Move aimed at enhancing government accountability and performance, a team of over 140 officials is set to track and assess the performance of federal ministries, departments, and agencies in Nigeria. The assessment exercise is scheduled to take place at the end of this month and represents a pivotal step in evaluating the effectiveness of government initiatives.
These officials have been drawn from 35 federal government ministries, departments, and agencies and will be responsible for evaluating and reporting on the progress of various projects and initiatives. The assessment will encompass key performance indicators, reporting mechanisms, and overall progress in achieving presidential priorities and ministerial deliverables.
The initiative is part of the central government’s efforts to ensure that ministers and their respective ministries fulfill their obligations effectively. President Bola Tinubu has made it clear that non-performing ministers may be replaced to uphold the government’s commitment to delivering on its promises to improve the lives of Nigerians.
Addressing the delivery desk officers and directors of planning at a technical retreat in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, Mrs. Hadiza Bala-Usman, Special Adviser to the President on Policy Coordination, emphasized the seriousness of President Tinubu’s commitment to delivering on his promises. She urged the delivery officers to provide feedback, track ministerial progress, and report challenges and bottlenecks to the central coordinating and delivery unit.
Bala-Usman outlined specific areas of assessment, such as customer experience at airports in the Ministry of Aviation and the growth of fertilizer use per hectare in the agriculture sector. The goal is to measure the impact of government initiatives on various sectors and ensure that they align with the administration’s objectives.
The assessment process is set to begin in January 2024, following a three-day cabinet retreat held in November 2023, where ministers signed performance bonds outlining their ministry’s deliverables for the 2024 budget cycle. This performance bond will serve as a tool for tracking the ministers’ performance and will be reviewed during periodic retreats.
While the government’s focus on assessing ministerial performance has been met with some criticism, with some arguing that addressing pressing national issues should take precedence, it underscores the administration’s commitment to accountability and effective governance. The assessment process aims to ensure that government resources are used efficiently and that ministers are held accountable for their roles in achieving the nation’s developmental goals.