Tag: Finance - Page 25 - African News Today

16Sep

By Obiajulu Joel NwoluNo Comments

Economy, Employment, Finance, News, Nigeria

NESG Vs CBN Faceoff: Prospects for SMEs

Most Nigerians were startled and bemused by the recent revelations by the Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG), against Nigeria’s apex Bank, Central Bank of Nigeria. The NESG is a non-profit private sector organisation setup in 1966 with a mandate “to promote and champion the reform of the Nigerian economy into an open, private sector-led globally competitive economy”. It issued a 15-point statement jointly signed by its Chairman, Mr Asue Igbodalo and the Chief Executive Officer, Mr Laoye Jaiyeola where it made some damning accusations on the integrity of the CBN to stimulate the ailing Nigerian economy to thrive under the COVID-19 pandemic. It concerns bothered on issues such as transparency and efficiency of agricultural intervention under the anchor borrowers programme; foreign e...

CBN Urges Nigerian Banks to Increase Agric Sector Lending to 10%

16Sep

By Obiajulu Joel NwoluNo Comments

Agriculture, Covid-19, Economy, Finance, News, Nigeria

CBN Urges Nigerian Banks to Increase Agric Sector Lending to 10%

The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr. Godwin Emefiele has asked banks in Nigeria to consider increasing the percentage of loans available to the agriculture sector to 10 percent by 2024. Emefiele advocated for a spike in the current four per cent. This comes on the heels of optimism by Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs. Zainab Ahmed that the Nigeria economy will bounce back strongly within the near term with the right policy responses to the multidimensional crises occasioned by the COVID-19 pandemic. The CBN governor while delivering an address at the opening ceremony of the 13th Annual Banking and Finance Conference said the sum of N69 billion had so far been disbursed to over N140,000 beneficiaries from the N100 billion CBN COVID-19 support...

Nigeria – Why We Resigned from NESG – Bank Directors

11Sep

By adminNo Comments

Economy, Finance, News, Nigeria

Nigeria – Why We Resigned from NESG – Bank Directors

It is no longer news that the NESG (Nigerian Economic Summit Group), few days ago criticized some policies adopted by the CBN in its bid to stabilize the economy. What is however news is that following this criticism and CBN's response, doubling down on its position, three members of the have NESG board resigned. The three board members that resigned are Kennedy Uzoka, Group Managing Director of UBA Plc, Adesola Adeduntan, Managing Director of First Bank and Abubakar Suleiman, Managing Director of Sterling Bank Plc. The reason they gave for their resignation was that they were not carried along by the NESG board before the release of the statement attacking CBN's policy direction. They said among other things "We were not consulted on the statement, and as directors of the NESG...

Government Will not Pay a Kobo of Foreign Reserves to Import Food or Fertilizer Says President Buhari

11Sep

By Obiajulu Joel NwoluNo Comments

Agriculture, Economy, Finance, News, Nigeria

Government Will not Pay a Kobo of Foreign Reserves to Import Food or Fertilizer Says President Buhari

President Muhammadu Buhari has instructed the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to make forex inaccessible for people seeking to import food items and fertilizer. The President said this at the meeting of the National Food Security Council at the Presidential Villa in Abuja on Thursday. It restates the earlier directive on forex given by Buhari in August 2019. President Buhari asked private businesses determined to import food items to use their money to compete with local farmers, noting that government will not provide forex for such purposes in a bid to promote local production. He said, “I am restating it that nobody importing food or fertilizer should be given foreign exchange from the Central Bank. We will not pay a kobo of our foreign reserves to import food or fertilizer. ...

CBN Defends Policies, Responds to NESG’s Claims

10Sep

By Obiajulu Joel Nwolu19 Comments

Covid-19, Economy, Finance, News, Nigeria, Press Statement

CBN Defends Policies, Responds to NESG’s Claims

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has defended its intervention programmes aimed at stimulating economic growth, saying it everted food crisis during the peak of COVID-19 lockdown. This was stated in a statement by the CBN titled, “Re: Matters of Urgent Attention,” signed by its Director, Corporate Communications, Mr. Isaac Okorafor, which was in response to claims by the Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG), that its stimulus programmes were without policy clarity. According to a statement released on Monday, NESG had alleged a huge loophole between food production and the needs of Nigerians despite the enormous sums disbursed by the CBN under its intervention programs. The CBN, in its reaction defended its action claiming its intervention packages were channeled to sectors crit...

Enugu Airport Reopens After 370 Days Closure as South East Leaders Commend Buhari

31Aug

By Obiajulu Joel NwoluNo Comments

Aviation, Finance, News, Nigeria, Transportation

Enugu Airport Reopens After 370 Days Closure as South East Leaders Commend Buhari

The federal government of Nigeria on Sunday commissioned the rehabilitated Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu, for flight operations. The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) had closed the airport on August 24, 2019 for rehabilitation after its runway had become deplorable. In his address at the inauguration on Sunday, President Muhammadu Buhari who was represented by the Minister of Aviation, Senator Hadi Sirika, describes the airport reopening as a “promise kept.” According to Buhari, the airport was important to the aviation industry as well as the people of the South-East because of its revenue base, noting that informed the concerted effort at delivering the airport on time. The minister stated that the Buhari had shown commitment towards the infrastructural...

FEC Approves N8.49bn For Purchase of COVID-19 Testing Kits

12Aug

By Obiajulu Joel NwoluNo Comments

Covid-19, Finance, News, Nigeria, Science

FEC Approves N8.49bn For Purchase of COVID-19 Testing Kits

The Federal Executive Council (FEC) has today ratified the sum of N8.49bn for the procurement of 12 items for the testing of deadly COVID-19 by the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC). President Muhammadu Buhari gave the approval during a virtual council meeting on Wednesday. The minister of Health, Osagie Ehanire presented the memo on behalf of the centre at the Council chambers of the Presidential Villa, Abuja after which it was considered and approved.

NDDC Issues Senator Two weeks Ultimatum to Refund N2.5bn for Failed Contracts

8Aug

By Obiajulu Joel NwoluNo Comments

Corruption, Crime, Economy, Education, Finance, Judiciary, Legislature, News, Niger Delta, Nigeria, Press Statement

NDDC Issues Senator Two weeks Ultimatum to Refund N2.5bn for Failed Contracts

Case pending before two courts, letter has not reached me – Nwaoboshi The Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) has hit back at the Nigerian Senate, asking Chairman, Senate Committee on Niger-Delta, Senator Peter Nwaoboshi, to refund N2.5n for contracts his companies failed to deliver. The commission failed to mention the names of the concerned firms in the letter written to the lawmaker. The commission gave Nwaoboshi a two weeks ultimatum to refund the funds to its account. NDDC in a letter signed by the Director, Legal Services, Peter Okoro, dated July 5 asked Nwaoboshi to return to its coffers fund earmarked for the supply of plastic chairs and desks for primary and secondary schools in the Niger Delta region in 2017. The letter read, “Instead of supplying the cha...

Eased Lockdown: PTF Ratifies Gradual Reopening of International Air Flights in Weeks

7Aug

By Obiajulu Joel NwoluNo Comments

Aviation, Covid-19, Economy, News, Nigeria, Safety, Transportation

Eased Lockdown: PTF Ratifies Gradual Reopening of International Air Flights in Weeks

The Boss Mustapha led Presidential Task Force (PTF), on COVID-19 has signed off on gradual reopening of international air flights and train services across Nigeria in weeks, and not months. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), reports that this formed part of the concessions agreed upon at the end of the second extension of the second phase of eased lockdown. This was announced by Boss Mustapha, Chairman of the PTF and Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), while addressing the press at the daily briefing of the PTF on Thursday in Abuja. He said, “It’s important to ensure that restrictions are not completely relaxed in order to control transmission. “It is also important that at this Community Transmission Phase of the pandemic sub-national governments step up to tak...

FG Extends Phase Two Lockdown by Four Weeks, Retains 10pm Curfew

7Aug

By Obiajulu Joel NwoluNo Comments

Aviation, Covid-19, Economy, Education, Finance, News, Nigeria, Transportation, Youths

FG Extends Phase Two Lockdown by Four Weeks, Retains 10pm Curfew

President Muhammadu Buhari has ratified the extension of the phase two lockdown measures in response to COVID-19 by another four weeks. This implies that all guidelines introduced to curb the spread of the virus under the second phase of the relaxed lockdown which took effect on June 1 will remain effective with slight modifications to address the economic, socio-political and health concerns as contained in the latest report by the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19. This was disclosed by the Chairman of the PTF who is equally the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, boss Mustapha, at the press briefing of the task force in Abuja on Thursday. Mustapha said state governments and authorities of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) would be mandated to enforce non-ph...