Agric policies causing job creation unsustainable, says NECA
By Joy ObakeyeÂ
The Director General of the Nigeria Employers’ Association (NECA), Mr. Adewale Oyerinde, has stated that the increase in import of agriculture products over exports, is leading to an unsustainable job creation trend in the sector.
Oyerinde who spoke at a media chats with Labour Writers Association of Nigeria (LAWAN), stressed that the rate of cultivation is reducing on a daily basis.
The NECA DG noted that if no deliberate and decisive approach is taken, the country may fail to meet the Sustainable Development Goals 2030
“While we are importing more agriculture products than we are exporting, some of the jobs we are creating in agriculture remain unsustainable.
“The cultivation rate is going down on daily basis.
“This is impacting heavily on our ability to meet the Sustainable Development Goals 2030
“And therefore, there is a need for urgency to act, there are things we can do internally and externally to make things better”, he stressed.
Nigeria’s Agriculture sector grew by 1.20 percent in the second quarter of 2022.
Oyerinde stated that more work needs to be done if the government plans to make do with the economic diversification drive away from oil, to agriculture.
Oyerinde also called on the Federal Government to remove fuel subsidy, stressing that: “the money channel for subsidy can be used to build refineries instead of some few individuals feeding on it”.
He added that the current economic challenge remains a key issue that must be addressed, while calling on the government to partner with the private sector in tackling the issues.
“The Federal Ministry of Petroleum Resources during recent House of Representatives ad-hoc committee probe on fuel subsidy payments said it has no financial records of fuel subsidy payments from 2017 to 2021.
“Let us face the consequence of the subsidy removal once instead of a few people feeding with subsidy money”, he added.
“For you to remove subsidy, you must make the refineries work and there must be a process. The subsidy is ruffled with so many things we cannot see. Petrol is an elastic demand, you can reduce the demand but you can not eradicate it.
“The attraction for that sector is very deep. I commend Aliko Dangote’s ongoing construction of the refinery, but then the federal government should build more with the money spent on subsidy because one refinery may not be enough.”
The NECA DG also took time to comment on the issue of multiple taxation, which he said that as some of the issues are addressed, the Federal Government is creating bottlenecks for the private sector through multiple taxes. “There is a need for government to give a clear road map; Government should think of how to cushion the pressure of inflation like in other developed countries of the world.”
