Victor Ezeja
AdminThe President of Kenya, William Ruto has described President Bola Tinubu’s removal of petrol subsidy as a very difficult decision that will move Africa forward, stressing that the continent forward needs the development that comes from such moves.
He stated this at a high-level event for African leaders with the theme “Africa’s green industrialisation” on the margins of the ongoing COP28 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE).
Prime Business Africa recalls that the prices of goods and services have continued to hit the roof since Tinubu announced on his day of swearing in that fuel subsidy is gone! Data for October 2023 released by the National Bureau of Statistics has it that Nigeria’s headline inflation rate surged by a 0.61 percentage point to 27.33 per cent while food inflation sustained its steady rise to peak at 31.52 per cent.
Speaking on the removal of subsidy in Nigeria by Tinubu, the Kenyan leader emphasized that African leaders needed to make more of such tough choices to stabilize their economies.
His words, “I want to congratulate my colleagues, heads of state – the President of Zambia for the many steps they have had to take to stabilise their economy.
“President Tinubu here, who has had to make very difficult decisions, including the removal of subsidy. We all have to make such difficult decisions to get Africa moving and I want to promise here that we will gather the courage to make the right decisions so that Africa can match into the future.
“And also partner with other regions of the world as we tackle the challenge of climate change, and as we create opportunities for young people so that our young people don’t have to get into dangerous routes to go to other destinations.
“We want to create jobs; we want them to get equipped on our continent and continue working on their continent,” Ruto explained.
He added that investors and development partners need to know that Africa has green investment projects and is ready to use renewable energy to turn the existential threat facing the continent into opportunities for investments, job creation, and development.
The Kenyan president said African presidents needed to work together to attract the potential of green energy to the continent.
He pointed out that some companies are already stepping forward to invest in Africa because they saw the “tremendous potential, opportunities, and businesses that exist on our continent.”
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