By Chijioke Okoronkwo, News Agency of Nigeria (NAN)

By many accounts, Public-Private Partnership (PPP), if properly harnessed, can be a veritable driver of economic growth.

Nonetheless, experts say proper regulation is paramount in order to achieve efficiency in PPP arrangements.

Recently, the Federal Government directed that all PPP agreements should adhere to the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC) Act and its guidelines..

The directive mandated all Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) to comply with the National Policy on PPP (N4P) and the ICRC Act of 2005 in their 2025 budget proposals concerning PPP arrangements.

The government directed all MDAs to ensure that they align with the provisions of the ICRC Establishment Act (2005) in the preparation and submission of their respective 2025 budget proposals as it relates to PPPs.

“Signing PPP-related Memoranda of Understanding (MoU), Memoranda of Association or contract instruments without following the provisions of the ICRC Act constitutes a violation of the law,’’ the directive reads in part.

The ICRC Act states inter alia: “As from the commencement of this Act, any Federal Government Ministry, Agency, Corporation or body involved in the financing, construction, operation or maintenance of infrastructure, by whatever name called, may enter into a contact with or grant concession to any duly pre-qualified project proponent in the private sector.

“This is for the financing, construction, operation or maintenance of any infrastructure that is financially viable or any development facility of the Federal Government in accordance with the provisions of this Act.

“This Act applies to investment and development projects relating to any infrastructure of any Federal Government Ministry, Agency, Corporation or body.

“Every Federal Government Ministry, Agency, Corporation or body shall prioritise its infrastructure projects and such priority projects may be qualified for concession under this Act.

“The projects mentioned in Subsection (1) of this Section shall be submitted to the Federal Executive Council for approval on the recommendation of the relevant Sector, Ministry or Agency prior to entering into any contract under Section 1 of this Act.

“In entering into any contract or granting any concession under Section 1 of this Act, the Federal Government Ministry, Agency, Corporation or body shall ensure that the project proponent possesses the financial capacity, relevant expertise and experience in undertaking such infrastructure development or maintenance.’’

Stakeholders are of the view that to optimise the benefits of PPP, all requisite regulatory frameworks must be adhered to, just as the ICRC is staying the course.

Dr Jobson Oseodion Ewalefoh, Director-General, ICRC, on assumption of office  in July, vowed to streamline processes required to deliver Public Private Partnerships (PPP) projects.

This is with a view to accelerate infrastructure development and bridge the attendant gaps and stimulate the economy.

He spoke at a strategic retreat held in Uyo, Akwa Ibom , where he rolled out a six-point policy direction as the new helmsman of the ICRC.

Ewalefoh, said his policy direction aligned with President Bola Tinubu’s charge, added that because of infrastructure gaps in Nigeria, PPP was required in every sector; hence the need for critical steps in advancing its delivery.

He listed the key points of his policy direction to include: Innovative Financing, Service Delivery Optimisation, Project Categorisation, Time Bound Delivery of Projects, Inter-Agency Collaboration as well as Strategic Partnerships.

“With the gap that we have in Nigeria, we need PPPs in almost every area and PPPs go beyond building infrastructure; service is a very key component of Infrastructure building.

“Even if we don’t build infrastructure, if we optimise the existing ones, what we will get will be novel, and the impact we will create will be so huge.’’

Ewalefoh, who is revved up for action, hinted that he was already in talks with potential investors who were interested in knowing how safe and profitable investments would be as well as a possible timeline for delivering the projects.

Citing the Nigeria Integrated Infrastructure Master Plan (NIIMP), he said that the nation’s infrastructure was weak and required financing to revolutionise the economy.

“I am going to be involved in strategic partnerships; I will work closely with ministers, permanent secretaries and chief executive officers of agencies; I am going to lead from the front on most of these partnerships and collaborations.’’

On service delivery, Ewalefoh said that part of his direction would be to optimise the processes of the commission to focus on service delivery.

On already existing PPP projects, the director-general said that the commission would evaluate all concession contracts to ensure the projects were performing optimally, while ensuring the projects were a win-win for both the private investor and the government.

On project categorisation, the director-general reiterated his desire to categorise projects as a means of ensuring more efficient project delivery within improved timelines.

He said that the commission would, within the ambit of the law, resolve all encumbrances that hampered the execution of projects so long as such projects were bankable and viable, important to the Nigerian people and delivered value for money.

In line with a presidential directive, Ewalefoh said that ICRC would begin the issuance of the Outline Business Case (OBC) Certificate of Compliance and the Full Business Case (FBC) Certificate of Compliance within seven days.

More so, in compliance with ICRC’s mandate, Ewalefoh said that the commission would pursue to logical conclusion all PPP projects that had long been approved by the FEC but had yet to commence.

The director-general gave the assurance at a meeting with the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Mr Adegboyega Oyetola.

Ewalefoh informed the minister that some of the pioneer PPP projects approved as far back as 2006 were under the purview of the ministry and would be re-evaluated.

In his submission, Oyetola attributed most of the projects that had stalled to lack of access to financing due to the dearth of capacity of the private parties.

The aviation sector is one area where effective implementation of PPP could prove vital.

In its bid to unlock the economic potential of the aviation sector through PPPs, the Federal Government has established task forces in ICRC and the Ministry of Aviation.

This was the outcome of Ewelafoh’s courtesy visit to the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Mr Festus Keyamo.

Ewalefoh, who highlighted the importance of aviation in galvanizing other sectors to foster the economic potentials of the country, said that the commission had set up its task force to fast-track investment in PPPs.

No doubt, the ICRC is not resting on its oars; it has continued to maximise the multi-sectoral nature of its mandate.

Recently, it honoured the Minister of Interior, Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, as PPP icon for attracting over 500 million dollars investment through PPPs.

Ewalefoh, during a visit to the interior minister, said that the Federal Government, through the ICRC, would conduct an audit of all PPP projects.

This move is to ascertain their performance as well as ensure that all the projects were insured as statutorily stipulated in the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission Establishment Act, 2005.

He is upbeat on the 3.5 billion dollars Bakassi Deep Seaport construction.

Ewalefoh, at a High-level Stakeholders’ meeting said that the construction of the 3.5 billion dollars Bakassi Deep Seaport would commence soon under the administration of Gov. Bassey Otu of Cross River.

He assured that the project will be completed in record time.

Deserving no less attention in the effort to deploy effective PPP implementation for national growth is science and technology, a critical sector.

Ewalefoh, at a meeting with the Minister of Innovation, Science and Technology, Mr Uche Nnaji, said the Federal Government would consider using private sector funds through PPP as an option for certain key projects in the sector.

Nnaji, on his part, said that his ministry served as a key enabler of economic growth.

Both parties expressed optimism that ICRC would partner the ministry in doing things right and enabling it to forge a better outlook for most of its projects.

More so, Ewalefoh weighed in on the implications of PPP for the nation’s struggling power sector.

He spoke as a high-level panelist at the recently concluded 30th anniversary of the Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG) with the theme, “Accelerating Infrastructure Development.’’

Ewalefoh said that PPP can solve the infrastructure challenges being experienced in the power sector.

He said that PPP was the best option to build new power infrastructure and also optimise existing ones.

“We have a lot of infrastructure gaps in Nigeria today across all the sectors from transportation, energy, health, housing and other sectors.

“The only way we can bridge the infrastructure gaps that we are having in this country is to harness private sector finance and expertise in building and managing infrastructure,’’ he said.

Still on power, Ewelefoh recently deliberated with the Minister of Power, Chief Adebayo Adelabu, on critical PPP issues on the sector. Abuja.

The ICRC boss said that plans were underway by the Federal Government to source from the private sector, part of the 10 billion dollars required to provide regular electricity across Nigeria within the next five to 10 years.

The duo agreed that in view of the funding and technology required to advance the sector, it had become imperative to seek private sector input through Public Private Partnership (PPP).

In his response, Adelabu commended the D-G for the initiative to visit the ministry with the proposal of advancing investment in the power sector through PPPs.

“For us to achieve 24 hours power supply across Nigeria in the next 5 to 10 years, there is a minimum funding requirement of about 10 billion dollars in the next 10 years.

“The government cannot afford that, when there are other critical sectors in need of funding,’’ he said.

The maritime sector is not left out.

The ICRC has also shown commitment to synergising with the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) to unlock PPP potential in maritime sector

According to Ewelefoh, the potential for NIMASA is huge and untapped; hence, the need for collaboration.

ICRC also recognises the importance of insurance in PPP.

Against the foregoing, ICRC has partnered the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) to mandate concessionaires of government assets to procure insurance covers for the assets under PPP arrangements.

Worthy of note, critical stakeholders at the sub-national level have also underscored the pivotal role PPP plays in national growth.

The Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF) recently called for collaborative efforts to scale up PPPs to address the infrastructure gap in Nigeria.

AbdulRahman Abdulrazaq, Governor of Kwara, and Chairman of NGF, made the submission at the 2nd Joint PPP Units Consultative Forum (3PUCF) and the Nigeria PPP Network (NPPPN).

Abdulrazaq, represented by Abdulateef Shittu, Director-General, NGF said that there was a 100 billion dollars infrastructure deficit at the subnational level.

“Overall, at the federal and state levels, we have over a 200 billion dollars infrastructure deficit, and because the government cannot foot the bills alone we need collaboration from the private sector,” he said.

Stakeholders say the worthwhile regulation as being provided by ICRC is fundamental to maximising the enormous potential of PPP for national growth and development (NANFeatures)

**If used please credit the writer and News Agency of Nigeria