By Peter Egwuatu

Renaissance Capital Limited said the Federal Government needs to initiate policies that will attract long term investment into the country.

Chief Executive Officer, Nigeria’s Renaissance Capital, Mr. Temitope Popoola, said investors all over the world invest in countries where there are favourable policies that enhance productivity and in turn lead to profitability. “Investors invest with the purpose of having returns from their investment.”

President Muhammadu Buhari and Vice President Yemi Osinbajo at the opening of a 2-day National Economic Council Retreat at the Statehouse Conference Centre on 21st March 2016.

He therefore called on the government to put in policies that will drive investment into the country, not just short term but long term investment.

While reacting to the proposed plan by the federal government to borrow N1.8 trillion to finance the 2016 fiscal year, he said: “There is nothing wrong in borrowing, but the government should put adequate structures in place to ensure it generates revenue to repay whatever it borrows.”

In his remark at the Renaissance Capital’s 7th Annual Investor Conference held in Lagos, the global chief economist at Renaissance Capital, Mr. Charles Robertson, said Nigeria do not need hot money but long term funds from Fund Managers. Fund managers would like to engage investors with long term fund to invest in the country .

“They want to invest in Nigeria for a long term especially in equity market. They will want to buy into stocks with good fundamental and not touch it for 10 years and it just goes up and there are stocks like that in Russia, that have made some fund managers successful. They want Nigeria to derive the right policy for investors” he emphasized.

He also pointed out that both equity investors and other investors coming into the country for businesses would want to see better governance, strong growth and sustainable strong currency.

Robertson noted that with the level of the per capital GDP of the country, the agriculture processing industry and textile is where investment should be happening now and as Nigeria gets richer and by year 2020, investment can then be moved into the heavy industry like steel for example.

Also, the Chief Executive Officer, Renaissance Capital, Igor Vayn, said, “We are confident in Nigeria with the vast untapped resources, its potential is great, coupled with its growing consumer base.”

He added that going forward, Renaissance Capital will continue to develop its business in the continent to support the economic growth and facilitate further investment in Africa’s fast-growing markets.