The Ministry of Finance Incorporated (MOFI) has confirmed that over N38.3 trillion worth of federal government-owned investment assets are currently under audit and structural reform.
The announcement was made by Dr. Armstrong Takang, Chief Executive Officer of MOFI, during the inauguration of the 2025 Corporate Governance Guidelines by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) in Lagos on Wednesday.
Takang emphasized that the reforms are part of a broader strategy to reposition Nigeria’s state-owned enterprises (SOEs) for profitability, transparency, and better governance, with the ultimate goal of bolstering national economic development.
According to Takang, Nigeria had operated for decades without a reliable and centralized registry of government-owned assets. He disclosed that when MOFI began the asset review process, only N1.5 trillion in assets had been recorded officially.
“After evaluating just 20 key assets, we uncovered a staggering N38.3 trillion in net asset value,” he revealed. This, he said, signified the massive scale of unaccounted-for investments held across various sectors of the Nigerian economy.
Takang lamented the failure of many of Nigeria’s public enterprises to deliver returns to the government, noting that several iconic projects — once hailed as national pride — have become relics of neglect. These include Nigerian Airways, Ajaokuta Steel Company, and Delta Steel, which despite heavy government investments, have collapsed or are operating far below capacity.
“We spent billions of dollars to establish these companies. Today, many are ghost towns. There is zero return to the Nigerian people,” Takang said.
He attributed much of the underperformance to the absence of corporate governance — a lack of rules, transparency, accountability, and proper oversight.
He noted that many government-owned companies operate without audited financials, performance reporting, or consequences for poor performance.
“Executives ran these companies as if they were personal empires. There was no transparency, no oversight, no accountability,” he said, stressing that the reforms were designed to end this era of impunity.
To address the long-standing gap in transparency, MOFI has launched a comprehensive public asset registry, designed to track:
What the government owns
Where these assets are located
Their current value
The management structure
Operational performance
“This is not just a spreadsheet exercise. It’s about democratizing information. Every Nigerian deserves to know what we own and what returns we’re getting,” Takang stated.
Complementing the registry is a newly introduced Corporate Governance Scorecard, which rates public enterprises on:
Transparency & disclosures
Dividend payments
Liquidity status
Capital growth
Community and environmental impact
The evaluation is carried out by an independent panel of experts drawn from bodies such as the Financial Reporting Council (FRC), Institute of Directors (IoD), and the Society for Corporate Governance Nigeria.
Takang positioned the reforms as essential building blocks for President Bola Tinubu’s ambition of making Nigeria a $1 trillion economy by 2030.
“If we want to play in the Premier League of global economies, we need to act like serious contenders. That means discipline, transparency, governance, and accountability in managing what we already have,” he said.
He also stated that public assets should not be sold due to failure, but rather when they have matured and become self-sustaining.
“Privatizing failure simply transfers national losses to private hands. We must build value first, then commercialize responsibly,” he said.
Takang emphasized that corporate governance is not merely a box-ticking exercise, but the engine that drives credibility and efficiency in both private and public sectors.
“Strong institutions are built on good governance. If we don’t instill it in public enterprises, we will never build a truly competitive and prosperous economy,” he said.
He added that managing public wealth properly is also a matter of national pride and sovereignty.
“A rich man in a poor country is still poor. If we want respect for our people and our passport, we must begin with how we manage our own wealth,” he stated.
The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) welcomed MOFI’s reforms, aligning them with its 2025 Corporate Governance Guidelines designed to strengthen leadership structures within regulated entities.
The NCC reiterated its commitment to promoting transparent, fair, and forward-looking business practices within the communications sector, encouraging other government agencies to adopt similar reform models.
The MOFI initiative represents one of the most ambitious efforts in recent history to overhaul the management of Nigeria’s public assets. By instituting transparency, proper oversight, and performance tracking, the government is taking bold steps toward turning long-neglected enterprises into engines of economic growth, innovation, and national prosperity.
The N38.3 trillion asset audit could redefine how Nigeria harnesses its resources — moving from waste and decay to a system that works for the people.