Nigeria on Wednesday launched its National Development Plan, 2021-2025.
The Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed, who introduced the plan to President Muhammadu Buhari, declared that the 2021-2025 plan succeeds both Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP 2017-2020) and the Vision 20:2020.
Ahmed announced that the Plan will focus investment on massive infrastructure, ensure economic stability, enhance the investment environment, improve on social indicators and living conditions of Nigerians, among other targets.
When the plan was initiated earlier this year, it was announced as a plan that will help the Nigerian economy to achieve once more an annual growth rate of five percent. It targets to achieve an investment of about $840 billion in infrastructure over a period of five year. As much as 85.7% of this amount is expected to come from the private sector.
Speaking at the formal launch of the plan on Wednesday, Ahmed further said that the plan will encourage the encourage the use of science, technology, and innovation to drive the growth being targeted.
“In order to have the future we all desire, the Plan is developed to play a sizable role in the product complexity space internationally and adopts measures to ease constraints that have hindered the economy from attaining its potentials, particularly on the product mapping space,” the minister said.
“The plan provides for the implementation of major infrastructure and other development projects across the six geopolitical zones and opening up of opportunities for the rural areas to ensure balanced development and increased competitiveness.
She added that the NDP builds on the foundation developed in the Vision 20:2020 and the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan. Lessons from these previous plans guided the development of the NDP 2021-2025
According to her, the plan seeks to invest massively in infrastructure, ensure macroeconomic stability, enhance the investment environment, improve on social indicators and living conditions, tackle climate change mitigation, adaptation, and resilience strategies, among others”, she said.
