Oscarline Onwuemenyi
24 May 2017, Sweetcrude, Abuja – The Federal Government has said that it plans to achieve 10 Gigawatts of electricity operational capacity by the year 2020.
The Minister of Budget and National Planning, Sen. Udoma Udo Udoma, who stated this in a keynote address at the second Kano Economic and Investment Summit on Tuesday, said the Federal Government had also planed to improve the power sector through the renewable energy sources.
The summit is part of activities organised by Kano State Government to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the creation of the state.
According to him, the government is committed to reviving the manufacturing sector, to achieve an annual growth of 8.5 per cent to meet 10.6 per cent growth rate by 2020.
“We also intend to achieve self-sufficiency in petroleum products during the period. we also want to be an exporter of some key agricultural products such as rice, groundnut, cassava and vegetable oil, among others,” he said.
Udoma further noted that the Federal Government intended to create no fewer than 15 million jobs for the unemployed persons in the country as part of efforts to fight poverty, particularly among the youth.
He said based on the plan, 3.7 million jobs would be created annually to address the unemployment challenges in the country.
“If you get people out of poverty, you must provide them with jobs, hence our commitment to provide jobs,” he said.
He disclosed that the Federal Government had set aside a certain amount of money in this year’s budget to provide infrastructure for the revival of the free trade zone in Kano.
He said this would give exporters in Kano the opportunity to take advantage of the funds.
The minister, who commended Kano State Government for initiating the summit, said the Federal Government would continue to support such giant strides aimed at promoting economic growth in the country.
“Federal Government is encouraged by the effort of many states for the progress they are making in the agricultural sector of the economy. I am confident the summit will promote investment opportunities in the state and the country at large,” he said.
Prominent personalities who attended the summit included the Minister of Interior, Gen. Abdurahman Danbaba, Gov. Aminu Tambuwal of Sokoto State and Deputy Governor of Zamfara, Malam Ibrahim Wakala.
The theme of the summit is “Transforming the Kano Economy: Turning Challenges into Opportunities”.
