He
Outlined Key Areas Of Focus In His Administration, Including Economic Reforms,
Support For The Manufacturing Sector, Micro, Small, And Medium-Sized
Enterprises, And A Forthcoming Salary Review For Civil Servants.
Removal
Of Fuel Subsidy:
For
Several Years, I Have Consistently Maintained The Position That The Fuel
Subsidy Had To Go. This Once Beneficial Measure Had Outlived Its Utility. The Subsidy
Cost Us Trillions Of Naira Yearly. Such A Vast Sum Of Money Would Have Been Better
Spent On Public Transportation, Healthcare, Schools, Housing And Even National
Security. Instead, It Was Being Funnelled Into The Deep Pockets And Lavish Bank
Accounts Of A Select Group Of Individuals. This Group Had Amassed So Much
Wealth And Power That They Became A Serious Threat To The Fairness Of Our
Economy And The Integrity Of Our Democratic Governance. To Be Blunt, Nigeria Could
Never Become The Society It Was Intended To Be As Long As Such Small, Powerful
Yet Unelected Groups Hold Enormous Influence Over Our Political Economy And The
Institutions That Govern It. The Whims Of The Few Should Never Hold Dominant
Sway Over The Hopes And Aspirations Of The Many. If We Are To Be A Democracy,
The People And Not The Power Of Money Must Be Sovereign.
The
Preceding Administration Saw This Looming Danger As Well. Indeed, It Made No
Provision In The 2023 Appropriations For Subsidy After June This Year. Removal Of
This Once Helpful Device That Had Transformed Into A Millstone Around The
Country’s Neck Had Become Inevitable.
Multiple
Exchange Rate System:
Also,
The Multiple Exchange Rate System That Had Been Established Became Nothing But
A Highway Of Currency Speculation. It Diverted Money That Should Have Been Used
To Create Jobs, Build Factories And Businesses For Millions Of People. Our National
Wealth Was Doled On Favourable Terms To A Handful Of People Who Have Been Made
Filthy Rich Simply By Moving Money From One Hand To Another. This Too Was
Extremely Unfair. It Also Compounded The Threat That The Illicit And Mass
Accumulation Of Money Posed To The Future Of Our Democratic System And Its
Economy.
Economic
Reforms:
I
Had Promised To Reform The Economy For The Long-Term Good By Fighting The Major
Imbalances That Had Plagued Our Economy. Ending The Subsidy And The
Preferential Exchange Rate Swam Was Key To This Fight. This Fight Is To Define
The Fate And Future Of Our Nation. Much Is In The Balance. Thus, The Defects In
Our Economy Immensely Profited A Tiny Elite, The Elite Of The Elite You Might
Call Them. As We Moved To Fight The Flaws In The Economy, The People Who Grow
Rich From Them Predictably Will Fight Back Through Every Means Necessary.
Our
Economy Is Going Through A Tough Patch And You Are Being Hurt By It. The Cost
Of Fuel Has Gone Up. Food And Other Prices Have Followed It. Households And
Businesses Struggle. Things Seem Anxious And Uncertain. I Understand The
Hardship You Face. I Wish There Were Other Ways. But There Is Not. If There
Were, I Would Have Taken That Route As I Came Here To Help Not Hurt The People
And Nation That I Love. What I Can Offer Is Immediately Stop Reducing The
Burden Our Current Economic Situation Has Imposed On All Of Us, Most Especially
On Businesses, The Working Class And The Most Vulnerable Among Us.
Already,
The Federal Government Is Working Closely With States And Local Governments To
Implement Interventions That Will Cushion The Pains Of Our People Across
Socio-Economic Brackets.
Support
For Manufacturing Sector, And Micro, Small, And Medium-Sized Enterprises:
Earlier
This Month, I Signed 4 Executive Orders In Keeping With My Electoral Promise To
Address Unfriendly Fiscal Policies And Multiple Taxes That Are Stifling The
Business Environment. These Executive Orders On Suspension And Deferred
Commencement Of Some Taxes Will Provide The Necessary Buffers And Headroom For
Businesses In The Manufacturing Sector To Continue To Thrive And Expand. To Strengthen
The Manufacturing Sector, And Increase Its Capacity To Expand And Create
Good-Paying Jobs, We Are Going To Spend N75 Billion Between July 2023 And March
2024. Our Objective Is To Fund 75 Enterprises With Great Potential To
Kick-Start Sustainable Economic Growth, Accelerate Structural Transformation
And Improve Productivity. Each Of The 75 Manufacturing Enterprises Will Be Able
To Access N1 Billion Credit At 9% Per Annum With A Maximum Of 60 Months Of
Repayment For Long-Term Loans And 12 Months For Working Capital.
Our
Administration Recognises The Importance Of Micro, Small And Medium-Sized
Enterprises And The Informal Sector As Drivers Of Growth. We Are Going To
Energise This Very Important Sector With N125 Billion. Out Of The Sum, We Will
Spend N50 Billion On A Conditional Grant To 1 Million Nano Businesses Between July
2023 And March 2024. Our Target Is To Give N50,000 Each To 1,300 Nano Business
Owners In Each Of The 774 Local Governments Across The Country. Ultimately,
This Programme Will Further Drive Financial Inclusion By Onboarding
Beneficiaries Into The Formal Banking System. In Like Manner, We Will Fund
100,000 Msmes And Start-Ups With N75 Billion. Under This Scheme, Each
Enterprise Promoter Will Be Able To Get Between N500,000 To N1 Million At 9%
Interest Per Annum And A Repayment Period Of 36 Months.
Food
Security Initiatives
To
Further Ensure That Prices Of Food Items Remain Affordable, We Have Had A
Multi-Stakeholder Engagement With Various Farmers’ Associations And Operators
Within The Agricultural Value Chain.
In
The Short And Immediate Terms, We Will Ensure Staple Foods Are Available And
Affordable. To This End, I Have Ordered The Release Of 200,000 Metric Tonnes Of
Grains From Strategic Reserves To Farmers Across The 36 States And FCT To
Moderate Prices. We Are Also Providing 225,000 Metric Tonnes Of Fertilizer,
Seedlings And Other Inputs To Farmers Who Are Committed To Our Food Security
Agenda. Our Plan To Support The Cultivation Of 500,000 Hectares Of Farmland And
All-Year-Round Farming Practice Remains On Course. To Be Specific, N200 Billion
Out Of The N500 Billion Approved By The National Assembly Will Be Disbursed As
Follows:
Our
Administration Will Invest N50 Billion Each To Cultivate 150,000 Hectares Of
Rice And Maize.
N50
Billion Each Will Also Be Earmarked To Cultivate 100,000 Hectares Of Wheat And
Cassava.
This
Expansive Agricultural Programme Will Be Implemented Targeting Small-Holder
Farmers And Leveraging Large-Scale Private Sector Players In The Agric Business
With Strong Performance Records.
Infrastructure
Support Fund:
In
This Regard, The Expertise Of Development Finance Institutions, Commercial
Banks And Microfinance Banks Will Be Tapped Into To Develop A Viable And
Appropriate Transaction Structure For All Stakeholders.
Fellow
Nigerians, I Made A Solemn Pledge To Work For You. How To Improve Your Welfare
And Living Condition Is Of Paramount Importance To Me And It’s The Only Thing
That Keeps Me Up Day And Night. It Is In Light Of This That I Approved The Infrastructure
Support Fund For The States. This New Infrastructure Fund Will Enable States To
Intervene And Invest In Critical Areas And Bring Relief To Many Of The Pain
Points As Well As Revamp Our Decaying Healthcare And Educational Infrastructure.
The Fund Will Also Bring Improvements To Rural Access Roads To Ease The
Evacuation Of Farm Produce To Markets. With The Fund, Our States Will Become
More Competitive And On A Stronger Financial Footing To Deliver Economic
Prosperity To Nigerians.
Part
Of Our Programme Is To Roll Out Buses Across The States And Local Governments
For Mass Transit At A Much More Affordable Rate. We Have Made Provision To
Invest N100 Billion Between July 2023 And March To Acquire 3000 Units Of
20-Seater CNG-Fuelled Buses. These Buses Will Be Shared With Major
Transportation Companies In The States Using The Intensity Of Travel Per
Capita. Participating Transport Companies Will Be Able To Access Credit Under
This Facility At 9% Per Annum With 60 Months Repayment Period.
In
The Same Vein, We Are Also Working In Collaboration With The Labour Unions To
Introduce A New National Minimum Wage For Workers.
Salary
Review For Civil Servants:
I
Want To Tell Our Workers This: Your Salary Review Is Coming.
Once
We Agree On The New Minimum Wage And General Upward Review, We Will Make Budget
Provisions For It For Immediate Implementation.
I
Want To Use This Opportunity To Salute Many Private Employers In The Organised
Private Sector Who Have Already Implemented General Salary Reviews For
Employees.