'We have made progress at all levels, in all sectors' -Nigerien PM
Niamey, Niger (PANA) – Niger’s Prime Minister, Brigi Rafini, on Tuesday said he is pleased about the progress made by his government since the advent of the Fifth Republic eight years ago, underlining that ‘’at all levels and in all sectors, indicators are that we have progressed significantly’’.
‘’My conviction today is that the commitments made by president Issoufou have globally been honoured and are being materialised, the result is that in eight years, significant progress has been made and challenges tackled, including structural changes’’, said BRafini, speaking to the press evaluating the eight years of implementation of the Renaissance programme.
‘’The Renaissance programme is the expression of the strong commitments made by president Issoufou since he decided to stand as candidate and after the Nigerien people gave him confidence in 2011 and 2016’’, said Prime Minister Rafini.
He recalled the commitments made by president Issoufou summarized in eight points -- promoting cultural renaissance, establishing and consolidating democratic, strong and credible institutions, guaranteeing the security of people and goods, guaranteeing potable water access for all.
The other points are food security, the development of energy and communication infrastructure, the development of social sectors, including education and health, and the promotion of youth employment.
‘’Concerning governance," he noted the adoption of about 40 bills to ‘’strengthen democratic state and rule of law’’.
He also noted ‘’the significant efforts’’ made in the domain of the fight against corruption, which enabled Niger to record significant progress, particularly in the ranking of the corruption perception index where the country moved from 123rd to 114th place in 2018.
In the sector of social development, the health component recorded significant progress, particularly the health coverage rate which rose from 45% to 50.6% in 2018. In addition, ‘’drastic drop’’ in the infantile and maternal mortality was noted.
‘’In general in the economic domain, the riches created progressed on average by 5.8%, all progress enabled to take up huge challenges. They also enabled to record important transformations in our country’’.
At the diplomatic level, Niger’s image was raised through the leadership of president Issoufou Mahamadou, who is ‘’champion in different African initiatives which his African peers entrusted him, for example the implementation of the African free trade area’’.
‘’The eight years of the Renaissance programme have really set the foundations for the continuation of Niger’s accelerated development, a regeneration anchored in the triple social, political and economic modernisation’’, concluded the head of the government.
-0- PANA SA/IS/MSA/VAO 16April2019
