ABUJA- The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the National Productivity Centre (NPC) have agreed on a wide range of collaborative efforts toward tackling corruption and boosting productivity in the country.
EFCC Spokesperson, Dele Oyewale, made this known in a statement on Friday in Abuja.
He said that the agreement was made when NPC Director-General, Baffa Dan’agundi, paid a courtesy visit to the EFCC headquarters in Abuja
Oyewale said the two agencies had agreed to work together in areas such as training, administration, and Servicom.
He quoted Dan’agundi as saying that the partnership would help his agency to achieve its mandate of monitoring the productivity of Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) in the country.
Dan’agundi said his agency had already started working with some of the MDAs, with remarkable results.
“We have started working with some of the MDAs and they are sending a lot of accolades.
“We had only three training sessions when I came, and I understand we have a lot to do in terms of improving the productivity of the MDAs and the country at large.
“We believe the mandate of this agency should be put into use, and some of these actions, which we have started enrolling.
“We hope you’ll work with us and that you will give us this opportunity and we pray we don’t disappoint you,” Dan’agundi said.
EFCC Chairman, Ola Olukoyede, welcomed the collaboration, saying it would help in tackling corruption, which he identified as a major obstacle to productivity in the country.
“There is a nexus between the issue of productivity and corruption.
“I believe this is an area where we can collaborate and work together.
“You have a huge assignment and task in your hand, before now the only thing we heard about your agency is giving of productivity awards, and no other thing,” Olukoyede said.
He urged the NPC to move beyond just giving productivity awards and work towards measuring productivity in Nigeria’s 774 local government areas and the federal level.
The EFCC boss advised the NPC to be diligent in selecting recipients of productivity awards.
“In the past, we have seen where awards were given to all manners of criminals and other financial crimes suspects.
“Be diligent in the people you give awards to,” he said.
Olukoyede said the EFCC was open to learning from the NPC, particularly in the area of administration and Servicom.
“We are open to knowledge every time, if there are areas where we can collaborate, particularly in the area of administration and Servicom, we don’t mind, we are open to it,” he said.(NAN)
