Deji Elumoye in Abuja 

Vice-President Kashim Shettima has said the courageous and unavoidable reforms being undertaken by the administration of President Bola Tinubu, which are currently fixing Nigeria’s structural weaknesses, are a proof of the power of political will in economic policy.

He, therefore, called on African nations to embrace the knowledge economy, saying it is a bridge to transform the continent’s economic growth and development through productivity beyond outdated explanations. 

The vice-president, who disclosed this on Tuesday in Abuja at the opening session of the 66th Annual Conference of the Nigerian Economic Society (NES), noted that while Nigeria is not immune to the economic morass Africa had long been enmeshed in, the nation’s comforting prospect is that it currently has a president with a listening ear.

According to Shettima, “Nigeria is, of course, not exempted from Africa’s economic tragedies. But our silver lining is the listening ear of President Bola 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 stressed the need for African nations to get rid of the old-fashioned approach to their economy and embrace structural transformation if they must revive human capital challenges and reverse unemployment on the continent.

He said: “We live in a world where a random citizen in Daura can outsource his services to a corporation in Dallas without seeing the inside of a plane or 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. There is no justification for the low per capita income that afflicts our nations amidst the resources at our disposal.”

Shettima observed that though “geopolitical conflicts, trade protectionism, supply chain disruptions, the energy transition, and the disruptive rise of artificial intelligence” may all seem like a threat to the continent’s economy, they are opportunities in disguise.

“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 explained, just as he pointed out it is the mandate that the Annual Conference of the Nigerian Economic Society has been given “to find new pathways to solutions,” while the nation awaits the recommendations.

The vice-president noted while the Tinubu government did not claim the ongoing reforms would be easy, it has always acknowledged the inflationary impact of the reforms, as well as the “spillovers from global crises into our economy,” which explains why President Tinubu “has remained committed to investment-friendly measures and social protection programmes to cushion the vulnerable”.

“Policies in transportation, healthcare and education have been deliberately targeted at reducing inequality because these are the sectors that affect the weakest among us,” he added.

Shettima commended the President of the Nigerian Economic Society, Prof. Adeola Adenikinju, and his team for challenging the nation “to reflect on what decades of policy failures and vulnerabilities to global risks have created for Africa. 

“I urge all participants to take their roles in this conference not as a scholarly exercise but as a continental and national assignment—one expected to salvage Africa’s economies from their fragile status,” he further stated.

Earlier, the Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Abubakar Bagudu, applauded the vice-president’s significant contributions in the realization of the economic reforms of administration of President Tinubu. 

Bagudu assured the NES that it will be fully integrated in all of the ministry’s programmes, especially the preparation and implementation of the development plan and the recently approved Renewed Hope Ward Development Programme.

Also speaking, the Minister of Livestock Development, Alhaji Idi Mukhtar Maiha, presented potentials in Nigeria’s livestock sector, estimated at several billions of dollars, offering opportunities for economic diversification.

The minister expressed readiness to partner with the NES to brainstorm on the “brilliant ideas” needed to implement President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda for the livestock sector, which he described as “the next crude oil”.

For his part, the President of the NES, Prof. Adenikinju, reiterated the society’s commitment to collaborating with the Tinubu administration to actualise the goal of genuine economic transformation and national development.

He said the NES under his leadership has undertaken reforms aimed at repositioning the body to act as “a bridge between research and policy, a centre for mentoring the next generation of economists, and a trusted partner in Nigeria’s pursuit of sustainable development and Africa’s transformation”.

Highlighting the milestones of his administration, Adenikinju said under his watch, the NES “established chapters across the 36 states, FCT and the Diaspora, to ensure national reach and grassroots engagement; created the NES Women’s Wing and Students’ Wing to broaden inclusivity and representation”, among others.

The NES President added that the reforms have transformed the society into a modern, inclusive and globally connected professional body while preserving its core identity as Nigeria’s foremost economic think-tank.

On his part, the Director of the African Development Institute, Dr. Eric Kehinde Ogunleye, said the African Development Bank (AfDB) remains committed to the development of Africa and Nigeria, even as he stated that “Nigeria occupies a strategic position in moving the African continent forward.” 

Ogunleye commended the Tinubu administration for its bold reforms aimed at achieving structural and economic transformation, as well as inclusive growth.

Charging the audience regarding investing in people, he advised: “Let us rethink how we invest in people because these are the people who represent the greatest assets of the continent.”

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