WE HAVE 'CREDIBLE PLAN' TO REVIVE ECONOMY - FINANCE MINISTER

The federal government remains hopeful of an economic revival the Finance Minister, Mrs Kemi Adeosun has said, even as the country slides into recession.
Low global oil prices have helped push Nigeria’s economy into its worst economic crisis in decades. Gross Domestic Product (GDP) shrank 0.4 per cent in the first quarter while second-quarter growth figures – expected this week – are to reflect a deepening crisis due mainly to lower oil receipts amid militant attacks in the Niger Delta.
Adeosun told the Financial Times that the government did not dispute the IMF’s forecast last week that the economy would contract 1.8 per cent. “We’re simply saying that we have a very credible plan for dealing with the challenges we are facing, which we’ve been very honest about,” she said.
Although Adeosun thinks “there is still a long way to go”, the government is convinced that “diversifying and repositioning” the oil-dependent economy will bear fruit.
Part of that diversification includes the agricultural sector, where a boost in output is expected this year. “Aggressive” management of food price inflation, which includes low cost loans to farmers and improved distribution of fertiliser, will help bridge the shortfall in oil revenues.
Meanwhile, Adeosun has also called on Nigerians in the Diaspora to see the current economic realities in the country as good opportunities for them to participate actively in the ongoing efforts to reposition the nation’s economy.
Speaking at the 2016 Diaspora Conference in Abuja, yesterday, the minister described Diaspora as a major part of the Nigerian Community, which has a key role to play at this critical time. Stressing the need for a collective action, the minister said, “What Nigeria needs now is Economic Patriotism that will support this administration’s efforts to reposition the economy.”
She stated, “We must never become so comfortable abroad that we forget, or worse still, despise our roots. Rebuilding Nigeria is an important mission for the next generation, who deserve the chance of a Nigeria that provides opportunities for them.”
According to the her, “Other diaspora communities retain strong links to their motherland and we must do so in order to retain the fabric of our families and our value system.”
She pointed out that the current administration is rebuilding Nigeria based on fundamental values that shaped the childhood of many people but which were sadly abandoned by a few in pursuit of aggrandisement wealth that they can never spend. Those fundamental values, according to her, include hard work, enterprise, honesty,and self-reliance.
Calling for understanding and patience on the part of the citizens, Adeosun explained that fundamental shifts need time to be developed properly with adequate windows for consultation before they can be successfully implemented.
“However, once implemented they will be permanent in ensuring that we maximise all our endowments to compliment oil, rather than relying on oil which has created ‘economic laziness’,” she stated.