US to give Buhari $2.3bn to fight poverty

The Federal Government has signed a $2.3bn

assistance agreement aimed at fighting extreme

poverty with the United States Agency for

International Development.

The Senior Special Assistant to the Vice President

on Media and Publicity, Mr. Laolu Akande, disclosed

this in a statement on Sunday.

Akande said the agreement would help the

government to combat extreme poverty among

Nigerians over the next five years.

He said Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo signed the

agreement on behalf of the Federal Government

while the USAID Head of Mission in Nigeria, Mr.

Michael Harvey, signed on behalf of the US

government during a meeting at the Presidential

Villa, Abuja, last week.

He quoted Osinbajo as noting that since President

Muhammadu Buhari’s visit to the US President

Barack Obama in the White House in July, the

Nigerian government had seen better cooperation

from the US.

The Vice-President also noted that there had been

great deal of interaction on how the present

administration intended to implement its agenda,

saying the interaction was because the US wanted

the government to succeed.

“The issue of the extreme poverty of a vast

majority of Nigerians is a very important issue for

us. It is at the heart of our economic policy. You

can’t have that vast number of poor people and

don’t plan around that and for us this is crucial

and absolutely important,” Osinbajo was reported

to have said.

The Vice-President also lauded the inclusion of the

North-East among the areas of focus in the

agreement, adding that there was a consensus in

government to address the problem of out-of-

school children and the observed drop in enrolment

figures in parts of the nation.

He promised that the present administration would

continue to lead a transparent and an open

government, clean up the business environment and

emphasise a bottom-up approach to economic

planning.

The $2.3bn assistance will cover activities from

2015 through 2020, with the objective of helping

Nigeria reduce extreme poverty in a more stable

and democratic society.

It is expected to stimulate inclusive economic

growth, promote a healthier, more educated

population and help strengthen good governance.

The USAID director said the agreement would

provide a solid foundation for the two countries to

partner to reduce inequalities across the country.