Governance Burden Too Heavy for Government Alone — Abiodun

Ogun State Governor, Dapo Abiodun, has stressed that the responsibility of tackling poverty and driving national development cannot rest solely on the government.

Speaking in Lagos on Tuesday at the 12th Annual Public Lecture of The Foursquare Gospel Church Nigeria, themed *“Poverty Alleviation, Economic Development and Stability of the Nigerian Economy,”* Abiodun said the complexity of governance makes collaboration essential.

“The burden of governance cannot be shouldered by government alone, and the church has effectively demonstrated this belief through its initiatives,” he said while commending the church’s contributions in education, healthcare, humanitarian services and empowerment programmes.

Abiodun added that poverty alleviation must be built on inclusive growth and economic stability.

“Economic development and stability are two sides of the same coin. Without stability, the economy is short-lived. Without development, poverty persists. Poverty is not just an economic statistic, it is a human reality. We must care for the vulnerable,” he said.

In his welcome address, the General Overseer of Foursquare Gospel Church Nigeria, Rev. Sam Aboyeji, emphasised that no nation could achieve meaningful development without first tackling poverty. He described the church’s 70 years of presence in Nigeria as a “sacred duty” to contribute to national progress.

Delivering the keynote lecture, Dr. Doyin Salami, Senior Fellow and Associate Professor at Lagos Business School, warned that Nigeria’s current 3.2% growth rate was inadequate to reduce poverty. He argued that the country needs consistent annual growth of at least 6.5% for a decade to achieve real progress.

Salami further cautioned against Nigeria’s overreliance on the services sector, warning that de-industrialisation was undermining sustainable development. He recalled that while Nigeria once fared better than China in poverty indices in the early 1990s, China reversed its fortunes within a few years, leaving Nigeria behind.