Isaac Anumihe, Abuja
About $9.25 billion investment has been identified in the manufacturing and processing labs and this has the potential of creating over 378,000 jobs.
In the power and gas sector, where over $8.57 billion investment has been made, it is expected that over 7,000 jobs would be created as well.
This was contained in a statement by the Ministry of Budget and National Planning.
The statement also disclosed that through the Economic Recovery Growth Plan (ERGP) initiated about one and half years ago, about $4.7 billion investment has been identified in agriculture and transport focus labs with a potential to create about 129, 000 jobs.
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The Minister of Budget and National Planning, Senator Udoma Udo Udoma, whose ministry coordinates implementation of ERGP said the cumulative investment value of the projects that were identified at the focus labs were projected to rise up to about $39.12 billion with potential for 716, 079 jobs by 2025.
“Our aim is, simply put, to raise the level of productivity in Nigeria. We want more things to be grown in Nigeria. We want more things to be made in Nigeria. We want more opportunities created for Nigerians to be able to work. That is what the focus labs are all about.” he said.
This is as the special assistant to the president on media and publicity, Garba Shehu and the statistician-general of the federation,
Yemi Kale have disagreed over methods of tracking job creation and unemployment numbers in Nigeria.
While Shehu has accused Kale of underplaying the jobs created in agriculture, Kale has claimed that lack of funds had frustrated the release of 2018 employment figures.
“Mr. President, who had complained many times about employment figures reflecting mostly white collar jobs and therefore unfairly underplaying the millions of jobs his administration has created in the farms must have felt a sense of vindication.
“The response by the government was, go and put this out, address a world press conference to correct the wrong impression for all to know how well we are doing in creating jobs. We hope there will soon be a date for that press conference.” Shehu said in an interview with Channels TV.
