National Planning Minister, Dr Shamsuddeen Usman yesterday expressed worry over what he described as lack of "strategic thinking" by some thematic groups of the Vision 20: 2020, which seek to place Nigeria among the 20 most developed countries in the World.

He said he had gone through some of the group's work and was not satisfied as they "only succeeded in making marginal improvement," insisting they must go back to do a better job.

Shamsuddeen was speaking at the inauguration of the Special Interest Groups for the Vision 20: 2020 at the Abuja Transcorp Hilton Hotel. The group comprises women, people with physical disability and youth. They are expected to make inputs to the visioning process as it relates to realising their goals and aspirations in 11 years time.

The minister's criticism came barely two and a half months to the October 1st deadline set for the submission of the final draft of the vision's document to President Yar'adua. 29 thematic groups were formed under the National Technical Working Group (NTWG) some of which include; Agriculture, finance, Governance, judiciary, transport, education, media and energy.

Discussing on the topic, "The Strategic Imperatives for Nigeria's Vision 2020," the minister said Nigeria is at a cross road and "the direction we chose to follow will determine where our collective fate lies in the future."