Following the promise to evaluate ministers based on their performance indicators and carry along citizens in its programmes, the Federal Government, on Monday, launched the Citizens’ Delivery Tracker App. ‘LAOLU AFOLABI writes on this initiative and its impact on the citizen-government relationship
The Federal Government, through its Central Coordination Delivery Unit, on Monday, launched the Citizens’ Delivery Tracker, to get feedback on some of its policies and to track any projects of its ministries, departments, and agencies.
Speaking at the launch and public demonstration of the tracker at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel, Abuja, Hadiza Bala Usman, the Special Adviser to the President on Policy and Coordination, who also doubles as the Head of the CCDU, said the Federal Government would hold every minister accountable on key deliverables of their portfolios.
Bala Usman, a former Managing Director of Nigeria Port Authority, was named the Special Adviser to the President on Policy Coordination on June 19, 2023, and the President, at a Federal Executive Council meeting, later announced her alongside Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, as permanent members of FEC. During the cabinet retreat, the President further announced Bala Usman as the ‘headmistress’, to ensure the MDAs run along with the policies of the administration.
Over the years, Nigeria has never been in short supply of good and smart policies, but there have been inconsistencies and poor coordination. Successive administrations had come up with plans to move the country forward, but the implementation of such policies had been poor, a reason the country seems backward. Of note is the FADAMA project to provide food security, the Anchor Borrower Scheme, Cassava Bread policy, Growth Enhancement Support Scheme, Agricultural Transformation Agenda, National Policy on Education, National Population Policy, National Housing Policy, Poverty Alleviation Policy, National Development Plan, among others. All these policies were initiated for the good and progress of the country. However, some of the programmes and policies were either short-lived or dead on arrival, because they were not properly coordinated or given life.
In 2002, via the presidential initiative on cassava, 10 per cent inclusion was made mandatory for baking by the Federal Government. The policy on cassava inclusion stipulated strategies for all categories of bakers to include cassava flour in their products in the country. The policy was initiated by then-President Olusegun Obasanjo. By 2012, President Goodluck Jonathan, through the Agricultural Transformation Agenda and Cassava policy, with the then Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development and now President of African Development Bank, Dr Akinwumi Adesina, pushed ahead to implement the cassava bread initiative. This helped in the massive planting of cassava. The country improved in its production. However, the policy ended with that administration.
In every layer of governance, some of the reasons for poor implementation of policies have been corruption, personal interest above that of the country at the expense of the public, non-alignment of priorities, lack of monitoring unit, overlap in duties and, perhaps, rancour and fight for superiority among heads of MDAs.
In the immediate past administration, there was a reported non-coordination in fiscal and monetary policies. It is worthy of note that most of the activities of the then Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Godwin Emefiele, were not in tandem with the fiscal policies of the former Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed. During the naira redesign crisis, the minister was reported to have told members of the National Assembly that her office was not aware of plans by the CBN to redesign the naira. This shows that even if the policy was good, it was carried out without consulting stakeholders and Nigerians bore the brunt of it.
The appointment of Bala Usman, however, was to help the MDAs achieve the core objectives of the administration, harmonise policy plans by each MDA and ensure that the government delivers values to the governed without each MDA working in conflicting terms.
It will be recalled that President Bola Tinubu had, during the cabinet retreat held for ministers, presidential aides, permanent secretaries, and top government functionaries in November 2023, promised to strengthen the CDCU, in a bid to ensure citizens are an integral part of the monitoring and performance management process of the government.
Shortly after the retreat, the President redefined the priorities of his administration, placing a premium on security, food, infrastructure, education, health, and social investment.
Also, ministers and heads of agencies were asked to submit lists of deliverables and timelines which will be monitored monthly and quarterly through Key Performance Indicators.
The redefined goals of the administration were contained in a January 15, 2024 circular issued by the office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, with copies sent to the Clerk of the National Assembly, the Auditor-General of the Federation, the Accountant-General of the Federation, Heads of Extra-Ministerial Departments/Directors-General and Chief Executive Officers of parastatals, agencies and government-owned companies.
In the release, the Renewed Hope agenda was reprioritised and eight priority areas of the administration were listed: reform the economy to deliver sustained inclusive growth, strengthen national security for peace and prosperity, boost agriculture to achieve food security, unlock energy and natural resources for sustainable development and enhance infrastructure and transportation as enablers of growth.
Others were, to focus on education, health, and social investment as essential pillars of development; accelerate diversification through industrialisation, digitisation, creative arts, manufacturing, and innovation, and improve governance for effective service delivery.
Bala Usman, speaking at the launch of the tracker, said, “The Citizens Delivery Tracker is an application that allows citizens to view the priority programmes and projects of the Federal Government on their devices. We upgraded this application through consultations with a wide spectrum of stakeholders and it is now ready for use.”
She said the CDCU had also developed a Delivery Reporting Framework and Template to accurately assess and report the performance of MDAs, by adopting international best practices and utilising globally-recognised performance indicators and benchmarks to assess the performance of MDAs in the implementation of government priority programmes, projects, and policies.
“Accordingly, I have the pleasure to inform you, gentlemen of the press and all Nigerians, that the Citizens’ Delivery Tracker Application is available for download on the Google Play Store and in the Apple store within the next month,” she said at the event monitored on Zoom.
Speaking on a television programme later on Monday, Bala Usman said the CDCU will respond to citizens’ comments and assessments of deliverables within 24 hours and escalate to the associated MDA to address concerns.
The application, The According gathered, will help citizens to give real-time feedback on their assessment of policies, projects, and programmes of the government from anywhere in the country, with its ease of use and interactive features.
They will be able to evaluate, track, monitor, report, and give feedback on policies, programmes, and projects and to access ministers’ deliverables in the performance bonds they signed with the president, to bring about transparency and accountability
With the tracker app, Nigerians will be able to monitor and evaluate government actions and policies, which, to some, will be a transformative step forward in encouraging an accountable and participatory governance system in the country.
There had been efforts in the past by the media to track the government’s projects across the 774 local government areas of the country. Using the data from the budget, as approved by the National Assembly, some of these projects were tracked to their locations and level of implementation reported. However, for the first time, Nigerians will have access to the deliverables of all ministers, directly from the government itself, in a bid to help citizens as integral stakeholders.
For ministers and heads of government agencies, it may not be business as usual. In separate interviews, Bala Usman had consistently said ministers in President Tinubu’s administration had the understanding that they would sign a performance bond with the President, which would be their social contract, and on that basis they would be appraised every quarter.
The tracker, according to Bala Usman, will be an opportunity for the President to have a clear view of his ministers’ performance from a single click on a portal right in front of his table. It will be a window for citizens’ engagement with the President and a scorecard to know those who are working and those who are not.
Reacting to the development, some Nigerians took to the X (formerly Twitter) handle to speak on the new initiative. Aisha Abdulkadir Yusuf, through her handle, @KwenAisha, said “Being able to evaluate, track, and monitor government policies & programmes is such an empowering opportunity for us as citizens. I can’t wait to download the app, and start using it to stay informed and engaged.”
Another X user, @clementBetiku2, wrote: “This app should be made to cover the lawmakers and the MDA. It will equally allow Nigerians to measure the effectiveness of lawmakers and the MDA (s). States should also think in the direction.”
Also, speaking on the handle, @RealQueenBee_, another concerned X user, said, “Start by publishing your annual budget as a sign of full transparency to your citizens, then they can take you serious (sic).”
A presidential aide, Temitope Ajayi, on his X handle, @TheTope_Ajayi, said “With the launch of the Citizen Delivery Tracker App, the President Tinubu-led administration has taken open governance and accountability to a new height. Nigerians can now monitor what Ministers and Heads of Departments and Agencies of Government are doing to deliver on the eight priority areas of the administration… Now Nigerians will have access to the deliverables of MDAs. The government is also acknowledging the role of citizens as integral stakeholders in monitoring and evaluating performance.”
