Tinubu Blames ‘Lack Of Data’ As Major Menace Affecting Nigeria’s Growth

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu said Thursday that his administration would address what the historical inadequacies of policymaking thwarted by a lack of comprehensive data in Nigeria.

VerseNews reports that the president said this during the 2023 Comptroller-General of Customs Annual Conference at the Lagos Continental Hotel, Victoria Island, Lagos.

He said lack of comprehensive data had been “a technological affliction” that has hindered the growth trajectory of Nigeria and the entire Africa, impeding the ability to make informed governance decisions.

He said data is the guiding light in the ever-evolving landscape of the modern world, Nigeria can no longer afford to function in the dark.

The president, who was represented at the conference Vice President Kashim Shettima, said the grand vision of his administration is to deploy data to make sound government decisions.

Shettima described Tinubu as an “accounting virtuoso” with an unparalleled understanding of data and its significance to piloting the affairs of the country, stressing that it is due to his knowledge of data as the invaluable gold of the 21st century that the President strategically appointed “tech-savvy Nigerians” into critical government positions in order to ensure strategic planning.

“Even before we were given this mandate, we knew that every facet of our lives is woven with data. We must not only commit to deploying data to make decisions within the government but also address the historical inadequacies of Nigerian policymaking, often impeded by a lack of comprehensive data. Our current governance landscape demands a transformative intervention, and the solution is what has brought us together today.

“There’s no doubt that the chiming of this clock of modernity is inviting us to take action. It’s inviting us to adopt evidence-based processes and innovative strategies to align policies with the objectives of this administration, to streamline decision-making, and to resolve conflict arising from misinformation and inconsistent policies within the government,” he said.