Abuja- Dr Usman Abdullahi, a director of Accreditation, Centre of Management Development (CMD) has said that the merger of Budget Office with the National Planning Commission (NPC) would boost economic development.
Abdullahi who spoke with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja, commended the wisdom of President Muhammad Buhari for merging the two offices.
He said that CMD, a Parastatal under the NPC had yearned for the development for a very long time, saying that planning and budgeting could not be separated.
“Planning where it is, goes with budgeting. If you cannot effectively budget your plan, your planning will not be effective.
“You can see the vision and wisdom of this administration, bringing this together.
“It is really good for the country and we are very hopeful that it will enhance economic development,’’ the director said.
Meanwhile, some officials of the NPC also lauded the merger of the Budget Office with the Commission and the appointment of two ministers.
Some of the officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told NAN that the merger would enhance government operations.
NAN reports that President Buhari had on Nov. 11, upgraded the commission to a Federal Ministry of Budget and Planning.
Mr Udo Udoma becomes the minister while Mrs Zainab Ahmed is the Minister of State for Budget.
The officials, who spoke with NAN after assumption of duty of the minsters, recalled that Budget was under National Planning before it was taken to the Ministry of Finance.
A male official at the commission, who pleaded anonymity, said it was good that budget was back to planning.
“This is a positive development; we had budget and planning together in 1991 when I was employed. In fact, my appointment letter read the Ministry of Budget and Planning.
“Budget was moved from Planning to Ministry of Finance in 1993 and we have been struggling since then to use the instrumentality of budget to achieve our planning, “ he said.
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Similarly, an official of the commission said one could not plan properly without aligning the plan with budget.
He said the President’s decision to upgrade the commission and appoint two ministers,would enhance effective planning, using budgeting.
“I believe the overall goal of the merger is to have a vibrant economy and sustainable development,” he said.
A female official said that the ministry would expect full implementation of its plans now with the merger of budget with planning,.
“It will enhance effective implementation of the Medium Term Strategic Plan (2016-2020).
“We hope there will be enough funds to implement the plan, “ she said. (NAN)