SWDC Pledges Result-Driven Devt at South-West ClinicSunday Ehigiator
The South-West Development Commission (SWDC) has reaffirmed its commitment to coordinated and result-driven regional development following its participation in a high-level Southwest Regional Development Clinic organised by the Federal Ministry of Regional Development in collaboration with the Office of the Vice President of Nigeria.
The three-day clinic, sponsored by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), was held recently at the Lagos Marriott Hotel, Ikeja and brought together the SWDC Board and Management, senior federal government officials, development partners, and policy experts.
The engagement focused on aligning regional development planning and execution with public service rules, financial regulations, and international best practices.
The clinic forms part of a broader national regional development clinics initiative aimed at translating federal regional development policy into region-specific operational diagnostics, priority setting, and implementable delivery frameworks.
Speaking at the closing session, the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of SWDC, Charles Akinola, said the commission was repositioning its programmes toward a results-based and rights-informed approach.
“We are deliberately repositioning the commission toward a results-based and rights-informed management approach that strengthens the link between strategy, implementation and measurable outcomes in line with the Renewed Hope Agenda,” Akinola said.
He added, “Our focus is to move away from fragmented interventions to a more unified and coordinated regional development model that enhances accountability, scale and measurable impact across the South-west.”
Also speaking, the Chairman of the SWDC Board, Olubunmi Adetunmbi, reaffirmed the board’s commitment to institutional discipline.
“Sustainable regional development can only thrive on strict adherence to civil service rules, due process and institutional discipline. As a board, we are fully committed to upholding these standards as the foundation of our operations,” Adetunmbi stated.
UNICEF’s Chief of Social Policy, Hamidou Poufon, expressed satisfaction with the engagement.
“We are encouraged by the depth of technical engagement and the quality of stakeholder participation we have seen at this clinic. It reflects a genuine commitment to strengthening regional development systems,” he said.
Similarly, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Regional Development Programmes in the Office of the Vice President, Mariam Temitope Masha, stressed the importance of policy alignment.
“There must be strong coordination between national policy frameworks and regional delivery institutions. Clinics like this are critical to ensuring that federal development priorities are effectively translated into measurable outcomes at the regional level,” she noted.
Among key facilitators at the clinic were former Director-General of the Budget Office of the Federation, Ben Akabueze; industrial policy expert and former Senior Special Adviser on Industrialisation to the President of the African Development Bank, Banji Oyelaran-Oyeyinka; and retired federal permanent secretary and public sector reform expert, Goke Adegoroye.
Other facilitators included representatives of the Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, the Minister of Justice, the Head of Service of the Federation, the Accountant General of the Federation, and the Director General of the Bureau of Public Procurement. Also in attendance were officials of commercial banks and finance experts, as well as the Director-General of the Development Agenda for Western Nigeria Commission (DAWN Commission), Seye Oyeleye.
The SWDC said insights from the clinic would guide its operational framework as it deepens collaboration with federal institutions and development partners to accelerate inclusive growth and sustainable development across the South-west.
