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Nigeria still needs Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala 04 Jun 2015

Against all expectations, President Muhammadu Buhari did not immediately give away the complexion of the avowed “change” of his administration on assuming office. He did not pronounce sweeping changes with immediate alacrity. More likely, therefore, he is going to be incremental in implementing his “change” agenda. This approach would enable him to avoid making superficial changes here and there. He is also likely to identify the things that do not need to change.

There is no doubt that personnel change will come to fiscal management in Nigeria for good. As I wrote in June 2014, the victory of the APC in the presidential election, that was several months ahead then, would be the end of the reign of Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala in the Nigerian fiscal space. The reason I said that was because in her second term as finance minister, she refused to put her neck on the line by forcing through difficult fiscal reforms. Whereas she put up a stellar performance in this regard as finance minister between 2003 and 2006 and suitably wrote about her exploits in her book: “Reforming the Unreformable,” thereafter, she refused to reform the ‘reformable’ between 2011 and 2015. For that reason, there would be no consideration for her in the new government.

Nevertheless, the way President Buhari relates with Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala moving forward, would define the astuteness of his implementation of the change agenda of his party. NOI, as I would like to call her subsequently with some affection, is one Nigerian that remains relevant to promoting the national cause, either in or out of government. There is no Nigerian that is more influential than her in the international development circles today. Since President Buhari would need to engage in this sphere quite actively in the next four years, he potentially has an influential lobbyist in NOI.

Nigeria is an influential country. One of the ways we know this is the lift the country gives the career of Nigerian world-class technocrats when they take the opportunity to serve the country. Soon after she left the government in 2006, NOI was appointed a Managing Director of the World Bank in charge of three regions of the world apart from running the administrative secretariat. The position was created specifically because of how high her profile had risen while serving the Nigerian government. She was the first amongst other managing directors of the Bank, making her the de facto number two of the global institution. We have just seen a repeat of the lift Nigeria gives the career profile of its high-achieving officials with the appointment, last week, of Dr. Akinwunmi Adesina as the next President of African Development Bank, on the back of serving as Nigerian minister of agriculture in the last four years.

Akinwunmi Adesina did particularly credit his appointment to the backing of NOI. For so long, a Nigerian could not be appointed to head the Pan-African institution, in spite of the country wielding the single largest voting power in the institution, being its largest shareholder. This was the case because the influence of Nigeria was moderated by the diversity of interests at the AfDB where there are non-African members with considerable influence, including the United States and Japan. NOI’s network reaches these powerful stakeholders and we now have the first Nigerian AfDB President. This is one area we can expect to see NOI continue to use her considerable leverage within the global development community to advance our national interests and support the career aspirations of fellow citizens.

Whatever reputational loss she may have suffered because of her performance in the last administration, it is altogether a domestic issue. Internationally, the reputation and credibility she had worked very hard to establish over the years remain untarnished. Therefore, governments and leaders in international finance will often rely on her opinion in dealing with Nigeria. And one can expect her to remain passionate about the country for life.
 
The right attitude is for former public officials to be eternally indebted to the country for the opportunity provided them to serve. Outside government, ex-public officials should continue to advance the national interest in any way they can. It is for this reason that a new government should be careful not to sully their reputation because of the convenience of politics.

In making this recommendation, one is aware that a number of public officials do grossly abuse their positions. Such officials should face the consequences, including prosecution. I am also aware of those who cannot seem to find relevance outside of the corridors of power and, therefore, constitute a nuisance and distraction for the government of the day. Such a behaviour should not be condoned. But former public officials who don’t belong to these categories should not be impaired in lending their expertise and network in advancing the national interest.

A comprehensive view of NOI’s contributions to governance in Nigeria since around year 2000, from helping to setup the Debt Management Office pro bono to May 29th, 2015 when she unceremoniously bowed out with the Administration of Goodluck Jonathan, would credit her with sterling achievements. Through her efforts, the DMO has modernised public debt management for the country, enabling government to raise fund to finance budget deficits while helping to develop the local debt capital market. The many reforms NOI undertook to help government curb corruption and improve accountability remain very important. Her recent work in helping to mobilise resources to operationalize mortgage refinancing and bring scale to the development finance space would be an enduring legacy. While I wish her the best in her future endeavours, I strongly hope we have not seen the last of her contributions to governance in Nigeria.