BENIN CITY – The former Secretary to Edo State Government and leader of the team including those from Price Waterhouse Consultants (PWC) that organized the three-day Strategy Dialogue to set agenda for the new administration in Edo State, Prof. Julius Ihonvbere has submitted the report of the workshop to Edo State Governor, Godwin Obaseki.

Speaking after receiving the report at the Government House, Benin City Tuesday, Governor Obaseki, who described the Strategy Dialogue as a ground-breaking event, disclosed that the basic steps taken nine years ago were already yielding results to demonstrate that the state government had moved beyond political speak.

Though he observed, “The key issue is that we have agreed on the consensus,” the Governor also said “The journey is long but we will get there faster than expected. ” stressing “We will come out with implementable clear action plan.”

Dwelling on the six thematic pillars upon which agenda had been set for his administration, Governor Obaseki noted that the challenge is not monetary but that of prioritizing properly and ensuring optimal utilization of resources.

“Finally, I will like us to upload this report to our website so that it will get to all Edo people both at home and abroad so that they can make their contributions. So the dialogue is not over. It is a continuous process,” he said and thereafter he thanked the organizers and participants at the workshop.

Related News

Presenting the report to the Governor earlier, Prof. Julius Ihonvbere said 150 participants from a wide spectrum of life endeavours attended the workshop, priorities recognised, consensus reached and that it is particularly people-driven and people-focussed.

Recalling that in the last one month, the various sectors were interrogated, Prof. Ihonvbere noted that the 2017 budget presented by the Governor showed holistic approach even with the vision of the six thematic pillars comprising economic revolution, environmental sustainability, institutional reforms, culture and tourism, socio-welfare enhancement, and infrastructural development.

According to Prof Ihonvbere, there are 123 quick-wins doable within the next six months made up of short and long terms initiatives, some of which are policy pronouncements by the Governor and that some will request legal backing.

He emphasized implementation of the recommendations contained in the report on the Strategy Dialogue and that the Ministries, Departments and Agencies will be the drivers.

While stressing that ideas were generated, consensus reached with individual and collective benefits, he also hinted that there will be evaluation at the end of the day because it would be a continuous exercise.