CONTINENT RANK
UNIVERSITY
COUNTRY
WORLD RANK
SIZE VISIBILITY RICH FILES SCHOLAR

1 University of Cape Town 387 485 532 722 387
2 Stellenbosch University 455 773 1,095 550 230
3 University of the Witwatersrand 473 2,170 819 556 270
4 University of Pretoria 646 4,858 1,672 285 223
5 Rhodes University 651 1,277 573 1,444 855
6 University of South Africa 729 1,247 1,166 917 672
7 Cairo University 770 3,505 687 1,812 772
8 University of Kwazulu Natal 778 515 1,680 484 713
9 University of the Western Cape 992 2,161 1,419 2,029 1,054
10 American University in Cairo 1,043 2,025 1,532 1,776 1,167
11 Ain Shams University 1,094 4,052 4,102 1,726 338
12 Makerere University 1,177 371 4,457 1,210 784
13 University of Khartoum 1,216 2,700 1,279 1,193 1,643
14 University of Johannesburg 1,287 2,759 4,592 909 755
15 Kwame Nkrumah University of Science & Technology 1,338 3,798 3,062 3,897 955
16 Addis Ababa University 1,367 1,223 4,956 2,904 791
17 University of Nairobi 1,367 631 1,794 2,761 1,724
18 Mansoura University 1,373 1,914 3,734 2,197 1,138
19 Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University 1,378 1,949 3,682 2,048 1,176
20 University of the Free State (1) 1,499 4,187 3,640 2,150 1,281
21 Polytechnic of Namibia 1,608 296 820 1,106 2,737
22 University of Benin (1) 1,639 5,768 1,802 7,522 1,697
23 North West University 1,677 2,156 7,521 2,269 925
24 Zagazig University 1,682 7,984 2,974 3,196 1,592
25 University of Ghana 1,727 1,540 2,220 8,159 1,830
26 Université Mentouri de Constantine 1,837 2,317 9,377 1,866 892
27 Université Cheikh Anta Diop de Dakar 1,895 3,932 4,847 4,791 1,602
28 University of Dar Es Salaam 1,907 1,885 5,745 1,769 1,703
29 Al-Azhar University 1,929 7,958 1,056 8,934 1,996
30 University of Botswana 1,936 2,245 6,573 4,567 1,459
31 Assiut University 1,994 4,727 6,221 2,615 1,561
32 Helwan University 2,014 8,454 2,730 4,109 1,868
33 University of Zimbabwe 2,118 5,356 4,304 7,711 1,734
34 Cape Peninsula University of Technology 2,209 3,929 2,359 3,240 2,283
35 University of Agriculture Abeokuta 2,266 2,916 9,426 5,248 1,271
36 Université des Sciences et de la Technologie Houari Boumediene 2,276 4,926 7,975 5,245 1,437
37 Université Cadi Ayyad 2,324 3,782 6,169 3,504 1,798
38 University of Ibadan 2,515 7,146 4,645 6,696 1,866
39 Sudan University of Science & Technology 2,517 2,765 2,644 2,988 2,905
40 University of Tanta 2,806 10,722 6,127 3,072 1,864
41 Tshwane University of Technology 2,855 4,568 7,158 4,972 1,873
42 Université Badji Mokhtar de Annaba 2,884 7,592 4,518 10,002 1,941
43 Strathmore University Nairobi 2,980 299 3,915 3,740 4,195
44 South Valley University 3,029 8,283 8,419 3,367 1,793
45 Kenyatta University 3,034 591 7,299 3,731 2,144
46 Mauritius Institute of Education 3,166 4,221 387 12,901 9,576
47 University of Nigeria 3,228 4,072 9,375 8,440 1,752
48 Arab Academy for Science & Technology and Maritime Transport 3,235 2,384 1,922 4,874 6,828
49 Obafemi Awolowo University 3,263 8,626 8,408 8,414 1,741
50 Egerton University 3,305 3,829 3,886 3,503 3,738
51 Suez Canal University 3,369 2,054 10,208 4,613 1,872
52 University of Lagos 3,486 2,688 9,521 9,241 1,841
53 Université Abou Bekr Belkaid Tlemcen 3,487 2,418 4,023 4,788 4,254
54 Université Ferhat Abbas Setif 3,509 7,114 11,227 5,884 1,645
55 Ahmadu Bello University 3,512 4,058 10,399 8,159 1,756
56 University of Mauritius 3,525 5,841 4,313 2,521 3,714
57 University of Fort Hare 3,642 4,681 8,311 4,254 2,032
58 University of Namibia 3,738 4,273 6,035 1,877 3,282
59 Al Akhawayn University Ifrane 4,204 4,699 5,097 3,311 4,848
60 Université Mohammed V Agdal 4,205 1,503 10,203 7,105 2,076
61 Alexandria University 4,205 4,617 14,720 3,315 1,599
62 Universidade Eduardo Mondlane 4,278 4,757 3,952 3,854 6,388
63 University of Ilorin 4,302 7,386 9,139 1,985 2,261
64 University of Malawi 4,354 8,726 8,452 13,739 1,892
65 Université Djillali Liabes 4,358 10,233 8,078 4,836 2,130
66 Minia University 4,364 9,367 9,092 4,218 2,055
67 Université d'Oran 4,391 12,404 7,817 7,062 2,022
68 National University of Rwanda 4,407 2,031 6,728 3,308 4,472
69 École Mohammadia d'Ingénieurs 4,451 7,401 4,551 5,162 4,907
70 Open University of Sudan 4,488 6,964 837 15,918 9,576
71 University of Zululand 4,551 3,278 8,897 5,010 2,549
72 Université Abdelmalek Essaadi 4,618 1,409 4,460 3,957 8,237
73 University of Education Winneba 4,632 5,056 3,729 11,914 5,343
74 Durban University of Technology 4,686 3,427 9,098 4,642 2,623
75 African Virtual University 4,785 8,339 6,634 8,350 2,794
76 Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology 4,791 5,162 7,142 7,384 3,093
77 Presbyterian University College 4,868 684 2,601 14,318 9,576
78 Al Azhar Al-Sharif Islamic Research Academy 4,889 4,389 2,779 7,808 9,576
79 Université d'Antananarivo 5,071 5,164 2,151 12,733 9,576
80 Mogadishu University 5,178 3,240 1,172 18,742 9,576
81 Faculté des Sciences Rabat 5,194 8,232 8,838 3,809 2,744
82 Université Hassiba Ben Bouali 5,212 2,199 10,142 2,356 3,444
83 Jimma University 5,288 11,158 5,046 9,943 4,164
84 University of Limpopo 5,406 7,477 10,934 7,379 2,097
85 École National Supérieure de l'Informatique (ex-INI) 5,427 1,661 5,671 9,967 6,573
86 Université de Batna 5,541 7,544 8,465 3,587 3,626
87 Groupe EIER-ETSHER 5,576 2,313 8,314 5,811 4,749
88 University of Jos 5,681 5,022 10,220 4,760 2,900
89 Université Senghor d'Alexandrie 5,738 6,268 4,501 10,037 7,159
90 German University in Cairo 5,842 9,015 6,862 4,917 5,066
91 Université Mouloud Mammeri de Tizi Ouzou 5,878 5,297 9,066 5,382 3,854
92 Kafrelsheikh University 6,002 8,102 8,760 4,195 3,918
93 Université Hassan II Ain-Chock 6,051 1,025 5,288 9,567 9,576
94 Benha University 6,120 4,084 12,561 1,547 2,781
95 Auchi Polytechnic 6,254 2,101 2,331 18,742 9,576
96 Hubert Kairuki Memorial University 6,358 2,533 6,330 13,645 6,228
97 Wisconsin International University College Ghana 6,492 10,098 2,299 15,918 9,576
98 Universidade Jean Piaget de Cabo Verde 6,515 7,778 9,063 9,777 3,352
99 Fayoum University 6,562 5,803 11,201 2,611 3,677
100 National Open University of Nigeria 6,576 12,658 9,157 4,064 3,528
http://www.webometrics.info/top100_continent.asp?cont=africa

backwardness your state is know for second hand cloth.for christ sake, why is't some Nigeria are celebrating backwardness,go to Aba portorportor every where Aba is the most dirt city. i have be to in the east,dirt water every where if it rain the water we not move for days,thou it may be he have work on it now because is almost a year now i went there

Ileke-IdI:
Beautifully illustrated.

lmao@ gala hawking as employment. Honerico, o badt gan



www.nairaland.com/attachments/746854_statistic_pnge9814e183f7ac0fbb705f4fa91cff238

go by this chart what make Anambra,a state that has less unemployment rate?

manchy7531:

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2012/07/anambra-has-lowest-rate-of-unemployment-minister/

the statement acredited to the minister may not be truth,my question is since 2009 did 'National Bureau of Statistics release other statistic on employment,this was 2009 statistic

Austine.E:
While people are busy weighing the impact of Walmart coming to Nigeria on Igbo businessmen,we also forgot about 35% of other nigerians in petty businesses whom already are finding it very difficult to compete against the igbos in this harsh economic market system!i then submit that the initial victims of this draconian neo-imperialistic organizatns coming to Nigeria will first of all be the yorubas and Hausas who make up that 35% non competative and dissadvantaged traders!....suffice it say that even in places like China,India,Malaysia etc Igbo markets and igbo traders compete relatively well on thesame platform with these people!BTW ve you wondered why the chinese infiltrated Kano with cheap products and grounded almost every manufacturing companies in the North and cldnt get close to the East and igbo business interest!The igbos are masters of the game and even occasionally take they war to there doorsteps in their countries! i only fear for some manufacturers who may nt be able to compete well in Nigeria because of high cost of productn and labour,basically i pity companies like Doyin groups,Eleganza,even foriegn oriented companies like UAC,Lever brothers,Cadbury Nigeria,PZ etc who are most likely going to be affected because of its corporate nature and the cost of running it,it may also lead to high number of job loss,guess the yorubas and every other Nigerians will be affected in this job loss!

rubbish

Spirit of Okija: In this order..

1. Lagos

2. Abuja

3. Port-Harcourt

4. Calabar

5. Enugu
6. Uyo

7. Owerri

8. Nna e don finish o!!


NOTE: The Top 4 have all it takes.. Money flows, Night life, Urban, ethinically balanced, fine

Nigeria is divided into thirty-six states and one Federal Capital Territory, which are further sub-divided into 774 Local Government Areas (LGAs). The plethora of states, of which there were only three at independence, reflect the country's tumultuous history and the difficulties of managing such a heterogeneous national entity at all levels of government.
Nigeria has six cities with a population of over 1 million people (from largest to smallest: Lagos, Kano, Ibadan, Kaduna, Port Harcourt, and Benin City). Lagos is the largest city in sub-Saharan Africa, with a population of over 8 million in its urban area alone. Population of Nigeria's cities over a million are listed belowPopulation of major cities
See also: List of cities in Nigeria
City Population
Lagos 7,937,932
Kano 3,848,885
Ibadan 3,078,400
Kaduna 1,652,844
Port Harcourt 1,320,214
Benin City 1,051,600
Maiduguri 1,044,497
Zaria 1,018,827 statistic last census,
this are the best city in nigeria,i my own opinion onitcha,Aba,calabar,owerri they are all small town and not a city

Chinom: If the snub really happened, then the Oba is the real di*ckhead here. This cannot happen in the US or Europe. A vindictive OBJ would deal with this Oba squarely without him knowing where the blow came from. Thank God we have GEJ. He is the MAN here, not the pathetic Oba. That is,if the snub actually happened. Who publicised this picture anyway ?.

thou Oba did not snub Good luck.but can some one tell me what did nigeria law say if president go to some body house to ask for help and he was snub.did that person brake any law?i know that not every home in US can open his door to Obama.his Royal highness oba of benin is well learn,he has two law degree from Cambridge i don't think a well learn traditional ruler like that can delibratly brake any law.

manchy7531: stop being jealous and ignorant.go check out the answer to ur rantings. https://www.nairaland.com/237534/look-going-school-nigeria-statistics

National Bureau of Statistics http://nigeria.unfpa.org/pdf/nigeria_2010.pdf

manchy7531: stop being jealous and ignorant.go check out the answer to ur rantings. https://www.nairaland.com/237534/look-going-school-nigeria-statistics

fake statistics

Sam_Ikenna:

Very well then, giving Imo state some kind "help" wont be a bad idea right?

A lot of people have this ego need that makes them want to believe that Earth is the center of the universe.A wrong concept misleads the understanding; a wrong deed degrades the whole man, and may eventually demolish the structure of the human ego.

norseman2:
Infact Ɣöur a fool, Yoruba slowpoke, Imo state has †ђξ highest numba O̶̷̩̥̊͡F student dt wrote dt last jamb, ​№ º°˚˚° need Τ̅☺ tell U̶̲̥̅̊ more , U̶̲̥̅̊ ​A̶̲̥̅̊я̲̅ε̲̣̣̣̥ jst †ђξ biggest fool on nairaland, mayb Ɣöur father ws high on alomo wen he ws fucking Ɣöur mother, dt he allowd †ђξ better part O̶̷̩̥̊͡F U̶̲̥̅̊ sliped dwn his leg. Idiot

did you cheek how many were admitted,they may have the highest number of student that take jamb.but they may not have the highest number of student that were admitted. last ssce,imo wast not in top 7 state.the state in top performers were s.west state and edo state.i mean state that have more than 20% credit in five subject including English and maths.national average was 11.3%.but all the s.west state have more than 25%including edo.you cheek the top 20 university in the country. in webrocom ranking,all are in s.west and edo state,apart from UNN and ABU. western region still the leader in education in the country

my question is this why should edo state government give 200 hectares of land to,this pple to build a university,only to covert the land to farm and use it to fund a university in imo,edo state govt should get our land back .about a year ago,BENIN CITY – Edo State Government has issued a Certificate of Occupancy for the land to build a university by Loyola Jesuit Order at Ewatto Community in Esan South East Local Government Area.

Making the presentation at the Government House in Benin City, Edo State Governor, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole said the Certificate of Occupancy for the land is part of the state development agenda to encourage even development in all parts of the state.

“We have waived all fees to enable the Jesuit Order start the project and the money that would have been spent on the C of O and land,should be diverted to other projects. This will no doubt increase the economic activity in the rural communities”, he noted.let imo give them land to farm.u can not using our land to farm and be using it to fund skul in imo.
You have demonstrated your love for education with the issuance of a Certificate of Occupancy to Loyola Jesuit for a parcel of land measuring two hundred hectares for the establishment of a university”, he added.

manny4life:


You see what I say, why you mentioning my family?

Because you deny who your creator is, and strongly believe in your oracle, that which you believe in will visit you, your family and your children. The lord God in his mighty fire will visit you and your oracle, for this which you have said, evil will never depart from you. In the name of God, I return back all your arrows back to you and it will hit you in 1million folds...AMEN.

Although I won't challenge anyone BUT if any oracle comes my way, the fire that burns in me is greater than the fire that burns in them. The Bible said, he that is greater in me is greater than he that is in them. So hear my word; I'M NOT AFRAID of your terror by night, nor your arrow that flies by day, nor your pestilence that walks in darkness, nor the destruction that lays waste at noon day. My brother, go and read about the account of Elijah and the 400 prophets of Baal.

I am a covenant child with GOD, yes I said it. I believe in the holy GOD of Israel. So tell your Oracle, NOTHING, and I mean NOTHING can happen. In as long as GOD is a consuming fire, well, let's see if GOD consuming fire and oracle's consuming fire, which is greater. Your ignorance is why I write this to you, my brother, seek GOD and immediately but if you'll not seek GOD but rather have your trust and hope on an idol, yet you use your oracle to threaten a covenant child, then watch, the wrath of GOD is near.

they will surly visit u,on that day u keep on quoting ur bible.

manny4life:


If you believe this stuff you just wrote, then this is the reason why Nigeria can't move forward. While the Oba needs to be respected and the Oba needs to reciprocate as well, but Oba performing ritual, is his ritual greater than GOD?

If Oba's ritual is greater than God in the Bible, then Oba's ritual will work, but if not, since there's GOD and in the Bible, GOD commanded spiritual work on fellows like this, his ritual won't work. By the time a team of prayer groups declare 7-days fire and brimstone prayer on his rituals, his rituals will bow.

may the oracle in our land remember to visit your family.

empty seat

empty seat.

Edo’s Budget of Progress, by Nasir Ahmad El-Rufai



From a hopeless budget in the Bauchi of the North-East, a sensible one in Lagos of the South-West and an opaque budget in Benue of the North-Central, our focus this week is on the South-South state of Edo with a view to assessing how self-reliant, fiscally prudent and accountable the state is. It is one of the states where a Fiscal Responsibility Bill has been presented to the state House of Assembly but has not yet been passed into law. While the state benefits from the 13% derivation fund as a marginal oil producing state, this fiscal advantage does not translate to any significant edge in financial transfers and key indices when compared to other states in the Niger Delta region.

The Mid-Western Region was created in 1963 from Benin and Delta provinces of the old Western Region, and its capital was Benin City. It was renamed a province in 1966, and in 1967 when the other provinces were split up into several states, it remained territorially intact, becoming a state. In 1976 it lost Ughelli to the new Rivers state and was renamed Bendel state. Edo State was formed on August 27, 1991 when Bendel State was split into Edo and Delta States. Geographically, Edo is bounded on the north and the east by Kogi State, on the west by Ondo State and on the south by Delta State. It had a population of 3,233,366; 1,633,946 males and 1,599,420 females according to the 2006 Population and Housing Census, making it more populous than Botswana and the Gambia.

As a marginal oil producing state, one of Edo’s principal mineral resources includes crude oil though in tiny quantities compared to other Niger-Delta states. Others resources are natural gas, clay chalk, marbles, granite, limestone (an estimated 10 million tones reserve),gypsum, feldspar (useful for glass production), kaolin(huge deposits which have not been exploited) and a reserve of about 90 million tonnes of bentonite. While bentonite has wide industrial usage, much of the required amount for local consumption is still imported. These minerals are potential revenue sources for the state. Agriculture is the predominant occupation of the Edo people. The major cash crops produced are rubber, cocoa and palm produce. In addition, the State produces crops like yams, cassava, rice, plantains, guinea-corn, and assorted types of fruits and vegetables.

Col John Yeri served as first Military Governor of Edo state till 1992. Others who governed the state include; John E.K Odigie-Oyegun (1992-1993), Chief Lucky N. Igbinedion (1999-2007), Prof. Oserheimen Osunbor (2007-2008) and most recently Comrade Adams A. Oshiomhole. Oshiomole was sworn into office November, 12 2008 after the appeal court declared him the winner of Edo state gubernatorial election of April 2007 under the political platform of AC. Prior to his election as Governor he was the president of Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC).

Oshiomole’s activism dates back to his days at the Arewa Textiles Company where he was union secretary. He became a full-time trade union organizer in 1975.In 1999, he became president of the Nigerian Labour Congress. He was publicly recognized as man of the people and openly challenged the government where policies were not in favor of the workers. The emergence of Adams Oshiomole as governor of Edo state came as a delight to many who were familiar with his activities and achievements as leader of the Nigeria Labor Congress and believed he would make a difference by actively being in government. Both Nuhu Ribadu and I broke ranks to attend his fundraising dinner and supported his candidature over the PDP candidate. Against this background, Oshiomole had the popular vote and naturally, the masses believed that his antecedents will enable him to use the resources of the state judiciously and in the best interest of the citizens.

Edo State Government’s budget totaled N150.9bn for the 2012 fiscal year; with N64.5bn (43%) recurrent expenditure and capital expenditure slightly higher at N86.4bn (57%). It falls short of the international standard requiring about 70% of expenditure for capital projects, but may be justified by Edo being an old sate with more maintenance burden that new build-outs of infrastructure and facilities. Edo’s personnel cost is 19% of the overall budget and is higher than the state’s IGR of N23.9bn by N4.8bn.This means that the state, if solely dependent on its IGR would not be able to sustain personnel costs much less invest in development projects. The state’s IGR of N23.9bn is only a third of its recurrent expenditure of N64.5bn and therefore insufficient to sustain those expenditures. The state government needs to be shrunk in size and cost.

The high recurrent expenditure cuts across the different sectors in the state, with health and education as understandable, but not in others. The Education sector has N14.1bn allocated for recurrent expenditure while capital expenditure for the sector is half that sum N7.7bn. About N4.3bn is expended on recurrent costs within the health sector in while the capital expenditure is slightly lower at N4bn. Works is the only sector with a allocation in favour of capital spending. It also got the lion’s share of the budget (N36.5bn) and of that amount, only N190m is for recurrent expenditure. Commendably, residents and visitors to the state applaud the current government’s effort at building roads in Benin City after a decade of neglect under PDP governments.

Edo leads all other states in the South-South zone in educational attainment in terms of numbers admitted to Nigerian Universities in 2007/2008 with a total of 3,569 while Bayelsa had only 434. The 2010 National Literacy survey statistics indicate youth literacy in Edo as 89.7%. Edo however has the lowest percentage of adults literate in English 73.5% in the south-south zone. Although the state was previously recognized as the “miracle centre state” because of the high incidence of exam malpractice prevalent there, the state was adjudged best overall in WAEC examinations in 2008 according to an advisor to the Governor. Hopefully the increase in capital expenditure to the sector from N5.6bn in 2011 to N7.7bn in 2012 would be a step in the right direction in support of education for the state.

Regarding health in the state, in 2011, Women Health and Action Research Centre stated that out of 100,000 women that enter labor rooms, 50 of them do not come out alive. Studies including data from Edo state indicate maternal mortality reflects the national average. It seems that maternal health is currently not given the priority it deserves by the state government. Of the N8.2bn allocated to health, about half the amount (N4.3bn) would be expended on overhead and personnel costs.

Despite Edo being a predominantly agrarian state, a paltry N1.5bn (about 1%) is allocated to the sector. Only 0.9% (N812.4m) of the capital budget is allocated to the sector. How this is supposed to aid development in the sector is an open question.This sector deserves to be given more attention if the state is to boost its IGR, employment and rural incomes.

Most of the state’s IGR is from taxes. The state increased its IGR projections from N18.5bn in 2011 to N23.9bn for the 2012 fiscal year but only made about 58% (N10.7bn) of its projections in actual revenues. For 2012, approved tax estimates are N16.9bn (71%) of the total IGR figure. The amount has increased from N13.9bn estimated in 2011. However, the state fell short by about N5.4bn (39%) of its projection in 2011. In 2011, the state projected its statutory allocation to be N45.7bn but received N22.4bn. In spite of all the above, it still estimated receipts of N56bn for 2012.

It is evident, even to a layman that continuous over-estimation of income that constantly falls short will surely lead to a deficit budget. In fact, the Edo state budget has a deficit of about 14% (N20.5bn). Its total receipts amount to about N130bn, made up of N115.4bn recurrent revenue and N15bn capital receipts while total expenditure is about N151bn. The budget makes no mention of how this deficit is funded. In 2011, the Edo state government was only able to balance out its revenue deficit by virtue of income which was not included in the estimates but was paid by the Federal Government, namely; excess crude oil reserve fund (N9.4bn), multilateral debt refund (N3bn) and refund of 0.75 commission charged on Paris club debt refunds (N436.2m). Perhaps that is what it expects to do in 2012.

The Edo State Government has attempted to correctly prioritize its spending by allocating the bulk of the funds to the major sectors of the economy as thus; Works (N36.5bn), Education (N21.8bn), Health (N8.2bn), Transport (N642m), Energy and Water Resources (N2.0bn), Environment (N18.9bn) and Agric (N1.5bn). Interestingly it categorically lists the state security vote as N4.5bn which is highly commendable compared to Bauchi’s allocation of a massive N17.6bn.

Edo ranks 21 in the ease of doing business rankings in Nigeria. It ranks 16 of the 37 states in ease of starting a business. On average, it takes 45 day and 60.5% of one’s income to start a business in the state. Unemployment in the state is 17%, below the national average of 21.1% but considering that the state is home to two large Universities which churn out graduates yearly, it is imperative for the government to create a thriving environment for SMEs which would not only reduce unemployment and saturation of the state civil service but will also boost the economy of the state.

In Edo state, 39.4% of the population is food-poor and cannot afford proper meals daily, 47% are absolutely poor, 57.9% relatively poor and a little below half the population (47%) survive on less than a dollar a day. Overall, Edo’s poverty ratings lie in the middle among the south-south states with Akwa-Ibom, Rivers and Bayelsa slightly better while Delta and Cross-Rivers are much worse off.

The spending priorities in Edo indicate a high cost of governance which is unsustainable given the state’s earnings. The government is spending so much to maintain its staff at the expense of developmental investment. The situation is further worsened by falling revenues and repeated “over-estimation” of its revenues. The government incurs expenses without commensurate revenue flows in the university it owns and several state owned companies. A typical example would be education which receives about N21.8bn but generates less than 2% (N355.3m) in revenues through fines and fees. Virtually all its SOEs return nothing to the government coffers and should be privatized. The state should also aspire to be like Lagos which makes every MDA a significant revenue centre.

The present government of Adams Oshiomhole must be commended for its efforts at improving the state compared to the work done by its predecessors. But as with everything in life, there is room for improvement if continuity is sustained.The state is blessed with abundant resources which have barely been tapped and converted to cash-cows and apart from tax earnings which cannot even sustain its recurrent expenditure, the states’ major financing source is the Federation Account.

Without handouts from the Federal Government, will the state exist in the form it does now? The answer is no. Has the state provided a thriving environment for SMEs to play an active role in its economy? It is trying but needs to do more. Is the government investing in physical infrastructure and human capital or is it just maintaining what it has inherited? The state’s performance in education and spending on roads answer this question affirmatively.

Kobojunkie:

Beginning ke? The East has recorded so many decades of this misplaced pride. Obi is simply riding the same horse that many of those before him have ridden.

Edo’s Budget of Progress, by Nasir Ahmad El-Rufai
Posted By Japh On May 18th, 2012 07:44 AM | ARTICLES
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From a hopeless budget in the Bauchi of the North-East, a sensible one in Lagos of the South-West and an opaque budget in Benue of the North-Central, our focus this week is on the South-South state of Edo with a view to assessing how self-reliant, fiscally prudent and accountable the state is. It is one of the states where a Fiscal Responsibility Bill has been presented to the state House of Assembly but has not yet been passed into law. While the state benefits from the 13% derivation fund as a marginal oil producing state, this fiscal advantage does not translate to any significant edge in financial transfers and key indices when compared to other states in the Niger Delta region.

The Mid-Western Region was created in 1963 from Benin and Delta provinces of the old Western Region, and its capital was Benin City. It was renamed a province in 1966, and in 1967 when the other provinces were split up into several states, it remained territorially intact, becoming a state. In 1976 it lost Ughelli to the new Rivers state and was renamed Bendel state. Edo State was formed on August 27, 1991 when Bendel State was split into Edo and Delta States. Geographically, Edo is bounded on the north and the east by Kogi State, on the west by Ondo State and on the south by Delta State. It had a population of 3,233,366; 1,633,946 males and 1,599,420 females according to the 2006 Population and Housing Census, making it more populous than Botswana and the Gambia.

As a marginal oil producing state, one of Edo’s principal mineral resources includes crude oil though in tiny quantities compared to other Niger-Delta states. Others resources are natural gas, clay chalk, marbles, granite, limestone (an estimated 10 million tones reserve),gypsum, feldspar (useful for glass production), kaolin(huge deposits which have not been exploited) and a reserve of about 90 million tonnes of bentonite. While bentonite has wide industrial usage, much of the required amount for local consumption is still imported. These minerals are potential revenue sources for the state. Agriculture is the predominant occupation of the Edo people. The major cash crops produced are rubber, cocoa and palm produce. In addition, the State produces crops like yams, cassava, rice, plantains, guinea-corn, and assorted types of fruits and vegetables.

Col John Yeri served as first Military Governor of Edo state till 1992. Others who governed the state include; John E.K Odigie-Oyegun (1992-1993), Chief Lucky N. Igbinedion (1999-2007), Prof. Oserheimen Osunbor (2007-2008) and most recently Comrade Adams A. Oshiomhole. Oshiomole was sworn into office November, 12 2008 after the appeal court declared him the winner of Edo state gubernatorial election of April 2007 under the political platform of AC. Prior to his election as Governor he was the president of Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC).

Oshiomole’s activism dates back to his days at the Arewa Textiles Company where he was union secretary. He became a full-time trade union organizer in 1975.In 1999, he became president of the Nigerian Labour Congress. He was publicly recognized as man of the people and openly challenged the government where policies were not in favor of the workers. The emergence of Adams Oshiomole as governor of Edo state came as a delight to many who were familiar with his activities and achievements as leader of the Nigeria Labor Congress and believed he would make a difference by actively being in government. Both Nuhu Ribadu and I broke ranks to attend his fundraising dinner and supported his candidature over the PDP candidate. Against this background, Oshiomole had the popular vote and naturally, the masses believed that his antecedents will enable him to use the resources of the state judiciously and in the best interest of the citizens.

Edo State Government’s budget totaled N150.9bn for the 2012 fiscal year; with N64.5bn (43%) recurrent expenditure and capital expenditure slightly higher at N86.4bn (57%). It falls short of the international standard requiring about 70% of expenditure for capital projects, but may be justified by Edo being an old sate with more maintenance burden that new build-outs of infrastructure and facilities. Edo’s personnel cost is 19% of the overall budget and is higher than the state’s IGR of N23.9bn by N4.8bn.This means that the state, if solely dependent on its IGR would not be able to sustain personnel costs much less invest in development projects. The state’s IGR of N23.9bn is only a third of its recurrent expenditure of N64.5bn and therefore insufficient to sustain those expenditures. The state government needs to be shrunk in size and cost.

The high recurrent expenditure cuts across the different sectors in the state, with health and education as understandable, but not in others. The Education sector has N14.1bn allocated for recurrent expenditure while capital expenditure for the sector is half that sum N7.7bn. About N4.3bn is expended on recurrent costs within the health sector in while the capital expenditure is slightly lower at N4bn. Works is the only sector with a allocation in favour of capital spending. It also got the lion’s share of the budget (N36.5bn) and of that amount, only N190m is for recurrent expenditure. Commendably, residents and visitors to the state applaud the current government’s effort at building roads in Benin City after a decade of neglect under PDP governments.

Edo leads all other states in the South-South zone in educational attainment in terms of numbers admitted to Nigerian Universities in 2007/2008 with a total of 3,569 while Bayelsa had only 434. The 2010 National Literacy survey statistics indicate youth literacy in Edo as 89.7%. Edo however has the lowest percentage of adults literate in English 73.5% in the south-south zone. Although the state was previously recognized as the “miracle centre state” because of the high incidence of exam malpractice prevalent there, the state was adjudged best overall in WAEC examinations in 2008 according to an advisor to the Governor. Hopefully the increase in capital expenditure to the sector from N5.6bn in 2011 to N7.7bn in 2012 would be a step in the right direction in support of education for the state.

Regarding health in the state, in 2011, Women Health and Action Research Centre stated that out of 100,000 women that enter labor rooms, 50 of them do not come out alive. Studies including data from Edo state indicate maternal mortality reflects the national average. It seems that maternal health is currently not given the priority it deserves by the state government. Of the N8.2bn allocated to health, about half the amount (N4.3bn) would be expended on overhead and personnel costs.

Despite Edo being a predominantly agrarian state, a paltry N1.5bn (about 1%) is allocated to the sector. Only 0.9% (N812.4m) of the capital budget is allocated to the sector. How this is supposed to aid development in the sector is an open question.This sector deserves to be given more attention if the state is to boost its IGR, employment and rural incomes.

Most of the state’s IGR is from taxes. The state increased its IGR projections from N18.5bn in 2011 to N23.9bn for the 2012 fiscal year but only made about 58% (N10.7bn) of its projections in actual revenues. For 2012, approved tax estimates are N16.9bn (71%) of the total IGR figure. The amount has increased from N13.9bn estimated in 2011. However, the state fell short by about N5.4bn (39%) of its projection in 2011. In 2011, the state projected its statutory allocation to be N45.7bn but received N22.4bn. In spite of all the above, it still estimated receipts of N56bn for 2012.

It is evident, even to a layman that continuous over-estimation of income that constantly falls short will surely lead to a deficit budget. In fact, the Edo state budget has a deficit of about 14% (N20.5bn). Its total receipts amount to about N130bn, made up of N115.4bn recurrent revenue and N15bn capital receipts while total expenditure is about N151bn. The budget makes no mention of how this deficit is funded. In 2011, the Edo state government was only able to balance out its revenue deficit by virtue of income which was not included in the estimates but was paid by the Federal Government, namely; excess crude oil reserve fund (N9.4bn), multilateral debt refund (N3bn) and refund of 0.75 commission charged on Paris club debt refunds (N436.2m). Perhaps that is what it expects to do in 2012.

The Edo State Government has attempted to correctly prioritize its spending by allocating the bulk of the funds to the major sectors of the economy as thus; Works (N36.5bn), Education (N21.8bn), Health (N8.2bn), Transport (N642m), Energy and Water Resources (N2.0bn), Environment (N18.9bn) and Agric (N1.5bn). Interestingly it categorically lists the state security vote as N4.5bn which is highly commendable compared to Bauchi’s allocation of a massive N17.6bn.

Edo ranks 21 in the ease of doing business rankings in Nigeria. It ranks 16 of the 37 states in ease of starting a business. On average, it takes 45 day and 60.5% of one’s income to start a business in the state. Unemployment in the state is 17%, below the national average of 21.1% but considering that the state is home to two large Universities which churn out graduates yearly, it is imperative for the government to create a thriving environment for SMEs which would not only reduce unemployment and saturation of the state civil service but will also boost the economy of the state.

In Edo state, 39.4% of the population is food-poor and cannot afford proper meals daily, 47% are absolutely poor, 57.9% relatively poor and a little below half the population (47%) survive on less than a dollar a day. Overall, Edo’s poverty ratings lie in the middle among the south-south states with Akwa-Ibom, Rivers and Bayelsa slightly better while Delta and Cross-Rivers are much worse off.

The spending priorities in Edo indicate a high cost of governance which is unsustainable given the state’s earnings. The government is spending so much to maintain its staff at the expense of developmental investment. The situation is further worsened by falling revenues and repeated “over-estimation” of its revenues. The government incurs expenses without commensurate revenue flows in the university it owns and several state owned companies. A typical example would be education which receives about N21.8bn but generates less than 2% (N355.3m) in revenues through fines and fees. Virtually all its SOEs return nothing to the government coffers and should be privatized. The state should also aspire to be like Lagos which makes every MDA a significant revenue centre.

The present government of Adams Oshiomhole must be commended for its efforts at improving the state compared to the work done by its predecessors. But as with everything in life, there is room for improvement if continuity is sustained.The state is blessed with abundant resources which have barely been tapped and converted to cash-cows and apart from tax earnings which cannot even sustain its recurrent expenditure, the states’ major financing source is the Federation Account.

Without handouts from the Federal Government, will the state exist in the form it does now? The answer is no. Has the state provided a thriving environment for SMEs to play an active role in its economy? It is trying but needs to do more. Is the government investing in physical infrastructure and human capital or is it just maintaining what it has inherited? The state’s performance in education and spending on roads answer this question affirmatively.