Success of made-in-Nigeria requires support of all —NESG Chairman

The Chairman, Nigeria Economic Summit Group (NESG) Board Committee, Dr. Adedoyin Salami, has  said that for  ‘made-in-Nigeria ‘  to succeed, the task must not be left  to the Federal Government alone but must be embraced by all.

Speaking on Monday at the opening of the 22nd edition of the Nigeria Economic Summit (NES 22) in Abuja with the theme “Made-In-Nigeria”, NESG Chairman said that for the Nigerian economy to be globally competitive, it is imperative for public procurement processes to dedicate specific portion to made-in-Nigeria goods and services.

“If made-in-Nigeria must succeed, it should not be the challenge of the Federal Government alone. All the 36 states of the federation and the Federal Capital territory (FCT) must have a role to play,” he said.

According to him, “The country’s economic situation is worse than stagflation. What we have is an economy that is shrinking in size. So far, this year it has shrunk by about 1.5 per cent, with combination of stagnant growth and rising costs,” he noted.

He explained that the growth rate began slowing down since 2013 before contracting into the recent recession. He said the country should see the situation as an opportunity to revitalize and re-engineer the economy to grow again.

NESG Chairman stressed the need to embrace the imperatives of local competitiveness and productiveness, as well as ability to create and add value to the economy adding that indices like global economic policy, global trade, and capital flows have worsened and is likely to remain unfavourable to Nigeria throughout the life time of the President Muhammadu Buhari administration.

Speaking on oil, he said; “The dynamics of oil has changed, with the production of shale oil. The cost of producing shale oil imposes a cap on oil prices, with 72 countries in the world potentially capable of producing shale oil, with Nigeria’s key customers, United States and China already producing shale oil or looking for alternatives to our oil,” he said.

He advised Nigeria to move away from oil dependence, saying the country could overcome the domestic economic challenge if solutions were found to the absence of a policy framework to articulate national development attainment goals.

According to him, the strategic implementation plan by the Budget and National Planning Ministry, fell short of a national development plan, as it hardly helped investors and guide the economy towards what the country’s national preferences were and what the development path should be.

He warned that failure to make the private sector the engine of growth and development would not make the country attractive to investors, saying government must encourage and support the private sector to contribute to the economy.

Speaking on the issue of rising unemployment, particularly among the 15 to 25 age group, he said this would not only destroy hope, it would create a fundamental systemic challenge for social coherence to economic progress and inclusiveness.

To create a globally competitive economy, he said Nigeria must not only produce her goods and services, but must have a strong, consistent and stable currency that gives Nigerian producers advantage against global competition.

President Buhari declared the summit open and used the occasion to urge participants to ensure they come up with resolutions to support government’s effort to diversify the economy in the face of challenges posed by dwindling global oil prices.

“Made in Nigeria lies at the heart of so many efforts we are making to lead us through this trouble times and lay a firm foundation for the future,”

“We need to diversify the economy so that we will never again have to rely on one commodity to survive as a country; so that we can produce the food we eat, make our own textiles, produce most of the things we use and create the right environment for our young to be able to benefit and create jobs through technology,” the president said.