In the past I did this more frequently, but recently news coming out of Nigeria has been sort of so so. But not anymore I am bringing this series back. In this series I pretend like my opinion matters, so I proceed to let the world know what my feelings are about events in home country. : Since we have now figured old man OBJ practically flushed money down the drain by handing money out to unregistered companies with no intentions of fixing Nigeria's power problem. My hunch is that we do not need 13 or 18 billion dollars to kick things off. With one billion dollars we can get off to a good start. I am no longer buying the idea that Nigeria's energy problems is as big as they make it to be. With small funds and a big brain Nigerians will pay for their power consumption. Yaradua asking for $20bn dollars is just another OBJgate waiting to happen. . I really like the symbolic aspect of this incidence. Are things changing?: Not bad at all. If only we had more of this, maybe someday a Nigerian company will buy up Jaguar and Rover like the . : Wow! Nigeria has customer surveys. Good thing are really happening. Hold up! Is this a market correction or things are turning around. They gave me their word, things would not turn sour till middle of 2009. Lets keep our eyes wide open here.
One analyst said the bank's position appeared "survivable" -- but protecting its debt is pricier than protecting that of Turkey or Nigeria, traders say. "You could say Lehman is riskier than Nigeria," one trader said, asking not to be named. "But it's not a trade or a comparison people often try to make." -----PRICELESS. )I wonder why investing in Nigeria is the yardstick for measuring risk. Anyway that isn't the core of this short note. Wall street has been punked.
Iwas fooled for a second. I thought the presidential elections was going to be annulled. The election tribunal insists, "...the tribunal ruled that substantial non compliance with the 2006 Elctoral Act as alleged by the petitioners did not give enough grounds for the nullification of the entire results of the poll." Let us rally round MYA for now and get this reconstruction process going. Have a blessed work week.
Eighteen turbines worth $3 billion are sitting untouched in a Lagos port because the government has no way of moving them to the site of the power stations, he said.
I am sure we as able bodied Nigerians are willing to carry these turbines on our heads and then deliver it where it is needed. Picture this, on one of those environmental sanitation Saturdays(partial curfew), if 1 million of us gather at the docks. We can take turns at lifting these turbines. I believe we can do it. I will be there to serve/sell snacks though. Yes we can. Now to put the cherry atop this cream, our able that the authorities cut power smack in the middle of his high powered meeting. I'd dare to suggest that this is beyond the state of emergency that he intends to call. I'd skip all of that and call all iron benders in Nigeria to come and put some their foofoo power to good use.
Here is an I read a few weeks ago in the . I find it relevant to the current discourse about OLPC practicality. I am drawn to the ways in which some people have been able to circumvent the challenges posed by poor infrastructure and government red tapes. Here is my favorite quote in the article, "I'm very optimistic about what I'm seeing in many parts of the world, including India, China, Mexico, and Brazil, and Nigeria". Okay, I added Nigeria to the list. I hope you enjoy the article and also find it inspiring.
"These young entrepreneurs are trying to make their marks independent of what their fathers and grandfathers have done. These young people and their companies are growing fast and becoming relevant on the global scale," he says. While previous generations were often constricted by government red tape and low customer expectations, younger entrepreneurs who take their cue from the international business models they see online are more open to new ideas and are setting higher standards for their companies.
Economist in the Yaradua government must be throwing fits right now. Soludo has the hardest job on earth, where you are supposed to fight the dragon with bare hands. Enjoy the article.
A few weeks ago, it was announced that those funds had risen to 54 billion. The latest story doing the rounds is that these monies are going to be mobilised and shared between the three tiers of government: Federal, States and Local Governments. (They may have already started). That sharing may be constitutional, but many people including this writer are worried about these monies ending up where they are not supposed to end up, especially now that that NIPSS course is about to begin.
There are times when I find it difficult to keep up with blogging positively about Nigeria, please indulge me this one time. Last September Mr Nuhu Ribadu while speaking in New York said he was . Recently I watched Mr. Nuhu Aliyu, make allegations against his colleagues in the Nigerian Senate, promising to name names. I watched with a friend, (thanks to ) and we declared that Mr. Aliyu was one of a kind, the acting-outside-the-box type. His getup was unprecedented and an utter display of bravery. Yesterday, when Senator Nuhu Aliyu had his opportunity to name the names, , ranging from outright selfish ones, to "really I will say anything to get out of the hot seat right now". Some have wondered aloud where the pressures may be coming from. , . I am not fit to make accurate conjectures of my own, I know too little to make deductions from the information reported by the newspapers, though my suspicion is that Nuhu knows something I do not know. One thing is certain though, Nigeria is no country for brave men. Brave men that can stand by their utterances, be it right or wrong. Not men that are quick to explain away prior utterances, the moment they get a phone call from the 'powers'. For Nuhu Ribadu's EFCC, the one good 'thing' that was working for us. I respect the good work this man has done. He put the fear of God into all that had any remote connection to the Nigerian government. . Like in the case of senator Aliyu I may not be able to make specific statements about the delicate dance of being brave in Nigeria. If I were in their shoes, I may even cave in just like they have done, as the pressures become unbearable. However one thing remain true. In the case of these two Nuhus, Nigeria has proven to be a country that is not welcoming to out of the box brave acts.
No prizes for figuring out, that Nigeria needs change badly. A change of heart, structural change, or an outright revolution. Whatever we choose to call it, one thing is certain, Nigeria needs to follow a path drastically different from that which it is presently on. Below I opine that Nigerians may not get the drastic change which we desperately seek. The change, if any, will be slow and less dramatic. If this is the future that awaits Nigeria shouldn't we start making plans for the long trip? I believe Kenya or Cote D'Ivoire, will not happen in Nigeria. I will even stretch that further by saying, Kenya or Cote D'Ivoire, will not happen even if the politics gets dirtier than it is at the moment. Revolt and revolutions are mostly driven by economic sentiments. The dynamics of the Nigerian economy will not permit the type of disruptions that will lead to an all out revolution (Pretty hard to get the French revolution out of ones head). The biggest stumbling block to a revolution occurring in Nigeria is the emerging middle class (they call themselves the rich). As this class of hardworking individuals emerge and get on the conveyor belt of the Nigerian dream, which will eventually lead to the treadmill of capitalism, they will stifle unrest. This will happen because, unrests and drastic change will no longer be attractive to this subset. Rather, they would advocate for patches, plans and less disruptive change. The rich in Nigeria figured it out when they started handing out small loans, mortgages, and fairly well paying jobs to Nigerians. The Nigerian elite now invest in their home country. Isn't it time to abandon the dreams of a revolutionized Nigeria from which brand new Nationalism will emerge for a well thought out national plans. Time to exchange those berets for the drawing boards. We will make changes for sure, its just not going to be disruptive or done overnight. Why is all of this important? One, it allows for the formation of the proper expectations and also it allows the guy on the street to formulate his/her own plan of action. If we realize that the much awaited time, when all of us will suddenly 'get it' and therefore take to the streets demanding change, isn't really going to come. Then maybe we will be more willing to commit to a slow, sure and steady plan. In response to , who initially asked this question I dare to say, Nigeria will not have bloody revolution, we would not even get a bloodless revolution. We may get a National plan and if we get pretty lucky a leader that can articulate the plan. Also See: Viva La Revolucion by Adeola Aderounmu...
Just days after being that milk and meat from cloned livestock were safe for human consumption, Europeans were that cloning causes suffering to the animals. Groups representing consumer interests argue that the science backing the F.D.A.’s decision is shaky and that consumer surveys show that most people are opposed to cloning animals, let alone eating them. Setting aside the associated with cloned animals, it remains clear that the long term outcomes of consuming cloned animal remain unknown and will probably remain so for a long time to come. As these various interest groups jostle to have the final word on cloning, on behalf of the rest of us, I would like to ask what, if anything, this may mean for consumers in Africa. Cloned Suya At the moment it is rather unlikely that cloned farm animals and milk will replace the regular beef and milk. For now this technology appears to be only logical for those seeking to produce designer animals. However, with most technologies there is still the possibility that cloned beef and milk will make it into mainstream consumption. If this ever happens, and if the technology becomes easy to replicate thereby driving, "average cost" of these farm produce below the price of the regular beef and cow. This products will eventually flow to Africa. I worry that these products may gain widespread acceptance in Africa even if this never happen in Western countries. The lax importation guideline, the hardly enforced labelling laws will ensure that this will happen. Eventually if low prices coincide with even a partial pass mark for the beef and milk, the map of consumption of cloned farm animals will lay flush with that of developing economies. Bio-engineered crops vs. Death by starvation In 2002 when the governments of Zambia and Zimbabwe the importation of genetically modified grains, even as these countries faced an imminent famine, there was an outcry from the West. The US claimed the bans were politically motivated, while the African governments claimed they were being arm-twisted and black mailed into accepting food that had the potential of being harmful to citizens. I am no scientist so I can not make definite statements about this claims. Speaking with a geneticist this evening equally left me with more unanswered questions than prior to the discussion. However, it is obvious that when it comes to bio engineered crops, African Governments have little or know leverage when making the decisions of whether to accept these crops or not. There isn't much of a choice to be made between GM or Cloned crops VS. death by starvation.
Competing With Knock-Off In the late 90's giant chicken and turkey mostly imported from Belgium surfaced in Nigeria. Prior to this time all poultry was mostly locally produced. A few government officials expressed their dissatisfaction with this trend, but other than just sprinkles of news related events there wasn't much done by the authorities to discourage the trend. Nigerians had their fill as these imported poultry was rather cheap. The government could not check the trend, because there was always the alternative of importing goods through the sea port in Cotonou. When it comes to knock off goods, and food, Nigeria is both porous and very receptive, and the government does not have the capabilities to enforce any proclamation against any 'fishy' food item. In Nigeria you just can not compete with knock-offs.
Conclusion Whether Africans will consume cloned farm produce or not, is a decision that will be made for them. Africans would not have much say on this issue. This is the beauty or maybe ugly side of a market system that relies heavily on producers, because the choice to consumed has been stymied by poverty.
Dear Santa please drop a new crop of reporters through Nigeria's chimney. There are a few exemplary reporters working at Nigeria'snews houses, however the bulk are mere fillers. This is no news and probably not worth loosing hair over. Here I am going to make my case with s simple illustration. I did this in the past as a side gist.In the story below Mr. Kingibe talks about almost getting fired because of a news report. However he fails to mention which report caused the friction between him and Mr President. Here is a journalist that followed Mr. Kingibe all the way to Edo state, writing about the incident. He pens down exactly what Mr. Kingibe said, goes on to ramble about the wedding ceremony and as far as he is concerned he has covered this news item adequately. His editor probably thinks he has. How on earth does a journalist pass up on this sensational story? There could not have been more than 10 stories about Mr. Kingibe in the papers in the last 2 weeks. How come the journalist could not take 20 minutes to run a search, or prod Mr. Kingibe's crew a bit further. Let us assume these are pretty challenging tasks for Mr. Journalists. Why not post the probable stories and let the public make up their mind. I am tired of reading about, 'certain baron', anonymous minister, 'a particular senators' and the likes a journalists job is to name names and piece stories together. I hope we get a better press corp next year. Ugh. Have a merry Xmas.
According to him, "I want to thank God that I am still the Secretary to the Federation and Chairman of this occasion today because I would have been sacked last week by the President because of a newspaper report. If not for my loyalty, commitment and dedication to service, I would not have survived it."
I am no fan of public office holder who know the reason(s) why Nigeria has remained underdeveloped, but Mr. Ali touched on one of the central ideas of this blog. Leaders have had their fill at pillaging because we have allowed them with little or no struggle. However I would like to extend Mr. Ali's thoughts a bit further. These 'good' leaders, a group which Mr. Ali will be proud to belong, are at fault too. They have failed at fighting for and developing the infrastructure that can check the looting. Mr. Ali's speech is encouraging, but unfortunately he can not be exonerated here. Have a Merry Xmas. President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua's legal counsel Mallam Yusuf Ali (SAN) has blamed Civil Society Organisations, the media and the nation for the poor leadership provided by politicians...This, according to him, encouraged the protracted looting of treasury by some unpatriotic leaders "because they know that as things are in Nigeria today, you can do almost anything and get away with it, there is full proof for that".
What do you think about Nigerian online tabloids? These platforms seem to have the freshest and most sensational news. Some of them seem to be breaking the news faster than mainstream media. What do you make of them. How true are the stories they carry? Is this citizen journalism at its finest or an attempt at taking cheap shots? If all of these still sound over the top-ish I am talking about outlets like these; , and .
S piece on Government and Taxation is thought provoking. In an instant you can tell the piece was written by someone on the ground and not a blogger looking in from a faraway location. writes about the arbitrary decisions taken by State and Local government which create bottlenecks for investors in Nigeria. In addition to the taxes which she talked about, I do see how the possibility of a court case in the middle of an investment cycle can astronomically increase risk to investors. I am glad that the judiciary system is at least making an effort to protect the investors. Overall this is a well rounded piece that can be extended to different facets of our national polity. An attempt is madeat taking a swipe at the complicated challenges facing investors in Nigeria. This reaffirms my believe that without responsible institutions all economic growth and structural improvements will remain unsustainable in the long run. In Nigeria institutions are centered around individuals, it ought to be the other way around.
Sometimes the victim tries to fight back, as is the case with the 1004 redevelopment in Victoria Island. The developers got cash upfront for the project to the tune of N25 million per flat (some flats went for N27 million). I think the developers spent N7 billion acquiring the property from the Federal Government (about N7 million per flat). They will probably spend another N7 to N10 billion refurbishing each flat. The state government can do the math as well as anyone else and has decided that N8 billion is too much for the developers to book as profit. The state government as determined that planning permission was not granted for reconstruction of the estates, and has slapped the developers with N3.4 billion in fees and levies. The developers have taken the matter to court, and from what I have heard will probably win.
I was reading the Nigerian Guardian newspaper recently and saw a report on the development of a Free Trade Zone in Kano State. I noticed that the Federal Government was to pour in approximately N5 billion into the project and learned that an undisclosed investor had already pumped in millions of dollars to complete the project.
For those of you that are unfamiliar with the term Free Trade Zone ("FTZ" and also known as Free Zone ("FZ")), these zones are simply a designated area created to attract foreign investment and business by offering no taxes, relaxed labor rules, relaxed rules on imports and exports of goods. This tool was used by Dubai to transform itself from a desert rest stop for Bedouin nomads to an economic gateway to the Middle East.
It is from this perspective that I consider the possibilities of a Free Trade Zone in Kano. The free trade zone, called Panisau, is located on 230 hectares of land, has an 11 KVA generator, access roads, internal roads and other facilities. By making it easier for investors to 'set up shop', Kano will quite possibly improve its economy and create jobs and much needed cash flow. There are apparently many plans to rejuvenate Kano - a new dry port at Zawaciki, a multi-billion Singer market, the re-construction and expansion of the Lagos-Kano railroad and the possible rehabilitation of the Mallam Aminu Kano international airport.
Kano is also gearing up to become an arbiter of oil. A pipeline from the Delta region will soon be re-routed from Katsina to Kano. This pipeline will provide the state and a few other West African nations with energy. These new projects in combination with the Free Trade Zone could transform Kano into a gateway to not just Northern Nigeria, but to various north African countries.
As early as the 13th and 14th century, Kano was an economic center and controlled commerce in gold, leather, ivory, salt and unfortunately, slaves. In the modern era, it had a rich history as a producer of groundnuts but eventually witnessed an economic decline in the 1990s which led to an increase in poverty. This FTZ at Panisau could afford Kano an opportunity to re-achieve the economic success of its glory days and it could potentially be of great benefit to the citizens. We shall have to wait and see. By . Migrated from AltNigeria.
The Siemens Wilbros bribery scandal currently rocking the Nigerian telecoms sector has provided daily humor. “It is instructive that Nigerian officials alone took 10 million Euros out of the overall 12 million Euros allegedly paid out by the German company to officials in three countries, including Russia and Libya.“That made Nigeria a clear gold medallist in this Siemen’s bribery contest, with Russia, a distant second, with only 2 million Euros shared by 38 people. . I supportEFCC's efforts at cleansing Nigeria's public service. NuhuRibadu is doing what many spineless Nigerian public official has been unable to do in our country's recent history.
Here I share my bookmarks over the past week with you. I hope you like. AfricanLoft tells us that we are may be sitting on the solution to our power problems in Africa. The World Changing team think I am cool, hey! I think they are cool too, I am so conceited. New electronic trading pits opens at Nigerian Stock Exchange. Yaradua is hinging the countries growth on the capital markets. The as pointed out by the Africorp group. They also gave us . Grab your tissues Ngozi regrets her early exit from OBJ's government. I no for sure that the story, as printed, is incomplete. More gist on that later. , and we wonder why PHCN would not work. I am tempted to throw in an African adage here, but I'd pass. What is a Nigerian roundup without the news of a corrupt official tucked in there somewhere. , I met this guy at the Muritala Airport in 1995 and he was gracious, and very warm. What can I say, dr. Jeckle... And no I would not leave you hanging like that, here is some good news about a Nigerian politician. .
Thanks to over at for linking to this article in the .
The temptation for taking short cuts on the road to riches has often been as great for entrepreneurs as it has for state officials. . Now, according to a former senior government official, with the state starting to relinquish control of the commanding heights of the economy, there is a greater rapprochement between the two, with money from both public and private sources blending together. Big business and some of the banks are heavily invested in the political system, just as politicians and government appointees are invested in the Nigerian banks and businesses making money, he says. There are significant changes, however, in the way Nigeria’s newly mega-rich are deploying their wealth. In the past, the wealth was hoarded in banks abroad. Today, it is mostly being poured into business enterprises within Nigeria.
This article draws mixed feelings from me, on one hand, I am glad that 'new money' gets it. This way they have done better than 'old money'. However the thieving still continues, leaving my people in stark poverty. It is true that Nigeria is a country in the middle of an enormous process of wealth creation, but the possibility of wealth being redistributed isn't in the horizon. Something has got to give pretty soon. I can feel it. Enjoy the article and hat-tip to Emeka.
H discusses a BBC program that looked at corruption in Africa, especially within the Aid agencies. In other news, GSM mobile is planning to pump a whopping $50 billion into sub-Saharan Africa over half-decade-. Like its time to jump and shout. The returns on investment in communication in Africa is high enough. Okay, I am just beefing because I am not a part of it. The IMF thinks there are . I think so too, apparently thinking otherwise isn't very rewarding psychologically. In Nigeria, the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Prof. ChukwumaSoludo yesterday that Nigeria would need $510 billion over fifteen years to develop its railways and develop other infrastructure. I'd say make that a bajillion dollars if you want sir, we know Nigeria needs tones of money to get our infrastructure back together. Okay now lets get back to work and start with the first million dollars we recovered from these looting thugs.
Forget my short attenton span, I read the four page historical account of events in the Niger Delta as narrated by AsariDokubo. This is no mean feat for me, as I do not recall reading more than two paragraph of any Nigerian news item/interview/editorial in the past. I read the first and last paragraph and simply assume the rest, it is always the same story line anyway. This blow by blow account of events as perceived by Mr. Dokubo is different, it is captivating and would make Jason Bourne go green with envy. Complete with money, treachery, mega-corporations, guns, power thirsty individuals with strong government ties. Where is Leonardo Di Caprio when you need him? I would buy the Movie rights to this story if I had the resources. I leave the in depth analysis to the pundits with a deeper knowledge of the intricacies of the region. For now I say, sit back, grab some pop-corn and enjoy the stark realities of the sufferings of my brothers and sister. Read the . Hat tip to . See related video .
My Sino-Indian fascination is no secret, I am intrigued by the idea that countries can make plans and stick to those plans. I am even more fascinated when developng economies pull this feat off.
Singh talked to Nigeria's Economic Management Team which has been set up with the task of putting the country's finances in shape. According to minister of state for external affairs Anand Sharma, the PM focused on human resource and infrastructure development, stressing that the two needed to be aligned.
Singh who also loves teaching, gave a lecture to our planners. Many studies involving Nigeria have however shown that our issues aren't necessarily that of poor planning or a dearth of sound ideas. Our problems have been closely linked to poor implementation of theoretically sound ideas. Really Nigerian economists developed what was ailed as one of the world's best development plan in the late 70's. I recall this same plan deprived me of precious bonding time with Charlie. Now I can officially lay the blame of my mal-adjustements at Nigeria 's feet. Back to the gist, can the present crop of planners in Nigeria truly bang out a workable Nigerian National Development Plan? I dare to say Nope. Structure, Structure, structure. A round table of Keynes, Smith with a sprinkle of Solow can not save our country given its present state. In summary, Nigeria can not be saved by sound economic theory, in my opinion one Sociologist or one psychologist or one law enforcement officer is worth more than a team of economist, given the present state of decay in home country. I also dare to extend this further by saying a -esque intervention has no place in Nigeria.
In a totally unrelated gist, I just learned that Lucky Dube, the South African Raggae star was shot dead. Totally disheartening. I feel like I know Lucky. We bonded in 1995 (when I first dabbled into college life, need I say it did not go well), those were hard days, no water no electricity and buying hand-out(s) and for some folks outright purchase of grades. Lucky and I bonded you know what I mean wink wink. Bonded. R. I.P Lucky.
I was reading the Nigerian Guardian newspaper recently and saw a report on the development of a Free Trade Zone in Kano State. I noticed that the Federal Government was to pour in approximately N5 billion into the project and learned that an undisclosed investor had already pumped in millions of dollars to complete the project. 
