Born: February 6, 1924
Died: 2000
Nationality: Nigerian
Profession: Economist
Notable Roles: Economic adviser, public finance scholar, policy committee chairman
Origin: Ojoto village, Anambra State, Nigeria
Biography
Pius Nwabufo Okigbo was an eminent Nigerian economist and public intellectual. He was the elder brother of renowned poet Christopher Okigbo, and a cousin to academic Bede Okigbo.
He received his secondary education at Christ the King College, Onitsha, where he passed the Cambridge School Certificate with Grade One in 1940, earning an exemption from the University of London matriculation. In 1941, he began a diploma course in arts at Yaba Higher College, Lagos. Due to World War II, Yaba College was converted into a military base, and he was transferred to Achimota College in Accra (then Gold Coast, now Ghana), where he completed his diploma in 1943 with studies in Latin, Greek, history, English language, and literature.
Okigbo obtained a BSc in Economics through private study and later earned his MA and PhD in Economics from Northwestern University in the United States.
Career and Contributions
Pius Okigbo was instrumental in shaping Nigeria’s economic discourse. He was known for introducing new methods of analyzing African economic challenges and was highly regarded for his scholarly work on national accounting standards in Nigeria.
He served as the economic adviser to the Governor of the Eastern Region of Nigeria and participated in several national economic committees. His deep understanding of public finance earned him roles as chairman of various policy and review committees.
The Okigbo Report
In 1994, Okigbo chaired a committee to investigate the activities of the Central Bank of Nigeria. His report, famously known as the Okigbo Report, condemned the government's mismanagement of $12.4 billion in oil revenues, exposing financial misappropriations in two special accounts. The report remains a critical historical document in Nigeria's economic and governance discourse.
Legacy
Okigbo is remembered as a pragmatic economist and a visionary intellectual who used his scholarship in service of public accountability and national development. His influence continues to be cited in discussions on Nigerian public finance and economic policy.