By Tony Obiechina, Abuja
The Minister of State, Budget and National Planning, Clem Agba says the Federal government is implementing key recommendations from the Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG) in order to build a robust economy.
The Minister stated this on Wednesday in Abuja at a World press conference ahead of the Nigeria the 27th Nigeria Economic Summit tagged “Securing the Future: The Urgency of Now,”
Commenting on the theme of the Summit, Agba said the conference is taking place at a time that requires stakeholders from bother public and private sector to come together to build economic prosperity
His words: “It is pertinent to say the recommendations of 26th edition of the Nigeria Economic Summit has been forwarded to Federal Executive Council and subsequently to Ministries, Department and Agencies of government for full implementation.
“Also, key recommendations from the summit formed a large part of our the national economic plan.
“The theme of the for this year is crucial as it seeks to explore potential opportunities in the economy under it’s sub-themes which include ,high and sustained growth, political economy, digital transformation, quality of life among others,”
Speaking further, the minister stated that some of the policies to grow the economy are directed towards investment in critical infrastructure such as rail, communication and digital technology of which the result is evident in the recent GDP growth.
On the need for synergy between public and private sector, Mr. Agba added that “Government recognizes the position of the private sector which is why the national economic planning committee is being headed by Mr. Atedo Peterside
He said the coming summit which will hold from the 25th through 26th October will serve as an avenue to discuss solutions to the challenges facing critical sectors of the economy.
Earlier in his remarks, the Chairman of the Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG), Mr. Asue Ighodalo said the rationale behind selecting this year’s theme is to draw the attention of all and sundry on the need to address critical problems bedeviling the country.
According to him, “We are in difficult times, and there is an urgent need to take decisive action in securing our future. This is why we will converge stakeholders in this year’s event who will participate in 28 Sessions under 5 plenaries.
“The Covid-19 pandemic has dealt a blow to the economy coupled with worsening insecurity, weak exchange rate unemployment among others and there is no other time to have discussions and act on them other than now,”
Mr. Ighodalo commended the federal government for taking cognizance of key recommendations from the previous summit especially in the area of infrastructure by increasing capital expenditure to 18% .
He called for replication of such actions in healthcare, education, digitalization and the MSME Sector.
