Population must drive development, not politics – Femi Akinkuebi

By Precious Oluwole

Ondo-born industrialist, Femi Akinkuebi, has urged Nigerian leaders to prioritise population-driven planning, saying the country is failing to tap its greatest economic advantage.

In a statement titled “Nigeria’s Untapped Goldmine: Why Population Must Drive Development, Not Politics,” he said nations like China became global powers by deliberately converting population into wealth.

According to him, “China did not become a global economic power by accident; it became one by understanding the simple truth that population is wealth. Every major policy, strategy, and long-term vision the Chinese government pursued for decades was tied to one central question: How do we productively engage over a billion people?”

Akinkuebi said China created policies that compelled global companies to employ its citizens, while building housing estates, roads and transport systems strictly to support economic activity.

He noted that Nigeria has a similar youth-heavy population but lacks strategic planning to harness it.

He referenced a viral video from Niger State where teenagers stoned a government convoy, saying it reflected wasted human potential.

He added, “I saw potential — human resources wasting away, angry not because they want trouble, but because the system has failed to give them purpose, direction, or opportunity.”

The industrialist argued that projects without economic value cannot solve unemployment, stressing that factories, not temporary construction jobs, drive long-term prosperity.

Akinkuebi urged the government to ask critical questions about how the population is being absorbed into productive sectors, warning that idle youths easily become instruments of frustration.

He maintained that purposeful engagement can transform young Nigerians into builders, not agitators.

“When citizens have no economic relevance, they become tools of frustration… But when they have meaningful work, the same energy that destroys can build a nation,” he said.

He called for a shift from politics-driven development to population-driven policies, insisting that Nigeria’s rise depends on using its people intelligently.

He concluded, “Population is not our problem — our failure to use it intelligently is. The future belongs to countries that can turn their people into producers, not spectators.”