The Presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP) in the 2023 General Elections, Peter Obi on Thursday, January 2, 2024, held a World Press conference where he identified several economic steps that will lead to a better country.
1. Future borrowings must be tied to regenerative investment
All future borrowings must be tied to regenerative investment and visible productive assets that will benefit the nation. This will ensure both productivity and the ability to service and amortize such loans rather than continue the current practice of accumulating massive debt with no tangible returns, which places undue strain on future development revenues
2. Tax Reform should be linked to productivity
“Tax is a function of productivity; the country is unproductive so are you going to tax 100 million Nigerians that are living in extreme poverty? Are you going to tax those people I saw in IDP camps?
“Tax is a function of productivity, when the country is productive and people are getting fully employed then you can tax and we can generate more tax. What we need now is to reflect on the country and make it productive and then we can talk about generating more revenue.’’
3. Nigeria’s fall from highest GDP in Africa to fourth
Nigeria remains one of the poverty capitals of the world, with over 100 million in extreme poverty and more than 150 million in multidimensional poverty. The situation has deteriorated significantly in the past 18 months under the current administration. As a nation, we are falling from being the highest GDP in Africa in 2014 at $574 billion and a capital of about $3,500 billion to now ranking the fourth with a GDP less than 50 percent of what we were a decade ago, about $200 billion, with a capital less than a third, about $1,000 billion.
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4. Inadequate energy supply continues to hinder national development
We have earned the dubious distinction of being one of the countries with the largest number of people without access to electricity. In 2024, despite the optimal and unacceptable power generation and distribution, the frequency of national grid collapse increased significantly. The frequency of national grid collapse increased to where we have almost 12 times in 12 months.
As a result, we are now markedly referred to as a generator country. This persistent lack of adequate energy supply continues to hinder our national development.
5. Critical level of hunger and food insecurity
Food insecurity has become a national norm, making Nigeria one of the hungriest countries of the world.
Gainfully employed and middle-income Nigerians now spend nearly their entire income on feeding, with some resorting to borrowing just to eat. For those living on margins, low-income earners and unemployed, the situation is even more dire. The newly approved minimum wage of N70,000 cannot afford a bag of rice or even half a bag of beans.
As a result, many Nigerians go to bed hungry, whilst the number now relies on palliative and charitable support. Tragically, this has recently led to several avoidable deaths. Nigeria, in the 2024 Hunger Index, is ranked 110 out of 127 countries measured, reflecting a critical level of hunger and food insecurity.
6. Worrisome rising debt profile
Our national debt has risen astronomically from approximately 15 trillion in 2015 to over 100 trillion today. This sharp increase has occurred within the last 18 months under the current administration.
By: Babajide Okeowo
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