President
Muhammadu Buhari participated at the Ministerial Retreat on Framework
for 2017 Budget at the Statehouse today, 15th Sep 2016, and was a
keynote speaker. Below is what he told his ministers during the economic
retreat.
I am delighted to be here with you at this Ministerial Retreat on the Economy and the Budget. The theme of the Retreat which is “Building Inter-ministerial Synergy for Effective Planning and Budgeting in Nigeria” is very apt and timely, especially as we are in the process of developing the 2017 Budget.
Over the years, there has been a mismatch between planned targets
and budgetary outcomes at the National and sectorial levels. The
Federal MDAs have not also benefited significantly from working together
and building consensus around common national objectives. This has
impeded growth and development of the country.
It is in this context that this Retreat has been designed to
discuss issues around the State of the Economy and build consensus
amongst Cabinet Members and top Government officials. The Retreat will
also serve as an opportunity to have a general overview of the economy
and discuss the framework for the 2017 Budget, its key priorities and
deliverables.
This Retreat is coming at a critical time in our economic history,
when the Nigerian economy is in a recession, with significant downturn
in performance in various sectors. It is with regard to the importance
of this Retreat that I decided to sit through the first part of the
session to listen to the views from experienced economists and
development experts on how best to implement our plans to rid the
country of its oil dependence and to diversify the economy and bring the
country out of the current economic recession.
This is in line with our Administration’s determination to lay a
solid foundation for growth and development as outlined in the Strategic
Implementation Plan (SIP) of our Change Agenda.
Given that this Retreat is a lead-up to the 2017 Budget, my
expectation is that we will come out of the these sessions with a
determination and common position on how to have improved synergy
amongst the various Ministries and Departments for the effective
formulation and implementation of the 2017 Budget.
I also trust that the breakout sessions will enable you to discuss
extensively amongst yourselves, the details of the four sub-themes and
come up with practical solutions on the way forward in order to come out
with a set of prioritized projects and programmes that will fit into
the 2017 Budget.
In this regard, let me inform you that because of the need to focus
on our key priorities, some Ministries may get significantly less
capital allocation than they received in 2016, while others may get
significantly more.
You may notice that some key non-spending agencies, such as the
Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC), the Bureau of
Public Enterprises (BPE), the National Sovereign Investment Authority
(NSIA) and the National Pension Commission (PENCOM), are participants at
this Retreat.
This deliberate inclusion underscores the commitment of this
Administration to leverage on private sector resources, through Public
Private Partnerships (PPP) and other arrangements, in order to augment
the scarce budgetary resources at our disposal and to accelerate
investments in building critical infrastructure.
Indeed, the challenges we face in the current recession require
‘out-of-the-box’ thinking, to deploy strategies that involve engaging
meaningfully with the private sector, to raise the level of private
sector investment in the economy as a whole.
We are confident that the level of private investment will grow as
we are determined to make it easier to do business in Nigeria by the
reforms we are introducing under the auspices of the Presidential
Committee on Ease of Doing Business.
Let me reiterate that this Government will continue to strategize
on how we can turn the current challenges into opportunities for our
nation and especially for our vibrant youth on whose shoulders lies the
future of this nation. This is why we have embarked on measures and
actions that will open up the opportunities we have seen in the Power,
Housing, Agriculture, Mining, Trade and Investment, Information
Communication Technology (ICT) Sectors, Tourism, Transport and other
sectors.
I wish to reassure its teeming youth that this Government would
remain steadfast in its effort to ensure greater progress and prosperity
for you.
While Government is taking the lead in the task of repositioning
our economy for Change, we cannot achieve this completely by ourselves.
We will need, and we ask for the support and cooperation of the private
sector’s domestic and foreign investors, the States and Local
Governments, the National Assembly and the Judiciary as well as all
well-meaning Nigerians in this important task. We are confident that
working together, we shall succeed.
Finally, I trust that the cabinet members will learn from the
experiences of the Resource persons and facilitators to prioritise their
sector programmes and projects to bring the country out of the current
economic recession and place it on the path of growth and development.
I therefore urge the Honourable Ministers and other senior
government officials here present, to actively participate in the Second
Technical Session, which I believe will provide you with deeper insight
into the complex issues that will open opportunities for you to
identify critical priority projects and programmes for the 2017 Budget.
At this juncture, may I formally recognize and acknowledge the
presence of the array of experts invited to serve as resource persons
and facilitators at this Retreat. I am confident that Ministers and
Senior Government officials will benefit immensely from your expertise
and wealth of experience.
I wish you all fruitful deliberations and look forward to receiving the report of the Retreat.
Thank you.
Are You On youtube? subscribe to Hot GIST Channel Latest Updates - @Hot Gist
Are You On youtube? subscribe to Gospel World (which is also owned by Tony Gists) youtube Channel Latest Updates - @Gospel world
Are you on audio mack? Follow Tonygists on audio mack to listen and download to the latest Mfm sermons Latest Updates - @Tonygists
Follow Tonygists on LinkedIn to get more jobs opportunities Latest Updates - @Tonygists
Are You On youtube? subscribe to Honest Ose Channel Latest Updates - @Honest Ose
Are You On youtube? subscribe to Honest Web Solutions Channel Latest Updates - @Honest Web Solutions
Are You On youtube? subscribe to Xtremely Honest Channel Latest Updates - @Xtremely Honest
Are You On Twitter? Follow Us Now For Latest Updates - @tonygists
Are You On FACEBOOK? Like Our Page For Latest Updates - tonygists
Are You On FACEBOOK? Join Our Group For Latest Updates And Interactions - TonyGists
© 2024 Tonygists | Portions are © 2024 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may be published, broadcast, rewritten, or distributed.
