The Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Senator George Akume, has called on Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) to dismantle barriers that hinder effective coordination and implementation of government policies.
Speaking on Tuesday at the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (OSGF) Sectoral Retreat in Abuja, Akume urged civil servants to strengthen collaboration to avoid duplication of efforts.
He said, ‘I urge us to concentrate on practical and actionable steps that will strengthen inter-ministerial collaboration and eliminate duplication of efforts.
‘Our goals should include improving the monitoring and evaluation of government projects and policies, promoting transparency and data-driven decision-making, and strengthening institutional capacity to achieve measurable and sustainable results.
‘Let this forum serve as a moment of reflection and recommitment, a time to identify and dismantle the systemic barriers that hinder effective implementation’.
Akume warned that weak coordination, duplication of efforts and operating in silos have undermined the impact of government initiatives.
‘As we all are aware, the success of any administration relies not only on the strength of its policies but also on how effectively those policies are executed. Experience shows that even the best-intentioned policies can fail to achieve their objectives due to weak coordination, overlapping efforts, lack of inter-agency collaboration and insufficient performance monitoring. These shortcomings reduce the overall impact of government initiatives and undermine public trust’, he said.
He explained that the retreat was organised to align the OSGF’s mandate with the priorities of President Bola Tinubu’s administration under the Renewed Hope Agenda, which focuses on economic revitalisation, social inclusion and governance reforms.
He said, ‘Let us strengthen coordination mechanisms, leverage digital tools and institutionalise performance management as the foundation of our public service culture. By the end of this retreat, I hope we will emerge with a renewed sense of purpose and clear action points to accelerate the realisation of the Renewed Hope Agenda across our sector’.
According to him, the government must shift from activity-based administration to a results-driven approach anchored on clear performance indicators, continuous tracking and accountability.
‘Our goal is to build a seamless government machinery where every component works cohesively to advance the President’s priorities. The present administration of President Bola Tinubu has established a clear and ambitious vision for national development through the Renewed Hope Agenda. This agenda prioritises economic revitalisation, social inclusion, infrastructural development and foundational governance reform’, he said.
Akume added that digital tools would be deployed to improve monitoring and ensure that government decisions are based on data.
He listed ongoing efforts, including e-government platforms, data integration systems and digital dashboards for real-time tracking of national priorities.
He said improving the efficiency of policy implementation is a collective responsibility.
Over the years, several government reforms have been slowed by overlapping mandates, duplication of projects and weak inter-agency collaboration
The OSGF Sectoral Retreat is part of efforts to ensure alignment between the President’s priorities and the implementation roles of MDAs, with emphasis on measurable outcomes, performance evaluation and reduction of bureaucratic overlaps.
