The proclivity for an integral
fettling of Nigeria’s gaping concerns is patent in the ideation and iteration
of the Tinubu administration’s priority areas of reforming the economy to
deliver sustained inclusive growth; strengthening national security for peace
and prosperity; boosting agriculture to achieve food security; unlocking energy
and natural resources for sustainable development; enhancing infrastructure and
transportation as enablers of growth; focusing on education, health, and social
investment as essential pillars of development; accelerating diversification
through industrialisation, digitisation, creative arts, manufacturing &
innovation, and improving governance for effective service delivery.
It is one reticular hoop. One
niche subsisting on the other; one outcome depending on the other and vice
versa, and one thread cascading down on the others. A breathing filament runs
through the nexus of security, agriculture, education, infrastructure, job
creation, and other sectoral motifs. They are one important whole.
Effective security will naturally
enhance food production as citizens can go to farm; open arteries of
investments, and effectuate the deepening of investments in other sectors, as
well as impact the overall well-being of society. Improved agriculture will, in
turn, ensure food security, price stability, and hunger mitigation.
Infrastructure provision will stimulate investments and create opportunities
along multiple channels of growth. And so will investments in education,
healthcare, and other sectors all converge to secure Nigeria’s future.
It takes a dexterous laying of
bricks to build an edifice. The administration takes a cultivated and diligent
brick-by-brick approach to governance; to building that nation we all deserve.
It is a steady, well-thought-out, and carefully executed step-by-step fashion
as against the harum-sacrum option.
In March, President Bola Tinubu
approved the establishment of the Renewed Hope Infrastructure Development Fund
(RHIDF) to facilitate effective infrastructure development across the pivotal
areas of agriculture, transportation, ports, aviation, energy, healthcare, and
education in Nigeria.
The Fund will, among other
things, invest in critical national projects that will promote growth; enhance
local value-addition, create employment opportunities, and stimulate
technological innovation and exports.
It will cover agricultural infrastructure
and food security with emphasis on the development of robust agricultural
infrastructure networks; ports revitalisation, with premium on the rejuvenation
of port facilities and associated infrastructure to streamline operations and
enhance the ease of doing business; aviation enhancement, with focus on the
revitalisation and modernisation of major airports nationwide; road
infrastructure, with some strategic projects like the Lagos-Calabar Coastal
Road, the Sokoto-Badagry Road, among other key road projects across the nation,
to receive attention, and rail infrastructure, with Lagos-Kano and Eastern rail
lines as some of the projects to be prioritised.
In healthcare, President Tinubu
is sparing no effort as investments are being funnelled into the sector.
Recently, he directed the immediate upgrade of key health infrastructure and
equipment across the six geo-political zones. Ten hospitals bestrewing the six
geopolitical zones will be revamped to provide exigent and top-tier healthcare
services in the lines of radiology, clinical pathology, medical and radiation
oncology, and cardiac catheterisation.
On April 3, the president signed
into law the Student Loan (Access to Higher Education) (Repeal and
Re-enactment) Bill, 2024. And in furtherance of his resolve to secure Nigeria’s
socio-economic future by ensuring sustainable higher education and critical
skill development for all Nigerian students and the youth, he expeditiously and
carefully appointed a management team. This is so that the necessary
instruments are put in place for the effective take-off of this all-important
fund.
There is also the plan for school
feeding and other education-specific initiatives to overhaul the entire
pedagogy train.
The president has also approved
the establishment of the Nigerian Consumer Credit Corporation (CREDICORP) and
appointed a chief executive to efficaciously manage the corporation and ensure
the expansion of access to credit to all classes of Nigerian citizens while
promoting financial inclusion, and enhancing the quality of life of the
Nigerian people as they access the tangibles of prosperity.
The Tinubu administration is
executing a full-system upgrade, even with specific attention to some sectors,
understanding that Nigerians deserve a full complement of good governance and
socio-economic security.
