By Sola Oni in Abuja
Federal Government has blamed the states for the shortcomings of the past development plans, saying it did not receive the needed co-operation from the sub-national governments.
Speaking at the closing of 19th National Council on Development Planning (NCDP) meeting on Friday in Abuja, Minister of Finance, Mrs Zainab Ahmed said the overall score card of previous plans were adjudged to be below expectations because of inadequate collaboration from the subnational governments.
According to her, the previous plans did not make much impacts based on the assertion that the plans were more of federal government than national.
“However, the overall scorecard of previous Plans were adjudged to be below expectations and these were among other factors attributed to inadequate collaboration from Sub-National Governments based on the assertion that the Plans were more of Federal Government Plans rather than National.
“This notion had denied previous Plans of the needed cooperation from State Governments which led to little success recorded so far.”
The minister lamented that the outbreak of COVID-19 in 2020 and its myriad of consequences, had impacted so much on the economy, adding that it would take decades for the world to recover.
She also noted that the economy plunged into another wave of recession in 2020, which was however short-lived by proactive measures put in place by the current Administration.
“This experience calls for an urgent strategy to develop a more resilient and sustainable economy model that could stand the test of time. Achieving this would require maximum cooperation and collaboration at all levels of Government.
“The ongoing Medium Term National Development Plans (MTNDP) 2021-2025 and Nigeria Agenda 2050 were designed to address these concerns.
“Today’s meeting is therefore aimed at ratifying key resolutions reached in the last two days and to formulate critical actionable strategies towards repositioning the Nigeria economy into a prosperous and all-inclusive one.
“I therefore implore your cooperation as true citizens in the development of our great country, towards the realization of the objectives of this meeting”, she explained.
“Achieving this would require maximum cooperation and collaboration at all levels of government. The ongoing Medium Term National Development Plans (MTNDP) 2021–2025 and Nigeria 2050 was designed to address these concerns” the minister said.
In his keynote address to the conference, the Vice President, Prof Yemi Osinbajo, said the primary purpose of planning was to accelerate growth and improve on the lives of the people.
Osinbajo, who spoke virtually, said planning should take into account the interest of the more vulnerable population, adding that growth must be able to create jobs for the teeming unemployed youthful population in the country.
Earlier, in his remarks, the Minister of State, Budget and National Planning, Prince Clem Ikanade Agba appealed to all stakeholders including the Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), states and the organised private sector to ensure that the objectives of the plan were achieved especially as the plan was also tied to other regional development plans such as Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), African Union 2063 (AU-2063) and ECOWAS Vision Document.
“The discussions have been very enriching especially coming at a time that the Medium Term National Development Plan (MTNDP) 2021-2025 and Nigeria Agenda 2050 are being developed. The outlook for the plan is to ensure that a holistic and robust plan document which enhances synergy and inclusiveness is delivered to Nigerians” he noted.
The 3-day conference which attracted participants including commissioners, permanent secretaries and directors from across the 36 states of the Federation, including the FCT, ended on Friday.
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