Falae added that the Nigerian government needed to seriously focus on agriculture and give necessary support to farmers to prevent the food shortage that may arise after the pandemic.
Olu Falae, a former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, has advised the state and the federal government to cut down cost and avoid frivolous spending to salvage the country's economy amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Falae said Nigeria's economy would soon pick up but noted that political leaders at the helm of affairs need to urgently block leakages and focus only on essential spending.
He spoke in an interview with Sahara Reporters, listing strategies to recover from the pandemic.
The former minister said the price of crude oil, which initially fell as a result of the pandemic, would soon rise again and boost the nation's economy.
Falae added that the Nigerian government needed to seriously focus on agriculture and give necessary support to farmers to prevent the food shortage that may arise after the pandemic.
According to him, the country is not as badly affected as many other countries of the world with the pandemic, adding that the number of casualties was also minimal.
He said, "Corruption, lack of sincerity and wasteful spending are the clog in the wheel of progress of this country and nobody want to care about this.
“But we will gradually build up again and I believe in another twelve months, our economy should be back to normal. Growth is gradual and so it is in the economy. When countries are opening up, things will change again".