Speaking at an Inter-ministerial Briefing to update the media about palliatives by the government, the Commissioner for Economic Planning and Budget, Sam Egube hinted that the administration will consider reordering the N1.17 trillion budget for 2020 to channel funds into ventures that will generate quick employment and resources for Lagosians.

The media briefing, which was held at the JTT Park in Alausa, was organised by the State government to enable Honourable Commissioners directly involved in the intervention programmes of Lagos State government provide updates on the activities aimed at reducing the effects of the pandemic on the populace.

Egube said the ravaging pandemic had slowed down the growth of the State’s economy, shut down industrial production and distorted the supply chain of essential items, thereby heightening the fear of food insecurity among residents.

Assuring that the Lagos Government has started responding to the concerns of citizens, Egube said, “We have started to put together post-COVID-19 response and stimulation plan to ensure our business continuity plan is riding after Coronavirus. We are going to look at enterprise; that is, Small and Medium Scale businesses that have the capacity to generate quick revenue and employment. All these economic stimulus packages will be rolled out when we have clarity on the slowdown of the spread of Coronavirus in the State”.

Egube continued saying, “We will be looking at the construction sector and agriculture, empowering of people with vocational knowledge and skills. We believe these investments will stimulate growth and set the economy of the State on a powerful rebound for more prosperity.”

While pointing out that the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic had reinforced the need to draw up the database of people living in the State, Egube advised residents to enrol with Lagos State Residents Registration Agency (LASRRA) to enable the government update its database of residents for emergency planning and budgeting.

In his own contribution, the Commissioner for Finance, Dr. Rabiu Olowo, said the national economy felt the impact of the twin-shock occasioned by the falling prices of oil in the international market and freezing of revenue due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Olowo disclosed that the State Government had granted three months moratorium on accrued principal and interest payment on loans granted to Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and Entrepreneurs by Lagos State Employment Trust Funds (LSETF).

“Those who have loans currently running with the LSETF have been given three months moratorium by the State Government for principals and interests to ensure that these small businesses that generated jobs are not hit by crisis.

“We will also be raising the capacity of LSETF to support the SMEs with capital that will act as a shock absorber and give necessary incentives to enable them mitigate the impacts. This plan is for a period after the battle would have been won against COVID-19,” Oluwo explained.

Admitting that the State revenue had been greatly affected by under-performance of businesses occasioned by the lockdown, Olowo said it would be premature to evaluate the State’s loss at the present time.

The Finance Commissioner also stated the Government had apportioned all donations it received from private sector and Federal Government transparently, stressing that all funds received in support of Coronavirus will be fully accounted for.

Also briefing the media on activities of the Ministry of Agriculture, the Commissioner, Prince Gbolahan Lawal, noted that Lagos Government was proactive with the introduction of its Stimulus Food Relief Programme for the vulnerable people in the State, which will cater for 200,000 families in the first tranche.

Dismissing misinformation about the scheme, Lawal explained that the State engaged Community Development Associations (CDAs) to distribute the food items, and not politicians or Local Government Chairmen.

He confirmed that the second phase of the food scheme took off early Thursday to reach aged beneficiaries registered with LASRRA, adding that irregularities observed in the first phase had been addressed.

Lawal said the State Government had created direct jobs for 600 individuals employed in centres where the relief package items were produced, asserting that the economies of other States were boosted as their farmers supplied produce packaged for distribution to the aged, vulnerable and physically-challenged.

Giving a detailed insight into the latest developments about patients undergoing treatment at the Infectious Disease Hospital, the Commissioner for Health, Prof. Akin Abayomi, declared that seven additional patients would be discharged later in the day, having fully recovered from the COVID-19 disease.

Professor Abayomi attributed the success achieved, so far, by Lagos State to the commencement of capacity build-up five years ago and the experience acquired during the Ebola epidemic in 2014.

The Health Commissioner expressed optimism that the record of new cases in the last few days suggests that there is a gradual flattening of the COVID-19 curve in Lagos, envisaging that there will not be an exponential increase in confirmed cases in the State.

“Whatever we have been doing in Lagos is working. The data we have at the moment shows that we have 145 confirmed cases; we have discharged 32 patients who have completely recovered. We are discharging seven more patients, which will be 39 in total,” Abayomi asserted.

Speaking further, the COVID-19 Deputy Incident Commander said, “We have had two deaths in Lagos but not in the State-owned facilities. So far, we have had 100 per cent recovery. By next week, we will be scaling up the isolation facilities to over 400 beds, as we are opening isolation centres at Landmark Event Centre and Gbagada General Hospital. We have also built more bed space for isolation in conjunction with the Federal Government and GTBank.”

In his address, Commissioner for the Environment, Tunji Bello stated that agencies under the purview of the Ministry, especially LAWMA, was mandated to ensure the evacuation of waste across the State during the lockdown.

“We ensured that PSP operators go around Lagos to prevent the accumulation of waste within the metropolis during the lockdown and ensure the environment is kept clean and healthy,” Bello said.

He maintained that despite the fumigation being undertaken across local governments and some bus stops within the State, plans are in place for massive disinfection of all the highways across the State.

Bello also affirmed that the cleaning of all drainage channels in Lagos is ongoing to take advantage of the dry season before the rainy season commences fully.

The media briefing is the first in the series of activities lined up by Lagos State Government to keep residents abreast of its programmes and initiatives aimed at combating the COVID-19 pandemic.

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In a statement signed by his Chief Press Secretary, Habib Aruna, the Governor made the decision shortly after the State Executive Council meeting on Wednesday.

Ashade is expected to resume his new portfolio with immediate effect.

Governor Ambode, however, said Ashade would still oversee the Ministry of Economic Planning and Budget pending when the State Executive Council would be reshuffled.

It would be recalled that Governor Ambode on Wednesday, October 19, on Wednesday carried out a cabinet reshuffle with the dropping of the Commissioners for Tourism- Mr Folorunsho Folarin-Coker; Finance, Dr. Mustapha Akinkunmi and Transportation, Dr. Ekundayo Mobereola.

Ashade was until his appointment by Governor Akinwunmi Ambode, a Partner at KPMG Professional Services, one of the big four international professional services firm with specialisation in audit, tax and advisory services.

With over 16 years of professional experience with KPMG Nigeria and extensive skills in financial services industry, project and quality assurance management and public private partnership, he is surely a round peg in a round hole.

A Chartered Accountant and Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN), Ashade was born in Badagry on 6th October, 1975. He had his primary education at Anglican Primary School, Ilado, Badagry between 1981 and 86 and proceeded to Iworo Ajido High School, Badagry where he passed the West African School Certificate of Education in 1992 before proceeding to University of Lagos where he graduated with B.Sc (second class upper division) in Biology in 1997.

Ashade joined KPMG (then Arthur Andersen, Nigeria) in March, 1999 and this provided an opportunity for a career change to Accounting. He became chartered in 2004 and was admitted as a partner in KPMG 2013. In 2015, he was appointed a Fellow, Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria.

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The State Commissioner for Economic Planning and Budget, Akinyemi Ashade disclosed this recently at a seminar on Policy Brief with the theme, “Lagos State Demographic Dividends”, organised by the Lagos Bureau of Statistics in collaboration with United Nation Population Fund for public officers and other government officials.

Addressing the participants, the Commissioner noted that, development experts worldwide had concerned themselves about the vagaries, anomaly and pervasive poverty often associated with any geographical entity with population bulge.

He opined that, some researchers had carried out studies to ascertain the effect of population structure, size and policy environment on the socio-economic well-being of the people, and the likely future outlook.

Ashade averred that, it has become imperative that all stakeholders in the population sector must work together and ensure that all population-related indices are compiled and disseminated on regular basis, for effective decision-making and make research on demographic dividend in Lagos State worthwhile.

He opined that, data gathering is the soul of good governance, adding that, any Nation or State that cannot ascertain its population indices cannot effectively plan for the need of its people and therefore will fail.

In a paper delivered at the event by Professor Olanrewaju Olaniyan of the Department of Economics, University of Ibadan titled, ‘Demographic Dividend in Lagos State: The opportunity we cannot afford to forgo’, he explained that, demographic dividend is the economic growth potential that can result from shifts in a population’s age structure.

According to him, “The reflection of the demographic transition that the State had gone through in the past decades shows increase in the support ratio needed to drive the State’s economy into a faster path of economic growth, a window of opportunity that can lead to demographic dividend if well exploited”.

He noted that, at an early stage of [demographic] transition, fertility rates fall, leading to fewer young mouths to feed.
He added that, during this period, the labour force temporarily grows more rapidly than the population dependent on it, freeing up resources for investment in economic development and family welfare.

The first demographic dividend, he added was transitory because, eventually, the population of working age ceases to increase, in which case he said, led to drop in income per consumer.

Professor Olaniyan stated further that, the State had transited from high fertility and mortality rates to low fertility and mortality rates with the number of children born per woman falling from 3.9 in 2003 to 3.4 in 2014 which if compared to other States is lower.

He maintained that, the improvement in education and literacy levels of mothers has reduced the mortality rate as well as public health interventions.

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The House approved the amount as sent by the state Commissioner for Economic Planning and Budget, Akinyemi Ashade.

In a letter sent to the House and read on Monday by the Assembly Clerk, Ganiyu Abiru, the commissioner said: “the 2015 appropriation law directs that any expenditure above N200 million from the special expenditure fund should seek and obtain the approval of this honourable House.

“I wish to request the approval for the utilisation of special expenditure fund to the sum of N352. 9 million. The funds are to be used for the purchase of official vehicles and other accessories for the 20 first-term honourable members of the eighth Assembly.”

In reaction to the letter, Chief Whip of the House, Rotimi Abiru, urged the House to give the request an express approval.

Contributing, Rotimi Olowo, who represents Somolu Constituency I, added that such approval would help the new members of the Assembly to enjoy the benefits of the office they occupy.

Speaker Mudashiru Obasa, in his own contribution, commended the patience of members since the inauguration of the eighth Assembly.

Obasa said: “On behalf of the state, I want to thank you for your patience that six months after inauguration of the 8th assembly, you have not been given official vehicles. We thank you for your endurance.”

He then called for a voice vote where it was unanimously agreed that the amount be approved. Obasa thereafter directed the Clerk to convey the approval to Governor Akinwunmi Ambode.
It is not yet known if there are plans to also buy cars for the old members of the House.

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