Abuja, Dec. 22, 2023: The National Economic Council (NEC) on Thursday constituted committees on Economic Affairs and Crude Oil Theft and Management.
Mr Stanley Nkwocha, the spokesperson of the Vice-President, made this known in a statement on Thursday in Abuja.
The committee was constituted following deliberations on critical economic matters and assessments of potential short-term, medium and long-term strategies for addressing pressing economic issues.
Vice-President Kashim Shettima chaired the 138th meeting of NEC held virtually.
Shettima urged members of the NEC to shelve the idea of vacation in the yuletide and carry on with issues of governance to ease the burden of Nigerians hanging on their shoulders.
He also enjoined the council members to be alive to the demands of Nigerians noting that, “as the year draws to a close, none of us in this chamber should anticipate a vacation.
“I tend to think so because upon our shoulders rests the weight of responsibilities from which we cannot escape. We are returning to be judged by the promises we made to be here.
” My principal, President Bola Tinubu, GCFR, has shown that the challenges inherited by his administration are surmountable.
“President Tinubu has offered visionary leadership and presented a coherent development plan to assist in the country’s pursuit of order, abundance, and stability.
“Each of us owes their constituents the scorecard of their stewardship in these few months of translating ideas into tangible actions.
“That’s why we can’t afford to fail, and the new year must be, for us, a timeout to reflect on how we have fared so far and what we must do differently to keep the hope of the nation alive.”
Apparently keen about getting results of the government’s ongoing reforms in good time, Shettima stressed the need for the citizens to feel the positive impact of fuel subsidy removal and forex unification.
He noted that high inflation and cost of living are global challenges that have affected the economies of all countries.
Shettima said they should be considered as enough “inspiration for us to come together and tackle ours through realistic interventions”.
The committees are to be headed by Gov. AbdulRahman AbdulRazak of Kwara and his Imo State counterpart, Sen. Hope Uzodimma, respectively.
The economic matters committee is saddled with the task of preparing a clear roadmap for dealing with petroleum subsidy, including a framework for defending wage negotiations, exchange rate management and fiscal consolidation sustainability.
It also includes liquidity management and inflation, medium term investment and growth, fiscal transparency and accountability, as well as state of emergency on food production for 2024.
Members of the committee include governors of Gombe; Lagos, Akwa Ibom, Niger and Kaduna States representing North-East, South-West, South-South, South-East, North-Central and North West.
While Rukaiya El-Rufai, Special Adviser to the President on NEC and Climate Change would served as Secretary.
The second committee on Crude Oil Theft and Management, an existing NEC committee, has been reconstituted with Gov. Hope Uzodimma of Imo State as the chairman.
Members of the committee include governors of Ogun, Plateau, Rivers, Borno, Jigawa and Abia presenting South-West, North-Central South-South, North-East, North-West and South-East.
Others are: Minister of Budget and Economic Planning; Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, CBN Governor; GCEO of NNPCL, NDDC Chairman, and Service Chiefs.
The secretariat would be domiciled at the Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning and the Special Adviser to the President on Economic Matters, Dr Tope Fasua would serve on the committee.
