Connect with us

News

Government Partnership will make a difference

Published

on

Citizens’ participation in Open Government Partnership will make a difference
Mr Benjamin Okoro, the Nigeria Open Government Partnership (OGP) National Coordinator says that citizens’ participation in Government Partnership will make all the difference in the anti-corruption war by the President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration.
Okoro said this at the OGP Stakeholders Validation Retreat on the second National Action Plan (NAP) on Friday in Abuja.
The Open Government Partnership is a multilateral initiative that aims to secure concrete commitments from national and subnational governments to promote open government, empower citizens, fight corruption, and harness new technologies to strengthen governance.
Okoro who was represented by Mr Stanley Achonu, the Civil Society Adviser, in his welcome address said that there is the need to involve all stakeholders in the validation process.
He said that one of the reasons for the retreat is to provide a good opportunity for strengthening and broadening ownership of the NAP.
“This retreat is to ensure active involvement of citizens and civil society organisations during the implementation process.
“It will also ensure that there are more processes and relationships-focused endeavours that aim to transform governance systems and behaviours, thereby opening them up to a wider range of participants contesting and reconfiguring power dynamics.
“Therefore, the responsiveness of government depends to a large extent on the willingness and capacity of its citizens to believe in its policies.
He said it will afford participants the opportunity to look through the draft to be sure that views of stakeholders are reflected in the action plan.
“We are going to look at the full document and make sure that we agree on the content. It is critical to consider it line by line to look at who is responsible for what.
“I encourage us to look at the contents of the document and consider the activities in it to confirm that it’s something that is achievable within the next few years and once we are ok with them, the document will be validated’’.
Mr Abu Umaru of the OGP while presenting the overview of the NAP Development said the stakeholders would review the first four years of Buhari’s administration.
“All stakeholders will look at the key objectives of the NAP which will help to enhance security, fight corruption and improve the economy“.
He also said that the four key areas of open government namely transparency (open data); accountability (responsive government), citizen participation and the use of technology, will be upheld.
“Nigerian government and citizens need to do everything possible to ensure effective implementation of the Nigeria OGP National Action Plan,“ he added.
Another stakeholder Peter Egbule said that Nigeria has been faced with the challenge of effectively utilising its resources to support equitable economic growth, effective service delivery and social cohesion.
“One of the major driving forces for the development blockade is lack of openness, transparency and accountability in governance“, he said.
He applauded the Ministry for working tirelessly in ensuring that the action plan is validated ahead of its submission by the end of September to the OGP International Secretariat.
This will ensure that Nigeria maintains an uninterrupted membership of the global body.
NAN
Continue Reading
Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.

News

RMAFC Chairman Charges Directors, HODs on Accountability, Productivity

Published

on

Joel Ajayi

The Chairman of the Revenue Mobilisation, Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC), Dr. Mohammed Bello Shehu, OFR, has charged Directors and Heads of Departments (HODs) to demonstrate commitment, accountability and professionalism in the discharge of their duties to ensure the successful implementation of the Performance Management System (PMS) in the Commission.

In a statement issued on Thursday in Abuja by Head, Information and Public Relations Unit Maryam Umar Yusuf, mnipr stated that, Chairman gave the charge at the signing of Performance Contracts by Directors and Heads of Departments at the Commission’s headquarters in Abuja.

He described the exercise as more than the signing of official documents, noting that it represented a covenant of accountability and a commitment to delivering on the Commission’s strategic objectives through improved productivity and measurable results. He also noted that the initiative aligned with the Federal Government’s Renewed Hope Agenda under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, which prioritises institutional efficiency, good governance and improved service delivery.

Dr. Shehu explained that the PMS represents a deliberate shift from routine administrative activities to a result-oriented system that measures institutional and individual performance against clearly defined objectives.

He noted that the Commission had recorded significant progress towards its implementation through the development of a dedicated IT platform, organisation-wide staff training, capacity building for PMS champions, management sensitisation sessions and change management initiatives.

He emphasised that the system was not designed to be punitive but to empower officers, clarify responsibilities, identify capacity gaps and promote fairness in performance assessment. He therefore urged Directors and HODs to ensure that departmental targets and key performance indicators were realistic, measurable, time-bound and aligned with the Commission’s strategic objectives.

 He assured staff of management’s commitment to providing the necessary support and enabling environment, while urging all officers to embrace the initiative and make accountability, professionalism and improved service delivery their guiding principles.

Also speaking, the Chairman of the Personnel Matters Committee (PMC) and Federal Commissioner representing Cross River State, Ntufam Eyo-Nsa Whitley, described staff as the driving force behind the success of the Commission, urging them to demonstrate discipline, diligence, emotional intelligence and dedication to their responsibilities.

He encouraged officers to take the performance management exercise seriously and give their best towards achieving the Commission’s objectives.

He further urged staff to support one another, embrace the reform process and avoid attitudes that could undermine teamwork and institutional progress. Hon Ntufam called on the PMS champions to demonstrate commitment and provide guidance to their colleagues, stressing that collective responsibility, discipline and effective implementation would ensure the success of the initiative.

In his welcome address, the Secretary to the Commission, Comrade Tosin Adeyanju, described the signing ceremony as a significant milestone in the Commission’s history, marking the transition from intention to action, planning to execution, and traditional performance evaluation to a modern, data-driven performance management system.

He appreciated the Chairman’s leadership and the Commissioners’ support, while acknowledging the critical roles of Directors and HODs in driving the transformation.

He urged management staff to take ownership of their performance agreements and ensure regular engagement, feedback and monitoring to achieve the desired results.

He stressed that the success of the PMS would depend not merely on signing the contracts but on the Commission’s ability to translate agreed targets into improved productivity, efficiency and measurable institutional achievements.

Earlier, the Director overseeing the  Administration and Human Resource Department, Alhaji Ahmed Rufai Gidado, explained that the Commission had undertaken a series of activities towards the implementation of the Performance Management System and that the signing of the performance contracts represented a major milestone in the process, marking the transition from preparatory activities to the implementation phase.

In his lecture on The Role of Performance Management in Public Sector Transformation, Mr. Nwachukwu John, Head of Economy Team Performance Management at the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation (OHCSF), commended RMAFC for the progress recorded in adopting the PMS framework. He noted that the Commission’s commitment demonstrated its readiness to embrace public service reforms and align individual responsibilities with institutional and national development objectives.

He explained that the PMS was designed to connect the responsibilities of individual officers with departmental targets, the Commission’s strategic plan and the Federal Government’s priorities. He urged Directors and HODs to ensure that performance contracts were cascaded to other levels of staff through regular engagement and feedback, emphasising that the system was a productivity tool rather than a promotion exercise.

Similarly, Mr. Ohiro Emmanuel, PMS Consultant with Reliefline Nigeria Limited, delivered a lecture on Overview of the PMS Implementation Journey, during which he described the signing of performance contracts by Directors as a major milestone in the implementation process. He explained that the Commission had conducted staff training, developed a dedicated PMS IT platform and trained performance management champions to facilitate the process.

He stated that the next phase would involve cascading the performance contracts across departments, with Directors engaging their Deputy Directors and Assistant Directors, who would subsequently work with other officers to ensure that individual responsibilities were aligned with departmental targets. He urged the Commission to sustain the momentum and proceed with the cascading process to achieve full implementation of the system.

In his closing remarks, the Director of Reliefline Nigeria Limited, Mr. Francis Ikuyinminu, expressed appreciation to the leadership of RMAFC for their commitment and collaboration towards the successful development of the PMS.

He also acknowledged the support of the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation and other partners, reaffirming his company’s commitment to providing technical advisory support, capacity building and change management to ensure effective implementation of the system. He urged all stakeholders to sustain their partnership and commitment towards building a legacy of excellence

Continue Reading

Trending

error

Enjoy this blog? Please spread the word :)