Economy: Senator Bagudu highlights Project sketch for Sustainable Economic Transformation

 

Chidimma Uchegbu – Abuja

 

The Federal Minister of Budget and  Economic Planning ,Senator Abubakar Bagudu has has reiterated    that the Pathways to Sustainable Economic Transformation and Inclusion in Nigeria lies in innovative policies, robust workable institutions, strategic investments in infrastructure, upskilling our human capital, encouraging entrepreneurship and  leveraging digital technology.

 

The Minister made this statement in Abuja at the media briefing in preparation for the 29th Nigerian Economic Summit for October 23 -24, 2023 stressing that  through targeted reforms, increased transparency, and good governance, Nigeria can unlock its immense economic potentials, attract foreign investments, equip our youth with the skills and resources they need to leverage the opportunities of this digital era, and improve the quality of life for its citizens.

 

Senator Bagudu said  the 29th Nigerian Economic Summit seeks to:Inspire confidence in the Nigerian economy to drive job creation, economic growth and the realization of Nigeria’s economic potentials; Collectively design and prioritize strategies to unlock untapped potentials, foster sustainable economic transformation and promote shared prosperity for the nation.

 

Also Cultivate a people and technology-centered approach to addressing emerging trends, shaping a future of inclusive and sustainable economic growth for Nigeria; Facilitate the implementation of reforms to promote investor confidence, attract FDI, and provide incentives for private sector participation in economic and social development; and Facilitate discussions and actions towards attracting capital to support sustainable economic development initiatives, he said.

 

According to him ,the Summit would be anchored on Plenary sessions, CEO Roundtables, Briefings, Insight Sessions, Debates, Workshops, Dialogues, Co-creation labs and High-level panel discussions. Stakeholders would highlight the imperatives of Economic Sustainability, Inclusive Growth, Execution, Political Economy and Visionary Leadership as drivers of sustainable socioeconomic development.

 

The Summit has become the largest and foremost annual convergence for public sector policy makers and private sector industry leaders in Nigeria. It also brings together development partners, civil society organizations and representatives of the academia. It provides participants with the unique opportunity for consensus building, identifying development challenges facing the country and proffering implementable strategies and policy framework for addressing them.

 

The 28th Summit (NES#28), focused on 2023 and Beyond: Priorities for Shared Prosperity. The theme was important given the fact that the Summit was held on the heels of the preparation for the 7th successful political transition and the urgent need to set priorities for the new Administration that was billed to assume power on May 29, 2023. It also provided a timely opportunity for a national economic review and created unanimity amongst all Nigerians on the need for us to actively prioritise the pursuit of economic growth that can sustainably create jobs, lift millions out of poverty and enable Nigeria realise its economic potentials.

 

In order to ensure effective preparation for the 29th Summit, the Joint Planning Committee (JPC) for the 29th Summit was inaugurated on Monday, July 31, 2023 to carry out all necessary arrangements for the successful hosting of the Summit. The inauguration midwifed five Sub-committees, namely; Technical; Fund Raising and Mobilization; Media & Publicity; and Editorial and Event Planning. The Joint Planning Committee has since inauguration ben working round the clock leading to this press conference we are witnessing here today.

 

The theme of the 29th Nigerian Economic Summit is “Pathways to Sustainable Economic Transformation and Inclusion”, as it was chosen to discuss the imperatives for transforming the nations economy while ensuring inclusivity.

The discussions around the theme will be dimensioned across five sub-themes; namely, Stimulating Economic Growth; Mobilizing Finance for Sustainable Development; Harnessing Human Capital Development; Promoting National Cohesion & Inclusion; and Reforming Public Institution. Its success will depend on the active and deliberate participation of all critical stakeholders; including, the Federal Government, Sub-national Government, Private Sector operators, Civil Society organizations, the Media and Development Partners.

 

The sub-themes address relevant pillars in the National Development Plan 2021-2025, the Nigeria Agenda 2050 and the Renewed Hope Agenda. It is expected that the outcomes from this important national dialogues will send a strong message on the avowed commitment of the current Administration for effective collaboration with the private sector in achieving a sustainable and inclusive economic transformation.

“The goals of Sustainable Economic Development as encapsulated in the country’s perspective Plan, tagged the Nigeria Agenda 2050, include; a stable and predictable macroeconomic environment, adopting policies that are consistent with raising domestic savings and investment, creating an enabling and conducive business environment, achieving concentric economic diversification, achieving sustainable growth, promoting productivity and industrial development.

“The others goals include addressing demographic issues, and dealing with social problems such as poverty, unemployment and inequality, as well as the expansion of fiscal space through improved revenue generation and promotion of good governance. It is also intended to provide a modern and efficient infrastructure, promote the expansion of the private sector through deliberate policies for the formalization of informal sector, and ensuring good governance.

“Overall, the main target of the Nigeria Agenda 2050 is to increase the country’s per capita GDP to US$6,000 and US$33,000 by 2030 and 2050 respectively. It will also bring poverty rate to 0.6% and unemployment rate to 6.3%, while transiting the economy to the highest per capita GDP in the Group of upper-middle income economies. The Plan will be effectively implemented by successive governments through six number 5-Year Medium-Term National Development Plans and Annual Budgets.

” The Renewed Hope Agenda and 8 Priority Areas of the current Administration are aimed at fast-tracking the goals of the Nigeria Agenda 2050 and the National Development Plan 2021-2025 with a double-digit growth rate and inclusive development. The Ministry is in the process of conducting the mid-term review of the NDP 2021-2025 with the purpose of fine-tuning the Plan and ensuring that the Renewed Hope Agenda of the current Government is incorporated into the NDP 2021-2025. The Ministry will welcome innovative ideas from the stakeholders at the Summit to ensure its effective integration into the NDP 2021-2025.  12.       Gentlemen of the Press, the Pathways to Sustainable Economic Transformation and Inclusion in Nigeria lie in innovative policies, robust workable institutions, strategic investments in infrastructure, upskilling our human capital, encouraging entrepreneurship and innovation, and leveraging digital technology. Through targeted reforms, increased transparency, and good governance, Nigeria can unlock its immense economic potentials, attract foreign investments, equip our youth with the skills and resources they need to leverage the opportunities of this digital era, and improve the quality of life for its citizens.

Therefore, the 29th Nigerian Economic Summit seeks to:Inspire confidence in the Nigerian economy to drive job creation, economic growth and the realization of Nigeria’s economic potentials;Collectively design and prioritize strategies to unlock untapped potentials, foster sustainable economic transformation and promote shared prosperity for the nation;Cultivate a people and technology-centered approach to addressing emerging trends, shaping a future of inclusive and sustainable economic growth for Nigeria;Facilitate the implementation of reforms to promote investor confidence, attract FDI, and provide incentives for private sector participation in economic and social development; andFacilitate discussions and actions towards attracting capital to support sustainable economic development initiatives.

 

The Summit would be anchored on Plenary sessions, CEO Roundtables, Briefings, Insight Sessions, Debates, Workshops, Dialogues, Co-creation labs and High-level panel discussions. Stakeholders would highlight the imperatives of Economic Sustainability, Inclusive Growth, Execution, Political Economy and Visionary Leadership as drivers of sustainable socioeconomic development.

 

Also speaking, Mr. Olaniyi Yusuf, Chairman of the Nigerian Economic Summit Group(NESG), underscored the need for Nigeria to embrace industrialisation to create jobs, reduce poverty and enhance equitable distribution of resources.

 

Yusuf noted that Nigeria stands at a unique juncture to chart a course towards shared prosperity and overcome long-standing obstacles that have impeded her socio-economic progress.

 

According to him, “In the face of a rapidly changing global economic landscape and increasing inequalities, a strategy for sustained growth must ensure a form of industrialisation that makes opportunities accessible to all people and broadly distributes income and non-income gains across society.

 

“Our inability to fully integrate solutions to social issues into targeted industrial and economic policies undermines the developmental potential of our country, thus widening income inequality gaps.

 

 

 

“Low productivity, inadequately diversified local economic activity, high unemployment rates and job insecurity remain a challenge for our country.”

 

He however, acknowledged that Nigeria has youthful population with a tremendous opportunity for accelerating national development through entrepreneurship and innovation, adding that “With a large pool of creative and ambitious young minds, the country has the potential to foster a vibrant start-up ecosystem and drive economic growth.

 

 

“By leveraging technology and innovation, these creative minds can introduce disruptive solutions, create jobs, and contribute to the overall progress of the Nigerian economy.