This paper critiques the attempt by Nigerian Breweries Plc (NB, a subsidiary of Heineken) to increase its use of local raw materials for beer brewing. It argues that the greatest threat to this initiative has been the inconsistent Nigerian Government policies, especially with respect to promoting and encouraging the cultivation of local raw materials for beer production. Policy reversals in this direction have helped to slow down the backward integration initiative of the Nigerian Government aimed at replacing imported barley with local sorghum as the main ingredient for beer production in the country. While NB can help to fund research into the development of high yield sorghum hybrids, the task of ensuring the widespread and proper use of such seeds by local farmers will depend on the existence of a supportive and effective national agricultural policy. The development and operationalization of such a policy cannot be outsourced to multinational beer companies by the Nigerian Government. Copyright © 2016 The Institute of Brewing & Distilling

Nigeria is arguably the largest importer of dairy products in Africa. Available statistics shows that up to 98% of the total dairy products consumed in the country are imported; and that about 75% of the entire dairy market is controlled by FrieslandCampina WAMCO (FCW). The purpose of this study is to examine the basis for the prevailing import orientation in the dairy industry since 1973. Is the orientation traceable to operations of multinational companies or the institutional and governance challenges in the country? Using triangulated data collected from FCW official reports and other relevant sources, and a content analytical technique, the study finds that the problem in the industry is multifaceted. Central to the challenges are persistent institutional and infrastructural defects, as well as faulty integration designs adopted by FCW. Based on this, the paper recommends that reversing the current trend requires government’s policies that dis-incentivizes importation. However, such policies can work only when the right atmosphere for cattle farming and local dairy production is put in place.

In this paper, we employed a blend of multiple and historical case study design, and a mix of institutional, behavioral, resource-based, and multinational theories, to examine the nature of multinational companies’ (MNC) engagements in local economic development and capital export practices in an African context. Evidence from our Nigerian case analysis (FrieslandCampina, Nigerian Breweries Plc. and Dangote Cement) confirms the proposition that, faced with a similar degree of uncertainty and constrained institutional environment and laying claims to differing sources of competitive advantage, both local and foreign MNCs would repatriate profits and limit exposures to local value chains (LVCs) mainly as a strategy for mitigating country risks and preserving corporate value. Such limited exposures detach MNCs, especially the foreign ones, from the LVCs, and by doing so push them to deeper reliance on the global value chains (GVCs). Linking local businesses to the GVCs is central in the inclusive development (ID) debate essentially because it allows for the redistribution of economic benefits, helps in building a complementary (rather than competitive) relationship between MNCs and local businesses, and facilitates local businesses’ access to international markets. We, therefore, recommend that in pursuit of the inclusive and sustainable development projects in Africa, industrial policies need to be tailored toward stabilizing the policy environment, protecting investments from risk of expropriation, and incentivizing MNCs’ participation in the LVCs.

This paper contributes to the finance and growth debate by examining the channels through which bank and
market promote economic growth in Nigeria. The paper used 17 years time series data, 1992-2008, to fill this
knowledge gap. The formulated models were estimated with the Ordinary Least Square regression. The growth
rate of GDP per capita was adopted as the dependent variable, while bank size, bank activity, bank efficiency,
market size, market activity and market efficiency were adopted as the independent variables. The regression
coefficient for bank size, bank efficiency, market size and market efficiency were positive in promoting
economic growth. However, the coefficient of bank activity and market activity were negative in promoting
economic growth in Nigeria. The finding of the study relegates the financial structure arguments to the shadows,
and recommends for favourable macroeconomic environment that will allow for the development of the
financial system.

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