Setting up Nigerian Council of Social Work to drive Social Work Act: Coalition of Social Work Professional Associations woos Tallen to help.

Oru Leonard 

In an effort to see the timely take off of the Nigerian Council for Social Work (NCSW) Act, 2023, the Coalition of Social Work Professional Associations of Nigeria (COSOWPAN) has approached one of the greatest drivers of the realization of the Act, the Honourable Minister of Women Affairs (HMWA), Dame Pauline Tallen, OFR, KSG to help to set up the Council so that the apex role of the Council to drive the Act can commence in earnest.

The Coalition of Social Works Professional Associations of Nigeria (COSOWPAN) when it paid a visit to Dame Pauline Tallen to show appreciation to her for the supportive role played to ensure that President Muhammadu Buhari, GCFR signed the National Assembly-promulgated Bill into law. The Coalition also urged the Minister not to leave the Social Workers to their fate at this point. It appealed to the Minister to deploy further support to equip the National Social Work Force Coordination Group (NSWFCG) to set up the Secretariat, Offices; be equipped with logistics to run the Council for the Social Workers.

COSOWPAN includes Association of Federal Social Workers of Nigeria; Association of Medical Social Workers of Nigeria; Association of Social Work Educators of Nigeria; Social Welfare Association of Nigeria and others.

Minister Tallen who was represented by the Director, Economic Services, Mr. Idris Muhammed, while welcoming the Social Work Professionals revealed that the Ministry which has the largest percentage of Social Work practitioners in the Social Service sector and amongst the three focal Social Service Federal Ministries will work for the realization of the Council.

She disclosed that the Ministry’s interest is the professionalization of social work that is guided by the provision of the 1989 Social Development Policy. She stressed that a technical Department of the Ministry has been fully and officially granted professionalized status vide an official letter to the Ministry from the Office of the Head of Civil Service of the Federation (OHCSF) dated 11th August, 2014.

According to her, the letter also mandated the Ministry to intensify efforts towards ensuring the enactment of the Social Work Regulatory Bill into law which has now been done.

The Minister said with the support from UNICEF and other stakeholders, and following various programme meetings, a passage of the Nigerian Council of Social Work (NCSW) Bill by the two Chambers of the National Assembly was realized with eventual assent by Mr. President. This, he said, is in view of initial set-backs when Mr. President withheld assent to the Bill in December 2017.

While commenting on the importance on the Act, Dame Tallen commended the Coalition for sticking together; saying that the Act will strengthen the provision of welfare services to vulnerable Nigerians including women and children.

She revealed that National Social Service Coordination Working Group which is chaired by the Ministry with membership cutting across all the Ministries, Department and Agencies (MDAs) and Non-Governmental sectors will give support to the Act.

Tallen stated that the Ministry in collaboration with UNICEF Nigeria is going to organize the first meeting of the group this year.

Earlier, the leader of the team, Comrade Olu Jacob flanked by other members of the delegation thanked the Minister for accepting to receive them. He said COSOWPAN is a conglomerate of clinical and non-clinical social work Associations in Nigeria. He intimated the Minister about the need for the Ministry to set-up the Council that will drive the implementation of the Act after more than two months of being signed into law by Mr. President. He equally used the opportunity to tell the Minister that the target of the organization is for the profession to rank in status with similar professional bodies in Nigeria.

The high point of the event was the presentation of plaque and a beautiful flex banner – souvenirs to the Minister by the Coalition.

(FMWA Media)