Former Minister of Education Oby Ezekwesili has said the directive given to the President of the World Bank, Jim Yong Kim, by President Muhammadu Buhari was normal with any conflict ravaged zone.
The former vice-president of the World Bank, Ezekwesili, took to her Twitter handle to explain the reason for Buhari’s directive.
She wrote: ”As a practice, POST- conflict zones -e.g. Northern Uganda, Northern CAR, Eastern DRC receive Special Focus from .@WorldBank .It MAKES SENSE!
”As the destabilization in the North East worsened Human Development Indicators in North East Nigeria, our country SADLY JOINED that List.
”Our Africa Strategy when I became VP of @WorldBank 48 countries including Nigeria PRIORITIZED QUICK RECONSTRUCTION of PostConflict areas.
”The Evidence-Based justification for PRIORITIZING Post-Conflict Reconstruction is that it helps BUILD RESILIENCE & Prevents a RELAPSE.
”In ALL the cases of countries like CAR, DRC, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Uganda, Guinea (both Bissau & Conakry) this was the APPROACH.
”Prioritizing Reconstruction of Post-Conflict zone in ANY of those countries FACTUALLY PROVED to be KEY for REST OF COUNTRY GROWTH&STABILITY!
”The BENEFIT of becoming a Priority is that our Knowledge program (Economic & Social Studies) & sizable portion of Loan will target the area.
”It however DOES NOT MEAN that the REST OF SUCH COUNTRY becomes NEGLECTED in the Knowledge & Lending Programs of the Bank. NOT AT ALL.
”The prioritizing given to North East in discussion between @JimYongKim & @MBuhari is thus NOT UNUSUAL AT ALL. Let’s NOT POLITICIZE IT please
”At time they met in 2015, serious work & discussions already took place among Development Partners on HOW BEST TO HELP STABILIZE North East.
”The current brouhaha is of course triggered by CONTEXT of EXISTING TENSIONS occasioned by our President’s POOR MANAGEMENT of OUR DIVERSITY.
”The FEEDBACK that President @MBuhari can take from the RAGE that his discussion with @WorldBank has triggered it is to REFLECT ON HIS WAYS.
”FEEDBACK is IMPORTANT for IMPROVING GOVERNANCE especially in a country as DIVERSE as ours. President @MBuhari can make this moment COUNT.”
