The President’s strategy of stabilizing the economy and the investment environment was to crowd in the private sector.
The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr. Wale Edun, stated that the Federal Government will assess the effects of the current global tariff war on Nigeria.
He addressed the Corporate Governance Forum for Government Owned Enterprises at the Ministry of Finance Incorporated in Abuja yesterday.
Wake Edun, “For the economic management team of Mr. President and indeed his whole government, we are going back to the drawing board to look at the scenarios that may play out if the current tariff situation is prolonged.
“For Nigeria, in terms of exports, it’s not too bad because oil minerals are excluded by America from being in any way sanctioned with tariffs.
“But based on our non-oil exports and based on the formula that the Americans are using, we do have a 14% tariff on our exports. But it’s a lot better than Vietnam, which has 46%.
“So we need to look at these situations and see what the opportunities are. The Nigeria of today, with a relatively stable economy and an attractive investment environment, including attractive exchange rate, is a place where if they can’t produce in Vietnam, they can come and produce in Nigeria.
“We are here, we are ready, we are waiting, and we have what will be attractive to them in terms of policies, in terms of market, and in terms of export capacity.”
In order for the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) to become publicly traded, Wale Edun stated that the company must first establish a high level of corporate governance.
“I think you will all agree that this is a critical issue at a critical time. You have the likes of NNPC, which is a portfolio company. We have good indication that they are looking to IPO (Initial Public Offerings).
“NNPC is the crown jewel of the Nigerian corporate sector and the economy. It is a limited liability company, and if you want to go public, corporate governance is at the heart of what you must achieve.”
The minister acknowledged that public investment for infrastructure is inadequate and stated that the current administration’s objective is to bring in private capital.
“But more important than that, rather than relying on budgetary funding, the whole aim of Mr. The President’s strategy of stabilizing the economy and the investment environment was to crowd in the private sector.
“Government accounts for 10% of GDP. The private sector, 90%. That’s where the money is. And that’s why the focus has been on, for example, rather than the Ministry of Works looking for funds, using the Highway Development and Management Initiative to hand over major roads which the private sector is interested in constructing, reconstructing and concession basis. There are eight other roads that are ready to go.”
Former World Bank Country Director in Nigeria Dr. Ndiame Diop called for more transparency in GOE management. He stated that just 50% of them had their yearly reports produced and placed on the MOFI website, an improvement over the previous year but still needed to be done.
As the new Vice President of the African Region of the World Bank, Dr. Diop remarked that technology to extract federal government money from the GOEs before the yearly accounts were prepared had increased government revenue.
Dr. Armstrong Takang, MOFI MD, stated that GOEs dominated infrastructure, finance, natural resources, and industry worldwide, providing key services that boost economic growth and reduce poverty.
Utility SOEs (9State Owned Enterprises) made up 50% of SOE value in OECD countries. MOFI manages a comprehensive SOE portfolio in energy, infrastructure, financial services, manufacturing, agriculture, and digital services as custodian of public wealth, according to the MD.