The Federal Government has stepped up efforts to generate more revenue from Government-Owned Enterprises (GOEs) as part of a wider fiscal strategy aimed at reducing deficits and strengthening Nigeria’s public finances.
At the centre of the renewed drive is the introduction of a performance scorecard by the Ministry of Finance Incorporated (MOFI) to track the operational efficiency of GOEs and their compliance with corporate governance standards.
The scorecard, which is already in use, is expected to guide government decisions on whether to consolidate, expand or exit specific investments. It will also serve as the benchmark for assessing the performance of federal portfolio companies.
Complementing the initiative is the MOFI Excellence Awards, an annual programme designed to recognise and reward GOEs that demonstrate strong compliance and outstanding performance based on the scorecard. Although the awards were unveiled last year, the first full cycle is scheduled to commence this year as part of a continuous performance improvement framework.
A Presidency source told The Nation at the weekend that the awards are intended to promote accountability and reward best practices among government-owned firms.
“What the award does is to reward compliance by portfolio companies,” the source said.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu had earlier sounded a stern warning while presenting the 2025 budget to the National Assembly, declaring that underperformance by GOEs and revenue-generating agencies would no longer be tolerated.
“Nigeria can no longer afford leakages, inefficiencies, or underperformance in strategic agencies,” the President said, directing the leadership of GOEs to meet assigned revenue targets under close monitoring.
To reinforce the directive, Tinubu announced plans to deploy comprehensive digitisation across revenue mobilisation processes. These include standardised electronic collections, interoperable payment systems, automated reconciliation, data-driven risk profiling and real-time performance dashboards.
According to the President, the measures are designed to seal revenue leakages, strengthen compliance and ensure prompt remittance of funds into government coffers.
The Presidency source noted that the renewed focus on GOEs is directly linked to the Tinubu administration’s determination to narrow the fiscal deficit through improved revenue mobilisation.
“The goal is to reduce the deficit by raising more revenue. That means our state-owned enterprises must perform better and make larger contributions to the government purse,” the source said.
Central to the strategy is MOFI, which has been mandated not only to enhance the performance of GOEs but also to drive strategic investments across key sectors of the economy, in line with the administration’s broader economic reform agenda.