Omodele Adigun and Uche Henry
Worried by Nigeria’s current standing on the global human development index, two prominent economic minds recently advocated tax and welfare packages that would lift the nation out of its messy present.
According to Mr. Fola Adeola, the Chairman of Fate Foundation, and Mr. Muda Yusuf, the Director General of Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), who spoke at an Economic Discourse on Human Development Index versus Economic Growth organised by Vanguard Newspapers, only economic policies geared towards improving the human capacity to produce goods and services can grow the nation’s economy.
Adeola, a former Group Chief Executive of Guaranty Trust Bank, in his keynote address on Human Development Index and Economic Growth, Nigeria’s Policy Options, said that since human capacity development is a necessary condition for economic growth and development, it was expedient that economic policies geared towards improving the human capacity to produce goods and services and impart on the economy should be given top priority.
“We need to develop our human capacity first so that we can produce because any country that does not produce cannot grow or develop, and there must be prudent measurement of productivity; if not, we will still be rigmaroling because what cannot be measured cannot be done,” he stated.
He explained that, “Nigeria’s problems cannot be solved by its abundant resources but rather by the quality of its human resources which have what it takes to fix the country and the political will to act decisively and proactively to place it in the right direction. This, of course, cannot be done if human capacity building is relegated,” he added.
Adeola identified “12 giant evils” that have been bedevilling the country and grounded the economy. These evils, according to him, include voidness, insecurity, idleness, diseases, darkness, barrenness, squalor and hunger.
“Other evils like wastage and mismanagement, crookedness, ignorance and aimlessness particularly on the side of political leaders and resource controllers must be addressed urgently if the country must extricate itself from present economic mess,” he stated.
According to him, there are other evils that have kept the country in a sorry state, which, if not tackled, might spell doom for the country.
For his part, LCCI boss, Muda Yusuf, argued that the private sector can complement the efforts of the government in delivering quality human capital because the country needs human capital to drive its economy.
He stated: “The Federal Government should not be taxing private schools, whether primary, secondary or university, the way it is taxing banks or an oil company because they are helping to support it to deliver on some key social objectives.
“We should grant them complete tax holiday and all the inputs into the educational sector, including educational materials and laboratory materials; all these should come into the country free of import duty so that the private sector may be able to complement the effort of the government in delivering quality human capital because we need human capital to drive the economy.”