NAN
The Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) and its predecessor, Technical Committee on Privatisation and Commercialisation (TCPC) have reformed over 140 public enterprises in 30 years.
The Director General of BPE, Mr Alex Okoh disclosed this on Tuesday in Abuja, at the inauguration of the Stakeholder Engagement Committee of the National Council on Privatisation (NCP).
The News Agency of Nigeria(NAN) reports the committee was inaugurated by the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohanmed who is the Chairman.
The committee has the mandate of achieving a credible public enterprise transformation strategy of the federal government.
Membership of the committee are drawn from the labour unions, the private and public sectors, human rights organisations and NGOs.
Okoh said that the over 140 enterprises so far reformed in 30 years cut across various sectors of the economy including, banking and insurance, oil and gas, power, hospitality, pensions and telecommunication,.
He said the reformed enterprises went through the process of full or partial privatisation, full or partial commercialisation and concessioning.
Okoh, faulted, the general believe in the court of public opinion that privatised enterprises had been sold for far less than their actual market value and that they were not doing well.
“Of these privatised enterprises, over 60 per cent have achieved a good level of performance.
The power generation companies are performing very well. I can also tell you that the seaports are performing despite some infrastructural constraints.
It can thus be seenthat there is something of a mismatch between public perception of privatisation and the realities of its contributions to the economy” he said.
The DG noted that an effective stakeholder engagement strategy would go a long way in correcting the wrong public perception on privatisation .
He also underscored the need to build support and understanding for the federal government’s reform agenda by effectively communicating considerable benefits of privatisation.
Okoh said there was an urgent need to manage the concerns and allay the fears of key stakeholders while ensuring that their interests were considered.
The DG raised concern over a recent development where certain institutions were engaging in activities which tend to compromise and conflict with the statutory functions of NCP and BPE.
The minister, after inaugurating the committee, underscored the need for its members to live up to their responsibilities.
He said the committee should identify and maintain contacts with stakeholders and opinion leaders and in turn advise the NCP on their interest and concerns.
Mohammed reiterated the President Muhammadu Buhari Administration’s commitment to promoting the participation of the private sector in the strategic economic agenda of the nation
He said the government would provide the enabling environment for the private sector to thrive such as provision of critical infrastructure.