.JPG)
The Senior Special Assistant to the President on the Millennium Development Goals, (SSAP-MDGs), Dr Precious Gbeneol has expressed deep concern posed by the twin challenges of insecurity and unemployment to the attainment of the MDGs by the target date of 2015.
Dr Gbeneol, who made this remark on the occasion of World Science Day for Peace and Development held on Sunday, also appealed to the public to embrace peace and heartily support the efforts of President Goodluck Jonathan to ensure a secured society where the larger population can access meaningful and sustainable employment.
In a statement signed by the Head, Information and Communication, Dr Christopher Otabor, the Presidential Adviser noted that no meaningful development can be achieved in an environment that is threatened by insecurity and where the populace are not gainfully employed.
According to Gbeneol, the security challenges in the country, especially in the North-eastern zone has not only prevented the needed development, but has also drastically reversed the enormous gains earlier recorded by the government with regards to the attainment of the MDGs.
Dr Gbeneol noted that Nigeria has made real progress in the efforts to eradicate extreme poverty since the country, alongside other developed countries adopted the Millennium Development Goals in 2000. But, insecurity and unemployment remain a major concern. “There is no doubt that improved growth performance and macroeconomic stability have provided conducive environment for policies and programmes towards the achievement of the MDGs. But we as a country, with everyone involved must be committed to the course of security and development. Individuals and private sectors must support government efforts to create jobs for the people.”
The presidential aide acknowledged the dogged commitment of the President Jonathan and the efforts of the Federal Government to create jobs through different initiatives like the Conditional Cash transfer (CCT), YouWin and other efforts aimed at boosting the productive capacity in the Nigerian economy especially urged support for the Agricultural Transformation Agenda. Specifically she noted that Nigeria has partly achieved the goal one which deals with eradication of extreme poverty and hunger ahead of target date of 2015 by reducing the proportion of people suffering from hunger by 50 per cent.
Dr Gbeneol noted that though MDG 1: “Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger”, remains one of the most difficult to attain in view of the current challenges, there is however a better outlook on hunger reduction. “Given the consistent progress in the past decade and current efforts through the agricultural transformation agenda, it is possible that the proportion of under-5 children that are underweight, now 24.0 percent, can be brought down to 17.85 percent by 2015.”
The presidential Aide also stated that the outlook for achieving MDG 2 – “Achieve universal basic education” is generally bright if current efforts are sustained and accelerated, while Nigeria remains perfectly on track on MDG 3: “Promote gender equality and empower women” with the country’s track record and present status indicate bright prospects of achieving gender parity in primary and secondary enrolment by 2015. Realising this prospect will however depend on the intensification of current interventions to promote girl-child education.
“Also, wide rural-urban gaps coupled with wide variations in MDGs status across states threaten the attainment of the 2015 targets. Therefore, to realise the national MDGs targets requires concerted efforts, not only in accelerating overall progress, but also in targeting low-performing states. In the same vein, as we inch closer to 2015 and to support a comprehensive end-point assessment of the overall MDGs experiences, it is imperative to strengthen data collection and analysis, sufficiently disaggregated to capture subnational realities.” Gbeneol Stated.
On the whole, the Presidential Adviser maintained that the country is on track. Nigeria was honoured for the achievement at the week-long 38th session of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation, FAO’s highest governing body in Rome earlier in the year, which was designed to review the state of hunger and food security in the world alongside 37 other developing countries, institutions and individuals for outstanding action against hunger. FAO had indicated that Nigeria got the award because it has been able to reduce the number of her citizens suffering from hunger from 19.31 million in 1990 and 1992 to 13.38 in 2010 and
2012.
The world body also noted that there has been a decline in the prevalence of under-nourishment in the country from 19.3 per cent in 1990/1991 to 8.5 per cent by 2010/2012. This is below the MDG target of 9.7 per cent that was set for 2015. While noting that the progress recorded by Nigeria has been attributed to the commitment of federal government to the fight against hunger through a multi-sectoral approach which has the Agricultural Transformation Agenda at its centre, Gbeneol said it is now up to Nigerians to ensure that the momentum is sustained. She also said the Office of the Senior Special Assistant to the President on MDGs has also played a central role in the success of the agricultural transformation agenda through interventions aimed at enhancing food security such as Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) programme being implemented under the Conditional Grants Scheme.
“The 56,000 low-income households engaged in CCT scheme across 24 states of the federation will be given the sum of N100, 000 as principal startup capital for an agricultural enterprise at their exit from the programme. The condition for the release of this sum is the completion of 3-month training in an agro-business. Households are supported to invest in poultry, fishery, backyard vegetable production, amongst other areas,” said Gbeneol.
She also said OSSAP-MDGs has consistently supported the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development in three principal areas which include training of youth and women in agricultural practices, funding of extension services, and construction of rural feeder roads. With the support, Gbeneol noted that Federal Ministry of Agriculture has in the past three years been able to train 5,000 youths in ten different value chains and provide start-up packages for 6,000 youths including access to credit and other inputs through the Growth Enhancement Scheme (GES); training of 2,500 women in poultry, bull fattening, sheep and goat production, bee keeping, crop value chains and extension among others.
