With all this talk about the inflationary impact the removal of petrol subsidy is having on the Nigerian economy, how come our economists have not revealed how investing the $8bn saved will bring more benefits than pain

Ayo Akinfe

[1] Nigeria was spending $8bn a year out of her paltry $30bn annual budget subsidising petrol marketers. As a nation we simply could not afford this. One does not need to be genius to know this wasteful spending had to go

[2] Most Nigerians are rightly scared about the inflationary impact the subsidy removal will continue to have on the economy. However, I believe these fears can be negated if the cash is used to fund infrastructural development that will improve lives in other areas

[3] I would spend $4bn of the cash on education. Human capital development has got to become our national slogan in the post-coronavirus era

[4] This $4bn should be shared among the education commissioner’s in each of the 36 states and were I President Tinubu, I would give each of them a mandate to build at least six technical colleges, two universities, four polytechnics, 50 secondary schools and 100 primary schools within their respective domains

[5] In addition, each of these states must produce a public works programme that involves getting our youth off the street and into vocation education. President Tinubu should make it clear he wants to see all those herdsmen, potential Boko Haram recruits, bandits, area boys, prostitutes, etc trained in welding, carpentry, fashion design, mechanics, bricklaying, etc

[6] Personally, I then want to see $2bn of these subsidy savings spent on rural roads across all 774 local government areas. Our rainy season has shown that we have no rural transport network. Many villages and farms are totally inaccessible whenever it rains, thus pushing up food prices

[7] Given that the subsidy will inevitably result in less car usage, President Tinubu should then dedicate $2bn to the construction of our national rail network. We simply have to get more people off the roads and into trains as an urgent priority

[8] In subsequent years, I would also dedicate about $2bn to a national bicycle programme. We need to get away from this ignorant notion that bicycles are for the “bush man” and villager

[9] Come 2027, $4bn of this money should be invested in a mega hydro-electric power plant at Idah or Lokoja. President Tinubu should read the riot act to his power minister that he wants a facility that can generate at least 10,000MW

[10]Given that this $8bn savings will be annual, what we have to do is actually create a National Infrastructural Development Fund and pour this money into it every year. If judiciously spent, this capital could make a huge difference to the lives of millions of Nigerians

Ayoakinfe@gmail.com