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The Minister
of Works, Arc Mike Onolememen has recommended the declaration of state of emergency
in the infrastructure sector and the establishment of an Infrastructure
Development Fund, IDF in order to bring the country out of the huge
infrastructure deficit.
Arc.
Onolememen, in his goodwill message to the 2013 International All Africa Youth
Reunion/Camp in Abuja requested the National Assembly to pass appropriate
legislation establishing the IDF and the implementation of the National
Integrated Infrastructure Master Plan, NIIMP, from the first line charge over a
10-year period.
The message
with the title " Funding Infrastructure Development in Africa: Nigeria as a
Case Study" also recommended better corporate governance which requires an
amendment to the Company and Allied Matters Act that allows companies to
contribute 3-5 per cent of their pre-tax income to the IDF.
The Minister
said the Federal Government recognizes the need to bridge the infrastructure
gap in the country which requires Attitudinal Change, including bold and
courageous actions by both the Executive and the Legislature to unleash
uncommon transformation in the country.
The Minister
who was represented at the occasion by the Deputy Director, Highways, Planning
and Development, Engr. Umunna Ekenna, described the infrastructure deficit as
large and affecting every sector adding that investments in the road sector
alone require at least the construction of 14,000 km of new roads annually for
the next seven years. This is apart from the routine maintenance and
rehabilitation of existing road network.
Arc.
Onolememen identified good infrastructure as "critical to the overall
development of the Nigerian economy, which in turn impacts the standard of
living of Nigerians" thus he said infrastructure development occupies a
central place in President Goodluck Jonathan's transformation agenda.
He stated
that the Jonathan-led administration embarked on major sector reforms in Roads,
Housing, Maritime, Aviation, Agriculture, Solid Minerals, Power, Oil and Gas,
etc and that the country has just completed the development of a National
Integrated Infrastructure Master Plan which requires tens of trillions of naira
to implement.
The
government, the Minister stated, cannot fund this huge portfolio alone due to
the limited financial resources available and against the backdrop of current
global financial tightening and increased competition for available
infrastructure funds.
Arc.
Onolememen reiterated that there is a global competition among nations to
attract private capital into infrastructure development through Public Private
Partnership, PPP, and other form of engagement with the private sector.
The Minister
said that to attract private finance, the Federal Government of Nigeria took a
number of steps not only to ensure that Direct Foreign Investments, DFIS and
PPP thrive in the development of infrastructure and the real sector in Nigeria
but also to guarantee transparency and accountability in the process.
He mentioned
that much time has been devoted to exploring new ways that will bridge
infrastructure gap in the country, which reforms will ensure enhanced
sustainable financing of infrastructure development; adding that India,
Malaysia and many other countries have successfully turned around
infrastructure development and consequently their economies through these
reforms.
Arc.
Onolememen was of the opinion that "User pays" principle will
inevitable find its way into the infrastructure sector if the nation is to
attract private investment in the development of infrastructure.
The Minister
was given an Award as Africa Entrepreneurship Man of the Year 2012 says that
Federal Government has recently embarked on a number of PPP projects as a way
of delivering some critical national infrastructure in Nigeria.
Other
Goodwill messages were delivered by Hon. AbdulMajid, the President of Youth
Council of Nigeria and representatives of youth organisations from Ghana and
Ivory-Coast.
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