KEY POINTS
- The Federal Government has reaffirmed its commitment to international collaboration and governance transparency to boost Nigeria’s global investment appeal.
- Speaking at a Fidelity Bank webinar, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Mrs. Bianca Udumegwu-Ojukwu, highlighted digital reforms as central to the Renewed Hope Agenda.
- The initiative focuses on sub-national opportunities, urging state governments to adopt transparent fiscal policies to attract international partners.
- Key reforms cited include the Treasury Single Account (TSA), PEBEC business ease measures, and the digitalization of public finance management.
MAIN STORY
The Federal Government is leveraging digital transparency to unlock new investment frontiers at the state and local levels. During a high-level webinar hosted by Fidelity Bank Plc on Tuesday, titled “Digital Fiscal Transparency: Unlocking Sub-national Opportunities for International Partners,” Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Mrs. Bianca Udumegwu-Ojukwu, emphasized that accountability is Nigeria’s primary tool for attracting foreign capital.
Represented by Mr. Abdulqadir Olanrewaju, the Minister noted that aligning trade policies with global standards through the WTO and AfCFTA remains a top priority.
Fidelity Bank’s CEO, Dr. Nneka Onyeali-Ikpe, reinforced this by calling for technology-driven financial systems that build trust between governments and investors. She noted that the bank is already facilitating this through compliant digital platforms that streamline revenue collection and foreign currency transactions.
Experts at the event pointed to Kaduna State as a success story, where reforms in land administration and infrastructure have significantly improved regional competitiveness, serving as a blueprint for other sub-nationals to become engines of economic growth.
THE ISSUE
The primary hurdle identified is the “Sub-national Transparency Gap.” While the Federal Government has made strides with the TSA and anti-corruption agencies like the EFCC, many investors remain wary of the regulatory “bottlenecks” at the state level. The “Ease of Doing Business” is often inconsistent across borders, leading to fragmented growth. To resolve this, the government is pushing for a uniform “Digital Fiscal Roadmap” that ensures state-level financial data is accessible and secure, effectively removing internal trade barriers that have historically deterred long-term international partnerships.
WHAT’S BEING SAID
- “Digital fiscal transparency is key to unlocking sub-national opportunities for international partners,” stated Mrs. Bianca Udumegwu-Ojukwu.
- “Building trust through secure, technology-driven financial systems is critical to attracting domestic and foreign investments,” noted Dr. Nneka Onyeali-Ikpe, CEO of Fidelity Bank.
- “Investors are influenced by conditions at state and local levels, including infrastructure and regulatory efficiency,” added Mr. Akpotor Justice of the Ministry of Industry, Trade, and Investment.
- “The reforms have led to faster business registration and increased digitisation of government services,” Olanrewaju concluded on behalf of the Foreign Ministry.
WHAT’S NEXT
- The Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission (NIPC) is expected to intensify its assessment of state-level investment readiness.
- Fidelity Bank plans to scale its digital collection platforms to more states to enhance fiscal accountability and revenue tracking.
- A series of workshops will be held to help SMEs at the sub-national level align their products with AfCFTA trade standards.
- PEBEC will continue working with state governors to simplify land titles and business licensing to mirror the success seen in Kaduna.
BOTTOM LINE
The Bottom Line is that Nigeria’s economic growth is now a “State-by-State” mission. By moving fiscal data into the digital sunlight, the Federal Government and Fidelity Bank are telling international investors that the “Renewed Hope” agenda extends beyond Abuja. For Nigeria to be truly competitive, every sub-national unit must function as a transparent, digital-ready gateway for global capital.
