A financial analyst and Senior Managing Partner, PKF Professional Services, Mr. Tajudeen Akande has called on the federal government to broaden revenue generation and block its leakages.
Akande who was a guest speaker at the unveiling ceremony of clubsworld.net blog and public lecture in Lagos, noted that the problem with the Nigerian budget is that expenditure is always higher than revenue which leads to borrowing.
Lamenting the current debt profile that stood at N42.84 trillion, Akande said debt servicing was a serious cause for worry.
He noted that the issue of deficit will reduce when the government pumps up revenue which will also curb external borrowing.
The financial expert who commended the President Muhammadu Buhari administration on the January to December budget cycle which, according to him, enabled businesses to plan, regretted the meagre 8 percent Gross Domestic Products, GDP generated compared to the smaller countries in Africa generate 15-18 percent GDP.
Speaking on the theme: ‘How Recreational Clubs Can Contribute to Nigerian Economy,’ Akande who is also the president of Business Club Ikeja, BCI said the roles of social clubs in social-economic development in Nigeria cannot be overemphasised, saying it has become an essential factor to improving the health and well-being of individuals and contribute massively to the GDP.
Having gone through recession twice in three years, the financial guru advised political actors to lower the expenditure to what the country earns.
“The basic problem with our budget is that the country is in such a situation where the expenditure is higher. And some economists believe that when you’re in recession you need to spend your way out of it. In which case, once you keep spending, the economy will pick up, but if you are able to generate what you are spending, it’s a different ball game,” he stressed.