Awosika: Public Sector Reforms Must Be Driven by Trust, Consultation

Former Federal Permanent Secretary, Dr Dere Awosika, has called on government to prioritise consultation and trust-building in public sector reforms, warning that top-down approaches could undermine implementation and sustainability.

Awosika said successful reforms required engaging public servants responsible for implementation and citizens affected by policy changes, rather than imposing decisions without adequate consultation.

She made the call during an episode of the Aig-Imoukhuede Foundation podcast, ‘Reform Is Not a Guessing Game’.

Awosika said reformers must first identify institutional weaknesses and understand why existing objectives were not being achieved before introducing new policies or interventions.

“Reforms are not supposed to be a pass-down of instructions. It’s supposed to be a discussion on the weaknesses, identify them, and see that the goals that you set to meet are not being met,” she said.

The chief executive officer of Josephine Consulting Ltd. stressed that public servants and affected communities must be involved in designing implementation strategies to ensure that reforms reflect their interests and local realities.

Drawing from her experience leading polio eradication efforts in Nigeria, Awosika said engaging traditional and religious leaders helped address community concerns and secure public acceptance of vaccination.

“We need to build trust with citizenry. They cannot believe us unless we trust them,” she said.

Also speaking, an economist and policy strategist, Dr Akin Olusoji-Akinyele, said consultation should remain an integral part of the reform process, with feedback from beneficiaries used to determine the effectiveness of interventions.

He said the success of reforms should not be measured solely by their implementation but by their impact on the people they were designed to serve.

“The reform itself is not complete until the beneficiary has given you some form of feedback as to whether this is working,” he said.

The discussion was moderated by the Executive Vice Chair of the Foundation, Ofovwe Aig-Imoukhuede, ahead of the November 19 launch of its Public Sector Reform Playbook in Abuja.