By George Onyejiuwa,Owerri
President of the Nigerian Association of Economists (NAE), Prof. Innocent Eleazu said more than 90 million Nigerians live in extreme poverty due to a bad economy caused by incompetence, greed, corruption, wickedness and mismanagement of the country’s economy by the ruling class, warning that if the situation is not adequately addressed, there could be famine by 2025 in Nigeria.
He pointed out that one of the main causes of the failure of the country’s economy is the overreliance on “crude oil, which dominates Nigeria’s export sector”.
Prof. Eleazu, who said this at the Association’s wake-up/reward dinner held over the weekend in Owerri, Imo State, said that more than 86.9 million Nigerians live in extreme poverty, about 50% of the population.
He said Nigeria National’s growing public debt continues to be a cause for concern. “The Debt Management Office said total external debt stood at 827.16 trillion while domestic debt soared to 856.7 billion.”
“In Nigeria, about 86.9 million people live in extreme poverty, about 50% of the total population. The poverty rate in Nigeria in 2018 was 92.00%, a decrease of 0.9% from 2009. Imagine what the unemployment rate is in Nigeria today. The consumer price index in Nigeria is expected to reach 409.75 points by the end of the quarter, according to Trading Economic Globe Macnomodels”.
Urge the federal government to invest heavily in human capital development, trade and industry to improve the economy.
Eleazu who disapproved of the high cost of living, especially throughout the Southeast, lamenting that the poverty rate was alarming. “By 2026, the overwhelming majority of Nigerians will live in extreme poverty. The wealth gap has created the political constitution that allows terrorism to thrive, making anti-corruption goals unachievable.”
In addition, Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, who received an award for excellence from the association, urged the federal government to encourage agriculture by equipping farmers and building infrastructure, and advised economists to continue exploring positive ways to join with government and other relevant agencies to strengthen the economy.
