The Minister of Communication Technology, Omobola Johnson
on Tuesday, briefed the President on the performance of her Ministry posting an
appalling 16 percent utilization of funds appropriated under the 2012 budget
Briefing newsmen at State House, Abuja after her session
with the President Mrs Johnson also made some startling revelations about what
was hindering ICT in Nigeria from attaining full potentials
The Communication Technology Ministry was created by
President Jonathan last year to underscore the importance he places on this
sector for transforming Nigeria into a major player on the globe
But the slow pace of implementation of the 2012 budget
shows anything but a Ministry ready to transform an economy as what was primed
to be a presentation laced with technical jargon only revealed a Ministry that
had largely under performed
Mrs Johnson explains that this is because of the
complexity of the projects being implemented most of which will be completed
next year and have been provided for in the 2013 budget
The Communications Technology Minister also corrects
certain impressions about the telecommunications Industry noting that in spite
of its seeming success it has only achieved sixty percent penetration of the
country's terrain
She stresses that provision of infrastructure is the major
problem in the industry and this is being addressed with a fund that has been
put in place and emphasis on private sector participation
The Communications Technology Minister cleverly avoided
answering questions about how much funds had accrued to the Federal Government
coffers through charges, penalties and fees as if they did not form part of
performance indicators
The Communications
Technology Minister is however confident that with the policies and delivery of
sixteen projects currently under construction, there will be a dramatic
transformation of ICT in Nigeria in the years to come
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