The Chief Executive Officer of African Union Development Agency-New Partnership for Africa's Development (AUDA-NEPAD), Princess Gloria Akobundu, has said that the Agency is now fully Positioned for positioned for efficient operations and better delivery on its mandates and goals.
She made this known in a press conference held recently. Akobundu thanked His Excellency, President Muhammadu Buhari, GCFR, the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria for always providing the neccessary exemplary leadership.
The full Press Release below:
I am pleased to express my profound gratitude to you all for your presence at this press briefing as a process towards the implementation of the Second Review Road Map in Nigeria.
I wish to recognize the courageous and exemplary leadership of His Excellency, President Muhammadu Buhari, GCFR, the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in giving his accent and approval to the conduct of the Second Peer Review of the Country as well as his support towards the Review process from the inception to the conclusion.
My sincere appreciation also goes to the Secretary to the Federal Government, Barrister Boss Mustapha, whose leadership and guidance added a great deal to achieving a successful Second Review of Nigeria.
I also wish to particularly thank the Chief of Staff, Attorney General of the Federation and Cabinet Members for their support guidance and collaborations towards the successful conduct of the Review.
Sincere respect and appreciation to the State Governors who hosted the validation exercise and ensured hitch free exercise at state and local government level.
I appreciate the APRM National Governing Council (NGC) Nigeria, under the chairmanship of Senator Abba Ali, who has competently been leading the Review Process.
In July 2001, African leaders emboldened by the desire to see a prosperous Africa adopted an African initiative and led socio-economic development framework –“the New Partnership for Africa`s Development (NEPAD) “now transformed to the African Union Development Agency (AUDA-NEPAD), positioned for efficient operations and better delivery on its mandates and goals. Since its inception, AUDA-NEPAD has recorded effective implementation of numerous policy frameworks and programs for sustainable economic growth and development in the Country and the Continent at large.
As you are aware, African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) is a governance arm NEPAD established in 2003 by Heads of State and Government of African Union as a unique accountability method for African Countries to review each other's governance and hold Member States accountable. The Mechanism is innovative and bold attempt by Africa to improve governance and well-being of all citizens. Accordingly, NEPAD has played a critical role in entrenching democracy and promoting good governance. The overarching goal therefore, is for all the 42 participating countries of APRM to accelerate progress towards adopting and implementing the priorities and programs that promotes good governance and best practices for sustainable growth and development.
The primary objective of the APRM is to foster the adoption of policies, standards and practices that lead to political stability, high economic growth, sustainable development and accelerated regional and continental economic integration. This could be achieved through experience sharing, reinforcement of successful best practices, including identifying deficiencies and assessment of requirements for capacity building. It also has obligation to Track, Monitor, Assess and report on the impact of the implementation of AU Agenda 2063, SDGs and UN Agenda 2030 on Socio – Economic Development for quality leadership.
The following are the notable milestone achievements in the conduct the Second Review;
I. The approval of Mr. President on the 8th of March, 2019 for the Conduct of Second Review of Nigeria.
II. Constitution and inauguration of the National Governing Council (NGC) which is made up of a 15 members with two representatives per geo-political zone.
III. Advance Mission and Broad Sensitization held on the 27th-28th of February, 2020
IV. Engagement of the Technical Research Institutes in line with APRM Policy and Review Guideline who researched and reported on each of the four thematic Areas of APRM as follows;
a. The Nigerian Institute of Social and Economic Research (NISER) on Economic Governance and Management,
b. National Centre for Technology Management (NACETEM) on Socio-Economic Development,
c. Centre for Democracy Development Research and Training (CDDERT) on Democracy and Political Governance,
d. Nigeria Institute for International Affairs (NIIA) on Corporate Governance
V. Training/Awareness on the roles and responsibilities of the National Structures for effective implementation of the Review process.
VI. Adoption of the Road Map for the Second Review of the Federal Republic of Nigeria
VII. Strategic Technical meeting in preparations for the Self-Assessment process on the conduct of the Second Review
VIII. Training of the NGC and Review Team on the administration of the Review Questionnaire;
IX. Administration of questionnaires across all sectors and levels of government
X. Aggressive sensitization of the general public on the Review Process for inclusiveness
XI. Sectoral and Zonal Consultations
XII. Engagement of Public and Private Sectors, CSOs,
XIII. Harmonization of the Country Self-Assessment Report by the National Institute for Security Studies (NISS)
XIV. Signing of the Memorandum of Understanding by H.E Muhammadu Buhari on the 18th of January, 2021
XV. Conclusion and production of the Country Self-Assessment Report (CSAR)
XVI. Validation of the Report by Country Review Mission on 23rd of June, 2021.
Please note that the contributions that formed the Country Review Report (CRR) came from the outcomes of the various consultations including gender, people living with disabilities, youth, traditional council, market women Association.
Presentation of the Country Review Report at the 31st Summit of the APR Forum of Heads of State and Government at the margins of the 35th Ordinary Session of the African Union by Dr. Abdoulie Janneh, the Lead Panelist to Nigeria on the 4th of February, 2022, where Nigeria was reviewed with His Excellency, President Muhammadu Buahri in attendance and responded accordingly and responded accordingly.
Today, we are happy to announce to you that Nigeria has been Peer Reviewed for the second time under the leadership of President Muhammadu Buahri, GCFR. The Second Peer Review of Nigeria has come at a critical time in the history of the country. The review report was far-reaching and encompasses various segments of our socio-political economy and highlighted the developments recorded since the first peer review.
The essence of today Press Briefing including;
I. To inform Nigeria that Nigeria has been Peer Reviewed for the second time
II. To inform Nigeria that the programme which was earlier announced has now reached a successful conclusion despite the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. Starting from the 8th March, 2019 and being Peer Reviewed on the 4th of February, 2022.
III. That Nigeria under the leadership Mr. President will launch the Report for implementation of the National Programme of Action (NPoA) which is the outcome of the Report.
IV. The launch and implementation of the Country Review Report and the NPoA will help to address the challenges identified in the Report, strengthen democracy and good governance for economic growth and development.
V. This will be done in collaboration with public and private sectors and Civil society organisations.
VI. It is also to inform Nigerians that despite the challenges that the country is currently facing, tremendous progress and success has been made in many areas particularly in infrastructure development, agricultural revolution, humanitarian services, fight against corruption and so many more for which Nigeria was highly commended at the 31st APR Forum on the 4th of February, 2022.
VII. Mr. President has assured that the government will effectively implement the National Programme of Action (NPoA).
VIII. The launch will feature discussions of the outcome of the Report and experience sharing on the best practice by member states.
IX. A Committee has been put in place to study the Report and plan the launch of the Report and the outcomes.
To address the challenges identified in the second Country Review Report, Mr. President has reiterated in his response during the review at the 31st APR Forum that “the Government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria has prioritized” the following:
Building a thriving and sustainable economy;
Enhancing social inclusion and poverty reduction;
Enlarging agricultural output for food security and sufficiency;
Attaining energy sufficiency in power and petroleum products;
Expanding transport and other infrastructural development business growth, entrepreneurship and industrialization;
Access to quality education, affordable healthcare and productivity, social cohesion and security; and
Building a system to fight corruption and improve governance.
In view of the outcome of the Report, AUDA-NEPAD /APRM Nigeria on its own part will ensure the effective implementation of the National Programme of Action (NPoA) at the 36 states and 774 Local Government of the country including FCT as well as ensure the generation of progress Report which is expected to be presented at the upcoming 32nd APR Forum of Heads of State and Government in 2023.
Under the leadership of Mr. President and with the collaboration of the public and private sectors and CSOs, AUDA-NEPAD/APRM Nigeria has continued to make tremendous successes in its mandates, programmesand implementation of Agenda 2063. The following are some of the Agency’s landmark achievements
i. Second Review of the Federal Republic of Nigeria
ii. Reform of NEPAD for effective and efficient service delivery. The Agency is currently awaiting the passage of its Bill
iii. The Innovative Strengthening of Smallholder Farmer Capabilities towards Productive Land Restoration amid Covid-19 in Nigeria
iv. Presidential Infrastructure Initiative through collaboration with relevant Agencies
v. Early warning programmes through collaboration with relevant stakeholders.
A more comprehensive list of all AUDA-NEPAD/APRM programmes and achievements has been available.
The Agency is committed to delivery on its mandates with the continuous support of President Muhammdu Buahri GCFR and relevant stakeholders.
Ladies and Gentlemen of the Press, I am delighted to inform that this Press briefing is part of the review process in commemoration of the endorsement of the Second Review Report of the Federal Republic of Nigeria by the AU-APRM Heads of State and Government.
