8th Presidential Quarterly Business Forum Held At The State House Banquet Hall

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FG Partnership With Private Sector Sends Strong Signal To Investors, Empowers Economy.

REMARKS BY HIS EXCELLENCY PROFESSOR YEMI OSINBAJO, SAN, GCON, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA, AT THE 8TH PRESIDENTIAL QUARTERLY BUSINESS FORUM (PQBF) HELD AT THE STATE HOUSE BANQUET HALL, ABUJA ON THE 16^TH OF JULY 2018.

PROTOCOL

Let me once again join my colleagues in thanking you our friends and partners, especially those that have consistently supported the Quarterly Business Forum.

We had said nearly two years ago that perhaps the most crucial component of our economic policy, is our partnership with the private sector, and this is not merely ideological nor rhetorical, it is simply the only way to go. Our 2018 budget is barely N9 Trillion, and if you add the budgets of the 36 States, you may probably add another N12-15 trillion. This Is barely 10% of GDP. Meanwhile, private sector investment in the economy is in the order of 60 to 70 percent of GDP. So, how do we plan when most of our economy is not factored in? I think our relationship with the private sector is an existential one it’s not merely just because it sounds nice, it’s the only way to go.

This is why in practically every detail of the implementation of our ERGP, we’ve ensured a rigorous process of engagement with the private sector.

Last week, as had been said, I was on a road show with our technology and innovation companies to the Silicon Valley and to Hollywood with our Entertainment and creativity entrepreneurs and I went along with several regulators and investors and of course honorable minister of Industry Trade and Investment, the NIPC, GM, NEPC, DG.

I think it was helpful, and one of the takeaways I had from there was that it was particularly helpful that the government was there, shoulder to shoulder with the private sector. For many investors, and this was what was repeated to me several times, it sent a strong signal to them of our commitment and seriousness to investments in technology and creativity.

Just last month, we established the Presidential Advisory Group on Technology and Creativity, which is constituted largely of innovators, artists and relevant FG Ministries and agencies. The advisory group is to develop policy on these major sectors of our economy that had long been ignored.

I think the point to be made is that we’re really committed to ensuring that every step of the way the private sector is with us, as they say, lockstep with us, they’re with us on it so that we understand what exactly the requirements of the private sector and we let the private sector lead as much as is possible while we try and create an environment that would work.

The development of our policies around exports has also taken the same route. At the Industrial and Competitiveness Council, (which I have the privilege of chairing, with two Vice chairs, the Honorable Minister Of Industry and Trade and Investment and Alhaji Dangote who represents the Private sector,) we have dedicated groups, looking at a variety of issues that are important to our export strategies. Our trade policy motives are to use the appropriate tools and instruments to strengthen the export potential within the economy and exporters who add value to the goods and then to apply incentives that promote and support investments and exporters who add value to goods.

The reinstatement of the Export Expansion Grant and also the successful implementation of that Grant is critical in my view to growing our non-oil exports. We anticipate that with the use of technology will significantly improve the process of managing the scheme and that would also introduce some transparency. So, we’re really committed to reinstatement and we’re committed to successful implementation, and I think we’re going about it the right way by step by step approach and also trying to use technology.

With respect to the African Continental Free Trade Area, there are clearly huge gains for us. No question at all. The rest of Africa also naturally see the enormous advantage of Nigeria’s participation. Everybody is waiting for us, naturally. And that’s because they see a huge market, they see the advantages of our being there. But we must be sure that we get the best possible terms for Nigerian trade and commerce. Our experiences with dumping, with trans-shipment and other injurious trade practices, make it obvious to us that our market could be a real target, our local manufacturing could become unprofitable and our agricultural advances could be reversed. Consequently, we have embarked on an extensive consultation, and I think Ambassador Osakwe went into great detail about that with trade, with commerce and professional groups and organized labour across the six geopolitical zones, to get a clearer sense of their concerns as we navigate the process of signing the treaty.

I think the general results favour engagement but the concerns remain around improving the domestic environment for greater competitiveness. Especially concerns round power supply and investment in trade infrastructure. I don’t I could make a more eloquent case than the honourable minister of Power has just made. Because one noting of the various studies, and I think Engineer Ibrahim Usman mentioned some of the studies that he would like to see done or that man would like to see done I think those studies are important, I think those kinds of background investigations as to what works and what doesn’t work, what’s going on with our industry and all that, what would the impact be on our industry. I think those concerns are very crucial, and many of them are being done already.

But it’s my sense is that we must be careful not to give the impression that these are minimum preconditions for engagement with the process. Because the question, of course, that’s been asked is ‘when would we be ready?’ ‘what is the opportunity cost of not engaging now?’ I think these are the concerns that we must have. We must fix this car, as I’ve said in the past, while the engine is running. We can’t wait, with the way things are going the only thing  to do it is to fix the car, while the engine is running, you can’t say there’s just no time for us to say ‘okay let’s wait, take down the entire car, dismember it and put it back again, just to repair it.’ I think this is the time to go ahead and do something about it while we’re taking into account, all of the issues that have been raised and making sure that we are negotiating well. I think the point was also made, very well about the participation our Ambassador Osakwe and our Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment.

For the very first time, Nigeria is engaged, and we are leading the engagement, especially at the AU. This something that has never happened in the past. I must also mention that the difference in substance in this, in the past, we found treaties that were negotiated and signed, nobody knew who negotiated them, nobody knew how they were done, nobody knew what was going on. I have worked as adviser to the Attorney General many years ago in Federal Ministry of Justice, and one of the critical things, because we then gathered all our treaties, in fact, I don’t know if you ever came across a series of publications called Nigeria’s Treaties In Force from 1960 and I think there were Treaties In Force up to 1990, from Independence to 1990, ten volumes, I actually edited those volumes, the ten volumes, all of those volumes, nobody knew who negotiated them, we just simply signed.

For the first time, we have an office where we have trained negotiators, and that’s how come we were at the forefront of this negotiation of this particular negotiation with Ambassador Osakwe, we actually went to go and poach Ambassador Osakwe from the WT and brought him to come and man that office, because Nigeria as at today, our position in Africa, we’re not only the largest economy, we also want to be the leader, not just being in a large economy, we want to be the leader in innovation, we want to be the leader in business, in the industry, we want to be the leaders.

To do so, we must have the right people, there must be competence, they must be ready to work with us, and then they must also understand the business environment watch. So, I think we have an advantage in having our own negotiators leading the chart here, I think it’s a major advantage. I don’t think we should look at it any other way, otherwise, we’ll compromise the gains we have made. If we are the ones negotiating, the terms are better for us, we’re leading the negotiations, it’s better for us than for us to sit back and watch other people do the negotiations when eventually, we might end up signing.

I also must mention the difference, especially talking about infrastructure, the difference that this administration brings to this whole question of how to deal with infrastructure. One of the President’s commitments and I think it’s a passion for him, and that is getting infrastructure done. One instruction he’s given about infrastructure is that we must complete what is important, to complete all of the projects that are important and have been abandoned. They must first be completed before we start anything new, so not only are we investing more than ever before in infrastructure in the history of this country, the greatest amount of money are being invested in infrastructure today. But we’re also ensuring that we complete the projects. Look at the Kaduna to Abuja railway, it started many years ago, but we concluded it when came, we’ve finished with it. Abuja Light rail started in 2007, it was stalled in 2010. The whole point of the Abuja Rail was to meet the Commonwealth Games in 2014, that’s why it was started. It was abandoned, we just completed it in 2018, although our opponents criticized us, they say we’re shameless for even completing the project. Sometimes, it’s very difficult to understand where people are coming from.

I think it’s very important, I meant it’s almost a thing with us that we must go and flag off a project or do a ground-breaking ceremony, but about completing, we don’t really care very much whether it’s ever completed or not completed. But I think we have really committed to the idea of ensuring that infrastructural projects are taken seriously and that they are completed. Look at the Mambilla Hydro, 40 years old in planning, 40 years. We now budgeted for it, we’re raising the capital for it.

On the investment side, we are working hard to create an environment that is attractive to long-term investments in particular. In addition to the progress we are making, strengthening the ease of doing business, reforms around the incentives available to investors have been undertaken and we’re reviewing the Pioneer Status Incentive scheme, and that’s being done by the NIPC. We just heard that the review so far has seen the inclusion of 27 new, eligible industries and now provides for a review of the scheme every two years. We are committed to supporting investors who themselves have shown commitment to being in this economy.

To grow additional investments, we are also developing a systematic and data-driven approach towards engaging with international trade partners, which will ensure that we are focused in our approach to entering bilateral trade engagements and we realise maximum returns from this. The Executive Secretary of the NIPC has been directed by the Economic Management Team to develop a clear plan with identified trade partners and we will share our targeted approach with the private sector as we progress in this regard.

Our focus is to create a strong economy that is friendly to investment, that is conducive for growth and resilient to shocks. I’m sure that all of us, and again I must commend your commitment to this process to the Quarterly Business Forum and hope that you will stick with us in ensuring that all of these issues that have been raised, all of the concerns that have been raised, are worked through. I think as with everything, follow-up is important, as with everything, implementation is important and I think one of the best things that have happened is that the private sector is engaged and keeping us on our toes and ensuring that we do what it takes, that we said we’re going to do, I hope that you would also play your own part in doing what you said you will do.

Thank you very much.