By Constantine ‘Labi Ogunbiyi

The African continent stands at a pivotal juncture in the global energy sector, with abundant oil and gas reserves offering immense potential for economic growth. However, while the continent holds significant promise, navigating the upstream oil and gas sector in Africa comes with a plethora of risks and potential setbacks that demand careful consideration and strategic planning. This is against a backdrop of cutbacks in international capital for carbon-intensive oil and gas developments and increasing competition for the same sources of capital. Innovative financing solutions are thus required to fill the void, but can only be truly successful if tailored to specific needs and adopted and respected by all stakeholders.

Nigeria, Africa’s largest oil producer, epitomises the complexities and opportunities within the continent’s energy sector. Over the past decade, the Nigerian oil and gas industry has grappled with insecurity, asset vandalism, and community unrest, leading to a decline in investment. This coupled with the need for the sanctity of contracts and a properly structured fiscal framework has seen investment in the sector decline to about US$5 billion per annum from highs of about US$22 billion per annum in 2012.

Nigeria has an abundance of unexploited discovered natural gas (as well as significant prospective gas resources), now heralded as a “clean” transition fuel amidst global energy shifts. Nigeria should seek to attract significant investment during this transition era (which has also seen crude oil prices rebound) to take full advantage of this, thus retaining the value of crude oil and gas resources to enable it to position itself for its energy transition (towards net zero) agenda. A just energy transition, the paradigm that gained impetus at the December 2023 COP28 Conference, is intended to decelerate financing fossil fuel developments while supporting those most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change when facilitating the transition to clean energy. This is not simply a tweak to existing systems; it is a fundamental transformation towards a cleaner, more sustainable future. This shift is driven by environmental concerns, the changing balance of power on the global stage, and awareness that the energy-producing nations in the Global South (which produce only a fraction of global emissions) should be given a chance to “catch up” industrially, technological advancement as consumer demands. It is estimated that the country needs about US$25 billion of annual investment in the next 10 years to achieve crude oil output of three to four million barrels per day and 3 bcf per day of gas production for domestic consumption (an ambition). A lack of available infrastructure, whether because of existing compromised infrastructure through age or sabotage or simply a lack of new investment, and competition for capital regionally, poses challenges that will need to be overcome to achieve this. Inadequate infrastructure impedes the development and operation of oil and gas projects in Africa, increases project costs, delays timelines, and heightens operational risks.

The new Government has declared that it is “open for business” and will take urgent steps towards solving the fiscal, regulatory, security, and other issues discouraging investment and operations in the nation’s petroleum sector – something that is urgently required to help to push its oil and gas production to the ambitious levels being targeted. The mechanisms are in place – the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) has done a lot to bring an enabling framework to the industry, including by allowing the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and its subsidiaries to raise capital on their own balance sheets, whether by divestitures or development partnerships on their blocks (including risk service contracts, financial and technical service agreements and the likes), crude forward sales, debt or equity capital raisings, etc. Still, there is a need to focus more on implementing the PIA in a manner that restores investors’ confidence and boosts oil and gas production, ultimately increasing jobs, the country’s earnings, and prosperity. Whilst international commodity traders have increased their activity and funding of oil production in Nigeria, they rarely support the development of appraisal and near-production assets. Access to innovative capital structures for such capital-intensive projects, involving a more risk-reward approach will be key to developing such assets, as will the deepening of regional capital markets to bolster the capital available from institutions such as the African Export-Import Bank and planned new initiatives such as the African Energy Bank. Effectively, more “home-grown” solutions will be required.

As international oil companies shift focus to deep offshore and gas-rich assets, indigenous companies and smaller operators are stepping in to fill the void. However, accessing capital remains challenging. Innovative financing models, such as the contractor risk service  model, offer a promising solution. This model, which involves contractors taking financial risks and receiving payment from production, incentivizes efficient asset development while mitigating risk for owners and operators.

The contractor taking such risk, is effectively a co-financier of, and investor in, the development of the oil block – ensuring a service that would otherwise require immediate payment, to benefit from payment from oil and gas production (therein lies the contractor risk).

The success of such models hinges on the support of all stakeholders, including operators, joint venture partners, financiers, regulatory authorities, and local communities. By aligning incentives and sharing risks, these partnerships can drive sustainable development and enhance investor returns. The recent completion of the FSO ELI Akaso infrastructure project by the Century Group (CG) (part of an alternative crude oil evacuation system (ACOES)), facilitated by the contractor risk service model, exemplifies the potential for collaboration to unlock value and foster growth. The ACOES is being developed as a result of the need to enhance production and supply security from oil blocks in the Eastern Niger Delta due to infractions and prolonged outages of the Nembe Creek Trunkline (historically one of Nigeria’s major oil transportation arteries evacuating up to 150,000 bopd of crude from the Niger Delta to the Atlantic coast for export). The CG model is “Made-in-Nigeria-for-Nigeria” but can be rolled out regionally (and globally too), in countries where access to capital for oil and gas developments is tough. Contractors work in a vacuum: the aim of which is to optimise oil production to ensure that their clients thrive so that they do too. However, they rarely take financial and production risk executing a “pay-as-you-go” model (often including mobilisation and other hefty prepayment-type fees), which can leave operators hanging where assets under-perform. They also get the job done without involving themselves in the issues that may affect joint venture partner relationships.

Local and international investors, including UK-listed San Leon Energy plc, World Carrier Corporation, and GT Bank plc have invested heavily in Energy Link Infrastructure Limited (ELI), the sponsor of the ACOES and owner of the FSO ELI Akaso and relevant pipeline infrastructure to develop the ACOES. With the advent of COVID and a lack of production available from anchor clients, ELI needed to look for alternative sources of capital to ensure that the FSO ELI Akaso is ready for operations. Without CG’s involvement in a contractor risk service model, the FSO would not be operationally ready and now established as a terminal for oil export. As the Akaso starts to take on barrels from various oil producers, the business should thrive. CG, as an investor by the application of its contractor risk service model, should also be rewarded and feted for having stood by the business at a time when access to alternative capital was proving difficult. With the success of this approach, CG is ensuring that the contractor risk service model should be considered by the industry as an alternative, proactive, and additional funding source for the development of energy projects.

Looking ahead, achieving sustainable development in Africa’s oil and gas sector demands collaborative action from all stakeholders. Local investors, operators, and contractors play a crucial role in de-risking opportunities and crafting an appealing investment narrative that attracts capital. By leveraging local expertise and fostering partnerships, these stakeholders can unlock the sector’s full potential while mitigating risks. Regulatory frameworks also play a pivotal role in shaping the investment landscape. It is imperative that these frameworks prioritize ease of doing business and uphold contract sanctity to instil confidence among investors. Additionally, addressing bottlenecks to investment and exits is critical for maintaining investor interest and sustaining growth momentum. Addressing the need to resolve the long-standing saga and delay in the consummation of the $1.3 billion ExxonMobil sale of its 40% stake in Mobil Producing Nigeria Unlimited (MPNU) to Seplat Nigeria Plc, the Nigerian Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Heineken Lokpobiri said on 16th April 2024: “Now that the whole world is campaigning against investment in fossil fuel, if we close this transaction and Seplat expands their investments, Bonga North, which is predicated on that resolution, comes on board, and the whole world will know that Nigeria has become a new investment destination and that is the objective of this government.”

In charting the course for Africa’s upstream oil and gas industry, daring innovations and strategic partnerships will be indispensable. By embracing risk and seizing opportunities, the continent can harness its energy potential to drive economic prosperity and sustainable development for generations to come. More local investors, operators and contractors (like Century Group) will need to step up to help to de-risk opportunities and ensure the investment narrative is attractive, properly articulated and understood. With traditional international financing techniques becoming more difficult to secure for oil and gas projects, the contractor risk service model is an invaluable additional tool to ensure the continuing development of energy projects.

About the Author

Constantine ‘Labi Ogunbiyi has been involved in the energy (including renewables), fintech, and logistics sectors as an investor, Strategic Advisor, and/or Director on several boards. He has more than twenty-five years of experience in international capital markets, private equity, acquisition, structured, trade and project finance, and public and private partnerships in the African energy, technology, and infrastructure sectors, in particular. Labi,  was a founder and Executive Director of Afren plc responsible for business development, strategy, and growth, leading Afren’s negotiating team in Nigerian acquisitions and equity and debt financings (capital raising of more than $1.7 billion) between 2005 and 2009. In 2009, he founded First Hydrocarbon Nigeria Limited (FHN), a leading indigenous upstream oil and gas exploration and production company in Nigeria, and functioned as its Chief Executive Officer, selling the business in 2013.

Presently, he runs his family office, Phoenix Generation Limited, a direct investment and strategic investment advisory service company. He holds Legal Qualifications from the Universities of London (King’s College), Passau (Germany), and the Oxford Institute of Legal Practice.

By Bolanle Bolawole

To begin with, let me ask whether you knew that abusing the Naira is a worse offence than stealing or embezzling the Naira? You can steal billions of Naira and walk away free. But abuse the Naira and end up in jail with automatic alacrity! Worse still, you can leverage the riches so suddenly acquired to contest election into high office and become anything – president, vice president, governor, senator, honourable – just anything!

Only a few persons in high office in this country today do not fall into this category. When you steal so much, you intimidate the authorities; the anti-corruption agencies negotiate with you; the courts respect you and the populace worship you. Spiritual leaders grovel for a piece of the cake. Crumbs from your table ensure that the masses flock to you and do your bidding.

An uncountable number of our leaders have corruption allegations and cases running for years hanging around their neck. In the interim, they walk the street; stand for election, win and are, today, “their excellencies” “distinguished” and “honourables” This is very much unlike the automatic alacrity with which Bobrisky was sent to jail and the Cubana Chief Priest was hauled before the court on charges of abusing the Naira.

The seriousness with which the authorities now pursue selective cases of abuse of the Naira suggests that this offence destroys the economy and impacts Nigerians more negatively than the stealing of humongous sums from the country’s coffers. This is quite unfortunate as it smacks of a deliberate diversionary tactic to shift the people’s attention from more serious matters.

Someone said Bobrisky quickly went to jail maybe because his lawyers were B.Sc. in Law lawyers! Were they the ones who advised him to plead guilty, thinking that would earn him pity and soft-landing? He was like a person that enemies wanted to roast alive who now doused himself with petrol and stood before the fireplace. The Cubana Chief Priest must have learned lessons from Bobrisky’s error. Maybe his lawyers had authentic LLB. Law! If you know, kindly tell me why the Dunamis pastor apologised to the lady who bagged B.Sc. Law degree from NOUN!

While Bobrisky cools his feet in jail, the Cubana Chief Priest roams freely, having been admitted to bail, which was denied to Bobrisky. Because he pleaded not guilty, the Cubana Chief Priest is considered innocent until the contrary is proven; unlike Bobrisky who pleaded guilty from Day One and the judge only had to fix a date to sentence him – and the sentence pronounced was harsh, in my view.

Bobrisky’s lawyers appeared lazy. I will love to see how the Cubana Chief Priest and his lawyers tackle the prosecution. What is the evidence that the person caught on video abusing the Naira was the accused and not a look-alike? Remember the drug-related charges that dogged the steps of Kashamu Buruji until his death. How are they sure that what was abused was real Naira and not fake, look-alike Naira? Will exhibits be presented in court, with serial numbers to boot? What if rats or snakes – or even monkeys! – are later announced to have devoured the exhibits? Will electronic evidence (a relatively new source of evidence) suffice in this case? In a democracy, there is the need to stretch the law to its elasticity level and not take anything for granted.

 I love the song “apostle must to hear this” by portable but warn him not to fall into the same pit as Bobrisky. I will loan him the wisdom of the elders as Grandma told me. There was a wicked king in one town and people only murmured behind his back as none could summon the courage to confront him. One day two friends bared their minds about this wicked king in a gathering of friends. Unknown to them, one “amebo” carried the tale to the Kabiyesi. Pronto, he sent messengers to bring the twosome to his palace. Everyone knew what the outcome would be.

So, one of the friends went into his inner chambers and behaved like a man, as they say. He committed suicide rather than stand the indignity he would be subjected to before being beheaded at the palace. So, only one offender was hauled before the king, who was surprised to see that he did not committed suicide like his friend. “Coward,” the king yelled at him. “Why did you not summon the same courage as your friend?” The king was surprised at the response he got: “Only cowards die before they see the death that would kill them!” But I digress!

One day late into the night some years back, we were unwinding in the Dining Room of a governor, as was our practice, when his phone rang and the person on the other end was frantic. It was an SOS to His Excellency by the apostle, who was in the state for a three-day crusade, to come to the rescue. It was a “Come to Macedonia and help us” kind of shrill cry. The Man of God said his hotel had been surrounded by security operatives from Abuja and were banging on his door, threatening to pull it down if he failed to open it.

His Excellency, an action governor, immediately sprang to action; mobilised his security aides and all of us headed for the hotel. His Excellency, commando-style, stormed the hotel, yelling and stomping: How dare you! You want to create a crisis in my state? How dare you invade my state without my knowledge? Not even the courtesy to put me in the know? I am the chief security officer of this state! Ad infinitum!

As His Excellency was raking, he was pushing his way towards the apostle’s room. The security operatives from Abuja were taken aback. They were armed to the teeth. The governor’s security aides were also armed. Thank God there was no shoot-out between the two opposing groups. What would have become of “bloody civilians” like me? The governor got to the apostle’s room, wrapped his arm around him, led him down the stairs, and hauled him into his official car and we drove away, straight to the Government House.

That was my first time seeing the Apostle Suleman. Was the governor’s action right? Yes, I think it was, but was it dangerous? Yes, it was! What if a shoot-out had occurred? But why should security agents storm a state without the knowledge of the governor who is touted by the country’s Constitution as the chief security officer of the state? This is one area of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) that needs further amendment.

If we can excuse what the governor in question here did to rescue Apostle Suleman, can we in like manner justify what the Governor of Kogi state did to smuggle his erstwhile boss, Yahaya Bello, from EFCC’s net as is being alleged? I do not think the Kogi governor did the right thing. So also do I not think Yahaya Bello himself did the right thing trying to run away from the law. How far can he run? And for how long will he hide? Has he not made his case worse now that he has been declared wanted by the EFCC?

For how long can the incumbent Kogi governor provide his political godfather a safe haven? If Yahaya Bello is innocent, why is he running? Has it not been said that a clear conscience fears no foe? After all his grandstanding, why is Yahaya Bello now developing cold feet? Why is he now hiding under the cover-cloth of his successor? Again, for how long will he do this?

 In 2018, the then Ekiti state governor, Ayo Fayose, was taunted by the EFCC: that his immunity would soon expire as his tenure expires; that he would be hauled before the court; and that he would rot in jail! Fayose told them he was not on the run but would turn himself over to the EFCC – all by himself. Fayose was man enough to honour his words. He went to the EFCC office in Abuja by himself. I was one of those who followed him there. He was detained by them. He was charged to court and was remanded  at the Ikoyi prison for a while. I visited him there. When the case began, I followed him to court on a countless number of occasions. Fayose defended himself. The case is still on but Fayose is not in hiding like Yahaya Bello has now done. He did not run from the law. Fayose was outspoken but not lousy like Yahaya Bello.

Yahaya Bello has been declared wanted. That is the right thing to do but that is not all. If it is true that the Kogi state governor was the one who, hiding under the cloak of immunity, shielded him from arrest by the EFCC, then, that is a serious matter. The Kogi state governor, in so doing, has shown that he is not fit for the high office he occupies. He has to be removed by all means possible.  Was that not the same man who prostrated before Yahaya Bello after the Kogi governorship election? What, then, should we expect? What a shame! If removing the Kogi state governor is what must be done to gain access to Yahaya Bello, so be it! This is one of those rare occasions that you regret that Olusegun Obasanjo is not the president!

Then, the security aides that the Kogi State governor used to frustrate the EFCC must be sanctioned. We have had too many cases of security officials acting unprofessionally and at cross-purposes in a way that does them little or no credit. An end must be put to this. There is also the embarrassment of judges giving conflicting orders that make a mockery of the judiciary. What is the function of the NJC in this regard?

Importantly, the time is now to review the immunity clause in the Constitution; either we totally remove it or we strip it of its omnibus status. The spirit and letters of the immunity law aim at allowing those enjoying it the opportunity to focus on the task of governance without distraction but now that it has become an instrument for criminality, something must be done about it.

We used to give ourselves the consolation that presidents and governors, the clan that enjoys immunity, have expiry date, after which they can then be called to account, but with the Yahaya Bello incidence where spirited efforts are being made to still cover the former governor with the borrowed cloak of immunity belonging to his successor, then, this has become a serious matter that we can no longer gloss over.

Do not think sitting and former governors are not watching. If Yahaya Bello gets away with this, then, it will very soon become the order of the day all over the country.

Bolawole is a former Editor of PUNCH newspapers and also a public affairs analyst on radio and television.

By Temitope Ajayi

Tracking many stories of remarkable progress currently taking place in Nigeria can be a very difficult task. This is so because these important stories are lost to some who daily indulge in the cacophony of negative reports. Negative news often dominates the headlines.

With a 24-hour news cycle that tends to focus only on the distasteful narratives, several Nigerians have been made to accept the view that nothing good is happening in their country.

Those who rely on the mainstream media and social media as the only sources of news and information they consume are the worst hit by the cycle of misinformation that portrays our country as descending rapidly to the edge of the precipice.

However, the reality is different: the country is making progress in leaps and bounds.

Late Swedish physician and Professor of International Health at Karolinska Institute, Hans Rosling, his son, Ola Rosling, and daughter-in-law, Anna Rosling, extensively dwell on this subject in, “Factfulness: Ten Reasons We’re Wrong About the World – and Why Things Are Better Than You Think,” a book published in 2018.  In the book, the authors demonstrate that the majority of the people are made to hold the wrong notion about the state of the world because the media project data, analyse trends and select stories to make people assume that things are getting worse around them.

The authors assert that a majority of the people view the world as poorer, less healthy, and a more dangerous place to live in than it actually is. In other words, many people believe they are living in a worse period in the history of mankind because of misinformation.

The same situation the Roslings describe in their book is at play in Nigeria, where individuals, interest groups, activists, analysts, self-serving politicians, and opposition elements constantly project and amplify negative stories.

It is as if we are in a race with those who can say the most horrible things about our country.  Yet, we have an abundance of good stories to tell the world. We seem so numb to the good news that we are dismissive of breakthroughs and innovative trends.

For instance, we downplay the significance of Dangote Petroleum Refinery and its possibilities to reflate the economy.

Many people forget so soon that we had been importing petroleum products for over three decades because the state-owned refineries are moribund. Our national economy bled, and the country was in a fiscal cul-de-sac for those years as a result of subsidy payments on petroleum products.

Today, however, Nigeria is home to the largest single train refinery in the world with the capacity to process 650,000 barrels of crude per day.  Cynics do not see this as a breakthrough.

Nigerians who are 60 years old and below started seeing modern rail infrastructure from 2016 when the All Progressives Congress-led administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari  commissioned the standard gauge rail system, beginning with Abuja-Kaduna route, later Lagos-Ibadan and then, the Warri-Itakpe.

The national rail modernisation project is progressing with Kano-Katsina-Maradi and Kano-Kaduna standard gauge rail projects at different stages of completion. The contractor working on rehabilitation of the Port Harcourt-Maiduguri narrow gauge recently announced the completion of the Port Harcourt-Aba section. While the Federal Government is rallying stakeholders to promote economic integration across the country, the Lagos State Government recently launched two metro rail lines -Blue and Red Rail lines – as part of the state’s elaborate masterplan to build a modern and efficient megacity. Like Lagos State, there are visible signs of remarkable, quantifiable progress in several other states, including Kaduna, Kano, Akwa-Ibom, Rivers, Kebbi, Borno, Gombe, Oyo, Ekiti and Ogun, among others.

A few weeks ago, the President Bola Tinubu-led administration embarked on the construction of the 700 kilometres Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway that will connect nine coastal states in another bold move to further bolster economic growth and open up the country to productive economic activities.

While it may be very easy for critics and other armchair analysts to ignore these developments and their significance to remaking Nigeria, there is no gainsaying that these projects and many more that are ongoing or about to be instituted across critical sectors are the core of President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda. Indeed, it is hard to process why the so-called critics and cynics can not see the Lagos-Calabar Highway project as a clear demonstration of the President’s commitment to harnessing the potential of our renascent Blue Economy.Despite what is bandied by the most vociferous critics, a recent policy intervention on the state of the economy by the Independent Media and Policy Initiative (IMPI), a think-tank group, refuted the apocalyptic prognosis of the economic situation of the country by opposition figures, led by former Vice President Atiku Abubakar.

The experts at IMPI made brilliant and well-thought-out submissions that repudiated the doomsday prophecy of critics.

Acting true to type, the Peoples Democratic Party Presidential candidate in the last election, and a few others, including business advocacy groups, derisively heightened tension with their pronouncements on the state of the economy. They framed the country under the leadership of President Tinubu as a hostile business environment, scoring the administration low on business enablement. While politicians, such as Atiku Abubakar, will naturally play politics with everything to score cheap points, some corporate advocacy groups often raise needless alarms, ostensibly, to compel the government to do their bidding and usually in manners inimical to the interests of the people.

For example, while private sector advocacy groups, such as the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) and Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA), regularly issue press statements on many businesses shutting their operations in Nigeria, such statements always fail to disclose that new businesses are also springing up in the country.

It is not only in Nigeria that businesses shut down operations. And in any case, businesses wind up operations for many reasons that may have nothing to do with the operating environment.

It is a worldwide phenomenon shaped by a variety of factors. For instance, when the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria announced that 767 companies shut down in 2023, the Small Business advocacy group in the United Kingdom announced that 345,000 businesses closed shop in the UK.

The UK Group said: “More businesses closing down than starting up for the first time in 12 years.”

While it is not good for any business to shut down operations, irrespective of the number of employees, those who project the negative narrative should be nuanced and more balanced in their analyses.

In its submission titled, “In Defence of the Nigerian Economy,” the Independent Media and Policy Initiative declared: “767 companies that closed down in Nigeria do not in any way come close to the 345,000 closures recorded in the United Kingdom in that same period. Neither can the number be compared to the 460,000 companies that shut down every quarter, that is every three months, in China, or the 10,655 Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) shut down in 2022-2023 in India.

“As routinely rendered, we are further informed by the Indian data that there were over 11,000 new firms that started business afresh for every one of the 175 shutdowns in 2022.”

Interestingly, while the announced exit from Nigeria by GSK and Sanofi generated much furore on the social media and mainstream media last year, about the same period the two companies were planning their exit, indigenous pharmaceutical companies, such as  Emzor were making new multi-million Dollar investments to expand their production lines in Nigeria.

More balanced news reports on Nigeria in that respect should have also included statistics circulated by the National Agency for Food and Drugs Administration and Control (NAFDAC), which indicated that 105 applications for the construction of drug manufacturing facilities across the country were approved, and 35 percent of the promoters of the approved applications actually completed construction of their factories. Within this period, Emzor Pharmaceuticals Company owned by Mrs. Stella Okoli, Japanese Multinational Pharma, Otsuka, and over 20 newly registered local drug manufacturers cumulatively, invested over $2 billion to complete their World Health Organisation (WHO)-compliant facilities to produce quality pharmaceuticals and essential drugs for Nigerians.

In its ranking of Africa’s 100 fastest growing companies in 2023, Financial Times (FT) ranked 27 Nigerian businesses on the list.

The FT list, again, validated the strength of the Nigerian economy and its viability as a business destination for investors seeking to make good returns on their investments.

Since his assumption of office less than a year ago, President Tinubu has been bullish in addressing the identified problems besetting the investment climate in Nigeria.

The administration has restored global confidence in the monetary policy reforms of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) that have seen the Naira rebound strongly against the Dollar, and other convertible currencies, making the Naira the best performing currency in the world.

On the back of the reforms embarked upon by the fiscal and monetary authorities, the country’s currency gained N900 against the US Dollar within a span of two months. This is spectacular, but to subjective critics, they are unimportant.On security, the progress being made is noticeable and can be felt in the calmness that has returned to the South-East geopolitical zone.

This is where the criminal activities of outlawed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) group and its Eastern Security Network (ESN) have been brought under control. In the North-West zone, and parts of North-Central, most especially, Abuja, where there was a surge in banditry and kidnapping, the Nigerian Military and Police have successfully gained control and counterbalanced major threats to security of lives and property. The National Security Adviser, Malam Nuhu Ribadu, announced on Monday, April 15, 2024, that the security forces had rescued 1,000 Nigerians from their abductors without payment of ransom.

This is the evidence of successful security operations across the country. Again, the cynics and inveterate critics will not find such feats interesting to amplify.

In the technology ecosystem, Nigerian startup companies have continued to record big strides. At least 10 Nigerian startups were selected among 40 technology firms listed for the $4 million Black Founders Fund.

The Black Founders Fund is sponsored by Google for Startups (GfS). Nigeria continues to lead the pack in tech startups and capital raising in Africa. In the First Quarter (Q1) of 2024, 121 African tech startups, led by Nigeria’s Moove, raised $466 million.  Of the total amount raised in Q1 2024 by tech startups on the African continent, Nigerian startups got the lion’s share of $160 million. Nigeria’s startup ecosystem has remained vibrant and a huge centre of innovation and driver of economic growth. A 2022 report on African Tech Startups Funding by Disrupt Africa also showed that startups from Nigeria accounted for 28.4 percent of the total funded ventures and received 29.3 percent of total investments in Africa.

The report indicated that 180 startups from Nigeria collectively raised $976 million out of the $3.3 billion that flowed into the continent. From the Nigerian tech ecosystem, Andela, Flutterwave, Opay, Jumia, and Interswitch emerged unicorns out of a total of 7 unicorns in Africa.

That each one of these five companies with over $1 billion in valuation came out of Nigeria is an affirmation of the progress Nigeria is making in human capital development.

Another interesting twist to this enchanting story is that the majority of the founders of the leading startups came out of the Nigerian school system. They had their education from primary school up to the university level in Nigeria.

The story of Kiakia Bits Limited and Sycamore, two companies managed by innovative and enterprising young Nigerians, illustrates the impact Financial Technology (FinTech) companies are making on the economy as enablers of growth for small businesses. Established in 2016 by Olajide Abiola and his partner, Chiemeziem Anyadike, Kiakia has over 200,000 customers and has advanced credit worth over N20 billion to more than 12,000 small and medium scale enterprises within eight years. Babatunde Akin-Moses and two of his partners started Sycamore in 2019 after they met during their MBA programme at Pan-Atlantic University (PAU), in Lagos.

Within five years, the company has gained recognition and reputation as one of the most visible and viable brands in the FinTech space. Sycamore has 140,000 registered customers, out of which over 10 percent are active.

The value of transactions on Sycamore’s platform in dollar terms is in excess of $30 million. The company has disbursed over N25 billion in credit to various small and medium enterprises. A major revelation from both Kiakia and Sycamore is the report that 99 percent of their credit to small and medium scale enterprises are performing, an indication that the businesses they support are doing well.

Overall, the groundbreaking performance of the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) as, possibly, Africa’s best stock exchange in terms of capital appreciation, the footprints of BUA Group in manufacturing and other consumer goods, the solidity of IHS Towers and MainOne as Africa’s telecoms infrastructure backbones, the disruption caused by Air Peace on the lucrative Lagos-London route, the grandeur of the sprawling Lekki-Deep Sea Port rank highly among countless high-impact business endeavours. And finally, the indomitable spirit of Nigerians epitomises the narrative of progress that should be regularly amplified by all patriotic Nigerians.

Ajayi is Senior Special Assistant to President Tinubu on media and publicity.