By Ayo Kehinde
Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed on Thursday agreed that the biggest challenge the country faced in 2021 is in the are of security.
Speaking at a press conference in Lagos called to showcase the achievements of the administration during 2021, the Minister said; “Let me admit straightaway that the year has not been devoid of challenges. For the outgoing year in particular, the major challenge has been that of insecurity.”
He said in the opening sentence of his long address, that “in spite of this and the usual economic challenges, especially the dwindling resources available to the government, the administration has availed itself creditably”.
He went on to unveil a list of what he called 100 Buhari Administration’s achievements in 2021
They included the various enabling task forces and other operations set up across the country by the Armed Forces of Nigeria to enhance security as well as their involvement in international peace and security efforts and participations in the UN initiatives. Others are the passage of the Petroleum Industrial Act, investments in oil and gas projects; Award of $1.5 billion contract for Rehabilitation of Port Harcourt
Refinery to Tecnimont SPA of Italy; Contract signed to build Maiduguri Emergency Power Project; NNPC Posts N287 billion Profit, the first time it will record such profit in 44 years; Construction/Rehabilitation of 21 Roads under FG’s Road; Infrastructure Development and Refurbishment Investment Tax Credit Scheme; Projects carried out by the Federal Ministry of Works and Housing in 2021.
Also were the designation of Four International Airports in Abuja, Kano, Lagos and Port Harcourt as Special Economic Zones, aimed at encouraging business/investment; Flag-off of the Commercial Operation of Lagos-Ibadan rail line in June 2021; ground breaking of 2,044km Port-Harcourt-Maiduguri Eastern Gauge Railway and the Kano-Kaduna Standard Gauge Rail-line Modernization Project; COVID-19 initiatives across the country, Passport reforms; Expansion of N-Power from 500,000 to 1 million beneficiaries.
Others included the issues of National Identification Number and that of unregistered/improperly-registered SIM cards have been addressed; Creation of 2 Virtual Institutes and training of about 210,000
Nigerians, many of whom received certifications; Successful bidding process to select the companies that will provide 5G network service and the recovery of the economy remained on a steady path throughout the year 2021.
