Nigeria has created and saved over 2million jobs through the implementation of the Economic Sustainability Plan, ESP, which began in June last year.
The Economic Sustainability Committee, chaired by Nigeria’s Vice President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo designed the N2.3 trillion ESP as the country’s response to the economic challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic.
President Muhammadu Buhari set up the committee in March 2020, charging it, among other things, to develop a clear economic sustainability plan in response to the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Parts of its objective was to provide fiscal and monetary stimulus package, including support to private businesses; and propose a clear-cut strategy to keep existing jobs and create opportunities for new ones.
Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Office of the Vice President, Laolu Akande, who briefed the media after the meeting of the Economic Sustainability Plan on Thursday, said that the over 2million jobs were created around micro, small and medium enterprises, MSMEs.
He said that the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed, gave a report on the implementation of the plan at the meeting on Thursday, detailing the outcome of the plan and the release of funds for it.
“The committee was also briefed that over two million jobs have been both saved and created since the implementation of the ESP.
“This is especially around MSMEs with the Survival Fund; the Payroll Support, construction and a lot of rehabilitation that has been going on, including the 774,000 jobs created around public works in each of the 774 local government areas in the country,” he stated.
About 57% of budget released
According to Akande, the Finance Minister also informed the committee that there has been considerable progress in the release of funds with about 57% of the N500billion allocated to the plan in the amended 2020 Appropriation Act released so far.
He said that this “is why there has been considerable progress in the work of the committee.”
Akande said that the Vice President and members of the committee were committed to doing more to meet the president’s target of ensuring that the fall outs of the pandemic do not badly affect the Nigerian people and that the Nigerian economy gets the recovery it deserves.
Lateefah Ibrahim
