The Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), on Thursday, described President Bola Tinubu’s New Year speech as boasting critical themes relevant to the nation’s growth.
It said the themes were such that could even help Nigeria achieve her goals of becoming a $1 trillion economy through more collaborations with the international community and improving the country’s business environment.
These critical themes, it added, included the announcement of the National Credit Guarantee Company, the President’s desire to work more collaboratively with the international community and his focus on ethical citizenship and shared values.
In a response by the Director General of LCCI, Dr. Chinyere Almona, the institution reiterated her concerns about the consistency of policies and the reforms currently being driven by the government.
Almona said: “The National Credit Guarantee Company announcement represents a critical step toward unlocking access to credit, particularly for women, youth, and small-scale enterprises.
“If implemented effectively and efficiently, it can boost demand for goods from agro-producers and industries, and this can improve the capacity utilisation of manufacturers and the capacity to create more jobs in the mid-term.
“We, however, emphasise the need for swift operationalisation and a transparent framework to avoid bureaucratic bottlenecks,” noting that the president’s desire to work more collaboratively with the international community was a good idea.
She added that for Nigeria to really explore inherent opportunities in international relations, it must do more to create an enabling business environment attractive enough to boost the country’s share of Foreign Direct Investments this year.
“All our diplomatic efforts should be geared towards boosting foreign trade, especially when we can boost our non-oil exports to the levels of recording trade surpluses in 2025.
“We need critical investments in the telecommunications sector to boost the digital transformation agenda of this government.
“Similarly, the Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) initiative requires huge investment in infrastructure. Both digital transformation and energy transition are quite critical to achieving the level of industrialisation required to power a one trillion economy,” Almona said.
The LCCI further noted that the president’s focus on ethical citizenship and shared values underscored the role of social cohesion in nation-building.
It, therefore, said the upcoming National Values Charter and Youth Confab were commendable efforts to galvanise citizens and foster patriotism.
“For the business community, a stable and cooperative societal framework is foundational for sustained economic activity.
“Beyond the show of commitment to a charter of shared values, we believe that the rule of law remains the most important guarantee of human rights protection and the best template for justice and fairness in a democratic state,” the chamber said.
It urged the government to do everything within its means and power to institute a culture of avoiding controversies and uncertainties by charting a sure path for policies, regulations, and budget implementation.
Sunday Aborisade, Dike Onwuamaeze and Ahmad Sorondinki
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