The Emir of Kano, Muhammadu Sanusi II, and businessman Atedo Peterside have called on the Federal Government to target 10 per cent economic growth to lift Nigerians out of poverty, create jobs and improve living standards.
They warned that Nigeria could not afford to celebrate economic growth of about four per cent while millions of citizens continued to face difficult economic conditions, insisting that reforms must translate into measurable improvements in household incomes and welfare.
The two prominent Nigerians spoke on Tuesday at the Oxford Global Think Tank Leadership Conference in Abuja, themed ‘Leadership for a Prosperous Future’, where they joined other economic experts and policymakers to examine the country’s development challenges and prospects.
Sanusi cautioned against measuring economic progress solely through headline Gross Domestic Product (GDP) figures, arguing that the ultimate test of economic policies should be their impact on the living conditions of ordinary Nigerians.
The former Central Bank of Nigeria governor acknowledged improvements in some macroeconomic indicators, including economic growth of about 4.5 per cent, but said such figures did not necessarily reflect improvements in household welfare.
He noted that the decline in GDP per capita since 2023, influenced by economic growth and currency depreciation, raised questions about whether the benefits of ongoing reforms were reaching the wider population.
According to him, economic performance should also be assessed through improvements in education, healthcare, nutrition, employment, household incomes and poverty reduction.
Sanusi warned against excessive dependence on portfolio investments, which he said could be volatile because of their sensitivity to high interest rates and short-term returns.
He argued that sustainable economic growth required deeper structural reforms beyond the removal of fuel subsidies and changes to foreign exchange policy. He called for increased investment in infrastructure, transparency, accountability and productive sectors.
He also cautioned that perceived regional imbalances in government appointments, particularly in sensitive national security positions, could undermine national cohesion, urging the government to promote fairness and inclusion.
Similarly, Peterside said Nigeria could not achieve the growth required to create jobs and improve living standards without substantially increasing investment.
He blamed political patronage, corruption, regulatory harassment and the absence of a level playing field for discouraging investors and weakening private sector growth.
Peterside said businesses, particularly small and medium-scale enterprises, faced arbitrary demands and harassment from government regulators, making it difficult for them to expand their operations and create jobs.
He also identified public procurement as a major channel through which public resources were diverted, warning that inflated contract costs undermined government spending on infrastructure and essential services.
Describing the abuse of procurement processes as a form of legalised theft, he said Nigeria must confront corruption and state capture if it hoped to attract the domestic and foreign investments required to transform its economy.
The businessman further warned that economic reforms should not place the entire burden of adjustment on ordinary citizens while individuals benefiting from political connections and public resources remained protected from the consequences.
He called for stronger institutions, protection of businesses from arbitrary government interference and a transparent system of public appointments and resource allocation.
Former President of the African Development Bank, Dr Akinwumi Adesina, said Africa’s growing youthful population presented a major economic opportunity that could only be realised through deliberate investment in human capital.
Adesina noted that Africa’s population was projected to account for about a quarter of the global population by 2050, with young people constituting a significant proportion.
He, however, warned that population growth alone would not guarantee prosperity, stressing that governments must invest in education, healthcare, nutrition, technical skills and access to finance.
According to him, young Africans should be equipped not only to seek employment but also to establish businesses, develop technologies and provide solutions to the continent’s economic challenges.
He also called for increased investment in digital technology and artificial intelligence, warning against a situation where Africa remained merely a consumer of technologies developed elsewhere.
Adesina stressed that affordable financing and adequate infrastructure were necessary to enable young people to transform their ideas into viable businesses and productive ventures.
Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Dr Bosun Tijani, said Nigeria’s future prosperity would depend largely on its ability to apply knowledge and technology to improve productivity.
Tijani argued that possession of natural resources alone could not guarantee national wealth, explaining that countries became prosperous by developing the capacity to add value to their resources through technology, innovation and technical expertise.
Citing Nigeria’s telecommunications sector, he said the liberalisation of the industry and introduction of GSM services in 2001 demonstrated how deliberate government policies, private investment and competition could transform an economy.
He identified artificial intelligence as another major opportunity for Nigeria but said the country must first develop the infrastructure, skills and institutional capacity required to adopt and apply the technology effectively.
The minister listed connectivity, computing and data infrastructure, research and skills development, innovation capacity, and effective policies and institutions as essential foundations for Nigeria’s digital transformation.
He disclosed that the Federal Government was pursuing an approximately 90,000-kilometre open-access fibre-optic network, backed by an estimated $2bn investment, to expand broadband connectivity across the country.
Tijani also highlighted plans to strengthen shared computing infrastructure and develop a Nigerian large language model capable of supporting indigenous languages, including Yoruba, Hausa and Igbo, as well as Nigerian-accented English.
He said the government’s 3 Million Technical Talent programme was designed to develop a skilled workforce for the global digital economy, while the National Artificial Intelligence Strategy would guide the responsible development and adoption of AI.
The minister also cited an AI community of practice, supported initially with $150,000, as part of efforts to encourage collaboration and practical applications of artificial intelligence.
To demonstrate the importance of technology in improving productivity, Tijani compared Nigeria’s maize yields of between 1.5 and 2.5 tonnes per hectare with about 10 tonnes per hectare in Brazil and Argentina.
He attributed part of the productivity gap to the use of precision technologies and improved agricultural practices, urging Nigerian businesses to take advantage of emerging digital infrastructure to develop products, create jobs and generate economic value.
In her remarks, Convener of the Oxford Global Think Tank Leadership Conference and former Director-General of the Securities and Exchange Commission, Arunma Oteh, called for stronger collaboration among government, businesses, investors, financial institutions and citizens to achieve sustainable economic development.
Oteh said domestic capital markets had a critical role in mobilising resources for development, urging increased retail participation to enable more Nigerians to invest in productive enterprises and benefit from economic growth.
She also identified pension funds as an important source of long-term investment and wealth creation, provided appropriate safeguards and investment frameworks were established.
Oteh stressed the need for greater investment in education, skills and employment, noting that about 70 per cent of Africa’s population was below the age of 30.
She further advocated decentralisation of development initiatives, arguing that allowing communities and subnational authorities to address local needs could improve service delivery.
Citing electricity supply in Aba, Abia State, she said decentralised approaches offered opportunities for more effective infrastructure management and delivery of essential services.
The former SEC director-general also called for a business-friendly environment supported by reliable infrastructure, access to finance, regulatory certainty and a skilled workforce.
She cited reported international interest in the proposed public offering of the Dangote Refinery as an indication of the capacity of Nigeria’s capital market to attract investment from beyond the country’s borders.
The speakers agreed that Nigeria’s economic challenge went beyond achieving higher GDP growth, stressing that sustainable prosperity would depend on translating investment, technological innovation and human capital development into jobs, higher productivity and improved living standards.