WHAT CONSTRAINS NIGERIAN LOCAL ACADEMICS’ PARTICIPATION IN MULTI-STAKEHOLDER PARTNERSHIP FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS (SDGS)? INSIGHTS FROM THE EXPERT WORKSHOP

Nigeria's pursuit of the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), among other constraints, is hampered by insufficient local academic experts’ participation in Multi-Stakeholder Partnerships (MSPs), limiting vital knowledge brokerage. This qualitative study, involving an academic expert workshop with social, physical, and environmental scientists at Kaduna State University, Nigeria, explored specific constraints of Nigerian local academics participaction. Analysis of expert presentations and discussions revealed four interconnected limitations: limited knowledge of SDG challenges, insufficient subnational policy instruments for stakeholder mobilization, constrained collaboration platforms, and limited multidisciplinary research relevant to local policy. These factors synergistically impede local academic expert participation. Findings underscore the urgent need for targeted policies to integrate local academic expertise, towards strengthening MSP implementation (SDG 17.7) at the Nigerian domestic local level in accelerating SDG achievement. This exploratory study, therefore, advocates for enhanced local academic experts’ participation in MSPs to improve local knowledge brokerage and foster research-informed policymaking, paving the way for more inclusive sustainable development goals (SDGs) implementation in Nigeria and the SSA region through MSPs.