…Any country that seeks to grow must fight for FDI
Nigeria is said to have performed impressively in attracting foreign capital in first quarter of 2025, to the tune of $5.642bn. This is said to be better than it was in 2024, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).
Other reports said in 2024, Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in Nigeria experienced a mixed performance. The source said; “While total capital importation increased, FDI itself saw a significant drop, with some reports indicating a record low in Q2 2024.
Nigerians have continued to show apprehension over dwindling fate of FDI into Nigeria as the economy shows mixed reflections.
Now, a gathering of economists, investors, academia, and government managers have admitted that any country that seeks genuine economic growth must design its economic space to attract foreign direct investments.
This seems to be the major takeaway from the maiden Atlantic-Savannah International Conference & Convention (ASICC) which held in Port Harcourt along with the regular ‘Port Harcourt Business Breakfast’.
Leading in the push for conditioning FDI into Nigeria especially with focus on Nigeria area and Port Harcourt investment belt in particular is Sylva Opuala-Charles, a professor of economics who is President of the Garden City Premier Business School as well as Executive Vice President, the Atlantic-Savanah International Conference & Convention (ASICC).
Opuala-Charles told BusinessDay in an interview at the sidelines of the ASICC that foreign investment is about attracting outsiders to come and invest such as 10% in an existing business. “That is brown investment. But if you are coming in with huge funds and equipment to set up a factory or a business, that is green investment.
“What we are trying to say is that if any country seeks to grow, it must fight for FDI (foreign direct investment), especially in the local content development environment.
“Local content means you are domesticating most of the roles just like Nigerians engineers are positioning themselves to play major roles in the oil and gas industry. Today, 56% of success has happened. Prior to Nigerian Content Act, it was mere 5%.”
He said: “It is about awareness of the people and what we are doing in the Premier Business School is to show that we should not have a batter yesterday in careers and entrepreneurship. If you drive this type of interaction, things can unfold. Great opportunities have been unfolding here. If you are a smart person, you can take up any of the opportunities exposed here.”
The professor who said both the breakfast meeting series that happen every quarter and the ASICC that has just joined as an annual event complement each other. “What is important is it is a business and economic forum where you have business breakfast for business mentees while the conference is talking about development, entrepreneurship, investment, advocacy, all put together.
“What we are trying to do is to assist the government, businesses, and individuals to grow and to ensure that they have an unimpeded success and sustainability in their careers and businesses.”
The government people are said to be usually invited but because of the transition in Rivers State, none of them may have showed up in this first edition. “We hope next year would be better, that is if we are doing it in PH because we can do it in Abuja or in any other state capital. We need to create more awareness about this conference.”
The executive vice chairman of ASICC however said there is communique that would come out from the conference while all the papers presented will be made available to stakeholders especially governments around the region and beyond.
Uwagaa shows what keeping to time does to a businessman:
In his opening address, Uzo Nelson Uwaaga, a pharmacist pointed at the difference between behaviours around the world business belts. “I try to move around not only in this country but beyond the shores of Nigeria in my own small way. It is worthy of note that there are many good people in Nigeria. The issue, as we all know, is leadership. And it is about leadership without values.
“I started somewhere outside Nigeria. I met good people. They taught me both good and bad.”
He talked about an old man. “He is one of the oldest men who is my friend and my mentor going to 97 years. He taught me one thing. He said, keep to time. I asked him, what do you mean by that? And he said, if you can keep to your time, it means you’re disciplined, and if you are disciplined, every other thing in your life revolves around being disciplined.
“I ended up finding myself somewhere in Tokyo, Japan. When an appointment is fixed, it doesn’t matter who you are, it doesn’t matter the business you are discussing with them, 10 minutes later to the place and it is locked.”
The pharmacist warned Nigerian business managers to understand that the world is moving on since after the COVID-19 era and that things have changed tremendously. He warned that there’s a new world order.
“When we talk about democracy or good governance, we need to create it by putting the right and good people in position to help in leadership. They’re going to turn this world into what you and I will not recognize.
“The first thing that struck me when I came to this event yesterday was when I found young people in our midst, then, I said, well, we’re going to get there and structures need to be in place for this great country. It’s a great country. I don’t believe people who say otherwise. I’ve been to most of the places in the north and they receive you very warmly. It’s all about leadership.
“When you look at Nigeria that produces oil and look at Indonesia that produces oil, we are nowhere near them all. Tomorrow, you can create relationships that will speak for Nigeria.”
He advised on the need to create bridges in a relationship. “The ability to manage situations were taught in the good days of the National Institute of Health (NIH). It is said that dying starts from the legs but I say fairly, maybe a little bit of that, but you know what controls the legs? It is the brain, the head.
“This journey is about creating friendship across Nigeria and don’t keep good information to yourself. Tell your friends and invite them next time to attend this event.”
A major of tool of looking at how local content management can impact FDI was a paper by Charles-Opuala the professor of Economics & Management, American Trinity University, California, USA, as well as President of the Garden City Premier Business School. The paper was presented jointly with Jonah Olo Orji, who holds a doctorate degree in Economics and is the Principal Manager, Directorate of Academic and Professional Programme, Garden City Premier Business School, Port Harcourt.
The study looked at impact of local content policies and FDI in the Nigerian energy sector.
The presenter, Orji, said the study examined the determinants of foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows into Nigeria’s energy sector, focusing on the roles of local content intensity (LCP), regulatory quality (REGQ), and infrastructure availability (INFR), while controlling for global oil prices and exchange rate volatility.
The study revealed three things; first being that local content intensity exerted a positive and statistically significant effect on FDI inflows, suggesting that credible local content enforcement complements rather than deters investment.
Second, he said, is that regulatory quality and infrastructure availability, although correctly signed, had insignificant short-run impacts, highlighting that investor responses depend on consistent policy implementation and large-scale infrastructural improvements.
Finally, he stated, the error-correction term showed a rapid speed of adjustment (–0.6675), meaning that policy shocks and external disturbances are corrected within a year, indicating strong long-run mean reversion in FDI flows.
According to Orji, the findings demonstrate that local content policy, when effectively designed and enforced, can stimulate FDI inflows into Nigeria’s energy sector by enhancing domestic capacity and improving investor confidence.
“This outcome challenges the traditional argument that localization measures always crowd out foreign investors; instead, it supports studies which show that well-structured local content regimes can foster partnerships, knowledge transfer, and stability. Conversely, the lack of significance for regulatory quality and infrastructure suggests that Nigeria’s governance and infrastructural deficits continue to undermine investment potential.
“These results are consistent with previous studies which emphasize that institutional weaknesses, policy inconsistency, and infrastructural bottlenecks remain critical barriers to foreign investment. The fast adjustment speed underscores the importance of policy credibility: while investors may react negatively to shocks, credible reforms can quickly restore inflows.”
Way to enhance FDI with local content:
Charles-Opuala and Orji thus recommended to Nigeria to build supplier-development programmes, financing windows, and technology-transfer partnerships to deepen local participation without creating undue burdens on foreign firms.
They also recommended measures to ensure transparency in contract awards and monitoring mechanisms through the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB). “Move beyond statutory reforms (e.g., PIA 2021) to consistent enforcement, transparent licensing, and predictable dispute-resolution processes.
“Establish independent performance indicators for regulatory agencies in the energy sector to measure effectiveness in attracting investment. Channel investment into integrated energy infrastructure such as gas pipelines, power grids, and port facilities that directly lower operational costs for investors; and encourage public–private partnerships (PPPs) to finance and maintain energy infrastructure, reducing government’s fiscal burden.”
Other measures both Economists recommended include reducing exchange rate volatility through sound monetary policy and targeted interventions. “Enhance fiscal predictability in oil and gas taxation to minimize uncertainty for long-term investors; avoid abrupt policy reversals or inconsistent enforcement which discourage long-term capital inflows; an institutionalize stakeholder dialogue among government, international oil companies (IOCs), and local operators to sustain investor confidence.”
Most participants raised questions to ascertain if local content truly attracts FDI or scares it away. Others wondered if it was possible to end corruption and favoritism in procurements systems and contract awards in the energy sector. They were told that technology was fast blocking corruption.
