Business

PEBEC okays new action plan

The Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC) has approved a new National Action Plan intended to drive the ease of doing business reforms in the country.

The approval came during an expanded meeting of the council presided over by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo at the presidential villa, Abuja on Tuesday.

Speaking at the occasion, Osinbajo restated government’s commitment to ensuring that it delivers on the ease of doing business reforms.

Osinbajo, the chairman of the expanded council, which included the Chief Justice of the Federation, Justice Walter Onnoghen, Deputy Governor of Kano State; Prof Hafiz Abubakar; a member of the National Assembly, Senator Bala N’Allah; representative of Lagos State government, several ministers and representatives of the private sector.

The new National Action Plan NAP 2.0 has over 60 priority initiatives targeted to be attained by November this year.

The initiatives cover such areas including Starting a business, Construction Permits, Registering Property, Getting Electricity, Getting Credit, Paying Taxes, Trading Across Boders, Enforcing Contracts, Simplifying the Procurement Process, Entry and Exit of People, and Trading Within Nigeria.

Government is hoping that a successful implementation of the NAP 2.0 would deliver significant benefits especially for SMEs including the fact that it would make 1.3 MSMEs eligible to do business with government, bring about 75 per cent reduction in average clearance time for foreign travelers, 60 per cent reduction in time to get electricity, 75 per cent reduction in time to register business premises and 50 per cent reduction in time for filing corporate income taxes.

While the initial NAP had a 70 per cent performance rate, the final results of NAP 2.0 will be announced in December by the PEBEC Secretariat.

Welcoming the participation of the Chief Justice, Kano and Lagos State government representatives, the representative of the Senate President at the meeting, Vice President Osinbajo highlited the importance of the reform initiatives especially those around the Nigerian airports as an example.

“Improvements in the airport has a way of defining the change we are talking about, it will show we are serious,” the VP told members of PEBEC.

The meeting was also attended by the Industry, Trade & Investment Minister, who is the Vice Chairman of PEBEC, the Attorney-General of the Federation/Minister of Justice, Ministers of Finance, Power, Works & Housing, Interior, Transportation and also the Minister of State for Industry, Trade & Investment and the Minister of State for Budget & National Planning. The Acting Secretary to the Government of the Federation was also at the meeting.

The Vice President also on Tuesday presided over the National Council on Privatisation, NCP.

 

(TRIBUNE)

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