President Muhammadu Buhari has exhorted Nigerians in the Diaspora to actively participate in the country’s post-COVID-19 economic recovery efforts.
The president said this In a video message to commemorate this year’s Diaspora Day, which is being observed on July 25 of every year, the President appealed to his compatriots, whose home remittances exceeded $25 billion annually in three years, not to abandon their fatherland in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Over the past three years, Nigerians in the diaspora have brought in over $25 billion annually as home remittances to the Nigerian economy through official and non-formal channels.
“This is about 6.0 per cent of our annual GDP and upwards of 80 per cent of our annual budget. This has impacted on livelihoods of Nigerians in terms of education, health, housing and estate development, industry, trade and investments, agriculture and technology/skills transfer.
“In terms of diaspora home remittances, Nigeria is rated as number one in sub-Saharan Africa and this is still growing especially with the advocacy and mobilisation programmes of the newly established Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM).
“Nigerians in Diaspora are also known to be engaged in skill transfer in ICT and industry. They are also active in our universities as lecturers, and in carrying out medical missions.
“It is, therefore, my sincere hope that even with the depressed economy under stress in the year 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Nigerians in the Diaspora will rise up to the occasion of not abandoning their country of origin, but be active in our post-COVID-19 economic recovery efforts,” Buhari said