By Aliyu Nuhu
Twitter shunned Nigeria and put its headquarters in Accra Ghana. Before Twitter, Google ALab and FAN milk also chose Ghana to Nigeria. Even Nigerian companies are moving to Ghana. Many that stayed have closed shop. A
World Bank Enterprise survey reported 322 private firms closed down in Nigeria between 2009 and 2014 due to stifling business regulations, corruption, and political environment.
Twitter said it was because Ghana has stable democracy with freedom of speech and respect for human rights,stable electricity and educated workforce.
Well Nigeria has a stable democracy but does not have freedom of speech. Even when Nigeria transfers power peacefully with ruling party losing,the aftermath says a lot about our democratic maturity. So much bloodshed,court cases and acrimonious relationship between the winning and losing parties. We think the world is not watching, especially Twitter, Facebook and Google?
About freedom of speech you can say anything but must look your back, especially when you say something against a governor,the least tolerant of the power apprentices we have in office. The president has developed thick skin for insults but he has overzealous security agencies that may want to impress him. Nigerian high officials can bribe the courts to send you to jail. Mahdi Shehu is still recounting his ordeal in the hands of Aminu Masari.
Twitter is correct on Ghana having regular and stable electricity. For its size,the size of Lagos, Ghana generates approximately 4000mw of electricity,the same with Nigeria that is about 25 times its size.
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About workforce Twitter didn’t get it right. There is instability in public school system but the private universities are sound and stable,they are 79 in numbers, more than the entire universities in Ghana that has 9 national universities and eleven private universities. Nigerians are also going to every corner of the world to study in the best schools the world can offer.
There are other reasons that drove Twitter away just like other companies that left Nigeria for Ghana, which Twitter refused to say. One of them is insecurity. There is no basis discussing how bad things are in Nigeria. Abuja, Nigeria’s capital is the safest city in the country but is surrounded by terror from Nassarawa,Niger,Kogi and Kaduna states. Nigerian roads are not safe even under heavy armed escort.
Nigeria is also being shunned because of the instability of its currency. The Cedi is strong against the Dollar but that is not the full story,the Naira doesn’t have to be as strong for the economy to look good. It is exchange rate stability that counts. You can’t invest in an economy,trade in local currency that is losing value every hour and expect to ever break even. When you have generated enough Naira to pay off your international financiers, the CBN will say it doesn’t have enough Dollars for repatriation.
Ease of doing business is another factor. Corruption ensures that Nigeria is not a place to do business especially when you have a choice like Ghana. Our corruption has manifested in one of the most chaotic sea ports clearing system in the world. Any foreign investor wants to import and export goods at ease,not in Nigeria. Airlines have moved their offices to Ghana because even as Ghana produces less fuel, aviation fuel is available all year and cheaper.
To beat Ghana we need to have security, electricity, transparency, efficient airports and seaports and key in to best practices in protection of human rights. It is straightforward but Nigeria is becoming an impossible nation to run?
Aliyu Nuhu is a public affairs analyst
