Investigating the Adoption of Presidential Executive Order 11 on State and Local Government Buildings in Borno and Yobe States, North-Eastern Nigeria

Abstract

Primarily binding on federal Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs), the Nigerian National Building Maintenance Policy was approved by the Federal Executive Council in 2019 to transition public building upkeep from a reactive to a preventive model. Subsequently, Presidential Executive Order 11 was signed in 2022 to grant the policy legal backing, mandating all federal MDAs to establish dedicated maintenance departments and allocate specific budget lines for asset preservation. Following the severe destruction of infrastructure by the Boko Haram insurgency, massive rehabilitation and renovation of public buildings is currently underway across Borno and Yobe states. This study advocates the adoption of the principles of Presidential Executive Order 11 for public buildings in these states to safeguard the newly refurbished, multi-billion Naira investments. Using a mixed-methods approach, data were gathered from senior civil servants across 260 state and local government MDAs in Borno and Yobe, selected via a purposive, maximum variation sampling technique. These officials comprised two key categories: (1) Construction Professionals, including Facility Managers, Maintenance Officers, and related personnel, and (2) Administrative and Finance Officers. Findings from structured questionnaires and face-to-face interviews were subjected to a Chi-square analysis, revealing a statistically significant disparity between the principles of the Order and the actual maintenance structures in place. The study concludes that the public building maintenance framework in the region requires an urgent and deliberate paradigm shift, and recommends the full adoption and implementation the principles of Presidential Executive Order 11 at the state and local government levels.