Tag Archives: Agencies

FG to reduce agencies at ports from fifteen to six – Lai Mohammed

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Lai Mohammed, minister of information and culture, says the government will cut the number of agencies across Nigerian seaports and airports from 15 to six.

Mohammed, who is also a member of Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC), said once the council prunes the number of agencies at the ports to six, it will be possible for people to clear their goods within 24 or 48 hours.

He reiterated the government’s commitment to improving Nigeria’s ranking in the World Bank Ease of Doing Business Index, saying the current ranking of 169 out of 190 countries is unacceptable.

“It’s unsatisfactory that today we are ranked 169 out of 190. That is not very good and the things that we don’t take seriously, like a file staying for 14 days on somebody’s desk, add to this poor ranking,” he said.

“People don’t seem to appreciate how the poor attitude to work impacts negatively on the image of Nigeria and the ease of doing business.

“This is what this Council has been working on since last year and I am proud to say that this Council has been working slowly and steadily but they are actually achieving results.”

Citing the example of Georgia, which was ranked in the 160s a few years ago but currently occupies the fifth position on the global index, Mohammed said though the task of moving Nigeria up the ladder is daunting, there is the abundance of the political will on the part of government to achieve such improvement.

Jumoke Oduwole, executive secretary of PEBEC, who paid Mohammed a visit said the 2017 priority areas for business reform include starting a business, getting credit, trading across the border, paying taxes, construction permits and registering property.

She said three areas prioritized based on engagement with the private sector are entry and exit of goods, entry and exit of people and government transparency.

“The Visa-on-Arrival Programme has been updated to include e-submission,” Oduwole said.

“Before people had to go to the Immigration Office to submit in person so that the Comptroller General of Immigration could give his assent, but now you can submit and they is also a dedicated desk and you don’t have to go physically anymore.”

She disclosed that the council has harmonised the entry and exit forms being managed by different agencies of government at our airports and today, instead of filling four different forms to exit you fill only one and the number of questions on that single form has now been reduced from 23 to 15.

The PEBEC secretary said the authorities at the ports have been mandated to install the iCheck Security Solution Technology, which will phase out the entry and exit forms in due course.

She also disclosed that 11 bills are currently before the national assembly, which will tremendously enhance the ease of doing business in Nigeria when they are eventually enacted into law.

 

Source: The Cable

“Government agencies rejecting us”, Abuja corps members lament

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Some National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members deployed to Abuja say they are being rejected by federal government agencies where they were posted for primary assignment.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the affected corps members are from the 2016 Batch B (Stream II) that just ended their three-week orientation.

The corps members said the major reason for their rejection was lack of funds to pay their monthly allowances.

Ojodomo Ogu, a graduate of Kogi State University, said the agency where he was posted flatly turned him down and based its decision on the lack of provision for corps members’ stipends in its 2017 budget.

Expressing his frustration, he said there was no need for the NYSC scheme to continue if government institutions could no longer accommodate corps members.

Chioma Agbasi, a University of Jos graduate, said she was rejected on the “flimsy excuse” of lack of vacancy.

Julie Andrew, who graduated from the University of Lagos, observed that the rejection was not limited to government institutions.

“I was posted to a micro-finance bank in the Central Area of Abuja which rejected me, citing lack of vacancy after they kept me waiting for two days. Thereafter, I returned to the NYSC office which re-posted me to a government agency located in the Central Area of Abuja, but the story was the same.

“To make matters worse, most employers do not provide accommodation for corps members, and this has made life difficult for those who do not have families and friends in Abuja.”

Narrating his ordeal, Adewale said he was first posted to a private firm operating in his area of specialisation, but was turned down on the excuse of re-organisation.

Aisha Hamza, a polytechnic graduate, said she was rejected simply because the organisation was accepting only university graduates.

“At the end of the day, I had to accept serving in a secondary school in Bwari without payment, and where there is also no decent accommodation,” Hamza lamented.

Dada Rabihu, managing director of an engineering company, explained why most corps members are rejected by organisations.

“Most times, we reject corps members because what they studied in school is irrelevant to the organisations’ areas of operations. For instance, last year, a corps member who studied Hausa Language and Literature was posted to us.

“We felt since he could not contribute anything meaningful to the growth of the company, the best thing was to reject him. It is not only in our interest but also for his own good.

“When you take into consideration the fact that the corps member needs to gather work experience that is related to his field of study you will accept our position.”

Government Moves To End Niger Delta Crisis, Merge Agencies

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The Federal Government yesterday moved to end militancy in the Niger Delta region.

Addressing State House Correspondents on the outcome of the National Economic Council (NEC) meeting, Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai joined by the Deputy Governor of Anambra State Mkem Okeke, said governors under the aegis of the Nigerian Governors Forum (NGF) have agreed to form a committee that would collaborate with the Federal Government to combat the menace of vandalism and destruction of oil and power installation among others.

Minister of Budget and National Planning, Udoma Udo Udoma, who also spoke after the NEC meeting, with Vice President Yemi Osinbajo presiding, said the current administration was only on a rescue mission of an economy that was already battered.

El-Rufai also disclosed that the NEC agreed to step up cost saving measures including a reduction of aides, vehicles in the convoy of government officials and merger of agencies as recommended by the Steve Oronsaye Committee on Public Service Reforms and in view of the recession.

“At the federal level, we are suggesting looking at the Orosanye report. We have discussed very important steps to be taken. We have suggested looking at Orosanye report that suggested merger and reduce publications of agencies,” El Rufai said.

According to him: “FG has 580 agencies. They are too many and they cost too much. There is a need to look at those that are duplicated and merge them. That is a report published since 2012. Even within MDAs, we need to consider merging departments. We may not need as many departments as we have. We have discussed implementing a public service renewal programme to get younger people, more IT-saving people into the public service.”

Credit:

http://guardian.ng/news/government-moves-to-end-niger-delta-crisis-merge-agencies/

FG to reduce number of agencies at ports.

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Worried about the loss of business to neighbouring countries arising from low competitiveness, indications emerged at the weekend that the Federal Government may further reduce the number of agencies at the nation’s ports.

This is part of measures to address complaints bordering on the ease of doing business.

The Government said efforts are underway to reduce human intervention at the ports, some of which have been responsible for the poor operational efficiency, by deploying technology and increasing stakeholder collaboration on regulatory frameworks.

The Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, noted that the present administration is looking at issues raised by stakeholders bordering on concessions, charges and local content as well as the number of agencies at the ports. This is with a view to improving earnings from non-oil exports as well as encouraging bilateral ties between Nigeria and other trading partners.

With many importers and traders diverting their cargoes to neighbouring countries, the Government noted that measures are underway to address the bottlenecks in the maritime sector.

Besides, the government also announced plans to invest massively in infrastructure and human capacity development, noting that it is focusing on policies and reforms geared at promoting diversification and structural reform of the economy.

The Government had in the past reduced the number of agencies at the ports in a bid to check complaints by operators on the number of signatories and turnaround time needed to clear their cargoes at the ports.

Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, noted that successful policies execution is expected to result in enhanced productivity growth; increase manufacturing share to Nigeria’s total export earnings and drastic reduction in susceptibilities of the economy to external shocks from commodity volatility currently being experienced by the nation.

He explained that reform efforts at the ports is focused on deploying a deliberate, well thought through automation strategy that achieves the tripartite objectives of blocking revenue leakages, improving process efficiency and reducing human intervention.

During a public-private dialogue on port efficiency and maritime sector roadmap organised by the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), he revealed that in the strategic implementation plan for 2016, the Government is making efforts at facilitating trade by ensuring that the environment is conducive for operators and investors.

Osibajo, who was represented by the Senior Special Assistant ?to the President on Industry, Trade and Investment, Office of the Vice President, Dr. Jumoke Oduwole, stated that to improve ease of doing business in Nigeria, particularly trade across borders, the administration is focusing on critical infrastructure to achieve the objective.
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In his words, “In light of the well-documented challenges experienced by users of Nigerian ports today, making it easier and faster to facilitate the exit and entry of goods into Nigeria, as well as improving the business environment are critical to the sustainable and inclusive development of the Nigerian economy.”

43,000 Ghost Workers Uncovered In Nigerian Security Agencies

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The Head of the Continuous Audit team of the Federal Government, Mohammed Dikwa, on Tuesday said N50 billion was saved so far through the audit of security agencies payroll.

Mr. Dikwa said this in Abuja at a meeting between the Continuous Audit team, Minister of Finance and Heads of Para-Military agencies.

President Mohammadu Buhari had set up the Continuous Audit team to look into the payroll of all Federal Government’s Ministries, Departments and Agencies.

The team had already embarked on the audit of the Military payroll and enrolling them on the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS).

“Since we started the continuous audit programme, we have saved about N50 billion and over 43,000 ghost workers have been removed from the payroll of the federal government.

“And as we go on, we are very sure that we will continue to reduce the cost of federal government payroll.

“Please note the cost is not related to ghost workers alone but with allowances which we believe have to be trimmed down so that we can manage the cost of governance,’’ he said.

Mr. Dikwa said officers from the account departments of all the para-military agencies were currently undergoing training on IPPIS and the Government Management Information System (GIFMIS)

 He said the plan was to have all the agencies enrolled on the IPPIS and GIFMIS at the end of the month once the training was completed.

Credit: PremiumTimes

FG to Enforce Spending Limits for Revenue Generating Agencies

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In a bid to block leakages and improve internally generated revenue paid into Consolidated Revenue Fund, the federal government has finalized measures that will reduce the ability of its revenue-generating agencies to spend money at source and also set limits on their expenditure.

It was learnt that the measures were contained in a memo recently sent to President Muhammadu Buhari by the Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, detailing how most of the agencies spend almost 100 per cent of the revenue they collect on behalf of the federal government and remitting paltry sums to the Consolidated Revenue Fund.

Section 22(2) of the Fiscal Responsibility Act requires theses agencies to generate an operating surplus, of which 80 per cent is to be paid into the Consolidated Revenue Fund (CRF). The balance of the operating surplus is meant to be transferred to the agency’s general reserve fund, notwithstanding the provisions of any written law establishing the agency.

The same act requires that these agencies submit annual budgets for approval by the National Assembly.
But in practice, many of these agencies fail to submit budgets and are thus able to generate and spend revenue without scrutiny or accountability.

The level of compliance with remittances into the Consolidated Revenue Fund is so low, with some agencies never having contributed any funds at all.

It was the same high degree of non-compliance that set the former Coordinating Minister for the Economy and Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, on a collision course with the management of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) last year when her ministry was forced to withdraw operating surpluses from the accounts of the agencies with commercial banks in the country.

Credit: ThisDay

Buhari inaugurates committee for reconstitution of FG parastatals, agencies

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President Muhammadu Buhari, on Monday inaugurated a Presidential Committee on the reconstitution of Federal Government Boards of Parastatals, Agencies and Commissions.

The constitution of the Committee, headed by Babachir Lawal, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, SGF was revealed in a statement issued by the Assistant Director (Press) in the Office of the SGF, Oise Johnson, said the committee is headed by the SGF.

The Committee is made up of members from the six geographical zones. According to the statement, the members are: Alh. Mai Mala Buni (North-East Zone), Alh. Zakari Idde (North-Central Zone) and Alh. Inuwa Abdulkadir (North-West Zone), Chief Hillard Etagbo Eta (South-South Zone), Chief Pius Akinyelure (South-West Zone), Chief Emmanuel Eneukwa (South-East Zone) while Mr. Gideon Sammani (SSAP to the President) will serve as Secretary.

The committee after the inauguration, held its inaugural meeting in Abuja.

According to its terms of reference, the Committee will have “(i) determine and recommend to Mr. President, the Governing Boards of Federal Government Parastatals, Agencies and Commissions to be reconstituted immediately.

“(ii) To identify the available positions of the Chairmanship and Membership levels in each of the affected Parastatals, Agencies and Commissions as provided for in their respective enabling laws.

“(iii) To allocate the Chairmanship and Membership positions to each State of the Federation and the Federal Capital Territory, including slots for Presidential discretion.

“(iv) To receive and screen the nominees received from the States and the Federal Capital Territory and recommend them to the President for consideration and approval.

“(v) To ensure balance in the distribution of Board members along the geo-political zones of the country.

“(vi) To advise Mr. President on any other matter(s) regarding the composition of the Boards that are incidental on the foregoing terms of reference.”

 

 

Credit : PM News

President Buhari Insists On Slashing Number Of Ministries, Agencies

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President Muhammadu Buhari has said his administration was seriously looking for ways of cutting down the cost of governance by reducing the number of ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs).

The president, who stated this at the weekend when he met with the Nigerian community in Benin Republic, assured, however, that in cutting down the number of MDas, he would not take the interest of Nigerians, including those living in Diaspora, for granted.

He also assured Nigerians living in Diaspora that his administration would consider their requests of setting up of consular offices where necessary to enable the embassies coordinate and respond to their urgent needs in an expeditious manner.

President Buhari, who was in Benin Republic on a one-day visit and to attend the country’s 55th independence anniversary, met with Nigerians living in the country immediately after he was hosted to a launch by the country’s president, Boni Yayi.

Responding to requests made by the Nigerian community in Benin Republic through the Nigerian Ambassador, Dr. Lawrence Obisakin, he assured that the government would next year look at the possibility of creating more consular offices in Benin Republic.

Responding to requests for two more consulates in Benin Republic to complement the Nigerian embassy, Buhari noted that even though the federal government was trying to whittle down the number of MDAs, he would include their request in next year’s budget.

He said, “I think I will direct your ambassador to make the request to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs so that by the time we are doing the next budget, it would be included.

“Although we are trying to cut down on the number of ministries, the morale of Nigerians in Diaspora must be considered. This is because we are so many. We are aggressive whether in business or other facets of life. So, we as a government will do everything possible to look after Nigerians wherever they are.”

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Agencies Evacuate Bodies From Bombed Borno Market

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The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) and International Community of Red Cross (ICC) in Borno State have reported evacuating some 17 corpses from a meat market in Maiduguri following the explosion that hit the site on Tuesday.

According to spokesman of the NEMA in the Northeast zone, Abdul Kadir Ibrahim, “Our men have evacuated not less than 17 the dead corpses in the explosion.”

Ibrahim was not able to give accurate figure of those that injured in the explosion as officials from the agency with other humanitarian agencies were still involved in taking the injured to Umaru Shehu General Hospital in Maiduguri.

The spokesman of the ICRC in the Borno State, Mallam Umar Sadiq, however confirmed that 24 people injured in the explosion were rushed to the University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospitals and State Specialists Hospital.

Kasuwan Shanu is the major market for the sales of livestock in Maiduguri, also accommodating an abattoir. Many residents of the largely-impoverished town patronise the market.

About 50 people were reported killed in the attack that bore the hallmarks of Islamist Boko Haram militants.

Credit: CAJ News