Fed Govt cushioning effects of reforms, say ministers.

It was another opportunity yesterday for senior figures of the Tinubu Administration to lay out the government’s policies and how they have impacted the people.

The occasion was the briefing by Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) Senator George Akume on the activities lined up to mark the 64th independence anniversary.

No fewer than 20 million Nigerians have received the government’s financial support through cash transfers.

The removal of petrol subsidy has opened up the energy sector for local and foreign investments.

The ongoing massive road infrastructure will not only ease movement across the country but will push up economic development.

Akume, a former governor of Benue State, is chairman of the planning committee.

The low-key event begins today with the Jumat prayer at the National Mosque in Abuja.

An inter-denominational Church Service will be held on Sunday at the National Christian Centre.

There will be a broadcast by Mr. President and a military parade at Aso Villa on October 1.

Ministers – Wale Edun (Finance), Mohammed Idris (Information and National Orientation), David Umahi (Works), Tahir Mamman (Education) and Atiku Bagudu (Budget and National Planning) – also spoke at the event.

While Idris gave a general outlay of the achievements of the 16-month-old Administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, other ministers spoke on the specific programmes so far undertaken by their ministries.

Akume said the government was aware of the cost of living crisis which are the unintended side effects of the bold economic reforms.

To Edun, who is the Coordinating Minister of the Economy, the government is measuring the number of food items being imported during the suspension of duty window so as not to discourage production.

According to him, the maize and wheat expected from aboard would soon be delivered.

Edun stressed that Nigeria should not rely heavily on food imports, especially with its already laid out plans and strategies for boosting domestic food production.

To achieve this, he said the government was working on providing inputs, seeds, and fertilisers to small-scale farmers under successful schemes.

He chairs coordinating meetings to ensure the timely delivery of essential inputs for the upcoming dry season harvest in November.

Edun highlighted the importance of balancing imports with domestic production to avoid discouraging local farmers and millers.

He added that the government seeks to determine the optimal quantity of imports that would not harm the agricultural sector.

He said long-term strategies are in place to increase agricultural productivity, aiming to boost yields to comparable levels with developing countries.

“We should not be importing food and the strategy and the aim and objective of government is to get us out of that situation as soon as possible.

“The work on the remainder of the wet season harvest, providing inputs, seeds, fertilizer to small scale farmers, particularly under the Nigerian Agricultural Growth Scheme and Agri-pocket Scheme, which has been successful, is ongoing.

“Government has already procured maize and wheat, which is on its way. As regards the other importers, it is critical that we do not disrupt the domestic production of food.

“It is critical that we do not disrupt farming in Nigeria by flooding the market with imports that now put prices where farmers are now discouraged from engaging in production and millers are discouraged from engaging in food processing”, he said.

Edun described petrol subsidy removal as a “necessary, bold, and courageous” move by President Tinubu, adding that the policy has garnered international support, attracting concessional financing to bolster the economy.

The minister, however, noted that it led to increased prices, prompting intervention schemes, which have provided direct benefits to approximately 15 million households, covering 75 million Nigerians.

He said 840,000 payments were recently made to 4.4 million households, covering 20 million Nigerians, adding that the government aims to scale up these interventions, focusing on the poorest and most vulnerable.

Edun highlighted the benefits of domestic refiners buying crude from NNPC in naira, citing lower oil prices as an opportunity for reduced petroleum product prices.

The removal of subsidies has opened up the market to competition and pricing, he noted.

Bagudu, shed light on the imperative of President Tinubu’s economic reforms.

According to him, Nigeria’s population has surged fivefold since 1960, from 45 million to approximately 232.7 million, intensifying demands for government services, infrastructure, education, healthcare, and global competitiveness.

In the last 25 years, Nigeria’s population has grown from 119 million, yet the economy has not kept pace.

Despite this disparity, expectations for government services have heightened, driven by constitutional democracy and citizens’ awareness of their rights.

As a result, Nigerians are seeking improved infrastructure, water, schools, empowerment, and opportunities for meaningful lives.

According to Bagudu, the Tinubu Administration recognizes the need to confront these challenges head-on without playing the blame game, adding that the government aims to mobilize the populace by acknowledging past efforts and collective responsibility.

“The easiest way to mobilize a populace is to quit the blame game, admit the challenge, and mobilize the populace so that we confront the challenge.

“He was sworn in at a time when the world, countries in the industrial world, and many developing countries are facing a cost of living crisis,” he said.

Umahi said the government inherited a lot of challenges as far as roads in the country were concerned.

He explained that poor design and supervision of the roads, coupled with poor construction were the problems the administration met on the ground.

He, however, said the Federal Government had improved on the design of the roads and the President has also introduced new windows for infrastructure funding.

Umahi said the Federal Government would toll all major roads in the country upon completion of construction and renovation.

“We have the Lagos-Ibadan (Expressway), we are completing it and we are tolling it,” he said.

He listed some of the roads as Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, Second Niger Bridge, Abuja-Kano Road, and Makurdi-9th Mile, among others.

The former Ebonyi State governor said the tolling of federal roads “is going to bring a lot of money to the Federal Government”.

Umahi said private sector members have been engaged “to bring in funds, construct these roads, work with the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission and the Ministry of Works to toll these roads”.

The minister said the government would start with the Keffi-Makurdi Road that has been completed, adding that his ministry has been engaging with the Ministry of Finance for a paperless mode of payment.

He said: “If there is security, where the response time will be 10 minutes on the entire corridor, where you have solar light permanently and reduced travel time, and through the tolling, the roads are maintained, there will be confidence because Nigerians will pay if the roads are good.”

He said this administration inherited a total of 300 damaged roads and bridges, adding that more road constructions would commence from October 1 across the six geopolitical zones.

The series of transformative policies and reforms are designed to address the missteps of the past, Idris said.

“Under the visionary leadership of President Tinubu, we have initiated transformative policies and reforms aimed at correcting the missteps of the past and repositioning Nigeria as an economic superpower in the near future.

“Despite global economic headwinds and the transitional pains accompanying some of the reforms, the President has remained focused in his efforts towards reviving our economy and returning the country to the path of prosperity and sustainable growth,” he said.

Idris noted that one of the significant setbacks to rural socio-economic development is the absence of direct fiscal control by elected local government administrations.

The Minister said President Tinubu had taken a decisive step towards implementing local government autonomy, by seeking a verdict from the Supreme Court.

According to Idris, this action demonstrated a commitment to a deep-rooted restructuring of the country.

The court directive, he added, would promote development, effectiveness and accountability in the local councils.

The minister said the reforms were also tailored to ensuring macroeconomic stability, stabilising the foreign exchange regime, and reforming the tax system to make it more efficient.

“The administration is reducing the burden on Nigerians and repositioning our oil and gas sector to attract new investment,” he said.

Idris said that with the removal of the petroleum subsidy, President Tinubu is gradually guiding Nigeria into an unprecedented energy transition phase.

He said the President had launched a presidential initiative to move the country from fossil fuels to Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) for vehicles and machinery.

“The ongoing rollout of CNG and associated infrastructure is reducing transportation costs for Nigerians by up to 60 per cent, creating jobs, and attracting tens of millions of dollars in local and foreign investment.

“Young Nigerians now have a clearer path to sustainable tertiary education through the Student Loans (Access to Higher Education) Act 2024, which has established the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND).

“Complementing this is the new Consumer Credit Corporation established to guarantee access to low-cost and flexible consumer credit.

“Therefore, we can see that, in multiple ways, the President is focused on putting more money in the pockets of the Nigerian people, and creating avenues for sustainable prosperity,” Idris said.

The minister commended Nigerians for their patience and resilience in the very difficult period of economic evolution.

He noted that the journey had been tough, adding: “Surely, there is light at the end of the tunnel as our sacrifices will not be in vain.”