National Economic Empowerment and Development Strategy (NEEDS)

National Economic Empowerment and Development Strategy (NEEDS) – 2003-2007.

This heralded the return to serious medium term planning in Nigeria.
NEEDS is described as Nigeria’s plan for prosperity. It is a four-year medium term plan for the period 2003 to 2007.

Though a federal government plan, the States and Local Governments were also expected to have their counterpart plans- the State Economic Empowerment and Development Strategy (SEEDS) and the Local Government Economic Empowerment and Development Strategy (LEEDS) respectively.

It was a comprehensive plan that sought to include not only all levels of government towards moving in the same direction, but also, the organised private sector (OPS), the Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) and the general public in cooperative activity in pursuit of developmental goals.

NEEDS as a plan, contained all the envisaged policies and programmes of the federal government for the period 2003-2007 and far beyond and served as the fountain of the much touted Obasanjo’s reforms.

NEEDS was not only a macro- economic plan document, but also a comprehensive vision, goals and principles of a new Nigeria that would be made possible through re-enacting core Nigerian values like respect for the elders, honesty and accountability, cooperation, industry, discipline, self-confidence and moral courage.

The primary goal of making Nigeria a ‘promised land’ would be realized according to NEEDS through four key strategies of wealth creation, employment generation, poverty reduction and value reorientation. At the twilight of the Obasanjo administration in 2007, printed draft of NEEDS-2 which was expected to cover 2008-2011 was released into circulation.However, the NEEDS plan had only limited successes vis a vis its stated objectives especially as it related to deregulating the economy, reducing bureaucratic red-tapism in governance, creating of jobs, alleviating of poverty and providing welfare programmes and infrastructure such as water, improved health care, electricity and roads, etc.