President Muhammadu Buhari on Friday said his administration will focus on ending poverty in the country until the end of his administration in 2023.
The president made this commitment in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, during official presentation of the Country Review Report of Nigeria to the 31st Africa Peer Review Forum of the African Union.
The president said the poor and vulnerable in Nigeria remain top priority for protection and lifting from the poverty cycle through the sustenance of social safety nets. He added that access to education and opportunities will be expanded.
According a statement by Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Mr Femi Adesina, Buhari said the Nigerian government will take advantage of Information, Communication and Technology to ensure inclusiveness, access and create more opportunities.
“Nigeria’s strategic focus, as we set out to achieve the objectives of the African Union Agenda 2063, has been around building a thriving and sustainable economy, enhancing social inclusion and alleviating poverty, enlarging agricultural output for food security and sufficiency and attaining energy sufficiency in power and petroleum products,” Buhari said at the event.
The country is also focussed on “expanding transport and other infrastructural development, business growth, entrepreneurship and industrialization as well as access to quality education, affordable healthcare and productivity, social cohesion and security, and building a system that fights corruption and improve governance,” according to the president.
Buhari assured that Nigeria remains resolutely committed to achieving these set goals.
He further assured that his administration remains committed to providing social safety nets for the poor and most vulnerable in the society, while also taking advantage of the huge opportunities offered by the information and technology sector.
The President reiterated that Nigeria had remained a committed and dedicated member of the African Peer Review family, after acceding to the Mechanism in 2003, pointing out that “the forum has presented its second peer review report on Nigeria.
“This Second Peer Review of Nigeria came at a critical time in the history of the country. From the report just presented, there is no doubt that the exercise was far reaching, as it touched the various segments of Nigeria’s political-economy and highlighted the progress recorded since the first peer review.
“The report also highlighted some challenges and as a country, we are prepared to review those challenges in the context of our internal dynamics in Nigeria, ultimately with the determination of achieving Agenda 2063 goals of the African Union,’’ he added.