Chidimma Uchegbu – Abuja
The Federal Government has promised that it will work more closely with the private sector to actualise its eight priority areas.
The Vice President, Senator Kashim Shettima stated this at the closing ceremony of this year’s Nigerian Economic Summit (NES#30) in Abuja yesterday.
The Vice President who was represented by the Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Senator Abubakar Atiku Bagudu, said from the inception of this administration, the government understood and accepted that partnership with the private sector was essential for the country’s economic growth and development.
According to him, “Over the last three days, this summit has facilitated deep and meaningful conversations among public, private, and civil society leaders.
“Together, we have created an environment of mutual respect and dialogue. This understanding has informed our engagement with the Summit process, which has generated many policy recommendations for government action.”
The vice president said it is clear that implementing the current administration’s priorities, particularly the eight priority areas enumerated in the Renewed Hope Agenda, which is the administration’s strategy for repositioning the economy for macroeconomic stability, growth, and development, requires the support of all Nigerians.
He said that the government is waiting for the recommendations arising from the summit with a pledge that they would be implemented.
The Chairman of NESG, Mr. Niyi Yusuf, at a post summit media conference listed three take aways from the summit to include that the country is going through difficult times, but there is a need to stay the course and nurture the seed, that there is a huge private sector capital on the continent waiting for government to tap into for development and that opportunities are beyond Nigeria, as Nigeria has signed on to the African Continental Free trade Agreement (ACfTA), “so instead of a market of 220 million people, now we have a market of over four billion,” he said.
Speaking during one of the sessions on Race to 2030: catalising the sub-national Action towards meeting the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), Executive Secretary, National Primary Health Care Development Agency, (NPHCDA), Dr Muyi Aina, said Nigeria is still far from meeting the SDGs.
He said only 10 per cent of the country’s 40,000 primary healthcare centres are functional, and called on all, particularly the private sector to support the government.
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