Finance Spirit

Africa’s second largest economy is a bundle of extreme contradictions; with billions of dollars in annual oil revenue on one end and pervasive poverty for most of its 148 million people on the other. Relative political stability since 1999 has delivered some reform and regulatory initiatives to correct huge and long-standing macroeconomic disparities, yet the country remains overwhelmed by persistently dismal indicators and human development indices. Nigeria’s current per capita GDP of $1,418 ranks it below much smaller African economies like Sudan, Congo and Swaziland. The latest UNDP poverty survey of 108 developing nations placed the country at the 80th position, below Rwanda and Malawi. Achieving the UN Millennium Development Goals and its own, and more ambitious 2020 target require a paradigm shift in mindset and priorities. It also requires the successful engendering of a broad, pan-Nigerian entrepreneurial spirit!

A slew of relevant policy redirections have already been initiated in this regard: The government has deregulated oil prices, disinvested public sector undertakings, created special economic zones and passed assorted legislation to encourage enterprise development. While some of these measures are starting to show positive results, many have been largely ineffective while yet others have completely collapsed. For instance, a massive privatisation drive launched after 1999 managed to rake up private sector investment. However, Abuja’s simultaneous inclination for micro-enterprises, instead of small-scale ventures, did little to curb unemployment. The failure or even inadequate success of these measures is attributed primarily to disregard or ignorance of ground realities, and lack of a coherent, consistent, macro-level vision.

Nigeria’s unique set of problems calls for broad-based policy intervention from the bottom up, and any individual law or policy that is not part of a unified effort is unlikely to make much difference. The ‘bottom up’ analogy is pertinent, as one of the first things Nigeria ought to be doing is improving the condition of its roads.

Last 5 posts by Deepak Shrivastava

• Managing Your Money - July 28th, 2010
• Raising Finances For Your Small Business - July 24th, 2010
• Debit Cards Vs Credit Cards - July 23rd, 2010
• A Unique cosmetic dentistry in UK - July 22nd, 2010
• Small Business Loans For Women - July 17th, 2010