President Buhari’s full speech on 2020 Democracy Day celebration

President Muhammadu Buhari on June 12 addressed Nigerians to commemorate the 2020 Democracy celebration.

The Nigerian leader listed some of his achievements and the effort of
his administration to curb the spread of Coronavirus in the nationwide
address. Here is the full speech below;

Fellow Nigerians,

The 2020 celebration of Democracy Day marks 21 years of uninterrupted
civil administration in our dear country. This day provides us an
opportunity to reflect on our journey as a nation, our achievements and
struggles.

It is a day to honour our founding fathers who toiled to establish
our republic and every Nigerian who has worked tirelessly to sustain it.
We are celebrating this year’s Democracy Day despite the COVID-19
pandemic which afflicts our nation and the whole world.

It is indeed a very difficult time for everyone especially those who
have lost loved ones to the virus and those whose sources of livelihood
have been severely constrained by the stringent measures we introduced
at every level of government to contain the virus and save lives.

The dedication of our health and other essential services staff
towards containing this virus is a testament of our courage and
resilience as a people and as a great nation, and I use this opportunity
to say thank you to all of you for your service to the nation.

Sustaining our democracy thus far has been a collective struggle, and
I congratulate all Nigerians and particularly leaders of our democratic
institutions on their resilience and determination to ensure that
Nigeria remains a shining example of democracy.

In my 2019 Democracy Day address, I promised to frontally address the
nation’s daunting challenges, especially insecurity, economy and
corruption. I therefore find it necessary to give an account of my
stewardship on this day.

We have recorded notable achievements in the course of implementing
our nine priority objectives and are establishing a solid foundation for
future success.

On the economic front, our objectives have remained to stabilize the
macroeconomy, achieve agricultural and food security, ensure energy
sufficiency in power and petroleum products, develop infrastructure,
fight corruption and improve governance.

We have witnessed eleven quarters of consecutive GDP growth since
exiting recession. The GDP grew from 1.91% in 2018 to 2.27% in 2019 but
declined to 1.87% in the first quarter of 2020 as a result of the
decline in global economic activities due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Every single economy in the world has suffered a decline. Ours has been relatively moderate.

In order to stabilize the economy, the Monetary Authority took steps
to build the external reserves which resulted in improved liquidity in
the foreign exchange market.

The external reserves grew from $33.42 billion on April 29th 2020 to
about $36.00 billion in May, 2020 which is enough to finance seven
months of import commitments.

Agriculture remains the key to our economic diversification
strategy. The Presidential Fertilizer Initiative programme continues to
deliver significant quantities of affordable and high-quality
fertilizers to our farmers.

This initiative has also revived 31 blending plants and created a
significant number of direct and indirect jobs across the value chain.

Government is also revamping the cotton, textile and garment sector
via a CBN Textile Revival Intervention Fund that would considerably
reduce foreign exchange spent on cotton and other textile imports.

Through the food security initiative, we are promoting “Grow What We
Eat” and “Eat What We Grow”. I am also delighted that more and more
Nigerians are taking advantage of the opportunities in the agriculture
and agri-business sector.

I assure you that government will continue to support the Agriculture
sector through the CBN Anchor Borrowers Programme and similar schemes.

To protect our farming investments, we have deployed 5,000
Agro-Rangers and employed 30,289 in our para-military agencies. We are
also integrating rural communities to the formal economy by extending
access to credit and inputs to rural farmers and building feeder roads.

Our efforts on growing non-oil exports have started to yield some
results. For instance, in the past year, our revenue from Cocoa and
Sesame Seed increased by $79.4 million and $153 million.

Africa presents a huge opportunity for our export base
diversification and we are developing our strategy to grow intra-Africa
trade through the Africa Continental Free Trade Area Agreement.

Nigeria has risen by 25 places on the World Bank’s Ease of Doing
Business ranking from 146th to 131st and is now rated as one of the top
ten reforming countries.

This development is due to the Visa on Arrival policy, consistent
promotion of initiatives that expand facilities available to Micro Small
and Medium Scale Enterprises, robust electronic registration and
payment system, seamless processing of business registration and
reduction of cost of registering business by 50%. We are confident that
on-going efforts would result in further improvement of this rating.

We remain committed to expanding our mining sector. To this end, I
have directed the resuscitation of the Ajaokuta Steel Plant based on
Government-to-Government financing and a Public-Private Sector
financing.

With foreign and domestic investments and the participation of Small
Scale Miners, we are harnessing the supply value chain in gold
production.

We would also be launching a fully digitized mineral rights
management platform for quick processing of mineral rights application,
digitization of records and plugging revenue leakages.

The Power Sector remains very critical to meeting our industrial
development aspirations and we are tackling the challenges that still
exist in the delivery of power through different strategies.

We are executing some critical projects through the Transmission Rehabilitation and Expansion Programme including the:

a. Alaoji to Onitsha, Delta Power Station to Benin and Kaduna to Kano;

b. 330kv DC 62km line between Birnin Kebbi and Kamba;

c. Lagos/Ogun Transmission Infrastructure Project;

d. Abuja Transmission Ring Scheme; and

e. Northern Corridor Transmission Project.

Our agreement with Siemens will transmit and distribute a total of 11,000 Megawatts by 2023, to serve our electricity needs.

On transportation, another critical sector to improving our economic
competitiveness, we are growing the stock and quality of our road, rail,
air and water transport infrastructure.

Through the SUKUK-Funded Road Projects, a total of 412km of the
targeted 643km road projects have been completed, representing 64%.

The Presidential Infrastructure Development Fund projects are also progressing very well.

On the 2nd Niger Bridge, piling work has been completed and the
approach roads are being constructed. 48% of work on this bridge has
been achieved.

We have constructed 102km of the 376km Abuja – Kaduna – Kano Road,
representing 38%, and the 42.9km Obajana – Kabba Road is 87.03%
complete.

Furthermore, the Federal Roads Maintenance Agency has completed
routine maintenance on over 4,000km of federal roads out of the 5,000km
targeted.

We are extending and upgrading our railway network too. We are
introducing more locomotives, coaches and wagons for the Abuja-Kaduna
Rail Line.

The Central Ajaokuta – Itakpe – Warri Line has been completed and is
being extended from Itakpe to Abuja on one end and from Warri Town to
Warri Port on the other.

The Lagos-Ibadan Rail Line is 90% completed and would be extended to
the Lagos Port which would help address the long-standing gridlock at
the Apapa port.

The Kano–Maradi Single Track Standard Gauge Railway, Coastal Railway
Project & Port Harcourt–Maiduguri Standard Gauge Railway,with its
associated branch lines running through the South Eastern & Gombe
States, industrial park & Bonny Deep Sea Port are all ready for
concessioning.

Government continues to make investments in the Aviation sector to
position it as a travel and trade hub in West Africa and the wider
African continent.

Airport Terminals in Abuja, Lagos, Kano and Port Harcourt are being
expanded, while the rehabilitation of the Enugu Airport is almost
completed.

All our airports are being raised to international standards with the
provision of necessary equipment, especially navigational aids, to
guarantee world class safety standards.

For the first time in over ten years, Nigeria is conducting bidding
process for 57 Marginal Oil Fields to increase revenue and increase the
participation of Nigerian companies in oil and exploration and
production business.

We continue to grow local content in other areas of the oil and gas
sector with the disbursement of funds from the $200 million Nigerian
Content Intervention Fund to indigenous manufacturers and service
providers.

With sustained engagement of youths, opinion leaders and other
stakeholders, we have restored peace in the Niger Delta Region and
maintained our oil production levels.

The Head office of the Niger Delta Development Commission will be
commissioned shortly. The Funding of sections I–IV of the East-West Road
shall be pursued with a view to completing the project by the end of
2021.

Furthermore, I am determined to ensure that development meant for the
people of the Niger Delta get to them so I have authorised a Forensic
Audit of the Niger Delta Development Commission.

Digital Economy continues to play an important role in our
development agenda as we move into the age of Artificial Intelligence.

Since the creation of the Ministry of Communication and Digital
Economy,the National Digital Economy Policy & Strategy has been
launched. Steps have been taken to achieve a reduction of connectivity
cluster gaps from 207 to 114 as well as increase the level of 4G
coverage by 30%.

Nigeria remains committed to expanding access to quality education to
enhance the productivity of its citizens and would continue to pursue
the enforcement of free and compulsory basic education for the first 9
years of schooling.

In pursuit of this, we have launched the Better Education Service
Delivery for All in 17 states, established additional 6 Federal Science
and Technical Colleges and currently executing a pro-active Teacher
Training Plan with all states of the Federation.

In our revision of the operations of specialized education funds
& to implement reforms that would optimize their benefits to the
sector, we have adopted a Public-Private Sector Partnership for
provision of infrastructure & also collaborate with the private
sector to create jobs.

Our pursuit of affordable housing for the low and middle-income
earners has received a boost with the delivery of 1,200 housing units,
provision of 520 service plots with infrastructure through a Public
Private Sector partnership & issuance of 868 mortgages totaling N7.7
Billion.

Similarly, Home Renovation Loans totaling N16.2 Billion have been granted to 19,210 people.

To enable sustainable access to safe and sufficient water to meet the
social, cultural, environmental and economic development needs of all
Nigerians, we continue to expand our water supply, irrigation and dam
facilities.

The Completion of Amauzari, Amla Otukpo and other 42 Earth Dams with
combined job creation of about 43,354 direct jobs and 71,172 indirect
jobs, would provide more support for irrigation agriculture and water
supply.

To further institutionalize our effort in this regard, I signed the Executive Order 009 on Ending Open Defecation in Nigeria.

In order to improve our forest cover & in fulfilment of my
commitment at the 74th Session of the United Nations General Assembly in
2019,we have commenced the planting of 25 million trees.This initiative
will also contribute to our effort to mitigate the effect of climate
change.

In the area of security, we remain unshaken in our resolve to protect
our national infrastructure including on-shore and off-shore oil
installations, secure our territorial waters and end piracy in the Gulf
of Guinea.

Ending insurgency, banditry and other forms of criminality across the
nation is being accorded appropriate priorities and the men and women
of the Armed Forces of Nigeria have considerably downgraded such threats
across all geo-political zones.

All the Local Governments that were taken over by the Boko Haram
insurgents in Borno, Yobe and Adamawa have long been recovered and are
now occupied by indigenes of these areas who were hitherto forced to
seek a living in areas far from their ancestral homes.

The total collapse of the economies of these areas, which constituted
a threat to our food security, has also been reversed with the gradual
recovery of farming and other economic activities.

I regret recent sporadic incidents with tragic loss of lives in
Katsina and Borno States as a result of criminals taking advantage of
COVID-19 restrictions. Security Agencies will pursue the perpetrators
and bring them to swift justice.

I must implore state and local governments to revamp their
intelligence assets so that the Security Agencies can nip in the bud any
planned attacks in remote rural areas. I send my heartfelt condolences
to all the relatives and communities affected.

As part of the strengthening of our internal security architecture, the Ministry of Police Affairs was created.

Amongst others, Government has expanded the National Command and
Control Centre to nineteen states of the federation, resuscitated the
National Public Security Communication System and commenced the
implementation of the Community Policing Strategy.

Government has similarly established a Nigerian Police Trust Fund as a
public-private sector vehicle for alternative sources of funding
security activities.

To reduce security challenges through our external borders especially
smuggling of oil products out of the country, inflow of small arms and
drugs into the country and equally protect our local manufacturers, we
introduced operation “Ex-Swift Response” closing our borders from August
20th 2019, and have considerably succeeded in meeting its objectives as
well as improving our national revenue.

Our Government has continued to work to reduce social and economic
inequality through targeted social investment programmes, education,
technology and improved information.

Our Social Investment Programme has continued to be a model to other
nations and has engaged 549,500 N-Power beneficiaries, 408,682
beneficiaries of the Conditional Cash Transfer Programme, and 2,238,334
beneficiaries of the Growth Enhancement and Empowerment Programme. This
is being done in collaboration with the States.

Similarly, “Marketmoni” and “Tradermoni” Programmes have provided
affordable loans to small and micro scale enterprises to grow their
businesses.

Under the National Home-Grown School Feeding Programme, over
9,963,729 children are being fed to keep them in school and improve
their nutritional status.

Fellow Nigerians, the year 2020 has been like none other. In January
2020, the COVID-19 was declared a global pandemic by the World Health
Organization.

The number of global infections has risen from less than 8,000 shared
between China and eighteen other countries to over 7 million spread
over 216 countries and on all continents.

Nigeria recorded its first case of COVID-19 on February 27th 2020 and
within the first 100 days, I have had cause to address the nation on
three occasions within one month, which underscores the gravity of this
pandemic.

There is no doubt that this pandemic has affected the global economy
and all known socio-economic systems. It has also brought grief and pain
to families that have lost their loved ones.

Like many Nigerians, I feel the grief and pain not only as your
President but also as someone who has lost a close member of my staff
and some relatives and friends.

In order to have a robust National response, I approved a
Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 to provide guidance and leadership
in tackling the pandemic nationwide.

State Governments also constituted their own COVID-19 Task Forces.
Complementing this was the establishment of a National Emergency
Operations Centre responsible for providing technical and professional
guidance in the National Response.

The overall objective of the PTF COVID-19 is to ensure that the
pandemic does not overwhelm our health systems, while ensuring that we
maintain an effective Case Management System to help in containing the
spread of the virus.

The impact of the pandemic has disrupted our economic system and to
ensure its functioning while still addressing the spread, the Federal
Government put in place a number of various non-pharmaceutical measures
to slow down the spread of the virus, in addition to a progressive
re-opening of the economy.

As part of the strategy to create jobs in reducing the effect of
COVID-19 on our youths, I directed the employment of 774, 000 Nigerians.
These youths will be engaged in Special Public Works Programme aimed at
cushioning the effects of economic downturn.

Each of the 774 local government areas in the country will be
allotted 1,000 slots. I am pleased to report that this programme has
commenced.

I receive regular briefing from the PTF on COVID-19. I note that the
National Response relies on Science, Data and Experience in taking
decisions. This informed my approval for the ease of lockdown phase to
ensure a balance between lives and livelihoods.

I am confident that the steps being taken by the PTF would result in
flattening the COVID-19 curve. I, therefore, implore all Nigerians to
abide by the approved guidelines and protocols. There is hope for us all
if we take individual and collective responsibility.

Government is determined to turn this COVID-19 challenge into a
motivation to action by building a nation-wide public health care system
that will help us overcome the COVID-19 pandemic and prepare for any
future outbreak.

Already, we have begun to look inward and I charge our inventors,
researchers and scientists to come up with solutions to cure COVID-19.

Government has continued to implement accountability and transparent
policies through the Open Government Partnership and the transparency
portal on financial transactions.

Similarly, we have strengthened auditing and accountability
mechanisms so as to ensure that rules and regulations are followed
strictly.

Anti-Corruption Agencies have secured more than 1,400 convictions and
also recovered funds in excess of N800 billion. These monies are being
ploughed into development and infrastructure projects.

The Public Service of Nigeria remains the bedrock for the formulation
and implementation of policies, programmes and projects in the country.
This accounts for why it continues to evolve especially as new
socio-economic challenges emerge for Government to address.

I will continue to give all the necessary support for the on-going
reforms designed to return discipline, integrity and patriotism as the
hallmark of the public service.

In the face of dwindling resources and rising cost of governance, I
have authorized that the White Paper on the Rationalisation of
Government Parastatals and Agencies be reviewed for implementation.

Our youth population remains a source of strength in achieving
development objectives. In this regard, we would continue to concentrate
in developing their skills, providing them with opportunities to
express their entrepreneurial, research and industrial capacities as
well as ample opportunity to take leadership positions in the service of
the nation.

The commitment of this Administration to the well-being of people
living with disabilities remains unwavering. Government recognises their
contributions to development.

I have directed that all relevant Government agencies pay special
attention to the peculiarities of persons with disabilities in the
formulation and implementation of their policies and programmes, and
where suitable their employment.

Nigerian women remain a particular treasure to this nation and for
this reason this Administration has continued to give them a place of
pride in the affairs of our country.

I salute your courage, enterprise and resilience as well as your
contributions to national development. I wish to assure all our women of
this administration’s determination to fight Gender Based Violence
through the instrumentality of the law and awareness creation.

I am particularly upset at recent incidents of rape especially of
very young girls. The Police are pursuing these cases with a view to
bringing perpetrators of these heinous crimes to swift justice.

Government continues to recognize and harness the power of the media for positive development.

The reforms of the broadcast and advertising industries including
digital switch over and continuous engagement through town hall meetings
remain central to accurate and credible information dissemination.

Our culture provides the basis for our existence as a people and a
nation. In preserving iconic aspects of our national culture, this
government has been pursuing the recovery of artefacts removed from
Nigeria, promoting heritage sites and festivals and working towards
designating some of our heritage sites as UNESCO World Heritage Centres.

This administration is focused on ensuring that Nigeria would always
be governed by the Rule of Law and I would do my utmost to uphold the
constitution and protect the lives and property of all Nigerians.

Government has initiated a number of policies and programmes designed
to promote the legal rights of Nigerians, facilitate the
institutionalization of a responsive legal system, provide support to
all constituted bodies in implementing their mandates and improve our
custodial system of justice.

The National Assembly has been an important partner in our quest to
sustain our democracy and achieve our development objectives.

The National Assembly has been an important partner in our quest to
sustain our democracy and achieve our development objectives.

The National Assembly has been an important partner in our quest to
sustain our democracy and achieve our development objectives.

I must admit that the relationship between the media and successive
governments has not always been perfect. But there is no denying the
fact that you have been an effective watchdog for the society especially
in holding public officers to account.

It is sad that in the course of securing our democracy, some of your colleagues have had to pay a heavy price.

We will continue to guarantee freedom of the Press as we place high
premium on responsible journalism that is devoid of hate speech, fake
news and other unethical professional conduct.

Fellow Nigerians, as we celebrate this year’s Democracy Day, let us
remember that, notwithstanding our aspirations, humanity and indeed
democracy is under the threat of COVID-19.

Nigeria has survived many crises before and came out stronger. I am
confident that by God’s grace we shall overcome this one and emerge
stronger and more purposeful.

Thank you for listening. God bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria.