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Tag: recession

  • 2017 Budget well prepared to end recession – Buhari tells Nigerians

    2017 Budget well prepared to end recession – Buhari tells Nigerians

    President Muhammadu Buhari has expressed the hope that the 2017 budget which he will present before the National Assembly on Wednesday, will get the nation out of its economic woods.

    The President made this known in his 2016 Eid-El-Maulud message to the nation.

    The message was made available to newsmen in Abuja on Sunday.

    According to him, Federal Government is determined to overcome the mountain of economic difficulties, and return the nation to the path of prosperity.

    “As we look forward to 2017 with hope and huge expectations, let me assure you that with collective dedication and hard work, we will overcome the mountain of economic difficulties, and return our country to the path of prosperity.

    “The 2017 Budget proposals which I will lay before the National Assembly on Wednesday, will contain measures that we are confident will get the nation out of its economic woods.’’

    The President, who wished all Muslims a happy and memorable celebration of the birth of the great Prophet, urged Nigerians not to lose faith in the ability of his administration to make a difference in their lives.

    “Against all odds, we have used these pillars of strength in securing a just and fair society, and our efforts are beginning to yield dividends in curbing terrorism, militancy, corruption and other crimes that devalue our humanity.

    “As we use the memorable occasion of this celebration to reflect on our current challenges, I urge you not to lose faith in the ability of this administration to make a difference in the lives of our people,’’ he added.

    President Buhari maintained that the reality of “the temporary challenges should not undermine our hope, reverse our collective will to succeed, or divide us; rather it should remind us of why we need to stay together, fight together and succeed together.

    “We all share a vision of a better Nigeria, and we will all share in the responsibility of building the country of our dreams.

    “As we celebrate and reflect, I wish all Nigerians a peaceful Eid-el-Maulud.’’

  • FG pledges support for local industries to cushion effects of recession

    FG pledges support for local industries to cushion effects of recession

    The Minister of State, Industry, Trade and Investment, Hajia Aisha Abubakar, has assured local industries in the country of Federal Government’s support to enable them thrive in the prevailing economic recession.

    The minister, who stated this during a visit to some leather industries at Chalawa Industrial area on Saturday, said this would enable them remain afloat and provide employment to Nigerians.

    She said that the Federal Government was committed to providing the needed support to the industries for the economic development of the country.

    According to her, the current economic recession in the country is a good opportunity for people to look inwards towards developing the economy.

    Abubakar called on small scale businesses to register with the relevant departments to enable them access facilities for the growth of their businesses.

    She expressed happiness that, despite the prevailing economic challenges, some of the industries were still operating.

    Earlier, the Chairman of Whanu Shoe Ltd, Alhaji Bashir Danyaro, called on the Federal Government to provide immediate support to the ailing industries in the country.

    He said the call was necessary in view of the fact that most of the industries had stopped operation, while others were operating below installed capacity.

    The Minister had earlier held meeting with stakeholders including members of the state Manufacturer Association of Nigeria and Association of Small scale industries, among others.

  • Buhari on track to lead us out of recession, Osinbajo assures Nigerians

    Buhari on track to lead us out of recession, Osinbajo assures Nigerians

    Vice President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo, has assured Nigerians that President Muhammadu Buhari is on the right track to lead the nation out of the present economic crisis.

    Speaking during a Town Hall meeting in Kano on Monday, the Vice President said Nigerians need a man in the pedigree of President Muhammadu Buhari.

    The Vice President who called on Nigerians to exercise patience with Buhari that all will soon be well said, “I’m confident everyone of us would come out of this recession happy.”

    He added that, “let’s be patient, let’s work hard, and we are lucky with the kind of President we have, he is an honest man.”

    “This country needs honest leadership, we need somebody like Buhari who is not going to steal your money,” Osinbajo said.

     

  • Nigeria, Morocco Bilateral Agreements will shorten Nigeria’s recession – Elumelu

    Nigeria, Morocco Bilateral Agreements will shorten Nigeria’s recession – Elumelu

    The Chairman of Heirs Holdings, Mr Tony Elumelu, has said the Bilateral Agreements signed between Nigeria and Morocco will help shorten Nigeria’s economic recession.

    Elumelu made his stance known after participating in the signing ceremony of two of the bilateral agreements, at the State House, Abuja, on Saturday.

    The Bilateral Agreements (twenty one in number) were signed between Nigeria and Kingdom of Morocco during the 3-day official visit of the Moroccan King Mohammed VI to Nigeria.

    The agreements included, the Memorandum of Understanding Relating to Potential Collaboration Between Heirs Holdings and Banque Centrale Populaire and Memorandum of Understanding between United Bank for Africa Plc and Attijari Wafa Bank of Morocco.

    Elumelu, who is the founder of Tony Elumelu Foundation, commended President Muhammadu Buhari for his forsight and vision for the nation.

    “To me, what happened here today is just beyond one sector. We have seen the delegation of Morocco and we have also seen our own Nigerian private sector people.

    “What we have done today in my view point will help further shorten our recession and take us to economic prosperity and boom again.

    “I say this from deep of my heart that I like it when our political leaders like Presidents begin to create platforms and opportunities like this for the private sector to grow because it is the private sector that will help to create employment.

    “So, what has happened today is good and a big plus for our government and our President,’’ he said

    Governor Abubakar Badaru of Jigawa, who also spoke after the ceremony, described the signing of the agreement on the gas pipeline project as “a wonderful development’’ for Nigeria.

    He said that many West African countries would witness economic prosperity as a result of the gas pipeline project.

    “The gas pipeline is a wonderful development for the country. It will help the African regions as the pipeline passes across so many countries.

    “We heard that power, fertilizer plants will be built, and many other developmental activities are going to happen around this agreement.

    “So, I believe it will help the state governments because the economic fortune of the country will improve and when they improved it will reflect on the economies of the states.

    ”There will be job creation and a lot of employment and it is the citizens of the states that will benefit from the job creation.’’

     

  • Government must deepen investment in infrastructure, agriculture to curb recession

    An Economic expert, Mr Leonard Ugbajah, says the quickest way out of recession was for government at all levels to deepen investment in infrastructure and agricultural development in the country.

    Ugbajah, the Technical Adviser to the Private Sector Coalition on Competition Bill enactment in Nigeria stated this to news men in Abuja on Thursday.

    “The challenge again here is that most of the things we need to do to see the result will come in the long term.

    “But then there are certain quick wins we can harvest, one of the things I think the government should be doing right is to focus on infrastructure.

    “Now you can’t talk of diversifying the economy when you don’t have the infrastructure base to carry a diversified economy.

    “You can give all the special intervention you want which we have done a lot of it in Nigeria.

    “We have intervention for rice, we have for cassava, we have for maize and all that, but when the business environment doesn’t support business, then your intervention will go to waste.’’

    He also said that it was important government focus on developing vocational education in the country, this he said was a catalyst for achieving a vibrant economy.

    He said that government investing more to improve agricultural yield would also help in accelerating the growth of the economy.

    “You can’t have a vibrant productive economy, where people carry about certificates that cannot produce anything.

    “ For you to have a productive economy, you have to focus on vocational education from the secondary school level.

    “We need to return to the era of technical schools, because that is the mid manpower level you need.

    “So a fundamental reform of our educational system is important.

    “What area should we focus on, we should look at agriculture and when we look at agriculture.

    “Not just in producing more but in improving the production process to get higher yield, and looking at agriculture from a value chain perspective“.

    He said that the value chain approach to agriculture production would entail devising possible ways to mitigate waste of agricultural products.

    He said one of such ways was to site processing plants close to production points.

    He also advised the government to channel intervention funds to improving agro-processing in Nigeria using the cluster base method.

    “If tomatoes are produced in large quantity in the North, we can cluster tomato processors around that area.’’

    He said that the cluster base approach would help bridge the infrastructural deficit in the country.

    “What clustering does for you is to localize the right kind of infrastructure you need in a particular space.

    “So you solve the peculiar infrastructure problem, you also solve the peculiar problem in the value chain that has to do with skills.’’

    On Passage of Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB), Ugbajah said that the non passage of the bill was preventing new companies from making investment in the oil sector.

    He said that PIB was the framework required to salvage the oil and gas sector from its deteriorating situation.

    He commended the Senate for its decision to give the Bill priority now, noting that there was urgent need to pass the bill