National Economic Council
NEC approves report of Presidential Committee on land reform
Nov 11, 2009, 12:01
| | The National Economic Council (NEC) at a meeting presided over by Vice President Goodluck Jonathan on Tuesday, November 10 at the State House in Abuja, approved the report of the Presidential Committee on land reform
Briefing the media on the outcome of the Council’s meeting which was attended by Governors of the 36 states, Governor Ibrahim Shema of Katsina State disclosed that NEC approved the report of the presidential committee on land reforms which provides for peasant farmers holding land in small groups and that the land can be used as collateral to raise loans.
The Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria Mallam Lamido Sanusi in his own briefing disclosed that there are no plans to nationalize any bank. He explained that the first option the government gave to the banks was to rescue themselves by raising necessary capital to run their operations adding that if any of them could not help itself, the government would take it over temporarily but assured that the government would relinquish the ownership quickly.
He stated that the Council was briefed by the Central Bank on the shortage of loans to businessmen and that a retreat would hold in December to address the issue. He said the Council however urged the CBN to do everything possible to bring down the interest rate in the country so as to make funds available to manufacturers to energise the sector.
Mallam Sanusi revealed that the council reiterated its earlier support for the deregulation of the downstream sector of the oil industry and advised that government sets up very effective communication strategies to enlighten Nigerians on the benefit of the policy.
According to him Council gave its support to the proposal by the Minister of Sports for the establishment of Community Sports Centres in each of the Senatorial zones of the country to aid the development of sports in the country. This would be done by the private sector in collaboration with the states and federal government.
Speaking on the ecological fund, Governor Peter Obi of Anambra State said that sequel to the discovery of poor management of the fund NEC has approved a better and more transparent way of managing the fund.
Governor Obi who noted that President Umaru Yar’Adua has not awarded any contract from the fund since he assumed office stated that under the new dispensation, state governors would be involved in the processing and award of the contracts as a means of making it more transparent.
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