Are we richer after the GDP ‘rebasing’?
This is the best article I have read regarding the rebasing of our GDP and the new fact that Nigeria’s economy is the biggest in Africa. Many people are reading politics into it rather than looking at it from a purely economic point of view and pointing out its implication. I will like to comment on a few of the implications you pointed out.
One is that the new economy requires people who are highly skilled. I prefer to use the word “skilled” to education because our concept of education is simply going to the university to acquire all manner of certificates. What the new economy requires is a high level of skills. Our own Alhaji Aliko Dangote once lamented when addressing students from the Lagos Business School that one of the biggest problems he had in the construction of some of his factories was the shortage of skilled welders. We see it every day. We have shortage of skilled electricians, plumbers, tile layers, machinists, tailors, even carpenters, etc and yet we have a high rate of unemployment. Oil companies import workers from the Philippines and Indonesia in order to maintain their oil rigs despite the fact that we have many engineers that are unemployed. Yes, the new economy requires people to be educated but the education must be the right one.
Secondly, you said that the government must create the jobs directly. I can tell you that the government is a poor creator of jobs. In China when the government was directly creating jobs, poverty was rampant. It was only when the government changed course that the economy started growing. I know that a lot of companies in China are government owned, but these companies are running like private enterprises. Remember also that the culture and attitude of people in China to government business is different from ours. The government’s role is to create the enabling environment by putting appropriate laws in place and enforcing those laws vigorously.
Finally, agriculture and manufacturing remain the most important areas if we are to reduce unemployment in Nigeria, but the government needs creative legislations in order to bring this about. The first is to ensure that there are linkages between crop production and our agro-allied industries.
Agwamba
agwamba2@yahoo.com ************************** Sir, to be frank and sincere to ourselves, we are being deceived by our leaders inasmuch as we will end up still fighting for a meal per day; the celebrants of this GDP growth are nothing but those fighting for the easiest route to manipulate the 2015 for themselves,. The best way to measure a nation’s GDP is that of its productivity in terms of delivering goods and services to and by the citizens; 90 percent of the citizens are now battling with their stomachs. To me, if the finance and all other relevant institutions will announce the GDP growth, it surely sounds odd considering the uncountable complaints of our finance minister on the matter. I can recall several times when she even highlighted to the nation of her fear in paying monthly salaries based on how she saw things . The reality will soon be revealed! Thank you Mr. Sanusi for this wonderful piece and thanks to your namesake who blew the whistle!
Abdulazeez U. Rafindadi
hassanrafindadi@gmail.com