By Bunmi Akande
The Ekiti State Government has commenced compilation of the State Gross Domestic Product (SGDP) for 2024 and 2025, urging stakeholders to support the exercise with accurate and reliable information.
The call was made at a stakeholders’ engagement meeting held at Lady Jibowu Hall, Ado-Ekiti, as part of efforts to sensitise the public and dispel concerns that the data collection exercise is linked to tax or revenue collection.
Speaking on behalf of the State Commissioner for Budget and Economic Planning, Mr Femi Ajayi, the Permanent Secretary of the ministry, Mr Olusola Akinluyi, described the exercise as critical to generating reliable economic data for effective planning and policymaking.
The Commissioner explained that GDP is a scientific measure of the size and performance of an economy, noting that the SGDP would help government determine the level of economic activity and the contribution of various sectors to the state’s economy.
He said the data would help government identify sectors with strong growth potential as well as those requiring greater investment and intervention.
According to him, the computation will cover major sectors of the state economy, including agriculture, education, trade and investment, cooperatives, construction, services, arts, culture and tourism, health, accommodation and food services, and water and sewage, among others.
Mr Ajayi urged stakeholders to cooperate with field officers by providing accurate information necessary for the successful completion of the exercise, stressing that the quality of available economic statistics has a direct bearing on the quality of planning, policy formulation, investment decisions and development programmes.
He added that the exercise would provide a reliable baseline for assessing Ekiti’s economic performance and tracking its development over time.
Also speaking, the state Statistician-General, Mrs Dolapo Dasola Ojo, clarified that the SGDP compilation is purely a statistical exercise with no connection to tax collection.
She said it was designed to gather accurate information on economic activities across the state, which would help government better understand the contribution of various sectors to the economy.
Ojo urged business owners, institutions and other stakeholders to cooperate with data collection teams, stressing that credible data is essential for evidence-based decision-making. She said the information generated would support government efforts to formulate policies aimed at stimulating economic growth and improving residents’ wellbeing.
She commended Gov. Biodun Oyebanji for creating an enabling environment for the Bureau of Statistics to discharge its statutory responsibilities, and appealed to stakeholders to participate actively, noting that their cooperation would contribute to producing credible economic statistics for effective planning and sustainable development in the state.
