On Thursday, February 4th, a former Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Emmanuel Ibe Kachikwu, publicly presented four new books at a classy virtual global event, which attracted over 2,300 participants from no fewer than five continents.
Participating were President Muhammadu Buhari, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, former Minister of Defence, T.Y Danjuma; the current Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Timipre Sylva, Secretary General of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), Sanusi Barkindo and the Edo State Governor, Godwin Obaseki.
Others, who witnessed the event were the Minister of Mines and Hydrocarbon in Equatorial Guinea, Gabriel Obiang Lima; Secretary General of Africa Petroleum Producers’ Organisation, Omar Farouk; Mr. Abdulrasaq Isa, Mr. Austin Avuru as well as other global oil industry chiefs, the academia, lawyers and business titans.
However, below are the respective reviews of each of the books, which many of the participants reckoned would continue to provide guidance to the industry operators in terms of experience, knowledge and policy formation.
The Nigerian Petroleum Industry: 2015 to the Future
REVIEWER: ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR, DR. DAYO AYOADE (MNI), FROM THE FACULTY OF LAW, UNIVERSITY OF LAGOS, WITH SPECIALTIES IN ENERGY, PETROLEUM AND ELECTRICITY SECTOR.
The book titled Nigerian Petroleum Industry: 2015 to the Future; Restructuring and Reforming for Growth, is an interesting book. The book deals with policies and looks to the future of our country. Since we discovered oil in 1956, Nigeria has struggled with its oil and we need policy books like this to strategise way forward for the nation.
There are several oil and gas books, of course, in the market but few of them actually look to the future – few of them provide this kind of strategic and analytical approach that consider where we are, and we need to get to.
I find that this book reflects Dr. Kachukwu’s private sector experience as well as his time in office as Minister of Petroleum Resources. It also demonstrates a formidable team of technocrats that backed up the minister during his time in office.
The various chapters look at different things in the book. The first chapter looks at ‘Repositioning the Industry for Prosperity’. This looks at the policy thrust of the Ministry of Petroleum Resources and deals with seven big wins and looks at key policy initiatives of the government.
The second chapter deals mostly with technical perspectives on petroleum resources management and under this heading; we see how the national petroleum policy and the national gas policy were put into effect and how it provides a strong foundation for growth.
The third chapter deals mostly with policy and regulations and other perspectives. And here, we look at key legislative, policy initiatives and interventions; we look at some of the investment framework, we look at some of the key natural gas infrastructure in the country.
More interestingly, if you look at chapter four that deals with transparency and efficiency, it deals with what has been killing the country, because there is need for transparency in how we operate our regulations and efficiency in how the system works; our long contracting circles, the problems in doing business with our government agencies are tackled robustly.
If we look at the seventh chapter on stakeholder management and international coordination that deals with something you might not find in many books, and of course, it is the minister’s personal experience especially, in relation with OPEC and bilateral relations – the way oil and gas policies activities are defended from the point of view of national interest.
Now, if you turn to the ninth chapter, where the minister looked at building the petroleum industry for the future, this is very interesting, because the whole welfare of the staff, the whole human resources and capacity of the staff are examined in details and a way forward is being found.
We look at the tenth chapter, which interestingly is called project 100 and here, the minister, looking at 100 SMEs – small and medium scale companies to encourage them to be the foundation of the future of Nigeria. This leads to the eleventh chapter, which deals with national content.
Local content is one of the biggest policies that have driven growth in Nigeria at the moment. And the twelfth one is the Buhari legacy and this is very interesting, because it has been able to sum up some of the achievements of President Muhammdu Buhari (GCFR) over the last 40 years and that is not a small achievement.
This is succeeded with the chapter on the future path, which is chapter thirteen and deals with diverse issues, transparency, gas infrastructure and so forth, while the final chapter is the conclusion that rounds off the book.
This book is very interesting, well presented, has very good illustrative charts and tables. The information in it will delight legal scholars, governments, private sector participants in the industry and it is very warmly recommended.
The vision unpinning this book shows how we can get to national prosperity and it is not a mean achievement to put all of these diverse issues into one book.
On this note, I would like to congratulate Dr. Kachikwu on this excellent book and wish him well for the future.
Gas Development in Nigeria: Legal and Policy Framework
REVIEWER: DR. PETER ONIEMOLA FROM THE FACULTY OF LAW, UNIVERSITY OF IBADAN. HE IS ALSO THE ENERGY LAW COORDINATOR, CENTRE FOR PETROLEUM, ENERGY ECONOMICS AND LAW, UNIVERSITY OF IBADAN.
The book, Gas Development in Nigeria: Legal and Policy Framework, written by Dr. Ibe Kachikwu is a masterpiece. It is a book that addresses the legal and policy issues in the oil and gas industry in Nigeria with a focus on gas.
The book is structured into six chapters and the striking point in the book is the examination of natural gas or gas development in Nigeria, looking at the overview of the industry, the challenges surrounding the development of gas in Nigeria.
Another striking chapter to be considered in the book is the examination of the legal regime for gas in Nigeria, which involves the examination of the provisions of the constitution, the Petroleum Production Act and the production drilling and production regulation among other legislations in the oil and gas industry.
The various policies relating to gas are also examined in another chapter – so compelling in demonstration of how policies affect the development of gas in Nigeria.
It is also striking to see that the matters bothering on climate change – sustainable development of gas – are also examined in the book.
With development of the Nigerian gas sector, which has been bedeviled by series of challenges such as pricing, cash call issues and the need for continuous funding and infrastructural development in the gas sector, the author was able to bring on board, his experience as a practitioner in the field as well as an administrator.
The book itself is rich in content and will be an important source for policy makers, legislators, academicians and persons, who are seeking to invest in the sector – all those who are seeking to develop their knowledge on the gas sector in Nigeria.
It is an excellent book the way it is written and the way the book is structured is futuristic in nature. Though I would have loved to see an expert in the area transactional practice. The transactional aspect of oil and gas law is an area we need to develop in the country.
And again, the author, bringing in his level of his experience, can also consider developing such area in the future for the purpose of making a contribution to the gas sector in Nigeria.
Nigeria Foreign Investment Law and Policy
(Second Edition)
REVIEWER: DR. OLUWATOYIN ADEJONWO OSHO, SENIOR LECTURER, FACULTY OF LAW, UNIVERSITY OF LAGOS
There is a strong relation between foreign investment and economic growth especially, for developing and emerging market countries like Nigeria, because it promotes socio-economic development. This book is a second edition of the one published in 1988.
The book seeks to assess the progress, if any, with regards to the legal and regulatory framework for foreign investment in Nigeria. It also seeks to provide a detailed and comprehensive overview of the current law and policy guiding foreign investment.
The rationale for the second book, that is the second edition, is emphasised by the author, who asserts on page two that and I quote: “The last few years has seen a substantial shift in the perception of foreign investment by Nigeria and Nigerians. The perception of foreign investment has shifted from abhorrent to accommodation of and encouragement of foreign investment.”
The author included several vital resources and statistics on the subject, and it would be of relevance to both local and foreign investors. The book is divided into eight detailed chapters and these chapters highlight the issues that are of interest for the sustainable development of Nigeria’s foreign investment landscape. The author highlights relevant legal, regulatory, tax and policy regimes of foreign investment in Nigeria.
There are several highpoints in the book such as the section on the historical development of the Nigerian economy and analysis of the market indicators or the ease of doing business in countries comparable to Nigeria such as Ghana and South Africa, the procedure and requirements for obtaining permits especially, as regards to foreign investment and recommendations on reforming the Nigerian investment legal regime.
Nigerian Foreign Investment Law and Policy is an articulate and commendable effort that illustrates the role of foreign investment for the sustainable development of emerging economies such as Nigeria’s particularly, in this era of economic globalisation and trans-national trade, all within a framework of sustainable development.
This book by Dr. Emmanuel Ibe Kachikwu is unquestionably scholarly work, which not only fills a gap in existing literature on foreign investment in general, but also fills a gap in legal literature.
The book proffers useful pathways and provocative insights, which will be useful to investors both foreign and local, academics and researchers, legal practitioner, governments, international organizations, students and every other person that is interested in the laws and policies with respect to foreign investment in Nigeria.
I, therefore, humbly and respectfully, recommend this book to all.
The Nigerian Law of Contract: Study Companion
REVIEWER: DR. ADEKEMI OMOTUBORA, LECTURER, DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCIAL AND INDUSTRIAL LAW, FACULTY OF LAW, UNIVERSITY OF LAGOS
I’m reviewing the book, Nigerian Law of Contract: Study Companion by Dr. Ibe Kachikwu. The book is published by, Law Publishing and Conference Services Limited in 2020.
The objective of this book as stated by the author, is two-fold: the first is that the book is written to capture and present to the reader, the over racking scope of the law of contract, the second is that it aims to address the evolution of and recent development in contract law.
So, in recognition of the fact that the law of contract is the foundation of all other commercial laws and that different professional – both lawyers and non-lawyers – are having to deal with this area of contract, the book was written to appeal to a larger audience of both lawyers and non-lawyers. So, the book delivered on this objective.
The first point that I would like to note is the excellent structure of the book in terms of the topics covered, discussions and analysis of the law. And in spite of the fact that it is legal text…and legal texts are known for their legalese, this book adopts a sophisticated narrative, which is easy to follow by both lawyers and non-lawyers.
So, non-professionals not initiated in the legal profession can also use this book. The book consists of 14 chapters, covering the broad scope of the contract law. In chapter one, the author introduces the Law of Contract and that chapter discusses the forms and classification of contract and the formalities for an enforceable contract.
In chapter 2, the book discusses the complex concept of offer and acceptance. This is an area that most people find difficult to actually grasp. Usually, people don’t know the differences between offer and acceptance.
As a teacher I can say this is also challenging for me to explain to students and for them to grab but this book has done excellently in tackling this area. Chapter 4 explains and analyses capacities of parties to contract.
In chapter 7, the book deals with exclusion clauses. In Chapter 8, it describes and analyses the desiccating element of contract and in chapter 9, it examines illegal and void contracts. Chapter 12 of the book is particularly captivating – it is particularly interesting; it is particularly significant and why do I say so?
Because it focuses on e-contracts and e-signature and this is a relatively new area of the law that many authors, even many new books have not covered recently. So, this is a significant addition to the body of knowledge in terms of the coverage of this area.
In chapter 13, the book examines the rules for drafting and executing contractual terms. It does merge the rules of interpretation, which is also a complex area of the law to grasp, so readers know the relationship between the rules of interpretation and the elements of contracts that lawyers often draft.
Overall, what is my impression of this book? I think it lives up to its title of being a study companion but that doesn’t mean that we are saying it is a study companion meant for just students; this is also a practitioners’ book; it can be used by students and it can be used by practitioners alike and it can be used especially, by non-lawyers, who want to understand this area of the law or who work in this area and deal with this area of the law.
So, my conclusion is that this is an excellent book. It is a great addition to the body of knowledge. I congratulate the author on this outstanding achievement. I would recommend this book to students, practitioners and all the people, who are interested in learning about the law of contract.
