By FRANCIS OGBIMI

THE Oxford Advance Learner’s Dictionary 1995 Edition, defined the word “wisdom” as the ability to make good and serious judgement because of one’s experience and knowledge. However, we know that true wisdom, knowledge and understanding are gifts from God. Making good judgement, as such, is not a common thing. The world is in turmoil today because many leaders do not make good judgement. Whereas the Japanese privatisation was characterised by wisdom, knowledge and understanding, the Nigerian one was not.

Nigeria’s development plans and activities have always been guided by greed, lack of knowledge and refusal to learn on the part of those who have been managing the Nigerian economy. The purpose of this article therefore, is to compare the Nigerian privatisation experience with what Japan did that transformed the nation from an agricultural/artisan one into an industrialised one rapidly. Perhaps those who have been misleading Nigeria can learn from the Japanese experience and stop doing the wrong thing. 

Japan claims that its origin dates back to 600 B. C., though, more objective sources suggest that the existence of Japan dates back to about 300 B. C. That explains why the Japanese government celebrated the 2600th anniversary of the nation with great publicity in 1940. It is believed that the Japanese derived most of their culture from China, Korea and other South-East Asian nations. The Japanese state in the 6th century was mentioned as a tribally divided people in Chinese record. Japan as such, is a younger nation than Korea and China. The period before the end of the 7th century is referred to as the transition period, while the period eighth through the first half of the nineteenth century is described as the experimental period in Japanese history.

Japan, like China, was ruled for centuries by dynasties (lines) of kings. Fujiwara, Kamkura and Ashikara, were some of the dynasties up to the 16th century. Succession was a serious problem in Japan. Japan was in serious confusion during the first half of the 16th century. That was the situation in Japan when the nation had its first encounter with Europeans. The Portuguese were the first to enter Japan in 1543. Christian missionaries introduced Christianity into Japan during the period 1549-1551. Confucianism and Buddhism had been introduced into Japan in the sixth century. The Japanese government executed some missionaries and native Christians in 1593 and expelled all other foreigners at about 1613 before going into seclusion. 

Science and technology up to the Tokugawa period remained primitive. Technology remained artisan; the more commonly used agricultural mechanisation instruments were draft animals, ploughs and hoes. Land remained the most important resource, with much of it in the hands of small number of wealthy people. Shifts were often covered by subterfuge.

During the middle of the nineteenth century, Japan remained a closed society and the nation achieved feudal stability. All efforts by Europeans and Americans to establish friendly relations up to the middle of the nineteenth century were rebuffed, because they were seen as developments likely to introduce bad influence into Japan.

However, Japan was forced to open her doors to the West as from 1854. After many trials, the United States in 1854 through the threat of her naval fleet forced Japan to open her ports to American ships and trade. When Matthew Perry, the American naval officer, entered Edo Bay in Japan, on board the steam frigate Susquehanna in 1854, most Japanese had never seen such a vessel much less a whole flotilla. The Japanese quickly realised that the time to remain in seclusion was over. Japan quickly signed a series of forced-treaties from 1854 to 1858 with America and other Western nations.

That led to the subtle change of government known as the Meiji Restoration of 1868. The Japanese quickly realised that the way forward was to learn from the West. The decision to learn from the West followed from the saying associated with the Asians: ‘Do not just give me fish to eat, rather, teach me how to fish so that I can catch fish myself any time I wish to eat fish.’ That regime quickly made changes in the structure of government and educational system. By 1875, there were some 600 Western experts hired by the Japanese government and some 3000 foreign advisers were invited into Japan between the signing of fundamental treaties and 1890.

The Restoration met Japan an agrarian nation. There were few, if any industries of importance in Japan at that time. The government did not waste time establishing model industries which encouraged Japanese to learn and acquire knowledge, skills and capabilities to build the factories modelled after those set up by government. Most of the public enterprises built by Meiji Japan lost money for a long time. However, because the primary objective for establishing them was for the citizens to learn from them, promote industrialisation and establish private ones to demonstrate that the Japanese have learnt and acquired the relevant knowledge, skills and capabilities to build and run similar plants and industries, they could not be sold till the desired objectives were achieved. Agricultural development is invariably preceded by industrialisation in the development process. The first attempt to develop agriculture after the Restoration failed, due to the clamour of people for less of government (privatisation). Only a short time of cessation of government’s interest was necessary to demonstrate the futility of allowing matters drift and in 1890-91 the government resumed the task.

The establishment of public enterprises in Nigeria was never aimed at industrialisation. Following the colonial experience with Britain, Nigeria’s five-year National Plans 1960-1985 and the Structural Adjustment Programme, SAP, introduced to many African nations by the World Bank and IMF, 1986-now, were all based on the claim in the West that nations develop by merely investing capital. Developing nations may invest on infrastructure to attract foreign investments. 

Public enterprises were therefore established to provide jobs-with-no emphasis on learning and quick return of investments. Consequently, Nigeria’s privatisation was based on the grudge that the invested funds were not being returned as expected and seen by the powerful in government as the opportunity to acquire public liquid assets in banks, the oil and gas industry, and to abandoning core industrialisation-promoting enterprises like iron and steel and aluminium plants, paper-making industry, etc. 

The Nigerian establishment of public enterprises and their sale was not guided by wisdom but by greed and absence of wisdom. 

What Nigeria needs is integrated learning (education, training, employment and research) and industrialisation. This would demand many public enterprises for teaching production activities. A learning-society is the progressive one. Integrated learning would readily develop the capabilities for doing many things including production and servicing and repairing refineries. A learning society is on the route to industrialisation. No industrialisation, no reliable infrastructure. The development of a nation is about acquiring new knowledge, skills and capabilities for solving problems including production. Industrialisation is achieved after a society has accumulated a critical quantity of knowledge, skills and capabilities. The learning-society is the progressive one. 

*Ogbimi, a development economist, wrote via: [email protected]