Check most faded ancestral kingdoms, they failed not because of lack of resources, rather, due to the poor utilization of their people. Typically, the people become enterprising, build wealth and after passing an inflection point, they pause – and lose their minds. Over time, another kingdom takes over.

As early as 1961, most European countries have written out any support to Nigeria because they saw a nation with a dynamic and pragmatic agricultural policy which if built upon could make it a respected nation in the world. In Belgium, they argued that any financial help to Nigeria was stupidity as the nation was already in a virtuoso cycle to greatness. Unfortunately, that did not happen and has not happened. Let me take you to economic systems for why:

Country A generates aggregate economic output (GDP) via agriculture of $5 billion but employs 1 million doing that. But it does not have a lot of money, just $0.5 billion, in the foreign reserves.

Country B generates output of $1 billion via crude oil sector but employs 100,000 people doing it. But  it has $20 billion in foreign reserves from the sale of the oil. 

Many people will say that Country B is in a better shape. Possibly, if that $20 billion is not mismanaged or stolen. But structurally, Country A has a stronger positioning provided it can keep getting more productive. It has found a way to employ its 1 million citizens and it has a decent reserve.  

In Country B, the citizens are under stress with largely zero economic participation, implying that risk is concentrated on what leaders do with that $20 billion. When you have bad leaders, you have the Nigerian case. When you have better ones, you have UAE (Dubai).

This explains why Nigeria has 133 million extremely poor people despite having earned $741.48bn  from oil & gas in 21 years. The curse of oil is not that oil is bad. The curse is that you can be partying in Abuja, drinking kunu, eating nkwobi and amala, and your bank balance will be growing in New York via oil sales. But when you look around, only few are in that party with the majority dying of the real curse: poverty in a land of plenty.

A National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) report has revealed that 63% of persons living in Nigeria (133 million people) are multidimensionally poor: “65% of the poor (86 million people) live in the North, while 35% (nearly 47 million) live in the South. Poverty levels across States vary significantly, with the incidence of multidimensional poverty ranging from a low of 27% in Ondo to a high of 91% in Sokoto.”

Nigeria earned $741.48 billion from oil and gas over a period of 21 years covering 1999 and 2020, according to Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI).

This was disclosed by the Executive Secretary of the organization, Dr Ogbonnaya Orji, during a stakeholders’ engagement forum on the implementation of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) in Abuja. Orji said the reports involve 25 cycles of audit of the oil and gas sector.

“The 2021 oil and gas sector audit is currently ongoing and will soon be released.

“This is guided by a five-year strategic plan (2022-2026) which will enable the agency to establish a presence and operate at sub-national levels to support government’s revenue growth plan and resources mobilization,” he explained.

The Nigerian oil sector is riddled with corruption and malfeasance that have enabled revenue shortfalls for years, particularly in 2022, when the country’s oil production was halved by oil theft. Consequently, there have been calls for the government to ensure transparent operation in the industry.

Orji said that he is delighted that NEITI’s reports had led to the recovery of several billions of dollars by the government from companies operating in the sector. He added that the recommendations made by NEITI in its reports have also triggered huge reforms in the sector.

Recently, President Muhammadu Buhari signed the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), aimed at sanitizing the industry. The PIA which birthed the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL), has not been fully implemented. Orji said that NEITI, being a member of the Presidential Steering Committee (PSC), would provide the information and data in the oil and gas sector that would help to effectively implement the PIA.

“As an agency charged with promoting transparency and accountability in the extractive sector, NEITI has responsibility to facilitate and strengthen participation by diverse stakeholders for a successful implementation of the PIA.

“Therefore, the implementation of the Act and full operationalisation of its provisions are of great interest to NEITI and its stakeholders.

“NEITI has been working with relevant stakeholders and leveraging on our experience and exposure in the oil and gas sector to ensure that the implementation of the PIA delivers its objective and desired results,” Orji said.

He explained that NEITI has pioneered a programme designed to provide platform for stakeholders, and state and non-state actors to discuss and engage with the process of PIA implementation. In addition, he said that the platform will serve as a platform to update the public and galvanize the needed public support for the implementation of PIA.

“As an agency with the mandate to promote transparency and accountability in the extractive sectors, with a multi-stakeholders platform for dialogue on natural resources governance, NEITI has a huge responsibility to facilitate and strengthen the participation of diverse stakeholders for a successful implementation of the PIA.

“So far, NEITI has conducted and published 25 cycles of audit reports in the oil and gas sector, covering the period 1999-2020. From the report, a total of $741.48 billion was recorded as revenue earnings to government coffers from the sector.

“Besides, NEITI reports have led to the recovery of several billions of dollars by the government from companies operating in the sector. Recommendations of our reports are also triggering huge reforms in the sectors, one of which is the PIA we are discussing here today,” he added.