The Founder and CEO of The Offshore Lab, Emeka Obiwulu, has said that Nigeria must change its approach to infrastructure development, especially in response to climate change.
According to him, Nigeria needs to focus on strong partnerships, accountability, and a mindset shift towards sustainable projects to succeed in its infrastructure development.
During an interview on News Central TV’s Jasiri, Obiwulu discussed the topic “Nigeria’s Infrastructural Project Failures”, where he stressed that the country needs to break free from the “build and abandon” mentality, and shift towards sustainable infrastructure that focuses on building, maintaining, and sustaining projects over the long term.
“Nigeria has some of the best minds and policies in the world,” said Obiwulu. “The challenge lies in the fundamentals, where it is difficult to build and implement sustainable projects.”
Obiwulu pointed out that advanced systems are available to predict weather patterns and natural disasters.
For example, Nigeria Hydrological Services Agency (NIHSA) warned about the risk of flooding in states like Borno for 2024. Communities were asked to relocate, but he believes the real issue is a mindset problem, not a lack of information.
He argued that Nigeria must embrace a proactive approach to infrastructure by using predictive data and acting accordingly to prevent disasters, rather than waiting for problems to occur.
Regarding the relationship between the government and the private sector, Obiwulu believes that collaboration is key to bridging the infrastructure gap.
“The private sector should work with the government to deliver infrastructure projects to the highest standards. Each sector has a role to play, and solutions should be tailored to the unique challenges we face,” he said.
He stressed that the private sector, with its built-in accountability to shareholders, can bring the resilience and sustainability needed for successful long-term projects.
“If the private sector delivers excellent results, then there’s no reason not to involve them further.
“A competent private sector company, whose success relies on being accountable to its shareholders and investors, helps make a project more resilient and sustainable. This is because the company’s systems and structures are designed to support the project.
“This gives the project a better chance to succeed compared to a situation where a single entity tries to handle everything, which can lead to conflicts of interest and reduce its effectiveness,” he said.