The proposed Vision 2020 development programme has been on since the Obasanjo administration which is supposed to ensure a technology-savvy Nigeria in the year 2020. Now the Yar’Adua’s administration has also picked up on this vision which is somewhat a positive sign and a gain for our nascent democracy. We have seen so many other government programmes in the past which looked brilliant on paper, but the implementations always seemed impossible. As we all know, the real problem has never been the lack of ideas, but rather that of implementation. For Vision 2020 not to take the same path as its predecessors, the Nigerian government needs to carefully understudy her previous strategy to avoid the same pitfalls and fill up all loop holes.
Vision 2020 is a brilliant idea. From my perspective, as a computer scientist and a software developer, expectations are high. I sincerely believe the proper implementation, this time around should bring the needed respite to Nigerians and encourage creativity and productivity overall. In other words, the process of power generation and distribution should be close to flawless. The Nigerian roads should be passable. Water supply should be at a hundred percent getting to the rural communities. We would be less dependent on oil as a primary cash cow. Job unemployment should be at a minimum and job seekers able to work in their various disciplines and on merit. Investment in the agricultural sector and subsidies to farmer boosted by the government and there would not be need to fly out Nigerians for medical care.
If the government is to make good on its promises to Nigerians, it should begin right now by changing its approach to governance. It should be people-oriented and not a government of isolation. Today, the government- Executive, Judiciary and the Legislative arms, are isolated and separated from the people. They really are some what out of touch with the reality of the day. The bottom line is that Nigerians are suffering and lacking the most basic of amenities. This is sad and shameful for a country that is about the eighth largest exporter of petroleum in the world. The government of the day should start getting results in the areas of the development of local basic infrastructures like the transportation and the energy sector because they impact greatly on Nigerians. Our bad roads are a major cause of death in Nigeria today either by accidents or by armed robbers waiting patiently at failed sections of the roads to dispossess others and most times resulting in loss of lives. While these incidents are not reported internationally because the losses a mostly due to carelessness on the part of our government, but a plane crash involving 12 persons in Latin America would make the headlines. The epileptic nature of the power generation and distribution is a major reason for the overall price hike in the final product and a discouragement to investments in Nigeria. It is simple, investors and even Nigerian industrialist would prefer to shift their operations overseas to countries such as Angola and South Africa for their stable power generation and which is ultimately Nigeria’s loss.
I have lived in Mexico for over five years now. A country which shares similar characteristics to Nigeria in many areas including petroleum production. Mexico is about the fifth ranked in the world with respect to petroleum production but not a member of OPEC and as such not subject to the OPEC regulations, but has benefited greatly as well from the high prices of petroleum products. Their foreign reserve is at an all time high like in Nigeria. The story does not end there because Mexicans are reaping the benefits and do not have to wait until the year 2020 as in our case. Corruption is another characteristics shared by both countries, but unlike in Nigeria it is better managed and checked. In the last three years, Mexico has seen major project proposals and their implementations in the transportation sector. The transportation sector has been greatly funded and real and concrete results are being achieved as well. Foremost on my mind are the completions of the metropolitan mega bus systems and suburban fast train system within a four-year time frame. Commuting has never been easier in Mexico City. During this same period, the maintenance and construction of new road networks has been an on-going process. Unlike the companies in Nigeria, accountability is paramount. The companies are not only responsible for the constructions, but also for the maintenance as entrenched in their contracts. Sometimes, I wonder why an apparently good road is being re-constructed because they would look perfectly okay to the Nigerian contractors. Accountability requires that the companies stick to the terms of agreement which includes periodic maintenance of the roads. If this is not already the case in our process of allocation contracts, maintenance should be therefore entrenched in the original contracts to prevent them (contractors) from doing shabby, shoddy and shady jobs and eliminate further wastes in the sector
Vision 2020 is realizable, the government and ultimately, the people of Nigeria need to re-orientate themselves on the objective. Do we really need to be service-oriented and a consumer nation or a technology-oriented nation? If the former is the case, then the realization of 2020 would be a tall order. The past few years has seen an unprecedented growth in the financial sector involving the banking, insurance as well as the stock market. We have seen the jostling for employments in these sectors causing and influx of graduates from all disciplines from Bio Chemistry to Business major graduates into these sectors. Likewise, we have also seen the continuous quest of Nigerian graduates in the engineering professions seek employments in the various petroleum exploration and servicing companies. The resultant effect is that we are, at the same time, witnessing the reduction in field specialists in Bio Chemistry, Physics, Biologists, Geologists, computer scientists, civil, electrical, mechanical and so on because the best and the brightest have been absorbed by the financial and petroleum sectors and reduced to dummies in their various disciplines because they generally discontinue the practice of their original professions due to re-training in new areas as it suits the employers. The monthly salaries and benefits are excellent without a doubt but coming at the expense of achieving our vision for 2020.
This trend cannot be allowed to continue in order to avert an imminent failure to a brilliant plan. The federal government can help both directly and indirectly by encouraging creativity in the vital sectors of health, agriculture and technology. These sectors have to be adequately funded and monitored for proper implementation of projects. What obtains presently is a situation where the government dishes out money and the story ends there due to lack of follow ups and feed backs. Gross corruption and abuse is usually the result. If there is a system of checks and balances, people would become more responsible and accountable. The introduction of the EFCC has been a welcomed initiative from the Obasanjo administration. It is left to the present administration to strengthen it by reducing its interference considerably. On the other hand, the government can indirectly help by involving local industrialists and scientists in developmental projects. This implies that the government must award project to local companies but with a clause requiring these companies to invest in research and developments which would require the recruitments of our best and brightest graduates with justifiable and competitive salaries. With a good take home pay, the country would witness a drastic reduction in brain drain. Today, we have become accustomed to reading about our leaders seeking medical help abroad because we do not have the required equipments for treatments here in Nigeria. Among the very long list of Nigerians is our president. This should be a wake up call because if this ugly trend continues, in the nearest future, we would be treating malaria cases in Germany as well.
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