Nigeria

2 Nigeria special advertising sectionOil production rig illuminated at dawn, Niger DeltaNonetheless, as he prepared to leaveoffice, Obasanjo admitted that thechanges he initiated are far from complete.The reforms need to continue butare sustainable, he said. He had nodoubt that the incoming administration,to take office in May, would advanceand consolidate those reforms. The politicaland economic establishment echoesthis view.However, Obasanjo’s failures havebeen as notable as his achievements. Themajority of Nigerians have seen no significantchange in their quality of life, andliving conditions in the oil-rich NigerDelta region have worsened as unresthas increased.Most spectacularly, while the country isthe world’s sixth-largest oil producer,power supplies are still breaking downdaily and a shortage of fuel causes longqueues at gas stations.Nevertheless, the legendary goodhumoredoptimism of Nigerians persists.“All we need is a new broom,” said onepolitical analyst. “And through theseelections we will get one democratically.”It will be the new administration’surgent task to start sweeping diligentlyand effectively and tackle these issues.Eight years of civilian rule have lessenedthe fears of yet another military coupand allowed the prospect of Africa’smost populous country reaching its fullpotential.The burgeoning business communitywidely holds the belief that with electionsout of the way, Nigeria is about toenjoy an economic boom.“The climate has changed,” says ChiefBayo Ojo, the federal attorney generaland minister of justice.“Corruption hasbeen tackled head on. There is dueprocess. Everything we do in our contractingsystem is transparent. The futurelooks good for Nigeria.”Several significant developments backthis optimism with facts. Capital inflowshave been doubling every year andreached $2.5 billion in 2006, accordingto the Central Bank. Economic growth isa respectable 5.63%, and the bankexpects it to rise this year to 7%.Foreign debt, which stood at $30 billionwhen Obasanjo came to power, hasnow been paid off, and the country’sforeign currency reserves have increasedfrom $3.7 billion to $40 billion.Meanwhile, foreign investment and thecountry’s non-oil exports grew by a quarterlast year.Irene Chigbue, the bluntly spokendirector-general of Nigeria’s Bureau ofPublic Enterprises, believes these landmarktransformations have not receivedsufficient coverage in the global press.She admits that the years of militaryrule and mismanagement seriously damagedthe country’s international image,but maintains that Nigerians, throughGETTY / JAMES NELSONtheir own efforts, have “got their acttogether” and moved on.“The international community stilltends to look at our past reputation,”she says, “but a complex reform processhas been going on for six years now. Soit hurts that, despite all these effortsmade to shape up, we don’t get duerecognition from our senior partners inthe global arena.“Things are changing very fast inNigeria in all facets of our national life.We’ve gone a long way and we have aclear determination to go on in the rightdirection.”Chigbue argues that the problems ofcorruption and red tape are no longerrelevant with regard to foreign investmentin Nigeria. Investors, she says, arecoming in from a variety of Asian andEuropean countries. She concedes, however,that U.S. investors are still reluctantto enter the Nigerian marketplace.“They are present in the oil sector, ofcourse, but we really want them to be inother sectors,” she says. “When they areready to move out of their comfortzones, we hope that we will be able topersuade them to come.”Nigeria, says Chigbue, is making a lotof effort to attract U.S. investors, andthey should be looking for Nigerian outletsnow because big changes are underway.The country is a logical business partnerfor Americans, she says. With a populationof 140 million, it is at the heartof Africa, and neighboring countriesdepend on it for goods and services. Itsinfrastructure requires massive development.But Nigerians speak English, theweather is good and labor is fairly skilledand inexpensive.“People who come here should beable to maximize these benefits to makequick returns,” she adds. ❖Michael KnipeProject Managers: Soledad Grognett, Jeffrey Hartman,Inti Perez-Pedersen and Ana LanzacPublisher: John Gasser; Managing Editor: Beverley BlytheEditor: Michael Knipe, Art Director: Y. Taravilla-Marín.This special advertising feature was produced byInsight Publications, a division ofImpact Media Global Ltd.53 Chandos Place, London WC2N 4HS, UK.Tel: +44 20 7812 6400 Fax: +44 20 7812 6413150 East 55th Street, 7th Floor, NY, NY 10022, USA.Tel: +1 212 751 1900 Fax: +1 212 751 0088e-mail: publisher@insight-publications.comwww.insight-publications.com