President Muhammadu Buhari said Monday in Abuja that he will gladly
reverse or abandon some inherited economic policies if doing so will lead
to the creation of more jobs for Nigerians.
At a meeting in the Presidential Villa with Executive Members of the
Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), President Buhari directed the
Ministries of Industries, Trade and Investment, and Finance, as well as
the Central Bank and other relevant government agencies to evolve before
next year’s budget, new policies to boost domestic manufacturing.
“We are in difficult times economically, but we’ll continue to do our best
for manufacturing to pick up. We must begin to behave as if we have no oil
at all.
“We will gladly have policy somersaults, if it will mean more jobs,
particularly for youths. I campaigned on three major planks. To
effectively secure our country, provide employment through revamping the
economy, and wage a relentless war against corruption. I intend to keep
faith with these promises,” the President said.
He lamented that the textile industry that employed about 320,000 people
in the past only parades about 30,000 now.
“It shows the carelessness of past governments, if almost 300,000 people
lose jobs in a single sector. We have a clear idea of how we can stimulate
employment and we will work very hard to do so,” President Buhari told the
MAN delegation.
The MAN President, Dr Frank Udemba Jacobs had appealed for a review of
policies that stifle the manufacturing sector, noting that the importance
of a robust manufacturing sector for the general well-being of the
economy cannot be over-emphasized.