From Sola Ojo, Kaduna
Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Dr. Maikanti Kacalla Baru, has said that diversification is the only panacea to Nigeria’s current economic downturn.
He made this submission in a lecture paper entitled: “Oil and Gas Industry and the Nigerian State: Enduring Value, Promoting Economic Integration and Social Stability-delivered at the 40th convocation ceremony of the Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria. Going down the memory lane, Baru blamed successive administrations for the neglect of the agricultural sector as well as solid minerals development which hitherto was the mainstay of the economy. “Steady but volatile flow of hard currencies accrued from crude oil took our attention away from Agriculture and solid minerals development. As a result, our people, by circumstances they had never chosen, began a journey of necessity, from rural to urban areas in search of better livelihood. Problems of unemployment, corruption, wasteful execution of moribund Projects soon took over our National development sphere,” he said.
“As time goes by, Agriculture that was known as job for the assiduous and the affluent in the developed part of the world was relegated to the job of the peasants and less privileged in Nigeria. Things changed quickly as oil boom brought about distortion in our production and consumption patterns, which gave a false twist to the Nigeria economy. Agriculture and Mining which were the primary drivers of the economy were relegated in the 70’s for crude oil which now makes the country a virtual mono- product economy.”
“Some of us still remember the glory days of the Agricultural boom. Nigeria was a huge haven for agricultural products. We nostalgically remember the Groundnut pyramids of Kano, the wonders performed with cotton proceeds, the booming business of Hides and Skins and the contribution of Coffee and Cocoa down south.
One wonders how we got to the present mono economic state with all these successes”, he further lamented.
NNPC boss, therefore, stressed the need for Nigeria to pursue immediate turnaround of agriculture, mining and manufacturing sectors in order to liberate the country from the current economic doldrums. His words: “Agriculture is still the sector that employs the largest share of the labour force in most developing and transiting economies including Nigeria. Improving agricultural productivity and commercialization, and linking producers to markets are among some of the important measures required in this regard.”
“Economic diversification by embracing various sectors such as Agriculture, Mining, and Manufacturing that can rescue the Nation from the current economic doldrums is therefore necessary. It is this strategy that has the potential of creating jobs for the teeming unemployed population of the youths as well as boosting the foreign exchange earnings of Nigeria.”
Baru further advocated for the development of the oil rich region, noting that Niger Delta has been a key contributor to Nigeria’s economic development. “However, a cursory look at the state of development in the Niger Delta indicates that despite the huge resources channeled by the government, much progress needs to be made in improving the living conditions and quality of life of the people in the region.”
“Different Administrations have deployed different initiatives to address the disparaging socio-economic issues in the Region, including critical multi-sector interventions, but the development challenges have not only lingered, but also continued to expand, perhaps, in ways that might not have been envisaged”, he said.
He commended President Muhammadu Buhari for the effort of his administration to diversify the nation’s economy. Dignitaries present on the occasion included, Oba Rilwan Akiolu of Lagos, who chaired the event, and the Obi of Onitsha, Igwe Alfred Ugochukwu Achebe.