Nigeria Not Among Africa's Shining Examples - World Bank
By Rafiu Ajakaye Foreign Editor, Lagos
indenpendent 30-06-09
Nigeria again fell short of expectation on Monday, missing on the list of African countries the World Bank and the Brookings Institution adjudged the best in democratic practice.

Both institutions released a joint report showing several African nations making great improvements in how their people are governed - another blow to the efforts of Aso Rock to portray itself in good light amid rising disapproval.

The report came as Abuja tries to troubleshoot itself out of allegations of graft by government officials, human right abuses, as well as get its amnesty deal for Niger Delta insurgents off the ground.

The report showed Botswana on a par with many developed Western nations.

It said other African countries in the loop of progress are Liberia (under the continent's only democratically elected woman leader, President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf), Uganda, Angola, Ethiopia, and Congo.

In the Worldwide Governance Indicators project, the authors define governance as the traditions and institutions by which authority is exerted in a country.

These include how governments are selected, monitored and replaced; the capacity of the government to formulate and implement sound policies; and the respect of citizens and the state for the institutions that govern economic and social interaction among them.

Coinciding with countries that have done well, the report said, a similar number - among them Zimbabwe and Cote D'Ivoire - have experienced deterioration in several areas of governance.

Nigeria was neither mentioned as progressing nor retrogressing - a sign it lacks the yardstick to be so measured after the much-criticised 2007 election and allegation that Aso Rock is not committed to its vaunted electoral reform.

In many other countries around the world, "no significant change in either direction is yet apparent in recent years," the report said.

"The good news is that some countries are recognising and responding to governance challenges and are showing strong improvements," explained Aart Kraay, a ranking World Bank economist and the report's co-author.

Kraay said the changes "reflect concerted efforts by political leaders, policymakers, civil servants, and the private sector," in the improved countries.

Daniel Kaufmann, Kraay's co-author from the Brookings Institution, a Washington-based policy research group, said, "We should not presume that rich and powerful countries have the very best levels of governance and corruption control; the financial crisis reminds us that the quality of governance in G8 (Group of Eight) countries is not always exemplary."

The G8 includes the West's leading economies and Russia.

Using 35 data provided by 33 different organisations, including development banks, think tanks and private companies, the authors produced the eighth edition of the 102-page index, described as one of the most comprehensive international sets of indicators currently available.

It covers 212 countries and territories.

The report says that where commitment to positive change exists, improvements in governance can and do occur

same in year 2090

How is that a suprise?

nawoo

are we gona sit back and continue watching those banana-politicians

watch them on their agbada with police escort

imagine contonu with their good roads

ghana with some fair electricity supply to their cities

s-africa with their standard etc

naija just keep recylin slowpoke, hence keep movin back

kia i need a gun for real

noooooooooooooooooooooooooo, this is aint right

our children children we are killing

Nigeria was neither mentioned as progressing nor retrogressing - a sign it lacks the yardstick to be so measured after the much-criticised 2007 election and allegation that Aso Rock is not committed to its vaunted electoral reform.

My O My!

Is this country cursed?

I am thinking it is cursed

Nigeria was neither mentioned as progressing nor retrogressing! We dey kampe no shaking!

hmmm