- Economic Recovery Plan Ready in February
The Federal Government’s anticipated National Economic Recovery Growth Plan will be ready before the end of February.
The NERGP focuses on five broad areas namely: macroeconomic policy, economic diversification and growth drivers, competitiveness, social inclusion and jobs, and governance and other enablers.
Government, through the plan, is targeting a growth rate of seven per cent between 2017 and 2020.
Mr Akpandem James, the Media Adviser to the Minister of Budget and National Planning, Sen. Udoma Udo Udoma, in a statement on Friday in Abuja, stated that the plan is expected to be formally launched by President Mohammadu Buhari.
It said that the Federal Government plans to brainstorm with economic experts from the private sector before finalising its development process.
Apart from economic experts, the organised private sector, civil society groups, the academia and State governments will also be consulted.
It said, “This is expected to enrich the Plan development process.
“The Forum, scheduled for noon of Monday, February 6, 2017, is expected to be chaired by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo.
“The NERGP is a follow-up to the Strategic Implementation Plan (SIP) which was a short term economic plan to drive the implementation of the 2016 Budget.
“In the SIP, government promised that it would deliver a more comprehensive economic recovery and growth Plan subsequently.”
According to the statement, the plan aims to address current economic challenges, restore growth, and reposition the economy for sustained inclusive growth.
It said, “It is principally targeted at getting the economy out of recession, getting people back to work and moving the country from a consuming nation to a producing nation.
“It also aims at providing an environment for ease of doing business and creating jobs, among others.
“Implementation of the plan will be driven by strong political will and strong collaboration between the public and private sectors especially in the areas of Agriculture, Manufacturing, Solid Minerals, Services and Infrastructure.”
The statement stated that 59 strategies have been developed, out of which 12 have been prioritised based on their importance to the success of the plan.
It listed priority areas to include restoring oil production to 2.2 million barrels per day and also reach 2.5 million barrels by 2020, privatise selected assets, accelerate non-oil revenue generation and drastically cut costs.
The statement further stated that Government also plans to align monetary, trade and fiscal policies, expand infrastructure especially power, roads and rail, revamp the four existing refineries and improve ease of doing business.
It said policies that promote Made-in-Nigeria goods will also be introduced.
