Edinburgh, Scotland, February, 2018
Nigeria scaled up 24 spots in the Ease of Doing Business Index, moving up on the rankings. The Ease of Doing Business is an index, developed by the World Bank, that scores and ranks countries based on how easy it is to set up and operate a business there. The focal point of the evaluation by the global apex bank is premised on the policies government put in place to guarantee business start-ups, a seamless process in getting permits, or licenses depending on the sector of investment. power, loan, land permit, payment of multiple taxes, bureaucratic bottle necks, among others. In a press statement released by George Onuma, a Business Consultant in connection to the Discourse event being organized by the Association of Africans in Scotland in collaboration with the Law firm of Prince Joel & Associates, it said that the event with theme as Real Estate Investments and Ease of Doing Business in Nigeria: Challenges & Realities holds at Crammond Kirk Hall, Edinburgh, Scotland on Saturday, 24th February, 2018 with the primary aim of attracting leading global and Nigerians professionals in the diaspora to take advantage of the vast opportunities in Nigeria’s real estate sector.
The discourse is for aspiring and established investors to receive accurate, useful and current market insights and lead conversations that will address the myths and misconceptions of investing in Nigeria, while connecting investors with pre-qualified, safe real estate investment opportunities from reputable realtors in Nigeria. According to the Theme Speaker Prince O. Williams-Joel, Managing Partner, Prince Joel & Associates, a renowned Nigerian Lawyer, Blogger and Author, the discussion will focus on issues that include how to profile and navigate investments in Nigeria highlighting the latest developments in the ease of doing business policy framework, spotlighting on investing in real estate property and construction opportunities.
Prince Joel applauded the prompt decision by the Nigerian government to re-evaluate the ease of doing business policies which points to the fact that a need to retool the existing investment policies in Nigeria for optimal performance was necessary with the view to attracting the desirable investors into the country. He said “Nigeria recorded progress in 8 out of 10 topics appraised in Ease of Doing Business Index. Accordingly, Nigeria is amongst the 10 most improved countries for the 2018 ranking. The most notable increases were made in the ease of company registration, getting credit, enforcing contracts and dealing with real estate and construction permits topics”.
Furthermore, Prince Joel noted that the rising prominence of credit bureaus and the increased sophistication of the identity authentication system (Sim Card Registration, Bank Verification Number (BVN) and National Identity Number (NIN), etc.) contributed to Nigeria’s jump in this index. This reduced the risk associated with lending, boosting credit availability. Also contributing to this improvement, he said was the effective implementation of the goals laid out in the Economic Recovery Growth Plan (ERGP). The move from traditional means of registering a company (with papers) has been replaced with online processes. New companies can confirm name availability, get all the information needed, and download and submit registration forms – all online! Other notable changes are: introduction of the visa-on-arrival option, airport infrastructure development and the removal of baggage check post in the checking-in process.
The President, Association of Africans in Scotland, Collins Ikhide in his remarks said that the news about Nigeria’s improvement in the Ease of Doing Business index is indicative of how favourable the Nigerian economy is for business operations. According to him, “some of these issues are important considerations for Foreign Direct Investors who are not only interested in the macro-economy but are also interested in the existing regulatory framework, policy and security. Essentially, these investors are interested in anything that can affect the success of their investments”.
According to Abayomi Odubanjo, Vice President, Association of Africans in Scotland “our members and Nigerians in diaspora will utilized this discussion event to understand and appreciate the enormous opportunities that abound in Nigeria’s real estate sector and the commitment of the government to the removal of all forms of bottlenecks that stifle the inflow of FDI and potential economic activity in Nigeria”.
In summary, the Secretary, Association of Africans in Scotland Daniel Omoraro said “the friendlier an economy is to business operations, the more attractive it is for investments, which is a vital catalyst of economic growth and development. Therefore, Nigeria’s rise in the Ease of Doing Business Index is laudable and positive for the recovery path”.
In his remarks, the Public Relations Officer, Association of Africans in Scotland Nosa Odoko stated that the partnership between their association and the Law firm of Prince Joel & Associates Nigeria is on display by hosting this event to encourage the international community especially Nigerians in diaspora to invest in Nigeria working with a trustworthy partner.
On the other hand, as part of his presentation, Prince Joel informed the gathering that the Ease of Doing Business brings up the issue of competitiveness. He said that “when international organizations are looking to enter into a new region, they examine a wide range of variables such as size of potential market, and the ease of doing business. Investors are looking to avoid markets with a strong presence of politics & bureaucracy, coupled with high operating costs”. He stated further that the fruits of this reform are being felt already, the upgrade of the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) online portal to enable investors register their business without visiting CAC office has commenced, seven forms needed to fill at CAC for company incorporation has been reduced to just one. An investor can now get his Tax Identification Number (TIN) online without visiting the Federal Inland Revenue Services (FIRS).
Additionally, Prince Joel said “work is ongoing to reduce the number of agencies operating in the ports to only six. The Single Window Initiative at the ports will soon be coming on stream. Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) Visa on Arrival and forty-eight hours visa processing are functional, the NIS has effected a harmonized departure and arrival form for Nigerians and non-Nigerians”.
From his analysis, it is evident that the economic policy of government is repositioning the Nigerian economy towards the right direction. In his words, “the just released ambitious Economic Recovery Growth Plan (ERGP), a strategy document projected to achieve seven percent GDP growth spanning 2017 to 2020, will tremendously make the country attractive to foreign investment into Nigeria in the medium to long term. Ultimately, this will enable the Nigerian economy to rebound unto the global map, attracting both foreign and local investors” he said.
The press statement confirmed that the discourse would culminate into an interactive Question & Answer session where the Theme Speaker Prince Joel would proffer solutions to the challenges associated with the real estate sector as well as provide information on available cross border transactions partnerships necessary for effective mobilization of direct foreign investment into Nigeria.
The major highlight of the event would be the public presentation of the masterpiece book: COMPILATION OF ARTICLES ON LAW & PROPERTY IN NIGERIA: SIMPLIFIED, written by Prince Joel which has been globally acclaimed as a handbook of property transactional knowledge and the author’s invaluable contribution to showcasing the untapped investment opportunities in the Real Estate industry in Nigeria and to bridge the gap of apparent dearth of simplified practical resources for local and international investors.
