In its quest to change the inclement business conditions in the country particularly in the ease of doing business, the National Assembly has transmitted the new Business Facilitation (Miscellaneous Provision) Bill 2022 to President Muhammadu Buhari for his assent. The bill, when it eventually becomes law, will be known as the Omnibus Business Act.

Dr Jumoke Oduwole, the Special Adviser to the President on Ease of Doing Business/Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC), on Friday in Abuja, said the enabling business bill will soon be signed into law. The Executive Bill was passed by the House of Representatives in October 2022 and by the Senate in December 2022.

Nigeria is Africa’s largest economy. The country is, however, currently ranked 131 out of 190 economies in the world on ease of doing business, according to the latest World Bank annual ratings

According to Oduwole, the Business Facilitation Bill aims to codify Executive Order 001 (EO1) on Transparency and Efficiency in Public Service Delivery. She said it would also amend select business facilitation laws identified as critical to the ease of doing business in Nigeria, and institutionalise business climate reforms.

“The bill is designed to strengthen ongoing reforms and consolidate legislative provisions that border on ease of doing business in Nigeria. The transmitted bill is a culmination of four years of collaboration of public and private sector stakeholders since 2018. This includes the Federal Ministry of Justice and the Section on Business Law of the Nigerian Bar Association through the participation of over 40 law firms and consulting firms,” she was quoted to have said.

The Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG) and the National Assembly Business Environment Roundtable (NASSBER) are also part of the critical stakeholders. “The Omnibus bill is an intervention of PEBEC to consolidate and amend legislative provisions towards deepening PEBEC reforms and removing bottlenecks for Micro, Small, and Medium-sized Enterprises (MSMEs) in Nigeria,” she said.

The main challenges of doing business in Nigeria include a hostile business environment, difficulty finding competent staff, poor state of Infrastructure, red tape, bureaucracy, and changing government policies as well as high cost of business financing, among several others. Although the current government has focused on making the country more conducive for businesses to thrive, Nigeria has not moved appreciably in the ease of doing business index.

Ayodele Johnson

Ayodelé is a Lagos-based journalist and the Content and Editorial Coordinator at Meiza. All around the megacity, I am steering diverse lifestyle magazine audiences with ingenious hacks and insights that spur fast, informed decisions in their busy lives.