Insecurity is killing businesses in Nigeria –NECA

President, Nigeria Employers' Consultative
Association, NECA, Chief Richard Uche has decried
the threat posed by insecurity to the ease of doing
business in Nigeria especially in the Northern part
of the country.
Speaking at its 55th Annual General Meeting, AGM
in Lagos, he said the threat of the Boko Haram sect
is scaring away international investors, and a dent
on the country's image in the international
community.
He said, "This development has paralyzed
businesses in some Northern parts of the country
and stifled productive activities. Of greater concern
is the fact that businesses are closing down,
Nigerians are losing jobs and families are being
displaced."
Uche called on a due intelligence search on the root
causes of the menace and improvement of security
infrastructure, as well as a drastic reduction in
unemployment, which is believed to have
contributed to the spate of violent crimes and
insecurity in the country, among other
recommendations.
Richard further expressed worry over the growth in
the country's Gross Domestic Products, GDP,
without a corresponding increase in the welfare of
the people.
He said, "We wish to reiterate that in assessing the
performance and health of our economy, we should
go beyond the GDP growth rate. Indices such as per
capital income, number of new jobs and new
businesses created, sectoral inflow of Foreign
Direct Investment, improved and increased road
networks, megawatts of electricity generated, life
expectancy, number of Nigerians with access to
pipe borne water, health facilities, housing,
decrease in crime rates, etc should feature
prominently in the scorecard. These are
fundamental issues that assist us in knowing
whether our nation is indeed progressing or
retrogressing.
"Thus, while we commend the government for its
increased attention on improving security in our
country, we should, however, emphasize that the
antidote to sustainable safety and security of the
country lies in a healthy and prosperous economy
that ensures inclusive growth and job creation."
Continuing, he said, "There is no gain-saying the
fact that corruption has been the bane of our
economy. This monster has continued to drain our
commonwealth of resources that would otherwise
have gone into improving our citizenry. We call on
the government of the day to demonstrate a
renewed commitment to eradicate corruption and
rein in this bull in our China shop.
In its financial report, NECA reported a surplus of
N43.73 million in its 2011 financial year compared
to N887.88 thousand in previous year.
It recorded a gross income of N174.57 million as
against N178.338 million in the previous year;
while its value added rose to N152.82 million from
N116.11 million it reported in 2010.