Show Notes
In the previous episode, Dr Andrew Nevin introduced the concept of ''dead assets'' to address the government's liquidity and foreign exchange challenges. In this episode, Fola Fagbule challenged that notion. He asserts that what matters are for these assets to be strategically and reasonably managed to achieve the long-term developmental objectives of the country, and not just short-term commercial goals. Fola Fagbule is an infrastructure finance expert. He serves as a Senior Vice President and Head of Financial Advisory for the Africa Finance Corporation. He is also the co-author(with Feyi Fawehinmi) of a bestselling history book on Nigeria called ''Formation: The Making of Nigeria from Jihad to Amalgamation''.
You can buy the book here [https://www.amazon.com/Formation-Making-Nigeria-Jihad-Amalgamation/dp/191317509X] and here is a link [https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/f-o-r-m-a-t-i-o-n-the-making-of-nigeria/id1518462005] to the excellent companion podcast about the book. These are also two brilliant [https://folahanmifagbule.medium.com/the-currency-of-infrastructure-ff2e3c42798e] essays [https://folahanmifagbule.medium.com/a-failure-of-change-management-78fa1c8245a3] by Fola on infrastructure that pairs very well with the subject of the discussion.
More from Ballots and Beyond: A Deeper Dive into Nigeria's Elections
In the final episode of the series, Timi and Tobi talk to Andrew Alli on Nigeria's energy crunch and the macroeconomic distortions that discourage private investment in the sector. He also discussed some key reforms the next president should pursue, and how to build infrastructure to deliver social and economic value. Andrew Alli was the former Chief Executive of Africa Finance Corporation, and now Senior Adviser of the Pan-African investment company SouthBridge Group. He has overseen billions of dollars in infrastructure investment across Africa.
Timi and Tobi talk to Taiwo Oyedele on the common misconceptions about taxation in Nigeria. They also discussed the true state of the government's fiscal position and whether Nigeria is heading for a debt crisis soon. Taiwo is the Fiscal Policy partner and Africa Tax leader at PwC. He is one of the preeminent tax and fiscal policy experts in Nigeria.
Timi and Tobi talk to Tolagbe Martins [https://tolagbe.com/about/] about the challenges of effective delivery of public goods and services - with much of the discussion focused on her experience in leading different public service delivery initiatives across multiple municipalities in Nigeria. She is an organisational psychologist with a two decade career spanning aviation, healthcare, and consulting on public private partnerships.
Timi and Tobi talk to Chris Ogunmodede about the implications increased interest of young people in the election, the personality-centered party system, and Nigeria's battered international standing. Chris Ogunmodede is foreign policy and international affairs analyst. He is also an associate editor with World Politics Review where he writes a regular blog [https://www.worldpoliticsreview.com/author/chris-olaoluwa-ogunmodede/] about African global affairs.
Timi and Tobi talk to Michael Famoroti, co-founder, chief economist and head of data intelligence at Stears - Nigeria's foremost economics business analytics publication. They talked about the recent elections poll by Stears and the talking points the results [https://www.stears.co/premium/article/stears-poll-predicts-nigerias-next-president/] generated. Michael also weighs in on the enormity of the fiscal problems that Nigeria's next president will have to deal with.