Nigeria needs to spearhead the recreation of the Non Aligned Movement this time making it an economic body with a mandate to get its fair share of direct investment

Ayo Akinfe

[1] On September 1 1961, the The Non-Aligned Movement of 120 developing world states that were not formally aligned with any major power bloc was formed. With its headquarters in Belgrade, the association was supposed to represent developing nations caught up in the East-West power spat called the Cold War

[2] Drawing on the principles agreed at the Bandung Conference in 1955, the Non-Aligned Movement was established through an initiative of the Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, Yugoslav President Josip Broz Tito, Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser, Ghanaian President Kwame Nkrumah and Indonesian President Sukarno

[3] At the Lusaka Conference in September 1970, the member nations added as aims of the movement the peaceful resolution of disputes and the abstention from the big power military alliances and pacts. Another added aim was opposition to stationing of military bases in foreign countries

[4] Because the Non-Aligned Movement was formed as an attempt to thaw out the Cold War, it struggled to find relevance since the Cold War ended. After the breakup of Yugoslavia, its membership was suspended. Now, is the time for a renewal and I think Nigeria should take centre stage

[5] As the world's largest black nation, Nigeria should gather about 20 other big nations around her and create a Movement of Nations With $3trn as their GDP Target. Its aim should be to ensure all its members have an annual gross domestic product of at least $3trn by 2030

[6] Members should include India, Nigeria, Brazil, Indonesia, Pakistan, Mexico, Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, South Korea, South Africa, Egypt, Ethiopia, Colombia, Australia, Argentina, Bangladesh, Turkey, DR Congo, Iran, Thailand, etc

[7] As part of its goals, this body should look to amalgamate with smaller and unsustainable neighbours. Anyone who thinks that the likes of Benin Republic, Togo or Niger Republic can compete in today's global economy is just being delusional

[8] This movement should make it compulsory for at least one third of global foreign direct investment to go to its members. If that does not happen, they should stop trading with the OECD industrialised nations

[9] For every electric car manufacturing plant opened in the industrialised world, one should also be opened in a developing nation under a counterpart investment programme. With regards to the wider clean energy movement, this association should insist on a 50:50 split of all future investment between developed and developing nations

[10] On an annual basis, this Movement of Nations With $3trn as their GDP Target, needs to publish major investment priorities. I know we are no longer producing leaders like Nkrumah, Nasser, Tito, Lumumba, Machel, Cabral, Allende, etc anymore but alas, we have to give it our best shot. For me, it appears that since the end of colonialism, we simply fail to churn out intellectual fighters and giants as we did in the 1960s.