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SERAP Asks World Bank to Suspend Loan Nigeria’s 36 States
Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has urged the World Bank to suspend loans to Nigeria’s 36 states until previous ones are accounted for.
This is due to recurring allegations of mismanagement of public funds by state governors, including loans which may have been obtained from the World Bank,
This is contained in a letter addressed to Mr Ajay Banga, president of World Bank, and signed by Kolawole Oluwadare, deputy director, SERAP at the weekend.
According to the body, many of the country’s 36 states are allegedly mismanaging public funds which may include loans obtained from the Bank and its partners, and allocations from the Federal Government, which may also include loans obtained from the Bank.
SERAP: “The World Bank and its partners cannot continue to give loans and other funding to these states where there are credible allegations of mismanagement or diversion of public funds.”
“We are concerned that there is a significant risk of mismanagement or diversion of funds linked to the Bank’s investments in many of the country’s 36 states. It is neither appropriate nor responsible lending to give loans to these states only for the loans to be misspent.” SERAP said
The letter, read in part: “The World Bank’s lending and support for these states may create the impression of complicity in the allegations of mismanagement or diversion of public funds by the states which may include loans from the Bank and its partners, and federal allocations.
“We would consider the option of pursuing legal action should the World Bank fail or fail to implement the recommendations contained in this letter, and we may join the country’s 36 states in any such suit.
“According to Nigeria’s Debt Management Office, total public debt portfolio for the country’s 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory is N9.17 trillion. The Federal Government’s total public debt portfolio is N78.2 trillion.
“SERAP also urges you to demand expressed commitment from Nigeria’s 36 governors to address credible allegations of mismanagement or diversion of public funds in their states and provide guarantees that loans and funding from the Bank and its partners would not be used to fund the luxurious lifestyles of politicians.
“SERAP urges the Bank to send independent monitors to the 36 states to monitor the spending of the loans and other funding obtained from the Bank and its partners to remove the risks of mismanagement or diversion of public funds by these states.
“The World Bank currently has a portfolio of about $8.5 billion spread across the country. The Bank has also approved several loans and other funding facilities to the country’s 36 states including the recent $750 million credit line meant to the states carry out reforms to attract investment and create jobs.
“The accounts of Nigeria’s 36 states are generally not open to public scrutiny as many of them continue to refuse freedom of information requests seeking transparency and accountability in the spending of public funds.
“The World Bank and its partners need to make clear to Nigeria’s state governors that it would not tolerate any mismanagement or diversion of public funds by immediately suspending any pending loans and other funding to them until the allegations of mismanagement or diversion of public funds are investigated.
“The Bank has a legal responsibility to ensure that suspected perpetrators are brought to justice and that any mismanaged or diverted public funds are returned to the treasuries of the states.
“The World Bank has the legal obligations to observe and promote compliance with the Nigerian Constitution 1999 [as amended] and domestic laws including the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2007.
“Nigeria’s total public debt stock, including external and domestic debts, increased to N46.25 trillion or $103.11 billion in the fourth quarter of 2022.
“Many states reportedly owe civil servants’ salaries and pensions. Several states are borrowing to pay salaries. Millions of Nigerians resident in these states continue to be denied access to basic public goods and services such as quality education and healthcare.
“Several state governors are also reportedly spending public funds which may include funding obtained from the Bank and its partners and allocations from the Federal Government to fund unnecessary travels, buy exotic and bulletproof cars and generally fund the lavish lifestyles of politicians.
“The country’s 36 states have reportedly spent N1.71tn on recurrent expenditures, including allowances, foreign trips, office stationery, and aircraft maintenance in the first nine months of 2023.
“In Abia State, the government reportedly spent N397,520,734.84 on ‘feeding and welfare’ and N223,389,889.84 on ‘refreshments and meals.’
“The Akwa Ibom State government has reportedly spent N92.54bn on allowances and social contributions, social benefits, travel and transport, utilities such as electricity chargers, Internet access charges, and on materials and supplies such as office stationery, drugs, laboratory and medical supplies, maintenance, training in the first two quarters alone.
“The government has also reportedly spent N10m on hosting/mobilisation of political associations and interest groups, and N841.83m on entertainment at meetings.
“The Adamawa State government has reportedly spent N40.90bn on non-salary expenditure as of the end of quarter three, 2023 including on furniture allowance, travel and training, domestic and foreign, office stationery and consumables, and refreshments and meals.
“The Anambra State government also reportedly spent N15.17bn frivolous items, as of the end of quarter two, 2023. While Bauchi State government reportedly spent N70.25bn on frivolous items, Bayelsa State government spent N58.26 on travel, welfare packages, burial logistics, meeting expenses, ‘praise night/thanksgiving expenses’, and ‘marriage ceremony support’.
“In Lagos State, N440,750,000 was reportedly awarded to the Office of the Chief of Staff for the “procurement of a brand new bullet-proof Lexus LX 600 for use in the pool of the Office of Chief of Staff.” Some N2bn was also reportedly budgeted to buy rechargeable fans, rechargeable lights and fridge in the Office of the Deputy Governor.
“The Benue State government reportedly spent N34.44bn on ‘special day celebrations’ ‘welfare packages’, ‘security votes’, and materials and supplies such as office stationery, and books.
“According to reports, Borno, Cross Rivers, Delta, Ebonyi states also respectively spent N32.63bn, N43.71bn, N152.15bn, N30.91bn, and N41.11bn on frivolous items and the public funds may have been mismanaged or diverted.
“Ekiti State reportedly spent N31.33bn on local and international travel and transport, miscellaneous such welfare packages, refreshments, honorarium and sitting allowances. According to reports, both Enugu and Gombe states respectively spent N33.36bn and N24.73bn on frivolous items and the public funds may have been mismanaged or diverted.
“Imo State government reportedly spent N58.21bn on refreshments and meals, welfare packages, and other allowances. Jigawa State reportedly spent N49.64bn on transport and travelling, materials and supplies including drugs, vaccines, medical supplies, and stationeries.
“According to reports, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Kwara and Kogi states also respectively spent N27.87bn, N17.79bn, N40.49bn, N24.51bn, N41.19bn, and N58.02bn on frivolous items and the public funds may have been mismanaged or diverted.
“Section 41 of the Fiscal Responsibility Act provides: ‘Government at all tiers shall only borrow for capital expenditure and human development.’
“Section 44 of the Fiscal Responsibility Act provides: ‘Any Government in the Federation or its agencies and corporations desirous of borrowing shall, specify the purpose for which the borrowing is intended and present a cost-benefit analysis, detailing the economic and social benefits of the purpose to which the intended borrowing is to be applied.’
“Under Section 45, ‘All banks and financial institutions shall request and obtain proof of compliance with the provisions of this Part before lending to any Government in the Federation. 2) Lending by banks and financial institutions in contravention of this Part shall be unlawful.’
“The World Bank and its partners have obligations under international anticorruption and human rights law, including a responsibility to promote transparency and accountability in the management of public funds, prevent mismanagement or diversion of public funds, and redress any abuse of public trust that they may have contributed to.
“As a UN specialized agency, the World Bank also has an obligation to promote transparency and accountability in the management of public resources and effective implementation of the UN Convention against Corruption to which Nigeria is a state party.
“The World Bank’s board of executive directors also has an obligation to ensure that the policies and decisions of the Bank are consistent with their own statutes and governments’ transparency and accountability obligations.”
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Mutual Benefits Decries Low Insurance Penetration, Seeks Policy Changes
Mutual Benefits Assurance Plc has decried the low insurance penetration in the country, calling for policy changes to increase insurance uptake by Nigerians.
Mr. Femi Asenuga, Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of Mutual Benefits, who made the call at a workshop for insurance journalists, advocated for media support in ensuring policy changes, shaping public understanding of insurance and deepening insurance penetration in Nigeria.
While emphasizing the important role of the media in educating the insuring public on how insurance contributes to economic resilience, he said the ability of insurance journalists to communicate the complexities of insurance in a relatable and impactful way is vital in building public trust and confidence in the industry as well as encouraging more people to embrace insurance.
Asenuga said: “We are far from where we are supposed to be as a country. Nigeria with a population of over 200 million and as the giant of Africa should not only be in theory. As the press, you have a major role to play in changing the narrative of insurance penetration in the country.
The change is not only expected at the consumer level but also at policy making because that is where everything starts from.”
In her presentation “The Role of Insurance in National Development,” Head, Technical Department, Mutual Benefits Assurance Plc., Mrs. Titilayo Akinsiku, highlighted some of the roles insurance plays in national development.
They include, according to her, Risk Mitigation and Financial Stability; Business Continuity and Resilience; Social Welfare and Inclusivity; Risk Management and Sustainable Development as well as Investment and Capital Formation.
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Thabo Mbeki Tells African leaders to Emulate Relationship Between Nigerian and South African Musicians
Thabo Mbeki, former President of South Africa has advised current African presidents to emulate the impressive relationship between Nigeria and South African musicians.
Mbeki said the African artists have managed to forge a formidable relationship and strong collaborative strategies which has seen them popularise both countries’ entertainment sectors and create wealth for the industry’s participants but the political leaders in Africa are locked in baseless egocentrism and territorialism which prevents generation of wealth amongst African countries.
Mbeki said before now that Africa used to be feared due to a strong pan-Africanism consciousness among leaders and deliberate policy formulations directed towards giving it a force of power.
He, however, regretted that today’s leaders lack such political will, are more Eurocentric and lack clear direction on how Africa should remain a liberated continent.
“Political will to manage diversity is central to the survival of all of the African states because there’s no African state which is not characterized by the diversity of its population now,” Mbeki said at his Thabo Mbeki Foundation premises, Johannesburg while hosting the third cohort of the MTN-MIP Fellows
“And so if you want to keep a continent or a country together, there’s got to be a conscious political decision. There is one outstanding example in this regard – Tanzania.
“When Tanzania was known as Tanganyika, there were two very important decisions under Julius Nyerere to keep the whole country together. One of them was to have one central language.
“Nyerere decided that everybody must speak Swahili and abandon tribal or regional languages. So, everybody speaks Swahili. The second decision was the abolition of the institution of chieftaincy ship. So there’s no chief of this tribe or that tribe.
“These were conscious decisions taken by the political leadership. They wanted to build one nation out of the Tanganyikans, and it’s worked.
“So, because the people of Tanzania have gotten used to being one, even some few years back when some political people, in Tanzania, started resurrecting this matter about tribal identity in order to advance their own political futures, the consciousness one united Tanzania, was strong enough to defeat them.
“So, that’s why I’m saying it’s a political decision here. South Africa is very fortunate in that respect, because you know, the diamond mines, which were first discovered in the 19th century, attracted people from Southern Africa, from as far as Angola among others to South Africa.
“Then a bit later, gold mining came and domestically, there was a lot of movement of people, and social economic development.
“Recall that at the formation of the African National Congress in 1912, one of its principal slogans was to bury the demon of tribalism.
“So since the beginning of the 20th century, you’ve had a political organization whose task was to make sure that all of this algorithm come together so that you see you got to a point before liberation here, if you said in 1960 to the African community here, wherever you are in the country, you say, who’s your national leader? They would say Alberto.
“So, what has happened on the continent is a regression from the kind of pan-Africanist commitment that we had with other earlier leaders on the continent, and the weakening of that resolve has negative consequences like the frosty relationship between South Africa and Nigeria.
“Another is the poor Visa regulation which has made it very difficult for cross border trade.
“And now addressing the challenge is to address the larger political problems. The point is always being made about the relationship between the artists, Nigerian, South African artists, and what they are able to do,” he added.
News
World Bank says 40% Nigerian MSMEs are Owned by Women
A report by the World Bank has established that 40 per cent of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in Nigeria are owned by women, with most of the businesses growing at a remarkable rate.
In the World Bank latest report released on Wednesday, the global bank, through its Nigeria Women Entrepreneurs Finance Initiative (We-Fi), partnership with the Development Bank of Nigeria (DBN) and two commercial banks in Nigeria – Access Bank and Sterling Bank, established development of innovative credit solutions that expanded access to finance for women entrepreneurs.
The report summarizes key lessons, which include initial diagnostic; an assessment of demand for business loans; analysis of SMEs who applied to and/or received Access Bank cash flow loans, and administrative data from Access Bank’s cashflow loan programme.
“Our objective is to provide insights into the successes and challenges of disbursing loans to women-led SMEs (WSMEs) in Nigeria.
This research is being conducted in partnership with the World Bank’s Africa Gender Innovation Lab (GIL), which is also carrying out an impact evaluation that will capture how cashflow-based lending impacts male- vs female-led firms’ access to credit and business performance,” the report added.
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