One of Nigeria leading advocacy for transparency, accountability, and effective service delivery, BudgIT, a civic-tech organization has charged the Federal Government to immediately release a transparency and accountability plan to ensure that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s 31st nationwide broadcast concerning the nation’s current economic crisis and plans to frontally tackle them achieve the desired goals.
The CSO, in a statement issued on Monday and signed by its Communication Associate, Nancy Odimegwu, recalled that the President had, during the broadcast, said that a budget of N75 billion will be allocated from July 2023 to March 2024 to support 75 promising manufacturing enterprises, 200,000 metric tonnes of grains and 225,000 metric tonnes of fertilizer and inputs would be released to farmers and that N125 billion will be invested in MSMEs, amongst other remedial interventions.
Noting that these promises indicate a significant effort to navigate the complexities of the economic crisis from the fuel subsidy removal and mitigate the impact on the Nigerian populace, the civil advocacy group
pointed out, however, that the successful execution of the planned interventions remained contingent upon transparent planning and accountability mechanisms.
BudgIT noted that the fuel subsidy removal had caused a 335% increase in fuel prices and expectedly ncreased the cost of goods and services and strained the already fragile economy as many Nigerians now struggle to afford necessities.
It stated that in this context, President Bola Tinubu’s promises as enunciated in the 31st July broadcast offered a glimmer of hope, stressing that achieving them is essential to alleviate the widespread suffering and rebuild the nation's economic stability.
The CSO further clarified: “BudgIT acknowledges the complexities of the current economic situation and the need for immediate and effective action. In line with our mission toward transparency and accountability, we implore that fulfilling President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s promises calls for a united front and a clear roadmap.”
It expressed its commitment to partner the government, civil society organizations,and all stakeholders to address the current economic challenges and secure a brighter future for Nigeria.
In addition, BudgIT also highlighted how the government could, through a properly charted transparency and accountability roadmap, achieve the promises made on its interventions in other sectors of the economy.