Paul Oluikpe is a prominent financial inclusion advocate in Nigeria. As Head of Financial Inclusion at the Central Bank of Nigeria, he is well known for coordinating financial inclusion efforts across the country for many years and has garnered significant achievements in advancing access to finance for rural people, women, youths and MSMEs in Nigeria.
In Swim or Sink, Oluikpe digs into his background at the central bank to excite the reader with transcendental knowledge of policy in different terrains of the world. He elucidates his thesis around seven forces, with deep insight and reference to historical events and current affairs. He opines that the policymaker is inexorably tied to the external influences that pose problems for his instruments and realization of his policy ideas. This wicked context presupposes that he would need a dynamic adaptation to frequently keep ahead of a changing world.
Paul Oluikpe uses seven chapters to expound on his ideas of policy, namely the economy, politics, ambiguity, complexity, instability, resources and execution. His theoretical assumptions rest on the fact that these forces are inevitably present in all contexts in varying degrees. He takes the reader on a cross country marathon, with an eclectic mix of policy situations to enrich understanding and underscore the central thesis of the book.
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I find the book very useful for allowing me to gain insight and amplify real life scenarios of policy. The book however falls short on the front of treating Central Bank of Nigeria specific policy cases. The author claims that he lacks objectivity to take on CBN cases because he is a staff of the CBN. I totally understand this and he cited conflict of interest. He could however have sought permission from his institution to use CBN specific cases to bolster the fine theories and practical ideas expounded in his book as this could have further expanded the debate on policy. Apart from this, I am enthused by the fine intellectual disposition of the author and his well-reasoned arguments which hit home with profound reality.
Dr. Peter Ayim
MSME Business Development Services, Abuja, Nigeria.
