President Muhammadu Buhari has reiterated his commitment towards the diversification of Nigeria’s economy, moving from dependence on oil to sectors such as agriculture, power generation, services, education, industry and solid minerals.
This was disclosed in India where he met with the Chief Executives of Indian companies operating in Nigeria while attending the Third Session of the India-Africa Summit holding in New Delhi, India from October 26-30.
In a statement on Wednesday by the Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Mallam Garba Shehu, Buhari noted that despite the fall in oil prices, his administration remains fully committed to maintaining macro-economic stability and improving investor confidence in Nigeria.
He expressed his belief that with its abundance of human and material resources, the Nigerian economy does not have to suffer unduly from low oil prices, despite its severe impact on government revenues.
“What is required of us, to which we are strongly committed, is the implementation of tight expenditure controls, effective fiscal and monetary policies, including the husbandry of scarce resources which our introduction of the TSA has began to address.
“We are aware some of these measures may hurt some businesses in the short term, but we believe they are right for a sustainable economy,” he stated.
President Buhari noted that India has been a dependable ally and friend of Nigeria, and urged the Chief Executives to expand their companies’ investments in Nigeria.
“So that we can, together, turn our engagements into a win-win situation for our two countries”.
He told the Indian CEOs that, “We can increase and diversify the current volume of our bilateral trade beyond US$16.36 billion and diversify to other critical sectors such as agriculture; green technologies in power generation; infrastructure information & communications technologies; the services sector; education; industry, especially textiles & solid minerals among others.
Furthermore, the president urged the Indian CEOs to accept the changes in policy being introduced by his administration and observe all extant Nigerian laws in running their business in the country.
PMB warned that his administration will not tolerate the importation of sub-standard goods, especially foods and medicines, into Nigeria.
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