diversification seriously, the country must separate its budget and financial system from oil price benchmark syndrome, the Executive Director of African Institute for Applied Economics (AIAE) has said.
Speaking yesterday in Abuja at the public presentation of the book: "The Global Economic Crisis and Nigeria: taking the right lessons, avoiding the wrong lessons," the director said the oil benchmark syndrome confers a mentality of overdependence on the oil sector.
He said: "The oil benchmark mentality does not give the right national mindset for the much needed economic diversification. Time has come to consider some form of decoupling or debugging of the government budget and public finance from the oil benchmark syndrome."
He expressed concern over the rising domestic debt profile as well as rising physical deficit as can be seen in the 2010 budget that has been passed by the National Assembly.
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"These are areas of concern and we think that steps should be taken to watch these trends particularly the depletion of the excess crude account between 2006 to 2009.These important signs needs to be watch by stakeholders so that we are sure that we are on the part of sustainability," he said.
He said that whatever measures that the country is taking to curb with the aftermath of the economic crisis should not undermine the basis for long time economic sustainability.
He said the book that was presented is a fall out of his institutes last year's symposium in collaboration with the National Assembly Policy Analysis and Research Project on the Global Financial crisis and Nigeria.
He said the book is designed to benefit different segments of the society, adding that it shows evidence to inform and influence economic policies.
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