Browsing: Nigeria

Long before COVID-19, for example, there have been problems with Nigeria’s privatization of the power sector and the performance of the entire value chain from generation to transmission and distribution. The problem perhaps can be traced back to 2013 when the Federal Government of Nigeria decided to complete the privatization of the electricity sector.

At return to civil rule in 1999, there was a lot of hope and enthusiasm that return to civil rule will eliminate or reduce corruption as corruption was always one of the reasons for military takeover. There was hope that development will be accelerated leading to  the talk about dividends of democracy. There was expectation that the potentials of Nigeria will be realized. But 21 years later, all these hopes and aspirations remain unfulfilled.

Challenges around the world today point to one thing and one thing only: the need for the leadership to move away from sheer rhetoric and show capacity in areas so demand. It is in same light that the current situation in Nigeria demands of the government to put in place a watertight border management plan that could guarantee the security and safety of the Nigerian people.

Nigeria has always been an interesting case. It’s the richly endowed country that is also home to some of the world’s poorest. It is where sprawling mansions exist in close proximity to slums. For some unexplainable reason, we have struggled to transform the mineral and human endowment into a better quality of life for all Nigerians. Inequality has been a permanent feature of our nation, the rich-poor divide being one of the most dispiriting.