Written by Bolaji Ogundele

Port Harcourt Saturday, 31 July 2010 - Special Adviser to the President on the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD), Mr Tunji Olagunju, has come in defence of the programme against the comments of the Rivers State governor, Mr. Rotimi Amaechi.

Olagunju, who joined the deliberation of state coordinators of the programme in Port Harcourt on Friday, said he had seen NEPAD make remarkable progress.

Amaechi, represented by his deputy, Tele Ikuru, had rated the programme low in terms of performance while speaking at the opening ceremony of the two-day event on Thursday.

The governor said he had observed the programme and studied its records from inception and found that it was yet to make progress in its core objectives of development and poverty reduction on the continent.

But Olagunju said assessment of programmes like NEPAD might be subjective as it would largely depend on the view of assessor as well as the generation involved.

He said his view was that the programme had progressed well, citing projects targeted at linking African countries in various ways as well as the emphasis laid on good governance in Nigeria.

Though Olagunju did not give a list, he said about 79 projects had been executed to achieve the objective of continental integration.

Source: www.tribune.com