Former Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Kingsley Moghalu, has provided insight into why African countries, including Nigeria, face challenges in achieving prosperity. Moghalu attributes the issue to weak governance capacity, encompassing various critical factors.
In a detailed post on X, Moghalu outlined the deficiencies hindering prosperity:
1) Lack of a foundational philosophical worldview, which every prosperous developed country possesses.
2) Inadequate knowledge of public policy framing and execution.
3) Absence of a robust monitoring and evaluation framework.
4) Deficiency in basic macroeconomic knowledge, evident from his interactions during his tenure at CBN.
5) Poor strategy and risk management.
6) Limited understanding of the private sector’s role and the appropriate balance between state regulation and market forces.
Lack of genuine accountability for corruption, allowing it to become systemic and derail governance focus from development.
Excessive focus on ethnic and religious identity, which undermines objective decision-making and nationhood.
Moghalu emphasized that these weaknesses prevent African countries from achieving true governance and development, thus obstructing their path to prosperity.