Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Senator Abubakar Bagudu, has emphasized the need for Nigeria to develop a sound financial system with integrity to attract more resources and fund its development agenda.
Speaking at the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit’s management retreat in Abuja, Bagudu noted that the country’s current financing level is insufficient to achieve its Agenda 2050 goals, which require an annual investment of at least $100 billion, according to Leadership.
He commended President Bola Tinubu’s administration for implementing bold economic reforms to boost revenue but stressed that more needs to be done to achieve the desired financing levels.
Bagudu cited the example of Brazil and Indonesia, which have similar population sizes but significantly larger budgets, and emphasized the need for Nigeria to improve its credit rating and attract domestic and foreign investments.
He praised the NFIU for its efforts in enhancing the integrity and soundness of the financial system and encouraged more effective communication to reinforce its work.
“Our Agenda 2050, a statement of our national aspiration, requires that we invest at least 100 billion dollars annually to achieve a GDP per capita of $33,000 or more by 2050,” he said, adding, “We are nowhere near that.”
” However, we still need to be where we should be; we are not near the kind of flows we expect,” the minister noted.
” The plan is to use private sector or capital market money to fund the plan. Because of that, we need confidence, integrity, and soundness in our financial system,” he pointed out, “The rating agencies could be more generous with us, maybe not only with us but with all countries.”
The minister said, “Our credit rating should improve. We have taken measures similar to those in countries that have achieved significant increases in credit ratings. We have established and committed institutions, particularly the NFIU, and should benefit from them.
“Communication matters, so we reinforce and punish wrongdoing while drawing attention to our great work to enhance the integrity and soundness of our financial assistance.”
