Ekiti State Governor, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, on Monday commenced a two-day briefing with heads of Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) in the state aimed at fine-tuning the strategic development plans of the Fayemi-led administration.

The briefing, involved presentations and defence of work plans by heads of MDAs, is a follow up to the retreat organised for top government functionaries earlier in the month.

Speaking at the meeting held in Governor’s office Ado-Ekiti, Fayemi said the meeting would enable the heads of the MDAs to finalise those priorities which were agreed on at the retreat held in Iloko-Ijesa, in Osun State, and realign them with the budget; adding that each ministry would sign a performance bond afterwards.

The Governor said the meeting which involved office of Transformation, Strategy and Service Delivery (OTSD) and the Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning would decide what the real priorities are for the ministries and allocate resources to them accordingly.

He added that OTSD and Ministry of Budget will however embark on monitoring and evaluation of the performance of the MDAs viz a viz their priorities and the resources allocated to them.

“We had a retreat at Iloko and we came out with very clear plans for each of our MDAs. They were meant to go back and hold step down retreat with their own agencies, departments and staff so they can come up with a realigned budget for the places of priorities that we have agreed. “These meetings that we are doing right now are now to finalise those agreed priorities and the realigned budget.”

“They are to do resource allocation at their level and that’s what this meeting is doing and the office of transformation that’s responsible for monitoring and evaluation over the period of the budget and the ministry of budget and planning to see how we can now look at the available resources, look at what the ministries are asking for and then decide what the real priorities are and then fund these priorities by allocating resources to them”, he said.

The MDAs that participated in Monday’s exercise include: Ministry of Health and human services, Ministry of Works and Transport, Ministry of Local Government and community Development, Ministry of Agriculture and rural development, Ministry of Women Affairs and social services, Ministry of Lands and Urban development, Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Youth and Sports.

During the meeting, the Commissioner for Health, Dr. Moji Yaya-Kolade noted that the health sector suffered a huge setback during the previous administration as the ministry was not adequately catered for.

The Permanent Secretary in the Ministry, Dr. Folakemi Olomojobi, also corroborated this, adding that the State Health Databank had underperformed because the annual subscription for the centre was not funded by the past administration.

Yaya-Kolade noted that the State’s Teaching Hospital as well as the other secondary health facilities in the State are facing “serious competition from ABUAD and Federal Teaching Hospital Ido” adding that all heads of health facilities in the State “must work together in a strategic manner” to ensure that the facilities provide quality healthcare service for the people.

Update news