Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, has urged members of the Advertising and Integrated Marketing Communication industry, to actively engage in sensitising Nigerians on the transformative economic reforms initiated by the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu administration, which aimed at engendering economic growth and fostering a prosperous nation.
Idris made the call in Abuja yesterday while declaring open the National Advertising Conference with the theme: “Marketing Communications As An Enabler of National Transformation.”
The minister, who was represented by the director general of the National Orientation Agency (NOA), Mr Lanra Issa-Onilu, acknowledged the indispensable role being played by advertising.
He said integrated marketing communication professionals help in disseminating information that shapes public opinion, adding that they are well positioned to serve as catalysts of Nigeria’s social and economic transformation by mobilising citizens to fully take advantage of the reforms being implemented by the administration.
“The president has been decisive from inception and we can see this from the tough but necessary decisions he took regarding the fuel subsidy, foreign exchange regime, and fiscal reforms, among other critical things.
“We are reforming the tax landscape, expanding the National Social Register through which social welfare is provided to the poorest and most vulnerable Nigerians. The President has just presented his first full-year Budget to the National Assembly, the Renewed Hope Budget, focused on jobs, economic growth, macro-economic stability, ease of doing business, poverty reduction, social security, and enhanced human capital development,” he said.
Idris said the federal government launched an SME support programme, the Presidential Conditional Grant Scheme and Palliative Programs, targeting traders, artisans, transporters, vendors, and creatives with grants and low-cost loans.
“One million nano-businesses – the smallest businesses in the country – will benefit from grants of N50,000 each, while bigger businesses will be eligible to benefit from loans from a 75 Billion Naira Fund,” he said.
The minister added that these initiatives are in addition to the ones already announced and being implemented, such as the rollout of CNG buses for deployment by state governments, to help alleviate the impact of the petrol subsidy removal.
He said all these initiatives were not spontaneous but well-crafted in the president’s Renewed Hope Agenda, which included Reforming the economy to deliver sustained inclusive growth strengthening national security for peace and prosperity, boosting agriculture to achieve food security, unlocking energy and natural resources for sustainable development and enhancing infrastructure and transportation as enablers of growth.
Others are focusing on education, health, and social investment as essential pillars of development and accelerating diversification through industrialisation, digitisation, creative arts, manufacturing, and innovations, he said.
“We need your creative solutions and approaches, we need your unparalleled network, we need your platforms. This is not about propaganda or noise-making, no! Instead, it is about enlightenment, sensitization, and opening Nigerians‘ eyes to see the various economic opportunities emerging around them,” he said.
The minister said the government remains committed to making information available in a timely and credible manner, assuring that he would discharge his functions with utmost openness and integrity.
