President Bola Tinubu, on Monday supported collaborations with international technology firms to guarantee that information from public institutions is correct and transparent in order to provide models for appropriate public sector planning and accounting across sectors.
According to Ajuri Ngelale, Tinubu’s special adviser on media and publicity, at a meeting with Andres Arroyo, global vice president of Oracle, at the State House, the president once more voiced his worry over Nigeria’s excessive civil service payroll at the national and sub-national levels.
He said, “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 one to two percent of the population is consuming all the revenue?
“I think we need a 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.”
The president praised the company’s dedication to helping in the data management sector and emphasised the importance of knowledge transfer via the establishment of academies and training facilities in Nigeria. In addition to facilitating company operations, the plans are intended to support digital innovation, effective identity management, effective payroll administration, and high-quality citizen-centered service delivery.
In his speech, President Tinubu applauded the positive effects of technological advancements in enhancing accountability and accelerating service delivery timelines without compromising quality. He cited Oracle’s demonstrated success in automating the Lagos State payroll system during his time as the state governor.
“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 favour of effectiveness and reliability,” the president said.
Arroyo, 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 provide the desired skills development opportunities for Nigerians.
He 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.”
