THE THEORY OF FEEDING THE MULTITUDE WITH LOAFS OF BREAD AND FISHES.
AN APPROACH AIMED AT MANAGING NIGERIA’S RESOURCES FOR INCLUSIVE GROWTH IN LINE WITH THE CHANGE AGENDA OF THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT.

Provided within the limit of about a thousand words, in compliance with the “rules of engagement”

By: ORIMOLOYE, Ifeoluwa
e-mail: loveorims@yahoo.com

ABSTRACT
Of a truth, every facets of our life in Nigeria needs to undergo change, a serious one, else, we shall witness right before our faces, the countless number of human and natural resources go into waste year in, year out. We also need to as a matter of urgency, diversify from our dependence on oil as the major economic powerhouse and face other abundant mineral resources. Identifying all of these challenges and proffering a feasible solution is my definition of CHANGE. This and many other reasons forms the basis for this contribution especially as it relates to the Change agenda of the federal government of Nigeria.

INTRODUCTION
To begin to solve our problem as a country, we need to realize the fact that in a country like ours where resources abounds, there is a need to diversify the economy and halt the mono-cultural trend. We are in a situation where a lot is being invested in the oil sector while a host of other more-economically viable minerals abounds, and are allowed to waste away at the instance of less-competent -local miners.
I will say that my definition of the change agenda of the Federal government of Nigeria extends to Agriculture and Mining as the drivers of the economy rather than oil produce. This relates to the title of this paper; “FEEDING THE MULTITUDE WITH LOAFS OF BREAD AND FISHES”. My definition of the ‘bread’ stands to be the solid minerals/mineral resources while the ‘fishes’ relates to agriculture.
I have therefore, categorized resources into two divisions, viz;
Natural resources
Human resources
I shall limit myself to the natural resources, and give a surface description or overview of the human resources as it translates to the Nigerian society.
NATURAL RESOURCES
In line with the agenda of the federal of Nigeria, I structured the natural resources into two divisions, which is the mining and agricultural resources. Coincidentally, the two sectors are the oldest sector in the country, they are economically feasible but with a less of concentration.

AGRICULTURAL RESOURCES
Agriculture is meant to give development a soft-landing, exactly the way it contributes the GDP and give the economy a boost. I have heard stories about the bumper profit that was realized in the country during the 2nd republic and how particularly in the South-West, the yields from agriculture was used in establishing schools and in the provision of quite an enviable array of basic infrastructures. It is however not surprising that at the partial neglect of agriculture, the only infrastructure that stands out in many of the regions are the infrastructures that were put in place from the yields from agriculture, in those days. Also, myth about Malaysia abound, the story of how Malaysia got to tap our oil-palm seedlings and how oil-palm became the source of revenue for the Malaysians. This suggests invariably that there are omissions in the utilization of agricultural resources, thus;
Inadequate access to credit facilities/real investment in agriculture like it is being witnessed in the oil and gas sector of the economy.
Agriculture is made to look like something unpleasant, it is not encouraged and so prospective farmers run away from it.




MINERAL RESOURCES
The domestic mining industry is underdeveloped, leading to Nigeria having to import commodities it could produce domestically, such as salt or iron sheets and billets. At that we won’t need to import specific mineral resources that abounds even with our domiciliary. Mineral resources should be exploited, explored and refined in the country. Thus raw materials like iron and steel can be processed with the awakening of Ajaokuta steel industry. This will go a long way in consolidating the efforts of the Federal government at assembling made-in-Nigeria vehicles and other locally-made products.

HUMAN RESOURCES: Human resources translates to manpower. An average Nigerian can boast of a surplus of energy waiting to be utilized. This is prevalent among the youths. It always seem like the youths are possessed with an abundant energy which always seem under-utilized. And so, we have seen them in most cases, diverting their energy into something that is willing to drain it. Unfortunately, it is always an unpleasant adventure.
The criminal adventures youths engage in can be converted positively, by ‘taking advantage’ of the excessive energy bustling in them, early enough, into profitable means. Skill acquisition is just one of the numerous fruitful, but ineffective means of tapping the excessive energy.
MANAGERIAL APPROACHES

ADOPTING RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT APRROACHES/TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER: In my opinion, we have intellectuals with enviable track records in technological breakthrough. Let us have a platform where our countrymen who are the brains behind the success of the other countries, be made to return home. They seem to be running away from their home country because they are not encouraged in anyway. We should invite them and make them contribute intellectual ideas. The government as well as private organizations should invest in research and development where the invited will serve as main actors. This should as well extend to home-grown intellectuals. They should be availed the opportunity to travel to developed nations and tap their resource management principles. They should be made to be aware of the world around them. Hence, they should get exposed to technological advancements with a bond enforcing them to return to their home country and use the knowledge gained in developing the country. Never-the-less, the encouragement is something worthwhile.

RE-TRAINING OF LOCAL MINERS: At present our mineral resources are being subjected to serious waste through the actions of individuals who are exploring these mineral resources, but are not competent or certified to do so. What we need to do is to adopt these people and get their commitment into working for the government as miners. They are semi-skilled and should be made to pass through adequate training in mineral processing, with modern processing technologies. Remarkably, countries like Japan adopted this method after the Second World War, countries like China are still in the use of this method and are booming. Our concentration on ‘paper certificates’ should therefore be reduced. This is my definition of an INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION which must be adopted by the country.

ENCOURAGING LOCAL CONTENTS: Our local products should be encouraged, while concentration on foreign products should be discouraged.

RECYCLING: Alternatives for power generation must be created, using these domestic resources. The domestic sources should extend to recycling as an initiative that should be encouraged.

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