SPECIAL REPORT: Nearly 4 years in office, what has changed at Osun under Oyetola?

When the All Progressives Congress (APC) gubernatorial campaign was officially launched in September 2018, then-candidate Gboyega Oyetola pledged to lead Osun State to promised land.

Mr. Oyetola told a rally at the Ooni of Ife Adeyeye Ogunwusi Palace in Ile Ife that he was not a candidate who needed tutoring to lead Osun.

"I know where we started. I know where we are. I am not a candidate who needs a tutorial to lead Osun. As an apprentice, eight years is more than enough training time for anyone. I'm the best person to continue where we are," Oyetola said.

Mr. Oyetola finally won the elections in 2018 and is now seeking a second term in the next elections.

This time, he said fulfilling the promises he had made to the people of the state over the last three and a half years of his administration, with limited resources, would give him victory in the July 16 gubernatorial election in the state.< /p>

"We would continue to focus on delivering quality services to the people and God's will would prevail with the popular support of the people," he said, adding that with "the meager available resources accumulated by state, he had transformed the economy of the state in positive ways to benefit those who elected him. »

PREMIUM TIMES looks at data on key socio-economic indicators to see what has changed since Mr. Oyetola took office in 2015.

The Oyetola Era and Internally Generated Revenue (IGR)

Before Mr. Oyetola took office, the internally generated income (IGR) of Osun State was N10.3 billion in 2018. The state generated N4.7 billion in naira in the first half of this year and 5.5 billion naira in the second half. , data released by the bureau of statistics, NBS, shows.

In 2020, Osun's IGR rose to N19.67 billion, placing it among the 16 states with the highest IGRs in the country. The state raised N9.6 billion in the first six months of the year and N9.8 billion in the last six months.

In 2020, Osun State's IGR per capita stood at N3,678, an increase from N1,378 recorded in 2018.

Meanwhile, when the state's GRI is analyzed on a per capita basis, it is relatively low compared to its peers. It falls below the national average of N4,616. Osun State has the second lowest IGR per capita in the South West region and the 19th nationally.

Last year, the governor was quoted by Businessday as saying his administration has aggressively opened up new revenue opportunities through effective tax collection while leveraging the state's capabilities in the areas of agriculture, tourism and mining. "Through our reform efforts, we are beginning to see results in these areas as significant contributors to our economy," Oyetola said.

Financial solidity

In 2018, Osun ranked 32nd on the fiscal sustainability index, just ahead of Taraba, Plateau, Adamawa and Kogi states.

In 2021, the state climbed to 19th place on the index. It was ranked 13th out of 36 states in the federation, sitting behind Sokoto; Zamfara; Kwara; Edo; Cross River; Gombe; Kaduna; Kebbi; Lagos; Anamba; Ebonyi and Rivers.

This shows significant improvement under Oyetola administration.

Nevertheless, the data reveals that the state is still heavily dependent on statutory grants from the federation account, even though these allocations have been declining since 2018. According to the non-profit organization BudgIT, reliance on statutory allocations from Abuja is a risky fiscal strategy, especially given the volatility of crude oil prices, a significant part of which...