The presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, on Tuesday said that one of priorities if elected Nigeria’s next President would be to build a stronger partnership with the private sector in order to improve the nation’s economic growth.
Abubakar, who made this remark at the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) Private Sector Economic Forum on the 2023 Presidential Election on Tuesday in Lagos, said he would foster economic prosperity, strengthen national security, restore Nigeria’s unity, improve education delivery and restructure the polity.
The PDP candidate in the 2023 Presidential election pointed out that collaboration with the private sector was desirable in view of its desirability in Nigeria’s development, particularly based on the sector’s contribution of 78.9 percent to national consumption expenditure.
Abubakar explained that about 85 percent of the investments in the Medium Term National Development Plan 2021-2025 was projected to be private-sector-funded.
He maintained that it would be pretty difficult for Nigeria to overcome its economic challenges without policy reforms to restructure the economy and to support the private sector to unleash its growth potential.
He clarified: “According to the Nigeria Infrastructure Master Plan, Nigeria has an infrastructure financing deficit of approximately 3 trillion dollars over the next 30 years.
“This means a financing requirement of approximately 100 billion dollars per annum, which cannot be met by the public sector.
“For these and many other reasons, a warm handshake with the private sector is inevitable for any economic policy or programme to succeed.
“Indeed, private sector leadership in driving growth is the first of three key principles of my economic growth and development agenda, as encapsulated in my covenant with Nigerians.
“We would listen to the private sector more and secure their buy-in when policies are designed to determine the success of our economic growth and development agenda”, the PDP candidate added.
Noting that creating economic opportunities for Nigeria will portend positive implications for social cohesion and national security, Abubakar maintained that increased jobs and income opportunities would reduce crime among the youths, and ethno-religious engendered violence and conflicts in the country.
The former Vice President of Nigeria that his coming to power in 2023 remained critical given the current state of the country’s economy, promising that if elected into office, his economic growth and development agenda will stimulate growth and usher in an economic model that is modern, dynamic, competitive and capable of taking its rightful place among the top 20 economies of the world.
Abubakar said: “Nigeria has the potential to double its Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by 2030 and achieve a per capita income of approximately 5,000 dollars.
“We anticipate growth from our policies that seek to revitalise the real sectors including agriculture, manufacturing and Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME). Rebuilding infrastructure and reducing infrastructure deficit would enhance the carrying capacity of the economy and unleash growth and wealth creation.
“We will elevate production for export to a top policy and long term investment priority and promote export of manufactured goods.
“I have always nurtured a desire to create abundant opportunities for people and enhance the capability to explore those opportunities so that they can live a happy, healthy and productive life as I feel fulfilled when I create prosperity for others,” he added.
In addition, he spoke on plans to restore investors’ confidence in the Nigerian economy by providing more clarity, coherence and consistency in the polity even as he maintained that the monetary and fiscal authorities would be better coordinated to ensure a stable macroeconomic environment with low inflation, stable exchange and interest rates.
He promised: “We will allow the Central Bank of Nigeria the independence to pursue its mandate but ensure that such policies are not detrimental to Nigeria’s quest for Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) and to Nigeria’s long term growth.
“I will break the jinx in infrastructure financing, lead Nigeria out of darkness, be more strategic and circumspect on debt accumulation, and undertake far reaching reforms to engender efficiency and reduce administrative costs,” the PDP flag-bearer added.
In his remarks, the LCCI President, Dr Michael Olawale-Cole, pointed out that though the chamber remained politically non-partisan, it was, however, interested in the economic agenda of the candidates and their plans to make a better Nigeria in the next dispensation.
According to him, this is in view of the chamber’s awareness of the over-shadowing effect of politics over managing the nigerian economy and would, therefore, wish to contribute to the setting of a new order that could take the economy out of the doldrums.
He noted that beyond economic management, the chamber understood that countries would naturally rise or fall through leadership and governance and Nigerians had another opportunity to decide who would lead them from 2023-2027.
“For the past 16 years; the LCCI has organised this session in every election cycle as part of its public policy advocacy to provide a first-hand opportunity for presidential candidates of the leading political parties to speak to the organised private sector on their economic blueprint for Nigeria.
“All patriotic Nigerians would like to know the plans and intentions of a future president, and this will most likely enhance the choices people make at the polls.
“New policy directions, institutional reforms, and sound governance are critical to creating a new economic order in Nigeria. This is why we are gathered here today”, the OPS leader added.
