“They all paint a gloomy outlook. But each threat is also an opportunity in disguise.”
Vice President Kashim Shettima on Tuesday said artificial intelligence, energy transition, supply chain disruptions and trade protectionism should be seen as opportunities for Africa’s growth rather than threats.
At the opening of the 66th Annual Conference of the Nigerian Economic Society (NES), where he was honoured as a Fellow of the Society, the vice president argued that adversity could fuel transformation if governments invested in people and embraced structural reforms.
“They all paint a gloomy outlook. But each threat is also an opportunity in disguise,” he said. “This is why a society such as yours exists: to light the path of a continent even in the darkest night.”
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Painful reforms
Mr Shettima defended President Bola Tinubu’s economic policies, including the removal of fuel subsidies and foreign exchange liberalisation, which have pushed inflation to record levels and left households struggling.
“Under his leadership, this administration has embarked on bold and inevitable reforms to address structural weaknesses that others before us only paid lip service to,” Mr Shettima said.
“These reforms testify to the power of political will in economic policy. Their painful but necessary consequences remind us that a malignant disease can only be cured by painful surgery. The wounds are temporary, but the recovery is permanent.”
He said the government recognised the inflationary impact of the reforms and spillovers from global crises. “Policies in transportation, healthcare, and education have been deliberately targeted at reducing inequality because these are the sectors that affect the weakest among us,” he added.
Knowledge economy
Mr Shettima urged African nations to embrace the knowledge economy and modernise their human capital.
“We live in a world where a random citizen in Daura can outsource his services to a corporation in Dallas without seeing the inside of a plane or leaving his bedroom,” he said. “But to catch up with this changing world, Africa must embrace structural transformation that reinvents its human capital and reverses unemployment.”
He added that poverty must be “confronted head-on for the promise of this continent to be realised in the lives of our people. There is no justification for the low per capita income that afflicts our nations amidst the resources at our disposal.”R
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Budget and Economic Planning Minister Abubakar Bagudu praised the VP’s role in driving reforms and pledged that the NES would be fully integrated into the ministry’s programmes, including the new Renewed Hope Ward Development Programme.
Livestock Development Minister Idi Maiha highlighted the multibillion-dollar potential of the livestock sector, describing it as “the next crude oil” and promising to work with the NES to implement “brilliant ideas” for diversification.
NES President Adeola Adenikinju reiterated the society’s commitment to act as “a bridge between research and policy, a centre for mentoring the next generation of economists, and a trusted partner in Nigeria’s pursuit of sustainable development and Africa’s transformation.”
He noted milestones under his leadership, including the creation of chapters across all states and the diaspora, as well as new women’s and students’ wings.
Eric Ogunleye, Director of the African Development Institute at the African Development Bank, said the AfDB remained committed to Nigeria and Africa’s transformation.
“Nigeria occupies a strategic position in moving the African continent forward,” he said, urging governments to rethink investment in people, who represent the continent’s greatest assets.
