Deliverology: An agenda to make budget work in Nigeria
The idea of deliverology was initially developed in the United Kingdom’s Cabinet Office in 2003, with the aim of improving public service delivery. The primary focus was on improving the performance of government departments, including the Department for Works, Pensions, Revenue and Customs. Throughout the years, an increasing number of countries around the world have […]
The idea of deliverology was initially developed in the United Kingdom’s Cabinet Office in 2003, with the aim of improving public service delivery. The primary focus was on improving the performance of government departments, including the Department for Works, Pensions, Revenue and Customs.
Throughout the years, an increasing number of countries around the world have embraced deliverology, including Canada, Singapore, Germany, Australia, and China. As a result, deliverology has become increasingly popular in both the public and private sectors throughout the world.
Similarly, Nigeria has launched a digital budget tracking system in 2020 to make its budget process more transparent, efficient and accountable. The introduction of OpenTreasury, enables citizens to follow the government’s spending in real-time. The platform is designed to enable citizens to track the budget allocations for different sectors and services, view detailed financial information about projects and contracts, and access data on Nigeria’s public finance management system. This system is expected to make it easier for citizens to hold the governments accountable for their spending decisions and ensure that funds are managed responsibly. Unfortunately, the citizens are not sensitised or educated on how the open treasury operates.
In order to ensure effective implementation of the Nigerian budget and management of crude oil production and exports, it is essential that regulations and supervision be separated. This means that different agencies should be responsible for different functions. For instance, an independent commission should oversee the budget process and monitoring of public funds while a separate agency should be given the authority to regulate the oil industry and manage crude oil production and exports. By separating these roles into different entities, it will allow for more efficiency and accountability. Furthermore, having two distinct bodies with expertise in their respective areas will help ensure that no single agency is able to dominate or unfairly influence policy decisions. The present system allows for ‘ga wuka, ga nama’…..
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The proponents of deliverology are a range of experts within different disciplines, including business, operations and organisational development. Leading proponents include Michael Barber, who is one of the leading global thinkers on the topic, as well as other professionals such as Tony Blair and Keshav Varma. They have developed a practical approach to project delivery that has been successful in many different settings.
Nigeria’s budget is not deliverable due to a number of factors, including inadequate funding, lack of clear strategies for implementation, deficiencies in the capacity of public and private sector institutions, corruption, and a lack of transparency. Inadequate funding is often cited as one of the largest challenges facing Nigeria’s ability to reach its delivery goals, as the country’s resources are limited and the government must allocate what it has carefully.
Additionally, there is a need to ensure that resources are managed effectively and efficiently, and that funds are used in an accountable and transparent way.
Deliverology works by focusing on the efficient and effective delivery of government services. It looks at all aspects of service delivery across different departments, including the design, planning, implementation, and evaluation of policies and programs. The goal is to ensure services are efficiently delivered so that citizens have access to the services they need, when they need them. Deliverology also looks at how departments can work together to maximise their impact and efficiency. This includes improving collaboration with other stakeholders, such as NGOs and private sector actors, to solve challenges related to public service delivery.
Deliverology can help Nigeria improve the delivery of essential services to its citizens in a number of ways. Firstly, it can help government departments better understand their constituents’ needs and concerns, and consequently design and implement targeted policies that can effectively address these needs. Secondly, it can promote collaboration and improved communication between different government entities, as well as with other stakeholders such as NGOs, to ensure efficient and effective service delivery. Finally, deliverology can also support better monitoring and evaluation of the delivery of services to ensure they are meeting the needs of citizens and are achieving the desired outcomes.
Hurso Adam PhD wrote from Abuja