Nigeria to become global player in human resources, says Osinbajo

Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo (SAN) has said Nigeria is moving from a natural resource-based economy to exporter of human capital.

Osinbajo stated this in a virtual message to the 2020 Art of Technology conference with the theme: Smart Data, Smarter Lagos, today.

A statement by the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity in the Office of the Vice President, Mr Laolu Akande, quoted the Vice-President as saying though Nigeria had been known globally as one of the leading producers of crude oil, its reputation in the near future will be based on creativity.

“It is now evident that within the next decade, Nigeria will cease to be a country whose main contribution to the world is crude oil. The resources that we have, which are increasingly in high demand, globally, are your capacity for innovation, your imagination, your creative content and your highly adaptive solutions. Your minds and workspaces are the refineries of the present and the future.

“We are finally embracing the true logic of true wealth. It is not being a primary producer, it is about value-added, it’s about maximally leveraging what you have, technology, and in particular, data offers that incredible opportunity,” he said.

Osinbajo added: “As we contend with the challenge of providing the means of self-actualisation for nearly 200 million people and one of the world’s fastest-growing populations, it is clear that we must marshal the resourcefulness and ingenuity of our citizens in the quest for development and growth.

“Developmental governance in the 21st century is about continuously deploying innovative solutions against our most complex challenges.”