By Modupe Gbadeyanka
As the year 2019 wraps up today, Wednesday, December 31, 2019, one of the major prayers Nigerians would be making to God during the crossing over into the new year tonight would be for a better 2020.
The outgoing year was very tough for residents of country, which prides itself as the giant of Africa, but to its citizens, a mere empty giant because smaller African countries, including Rwanda, Ghana, Kenya, amongst others are beginning to leave Nigeria behind.
In the coming year, Nigerians will expect government to make life better for them. However, one of the welcome gifts from government would be the coming into effect of the raise in the Value Added Tax (VAT) to 7.5 percent from the present 5 percent. But one good thing is the return of the nation’s budget cycle to January-December.
According to the Minister of Information and Culture, Mr Lai Mohammed, this development will lead to “a more rapid infrastructural development, more job creation, etc.”
In 2019, Nigerians overwhelmingly voted for President Muhammadu Buhari for another four years in office and during his June 12 speech, the President promised to alleviate the suffering of Nigerians and further pledged to lift about 100 million Nigerians out of poverty in 10 years.
To make this a reality, Mr Buhari constituted an economic squad to help him with policies that would make the economy better in order for him to achieve his dream and fulfil what he promised the electorates during his campaigns across the country.
Though inflation has gone up as a result of the decision of his government to close the nation’s land borders, there are strong indications that the gains of this move will start to materialise.
At the moment, Nigerians are beginning to eat locally produced rice, while the cultivation of the staple food has increased, making farmers richer, which will in turn result into a better economy.
The giant strides of this government in the agricultural sector has continued to help the country have better foreign trade performance.
The value of imports in 2019, as at the third quarter, stood at N11.6 trillion compared with N9.6 trillion in the same period of 2018, representing an annual growth rate of 21 percent between 2018 and 2019. Other than refined petroleum products, major imports have been machinery and vehicles.
In terms of exports, the value grew by 2.5 percent between 2018 and 2019 as at the third quarter, rising from N14 trillion to N14.4 trillion. This resulted in a stronger overall performance and an increase in the value of total trade by 10 percent between 2018 and 2019.
While the value of crude oil exports decreased by 3.78 percent, non-crude oil exports rose by over 30 percent in value between 2018 and 2019. Non-oil exports also doubled from about N1 trillion to N2 trillion over this period.
All these figures are sweet to hear, but one key thing Nigerians will love to hear more is turning these stats into food on their tables and money in their pockets. They will hope to have a better 2020 and go extra length to fully support the government and embrace its policies because they are happier.
