CEO of Global Analytics Consulting comments on Nigeria's economic challenges

A leading economist in Nigeria and the CEO of Global Analytics Consulting Tope Fasua has provided in-depth insights on some of the most urgent problems currently challenging the Nigerian economy, the biggest of which appear to be unemployment, education and healthcare, among a range of others.

Fasua’s view on the issue of unemployment are highly relevant in the current international scenario, covering the issue of automation and its displacement of a number of jobs, starting from the bottom up in terms of income brackets. According to Fasua, the solution to this issue lies in the identification of Nigeria’s economic problems.

Nigeria is the largest economy in Africa, and is endowed with a number of promising indicators including a young population and the rapid expansion of internet access. Nevertheless, the country continues to face key obstacles, and deploying talent towards solving these problems would be the ideal way to tackle the issue of unemployment, according to Fasua.

“We have to think about the problems we have. The more we think about those problems, the more we see the opportunities for pushing people in those directions and creating jobs, at least in the interim, when things appear to be quite tough,” he says. The issues he refers to span a number of economic domains.

One of the biggest issues in Nigeria, according to Fasua, is the state of the education system. The country has traditionally been dependent around a public education system, although the quality of education in public schools has rapidly deteriorated over the years, forcing parents to spend on private education and live under financial strain.

A similar issue of deteriorating quality is apparent in the healthcare sector, according to Fasua. Compensation for medical staff remains low, which has prompted nurses to go on strike several times. In addition, the high fees demanded by hospitals has denied access to a number of low-income households, leading to dire consequences. 

Fasua elaborates, “It is impossible to quickly ramp up capacity at the top end of the spectrum, but if people are encouraged, and their eyes are open to opportunities in the health sector, the capacity for employment there is massive. Nigeria could do with thrice the number of existing personnel in this sector. We cannot have a density of 1 doctor to 10,000 people in some places and not directly channel human resources into the medical sciences.”

In addition, Fasua also echoes other leaders in Nigerian industry to call for an overall improvement of the country’s digital infrastructure. His expertise stems from an illustrious academic and professional background, which includes names such as the London Business School and the Harvard Business School.