Bagudu applauds AFDB’s support for Nigeria economic growth, devt

By Palma Ileye

Minister for Budget and Economic Planning, Senator Abubakar Bagudu, has commended the African Development Bank for being magnanimous to the nation’s economic growth and development.

Bagudu made this commendation in Abuja, when the African Development Bank’s, Chief Country Economist, Mr. Jacob Oduor, led the Bank’s team on a visit to his office.

He appreciated the bank for considering Nigeria for intervention programs despite the high demand on the institution from many other countries.

He disclosed that Nigeria was currently going through a task reform process which had an ambitious target of 18% to GDP ratio by 2026 which was higher than what was previously in the National Development Plan, NDP.

He explained that the National Development Plan was a reflection of Nigeria’s vision of where the country wanted to be by 2050 saying that, “we have a long term perspective plan against 2050 but for 5years duration, we have a national development plan.”

He continued: “We are currently in the midst of the review because the renewed agenda under which the manifesto of the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Vice President contested and where given mandate by Nigeria people envisaged higher growth.

“The President has left investment drive and is interacting with the private sector both domestic and international.”

The Minister listed some of the roles of the Ministry in improving the nation’s economy to include as follows: the Macro Economic Department’s assisted by some development partners to work on how to put in place those special things needed for higher growth; the Ministry also served as a Secretariat of the National Economic Council which was the meeting point between the Federal and States; we are also responsible for joint planning between Sub-national and the Federal, as well as, sectors specific issues, like social protection policy.

Moreso, the Budget Minister mentioned that the Ministry had a nutrition policy and that all those roles were going to play prominent roles in the 2024 appropriation, both at the Federal and sub national levels.

Earlier, Mr. Oduor stated that the purpose of their visit to the Ministry was to view the perspective from Budget and Economic Planning in terms of recent economic development.

He noted that the discussion would be based on Maintaining Fiscal Sustainability through Revenue Mobilization, Recent economic development and economic policy challenges in 2022/2023, Outlook for medium term policy plans and priorities of the government, Spending and investment plans, Fiscal MTEF; Developments and budget implementation.

He explained further that: Fiscal framework: Managing fiscal Risk, Economic Policy: Revenue mobilization: Contingency plan: possible fiscal costs, and strategies, Budget financing plans: current and medium term, 2023 Budget and policy directions were Fiscal implications of the recent removal of subsidies and exchange rate unification {impact on fiscal space and deficit} , Trends in expenditure arrears and plans for settlement, Social and welfare implication of the recent fuel subsidy removal and unification of exchange rates.

He also mentioned that the AFDB had structured an economic reform support program as a two year programmatic policy based operation from 2023 …2024 to assist the Federal Government of Nigeria to provide a base for holistic implementation of macroeconomic policy and structural reforms to safeguard the gains from reform effort.