Rotimi Agboluaje, Ibadan
The Oyo State Government disclosed at the weekend that the public and private sectors as well as communities would be adequately mobilized and empowered as partners to make patriotic contributions to the state especially in the areas of revenue generation and development process.
It stated that strategies for revenue generation would be deployed based on its peculiarities and unique strengths for development, noting that there would be institutional framework for economic planning, budgeting and development that would coordinate strategies across Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs).
This move will serve as a pre-requisite for attracting resources from multilateral/bilateral development partners as well as direct foreign investors.
These were part of the recommendations made at the end of a 3-day Workshop on Institutional Reforms themed ‘development planning and development cooperation: vehicle for socio-economic development in Oyo state’ organized by the state government at the House of Chiefs, State Secretariat, Ibadan.
The workshop, which had top government functionaries in attendance, was facilitated by a team of resource persons led by a Development Cooperation Expert, Dr. Yisa Kolawole, in line with the principle of the state’s budget of self-reliance.
In her remarks, the Host and Special Adviser to Governor Abiola Ajimobi on Intervention funds and Developmental Projects, Dr. Adebukola Adebusoye, pledged that government would continue to advocate and promote the culture of value chain, especially towards agribusiness activities to enhance revenue base, noting that a combination of strategies for improved tax and non-tax revenues is important for equity in the system.
She assured that Ajimobi administration will work towards achieving a reliable database which will be adopted as a reference platform at all times, stressing that reliable data base will aid the intervention projects, programs and initiative of the Development partners to expand the frontiers of opportunity/cooperation required for the socio-economic development of the state.
Dr. Adebusuyi stated that the 3-day workshop was organized to create awareness on the new paradigm in development planning and international cooperation as a cost effective/feasible option for economic growth and development.
