The call was made by Bamidele Atoyebi, Convener of the Bola Ahmed Tinubu Ideological Group and National Coordinator of Accountability and Policy Monitoring PR, who said stronger collaboration among the three tiers of government was necessary to ensure that government interventions reach ordinary Nigerians.

Atoyebi made the call in a statement titled “Progressive Governors, LG Chairmen Should Complement First Lady’s Drive.” He pointed to the Renewed Hope Initiative (RHI), led by First Lady Oluremi Tinubu, which has introduced programmes in agriculture, economic empowerment, healthcare, education and social investment.

One of the programmes cited was the RHI-Tony Elumelu Foundation women empowerment initiative, which provided N50,000 grants to 18,500 women across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory to support their businesses.

Atoyebi argued that states and local governments could expand such interventions by introducing additional business-support schemes for women, traders, artisans and young entrepreneurs.

He also urged governors to support farmers through equipment, rural roads, storage facilities and additional funding, while local governments should develop programmes based on the specific needs of their communities.

The group cited Imo State as an example, where the number of beneficiaries of the women empowerment programme was reportedly increased from the 500 initially allocated to each state to 2,500 women.

Atoyebi further referenced the National Community Food Bank as an example of multi-level cooperation, noting that the programme involves federal institutions, private foundations and the Nigeria Governors’ Forum. The initiative was announced with a N500 million contribution from the First Lady and a N17 billion pledge from the Governors’ Forum.

He maintained that governors and local government chairmen should not wait for programmes from Abuja before addressing urgent needs in their communities.