Buhari promises Nigerians better life

President Muhammadu Buhari, yesterday, assured Nigerians and the international community of his administration’s commitment to use the rest of his tenure to improve access to quality education, health care and enhance productivity in a roll call of nine priority areas.

The President, who received letters of credence from ambassadors/high commissioners of eight countries at the State House, Abuja, said efforts were being made to sustain Nigeria’s position as a profitable investment destination with “unequalled incentives in all sectors, especially large market and flexible tax system which investors from various countries can take advantage of.”

The affected envoys are Hocine Latil of Algeria; Luong Quoc Thinh of Vietnam; Dr. Benson Alfred Bana of Tanzania; Traore Kalilou of Cote d’Ivoire; Abakar Saleh Chahaimi of Chad; Jamal Mohammed Barrow of Somalia; Brahim Salem El Mami Buseif of Sahrawi Arab Republic’s Mohammed Alibak of Iran.

Buhari told the diplomats about Nigeria’s priority and quest for people-focused policies. He went on: “In our efforts to achieve a realistic domestic and foreign policy, as well as national development, we have identified the following nine priority areas to guide our policy directions over the next few years.

“Build a thriving and sustainable economy; Enhance social inclusion and reduce poverty; Enlarge agricultural output for food security and export; attain energy sufficiency in power and petroleum products and expand transport and other infrastructural development.

“Expand business growth, entrepreneurship and industrialisation; expand access to quality education, affordable healthcare and productivity of Nigerians; build a system to fight corruption; improve governance and create social cohesion in addition to improve security for all.”

Describing Nigerians as the “nation’s most prized assets’’, Buhari said the nine priority mandates were already reflected in the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP), a medium-term initiative pioneered by the government to restore economic growth and development while leveraging the resourcefulness and resilience of the citizens.