Ease of Doing Business: Buhari claims no administration has worked as hard as his

President Muhammadu Buhari has claimed that no administration under a democratic Nigeria has worked as hard as his, especially in lifting Nigeria’s rankings with the ease of doing business.

This was disclosed in a statement issued by Mr Femi Adesina, one of President Buhari’s media after the President had an Iftar dinner with members of the business community and the leadership of political parties in Abuja.

He added that his administration is committed to counting on the private sector for stability.

What he said:

Buhari recounted that last week the National Executive Committee ( NEC) of the All Progressives Congress (APC) had a successful meeting, ending with a clear message that the party would continue to push for the establishment of democratic principles at all levels.

He said, ‘‘Today, we can proudly say that we have a political system that allows political parties of all views and persuasions, reflecting the diversity of our nation to co-exist, and contest for elections at all levels of government without fear or institutional bias and pressure.”

On ease of doing business in the country, he added that ‘‘No administration has done as much as we have done in the creation of a climate best suited for business, big and small, to thrive.

‘‘The ease of doing business index that is globally recognized has acknowledged that the ease with which business is carried out in the country has never been better than it is today. We will continue to make it better.

‘‘We will equally continue to count on the support of the private sector to improve economic growth and create new job opportunities for our teeming population.

‘‘Employment is critical to stability and prosperity of our country. Government and the private sector, working together, have an opportunity to transform the lives of people in ways that was hard to imagine in the past.”

What you should know

• Nigeria’s unemployment rate as of the end of 2020 rose to 33.3% from 27.1% recorded as of Q2 2020, indicating that about 23,187,389 (23.2 million) Nigerians remain unemployed.
• However, Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) grew by 3.98% year-on-year in real terms in the fourth quarter of 2021, indicating a sustained positive growth for the fifth quarter since the recession witnessed in 2020.
• The Q4 2021 growth rate was higher than the 0.11% growth rate recorded in Q4 2020 by 3.87% points and lower than 4.03% recorded in Q3 2021 by 0.05% points.