Fed Govt Urges Savings Culture, Transparency at NACOFED 2024
By Patience Ikpeme
The Federal Government has called on governments at all levels to adopt a culture of saving for the rainy day, stressing the importance of fiscal discipline, transparency, and accountability in governance.
The Accountant General of the Federation (AGF), Dr. Oluwatoyin Madein, made this appeal at the 2024 National Council on Finance and Economic Development (NACOFED) held in Bauchi State.
This was revealed by Bawa Mokwa, Director of Press and Public Relations, Office of the Accountant General of the Federation (OAGF) on Thursday in a press release.
Dr. Madein emphasized the necessity of saving during periods of financial surplus to ensure the availability of resources in times of economic adversity. She stated that, “Savings is good, and savings at the time of plenty is advisable. Governments at all levels should save from whatever comes to them so that they can have what to fall back to in any adverse situation.”
To foster fiscal discipline, the AGF recommended the adoption of appropriate control measures and viable investment strategies, which she said would safeguard resources for the future.
Dr. Madein also stressed the importance of transparency and accountability in all tiers of government, extending beyond financial resources to include other assets and human resources. She pointed out that governance requires comprehensive oversight, stating:
“Transparency doesn’t end with finances; it goes round to even the storekeeper and those that manage the kitchen. Infrastructure has to be accounted for. Everything that can be used indiscriminately must be properly accounted for in a transparent manner.”
The AGF highlighted the risks of focusing solely on financial controls while neglecting other areas, saying “If we only build structures around how finances can be controlled, and leave the other areas without much control mechanism, then we are just doing a haphazard job. We need to build serious control measures around our assets.”
Dr. Madein stressed the need for those in positions of authority to adequately account for assets procured with public funds.
“When funds are released for the purpose of increasing assets of the government, those assets must be accounted for by those handling them,” she noted.
Additionally, the AGF called for continuous capacity building and workforce motivation, describing these as critical factors in ensuring transparency and accountability in public asset management.
