ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) 鈥 Nigeria鈥檚 President Bola Tinubu on Monday announced economic measures to ease growing hardship in Africa's most populous country as labor unions threatened protests to demand more action.
introduced by Tinubu since he took office in May have further squeezed millions of Nigerians. The government ended decades-long gasoline subsidies that Tinubu said favored the rich, but the decision has the price of gas, causing a sharp spike in prices of food and other essential commodities.
In a state broadcast late Monday, the Nigerian leader said he understands that Nigeria鈥檚 economy is going through a 鈥渢ough patch鈥 but added the government has saved more than one trillion naira ($1.16 billion) since the subsidy was scrapped in late May. Past funds for the subsidies were 鈥渂eing funneled into the deep pockets and lavish bank accounts of a selected group of individuals,鈥 he added.
鈥淲hat I can offer immediately is to reduce the burden our current economic situation has imposed on all of us,鈥 the Nigerian leader said as he announced incentives and credit facilities for businesses many of which would be implemented over the next year.
The hardship has squeezed many in the country of more than 210 million people which already had been struggling with record inflation and poverty rates. Many businesses have shut down and more Nigerians are trekking to work, unable to afford increasing transport fares.
While the doctors in Nigerian hospitals to demand better welfare, Nigeria鈥檚 labor unions said they will hold protests on Wednesday to demand more actions from the government and improved social welfare programs for their members, most of whom they said now spend at least 70% of their salaries on transportation.
Tinubu admitted the government was not fast enough in introducing measures to cushion the effect of the subsidy removal and requested more patience from citizens.
鈥淭he federal government is working closely with states and local governments to implement interventions that will cushion the pains,鈥 he said.
Some of the interventions, according to Tinubu, include the provision of one billion naira ($1.16 million) credit to each of 75 manufacturing companies over the next year and the provision of 125 billion naira ($145 million) in the form of grants and loans to small, medium-sized enterprises and other businesses in the informal sector.
The Nigerian leader said he has ordered the release of 200,000 metric tons of grains to households across the country to help stabilize the price of food while 225,000 metric tons of fertilizer, seedlings and other inputs are being provided to farmers. At least 200 billion naira ($232 million) would also be invested in agriculture to boost farming, he said.
Tinubu also said the government is continuing to negotiate a new salary structure with civil servants.
