Why Nigeria Approves Sale of Three NIPP Gencos

Three electricity generation companies (Gencos) built by the Niger Delta Power Holding Company (NDPHC) under the National Integrated Power Projects (NIPPs) would soon be sold to private investors in continuation of the 2013 NIPP privatisation that was suspended, the Managing Director of NDPHC, Mr. Chiedu Ugbo, has disclosed.

 The plants, which Ugbo said the resumption of their privatisation has been approved by the government, include the 634 megawatts (MW) Calabar, 1,076MW combined cycle Alaoji, and 506MW Geregu. He noted that the challenges that stalled their sales had largely been cleared and were now ready to be privatised.

Speaking in an interview at the weekend in Abuja, Ugbo explained that the government approved their privatisation because the transmission and gas supply troubles they had, had been resolved and that the market risks in the sector were being addressed.

He also noted that preferred bidders for the plants were still very interested in them as against thoughts that they might have lost interests.

Ugbo said: “This privatisation process started in 2012 and moved to 2013 with the emergence of the preferred bidders. At that time it was a mix of market issues and internal issues that had to do with gas supply, completion of the power plants and evacuation.

“Alaoji and Calabar had no evacuation facilities, the plants on the west side of Delta, from Sapele, Benin had gas supply problems. Shortly before I came in, the company got approval that once we finish resolving the issue of a particular plant we should go ahead and sell the plant.

“So, we were able to rush and finish the Ikot-Ekpene switching station and the transmission line to Calabar and the transmission line to Alaoji, as both of them come to Ikot-Ekpene where the power is sent to Ugwuaji and from there to the rest of the grid.

“So, that resolved the transmission challenge for Calabar and Alaoji. Total has finished the dedicated pipeline to Alaoji power plant and they have started supplying gas to the plant. Alaoji and Calabar both have gas evacuation facilities. We got approval for Calabar to be privatised, Alaoji was not included because it was under litigation. But the issue has been handled and Alaoji is back,” he explained.

According to him: “In Omotosho, gas was the only challenge and we are working on that. For Geregu, we are discussing with GACN and NPDC to finalise the gas supply agreement for that plant. So, in essence, we’ve finished what is our responsibility for the three and we are ready to go.”

On the market risks, Ugbo explained: “In 2014, the market was not bankable. It was difficult for bidders, as any lender coming to do due diligence on Nigerian market would just see what we were getting. That you would supply 100 per cent and get about 25 per cent. They (lenders) were saying that the market couldn’t guarantee their monies coming back.

“But we are still on the privatisation process because the preferred bidders are still interested as much as they were in 2013. We still have them and we are working with them as we try to close these three transactions,” he confirmed.

He noted that the NDPHC was also working with the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) and National Council on Privatisation (NCP) to conclude the privatisation process, adding: “We are just waiting for certain approvals now if the options we are proposing are accepted.”

Insisting that the plants were still wanted by the investors, Ugbo said: “It is just to clear the market risks around the plants so that the lenders can provide the funds to the investors. The business must make sense before the lenders will put their money there.”

He also disclosed that the NIPP plants that are in operation were selling power to the national grid at a discounted rate, in addition to them not allowed to claim capacity payments.

Ugbo explained: “Our tariff is somewhere around N18 while the rest of the generation plants are about N23 per kilowatt hour. We are discussing this with NBET right now because it is what we met.

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DRC: Peacekeeper Killed In Attack....

 Rebels from a Ugandan-dominated group on Monday attacked a UN military base in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, killing one peacekeeper and injuring 12 others, the UN mission said.

According to the report, the attack took place in Beni, where UN soldiers have been battling the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), which is dominated by hard line Ugandan Muslims, a spokesperson for the UN mission in the DRC said.

Also, Congolese troops had clashed with the rebels in the area on Sunday. The day before, the ADF attacked around 10 motorbike taxis in the locality.

 The UN mission known by its French acronym Monusco said, adding that UN ground and air forces had been deployed in the area.

The UN did not specify the nationality of the dead soldier or the injured.

Rich in precious minerals, the east of DRC has been unstable for 20 years.

Several dozen local and foreign armed groups stand accused of serious rights abuses against civilians, such as rape, killings and abductions.

The ADF has been accused by Kinshasa and the UN mission of killing more than 700 people in the Beni region since October 2014.

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Again, Political Leaders vent Anger At Umeh, Sagay, Others...

Political leaders in the South-East geo-political zone of the country, on Friday, applauded the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, for his contributions to the development of the Nigerian political system.

“Chief Odigie-Oyegun, by his political understanding has provided a bridge of good appreciation of democratic behavior between the presidency and the party on one hand and the government and the governed on the other hand”

They also commended the national chairman of the ruling party for taking the South-East into consideration and supporting the Igbo dream of producing a president for the country.

“The future of Ndigbo is only safe in the hands of APC,” the leaders said.

At a meeting in Enugu, the leaders criticised the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) for failing to stem the continued suffering of the good people of Anambra State.

Willie Obiano, the leaders said, they were sure would not win the November 18 governorship election because the APGA led-administration had performed abysmally.

They also launched a strongly- worded attack against the Chairman of the Presidential Advisory Committee on Anti-Corruption (PACAC), Prof. Itse Sagay, Executive Director, Centre for the Vulnerable and underprivileged (CENTREP), Mr. Oghenejabor Ikimi, the Chairman, Christian Council of Nigeria (CCN), Rev Tunde Adeleye, former Special Assistant to ex-president Goodluck Jonathan, Reno Omokri, former National Chairman of APGA, Chief Victor Umeh, Nigerian Blogger, Kemi Olunloyo and Executive Chairman, Coalition Against Corrupt Leaders, Mr. Debo Adeniran, describing their criticism of Oyegun and the Muhammadu Buhari led-APC Federal Government as harsh and misleading.

In a communiqué, the leaders’ heaped scorn on former ally of President Buhari, Buba Galadima, former Majority Leader of the Osun State House of Assembly, Wahab Olatoye and Prof. Sagay for dabbling in the affairs of the party, mocking them as the mouth-piece of those plotting to destroy the country’s ruling party”

“These critics are puppets who are only twitching to the pull of the strings of certain individuals in the country. The All Progressives Congress is an effective and efficient political organization. It is not a shelter for unlawful or greedy politicians” the leaders said.

The communiqué, signed by the chairman, South-East Unity and Advancement Forum (SEUAAF), Chief Maxwell Okoye, acknowledged the vision, maturity and leadership style of Oyegun.

They also praised the former Edo State governor for promoting the Igbo cause, providing direction and expanding the ruling party.

“APC is not ill. The political growth of the party is not aimed at decreasing the power of some individuals. Odigie-Oyegun will never protect corrupt politicians”

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US President Approves New Russia Sanctions

United States President, Donald Trump, has signed into a law a bill which imposes new sanctions on Russia for their alleged meddling in the 2016 election.

The White House had indicated that Mr. Trump would sign the bill after it had passed through both houses of Congress, the BBC reports.

But on Tuesday, U.S Secretary of State, Rex Tillerson, said he and the President are not “very happy” about the bill.

Russia denied interfering in the U.S election, and Mr. Trump has denied colluding with Russia.

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Nigeria Secures N3.38bn AfDB loan For Potatoes Production

 

 

The Minister of Finance, Kemi Adeosun  said the loan would be used to develop the Irish potatoes value chain in the 17 local local government areas of the state.

 

Adeosun  explained that the implementation would be jointly executed by FADAMA project and a unit in the state ministry of agriculture with about 70 percent of the loan going for the provision of infrastructure, extension services, improved planting and marketing.

 

According to the minister, the implementation would help to boost production and minimize wastage.

 

The  minister said: “My approval was on behalf of Plateau State to support the potato value chain. 

 

There is a loan that we had previously cancelled from AfDB. So, it is not a new loan. We cancelled it and redirected the money to request on behalf of Plateau State Government to support the potato value chain.

 

“The rationale is that Plateau actually accounts for 95 per cent of Nigeria’s potato production and from Plateau, potatoes are actually exported to Ghana, Niger, Chad and other countries and despite that, there are huge profit losses because there is no enough storage and there is so much more we can do with Plateau’s potatoes.

 

“So, AfDB has come up with a comprehensive programme that will affect over 100,000 families. It is expected to create 60,000 jobs in a potato value chain, from processing, storage, replacement of current inputs and indeed, export.

 

“Now, the terms of the loan is one per cent per annum interest rate and it has 25 years moratorium. Plateau State will provide counterpart funding and the balance will be borrowed. It will affect 17 local government areas and we expect it to make significant job creation.

 

“The amount of the loan is N3.38 billion equivalent and Plateau State ought to contribute N595 million as their own counterpart funding.

 

“We have put a process in place to ensure adequate monitoring. This is really an important economic development for the nation and for Plateau State in particular.

 

“We have real advantage in potato production. We are really going to invest the money on roads. In some cases, the money will be used for roads to enable the products to come out. Sometimes, it is for storage. Sometimes, it is transportation. Sometimes, it is access to seedlings.”

 

Also speaking, Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola said, FEC approved and ratified works to be done on the Apapa Wharf road at the cost of N4.131 billion.

 

The Minister disclosed  that the two memos his ministry brought to council were ratification of road works that had to be done under emergency circumstances.

 

According to the minister, “The first was the Abuja- Kaduna highway. Recall we had to immediately do palliative works in order to support the closure of the Abuja airport runway which necessitated diversion of traffic to Kaduna.

 

“At that time, we didn’t have FEC’s approval, we only had anticipatory Presidential approval as prescribed under the law for emergencies works.

 

“The second one was with respect to the Apapa Wharf road. Recall that there was a recent presidential order for a 24hour, and that put pressure on an already detoriating road.

 

“I also went to handover that road sometime in June under the public private partnership structure between Julius Berger, Flour Mills, NPA and the ministry of Power, Works and Housing.

 

“To start construction on that first phase of the road. Council approved and ratified works that we had conducted on Abuja-Kaduna highway and also terms and conditions upon which we handed over the Apapa road.

 

“The project is at the cost of N1.58 billion for the 165 km Abuja Kaduna stretch where we did mainly patching of potholes to make the roads motor-able during the closure of the Abuja airport. The Apapa project is N4.131billion.”

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Emefiele Says Central Bank Will Continue To Review Policies To Ensure Best...

Mr Godwin Emefiele, the Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) said the apex bank will continue to review it’s polices to ensure that the best  is achieved for the country’s economy.

Emefiele said this in  Nsukka on Saturday in a lecture titled “The Dilemma of Monetary Policy and Exchange Rate Management in a Recession: Potential Options for Nigeria”.

The event was to mark the second Home-coming Lecture  of the Department of Economics, University of Nigeria Nsukka.

He said CBN recently embarked on aggressive drive to close the gap between the interbank and pararell market which it’s positive impact was  already evident in the economy.

“CBN will continue to monitor  evolving situations and constantly review it’s polices to ensure the best for the economy,” he said.

“How do we justify the importation of items like  apple, cucumber and eggs from South Africa, beef  from Zambia and toothpicks from China.

“These are items we can locally produce and use money in importing these items to beef up local industries that will in turn create employments for our youths.

“We must take cognizance  of the fact that imports are leakages to every economy, ” he said.
Emefiele said the country  missed opportunity of being a great economy when it saw oil and
abandoned agriculture which was the backbone of the economy in 1960s and 1970s .

 "In those good days,  the south east and south south are known for palm oil,  the south west for for Cocoa and north for groundnut but we saw oil and abandoned agriculture.

"Country like Netherland  is oil producing but also produces agriculture in large quantities, majority
of fish we consume in this country is from Netherland,” he said.

He said the apex bank was aware of the pains Nigerians were going through because of the economic recession.

He said it was an opportunity to look inward to diversify the economy and come off the recession stronger.

“This recession provides opportunity  for us to look inward, diversify the economy, produce locally and create employments for our youths.

“We must diversify our economy and go back to agriculture as we cannot survive as a people by importing everything .

“We must export more and import few items in oder to make our economy strong and increase our foreign exchange earning,” he said.

The Vice-Chacellor of UNN,   Prof. Benjamin Ozumba, expressed appreciation to the governor for  accepting the invitation to deliver the lecture.

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Nigeria To End Export Of Raw Minerals

The Federal Gov­ernment says it would end the export of raw minerals at the expiration of its 18 months’ notice.

Speaking on the second day of the 6th edition of the Sustainabili­ty in the Extractive Industries (SIT­EI) conference in Abuja yesterday, the Minister of Mines and Steel De­velopment, Dr. Kayode Fayemi said government would come down heavily on those who try to flout the policy.

Dr. Kayode Fayemi  who spoke on theme: “Operationalizing the framework for globalizing our local economy,” revealed that the ministry would be working with the Nigerian Customs Service (NCS) to achieve the objective.

The Minister expressed optimism that the policy would encourage local pro­cessing of minerals, with govern­ment now ready to assist companies involved in minerals beneficiation with processing plants.

Fayemi said:  “Even the min­eral types that are available in Nige­ria, people prefer to just take them out raw and they lose a lot of mon­ey. Government is not in the busi­ness of buying but we are in the business of discouraging raw ex­portation of Nigeria raw mineral types. And we are working with Customs on this. We are also en­couraging many of our companies giving them 18 months before we start coming down heavily against them. That 18 months ends by 12 months’ time since we made that pronouncement”.

According to Fayemi,  government “do not take kindly raw exportation of our minerals because it be pro­cessed, beneficiated, and there are companies that are adding val­ues now to what the produce. We need to also work with them or we need to support those who need lifting up to put in place processing plants, beneficiating plants.”

The minister therefore called for the re­moval of investment barriers that discourage global players from the country’s mining sector.

He explained that the Feder­al Government issues mining license to investors in the sector, while state government are responsible for the issuance of Certificate of Occupancy (CoC) for the same piece of land and in most cases prevent the investors from operating in the field.

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Government Plans ICT Varsity - Shittu

The Minister of Communications, Mr. Adebayo Shittu, has said the Federal Government has concluded plans to establish an Information and Communication Technology (ICT) university.

 The proposed ICT school, he said, is informed by the low-ranking of Nigeria in terms of development when compared to other African countries’growths.

At the yearly lecture of the Nigerian Academy of Engineering held at the University of Lagos (UNILAG), the minister urged the academy to partner with the ministry to set up the ICT school, which, he assured, would be “run as a public-private partnership”.

Shittu said since ICT had become an enabler of growth in modern time, it was time Nigeria filled the gap in the ICT industry by equipping its youths with requisite knowledge.

He said: “I want to invite your academy to partner with the Ministry of Communications in setting up of the ICT University. If your academy is favourably  disposed towards that, we are prepared to cede one of the six campuses to you, so we can jointly run it to ensure that our youths get the best ICT training.”

He said he would play an intermediary role between the academy and the Federal Government for whatever contact the academy might need to make the partnership successful.

The guest lecturer, Prof Michael Adewumi, who spoke on: Training engineers for the global century, said he believed Nigeria needed to train globally-competitive and locally-relevant engineers.

To achieve this, he said engineering training must surmount the problems of one-dimensional training, ignorance of local context and the expectation of employment in multinationals upon graduation.

The lecturer at Pennsylvania State University in the United States (U.S.) maintained that local knowledge must be fully harnessed.

“To train a successful engineer, we must have a seamless integration between what they already experience and what they need to know. For example, while teaching gaming theory or probability, why not focus on the game of ayo instead of baseball,” he said.

Adewunmi also said three-dimensional education, which involves diversifying the curriculum, as well as creativ1e application of solutions from the local to global stage is essential if Nigeria is to have locally-relevant engineers.

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Central Bank Extended Its Guarantee To Skye Bank As It Continues...

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has extended its guarantee to Skye Bank Plc for another year, just as it continues to consider the bank’s recapitalisation proposal, the bank disclosed Tuesday.


“The management of Skye Bank is very appreciative of the gracious support of the CBN by way of guarantees, support, waivers and other forbearances over the course of the last one year, which have also been extended by another year.

In an advertisement jointly signed by its Chairman and Group Managing Director, Messrs. M. K Ahmad and Tokunbo Abiru, Skye Bank said as part of efforts to stabilise the bank, it had successfully implemented its cost optimisation initiative, which has enhanced liquidity and efficient service delivery to its customers since the regulatory-induced takeover of the bank one year ago.

“The bank continues to require assistance from the CBN and government as it repairs the damage inflicted on the institution in the past and charts a sustainable path forward.

“We continue to be confronted by the antics of detractors who do not wish the bank well in hopes of escaping lawful debt obligations or accountability for misdeed.

“We will ensure that all those who committed infractions against the bank restitute accordingly for their actions and all debtors meet their legitimate obligations to the bank,” the bank’s directors said.

The bank also noted that it has, as part of its aggressive recovery initiative, recovered over N60 billion of outstanding bad loans over the past one year.

“We have also reached settlement and restructuring agreements with many of the chronic bad debtors resulting in substantially improved payments and prospects of future recoveries,” they added.

They stated that through the support of the CBN, the bank successfully embarked on initiatives to restructure and reposition Skye Bank based on its broad mandate which includes cost management and optimisation, as well as divestments to improve the institution’s financial position.

Such cost containment measures, according to them, included branch rationalisation, review of service contracts and cash management operations, which have resulted in hundreds of millions of financial savings.

Further noting some of its achievements, the bank stated that it successfully arrested and managed the post-intervention situation and has, to a large extent, stemmed the tide and reduced deposit losses, thereby restoring customer confidence and stabilising the institution.

It further noted that the new management has successfully settled many matured trade and bilateral obligations and restructured outstanding balances with the relevant institutions and counterparties.

The bank also reported that it has fully divested from four local subsidiaries releasing a total cash value of N6.2 billion, and was in the process of divesting from others.

The CBN in July last year sacked the board of directors of the bank, including two of its longest-serving executive directors and immediately reconstituted a new board.

CBN Governor, Mr. Godwin Emefiele, had said that the central bank took what he described as a proactive step in order to save the health of the bank from further deteriorating.

To correct the anomalies in the bank, he said the CBN held several meetings with the management and board of Skye Bank as part of its strategy of close engagement whenever a bank’s financial or governance situation poses potential threats to the overall stability of the financial system.

THIS DAY

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Nigeria Lost $6bn to DPR’s Poor Administration of Divested Oil Blocks

 

Nigeria lost an estimated $6 billion as a result of the Department of Petroleum Resources’ (DPR) poor administration of the expiring oil blocks, which were sold by the international oil companies (IOCs) between 2010 and 2015 to local firms, Nigerian exploration and production (E&P) operators have said.

The Department of Petroleum Resources has also admitted that it was not prepared to develop the necessary guidelines for the asset divestment programme by the IOCs, as the exercise came as a “shock” to the agency, pointing out that it has learnt some lessons for future exercise.

The Nigerian operators have, however, stated that all hope is not lost, as the country could earn over $3 billion from the next wave of asset sales if the Department of Petroleum Resources manages the outstanding onshore oil blocks set to expire soon properly.

In the first acquisitions by Seplat Petroleum Development Company Plc and First Hydrocarbon Nigeria in 2010, the IOCs raked in $471 million.

The IOCs were also paid $3.979 billion in the second divestment exercise between 2011 and 2012 by Eland Oil, Starcrest, Neconde Energy, Heritage Oil, Shoreline Energy, ND Western and Oando Energy Resources.

Under the last divestment programme between 2014 and 2015, the IOCs smiled away with $5.954 billion from Seplat, Erotron E&P, Newcross Petroleum, Crestar Integrated Natural Resources, Aiteo Group, Taleveras, Tempo Energy, Belemaoil, West African E&P, and First E&P.

But speaking in Lagos recently at the maiden edition of the Aspen Energy Roundtable, the Nigerian independents argued that 60 per cent of the $10.404 billion paid by the local operators to acquire assets from the IOCs would have gone into the federal government treasury if the DPR had better managed the licences covering the divested oil blocks.

In a keynote speech, the chief executive of Seplat Petroleum Development Company Plc, Mr. Austin Avuru stated that 70 per cent of the money used to acquire the assets came from Nigerian banks.

“The first $471 million was in 2010 and it involved Seplat and OML 26 (First Hydrocarbon), the second was also $4 billion and the third one, which was the most recent was almost $6 billion and you can see the implications of all these.

“So, if you put all these together, you are talking of over $10 billion in spend to acquire these assets. They all usually come to about $2 per probable barrel and about $4-$6 per proven barrel in terms of oil.

“It is not small money and 70 per cent of this money came from Nigerian banks,” Avuru explained.

The Seplat boss, whose company is listed on both the Nigerian and London Stock Exchanges, added that 60 per cent of the monies paid to acquire the assets would have gone into the federal government treasury if the DPR had handled the lease administration properly.

“That is another discussion entirely but I can tell you that 60 per cent of those money would have gone to the DPR if it handled the lease administration properly.

“But this is all the money that we, as Nigerian companies using Nigerian banks, paid to the IOCs and they took the money away. I think that will be a lesson for the next lease administration and bid rounds and renewals because if you have a title to these leases, especially leases that are due to expire and if you don’t take the title, the one who has the title will sell that title for all of this money,” Avuru explained.

According to Avuru, there were issues in the administration of the country’s oil and gas resources, which he described as wasting resources, adding that the country’s resources should be administered to ensure that “maximum value is captured without expropriation”.

“We are the victims knocking our heads together and paying three times more for these leases because we have no option. There are no leases available. So we knock our heads together and then the IOCs are smiling.

“We could have paid one third of what we paid to the government and everybody will be happy,” Avuru added.

The Seplat CEO, however, stated that there were still about $12 billion in assets in the portfolio of IOCs that will be divested, adding that the federal government could earn over $3 billion if the DPR manages the licences properly.

“There are still about $12 billion of the IOCs’ portfolio that could still be divested, given the right opportunities, depending on how DPR plays it.

“There could still be $3 billion cash available to DPR, depending on how the DPR handles the administration of those leases that are due to expire,” he said.

In his contributions, the Managing Director of ND Western, which paid $600 million for OML 34, Dr. Layi Fatona, noted that the federal government did not create the environment for the IOCs to plough back the money realised from the sale of the assets.

Fatona also noted that some of the assets were over-priced but exonerated the IOCs, as the transactions were based on a willing buyer-willing seller basis.

He blamed the government for not creating the environment for the oil majors to reinvest in the country.

“But the most important thing is that when you look at the spending, all of the money came mostly from the Nigerian banking system. And I ask a pertinent question: should we call this capital flight?

“All that money that was taken from the Nigerian banking system by essentially indigenous E&P companies and paid to the IOCs left the shores of this country?

“How much of this money ended up as a backward reinvestment in the Nigerian petroleum industry?” he asked.

 “So it is not about capital flight, it is about the fact that we have failed holistically to create the environment where the seller of an asset who makes a profit believes sufficiently in this society and puts all the money back into the system,” he said.

In her response, the Head of Upstream Monitoring and Regulation at DPR, Pat Maseli admitted that the regulatory agency was not prepared for the divestment programme at the outset.

“For the divestments and all that, that came – you know, it came as a shock. Will I say as a shock – we were not really prepared as regulators to develop the guidelines.

“But we have learnt our lessons and we are progressing them and making them better,” she said.

She added that the agency had also learnt its lessons in the marginal bid rounds.

“By the time we have the next bid round, it will be better than the previous ones, where we had forced marriages and it was not working and people were just rent seekers. This time, it is going to be different,” she added.
THIS DAY

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'Why Nigeria Ready To Explore Tourism As New Oil’

Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the Minister of Information and Culture,  said on Thursday in Lagos that the Federal Government was prepared to explore and exploit tourism as its new oil.

Mohammed said this at a news briefing he addressed to officially announce the forthcoming Creative Industry Financing Conference slated for July 13 and July 14 in Lagos.

According to the minister, the government attached importance to the Creative Industry in line with its cardinal programme of diversifying the economy away from oil.

Mohammed said that the other sectors being developed into pillars of the economy included Agriculture and Solid Minerals. “To those who may still be wondering what is in the Creative Industry? My answer is that it is Nigeria’s new oil.

“The overall essence of all our efforts is to transform the Creative Industry to a Creative Economy.

“We also believe that this transformation must be driven by the private sector, with the government providing the enabling environment,’’ he said.

He said  the conference which is being organised in conjunction with the Think Tank Media will be declared open by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo.

The minister said that the event was organised to underscore the high priority given to the creative industry by the government in its diversification policy.

“Other countries have also taken advantage of the industry to grow their economy.” “The Creative industry contributed 84.1 billion Pounds Sterling to the British economy in 2014.

“It also contributed 698 billion dollars to the U.S economy, according to a 2015 report. “Nigeria cannot afford to be left behind, hence we are ready to explore and exploit the new oil,” he said.

Mohammed said that the conference was conceived upon realisation that lack of access to financing was stunting the growth of the Creative Industry.

He assured that the conference would take the industry into a golden era of smooth access to short and long term financing and world class management.

Mohammed disclosed that topics such as, “Government’s Role in Funding Creative Industry’, ‘Fundamentals of financing film, Television and Music Production” would be tackled by global experts from within and outside Nigeria.

He said that Niger Republic had indicated its willingness to attend the event.

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CBN Warned Nigerians To Desist From...

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has warned Nigerians to desist from unwholesome financial engagements in all Ponzi schemes.

It also revealed that investors in such schemes lost the sum N11.9 billion as at December last year.

The acting Director, Corporate Communications Department of the CBN, Mr. Isaac Okorafor, said this during a 2-day Bank-Wide sensitisation campaign on CBN initiatives and programmes in Kano yesterday. He was represented by Mr. Yusuf Wali.

According to the CBN spokesman, since 2015, the Bank had been adequately educating Nigerians on its banks activities in order to create awareness. 

“Our objective is simple. We want you to understand what we do at the CBN. We want to sensitise you on your roles as citizens in keeping the naira clean and other matters,” he told his audience.

He said the CBN had introduced some strategic initiatives and intervention schemes to support the economy with a view to ensuring sustainable growth and development.

According to him, the initiatives and intervention schemes can broadly be classified under the many sectors in the country economy.

In her address, the acting Controller of the CBN Kano office, Mrs. Bilkisu Mahe Wali, decried the inability of successive administration to cooperate with the CBN.

According to her, the purpose of the campaign was to sensitise the citizens on various intervention and other activities which the CBN was involved in for the benefits of the people.

She lamented that lack of education and awareness contributed to the inability of a lot of people to participate actively in the apex bank’s programmes.

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Nigeria Moves To Insure National Assets

 Nigeria has said that it will ensure adequate insurance of its assets.

Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, the Minister of Finance,  revealed this during the National Insurance Conference of the Insurance Industry Consultative Council with the theme: ‘Nigeria open for business’, in Abuja on Monday. 

According to the minister,  “Foreign investors have shown great interest in the Nigerian insurance sector by entering into the market and progress can be seen in the introduction of new insurance products in the growing mortgage and housing sector. 

“To consolidate on the progress being made, the Federal Government will play its part to ensure that government assets are adequately insured.”

The minister, who was represented by the Permanent Secretary in the ministry, Mahmoud Isa-Dutse, also disclosed that through the Voluntary Asset and Income Declaration Scheme, the Federal Government would train insurance brokers and underwriters because they were the people who would support individuals to purchase insurance policies that hedge potential losses of wealth and assets.

The minister also said that  the government would support the sector to continue to contribute effectively to sustainable and inclusive economic growth.

“We must be willing to expand the insurance market beyond the upper class and formally employed market, to the middle and lower income market. Doing this means that our distribution channels must be innovative, considering product features, cost, proximity and all other relevant factors,” Adeosun stated.

Mohammed Kari, the Commissioner for Insurance, stressed  that the various reforms and initiatives of the Federal Government, including the fight against corruption and terrorism, improved management of the nation’s wealth and the determination for improved infrastructure all pointed to ensuring that the environment was prepared for business.

While speaking on the Executive Orders issued by the Acting President Yemi Osibanjo on the ease of doing business, Kari said that the commission had commenced a review of its processes to include timelines and datelines for granting approvals, licences and permits.

The Chairman, Heirs Holdings Limited, Mr. Tony Elumelu, called on the Federal Government to speedily address the $14bn annual infrastructure deficit in the country, stating that it was the single greatest impediment to business.

Mr. Tony Elumelu stated that the infrastructure challenge had become a source for concern as the country was in need of critical transportation system such as roads and railways, which facilitate businesses.

He dded that a country without efficient, affordable and accessible transport systems to facilitate the movement of people and goods from one place to the other would have difficulties attracting investors.

According to him, the gap in infrastructure had provided discerning investors with huge opportunities to partner the government in addressing the deficit.

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Cameroonian Ambassador To Give Explanations Over Killing Of Nigerians In Bakassi

The Foreign Affairs Ministry has summoned Cameroon’s High Commissioner to Nigeria, Amb.

Abbas Salahedine, to give explanations on the report of maltreatment and killings of Nigerians in the Bakassi Peninsula by Cameroonian Gendarmes.

A statement by the Ministry’s Acting Spokesperson, Mrs. Jane Adams, expressed dismay on the incident said to have been occasioned by alleged non-payment of taxes on fishing activities.

“The ministry has instructed the Nigerian Missions in Yaounde and Buea, to investigate the report with a view to confirming their veracity and inform Headquarters immediately.

“The ministry appeals to the Cameroonian authorities to exercise their duty of care and protection over the people of Bakassi, including other Nigerian citizens in the area,” the statement said.

A report on Friday had stated that no fewer than 97 Nigerians were killed as Cameroon Gendarmes allegedly attacked residents of Bakassi over failure to pay a N100,000 boat levy.

The report stated that the attackers sacked mainly Nigerians from Akwa Ibom, Cross River, and Ondo state.

Many others were however said to have escaped at midnight with their fishing boats and arrived at Ikang in Bakassi and Ibaka in Akwa Ibom.

The killing and sacking of Nigerians in former Bakassi are believed to be a violation of the 2005 Green Tree Agreement (GTA) by the Nigeria-Cameroon Mixed Commission.

The Agreement stipulated that the Bakassi returnees must be properly resettled to their natural habitat so that they can have a meaningful living.

The GTA also states that Nigerians who choose to remain in Cameroon can do so without any molestation.

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Again, 11 Teenagers Die In South African Botched Circumcision...

At least eleven teenagers have died of botched circumcision within two weeks during the winter initiation season in South Africa, authorities said on Saturday.

The Provincial Department of Traditional Affairs,  revealed that  all the deaths are in Eastern Cape Province, a hotbed of circumcision-related deaths.

Fikile Xasa from the department said: “The death toll of initiates in a short period is alarming.’’

 

According to him, the deaths occurred in spite of “Zero Deaths” campaign launched by the government.

Government-dispatched teams were currently monitoring the situation across the country, according to Community Development Foundation of South Africa, which deals with the safety of initiates.

It, however, said over 22 boys were rescued from illegal initiation schools in the province.

The department stated that six other initiates died in the province when their initiation school caught fire, noting that their funeral was held on Saturday.

Circumcision is viewed a sacred practice in African cultures, marking a male’s transition from child to adulthood.

In South Africa, young males must traditionally be circumcised as a passage to manhood.

According to the CDFSA, over 70 boys died at initiation schools in 2016 and scores of others were hospitalised in the Eastern Cape alone.

PUNCH

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Government Approves 10,000 Capacity Stadium For....

Akwa Ibom State Governor Udom Emmanuel has approved the construction of a 10,000 capacity stadium for Eket town.

The Commissioner for Youths and Sports, Monday Uko, made the disclosure while inspecting the old Eket Stadium on Wednesday.

According to Uko, the action of the governor was a renewed move to develop and expand sports infrastructure in the state.

The commissioner said the stadium would have tartan tracks for athletics, practicing pitch and a main bowl.

He  said the facility when completed would decongest state-sponsored football competitions from Uyo and offer the residents of the city opportunity to watch top flight football.

“We are not going to inherit anything from the old stadium. Everything here will give way for a brand new stadium which by the grace of God will be completed before the end of May 2018.

“We are going to construct a stadium that will take at least 10,000 spectators and going by the enthusiasm and quality that the governor attaches to projects, the stadium should attract international matches.’’

On the National Youth Games, the commissioner said athletes who excelled at the last state games would represent the Akwa Ibom in the forthcoming competition in Ilorin.

The commissioner said the decision was to assist them develop their talents.

Uko said the construction of the new facility would be completed before May 2018.

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Nigeria Adopts Gas Policy To Change Revenue Base

The Federal Government has officially trimmed down Nigeria’s total dependence on oil for its economy, a major move to set the country’s energy prosperity free from total collapse.

Minister of State for Petroleum Resources,  Dr. Ibe Kachikwu on Wednesday announced the approval of the National Gas Policy by the Federal Executive Council and stated that the development would give rise to the establishment of a single independent petroleum regulatory authority.

Currently, the policy and regulatory institutions overseeing the oil and gas industry in the country are the Ministry of Petroleum Resources, Department of Petroleum Resources, Nigeria Content Development and Monitoring Board, Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency and the Petroleum Equalisation Fund.

But in the NGP, which was approved by FEC last week, the five agencies will be collapsed into one regulatory authority.

 Before its approval, a copy of the draft NGP obtained by our correspondent, stated that the government was desirous of reducing the current regulatory overlaps and consolidating the existing regulatory agencies into a single one.

It stated, “The Federal Government is determined that there should be a new single regulatory agency for the petroleum sector in Nigeria, which will replace the existing regulatory agencies.

“The new agency will cover the whole petroleum sector, incorporate the activities of the existing petroleum regulatory authorities, and also cover some new regulatory activities not currently covered. 

It will essentially be responsible for the economic and technical regulation of the gas sector and shall have licensing, investigative, monitoring and dispute resolution powers.” 

The policy outlined the divisions, departments and functions envisaged to form part of the new petroleum regulatory agency to include upstream oil and gas regulation; midstream and downstream gas regulation; midstream and downstream oil regulation; health, safety and environment compliance; consumer protection; and compliance monitoring, among others.

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Nigeria Central Bank Releases $195m Into Market

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), has injected the total sum of $195 million into various segments of the inter-bank foreign exchange market.

 A breakdown of figures released by the CBN on Monday, July 3, 2017, shows that the sum of $100 million was offered to authorized dealers in the wholesale window, just as the Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) window was allocated the sum of $50 million. Those seeking forex for the purpose of BTA/PTA, tuition and medical bills, among other invisibles, received the sum of $45 million.

The Acting Director, Corporate Communications at the CBN, Isaac Okorafor, who confirmed the figures, said the Bank’s continued intervention was aimed at strengthening the international value of the Naira, while ensuring accessibility to the greenback by customers who required it for genuine purposes.

It will be recalled that the CBN in the last round of forex intervention in the inter-bank market on June 28, 2017, injected a total sum of $195 million to the wholesale, SMEs and invisibles segments of the market.

Meanwhile, a survey of markets in the Bureau de Change segment (BDCs) in Lagos, Abuja, Port-Harcourt and Kano, on Monday, July 3, 2017, showed that the naira exchanged at an average of N360/$1 in the BDC segment of the market.

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Maitama Sule, Elder Statesman Passes On

Alhaji Yusuf Maitama Sule, elder statesman and former Nigeria’s representative to the United Nations,  is dead. He was 87 years old. Confirming the death, the only surviving son of the late orator and Dan Masani Kano, Alhaji Mukhtar Maitama Sule told newsmen at his Dawakin residence that his father passed on at an Egyptian hospital in the early hours of yesterday.

According to Mukhtar, the late sage would be flown back to the country today for burial scheduled to hold by 4:00 p.m. The Kano State government has declared today a work-free day in honour of the deceased.

In his condolence message, Governor Abdullah Umar Ganduje expressed shock over the death of Sule, which he described as a huge loss not only to Kano but the entire nation.

  A statement by Commissioner for Information, Youth and Culture Mal. Muhammad Garba noted that Ganduje asked that the work- free day be used to pray for the repose of the soul of the late sage.

Before his transition yesterday, Sule had been rumoured dead twice: on March 13, 2013 and on April 5, 2016. On the first occasion, his Personal Assistant, Ashiru Sheriff debunked the rumour with admonition that journalists should always authenticate their news report before going to the public.

The claim by Sheriff in refuting the speculations on March 13, 2013 that “Dr. Maitama Sule is alive and well” would later, in July 2013, be confirmed during an explosive interview with The Guardian, which was published on Sunday, July 28, 2013.

Similarly, on April 5, 2016, the same Sheriff debunked the rumour that the elder statesman had died. “The rumour of the death of Danmasani is not true because as I am talking to you now he is hale and hearty,” the personal assistant had said then.

Eminent Nigerians, including President Muhammadu Buhari, Acting President Yemi Osinbajo, President of the Senate, Bukola Saraki and Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara extolled the virtues of the deceased whom they described as a great nationalist.

Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity to the President, Garba Shehu, said Buhari sent a personal letter of condolence to Governor Ganduje in which he expressed shock over the death of Sule.

The letter, said to have been personally signed by the President, also described the death of Sule as a “heavy loss.” Shehu said the letter would be delivered by the Federal Government delegation to the burial as constituted by the Acting President, Yemi Osinbajo.

Osinbajo who described the late Sule as a distinguished diplomat, extended condolences to his family, friends, associates and the government of Kano State. Sule, according to the acting president in a statement, is best remembered on the global scene, as one of Nigeria’s foremost envoys whose clarity of voice and vision contributed significantly to the high esteem and respect Nigeria earned at the United Nations.

At home, Osinbajo remembered Sule as an illustrious son of Nigeria, noting that his death was a loss to the nation. He observed that Sule positioned himself as an agent of unity.

In a statement also, Saraki said Sule should be remembered as one of those who fought for the nation’s independence and witnessed the modest achievements of Nigeria as a nation and, as an avowed and highly respected personality, core democrat, fearless politician, exceptional orator and an accomplished public servant.

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At Least 8 Injured In France Mosque Shooting

At least 8 persons including a girl were lightly wounded late Sunday in a shooting in front of a mosque in the southeast French city of Avignon, the prosecutor’s office said, ruling out terrorism.

According to initial accounts taken on the spot, at least two men got out of a car around 10:30 pm near the mosque and opened fire, including with a shotgun, the prosecutor’s office said.


None of the wounded had life-threatening injuries, it said.

“From what we know this evening, the mosque was not targeted. The fact that it happened in the street of the religious establishment was unconnected with it,” the prosecutor said, ruling out terrorism.

Witness accounts mentioned four men in the car, all hooded.

The criminal investigation department has taken charge of the case.

The shooting comes a few days after a man on Thursday attempted to drive his car into worshippers outside the Creteil mosque in southeast Paris.

The driver, a 43-year-old Armenian who suffered from schizophrenia, hit barriers and pillars outside the mosque with his 4×4 without causing any injuries before crashing into a traffic island.

According to a source close to the investigation, the suspect had made “confused remarks in relation” to a string of jihadist attacks that have struck France, killing 239 people since 2015.

Following a van attack against worshippers leaving Finsbury Park Mosque in London on June 19 which left one dead and 11 injured, France’s Muslim community has also felt threatened.

Some Muslim officials have described the Paris incident as an attack and called on the authorities to “strengthen protection of places of worship”.

The Paris police commissioner reiterated his orders for vigilance in protecting Muslim places of worship.

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