As the Coronavirus pandemic bites harder across the globe with dreaded economic effects, the Ondo State Governor, Oluwarotimi Akeredolu on Saturday announced the appointment of a seven-man Response Fund Committee.
The committee of eminent professionals of the state origin to is to raise and manage resources in cash or in kind from individuals, groups of individuals, private and public organizations, local and foreign donor agencies to be used to complement the efforts of the state government on the current war being waged against the spread of the disease in the state.
The Governor, in a statement signed on his behalf by the State Commissioner for Information, Donald Ojogo, announced the Chairman of Greenwich Trust Limited, Kayode Falowo as chairman; while the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of DeltaTek and DeltaAfrik Engineering and Oil and Gas Limited, Akinwumi Odumakinde will serve as deputy chairman.
Other members of the committee are Adesegun Fatusi, a Professor of Community Medicine and Public Health and current Vice Chancellor of the state-owned University of Medical Sciences, Ondo (UNIMED); Cecilia Akintomide, a non-executive director in the Board of FBN Holdings, and former Vice-President and Secretary-General of the African Development Bank (AfDB), and seasoned lawyer and CEO of JOF Nigeria Ltd, Segun Fagboyegun.
Akeredolu also confirmed the appointment of Ernst and Young, SIAO Partners as fund advisors and auditors, respectively, both will be providing their services without charge.
“The committee’s mandate, amongst others, is to help mobilize funds, in cash or in kind, and manage the efficient and transparent utilization,” Ojogo said.
He listed the Terms of Reference of the Committee as follows:
“Recommend and advise the government on funding strategies; manage funds mobilized; direct funding campaign; identify and contact effective funding channels/sources and carry out any other activities for the success of the above-mentioned.
He added that the Response Fund Committee will work closely with the State Inter-ministerial Committee and, and was expected to begin work immediately till the pandemic is wiped out of Ondo State and Nigeria in general.
It said the Committee would provide weekly reports and submit a concrete report at the end of its activities.
