By Rukayat Moisemhe
The Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) has urged the Federal Government to address six key policy priorities in the fourth quarter to boost investment, business expansion and job creation.
The LCCI President, Mr Leye Kupoluyi, made the call at the chamber’s quarterly State-of-the-Nation news Conference on Wednesday in Lagos.
Kupoluyi identified the priorities as reducing energy and transportation costs, supporting manufacturing and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), and sustaining disinflation while protecting productive investment.
Others are improving the tax and regulatory environment, strengthening food supply chains and agricultural productivity, and promoting public-private sector dialogue and accountability.
On energy and transportation, Kupoluyi said rising petrol and diesel prices, high electricity tariffs and increasing logistics costs continued to undermine Nigerian businesses’ competitiveness.
He urged the government to develop a coordinated programme to reduce energy and logistics costs through improved electricity reliability, domestic refining, efficient distribution and better transport infrastructure.
He also called for the removal of avoidable charges across supply chains to ease the burden on businesses.
While supporting efforts to moderate petrol price volatility, he stressed the need for policies that would deliver lower and more predictable energy costs for businesses and households.
The LCCI president proposed a six-month petrol price reduction programme targeting a 15 to 20 per cent cut from the prevailing national weighted-average pump price.
On taxation and regulation, Kupoluyi said tax reforms should be accompanied by simplified compliance procedures, effective taxpayer education and harmonisation of overlapping charges.
He also called for transparent dispute-resolution mechanisms and a structured review of regulations imposing disproportionate costs on SMEs.
According to him, such measures would encourage formalisation, investment and enterprise expansion.
On the global economy, Kupoluyi said persistent geopolitical tensions, particularly the United States-Iran conflict, and energy supply disruptions continued to threaten global supply chains.
He said the developments also increased pressure on businesses and households, requiring Nigeria to minimise external shocks to domestic prices and the cost of living.
Kupoluyi cited the latest International Monetary Fund World Economic Outlook, which projected global economic growth at 3.0 per cent in 2026.
He said the projection was supported by oil inventories, alternative supplies, government interventions and strong investment and trade linked to artificial intelligence (AI).
He, however, warned that prolonged energy disruptions, geopolitical tensions, extreme weather, fiscal pressures and financial market volatility could weaken the outlook.
According to him, faster AI adoption could boost productivity and growth, while persistent supply shocks and disappointing investment returns could weaken economic prospects.
“As the global economy continues to experience persistent shocks, LCCI recommends that Nigeria work to minimise their impact on prices and the cost of living,” he said.
Kupoluyi stressed the need to distinguish economic growth from broad-based prosperity, noting that a growing economy did not automatically translate into improved business performance, higher real incomes or sufficient employment.
He said Nigeria should sustain growth while strengthening manufacturing, agriculture, construction, logistics and export-oriented services.
“Nigeria needs a growth trajectory that is driven increasingly by productivity, private investment, industrialisation and employment creation.
“Reforms can open the door to investment, but their impact is felt only when capital begins to flow into projects that change people’s lives,” he said.
On agriculture, Kupoluyi urged the government to intensify support for irrigation, mechanisation, storage, rural roads, agricultural finance and agro-processing.
He also called for measures to address insecurity affecting farming communities and improve the transportation of agricultural produce from farms to markets.
On inflation, the LCCI president urged the government to address structural drivers, including high logistics costs, inadequate infrastructure, insecurity in food-producing areas and excessive costs along domestic supply chains.
He said the objective should be to moderate production costs, improve real incomes and make essential goods more affordable, rather than merely slowing price increases.
On foreign exchange, Kupoluyi said improved market stability should translate into increased productive investment and greater certainty for businesses.
He said the business community needed a foreign-exchange market that was sufficiently liquid, transparent and predictable to support legitimate transactions.
“Exchange-rate stability must translate into greater certainty for manufacturers and other businesses that depend on imported machinery, intermediate goods, spare parts, raw materials and specialised services.
“We encourage the Central Bank of Nigeria to sustain the reforms that improve market transparency and confidence, while ensuring that legitimate productive-sector demand is met efficiently,” he said.
Speaking for the organised private sector, Kupoluyi urged the government to create conditions that would enable businesses to invest, expand production, compete and generate decent jobs.
He also urged the Federal and state governments to ensure that increased public revenues translated into measurable improvements in infrastructure, education, healthcare, security and other services that supported enterprise development.
“For LCCI, the central advocacy message should be that macroeconomic stability is a foundation for growth, not an end in itself.
“The next phase of reform must convert stabilisation into lower business costs, stronger domestic production, export diversification, higher productivity and employment.
“This will require sustained public-private dialogue, measurable implementation targets and regular monitoring of reforms against outcomes that matter to businesses and households,” he said. (NAN)
Edited by Chinyere Joel-Nwokeoma
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