Can Privatization help Nigeria ?


_{I had a post "can nationalism save Nigeria" and no one responded but I think its an interesting conversation to have.}

Anyways, I know there are positives and negatives about privatization but I also feel that the "people in charge" will put the country in more danger as many of them are paid bribes from these companies in order to do business in Nigeria.

Selling Nigeria to corporations, I don't think is a good way to go, although I understand that the government has failed the people and that may be the only option.

Privitization in conjuction with Government regulation and oversight is a good mixed economic combination but judging from teh corruption levels in the country and the preoccupation of linening their pockets. Privitization might lead to more exploitation.

I think indigenous home grown privitization should be wholly encouraged and supported.

MTN, Zain, Glo and co exploit their customers true but, their service can never be compared to that of PHCN!!!

I think indigenous home grown privitization should be wholly encouraged and supported.

Do you mean promoting privatization amongst Nigerian owned corporations/ and not foreign owned ?

Sounds ideal but I feel that a lot of the time, Nigerian owned doesn't have much capital investments.

madamkoko:

Do you mean promoting privatization amongst Nigerian owned corporations/ and not foreign owned ?

Sounds ideal but I feel that a lot of the time, Nigerian owned doesn't have much capital investments.

"Capital Investment" unfortunately is a reality but yes I was talking about Nigerian or majority Nigerian owned corporations. Thats the unfortunate dilemma in adopting capitalist based system. If the government afforded these growing companies with the capital they need with minimal control of the enterprise and then gradual pulled out of the the corporations then we could develop powerful companies that would be large sources of revenue for the government in form of taxes and job creation.

Having foreign corporations function within our shores remains a good way to push for competition, at the same time improving quality of goods and services provided. The major reason why Nigerian corporations are not necessarily doing well is simply because majority of them do not consider the real needs of their clientele. Nigerian businesses have been known to be lapse in the area of pushing quality over quantity. Their foreign counterparts continue to have an edge in that area and until that trend is quelled, the status quo will most likely continue.

One does not need to be a genius to know that the main reason vast majority of Nigerians prefer foreign goods and serves is because they believe it is of higher quality than Nigerian goods. We have a country of over 75 million poor people who still prefer to purchase foreign goods if they can afford it. That number is a huge market there for a Nigerian corporation to break in, if it truly desires to do so. The question is how many local companies are willing to break out and do the sensible thing?

There are thousands, if not millions of Nigerian businesses out there( registered and unregistered). Every one of them has potential for growth, whether there continue to exist competition from foreign corporations or not. Problem is how many of these businesses are willing to adopt a better model that ensures them a larger piece of the market?

One other aspect that is seriously lacking in Nigeria is good customer services. I am pretty sure i don't need to elaborate this, we have all had that experience, people at airports and clerks at offices and waiters at restaurants etc, in Nigeria that treat you as if you are even lucky that they are attending to you and should hence even be appreciating being given the opportunity to bask in their glorious presence notwithstanding that such people are getting paid for the job, the frequent lack of understanding and comprehension as to how those things called queues work, etc. Such behaviour is not restricted to Nigeria alone but apparently any place that embodies "Nigerianness", i.e Nigerian embassies in different parts of the world apparently. Does it really kill that much to smile on the job and be polite? LOL

Privatization is the golden grail to Nigeria's development. If you remembered P&T/NITEL, how the workers 'fought' to stop selling out to private companies, then you would wonder what the government is waiting for before privatizing PHCN.

@naijaking privatisation is not the answer to all problems, it is a very important part of the solution but it is not bread and butter. NEPA was changed to PHCN and then "privatised", now what? What did it change?  NEPA still has complete monopoly of the Nigerian power market and is does not actually paint a picture of a trully independent corporation. Government has to start getting its hands out of all the pies it put its lfingers in due to greed and selfishness and corruption and this is where privatisation comes in but such won't result in any significant change unless accompanied by a free, fair and open market where companies can all have a shot at competing without any being favoured by the government as has continued to be the case on so many occasions from OBJ and Dangote Cement to the reported group that apparently tried everything to make sure NEPA remained government controlled and hence more milkable than it is now coutesy of corruption. When a free, fair and open market is in place then government can now play the role of regulator or if i dare say an impartial referee.

@ Sky Blue

you are right to an extent. Privitization don't work if the bidding process is not fair.

and this is where privatisation comes in but such won't result in any significant change unless accompanied by a free, fair and open market where companies can all have a shot at competing without any being favoured by the government as has continued to be the case

When a free, fair and open market is in place then government can now play the role of regulator or if i dare say an impartial referee.

Definitely.

@Sky Blue
You don't appreciate the nature of privatization to the extent PCHN doesn't have to be privatized in-block. What you privatize is the ability or an opportunity to provide, maintain, and manage power supply for example to a defined population in Nigeria. First of all, the federal government has to let go its control of these redundant monopolies (you know how difficult that would be-- to ask FGN to release its cash cow!). If you remove govt. monopoly in power supply to say Lagos state, I bet that within a year, there will be 2 or 3 power companies reliably suppling power to different parts of Lagos. The same way telephone companies were allowed to compete with NITEL, private power companies should be allowed to supply power to different areas of the country. The federal govt. agency will be meant to play a purely regulatory role.

naijaking1:

@Sky Blue
You don't appreciate the nature of privatization to the extent PCHN doesn't have to be privatized in-block. What you privatize is the ability or an opportunity to provide, maintain, and manage power supply for example to a defined population in Nigeria. First of all, the federal government has to let go its control of these redundant monopolies (you know how difficult that would be-- to ask FGN to release its cash cow!). If you remove govt. monopoly in power supply to say Lagos state, I bet that within a year, there will be 2 or 3 power companies reliably suppling power to different parts of Lagos. The same way telephone companies were allowed to compete with NITEL, private power companies should be allowed to supply power to different areas of the country. The federal govt. agency will be meant to play a purely regulatory role.

Can you please elaborate?

Break 'em up, sell them by states, regions or even cities, or let people be authorized to provide themselves with power. One electric company does not supply power to the whole US for example. In some cities, there may be 2 or 3 companies, each supplying different parts of the city.
Problem with naija is simple, they want one man(usually a mediocre Hause man) to be in-charge of everything, everybody, and everywhere. It's not that they don't know what works, they know, but don't have the political will to do it.

Yes, Privatization will help Nigeria's economy but the social problems will continue to worsen.

What belongs to everybody belongs to no one. Privatization is the only answer to the epileptic services being provided by public sectors.

What Social Problems do you speak of?And Why link them to Privatization itself?

Kobojunkie:

Having foreign corporations function within our shores remains a good way to push for competition, at the same time improving quality of goods and services provided. The major reason why Nigerian corporations are not necessarily doing well is simply because majority of them do not consider the real needs of their clientele. Nigerian businesses have been known to be lapse in the area of pushing quality over quantity. Their foreign counterparts continue to have an edge in that area and until that trend is quelled, the status quo will most likely continue.

One does not need to be a genius to know that the main reason vast majority of Nigerians prefer foreign goods and serves is because they believe it is of higher quality than Nigerian goods. We have a country of over 75 million poor people who still prefer to purchase foreign goods if they can afford it. That number is a huge market there for a Nigerian corporation to break in, if it truly desires to do so. The question is how many local companies are willing to break out and do the sensible thing?

There are thousands, if not millions of Nigerian businesses out there( registered and unregistered). Every one of them has potential for growth, whether there continue to exist competition from foreign corporations or not. Problem is how many of these businesses are willing to adopt a better model that ensures them a larger piece of the market?

i couldnt have put it better, . . . . . . . . . . . . . well said and so true.

@ poster
when u refer to privatization, I m tempted to ask how many non private coporations or companies still thrive in nigeria today?
or are u refering to nationalization?

nigerian corporations work with the idea that the government would always bail them out. an example is NEPA/PHCN. most nigerian corporations if not all are poor audited. PHCN would be bankrupt and involved in an enron like scandal if it was private. it would be a good thing if indigenous private corporations could thrive but production costs and lack of skilled labor stop them from doing so. public-private-partnerships are the best way to go but the nigerian government is notoriously known for not funding joint ventures, an example is NNPC delaying it's projects with shell/chevron/elf. the only solution for the nigerian economy is limited government involvement.