Reps to legislate 10-year National Development Plan

A legislation which seeks a  revitalised  National Development Plan for acceleration of infrastructural development is to be slated for debate on the floor of the House of Representatives.

BusinessDay findings show that some of the previous national development plans initiated between 1958 to 1962, 1970-1974; 1975-1980; 1990-1992 and 2010-2020, have no legislative framework of the National Assembly.

The already gazzetted legislative framework titled ‘An Act to provide for National Planning process and for other related matters’, for second reading, sponsored by Uchechukwu Nnam-Obi, provides that “each National Development Plan shall be prepared for a period of 10 years in perspective,” as stipulated in section 11 of the bill.

Analysts say a new National Development Plan should emphasize Public Private Partnerships to build badly needed infrastructure, free markets, limit government’s role in business, improving the ease of doing business/ business climate and diversifying the economy away from oil.

The bill seen by BusinessDay also seeks for periodic review and assessment of a National Development Plan to ensure better parliamentary oversight of the national development planning and implementation process.

The primary objective of the legislation “is to create a framework for the process of national development planning in Nigeria without detracting from the generality of the foregoing, specifically to: promote the process of national planning, which will be all inclusive and democratic in nature and accommodating the views of all segments of the economy.”

The Act which will be implemented by the National Planning Commission (NPC), seeks to recognise development priorities of the President, “provided that such devepment priorities shall not differ substantially from the national development plan to be prepared from time to time, pursuant to this Act.”

As provided in section 4, the Commission shall design and caused to be produced a National Development Plan preparation process, specifying clearly and assigning timelines to all stages in the process.

Section 14 of the bill further stipulate that “if  in the term of a subsisting National Development Plan it is found that: resources are not sufficient to finance the implementation of the National Development Plan or a need has risen for a specific developmental programme for which no plan has been authorised by the Act, an amendment to the National Development Plan shall be laid before each House of the National Assembly.”

According to the drafter of the legislative framework, Part III section 17(1,2) mandates the implementing agency to conduct a mid-term assessment of a subsisting National Development Plan, with a view to verifying the extent to which programmes and projects including specific goals, targets and objectives have been executed or met, as well as reasons for such shortcomings, and include recommendations of necessary steps to be taken to achieve the goals of the national development.

Such report as prepared and submitted by the Commission to the President, as stipulated in section 17(3) shall be submitted to the National Assembly for further legislative action, while section (20) mandates the President to transmit the annual reports on the implementation and progress of each National Development Plan to the National Assembly not later than 31st March of the next succeeding years.

In preparation of the draft of the National Development Plan, NPC is to hold at least two public hearings and provide opportunity for members of the public to testify and submit written comments as well as collate impute from the President, Government institutions that are considered expedient in the national interest as stipulated in section 8 and 9 of the bill.

KEHINDE AKINTOLA