Nigeria is a land with diverse possibilities, emerging from rural agricultural activities. There are abundant land mass as well as riverine areas for economic pursuits.
The country has many mineral deposits waiting to be tapped and utilised.
As well the country has turned out academicians including technologists with abilities to turn their knowledge into products.
Nigeria has many rich individuals who have been successful in the business field. The Federal and State governments have resources that fetch them money with which to execute projects.
With all the assets and resources available in the country, it is obvious that the country should be able to provide jobs and feed its teeming population.
The present economic adversity in the country is uncalled for. Too many people are claiming leadership for themselves without exhibiting its tenets.
For a country with so much diverse resources, unemployment would be a strange phenomenon, only if the leadership knows the rule of the game.
The president has his cabinet and so do the governors. These should solicit for and receive contribution of ideas from the citizenry.
Many of the citizens are surfing the internet, some have travelled and others have acquired experiences from far and wide which can be intelligently applied to make progress.
Many ideas should be collected and compared and the more promising ones applied.
It is not enough to harp on the diversification of the economy. The areas and activities to diversify the economy on should be mentioned.
Diversification should be done with shrewdness and in a way that does not waste public funds and it should benefit the great majority of people.
For instance there are many unemployed Nigerians from both poor and rich circles.
Many poor ones can accept a salary of ₦20,000 to ₦30,000 for a start. There are also many economic activities in Nigeria that can yield ₦1,000 in a day.
Some of these economic activities can be started with ₦20,000 or less. This is to say that ₦400 billion will be enough to find employment for at least 20 million Nigerians.
Or, in other words, this amount can find job for 20 million poorest Nigerians.
Source ideas from Nigerians and make market survey to find acceptable jobs that can make this a reality. Certain jobs would require a group of people merged together.
This sort of project will require elaborate preparations. For instance, officials to execute it will need to be free of corruption.
Charity begins at home. Sometimes, diversification of the nation’s economy is mentioned along with foreign revenue.
On the other hand, if the citizens are massively employed, this will increase the Gross Domestic Product.
And Nigerians will be economically satisfied. What is left over can be exported to yield foreign exchange.
The government can utilise the experiences and expertise of already successful Nigerians. Those who can expand their economic activities to employ other Nigerians can be supported with funds.
Government may not wait to establish bodies for the utilisation of the nation’s resources. Such bodies often end up being corrupted.
Rather individual Nigerians with proven expertise and technical know-how in the various disciplines should be involved in the diversification of the nation’s economy.
Agriculture is often remembered when mention is made of diversifying the Nigerian economy.
It can be remembered that before petroleum came in, the country had many agricultural goods to export. Hence, the advice is often to go back to agriculture.
However, the country already has many agriculturists and many people are still going into that field.
Most commodities in the market are much costlier than agricultural commodities and are imported. This is where the money of most Nigerians is spent.
And when the prices of these commodities go up, the price of other commodities follow them. Hence, it is in these areas that the economy needs to diversify on.
The country can diversify its economy into automobiles, spare parts, cement etc., while not neglecting agriculture and petroleum.
Furthermore, certain basic commodities that should be produced in Nigeria are still being imported, for instance, matches, torches etc.
Since Nigeria has experts in these fields, they can be funded to make the country self-reliant in these fields.
Some companies, with both limited and unlimited liability status produce for some time and later go into bankruptcy.
This should be prevented. Also, labour can be imported from cheaper areas to manufacture them in Nigeria.
Nigeria has foundry experts and still lacks foundry materials, and available products are costly. Local manufacturers should be encouraged with funds and the government can also partner with them.
The leadership should expedite action into diversifying the nation’s economy and making the country self-reliant.
From Ephraim Elombah