The Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, has inaugurated the National Council on Infrastructure with a targeted plan of doubling Nigeria’s infrastructure stock of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) to 70 percent as against the current level of about 35 percent by the year 2043.
Osinbajo, who formally inaugurated the Council during a virtual meeting, yesterday, stated that “for efficient and effective implementation of infrastructure projects, the National Integrated Infrastructure Master Plan recommended the establishment of the National Council on Infrastructure and its Technical Working Group (TWG).”
In a statement made available to Transport Day, Osinbajo said that the collaboration between the Federal Government and the private sector will ensure effective coordination of the infrastructure development across the nation and all sectors of the economy, and also bridge the nation’s gaps.
The membership of the National Council on Infrastructure which is chaired by the Vice President includes a representative of the State Governors; Federal Ministers, heads of government agencies, and members of the private sector.
SEE ALSO: $600m blocked funds: NUATE writes FG, seeks crude swap to defray backlog
The Vice President further stated that the National Integrated Infrastructure Master Plan was developed to provide “an integrated view of development in Nigeria with clear linkages across key sectors and identifies enablers for successful implementation in line with the current economic realities.”
He added that the National Integrated Infrastructure Master Plan takes stock of existing infrastructure and specifically sets out the goal of raising Nigeria’s stock to at least 70 percent by the year 2043.
The vice president noted that the Federal Government launched the N15 trillion Infrastructure Corporation (InfraCorp Nigeria) last year and the President also signed Executive Order 7, which has informed the right policy framework and created some opportunities for Public Private Partnership (PPP) in infrastructure development.
Emphasizing the importance of private sector participation, Osinbajo said: “The Reviewed National Integrated Infrastructure Master Plan (2020-2043) and the National Development Plan 2021-2025 also estimated the current nation’s infrastructure stock to be between 30-35 percent of the GDP in 2020 against 20 percent of the GDP recorded at the inception of this administration in 2015. This is still a far cry from the estimated target of 70 percent envisaged in 2043.”
He noted that the USD$2.3 trillion estimated resource requirement for the National Integrated Infrastructure Master Plan implementation was too large to be provided from public resources alone.
Further emphasizing collaboration between government and the private sector in closing these deficits, he noted: ‘A well-coordinated and strategic approach will be required to harness private resources to increase the stock of Nigeria’s infrastructure to the desired level by the year 2043.
“The private sector is expected to play an increasingly important role either directly or in collaboration with the government through Public Private Partnership (PPP) with the government providing a supportive environment with stable and transparent policies, rules and regulations.”
Members of the Council include the Governor of Ekiti State and Chairman of the Nigeria Governors Forum, Dr. Kayode Fayemi; Ministers of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed; Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami; Works, Babatunde Fashola; Power, Abubakar Aliyu; Transportation, Mu’azu Jaji Sambo; Communications and Digital Economy, Isa Pantami; Water Resources, Suleiman Adamu; Aviation, Hadi Sirika; Minister of State, Budget and National Planning, Clem Agba; and Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Mr. Godwin Emefiele.
Others are President of Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), Mansur Ahmed; President of Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA), John Udeagbala; Executive Vice Chairman/CEO, Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission, FCCPC, Babatunde Irukera; Managing Director/CEO, Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA), Uche Orji; among others.
