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President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday inaugurated in Abuja the National Steering Committee (NSC) of the National Strategy for Poverty Reduction and Growth (NPRGS).
The committee is chaired by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo.
Speaking at the inauguration, President Buhari reiterated the government’s commitment to lift 100 million Nigerians out of poverty within 10 years with a well-documented framework for implementation and funding.
He noted that the NPRGS had already proposed the creation of a private equity fund, the Nigeria Investment and Growth Fund (NIG-Fund), to lead resource mobilization and also to manage resources in a sustainable manner.
“This journey began in January 2021 when I asked the President of the Presidential Economic Advisory Council and the Secretary of the Federation Government to work together to define what would lift 100 million Nigerians out of poverty in 10 years.
“I am pleased to note that the process of designing this inclusive poverty reduction strategy recognized and corrected the mistakes of the past and laid the foundation for sustainable poverty reduction.
“This would be done through broad consultations held at all levels of government, development partners, the private sector as well as civil society,” he said.
He added that the NPRGS would tackle the underlying causes of poverty on the basis of which it developed programs that would address the multidimensional nature of poverty.
This, he said, came within the practical context of the comparative advantage of human and natural resources in different geopolitical areas.
“The main challenge facing this national steering committee is to translate our good intentions into a positive impact for the average Nigerian so that we create an appreciative impact on the poverty situation in our country.
“If India can lift 271 million people out of poverty between 2006 and 2016, Nigeria can certainly lift 100 million people out of poverty in 10 years.
“Fortunately, we have already started, but we have to face the challenges of slow implementation, inappropriate targeting and lack of adequate resources,” said the president.
Buhari listed the responsibilities of the steering committee to include anchoring collaborative efforts and overseeing strategy implementation.
It would also provide guidance to the technical working group and to federal ministries, extra-ministerial departments and agencies, sub-national governments and other stakeholders on the achievement of program objectives.
According to him, the committee will also monitor progress and any other effort that will improve the achievement of the goal of lifting 100 million people out of poverty in 10 years.
“The performance of our economy despite COVID-19 gives me comfort that we can meet our goal, but we need to seriously develop and work more with states and local governments.
“This appeal becomes more relevant in the face of recent forecasts from the IMF, the World Bank and our own Nigerian Economic Summit Group who have all agreed that Nigeria must tackle its situation of poverty head-on if our economic gains are to be. supported, ”he said. mentioned.
Members of the NPRGS also include the Federation Government Secretary and the President’s Chief of Staff.
Were present at the ceremony the vice-president, secretary of the government of the Federation, the boss Mustapha, certain governors and senior government officials,
Governor of Ekiti State (South-West), Governor of Delta (South-South), Governor of Sokoto State (North-West), Governor of Borno (North-East), Governor of State de Nasarawa (Center-North) and Governor of Ebonyi (South-East) are also members of the committee.
The others are the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, the Minister of State for Budget and National Planning, and the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development.
Still, others are the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investments, the Minister of Labor and Employment, the Minister of Education and the Minister of Health.
The Chairman urged the committee to start work immediately so that the Technical Working Group (TWG) can also “start assembling the nuts and bolts.”
“You may therefore consider providing immediate guidance to the TWG on the following: establishment of the NIG-Fund based on the development finance assessment report, public and private sector finance.
“Harmonize the development of existing human capital; intensify existing poverty reduction initiatives such as social investment programs, various agricultural support initiatives as well as support for micro-small and medium-sized enterprises.
“Leverage existing development partner support programs and projects with quick win potentials like the Nigeria COVID-19 Action Recovery and Economic Stimulus,” he said.
The president said the responsibilities were onerous but said he was confident the committee would be able to lay the groundwork and demonstrate, within the next two years, that it was practical to lift 100 million Nigerians out of poverty. in 10 years or less.
“As you all know, funding will always be a challenge, especially in these times of limited resources.
“The NPRGS has therefore proposed the creation of a private equity fund, the Nigeria Investment and Growth Fund (NIG-Fund), to lead our campaign to mobilize resources and also manage resources in a sustainable manner,” he said. -he adds.
In his remarks, Vice President Osinbajo said the NPRGS would consolidate other government efforts to reduce poverty, including N-Power, school feeding and conditional cash transfer programs.
Osinbajo noted that the president’s position that local governments, states and the federal government should work together to reduce poverty would be properly reflected in the framework and implementation, stressing the need for access and inclusiveness.
Earlier, boss Mustapha said the poverty situation in the country was already taking a huge proportion, with a growing population, adding that the situation was made worse by the COVID-19 pandemic.
He said the administration reacted quickly to the poverty fallout from COVID-19 and was able to improve the situation, and also ensured a swift exit from the recession. (NAN)
