World Trade Organisation (WTO) Director General, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala has stated that the demand for bribes by different people and institutions scare investors away from Nigeria.
She stated this at a dialogue to roll out the Dangote refinery IPO over the weekend noting that several engagements to attract investors has not brought the desired results due to institutional hinderances.
“We need more Alikos but we also have to remember that the vast majority of our businesses are smaller entrepreneurs and they may not have the clout that Aliko does but maybe him pushing will help open the door. I seriously believe that we have still too many obstacles on the way of investment. We really do and those who don’t have the power to push cannot do much.
Calls For Institutional Reforms
The WTO DG noted the next stage is to seek ways to remove obstacles preventing the needed reforms from happening stating “The next thing we have to look at, to me is what are these obstacles?
“We’ve talked about capital, patient capital, access to that but there’s so many bureaucratic hurdles in the way of people investing that I sometimes feel like we are shooting ourselves in the foot. Okay, so you have to run from one office to the other to the other to get license for your land, to get permission for this, to get approval for that and everywhere you meet rent seekers, that’s what economists call them.
“Rent seekers who want you to do this, do that, we’re among ourselves so let’s talk the truth. Okay, when I talked to investors even up to just two days before I came here, they were almost afraid to bring out the word; this is something we can clean up where the World Bank used to do it through doing business.”
