Restoring NNDC’s lost glory

Emir of Kano Alhaji Muhammadu Sanusi II recently called on governors of the 19 Northern states to restore the New Nigeria Development Company Limited, NDDC’s old glory. He made the call when the company’s Board of Directors led by its Chairman Alhaji Bashir Dalhatu, Walin Dutse, paid him a visit. This corporation, once the mighty […]

Emir of Kano Alhaji Muhammadu Sanusi II recently called on governors of the 19 Northern states to restore the New Nigeria Development Company Limited, NDDC’s old glory. He made the call when the company’s Board of Directors led by its Chairman Alhaji Bashir Dalhatu, Walin Dutse, paid him a visit. This corporation, once the mighty investment arm of the defunct regional government and the most prominent face of business in Northern Nigeria, has fallen on hard times and it hardly features on this country’s business landscape. Emir Sanusi said restoration of NNDC to its former vibrant self cannot be realized without the collective resolve of the northern state governors.
NNDC, as it is known today, was established in 1949 as a statutory corporation called Northern Regional Production Development Board, NRPDB. The purpose was to contribute to the Northern Region’s economic development. In 1956, NRPDB was reconstituted as Northern Region Development Corporation, NRDC. In 1960, the Northern Region government led by the Premier Sir Ahmadu Bello, Sardauna of Sokoto further changed it to Northern Nigeria Development Corporation, NNDC. It was incorporated on October 12, 1965 under the Companies Act (CAP. 37) 1958.
When the Northern Region was split into six states in 1967, NNDC came under their joint control through the Interim Common Services Agency, ICSA. This body managed the joint assets of the Northern states including the Ahmadu Bello University, Kaduna Polytechnic, Bank of the North, Broadcasting Corporation of Northern Nigeria [BCNN] and Ahmadu Bello Stadium, among others. Joint ownership continued even after General Murtala Mohammed dissolved ICSA [together with ESIALA of the old Eastern Region] in 1975 and even after the old North was further split into many more states.
In 1976, Northern Nigeria Development Corporation was dissolved and a limited liability company called New Nigeria Development Company was incorporated instead. The new company engaged in development banking operations aimed at assisting the newly created states. It subsequently evolved into a diversified holding company with interests in many sectors. At the height of its success in the 1970s and 1980s, NNDC was involved in many sectors including agriculture, solid minerals, consulting, real estate, construction, manpower development, hotel management, IT and telecommunications, oil and gas and investments.
NNDC’s wholly-owned subsidiaries include Kaduna Hotels, Northern Nigeria Investments Limited [NNIL], New Capital Properties Limited, Arewa Hotels, Arewa Suites Limited, Aso Motel, Sokoto Hotel, Integrated Development Consultants and Drake and Scull. Its associated companies, in which it had substantial shareholding, included Arewa Textiles, Chellco Industries, Critall-Hope, Funtua Textiles, Gaskiya Corporation, Hill Station Hotel of Jos, National Truck Manufacturing Company of Kano and New Nigerian Construction Company, plus about 30 others. In addition, it has investments in many quoted companies including Ashaka Cement, Conoil, First Bank, Jaiz Bank, John Holt, Nestle, UAC, UBA and Unity Bank.
Despite these awesome assets and investments, NNDC suffered the fate of most government-owned businesses in Nigeria as it began a decline in the 1990s until it reached its current nadir. Its initial culture of enterprise and business independence was slowly eroded by government interference and a revolving-door management system in which the owner states took turns to appoint NNDC’s Group Managing Director. The appointments then became political, with little concern for professional expertise as was the case in the early days. NNDC’s board, which since the ICSA days was made up of a Chairman and Secretaries to the various State Governments, initially worked well in the days when the SMGs and SSGs were professional civil servants but it later became a liability.
What is to be done? We wholeheartedly support Emir Sanusi’s call to restore NNDC’s lost glory. However, we do not think this is possible with complete public ownership. We therefore urge the Northern state governments to dilute or even sell off their shares and allow private businessmen to come in and revive this veritable giant.