Senate To Repeal Ministry Of Finance Act
•By Admin
ABUJA – THE Senate has moved to repeal the law establishing the Ministry of Finance Incorporated (MOFI).
It demonstrated this on Tuesday when it passed for second reading, a bill for an act to repeal the Act and re-enact the Ministry of Finance Incorporated 2025 Act.
This followed the presentation of the general principles of the bill.
The bill is designed to make for a modern, transparent and professionally driven framework for MOFI.
Sponsored by Sen. Mohammed Sani (APC-Niger), the bill sought to repeal the MOFI Act of 1959 and re-enact a modern, robust legal framework that reflects current economic realities of Nigeria and global best practices.
He said the act was established 65 years ago as the federal government’s investment holding company.
He, however, said under the existing act, MOFI operates merely as a passive custodian of government assets, saying that it lacks necessary authority, government structure, and institutional capacity.
“The result is that the federation has continued to lose significant revenue due to ownership structures, and weak oversight mechanisms.
“The bill seeks to transform MOFI from a dormant custodian into a strategic, professional and transparent institution capable of driving national wealth creation.
“The bill seeks to replace the 1959 legislation with a modern statute aligned with contemporary investment governance standards and global best practices.
“It seeks to establish a competent and professional group of directors with clear oversight obligations and supported by mandatory annual external audits and transparent reporting.”
He said the bill sought to empower MOFI to actively manage government assets, invest in domestic and international markets, enter public-private partnership and utilise innovative financial instruments,such as securitisation, bond issuance and special purpose vehicles.
He said the bill has the mandate to ensure that all MOFI investments comply with environmental,social, and governance standards,guaranteeing ethical, sustainable and responsible investment decisions.
Sani said the bill was designed to channel investment into high-impact sectors like technology, agriculture, manufacturing,infrastructure and other growth-driven areas, thereby reducing reliance on oil revenues and generating new economic opportunities.
“MOFI Act of 1959 is clearly no longer fit for purpose,it suffers from a narrow and outdated mandate, weak and unclear governance structure, restrictive investment authority, limited transparency and accountability.”
He said the identified weaknesses undermines Nigeria’s ability to generate value from public assets, while preventing MOFI from contributing meaningfully to economic growth.
“In Singapore, Singapore’s Temasek Holdings, valued at over 382 billion dollars operates with an independent board, full public disclosures, and diversified investment portfolios.
“In Norway, the Sovereign Wealth Fund manages over 1.4 trillion dollars and is renowned for transparency, ethical guidelines, and rigorous parliamentary oversight.
“This bill draws inspiration from such global models, adapting the principles in governance, transparency, and performance.”
Sani said the reforms would help Nigeria transition from dependent and volatile revenues to a diversified asset-powered economy.
“Mr President, distinguished colleagues, the Ministry of Finance Incorporated MOFI Bill 2025 represents a bold step towards modernising Nigeria’s public investment and architecture.
“By reigniting this 65-year-old law, we are strengthening governance, enhancing transparency, maximising national assets and driving sustainable wealth creation for generations to come.”
Sani urged lawmakers to support the second reading of the bill.
Sen. Abdullahi Yahaya (APC-Kebbi) said the bill was germane saying that it would be important for senate to consider the merging of the MOFI Act and the Sovereign Wealth Fund Act together to make for one operational act to oversee and handle the investments and assets of the federal government.
This, he said, would avoid duplication and in the discharge of roles and custodian of federal government investments and assets.
Sen. Adetukunbo Abiru, (APC-Lagos),who described the bill as long overdue, advised MOFI to work toward producing a database of all investments of the federal government across the nation’s and beyond.
Sen. Abdul Ningi (PDP-Bauchi) said the bill was a landmark legislation, saying that no modification was made on the bill for 66 years, describing the move to repeal and re-enact the bill as apt.
President of Senate, Godswill Akpabio, after second reading of the bill referred it to Senate Committee on Finance for further legislative input and to return back to plenary in four weeks.
•INDEPENDENTNG.