Nigeria’s High Commissioner to Ghana, Ambassador Ademola Oluseyi Onafowokan and the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Ibadan, Professor Isaac Adewole on Monday rallied global support for President Muhammadu Buhari’s on-going anti-corruption war.
The duo submitted that all hands must be on deck this time around to lift the country out of its present economic woes and take its rightful position in the comity of nations.
They both spoke at the opening of the 6th annual Ibadan Sustainable Development Summit (ISDS) hosted by the University of Ibadan in collaboration with the African Sustainable Development Network (ASUDNET) and Nigeria Sustainable Development Solutions Network (NSDSN).
The week-long Summit which drew development practitioners, policy makers and politicians from all over the continent has as its theme “The Post-2015 Sustainable Development Agenda: Whither Africa”.
In his keynote address at the summit, Ambassador Onafowokan lamented the high rate of poverty and hunger in Nigeria, like in some other countries in the Sub-Sahara Africa, submitting that the root causes in most countries had been attributed to leadership failure as well as corruption in high places.
“The cost of doing business in Africa is very high and not very encouraging while corruption is endemic,” the envoy noted just as he emphasized the need for development of social security and welfare systems that guarantee minimum standard of living in the continent.
“I hope the efforts of the present government in Nigeria in cleansing the economy will be supported by all and sundry, particularly the global communities. Definitely, with the way things are now going, there is light at the end of the tunnel here in this country.”
In the same vein, the Vice Chancellor of the University of Ibadan, Professor Isaac Adewole who was represented by the Deputy Vice Chancellor (Administration), Professor Emilolorun Ayelari insisted that the only thing Nigeria needs to triumph economically is good governance.
According to him, “Of course, without good governance all efforts may come to naught, and this is why I like to challenge all Nigerians, Africans and indeed the global community to support the renewd efforts of President Muhammadu Buhari at engendering transparency and good governance in Nigeria.
“If Nigeria gets it right, Africa will get it right and the world will be the better for it.
“I also challenge the organizers of this summit and all participants not to leave University of Ibadan without coming up with a think tank that will bring up workable approaches that will ensure the realization of the objectives of the Sustainable Development Goals.
“Africa is poor, but only because we choose to be. We are poor, but we are as rich as we could be, so we should be proud of our coat of many colours and brace up to unleash sustainable development on our continent.
“It is possible and it is achievable because all that are required reside in this group of participants at this summit. The University of Ibadan is ready to provide the required leadership, and we have demonstrated this by creating and supporting the needed platforms,” he said.
Other speakers at the summit included Professor Godwell Nhamo from the University of South Africa; Professor Sulaiman Gbadegesin, Vice Chancellor of Ladoke Akintola University of Technology (LAUTECH), Ogbomoso.
Others include Professor N. E. S. Lale, President, African Sustainable Development Network (ASUDNET); Professor Ikenna Onyido, Director, Nigerian Chapter of the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN-Nigeria); Professor Labode Popoola, Co-Director of the Nigeria Sustainable Development Solutions Network (NSDSN).
They all called for sustained efforts at building strong institutions in the country and invigorating the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) so as to enable the country to take leadership in peer review of the indicators of the Sustainable Development Goals within the shortest time possible.
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