The Director-General of the World Trade Organization, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, emphasized the pressing need for Nigeria to move beyond political infighting and inconsistent policies that have stunted the country’s development since independence.
She insisted that collective efforts, rather than indulging in a blame game, are essential to propel the nation forward.
Okonjo-Iweala spoke on Sunday at the Nigerian Bar Association Annual Conference held at Eko Hotel in Lagos, where she delivered a keynote address titled “A New Social Contract for Nigeria’s Future.”
“Nigeria today is not where it ought to be, and our nation has not advanced as much as it should have. This is why, more than 60 years after independence, we are still discussing nation-building. But we must pivot away from blame games and towards concrete actions that address both current and emerging challenges.”
While acknowledging that Nigerians are not alone in facing economic hardship, she remarked, “The solution does not lie in recrimination or futile regret, but in moving our country forward and advancing its interests. We are living in very difficult times, both locally here in Nigeria and globally. I am not here to cast blame on anyone, but to address all governments of my country, all political parties, and all Nigerians, about a positive path forward for our nation,” she said.
Drawing comparisons between Nigeria and other countries, Okonjo-Iweala highlighted how nations like South Korea, Peru, and India have outpaced Nigeria in economic growth and development, despite having similar starting points decades ago. She pointed to South Korea’s rapid industrialisation and Peru’s economic resilience as examples of what Nigeria could achieve with consistent and sound policies.
“In the 1960s, Nigeria’s per capita income was comparable to that of South Korea, but today, South Korea’s per capita GDP is 20 times higher than ours.”
“While other nations have taken bold steps to diversify and grow their economies, we have been left behind,” she said.
Okonjo-Iweala further explained that Nigeria’s inability to sustain growth is largely due to a lack of policy consistency and political will. “If we reflect on the early years of independence, it’s evident that Nigeria had what it takes to succeed, and yet we’ve fallen behind countries that were on par with us back then. I want to remind people that in the first half of the 1960s, our per capita income in 1960 dollars was roughly equal to that of South Korea, around 100 to 120 dollars per capita, according to World Bank data. But then South Korea’s growth took off, as it transitioned from exporting primary products like tungsten oil and dried seaweed to manufactured goods. Back then it was textiles and footwear, compared to today’s integrated circuits, electronics, ships, and autos, not to mention services exports, such as gaming, entertainment, etc., where South Korea is also strong.”
“Meanwhile, Nigeria’s export basket moved in the opposite direction and became less diversified. In the early 1960s, mining exports made up half of our exports, and food and animal or vegetable oils together accounted for about a third, with manufacturers making up five to seven percent. But since 1974, oil has dominated, often making up 97 to 100 percent of Nigerian exports, with its share rarely dropping below 90 percent.
The good news is that our economy itself is quite diversified, and there is potential to do much more in terms of agricultural exports, critical minerals, services such as entertainment, etc., and I want to commend ongoing efforts by this government to diversify our country’s exports.”
“Last year, Nigeria’s per capita GDP was 1,620 US dollars, while South Korea’s was 33,000,”she noted.
Okonjo-Iweala further stated that while Korea’s growth miracle was exceptional and world-leading, even more modest performers have outpaced Nigeria.
“Thailand’s per capita GDP was comparable to Nigeria’s in the early 1970s and is now $7,200. Peru, a country I will come back to, was about even with Nigeria in the early 1980s, but now has a per capita GDP of nearly $7,800. Even India, which into the 1990s and 2000s had a per capita GDP well below Nigeria’s, recently surpassed us on that metric and is now at $2,484. India is now the third-largest economy in the world, one of the fastest-growing and modernizing economies. I cite these numbers not because GDP is a perfect measure, but because, as Daniel Susskind, a scholar on economic growth at King’s College London, recently said, and I quote, GDP is correlated with almost every measure of human flourishing.”
She criticized the “not-made-in-my-administration syndrome,” where successive governments fail to build on the successes of their predecessors, leading to economic stagnation. “To minimize the volatility of economic and social policy and to set our country on a steady growth and development path, Nigeria needs a social contract. By this, I mean a fundamental agreement across political parties and society that certain policies and principles are sacrosanct and must not be altered with each change in administration,” she explained.
In his remarks, President Bola Tinubu, who was represented by Vice President Kashim Shettima, reiterated that his administration is working to address the numerous social and economic challenges facing the country. Tinubu stated that his government is “providing clarity and eliminating the opaqueness that fostered corruption.”
He added, “While I acknowledge the temporary existence of some daunting challenges facing us as a nation, I want to assure you that this government is committed to addressing all the developmental challenges confronting this country. Rest assured that in due time, this nation shall overcome. I want to assure you that this government will continue to prioritize the welfare of the judiciary, to ease the avoidable burden on their lordships, and speed up the adjudicatory process, which is a sine qua non for social order and economic development.”
