Nile University of Nigeria is hosting the ongoing three-day (November 26-28) annual conference of the Nigerian Economics Students Association. This year’s event, themed “War Against Poverty; Economics Perspective,” is designed to bring students, academicians, industry professionals, and other stakeholders together to explore indigenous solutions to the problem of poverty in Nigeria.
To this effect, Day 1 of the conference, which was held earlier today, featured presentations from some of the top economists in the country such as Dr. Tope Fashua, Prof. Sarah Anyanwu (President of Nigerian Economic Society), among others. Delivering the keynote address, Prof. Anyanwu outlined some of the contributors to the high rate of poverty in Nigeria as well as recommendations on how to tackle this issue.
According to her, factors such as corruption, poor implementation of policies aimed at alleviating poverty, high unemployment due to low job creation, overdependence on oil, etc. have contributed significantly to the high level of poverty in the country. To address this problem, Prof. Anyanwu continued, it is imperative for the Nigerian government and other relevant authorities to adopt strict measures to fight corruption, diversity the economy, invest in the country’s human capital, and ensure that the existing policies aimed at reducing poverty are well implemented.
Echoing Prof. Anyanwu’s sentiments was Dr. Fashua who, in his presentation, stated that the best way for a nation to reduce poverty is by creating wealth and investing in its human capital. According to him, Nigeria remains poor because the nation has failed to harness its abundant natural resources to create real value for its citizens and the world. Similarly, he stated, Nigeria has failed to invest adequately in its youth, which is the country’s greatest resource.
Following the addresses of Prof. Anyanwu and Dr. Fashua was a plenary session featuring accomplished academicians and professionals like Prof. Mike Kwanashie, Dr. Muhammad Rislanuddeen, Mrs. Sonia Shoyele, Dr. Arabi Muhammad, and Dr. Adenuga Adeniyi, among others. The event concluded with paper presentations by several top academicians.
