From India, Malaysia, Brazil to Benue (Nigeria)?
Analysis of Governor Suswam’s Economic and Political agenda for
Benue State
By Prof S.A. IBRAHIM, PROF EBELE. AMALI, and JOE ANUGA
In the beginning
The economic blueprint developed by his Excellency Hon. Gabriel Suswam at his
inauguration as the Executive Governor of Benue State on the 29th of May 2007
was contained in a document titled “Our Benue Our future”. The document was
revealed during his inaugural speech and contains the synopsis of his vision for
transforming the economic fortunes of Benue State for the better during the
period of his stewardship.
Given the nature of the economic problems faced by most developing countries in
general and Nigeria in particular, it goes without saying that people who hold
political offices in these societies have a heavy burden placed upon them by
history. The transformation of many former colonial societies across the Third
World which began to reflect significantly from the late 1980s to the mid 1990s
dearly showed that economic transformation in most societies across the globe,
are a function of internal arrangements and policies as much as they are a
function of the external environment in which global economic activities take
place.
The rise in the economic fortunes of countries like Singapore, South Korea,
Taiwan and the British controlled territory of Hong Kong was a reflection of the
deliberate policies pursued by the political leaders of these societies. Their
success led economists to refer to them as the “Newly Industrialized Economies”.
Utilizing the same set of policies and focusing on their proper implementation,
China, Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand began to emulate the successes achieved
by the four “Asian Tigers” and proved conclusively that the achievement of high
economic growth and an improvement of living standards within any society is a
function of the quality of political leaders that govern it.
This lesson was not lost on leaders from other parts of the globe. India, by the
late 1990s had already achieved a significant level of economic and structural
reforms enabling it to pull millions out of the poverty line and into
prosperity. Russia, Brazil, South Africa, and the Gulf Principality of Qatar had
transformed Dubai into a hub for international economic activity while Mexico,
Argentina and Chile had also gone quite a distance down the road of economic
reforms significantly increasing the living standards of their citizens and
boosting economic growth to very impressive levels.
In studying the policies that have been implemented in these countries and
territories, one is consistently struck by how relatively uniform they are. They
usually include sets of policies to effect fiscal, financial and monetary
reforms to significantly improve access to credit for the private section;
massive investment of state funds in improving upon existing physical
infrastructure and the construction of new ones to cater for projected
transformations; significant improvement in the use of public funds to finance
the educational sector focusing on both formal and technical forms of knowledge
and skill acquisition and committing on the average no less that 23% of total
state revenue to the educational sector; they also embark on the privatization
and commercialization of government owned agencies focusing on policies to
improve their efficiency and limit or do away with their drain of state budgets;
in addition to these, they always streamline the public bureaucracy and
reposition it such that there is a concerted attempt to deal with corruption and
wastage of state resources.
In all of these societies, these policies are pursued with the aim of attracting
foreign investment capital to help improve the capacity of their business
classes as they compete through their exports with the best of business
practices globally. Local comparative advantage usually drives consideration of
what areas can be used to fuel exports (for instance in Indonesia with its
massive forest reserves, a primary focus on the export of timber and related
business fields dealing with technologies compatible with the use of timber;
Qatar has utilized its massive oil reserves and the position of Dubai along the
global trade routes while Singapore has used its location between the great
international currency financial markets in New York and London to launch its
own banks into becoming primary centers of international currency financial
transactions reaping billions of dollars and creating thousands of jobs in the
process).
These introductory observations will guide the framework of our analysis of the
ideas that inform the economic blueprint of his Excellency Rt. Hon. G. Suswam in
Benue State and our appraisal of his ability to fulfill the ideas in his
document “Our Benue Our Future” as he implements the policies of his government
in the course of his first term.
Road to Suswamnomics
Appraisal of the foundational ideas informing Suswan’s economic policies
The foundational principles guiding the economic vision and programmes of his
Excellency Rt. Hon. G. Suswam can be gleaned from this quotation from his
inaugural speech on 29th May 2008. “We shall boost agriculture to ensure food
security, raw materials for our industries and guarantee employment and
meaningful earnings from agricultural ventures…. We shall streamline government
to make it effective, efficient and result-oriented. We also have programme for
urban and environmental renewal, improved housing, employment, general economic
emancipation and poverty eradication.”
An interesting dimension of the principles enunciated in this quotation is the
recognition of the idea of comparative advantage in directing economic policy.
Benue State straddles the River Benue which courses through its territory with
series of connecting streams and tributary rivers. This means that the area is
fertile and a rich source for fisheries. Most of the state has vegetation type,
the Guinea Savannah although in the extreme South – Eastern corner of the State
there are high mountainous elevations with distinct vegetation types closer to
the Rainforest. Also, in the South West, parts of the vegetation type correspond
to the Rainforest also. The vast majority of the population of the State reside
in the rural areas and engage in agriculture as their primary form of economic
activity. Therefore the decision to focus on extending the length of physical
infrastructure in the form of roads, bridges, schools, hospitals and so on
agrees with the observation that State resources if utilized in creating an
enabling environment can lead to impressive levels of economic growth and a
significant improvement in the quality of life of citizens.
Also important is the observation that physical infrastructure in urban areas
particularly in the State capital Makurdi require attention. It goes without
saying that before any prospective investor can reach the rural area, their
first impression which is very important in their assessment of a potential
environment for investment will be in the urban areas. The recognition of the
interconnection of these categories is therefore on the right track.
The thinking behind the extension of physical infrastructure into rural areas is
consistent with the idea that such infrastructure can help improve the value
received through the sale of their agricultural products by the rural
entrepreneurs. This in turn will enhance market efficiency and increase the
revenue base of the State. If this objective is met, the ability of other
investors to recognize an advantage in locating agro-allied industries in the
State can begin the process of industrialization in the area. The utilization of
policy frameworks to purse such an agenda therefore is consistent with the ideal
of moving the economy of the state forward.
Without a doubt, the instruments through which such policies can be properly
articulated and carried out remain the public bureaucracy made up of the entire
work force of the State. The ideas enunciated in the document “Our Benue Our
Future” with regards to the intentions of government for the public work force
is also laudible. It focuses on making the work force more effective, efficient
and result oriented. The former leader of Singapore reputed to be the main
architect of the economic success of the country observed in his memoirs that
the ability of any government to succeed in its intentions begins with its
appreciation of the public bureaucracy as the area of operations where it
succeeds in its intentions or fails.
Developing a proper focus on enhancing the quality of the work force is sine qua
non for achieving government’s goals. In this regard, the decision to include
this dimension of operations in the blueprint is also laudable. Focusing on
aspects such as housing, general economic emancipation, the utilization of an
e-based format for ensuring that workers are paid as and when due should go a
long way in strengthening the effectiveness of the go seeks to carry out its
economic policies.
In line with this, the recognition of the role of health care and related
service delivery is also a step in the right direction. The decision of
government to pursue a policy that will not only lead to the procurement of
drugs for the wider citizenry but aim at making the health sector self reliant
when it comes to drugs manufacturing suggests a futuristic approach to dealing
with the problems in the health sector.
The important role that education plays in the process of economic
transformation is also not lost to the blue print. As a matter of fact its role
is implied as every aspect of economic activity requires the input of qualified
people to actualize. Benue State has one of the highest number of citizens with
formal educational qualifications in Northern Nigeria. It has one state
university, four tertiary institutions, a series of secondary and primary
schools. Utilizing these already existing institutions as infrastructural
framework, the government already has a head start in its attempts to use
education as a leverage to drive economic growth and living standards.
Remarkably, the blue print recognizes the potential for the generating capacity
inherent in Information Communication Technology as well as the role utilizing
science based education to drive growth, improve creativity and transform
individuals and societies.
This dimension of investment has been brought home in its potential by the
example of South Korea which is reputed to be the most connected society in the
world. The vital role that information flows play in the educational system in
South Korea and the impact that this had had in guaranteeing that the nation
remains at the forefront of fast growing economics leaves very few in doubt that
the future of a performing educational system must utilize Information
Communication Technology or else lag behind global trends.
These areas cover the core initiatives of the blueprint for the economic
development programmes of Governor Suswam captured in the document “Our Benue
Our Future”. As we have already seen, these ideas are laudable and are
consistent with the policies utilized by other developing countries in the Third
World as they focused on reforming their societies to generate high economic
growth and improve living standards. Ideals in themselves, however, do not
change reality, rather it is the implementation of these ideas that transform
reality. In this regard, Nigeria as a nation has been observed to suffer a
serious policy implementation deficit. Our appraisal of the performance of
Governor Suswam and his management team shall now focus on how well they have
functioned in implementing these ideas under his leadership.
Ideas to reality
Suswamnonics in the first four years
The four years which saw the effective generation and management of the
budgetary process under Governor Suswam were 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011 which saw
the electoral calendar come around. In 2008 the total sum budgeted was N38.3
billion naira with an 8.5% deficit built into it. The figure for the budget of
2009 was N63.2 billion.
However, only 65% of the total figure or N41.4 billion was realized from all
revenue sources. This happened as a result of the dwindling oil prices caused by
the global financial meltdown which not only slowed down economic activity,
significantly but also led to a depression of commodity prices including crude
oil. It also led to a significant drop in foreign investment flows depressing
the Nigerian Stock Exchange significantly. Fortunately, the State Government
received about N19.4 billion as statutory transfers, about N5.4 billion as Value
added Tax, about N1.7 billion from internally generated revenue a N5.5 billion
loan facility, the combined sum of about N2.02 billion as PAYE and Exchange
Gains Allocation.
Finally, in the same year, the State received the sum of about N4.2 billion from
the Excess Crude Account and about N4.3 billion from Domestic Excess Crude
Proceeds. These augmented the shortfall from expected revenue and 70% of the
budget was implemented. The budget for 2010 was N80.8 billion and this
represents an improvement on the performance of crude oil prices in the
international market and a higher bench mark for the price of crude oil exports
adopted by the Federal Government for its budget in 2010. The 2011 budget was
N71.3 billion.
From the figures of budgeted revenue (though we must bear in mind the critical
shortfall that was witnessed in the 2009 budget year), between 2008 – 2011, the
Benue State Government budgeted a total of N253.4 billion to fund its
activities. How then was this fund used to implement the stated objectives of
the blueprint “Our Benue Our Future” and the principles contained in that
vision?
Urban physical infrastructure
The stated goal of the economic team led by Governor Suswam of utilizing the
creation and expansion of physical infrastructure saw the state government
contributing huge funds towards the development of urban roads across the State.
Over 100 kilometers of roads have been constructed or resurfaced in Makurdi,
Gboko, Otukpo and Katsina Ala. In the 2008 budget, about N10.835 billion was
allocated to the transport subsector. Of this amount over N4 billion was
expended on the road network in Makurdi, Gboko, Otukpo and Katsina Ala. This
bore significant discernable results as Makurdi, the Benue State capital is
arguably the most clean and beautiful state capital in the entire North Central
Zone of Nigeria. One remarkable achievement of the administration’s first 100
days in period following its assumption of office for a second term is the
opening of new streets in Makurdi. In all, seven new township roads have been
tarred while same is being extended on other roads. The roads which have been
completed include NKST Low-level, Abinsi Street, Emmanuel Mande, Asom Bur
Street, Ugbokolo Street, Ushongo Close, Okpoga and Bishop Iyangemar Streets, all
in High-level area of the town while
work is on-going on the Makurdi inner ring road.
The infrastructural development of Makurdi has has made possible the creation of
an Urban Taxi Service modeled on that in Abuja the Federal Capital City of
Nigeria. As things stand now, an investor interested in surveying Benue State
can fly into any international airport in the country and be transported
directly from there to the state using the services of the newly created Urban
Taxi Service. The infrastructural transformation has also seen on 80% booking
rate in practically all hotels in the State as more and more people take
advantage of the new found beauty and aesthetic quality of the main urban areas
in the State.
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