Why Tinubu Should Cut Down Cost Of Governance — AfDB President

The President-elect, Bola Tinubu, has been tasked with cutting down the cost of governance by the president of the African Development Bank (AfDB), Dr Akinwumi Adesina.

Adesina gave the admonition at the inauguration lecture as part of activities lined up for Monday’s swearing-in of Tinubu as Nigeria’s next president.

He stated that the size of government which is bloated comes with a high cost of public sector expenditure and its negative impact on the development process in the country.

“The cost of governance in Nigeria is way too high and should be drastically reduced to free up more resources for development. Nigeria is spending very little on development.

“Today, Nigeria is ranked among countries with the lowest human development index in the world, with a rank of 167 among 174 countries globally, according to the World Bank 2022 Public Expenditure Review report”, Adesina said.

“Unless the economy is revived and fiscal challenges addressed boldly, resources to develop will not be there.

“No bird can fly if its wings are tied. Nigeria currently faces huge fiscal deficits, estimated at 6% of GDP.

“This has been due to huge federal and state government expenditures, lower receipts due to dwindling revenues from the export of crude oil, vandalism of pipelines and illegal bunkering of crude oil”, he added.