FG to create, save 5m jobs from post-COVID-19 economic plans ― Adebayo

By JENNIFER INAH, Abuja

The Nigerian government says it will create and save about five million jobs from its Post-Covid-19 economic recovery plans.

The Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Mr Adeniyi Adebayo, disclosed this in a statement signed by his Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Mr Julius Toba-Jegede, in Abuja.

He revealed that plans are underway to save about 1.4 million jobs of Nigerians, with 40 percent of them in female-owned Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises MSMEs and 10 percent in businesses belonging to people with special needs.

Mr Adebayo said “the move is part of his ministry’s input in playing a lead role in the Federal Government’s delivery of Real Sector interventions of its Economic Sustainability Plan in the wake of the global pandemic”.

The Minister gave an overview of three programmes required to achieve the initiative to include; the MSME Survival Fund, the Guaranteed Off-take Stimulus Scheme and the Credit Support to MSMEs and Priority Sector.

“These interventions will save and create about five million jobs, support continued operations and increase in production capacity in priority sectors and protect MSMEs from the shocks of the Covid-19 pandemic.

“The Guaranteed Off-take Stimulus Scheme’s objective is to protect jobs, stimulate economic activities across the country and protect the income of vulnerable MSMEs by guaranteeing off-take of items produced by these businesses. The scheme will save an additional 300,000 jobs in MSMEs nationwide.

“The Credit Support to MSMEs and Priority Sector will provide affordable finance to key sectors impacted by the pandemic and enable increase in manufacturing capacity in priority sectors,” he said.

Mr Adebayo said the scheme will save and create an additional three million jobs and will be implemented through N50 billion MSME de-risking facility, N100 billion intervention fund for priority sectors.

“These sectors include healthcare, agro-processing, creative industry, local oil and gas and exports.

“There will also be N150 billion Capitalization Fund and a N50 billion Export Expansion Facility,” he added.

The Minister said the programmes had been designed with a robust governance structure and a monitoring and evaluation framework to ensure their successful implementation. (VON)