‘Generator economy’ won’t give Nigeria $1trn GDP by 2023 – NESG tells Tinubu

The Nigerian Economic Summit Group has told the present federal government under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu that the $1 trillion Gross Domestic Product growth target by 2030 is not attainable with a ‘generator economy’.

The chairman of NESG, Niyi Yusuf, disclosed this on Sunday while delivering a pre-Ramadan lecture organised by the University of Lagos Muslim Alumni (UMA).

According to him, 46 per cent of Nigeria’s population cannot access electricity.

He stressed that growth would not happen until the country solved the electricity supply issue.

He said for the country to achieve a $1 trillion economy, it must drive foreign direct investments (FDI), tame inflation and tackle foreign exchange volatility.

He added that the government must block fiscal leakages in key government agencies, including the Central Bank of Nigeria, the Nigerian Petroleum Company Limited, and the Federal Inland Revenue Service.

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“We must stabilise our economy, tame forex volatility and inflation rate. The government must block all fiscal leakages in the CBN, NNPC, and FIRS, and we must increase our tax-to-GDP ratio.

“Also, we must support local businesses and invest in digital infrastructure.

“We must track budget allocation. Our capital expenditure must be more than the recurrent and debt servicing; otherwise, we are not progressing.

“Again, growth will not happen until we solve the electricity supply issue. Presently, only 46 per cent of the population has access to power. We can’t run on a generator economy”, he said.