Shonekan gave the warning in a paper titled ‘The Role of the Anglican Communion in Economic Development’ which he delivered yesterday at a conference on Welfare of the Nigerian nation and the Role of the Anglican Communion in nation-building.

The former Head of Nigeria’s Interim National Government (ING) said that, in the absence of reliable official data on poverty level in Nigeria, “what we can see suggests that poverty remains pervasive’’.
He expressed concern that the unemployment rate, particularly of young school leavers and graduates, remains intolerably high, while infrastructure and capacity utilisation in the real sector remain weak.

Shonekan described as “horrendous” government’s domestic debt of about N2 trillion with its crippling impact on local economic activities.

He also described as “unhealthy” the economy’s continued dependence on the oil sector, and called for urgent and decisive steps to “pursue economic diversification initiatives.

“In terms of the economy, the vast majority of Nigerians have yet to feel the impact of the economy in a significant way,’’ he said further.

On how the country arrived at such dire straits, the former head of the ING identified faulty economic management strategies of previous governments, “the frightening ascendancy of counter norms that we have witnessed over the years’’, as well as a largely unstable political environment.

He said the church could help in remedying the situation by promoting an ethical and caring society which believes in, and adheres to, acceptable norms and values.

According to Shonekan, by investing in education and healthcare delivery, and by implementing economic empowerment programmes that it is well positioned to manage, the Anglican Church could help promote economic development.

“The Church can invest its surplus funds directly in the economy and this can target various sectors of the economy,’’ he said, adding, “the Anglican Communion can actively participate in policy advocacy in support of appropriate policies that can help promote economic development’’.

“It is common knowledge that part of Nigeria’s problems is lack of will to effectively enforce laws, rules and regulation. When we begin to do this, we can expect a better society for all Nigerians,’’ he said.