From Adanna Nnamani, Abuja
President Muhammadu Buhari has appealed to the organised private sector to reinvest their profits in creating jobs for Nigerians.
He made the appeal in a goodwill message to Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA) at the maiden Nigeria Employers’ Summit in Abuja.
Represented by Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige, he said the private sector could become the engine of growth in Nigeria by creating jobs, paying requisite taxes and financing works and services.
He enjoined the private sector to give justifiable consideration to decent work agenda and maintain social protection floor by adopting redundancy as the last option in personnel management, bearing in mind the policy of the Federal Government against retrenchment.
The president described the theme of the summit, “The Private Sector – An Engine for National Development” as apt, considering the challenges facing the country in terms of job creation and empowerment.
“While the government works with trade unions to ensure sustainability of the enterprise by building and protecting sound national industrial relations system, on the other hand, businesses are also protected and enabled to succeed.
“They are consequently expected to drive growth, create jobs and pay the requisite taxes that would boost investments, finance works and services to improve the social welfare of the people in the field of education, provision of basic facilities, portable water, transportation, care of the aged and other forms of horizontal and vertical social protection/social security that includes the empowerment of the less privileged and the vulnerable in the society.”
He expressed happiness that the National Labour Advisory Council (NLAC), of which NECA is a member, has commenced the consideration of International Labour Organisation (ILO) Convention No. 102 on Social Security (Minimum Standards), encompassing nine thematic areas or branches for ratification by Nigeria.
He said when this feat is accomplished, the role of the private sector in national development, would be highlighted.
“We hope to walk and work in the footpath of our words as we deliberate on the private sector as the engine of national development. The advent of COVID-19 and its aftermath have given rise to areas of global socio-economic interventions and models of development.
“As we review the principles of just transition and the outcome of deliberations by the recently concluded International Labour Conference in Geneva on Decent Work and the Social and Solidarity Economy, let us step this terminologies down to our basics and derive the best from them for our people. As we make profits, let us plough back such profits and create and retain jobs. As the cost of production rises and consequently causing a rise in cost of goods and services, a justifiable consideration should be equally given to the Decent Work Agenda and ensure that the Social Protection Floor is not compromised by imbibing the business principle of adopting redundancy as the last option in personnel management and bearing in mind that the prevalent Federal Government policy is against retrenchment of workers.”
Country Director of the ILO Office for Nigeria, Ghana, Liberia and Sierra Leone, Vanessa Phala, expressed her wish that “the summit will contribute to further advancing the decent work agenda with concrete steps towards an improved business environment for the Nigerian private sector.”