President Muhammadu Buhari has lamented that a significant portion of Nigeria’s prosperity is concentrated in the hands few people living in Four/Five states including the Federal Capital Territory.
Speaking during the opening session of the 25th Nigerian Economic Summit which held in Abuja on Monday, he said this leaves the remaining 30/31 states with about 150 million people waiting for a better opportunity to thrive.
However, he said his administration understands and is concerned with creating a better and decent quality of life for all Nigerians.
‘‘Today, many mistake prosperity with wealth. They are not necessarily the same. Experts and analysts explain economic trends by making references to indicators of wealth. Wealth, however, in its simplistic form, is money or other assets.
In recent years, global events have shown that when a society and its leaders are driven and motivated by these alone, the ultimate outcome is a divided state of severe inequalities. But a prosperous society is one where majority of its citizens have an acceptable standard of living and a decent quality of life.’’
‘‘Nigeria is a country with close to 200 million people living in 36 states and the FCT. A significant proportion of Nigeria’s prosperity today is concentrated in the hands of a few people living primarily in four or five states and the FCT. Some of the most prosperous Nigerians are here in this room.
‘‘This leaves the remaining 31 States with close to 150 million people in a state of expectancy and hope for better opportunity to thrive. This, in the most basic form, drives the migratory and security trends we are seeing today both in Nigeria and across the region.”
