Nigeria’s economic recovery lies in full control of resources— Bowen don 

…saying foreign aid reliance entangles nations

A Professor of Economics from the College of Management and Social Sciences, Bowen University, Iwo, Osun State, Professor Adedoyin Lawal, has declared that Nigeria’s economic recovery lies in its determination to take over the ownership of its resources and maximise them judiciously without foreign interference.

The don noted that regardless of any form of measures a nation might strategically deploy to ensure sustainable economic recovery, efficient resource control is essential for a sustainable economy.

Lawal said this at the recently held 21st inaugural lecture of Bowen University, which he delivered under the topic ‘Complexity and Simplicity: Unlocking the options for sustainable economic growth.’

According to him, it is high time Nigeria as a country took over full ownership of its mineral resources with an intent to process them into products for exportation.

He noted that the action would boost our export economy tremendously, which he said would reflect positively on the country’s foreign currency reserve. 

The professor further charged Nigeria to discourage itself from seeking foreign aid for its economic development projects, adding that the result will put the nation into perpetual slavery. 

Professor Lawal, in his inaugural lecture, described Nigeria as a resource-curse economy, fully endowed with mineral resources with a conducive environment for agricultural development, but characterised by high-level violence, corruption, and other economic vices.

He added that Nigeria might need to change its mode of operation from being a consumer country to a producer country by developing its resources.

Speaking further, he asserted that inflation in Nigeria is largely cost-push, such that increasing interest rates will only add to the cost of production, and manufacturers will pass the burden of interest to the final consumers. 

He said, “On the issue of curbing excess money in circulation, using interest to reduce excess liquidity might not yield the desired result, as some people in Nigerian society (bandits) do not patronise the banking system. 

“The role of public expenditure in fostering economic growth has long been a subject of debate among economists. For instance, a school of thought argued that public expenditure can actively stimulate economic growth and should be viewed as a driver rather than a consequence of it. In contrast, other schools of thought believed that public expenditure is merely a byproduct of national economic growth 

“However, empirical studies by eminent economics scholars in their findings show that both in the short and in the long run, government spending does not significantly drive economic growth. This suggests  the presence of arbitrary expansion across overlapping ministries, departments, and agencies (MDAs),  leading to inefficient and misaligned public spending.”

Continuing, the professor of economics added that, based on the insights, it’s expedient for government parastatals to improve fiscal efficiency and enhance the impact of public expenditure.

Though Professor Lawal described the President Bola Tinubu-led administration’s 2025 fiscal policy reform and the budget bill option as excellent, saying its impact on the economy will depend on efficient handlers who will drive the policy to fruition as envisaged by the president. 

He added that the economic measures the president has put in place to redress the damaging economy will take time for the masses to feel their impact because of their magnitude. 

Professor Lawal, who is the current Head of the Department of Economics at Bowen University, presented some solution options drawn from his research towards Nigeria’s sustainable economic growth efforts. 

According to him, resource-curse economies can change the tides by deliberately changing from being a primary producer to value addition. He noted that no economy can grow substantially by being an exporter of primary produce. The petroleum refining process can yield over 6,000 products. 

He also encouraged the Nigerian government to embrace saving culture, boost productivity and innovation, and develop improved negotiation skills.

Lawal also suggested strategic partnership deals among the major power blocs of the world, urging them to “engage in tangible–intangible trade-offs and also to adopt value re-orientation policy to adjust the country’s consumption pattern; buying home-made products, grow what we eat, produce what we wear and drive what we produce.”

The vice chancellor of the university, Professor Jonathan Babalola, in his remarks, stated that African countries’ major problems are the management of our resources and our inability to curb corruption.

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