Soludo: We Have Reached A Stage Where Nigeria Must ‘Innovate, Compete Or Die,’

  • Says signing AfCTA means insularity will no longer be an option.
  • Says Nigeria is struggling with the basic stages of growth when electric cars are fast replacing diesel and petrol cars.

A former Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) governor, Professor Charles Soludo, has said it is important for Nigeria to be innovative.

Speaking at The Platform, a programme convened by Pastor Poju Oyemade of Covenant Christian Center, Soludo explained that this was necessary for the country to remain relevant among the comity of nations.

Speaking on the signing of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AFCFTA), the former CBN boss said the implication is that insularity will no longer be an option.

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“The name of the game of the future in an increasingly integrated world is innovating, compete or die,” Soludo said.

Speaking further, Soludo who said that the world was already on the fourth industrial revolution with the digital economy while Nigeria was struggling with the basic stages of growth noted that electric cars are fast replacing diesel and petrol cars, and many Nigerians are still building petrol stations.

“The ordinary people who can’t explain what has hit them resort to all sorts of criminal activities to survive. Economic structuring will entail thinking through the alternative scenarios and mapping out to alternative possible proactive responses,” the former CBN boss added.

Soludo who noted that it would be difficult to have a competitive and prosperous post-oil economy of the future with additional hundreds of millions of Nigerians in the coming years stressed the need for Nigeria to improve its legal institutional foundation which he said has been designed for the consumption of oil rent.

He, therefore, advised that the country must completely shift from depending on oil sale as a source of revenue.

According to him, a post-oil economy requires that stakeholders maximise their full potentials. He stressed that it was impossible to build a 100-story building on the foundation of an old bungalow.

The economist also stated that this requires efforts from every citizen as the responsibility was not for the Federal Government alone.

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He also said that Nigeria needs to focus on wealth creation rather than sharing and consuming oil rent, paving the way for a new national business model.

“The link between law, constitution, institution, and judiciary and the economic transformations seems to be the weakest link in our design of national agenda,” the economist said.

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