Investment in education will lift Nigerians out of poverty –experts

Financial experts have tasked the federal government to improve the ease of doing business and invest more in the education sector as a panacea to lift 100 million Nigerians out of poverty.

They revealed this in separate interviews with the Nigeria News Agency (NAN) in Lagos.

They said that paying more attention to education would change the economic situation of the people.

Nigeria-South Africa Chamber of Commerce Executive Secretary Iyke Ejimofor said the surest way to lift Nigerians out of poverty would be to educate them more.

“The government should allocate more funds to the education sector in order to enable people to have skills that are more relevant in today’s world.

“The emphasis should be on informal education, especially entrepreneurship, as it is the antidote to poverty,” said Ejimofor.

He added that the federal government should invest more in the health care sector because there is a serious link between good health, the economy and productivity.

A former director of the National Association of Small and Medium Enterprises (NASME), Mr Nerus Ekezie, said the federal government should fight poverty by improving the ease of doing business.

“The government reforming the process of doing business will encourage more young people to enter into entrepreneurship.

“Studies have shown over time that venturing into entrepreneurship will create value and meet the challenges of unemployment,” said Ekezie.

He added that the government should grant tax exemptions and ensure a reduction in the time of acquiring land permits to attract investment into the economy.

NAN reports that President Muhammadu Buhari recently reaffirmed the federal government’s overall economic goal of lifting 100 million Nigerians out of poverty within 10 years, despite COVID-19. (NAA)