Nigeria

Overall, research suggests that, for various reasons, it remains difficult to hold multinational parent companies responsible for their subsidiaries’ wrongs. The question remains whether there are indeed justifiable reasons for holding parent companies liable for their subsidiaries’ wrongs. This question must be answered affirmatively.

The current attention to sustainability challenges in Nigeria presents a good opportunity for policy makers to review the extant company legislation in Nigeria and incorporate CSR provisions suitable to the nation’s cultural and economic context. The aim of CSR regulation is to use the market economy to finance and achieve sustainable development. The purpose of the company should be redefined to serve all the constituents, not only the community, but also employees, customers and investors.

The Commercial Law Research Network Nigeria (CLRNN) was established in 2019 to create a platform through which the suitability of reforms to the commercial law in Nigeria can be critically discussed. CLRNN creates a collaborative environment in which researchers with expert knowledge of Nigeria’s domestic and international contexts can engage on various commercial law subjects germane to Nigeria’s economy.

TWAIL scholarship share three central themes. First, it engages in historical analysis to disinter partial narratives of international law. Second, the historical analysis exposes avenues through which particular aspects of international law are unjust to everyday realities of Third World peoples. Third, some TWAIL scholarship attempt to reform or transform unjust international law to suit the needs and realities of Third World peoples.

Nigeria, in recognition of the varying economic, political, environmental and social dangers posed by the over reliance on carbon based forms of energy, has started to turn to the idea of decarbonisation. However, this process can be difficult to attain, because of conflict between the different actors in an energy system. When unresolved or improperly managed, such conflicts can delay / derail decarbonisation initiatives and could scare away Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) which has proven crucial in driving decarbonisation initiatives in emerging markets such as Nigeria.

This contribution aims to examine Nigeria’s use of Green Bonds as an example of an innovative policy initiative which has the potential to promote economic development while simultaneously reducing Nigeria’s carbon emission levels.

Nigeria, Africa’s most populous country, is blessed with abundant energy resources both conventional and renewable. In Nigeria, crude oil exports account for about 90 percent of foreign exchange earnings and 80 percent of government revenue, thus making the country’s economy heavily reliant on oil revenue. However, global economies of both developed and developing countries are now embarking on transitions to sustainable low carbon economy. Given the move towards sources of renewable energy, this has adversely affected oil revenue, consequently, it is very important that Nigeria diversify its economy.

This blog post examined how legal and institutional barriers have affected FDI in Nigeria’s RE sector and proffered strategies to resolve the identified issues. It was established that though Nigeria has considerable potential for generating solar, small and large hydro, biomass, biogas and wind energy to bridge her huge energy gap, the current RE production from these sources is abysmally low. Meanwhile, the FDI inflow in the sector is declining despite the government’s renewed favourable disposition. The situation is further exacerbated by some legal and institutional impediments that include policy inconsistency, inadequate legal framework, corruption, ineffective administrative processes, poor adherence to the rule of law, lack of awareness and insecurity.

Nigeria is obligated under extant international and municipal laws to acidulously respect, protect and fulfill PRTD. Though PRTD created under ACHPR is legally enforceable in Nigeria as exemplified in the enforcement of right to healthy environment (also created under ACHPR) in the case of Gbemre vs. SPDC (Supra); PRTD remains unpopular in Nigeria due to lack of awareness of its existence among the Nigerian people.

We are keenly following the unfolding developments in Nigeria and in the sub-Saharan countries that are on the cusp of adopting competition laws, and of course the developments in the AfCFTA as well as ECOWAS/WAEMU and other regionals. We hope to engage with these developments, and hope that our book can provide some insights and a perspective; a building block for moving forward towards a Voice for Africa.