As you are aware, activities marking the celebration of the 20th anniversary of our independence have begun. We are also witnessing the beginning of the second year of our experience in the presidential system of government in this country. I want us together to take stock generally and to examine our achievements and problems, so as to enable us enter the third decade of our independence with greater hope and determination to deal with our problems as a nation and to play our role effectively as a member of the international community of nations.

As a nation, we have defined new goals and established new directions designed to make it possible for us to live in harmony, and to ensure the survival of Nigeria as a united and truly independent country. We have also laid the foundation of a truly good and democratic government on the basis of liberty for the individual, equality and justice for all.

Since assuming office, self-reliance has been the chief objective of our administration. In pursuance of this objective, and as I have informed the nation and the whole world, the high priority programmes of the present administration are food, shelter and qualitative education. These are consistent with our promises to the people during our election campaign. In enumerating some of our achievements during the year, I would like to start with these programmes.

Agriculture and water resources

The green revolution is no longer a theory but a practical national commitment. Appreciating the fact that the vast majority of our people as farmers live and work in the rural areas, we have accordingly addressed ourselves to the task of improving their productive capacity and their standard of living. For example, the supply to farmers all over the country of pesticide, improved seeds and fertilisers at heavily subsidised prices has gone a long way to increase their production. Another important element in the green revolution programme is the provision of infrastructural facilities such as feeder roads, rural water supply and health schemes.

In the financial aspect, we have deliberately liberalised credit facilities for agricultural projects. From 1st October 1979 to the end of July 1980, the Nigerian Agricultural and Cooperative Bank has given approval to more than 600 various agricultural projects—spread over 17 states with a combined commitment of nearly ₦60 million out of which over ₦26 million has already been disbursed.

Under our programme for water resources, contracts have been awarded for the Lower Anambra Irrigation Scheme, the Dadin Kowa Dam, the Doma Dam and the Zobe Dam. Construction has started on the Goronyo and Challawa Gorge Dams. When completed, these projects are expected to produce about 200,000 hectares of irrigated land and 1,000,000 tonnes of assorted food crops.

The Oyan Dam, which will supply water to both Abeokuta and Lagos areas and provide 3,000 hectares of irrigated land, is 60 per cent completed. The Sokoto Rima Basin Development Authority has provided employment for about 4,000 inhabitants while the Bakalori project in the same state has produced 3,200 tonnes of wheat, 3,360 tonnes of maize, 960 tonnes of tomatoes and 800 tonnes of onions during the year.

This administration has decided to establish a National Council for Water Resources to coordinate and harmonise policies and plans on the nation's water provision and management. Massive rural water schemes have already been started in which 80 boreholes will be constructed in each state of the federation. Already, 40 of these have been successfully completed in Borno State under a technical agreement with the Chinese government. National Water Resources Institute has been established in Kaduna to train the much needed manpower.

Housing

The implementation of the Federal Government's policy on housing in which 2,000 housing units will be constructed in each state has commenced and has been acclaimed. Once again, let me invite the cooperation of all states to give maximum support and cooperation to this programme which is so vital to the generality of Nigerians. Furthermore, financial arrangements for the participation of the Federal Mortgage Bank and the World Bank Urban Development Project in the housing scheme for lower income earners have reached advanced stage. It is envisaged that as soon as these arrangements are concluded, the project will take off.

Education

This administration has inherited educational policies which are being redesigned to conform with its qualitative educational policy. The aim here is to provide a functional and practical education which will make our people responsive to our needs.

So far, enrolment in the primary education has risen from 8 million to 11.5 million. Secondary and technical education are being established at the same time to meet the increasing number of students from our primary schools. In order to cope with the need for more teachers, the Federal Government has granted state governments ₦18.25 million to establish new teacher training colleges and to expand the existing ones.

As a result of the priority we attach to technical education, we have concrete plans to establish one technical school in each state of the federation before the end of 1981. As a result of this, the present practice of sending our boys overseas for vocational and technical training not so relevant to our needs and circumstances will be phased out.

As at now, Nigeria has seven federal polytechnics. Plans are being made to ensure that each state has at least one federal polytechnic. It is significant to note that the Federal Government has reverted to the two-tier diploma system of technical certificate award of OND and HND. There is a one-year compulsory period of industrial attachment to give the trainee technologist adequate technical and practical experience before graduation.

At the university level, seven federal universities of technology will be established in Bauchi, Benue, Imo, Gongola, Ondo, Niger and Ogun States. Those of Imo, Benue and Bauchi states will take off this session. Those in Gongola and Ondo states will take off in 1981 while Niger and Ogun states will start in 1982. To ensure that higher education comes at the doorstep of all deserving Nigerians, work is going on for the establishment of the open university. This will come to reality in October 1981.

With regard to the existing universities, we have restored university autonomy, and the admission of students to universities, hitherto handled by the erstwhile Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), has reverted to the universities. The existing 13 universities have received grants totalling ₦315 million for 1980 Budget to enable them cope with their academic and development plans. By 1981, the total bursary post-graduate awards will rise from 1,444 to 2,000 at a cost of ₦9.3 million.

Health Services

This administration attaches great importance to the provision of adequate, efficient and effective preventive and curative health services throughout the country. To achieve this objective, existing teaching hospitals at Ibadan, Lagos, Benin, Enugu, and Ife are being expanded to cope with the training needs of the medical profession. New teaching hospitals under construction at Zaria, Maiduguri, Sokoto, Ilorin and Calabar are progressing satisfactorily. A National Eye Centre in Kaduna is under construction, which when completed will cost ₦19 million. The Federal Government has also approved the upgrading of the general hospitals at Jos, Calabar and Ilorin to the status of teaching hospitals.

In the rural areas, the Federal Government has built and equipped 11 comprehensive health centres, 24 primary health clinics, and 362 health clinics at the cost of ₦3.05 million in each state of the federation to supplement state efforts. Plans have been completed for the establishment of Food and Drug Institute at Kaduna to train personnel needed for control of food poisoning, drug abuse and the quality of imported drugs. To further reduce our overdependence on foreign drugs, six of our old teaching hospitals have embarked on a programme of producing common drugs in their own laboratories.

Science and technology

As a result of the creation of the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology, incentives are now open to Nigerians with requisite talent to invent and translate theoretical results of scientific research into practical application.

It is noteworthy that the Veterinary Research Centre, Vom, will soon start the production of cattle and poultry vaccines. Similarly, the Institute for Oil Palm Research has developed a dwarf and twin oil palm and palm kernel production in the country.

Industry, iron and steel development

This administration is conscious of the fact that our scientific, technological and industrial development will not be possible without iron and steel industry. Every support therefore is being given to the execution of our two iron and steel projects, At Ajaokuta, the contract for civil works for the main steel plant has been awarded. By 1983, it is expected that two priority rolling mills of the plant will be commissioned. Contracts have also been awarded for the construction of 8,000 staff housing units which will be completed in 1981.

Much more than at Ajaokuta, greater achievements have been made at Aladja, where the initial civil works are nearing completion. The erection of steel structures and sheeting and supply of equipment and machinery have reached advanced stages. Already, the training centre of the steel complex has been completed and commissioned. It is hoped that the Aladja Steel Project will be commissioned in 1981. I am reliably informed that the civil works for the Wire and Rod Projects at Jos, Oshogbo and Katsina rolling mills are progressing satisfactorily.

To train Nigerians in steel technology, the construction of the Ajaokuta Metallurgical Training Complex has started and the first batch of trainees will be enrolled in 1981. A National Technical Training Institute for the same purpose will soon be established at Onitsha, Anambra State.

In the field of industrial development generally, within our first year in office we have formulated an industrial policy which will serve as a useful guide to investors. Plans are aimed at laying emphasis on agro-allied and energy related industries based on fair dispersal.

Mines and power

As of now, a mineral map covering more than 60 per cent of the whole country has been produced. Data are now available for mineral exploration, soil surveys and for the evaluation of water resources. Such data are a pre-requisite for effective planning of our country's resources. Exploration of uranium, phosphate and salt deposits is continuing and the preliminary mapping of the iron ore and marble recently discovered near Abuja has begun. Efforts will continue to be made to identify and locate other minerals so as to reduce over-dependence on oil.

Plans are well in hand to revamp the Ameri and Enyigba lead and zinc mines in Anambra State, and to establish salt deposits in Benue State.

The National Electric Power Authority (NEPA) is intensifying its efforts to increase power supply for distribution throughout the country. NEPA's electrification programme for rural areas aims at electrifying all local government headquarters and connecting them to the national grid. During the year 1980, 16 of such projects were commissioned and 10 other towns will be commissioned by the end of this year.

Transport, communication and works

In order to meet the infrastructural requirements of the nation for our economic development and general mobility of our people, the present administration continues to give greater attention to land, sea and air transportation. While existing airports are being expanded and equipped with essential navigational aids, the Federal Government is giving great attention to the development of new ones at Akure, Owerri, Minna and Bauchi. Services now being provided by the Nigeria Airways can hardly cope with the explosion in demand both on domestic and international routes. In order to alleviate the problems, four new B-737 aircraft now on order will soon be delivered.

Expansion

To further improve on our sea ports, contracts have been awarded for building a new port costing ₦48.6 million at Sapele and another at Onne at a cost of ₦130 million. Nigeria's merchant shipping activities have sharply risen as a result of expansion of the fleet of the Nigerian National Shipping Line.

During the period under review, in the area of telecommunications, 20 new automatic telephone exchanges have been commissioned providing 66,500 telephone lines, all with subscriber trunk dialling facilities. At the same time 2,000 lines of telex/gentex services have also been commissioned.

In order to ease traffic and improve on federal highways, this administration has completed the construction of over 1,500 kilometres of road. Additionally, arrangements have also been completed for the rehabilitation and special maintenance of 14 roads totalling more than 1,600 kilometres while tenders are being reviewed for the construction of 11 other roads and four major bridges throughout the country.

Social welfare, sports, youths and culture

One of the significant steps taken by this administration has been the granting of autonomous status to the Centre for Black and African Arts and Civilisation, which is a multi-dimensional resource documentation centre. This archival centre has already served 15,000 visitors and researchers from all over the world and has continued to earn for Nigeria, the pride of being the custodian of black civilisation.

In the field of sports, the organisers and participants have done moderately well. Our sportsmen and women have done Nigeria proud by winning the new African Cup of Unity, the All-Africa Athletic Challenge Cup and the Julius Nyerere Cup for Badminton.

Our performance, however, in the last Olympic Games in Moscow clearly fell below expectation. For the first time in recent times, Nigeria failed to win a single medal in an international sporting competition. This is a cause for concern for all of us and every effort will be made to retrieve our lost status.

Law and order

I now want to touch on another vital sector. This is the area of law and order. Since the change from military to civilian administration with the consequential return of the military to the barracks, routine responsibility of maintaining law and order in the country has devolved on the Nigerian Police Force. It becomes necessary therefore to expand the Police Force. Since October last year, over 6,900 personnel, including about 100 university graduates, have been recruited and trained.

Every effort is being made to provide our police force with sufficient and modern weapons and equipment, including vehicles. The various steps that are being taken are aimed at enhancing the efficiency and effectiveness of the police in discharging their duties in a world in which people are becoming more and more criminally-minded. In these endeavours, the welfare of the police personnel is not left out. For example, new police barracks, residential quarters as well as additional police stations are being given priority attention.

Economic situation output

During the year under review, our general economic performance has shown a marked improvement as compared with the two preceding years. Arising from the improved infrastructural facilities and the import liberalisation policy introduced with regard to raw materials and spare parts, output in the industrial sector increased by about 10 per cent over its previous level. The continued rise in the price of crude oil has resulted in a balance of payments surplus in the year 1980, in spite of the slight cutback in the production and high level of our imports.

Reserves

By way of simple comparison, our foreign reserves in October last year stood at about ₦3 billion. Today it stands at about ₦5.2 billion. Through prudent financial management, this administration which inherited a deficit of ₦1.4 billion in its current account on its assumption of office on 1st October, 1979, has at the end of July 1980 achieved a surplus of ₦2.4 billion.

Inflation

Available data for the first half of 1980 point to a decrease in the rate of inflation. The consumer price index for the half year showed an increase of about only 2 per cent as compared with 12 per cent in 1979. This decrease in the rate of inflation in the first half of 1980 has been partly due to our improved domestic output and the strength of the naira against most other currencies.

However, in the second half of the year, the rate of inflation has increased. This is reflected in the rise in prices of certain food items such as rice. We feel strongly concerned and this administration has taken both immediate and long term measures to check this undesirable trend effectively. I like to assure this nation that the positive result of this measure will soon be felt throughout the land.

Income policy

The problems of inflation, unfair distribution of incomes, low productivity, inadequate supply of essential commodities, poor standard of living, which dictated the need for the introduction of a conscious incomes policy four years ago are still lingering. This administration examined the incomes policy of the previous administration and introduced such modifications as are necessary and in keeping with the changed environment symbolised by our return to democracy. These modifications relate essentially to the areas of wage adjustment and price fixing.

Wages and salaries

In contrast to the previous inflexible position with regard to salaries and wages under the former regime, this administration has adopted a flexible medium-term approach to wage policy. Under the current wage guidelines, employers and employees are permitted to negotiate changes in salaries and wages within prescribed limits for the period 1980-82. The merit of this change is obvious. It allows for free collective bargaining between workers and employers, and lays down some foundation for cooperation by both sides.

Fringe benefits

Furthermore, this administration has reviewed a number of the fringe benefits paid to the public sector employees, such as housing and transport allowance. These allowances are now payable to all grades of public officers against the previous practice where only senior officers qualified for housing allowance and only vehicle owners were entitled to vehicle allowance.

We are determined to bring about a sustained improvement in the standard of living of all Nigerians be they workers, farmers or self-employed. Certainly, this goal cannot be attained through unrealistic wage awards which will only, in fact, increase hardship on all by aggravating the inflationary spiral. The main objective of our incomes policy is to ensure a steady growth in real income of all Nigerians.

Price

Akin to the changes made in the method of fixing salaries and wages, we have introduced a more flexible approach to price determination. The price control mechanism of the previous administration has been abolished.