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  • BPE reaffirms commitment to transparency, efficiency in service delivery

    BPE reaffirms commitment to transparency, efficiency in service delivery

    The Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) has reaffirmed its commitment to efficient and transparent service delivery through the full integration of SERVICOM principles across its operations.

    Speaking at the Bureau’s 2025 SERVICOM Day Symposium in Abuja, themed ‘Reforming Responsibly Through Effective Service Delivery’, the Director General (DG), Ayodeji Gbeleyi said the agency’s progress reflects its alignment with the national ‘Mission Possible’ agenda for public service excellence.

    At the event that brought together members of the National Assembly, anti-graft agencies, and other stakeholders, Gbeleyi noted that the Bureau continues to position itself as a trusted knowledge hub for investors and a driving force behind Nigeria’s economic reform under President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.

    “Our stakeholders, and indeed every Nigerian, look up to the Bureau to lead the economic reforms embedded in the Renewed Hope Agenda. We have positioned the Bureau as a trusted knowledge hub for investors seeking opportunities in Nigeria,” he said.

    Gbeleyi stressed that effective service delivery remains central to advancing the ease of doing business, adding that the symposium aimed to reinforce the importance of customer service in achieving the Bureau’s mandate.

    According to the DG, since establishing its SERVICOM Unit in 2008, BPE has implemented measures to enhance responsiveness and efficiency, including regular customer satisfaction surveys, a Service Charter, and quarterly SERVICOM meetings. 

    The Bureau, he said, has also improved workplace conditions through electronic registers, CCTV installations, and upgraded reception and canteen facilities.

    “These initiatives reflect the Bureau’s unwavering commitment to upholding SERVICOM’s core values and ensuring service delivery that is efficient, transparent, and citizen-focused,” Gbeleyi noted.

    Highlighting staff training and international exposure as major drivers of service excellence, he noted, “In 2023, only 16 staff participated in investors’ fora. 

    “That number rose to 49 in 2024, and 70 are already engaged in offshore training this year,” adding that such capacity building equips staff with global best practices to improve professionalism and efficiency.

    He urged participants to apply lessons from the symposium to strengthen service delivery within their institutions, emphasizing that every public interaction should “leave a delightful and enduring impression.”

    Chairman of the Senate Committee on Commercialisation and Privatisation, Senator Shuaibu Lau, represented by Hon. Abdulmaleek Danga, called for responsible reforms and stronger collaboration to enhance service delivery nationwide.

    He described the event as “A vital platform for dialogue and sharing innovative ideas” to improve efficiency and accountability in public institutions. 

    “Effective service delivery is a vital component of good governance that directly impacts citizens’ lives and the nation’s economic well-being”.

    Lau noted that reforms in the privatisation sector could stimulate economic growth, attract investments, and create jobs, adding, “By reforming responsibly together, we can not only improve service efficiency but also build public trust”.

    Acting National Coordinator of SERVICOM, Anthony Oshin, also commended the Bureau for prioritizing transparency, teamwork, and citizen-centred service. 

    Oshin, who was represented by Ngozi Akinbodewa, the Head of Operations at SERVICOM stressed that employee experience is the new customer experience, urging the Bureau to invest in staff motivation, technology, and continuous feedback.

    “Every public asset privatized must translate into measurable national development,” Oshin, while describing customer complaints as “free consultancy” that helps institutions identify weaknesses and improve processes.

    He emphasised that genuine reform depends on committed leadership and a motivated workforce, “When staff feel valued, they deliver better service. Treat employees as kings, and they will treat customers as kings,” he said.

    Guest speaker, Dr. Sam Ikoku and former BPE Director-General Bolanle Onagoruwa both praised the Bureau’s dedication to service excellence and transparency. 

    They urged the agency to sustain its reform efforts to strengthen Nigeria’s economic environment and accelerate national growth.

  • BPE charges NISO on 8,500 MW generation

    BPE charges NISO on 8,500 MW generation

    The Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) Director General, Ayodeji A. Gbeleyi, on Wednesday tasked the Nigerian Independent System Operator (NISO) to increase electricity generation from the present over 5,500MW to 8,500MW in the next one year.

    He made the charge in Abuja, during the Senior Leadership Team Retreat of the Nigerian Independent System Operator (NISO).

    He said, “The National Broadcast of Electricity today said generation resolves around 5500MW. I do hope most sincerely that when we come back here 12 months from now, that generation capacity, based on efficiency of the transmission grid, will be   somewhere around 7500 to 8,500MW.”

    Speaking with reporters on the sidelines of the retreat, he further explained that he said the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry (NESI) currently records a wheeling of 5,500MW daily, while generation capacity is well over 14,000MW.

    Gbeleyi, who insisted the target is achievable, said in the near term, the industry can up its capacity in the next 12 to 18 months by at least 50 per cent.

    “Where we stand today, we have about 5,500 MW of power being wheeled on a day-to-day basis.

    “Compare that with the fact that the total nameplate capacity for generation in the country is a bit above 14,000 MW.

    “So it is not a tall order for us to believe that in the near term, 12 to 18 months, we can scale up capacity, you know, to probably increase that 5,500 by a minimum of 50%,” said the BPE boss.

    Buttressing the realisation of the target, he said that since the generation capacity is already in place, if the grid can be strengthened, there are chances that the distribution infrastructure can also be scaled up.

    He revealed that already, the Federal Government has secured a $500million loan from the World Bank to finance the upgrade of electricity distribution infrastructure.

    Besides, he said the NESI will provide 3.2 million meters within the scope.

    Gbeleyi said, “Because the generation capacity is there, if this grid capacity can be scaled up, and we build in resilience, you know, chances are that with distribution infrastructure also being scaled up.

    “Today, the federal government of Nigeria has taken about US$500 million from the World Bank as a loan to finance the upgrade of the distribution infrastructure network. Within that scope, we are going to provide 3.2 million meters for Nigeria.”

    The BPE boss added that the Presidential Metering Initiative will provide 2 to 3 million meters to raise the metering record to about 7 million.

    He was hopeful to see significant improvement in terms of electricity access for all Nigerians.

    Meanwhile, the NISO Managing Director, Abdu Mohammed, said the 8,500MW target is realisable because of coordination and focus on attracting investment from the private sector.

    He said in view of what the representative of the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), chairman, Engr. Sanusi Garba, who was represented by Commissioner Dafe Akpneye, said the NISO is capable of achieving the target.

    According to him, NISO expects to see modernisation of the grid, resilience, stability and reliability.

    On the Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA), he said the government has awarded new contracts for the system covering the entire nation.

    According to him, work is in progress all over, across the northern points in the system, while contractors are working endlessly, timelessly, tirelessly.

    He revealed that by the end of next year, the SCADA should be set.

    “You see, every day progress is being made. We expect that by the end of next year, we should have this SCADA ready,” said the NISO boss.

     Stressing the importance of the grid, the NERC chairman recalled that those who dumped the grid have always quietly returned to it because of its reliability.

    In his goodwill message, the NISO Board Chairman, Dr. Adesesan Akin-Olugbade, said the occasion marks not only the beginning of a new administrative era but also a pivotal moment in Nigeria’s ongoing journey towards a resilient, transparent and efficient electricity market.

    He recalled that the journey to unbundle the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) and establish an independent System Operator, aimed at enhancing efficiency and transparency within the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry (NESI), began in May 2024, when the NERC issued an order to that effect.

    According to him, the BPE, in compliance with the Order, successfully incorporated the NISO Limited on 29th May 2024, as a private company limited by shares (owned equally by BPE and MOFI), under the Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA) 2020.

    He said, “The evolution of NISO into a neutral system operator (and market operator) reflects our collective commitment to the principles that underpin any well-functioning electricity sector that encompasses reliability, transparency, and neutrality.

    Read Also: PTAD, BPE join forces on pension management

    “These are more than just technical terms and ideals, but pillars essential to the confidence of market participants, the fate of investors, and, more importantly, the trust of the Nigerian people.

    “As an independent entity, NISO now carries the weighty responsibility of managing the national grid with impartiality and integrity.

    “In doing so, it must guarantee non-discriminatory access, efficient dispatch coordination, and fair market settlement, free from undue influence or conflict of interest.

    “This Board retreat is therefore not merely procedural but strategic. This is the time to set the tone for corporate governance excellence, operational discipline, and visionary leadership. As custodians of the system’s neutrality, you are tasked with creating the frameworks, safeguards, and innovations necessary to enhance reliability, as we look towards having a grid that is more dynamic, resilient and increasingly interconnected with new technologies and energy sources.”

  • BPE to partner Jigawa on PPPs

    BPE to partner Jigawa on PPPs

    Director-General, Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE), Mr. Alex Okoh, has expressed his readiness to provide technical support to assist the Jigawa State Government to optimise its assets and identify key areas where public-private partnerships (PPPs) can make tangible impact on the economy of the state.

    Okoh stated this when he visited the  Jigawa State Governor, Mallam Umar Namadi, at the state Governor’s Lodge in Asokoro, Abuja,

    Okoh noted that BPE, as the economic reform agency of the Federal Government, had supported other states.

    Okoh noted that Jigawa provides  opportunities for investments, which include agribusiness, solid minerals, renewable energy, light manufacturing, Maigatari Export Process Zone, and Gagarawa Industrial Pack.

    He commended the state for ranking top as one of the best places for doing business in Nigeria in the second subnational Ease of Doing Business 2023 Report.

    He added that the Bureau had carried out reforms in many sectors, which have brought about the establishment of organisations like the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Pension Commission (PenCom), a nd Nigeria Electricity Regulatory Commission.

    He further added that, the Bureau believes in the power of innovation, entrepreneurship, and private sector investment to drive the economy.

    Read Also: BPE: Why we are unable to pay ex-SAHCOL workers N1.8b severance package

    Hence by harnessing the resources of the state and BPE, an enabling environment can be created to attract more investment to transform and build a future where opportunities abound for people of Jigawa state to prosper.

    According to him, BPE is an agency of the Federal Government with over 30 years’ experience in sector and enterprise reforms and assets optimisation in the country.

    He noted that the Federal Government through a circular in 2020 expanded BPE’s mandated to include acting on its behalf in the administration of concession and Public-Private Partnership, PPP, in Nigeria.

    In his remark, Namadi, expressed delight with the visit and promised to collaborate with the Bureau to bring the needed economic reforms in the state.

  • SEC, BPE mull NNPC subsidiaries’ listing on stock exchange

    By Collins Nweze

    The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) are in talks with the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) on getting the corporation’s subsidiaries  listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange.

    SEC’s Acting Director-General  Ms. Mary Uduk, made this known when she engaged the media on the sidelines of the just concluded 2019 International Monetary Fund (IMF)/ World Bank Group Annual Meetings in Washington D.C.

    She said in other climes, government companies like the NNPC are listed in the capital markets of those jurisdictions, saying the proposed listing will come into force after the NNPC subsidiaries would have been restructured to meet the listing requirements of the NSE.

    Ms. Uduk, who was optimistic that that the listing will happen soon, said, “for your information, the discussion on the listing of the NNPC in the market has been ongoing for a long time. I know there is a committee on listing that has been engaging the NNPC. Also, NNPC as a global company cannot list. It has to be the companies under NNPC that can list. And before that happens, those companies have to be restructured to meet the listing requirements of the capital market”.

    She said the acceptability of investors is also needed.  “So, I do not see anything wrong with NNPC listing on the capital market and we pray that even the engagement that the Capital Market, NNPC, BPE have been having in respect of the listing of the NNPC will one day, and soon, happen.”

    On corporate governance, she said  companies must have good governance structure and managed properly for them to be profitable and sustainable, pointing out that “this is even more relevant for public companies, given that ownership is separated from control.”

    She said shareholders and investors must have comfort that their companies are well governed under the appointed managers. With the scorecard which now allows the Commission to assess compliance, investors are now better off.

    “The companies are complying and that is boosting investor confidence. The companies now disclose their level of compliance to corporate governance practices which enhances transparency,” she said.

    Also, on losses in the capital market, she said: “I would like to say that in terms of market loses, it is a global thing. It is not only in Nigeria that we are experiencing it. We are doing a number of things to get the market recover and get investors to have more confidence. For instance, in terms of innovation, we have set up a roadmap committee of Financial Technology (Fintech). And as we speak, the report of that committee will be launched later this month, and we have also set up an implementation committee”.

    Ms. Uduk SEC is encouraging more issuances, and looking at listing time to market. “We are ensuring that the time that issuers come to the market to raise funds, is comparable to the time that they go to the banks to also raise funds. This is because, whether you like it or not, the capital market and banks are direct competitors. And therefore, we try to ensure that issues do not spend more than two weeks from the time they entered the market to the time the funds were raised. We try to ensure that the turnaround time is very fast”.

    She said the commission was also  looking at establishing the rules on e-Initial Public Offers (e-IPOs), which  has already been done. “The rules are already in place, as well as the rules on crowdfunding, which will enable Small and medium Enterprises (SMEs) to be able to raise funds directly from the market. These and many others are the things we are doing to ensure that the market turnaround and the activities in the market picks up,” she said.

    “We will continue to implement most of our initiatives as contained in the Capital Market Master Plan including e-dividend, direct cash settlement, multiple subscriptions, financial literacy, commodities ecosystem, among others. I will like to tell you that these, and many more, are shaping the landscape of the Nigerian capital market,” she said.

    Speaking on the primary market, Uduk said  some new equities issues comprising Rights, Bonuses and Global Offer of securities are ongoing.

    “Some corporates have also issued bonds, also specifically, some have taken advantage of our new rules on Green bonds, global offers from Airtel, to issue this innovative product. We have equally expanded the number and value of our registered Collective Investment Scheme. For the secondary market, if you look at the equities market, especially on the Nigerian Stock Exchange, the market has lost about 16 per cent so far this year, on the back of relatively weak economic fundamentals and investors sentiments. Meanwhile, the trading statistics in the fixed income segment of the market appears relatively higher,” she said. Also, in terms of innovation, SEC has set up committee on Fintech, and also implementation committee.

    According to the SEC D-G, there was need to be optimistic about market performance in the last quarter of the year, believing that some improvement in the equities segment, especially as investors see opportunities to pick low-priced stocks. As you know, even in a down market, there are still opportunities, since what is down has higher probability of rising.

    On the market performance in 2019, she said the market had witnessed some relative activities in both the primary and Secondary segment of the market even as the equities market capitalization currently stands at N12.93 trillion.

    “The primary market has witnessed a new trend in the last one year with the listing of the telecomm companies (MTN Nigeria) and also the recent Initial Public Offer (IPO) and dual listing of Airtel. The dual listing of Airtel signifies the interest of the foreign issuers into the Nigeria Capital market,” she said.

    “Consequent to the Airtel IPO, some offshore companies are in discussion with the Commission for an IPO that will be dually listed in Nigeria and the United Kingdom. On the market trend – primary market talk – Rights issue largely in the past one year, few private placements as well as scrip issue ie bonus issue Corporate Bond issuances also recorded an increase in 2018 compared to 2017. We also encouraged the establishment of credit enhancement entity (Infra Credit an Agency giving credit enhancement for infrastructural projects),” she said.

    Uduk said  investors’ confidence is central to our job as the regulator of the capital market. “People must have confidence to invest, not just in the performance of the market, but that stakeholders will play by the set rules and standard and that the market is efficient. If you look at many of our initiatives, they are designed to achieve these. For instance, the e-Dividend system enables shareholders’ dividend to be paid directly into their bank accounts without the stress of dealing with physical dividend warrants and to reduce unclaimed dividend while the Direct Cash Settlement protects investors from funds mismanagement by ensuring that the proceeds of their shares sales are credited directly into their own account”.

  • Nigeria needs $100b annual investments to bridge infrastructural gap

    The Director General of the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE), Mr. Alex A. Okoh, has declared that Nigeria needs $100billion annual investments in to bridge infrastructural gap in the next six years.

    He said the next phase of the Reform and Privatisation Programme of the Federal Government is to focus on Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) with the view to correcting the infrastructural deficit in the country.

    According to a statement from the BPE on Wednesday, Okoh made the remarks when he received a delegation  from the  World Bank led by the senior Economist (Economics and Private Sector Development), Mr. Volker Treichel which visited  the Bureau in Abuja  recently.

    Okoh noted that the “country’s infrastructure gap is huge as it is estimated that Nigeria needs to invest more than USD Three Trillion in the next 30 years to bridge the gap; and average of $100 billion per annum for the next 6 years.”The Director General who was represented by Director, Infrastructure and Public Private Partnership Department of the Bureau, Mallam Sanusi Sule, said the new phase targets reforms mostly in the utility and infrastructure sectors which include; water resources, railways airports and highways.

    He stated the need for refocusing on PPP was borne out of the increasing budgetary constraints to fund the development of new infrastructure and effectively maintain existing ones; deteriorating infrastructure (dilapidated roads, schools, hospitals etc); higher public expectations in terms of efficiency and effectiveness of infrastructure service delivery.

    According to him, the country’s infrastructure stock was too low for any meaningful development and that “the public sector cannot afford to provide the resources required to bridge the huge infrastructural gap”.

    He added that the most feasible option is to attract private sector investments and the Bureau is working assiduously with key stakeholders to come up with a robust framework and process for implementing and managing PPPs in the country.

    Leader of the delegation, Mr. Volker Treichel said the visit was part of the World Bank private sector diagnostic assessment of the Public sector in Nigeria.

    He added that the Bank was also looking for opportunities to provide short term assistance to the Bureau in the next three years.

  • Lagos Trade Fair Complex not for sale, says BPE

    The Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) yesterday said that it has no intention to sell the Lagos International Trade Fair Complex (LITFC), rather, it said the Federal Government will concession the facility through a competitive transaction process.

    In a statement, its Head of Public Communication, Amina Tukur Othaman, said the Bureau’s attention was drawn to the closure of the complex by the Traders’ Associations operating in the complex and the protest by the said association over the purported sale of the complex.

    “For the avoidance of doubt, the Bureau states that the Federal Government, through the BPE, does not intend to sell the complex, rather,  the facility would be concessioned through a competitive transaction process.

    “It is for this reason that the government has procured the services of Messrs Feedback Infrastructure Services to advise on the way forward for the proposed concession. It is apt to inform the public that the Bureau on Friday, March 1, 2019, met with the entire Traders’ Associations to explain the essence of the planned Concession,” the statement explained.

    It would be recalled that the BPE had on August 23, 2017, placed caveat emptor in some national newspapers in the country wherein, it stated that the lease agreement that was hitherto executed by the government in favour of Aulic Nigeria Limited had been validly terminated and possession reverted to the governmrnt with effect from August 23, 2017.

    Members of the public were therefore warned that “any purported allotment, buying, selling, letting, leasing, charging, and subdivision, construction upon or dealings in connection with the said property and parcels of land in any other manner howsoever without the written permission of the FGN represented by the BPE is unlawful, illegal, fraudulent and amounts to trespass”.

    It further warned that any person(s) interfering with the said parcels of land “stand to lose their money as the FGN through the BPE will neither honour agreements, contracts or arrangements entered into with person(s) purporting to have authority to transact the property and or parcels of land whether in the manner described or in any other manner whatsoever nor will it re-imburse any monies paid in respect of such transaction”.

     

  • BPE concessions Old Warri Port for $100.78m

    The Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) yesterday signed an agreement for the concessioning of Terminal B Warri Old Port with Ocean and Cargo Terminal Services that won the technical and financial bid with $100,782,147.53.

    In his address at the ceremony in Abuja, the its Director-General, Alex Okoh, recalled that the National Council on Privatisation (NCP) on June 12, 2018, approved the firms’ bid which  emerged the preferred one for the terminal.

    “At the coming of the current government, the council at its meeting of 22nd and 23rd August, 2017, approved the continuation of the bidding process which included issuance of Request for Expression Proposals (REFs) and Information Memorandum to the subsisting seven prequalified firms, physical due diligence and data room exercise, evaluation of the financial proposals and finally the financial bid opening,” he said.

    According to him, the objective of the Federal Government in port concession is to increase efficiency in the nation’s ports, improve service delivery, modernise port development, reduce the cost and clearing of goods at the ports and relieve the government of the burden of financing the sector.

    The concessionaire, he said, is expected to focus on the objectives as it performs the business.

    He told the firm that government expects nothing less than strict adherence to the terms of concession agreement from the concessionaire.

    minals to private operators.

    “In fact, the concession of the Sea Ports, which included the construction of a new quay wall and apron equipped with requisite facilities for berthing vessels, making it one of the most modern port terminals in the country at the time.

    “Upon completion of the rehabilitated and reconstruction works, there was a need to concession the terminal to a private operator who would be responsible for the operation of the terminal and carrying out further development of its facilities in line with the Ports Concession Programme.

    “Following the approval by the NCP, advertisements inviting Expression of Interest (EOI) from prospective concessionaires for the terminal were placed in selected National Dailies on 23rd of June, 2014.

    “At the closing date for submission, 13 EOIs were received and subsequently evaluated. After the evaluation, seven firms achieved the minimum qualification mark and were prequalified for issuance of Request for Proposals (RFP) and Information Memorandum. Unfortunately , due to  certain challenges, the issuance of the RFPs was delayed for about two years.”

     

  • BPE dispels rumour of BEDC, Discos licence renewal

    The Director General of the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE), Mr. Alex Okoh, has said that contrary to insinuations in some quarters, there is nothing ongoing in contract or licence renewal for any of the Distribution companies (Discos), including BEDC Electricity Plc.

    Addressing reporters in Benin, the Edo State capital,  Okoh urged civil society groups, residents and other stakeholders in the BEDC franchise areas to exercise restraint and allow the company provide electricity without hindrance.

    The BPE chief described BEDC as one of the best managed discos.

    He said: “The government respects contracts and would not do anything to jeopardize the operations of companies that federal Government had willingly entered into agreements with, including the Discos, ” the DG said.

    “We have followed the development in Benin Disco with keen interest and indeed the attention of the Bureau has been drawn to certain erroneous information over the purported renewal of the licenses issued to the Discos, including BEDC Electricity Plc for the purpose of retail distribution of electricity” the DG remarked.

    While clarifying the difference between a performance agreement review and what has been purported as a review of the operating licence of the disco, Mr. Okoh disclosed that the performance agreement stipulates the milestones that the core investors should achieve within a specified period, while the issue of licensing was a different matter and is being handled by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC).

    He said in relation to the above, all discos sold were thus also required to acquire NERC license in addition to purchasing the privatized company and its assets, adding, “For BEDC, there is an existing 15years NERC licence broken into 10years plus 5year, with another 10years renewal option at the end of the 15years period i.e. licence of up to 25years”.

    Federal Government he hinted, was pursuing a comprehensive power sector recovery programed that will address the challenges of the sector many of which are faced by, but not peculiar to the Benin franchise areas.

    Government he equally added, has been working with its international partners to reposition the power sector and BEDC in particular has benefited from the services of international institutions like the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) aimed at getting the best electricity services to the people.

    In her update across the franchise states, Managing Director/CEO, BEDC Plc, Mrs. Funke Osibodu, disclosed that 27 applications were received for the Meter Asset Provider (MAP), adding that after screening, 7 were currently going through the financial bid review process.

    On the Ondo South network rehabilitation project, she disclosed that the federal government through the National Independent Power Project (NIPP) has joined forces with BEDC for the speedy rehabilitation of the whole network.

    “According to the new schedule of the joint effort, the first phase is from Ore junction to Okitipupa where 19 communities had been connected to the grid in Ondo South including Ore, Odigbo, Adaja and Liyetu among others. In Ondo North, 34 communities have been connected including Gedegede, Ikun, Eriti, Oke-Agbe, Ikare, Arigidi, Oba-Akoko and Ikaram among others.

    Speaking on the disruption in power supply in some areas of Benin, Mrs. Osibodu explained that the disruption, which affected areas such as Evbuotubu, Oliha, Uwelu, Ikpoba dam, Okhoro, Upper lawani and part of GRA, noted that the company had put in place a contingency plan to connect customers in the affected areas to existing functional feeders as a temporary measure pending when the faulty power transformer will either be repaired or replaced.

     

  • BPE to raise N300b for Budget 2018 funding

    The Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) will generate over N300 billion from privatisation and commercialisation to support the 2018 budget financing, its Director-General Dr Alex Okoh said yesterday.

    Okoh spoke in Lagos at the Stakeholders Media Interactive Forum organised by the Enterprise and the Stakeholders Engagement Committee of the National Council on Privatisation (SEC-NCP).

    The BPE plans to generate N300 billion into the 2018 budget through the sale of some national assets, such as  the Afam Power Plant in Rivers State, Geregu, Calabar and Omotosho National Independent Power Projects, re-privatisation of the Yola Distribution Company, River Basin Development Authorities and the National Parks.

    Some of the transactions in the pipeline include the concession of Warri Old Port, the reconcession of the Lagos International Trade Fair Complex, the sale of Afam Power Plant and three National Independent Power Projects.

    The DG explained that the BPE recently concluded the sale of the Federal Government’s 21 per cent interest in the Nigeria Security Printing and Minting Company to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

    The transaction is expected to contribute over N17 billion to the national treasury.

    Okoh said the process for recapitalisation of the Bank of Agriculture to create a stable financial institution that will support farmers was ongoing.

    He said the government through the CBN and  farmers associations would acquire 40 per cent each of the equity while the private sector would acquire 20 per cent.

    Okoh said the Nigeria Postal Service (NIPOST) would be unbundled into five commercial entities.

    The BPE boss said the Enterprise was entering into new privatisation reform programme through Public Private Partnership.

    Read also: BPE: why Fed Govt is holding on to 40% stake in DisCos

    He said the new reform programme targeted the utility and infrastructure sectors including railway, highways, roads, airports and the health sectors.

    Okoh said 142 companies had so far been privatised since the inception of the programme.

    Minister of Information and Culture Alhaji Lai Mohamed, the Chairman of SEC-NCP, who chaired yesterday’s event said despite the massive investment of about $100 billion in setting up some public enterprises, they have failed to live up to expectations adding that  they are consuming a large proportion of resources without providing commensurate returns or services.

    Mohammed added:”More importantly, they failed to allocate their resources efficiently, even as they consumed over $3 billion annually, by way of grants, subsidies, import duty waivers, tax exemptions, etc.”

    He said there are ongoing reforms and privatization in various sectors of the economy, including Communications, Development Finance Institutions, the Nigerian Commodity Exchange, Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria, Federal Housing Authority, National Parks and the River Basin Development Authorities.

    The Power and the Postal sectors, Federal roads, Railways, National Inland Water Ways and a host of other enterprises are also slated for reforms and privatization.

    The Minister said the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) had initiated and executed far reaching reforms in the Communications, Pensions, Sea Ports, Debt Management, Solid Minerals as well as the Power sector reform that led to the unbundling and privatisation of the successor companies of the Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN).

    “Some of these reforms led to the establishment of both regulatory and other agencies such as the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Pension Commission (PenCom), the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), Debt Management Office (DMO), Nigeria Electricity Liabilities Management Company (NELMCO), and the Nigeria Electricity Bulk Trader (NBET),” he said.

    Alhaji Mohammed said the BPE had drafted eight reform bills that, when passed, will liberalise the relevant sectors and lead to the setting up of appropriate regulatory agencies to create the much-needed conducive and enabling environment for private sector investments.

    He listed the bills as the Railway Bill; the Inland Waterways Bill; the Ports and Harbour Bill; the Federal Roads Authority Bill; the National Roads Fund Bill; the National Transport Commission; the Competition and Consumer Protection Bill and the Postal Bill.

     

  • BPE urges media monitoring of privatised enterprises

    The Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) has charged media practitioners to assist it in monitoring the activities and performance of privatised enterprises. The Bureau said this will alert the privatised enterprises of obvious public attention on them in spite of ownership transfer.

    The Director, Development Institutions and Natural Resources Department, BPE, Mr. Joe Chigbo Anichebe, gave this charge at the Quarterly Seminar of the Association of Business Editors in Nigeria (ABEN), during the week.

    Anichebe in his paper titled, “The Role of the Media in Nigeria in Managing Privatisation Program” said the media should not just stop at chronicling what was sold and at what cost; it should be telling the public the performance rating of the privatized enterprises.

    He said the need for the media to up its game in the watchdog role it plays in advancing the privatization program of the Federal Government was necessary because supervision and monitoring of the performance of privatised enterprises was one area the BPE has focused more attention in recent times.

    According to Anichebe, many privatised enterprises have recorded very striking, real and measurable performance improvements, while some have failed to fulfill the terms of the share purchase agreements.

    He said privatised enterprises that have failed to fulfill the terms of the share purchase agreements meant that they are not providing the services and goods, job creation and economic development objectives of the privatisation program.

    He added that it, therefore, meant that “More work need to be done.”

    “It appeared we had been so pre-occupied with getting the job done

    that we have not, until recently, gone out to collect hard evidence on what the privatised firms are actually doing. That has now changed,” Anichebe said.

    Continuing, the BPE spokesman said: “The question is: after reforms and privatisation, what next? Do we fold our arms and watch the privatized enterprises run at the whims of the new owners?

    “In other words, is the government merely interested in selling and allowing the investors determine the fate of these companies, for better or for worse? This is our concern and indeed, the concern of many Nigerians.”

    He, therefore, reiterated that the media ought to assist the BPE in monitoring the activities and performance of the privatised enterprises. He said, for instance, that till date, no medium has done a comparative financial analysis of privatised enterprises and their sector counterparts that were private investor founded.

    Anichebe said the BPE had established its Post Transaction Management Department in 2006, but reinvigorated it in 2017 to address the concerns of Nigerians with regards to the activities and performance of the privatised enterprises.  “In line with the restructuring that the current BPE Director General, Mr. Alex A. Okoh, introduced since his appointment in 2017, the Post Transaction Management Department is being strengthened.

    “This was to attain the government’s broad objectives of privatisation, especially in the implementation of business plans and post-acquisition plans submitted by investors,” he added.

    Anichebe explained that the idea was to ensure prompt achievement of economic value envisaged for the Nigerian economy through the fulfillment of contractual, legally binding agreements and the growth of the privatized enterprises.

    “Through the monitoring, we should also collect information on privatised enterprises, identify appropriate legal and regulatory business climate and identify policy bottlenecks for necessary adjustments,” he said.