Education, health, others to achieve 90% budget implementation

State commissioners, permanent secretaries and other critical stakeholders have commended efforts by USAID in ensuring that states in Nigeria record up to 90 per cent annual budget implementation.

The stakeholders, who were participants at a three day workshop organised by the (USAID) under its Nigeria Accountability, Transparency and Effectiveness(State2State) project, made this known on Friday in Abuja.

They said the technical assistance by State2State in drafting Medium Term Expenditure Framework(MTEF) would enable states across Nigeria, achieve huge budget implementation in education, health and other critical sectors.

The participants, who were drawn from six states including Sokoto, Ebonyi, Bauchi, Akwa Ibom Adamawa, Gombe, stressed that proper budget planning would not only ensure accountability and transparency in governance but equitable distribution of resources.

Mr Orlando Nweze, Commissioner for Finance and Economic Development, Ebonyi, said that the state’s partnership with USAID on the project had yielded a lot of impact, particularly on the people.

“The programme is all about having a credible physical planning to enable us have better strategy for sourcing and implementing the budget for 2020 to 2024.

“It is a medium term plan that is going to help the ministries, the sectors and the state in general to be able to make a proper fiscal planning.

“For us in Ebonyi State, we are very appreciative that this is happening at this time because the government of David Umahi, is already running a whole lot of process restructuring in the state.

“That links up to the engagement of the citizenry, the openness that we need to apply in operating government activities.”

He said that as part of effort to impact positively on the people, particularly in the various sectors, Ebonyi state had come up with the audio version of the 2021 budget as well as a video version.

Mr Yahuza Haruna, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning, Bauchi State, stated that the technical support provided by the State2State project would go a long way in enhancing livelihood of the people in different sectors.

“It changes a lot of socio-economic variables of the people, in health sector, education, in agriculture and every other sector of the economy, you will see the impact coming up and people will be happy.

“That is what we want to achieve and we are happy that USAID under the State2State project is giving us that technical assistance,” he said.

He also noted that when a budget is realistic, “the citizens will be happy because government is budgeting what it will do.

“At the end of the day the budget will be implemented maybe 90 per cent or 95 per cent and then the dividends of democracy will be felt.”

Haruna stressed that the knowledge gained at the workshop would enable the state prepare effective, inclusive and implementable budget.

He further noted that the training on how to acquire data was a major breakthrough, adding that “data that is normally the bane of developing a very good plan.

Dr Mary Paninga, Executive Chairman, Adamawa State Planning Commission, said that the knowledge gained from the workshop would go a long way in preparing realistic and achievable budget.

“We are here towards getting out exceptional and reasonable Medium Term Expenditure Framework and Fiscal Strategy Paper.

“The basics are what makes it to be better off than what we are used to.

“That is why we are here to get informed, educated on how to improve on the preparation of the MTEF document,” he said

According to him, the MTEF is the foundation for preparing a reliable budget.

“So, by the time we get to the preparation of the state budget, you discover that this will really help to get some form of realistic budget that is achievable.

“There will be less deviation from what is expected and budget line set will be realistic,” he said.

She further said, “for instance you have inflation rate, you have all other indices.

“Once they are estimated rightly and correctly, you are going to have a budget that is a bit realistic.

“So, with this information that we are being impacted with, it will help us to go towards that goal.”

On transparency in financial management system, Paninga said, “that is the bedrock of every budget and every expenditure of every state.

“Budget must be reliable and once it is reliable, you will be held accountable, and that transparency in executing the total document will be the watch word.

“The emphasis is on education, agriculture, health and the like but these are the topmost and definitely security.

“Touching the common man. That is why we have the open government partnership, which involves the community to see and have a say on what is being done and what they need by putting their own input,” she said.

According to her, that is why we have citizens engagement. So the package of the budget in the state has to encompass all these.

“One, the community gives its input to make sure that they are carried along.

“That is where it affects them when you talk of transparency, accountability and all of that.

“They have input, they have a say and the system is open for access to know whether whatever is done there is done according to what they have requested or they have put their input in.”

The chairman said the USAID programme was one of the best thing to happen to the state because it had provided the avenue to gain more knowledge on how to get reliable MTEF.

Supreme reports that the State2State project is a five year project meant to run from 2020 to 2025.

It is designed to enable states of the federation run accountable financial systems that would provide quality service in basic education, health and other priority sectors.

The focal states are Akwa Ibom, Adamawa, Bauchi, Ebonyi, Gombe, Sokoto.