TheCable

Kemi Adeosun, minister of finance, says the federal government, in its bid to curb wastage, now gets discount from airlines and trims its expenditures to reflect the realities of the Nigerian economy.

Adeosun made this disclosure while delivering a lecture  on ‘Efficiency Unit’, at the Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE) conference on Friday in Port Harcourt.

Adeosun, who was represented by Patience Oniha, said although government had in the past attempted several strategies to end loopholes in government expenditures, it was yet to achieve set goals.

She explained that the Efficiency Unit was saddled with the responsibility of monitoring federal government expenditure as it relates to procurement and efficient utilisation of government facilities.

“A weak audit system has, in the past, hampered effective checks and balances in government businesses, our administration shall ensure accountability,” Adeosun said.

“A good example of avoidable wastage was the huge losses accrued by past governments on air travels by top officials/CEOs of the MDAs; the present administration has put in place measures to cut down on air travels.

“We have also worked out modalities with some airlines on discounts on our travel services.

“The efficiency unit has also recommended the use of debits cards as one of the best methods to check fund diversion by government officials.”

Adeosun said that it was imperative to engage more stringent measures to curb wastage in government spending so as to effectively manage government Ministries, Agencies and Parastatals.

She added that as part of measures to check loopholes in government spending, the ‘Efficiency Unit’ was created to serve as part of the federal ministry of finance.

Adeosun said the efficiency unit would enable the federal government manage its scarce resources in the face of the dwindling revenue.

The minister therefore, urged editors to support federal government’s policies to ensure delivery of basic social amenities, which will in turn attract investors to the country.