(Isaac Anumihe, ABUJA)
Minister of Finance, Mrs Kemi Adeosun, yesterday, gave reasons why the Federal Government wants to use the pension fund to fund infrastructure, saying that the fund needed to earn a return.
Speaking when stakeholders in the market, led by the Chairman, Capital Market Master Plan Council (CAMMIC), Mr Olutola Mobolurin, visited her in Abuja, Adeosun said that the return would be largely driven through the capital market and that in order to achieve this, instruments should be created and certain sectors should be derisked.
Adeosun, however, called for more stakeholders engagement and literacy and awareness campaign on the importance of the capital market.
According to her , a lot of people do not really understand the capital market and what it could do for the development of the country.
“There is a lot to be done on your part around literacy and awareness as well as stakeholders engagement at every level, especially at the political level because I am not sure every minister truly understands what the capital market means for his portfolio” she said.
Adeosun explained that the capital market had potentials to solving most of the nation’s financial problems adding that the government would leverage on the opportunity and harness the potentials.
She said the country needed funds to finance various sectors of the economy and the capital market was the strength needed to support the government.
The minister said there was need for the capital market to compete with the money market but in order to do that, operators needed to increase its competitiveness.
Earlier, the Chairman and Leader of the Team, Olutola Mobolurin said that the committee was at the Minister’s Office to discuss the imperatives of mainstreaming the Master Plan of the Nigerian Capital Market Master Plan [2015-2023] with the view of getting the inputs of the Ministry of Finance along with other stakeholders to enable it come up with a robust market that is capable of revamping it into a National economic Development Policy.
”It is sad that the Nigeria’s Macroeconomic Outlook presently includes a challenging macroeconomic environment, imminent recession, rising inflation, falling purchasing power and failing levels of reserves. Today, Nigeria ranks less favorably on competitiveness. Standard of living and development indices remain relatively poor, in spite of the present challenges. Nigeria is richly endowed with all the resources needed to overcome the challenges and emerge as a major global economic powerhouse”.he said.