Friday, June
12, 2020 / 08:30 AM / State House / Header Image Credit: @NTANewsNow
Being an Address By His Excellency Muhammadu Buhari,
President of The Federal Republic of Nigeria during The (2020 Democracy Day) at
the State House, Abuja) on 12th June, 2020.
Fellow Nigerians,
The 2020 celebration of Democracy Day marks 21 year of
uninterrupted civil administration in our dear country. This day provides us an
opportunity to reflect on our journey as a nation, our achievements and
struggles.
2. It is a day to honour our founding fathers who
toiled to establish our republic and every Nigerian who has worked tirelessly
to sustain it.
3 We are celebrating this year's Democracy Day despite
the COVID nineteen pandemic which afflicts our nation and the whole world.
4 It is indeed a very difficult time for everyone
especially those who have lost loved ones to the virus and those whose sources
of livelihood have been severely constrained by the stringent measures we
introduced at every level of government to contain the virus and save lives.
5. The dedication of our health and other essential services
staff towards containing this virus is a testament of our courage and
resilience as a people and as a great nation, and I use this opportunity to say
thank you to all of you for your service to the nation.
6. Sustaining our democracy thus far, has been a
collective struggle and I congratulate all Nigerians and particularly leaders
of our democratic institutions for their resilience and determination to ensure
that Nigeria remains a shining example of democracy.
7. In my 2019 democracy day address I promised to
frontally address the nation's daunting challenges, especially insecurity,
economy and corruption. I therefore find it necessary to give an account of my
stewardship on this day.
8. We have recorded notable achievements in the course
of implementing our nine priority objectives and are establishing a solid
foundation for future success.
9. On the economic front, our objectives have remained
to stabilize the macro-economy, achieve agricultural and food security, ensure
energy sufficiency in power and petroleum products, develop infrastructure,
fight corruption and improve governance.
10. We have witnessed eleven quarters of consecutive
GDP growth since exiting recession. The GDP grew from one point nine-one
percent in 2018 to two point two-seven percent in 2019 but declined to one
point eight-seven percent in the first quarter of 2020 as a result of the
decline in global economic activities due to the COVID nineteen pandemic.
11. Every single economy in the world has suffered a
decline. Ours has been relatively moderate.
12. In order to stabilize the economy, the
Monetary Authority took steps to build the external reserves which resulted in
improved liquidity in the foreign exchange market. The external reserves grew
from thirty three point four-two billion US dollars on April 29th 2020 to about
thirty six billion US dollars in May, 2020 which is enough to finance seven
months of import commitments.
13. Agriculture remains the key to our economic
diversification strategy. The Presidential Fertilizer Initiative programme
continues to deliver significant quantities of affordable and high-quality
fertilizers to our farmers. This initiative has also revived 31 blending plants
and created a significant number of direct and indirect jobs across the value
chain
14. Government is also revamping the cotton, textile
and garment sector via a CBN Textile Revival Intervention Fund that would
considerably reduce foreign exchange spent on cotton and other textile imports.
15. Through the food security initiative, we are
promoting "Grow What We Eat and "Eat What We Grow'. I am also
delighted that more and more Nigerians are taking advantage of the
opportunities in the agriculture and agri-business sector. I assure you that
government will continue to support Agriculture sector through the CBN Anchor
Borrowers Programme and similar schemes.
16. To protect our farming investments, we have
deployed five thousand Agro-Rangers and employed thirty thousand two hundred
and eighty nine in our para-military agencies We are also integrating rural
communities to the formal economy by extending access to credit and inputs to
rural farmers and building feeder roads.
17. Our efforts on growing non-oil exports have
started to yield some results. For instance, in the past year, our revenue from
Cocoa and Sesame Seed increased by seventy nine point four million US dollars
and one hundred and fifty three million US dollars.
18 Africa presents a huge opportunity for our export
base diversification and we are developing our strategy to grow intra-Africa
trade through the Africa Continental Free Trade Area Agreement.
19. Business ranking from 146th to 131st and is now
rated as one of the top ten performing countries.
Nigeria has risen by 25 places on the World Bank's
Ease of Doing Business ranking from 146th to 131 and is now rated as one of the
ten top performing countries.
20 This development is due to the Visa on Arrival
policy, consistent promotion of initiatives that expand facilities available to
Micro Small and Medium Scale Enterprises, robust electronic registration and
payment system, seamless processing of business registration and reduction of
cost of registering business by 50%.
21 We are confident that on-going efforts would result
in further improvement of this rating
22. We remain committed to expanding our mining
sector. To this end I have directed the resuscitation of the Ajaokuta Steel
Plant based on Government-to-Government financing and a Public-Private Sector
financing.
23 With foreign and domestic investments and the
participation of Small Scale Miners, we are harnessing the supply value chain
in gold production.
24. We would also be launching a fully digitized
mineral rights management platform for quick processing of mineral rights
application digitization of records and plugging revenue leakages.
25 The Power Sector remains very critical to meeting
our industrial development aspirations and we are tackling the challenges that
still exist in the delivery of power through different strategies
26 We are executing some critical projects through the
Transmission Rehabilitation and Expansion Programme including the:
a.
Alaoji to Onitsha, Delta Power Station to Benin and Kaduna to Kano
b.
330KV DC 62KM line between Birnin Kebbi and Kamba
c
Lagos/Ogun Transmission Infrastructure Project
d.
Abuja Transmission Ring Scheme, and
e.
Northern Corridor Transmission Project.
27. Our agreement with Siemens will transmit and
distribute a total of 11,000 Megawatts by 2023, to serve our electricity needs.
28. On transportation, another critical sector to
improving our Economic competitiveness, we are growing the stock and quality of
our road, rail, air and water transport infrastructure.
29. Through the SUKUK-Funded Road Projects, a total of
four hundred and twelve kilometers of the targeted six hundred and forty three
kilometers road projects have been completed, representing 64%.
30. The Presidential infrastructure Development Fund
projects are also progressing very well.
31. On the 2nd Niger Bridge, piling work has been
completed and the approach roads are being constructed. 48% of work on this
bridge has been achieved
32. We have constructed one hundred and two kilometers
of the three hundred and seventy six kilometers Abuja Kaduna - Kano Road
representing 38%, and the forty two point nine kilometers Obajana -Kabba Road
is 87.03% complete.
33. Furthermore, the Federal Roads Maintenance Agency
has completed routine maintenance on over four thousand kilometers of federal
roads out of the five thousand kilometers targeted.
34 . We are extending and upgrading our railway
network too. We are introducing more locomotives, coaches and wagons for the
Abuja- Kaduna Rail Line.
35. The Central Ajaokuta - Itakpe Warri Line has been
completed and is being extended from itakpe to Abuja on one end and from Wari
Town to Warri Port on the other.
36 The Lagos-lbadan Rail Line is 90% completed and
would be extended to the Lagos Port which would help address the long-standing
grid-lock at the Apapa port.
37. The Kano-Maradi Single Track Standard Gauge
Railway Coastal Railway Project and Port Harcourt- Maiduguri Standard Gauge
Railway, with its associated branch lines running through the South Eastern and
Gombe States, industrial park and Bonny Deep Sea Port are all ready for
concessioning
38. Government continues to make investments in the
Aviation sector to position it as a travel and trade hub in West Africa and the
wider African continent.
39. Airport Terminals in Abuja, Lagos, Kano and Pot
Harcourt are being expanded, while the rehabilitation of the Enugu Airport is
almost completed. All our airports are being raised to international standards
with the provision of necessary equipment, especially navigational aids, to
guarantee world class safety standards.
40. For the first time in over ten years, Nigeria is
conducting bidding process for 57 Marginal Oil Fields to increase revenue
and increase the participation of Nigerian companies in oil and exploration and
production business.
41. We continue to grow local content in other areas of
the oil and gas sector with the disbursement of funds from the two hundred
million US dollars Nigerian Content Intervention Fund to indigenous
manufacturers and service providers
42. With sustained engagement of youths, opinion
leaders and other stakeholders, We have restored peace in the Niger Delta
Region and maintained our oil production levels.
43. The Head office of the Niger Delta Development
Commission will be commissioned shortly. The Funding of sections I-IV of
the East-West Road shall be pursued with a view to completing the project by
the end of 2021.
44. Furthermore, I am determined to ensure that
development meant for the people of the Niger Delta get to them so I have
authorized a Forensic Audit of the Niger Delta Development Commission.
45 Digital Economy continues to play an
important role in our development agenda as we move into the age of Artificial
intelligence
46. Since the creation of the Ministry of
Communication and Digital Economy. the National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy
has been launched. Steps have been taken to achieve a reduction of connectivity
cluster gaps from two hundred and seven to one hundred and fourteen as well as
increase the level of 4G coverage by 30%.
47. Nigeria remains committed to expanding access to
quality education to enhance the productivity of its citizens and would
continue to pursue the enforcement of free and compulsory basic education for
the first 9 years of schooling.
48. In pursuit of this, we have launched the Better
Education Service Delivery for All in 17 states, established additional 6
Federal Science and Technical Colleges and currently executing a pro-active
Teacher Training Plan with all states of the Federation.
49. In our revision of the operations of specialized
education funds and to implement reforms that would optimize their
benefits to the sector, we have adopted a Public-Private Sector Partnership for
provision of infrastructure and also collaborate with the private sector to
create jobs.
50. Our pursuit of affordable housing for the low and
middle-in Come earners has received a boost with the delivery of one thousand
two hundred housing units, provision of five hundred and twenty Service plots
with infrastructure through a Public Private Sector partnership and the issuance
of eight hundred and sixty eight mortgages totaling seven point seven billion
Naira. Similarly, Home Renovation Loans totaling sixteen point two billion
Naira have been granted to nineteen thousand two hundred and ten people.
51. To enable sustainable access to safe and
sufficient water to meet the social, cultural, environmental and economic
development needs of all Nigerians we continue to expand our water supply,
irrigation and dam facilities.
52. The Completion of Amauzari, Amla Otukpo and other
42 Earth Dams with combined job creation of about forty three thousand, three
hundred and fifty four direct jobs and seventy one thousand, one hundred and
seventy two indirect jobs, would provide more support for irrigation
agriculture and water supply.
53. To further institutionalize our effort in this
regard, I signed the Executive Order 009 on Ending Open Defecation in Nigeria.
54. In order to improve our forest cover and in
fulfillment of my commitment at the 74th session of the United Nations General
Assembly in 2019, we have commenced the planting of twenty five million trees.
This initiative will also contribute to our effort to
mitigate the effect of climate change.
55. In the area of security, we remain unshaken in our
resolve to protect our national infrastructure including on-shore and off-shore
oil installations, secure our territorial waters and end piracy in the Gulf of
Guinea.
56 The nation is being accorded appropriate priorities
and the men and women of the Armed Forces of Nigeria have considerably
downgraded such threats across all geo-political zones.
57 Ending insurgency, banditry and other forms of
criminality across the nation is being accorded appropriate priorities and the
men and women of the Armed Forces of Nigeria have considerably downgraded such
threats across all geo-political zones.
58. All the Local Governments that were taken over by
the Boko Haram Insurgents in Borno, Yobe and Adamawa have long been recovered
and are now occupied by indigenes of these areas who were hitherto forced to
seek a living in areas far from their ancestral homes.
59. The total collapse of the economies of these
areas, which constituted a threat to our food security, has also been reversed
with the gradual recovery of farming and other economic activities.
60 I regret recent sporadic incidents with tragic loss
of lives in Katsina and Borno States as a result of criminals taking advantage
of COVID-19 restrictions. Security Agencies will pursue the perpetrators
and bring them to swift justice.
61. I must implore state and local governments to
revamp thei intelligence assets so that the Security Agencies can nip in the
bud any planned attacks in remote rural areas. I send my heartfelt condolences
to all the relatives and communities affected
62. As part of the strengthening of our internal
security architecture, the Ministry of Police Affairs was created.
63. Amongst others, Government has expanded the
National Command and Control Centre to nineteen states of the federation
resuscitated the National Public Security Communication System and commenced
the implementation of the Community Policing Strategy.
64. Government has similarly established a Nigerian
Police Trust Fund as a public-private sector vehicle for alternative sources of
funding security activities.
65.To reduce security challenges through our external
borders especially smuggling of oil products out of the country, inflow of
small arms and drugs into the country and equally protect our local
manufacturers, we introduced operation "Ex-Swift Response" closing
our borders from August 20th 2019 and have considerably succeeded in meeting
its objectives as well as improving our national revenue.
66. Our Government has continued to work to reduce
social and economic inequality through targeted social investment programmes,
education, technology and improved information.
67. Our Social Investment Programme has continued to
be a model to other nations and has engaged five hundred and forty nine
thousand five hundred N-Power beneficiaries, four hundred and eight thousand
,six hundred and eighty two beneficiaries of the Conditional Cash Transfer
Programme and two million, two hundred and thirty eight thousand, three hundred
and thirty four beneficiaries of the Growth Enhancement and Empowerment
Programme. This is being done in collaboration with the States.
68. Similarly, Marketmoni" and Tradermoni"
Programmes haveprovided affordable loans to small and micro scale enterprises
to grow their businesses. Under the National Home-Grown School Feeding
Programme, over 9,963,729 children are being fed to
keep them in school and improve their nutritional status.
69. Fellow Nigerians, the year 2020 has been like none
other In January 2020, the COVID nineteen was declared a global pandemic by the
World Health Organization. The number of global infections has risen from
less than 8,000 shared between China and eighteen other countries to over
7million spread over 216 countries and on all continents.
70. Nigeria recorded its first case of COVID nineteen
on February 27th 2020 and within the first hundred days; I have had cause to
address the nation on three occasions within one month, which underscores the
gravity of this pandemic.
71. There is no doubt that this pandemic has affected
the global economy and all known socio-economic systems. It has also brought
grief and pain to families that have lost their loved ones. Like many Nigerians
I feel the grief and pain not only as your President but also as someone who
has lost a close member of my staff and some relatives and friends.
72. In order to have a robust National response, I
approved a Presidential Task Force on COVID nineteen to provide guidance and
leadership in tackling the pandemic nationwide.
73. State Governments also constituted their own COVID
nineteen Task Forces Complementing this was the establishment of a National
Emergency Operations Centre responsible for providing technical and
professional guidance in the National Response.
74 The overall objective of the PTF COVID nineteen is
to ensure that the pandemic does not overwhelm our health systems, while
ensuring that we maintain an effective Case Management System to help in
containing the spread of the virus.
75 The impact of the pandemic has disrupted our
economic systemand to ensure its functioning while still addressing the spread,
the Federal Government put in place a number of various non pharmaceutical
measures to slow down the spread of the virus, in addition to a progressive
re-opening of the economy.
76. As part of the strategy to create jobs in reducing
the effect of COVID nineteen on our youths, I directed the employment of seven
hundred and seventy four thousand Nigerians.
77. These youths will be engaged in Special Public
Works Programme aimed at cushioning the effects of economic downturn. Each of
the seven hundred and seventy four local government areas in the country will
be allotted one thousand slots. I am pleased to report that this programme has
commenced.
78. I receive regular briefing from the PTF on COVID
nineteen. I note that the National Response relies on Science, Data and
Experience in taking decisions. This informed my approval for the ease of lock
down phase to ensure a balance between lives and livelihoods.
79. I am confident that the steps being taken by the
PTF would result in flattening the COVID nineteen curves. I, therefore, implore
all Nigerians to abide by the approved guidelines and protocols. There is hope
for us all if we take individual and collective responsibility.
80. Government is determined to turn this COVID
nineteen challenge into a motivation to action by building a nation-wide public
health care system that will help us overcome the COVID nineteen pandemic and
prepare for any future outbreak.
81. Already, we have begun to look inward and I charge
our inventors, researchers and scientists to come up with solutions to cure
COVID nineteen.
82. Government has continued to implement
accountability and transparent policies through the Open Government Partnership
and the transparency portal on financial transactions.
Similarly, we have strengthened auditing and
accountability mechanisms so as to ensure that rules and regulations are
followed strictly.
83. Anti-Corruption Agencies have secured more than
one thousand four hundred convictions and also recovered funds in excess of
eight hundred billion Naira. These monies are being ploughed into development
and infrastructure projects.
84. The Public Service of Nigeria remains the bedrock
for the formulation and implementation of policies, programmes and projects in
the country. This accounts for why it continues to evolve especially as new
socio -economic challenges emerge for Government to address.
85. I will continue to give all the necessary support
for the on-going reforms designed to return discipline, integrity and
patriotism as the hallmark of the public service.
86. In the face of dwindling resources and rising cost
of governance have authorized that the White Paper on the Rationalization of
Government Parastatals and Agencies be reviewed for implementation.
87. Our youth population remains a source of
strength in achieving development objectives. In this regard, we would continue
to concentrate in developing their skills, providing them with opportunities to
express their entrepreneurial, research and industrial capacities as well as
ample opportunity to take leadership positions in the service of the nation.
88. The commitment of this Administration to the
well-being of people living with disabilities remains unwavering. Government
recognizes their contributions to development.
89. I have directed that all relevant Government
agencies pay special attention to the peculiarities of persons with
disabilities in the formulation and implementation of their policies and
programmes, and where suitable their employment.
90. Nigerian women remain a particular treasure to
this nation and for this reason this Administration has continued to give them
a place of pride in the affairs of our country
91. I salute your courage, enterprise and resilience
as well as your contributions to national development. I wish to assure all our
women of this administration's determination to fight Gender Based Violence
through the instrumentality of the law and awareness creation. I am
particularly upset at recent incidents of rape especially of very young girls.
The Police are pursuing these cases with a view to bringing girls perpetrators
of these heinous crimes to swift justice
92. Government continues to recognize and harness the
power of the media for positive development. The reforms of the broadcast and
advertising industries including digital switch over and continuous engagement
through town hall meetings remain central to accurate and credible information
dissemination.
93. Our culture provides the basis for our existence
as a people and a nation. In preserving iconic aspects of our national culture,
this government has been pursuing the recovery of artifacts stolen from
Nigeria, promoting heritage sites and festivals and working towards designating
some of our heritage sites as UNESCO World Heritage Centres.
94. This administration is focused on ensuring that
Nigeria would always be governed by the Rule of Law and I would do my utmost to
uphold the constitution and protect the lives and property of all Nigerians.
95. Government has initiated a number of policies and
programmes designed to promote the legal rights of Nigerians, facilitate the
institutionalization of a responsive legal system, provide support to all
constituted bodies in implementing their mandates and improve our custodial
system of justice
96 The National Assembly has been an important partner
in our quest to sustain our democracy and achieve our development objectives
97. I therefore greatly thank the leadership and
members of the Senate and the House of Representatives for their invaluable support
at all times
98. I will also like to convey our deep appreciation
to members of the Press for your doggedness in the struggle for attainment of
democracy since the beginning of our nationhood.
99. I must admit that the relationship between the media
and successive governments has not always been perfect. But there is no denying
the fact that you have been an effective watchdog for the society especially in
holding public officers to account. It is sad that in the course of securing
our democracy, some of your colleagues have had to pay a heavy price
100. We will continue to guarantee freedom of the
Press as we place high premium on responsible journalism that is devoid of hate
speech fake news and other unethical professional conduct.
101. Fellow Nigerians, as we celebrate this year's
Democracy Day, let us remember that, notwithstanding our aspirations, humanity
and indeed democracy is under the threat of COVID nineteen.
102. Nigeria has survived many crises before and came
out stronger. am confident that by God's grace we shall overcome this one and
emerge stronger and more purposeful. Thank you for listening. God Bless the
Federal Republic of Nigeria.
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