Oteh bemoans ‘lack of transparency’ in oil sector

Arunma Oteh, vice president and treasurer of the World Bank, has identified lack of transparency as one of the major challenges of the oil sector.

Speaking on “The Proper Role of Oil in the Context of Accelerating Growth and Development in Nigeria,” at the Philip Asiodu lecture series on Monday, Oteh said Nigeria urgently needs to diversify its economy.

“Diversifying Nigeria’s economy away from oil is urgent for two reasons. First, despite Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth over the past decade, it lags behind on human development and competitiveness indicators,” she said.

“A broader based, more inclusive economy is needed to effectively transmit as much oil wealth as possible into improving the well-being of all Nigerians.

“Second, Nigeria’s over-dependence on oil revenues for its economic growth and government budget makes it highly susceptible to oil price volatility.”

The former director general of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) said lack of transparency is one of the major challenges of the oil sector.

“The role of oil in accelerating Nigeria’s development is to provide it with financial resources to make strategic investments to diversify its economy.

“Success requires a strategic vision of the future, establishing sound development plans to achieve that vision, effective implementation, and on-going monitoring of the implementation to ensure that the desired objectives are achieved.

“Nigeria must establish a strategic vision of what it wants the economy to be in future and continuously re-evaluate that vision in the face of a rapidly evolving world.

“The oil sector challenges include pro-cyclical fiscal policies, weakening of the agricultural sector, and governance that has been characterized by weak institutions and lack of transparency.”

The Harvard Business School graduate was also vice president (West Africa) for African Development Bank (AfDB).

Her appointment, alongside Zeinab El Bakri for Central Africa Region created two female vice presidents for the first time in the history of the AfDB,