President Muhammadu Buhari says the recently developed Economic
\nSustainability Plan, aimed at stimulating the economy amid the COVID-19
\npandemic, will extend protection to very poor Nigerians and other
\nvulnerable groups through pro-poor spending.<\/p>\n
The President spoke in a recorded video message to a virtual high-level
\nUN meeting on trends, options and strategies in poverty eradication
\nacross the world.<\/p>\n
The event took place at UN headquarters in New York, Tuesday and also
\nserved as the official inauguration of the Alliance for Poverty
\nReduction (APE), an initiative of the President of the General Assembly,
\nProf. Tijjani Muhammad-Bande.<\/p>\n
Warning that COVID-19 pandemic risks reversing decades of progress
\nachieved in the efforts to eradicate poverty globally, President Buhari
\napprised the UN meeting on steps to revive the nation’s economy in the
\nwake of the pandemic.<\/p>\n
”It is my conviction that devoting our efforts towards human capital
\ndevelopment, efficient management of our resources, greater financial
\ninclusion and transformation of the agricultural sector to ensure food
\nsecurity are crucial to poverty eradication.<\/p>\n
”In this regard, Nigeria continues to strengthen its existing social
\nsafety net initiative by increasing access to enrollees who fit the
\nvarious programmes in the scheme.<\/p>\n
”Nigeria will also continue to provide easier and increased access to
\nfinancial services for micro and small-scale businesses through the
\nGovernment Enterprise and Empowerment Programme. But we are determined
\nto do more.<\/p>\n
”Nigeria holds the view that education is a critical driver of
\nsustainable development and has an immense capacity to eradicate
\npoverty.<\/p>\n
”Educating our children, especially the girl-child, contributes
\nsignificantly to the fight against poverty, environmental
\nsustainability, and improved health, as well as building peace and
\nresilient societies,” he said.<\/p>\n
President Buhari also used the occasion to reiterate the commitment of
\nhis administration to poverty eradication, highlighting the national
\nprogramme of lifting 100 million Nigerians out of poverty.<\/p>\n
”Nigeria attaches great importance to poverty eradication.<\/p>\n
”It is, for this reason, that in May 2019, on my inauguration for a
\nsecond term in office, our Government committed itself to start a
\nProgramme of lifting 100 million Nigerians out of poverty within a
\n10-year period,” he said.<\/p>\n
On the impact of COVID-19 pandemic, President Buhari said in Nigeria, as
\nin many other countries, the domestic supply chains and trading
\ncorridors have come under enormous strain, bringing to fore the health
\nversus economics debate.<\/p>\n
On poor and vulnerable people, the Nigerian leader expressed concern
\nthat more than 700 million people or 10% of the world’s population are
\nclassified as living in extreme poverty.<\/p>\n
”All the while they struggle with the most basic needs like nutrition,
\nshelter, health, education and access to clean water and sanitation.<\/p>\n
”In this condition, the number of poor people is estimated to triple as
\nlivelihoods across almost all economic sectors have been adversely
\naffected,” he said.<\/p>\n
President Buhari also told the meeting that with a population of about
\n200 million; a large percentage of Nigerians live in various stages of
\npoverty, adding that the prospect of the population sliding further into
\nextreme poverty is real, stressing, however, that government was also
\nstriving to combat and reverse the trend.<\/p>\n
President Muhammadu Buhari says the recently developed Economic Sustainability Plan, aimed at stimulating the economy amid the COVID-19 pandemic, will extend protection to very poor Nigerians and other vulnerable groups…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":71343,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-74555","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-other-news"],"yoast_head":"\n