SWF strategy document ready says Okonjo-Iweala

The strategic document that will guide the operations of the Sovereign Wealth Fund (SWF) is ready, a statement has said. The statement signed by Mr Paul Nwabuikwu, Spokesman of the Coordinating Minister for the Economy in Abuja said that the investment policy guideline was almost finalised.

It stated that the strategy document was ratified by the Board of the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA) led by Alhaji Mahey Rasheed to ensure that the blueprint was ready on time. According to the statement, efforts to hire key personnel and acquire a functional office have reached an advanced stage. The statement quoted the Coordinating Minister for the Economy, Dr Ngozi Okonjo Iweala as saying that the country stood to benefit significantly if the momentum was maintained.

“There is still a lot of hard work ahead, we need to remain focused and disciplined so that we can reap the rewards. We are not yet there but we are on the right track. The question we must keep asking ourselves is other countries have benefitted from SWF. Why not Nigeria?” she said. Mr Uche Orji, who was appointed the Managing Director of SWF in October said plans to appoint a Chief Investment Officer (CIO) for the organisation were on.

“We are in the process of filling the role of the CIO. We received 300 resumes for the CIO role and will soon commence the process of short-listing the candidates. We hope to have the interviews early next year and have a CIO in place by early March,’’ he said. He said that other key management and staff positions in the NSIA would be advertised on Dec. 2, adding that full complement of staff would be in place by the first quarter of 2013. Orji said that prudence would be the cornerstone of management at the NSIA.

He emphasised that in seeking the best investments for Nigeria, the NSIA would not limit itself but would search for the best deals wherever they could be found in the world. The idea of the NSIA is to build a savings base for the Nigerian people, enhance the development of Nigerian infrastructure, and provide stabilisation support in times of economic stress. Three funds that are expected to run under NSIA, they are Future Generation Fund, Nigeria Infrastructure fund and Fiscal Stabilisation Fund, which should hold at least 20 per cent of the assets under management. It will be recalled that state governors, who are opposed to the creation of the fund have called for its suspension with a suit challenging the implementation of the fund currently pending before the Supreme Court.