By Anthony Nwachukwu
Towards the mandate to “unfailingly demonstrate innovative thinking and an unrelenting focus on results,” the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola, has charged heads of agencies in the ministry to work assiduously to realise their deliverables.
Oyetola, who gave the mandate at his ministry’s maiden retreat for staff and agencies to relay the president’s set targets and goals, said the execution of the performance bond, and the completion of key projects within the ministry, would position Nigeria as a top global maritime nation.
The minister said the quest to make Nigeria a premier maritime nation would be achieved by “utilising the potential of the county’s blue economy to diversify revenue, assure sustainable development and cultivate environmental stewardship.”
Having also held a strategic roundtable with maritime stakeholders, Oyetola said the ministerial retreat was to evaluate, prioritise and forge practical resolutions for improvement for the directors and chief executive officers of the ministry’s agencies.
According to him, it was also a platform to relate with sector players with a view to understanding their roles in a key sector within the Nigerian economy, and to brainstorm on enabling strategies to achieving their mandate and functions.
“The maritime sector stands as a reservoir of immense potential, not only for economic growth but also for diversifying our revenue source and generating abundant employment opportunities for Nigerians,” he said.
“I am convinced we have what it takes to deliver on our Key Performance Indicators. We, are, therefore, gathered here to brainstorm on how to deliver on the KPIs.
“For instance, three months ago, I was told that the Funtua Inland Dry Port was at 80 per cent completion stage. Considering that we are expected to deliver this particular project in the first quarter of next year, it would be interesting to hear from the Nigerian Shippers’ Council how this can be achieved in record time.”
Also sharing the ministry’s mandate, vision and mission with its workers and agencies’ staff, he said it was imperative to understand and work towards achieving the goals.
“Our mandate is to institutionalise blue economy as an important pillar for economic sustenance and growth diversification, having due regards to the ecosystem.
“The mission is to formulate and implement policies, programmes and initiatives that will facilitate the development of an inclusive maritime and blue economy (ecosystem), driven by an operating environment that meets global best standards.
“We have a solid team of resource persons and facilitators to develop the goals and roadmap for the ministry, with a view to achieving the performance bond and other numerous projects, programmes and initiatives that will position Nigeria among the top-earning nations in the marine and blue economy sector.”
On her part, the Permanent Secretary, Dr. Magdalene Ajani, said the retreat was designed to provide a veritable platform for top management officials of the ministry and its agencies to cross-fertilise ideas on how to galvanise the marine sector to meet the ministry’s set goals and objectives.
“It is worthy to note that the minister has signed a performance bond with Mr. President, which will serve as a scorecard for the ministry. This bond comes with its initiatives, deliverables, key performance indicators, timelines and target, which the sector must unconditionally achieve.”
