By GARBA MUHAMMAD, Kaduna

For advocacy to truly drive development in Kaduna State, campaigners must go beyond presenting facts and statistics and learn to navigate the complex web of political power, relationships, and timing, a governance expert has said.

Policy and governance expert, Adejor Abel, gave the charge during a capacity-strengthening session on budget performance tracking and evidence-based advocacy held in Kano on Tuesday, July 5, 2025.

Speaking on the topic “Understanding Kaduna’s Advocacy Environment: The Political Economy of Advocacy,” Abel stressed that “advocacy doesn’t happen in a vacuum; it lives and dies in political reality.”

The four-day training was organised by the Partnership for Learning for All in Nigeria (PLANE), in collaboration with the UK–Nigerian Partnership for a Healthier Future (LAFIYA Programme), to strengthen the capacity of members of the Maternal Accountability Mechanism Initiative in Kaduna (KADMAM), Open Government Partnership (OGP), Kaduna Local Government Accountability Mechanism (KADLGAM) and Kaduna Basic Education Accountability Mechanism (KADBEAM) on evidence-based advocacy and accountability mechanisms in the state.

Abel urged participants to embrace Political Economy Analysis (PEA) as a practical tool for mapping out who truly holds power, what drives their decisions, and how to achieve change even in challenging contexts.

“You can have the best evidence, but if it threatens someone’s interest, it will never see the light of day,” he warned, noting that access to decision-makers is often unequal and that influence can rest with informal advisers or political brokers.

He further highlighted that timing is critical, as even the most compelling advocacy can fail if delivered at the wrong political moment.

The session was part of an intensive knowledge-sharing programme aimed at equipping advocates with targeted, realistic, and politically savvy strategies to push for reforms in Kaduna, where entrenched interests often slow or block progress.