The Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG), Dr. Tayo Aduloju has called on both federal and state governments to invest more heavily in data collection, citing the significant hindrance a lack of adequate data poses to planning, economic growth, and development, saying in sectors such as education, health, and agriculture, Nigeria still relies on approximate data.
During the quarterly media engagement of NESG over the weekend, Aduloju stressed the importance of prioritising data and advocated for increased funding for the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), which he described as under-funded.
“Generally speaking, we are under-collecting data to plan Nigeria, and that must change. Without data to plan local, state, and federal activities, there is no basis for development. Working with approximate guesswork leads to inaccuracies. In sectors such as education, health, and agriculture, we are still relying on approximate data. This must be resolved,” Aduloju stated.
Regarding the food crisis, Aduloju called for collaborative efforts among governments to address the growing issue, which he warned could lead to higher inflation.
He pointed out that Nigeria currently cultivates much less land than in the past, affecting overall food production. Additionally, the country’s population is growing faster than its ability to produce food.
“The first question we must ask ourselves is whether we are producing enough food. Is food available at the scale we require? We must consider all security threats, including human security, soil security, water security, land security, and input security such as fertilisers and pesticides. The system is under stress and needs a systemic approach to address it. Moreover, affordability is an issue; inflation is driven not only by food production but also by the effects of imports on prices,” Aduloju explained.