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Influx into Lagos shows Nigerian states in precarious situation

Influx into Lagos

The high influx into Lagos of young Nigerians escaping hardships from their original states of abode speaks to the urgency to create economic hubs that will drive development and create survival opportunities across Nigeria.

In search of economic opportunities, some 123 young Nigerians from Jigawa State, with 48 motorcycles loaded in an open truck arrived Lagos, Nigeria’s economic hub on Friday, August 30, 2019.

During interaction with newsmen, they said they had to migrate because “there is nothing to do in Jigawa State” as they have their families to fend for. While the unduly large number may have drawn the attention of the public, the influx of people from other states of the federation into Lagos is a daily occurrence.

According to Babatunde Adejare, a former commissioner for the environment in Lagos, an average of 6,000 people enter into Lagos every day, as the state which Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) averages N34 billion monthly, remains a centre of attraction.

Timothy Olawale, director-general of Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA), attributes this to the failure of most Nigerian states to create economic opportunities for their citizens and high-level poverty in the country.

“That Lagos has remained the economic hub of the nation is a known fact. The unfortunate reality is that rather than most states replicating the economic success story of Lagos, they have remained unattractive,” Olawale says.

In March 2019, the Brookings Institute declared Nigeria the poverty capital of the world, with about 91 million Nigerians living below $1.90 per day. Nigeria’s literacy rate is about 59%. There are about 13.2 million out-of-school children in Nigeria, with 69 percent in Northern Nigeria, where some states have known terrorism for a decade.

According to figures from the Nigerian Bureau of Statistics (NBS), over half of Nigeria’s extremely poor are in the northern part of the country ravaged by insurgency and unfavourable environmental disasters.

Last month, no fewer than six persons were killed and over 600 others were displaced during heavy rainfall in Jigawa State, according to Sani Yusuf, executive secretary, Jigawa State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA).

According to the SEMA boss, four local government areas were affected after a downpour including Kirikasamma, Kafin Hausa, Guri, and Birninkudu.

“But no matter what the arguments might be, at the root of poverty lies the deprivation of people’s access to basic necessities such as food, healthcare, and sanitation, education, and assets,” says Muhammad Sani Abdullahi, a development economist and chief of staff to the Kaduna State governor in a note to World Economic Forum.

Of Nigeria’s over 13 million out-of-school children, around half are girls. This is hardly coincidental or surprising that the country with the world’s highest number of out-of-school children is home to the highest number of people living in extreme poverty.

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Two-thirds of this population is concentrated in Nigeria’s highly populated north-west and north-east regions, both of which have been ravaged by the terror group, Boko Haram, resulting in an educational emergency affecting about 2.8 million children.

The 2018 Global Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) of the Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative best presents this picture. The poorest parts of Nigeria had the worst education indicators (school attendance and years of schooling) and these constitute the biggest percentage contribution to the MPI, followed by nutrition and child mortality – all issues that affect women.

Olawale believes that to address the problems, there is a need for state government and federal governments to collaborate in creating economic hubs across the country.  According to him, this will take commitment, political will and stakeholders’ engagement.

“In order to actualise this, we suggest that government should, through engagement with the organised private sector, identify states for this purpose. “The business community would, then, be encouraged through the provisions of infrastructure, business-friendly policies, appropriate tax incentives, adequate security, among others, to establish their presence in those states.

The Federal Government, he further stated, must rise to the occasion by facilitating the needed economic environment that will make all the states to be viable and deliberate efforts must be made to ensure that each state utilises their endowed resources for the development of their states rather than the usual cap-in-hand trips to Abuja for monthly allocation.

“Micro and Macro-economic policies that will attract and retain both local and foreign investors to the States of the Federation should, as a matter of urgency, be formulated and implemented,” said Olawale.

Gbenga Omotosho, Lagos commissioner for information and strategy, said the government was, however, not averse to migration into Lagos, as this is guaranteed under the constitution but emphasised the importance adhering to laws especially as it concerns commercial motorcycles.

Omotosho explained that the Lagos State Traffic Law 2012 prohibits operations of motorcycles on highways and bridges, a position of the law he insisted must be strictly adhered to, stressing also that the state government was committed to the safety and security of the citizens.

“The administration of Babajide Sanwo-Olu has clearly stated that Lagos is home for all, and will continue to make it the most-preferred destination in the world.

 

JOSHUA BASSEY & ISAAC ANYAOGU