Gov. Oluwarotimi Akeredolu of Ondo State on Sunday said his administration would leave no stone unturned in its determination to eradicate poverty and improve welfare of the people in the state.
Akeredolu, who disclosed this in a statement in Lagos, said the state would sustain its leadership in fiscal transparency, accountability and poverty reduction, which had been affirmed by the people.
The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) report, based on data from the World Bank, recently highlighted the economic impact of the REDEEMED agenda of the Akeredolu administration and measured adopted for poverty reduction.
Among the 36 states of the federation, Ondo state has the lowest multi-dimensional poverty index in 2022.
Multidimensional Poverty Index is often used by the World Bank to capture a more complete picture of poverty.
The implication of the report is that Ondo state has the lowest percentage of households deprived along three dimensions of well-being-education, monetary poverty, and basic infrastructure services.
According to Akeredolu, the low poverty incidence in Ondo state is a testament that targets plans, matched to the sustainable development goals, are improving the economy of the state and reducing poverty.
He said his government’s belief in free markets and the ingenuity of the people led to the creation of the Ondo State Entrepreneurship Agency (ONDEA) dedicated to fostering an inclusive and stimulated economic development agenda.
He said that such agenda was particularly targeted on the areas of funding, digitalization, skills acquisition, education, value exchange and human capital development.
Akeredolu said that ONDEA had also prioritized the empowerment of micro and macro entrepreneurs, adding that the state had been reaping their fruits
“In our efforts to transition the state to an industrial state, our initiatives like the Oil Palm, Red Gold initiative, have created over 5,000 jobs.
“Ondo-Linyi Industrial Park in Ọrẹ has created over 2,000 jobs, the afforestation revitalization scheme has generated over 1, 000 jobs. There are also other private concerns in the state doing the same.
“We did not get our enviable position by accident. Our painstaking investment in teacher recruitment and massive recruitment into the Amotekun corps, contributed to this good rating.
“For us in Ondo state, it was double honors, as this good rating did not come to us in isolation,” he said.
According to him, the World Bank gave an award of excellence to Ondo state for a “Very Good” performance on Fiscal Transparency and Accountability in their States Fiscal Transparency, Accountability, and Sustainability (SIFTAS) program.
He added: “We were awarded for our dogged focus on strengthening the fiscal sustainability, transparency and accountability of our state’s finances.
“Our administration is committed to lifting people out of poverty, securing the lives and property of Ondo state residents and ensuring that we build a better economy for everyone in the state.
“We are aiming higher. We will not relent. God bless Ondo state.”
NAN reports that Akeredolu’s REDEEMED agenda, is the developmental policy thrust of his second term.
It focused on eight key areas of development such as Rural and Agricultural Development; Educational and Human Capital Development; Development through massive infrastructure; Efficient service delivery, Development and Policy Implementation; Effective Health care and Social Welfare Services; Maintenance of law and order for adequate security; Energy, Mining and Sustainable Industries; Digital Revolution and Entrepreneurship.
Akeredolu had said the REDEEMED agenda would guide the conduct of government businesses as it was aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.
