Nigeria: Finance Minister seeks to reassure international community

Minister of Finance Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala has assured the international community of the government's seriousness over the issue of financial accountability.

The political and international nature of the NNPC dispute has become increasingly clear to Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala who is not only Minister of Finance but also a former senior World Bank official and former candidate for Bank leadership. According to some analysts, her position and reputation have been damaged by the affair despite her calls, which preceded Jonathan’s authorisation, for a forensic audit of NNPC financial affairs.  

She has even been accused of instituting a public relations “campaign” to protect her international and domestic reputation. This observation has been bolstered by her alleged use of the expensive US-based Mercury LLC public relations firm which has reportedly been used by President Jonathan’s administration since August 2013. 

This perception was perhaps bolstered by an Okonjo-Iweala piece that appeared in London’s Financial Times newspaper earlier this week. It opened with an assurance that despite “consternation in the markets” following Sanusi’s suspension and foreign exchange reserves below US$40 billion, the Naira has recovered and that the fundamentals are strong.  

Okonjo-Iweala - notably echoing Jonathan and Abati’s references to Sanusi’s three different estimates of the missing oil revenues - criticised him. She observed that Sanusi had first claimed that the figure was US$49.8 billion before he “accepted“ a finance ministry estimate of an unaccounted US$10.8 billion, before he “alleged” a “new figure” of US$20 billion. Besides the details, the minister also called for passage of the much-delayed PIB. It is clear that she was staying on message – even highlighting and supporting Jonathan’s announcement of a forensic enquiry – while also appealing to the international community.

Okonjo-Iweala was not the only senior high profile Nigerian appealing to foreign interests in London earlier this week. A large Nigerian delegation - including governors Isa Yuguda (Bauchi State), Emmanuel Uduaghan (Delta State) and Adams Oshiomhole (Edo State), former president Yakubu Gowon (1966-75) and Minister of Power Chinedu Nebo held court at the Institute of Directors. There they emphasised the attractiveness and openness of Nigeria to foreign investment and the length, admittedly including colonial rule, of the relationship between Nigeria and the UK.

For more news and expert analysis about Nigeria, please see Nigeria Focus and Nigeria Politics & Security.

© 2014 Menas Associates

Iraq, Iran form OPEC alliance

There have been speculations that Iran and Iraq are forming a strategic alliance within OPEC. The Financial Times, reporting on the recent OPEC conference in Vienna, even suggested that Iran's allies inside the cartel are trying to win the support of other producers against EU sanctions on Iran's oil industry.

The bid, which was spearheaded by Venezuela, was eventually rejected by key producers such as Saudi Arabia, Nigeria, Libya, and Kuwait. Nevertheless, the issue clearly overshadowed the OPEC talks and was blamed for 'strong disagreements' between members on crucial issues such as production and prices. The

Financial Times quoted unnamed officials as saying that the disagreements showed it would be increasingly difficult to maintain neutrality inside OPEC, as the sanctions issue is reinforcing already deep divisions between Iran, Venezuela, and Algeria on the one side and Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and the UAE on the other.

It has now become clear that Iraq has joined Iran's camp, whose members are accused of trying to politicise OPEC in favour of Tehran – a position that is expected to bode ill for the crucial cartel.

For more news and expert analysis about Iran, please see Iran Strategic Focus.

© 2012 Menas Associates

Ahmed Zewail appeals for help to fund Egypt's reforms

Egypt's most distinguished scientist who won the Nobel Prize for chemistry in 1999, Ahmed Zewail, has appealed for help to fund Egypt's reforms. In an article in the UK's Financial Times, he said that Egypt needed to change not just its leadership but its entire system. Echoing the successive UN-sponsored Human Development reports, he says that what Egypt needs above all is a decent education system.

“The so-called 'Children of Facebook' who fomented the revolution know Egypt was once ahead of South Korea in scientific research and development. They know that in the 30 years Mubarak sat in his palace and Egypt deteriorated, China has lifted hundreds of millions out of poverty, sent astronauts into space, built mega cities and high-speed trains, and brought its students up to world standards. They ask why Egypt cannot do the same thing.”

He says this will all take time but it is imperative to start now. “Of Egypt's many problems, the three most urgent to address are governance, economy and education. The army's Supreme Council, now the ruling political entity, has to ensure swift political changes. Egypt badly needs national unity and reconciliation. But to take the critical long-term steps to transform society it needs financial support. While Egyptians themselves must fashion the new nation, they need help in rebuilding sustainable institutions. The place to start is with the pivotal project, 'renaissance in education and development', whose acronym is the first command of the Koran: read.”

He is now calling for a global partnership of private and government organisations to establish a fund to finance a revolution in education. This should be directed by a board of trustees from renowned Egyptians and world leaders in cooperation with the Egyptian government.

Such an effort, he believes, would need an initial US$1 billion from private and government sources. “Further funds could then come from other nations and be deployed by the World Bank, the Arab Bank and the Islamic Development Fund. Repudiation of debt will redirect national resources to this and other vital projects.”

The money he asks for does not seem very much. But, he is making his appeal to the donor community at a time when it feels stretched by financial pressures at home.

For more news and expert analysis about Egypt, please see Egypt Politics & Security.

© 2011 Menas Associates