The government must be more sensitive towards the improving the welfare of the citizens at the twilight of high poverty rate, uncertainty and instability while reprioritising its expenditure to deal with the immediate economic problems and the impact of primary energy crises, more so the cooking gas and the Households kerosene , a Ph.D Scholar in Petroleum Economics, Policy and Management, who completed his course work since 2017 from the Emerald Energy Institute, University of Port Harcourt has said, as he described the situation as the country’s “greatest emergency since it is directly affecting the vast population that cut across the poor and non-salaried lower middle class and the vulnerable.
Similarly, the cost of the LPG in the country has rose by 240 per cent for 12.5kg, hitherto sold for N3,000 in January this year is now sold above N10,200 as House hold kerosene is now priced at N414.30 the same as ($1) per litre.
Friday Udoh who is also the Chief Coordinator, Institute of Chartered Economists of Nigeria, South-South, in a chat with journalists, cautioned that seldom to non response to the crises with the in -country resources and the human capability which is in abundance to look for elsewhere in the spectrum of borrowing to meet the economic needs may not be the best answer to the energy dwarf economy.
“There is a lot to be done to restore the economy back working. The government should mobilize people with proven expertise and competence which could largely be drown from among the country’s professionals, academies and artisans to help develope and achieving a home grown technology to process the abundance hydrocarbon resources in the country than allowing, for natural gas to be wasted through flaring and venting.
Udoh said that the country’s fiscal constraint is palpably a source of borrowing, but spending on the expenditure understandably is on the increase. “Which does mot mean that we ignores the budgetary obligations and the constraints, especially for the fact that our revenues is flattened,” he said.
There are so much tertiary institutions in the country with wonderfully and great minds that has been consciously and or unconsciously isolated from the policy making and solution process of the country. Whether someone sees any reason not to recognize human capital influences and a place of tertiary and specialised institutions in national economic development such understanding over our precarious disposition as a country is a poor perception.
“With a right therapy and priorities, as drawn on the country’s many sources of strength, the negative impact high commodity prices on the people could be minimized and set a stage for eventful future” He asserts.
With appropriate steps the country is adopted to minimise spins effect occasioned by the rising in commodity prices in the international market, Udoh said the immediate priority should be to suppress the impact of the scarcity. Temporarily, at ensuring that certain levies and taxes are cancelled on imported LPG and House holds kerosene. As he suggested that Mr President constitute a committee that is comprising of representatives of the Federal Ministry of Education, its counterpart in Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation, Federal Ministry of Petroleum Resources and Professionals in private practices and chaired by a researcher mostly from any of the University in the country primarily identifying the competence within each of these ministry.
Identifying appropriate approaches that will effectively drive program that is adopted to optimise the resources in -country at solving our energy at present the cooking gas and house holds kerosene problem.
At the epicenter should be focused on the human capital , tertiary and specialised institutions as complemented by professionals.
It must not be underestimated that a source of any economic competitive advantages lies within the confluence of research, innovation, creativity and entrepreneur (RIC&E) as such increasing; the needs to attain this at ensuring efficiency and resiliency in economic system to whether the unnecessary – externally and sector -specific-demand shocks being experienced now.
Very true the Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) popularly referred as Cooking gas can be processed in a grid format, otherwise in a smallest possible and less expensive means which the tertiary and specialised institutions contribution is critical and in this case will enhance the procession of LPG and Household kerosene making it available at least cost.
Correspondingly, tertiary and specialised institutions must be seen as a linchpin to economic development which inputs is critical and must not be ignored by the government. More so, as the time of low productivity, output and lack of competitive advantage. At this juncture we as a nation needs a conscious unification of innovation system that link industry, government, tertiary and specialised institution of learning to achieve competitive advantage and overcome the liquidity problems.
It doesn’t matter from reaching out to bipartisanship consensus, across the political aisle to draw in members of the opposition who may have experience and readily available to contribute at minimising the vulnerability of the commodity price surge on the economy.
“If, however, the government insists on status quo, with the same alienating the tertiary, specialised institutions and professionals, it will do too little, too late,” Udoh said in what he “references ‘ as “stubborn energy crises”.
He said that for the present energy crisis, Nigeria is vast slipped to a dip economic trap as never in 61 years of now.
“Steep rise in the price of oil in 2008 and the reflection on the other commodities prices which reaches an all-time high of $147.27 during the 11, 2008 trading penultimate was not so bad on the economy that is correspondingly demand for a concerted efforts of the government in various level of policy making to adopt a measure that will save the economy from imminent collapse.
Friday Udoh who is the Chief Coordinator, Institute of Chartered Economists of Nigeria, South-South
