The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Economy

  • The economy, going forward

    SIR: Crude oil has been the mainstay of the Nigerian Economy for far too long. I believe it is high time Nigeria diversified its economy. The advent of electric cars and alternative source of energy means that our crude oil will become a useless commodity in no time. The persistent fall of crude oil prices on the global market is simply inevitable. Let me say that this can also be attributed to the existence of a very weak OPEC (Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries) that has failed to act as a cartel.

    Many Nigerian economists would agree that Nigeria needs to diversify away from crude oil. And over the years, I have heard many Nigerian economists urge the Nigerian government to diversify into agriculture. For me, it just makes very little sense to diversify from one primary commodity to another primary commodity. Nigeria needs to diversity its economy into manufacturing.

    The reason is because the income elasticity of demand (the responsiveness of demand to change in income) for primary commodities is very low while manufacturing products have very high income elasticity of demand. In other words, individuals tend to consume more manufacturing products and less primary products as their incomes increase. And this explains why the foreign exchange earnings of many African countries are very low compared to their counterparts in the global north as the former produces primary commodities while the latter produces manufacturing goods. This is basic international economics.

    This is not to say that the Nigerian government should not invest in agriculture. It should invest in agriculture but utmost attention should be paid to the manufacturing sector. Evidence suggests that the remarkable economic growth recorded by the East Asians economies, dubbed the “East Asia Miracle”, between 1965 and 1990 was partly induced by mass industrialisation and growth of manufacturing exports in those countries.  The Nigerian government should do the same. And we should make huge investments in Research and Development (R&D).

     

    • Joshua Fagunwa,

    London.

  • ‘Nigeria’s elite to blame for parlous economy’

    ‘Nigeria’s elite to blame for parlous economy’

    Prof Chris Onalo is Registrar/Chief Executive Institute of Credit Administration (ICA) the pioneer professional body for credit administrators in Nigeria. In this interview with Ibrahim Apekhade Yusuf he attempts a critique of the President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration in the past one year and comes to a conclusion that the current managers have what it takes to return the almost comatose economy back on an even keel. Excerpts:

    What is your assessment of the President Muhammadu Buhari-led government one year in the saddle?

    In my view, one year engagement of the present government is not bad at all. And I say this with every sense of responsibility. The Nigerian nation has been brought down into bankruptcy. There’s therefore need for a new effort that will come on board with all forms of, permit me to use the word, radicalism. That is radicalism not in the context of being abhorrent but radicalism in the context of fixing the solutions because to repair what has been damaged it would take a lot of guts and fresh tools to work with. These are issues l think Nigerian elites are not really conscious of.

    Considering the welter of criticisms against the government would you say the government has been able to help Nigerians manage their expectations thus far?

    You see, there is this hedonistic attitude we seem to have as a people. We’ve this get-rich quick tendency. It has become a monster that tends to drive virtually all Nigerians. Mark my words. We tend to insist on quick fix. If you don’t fix it tomorrow we begin to kick against it. Even to the extent of forcing the government to say something to us which is what we want to hear. It looks to me that a typical Nigerian mentality does not want to appreciate reality. They believe in fallacy and falsehood such that someone that tells them the truth is not good to lead them. But someone that tells them all sorts of lies and postpones the promises is a good person. This must be reversed. No nation is built on these values.

    Now coming to the specifics, l think the government of Buhari met virtually an empty treasury. He met policies that had been destroyed. He met the economy in total shambles. I’m speaking as an expert. I’m not a member of any political party. They do not even recognise me. I’m speaking as a Nigerian citizen and as an active player in the organised private sector, especially the knowledge economy.

    So let nobody insinuate that maybe he is an agent of government because that’s one thing again Nigerians are very good at, rubbing people with a tar brush just so they can rubbish you. I have got nothing to do with the government as it is.

    Having said that, l can say that Nigeria within the last one year has been trying to come back as a country. Now let’s pick them one after the other. If you find yourself in a house that is already dilapidated and you’re coming to stay in there, it is only appropriate to repair the things that have been destroyed.

    Of course, repairing a house has to do with putting in place what would make the place habitable. In our case, we didn’t have the money. Nigeria relied on one product, oil to drive the economy. The oil market crashed as such we couldn’t get the required revenue from that stream of income as we were getting before. Unfortunately that has affected our income and the way government can implement its agenda for the economy.

    It was not the fault of the Buhari government. The international oil market was not within the control of Nigeria. People need to get that fact into their head. Because of the glut in the global oil market, we couldn’t find the right buyers for our oil. Thus we began to suffer depletion in our foreign reserves. And because of the looseness of the past government that allowed many unscrupulous businessmen to do whatever pleased them by way of primitive acquisitions of imported items against our very slim reserve things went bad.

    Very few people at the time raised their voices against these incidences. But unknown to all of us, the dangerous moment was waiting for the country. And so oil went down we couldn’t export anymore and investment was not coming into the country because of insecurity, today we found ourselves insolvent. We couldn’t pay for goods and services anymore. We couldn’t even give allocations to pay for what is expedient for our industrial development. As such there was confusion and crash in our economy which is now affecting everybody.

    The question l want to ask is where were the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria when people were importing all kinds of things? Where was the organised private sector including the Lagos Chambers of Commerce and Industry when a lot of these importations were coming in? Where was the organised labour including the Nigeria Labour Congress and the Trade Union Congress and all that?

    Why didn’t they mobilise the Nigerian people to match on the streets at the time we were having policy inconsistencies, policy somersaults and compromises here and there that we know definitely if it was not stopped will result in a situation where Nigeria becomes insolvent. And here we find ourselves and we’re saying one year after government has not fulfilled any promises.

    But when the crop of the present team were canvassing for votes, they promised to turn around the economy for good?

    What promises? The promise was to put Nigeria in shape like the rest of the world based on the rule of law.

    Secondly, the government said there must be recovery of our collective wealth stolen by people we blindly gave our trust. But we’ve now come to realise that the people we elected into public offices became richer than the country itself at our own expense.

    It’s expected that the government of the day will need those money to work with. The obvious priority is to recover the monies. These monies were not just in hundreds of millions. We’re all living witnesses to the discoveries so far.

    I’m surprised at the assessment that people are giving to Buhari government in one year. That the government has not performed and that Nigeria has become deeply entrenched in difficulties and become more and more poor than before.

    I begin to wonderful at that kind of submission. Where are we going? Are we so quick to forget even the problem that is staring us in our faces. The strength of the country’s economy went down and we had no control over that and because the past government refused to diversify and provide alternative source of economic activities whom do you blame?

    Now the same people who profited from the mess are turning back to blame the Buhari government. It’s a shame. I differ completely from that kind of parochial thinking.

    If there is anything that this government has done in the last one year, it is to convince Nigerians that the thieves, our collective enemies have been identified. It’s the fact that virtually all the key people that held public offices dipped their hands in the public till. I think that is the greatest achievement this country has ever seen. It is the greatest stride that this country has ever made. We’ve never had a government that has come this far in fighting corruption.

    Buhari government has done well. The country needs to be rebuilt and established on a very strong foundation. This is just one phase of what we need to have a solid, virile nation. We need a nation that is governed by the tenets of the rule of law and is accountable to the objective of the nation.

    The fact is we’re too much in a hurry as a people. We want everything done for us at the snap of a finger. But the reality is that nothing works by accident. No.

    We want to become like other nations overnight. To be honest to ourselves, people we trusted in the past have done incalculable damage to our collective wealth. This country has already been sold out and the government must start from somewhere.

    We must appreciate the fact that in whatever anybody is doing there is always a starting point. The massive problems and challenges are enormous. But you can only start from a particular location gradually to address those problems.

    If Buhari said there would be power supply in six months during the electioneering campaign, the reality on ground is obvious. Is it possible?

    Let me cite the example of the former governor of Lagos state, Raji Fashola, who is holding three portfolios. Has he forgotten his pedigree in Lagos? The answer is no. But l think he has seen the enormity of the problem facing him that is far bigger than what he saw while he was governor of Lagos state.

    In other words, governance at the federal level is much more difficult than what you have at the state level.

    Otherwise he would have loved to perform the magic that he performed when he was governor of Lagos state. There are lots of problems. These problems are not spiritual problems. They’re Nigerian problems. They’re problems the so-called cabals who brought down this country are not letting the government to move as fast as they want to do.

    Until we appreciate that we may not even have a stable government. If we carry this mind as we move to 2019 election, we’ll be in a hurry again to elect the next people into office and then we come up to dismantle what this government is trying to do. If that happens then the Nigerian nation is in trouble.

    I think this government has done well and I want to say that even if all the government can do is to devote the rest of the time to recover wealth with a view to establish structures that would hold this country together, let it be so. This country is not poor but wicked elements have taken our collective wealth and we need to recover them.

    But for anybody to say that the government has increased poverty in the land it’s a misguided statement.

    But there is so much poverty in the land…

    I think there is poverty in the land because the single source of revenue that affects the economy is no longer in place. That is the reality we must accept. We don’t need anyone to tell us that recession is around the corner. We’ve been living in recession even before this government came on board.

    If you’re thriving on one single product and you have a problem with that product, you’re automatically in recession.

    I’m completely appalled by the criticisms of the Buhari government by those who ought to know better.

    The naira devaluation that has been hotly debated was only made worsened by the monoproduct economy we’ve been running. So we should have ourselves to blame for that.

    Currency revaluation cannot be done by administrative fiat. It’s like saying that the government should just announce that by tomorrow the naira will be N10 to the dollar. Such things are not done through administrative fiat as l said earlier.

    It is done by market forces. The fact remains that this country is not producing and it’s not the fault of this government. For years this country stopped producing. I recall that the northern part of our country alone had many textile industries. Within Kaduna alone there were over 400 textile industries. We also had in Kano. Unfortunately if you go to those places today, l can bet you can’t see just one single textile industry anymore.

    We must be realistic in our appraisal of the situation for God’s sake. We must have a no-nonsense government that will kick-start transformation.

    You recall that the last regime was mouthing transformation agenda everywhere. I think transformation just began now.

    And if we must transform from the bad old days to great days ahead for this country, we must tighten up our belts. Of course, it’ll not be palatable because we’ve had wrong priorities. We’ve not been able to tell ourselves that this country is a great country and we forgot our position as the largest country for the black race.

    I think those who are saying the Buhari government has been a disappointment in the last one year need to apologise to that man.

    What you’ve said is against the popular opinion. The main issue out there especially if you ask the common man on the street is that this government has brought more hardship on the people.

    The question to ask is, how do you take care of the people? The government can take care of the people by providing opportunities for jobs and for entrepreneurship. But that has been locked down by the past government. Opportunities for job creation are not by newspapers and television discourse. It’s real economic policies anchored on certain level of resource support by the government. For instance, if government wants to pass through the Ministry of Trade and Investment to create jobs, it has to liaise with the private sector to do so. What I see there is that the ministry on behalf of the government has to identify what have been the impediments and the disincentives that has been in place, especially in the area of excessive taxes.

    If these disincentives are removed the government would need to put policies in place and implement same.

    People must realise that for instance, the power sector l talked about earlier may require a fresh start. And if you have to contract that out to experts they are not going to do it for you free. It would cost a lot of money to pay those people.

    I agree as you said that this government promised people better life in the hope that what they are coming to meet would be fair. But to the chagrin of everybody the national treasury had been looted. We need to identify that.

    Even international lenders would not be able to lend money to Nigeria unless we’re able to identify why it was easy for people to loot. Therefore lenders want assurance that any lending they give would not be vulnerable to what happened before in the past.

     

  • ‘Explore natural endowment to revive economy’

    The President/ Chairman Governing Council, Institute of Directors (IoD) Nigeria, Mr Yemi Akeju has urged state governments to tap into the natural endowment in their domain to develop their economy.

    Speaking yesterday during the Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the Institute, Akeju said the opportunities in each state would enable the state government to engage its people to drive the economy forward.

    According to him, there are  wealthy Nigerians that should be encouraged to bring their indigenes back home to look and do something in their environment. “We need to bring the rich people in each state to come home and make investments in their state so that we will be able to engage more of our people; this will lead to the development of the states and the country at large,” he said.

  • How small businesses can survive tough economic times

    It is no news our economy is troubled. The removal of subsidy, the exchange rate, the price of tomatoes! It seems like the external pressures keep piling up and we are all forced to adjust to our new reality. And while the price of everything is on the increase, income remains stagnant while business revenues are declining.

    The economic crunch is undoubtedly here with us requiring survival strategies by all.

    The big companies seem to have advisers who teach them how to handle and survive in this economy, but what about small business owners? Here are suggestions for small business owners on how to cope with the economic situation in the country.

    MONITOR EXPENSES

    As a small business owner, you should make sure your business makes more income than expenditure . That is the essence of business.

    You should monitor your expenses to know exactly which aspect of the businesses more money is spent on. This can be done in various ways depending on the size of business and the accounts being monitored. Expenses can be monitored from the use of apps to trusted professionals.

    Since in a tough economy, everyone is looking to cut costs. It is possible that the service or goods you offer is being cut out of someone’s budget. Because of this, you have to ensure your company is only spending on necessary things.

    After monitoring expenses, ensure you save money by reducing all non-strategic costs such as office supplies, administrative fees and others. If you decide to keep production budgets low, ensure that you still deliver quality products and services so as to set competitive prices.

    WORK ON YOUR PRODUCT OR SERVICE

    Although some people may disagree, studies show that the best time to diversify or introduce new aspects of a business is during tough economic times. The beauty of your small business is that you can achieve this without the financial and marketing struggles big businesses have to deal with. Ensure that the parts of your business you are offering to clients are necessities, so that even when clients cut budgets, your product remains a part of the said budget since it is a necessity. Remember to offer clients value for their money and pay attention to critical components of your operations

    CUSTOMER SERVICE AND EMPLOYEE MANAGEMENT

    This is no time to lose your clients. A recession makes it difficult to gain new customers, so why lose the ones you have worked hard to acquire?  During times like this, customer service and employee engagement are often put on hold while there is major focus on financial cutbacks.

    While you concentrate on finances, ensure that your attention is also focused on employees. Feel free to ask for their inputs when creating strategies for your business’ survival. Make their care, happiness and support a priority. Happy employees will deliver top-notch services.

    You should also ensure customers feel appreciated. This can be done by using first names when rendering services, listening to complaints and ensuring those clients’ needs are met. You should remain accessible to clients via social media, phone, and emails and other channels.

    Ensure you are giving clients quality for money paid so as to keep them coming back. Make clients feel appreciated at all times. The highest levels of customer service given to customers will always reflect positively in sales

    POSITIVE LEADERSHIP

    Even after a recession, your leadership skills play an important role in the survival of your company. No matter how difficult things may be for your company currently, do not repeatedly tell employees that you are unable to pay salaries, or show reduced faith in the future of the business.

    This kind of behavior in a leader may create a lackadaisical attitude in employees and even theft as some may work with the “after all the management can’t pay us this month” mentality.

    This is also the worst time to leave employees to do the everyday running of your business. Whether you have clients or not, be present at your office. Work with the same passion when setting up the business. Lead with clarity and commitment. Set monthly goals and ensure that employees are motivated throughout the recession so your business does not suffer a reduction in productivity.

    Debbie Larry-Izamoje
    Debbie Larry-Izamoje

    Debbie Larry-Izamoje did her undergraduate in the University of Sheffield, United Kingdom and postgraduate in University College London (UCL). She has also secured certificates in user innovation from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Innovation and strategy from Harvard University.

    She is a communications and brand strategist and Founder of www.imageboosters.com.ng which ensures young entrepreneurs have all the knowledge needed to grow their business
  • ‘Nigeria’s elite to blame for parlous economy’

    ‘Nigeria’s elite to blame for parlous economy’

    Prof Chris Onalo is Chief Executive/Registrar, Institute of Credit Administration (ICA) the pioneer professional body for credit administrators in Nigeria. In this interview with Ibrahim Apekhade Yusuf he attempts a critique of the President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration and comes to a conclusion that the current managers have what it takes to return the almost comatose economy back on an even keel. Excerpts: 

    What is your assessment of the President Muhammadu Buhari-led government one year in the saddle?

    In my view, one year engagement of the present government is not bad at all. And I say this with every sense of responsibility. The Nigerian nation has been brought down into bankruptcy. There’s therefore need for a new effort that will come on board with all forms of, permit me to use the word, radicalism. That is radicalism not in the context of being abhorrent but radicalism in the context of fixing the solutions because to repair what has been damaged it would take a lot of guts and fresh tools to work with. These are issues l think Nigerian elites are not really conscious of.

    Considering the welter of criticisms against the government would you say the government has been able to help Nigerians manage their expectations thus far?

    You see, there is this hedonistic attitude we seem to have as a people. We’ve this get-rich quick tendency. It has become a monster that tends to drive virtually all Nigerians. Mark my words. We tend to insist on quick fix. If you don’t fix it tomorrow we begin to kick against it. Even to the extent of forcing the government to say something to us which is what we want to hear. It looks to me that a typical Nigerian mentality does not want to appreciate reality. They believe in fallacy, falsehood such that someone that tells them the truth is not good to lead them. But someone that tells them all sorts of lies that postpones the promises is a good person. This must be reversed. No nation is built on these values.

    Now coming to the specifics, l think the government of Buhari met virtually an empty treasury. He met policies that had been destroyed. He met the economy in total shambles. I’m speaking as an expert. I’m not a member of any political party. They do not even recognise me. I’m speaking as a Nigerian citizen and as an active player in the organised private sector, especially the knowledge economy.

    So let nobody insinuate that maybe he is an agent of government because that’s one thing again Nigerians are very good at, rubbing people with a tar brush just so they can rubbish you. I have got nothing to do with the government as it is.

    Having said that, l can say that Nigeria within the last one year has been trying to come back as a country. Now let’s pick them one after the other. If you find yourself in a house that is already dilapidated and you’re coming to stay in there, it is only appropriate to repair the things that have been destroyed.

    Of course, repairing a house has to do with putting in place that would make the place habitable. In our case, we didn’t have the money. Nigeria relied on one product, oil to drive the economy. The oil market crashed as such we couldn’t get the required revenue from that stream of income as we were getting before. Unfortunately that has affected our income and the way government can implement its agenda for the economy.

    It was not the fault of the Buhari government. The international oil market was not within the control of Nigeria. People need to get that fact into their head. Because of the glut in the global oil market, we couldn’t find the right buyers for our oil we began to suffer depletion in our foreign reserve. And because of the looseness of the past government that allowed many unscrupulous businessmen to whatever pleased them by way of primitive acquisitions of imported items against our very slim reserve.

    Very few people at the time raised their voices against these incidences. But unknown to all of us, the dangerous moment was waiting for the country. And so oil went down we couldn’t export anymore and investment was not coming into the country because of insecurity, today we found ourselves insolvent. We couldn’t pay for goods and services anymore. We couldn’t even give allocations to pay for what is expedient for our industrial development. As such there was confusion and crash in our economy which is now affecting everybody.

    The question l want to ask is where were the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria when people were importing all kind of things? Where was the organised private sector including the Lagos Chambers of Commerce and Industry when a lot of these importations were coming in? Where was the organised labour including the Nigeria Labour Congress and the Trade Union Congress and all that?

    Why didn’t they mobilise the Nigerian people to match on the streets at the time we were having policy inconsistencies, policy somersaults and compromises here and there that we know definitely if it was not stopped will result a situation where Nigeria becomes insolvent.

    But when the crop of the present team were canvassing for votes, they promised to turn around the economy for good?

    And here we find ourselves and we’re saying one year after government has not fulfilled any promises. What promises?

    The promise was to put the Nigeria country in shape like the rest of the world based on the rule of law.

    Secondly, the government said there must be recovery of our collective wealth stolen by people we could trust. But we’ve now come to realised that these people we elected into government became richer than the country itself at our own expense.

    It’s expected that the government of the day will need those money to work with. The obvious priority is to recover the money. These monies were not in just hundreds of millions. We’re all living witnesses to the discoveries so far.

    I’m surprised at the assessment that people are giving to Buhari government in one year. That the government has not performed and that Nigeria has become deeply entrenched in difficulties and become more and more poor than before.

    I begin to wonderful at that kind of submission. Where are we going. Are we so quick to forget even the problem that is staring us in our faces. The strength of the country’s economy went down and we had no control over that and because the past government refused to diversify and provide alternative source of economic activities who do you blame.

    Now the same people who profited from the mess are turning back to blame the Buhari government. It’s a shame. I differ completely from that kind of parochial thinking.

    If there is anything that this government has done in the last one year is to convince Nigerians that the thieves, our collective enemies have been identified. It’s the fact that virtually the key people that held public offices dipped their hands in the public till. I think that is the greatest achievement this country has ever seen. It is the greatest stride that this country has ever made.

    We’ve never had a government that has come this far.

    Buhari government has done well. The country needs to be rebuilt and need to be established on a very strong foundation. This is just one phase of  what we need to have a solid, virile nation.

    A nation that is governed by the tenets of the rule of law and is accountable to the objective of the nation is a good nation.

    Without money you cannot even enforce the law. But one thing is this, we’re too addicted to corruption as such that is why our development effort is not clicking.

    We’re too much in a hurry as a  people. We want everything done for us at the snap of a finger. But the reality is that nothing works by accident. No.

    We want to become like other nations  overnight. To be honest to ourselves, people we trusted in the past have done incalculable damage to our collective wealth. This country has already been sold out and the government must start from somewhere.

    We must appreciate the fact that in whatever anybody is doing there is always a starting point. The massive problems and challenges are enormous. But you can only start from a particular location gradually to address those problems.

    If Buhari said there would be power supply in six months during the electioneering campaign, the reality on ground is obvious. Is it possible?

    Let me cite the example of the former governor of Lagos state, Raji Fashola, who is holding three portfolios. Has he forgotten his pedigree in Lagos? The answer is no. But l think he has seen the enormity of the problem facing him that is far bigger than what he saw while he was governor of Lagos state.

    In other words, governance at the federal level is much more difficult than what you have at the state level.

    Otherwise he would have loved to perform the magic that he performed when he was governor of Lagos state. There are lots of problems. These problems are not spiritual problems. They’re Nigerian problems. They’re problems the so-called cabals who brought down this country are not letting the government to move in as fast as they want to do.

    And until we appreciate that we may not even have a stable government.

    If we carry this mind as we move to 2019 election, we’ll be in a hurry again to elect the next people into office and then we come up to dismantle what this government is trying to do. If that happens then the Nigerian nation is in trouble.

    I think this government has done well and I want to say that even if all the government can do is to devote the rest of the time to recover wealth with a view to establish a structure that would hold this country together, let be so. This country is not poor but wicked elements have taken our collective wealth and we need to recover them.

    But for anybody to say that the government has increased poverty in the land it’s a misguided statement. I think there is poverty in the land because the single source of revenue that affects the economy is no longer in place. That is the reality we must accept. We don’t need anyone to tell us that recession is around the corner. We’ve been living in recession even before this government came on board.

    If you’re thriving on one single product and you have a problem with that product, you’re automatically in recession.

    I’m completely appalled by the criticisms of the Buhari government by those who ought to know better.

    The naira devaluation that has been hotly debated was only made worsened by the monoproduct economy we’ve been running. So we should have ourselves to blame for that.

    Currency revaluation cannot be done by administrative fiat.Take for instance, it’s like saying that the government should just announce that by tomorrow the naira will be N10 to the dollar. Such things are not done through administrative fiat as l said earlier.

    It is done by market forces. The fact remains that this country is not producing is not the fault of this government. For years this country stopped to producing. I recall that the northern part of our country alone had many textile industries. Within Kaduna alone there were over 400 textile industries. We also had in Kano. Unfortunately if you go to those places today, l can bet you can’t see just one single textile industry anymore.

    We must be realistic in our appraisal of the situation for God’s sake.

    We must have a no-nonsense government that will kick-start transformation.

    You recall that the last regime was mouthing transformation agenda everywhere. I think transformation just began now.

    And if we must transform from the bad old days to great days ahead for this country, we must tighten up our belts. Of course, it’ll not be palatable because we’ve had wrong priorities. We’ve not been able to tell ourselves that this country is a great country and we forgot our position as the largest country for the black race.

    I think those who are saying the Buhari government has been a disappointment in the last one year need to apologise to that man.

    What you said is against the popular opinion. The main issue out there especially if you ask the common man on the street is that this government has brought more hardship on the people.

    The question to ask is, how do you take care of the people? The government can take care of the people by providing opportunities for jobs and for entrepreneurship. But that has been locked down by the past government. Opportunities for job creation are not by newspapers and television discourse. It’s real economic policies anchored on certain level of resource support by the government. I give you an example.

    If government wants to pass through the Ministry of Trade and Investment to create jobs, it has to liaise with the private sector to do. What I see there is that the ministry on behalf of the government has to identify what has been the impediments and the disincentives that has been in place, especially in the area of excessive taxes.

    If these disincentives are removed the government would need to put policies in place and implement same. So it’s not something you say and it immediately comes to be. It would take a lot of resources.And don’t forget that we’ve a very massive country with a lot of call for intervention with a view to revamp the economy so that people can have a leverage and opportunities to bring in their talents and set up industries which can further create wealth for the country.

    If government must removed those disincentives it would take a lot of resource allocation to do that.

    People must realise that for instance, the power sector l talked about earlier may require a fresh start. And if you have to contract that out to a businessmen they are not going to do it for you free. It would cost a lot of money to pay those people. Besides, enforcement of such policies will require money for people.

    Implementation will also take resource allocation to be able to do all of this. Government promised people better life in the hope that what they are coming to meet would be fair. But to the chagrin of everybody the national treasury had been looted. We need to identify that.

    Even international lenders would not be able to lend money to Nigeria unless we’re able to identify why it was easy for people to loot so that any borrowing would not be vulnerable to what has happened before in the past.

  • Insurgency is counterproductive to Niger Delta’s economy, says inc

    The Ijaw National Congress (INC) has described the ongoing wave of insurgency and its resultant effect on the nation’s economy as counterproductive to the Ijaw nation, condemning the destruction of national assets by insurgents.

    The apex Ijaw socio-cultural organisation expressed the resolve in a position paper, signed by the National President of the body, Barr. Boma Obofuoribo.

    While reiterating its support for the federal government, led by President Muhammadu Buhari, it urged government to go about managing the escalating situation with restraint, noting that only dialogue and negotiating could yield the best results.

    While calling on those behind the insurgency to call their activities off with immediate effect, the INC called the federal government to start taking steps that will positively impact on the people of region.

    “The Ijaw ethnic nationality pledges its support to the federal government of Nigeria, led by President Muhammadu Buhari. This support has been made in various fora. We are non-partisan and apolitical and we will support any popularly elected government.

    “”We condemn the present resurgence of bombings of pipelines and oil installations in the Niger Delta as this ultimately, is counterproductive to the Niger Delta and the Nigerian state.

    “We appeal to the federal government to show restraint in its pronouncement and actions to crush the Niger Delta militants. We believe that this will not bring any lasting solution to this complex problem. The options of dialogue and negotiating are worthwhile and therefore, should be pursued.

    “While we urge the perpetrators to immediately stop these unwholesome actions, we appeal to the federal government to restructure the amnesty programme for better impact on the people and the community to assuage the plight of the people of the region and remove, from focus, some of the issues that have been responsible for these behaviours.

    “We appeal to the federal government to urgently enter into dialogue with stakeholders in the region in a bid to safeguard the interest of the nation”, it said.

     

  • MAN rates economy low, proffers solutions

    Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) has expressed mixed feelings on the current administration’s economic policies.

    MAN President Mr. Franks Udemba Jacobs, in an interview with The Nation, said it has been a mixed bag of sorts for the manufacturing sector, with some policies favouring his members and others hurting the sector.

    Lauding President Muhammadu Buhari on containing the insurgency in the Northeast, he, however, regretted that on the economy, businesses have been forced to slow down or, in some cases, shut down because of insurgents.

    “Traditional trade routes to neighbouring countries have been cut off as was witnessed in the Northeastern part of the country, while companies have been forced out of business because they were unable to continue with their operations in the face of obvious risks of death or incapacitation,” he said.

    Udemba underscored the association’s belief that the economy did not perform up to expectation during the period under review. He said macroeconomic indicators showed that the economy declined from what it was before the inauguration of the administration.

    According to him, this may not be blamed completely on the administration but on the downturn in the prices of crude oil by nearly 70 per cent.

    The MAN boss praised the government on the planned diversification of the economy into agriculture, solid minerals and the manufacturing sector.

    He criticised the non-release of fiscal policy measures by the government within the period under review, noting that it has created a vacuum. Fiscal policies are supposed to be released yearly to harness incentives and other measures and adjustments approved by the government.

    Jacobs cited pharmaceuticals where raw materials and inputs attract higher duty than finished products, and has been accepted for adjustment by the Tariff Technical Committee (TTC).

    He stressed that the absence of the adjustment was affecting local pharmaceutical companies, which are unable to compete. Some, Udemba noted have  had to close shop or downsize.

    Jacobs regretted that the Gross Domestic Domestic Product (GDP) declined to 0.36 per cent in the first quarter of the year, down from 3.96 per cent of the same quarter the previous year. “This negative growth, if not urgently and seriously addressed, could drag the economy into recession,” he warned.

    On the exchange rate, he said during the period under review, it depreciated from N191.10/US$ in the first quarter of 2015 to N200/US$ in the same period of 2016 at the Interbank Forex market, while it hovered around N320/US$ at the Bureau de Change (BDC) segment of the market.

    “The deregulation of the forex market may be seen as a partial solution to the forex challenge the country is facing, but in reality, the scarcity of forex is unabated.

    “Consequently, manufacturing companies found it extremely difficult to source foreign exchange for the importation of essential raw-materials and this has led to a number of closures of affected companies,” he said.

    Jacobs, therefore, called for urgent measures by government to lift the manufacturing sector out of the woods by coming up with policies that will make the manufacturing sector robust.

  • Capacity development centre will boost economy

    Capacity development centre will boost economy

    To help revive the national economy,  the Personnel Practitioners’ Consultative Association (PPCA), Ikeja chapter has established a capacity development centre to enhance the knowledge and skills of its members and non-members.

    PPCA is the grassroots professional arm of the Chartered Institute of Personnel Management of Nigeria (CIPM) that advances  human resource development

    The Chairman of the association, Jide Ologun, said it was the initiative of the group to empower its members to brace up with the current economic realities facing the country expressing the concern many employees were rather losing their jobs.

    He said there was urgent need to build entrepreneurial skills in the people including the young ones so that they could be self employed rather than searching for white collar jobs which according to him were not available

    “If you are seeking employment it is because you have value to offer, you can come about establishing a business that you can still offer that value”, he added

    Ologun, a lawyer told the Nation in Lagos the group would collaborate with the government at different levels and corporate organizations to ensure it delivered on its core promises adding to get the people right would give the right result

    According to him, any government that does not pay attention to training the workforce was out to fail because whether you like it or not even when you have the best of policies you need human resources to implement them adding if they are not in tune with your vision you will be working in the opposite direction

    He said the group embarked on all encompassing trainings to help members add value not only to their different organizations but also to the nation’s economy

    He argued people had capacities that when developed would manifest in good result, it’s all about helping the mind to add value to the workplace, he expressed adding the centre was well equipped with modern infrastructure and also opens to people who operate seminars and workshops.

     

  • Capacity development centre will boost economy

    Capacity development centre will boost economy

    As part of efforts in reviving the national economy which is the initiative of the present administration, the Personnel Practitioners’ Consultative Association (PPCA), Ikeja chapter has established a capacity development centre to enhance the knowledge and skills of its members and non members as well

    PPCA is the grassroots professional arm of the chartered institute of personnel management of Nigeria (CIPM) that advances the course of human resource development

    The Chairman of the association, Jide Ologun, said it was the initiative of the group to empower its members to brace up with the current economic realities facing the country expressing the concern many employees were rather losing their jobs.

    He said there was urgent need to build entrepreneurial skills in the people including the young ones so that they could be self employed rather than searching for white collar jobs which according to him were not available

    “If you are seeking employment it is because you have value to offer, you can come about establishing a business that you can still offer that value”, he added

    Ologun, a lawyer told the Nation in Lagos the group would collaborate with the government at different levels and corporate organizations to ensure it delivered on its core promises adding to get the people right would give the right result

    According to him, any government that does not pay attention to training the workforce was out to fail because whether you like it or not even when you have the best of policies you need human resources to implement them adding if they are not in tune with your vision you will be working in the opposite direction

    He said the group embarked on all encompassing trainings to help members add value not only to their different organizations but also to the nation’s economy

    He argued people had capacities that when developed would manifest in good result, it’s all about helping the mind to add value to the workplace, he expressed adding the centre was well equipped with modern infrastructure and also opens to people who operate seminars and workshops

    “One of the things the administration decided to do is to have a capacity development centre where we can empower people to add value to the efforts of the government in reviving the national economy.

    “If you look at how the resources of the country have been managed if those who have managed them before now knew some things they should have known to constitute the ingredients of national development perhaps they would have done better and we would have been far ahead of where we are today.”

  • Buhari: our naira policy is to safeguard economy

    Buhari: our naira policy is to safeguard economy

    Govt to disclose recovered fund this week, says minister

    Advocates of devaluation were yesterday told to forget it because it will hurt the economy.

    President Muhammadu Buhari in a broadcast to mark his administration’s one year in office and the 17th anniversary of uninterrupted democracy,  spoke on a variety of issues affecting the polity in a 30-minute speech broadcast between 7a.m. and 7.30a.m.

    The Federal Government has been hailed for fighting corruption and insecurity but the accolades have been trickling in on the economy. The President  said he would continue to keep an eye on measures introduced to stabilise the economy, adding that he supported the monetary authority’s decision to ensure alignment between monetary policy and fiscal policy.

    “We resolved to keep the naira steady as, in the past, devaluation had done dreadful harm to the Nigerian economy.

    “Furthermore, I supported the monetary authority’s decision to ensure alignment between monetary policy and fiscal policy.

    “We shall keep a close look on how the recent measures affect the Naira and the economy,” Buhari said, adding:

    “But we cannot get away from the fact that a strong currency is predicated on a strong economy.

    “And a strong economy pre-supposes an industrial productive base and a steady export market.”

    But the President warned that “the measures we must take may lead to hardship.’’

    Buhari maintained that the past 12 months of his administration had been spent collaborating with all arms of government to revive institutions so that they are more efficient and fit for effective service delivery.

    “We started boldly with the Treasury Single Account (TSA), stopping the leakages in public expenditure.

    “We then identified 43,000 ghost workers through the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS).

    “That represents pay packets totalling N4.2 billion stolen every month. In addition, we will save N23 billion per annum from official travelling and sitting allowances alone.

    “Furthermore, the efficiency unit will cut costs and eliminate duplications in ministries and departments. Every little saving helps.

    “The reduction in the number of ministries and work on restructuring and rationalisation of the MDAs is well underway.

    “When this work is complete we will have a leaner, more efficient public service that is fit for the purpose of changing Nigeria for the good and for good,’’ the President said.

    He frowned at the activities of illegal miners, saying a special security team had been set up to check the menace and protest the nation’s mining assets.

    Buhari said special measures would be in place to protect miners in their work environment.

    According to him, the Ministry of Solid Mineral Resources has produced a roadmap where Nigeria would work closely with the World Bank and major international investors to ensure best practices and due diligence in the mining sector.

    President Buhari, who announced the official inauguration of his administration’s Social Protection Programme, lamented that the society had been neglecting the poor and victimising the weak.

    “For too long, ours has been a society that neglects the poor and victimises the weak.

    “A society that promotes profit and growth over development and freedom.

    “A society that fails to recognise that, to quote the distinguished economist Amartya Sen,” poverty is not just lack of money. It is not having the capability to realise one’s full potential as a human being.

    “So, today, I am happy to formally launch, by far the most ambitious social protection programme in our history.’’

    According to him, the N500 billion appropriated in the 2016 budget for social intervention programmes will be used in in five key areas.

    He said that his administration was committed to providing jobs for 500,000 Nigerians to work as teachers. Besides, 100,000 artisans will be engaged.

    He added that 5.5 million children would be provided with nutritious meals through the school feeding programme to improve learning outcomes.

    There is also the conditional cash transfer scheme, which will provide financial support for up to one million vulnerable beneficiaries, and complement the enterprise programme.

    This programme would target up to one million market women, 460,000 artisans and 200,000 agricultural workers.

    Security

    On Security, the president praised members of the Armed Forces for their efforts in checking the Boko Haram insurgency in the Northeast

    “I would like to pay a special tribute to our gallant men and women of the armed forces who are in harm’s way so that the rest of us can live and go about our business in safety.

    “Their work is almost done. The nation owes them a debt of gratitude.’’

    The immediate focus, he said, is for a gradual and safe return of internally displaced persons in safety and dignity and for the resumption of normalcy in the lives of people living in the Northeast.

    He also pointed out that the EFCC was given the freedom to fight corruption while the judiciary was alerted on what Nigerians expected of it in the fight.

    Stolen funds

    The president said a significant amount of stolen assets and funds had been recovered.

    The President said the recovered funds would be credited to the Federation Account after all necessary legal procedures.

    “We are also engaged in making recoveries of stolen assets some of which are in different jurisdictions.

    “The processes of recovery can be tedious and time consuming, but today I can confirm that thus far significant amount of assets have been recovered.

    “A considerable portion of these are at different stages of recovery. Full details of the status and categories of the assets will now be published by the Ministry of Information and updated periodically.

    “When forfeiture formalities are completed these monies will be credited to the treasury and be openly and transparently used in funding developmental projects and the public will be informed,’’ he said.

    Minister of Information and Culture Alhaji Lai Mohammed, said yesterday that “the list of the looted and recovered funds will be released before the end of the week.

    “The names of the persons will be withheld for legal reasons.”

    Niger Delta

    The President reiterated the commitment of his administration to implementing the United Nations Environment Programme report. He said the government was advancing clean-up operations in the region.

    “I believe the way forward is to take a sustainable approach to address the issues that affect the delta communities. Re-engineering the amnesty programme is an example of this.’’

    He frowned at the recent spate of attacks by militants disrupting oil and power installations.

    “If the militants and vandals are testing our resolve, they are much mistaken. We shall apprehend the perpetrators and their sponsors and bring them to justice.

    “The policy measures and actions taken so far are not to be seen as some experiment in governance.

    “We are fully aware that those vested interests who have held Nigeria back for so long will not give up without a fight.

    “They will sow divisions, sponsor vile press criticisms at home and abroad, incite the public in an effort to create chaos rather than relinquish the vice-like grip they have held on Nigeria,’’ he maintained.

    According to President Buhari, the economic misfortune the country is experiencing from the very low oil prices has provided an opportunity to restructure the economy and diversify.

    He said that his administration was in the process of promoting agriculture, livestocks, exploiting the solid mineral resources and expanding the nation’s industrial and manufacturing base.

    This process, he said, would make the nation to import less and make the social investments necessary to allow the country to produce a large and skilled workforce.

    He revealed that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) would also offer more “fiscal incentives for business that prove capable of manufacturing products that are internationally competitive.’’

    He said the APC-led government remained committed to reforming the regulatory framework, for investors by improving the ease of doing business in Nigeria.

    President Buhari noted that already the first steps along the path of self-sufficiency in rice, wheat and sugar (big users of our scarce foreign exchange) had been taken.

    According to him, the Labour Intensive Farming Enterprise will boost the economy and ensure inclusive growth in long neglected communities.

    While expressing concerns over rising cost of foods such as maize, rice, millet, beans and gari, the president said the special intervention funds through the Bank of Agriculture would provide targeted support.

    “Farmers tell me that they are worried about the cost of fertilizers, pesticides and the absence of extension services.

    “The federal and state governments are on the same page in tackling these hurdles in our efforts at increased food production and ultimately food security.

    “I would like to take this opportunity to express my appreciation for the increasing role that our women are playing in revitalizing the agricultural sector.

    “Modern farming is still hard and heavy work and I salute our Nigerian women in sharing this burden.’’

    President Buhari announced that the government would soon inaugurate the national women’s empowerment fund.

    He disclosed that he had already approved N1.6 billion in micro-finance loans to women across the nation to assist in rehabilitating the economies of rural communities, particularly those impacted by the insurgency and conflict.

    President Buhari reassured the international community of Nigeria’s commitment to strengthen democratic principles and sustain the fight against terrorism and violent crimes.

    “We want to assure our neighbours, friends and development partners that Nigeria is firmly committed to democratic principles.

    “We are ready partners in combating terrorism, cyber crimes, control of communicable diseases and protection of the environment.

    “Following on the Paris Agreement, COP 21, we are fully committed to halting and reversing desertification.

    On restructuring of Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), Buhari said that his administration was committed to the restructuring exercise and the rationalisation of the MDAs for more efficient public service.

    Budget 

    “In all my years as a public servant, I have never come across the practice of padding budgets.

    “I am glad to tell you now we not only have a budget, but more importantly, we have a budget process that is more transparent, more inclusive and more closely tied to our development priorities than in the recent past,’’ he said.

    The president further noted that his administration had delivered significant milestones on security, corruption and the economy.

    “In respect of the economy, I would like to directly address you on the very painful but inevitable decisions we had to make in the last few weeks specifically on the pump price of fuel and the more flexible exchange rate policy announced by the Central Bank.

    “It is even more painful for me that a major producer of crude oil with four refineries that once exported refined products today has to import all of its domestic needs.

    “This is what corruption and mismanagement has done to us and that is why we must fight these ills.

    “As part of the foundation of the new economy we have had to reform how fuel prices had traditionally been fixed.

    “This step was taken only after protracted consideration of its pros and cons.

    “After comprehensive investigation my advisers and I concluded that the mechanism was unsustainable.’’

    Chibok girls

    The president expressed delight over the recent rescue of two of the abducted girls, saying his administration would continue to do its best towards rescuing the remaining girls and those in Boko Haram’s captivity.

    “Fellow citizens, let me end on a happy note. To the delight of all, two of the abducted Chibok girls have regained their freedom.

    “During the last one year, not a single day passed without my agonising about these girls. Our efforts have centred around negotiations to free them safely from their mindless captors.

    “We are still pursuing that course. Their safety is of paramount concern to me and I am sure to most Nigerians.

    “I am very worried about the conditions those still captured might be in. Today I re-affirm our commitment to rescuing our girls. We will never stop until we bring them home safely.

    “As I said before, no girl should be put through the brutality of forced marriage and every Nigerian girl has the right to an education and a life choice.”