THE Federal Government, on Tuesday, stated that for Nigeria to come out of its current economic doldrums, only private sector holds the key to that integration.
Minister of Mines and Steel Development, Dr Kayode Fayemi, made this disclosure in Abuja at the 53rd annual international conference and exhibition of the Nigerian Society for Mining and Geosciences.
Delivering his keynote address entitled: “Extractive Industry: The Imperatives for Wealth Creation and Employment,” the minister said that for Nigeria to witness economic growth on a sustained basis, it must successfully integrate itself into global markets.
According to him, “For a country to grow, it has to be part of the global goods and services market and it must also be able to access global capital, and it is the private sector that holds the key to that integration.
“If the private sector is going to deliver its full development potential in this regard, then we need to get the climate right for both domestic and foreign investments. If the private sector is to be the real engine of growth in a developing country like ours, the business leaders of tomorrow are going to emerge and lead the way. We must work together as partners to get some critical prerequisites in place. If academia is going to remain relevant, it must build links with industry and government in a mutually-beneficial manner.”
Dr Fayemi announced that the aspiration of the present administration was to build a world-class minerals and mining ecosystem designed to serve a targeted domestic and export market for minerals and ores.
The minister said the government would also achieve this by focusing on Nigeria’s minerals, mining and related processing industry over a three-phase period.
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