President Bola Tinubu has expressed concern about Nigeria’s civil service payroll at the national and sub-national levels, saying he is worried about the way to get the capital to develop the infrastructure needed in the country.

Tinubu, however, said his administration would partner with global technology companies to ensure that data from public institutions are accurate and transparent in providing templates on which proper public sector planning and accounting can occur across sectors.

He said this during a meeting with the Global Vice President of Oracle, Andres Garcia Arroyo, at the Presidential Villa in Abuja on Monday, September 4, 2023.

The president stated: “Each time they give me the payroll number, I get so frightened. Where am I going to get the capital to develop the infrastructure we desperately require if the payroll of 1% – 2% of the population is consuming all the revenue? I think we need tight technological control that can check and balance all necessary control points of our transaction processes.

“I’m looking forward to working with Oracle because I have the belief and confidence that you can do it as you have in the past.”

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Tinubu, who welcomed the company’s commitment to Nigeria’s civil service reform process and data management sector, stressed the need for greater knowledge transfer through the establishment of academies and training institutions in the country.

Aiming to promote the ease of doing business, digital innovation, effective identity management, efficient payroll administration, and qualitative citizen-centred service delivery, President Tinubu, according to a statement issued by his spokesman, Ajuri Ngelale, cited Oracle’s success in the automation of the Lagos State payroll system during his tenure as the Lagos State Governor and lauded the positive impact of technological solutions in enhancing accountability, and expediting timelines for service delivery without sacrificing quality in the process.

He said: “I have tested Oracle and it has worked for our success. In Lagos State, what we did in effective collaboration with you, has been copied across the states of the federation. We can only build our institutions with accurate data and cutting-edge data management capabilities that are reliable and effective. We can only rely upon our human resources for excellent service delivery to Nigerians if they are well-trained and ready to learn.

“The transfer of knowledge is essential for our nation and the continent. In this government, we believe that the only way to build our country is a bottom-up approach and from one single sheet of paper, we can create an end-to-end solution for public administration that will rid our service of its worst tendencies in favor of effectiveness and reliability.”

In his remarks, the Global Vice President of Oracle proposed a comprehensive digital transformation of work process at the federal level of administration, in order to achieve greater macro-economic visibility, streamline government processes for cost and time savings, and to provide the desired skills development opportunities for Nigerians.

Arroyo said: “You have shown tremendous practical leadership throughout your career, Mr. President. We have partnered with you and we know how determined you are to achieve all that you set out to achieve.

“This is why we are offering Nigeria a free national diagnostic of the present situation in the public service with a view to dimensioning across sectors the scale of solution required. We look forward to partnering with you again.”

The Star