Daybreak, Politics, Entertainment, Sport

Tag: Poverty

  • FG creates Adire Production Scheme to lift 100,000 Nigerians out of Poverty

    FG creates Adire Production Scheme to lift 100,000 Nigerians out of Poverty

    … Promises to make Adire a global phenomenon
    By Joyce Remi-Babayeju

    The Federal Government has created the Subsidized Adire Production Scheme to lift 100,000 on out of poverty and lessen hardship on citizens.
    The Minister of Humanitarian Affairs Poverty Alleviation, Dr. Betta Edu at Itoku and Asero Markets in Abeokuta, Ogun State put smiles on the faces of men and women traders, as she announced President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s readiness under the Renewed Hope Agenda to support the production of locally made Adire for both local and international markets.

    Edu at the market sensitized the market women on the market monies program and other social safety net programs from the ministry.

    The Minister explained that the Federal Government will invest largely in creating jobs through the local Adire fabrics production chain as one of the many ways to reduce poverty and improve export, that will further boost the economy and revenue for market men and women.

    Meanwhile, Edu gave assurance that the government intents to ensure the fabric becomes a global phenomenon while reducing to the barest minimum the presence of the imported fake Adire.

    The Minister gave the assurance that government programmes under her supervision will enhance opportunities in Adire Markets to lift millions of vulnerable Nigerians out of poverty.

    “First, you must be able to push local production to meet the demand. Local production must be enhanced at all costs to meet the demand. When local products saturate the market at a rate subsided and supported by the government, it will automatically eliminate whatever fluctuate coming into the market. ”

    “We don’t want to be selling fake Adire, made in other countries, and brought into Nigeria. What we want are the local ones made by our people to create jobs, it will build the micro and macroeconomy and it will help Nigeria to be more of a manufacturing economy rather than an import dependent country.”

    ‘These are the things that are affecting the exchange rates and other economic indexes in Nigeria. The government will provide that subsidy for the people, so we take the fuel subsidy off the fuel, we will provide it for the Adire makers so that they can provide local Adire that will be used in the country and exported out of the country, the minister emphasized.”

    “I was so happy yesterday when the governor and his commissioners said they are going to create hubs in Abuja where the original Adire would be sold. This is taking Abeokuta, Ogun State, to the world, and these hubs can be created even at embassies in other countries around the world where we can export Adire.

    “This is the original one, not the fake which is imitated and brought in. For us, if we support the local manufacturers, subsidize this for them, bring more people into this production to meet the demand, it will automatically eliminate the ones that come into the country.”

    Speaking further, the minister said that the state government has identified about five interventions that will really touch lives in Ogun State, covering about 100,000 persons in Ogun State.

    ” Part of what we identified yesterday was the ADIRE production, which is really very as typical to Ogun people; it is their identity and what they are known to do very well.”

    “Adire has both the local equipment production and modern production. We’ve been to production sites and clusters and also in the market to pick up some fabrics and interact with the market people and Iyalojas. All are here with us. We try to find out the cost of the final product and what it sells for in the market.”

    These cloth I am handling are N15,200, we have some of the N25,000, N75,000 in the shops. We have come here to see how it is being made locally, from the dying stage, the drying, and all of these stages that finally get to beautiful fabrics that we sell and export, Edu said.

  • 133m Nigerians Living In Poverty – FG

    133m Nigerians Living In Poverty – FG

    The Federal Government, through the National Bureau of Statistics, on Thursday said 130 million Nigerians are poor.

    In its 2022 Multidimensional Poverty Index Survey released in Abuja on Thursday, the NBS said the figure represents 63 per cent of the nation’s population.

    It added that the poverty index is mostly experienced in rural areas especially in the north with women and children being the most affected.

    Reports gathered that the survey was conducted by the NBS, the National Social Safety-Nets Coordinating Office (NASSCO), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), and the Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative (OPHI).

    It was gathered that the measure used to calculate the figure was based on Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) with five components of health, living standard, education, security, and unemployment.

    According to the survey, over 50 per cent of children across the country are affected by poverty.

    In his remarks, the Statistician-General of the Federation, Mr Adeyemi Adeniran, noted that 56,610 households were surveyed and areas such as health, education, living standards, food security, water reliability, underemployment, security shocks, and school attendance were considered.

    While the multidimensional poverty index stood at 27 per cent in Ondo State, the figure is estimated at 90 percent in Sokoto state.

    Details later….

  • 12m U-5 Children Living in Severe Food Poverty in Nigeria – UNICEF

    12m U-5 Children Living in Severe Food Poverty in Nigeria – UNICEF

    By Joyce Remi-Babayeju

    The United Nations Children’s Fund, UNICEF, has said that at least 12 million under five, U5, Nigerian children are living in severe food poverty.

    UNICEF Chief of Nutrition in Nigeria, Nemat Hajeebhoy disclosed this in Abuja yesterday at a Media Executive Roundtable Meeting on Nutrition organized by the National Council on Nutrition , NCN, of the Office of Vice President, Professor Yemi Osibajo .

    Hajeebhoy who disclosed this while speaking on the Nutrition Situation in Nigeria said that poor diets are robbing millions of children of their health, development, and lifetime prospects.

    Due to Food insecurity in Nigeria, 19 million people which includes adults and children are food insecure out of which 1 million suffer acute food insecurity, the UNICEF Chief of Nutrition stated.
    .
    She pointed that Nigeria ranks the number on in Africa and two in the world in terms of the number of children malnourished.

    “Due to the reality of malnutrition in the country, every hour, almost 100 children die from malnutrition and if left untreated by way of food security by the government of Nigeria, the 12 million Hajeebhoy said, ” children with severe acute malnutrition, SAM, are more likely to die than a healthy child.”

    As treatment to malnutrition , Hajeebhoy said,” It costs only N6,000 to prevent a child from becoming malnourished while it costs N 57,000 to treat ba malnourished child.”

    UNICEF called on government to take advantage of the first 1000 days of children’s critical window of opportunity by investing more in a child’s life from when a woman is pregnant to when the child clocks two years.

    President of Nutrition Society of Nigeria, Professor Wasiu Afolabi noted that despite the human and natural resources in Nigeria, without human capital development every other development will end up being destroyed, if nutrition is not prioritized.

    Head of Nutrition and Food Security, Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr. Rasaq Oyeleke said that 50% of deaths in Nigeria is related to malnutrition, and called on government to look at how to improve nutrition, by improving the food systems if the nation wants to achieve the 17 Sustainable Development Goals, SDGs.

    Dr. Oyeleke emphasized that consuming food does not translate to improved nutrition, adding that to promote healthy diet there is need for government to take such steps like reformation of foods and drinks , food products to contain less sugar, salt, and fats.

    Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning , represented by Lanre Adekanye who declared the meeting open, noted that adequate nutrition is the bedrock of child survival, health, and development.

    People with adequate nutrition are more productive and can create opportunities to gradually break the cycle of poverty and hunger in the nation, he stressed.

    Senior Special Assistant to the President on Nutrition, Office of the Vice President, Dr. Abimbola Adesanmi said that the objective of the Media Executive Meeting on Nutrition was to address and also create awareness on malnutrition in Nigeria.

    The Media is key in raising this awareness on the citizenry, so they can hold politicians accountable on their campaign promises on plans for Nutrition for the populac, Adesanmi said.

  • IDPs May Join Terrorists Over Poverty, Dwindling Resources – Zulum

    IDPs May Join Terrorists Over Poverty, Dwindling Resources – Zulum

    Borno State Governor Professor Babagana Umara Zulum has expressed fears that dwindling resources and poverty, if not tackled, may force some Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) to join Boko Haram and its splinter group–the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) fighters.

    The governor, who made this known yesterday during the closure of the Dalori-1, Dalori-2, Gubio and Muna IDP camps in Maiduguri, said that the state government cannot continue to keep its people in the IDP camps.

    He said the State government under his leadership will do everything possible to ensure that more communities are resettled in a dignified manner.

    Zulum said: “The only way to address the problems of insurgency is for the government to address the root cause which among others includes increasing poverty, infrastructure deficit and the climate vulnerabilities.

    “Therefore, what we need to do is to return the IDPs to their ancestral homes in a dignified manner. Nobody is forced to return to his ancestral home, we are here to support voluntary return in accordance with the Kampala Convention. People will be supported with means of livelihood so that they earned their means of livelihood by themselves otherwise our people shall continue to live in the IDP camps,” he said.

    The governor said all IDP camps will be closed before the expiration of his tenure urging the Federal Government to initiate a medium and long sustainable framework to curb the over dependence humanitarian support by the IDPs.

    Zulum lauded the chairman of Victim Support Fund General Theophilus Danjuma (rtd) and the fund for the largest support to the plights of the victims and government of the state during the over 13 years of humanitarian crisis.

    He also urged the returnees to make good use of the assistance and support the government resettlement efforts by assisting the security agents with useful information

  • FG needs 1 trillion to lift children out of poverty – Report

    FG needs 1 trillion to lift children out of poverty – Report

    By Joyce Remi-Babayeju

    A new report launched by the Vice President Yemi Osinbajo to mark the 2022 Children’s Day has revealed that Nigeria needs 1 trillion to lift children out of poverty along side exposed the depth of poverty children face in households.

    The three fold Reports launched on the Children’s Day namely , The Situation Analysis of Children in Nigeria, the Multidimensional Child Poverty Analysis in Nigeria and Monetary Child Poverty in Nigeria prepared by the Ministry of Budget and National Planning in collaboration with UNICEF, reveals the new evidence on the situation of child deprivation in Nigeria.

    According to the report 24.56% of children face extreme poverty by living in households that spend less than $1.90 a day as the analysis indicates that the country would need as roughly as 1 trillion naira to lift children out of poverty.

    The report notes that children are most affected by poverty because they are   vulnerable, and that poverty has long-term impacts on the well-being of children, even into adulthood.

    The Multidimensional Child Poverty Analysis using Multidimensional Overlapping Deprivation Analysis approach reveals that approximately 54 % of children in Nigeria are multidimensionally poor by facing at least three deprivations across seven dimensions of child rights including nutrition, healthcare, education, water, sanitation, adequate housing, and information.

    The Situation Analysis also indicates that child poverty rate is highest among children aged 16– 17 years and least among children aged 0–5 years.

    Multidimensional poverty in children is more prevalent in the rural (65.7 %) than urban areas (28.4 %). There are also high state disparities ranging from 14.5 % (Lagos) to 81.5 % (Sokoto), the report showed.

    The monetary child poverty report shows that 47.4 % of children face monetary poverty by living in households with expenditure less than N 376.5 a day – national poverty line. Slight differences are observed between boys (47.98 %) and girls (46.8 %) while there are high geographical and state disparities (from 6.5% in Lagos to 91.4% in Sokoto).

    UNICEF Representative in Nigeria, Peter Hawkins said,”Data is critical for effective budgeting and decision making – and the data from these surveys together paint a picture of the situation for children and families in Nigeria.”
    “We still have a long way to go towards ensuring the well-being of children and families in Nigeria, with persistent multi-dimensional poverty being a crucial obstacle.”

    The findings of these reports will help guide the federal and state governments as they plan their budgets – providing evidence for where more funds need to be allocated and wisely spent, Hawkins explained.

    According to the UNICEF lead, an analysis of the reports indica the need for improved social protection measures to ensure that children are protected from risks, along with an expansion of access to much-needed social services.

    Whether looking at poverty from a monetary or non-monetary point of view, the data show that children are more likely to live in poverty than other groups, he emphasized.

    Hawkins stressed the need to pay special attention to planning and programming for children, based on the policy recommendations and calls to action contained in the reports, adding that the data provided offers a clear direction and key actions necessary for the realization of children’s rights in Nigeria.

  • A’Ibom 2023: Owodiong to curb poverty, hunger with robust Agric policies

    A’Ibom 2023: Owodiong to curb poverty, hunger with robust Agric policies

    A prominent governorship aspirant in Akwa Ibom, Obong Ide Owodiong has pledged to reduce hunger and poverty in the state by declaring a state of emergency in the agricultural sector.

    Owodiong, who is of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, while fielding questions from newsmen yesterday in Uyo on his plan for agriculture promised to place Akwa Ibom among the 10 most sustainable and productive states in Nigeria by 2027 with ample contribution from a transformed agricultural Sector.

    He said his mission would remain to develop the agricultural potentials of the state by increasing food production, strengthen the economic status of agro-entrepreneurs and uplift their lifestyle.

    “I will develop agro-industrialization potentials of the State, reduce abject poverty, Increase wealth creation activities of Akwa Ibom State as an Agriculture Powerhouse.” He said.

    Owodiong maintained that the state remained a powerhouse for various crops such as palm oil, cassava, yam, cocoyam, plantain, banana, maize, rice, rubber, cocoa, vegetables among others and sea food (including catfish, barracuda, sardines, bonga, croaker, shrimps, crayfish, snappers, squids and oysters) and domestic animals such as cow, goat and sheep) including poultry and bees which needed to be boosted.

    “The factors that favor agriculture in Akwa Ibom State include favorable all-year round climate; fertile soil; and talented, skilled, and able-bodied manpower base. With majority of the people engaged in farming, at the subsistence level, as a means of livelihood or additional income, there is very little agro-industrial activities in the state.

    “The revolutionary development of Agriculture is what is referred to as Agribusiness; Agribusiness brings about the transformation of agricultural activity through value-addition, leading to the growth of other business opportunities in the Agriculture Value Chain.

    “ The Agriculture Value Chain is a presentation of the network of activities, the products and services, the support systems and linkages that take place from the point of production to the point of consumption from the Farm to the Table.” He explained.

    Highlighting the benefits of the proposed Agro- Industry in Akwa ibom state, the former ExxonMobil Director cited food security, job creation, income opportunities, talent and skills acquisition and economic growth

    “Agro-industry is defined as post-harvest activities that involve the transformation, preservation and preparation of agricultural production for consumption. It includes artisanal, minimally processed and packaged raw materials, the processing of intermediate goods and the
    fabrication of final products derived from agriculture.” He emphasized.

    He urged Akwa Ibom people to read his blueprint for the state to understand his level of preperadeness to change the narratives and usher in a new dawn with his election as the next governor of the state.

  • ‘Businesses Are Suffering,’ Elumelu Laments Over Hardship, Poverty In Nigeria

    ‘Businesses Are Suffering,’ Elumelu Laments Over Hardship, Poverty In Nigeria

    Nigerian Economist and businessman, Tony Elumelu on Thursday lamented over the worsening electricity, hike in prices of diesel, and its effect on businesses in the country.

    The CEO of Heirs Holdings in a series of tweets said businesses are suffering under the situation with Nigerian citizens groaning under food inflation as well.

    “How can a country so rich in natural resources have 90% of its citizens living in hardship and poverty?,” Elumelu said.

    “This morning, I am listening to my colleagues at the office bemoan the very pressing issues that they face every day in this country, and how things have been getting worse and worse – no electricity for 5 days, hikes in the price of diesel, frightening food inflation, etc.

    “I have often said that access to electricity is critical for our development, alleviation of poverty and hardship. And speaking of security, our people are afraid!” he lamented.

    Speaking further, the entrepreneur who also runs a leading non-profit organisation, Tony Elumelu Foundation said the country is unable to meet its OPEC production quota due to oil theft.

    “Businesses are suffering. How can we be losing over 95% of oil production to thieves? Look at the Bonny Terminal that should be receiving over 200k barrels of crude oil daily, instead, it receives less than 3,000 barrels, leading the operator @Shell to declare force majeure,” he said.

    “Why are we paying taxes if our security agencies can’t stop this? It is clear that the reason Nigeria is unable to meet its OPEC production quota is not because of low investment but because of theft, pure and simple!

    “Meanwhile, oil-producing countries are smiling as their foreign reserves rising. What is Nigeria’s problem? We need to hold our leaders more accountable!”

    Concerning the 2023 election, Elumelu urged those running for offices to prioritise security and urged Nigerians to advocate for leaders that deliver.

    “Elections are coming – security and resources need to be everyone’s agenda – let’s be vocal for our nation’s priority.

    “Evil prevails when good people are silent. We need to be vocal about 2023. Let’s focus on Nigeria. Demand and advocate for leaders that deliver.

    “In 2023, Nigeria must be on a strong trajectory for progress and development.”

    Elumelu in 2020 was named on Time’s list of the 100 most influential people in the world.

  • Reps Member Distributes 546 Poverty Reduction Items

    Reps Member Distributes 546 Poverty Reduction Items

    By Muhammad Ibrahim,Sokoto

    In his remarks, the governor Tambuwal represented by the Secretary to the state government, Saidu Umar while commending the Member for the effort said despite polical party differences, Alhaji Salame is a character who has his electorates at heart and emphasised on the all polical office holders to emulates the deeds of Salame as this will surely reduce redundancy to the lowest level.


    The governor then welcomes any activity aimed at reducing poverty and improve social well being of citizenry.

    Minister of Justice of the Federation,Alhaji Abubakar Malami remarked that if all well to do exhibit the same sence of direction like Salame there woldn’t be terrorism as experienced in the present day Nigeria.

    The Sultan of Sokoto Alhaji Saad Abubakar 111represented by Sarkin Yakin Binji Alhaji Usman also said it is another milestone towards eradicating poverty as he understood that last year the Member did the same distributions as this and therefore worthy of commendation.

    Earlier, the donor of the items, Abubakar Abdullahi Salame, Member representing Gwadabawa/Illela Federal Constituency in his address said the distribution of 167 motorcycles, 50 Keke Napep and 329 sewing machines and N2m was part of his corporate responsibilities to his electorates.

    He said is a duty on all elected members to consider first the welfare and health of his electorates and not accumulate wealth for single families.

    Salame further said this is the second times he is distributing such items to his people only to reduce hardships within the two areas and beyond adding that this will go a long way in reducing poverty in the state at large.

    He commended the state government under the leadership of governor Tambuwal for coming out with series of activities that can be beneficial to the citizens of Sokoto and the country in general.

    Sardaunan Kano, Alhaji Shekarau, other dignitataries from across the country graced the ceremony.

  • Kogi Vows To Ensure Food Security, Fight Hunger, Poverty In The State

    Kogi Vows To Ensure Food Security, Fight Hunger, Poverty In The State

    From Noah Ocheni, Lokoja

    Kogi State Commissioner of Agriculture, Hon. David Apeh on Thursday in Lokoja restated its commitment towards food security, wipeout hunger and poverty in the state.

    Apeh who gave the assurance while speaking during the celebration of this year’s World Food Day held in Lokoja said this year’s Day was organised by the ActionAid Nigeria and Participation Initiative for Behavioral Change In Development (PIBCID) in collaboration with the Kogi State Ministry of Agriculture, Titled: “Our Actions Are Our Future”

    According to the commissioner, “Governor Yahaya Bello has done so much in the fight against hunger, poverty and disease since he came on board through prompt payment of counterparts funding to international donor agencies in order to ensure and promote food security in the state”

    Apeh said the journey of agricultural development in the state has been eventful and very rewarding with an assurance that the sector will continue to receive priority attention now and in the future.

    The commissioner enumerated some of the major agricultural activities in the state to include; cassava, yam, rice, fish and maize production amongst others adding that the fight against hunger and poverty in the state should be a collective war by government and the citizens.

    In her goodwill message at the event, the state commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Development, Hajia Fatima Buba urged women in the state to key into agriculture as the sector serves the main source for human survival.

    She appreciated Governor Yahaya Bello’s effort to boost agriculture in the state and thanked ActioinAid Nigeria for sponsoring this year’s World Food Day Celebration in Kogi.

    Earlier, the Executive Director of Participation Initiative for Behavioral Change In Development ( PIBCID), Halima Sadiq said the decision to put in place the event is part of her organisation’s commitment towards ensuring food security sustainability and development of the Agricultural sector in Kogi State.

    “We celebrate this day to appreciate efforts by small holders farmers especially women in Agriculture who against all odds including COVID-19 Pandemic has ensured a reduction in the world hunger adding “the activity is aimed at creating global awareness and challenges of malnutrition as a result of sufferings from hunger and to further encourage nutrition sensitive Agriculture for citizens health and well being given that a healthy nation is a wealthy nation” Halima Sadiq explained.”

    She said the World Food Day is a global platform created for all actors in the Agriculture value chain involving producers, processors, off takers as well as consumers to collectively chart the way forward in addressing food security challenges.

    Halima was optimistic that collective efforts must be intensified to end hunger as a mandate in the sustainable development goals.

    In her address, the state coordinator of Small Scale Women Farmers Organisation of Nigeria, (SSWFON) Hajia Safia Yahaya commended ActionAid Nigeria for their advocacy that has yielded fruitful results of world Bank financial support.

    She also appreciated the state governor, Alhaji Yahaya Bello for his prompt release of counterpart funds towards their project implementation assuring that women farmers will put more efforts towards food sepp0curity and reduction of poverty to justify the support of the state government.

  • Buhari Inaugurates Committee To Lift 100 Million Nigerians Out Of Poverty

    Buhari Inaugurates Committee To Lift 100 Million Nigerians Out Of Poverty

    President Muhammadu Buhari has inaugurated the National Steering Committee (NSC) of the National Poverty Reduction with Growth Strategy (NPRGS) to be chaired by the Vice President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo.

    In his remarks at the event on Tuesday in Abuja, the President reiterated his commitment to lifting 100 million Nigerians out of poverty in 10 years, with a well-researched framework for implementation and funding.

    “This journey began in January 2021 when I directed the Chairman of the Presidential Economic Advisory Council and Secretary to the Government of the Federation to collaboratively work together to articulate what will lift 100 million Nigerians out of poverty in 10 years.

    “I am happy to note that the process of designing this inclusive poverty reduction strategy recognised and addressed past mistakes, as well as laid the foundation for a sustainable poverty reduction through the wide range consultations held at all levels of government, development partners, the private sector as well as the civil society,” he was quoted as saying by his media aide, Femi Adesina.

    President Buhari was confident that the NPRGS would address the underlying causes of poverty on the basis of which it developed programmes that would deal with the multi-dimensional nature of poverty within the practical context of comparative advantage of human and natural resources in the various geo-political zones.

    According to him, the major challenge before the committee is to translate the good intention of the government into a positive impact on the average Nigerian in order to create an appreciative impact on the poverty situation in the country.

    “If India can lift 271 million people out of poverty between 2006 and 2016, Nigeria can surely lift 100 million out of poverty in 10 years. Fortunately, we have already started but we need to unlock the challenges of slow implementation, inappropriate targeting, and absence of adequate resources,” the President said.

    The responsibilities of the committee, he noted, include anchoring collaborative efforts; provide oversight for the implementation of the strategy; provide guidance to Technical Working Group and federal ministries, extra ministerial departments and agencies, subnational governments and other stakeholders on meeting the objectives of the programme; as well as monitor progress and any other effort that would enhance the attainment of the objective of lifting 100 million people out of poverty in 10 years.

    “The performance of our economy despite COVID-19 gives me comfort that we can achieve our goal, but we need to seriously scale up and work more with state and local governments.

    “This call becomes more pertinent in the face of recent forecasts by the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and our own Nigerian Economic Summit Group which all agreed that Nigeria needs to frontally tackle her poverty situation if our economic gains are to be sustained,” he told the gathering at the event.

    President Buhari asked the committee to commence work immediately to enable the Technical Working Group to begin to put the nuts and bolts together.

    He said the responsibilities were onerous but expressed confidence that the committee would be able to lay the foundation and demonstrate, within the next two years, the practicality of lifting 100 million Nigerians out of poverty in or under 10 years.

    In his remarks, Vice President Osinbajo said the NPRGS would consolidate other efforts of the government to reduce poverty in the land.

    He noted that the President’s position that local governments, states, and the federal government should work jointly to alleviate poverty in the country would be properly reflected in the framework and implementation, stressing the need for access and inclusivity.

    The SGF, Boss Mustapha, who is a member of the committee said the poverty situation in the country assumed an enormous proportion with an increasing population, adding that the situation was compounded by the COVID-19 pandemic.

    He, however, said the administration responded to the COVID-19 poverty fallout swiftly and was able to ameliorate the situation and ensured a quick exit from recession.

    The committee also has as members Chief of Staff to the President, Governors of Ekiti (South West), Delta (South South), Sokoto (North West), Borno (North East), Nasarawa (North Central), and Ebonyi States (South East).

    Others are Ministers of Finance, Budget and National Planning; State for Budget and National Planning; Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development; Agriculture and Rural Development; Industry, Trade and Investments; Labour and Employment, Education and Health.