The Nation Newspaper

Tag: ‘Nigerian leaders

  • Norwegian economist advices Nigerian leaders on frugal spending

    Norwegian economist advices Nigerian leaders on frugal spending

    Tove Fortun, a 50- year old Norwegian trained economist with over 20 years experience working in the financial industry has impressed on Nigerian leaders, the need to be thrifty, especially fiscal expenditure.

    She made this appeal recently in a mail she sent to The Nation Online.

    Fortun who retired 10 years ago due to her health, said her interest in Nigeria is purely altruistic. “I wish the leaders will use the money from oil and other resources for the best for all people. Education is the key to get out of poverty. But even well educated struggle with their economy. So something must be wrong. All citizens must like Norwegian citizen have access to information about the income to the State Nigeria and also what the money is used for,” she said, adding: “That is very important to avoid corruption. If you show the accounts then everyone knows there are no skeletons in the closet. On long term the leaders should go for free education up to end of high school.”

    While noting that her native Norway is also an oil region like Nigeria, she however said it was heartening that life there is good. “I remember a happy childhood but in another economical time. We did not go to bed hungry but there was less money and not so many people went for high education as today. The oil has given us better possibilities to new hospitals with the most modern equipment for treatment for all diseases.

    “All youth are guaranteed 13 year at school free. Universities and Colleges are also free, means no school fee but you have to pay for books after the first 13 years, high school. The school was also free in my childhood but not so modern like today.

    “I know only one bad thing about Norwegian oil fortune. We trust in it too much, so we are in lack of innovation and also good engineers. One day the oil will bring less money to Norway and then we need to have other possibilities for the welfare we have in this country.”

    On welfare, she said: “Norway’s welfare system is based on that everyone who work full time and pay taxes. Most of our oil fortune is saved for next generation. But a certain percent is used every year for investments like health, roads, schools and so on.”

  • ‘Nigerian leaders launder $182b in 10 years’

    WITH a record $182 billion allegedly stolen by its leaders within a decade, Nigeria has been rated as the leading source of illicit financial outflow in Africa.

    The rating was contained in a report on currency laundering across the world by the United States-based Global Financial Integrity (GFI).

    Co-authored by GFI’s Lead Economist, Dev Kar, and GFI’s Economist, Sarah Freitas, the report is the first by the organisation incorporating a new and more conservative estimate of illicit financial flows.

    In the report,Nigeria occupies the eighth position among 20 countries appraised on illicit financial outflow.

    According to its recent document, the GFI said it used the World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF) data to quantify and pattern the illicit financial flows coming out of developing countries between 2000 and 2009, which depicted “Nigeria as the leading source of illicit financial outflow from sub-Sahara Africa” within the period.

    The GFI report had shown that developing countries lost $903 billion in illicit outflows in 2009, although there was a significant decrease from the $1.55 trillion they lost in 2008, the decrease arising essentially from global financial crisis within the vast majority of countries and not due to improved governance or economic reforms.