THE BUSINESS of GOVERNANCE
Newsletter No 77 | November 2023
Hello Yisahu,
How are you doing?
The year is winding down. And what a year it has been! I pray that God protects us and our loved ones so we will all witness the year 2024 in Jesus’ name!
As you may already know, December is my birth month. This year, I will be celebrating my birthday at the Fasola Agribusiness Industrial Hub.
The month of December is generally a time for reflection as we make plans towards the new year. It is a time for me to reflect again on why I chose to get into politics. It has always been about serving humanity and moving as many people as possible in Oyo State from poverty into prosperity. This has remained a mantra for our administration since 2019 as we pursued people-centred policies and programmes.
True, sometimes we make plans, and they do not work out exactly as envisaged, but in general, we try to do what is right for our people and make amends where necessary to stick to this goal. 2024 presents another opportunity for us to use our budget to create economic stability for our people. As I have always maintained, handouts and palliatives are good, but sustainable development is far more important.
Commissioning of the Organisation of the Tadhamunul Muslimeen Mosque, Adogba, Iwo Road
In the next few days, I will present our 2024 Budget for Economic Recovery before the House of Assembly. I must state that I appreciate the recent interest people have shown in line items in the 2023 budget. But as our Commissioner for Budget and Economic Planning pointed out, learning about and following the implementation process is more important. That a budget has been approved does not mean that the money will be released.
Also, in the spirit of my reflections, I have decided to read a book written by our own Professor Banji Oyelaran-Oyeyinka, a development Economist and currently the Senior Special Adviser on Industrialisation to the President of the African Development Bank (AfDB). The book is titled Rich Country, Poor People: Reversing Nigeria’s Story of Inequality and Poverty Amid Plenty to a Story of Shared Prosperity.
If other thoughts penned down by Prof are anything to go by, I believe I will be learning vital lessons from this book that will assist my team and me in making even better decisions that will bring economic prosperity to our people.
One of the things that Prof talked about in this book is the need for industrialisation. Of course, we cannot achieve a rise in manufacturing without creating a conducive environment. This is why we have always said that government should concentrate on creating an enabling environment so that private investments can thrive. I will definitely share any additional insights I find in my next newsletter.
Talk to you again soon.
Seyi Makinde
