Nigeria: Global Inequality Rising, Many Countries Incapable of Meeting SDG 2030

Michael Olugbode in Abuja

Nigeria has rued rising global inequality which is leaving many countries incapable of meeting the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) by 2030.

Speaking on Thursday at the ongoing Nordic-African Business Summit in Oslo, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Yusuf Tuggar, noted that the summit is potentially an epoch-making event in the history of the relationship between Nordic Countries and Africa

He said: “We gather at a time of weakening global economic performance, even if the Inflation Reduction Act has had a salutary effect on the largest economy on the planet- the US. Inequality is on the rise, as it becomes all the more apparent that we are unlikely to meet our Sustainable Development Goals by 2030.”

Tuggar further said: “More unsettling is the state of geopolitical affairs, as we made the transition after the Cold War from a bipolar order to a unipolar moment and then a multipolar system.

“Protectionism and trade barriers have made a comeback in what we thought had become an interconnected, globalised world. Now whether or not this is a result of the transition to a less stable multipolar system should not detain us here.

“What is clear is that it has become a less safe, scarier world and the businessmen and women in this room should become all the more concerned. Conflicts rage in Ukraine, Sudan and the Levant, each with the potential of spilling into a wider global conflict.

“That of the Levant has already become one, with Israel’s pre-emptive strikes at Iran drawing a response two days ago. In my region, the expanding Sahel has become a theatre for unconstitutional changes of government, organised criminal gangs and banditry.

“Migration has been weaponised, with eco-fascists calling for border closures and the far-right becoming mainstream in some countries. The gratuitous use of migrant fear has forgotten the admonishment of Adam Smith – the father of Economics: Free Circulation of Labour is the Foundation of any Free Trade System.

“When the Covid-19 Pandemic went global in 2020, we witnessed the onset of vaccine apartheid, as wealthier countries pulled up the draw bridges, depriving others of the intellectual property to reproduce the vaccines, even if they had the capacity.”

Nigeria’s Foreign Affairs Minister insisted that: “Much of what is wrong today has been supercharged by the scary notion that we are living in a post-factual era that feeds on the pursuit of identity politics. Social media is making it increasingly difficult for us to relate to people who are not like us and has become a space for performed contempt. Being louder means being right.”

He however added that: “having painted that gloomy picture, I am happy to say that we have an opportunity to do something very special here today between Nordic and African private and public sector.

“It was no less a businessman like you – Alfred Nobel – who deemed it fit to bestow the administering of the Peace Prize to a Norwegian Committee. He knows what he saw in Norway and Norwegians, even though he was not one.

“The entrepreneurs here have the unique opportunity to use their individual agency to take advantage of the enormous opportunities that exist on the African continent.

“Yes, Africa’s share of global trade is miniscule, but the growth opportunities for those who hitch on early are enormous. And the African Continental Free Trade Area is becoming a reality; presently, only 17% of Africa’s exports remain on the continent, compared to 69% for Europe and 59% for Asia.

“The AFCFTA is going to change this with tariff removals that will unleash a value of $50-70bn. We want to see clean energy-run Norwegian vessels ferrying goods from Lekki Deep-sea port in Lagos to Zanzibar. Norway’s trade with the whole of Africa currently stands at a paltry $8.5bn. it is not enough.”

He posited that: “The mere fact that 70% of the 220 million Nigerians are under the age of 30 and that most have mobile phones and are getting fast speed internet, is proof that it will be key to future global economic growth.

“For additional proof that Nigeria is going to succeed in the future, I urge you to please meet a successful Nigerian entrepreneur and engage them in discussion.

“They are African latter-day Vikings who can succeed anywhere in the world. It is not a fluke. They are resilient problem solvers with an indefatigable can-do spirit.”