THE CALL FOR INCREASING PARTICIPATION OF ECONOMISTS IN EVERY SECTORS OF THE NIGERIAN ECONOMY

By Victor Abidemi
abidemivic@gmail.com

The  world  is  rapidly  moving  towards  an  economic  system  that  is  based  on  the continuous  application  of  economic  analysis  to  real  world  issues,  as  such  the  role  of Economist  all  over  the  world  is  increasingly  becoming  important  and  vital  to  the growth  of any  nation. In  the US for example,  Economist  typically  do  the following:   Research  and  analyze economic issues   Conduct  surveys  and  collect  data   Analyze data using  mathematical  models  and  statistical  techniques   Prepare reports,  tables  and  charts  that  present  research  results   Interpret  and  forecast  market  trends   Advise  businesses,  governments  and  individuals  o  economic topics   Design  policies  or make recommendations  for solving  economic problems   Write articles  for  publication  in  academic journals  and  other media  sources While  doing  all  these,
 Economist  in  the  US  earn  an  annual  average  income  of  about $91,860  with  nearly  half  of  them  working  across  the  Federal,  state  and  local government.  They  usually  help  collect  and  analyze  data  about  US  economy including  employment,  prices,  productivity  and  wages  among  other  types  of  data. They  also  project  spending  needs  and  inform  policy  makers  on  the  economic  impact of laws  and  regulations.  These and  many  more are what  Economist  do  in  the US.  In UK,  France,  Japan,  China  and  even  India,  more  values  are  being  placed  on Economist  and  the  outcome  of  this  is  evident  in  the  growth  of  their  various economies. In  Nigeria  today,  the  aforementioned  are  virtually  not  available.  Economists  are  not placed  in  the  scheme  of  things.  Government  do  not  sponsor  research  works  and Economist  are  rarely  consulted  to  provide  recommendations  for  solving  economic problems.  If  the  Nigerian  Government  is  set  out  to  achieve  growth  and  development in  due  course  then  there  must  be  a  recognition  of  the  immense  contributions  of Economist  to  national  development. In  conclusion,  for  Nigeria  to  continue  growing,  there  is  a  need  to  increase  the participation  of  Economist  in  every  sectors  of  the  economy.  Also,  considering  the relevance  of  Economist  both  to  economic  growth  and  development  of  any  nation, concerted  effort  should  be  made  across  all  the  levels  of  government  (both  at  the federal,  state  or  local  level)  in  ensuring  that  economists  are  brought  to  the  fore  of every  policy  decision.  In  doing  these,  the  inputs  required  to  build  a  virile  nation based  on  strong  and  enduring  economic policy  are  met.