2019: “Stop blame game, focus on development” Osinbajo tells Governors

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo yesterday urged state governors and other stakeholders in the country to stop the blame game and focus on human capital development in their respective areas.

He made the call during the launching of Human Capital Development Programme: Healthy, Educated and Productive Nigerians for a Globally Competitive Nation by 2030 at the extended National Economic Council (NEC) meeting held at the Banquet Hall, Presidential Villa, Abuja.

Advising them to resist playing politics with issues, he said that it was time to get the job done.

The Vision 2030 focuses on the Human Capital Development and is hinged on three main thematic areas; namely health and nutrition, education and labour force participation.

Osinbajo said: “As a government, we are fully aware of the issues and we are committed to transforming them. There is no denying that debilitating levels of poverty existed in spite of huge earnings in the past. We are doing exactly what countries like India and Brazil did in a similar situation, for instance kick-starting the Social Investment Programme (SIP).

“The Federal Government must together with states collaborate on the issue of human capital development; it should not be a platform for blame games. Concerted collaboration is required now so we don’t repeat the mistakes of the past. Constant communication with the people is equally important because the resources belong to them,” he stated.

He stressed the need to promote transparency, accountability and improving existing data.

In his remarks, Chairman of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum, NGF, Alhaji Abdulaziz Yari, said governors had been working very hard to make Nigeria’s economy work in a more transparent manner and remain accountable to the people, adding “we have tried to make sure that every cent is spent.”

Yari, who is the governor of Zamfara State, stated that the concern raised on human capital development can only be addressed with availability of funds.

He said: “I can assure you that the governors are committed, but we have to work harder in the area of revenue generation to address all these competing demands.”

He queried the fact that the VAT has remained stagnant at 5 per cent for the past 25 years, insisting that a political decision has to be taken to increase it in the new year.

The World Bank Nigeria Country Director, Rachid Benmessaoud, said for the world to do well on human capital development, Nigeria has to do well because the world relies on Nigeria’s human capital.

He stressed that the quality of education improves young person’s opportunity to earn a living and help the economy, urging the government to work on improving human capital development.

The Country Director, DFID, Debbie Palmer, said Nigeria is ranked near the bottom of the World Bank’s Human Capital Index (152 out of 157 countries globally), describing it as a rude wake-up call for everyone in Nigeria and for everyone who cares about Nigeria.

USAID Country Director said the US government will continue to honour the partnership in the areas of education and health as well as with the private sector.

Ms. Zouera Youssoufou, Managing Director and CEO of the Dangote Foundation, commended the government for its commitment to see to the improvement in human capital development.

The National President, Association of National Accountants of Nigeria (ANAN), Alhaji Shehu Ladan, in his presentation, listed quality education, special agencies for skills, entrepreneurial support, vocational training, improved infrastructure and improved health care sector as factors that will improve the country’s human capital development.