Countries and institutions have resolved to embark on ICT programmes, spending billions of dollars and re-investing large shares of their profit to improve on ICT skills and networks because of the realisation of its benefit.
While some Asian countries like India, Korea and Singapore already made records in the sector and competing in the global IT arena, African countries are still waiting for aids and assistance from the developed countries and other financial institutions to fix their decaying infrastructure.
In Nigeria a lot of efforts have been put by several administrations to 'catch it young' but the country continue to remain at a learning stage after wasted years.
Some experts believed that Nigeria has not gotten it right in its past attempts to be an IT enabled state, because most of the programmes embarked upon were up-bottom approach but not bottom -up approach as it were in many countries.
The missing point according to some experts was that, no attention was given to the grassroots for IT development. In most cases the local schools have no knowledge about computer and other IT devices.
Most students come to know little of IT skills at their graduating periods from Universities or at the places of works. These have been the practice in most part of the country.
On the administration level, hardly see a local government official or teachers with full background knowledge in IT, the situation that causes lost of revenue, work hours and resources in the system.
The recent move by the federal government through its - Nigerian eGovernment Programme to introduce e-Enabled Local government administration (eLGA) aimed at boosting the moral of Local government council operations has come at the right time when the world is gradually becoming a global village.
The objectives of eLGA according to the secretary to government of the federation, Mahmud Yayale Ahmed is to establish a central platform where the functions and activities of the local government councils can interact with other councils and with citizens and businesses at any time, irrespective of their locations.
The Platform ties together local government operations such as data gathering, revenue generation, job creation along with routine administrative functions and collaborations. It also enables special activities such as education and health management and has interface to serve as electronic gateway to investors, tourists and the rest of the world.
These goals are no doubt needed to transform the Local Government administrations especially the issue of revenue generations and transparent usage of such revenues towards the developmental projects for our societies because LGAs are where the most corrupt officials are operate because there is no powerful system of check and balancing.
According to the initiator of the projects and chief executive officer of the NeGSt, Dr Olu Agunloye the injection of ICT is a major driver of productivity growth which makes it possible for an expansion of output, not just without concomitant increase in inputs, but with important reductions in hours worked over the medium term.
Speaking recently at the launch of the programme, Agunloye said an adaptive challenges of eGovernment go far beyond technology; they call for new organisational structures, new skills, new leadership and transformations through public-private partnerships, PPP
He said the eLGA's implementation requires huge costs and substantial technological layouts that make the adoption of partnerships very attractive that is why they engaged in PPP.
He noted that in term of revenues performance the eLGA as a platform will assists in tracing revenues and its judicial application, as the SGF said the system will make the LGAs operations more transparent and make governance more accountable and closer to the citizens and above all, make all local governments in Nigeria work in tandem in a constructive manner towards achieving the national goals set by this administration.
The project will be co-finance by one of the leading banks in the country- The Intercontinental Bank Plc. In his remark at the opening ceremony in Abuja, the Group Chief Executive, Intercontinental Bank Plc, Dr Erastus Akingbola said partnering in eLGAs is not only in-sync with the drive to popularize e-paymant in Nigeria by his Bank but also a very strategic initiative that will hep enthrone e-Governance in the country.
He said there is no better place to start the campaign for electronic government than the local government areas, because they are at the core of every government.
"if we are able to get the local government and their functionaries to buy in to this project we would easily leapfrog to the next stage".
Akingbola said the world has left Nigeria behind technologically. The only way for us to catch up is to embrace ICT, saying, with vast natural and sometimes difficult terrain of the country, our ever increasing population and peculiar political and economic situation, technology offers the best option in providing efficient, transparent and quality service and governance to our people.
The chief executive, intercontinental bank also said eGovernment is the surest way to fast forward the country's development and economic growth, therefore said " our bank is well placed to provide funds which will be used to develop the solution necessary to drive e-government".
Tomorrow (Tuesday) will mark the commencement of eLGA with a take-off summit at International Conference Centre, Abuja, theme: Empowering Local Govern-ment Administrations for the 7-Point Agenda.
The prayer is that government at the federal level would portray eLGA as a councils project as their baby and encourage them to nurture it up to actualisation level.
The NeGst through National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) should also build capacity and provide enable manpower to take care of the 774 local government areas without exception.
The summit is expected to draw participants such as LG Chairmen, Councillors, Council Managers, Treasurers and Auditors, Local Government Secretaries, Head of Personnel, Local Government Leaders, and Local Government Information Officers.
Other expected participants, are State Government, State Commissioners Ministries/Bureau for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Permanent Secretaries, Ministries/Bureau for Local Government;Special Advisers/Assistants, Ministries/Bureau for Local Government;Chairmen, Local Government Service Commission and Director FCT Area Councils Commission; The Presidency, National Planning Commission, Members of Senate Committee, House Committee and State Assembly Committee on Local Governments among others.
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Autor(en)/Author(s): Hamisu Muhammad
Quelle/Source: AllAfrica, 16.02.2009
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