FG defies govs, launches SWF with N160bn

Posted by admin Governors, Latest Politics Wednesday, October 19th, 2011

NOTWITHSTAN-DING the rejection of the Sovereign Wealth Fund (SWF) by state governors, the Federal Government, on Tuesday, went ahead with its implementation by launching it with $1billion (about N160 billion).

The Coordinating Minister for the Economy and Minister of Finance, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, made the disclosure at a press conference held to inform the public of the Federal Government’s determination to forge ahead with the fund as encapsulated in the Nigerian Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA) Act.

Addressing the media at the briefing, Dr Okonjo-Iweala said the government had launched the implementation of the Sovereign Wealth Fund with a series of initial steps designed to build a strong foundation for achieving the objectives of the fund.

“The process is beginning with the $1billion, which has already been put aside as initial funding,” she disclosed.

Announcing the decision, the minister said, “we are proceeding with the implementation of this very important programme, following consultations with the governors’ forum, because the feedback we have is that Nigerians strongly support saving for the future and the other core objectives of the fund,” she stated.

Okonjo-Iweala, who said that the government could not afford to delay implementing the fund, given the challenges facing the economy and the global financial crisis, asserted that the core objectives of the fund were saving for the future, investment in strategic infrastructure and building a buffer against shocks, such as the current global financial crisis which had damaged many economies across the world, including those of the western nations.

To ensure the full implementation of the NSIA Act, which became law on May 27, 2011, the finance minister disclosed that the recruitment of the management team of the fund through a transparent process targeting the best qualified Nigerians within and outside Nigerians, had commenced.

She said the KPMG had been engaged to manage this process and advertisements, calling for applications from interested Nigerians.

As directed by the Act, the minister said a four-member executive nomination committee, which will be selected from the list of qualified applicants short-listed by the KPMG, would be constituted.

Dr Okonjo-Iweala said the Federal Government was desirous of ensuring that the fund serves the purposes for which it was set up by putting in place men and women of integrity and honour in a transparent exercise.

“The president has directed that we put everything into this process, because he is committed to ensuring that Nigerians and Nigerian economy benefit from the focused implantation of the fund,” she said.

Dr Okonjo-Iweala stressed that the decision to begin implementation was taken after due consultations with the Governors’ Forum and that the dialogue with the governors on other areas was still ongoing.

“We are still talking with the governors and the dialogue is being conducted in an atmosphere of mutual respect, because both sides appreciate that at the end of the day, it is all about improving the Nigerian economy.”

It will be recalled that when the NSIA Act was passed into law, the governors at their forum kicked against it, because they said they didn’t trust the Federal Government and its ability to be very transparent on the matter.

The Edo State governor, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, confirmed the governors’ stand on Tuesday at the 41st annual conference of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN), when he told delegates that the governors were opposed to the fund, not because they didn’t believe in the concept of stabilising the economy but because there were other methods of doing so.

-Tribunewp_posts