Mr Akinwumi Adesina, President African Development Bank Group (AfDB) has decried the state in which Nigeria remains stagnant in so many areas of development.
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Adesina said that after 64 years of independence, the country should be among the developed nations of the world.
Adesina made the remark while delivering a lecture on “building a global Nigeria” to mark the 90th birthday anniversary of Rtd. Gen. Yakubu Gowon in Abuja.
He said that before independence in 1960, the founding fathers had a dream of a Nigeria that would be the shining light of Africa and indeed the black race.
He said that Nigeria, being the largest black nation on earth, should carry the hopes and aspirations of all black people in the world yearning to become a beacon in the world.
Adesina added that Nigeria should be an inspiration to elevate the whole continent of Africa.
“Certainly, 64 years after independence, Nigeria should not be a developing country but should be a developed nation.
“As President of the African Development Bank, when I travel around Africa, one issue that often marks conversations is, when will Nigeria develop?
”I have listened to several leaders tell me that the rise of Africa depends on the rise of Nigeria,” he said.
He cited the instance of Saudi Arabia which set the pace of development within the Gulf region, leading the development of the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and Kuwait, which had risen to become global giants.
He said that Nigeria needed to develop faster for Africa to develop, adding that Nigeria could not remain a disappointment to Africa continent as history was beckoning on the country.
“When the Gulf region was to develop, it took Saudi Arabia to set the pace.
“Today, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and Kuwait, each of these nations have risen to become global giants.
“When Europe had to develop, it needed Germany, the United Kingdom and France to spur the growth across the continent,” he said.
According to Adesina, when Asia had to develop, it took China, Japan, and South Korea, to spark even wider growth from Singapore to India, Malaysia, and Indonesia.
“For Africa to develop, it needs Nigeria to develop faster. History beckons on Nigeria and we cannot disappoint,” he said.
The AfDB boss said that it was his dream to see a better tomorrow for the country,
He called on leaders to start with a poverty-free nation, adding that poverty is particularly extreme in rural areas where millions of people have been forgotten and abandoned.
“Today, poverty is extremely pervasive in Nigeria. The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) as of 2022 estimated that 63 per cent of persons living in Nigeria (133 million people) are multi-dimensionally poor.
“It also states that over half of the population of Nigeria cook with dung, wood or charcoal rather than cleaner energy.
“High deprivations are also apparent nationally in sanitation, healthcare, food security, and housing,“ he said.
He said that the resultant effects of poverty were the prevailing kidnapping, drug abuse, banditry and social vices among the Nigerian youths.
“To address the situation, urgent and comprehensive efforts are needed to restore security and order, to protect lives, property, and farmlands, and to restore normalcy to traumatised zones, towns, villages, and communities.
“To stabilise and restore economic fortunes, education, health, social protection and jobs for youth programmes must be prioritised.
“Simultaneously, we must decisively tackle and reduce the burgeoning numbers of out-of-school children,” he said.
The AfDB boss also said that load shedding and the inconsistent availability of electricity had resulted in high and uncompetitive manufacturing costs.
According to him, most Nigerian manufacturing companies are providing their own energy with a high dependence on generators, diesel and heavy fuel oil.
“It has been estimated by the IMF that Nigeria loses about $29bn annually, that is, 5.8 per cent of its GDP, due to a lack of reliable power supply.
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“The report also indicates that Nigerians spend $14bn yearly on generators and fuel.
“There is no other way to say it, lack of electricity is killing Nigerian industries,” he said.
He quoted the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria as saying that industries spent N93.1bn on alternative energy in 2018.
“Today, no business can survive in Nigeria without generators.
“Nigeria had gas and crude oil in abundance, which can be vital means of generating electricity, yet, 86 million people live daily without electricity.
“Today, Nigeria is the number one country in the world in terms of the total number of people without electricity,” he said.
Adesina said that it was a situation that called for government’s attention so as to boost the country’s economy.
He said that looking at achieving a “global Nigeria”, the country must achieve universal access to electricity.
Highlighting AfDB‘s contributions, Adesina said that the bank had invested massively in the power sector to support the implementation of Nigeria’s Power Sector Recovery Programme by providing $200m dollars for the Nigeria Electrification Project.
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