Tag: Shettima

…urges VISA to tap Africa’s largest market through fintech expansion

Vice President Kashim Shettima has reiterated that Nigeria is open to investments and collaborations across diverse sectors, stressing that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration is committed to transforming the economy through bold reforms.

Shettima, who spoke on Monday when he received a delegation from VISA, led by its Regional President for Central and Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa (CEMEA), Mr. Tareq Muhmood, said the measures introduced by the Tinubu government since 2023 were difficult but necessary, and are already yielding measurable results.

According to a statement issued by Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Communications, Office of the Vice President, Stanley Nkwocha, Shettima said, “President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is determined to change the face of our nation. Today, there is a great room for expansion in the Nigerian economy. Eight out of the ten unicorns in Africa are from Nigeria”.

Highlighting progress under the reforms, Shettima pointed to steady growth in foreign reserves, improving tax administration, and restored fiscal discipline.

Read Also: Shettima: era of working in isolation over

“The economy has picked up pace, we have crossed the Rubicon, and we are on a path of sustainable growth. The tax reforms are gaining traction, we are restoring discipline to the system, and our foreign reserve is growing steadily,” he said.

The Vice President particularly commended VISA’s partnerships with local fintech companies, urging the global payment giant to leverage Nigeria’s vast unbanked population in its African expansion drive.

According to him, digital payment systems hold the future of commerce on the continent, with the added advantage of promoting transparency and curbing corruption.

In his remarks, VISA Regional President, Muhmood, praised the Tinubu administration’s reforms in oil and gas, the foreign exchange regime, and tax policy, saying they have stimulated renewed confidence in the Nigerian economy.

He said the company plans to expand its footprint in the country and support programmes that directly impact livelihoods across various sectors.

Also present at the meeting were VISA’s Senior Vice President and Head of Western and Central Africa, Aminata Kane; Vice President and Head of West Africa, Andrew Uaboi; and Senior Director and Head of Government Affairs, Chidozie Arinze.

Vice President Kashim Shettima has directed the Presidential Food Systems Coordinating Unit (PFSCU) to fast-track the disbursement of the Federal Government’s ₦250 billion credit support facility for smallholder farmers at a single-digit interest rate.

The directive was issued on Thursday at the 6th meeting of the PFSCU Steering Committee held at the Presidential Villa, Abuja. 

In a statement issued by Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Communications, Office of the Vice President, Stanley Nkwocha, Shettima said speeding up the release of the funds was crucial to ensuring that they reached the intended beneficiaries without unnecessary delay.

“On the Bank of Agriculture ₦250 billion facility, we need to sit down with all stakeholders and come up with a robust roadmap that ensures these funds reach the intended farmers and translate into real productivity gains,” the Vice President said.

He commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for granting the PFSCU the political cover to act decisively on key reforms in the agricultural sector, particularly the liberalisation of fertilizer raw materials and the establishment of the Presidential Seed Fund.

“I want to place it on record, our deep appreciation for Mr. President’s leadership and guidance. His clear directives on fertilizer liberalization and the seed fund have empowered the PFSCU to fast-track delivery in ways that directly support farmers and strengthen our food systems,” Shettima stated.

While praising the PFSCU for progress made since its last meeting in April, the Vice President noted that collaboration between federal ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs), the private sector, and development partners has already produced measurable results. 

These include the insurance of 250,000 farmers under the National Agribusiness Policy Mechanism (NAPM), the launch of the first phase of the Harvesting Hope Caravan across eight states, the approval of the ₦50 billion Seed Fund, and advances on the World Bank–supported $500 million AGROW programme.

Senator Shettima further urged stakeholders to step up efforts to revitalise the seed sector and to expand the nation’s strategic grain reserves in line with ongoing government reforms.

Also speaking at the meeting, Ekiti State Governor, Mr. Biodun Oyebanji, underscored the need for transparent structures that would guarantee the accessibility of the ₦250 billion loan to the farmers for whom it was designed. 

Read Also: Shettima: era of working in isolation over

He pledged that Ekiti State would provide monthly financial support to the PFSCU to enhance its work.

Jigawa State Governor, Malam Umar A. Namadi, commended the Bank of Agriculture for its role in supporting rural farmers, while calling for the provision of subsidies to boost agricultural productivity.

Similarly, the Governor of Cross River State, Senator Bassey Otu, welcomed the credit support scheme but advised that local farmers should be further encouraged with incentives, particularly through subsidies.

Earlier, PFSCU Coordinator, Ms. Marion Moon, stressed the urgency of consolidating Nigeria’s food security gains, noting that about 30.8 million Nigerians remain food insecure. 

She highlighted the unit’s efforts in strengthening collaboration with MDAs across the federal, state and local levels, while urging sustained support to achieve the administration’s goals.

The meeting was attended by the Deputy Governors of Niger and Ebonyi States, the Ministers of Finance and Agriculture, the Ministers of State for Finance and Agriculture, the President of the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON), as well as representatives of the private sector and development partners.

• Vice President urges states to back govt’s skills agenda
• Kaduna Governor Sani hailed for pioneering skills council

Vice President Kashim Shettima has called for stronger collaboration among federal, state, and private sector stakeholders to drive the Bola Ahmed Tinubu administration’s skills acquisition agenda.

He announced that “the era of working in isolation is over”.

Shettima spoke at the seventh meeting of the National Council on Skills (NCS) at the Presidential Villa in Abuja.

The Vice President described the current administration’s skills revolution as a central pillar of President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, which prioritises human capital development and job creation.

In a statement by the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Communications in the Office of the Vice President, Stanley Nkwocha, VP Shettima said: “The skills revolution is one of the covenants this administration has entered into with the Nigerian people.

“Let me be clear about what this means. The era of operating in silos is over. We must move towards a new streamlined workflow that embeds collaboration directly into the process of curriculum development and funding.

“This new process isn’t just for our own convenience; it is for the ambitious artisan in Kaura Namoda seeking certification; for the mid-career worker in Ebute-Metta; and for the technical colleges across the nation that need funding to become true centres of excellence.”

The Vice President hailed Kaduna State Governor Uba Sani for establishing and chairing the first Kaduna State Council on Skills.

Read Also: Police arrest self-proclaimed “Obi of Lagos,” foil installation ceremony

He described the move as “exemplary” and urged other subnational governments to replicate the initiative.

Shettima urged government officials, public servants, and the private sector to work together.

The Vice President added: “Fulfilling such a promise is not contingent on inter-agency harmony; it demands it. We have to unite. We simply cannot build a future-ready workforce on a foundation of division.

“We must replace fragmentation with a framework for partnership. We must replace indecision with a clear and resolute path forward. Let’s move from this room to the work of implementation with a single mind and a shared purpose.”

Governor Sani said the Kaduna Vocational and Skills Development Institute recently admitted more than 30,000 students.

The governor thanked the Vice President for his commitment to ensuring that the council achieves its objectives.

The Minister of Education, Dr. Olatunji Alausa, lauded Kaduna State’s initiative in facilitating President Tinubu’s commissioning of the Institute of Vocational Training and Skills Development.

The minister noted that in line with the Federal Government’s skills acquisition drive, technical colleges nationwide have been directed to prioritise relevant courses in the new academic year.

Vice President Kashim Shettima has called for stronger collaboration among federal, state, and private sector stakeholders to drive the Tinubu administration’s skills acquisition agenda, declaring that “the era of working in isolation is over.”

Speaking on Tuesday at the 7th meeting of the National Council on Skills (NCS) held at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, the Vice President said the government’s skills revolution is a central pillar of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, which prioritises human capital development and job creation.

In a statement issued by Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Communications, Office of the Vice President, Stanley Nkwocha, Shettima said, “the skills revolution is one of the covenants this administration has entered into with the Nigerian people. 

“Let me be clear about what this means. The era of operating in silos is over. We must move towards a new streamlined workflow that embeds collaboration directly into the process of curriculum development and funding. 

“This new process isn’t just for our own convenience; it is for the ambitious artisan in Kaura Namoda seeking certification; for the mid-career worker in Ebute-Metta; and for the technical colleges across the nation that need funding to become true centres of excellence”, Shettima said.

The Vice President commended Kaduna State Governor, Senator Uba Sani, for establishing and chairing the first Kaduna State Council on Skills, describing the move as “exemplary” and urging other subnational governments to replicate the initiative.

Read Also: Bold reforms confirm Tinubu’s political will, says Shettima

Shettima also called on government officials, public servants, and the private sector to work together, stressing that “fulfilling such a promise is not contingent on inter-agency harmony; it demands it. We have to unite. We simply cannot build a future-ready workforce on a foundation of division.”

Earlier, Governor Sani highlighted that the Kaduna Vocational and Skills Development Institute recently admitted more than 30,000 students, thanking the Vice President for his commitment to ensuring the council achieves its objectives.

The Minister of Education, Dr. Olatunji Alausa, praised Kaduna State’s initiative in facilitating President Tinubu’s commissioning of the Institute of Vocational Training and Skills Development. 

He disclosed that, in line with the federal government’s skills acquisition drive, technical colleges nationwide have been directed to prioritise relevant courses in the new academic year.

The Vice President concluded with a call to action, “We must replace fragmentation with a framework for partnership. We must replace indecision with a clear and resolute path forward. Let’s move from this room to the work of implementation with a single mind and a shared purpose.”

•VP urges Africans to embrace knowledge economy

Vice President Kashim Shettima has said the sweeping reforms introduced by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu are courageous and inevitable.

He said they showed a clear demonstration of the President’s political will in addressing Nigeria’s longstanding structural weaknesses.

Shettima spoke at the opening session of the 66th Annual Conference of the Nigerian Economic Society (NES) yesterday in Abuja.

He said the administration remained committed to steering the economy onto a path of sustainable growth, despite the short-term hardships associated with the reforms.

In a statement by the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Communications in the Office of the Vice President, Stanley Nkwocha, VP Shettima said: “Nigeria is, of course, not exempt from Africa’s economic tragedies. But our silver lining is the listening ear of His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

“Under his leadership, this administration has embarked on bold and inevitable reforms to address structural weaknesses that others before us only paid lip service to.

“These reforms testify to the power of political will in economic policy. Their painful but necessary consequences remind us that a malignant disease can only be cured by painful surgery. The wounds are temporary, but the recovery is permanent.”     

The Vice President urged African nations to embrace the knowledge economy as a bridge to productivity and human capital development.

“We live in a world where a random citizen in Daura can outsource his services to a corporation in Dallas without leaving his bedroom.

“But to catch up with this changing world, Africa must embrace structural transformation that reinvents its human capital and reverses unemployment. Poverty must be confronted head-on for the promise of this continent to be realised in the lives of our people,” he said.

Shettima argued that global challenges, such as geopolitical conflicts, trade protectionism, supply chain disruptions, the energy transition, and artificial intelligence, should not be seen only as threats but also as opportunities for Africa.

“They all paint a gloomy outlook. But each threat is also an opportunity in disguise. This is why a society such as yours exists: to light the path of a continent even in the darkest night,” he said.

The Vice President assured fellow Nigerians that the Tinubu administration was mindful of the inflationary pressures and global spillovers affecting Nigeria’s economy.

He added that Tinubu is committed to “investment-friendly measures and social protection programmes”.

According to him, deliberate interventions in transport, healthcare, and education are targeted at reducing inequality.

Read Also: Nigerian nurses urge greater investment in education, welfare, safer workplaces

The Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Senator Abubakar Bagudu, lauded Shettima’s role in the administration’s reforms.

He promised that the NES would be fully integrated into the ministry’s programmes, including the Renewed Hope Ward Development Programme.

Also, the Minister of Livestock Development, Alhaji Idi Mukhtar Maiha, highlighted the untapped billions of dollars in Nigeria’s livestock sector, describing it as “the next crude oil”.

He said the government would partner the NES to harness the sector in line with the Renewed Hope Agenda.

The NES President, Prof. Adeola Adenikinju, reaffirmed the society’s commitment to serving as a bridge between research and policy.

He said: “We established chapters across the 36 states, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and the Diaspora; created the NES Women’s Wing and Students’ Wing.”

Adenikinju stressed that the initiatives have repositioned the NES as Nigeria’s foremost economic think-tank.

The Director of the African Development Institute, Dr. Eric Kehinde Ogunleye, praised the Tinubu administration for its bold reforms and urged African leaders to rethink investment in people.

“These are the people who represent the greatest assets of the continent,” he said.

The conference attracted many dignitaries, including the Special Adviser to the President on Economic Affairs, Tope Fasua; MOFI Board Chairman, Dr. Shamsudeen Usman; Nigeria’s first Professor of Capital Market Studies, Uche Uwaleke; as well as representatives of the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, and CBN Governor, Yemi Cardoso.