getting the word out

Nasir El-Rufai

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D
Focus Area(s)
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1
Country of Reform
Interviewers
Graeme Blair and Daniel Scher
Name
Nasir El-Rufai
Interviewee's Position
Former Director General, Bureau of Public Enterprises, and Secretary, Council on Privatization
Interviewee's Organization
Nigeria
Language
English
Nationality of Interviewee
Nigerian
Town/City
Washington, D.C.
Country
Date of Interview
Reform Profile
Yes
Abstract

Nasir El-Rufai narrates his entry into public service in the context of the return to democracy under President Olusegun Obasanjo.  As an outsider to the political scene, he managed to advocate for privatization and eventually drafted and implemented a concrete multistage plan.  El-Rufai identifies the “easy” cases for privatization as companies that are (1) already listed on the stock exchange, (2) easy to value, (3) already operational in competitive markets, and/or (4) not politically contentious.  In contrast, the “hard” cases require progressive policy reform including regulatory sector review, enactment of legislation for independent oversight, implementation of antitrust measures and, notably, the creation of a pension system.  In dealing with trade unions and special interest groups, El-Rufai highlights the importance of legal tools and the support of the media, the general public and figures with considerable political capital, such as Obasanjo and Vice President Atiku Abubakar.  He also describes his office’s instrumental collaboration with the newly created Economic and Financial Crimes Commission in the fight against money laundering and, in particular, the Nigerian letter scams.  During Obasanjo’s second term, El-Rufai joined the Economic Management Team that successfully renegotiated the Nigerian external debt and pursued wide-ranging reform.  He attributes the success to the trust, sacrifice and synergy established within the team; their capacity to understand and integrate Obasanjo’s political goals into a reform plan; and their ability to capitalize on booming oil prices by using revenues to strengthen fiscal rule.  His commitment to reform continued during his tenure as minister for the Federal Capital Territory (FCT Abuja).  To improve the quality of service delivery, he promoted the involvement of the private sector in service provision and increased the range of options for public staff training, including attachment with public and private entities in Nigeria and abroad, and post-graduate training at Harvard Business School.  El-Rufai also sought to disincentivize engagement in corruption by increasing remuneration. He addressed the challenge of limited resources by focusing on civil service downsizing and reduction of state expenditure followed by a pay increase across the board.  The necessary downsizing was achieved through a double strategy.  First, following the computerization of personnel management, ghost workers were identified and eliminated from the system.  Second, permanent secretaries were tasked with identifying underperforming or corrupt civil servants, who were offered retirement packages.  As the administration could reject resignations, the drain of the best public servants was prevented, and El-Rufai aimed to address the sources of their discontent, such as shortcomings in the promotion system.  On the other hand, cost reduction mainly entailed the transfer of government-provided housing and vehicles to private ownership by civil servants, amortized through a newly created mortgage system and installment plans.  El-Rufai then discusses another major and controversial achievements of his tenure, namely the land titling initiative, highlighting the role of democratizing information to manage public pressure and increase transparency.  In closing, his personal reflections on public policy making include the need for immersion in the political scene to ensure the continuity of reform across administrations, and the importance of formal training in public administration to understand how to frame policy to overcome resistance and biases. 

 

Profile

A quantity surveyor by training, Nasir Ahmad El-Rufai worked as a consultant in the construction private sector for years.  After declining several offers to join the public sector, in 1999 he became president Olusegun Obasanjo’s director general of the Bureau of Public Enterprises  and Secretary of the National Council on Privatization.  During Obasanjo’s second term, he served as a member of the Economic Management Team and took over as minister for the Federal Capital Territory (Abuja), where he led civil service reform and undertook the computerization of Abuja’s land register.  He served briefly under President Umaru Yar’Adua.  After leaving public service, he completed legal and public management training programs at the University of London and the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard. 

Full Audio File Size
136 MB
Full Audio Title
Nasir El-Rufai - Full Interview

Edward Larbi-Siaw

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I
Focus Area(s)
Ref Batch Number
9
Country of Reform
Interviewers
Itumeleng Makgetla
Name
Edward Larbi-Siaw
Interviewee's Position
Tax Policy Adviser
Interviewee's Organization
Ministry of Finance, Ghana
Language
English
Nationality of Interviewee
Ghana
Town/City
Accra
Country
Date of Interview
Reform Profile
No
Abstract

Edward Larbi-Siaw describes in detail the process of tax administration reform in Ghana during the late 1980s.  First, the reform program sought to recruit highly skilled and diversified personnel that could raise to the challenges posed by the new taxation environment.  Larbi-Siaw describes alternative strategies to incentivize employment with the National Revenue Secretariat (NRS), including salaries matching those offered by the private sector and hierarchy adjustments aimed at providing in-demand scientists with ranks equal to those they would have at universities. This was possible only after the NRS was removed from the civil service to circumvent pay restrictions and rigid promotion systems.  Second, the secretariat was transformed into an agency through an institutional overhaul that involved the creation of departments specialized in research, internal operations, auditing, finance and human resources. Third, enhanced supervision and monitoring of revenue flow contributed to an increase in effectiveness and a reduction in corruption and malfeasance.  This was complemented by selective purges of corrupt or underperforming officials, with the notable exception of the operations core that remained largely untouched due to the strategic need to maintain the NRS running throughout the restructuring process and to minimize resistance.  Larbi-Siaw attributes the lack of generalized resistance to the reform to the support of the government, a consensus-building approach predicated on internal deliberation and consultation with other relevant agencies, and the successes of creative outreach efforts of the newly created NRS customer service and public relations departments. Nonetheless, there were two main sources of resistance. First, civil servants resented the retention of revenue to sustain high salaries at the NRS, which resulted in the abolition of retention and the drain of many qualified staff.  Second, public discontent over misused funds affected the NRS due to the inevitable link between revenue collection and expenditure. Information provision was key to transparency, and required extensive cooperation with the Ministry of Finance that could not always be secured due to intrinsic institutional conflict over jurisdictions.  Both factors also contributed to the considerable delay in integration of the revenue agencies—the Internal Revenue Service and the Customs, Excise and Preventive Services—despite a stated preference for a one-stop shop.  Finally, Larbi Siaw describes specific tax regulations that were introduced, highlighting the role of codification in the management of special interest groups that had previously been able to secure ad hoc exemptions.  

Case Study:  Professionalization, Decentralization, and a One-Stop Shop: Tax Collection Reform in Ghana, 1986-2008

Profile

At the time of this interview, Edward Larbi-Siaw was the tax policy adviser in the Ministry of Finance of Ghana. Trained as an economist, he initially worked at Ghana's central bank. He left that post to study law and management accounting. Upon returning to Ghana, he joined the National Supply Commission. As he specialized in economics taxation, he transferred to the National Revenue Secretariat (NRS) as chief director.  While at the NRS, he was involved in important reforms in tax administration and the structure of taxation.

Full Audio File Size
82 MB
Full Audio Title
Edward Larbi-Slaw Interview