Why Nigeria states are poor in the midst of plenty, by Adesina

President of the African Development Bank Group, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, has said states in Nigeria are poor because they do not maximally explore or leverage what they already have in abundance.

Dr. Adesina said the federal system of monthly grant helped to paralyse the state.

Adesina spoke virtually in Akure on the topic “From Federal Fatherism to a Commonwealth” while delivering the second term inauguration lecture of Governor Oluwarotimi Akeredolu.

He noted that the financial pilgrimage to Anujw to collect what he termed monthly federal manna has created a sense of helplessness and overt dependency on the centre.

The former Minister of Agriculture said only three states in Nigeria could survive without a federal revenue allocation.

Describing the Nigeria federalism as a federalism of fiscal dependency, Adesina stated that what is needed is greater economic and fiscal autonomy.

He warned that the issue was less about State or regional autonomy but financial and economic viability of Nigeria’s constituent states.

According to him, “Nigeria federalism does not grow its constituent entities. It simply makes them perpetually dependent. The Nigeria system is not Federalism but fatherism.

“Political autonomy is meaningless unless it is backed by greater fiscal self-reliance at the state level.”

The ADB President said the low tax rates in Nigeria was not a justification to keep
increasing taxes.

He said Nigerians paid one of the highest implicit taxes which are not seen or recorded but the government transferred their responsibilities to the citizens.

Dr. Adesina called for urgent need to diversify the source of financing for states across the country even as he declared Nigerians in Diaspora as new oil well.

He urged state governments to float diaspora bonds targeting specific investments to Finance infrastructural development.

Adesina said the way of economic quagmire was not restructuring driven by political expediency but economic and financial viability.

“States can become even more financially autonomous through greater fiscal prudence. If states focus on unlocking the huge resources they have based in areas of comparative advantage they will rapidly expand wealth for their people.