AfDB hails Nigeria’s campaign on local goods

African Development Bank (AfDB) has stated that it had provided 14 million people with improved access to transport, considerably above its targeted 10 million in 2017. The bank, in its Annual Development Effectiveness Review 2018 presented yesterday in Busan, South Korea, stated that majority of the beneficiaries were in low income countries. It added that the bank constructed, rehabilitated or maintained 2,500 kilometres of road of which 2,100 were in low income countries.
“Our investments in transport are transforming lives while our work in Northern Ghana has increased employment and livelihoods and access to social services in Fufulso city.” The report praised Nigeria’s initiative on Buy Made-in-Nigeria products and South Africa’s efforts on Buy Africa campaign to shape the countries’ consumer preferences.
“African countries are taking initiatives to promote domestic industries; many are creating industrial zones or parks with tax incentives and special terms. “The Nigerian Government promoted local manufacturers by mandating that its agencies spend more of their budgets on locallyproduced goods and services.
“Therefore, governments need to be alert to the future impact of artificial intelligence and automation on industrial development, including how they may affect employment opportunities for unskilled workers. “To help finance Africa’s infrastructure, mechanisms must be developed to draw on such global savings as sovereign wealth funds, pension funds, international bond markets and infrastructure funds. (NAN)