Nigeria Ministerial Nominee: Excerpts from Ngozi Okonjo Iweala’s Screening at Nigeria’s Floor of the Senate

Wednesday, 06 July, 2011

 

Nigeria is critical towards tackling challenges of building a sustainable economy especially achieving the VISION 202020. While Nigerians have been very strong in their views about the selection of the Ministers by President Goodluck Jonathan, it is therefore, expected that experience and expertise should take prominence over political interest.

Ngozi Okonjo Iweala, who was a Finance Minister in Obasanjo’s regime, was praised for fighting corruption and negotiating the cancellation of nearly two-thirds of Nigeria’s $30 billion Paris Club debt.

The World Bank Managing Director laid out her vision pledging she would help create jobs and ensure the country lives within its means if approved as cabinet minister in the current President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration.

Her views:

• I am really worried about the issue of making sure our budget is not eaten up by recurrent expenditure. The budget recurrent is now 74 percent and not much is left for capital expenditure. How we invest in capital if we’re spending all our money on recurrent expenditure?
• ‘Can we run a budget that is not negative? Absolutely. We can do it. We have been able to do in the past’ she explained that in the previous administration she served, the goal was to put in place a sensible fiscal policy that would enable us have a reasonable fiscal deficit’.
• For Nigeria to get over her economic challenges certain issues must be addressed and these, according to her, are: creation of job for the teeming unemployed youths; improvement of decayed infrastructure; disciplined financial controls, and support for key areas of the economy including agriculture, construction and real estate.
• Another concern was that Africa’s biggest oil and gas producer was seeing its foreign reserves fall despite high oil prices, although she said that was partly due to a policy of supporting the naira (the country’s currency); a stance she would not seek to reverse in the immediate term. ‘If we want to re-value the Naira, this may not be the time to think about it, I think we should wait until things are more stable’. She added.
• On Islamic Banking- ‘we need to look at non-interest banking without emotions. It is another form of banking. We just need to unpack the elements of this system of banking in order to understand it’.
• On viability of non-interest banking model in Nigeria –‘from evidence, it seems to be functioning relatively well in various parts of the world, and with proper implementation, it should also work in Nigeria’.

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Automatically translated into Portuguese thanks to WorldLingo

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Automatically translated into Arabic thanks to WorldLingo

Democracy simply means the government that comes from the people (through selection), government that is exercised by the people (through election) and for the interest of the people (through representation).

In other words, Democracy is a system of government in which a country’s political leaders are chosen by the people in regular, free, and fair elections. The people can criticize and replace their elected leaders and representatives if they do not perform well. The people are sovereign—they are the highest authority—and government is based on the will of the people. Elected representatives at the national and local levels must listen to the people and be responsive to their needs.

 

What guarantees the qualities of democracy are:

 

• A mechanism put in place by the people to check mate, monitor and evaluate, policies programmes of government, to either sustain and remove a government who is not responsive and competent.
• Active participation of the people as citizens in politics and policies. This also means there must be equality – formal equal treatment of all citizens by the state and equal rights to participate in politics and have all preferences equally weighted.
• The protection of the fundamental rights of the citizens, including the media
• Recurring, free, competitive and fair election
• A save space for the voters to cast their votes in secret, free of intimidation and violence.

This is an excerpt from the work of Bassey Duke.

 

Please, also post comments via the link below

http://youngstars-foundation.org/blog/what-guarantees-the-quality-of-democracy-and-what-are-you-doing-or-will-do-about-it-bassey-duke/

Description:
The Students MDGs Campaign Project is aimed at creating awareness among students/youths especially in secondary (high) schools about Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). As youths, we have responsibility to our communities’ development. The MDGs therefore, has provided pragmatic strategies for everyone to get involved in ensuring a better and sustainable society.

In order to ensure sincere participation and commitment on the part of young people (and adult), they need to first understand in detail what Millennium Development Goals stands for; how the eight goals of the MDGs contributes to assisting every community; why and how it concerns young people mostly to ensure the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

Background:
Achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) to many seems it’s just the sole responsibility of government. Government at grass root/local levels leaves it to the state; the state to national; national to region; and regional government would then say ‘its UN’.

Ten years later, pathway to realizing the global development goal is quite low. People and communities (mostly affected) by issues raised in the MDGs are yet to understand these goals. They need profound knowledge of the development targets; there and then, they can and would accept; and therefore, make it ‘their personal project’.

In all, taking simple and practical steps locally with global perspective will amount to effective and sustainable solution. I am convinced, en masse youths involvement plays critical role to providing the answer. 

The Students MDGs Campaign Project objective therefore is to fill the already existing gap by providing the knowledge to young students in secondary (high) schools and inspire them to action. These groups of people are best travelers; information carriers and smartest sharers.

It’s all about to learn, co-create and impact!

Join the project on:

http://projects.tigweb.org/Students4MDGs/

http://mdgscampaign.blogspot.com/

The project will on Tuesday, December 14, 2010 starts at Bright Future College, Osongama, Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria.

Updates will be posted accordingly.

Project webpage: http://mdgscampaign.blogspot.com/

UnyimeAbas8i

It is rather unfortunate that African leaders are not ready to take up responsibilities that leads to positive change. But at this point, even if countries were to forget about the 15% budgetary targets; ensuring a healthy nation should be an important factor to any government who truly wants better live for her people.

Factually, only few government officials in Africa obtain treatment in their country, most of them with their families fly abroad or hire overseas Doctors. This in effect, undermine their urge to ensure a working health sector in-country.

Much more than giving 15% budgets to health, effective usability/implementation and accountability must be ensured to actualize this goal.

http://www.endpoverty2015.org/en/africa/news/archbishop-tutu-continued-loss-millions-african-lives-which-can-be-prevented-unacceptable-and-unsust/30/apr/08#comments

Africa is a continent that possesses what it takes to move out of the third world countries mapping. It has intellectual human capacity –a people dedicated to service and hard work; and rich natural resources, though, the mere fact that most countries in Africa are found to be failed states already sets a pointer that the continent is poor.

While the continent struggles through a stagnated growth margin with a weak economy, dysfunctional educational system, poor healthy care delivery structure and massive unemployment.

One factor which contributes to the continent's continuous snail growth is her leadership. The governments have failed to render service but prefer to be served. There seem to be very little political will on marking up strategies to ensure sustainable development.

read more here
http://unyimeabasi.blogspot.com/2010/05/why-is-africa-poor.html

 
Nigeria has in recent time experienced series of development, but despite these and numerous youth programmes, many youths still suffer significant disadvantages. Estimates shows that in Africa, about 130 million youths are illiterates; youth unemployment is three times higher than that among adults; 102 million youths in Sub-Saharan Africa lives on $1 a day; millions of youths find themselves without education and training, and are easily drawn into conflict and violence.

Globalization is significantly impacting the way development investments are made; and now allow countries to focus on what works based on experience so as to enable appropriate diversification and utilization of resources for sustainable development.

To create a prosperous, balanced and sustainable economy in Nigeria is dependent on good leadership and governance structures. A credible government that understands the society’s needs –security, social services, employment creation, accountability and ensuring right-based society.

Nigeria and the African continent needs a turning point, perhaps the new government of President Goodluck Ebele Johnathan would lead the change.



How I wish, his 3-point Agenda would be a growth enabler for Nigeria’s economy, leadership and political life, to meet up enormous challenges and targeted goals before us –the MDGs by 2015, vision 202020.
 
It is now pertinent that Nigeria’s development will greatly depend on her ability to mobilize the creativity, vision and unique perspectives of youths for the present and future development of the nation. Perhaps, this will be achievable through coordinated and progressive series of activities that helps them become socially, morally and cognitively competent as leaders.

UnyimeAbasi Essien
+234 802 429 3798
mclato@gmail.com

useful links
http://allafrica.com/stories/200910220776.html

The time slated for the live chat is 5.00pm.
I wish to know which time zone is used because i will be joining the chat from Nigeria.

Its obvious that the growing number of young girls infected and affected with hiv/aids increases daily and Nigeria is almost at the highest risk. An estimated 22.4 million adults and children were living with HIV in sub-Saharan Africa at the end of 2008. During that year, an estimated 1.4 million Africans died from AIDS. Around 14.1 million children have lost one or both parents to the epidemic.

Loosing future mothers to a scourge we can control is totally unacceptable. Yes, political will matters but how do we wait for our unresponding representatives. However, I want to address two most important issues.

1. Local Impact: In recent years, most hiv/aids enlightenment programmes revolves around urban areas. As such, young people in rural communities lack this information and would continue to be vulnerable to the infection. Every year, we are experience and up-surge of rural to urban migration (for employment and good livelihood). The group of youths migrating to urban areas come without little or no knowledge about hiv/aids. Therefore, its high time we set our target areas of sensitization to rural areas.

2. Partnership: As young people are up to making greater impact, we need to build strong youth-adult partnership, develop collaboration with government and other public agencies. I believe that advocacy is very crucial as it will assist us get understandable partnership. Different groups should be able to come together and have a one-voice but massive idealistic strategies for effective and sustainable impact.

Personally, i am worried on why Nigeria's would still rank 2nd in sub-saharan Africa with 2.6million people living with hiv/aids after South Africa with 5.7 million. Ideally, it seems we are yet to do nothing. So, it therefore calls for massive commitment especially from young people. If we continue to wait for political will, to some extent, we'll may fail. But if we are conscious of the negative effect we may face in the future living with hiv/aids, then, let us pull out our energy, intellect and resources to make this feat a success.

I trust that we'll have to make our voices heard this year. We, young people needs both technical support and funding for projects.

Its obvious that the growing number of young girls infected and affected with hiv/aids increases daily and Nigeria is almost at the highest risk. An estimated 22.4 million adults and children were living with HIV in sub-Saharan Africa at the end of 2008. During that year, an estimated 1.4 million Africans died from AIDS. Around 14.1 million children have lost one or both parents to the epidemic.

Loosing future mothers to a scourge we can control is totally unacceptable. Yes, political will matters but how do we wait for our unresponding representatives. However, I want to address two most important issues.

1. Local Impact: In recent years, most hiv/aids enlightenment programmes revolves around urban areas. As such, young people in rural communities lack this information and would continue to be vulnerable to the infection. Every year, we are experience and up-surge of rural to urban migration (for employment and good livelihood). The group of youths migrating to urban areas come without little or no knowledge about hiv/aids. Therefore, its high time we set our target areas of sensitization to rural areas.

2. Partnership: As young people are up to making greater impact, we need to build strong youth-adult partnership, develop collaboration with government and other public agencies. I believe that advocacy is very crucial as it will assist us get understandable partnership. Different groups should be able to come together and have a one-voice but massive idealistic strategies for effective and sustainable impact.

Personally, i am worried on why Nigeria's would still rank 2nd in sub-saharan Africa with 2.6million people living with hiv/aids after South Africa with 5.7 million. Ideally, it seems we are yet to do nothing. So, it therefore calls for massive commitment especially from young people. If we continue to wait for political will, to some extent, we'll may fail. But if we are conscious of the negative effect we may face in the future living with hiv/aids, then, let us pull out our energy, intellect and resources to make this feat a success.

I trust that we'll have to make our voices heard this year. We, young people needs both technical support and funding for projects.

Young girls and HIV
Translated into English by: mclato
Its obvious that the growing number of young girls infected and affected with hiv/aids increases daily and Nigeria is almost at the highest risk. An estimated 22.4 million adults and children were living with HIV in sub-Saharan Africa at the end of 2008. During that year, an estimated 1.4 million Africans died from AIDS. Around 14.1 million children have lost one or both parents to the epidemic.

Loosing future mothers to a scourge we can control is totally unacceptable. Yes, political will matters but how do we wait for our unresponding representatives. However, I want to address two most important issues.

1. Local Impact: In recent years, most hiv/aids enlightenment programmes revolves around urban areas. As such, young people in rural communities lack this information and would continue to be vulnerable to the infection. Every year, we are experience and up-surge of rural to urban migration (for employment and good livelihood). The group of youths migrating to urban areas come without little or no knowledge about hiv/aids. Therefore, its high time we set our target areas of sensitization to rural areas.

2. Partnership: As young people are up to making greater impact, we need to build strong youth-adult partnership, develop collaboration with government and other public agencies. I believe that advocacy is very crucial as it will assist us get understandable partnership. Different groups should be able to come together and have a one-voice but massive idealistic strategies for effective and sustainable impact.

Personally, i am worried on why Nigeria's would still rank 2nd in sub-saharan Africa with 2.6million people living with hiv/aids after South Africa with 5.7 million. Ideally, it seems we are yet to do nothing. So, it therefore calls for massive commitment especially from young people. If we continue to wait for political will, to some extent, we'll may fail. But if we are conscious of the negative effect we may face in the future living with hiv/aids, then, let us pull out our energy, intellect and resources to make this feat a success.

I trust that we'll have to make our voices heard this year. We, young people needs both technical support and funding for projects.

Saturday, February 13, 2010 brought to memory the life I lived 15 years ago. I was on a trip to a local community in Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria. As we drove through the narrow village road, saw the community ...

http://mclato.blogspot.com/2010/02/local-experience.html

Feb. 13, 2010 - Come here with me to a local scene
http://mclato.blogspot.com/2010/02/local-experience.html

Saturday, February 13, 2010 was to memory the life I lived 15 years ago. I was on a trip to a local community in Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria. As we drove through the narrow village road, saw the community setting, children walking about from one compound to the other, young people returning from stream and fetching fire wood. There and then, I made use of my phone to get this pictures.
I would wonder why such thought came to me. I have been to several local projects but this time my emotion was different. I tried to imagine what would have happen if I were to stay put there.

Don't mind me, village community life is soft, sweet, affordable. Everyone cares and share. So, how long have you been to your own local place. Take a trip there soon!

Education as we already know is the bedrock of any society and its the connecting rod or the bridge that connects each society to the other. Formal Education is still very necessary. For instance, with no formal education Nigerians would only speak her local languages and not known to other languages. This also facilitates development, which is very obvious in francophone countries. The Nigerian story when it comes to the benefits derived from formal education turns on a different pivot. The crop of leaders in the country are ruling instead of leading. They are self-centred. Even in our youth cycle, youths who have acquired formal education tends to look-down on their peers who have not had such opportunity.

ASUU strike in 2009 was an eye opener showing us that some leaders in the country, if opportune, would deny average Nigerian the rights to formal education. Therefore, having access to primary education (MDGs 1) to tertiary institution should be encouraged among young people. However, formal education is becoming a necessity as a starting point to become an entrepreneur and a professional.

The budgetary allocation for education was N117 billion in 2005, N182.6 billion in 2006, N188 in 2007 and inN210.45 in 2008, somehow this yearly increase tends to comply with UNESCO 26% stipulation for budgetary allocation to education.

But people should look beyond the figures to see how the budgetary process has been used as an effective tool in dealing with the multifarious problems confronting the nation’s education sector.

All the countries that ranked top in the Human Development Index (HDI) released by UNICEF have one thing in common – a highly educated population. Similarly, there is a direct link between a country’s literacy rate and its per capita income. As a result, countries which have the highest rate of higher education also ranked highest in per capita income. In our country, though, the constitution of Nigeria gives all citizens the right to education, government’s commitment to this right is naught.

Its high time, the government place importance on her citizens' right to education by
1. Giving adequate and timely funding to the sector;
2. Ensure that funds are judiciously spent;
3. Stop giving deaf-ears, but monitor how the funds is put to use.