The Vice President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Professor Yemi Osinbajo, SAN, has said the country’s economy may not be able to create as many jobs as the country needs due to its high population growth rate.
He said this during his keynote address at the fourth annual Impact Investors Foundation Conference held in Lagos. The VP spoke virtually from his office in Abuja.
Osinbajo said, “The population growth rate consistently exceeds the capacity of the economy to produce sufficient jobs. It is also quite evident that some of the most lucrative businesses in the economy and with the profits they make, only a few people relative to the population benefit from the huge dividends that are declared.
“So glaringly, inequality in wealth, opportunities in the face of poverty, misery and social alienation in any society is simply asking for trouble. Such a situation is neither sustainable nor wise.
“The sharp drop in the standard of living caused by the COVID-19 pandemic-induced shocks on our economy and of course, our economy’s well being, not only further deepened the existing inequalities but pushed many people into extreme poverty,” the VP added.
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Osinbajo added that impact investing was a sound approach to addressing the issues.
He said the current models of impact investing that seen in the country currently were not only inspiring but also pointed in the general direction policy and regulation should go. The founder and Chief Executive Officer of the IIF, Mrs Ibukun Awosika, had said earlier during her opening remarks that Nigeria needs to collaborate with in-country resources. She said, “This is why the focus of this conference is to show the opportunities for investing within Nigeria.
“Not just investing from the regular view, but understanding that doing good and doing well as a combined policy of our investment activities can be one of the greatest things that we could do.”
The IIF organizes its annual convening on impact investing to promote the impact investing sector in Nigeria and resolve the market barriers impeding its growth. Impact investing as defined by the IIF is one that solves socio-economic challenges while generating profit. PUNCH
