The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr. Wale Edun, has said that the major goal of the various reform programmes of the present administration is to lift Nigerians out of poverty in their millions.

Edun, who stated this on Wednesday at the closing of the Nigerian Economic Summit (NES31) in Abuja, admitted that the government was willing to keep to the charge from the summit to translate the summit outputs into a single time-bound matrix that aligns with the summit objectives.

He stated that the overall aim and objective, strategy and policy of the Renewed Hope Agenda is to embark on massive execution of all the reforms.

“I will just emphasise that at the end of the day, the reforms must translate to better living standards. They must translate to lifting Nigerians out of poverty in their millions. That is the overall aim and objective, strategy and policy of the Renewed Hope Agenda,” he said.

He said the government is working to sustain consensus, solve bottlenecks, build capital, and publish evidence that keeps everyone honest between now and NES 32.

The minister further explained that the government would be transparent in the execution of the reforms as its commitment to Nigerians.

“The journey to a prosperous and inclusive Nigeria will be won by cadence and credibility. The cadence of regular delivery updates and the credibility that comes from measurable results from revealing data. So let us carry the discipline of this agenda,” the minister noted, adding that the government is striving to achieve a $1 trillion economy in 2030.

He said the national development plans would address a strategic blueprint to head towards a $1 trillion economy.

“Those are difficult to do, and it takes determination, resilience and being willing to stay the course to come up with projects that are feasible with both the public and the private sectors playing their effective roles. We will integrate the jobs and productivity insights that were agreed upon,” he noted.

Edun disclosed that reforming the tax regime is to produce more revenue for the government at all levels.

On infrastructure, the Minister said that a number of key infrastructure projects are being put in place by governments at all levels.

He said, “We all know the trajectory of the states in particular. And I must say that the data does show that they are investing in capital expenditure, capital projects, but the overall aim is to draw in the private sector, give them the opportunity to take part in the domestic market and indeed in international market, based on the new competitiveness that we have in the Nigerian production sector, manufacturing sector and indeed industrial sector.

Chairman of NESG, Mr.Niyi Yusuf, during the closing press conference, said the Think Tank group will continue to collaborate with the government to ensure the full implementation of the summit recommendations.

He said that one of the greatest achievements of the last summit was the enactment of the new tax laws, which was one of its recommendations at the summit.

He noted that the group will work with the government to identify recommendations that should be given priority.