Independence: Tinubu acknowledges hardship, promises to defeat poverty

ABUJA — President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has called on Nigerians to produce more goods and services, expand agricultural production, build globally competitive businesses and create opportunities for others as the country moves from economic reforms to an era of prosperity. Tinubu made the call in his Independence Day address to Nigerians on Thursday, saying his administration’s priority was to build an economy driven by production, enterprise, industrial growth and productive employment. He said he wanted to see more Nigerians manufacturing goods, more farms supplying food to cities and raw materials to factories, and Nigerian businesses taking their products to international markets.

“I want to see more Nigerians making things. I want to see more Nigerian farms feeding our cities and supplying our factories. “I want to see Nigerian businesses selling Nigerian goods to the whole world.

I want young Nigerians building unicorns and creating opportunities for others here at home,” the President said. Tinubu said Nigeria’s young population represented a major economic opportunity if properly harnessed, stressing that government must ensure that the energy, talent and ambition of young Nigerians translated into productive activity. “Prosperity requires more than cheaper goods.

It requires productive work,” he said. The President said his administration was therefore placing jobs, enterprise and industrial growth at the centre of its policies. He said the government would use Nigeria’s gas resources to power new industries, support businesses seeking to revive factories, expand digital connectivity and invest in skills required by employers.

Tinubu also pledged continued support for Nigerian businesses through infrastructure and financing to enable them to expand. According to him, the government’s broader economic objective is to lower the cost of living by reducing the cost of producing and transporting goods. He said the administration was expanding mechanised irrigation and dry-season farming, improving access to seeds and fertiliser, increasing mechanisation and investing in storage and transportation.

“We are building and completing the roads, railways and ports that connect farms and factories to markets,” he said. Tinubu said reducing production costs, cutting post-harvest losses, improving electricity supply to manufacturers and reducing transportation costs… President Bola Tinubu has acknowledged the economic hardship confronting millions of Nigerians, saying his administration is determined to build an economy that will steadily lift citizens out of poverty.