The Federal Government on Tuesday made a member of the board of First Bank of Nigeria Plc, Alhaji Mahey Rasheed, chairman of the management board of the Sovereign Wealth Fund.

The SWF is to replace the controversial Excess Crude Account, which was set up to save extra income made from the sale of crude oil in the international market above the benchmark rate.

The Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, who announced the constitution of the board in a statement, also named a former Managing Director, JP Morgan, Mr. Uche Orji, to serve in a similar capacity at the SWF.

Other members of the board are Mr. Arnold Ekpe, Mr. Jide Zeitlin, Mrs. Bili Awosika, Bisi Soyebo (SAN), Alhaji Hassan Usman and Mrs. Stella Ojekwe-Onyejeli.

Okonjo-Iweala, however, said that upon completion of due diligence, the candidate for the Chief Investment Officer was dropped. Although the minister did not state why, she explained that the position would be re-advertised shortly.

She said that the board would provide guidance for the operations of the Nigerian Sovereign Investment Authority.

The minister said that the implementation of the SWF would commence with an initial fund of $1bn, adding that the account would, for now, operate side-by-side the ECA.

“We will not shut down the ECA immediately because it will run side-by-side with the SWF for now and we will continue to see the expectations of stakeholders, but in the longer term, the ECA will fold into the SWF,” she explained.

Okonjo-Iweala said with a current balance of $7.35bn, the ECA had grown in the past few months.

The minister added that the recruitment of the management team for the board, which lasted almost a year, was rigorous and transparent.

She said 730 applications were received for the three executive positions of Chief Executive Officer, Executive Director (Investments) and Executive Director (Risk).

Okonjo-Iweala said, “Following a rigorous and transparent process, which lasted almost a year, the much anticipated SWF has become a reality with the announcement of the board of the institution, which will provide guidance for the operations of the NSIA.

“The establishment of an institutional foundation for the SWF is a victory for all Nigerians and a credit to the President, who assented to the bill in May last year.”

She added that the move demonstrated the determination of the Federal Government to improve the lives of Nigerians through macro-economic policies and initiatives.

“We have started putting together a quality team to ensure that we realise the objectives that inspired the establishment of the SWF. I am sure the team realises what is at stake and is ready to do the necessary work so that the country can start enjoying the benefits as soon as possible,” she said.

The minister said the SWF was made up of three major funds; stabilisation, infrastructure fund and future generations’ funds.

She said the new management team would begin operations in October, adding that it would develop a five-year investment plan for each of the funds.

On how the three funds would be managed, she explained, “Twenty per cent of any SWF funding shall be allocated to each of the three funds until they reach a ceiling percentage of Gross Domestic Product.

Source: Punch/ Ifeanyi Onuba & Ademola Alawiye