We feel your pains, Osinbajo tells Nigerians

Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo says the current administration is concerned about the hardship that Nigerians have been experiencing, and is taking steps to address them.

In a piece which highlighted the strategic implementation plan of the 2016 budget, Osinbajo said the government will resume the approach of townhall meetings – as was used during the campaign period – to explain its progress and address challenges.

Osinbajo said the implementation plan “articulates six thematic strategies and 33 priority actions, which will constitute the short-term priority of the federal government over the next 12 months”.

THE FULL PIECE

We acknowledge the pains you face and are concerned about them.

There are a multitude of things that require decisive action. We are taking action and in due course they will produce satisfying outcomes. Our determination is firm and unrelenting.

Consequently, I am pleased to share President Muhammadu Buhari’s strategic implementation plan for the 2016 budget.

This Strategic Implementation Plan articulates 6 thematic Strategies and 33 priority actions which will constitute the short-term priority of the Federal Government over the next 12 months.

Lasting changes in the policies, national security and governance.

Achieve an appropriate foreign exchange regime

Increase low interest lending to the real sector. We will need to move toward a single digit interest rate.

Maintain capital spending in the budget at a minimum of 30%. Complement this with funds from the infrastructure fund for commercial projects

Intensify the implementation of public financial management reforms to grow revenues and cut costs.

Maintain sustainable debt management strategy.

Introduce fiscal incentives to improve collections

Intensify the fight against corruption by increasing transparency, accountability and compliance with law and order

Intensify public procurement reforms in projects to obtain value for money and cut costs.

Sustain the fight against insurgency, kidnapping and other violent crimes, terrorism, cyber-crimes, piracy, oil theft and illegal mining activities.

Intensify the reorientation of the populace through integrity campaigns

Diversify the economy by fast-tracking industrialization, agriculture and agro-allied processing, as well as attracting investment into the solid minerals, tourism and entertainment sectors

Implement measures to achieve self-sufficiency & become net exporters of certain agricultural Items:

Rice-2018,

Tomato paste-2016,

Wheat-2019.

Increase local production of maize, soya, poultry & livestock, so as to achieve self-sufficiency: deadlines to be announced in due course.

Revitalize and expand agro-allied processing to intensify local production and processing of cassava, cocoa, cashew, fruits and sesame seed

Utilize 5,000 hectares of irrigable land in the 12 River basin development authorities and utilize 22 Dams for commercial farming activities by prospective investors

Develop Dadinkowa, Gurara and Oyan dams with 82.5 MW capacity contribution to the national grid.

Adopt and implement a roadmap to stimulate investment into the solid minerals sector, and plug revenue leakages in the sector

Implement the national industrial revolution plan and launch the ‘Made in Nigeria’ campaign

Increase manufacturing capacity through the operationalisation of industrial parks, free and export processing zones, etc.

Enhance support facilities to provide increased financial, technical assistance, networking and information to new investors and existing enterprises.

Implement the roadmap to increase private sector investment in culture, tourism, entertainment and sports

Create high-technology innovation hubs to support growth in the digital and technology sectors

Priortize critical Infrastructure, focused on increasing investment in power, rail and roads, etc.

Optimize the 7,000MW installed capacity and ensure associated infrastructure to fuel, transmit and distribute this capacity.

Ensure tariff includes all costs of transmission, generation and gas at new price, and distribution company costs required to operate, maintain and upgrade distribution networks.

Resolve all issues on gas pricing, tariffs and payment assurance. Conclude roadmap on gas development.

Complete the Kaduna-Abuja and Ajaokuta-Warri rail lines scheduled for 2016; commence the construction of the Lagos-Kano standard gauge Line; and finalize negotiations for the Calabar-Lagos rail project.

Undertake the rehabilitation and construction of 31 major road projects scheduled for 2016 to restore degraded sections of the Federal Highways network and to establish connectivity over a distance of 2,193km (through public works projects, maintenance works, PPP and other interventions)

Complete the rehabilitation of 4 Airports (i.e. Abuja, Kano, Lagos and Port Harcourt..

4. Oil and gas reforms

Adopt & execute a comprehensive national oil & gas master-plan (‘NOGM’) as the roadmap for the petroleum industry’s development, diversification, privatisation & governance. Adopt & execute a roadmap of gas development & flare elimination

Set a deadline to be self-sufficient in refined petroleum products & become a net exporter

Work with the national assembly on the passage of a Revised Petroleum Industry Bill (‘PIB’) or bills to give effect to the NOGM & to resolve fiscal & governance issues of the sector, & eliminate gas flaring.

Conclude negotiations to deal with all funding gap issues in the upstream sector

Ease of Doing Business

Move 20 places up global Ease of Doing Business Rankings, by implementing fast track measures for business approvals, acquisition of land titles, etc. (Nigeria is currently ranked 169 out of 189 countries by the World Bank – 2015 Survey)

Fast-track visa application and issuance processes

Social investment implement social intervention programme and specific health/education projects included in 2016 budget.

Health sector interventions including flagging off the revitalisation of 1 primary health centre per ward (a total of 10,000 nationwide)

The social investment plans include the following:

Train and deploy 500,000 unemployed graduates as volunteer teachers who would be paid on the job while they seek jobs in their chosen careers.

Homegrown school feeding for primary school pupils across the country paid for by the government

Micro-credit scheme that provides very soft loans to a million market women, artisans, traders

Creating innovation and technology hubs/ parks on a large scale and skills acquisition & vocational training for over 300,000 non-graduate youths

Conditional cash transfer where one million poor and vulnerable Nigerians would receive N5000 monthly

Bursary awards for tertiary education students of science, technology, engineering & maths, STEM.

President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration remains committed to economic diversification through import substitution and export promotion.

In addition to this, we will continue to engage the Nigerian people. We will resume Town-hall meetings to explain the progress and address the challenges.

Together, Nigeria will prevail.