For decades, governance in Nigeria and most developing countries has been largely perceived as reactive. Nigerian stakeholders believe the government’s response typically comes after disasters occur, institutions are reformed after they fail, and policies are developed only after opportunities have been lost. This pattern has cost the nation billions of naira in economic losses, weakened public confidence and slowed national development.
It is time Nigeria embraces a different model of leadership, one that anticipates change instead of merely responding or reacting to it.
Anticipatory governance is the deliberate practice of identifying emerging threats, opportunities and future trends before they unfold. Rather than asking, ‘what should we do when things go wrong?’, it should ask, ‘what decisions must we make today to prevent tomorrow’s problems and seize tomorrow’s opportunities?’ Globally, three main challenges hinder the application of anticipatory governance: cognitive bias, short termism and difficulty translating and measuring foresight to action (due to long term
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