BERTIE AHERN has taken to advising Nigerians on how they can avoid the mistakes made by Ireland and learn lessons from our woes.
The former taoiseach is also highlighting the importance of running “well-regulated banks” as a way of attracting foreign investment to the west African state.
Mr Ahern is a key contributor to a forthcoming economic report on Nigeria, in which he stresses the importance of spreading risk by growing the economy across different sectors. “As can be seen from the current precarious state of Ireland’s financial sector, the importance of economic diversity is huge,” he says in the report.
“Overexposure to any sector should not be taken lightly, as was seen when construction in Ireland accounted for over 15 per cent of GDP at the height of the boom.”
Mr Ahern says consistent and transparent policies could hold the key to Nigeria’s development and boost its efforts to attract foreign investment. Sound policies provided the building blocks for Ireland’s economic transformation in the 1990s, helping it to tap foreign investment and build GDP, he claims.
“We had to ensure that infrastructure was in place for companies to expand, complemented by sensible investment policies,” he says.
The former Fianna Fáil leader says ensuring banks are regulated and operated in line with best international standards could prove to be another key factor in capturing the interest of foreign investors.
Mr Ahern's remarks appear in The Report: Nigeria 2011,a guide to be published by consultants the Oxford Business Group on economic activity and investment opportunities in the oil-rich state. The guide also features an interview with the managing director of the World Bank.
Mr Ahern has visited Nigeria on a number of occasions since his retirement as taoiseach in 2008. In 2009, he attended the South-South Regional Economic Summit, where his speech focused on how the peace process could prove a model for reconciliation in the Niger Delta.
The register of TDs’ interests showed that he travelled to Nigeria in each of the past two years to deliver speeches organised through the Washington Speakers Bureau.
The bureau’s website says Mr Ahern “brought peace and political prominence to Ireland, creating a progressive strategy and blueprint for other countries of the world to follow”. His fees are listed in the highest band, “$40,001 and up”.
