Recommendations & Conclusions
11 items
2
Conclusion
Seventh Report - Lagos calling: Nigeria…
Accepted in Part
Awareness of the interconnected nature of Nigeria’s business, governance, security and natural environments is vital at every stage of policy making. The FCDO is well placed to play an oversight role, ensuring UK Government initiatives in one area are not undermined by lack of attention in another.
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Awareness of the interconnected nature of Nigeria’s business, governance, security and natural environments is vital at every stage of policy making. The FCDO is well placed to play an oversight role, ensuring UK Government initiatives in one area are not undermined by lack of attention in another.
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Government response AI summary
The government agrees that there are benefits to a clear and realistic longer-term plan for our approach in Nigeria but does not agree that they should publish a new integrated delivery plan within the next six months as the result of next year’s election in …
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Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
3
Recommendation
Seventh Report - Lagos calling: Nigeria…
Accepted in Part
The UK’s approach in Nigeria should be one that is defined by detailed and coherent long-term engagement. Yet it should be sufficiently agile to take advantage of new opportunities. As the FCDO makes difficult decisions on programme activities over the coming years, particularly those funded through Official Development Assistance, careful …
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The UK’s approach in Nigeria should be one that is defined by detailed and coherent long-term engagement. Yet it should be sufficiently agile to take advantage of new opportunities. As the FCDO makes difficult decisions on programme activities over the coming years, particularly those funded through Official Development Assistance, careful attention should be paid to ensuring the High Commission is able to be proactive and responsive rather than simply reactive. It is vital that UK partners and scrutiny bodies understand the aims and strategy of the UK in Nigeria in order to carry out their work as effectively as possible: In the next six months we recommend that the FCDO develop and publish an integrated delivery plan for Nigeria detailing how the aspirations of the Integrated Review will be executed in Nigeria. There should be realistic and measurable objectives for UK policy in Nigeria over the next five to ten years with clear activities and policies, and the plan should set out the resources required and which Government departments will be responsible for delivering them.
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Government response AI summary
The government agrees with the benefit of a clear, long-term plan but will not publish a new integrated delivery plan within six months. An internal strategy exists until 2023, and they will refresh it post-election and develop One-HMG country plans in due course.
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Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
5
Recommendation
Seventh Report - Lagos calling: Nigeria…
Accepted in Part
The enthusiasm of the Nigerian community in the UK to engage with their country of origin provides an opportunity for the UK Government to trial initiatives to work with diaspora groups from other countries where there are overlapping interests. We recommend that the FCDO make the most of the enthusiasm …
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The enthusiasm of the Nigerian community in the UK to engage with their country of origin provides an opportunity for the UK Government to trial initiatives to work with diaspora groups from other countries where there are overlapping interests. We recommend that the FCDO make the most of the enthusiasm for engagement amongst the Nigerian community to test various ways of involving diaspora groups in diplomacy. For example: a) Ad-hoc focus groups should be convened for contextual input on UK Government policy relating to Nigeria, particularly those relating to issues such as support for Small and Medium Sized Enterprises and those engaging in the creative arts space. 38 Lagos calling: Nigeria and the Integrated Review b) A means be provided whereby Nigerians living in the UK can engage with the Strategic Communications Platform for peacebuilding in the North East of Nigeria, and other such engagement platforms as they arise. (Paragraph 12) Sustaining strategic advantage in science and technology
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Government response AI summary
The government partially agrees with the recommendation and outlines existing engagement with the Nigerian diaspora through media outlets and social media influencers. It argues against diaspora engagement for peacebuilding, claiming resident Nigerians make a more meaningful contribution.
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Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
6
Recommendation
Seventh Report - Lagos calling: Nigeria…
Accepted in Part
As an emerging science and technology hub in Africa, Nigeria presents opportunities for the UK Government to make progress toward its priority of securing strategic advantage through science and technology. Investment in businesses and capacity development in the IT sector also has the potential to bring benefits to the people …
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As an emerging science and technology hub in Africa, Nigeria presents opportunities for the UK Government to make progress toward its priority of securing strategic advantage through science and technology. Investment in businesses and capacity development in the IT sector also has the potential to bring benefits to the people of Nigeria in terms of employment and access to life-transforming technologies as well as improving the dynamism of the rest of the economy. To stimulate diaspora investment in Nigerian small and medium sized tech enterprises the UK Government needs to adopt an approach that builds capacity across the whole tech ecosystem. We recommend that the FCDO prioritise UK Government capacity building support to the Nigerian legal system and legal services for business in Nigeria. Such support will allow UK investors to capitalise on the similarities in corporate law between the two countries as well as de-risking investments.
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Government response AI summary
The government agrees on the need to engage proactively in the digital and IT sector but states that evidence does not support ODA spending on skills capacity building programmes in that sector. The FCDO will prioritize work on investment facilitation and proportionate regulation instead.
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Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
7
Recommendation
Seventh Report - Lagos calling: Nigeria…
Accepted in Part
The UK Government should be more proactive in initiating programmes that build the capacity of the Nigerian IT workforce. Such programmes have the potential to be beneficial to both countries. We recommend the FCDO lead a pilot skills development programme within the ICT sector that aims to address skills shortages …
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The UK Government should be more proactive in initiating programmes that build the capacity of the Nigerian IT workforce. Such programmes have the potential to be beneficial to both countries. We recommend the FCDO lead a pilot skills development programme within the ICT sector that aims to address skills shortages in both Nigeria and the UK. This initiative, requiring close collaboration with other Government departments including the Home Office and BEIS, would be an approach that actively seeks to reduce the chance of a brain drain scenario by ensuring that a proportion of trainees are being trained for jobs they will fill in Nigeria. We recommend that the FCDO ensures in all such programmes rural areas are not sidelined and that candidates from these areas are enabled to participate.
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Government response AI summary
The FCDO agrees on the need to engage proactively in the digital and IT sector and space, but it believes that evidence does not support ODA spend on narrowly focused skills capacity building programmes in that sector. Their IT sector interventions now seek to foster …
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Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
10
Recommendation
Seventh Report - Lagos calling: Nigeria…
Accepted in Part
The UK Government, through the merger of DFID and the FCO, aims to use Official Development Assistance (ODA) more effectively to contribute toward wider foreign policy goals. This aim has been undermined by the cuts to research and Lagos calling: Nigeria and the Integrated Review 39 training programmes in the …
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The UK Government, through the merger of DFID and the FCO, aims to use Official Development Assistance (ODA) more effectively to contribute toward wider foreign policy goals. This aim has been undermined by the cuts to research and Lagos calling: Nigeria and the Integrated Review 39 training programmes in the science and technology sectors, which are ultimately detrimental to both the UK and Nigeria. We recommend that the Government sets out a clear and coherent approach (including how it will be funded) to its partnership with Nigeria on research and training for science and technology in the integrated delivery plan.
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Government response AI summary
The FCDO does not plan to publish an ‘integrated delivery plan’ at this time, however, their science and technology approach is, and will continue to be, reflected within internal strategic planning documents. This includes putting significant resources (£30m) into supporting multilevel interventions targeting stakeholders at …
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Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
11
Recommendation
Seventh Report - Lagos calling: Nigeria…
Accepted in Part
The UK-Nigeria Tech hub is an innovative solution that has the potential to benefit UK and Nigerian businesses through the exposure of entrepreneurs to would-be investors, peer mentoring and training. The lessons learnt here have the potential to be applied to other situations on the continent. To maximise the effectiveness …
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The UK-Nigeria Tech hub is an innovative solution that has the potential to benefit UK and Nigerian businesses through the exposure of entrepreneurs to would-be investors, peer mentoring and training. The lessons learnt here have the potential to be applied to other situations on the continent. To maximise the effectiveness of this programme we recommend the FCDO champion the role of the UK-Nigeria Tech Hub by: a) ring-fencing funding; b) encouraging collaboration with other government initiatives, such as the Climate Finance Accelerator, to build capacity in the Nigerian finance sector helping green tech start-ups secure seed investment from local sources; c) working across Whitehall to better understand the barriers to SME investment in Africa and how to address them. (Paragraph 33) Strengthening Security at Home and Abroad
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Government response AI summary
The government recognises the value of the UK-Nigeria Tech Hub but does not commit to ring-fencing funding. The Digital Access Programme will continue supporting and funding the Hub for Financial Year 2022–23, and potentially to March 2025. They will also work with incubators and the …
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Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
13
Conclusion
Seventh Report - Lagos calling: Nigeria…
Accepted in Part
What is needed to support Nigeria in its efforts to reduce CO2 emissions and adapt to its impacts is a package of targeted investment in both tangibles and intangibles which addresses multiple issues simultaneously. Interventions which will bear the most fruit for citizens of Nigeria and the UK will be …
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What is needed to support Nigeria in its efforts to reduce CO2 emissions and adapt to its impacts is a package of targeted investment in both tangibles and intangibles which addresses multiple issues simultaneously. Interventions which will bear the most fruit for citizens of Nigeria and the UK will be characterised by their provision of cash to finance sustainable infrastructure investment in green innovations, and a long-term commitment to Nigeria to help embed the change.
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Government response AI summary
The UK supports regional climate initiatives through institutions and bilateral programming. They will increase engagement with the multilateral initiatives working on regional multilateral climate programming to share lessons learned from our bilateral programming, and work closely with Nigeria-only programmes to increase its impact and synergises …
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Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
14
Recommendation
Seventh Report - Lagos calling: Nigeria…
Accepted in Part
We welcome the collaboration the Prince of Wales has given to the Great Green Wall initiative through the Sustainable Markets Initiative. The UK Government, however, is not as engaged as it could be in initiatives, such as the Great Green Wall, 40 Lagos calling: Nigeria and the Integrated Review that …
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We welcome the collaboration the Prince of Wales has given to the Great Green Wall initiative through the Sustainable Markets Initiative. The UK Government, however, is not as engaged as it could be in initiatives, such as the Great Green Wall, 40 Lagos calling: Nigeria and the Integrated Review that take a holistic and integrated approach to climate adaptation and mitigation— addressing multiple causes and effects of climate change simultaneously. This is despite the shared benefits for the UK and Nigeria on the ground, as well as the potential for addressing the root causes of more proximate issues to the UK, such as terrorism and illegal immigration, and to Nigeria, such as conflict and food insecurity. To maintain a coherent approach, and to maximise the benefits of the multiple initiatives to raise finance and build capacity for projects, we recommend that the FCDO champion Nigerian-led international climate initiatives with a broader holistic vision, such as the Great Green Wall, contributing where the UK can add value. There are opportunities for the FCDO to bring together its expertise in diplomacy, aid and trade to support these efforts as well as supporting UK NGOs already engaged at African Union level. One such action could include convening multilateral bodies and grass roots groups to aid greater collaboration toward delivery and measurement of trans-national projects. The FCDO’s approach should be outlined in the integrated delivery plan.
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Government response AI summary
The government partially agreed, stating it supports regional climate initiatives through multilateral institutions, but believes it can deliver more effective support through bilateral programming and will increase engagement with multilateral initiatives to share lessons learned.
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Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
18
Recommendation
Seventh Report - Lagos calling: Nigeria…
Accepted in Part
Investment in, and support for, Nigerian creative arts bring social and economic benefits for Nigerians. Investment builds on the UK’s soft power as a champion of the arts, helping maintain its position as a leader in the worldwide music industry. We recommend the FCDO support the development of the Afrobeats …
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Investment in, and support for, Nigerian creative arts bring social and economic benefits for Nigerians. Investment builds on the UK’s soft power as a champion of the arts, helping maintain its position as a leader in the worldwide music industry. We recommend the FCDO support the development of the Afrobeats genre, and other Nigerian creative arts, through: a) Funding proposed projects and broadcasters, such as the BBC World Service, aimed at extending the access of Nigerian creative arts to a wider audience. b) Supporting initiatives aiming to use the creative arts as a tool for reconciliation, development and empowerment in Nigerian society. Such initiatives should seek to support emerging artists from disadvantaged backgrounds and the approach should be outlined in the integrated delivery plan for Nigeria. c) Championing cross-government policies that encourage the cultural exchange between the UK and Nigeria including a track to make it easier for Nigerian musicians to perform in the UK as well as support for creative artists in maintaining the intellectual property rights over their work. The FCDO could consider initiating a UK-Nigeria Creative Arts Hub with DCMS that would allow for greater collaboration between artists. It could also facilitate access for artists to UK organisations which assist in development and training.
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Government response AI summary
The government is supportive of efforts to connect artists in the UK and Nigeria, citing the UK Government-supported creatives trade mission to Nigeria. However, they feel enhancing practical co-ordination of existing work would be more effective rather than creating a new creative arts hub.
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Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
19
Recommendation
Seventh Report - Lagos calling: Nigeria…
Accepted in Part
We applaud the important work undertaken by the British Council in promoting greater cultural ties and building on soft power assets. Similarly, the BBC World Service provides both a voice into, and a voice out of Nigeria, communicating British and Nigerian values and interests. We recommend that British Council funding …
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We applaud the important work undertaken by the British Council in promoting greater cultural ties and building on soft power assets. Similarly, the BBC World Service provides both a voice into, and a voice out of Nigeria, communicating British and Nigerian values and interests. We recommend that British Council funding for programmes that demonstrate synergy with the aspirations of the Integrated Review is ring-fenced. Funding for the BBC World Service should be sufficient to ensure that it remains the most popular and reliable source of accurate news and current affairs in Nigeria, as well as a relevant means of promoting cultural exchange.
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Government response AI summary
The government does not agree with ring-fencing British Council programming, as the FCDO provides a block grant and the British Council's focus and programmes are aligned to HMG's priorities in Nigeria. The FCDO has agreed to provide £95.84m to the World Service, through the World …
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Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office