Why ministry of finance hired foreign PR agency

The recent issues surrounding the act of the federal ministry of finance in hiring a British public relations (PR) and strategic communications consultancy group to handle its public relations portfolio for a monthly fee of two million dollars at a time when the government is struggling to survive has continued to general debate among stakeholders.

While it is believed in some quarters that the move was as a result of strong desire for value delivery, others considered it not to be in line with international best practice.

Though some analysts are of the opinion that, the federal ministry of finance may have done its research and discovered that local public relations agencies could not deliver to the ministry the desired value, others posited that there are agencies in Nigeria that have affiliations with agencies abroad that can deliver whatever value the ministry may desire.

While explaining the reasons for this action, Kemi Adeosun, minister of finance, explained that the ministry of finance hired Africa Practice, British public relations (PR) and strategic communications consultants.

According to her, “the ministry hired Africa Practice — alongside Banwo and Ighodalo, Citibank, Standard Chartered Bank — for international work on Nigeria’s recently tapped Eurobond, which was oversubscribed.”

Adeosun said; “the details of the deal are all available to the public, adding that it was approved by the Federal Executive Council (FEC). Africa Practice were engaged for international work on Eurobond for the next three years alongside Citibank, Standard Chartered, and Banwo and Ighodalo,”

As against the reported N610 million per month payment, Adeosun said Africa Practice was hired at N25 million per year or N2.083 per month. She said her ministry and the hired partners have succeeded in raising $1.5 billion for the country, with more to come.

She added that Africa Practice was present at the just concluded World Bank, IMF meetings in Washington DC as part of the assignment of interfacing with international investors. Africa Practice offers “risk advisory services with strategic communications to help clients identify opportunity, mitigate risk and overcome critical communications challenges. It has presence in Ghana, Kenya, South Africa, Tanzania, Zimbabwe, Australia, UK and Nigeria.

Reacting to this issue, the president of the public relations consultants association of Nigerai (PRCAN), John Ehiguese, told Daily Time that, “President Muhammadu Buhari should make his Finance Minister, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, who led the Nigerian delegation to the Washington DC meeting to explain whether the process of choosing the UK firm complied with the provisions of the Public Procurement Act, regarding competitive bid from other equally qualified Public Relations Consulting firms.

According to him, “It will also be of interest to the Nigerian people to know if the Efficiency Unit of the Federal Ministry of Finance signed off on the payment of the retainer fee allegedly paid to the PR firm in question.”

Ehiguese, who is also the CEO of Mediacraft Limited, a PR agency in Lagos, said the Minister’s actions confirmed the insatiable appetite of Nigerian public office holders for “foreign is better” items. He recalled that a similar step was taken by Trade and Investment Minister, Okechuknwu Enelamah, who engaged the services of the same firm to manage the “Ease of Doing Business” campaign of the Federal Government without any competitive bid involving Nigerian PR firms.

Ehiguese insisted that Nigerian PR firms had the competence and understanding of Nigerian issues to manage the campaign, adding that Adeosun’s action was a further depletion of Nigeria’s foreign resources at a time when the economy was in the recovery room.

In all this, analysts posited that the local PR agencies have to up their game if they want to remain relevant in the country. Practitioners must ensure they attend international conferences and meetings in order to build network and capacity for themselves and also remain important before government and the larger society.