No More Excuses, Heads Will Roll — Nigerian Government Warns Underperforming MDAs
No More Excuses, Heads Will Roll — Nigerian Government Warns Underperforming MDAs
The Federal Government has warned Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) against poor performance, insisting that public institutions must demonstrate measurable results rather than merely claim compliance with government directives.
The warning comes amid renewed efforts to strengthen accountability, improve public service delivery and address persistent gaps in the implementation of government reforms.
The development was highlighted during a high-level strategic engagement and press briefing on MDA data collection and harmonisation, hosted by the Federal Ministry of Finance on Thursday, October 8, 2026.
At the engagement, the Director-General of the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC), Princess Zahrah Mustapha Audu, presented findings from the Business Environment Enhancement Programme Accelerator (BEEPA), which assessed reform implementation and performance across federal MDAs.
The assessment showed that 16 MDAs had achieved full implementation of the reforms evaluated. However, mystery-shopping exercises also revealed a decline in responsiveness after active monitoring ended, raising concerns about whether some institutions were sustaining improvements in service delivery.
Audu reminded heads of MDAs that performance monitoring would continue through mystery-shopping exercises, a live performance tracker and an end-of-year compliance ranking under the Business Facilitation Act.
The monitoring mechanisms are intended to identify service-delivery gaps, track institutional performance and hold agencies accountable for their reform commitments.
The Federal Government also signalled that performance, responsiveness and compliance with reforms would increasingly inform its engagements with government agencies.
The administration’s position is that compliance on paper is insufficient unless it translates into tangible improvements for citizens and businesses.
The renewed warning places pressure on federal MDAs to demonstrate sustained progress, improve responsiveness and ensure that government reforms produce measurable outcomes.
