Vice President Yemi Osinbajo says officials negotiating contracts on behalf of Nigeria lack requisite knowledge to represent the country.
Osinbajo noted that many nations had suffered from illicit financial flows and losses due to poorly negotiated economic agreements.
The Vice President, who spoke at the opening of a two-day physical and virtual capacity building training for Nigerian negotiators organised by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission, stressed that the quality of the officials who represented the country at negotiations had reflected in the economy of the nation.
Osinbajo also identified poorly negotiated agreements and poor monitoring as the most significant causes of financial losses by nations.
According to him, “People must be held responsible for poorly negotiated contracts while transparency and due process must be encouraged.”
ICPC Chairman, Prof Bolaji Owasanoye, while speaking on ‘Guidelines for Negotiating International Agreements for Economic Development,’ on the occasion, said the essence of governance was development.
Special Assistant to the President on Economic Matters, Dr Yemi Dipeolu, on his part said the nation must develop “a corps of negotiators who could tackle the menace of illicit financial flows.”
The training was organised in conjunction with the Inter-Agency Committee on Stopping Illicit Financial Flows from Nigeria.
Participants include senior and middle-level negotiators drawn from the Ministries, Departments and Agencies who are involved in negotiating trade agreements with foreign nations and companies for Nigeria.