Udoma: We’ll Make Provision for Social Housing in 2017 Budget

Ndubuisi Francis in Abuja

The Minister of Budget and National Planning, Senator Udoma Udo Udoma has disclosed that the federal government would make provision for social housing in the 2017 budget.

He stated that government’s intention was to make the private sector to drive the process.

Briefing the Assistant Secretary for Multilateral Affairs of the Trade and Policy Department at the French Treasury, Mr. Guillaume Chabert, in Abuja Thursday, Udoma explained that the stimulative effect of investing in infrastructure was enormous and was the surest way of setting the country on the part of growth and sustainable development.

“Our intention is to make the private sector to lead the way in social housing. We will kick-start the process and intend to make some provision for it in the 2017 Budget.

” Then we are also looking at manufacturing. One of the ways is by developing export processing zones where we will have all the required infrastructure including power, rail and security, to encourage manufacturers to relocate to Nigeria,” the minister said according to a statement by his Special Adviser on Media, Akpandem James.

He restated that Nigeria’s borrowings are solely to fund infrastructure projects.

The minister told the Assistant Secretary, who was accompanied by the French Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr Denys Gauer, that the Nigerian government is working on a National Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (NERGP) which is tailor-made to move the country’s economy out of recession and set it on a growth path.

According to hi., “Our plan is that we should be able within that plan period (2017 – 2020) to achieve not less than 7 per cent growth.”