Shettima inaugurates NCP committee to drive economic reforms

Vice-President Kashim Shettima inaugurated the National Council on Privatisation (NCP) committee on Friday at the presidential villa, Abuja.

Shettima is to chair the committee, with Wale Edun, the minister of finance and coordinating minister of the economy, serving as the vice chairman.

Other members of the council include Lateef Fagbemi, attorney general of the federation (AGF) and minister of justice; Abubakar Bagudu, minister of budget and economic planning; and Doris Anite, minister of industries, trade, and investment.

Also named as members are George Akume, secretary to the government of the federation (SGF); Olayemi Cardoso, governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN); Tope Fasua, special adviser to the president on economic affairs.

Oluwole Oshin, Malam Mohammed Mustapha, Olayiwola Yahaya and Akwa Effion Okon, all of whom are categorised as private members, are also listed as members of the NCP, alongside Alex Okoh, the director-general, Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE), who was named secretary.

RESPONSIBILITIES OF NCP COMMITTEE

Shettima told the committee to execute their duties in line with the Public Enterprises (Privatisation and Commercialisation) Act 1999.

He said the goals of the council are to approve commercialisation and privatisation plans as well as standards and criteria for determining the value of public companies and selecting strategic investors.

“Others are approving the prices for shares or assets of the public enterprises to be offered for privatisation, approving the legal and regulatory framework for the reform of public enterprises,” he said.

“And also reviewing, from time to time, the socio-economic effect of the privatisation and commercialisation programme and deciding on appropriate remedies.

“The council is also mandated to appoint committees comprising persons from the private and public sectors with requisite technical competence to advise on the privatisation and commercialisation of specific public enterprises.”

NCP MEMBERSHIP VITAL TO ECONOMIC SECTOR REFORMS

Shettima explained that membership in the council symbolises more than mere participation.

He said President Bola Tinubu’s choice of the council’s membership served as a reminder of what the body could accomplish with new ideas.

“By his approval, Mr President has entrusted us with the strategic national assignment of piloting the nation’s economic sector reform, privatisation, commercialisation, and Public-Private Partnership (PPP) programme for the next four years,” he said. 

The inauguration of the council, according to Shettima, was an invitation for its members to take the lead in carrying out the renewed hope agenda.

Also speaking, Edun said a cursory look at the 2024 appropriation bill and budget estimate indicated that privatisation is among the areas the government is relying on to fund the budget and grow the economy.