The ease of doing business in Nigeria

To say that the 2018 World Bank report on Ease of Doing Business in Nigeria is shocking is an understatement. The yardstick it adopt to arrive at this remains unthinkable.  When GEJ’s administration announced in 2014 that Nigeria’s economy is the largest in Africa, many media houses went agog with scathing reactions from many and […]

To say that the 2018 World Bank report on Ease of Doing Business in Nigeria is shocking is an understatement. The yardstick it adopt to arrive at this remains unthinkable. 

When GEJ’s administration announced in 2014 that Nigeria’s economy is the largest in Africa, many media houses went agog with scathing reactions from many and sundry. That was given more attention due to the oil price boom of the moment that never reflected on the faces of common citizens. 

Therefore, the recent revelation by the World Bank that the country has stepped up from rank 169 in 2017 to 145 in 2018 in the rating of countries with ease of doing business, poised one to ask the criteria to this. 

As kudos goes to Vice President Prof. Yemi Osinbajo on the signing of three Executive Orders in May this year, which includes Ease of Doing Business bill into law; it is pertinent that what makes a business easy is still a mirage in the country. Though ease of doing business covers laws regulating starting up a business to registering property and access to credit facilities. But sadly, that is not the case on ground with credit from commercial banks still remain hard nuts to crack. 

The rate at which the Nigerian road is slaying businessmen is unimaginable. And the shamble state of power supply is another sorry state. Though it’s been reported that generation has hit up 7000 megawatts. Transmission and distribution has so far frowned its face. The rural areas that are now the driving force of the economy are still left with no effort to electrify them. More outrageous is that some oil explorers are still in the hands of their captors. Cutting across far Northeast to the Coastal Southsouth and Southeast both local and foreign nationals live in constant fear of kidnappers.

Worthy to note also is the recurrent clash between farmers and herdsmen. With the diversification to agriculture, one must not be told that farmers are now the business tycoon of this country. Hence, if the country is to boast of ease of doing business, the conflict between farmers and herdsmen need be dealt with once and for all. 

There is no doubt the country is witnessing relative peace. But that is not enough if at all the ease of doing business is to be concretized. As every well-meaning Nigerian owes unreserved appreciation to this current government on its stance on security and economic revolution, it is thought provoking to ask whether the World Bank had weighed the peaking 14% unemployment rate with its attendant 70% poverty level.

Isaac B Bahago, Minna, Niger State.