Vice President Yemi Osinbajo said Monday that Nigeria must engage knowledgeable teams for all its international trade and contract negotiations.
Osinbajo said this at a one-day capacity building workshop for negotiators of international economic agreements jointly organized by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) and the Inter-Agency Committee on Stopping Illicit Financial Flows (IFFs) from Nigeria.
He said the country must engage experts in all its international trade and negotiations to avoid the serious economic consequences that arise from badly negotiated or poorly crafted international economic agreements.
“This capacity building workshop will be the start of a structured regular programme of training for negotiators in the initial areas of investment, trade, environment, natural resources and taxation agreements.
“I expect further down the line that negotiators of other similar agreements financial, air services, shipping, fishing rights and such like will also be included in the programme.
“Our objective must be to build a corps of crack negotiators and subject matter experts in international economic agreements and indeed to develop what should emerge as a national style of negotiations,” he said.
Referencing instances of agreements that brought about undesirable outcomes for countries, the Vice President said the Simandou Iron Ore contract in Guinea, the Bilateral Investment Treaty in Pakistan, and the Strategic Alliance Contract in Nigeria, among others, point to the fact that “poorly negotiated contracts or framework agreements can lead to serious financial losses for countries.”
He explained that one of the most significant sources of economic loss for a country is the consequence of poorly negotiated agreements.
“Every negotiator must realize he or she is putting the entire nation’s economic prospects on the table every time they negotiate. My position is that depending on the size of some of these contracts, and their implications, outside counsels who are subject matter experts, should be involved at all stages of the negotiations,” he said.
In preparation for the Climate Change Conference of Parties (COP 26), Osinbajo urged that negotiators from Nigeria and other developing countries must be focused on the issues of a ‘just transition’ to the net-zero emission target, including ensuring that gas projects continue to be funded by international financial institutions.
“A topical issue in terms of negotiations is the preparation for the Climate Change Conference of Parties taking place in the UK towards the end of this year. I expect that the approach that will be taken as we count down to that event will be to compose an interdisciplinary team of experts and negotiators that can engage meaningfully in the talks,” he said.
