Infrastructure without concomitant national productivity

When the US President, Joe Biden signed a $1.2 billion infrastructure package, public affairs analysts expressed their opinions that such spending is badly needed by the world’s largest economy. I must say that infrastructure says a lot about a country. You will observe this either from the airports or the seaports. The sophistication of equipment and procedures. The quality of people at these public places is all part of the CF.

The need to fix Nigeria’s crumbling infrastructure has become a cliche. But this does not change the fact that our infrastructure needs urgent upgrade.

Some technology policy experts have always stated that every economic activity requires some developed infrastructure as prerequisite for growth and industrialisation.

Infrastructure, these experts say, refers to those facilities, structures, and institutions whose inadequacy lead to the limitation of the productive forces of a society. These include among others, scientific and technological institutions, educational institutions, basic industries, energy, transport, communication network, financial institutions, etcetera.

Within the context of a nation’s industrial development strategy, experts have established that there exists an opportunity to promote the development of first-class infrastructure such as telecommunications, roads, railways, and power supply, which are considered critical for effective operation of industry.

I have equally heard from some analysts that poor infrastructural facilities, weak industrial base and constant power failure are some of the factors sustaining backwardness of the Nigerian society. What a pity? But views expressed by these analysts are very correct. Even those in authority at state and federal levels acknowledged at various times that there is infrastructure deficit in Nigeria.

We have been told that Nigeria needs $1.5 trillion over a period of 10 years to achieve an appreciable level of the national infrastructure stock. Nigeria, we were told, is ready for investment in infrastructural development in the country. Mr President affirmed that his administration has established a legal and regulatory framework for private financing of infrastructure to establish a standard process, especially on the monitoring and evaluation process. Excellent point!

In addition, Mr President declared that his administration had taken the expansion of infrastructure in Nigeria seriously, bearing in mind that new investments in critical sectors of the nation’s economy would aid lifting 100 million Nigerians from poverty by 2030. By 2030, the government led by Mr President would not be in power. This raises a question as to how 100 million Nigerians would be lifted from poverty by a president whose government will not be in power beyond May 2023.

Despite our efforts at revolutionizing infrastructure, the World Bank has predicted that inflation may push 91 million Nigerians below poverty line due to increase in food prices between June 2020 and June 2021. With urban areas being disproportionately affected, the World Bank suggested that there is need for those in authority to articulate short term policies to support the welfare of the citizens. The welfare of citizens is very important because in the final analysis, people will make use of the infrastructure and operate same.

On Monday, March 28, 2022, terrorists attacked a Kaduna-bound passenger train that left Abuja. The attack left many passengers dead. Some passengers were abducted while others escaped either with injuries or no injuries. Was there any lesson learnt by those in authority as the train bombing was demoralizing?

If there was any lesson learnt by those in authority it is that building an infrastructure without concomitant national productivity will not yield the desired economic growth.

Millions of children are out of school, while millions of our youth are jobless. We cannot have millions of our youth jobless and be talking about national productivity.

A nation’s productivity is measured by comparing the amount of goods and services produced with the inputs which were used in production.

At the heart of national productivity is the nation’s human capital. Productivity in itself is a summation of applied technology, labor, capital and effective management of resources.

So, one can say that corporate or national development is contingent upon high productivity index which is achievable only through a virile workforce using up-to-date technology.

Looking at the weak state of our economy today, we have seen that infrastructure is necessary but not sufficient to fix the country’s structural defects. The nations structural defects cannot be fixed by only procuring trains, building new roads and bridges as well as commissioning of airports.

Our problems are much more deeper than what “infrastructure” alone can solve. Infrastructure on its own cannot transform a nation’s industrial and economic activities.

We need quality people which in itself is a component of national power. Most of our professionals are leaving the country in search of a better life elsewhere. But we look helplessly. Who will operate and use infrastructure to create wealth for the citizens?

We read that the government has a 10-year national development plan. Any determined group of people who are able, willing and ready to utilize the resources at their disposal to actualize their development plan will never be disappointed as their rewards on earth would be enhanced. The productivity which will result in turn will ensure prosperity, peace and progress.

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With a higher productivity index, the challenges we are facing as a nation will melt away. In industrialized countries of the world, the language of most boardrooms is that: “You either produce or perish.” How do we improve our national productivity without adequate electricity supply?

With inadequate portable drinking water supply in most states, inefficient waste management and transport systems, poorly equipped schools and hospitals, government cannot focus its attention only on revamping our roads and railways. Trains would be useful to a nation where goods are produced and distributed from rural to urban areas and vice versa.

Without that concomitant national productivity, the impact of resources expended to revamp the railway, road and airports will not be appreciated by most of the citizens. Nigerians need to be engaged in building infrastructure, not foreigners.

Recently, national bakers association announced that they might shut down their bakeries over rising cost of diesel and wheat. Using an in-depth analysis the connection between infrastructural development and productivity displays the ability for infrastructural development to awaken “the spirit of supply chain” of a local economy.

For example, in developed countries, one sees excitement and a progression within the economy because most individuals starting from SMEs to large corporations are fully involved and integrated in achieving the government’s infrastructure objective.

In industrialized economies, raw materials are shipped in or produced with the local economy and are transformed to finish products that are utilized in the infrastructural development project which ultimately feeds the productivity index of that economy.

But in Nigeria what do we see? One sees a complete reversal. In our country, both raw materials and finished products are imported. So what do we have?

Money generated leaves the local economy and it is repatriated to another economy. Very worrisome development.

Ultimately, if we are not strategic in the way we develop our infrastructure, we may end up creating an atmosphere of declined productivity in which our only gain is better-skilled masons. Thank you.