Nigeria’s exit from recession shows economic plan working – Presidency

Nigeria’s exit from recession is a key indicator of the success of the ongoing Economic Sustainability Plan (ESP) approved by the Federal Government, the presidency has said.

Laolu Akande, spokesperson for Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, said Nigerians should expect more as the implementation of the plan is gathering greater momentum.

Mr. Akande made these claims while updating the media on ESP progress and reacting to the latest GDP figures for the last quarter of 2020.

The president and the Federal Executive Council approved the ESP plan last June and the Vice President was asked to lead the implementation of the plan.

The plan is aimed, among others, at preventing a deep recession and putting cash in the hands of Nigerians after the economic fallouts of the pandemic.

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Nigeria slipped out of recession in the last quarter of 2020 as a GDP growth of 0.11 percent was recorded.

Mr Akande noted that right from Q3 2020, the economy was already on a rebound adding that the latest fourth-quarter figures show that the recovery of the Nigerian economy is a steady one.

“Like we explained late last year after the release of the third-quarter figures, the Economic Sustainability Plan, which was a calculated intervention by the Buhari Presidency, is driving the Nigerian economy in the right direction-upwards, and Nigerians can expect more because the administration is unrelenting in its determination to pursue the steady recovery and growth of our economy,” Mr Akande noted.

The Presidential spokesperson said the Economic Sustainability Plan is entering into an even more potent phase with the revving up of plans to install 5 million solar installations across the country and the social mass housing plan that will result in hundreds of thousands of affordable houses for ordinary Nigerians.

Both aspects, he noted, will yield several hundreds of jobs besides giving the national economy a significant spur like never before.