Modupe Gbadeyanka
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
Africa’s richest man and Nigerian billionaire businessman, Mr Aliko Dangote, has advised the Federal Government to concentrate on fixing the electricity problem in the country so as to spur economic growth.
Mr Dangote poor electricity supply in the country remains one of the problems hindering industrialisation in Nigeria.
The business mogul made this observation during the inauguration of the National Industrial Policy and Competitiveness Advisory Council in Abuja this week by the Acting President, Mr Yemi Osinbajo.
According to Mr Dangote, government should remove the constraints hindering industrialisation such as power, transportation, inconsistencies in policies, and challenges in land acquisition and communal violence.
He said the council was a welcome development which if well utilised could ensure diversification of the economy.
At the ceremony, Mr Dangote was announced as the Vice-Chairman, Private Sector team of the council chaired by the Acting President.
The Acting President charged members of council to create the chance for Nigeria to be competitive in international trade.
Mr Osinbajo said the council’s duty was not just patriotic but one to enable Nigerians to create livelihoods for themselves.
“It is not just a patriotic duty but I believe that it is what will rescue and save our country and give our country a real chance to be competitive in global business and commerce.
“And to give our people a fair chance of being able to create livelihood for themselves, jobs and all of those things that will make for a nation of people who are happy and satisfied,” he said.
The Acting President observed that the council members represented the crème de la crème of industry and business in Nigeria as a group and working with the public sector.
According to him, if the council cannot get it right then it is unlikely that the country can never get it right.
He said the council was important because generally speaking the public sector was not known to be good in business and could not deliver on any industrialisation effort.
Mr Osinbajo said that everywhere the government drove industrialisation, it always ended up in stagnation.
“Even the most successful experiments ended up in stagnation because government simply does not make the best business men or women.
“Government simply is not motivated enough,” he said.
He said it was the entrepreneurs’ drive for profit that saved the industry adding that such drives were initially personal.
He said that many of the council members had come to a point where it was not just enough to be wealthy of successful especially in a country with enormous potential.
Mr Osinbajo added that even to make more profits the environment needed to improve.
“I am really excited that that we are starting something today which I strongly believe that if we do it right we have a chance to turn things around permanently in the country,” the Acting President said.
He acknowledged that the key thing was implementation adding that while the private sector had the smartest people in the world, the public sector had the technocrats and urged for the collaboration of both sectors to solve many of the problems confronting the industrial sector, including creating good industrial hubs and solving power problems.
He also urged the council to hold the government accountable and make the government to act more effectively.
“I think that what we have tried to do by creating this council is to be able to put policy to test and policy to examination.
“So that there is a process by which the private sector is able to contribute to policy implementation but more importantly also to developing those policies,” he said.
On his part, the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Mr Enelamah said the council represented what the government was working out in furtherance of the partnership between the public and private sector with respect to industrialisation.
He said he was confident that the council would provide the formula that would work and produce results.
