The bold economic reforms of the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu administration are beginning to yield positive results, setting a firm foundation for sustainable growth and heightened investor confidence.
Vice President Senator Kashim Shettima disclosed this at the Jigawa State Economic and Investment Summit. He declared that while the structural changes required initial public sacrifice, they are crucial for Nigeria’s long-term survival and global competitiveness.
The Vice President pointed directly to regulatory overhauls as proof of the administration’s commitment to business transparency. He highlighted key policy achievements designed to attract foreign capital, including:
* Foreign Exchange Liberalization: Aligning currency markets to eliminate artificial bottlenecks.
* The Business Facilitation Act: Slashing bureaucratic red tape for domestic and foreign enterprises.
* The Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC): Institutionalizing transparent, streamlined administrative procedures across federal ministries.”We are taking difficult but necessary decisions,” Shettima noted, underscoring that these choices are already reshaping the nation’s financial reputation.
A major pillar of the administration’s plan to unlock industrial growth is the landmark Electricity Act 2023. The law shifts energy governance by empowering individual state governments to generate, transmit, and distribute electricity within their borders.
Shettima called the act a major catalyst. He explained that sub-national autonomy over energy infrastructure allows states to directly fuel local manufacturing zones, eliminate power supply deficits, and attract targeted private investments.
Turning his attention to local production, Shettima highly praised Jigawa State’s immense agricultural output. The state emerged as a cornerstone of national food security, contributing a staggering 40% of Nigeria’s total wheat yield during the previous farming season.
Despite celebrating this achievement, the Vice President challenged local farmers and stakeholders to drastically increase their productivity. He pointed out that Nigeria’s current average yield of 1.5 metric tonnes per hectare still lags far behind continental peers like Egypt and South Africa. He urged a rapid shift toward modernized farming techniques to close the gap.
