Shettima: Nigeria’s Economy Is Recovering, We’re Anticipating A Bumper Harvest In 2025

Vice President Kashim Shettima, on Friday said the Nigerian economy was recovering, even as he anticipated a bumper harvest this year.

Shettima was also optimistic that ongoing reforms initiated by the administration of President Bola Tinubu were such that would create employment opportunities for the youths as well as provide greater opportunities in various sectors of the economy.

He said this during the distribution of the tractors and sharing of relief items to victims of the 2024 flood disaster at the Government House at Lafia, Nasarawa State, describing the State as an agricultural powerhouse of the nation.

Shettima at the occasion inaugurated the distribution of tractors to 13 Local Government Areas and some selected individual farmers in preparation for the 2025 rainy season in the State.

The Vice President assured that the Nigerian economy was picking up, saying that the country was going to record a bumper harvest this year.

He said Nasarawa State has taken the position to feed the nation, adding that the federal government would continue to support the State in its quest to proffer solutions to the food crisis in Nigeria.

According to him, “The federal government under the leadership of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, will continue to identify with Nasarawa State and render whatever support and assistance necessary to enable the state succeed.”

On the distribution of relief items, Shettima said the federal government would continue to support the less privileged who had been affected by disasters to better their living conditions in their various localities.

Also, on Friday, while speaking at the Combined Graduation Ceremony of the Wing Commander Abdullahi Ibrahim Vocational and Technology Institute in Lafia, the Vice President underscored the inevitability of skills acquisition among the young demographic in Nigeria, noting that the nation could no longer afford to keep growing a population of idle, unemployed and unemployable youths.

The Vice President, in a statement issued by his Media Assistant, Stanley Nkwocha, stated that, “The danger of paying lip service to technical and vocational skills acquisition is one none of us is prepared to experience, and the examples of various low- and middle-income countries, especially the Asian Tigers, are there to inspire the direction of our National Development Plans and push our economic drive towards a destination we all desire—a place of boom.

“This is why President Bola Tinubu has championed economic reforms beyond the usual cosmetic fixes to lay the groundwork for greater opportunities ahead. With increased allocations to the states, I believe that we are more than energised to fund our development programmes.”

Recalling Nigeria’s origin as an agrarian nation, the Vice President noted that there is no greater inspiration than concentrating on “the magnitude of initiatives made possible by the proceeds of the sector and the hard work of those skilled and unskilled workers who were the fulcrum of our pre-oil economy.”

According to him, the graduation ceremony was an opportunity to celebrate the sincerity of the administration’s promise to create avenues for upskilling and reskilling the nation’s workforce across sectors.

Shettima pointed out that the institute was a vehicle through which the APC-led government fulfils its promise to Nigerians to “prioritise poverty reduction, employment generation, and job creation”.

Cautioning against harbouring the population of unemployed youths in the country, he said, “The reality we inherited points to the existence of a link between youth unemployment, violence, and other associated crimes, and as such, we cannot afford to create an idle, unemployed, or unemployable demographic.

Shettima who had earlier flagged off the distribution of relief materials to flood victims, presentation of tractors and paddy rice to farmers in the state said it was a demonstration of his “affinity for Nasarawa State, and as a Kanuri man who has ancestral connections with some segments” of the state that has already become home to him.

Earlier in his remarks, Governor Sule said the skills programme of the state vocational and technology institute was designed to address the skills gap in critical sectors and empower young Nigerians.

He thanked the Vice President for finding time to visit the state, and for supporting its modest contributions to economic transformation and youth empowerment.

In his remarks, former Plateau State Governor, Senator Simon Lalong, praised the courage and efforts of the state government in impacting the lives of young Nigerians through the various schemes in agriculture and vocational and technology training.

On his part, the Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese, His Lordship, Hassan Kukah, thanked Nasarawa State government for the efforts to address poverty through skills acquisition and economic empowerment initiative, just as he emphasised the significance of empowering young people with skills to impact their communities and societies.

Also speaking, Executive Director of the Wing Commander Abdullahi Ibrahim Vocational Technology Institute, Dr Daniel Asele said the 1,000 graduands of the 2024 programme of the institute had undergone rigorous training and acquired skills that are relevant to contemporary challenges of their communities and state at large.

In a goodwill message, the Director General of the Nigeria Employers Consultative Association (NECA), Mr Adewale Oyerinde, commended the Nasarawa State government for its commitment to empowering young Nigerians, saying the programme would significantly impact ongoing efforts to transform and industrialise the economy by providing the necessary skilled manpower to drive the processes.

On his part, the Emir of Lafia, Hon. Justice Sidi Bage Muhammad I (rtd), thanked the Vice President for his support and commitment to the people of Nasarawa State, pledging the loyalty of the traditional council to the federal government’s programmes and policies.

High points of the event were the presentation of start-up packs and certificates to the graduands in welding, tailoring, and ICT among other fields.

Deji Elumoye and Igbawase Ukumba

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