•Seeks low-key celebration…as ministers begin performance report today
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President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has directed his ministers to present their performance reports to Nigerians in commemoration of his first anniversary in office.
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The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, while announcing this at a press briefing in Abuja on Wednesday, said the low-key first-anniversary celebration would be marked with sectoral media briefings by the 47 federal ministers starting on Thursday (today).
Idris was joined at Wednesday’s media press conference by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume, and the Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Abubakar Bagudu.
Tinubu was declared the winner of the 2023 presidential election by the Independent National Electoral Commission Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, on March 1, 2023.
Tinubu, the candidate of the All Progressives Congress, garnered 8.7 million votes to defeat Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party, who came second with 6.9 million votes, while Peter Obi of the Labour Party secured 6.1 million votes.
At the opening of a three-day cabinet retreat for ministers, presidential aides, permanent secretaries and top government functionaries on November 1, 2023, the President said the ministers in his cabinet would only retain their offices based on performance, which would be reviewed quarterly.
“If you are performing, nothing to fear. If you miss the objective, we’ll review it. If no performance, you leave us. No one is an island and the buck stops on my desk,” said the President.
On January 24, 2024, the agency in charge of the assessment, the Central Delivery Coordination Unit, trained at least 140 officials to track and assess the performance of federal ministries, departments and agencies ahead of the assessment.
Performance trend
Speaking on Arise TV’s News Night in April, the President’s Special Adviser on Policy Coordination, Hadiza Bala-Usman, who heads the CDCU, affirmed that the unit had received performance reports from at least 20 of the 35 ministries.
She explained that the assessment report would be a product of a joint effort of the ministers, citizens and industry experts.
Bala-Usman said, “Our submission is for the first quarter. So, the first quarter has just ended, and we have initiated the assessment process. The ministers have all been asked to submit their performance based on the deliverables.”
She asserted that ministers would be assessed “based on what is out there in the public space. They would write to say, ‘Based on every deliverable you have given me, this is what I’ve done within the first quarter of the year.’
“Through the Citizens Delivery Tracker app, Nigerians will also say, ‘this is what we’ve seen the minister do’ and they would aggregate it.’’
The State Online reports that the Tinubu administration has implemented significant reforms to stabilize the economy, reduce inflation, and attract foreign investments.
He ended the graft-ridden fuel subsidy regime, triggering high fuel and transportation costs, leading to food inflation and increased hardships across the country.
To curb food inflation, the government allocated substantial funds to the agricultural sector, including N200 billion to boost agricultural productivity and ensure food security.
Efforts have been made to transition from single-season farming to year-round farming through investments in irrigation and water bodies.
The administration has also provided N75b to support small and medium-sized enterprises, fostering job creation and economic diversification.
It launched a N100bn consumer credit fund to mobilize the manufacturing sector, encouraging production and enhancing economic growth.
The student loan scheme meant to open greater access to tertiary and vocational education will commence operation on Friday.
In terms of infrastructure development, the Tinubu administration has initiated a 100,000 renewable housing programme across seven states to address the housing deficit and stimulate the construction sector.
To tackle high transportation costs and promote energy efficiency, the government has directed the purchase of compressed natural gas buses.
In a move to combat security, the Federal Government allocated significant portions of the budget to national security, while supporting the clamour for state police.
Some of the administration’s reforms and efforts to stabilize and grow the Nigerian economy had received recognition from international agencies and leaders.
The Central Bank of Nigeria introduced a slew of reforms to rein in the forex crisis.
These include unifying the multiple exchange rates to create a single, transparent exchange rate that reflects market dynamics more accurately and reduces arbitrage opportunities.
In a bid to boost the supply of foreign exchange in the market, the CBN implemented the diaspora remittances, encouraged non-oil exports by providing exporters with rebates and facilitating their access to forex at competitive rates and restricted access to forex for the importation of certain items that can be produced locally.
The CBN regularly intervenes in the forex market by selling forex to banks through various auction mechanisms.
Speaking on the first anniversary programmes, the information minister said there would be no fanfare to mark Tinubu’s one year in power.
He stated, ‘’From tomorrow (today), we are going to have ministers come in here to discuss what they are doing in their various ministries consistent with the policies of President Bola Tinubu.{agency}/PLEASE SHARE
*Tags: PBAT, Mohammed Idris, Ministry of Information and National Orientation, FG’s performance trend
