By Seyi Akinbodewa and Doyinsola Wale-Banmore | On Tuesday, 22 July 2025, Agora Policy convened a high-level policy dialogue to take stock of local governance reform in Nigeria about a year after the landmark judgment by the Supreme Court, which mandated direct federal allocations to the Local Government Areas (LGAs) and declared caretaker committees unconstitutional.

By Ayobami Ayorinde and Uchechukwu Eze | Agora Policy, with the support of MacArthur Foundation, hosted a high-level policy conversation on 22 July 2025 in Abuja, Nigeria, with the theme “Local Governance Reforms: A Year After the Supreme Court’s Ruling.”

Agora Policy will convene a high-level meeting of policymakers, academics and members of civil society on 22 July 2025 in Abuja to deliberate on how to improve the performance and relevance of Nigeria’s 774 local councils.

One year after the Supreme Court judgment that granted financial autonomy to Nigeria’s 774 local government areas, Agora Policy and its partners are convening a high-level policy conversation to assess the impact of the landmark ruling and to identify the reforms needed to improve governance, service delivery and human development at the local level across the country.

Supported by the MacArthur Foundation, this conversation will bring together policymakers, civil society actors, researchers, and development partners to deliberate on the progress and gaps in implementation of the ruling and how to make to make Nigeria’s local councils more accountable, efficient, and responsive.

The event is convened in partnership with the Centre for Fiscal Transparency and Public Integrity and The Cable. The policy conversation is scheduled to hold as follows:

Date: July 22, 2025

Time: 9:30 AM

Venue: Main Auditorium, Shehu Musa Yar’Adua Centre, Abuja