Tinubu Names 2026 Year of Families, Social Development

President Bola Tinubu has declared 2026 as Nigeria’s Year of Families and Social Development, signalling a shift in national policy that places the family unit at the centre of the country’s development agenda.

The President made the declaration at the State House in Abuja, according to a statement issued on Friday by the Minister of Women Affairs and Social Development, Imaan Sulaiman-Ibrahim.

Tinubu explained that the move is designed to confront deep-rooted challenges such as poverty, insecurity and social instability by strengthening family structures.

He noted that the approach aligns Nigeria with countries including Türkiye, the United Arab Emirates and Egypt, which have adopted family-focused governance models to achieve long-term development goals.

“Strong families are a national security and development asset. Societies that invest in family stability reduce vulnerability and long-term instability. I hereby direct that the year 2026 be designated as the Year of Social Development and Families in Nigeria, with coordinated action across all arms and levels of government,” Tinubu said.

The declaration follows the President’s state visit to Türkiye in January, during which Nigeria signed a strategic Memorandum of Understanding aimed at deepening cooperation on family cohesion and social welfare systems.

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The agreement is expected to shape reforms in areas such as social services, child protection and community-based support.

Sulaiman-Ibrahim said the administration is backing the declaration with concrete actions rather than rhetoric, stressing that coordinated family policies will now be institutionalised nationwide.

“For social development, it is no longer business as usual, the government intends to institutionalise coordinated family policies nationwide.

“Central to the new agenda is the proposed Nigeria Families First Programme (NFFP), which will serve as the government’s primary platform for implementing family-focused interventions. The initiative is designed to address economic pressures on households and improve child welfare and social stability,” she stated.

According to the Minister, the programme will prioritise economic empowerment through support for sustainable livelihoods, strengthen parenting skills via education and training, expand child-focused social protection, and improve access to healthcare, housing and professional care services.

She added that the initiative falls under the administration’s broader “Renewed Hope Social Impact Interventions,” a nine-pillar framework targeting improved outcomes for women and children. The framework aligns with the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, the global blueprint for advancing gender equality and child welfare.

The statement further explained that the family-centred strategy is intended to ensure that interventions in health, education, housing and employment are rooted at the household level rather than delivered through fragmented programmes.

“The success of the initiative will depend on effective coordination among federal, state and local governments, as well as sustained funding and monitoring.

“If fully implemented, the Tinubu administration believes the family-centred strategy could help reduce poverty, strengthen social safety nets and address some of the underlying drivers of insecurity across the country,” the Minister said.

She added that detailed action plans and partnerships would be rolled out in the coming months to translate the policy into measurable improvements in the lives of Nigerian families.