Country Director, ActionAid, Nigeria (AA), Mrs Ene Obi has called on the Federal Government to invest in its human capital development to create employment and alleviate poverty in the country.
Obi made the call while addressing newsmen at the sideline of a Gala night of the Arts for Development on Sunday night in Abuja.
The Arts for Development is an art exhibition put together by AA to showcase artworks by artists from the rural areas and those who had no platforms to showcase their works.
The Gala night was aimed to auction some of the artworks donated by artists to raise money for community development and educational sponsorship of indigent children in the country.
“We are calling on the government to invest in human capacity; to also open up many industries that have fallen down.
“This will help them come back to life so that they would be able to absolve many of the unemployed and even artists would be affected positively.
“Such will inevitably lead to alleviation of poverty in Nigeria,’’ she said.
On fighting corruption in the country, Obi said, she believed that the country’s judiciary was equal to the task and should find a way to hasten trial of corrupt officials.
She explained that when corrupt individuals were not prosecuted more people would continue to loot public treasury and the economy of this country.
“When corruption is not checkmated, things would not go right; you will see people dying in the hospitals because the lack of adequate amenities; monies budgeted for amenities are embezzled by officials.
“When you see government officials illegally taking billions of naira from the coffers of the government, it means something is not provided for; that money is meant for something,” she said.
Obi said that the country`s budget was meant to provide public facilities, adding that standard of education was in the country.
(NAN)
