The House of Representatives yesterday passed the sovereign wealth fund (SWF) bill, a week after the senate delivered the legislation proposed by the federal government to hold billions of oil revenue differentials between budget benchmarks and actual market prices.
Seeking to avoid a harmonization procedure, the house approved the senate's version of the law and passed the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority bill, with an initial investment minimum of the naira equivalence of $1 billion.
After the passage, the minister of finance, Olusegun Aganga said: "As a nation, we need a strategy to transform this finite wealth into an investment in the growth and development of our country, so that we can achieve ever-growing wealth for our generation and for generations of Nigerians to come. The Nigerian Sovereign Investment Authority is that strategy."
The start-up capital is to be sourced from the three tiers of government including the federal capital territory, with each level of government's contribution the initial fund, a percentage equivalent of such government's share of the federation revenue based on the subsisting formula.
According to the bill now passed by both chambers, future funding for the SWF will be derived from remaining funds from the federation account which shall be transferred to the authority.
Ready for the president
With the house passage, the bill now awaits a final third reading, viewed more like a formality, and the president's assent.
The lawmakers swiftly approved the 59 clauses in the bill and made three alterations to align it with the senate's version passed last week.
Section 16, sub section 3 requires the appointees to the board to the Fund to be subject to senate's confirmation, a requirement lacking in the initial house recommendation. Also, the lawmakers changed section 20 which allows reappointment for members of the board, from four years earlier stipulated to five years.
According to the bill, 60 percent of both the start-up capital and subsequent funds will be allocated equally to three main investment options: The Future Generation Funds, the Infrastructure Fund and the Stabilization Fund.
The fund, when established, would replace the country's excess crude account (ECA), severely criticized for its notorious management under the administration of Olusegun Obasanjo. Critics have said the ECA lacked a legal framework and disallowed accountability.
Still, the Sovereign Wealth Fund, set as a replacement for the ECA, drew opposition before it was passed yesterday at the House. Chairman of the house committee on Business and Rules, Ita Enang, said the bill, if signed into law, will breach the constitution and will be "potentially combustible. The contribution to the fund should be voluntary; funds should not be confiscated," he said. "You cannot hold my money and tell me you are saving it. I can also save my money."
Source: http://234next.com
Seeking to avoid a harmonization procedure, the house approved the senate's version of the law and passed the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority bill, with an initial investment minimum of the naira equivalence of $1 billion.
After the passage, the minister of finance, Olusegun Aganga said: "As a nation, we need a strategy to transform this finite wealth into an investment in the growth and development of our country, so that we can achieve ever-growing wealth for our generation and for generations of Nigerians to come. The Nigerian Sovereign Investment Authority is that strategy."
The start-up capital is to be sourced from the three tiers of government including the federal capital territory, with each level of government's contribution the initial fund, a percentage equivalent of such government's share of the federation revenue based on the subsisting formula.
According to the bill now passed by both chambers, future funding for the SWF will be derived from remaining funds from the federation account which shall be transferred to the authority.
Ready for the president
With the house passage, the bill now awaits a final third reading, viewed more like a formality, and the president's assent.
The lawmakers swiftly approved the 59 clauses in the bill and made three alterations to align it with the senate's version passed last week.
Section 16, sub section 3 requires the appointees to the board to the Fund to be subject to senate's confirmation, a requirement lacking in the initial house recommendation. Also, the lawmakers changed section 20 which allows reappointment for members of the board, from four years earlier stipulated to five years.
According to the bill, 60 percent of both the start-up capital and subsequent funds will be allocated equally to three main investment options: The Future Generation Funds, the Infrastructure Fund and the Stabilization Fund.
The fund, when established, would replace the country's excess crude account (ECA), severely criticized for its notorious management under the administration of Olusegun Obasanjo. Critics have said the ECA lacked a legal framework and disallowed accountability.
Still, the Sovereign Wealth Fund, set as a replacement for the ECA, drew opposition before it was passed yesterday at the House. Chairman of the house committee on Business and Rules, Ita Enang, said the bill, if signed into law, will breach the constitution and will be "potentially combustible. The contribution to the fund should be voluntary; funds should not be confiscated," he said. "You cannot hold my money and tell me you are saving it. I can also save my money."
Source: http://234next.com
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