Anambra State Governor Chukwuma Soludo says Nigeria must achieve annual economic growth of at least nine per cent to significantly reduce poverty and expand employment opportunities.
At the Nigerian Economic Summit 32, NES32, in Abuja, held under the theme “Growth that Works: Delivering Jobs, Productivity and Shared Prosperity”, on Monday, Soludo said the country’s current growth rate of about four per cent was insufficient to drive rapid poverty reduction and generate enough jobs.
He added that Nigeria would need to sustain annual growth of at least 12 per cent to attain a one-trillion-dollar economy by 2030 or 2040.
The governor noted that the country’s investment rate, currently estimated at between 17 and 20 per cent, would have to increase substantially to achieve the desired economic expansion.
He warned against interpreting high nominal expenditure figures as evidence of strong public spending capacity, explaining that combined government expenditure at the federal, state and local levels amounted to less than one dollar per person daily.
Soludo emphasised the importance of directing national savings towards productive investments that could boost output, create employment and improve living standards.
He also called for closer coordination among the three tiers of government, noting that state and local authorities accounted for a significant proportion of public expenditure.
The governor said effective collaboration would help maximise the impact of government policies and investments nationwide.
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Highlighting Anambra’s social interventions, he cited the state’s free education programme, which covers kindergarten through secondary school, as an example of policies producing measurable benefits.
He said the initiative had helped reduce the state’s out-of-school children rate from 2.5 per cent to 0.25 per cent.
Soludo also referenced a recent report by Oxford and the United Nations Development Program, which reportedly put Anambra’s multidimensional poverty rate at 9.6 per cent.
On food affordability, the governor said addressing post-harvest losses was crucial, noting that an estimated 43 per cent of agricultural output was lost after harvesting.
He explained that better storage, transportation and distribution systems would improve the movement of agricultural produce from farms to urban markets, helping to lower food prices for consumers.
Soludo urged governments to deepen collaboration across economic sectors and attract more investment to accelerate growth.
He further advocated policies that promote exports, strengthen domestic value chains and encourage investment in sectors where Nigeria enjoys competitive advantages.
The governor stressed that greater private-sector participation and productive investment were vital to creating sustainable employment and ensuring that the benefits of economic growth reached more Nigerians.
NAN
