Will Nigeria’s New Transformation Strategy Work?

Development and Security
Nigeria faces considerable development challenges, with a large population, a proportion of which is still below the international poverty line. The government has committed to alleviate poverty and to invest in healthcare and education.

In part due to the renewed focus on agriculture and food security, the country has already achieved the first Millennium Development Goal’s target on reducing extreme hunger, and is on track to do the same with MDG #2 – universal primary education.

As Jonathan said in January: “I have always believed that the single greatest thing we can do to ensure all Nigerians realise their potential and play a full part in our nation’s future, is to invest in education. The education of our young people is a key priority for this government.”

Between 2007 and 2013, the administration tripled the budget allocation for education from $1.4 billion to nearly $4 billion, built 125 Almajiri boarding schools and established 12 new federal universities. In an effort to improve the quality of science and technology education, the government rehabilitated more than 350 school laboratories and renovated the facilities of all 51 federal and state polytechnics.

The health sector has also benefited from major investment. In October 2012, President Jonathan unveiled an official commitment to saving one million lives by expanding primary health care services to women and children. The initiative included investments in maternal, newborn and child health, malaria control, immunisation coverage, logistics, and child nutrition.

In 2013 alone, the government recruited 11,300 front-line health workers and extended conditional cash transfer systems to more than 10,000 women and children across eight states. Immunisation coverage in Nigeria has exceeded 80%, and the country has eradicated the debilitating Guinea worm, which once affected 800,000 Nigerians each year.

Nigeria has also suffered from issues of instability, particularly in the oil-producing Niger Delta. The current government has pushed forward with an amnesty programme, combined with investments in infrastructure and education, that has dramatically reduced incidences of crime and insecurity. More than 30,000 people are reported to have been enlisted in the amnesty programme, and over half of them have been engaged in technical training centres.

The government is also working with international partners to tackle the threat of terrorism, particularly in the country’s northeast. Nearly $3.8 billion has been set aside in the budget for 2014 to improve the capacity of the police and security services.

“We will continue to do everything possible to permanently eradicate the scourge of terrorism and insurgency from our country,” Jonathan said at Nigeria’s centenary celebrations in 2014. “We recognise that the root cause of militancy, terrorism and insurgency is not the strength of extremist ideas but corrupted values and ignorance. That is why our counterterrorism strategy is not just about enforcing law and order as we have equipped our security forces to do. It also involves expanding economic opportunities, social inclusion, education and other measures that will help restore normalcy not just in the short term, but permanently.”

Governance and democracy
Corruption has been a significant drain on Nigeria’s resources, and the current administration has made improving transparency and governance a key facet of its work. The government is deploying three electronic platforms: the Treasury Single Account; the Government Integrated Financial Management Information System; and the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System.

Widespread corruption in fuel and fertiliser subsidy systems has been tackled, and culprits brought to justice by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.

Nigeria goes to the polls in 2015, and the administration has committed to make sure that the elections are of international standards by supporting the Independent National Electoral Commission. Making the nation’s democratic institutions function is key to achieving the stability and growth that Nigeria needs. As the President said in February:

“I hope and pray that one hundred years from now, Nigerians will look back on another century of achievements during which our union was strengthened, our independence was enhanced, our democracy was entrenched and our example was followed by leaders of other nations whose ambition is to emulate the success of Nigeria; a country that met its difficulties head on and fulfilled its promise.”