THE Federal Government has revealed that its non-oil earning in the next 10 years will hit $30 billion replacing oil as the country’s major source of foreign exchange.
Disclosing this in Abuja, the Executive Director of Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC), Segun Awolowo stated that the Zero Oil Export policy of the Council is already shifting the attention of Nigerians from oil.
Awolowo said this while hosting members of the Nigerian Initiative Economic Development who paid him a courtesy cal in his office. The Executive Director solicited for the support of NIED to improve the country’s foreign exchange.
He explained that the volatility in the oil market had made it imperative for the government to look inwards, noting that the country could no longer depend mainly on oil economy for implementation of its programme.
According to him, “the NEPC would work with members of the Nigerian Initiative Economic Development to bring to bear the vision of the government to make Nigeria an economy that could survive without oil revenue”.
Awolowo revealed that due to the over dependence of Nigeria government on oil economy, the country recorded a total revenue shortfall of about $40 billion between 2014 and 2016 due to fall in oil price.
The NIED is made up of Nigerian-Americans who are currently in the country to support the diversification plans of the Federal Government through massive investments in agriculture, manufacturing, solid minerals and transportation.