By Tony Obiechina, Abuja
The federal government has set up an inaugural steering committee meeting of the 40 deliverables’ mandate of the Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning.
Mrs. Zainab Ahmed, Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, in her address at the meeting, said that the meeting was important to reset the tone to accounting officers and their implementation officers on the 40 deliverables and its imperatives for the ministry and the overall economy.
She said: “All the 40 deliverables were assigned to accounting officers and implementation teams to perform the functions of oversight and execution respectively. Consequently, the ministry then developed key performance indicators (KPIs), baselines and targets to measure progress, and ensure full implementation of the 40 deliverables in a timely manner.” In addition, and according to her, key activities to ensure efficient implementation and execution of the deliverables have also been identified”.
According to a statement by Yunusa Tanko Abdullahi, Special Adviser on Media and Communications, Mrs. Ahmed stated that the meeting was meant to inaugurate a new governance structure, and others.
“Today, we are inaugurating a new governance structure and a holistic programme management framework, which will assist in effectively assessing, tracking and reporting progress on all the deliverables. This new governance structure and management framework will be supported by a team of external consultants to provide advisory support on the implementation of the mandate.
“On mapping the deliverables, she said that a mapping of the deliverables to the 11 government priority areas shows that the Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning contributes mostly to five key thematic areas comprising: Stabilisation of the macroeconomic environment; improvement of transport and other infrastructure development; enhancement of social inclusion and reduction of poverty; fighting corruption and improving governance; as well as provision of mass housing.
“Consequently, our relentless pursuit of these deliverables will help in mobilising domestic resources, attaining fiscal buffers, stimulating macroeconomic stability, improving national productivity, promoting business resilience, and attracting the needed foreign direct investments that will create jobs and enhance the standard of living of all Nigerians.
The Minister also said that overall, the outcomes of the meeting would enable all participants and stakeholders to review the performance of the deliverables, evaluate the challenges and lessons learned, as well as brainstorm on the way forward and capture recommendations for enhancing future performance.
Giving a brief background on the 40 deliverables, Mrs. Ahmed said that in 2019, the Presidential Retreat, Policies, Programme and Projects Audit Committee (PPPAC), which was instituted by the Presidency, led to the formulation of a programme that encapsulated the strategic plans for this administration’s ‘Next Level Agenda.’
“The PPPAC identified 11 broad government priority areas covering the macroeconomy, agriculture and food security, mass housing, poverty alleviation and social inclusion, national security, energy, transportation, health and education. These priorities were expected to guide policy direction over the next four years (2019 – 2023),” she stated.
The priority areas, in the words of the Honourable Minister, “led to the identification of the 17 ministerial deliverables, which were mapped to the Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning for execution over the four-year period. The remaining 23 deliverables are mandates assigned to the ministry.”
Concerning progress on execution, Mrs. Ahmed said: “However, progress towards execution has been hampered by vulnerability to macro and fiscal conditions, brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. In a remark by Mr. Aliyu Ahmed, Permanent Secretary, Finance, Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning, he said that the general concern of the meeting was to re-examine the activities of portfolio holders which no doubt has been grossly affected by a downward drive of the economy triggered by the effect of the global COVID-19 pandemic.
According to him, it was expected that at the end of the meeting, each portfolio holder would be rejigged to double up his or her effort and provide a guide to different policy objectives “as we strive to move the economy forward.
“There is no doubt that in an attempt to improve on the delivery of the mandate of our ministry, we would encounter numerous challenges. This, therefore, is the rationale behind our inaugurating this committee today in order to give a guide towards ironing out grey areas and believing that together we can proffer solutions and harness the very essence of our collective existence as a ministry”, he added.
