In the past three years, a total of 14 state governments have allegedly expended at least N21.04bn on foreign trips, yet none of them has managed to attract foreign investments successfully.

The states includes; Bauchi, Bayelsa, Benue, Borno, Cross River, Ebonyi, Edo, Gombe, Imo, Jigawa, Nasarawa, Taraba, Yobe, and Zamfara

Despite the influx of $14.85bn from foreign investors into Nigeria between 2021 and the third quarter of 2023, these states have failed to secure a share in the foreign investment pie.

Between 2021 and 2023, a breakdown of expenses on foreign trips by several states reveals Bauchi spending N3.81bn, Bayelsa N1.99bn, Benue N1.33bn, Borno N1.73bn, Cross River N663.16m, Ebonyi N1.01bn, Edo N1.77bn, Gombe N32.09m, Imo N541.23m, Jigawa N1.10bn, Nasarawa N541.26m, Taraba N2.52bn, Yobe N1.24bn, and Zamfara N2.77bn.

Surprisingly, despite these expenditures, there is no tangible result or foreign investments to show for the funds, according to data extracted from state budget performance reports obtained from Open Nigerian States.

It’s worth noting that not all states provided complete budget performance reports, with some only covering two quarters in certain instances.

Kebbi is notably absent from the list of states receiving foreign direct investments during the reviewed period, and unfortunately, there is no available data on the amount spent by the state on foreign-related trips.

The overall absence of foreign investments in these states aligns with a broader decline in investments across the country, attributed to concerns related to insecurity and other prevailing issues during the same period.

The World Bank opined, “Net FDI inflows are negative, reflecting net withdrawals of equity by foreign investors. FDI and FPI flows into Nigeria do not compare favourably with similar economies of the world, reflecting difficulties with FX availability, security concerns, and other structural challenges in recent years.”

Several states mentioned in this report, including Zamfara, Jigawa, and Nasarawa, have been grappling with the scourge of banditry in recent years.

In Zamfara, for example, banditry has become pervasive, affecting almost 14 local government areas.

The situation has led to the abandonment of over 70% of farmlands in the state, with farmers fearing attacks by bandits.

Highlighting the impact on investments, in 2022, the Managing Director of Zamfara State Investment Cooperation, Dr. Anas Hamisu Lawal, pointed out that insecurity was a major factor hindering the attraction of investments into the state.

Lawal said, “The first question they always ask is the security situation in the state..They are willing to invest whenever the security situation improves.”

In 2022, David Olofu, the Benue State Commissioner for Finance, emphasized the significant impact of insecurity on states’ ability to attract investors.

He said “It is obvious that insecurity prevented many states from attracting investors in 2021. How many investors did the Federal Government attract?

“How will investors come even when citizens are not safe? How will investors come when citizens cannot themselves invest in their place?”

In the same year, Governor Godwin Obaseki of Edo State announced a strategic focus on sectors such as technology, agriculture, and entertainment to attract investors to the state.

Despite these efforts, the state has not recorded any foreign investments in the past three years, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

In 2021, Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo, the Deputy Governor of Bayelsa State, disclosed that Governor Douye Diri was utilizing his foreign trips to attract investors, aiming to enhance the state’s economy.

He said, “We believe that we have procedures, and the governor deserves the attention he deserves to give to investors so that investors are brought to our state as no system that is not interacting with any other system can be very effective. What makes an economy a viable economy is the external investment into the economy.”

The mentioned states continue to face a dearth of foreign investments.

Discussing this situation, Professor Akpan Ekpo, a specialist in Economics and Public Policy at the University of Uyo, explained to The PUNCH, “They are not importing capital for two reasons. First, they don’t have potential investors who will do that. Secondly, there is insecurity in the country. Those things are not fertile ground for investments.”

An ECOWAS Common Investment Market consultant, Professor Jonathan Aremu, added, “It’s simple. It’s because they don’t have attractive factors.

“The factors that attract foreign investment are not available in those states. One thing about investment is that it is crisis shy.

“Investment doesn’t go to places where there are crises. Why? Because investors want stability and predictability in their investments, particularly, having returns on their investments.” he added