National Productivity Order of Merit

National Productivity Order of Merit
Native name	NPOM
Description	Award recognising outstanding productivity, hard work, excellence and contributions to national development
Country	Nigeria
Presented by	President of Nigeria
First award	1991

The National Productivity Order of Merit (NPOM) is a presidential award in Nigeria which is given to people and organisations as a recognition of their exceptional productivity, hard work, excellence and contributions to national development. The National Productivity Centre (NPC), a Federal Government body, manages it and promotes productivity awareness and improvements across various sectors of the Nigerian economy.

The award is a key part of Nigeria's annual National Productivity Day activities. The National Productivity Centre states that it is awarded to individuals and organisations in both the public and private sectors for achievements and breakthroughs over the previous three years and for their contributions to Nigeria's development.

History

Background

The Nigerian government's aim at promoting productivity as a means of achieving economic development led to the creation of the NPOM. Because of concerns about low productivity, the government set up several commissions and initiatives in the 1960s and 1970s. A structured productivity movement emerged after a conference in Ibadan in 1978 that brought together government and economic organisations, and the International Labour Organisation then helped Nigeria develop a national productivity programme.

The National Productivity Centre Act of 1987 established the National Productivity Centre as a statutory federal organisation to promote productivity and awareness throughout the Nigerian economy. The Act was passed as Decree No. 7 of 1987 and came into effect on 3 April 1987.

The National Productivity Centre was officially opened in 1984 and then received a statutory basis through the 1987 legislation.

Establishment of the award

The federal government established National Productivity Day in 1991 following a presidential directive issued at the launch of Operation Excellence in Service (OPEX) in Lagos on 21 February 1990. The first observance of National Productivity Day took place on 21 February 1991 at both national and state levels.

The NPOM became a key element of the National Productivity Day programme. The award was set up to identify, acknowledge, and reward productive individuals and organisations in both the public and private sectors.

Purpose and objectives

The NPOM, according to the National Productivity Centre, is an award designed to establish a culture of productivity and excellence in service delivery. Its objectives include acknowledging hard work and high productivity, rewarding productive workers and organisations, promoting healthy competition, and encouraging self-reliance.

The award also aims to promote values connected with productivity, such as efficiency, discipline, dedication, creativity, initiative, responsibility, and the quality of performance. For organisations, the evaluation considers factors including local sourcing of raw materials, job creation, staff training, profitability, capacity utilisation, and corporate social responsibility.

In 2022, President Muhammadu Buhari described the award as a way to identify, acknowledge, and reward individuals and organisations that demonstrate high productivity, hard work, and excellence.

Eligibility and selection

The award includes individuals and organisations from the public and private sectors, and according to the National Productivity Centre, nominees are evaluated based on achievements in the three years before the year the award is given.

Government ministries, departments and agencies, as well as state and local governments, private-sector organisations, and other bodies can make nominations. The NPOM Award Committee reviews nominations and recommends candidates for the President's approval. According to the National Productivity Centre, the committee also conducts its own investigations to verify the information in the nominations.

The Centre states that the award evaluation includes a 16-point assessment for each individual nominee and an eight-point one for organisations.

The federal government establishes a committee composed of members of the National Productivity Order of Merit Award Committee in order to carry out the selection process. In 2024, the government set up a new committee, which the Ministry of Information described as the fourth of its kind since the award was first introduced in 1991.

Award ceremonies

The NPOM is usually held on National Productivity Day, either chaired by the President or conducted on the President's behalf.

The ceremony marking the 19th National Productivity Day and the awarding of NPOM took place on 12 May 2022 in the Banquet Hall at the State House in Abuja, where President Buhari recognised individuals and organisations that had achieved results linked to productivity and national development.

The 20th edition, which included the awards from 2021 and 2022, was finally awarded in 2023. As stated in a publication by the National Productivity Centre, President Buhari approved the awards, and they were presented on 25 May 2023, towards the end of his term in office. The event took place at the National Productivity Centre headquarters, rather than following the usual National Productivity Day format.

Notable recipients

Recipients have included academics, public servants, business executives, entrepreneurs, scientists, medical professionals, and others.

The award was also given to businessman Abdul Samad Rabiu, who received the NPOM for the 2019/2020 period; at the 2022 ceremony, other business leaders such as Mike Adenuga, Jim Ovia, and Allen Onyema were also recipients.

The 2022 awards featured a special category devoted to COVID-19. Recognised recipients included Chike Ihekweazu, the former Director-General of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control; Akin Abayomi, the Lagos State Commissioner for Health; and Boss Mustapha, Secretary to the Government of the Federation, for their work during the COVID-19 response.

The award has also been given to statistician Yemi Kale, who was awarded it in 2017, and to pharmacist and business executive Sam Ohuabunwa, who received the NPOM in 2018.

In 2023, Abdullahi Mustapha, Director-General of the National Biotechnology Research and Development Agency; Ezra Yakusak, Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Export Promotion Council; and Jalal Sule Hamma of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency received the award, along with others.

Number of recipients

Since the award was established, the number of people and organisations who have received it has risen considerably. In 2017, the Minister of Labour and Employment said 303 individuals and 73 organisations had received it since the award began.

At the 2022 ceremony, the Federal Government stated that 382 people and 97 organisations had been awarded NPOMs since the programme started.

The National Productivity Centre's current programme description gives a cumulative figure of 467 individuals and 119 organisations honoured with NPOM awards since the programme began.

Administration

The National Productivity Centre administers the NPOM, a parastatal established by the federal government under the National Productivity Centre Act. The Centre is legally obliged to promote productivity improvements and awareness throughout the Nigerian economy.

The National Productivity Centre conducts research, measurement, advocacy, training, and other related programmes, and the NPOM Award Committee assesses and selects nominees for the award.

A bill sponsored by Senator Aliyu Wadada Ahmed, introduced in 2024 to amend the National Productivity Centre Act, suggested that the National Productivity Council should advise the responsible minister on the constitution and appointment of the NPOM Award Committee. The bill also proposed other changes to the statutory framework governing the Centre.

Significance

The NPOM is one of the main institutional arrangements the Nigerian government uses to publicly recognise productivity and workplace excellence. Unlike the country's formal national honours system, governed by the National Honours Act and featuring honours such as the Order of the Federal Republic and the Order of the Niger, the NPOM focuses specifically on productivity and is managed by the National Productivity Centre.

The government has presented the award as an incentive intended to encourage improved performance in both the public and private sectors. Its criteria encompass not only individual performance but also organisational contributions such as job creation, staff development, technology adoption, local sourcing, and productive efficiency.

See also

• Order of the Federal Republic
• Order of the Niger