Leapfrogging National Development using Technology

Transcript:Leapfrogging National Development using Technology:
Leapfrogging National Development using Technology Kola Okunola FNCS, FBCS Director, ICT Department Federal Inland Revenue Service June 2017 Table of Contents Introduction Gaps in National Development Role of Citizens in National Development Processes that can impact National Development Technology Uses and Applications that can bridge gaps in National Development Conclusion 2 Introduction National development is seen as the ability of a country or countries to improve the social welfare of the people for example by providing social amenities like quality education, potable water, transportation infrastructure , medical care, etc., with the aim of achieving increase in real per capita income as well as reduction in inequality, poverty, illiteracy and diseases. The word development suggests a progression from one level or form to a better or more advanced form (Lawal and Oluwatoyin, 2011) The concept of ‘leapfrogging’ can be used in the context of sustainable development for developing countries as a theory of development which may accelerate development by skipping inferior, less efficient, more expensive or more polluting technologies and industries and move directly to more advanced ones 3 Introduction There are divergent positions of development: Some people believe development is encapsulated in the sprouting of sophisticated physical structures Some look at it from the angle of increase in socio-economic activities. Some measure development in terms of improvement in financial standing. Development can also mean the actualization of an implicit potentiality, the simplest example being the patterned growth maturation of a seed or an initial germ–cell, to the full adult from the individual plant, Development is closely tied to infrastructure where it is those physical structures that facilitate the production of goods and services, without themselves being part of the production process. These include roads, airports, ports, utility production and distributive systems, water and sewage systems, communication networks and energy networks. No nation can develop without science and technology A nation that lacks the necessary science and technology in this area will have to depend on other developed nations for the existence of its people A nation without science and technology cannot feed its people because agriculture requires the application of science and technology. 4 Gaps in Nigeria’s National Development Standard of education – Needs to be raised Unemployment rate – Needs to be lowered Security: crime, kidnapping, militancy – Needs to be curtailed Power: epileptic power supply for industries and homes needs limiting growth Financial inclusion: low rural financial inclusion