Roundtable on Economic Transformation Process: Critical Signposts to Economic Advancement

Major economic fundamentals such as improved business environment, quality service delivery in the public service and fiscal consolidation have been identified as the major signposts to economic transformation. This was the consensus of the stakeholders, who attended the Roundtable on Economic Transformation Process at Transcorp Hilton in Abuja on the 27th of October, 2011.
The programme was organised by the Institute in collaboration with the Office of Special Adviser to the President on Performance Monitoring and Evaluation.

The Executive Director of the African Institute for Applied Economics (AIAE), Professor Eric Eboh made this submission in Abuja at a roundtable. According to him, fiscal consolidation would entail prudent management of public spending by the three tiers of government and improving the business environment, particularly power and transportation, is indispensable for economic diversification, accelerated growth, creation of wealth and employment.

The policy analyst added that  unlocking the business environment for non-oil growth  will not happen without significant reforms of infrastructure and regulatory systems, saying achieving better service delivery is fundamentally linked to public service and institutional reforms that are designed to deliver improved public service performance, effectiveness and efficiency.

The Special Adviser to the President on Performance Monitoring and Evaluation, Professor Sylvester Monye said performance is the bottom-line of the people’s expectation of government. He added that his office is developing simple and straightforward measures to assess whether the outcomes expected of the government agencies are being realised.

 Other speakers at the conference called for holistic approach to the transformation process. They said for Nigeria, this is a period of change, re-engineering, restructuring, re-organisation, reworking and transformation. They urged the government to introduce performance contract which clearly specifies the intentions, obligations and responsibilities of the government and the workers.

Other eminent personalities who spoke at the occasion included; Chief Economic Adviser to the President, Dr. Okedigbe Nwanze, Director General of Budget Office of the Federation, Dr. Bright Okogu, Director General of the West Africa Institute for Financial and Economic Management (WAIFEM), Professor Akpan Ekpo, representatives of the Head of Service of the Federation and the Minister of Trade and Investment, Dr. Chinedum Nwoko-a fiscal policy analyst, Mr Peter Oyeneye – public policy analyst.

Presentations:

Strategies  for Sustainable Business Environment in Nigeria
Business Environment: Key Evidence-Based Priorities
A Sustainable Business Environment and Wealth Creation
The Economic Transformation Agenda: Opportunities and Challenges
Institutional Reforms for Better Quality Service