BILL GATES BOMBS NIGERIA GOVT! YOUR ECONOMIC PROGRAMME DOES NOT ADDRESS YOUR PEOPLE’S NEEDS
BILL
GATES BOMBS NIGERIA GOVT! YOUR ECONOMIC PROGRAMME DOES NOT ADDRESS YOUR
PEOPLE’S NEEDS
Co-Chair
of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Bill Gates, has criticized Nigeria
government’s Economic Recovery and Growth Plan ( ERGP), saying it does not
reflect the people’s needs.
Gates
said this at the expanded National Economic Council (NEC) on Investment in
Human Capital, presided over by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, at the State
House Conference Centre, Presidential Villa, Abuja.
While
submitting that investment in infrastructure and competitiveness must go
hand-in-hand with investments in people, to anchor the economy over the long
term, however noted with dissatisfaction that Nigeria’s approach places
more priorities on physical capital over human capital development.
“The
Nigerian government’s Economic Recovery and Growth Plan identifies” investing
in our people” as one of three ” strategic objectives”. But the “execution
priorities” don’t fully reflect people’s needs, prioritizing physical capital
over human capital”
He said
at the event with the theme; “Role of human capital investment in supporting
pro-poor and economic growth agenda” Gates urged Nigeria “to face the facts so
that you can make progress”
He said
the country will thrive better with strong investment in health and education,
rather than concentrating on physical infrastructure, to the detriments of
human capital development.
Even
though World Bank’s World Development Report shows direct link between the
level of education and improvements in employment, productivity and wages,
Nigeria’s case shows that half of country’s children cannot read and write
Gates,
who said he does not enjoy “speaking bluntly” to Nigeria when the people had
been “so gracious enough “to invite him, however hinted that statistical data
show the country “still looks like a low- income country”
He said he was encouraged to be blunt by Aliko Dangote’s frank approach to “stressing the importance of accurate data.”
Taking a comparative analysis of data to back his arguments, he described Nigeria as “one of the most dangerous places in the world to give birth” , with “one in three Nigerian children, chronically malnourished”
He said he was encouraged to be blunt by Aliko Dangote’s frank approach to “stressing the importance of accurate data.”
Taking a comparative analysis of data to back his arguments, he described Nigeria as “one of the most dangerous places in the world to give birth” , with “one in three Nigerian children, chronically malnourished”
Nigeria,
he said has the fourth worst maternal mortality rate in the world, only ahead
of Sierra Leone, Central African Republic and Chad.
“In
upper middle- income countries, the average life expectancy is 75 years. In
lower middle – income countries, it’s 68, in low- income countries, it’s 62. In
Nigeria, it is lower still, just 53 years”
Gates
however sees the country thriving if it is ready to invest in the health,
education and opportunities- the human capital “if you don’t, however, then it
is very important to recognize that there will be a sharp limit on how much the
country can grow.”
Gates
who sees Nigeria as having “unmatched economic potential” assured that his
Foundation is eager to support the government to make “Nigeria a powerhouse
that provides opportunities for all its citizens.”
Citing
the gains Nigeria has recorded in the immunization against Polio, he urged
Nigeria to pursue human capital development with the same vigor to achieve the
desired results.
The
Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has committed well over $1.6 billion with the
foundation’s biggest office in Africa located in Nigeria.
The
foundation which is committed to making lives better for poor people globally,
is also planning to increase its Commitments to Nigeria, Gates said.
Chairman,
Dangote Foundation, Aliko Dangote, in his opening remarks, said for Nigeria to
truly compete globally, we must prioritize investments in the health, education
and opportunity of our people alongside other critical areas like
infrastructure. Together, these are the inputs that will make Nigeria
richer.
Osinbajo,
in his response again said that high oil prices and economic growth of previous
years had failed to translate into a better life for most Nigerians.
According
to him, instead grand corruption prevented investments in healthcare and
education and infrastructure, and shamelessly robbed government policies of
most if not all of their intended impact.
Osinbajo
however assured that the Muhammadu Buhari’s administration determined to
rewrite the Nigerian story, for the better. “To put Nigeria’s money to work for
Nigerians, doing the most with the least. And we have stayed true to that
vision, even as oil prices went into freefall, we ramped up investments in
infrastructure, as well as our social spending.”
He
reiterated that not only is the administration painfully aware of the issues
facing the country, it is prepared to take the challenges Dangote Foundation as
well as Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation have outlined head-on. “And we have
no choice, because the problem literally grows daily.”
The
Vice President noted that Nigeria has strong economic growth and development
ambitions, encapsulated in her Economic Recovery and Growth Plan, launched in
2017.
He
however stressed that all of those lofty ambitions can only be achieved through
the determined application of human skill and effort. “And for that effort to
be meaningful and productive it has to come from people who are healthy,
educated, and who are, and feel empowered.
“It is
this realisation that has helped ensure that one of the primary planks of the
ERGP is ‘Investing in our people’. And it is for this reason that we are
expanding the reach and quality of our healthcare, through the National Health
Insurance Scheme (NHIS); and working to guarantee basic education for all
persons, whilst also upgrading and modernising the quality of secondary and
post-secondary education.
“And
because this is the 21st century, we know that is also important to ensure that
our young people are being prepared for the economies of the future, not the
past. This means that STEM education is critical, and that technology must lie
at the heart of every one of our educational offerings.”
Osinbajo
said the Social Investment Programme launched in 2016 – comprising a jobs
scheme for unemployed graduates, a feeding programme for public primary school
pupils, a micro-credit scheme for small businesses, and a cash transfer scheme
for our poorest and most vulnerable households, is a key component of the
Economic Recovery and Growth Plan.
He said
the school feeding programme for example is to “our achieving better health,
nutritional and educational outcomes for Nigerian children.”
The
school feeding programme which he said has increased enrollment by 30 percent,
currently serves over 7 million school children, across 22 of Nigeria’s 36
states, and continues to grow as more States sign up for it.
“Apart
from the health outcomes – children free from malnutrition and stunting – there
are also important educational and economic benefits as well. By guaranteeing
one hot meal a day to these children the scheme has pushed school enrolment
rates upwards in many of the communities in which it is being implemented.”
