Delta State Commissioner for Works (Rural Roads) and Public Information, Mr Charles Aniagwu, has said the economic reforms of President Bola Tinubu’s administration are beginning to translate into improved purchasing power and greater economic activities at the grassroots.
Aniagwu said the gains of the Federal Government’s Renewed Hope Agenda were increasingly being transmitted from the macroeconomic level to households through deliberate interventions by state governments, including the MORE Agenda of Governor Sheriff Oborevwori.
The commissioner spoke on Wednesday as a panelist at a one-day seminar, titled “Harnessing the Gains of the Renewed Hope Agenda and the MORE Agenda Ahead of 2027,” held at Unity Hall, Government House, Asaba.
He said the key development in the reform process was that improved government finances were now providing states with greater capacity to invest in infrastructure, pay outstanding obligations, empower citizens and stimulate economic activities.
According to him, the emerging impact of the reforms should be viewed beyond economic statistics, as increased government resources were gradually finding their way into the pockets of workers, contractors, artisans, traders and small business owners.
Aniagwu said: “At the macro level, money has come in. Well, in the case of Delta, we have been able to shore up the purchasing power of the people as a way of giving them the benefits of this reform.
“The benefits that are coming are now trickling down. What has hit the macro level is now coming to the micro level.”
He explained that when government paid salary arrears and other outstanding obligations to workers, the money immediately entered the local economy as beneficiaries used their earnings to purchase goods and services.
He said the same principle applied to government-funded infrastructure projects, explaining that money spent on roads, schools and other projects circulated among contractors, workers, suppliers and traders in the communities.
“If a civil servant receives 10 months’ salary, it means that the ability of that civil servant to spend has been enhanced,” he said.
Aniagwu noted that when such workers spent their earnings, traders and other small business owners also generated income, enabling them to restock, employ labour and meet household needs.
He said the process represented an important nexus between the Renewed Hope Agenda at the federal level and the MORE Agenda in Delta State.
The commissioner cited the ongoing renovation of schools across the state as an example of how government expenditure could stimulate economic activities at the grassroots.
According to him, the projects were not merely about improving physical infrastructure but also about creating opportunities for contractors, artisans, suppliers and workers in the various communities.
He said the administration was also deploying empowerment initiatives to inject funds directly into the grassroots, particularly among people involved in small businesses and agricultural activities.
Aniagwu explained that relatively modest interventions could have a significant multiplier effect when targeted at people operating within local communities.
He said such beneficiaries would use the funds to expand their businesses, hire labour, cultivate farms and meet other immediate needs, thereby keeping the money circulating within the local economy.
The commissioner said the administration's approach was also evident in its massive infrastructure programme, including major roads, flyovers and other projects across the state.
He said the projects were opening up communities, facilitating the movement of goods and services and creating economic opportunities for residents.
Aniagwu further explained that the government was being deliberate in its approach to recruitment into the teaching service, saying a comprehensive needs assessment was being undertaken to ensure that new employment was based on actual manpower requirements.
He said the assessment would establish the teacher-student ratio, subject-teacher requirements and available facilities before new teachers were recruited.
According to him, the objective was to ensure that government resources were deployed efficiently and produced the desired impact.
He also said improved security and the state's stronger financial position had created a more conducive environment for economic development.
Aniagwu urged stakeholders to communicate the reforms to citizens in a manner that enabled them to understand the connection between economic stabilisation, increased government revenue, public spending and improved household welfare.
He said the current phase of the reforms was particularly important because the benefits of macroeconomic stability must continue to translate into better livelihoods, more economic opportunities and stronger purchasing power.
His position echoes the Federal Government's current emphasis on moving from macroeconomic stabilisation to what it describes as microeconomic prosperity, including lower inflation, more jobs, affordable credit, increased production and stronger purchasing power.
Aniagwu said the task ahead was therefore to consolidate the gains and ensure that the economic recovery continued to reach more Nigerians.
“The taste of the pudding is in the eating,” he said, stressing that the ultimate measure of the reforms would be the extent to which ordinary citizens experienced improved economic opportunities and greater capacity to meet their needs.
