Oil price: National Planning Minister urges states to develop contingency plans

Minister of National Planning, Dr. Abubakar Sulaiman, has advised states to develop contingency plans to complement Federal Government revenue should oil price decline continue.

The Minister gave the advice in Ibadan, Oyo State capital, recently in his keynote address at the meeting of the National Council on Development Planning (NCDP), which he chaired him with the states Commissioners for Economic Planning as members of council
“I am pleased to inform you that National Planning Commission is working closely with the Federal Ministry of Finance and the central bank in developing a contingency plan at the national level. The states are also advised to develop their strategic plans, as well as the associated contingency plans to complement efforts of the Federal Government. Commissioners for Economic Planning are therefore expected to lead the process in their respective states,” he said.
The Minister also explained that the decline in crude oil price from $100 to $80 per barrel in the recent past has the potential of affecting the economic performance of member nations of OPEC including Nigeria and by extension the states that rely on crude oil as major revenue receipts.
While emphasising the need for cooperation among all tiers of government to achieve desired result, the Minister said, “the Federal Government cannot do it alone; neither can the state and local governments. We all need to work together to achieve our common goals and aspirations of enhancing strategic planning and building resilience. There must therefore be synergy of purpose so that progress can be brought to our people within a short period.”
In his address, Oyo State Governor, Abiola Ajimobi, also stressed the need for effective collaboration between the states and the Federal Government in addressing all matters of national development.
He commended the NPC for driving laudable initiatives for the nation to achieve purposeful growth and transformative development.
The NCDP body was established in accordance with the National Planning Commission Act 1993, as one of the key statutory bodies constituted to facilitate and coordinate the economic development process at the federal and sub-national levels in the country.
The meeting of the council is expected to be held on bi-annual or annual basis and its recommendations are expected to serve as critical inputs to the meetings of National Economic Council (NEC) under the chairmanship of the Vice President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
The Ibadan meeting of the NCDP, which is the second to be held this year, has the theme, “Enhancing Strategic Planing for Transformative Development and Building Resilience.”
According to Sulaiman, the theme is apt, timely and a reflection of collective aspiration to initiate policies and programmes aimed at transforming the Nigerian economy for enhanced growth and development, which, he said, is also consistent with the aspirations of Transformation Agenda and NV20:2020.