₦airaland Forum

Tianamen1:
Rossinky,

I totally agree with you with regards to Nigeria being poorer than it is perceived to be. However, INDUSTRIALIZATION rather than Economic Diversification is our main issue. The difference between the two may seem little but the prescribed solutions for each differ significantly.

The oil and gas industry represents less than 10 percent of Nigeria's GDP. what is not diversified is government's revenues as Nigeria has one of the lowest Tax to GDP ratios on Earth.

Nigeria also has the paradox of having the richest black people on earth at the same time having the highest number of people living in extreme poverty on Earth.

SLS once made a comment that 90 percent of the funds in banks are owned by only 10 percent of Nigerian citizens.

INCREASING THE GOVERNMENT'S REVENUE

When we hear the word taxation, we all think about taxing businesses and we know that this is counter productive.

Other resource rich nations such as Norway, UAE, and states in The US such as Alaska and Texas, have low business taxes and little to no income taxes.
Income generation is mainly from property taxes, vehicle taxes, estate taxes and sales taxes. This is necessary because resource rich societies usually have high levels of inequality. Our leaders/looters would never agree to this as the burden of taxes would fall squarely on them, the 10 percent that control the 90 percent of bank deposits.

THE PATH TO INDUSTRIALIZATION.

You rightly noted that our infrastructural deficit is not responsible for our poverty. You also rightly noted that foreigners are excelling in businesses in Nigeria. You gave an excellent example of a Nigerian, Innoson, who is making all of us proud with his accomplishments.

- The Secret Sauce

1. Quality basic education: a child of a carpenter who attends a good school with children of bankers and lawyers is more likely to start an IKEA or a Home Depot than an accountants child. In The US, immigrants contribute vastly to increased productivity, not because they are necessarily smarter or naturally harder working, but for the fact that they have so little and their mates have so much more so they hustle harder.

Most countries realize that quality basic public education accomplishes two important goals towards industrialization
- increased competition
- reduced birth rate.

2. Quality health care.

Health is wealth so a healthy nation is a wealthy one as people will waste fewer resources on their personal health so they will have more time to focus on productive ventures.


These two factors of Industrialization are also the core components that make up the Human Development Index. Our leaders know these things but are not interested.

Sorry for any typos.


Don’t forget security bros. Without security, no investor will feel like coming to invest or sell products

samdunzo:
OP, while I agree, I honestly think that the root of Nigeria’s issues lies in the system of government it uses. It encourages both laziness and corruption. I would restructure Nigeria to six regions, each with its own constitution and control of resources. Each region would keep 70% of its resources, and remit 30% back to the center. This structure would encourage accountability and competition. This in turn would benefit Nigeria as a whole.

Rossinky:
Thanks bro.

Very impressed by contributions to the thread. Some highly insightful analyses all round. Well done guys.

kikero:
I think you missed my point.

The main reason why corruption thrives in Nigeria ultimately is that it does not threaten the earning power of the elite.

In industrial societies like China, they cannot afford corruption , because corruption threatens the earning power of the elite. If light, water and transport are not working the earning power of the elite would be reduced drastically

In resource dependent countries like Nigeria, the money flows not from what me manufacture, but what raw materials we sell. Since the earning power of the elite is dependent on how much of the sharing they can.corner, not on what they actually produce,.and since their earning does not depend on whether there is light or water flowing properly, corruption thrives.

Also, the economy in China is run as a profitable economy. No price controls, no sharing of the money. Nigeria does different. In this country we expect that we.sell.raw.materials and share the money for our enjoyment. Instead of doing what China is doing....accepting that our resources are.limited and maximising them via industries and science.

That's why I believe that when we vote out APC come 2023,.nothing would change. Unless this.country becomes a industrial country....which means hard decisions like taxes going up, allowing discos and gencos set their price for power so that they can attract the funds.needed to build our power investment,.allowing deregulation of the downstream sector...and so on.....unless we really change, corruption is not going away.

samdunzo:
OP, while I agree, I honestly think that the root of Nigeria’s issues lies in the system of government it uses. It encourages both laziness and corruption. I would restructure Nigeria to six regions, each with its own constitution and control of resources. Each region would keep 70% of its resources, and remit 30% back to the center. This structure would encourage accountability and competition. This in turn would benefit Nigeria as a whole.

Rossinky:
No we wouldn't!!!!!!!!

That 600 billion dollars is PEANUTS.

UNLESS you are earning that EVERY YEAR.

THEN you can talk about ''competing with the west''.

Did you read their annual budgets of some western nations that I posted?

That 600 billion dollars is less than 10% of the USA's annual budget.

So how will you compete with the west with that?

You people need to stop seeing small money as BIG money.

That is why we spend so much time fighting over the small oil money, because we think it's HUGE, and that access to it is all that matters.

But read our annual budget in comparison to those other nations as posted above.

That tells you EVERYTHING.

B3ACHSIDE:
Most Nigerians do not pay tax and Nigeria loses $20 billion dollars annually on tax evasions. Nigerians have no right to complain until they pay their taxes. You don't need the tallest skyscrapers to build an organized society.
https://www.nairaland.com/6086091/lack-id-database-hinders-efficient

Coastal cities like Calabar , Onitsha and the rest should have boardwalks , parks, and jetties ,piers and other basic public amenities & social programs . Taxation is subpar or non existent . Even so,The Local governments receive free allocations to do this things yet embezzle the funds.

Rossinky:
Most Nigerians think they would be living like people in Germany, USA, Dubai, UK etc... IF ONLY our leaders did not steal and 'loot' so much of the oil and gas revenues the country earns.

THAT IS THE BIGGEST DECEIT IN THE HISTORY OF THIS COUNTRY.

Nigeria does NOT make a lot of money from oil and gas commensurate to its huge population of 200 million.

The money is actually a pittance.

Nigeria's annual budget is 35 billion dollars.

Contrast that with South Africa's annual budget of 125 billion dollars.

Or the UK, 1.2 trillion dollars.

Or France, 1.7 trillion dollars.

Or Germany, 2.2 trillion dollars.

Or the USA, 7.6 trillion dollars.

NIGERIA NEEDS TO DIVERSIFY FROM OIL AND GAS TO EARN MORE AS A COUNTRY.

THAT is our Number 1 issue as a country.

Not corruption.

Not mismanagement.

Not tribalism or nepotism.

Not Boko Haram.

Not Fulani herdsmen.

Not IPOB.

But ECONOMIC DIVERSIFICATION.

Even with ZERO corruption, the money we earn today is grossly insufficient to develop the whole country and get everything working to perfection.

If you ask me, we're even doing quite well considering how little we actually earn.

Thank goodness the govt recognises the situation, and is doing well in diversification efforts through supporting manufacturing and agriculture especially.

Nigerian youths: Word of advice: Put your talents to use, and help in the nation's DIVERSIFICATION EFFORTS.

Start a business. Learn a skill. Go into manufacturing. Or agric processing. Or the services. You can start small scale and grow.

ADD YOUR QUOTA TO OUR DIVERSIFICATION DRIVE.

That is the ONLY way forward.

Alternatively, you can sit around perennially disgruntled and angry that the ''massive oil revenues'' of your IMAGINATION have not materialized before you, or led to a 1st world existence.

I SALUTE.

Perfectbeing:
600 billion dollars peanuts? How much does it cost to build a refinery? How much does it cost to build turbines? How much does it cost to build world class hospitals? How much does it cost to build a steel industry? How much does it cost to build industries? How much does it cost to construct durable roads, bridges and railways? If 600 billion dollars is too small for all these, then how much is enough? If 600 billion dollars is too small for infrastructure, the even 5 trillion dollars will be too small..

Rossinky:
Thanks bro.

Very impressed by contributions to the thread. Some highly insightful analyses all round. Well done guys.