Nigeria under President Muhammadu Buhari has performed poorly in governance, economic and political transformation, according to the Bertelsmann Transformation Index (BTI) 2022 Country Report.
The BTI measures the development status and governance of political and economic transformation processes in developing and transition countries. Founded in 1977, the report is published biennially by Bertelsmann Stiftung, an independent establishment based in Gütersloh, Germany. More than 250 experts from leading academic institutions and civil society organisations worldwide assessed 137 nations.
According to the 31-page report, Nigeria is 108th overall: 86th spot for political transformation, 113th for economic transformation, and 99th for governance index. The report warns that under “the weak leadership” of President Buhari, dangers in all political fields will persist and continue to shape the system.
It stated after the lawsuits against the 2019 presidential and gubernatorial election results were dismissed, Buhari and the All Progressives Congress (APC) consolidated power but have failed to meet expectations.
Noting that the last presidential election “was seriously flawed”, BTI said Buhari’s poor performance in his first term “continued and even worsened”.
The body criticised the President’s Covid-19 policies, as well as “his inability to professionalise the military in its campaign against the Islamist insurgency”. The report said the military suffered repeated setbacks and faced new challenges in central Nigeria and in the North-West.
The BTI said the Buhari administration “only half-heartedly pursued an anti-corruption campaign which did not yield any significant result”. In the Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) released annually by Transparency International (TI), Nigeria is currently placed 149 out of 180 countries evaluated.
The experts found violence throughout northern Nigeria increased again and continues to claim terrorists, security forces and civilians. The report also said people in southern Nigeria remain in the sphere of influence of border conflict, piracy, kidnapping and robbery.
The report decried the authorities’ incoherent policy to bring succour to millions of internally-displaced persons (IDPs). It stressed that judging by the attitude, “the international community will have to assume responsibility for these IDPs”.
The humanitarian crisis in Nigeria heightened over the past few months due to flooding, partly caused by climate change.
In its updated November 2022 report, the United Nations (UN) indicated that more than 3.2 million people are affected, amid food crisis fears.
