Nigerianization of the Public Services in Western Nigeria
| Author | L. G. Coke Wallis |
| Published date | 01 July 1960 |
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1002/j.1099-162X.1960.tb00177.x |
| Date | 01 July 1960 |
Nigerianizatum oj
the
Public
Services
in
Western
Nigeria
by L. G.
COKE
WALLIS,
C.I.E.
Chairman,
Public
Service
Commission,
Western
Nigeria
Comparison
with
India
IN the
Journal's
issue of
July
1959,1
Lord
Hailey referred to his revised African
Survey of 1956 in which he
had
called attention to
"the
great
disparity between
the recruitment of the indigenous element in the higher grades of the civil
services in
India,
and
the provision
made
in some of those African dependencies
which were
then
nearing astatus
ofselfrule."
It
may
be of interest to review
the
progress of Nigerianizing the higher
grades of the services in Western Nigeria since 1956, figures being available
from the Regional Treasury's monthly
return
of staff which began to be
pub-
lished in
that
year. These figures show
that
the
percentage
of
Nigerian officers
holding higher
grade
posts borne on
the
Government estimates (and excluding
the staffs of corporations
and
other statutory bodies) has increased as follows:
End
of 1956 56
End
of 1957 64.2
End
of 195874.9
End
of 1959 79.12
Lord
Hailey further observed
that
when the transfer of power took place in
India
in 1947 there were
then
in
the
Indian
Civil Service 623 members of Asian
origin against 504 of European.
In
the
smaller administrative class of Western
Nigeria there were
at
the
end
of 1959, 125 Nigerian officers against46 European,
though whereas
just
over
half
of these Nigerian officers
are
young
men
still on
probation,
the
Asian officers of
the
Indian
Civil Service formed aseasoned
part
of
the
cadre
and
were distributed in seniority, Indianization of
the
Service
having been well
under
way before they were recruited,
and
in the case of
the
more
junior
officers, before they were
born.
Training
For
some time
the
Government of Western Nigeria has recognized
the
urgency
of
'in-service' training for its predominantly young services. Although Nigerian-
ization of the administrative class,
and
also of the professional
and
technical
classes, has proceeded
at
possibly record pace,
and
although senior officers
have been
under
much
pressure in carrying
out
rapidly supervening policy
changes, time has been found to develop training facilities for
the
young officer.
In
no direction has
the
readiness
of
the
Government to take advice from
experts been more marked,
and
in particular, they were able
through
the
good
offices of
the
Ford
Foundation
to
obtain
the advice of
an
administrator of
1J.A.A., Vol.
XI;
NO.3;
p.
IIS.
2This percentage is for
"Nigerians"
and
does not include non-Nigerian West Africans.
If
the
latter
are
included the percentage is 80.1.144
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