Omisore Suggests Eight Ways To Boost Budget Performance

Oyewale Oyelola

Senator Iyiola Omisore has suggested eight ways to boost budget performance and ensure imprementation of national budget.

Omisore during a press briefing at PUBLIC PRIVATE PARTNERSHIP: National Assembly/Legislature Perspectives held in Abuja said budgeting is the most important fiscal policy tool that determines the quality of management of national resources.

He highlighted the following as ways to increase budget performance:

a) Providing information on the location of the ongoing projects.
b) Field trips to selected projects by legislators, legislative staff and technical resource persons of the Implementation Committee,
c) Non-state-actor groups (NSA) to identify locations and status of various on-going project,
d) Verification of claim as to the tier of government implementing a particular project.
e) Appraisal of implications of economic policy proposals on the developmental aspirations of the nation and distributive effects on the citizenry.
f) Evaluation of quarterly returns on revenue and expenditure performance, and other information items as may be demanded from the various ministries, Departments and Agencies(MDAs) of Government, and
g) Investigation of any allegations bothering on the implementation of the Appropriation Act.

Full Presentation

PUBLIC PRIVATE PARTNERSHIP: National Assembly/Legislature Perspectives

It is my pleasure to welcome you all to this press briefing, which seeks to provide information on the New Inclusive National Budgeting Initiative recently approved by the National Assembly. As you know, budgeting is the most important fiscal policy tool that determines the quality of management of national resources. This in turn determines the nature of the economy, and overall welfare of the citizenry.

Literature has also shown that the quantum and quality of resource endowment determines the pace and rate of economic growth and development. Similarly, we know that Nigeria is richly endowed in terms of human and material resources, and should therefore be one of the countries registering spectacular growth and development on a sustainable basis. Unfortunately, experience suggests that the manner in which we manage the enormous resources so far, does not augur well for maximum realisation of our development potential.

For example, Nigeria is currently witnessing a co-movement between huge annual public expenditure and deterioration in the welfare of the citizenry. Infact, Nigeria is being stigmatised as a paradox of a rich nation, and poor people. This scenario is neither desirable nor sustainable, if we are really desirous of becoming one of the largest twenty economies in the world by year 2020.

The ability to meaningfully turn things around on a sustainable basis, require proper understanding of the fundamental causes of our problem. I believe it is this knowledge gap that has accounted for the concentration of our collective effort on addressing the effects, rather than the real causes, of the problems. Emerging findings of the various probes instituted by the National Assembly may provide useful insights as to the nature and extent of these fundamental causes of the paradox. In my view, these could be summarised as follows.

Firstly, there appears to be persistent lack of coordination of policies, programmes and activities both within each and among the various agencies of government. This continues to affect adversely their internal consistency and synergy. Secondly, there seems to be an onslaught on the time honoured institutions and processes for safeguarding and managing public fund and resources. Thirdly, the level of effectiveness and efficiency of legislative oversight of fiscal operations of government, since the re-emergence of representative political system of government in Nigeria in May 1999, leaves room for significant improvement. In my view, these are some of the major components of systemic deficiencies that constitute the fundamental causes of our problem as a nation. I believe the National Assembly has a fiduciary responsibility towards addressing these and other fundamental causes.
Under a representative political system, the Legislative Arm has an important role to play in ensuring an effective, efficient, and purposeful management of national resources, to enable the people enjoy the so called dividends of democracy. In the Nigerian context still faces the challenge of adding value towards assuring the envisaged dividend. The realisation has informed the recent initiative by the National Assembly, aimed at enhancing understanding of the causes of our economic problems, and preferring informed solutions to them. One of these is the series of probes being initiated by the National Assembly, the findings of which have been very revealing. The National Assembly is aware of the interest of the people in these probes and the apprehension that the findings may not be pursued to logical conclusion. I want to assure you all that the National Assembly is determined to widen the scope and pace of such probes to logical conclusion. In addition, it will utilise the findings to address some of the systemic deficiencies that have plagued the nation over the years.
I am pleased to disclose that National Assembly has already put in place a framework under the auspices of the UNDP Support Programme to among others; enhance the capacity of legislators in the budget process. The implementation Committee was recently inaugurated for the purpose of realising the set objectives. Memberships of the Committee are made up of the leadership of the Appropriations Committees of the Senate and House of Representatives, Managements Standing Committees and legislative staff. A team of experienced Consultants have been engaged to also serve on the Committee.
It is a fact that there has not been dearth of good ideas, intentions and plans over the years. Rather, poverty of purposeful implementation remains the major problem. In view of this, the National Assembly has considered inclusive monitoring and evaluation of the various aspects of the national budgeting, as the prioritised intervention area of this initiative. I am of the view that the absence of such structured monitoring and evaluation mechanisms remain the weakest link in the fiscal policy chain.

We also realised that this is a multi-dimensional multi-party task. Hence, the National Assembly has decided to partner with stakeholders groups as the major strategy for achieving this goal. Apart from this, we recognise that the people constitute the beginning and the end of any credible and legitimate policy. Therefore they need to be involved, in the processes and decisions that affect their future. This calls for their effective participation in such processes. This principle will be brought to bear in implementing the inclusive monitoring and evaluation initiative.

By definition, a credible inclusive initiative must provide a level playing field for willing Stakeholders to engage in the process. The new initiative will respect will respect this attribute. Specifically, the inclusive process will be guided by the principle of purposeful partnership within the National Assembly, tiers of government, public sector agencies and the private sector. Also, professional groups, the media, labour, as well as civil society non-governmental, community and faith-based development oriented and the donor community organisations.
The tentative scope of the inclusive monitoring and evaluation framework includes, but not limited to the following:

a) Providing information on the location of the ongoing projects.
b) Field trips to selected projects by legislators, legislative staff and technical resource persons of the Implementation Committee,
c) Non-state-actor groups (NSA) to identify locations and status of various on-going project,
d) Verification of claim as to the tier of government implementing a particular project.
e) Appraisal of implications of economic policy proposals on the developmental aspirations of the nation and distributive effects on the citizenry.
f) Evaluation of quarterly returns on revenue and expenditure performance, and other information items as may be demanded from the various ministries, Departments and Agencies(MDAs) of Government, and
g) Investigation of any allegations bothering on the implementation of the Appropriation Act.

There will be proper delineation of roles, to be coordinated by the Implementation Committee. For example, the various civil society and non-government organizations, local units of various professional and interest groups, should be able to identify and voluntarily provide information about the status of any Federal project in their locality. The media also, should strive to bail out the citizenry from the current poverty of reliable information about the fiscal operations of the Federal Government of Nigeria. Other groups have similar roles to play in the initiative.
Similarly, it is important to note that a necessary condition for A effective participation is timely access to adequate and accurate information. Herein lies the rationale for this press conference, which seeks to sensitise the general public about the new initiative and solicit support for its overall success.
Towards deepening this culture of openness, the Implementation Committee is organizing series of sensitization and consultative meetings across the six geopolitical Zones of Nigeria. We seize this opportunity to solicit the support of the State and Local Governments in each zone towards wide dissemination of information about these meetings. A similar appeal goes to all non-state-actor groups, whom we expect to mobilize their members across the states within each zone to attend and participate actively at these meetings.
We also appeal to all Federal legislators and National Assembly Zonal leaders to help mobilize the people in their various constituencies to participate in the meetings. Special appeal goes to various interest and community groups whose membership penetrates the nooks and crannies of the various parts of Nigeria.

Finally, we appeal to all our traditional rulers to actively complement our effort towards ensuring the overall success of the people-oriented initiative. I need to stress that the active participation of all concerned will enhance the quality of decisions, proper delineation and coordination of roles among the various stakeholders groups.