Udoma Udo Udoma, Nigeria’s minister of budget and national planning, has reiterated the country’s commitment towards returning the growth rate of the economy to positive path from a negative trend in 2016 to 7 percent by 2020.
Udo Udoma said that the country can achieve the 7 per cent growth rate desirable for total economic breakthrough by the year 2020, adding that the focus of the current administration will continue to be on achieving agriculture and food security, stabilizing the macroeconomic environment, and ensuring energy sufficiency (in power and petroleum products). He also said that the government will also continue to emphasise improved transportation infrastructure and driving industrialization for the growth of small and medium enterprises.
Speaking at a Strategic Retreat organised by the Nigerian Institute of Social and Economic Research (NISER), Ibadan at the Training and Conference Centre, Ogere on Monday, the minister declared that it is not the much-talked-about issue of Nigeria’s exit from recession based on data recently released by the National Bureau Statistics may not have presented a call for celebrations for Nigerians yet.
He remarked that the NBS numbers was only challenge for Nigerians to work harder so that the country can achieve the target.
The minister therefore enjoined Nigerians to be more steadfast and join forces with government in the determination to change the national economic trajectory in a more fundamental way as encapsulated in the Economic recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP) launched by President Muhammadu Buhari on the 5th of April this year.
Udoma remarked that even though the Federal Government was estimating exiting recession by the 3rd Quarter of 2017, the Government was “encouraged by the NBS 2nd Quarter numbers which showed that Nigeria had already exited recession.”
According to him, whilst this news is very encouraging indeed, we appreciate that there is still a lot more work required for us to realise the full promise of the ERGP which is to have a rapidly growing economy with diversified sources of growth, increased opportunities for all our people, and a socially inclusive economy that reduces poverty and create jobs for the millions of young people entering the labour market, annually. In short, our job is not done until we have realized Nigeria’s full potential as a major player in the world economy.”
He therefore emphasized the need for Nigerians to partner with government through investment in human capital development by creating jobs and building a globally competitive economy.n
To achieve the goal, therefore, the Minister submitted that NISER, as the premier Think Tank and economic research Institute for Nigeria has an important contribution to make by leveraging its research activities on Science, Technology and Innovation that would further build a knowledge-based economy and also guide policy makers in their decision making.
Speaking earlier, the Director-General of NISER, Folarin Gbadebo-Smith explained the objective of the retreat which was to critically discuss how to reposition and reinvigorate the Institute for effective delivery of its mandate.
Akinremi Feyisipo, Ibadan
