Yemi Osinbajo, the Vice-President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria says Nigeria lacks the resources to pre-order for the coronavirus vaccine which will be ordered from Russia. In addition to this, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo appealed to Europe to work with Africa so as to make sure that when the vaccine is finally released, it would not be on the basis of the highest bidder but rather be made available at an affordable offer for everyone.
Showing posts with label Yemi Osinbajo. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Yemi Osinbajo. Show all posts
Osinbajo, Fintiri, minister meet over humanitarian and security situation in the North-East.
Vice President Yemi Osinbajo on Tuesday at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, met with Governor Umaru Fintiri of Adamawa over humanitarian and security situation in the North-East.
Also at the meeting were Hajia Sadiya Umar-Farouq, Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development; National Security Adviser (NSA), Babagana Monguno; Comptroller-General, Nigeria Customs Service, Col. Hameed Ali (rtd) among others.
Fintiri told State House correspondents afterwards that the meeting was successful and fruitful.
“These are strategies we need to keep for ourselves so that we move the country and the North-East forward.
“I think it is too early to divulge the information at the moment.”
He said that a key humanitarian issue in the region was the movement of food and other aids to the badly affected areas.
According to him, the military has been doing well of late while the communities are opening up.
The governor said that serious efforts were being made to address the issue of the flooding in the region.
“The flooding does not affect the North-East generally, but my state is one of those that have been identified by NEMA to have flooded this year.
“And personally, I have been making efforts in addressing the flooding challenge in my state.”
On the issue of shelter for Internally Displaced Persons(IDPs), he said that the IDP camps in the region were well taken care of.
He said that more houses were being built for IDPs in Borno.
“They are building more houses in all the local governments in that state for them to relocate IDPs camps to their various local governments of origin.
“That is also happening in Adamawa. We are addressing them headlong and we are moving forward in ensuring that our citizens are well taken care of and they are settled properly the way it should be in their communities.”
On COVID-19, Fintiri said that the curve had been flattened in the whole North-East, adding that efforts would be stepped up to ensure that the protocols were kept.
On her part, Umar-Farouk said that it was only Borno that still had a high concentration of IDPs.
“In Adamawa, there are one or two IDP camps and they originated from Borno State.
“In Yobe, we do not have official IDP camps; they are all back in their communities.
“So, what we are really working on now is Borno where we have a high concentration of these IDPs; and the government is doing everything possible to support, assist and to ensure that they are being catered for,” she said.
Source: News Agency Of Nigeria
Government agencies need to stop extorting businesses — Osinbajo
Osinbajo said this on Friday at the virtual edition of the Presidential Policy Dialogue hosted by the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
He said the government aimed to continue to improve on the national ranking in the World Bank Doing Business Index Ranking to below 100 in the coming years.
Osinbajo called on private sector to lead the charge for Nigeria’s economic growth and development by keying into the Economic Sustainability Plan of the Federal Government.
He said the priority of the Federal Government in response to the economic challenges caused by COVID-19 was to ward off recession using a mixture of stimulus measures to support local businesses, retain and create jobs and ameliorate the circumstances of the most vulnerable.
The vice president said though the stimulus package was just about 1.5 per cent of the GDP, it was the best the government could do given existing realities in the economy.
He said, “I take this opportunity to encourage the private sector to be proactive in leading the charge against recession and poverty in our country.
“The Federal Government is not under any illusion that it can do this on its own.”
“The opportunities that now exist in the short-term in agriculture, infrastructural development, housing construction, in renewable energy, digital technology development, mining, financial inclusion, healthcare and pharmaceutical manufacturing call for the private sector to take the bull by the horn and make them a reality.
“The government developed the Economic Sustainability Plan with a stimulus package of N2.3tn to give fillip to the economy across various sectors. Based on the assumption of the price of crude averaging out at $30 per barrel throughout the year, we anticipate an economic growth of about -0.59% in 2020.”
According to him, the ESP was designed to boost production, prevent business collapse, and provide liquidity.
He added that it would promote the use of labour-intensive methods and direct labour interventions in key areas like agriculture, light manufacturing, housing construction and facility maintenance while increasing infrastructural investment in roads, bridges, solar power, and communications technologies.
“It is intended to do all this while extending protection to the poor and other vulnerable groups in our society,” Osinbajo added.
In his remarks, the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Niyi Adebayo, said the current focus of the Federal Government in the manufacturing sector was on prioritising local production, especially in the importation of machinery that utilise local materials.
The LCCI President, Mrs Toki Mabogunje, commended the Federal Government for the management of the economy, adding that members of the chamber and the entire private sector players were willing to collaborate with the government.
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