Vice President Kashim Shettima has called on the organised private sector to support the Federal Government’s policy reforms aimed at building a resilient and inclusive economy.
Speaking at the 4th edition of the Nigeria Employers’ Summit in Abuja, Shettima, who was represented by the Special Adviser to the President on Job Creation and MSME, Temitola Adekunle-Johnson, stated that the nation is currently undergoing a transition.
He said this transition is with a wave of bold reforms designed to steer the volatile economy into a more stable and sustainable one, according to a statement from NECA on Thursday.
“The vision of the President Bola Tinubu administration is to build an economy where sustainable enterprises can thrive, create decent jobs, and contribute to a society where prosperity is shared by all, not just a privileged few,” he said.
He disclosed that the administration remains committed to ensuring that Nigerian businesses take full advantage of the African Continental Free Trade Area, as it recently gazetted the Preferential Tariff Concessions under the AfCFTA.
Shettima said this served as a way of opening doors for Nigerian exporters to access preferential tariffs across African markets, giving them a significant competitive edge, reducing the cost of importing intermediate goods and raw materials from other African countries, and improving profit margins, particularly for small and medium enterprises.
He equally urged the organised private sector to see the reforms as an opportunity to innovate, invest, and lead, stating that these reforms are designed to create an environment where sustainable enterprise can flourish and inclusive development is seen as a reality.
The Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, also spoke at the summit, expressing the government’s commitment to collaborating with the private sector to drive growth and development.
“Before now, there were conditions beyond the control of the private sector that didn’t allow for a more conducive business environment. Since the advent of this administration, we have seen efforts to remove the bottlenecks that impede the growth of business. So, the best time to invest in Nigeria is today,” Tunji-Ojo said.
NECA Director-General, Adewale Smatt-Oyerinde, stated that the summit aimed to build consensus around federal government policy reforms and transform them into actions favorable to businesses.
“NECA as a body remains determined to work with the government to create an economy that is not only competitive but can serve as a platform to advance the African economy,” Smatt-Oyerinde said.
