During an extensive search in the Niger Delta region, troops have discovered an astounding 102 dugout wells that are allegedly used for oil theft. This information was disclosed on Thursday during a press conference in Abuja given by Director of Defence Media Operations Edward Buba. In the course of the operation, soldiers in the Niger Delta region found and demolished eight vehicles, forty-one boats, thirty-six storage tanks, and 102 dugout pits. They also denied stealing an estimated N1,050,715,260. They also took possession of six pumping machines, 39 cooking ovens, and dismantled 61 illicit refining installations. Among the goods found were…
Author: Ken Ibenne
President Bola Tinubu stated this week that kidnappers ought to be treated like terrorists as the country continues its efforts to eradicate terrorism, banditry, and criminality. The President said that those who commit such heinous crimes should be considered terrorists, denouncing the abhorrent deeds carried out by kidnappers throughout the nation. At a Ramadan dinner with members of the Federal judiciary, including Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN) Olukayode Ariwoola, the President made the declaration on Tuesday. The President reaffirmed the government’s commitment to stopping banditry and declared that those who abduct children are cowards who cannot stand up to the…
In an effort to lessen the effects of climate change, the federal government has obtained funding totaling $198,175 from the Climate and Clean Air Coalition (CCAC) to encourage farmers to reduce their use of open-field burning. The goal of the 18-month project, which will be carried out in Benue state’s Gboko Local Government Area, is to educate farmers about the risks associated with open field burning and the sustainable uses for agricultural residuals. At a workshop yesterday in Nasarawa on the execution of Nigeria Abatement of Short-Lived Climate Pollutants (SLCP), Permanent Secretary Temitope Fashedemi of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture…
Nigerian businesses would be able to take advantage of Google technologies to boost their expansion and competitiveness. This was revealed during a roundtable discussion in Lagos, when prominent Nigerian companies joined Google West Africa to talk about the transition from third-party cookies to privacy-first marketing. Leaders from FairMoney, Konga, Mondelez, Stanbic IBTC, and Zenith Bank convened at the forum to underscore their shared dedication to reinventing customer engagement in the digital era. Companies realized that gaining the trust of customers is crucial in a society where privacy is becoming more and more important. Developing more privacy-focused marketing techniques is not…
The administration of MAX has given low-emission MAX motorcycles to the Lagos State Residents Registration Agency (LASRRA) in support of the global effort to achieve carbon-zero emissions and to lower the high cost of maintaining internal combustion engine cars. Its efforts to maintain low-carbon emissions on Lagos roadways while supporting the distribution of registration cards throughout the state include the donation. Founded in 2015, MAX is working to create the greatest mobility-tech platform in Africa. Since its founding, the business has offered mobility entrepreneurs options that guarantee they can carry out their vital work in a way that minimizes carbon…
Nigeria is currently educating a number of employees in Southern and Western nations in an effort to enhance the availability of energy throughout Africa and lessen reliance on expats from Europe and other continents. Through the National Power Training Institute of Nigeria (NAPTIN), Nigeria has developed its labor force by training employees of utility firms in Ghana, Togo, Malawi, Liberia, Mozambique, and other countries. The information was released at a time when Nigeria is still among the nations with the least effective electricity systems. Speaking yesterday in Abuja at a gathering that included the Ministry of Power, NAPTIN, and the…
Value Added Tax (VAT) paid by Nigerians who use telecommunications and other information and communications services was N412.31 billion in the previous year. According to data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), telecom businesses and other operators in the information and communications sector paid N466.5 billion in Company Income Tax (CIT) at this time. Because of its importance to the economy, the telecom industry continues to rank among the biggest payers of taxes to the government. The sector contributed 19.29 percent, 21.19 percent, 19.04 percent, and 10.02 percent in the first quarter, Q2, Q3, and Q4, respectively, according to…
The Yobe State Environmental and Climate Change Action Project (ECCAP) has been granted a $50 million loan by the African Development Bank Group (AfDB) in order to enhance food security and climate change resistance in northeastern Nigeria. In a statement released by the bank on Tuesday, it was stated that the funding initiative’s goals are to improve livelihoods, address food security issues, and mitigate climate vulnerability for nearly 3.5 million people in the region. The expected project funding for the ECCAP is $101.34 million. The Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa (BADEA) contributes $30 million in co-financing to match…
The planned protest against the standoff over the data-sharing agreement between the Lagos State Government and Uber Technologies System Nigeria Limited has been formally canceled by the Lagos chapter of the Amalgamated Union of App-Based Transporters of Nigeria (AUATON). Despite what some media outlets have said, the Union is more upset with Uber than with the Lagos government because the latter ignored its order to integrate the Application Programme Interface (API), which is essential for real-time data exchange. Jaiyesimi Azeez, the Union Chairman, has acknowledged the importance of the API integration in enhancing driver safety and has voiced support for…
An outbreak of ginger blight costs farmers N12 billion, and the crisis jeopardizes Nigeria’s position as the market leader. Farmers impacted by the nationwide outbreak of ginger blight have received a N1.6 billion compensation package from the federal government through the National Agriculture Development Fund (NADFund). The action follows investigations that revealed a fungal illness that devastated ginger fields in Kaduna, Nasarawa, Plateau states, and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) caused farmers to lose an estimated N12 billion. Speaking at the inauguration of the Ginger Blight Epidemic Control Taskforce in Abuja yesterday, Minister of Agriculture and Food Security Abubakar Kyari…
The clearing of a $7 billion foreign exchange (FX) backlog by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has been praised by the Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA). It does, however, reaffirm the necessity of taking immediate action to resolve certain organized private sector (OPS) members’ unfulfilled FX requests. Several NACCIMA member companies and other private sector operators have contested the assertion that the backlogs had been cleared, according to a statement from NACCIMA’s National President, Dele Oye. According to Oye, a number of NACCIMA members have expressed regret that their naira monies were held…
Enugu State Governor, Dr. Peter Mbah on Tuesday, inaugurated the newly constituted Governing Council of the Enugu State University of Science and Technology, ESUT, in line with Section 6 (1) of ESUT Establishment Law, stressing that education remained the strongest weapon to fight poverty. The Governing Council has Sir Chinyeaka Ohaa as Chairman with Prof. Ikenna Chukwu, Engr. James Ifeanyi, Mrs. Gladys Okoro, Hon. Chinedu Onu and Dr. Eric Oluedo as members. He noted that the Governing Council was constituted based on competence and the expressed confidence that the institution and state government would benefit from members of the Council, given their track…
In February 2024, Nigeria’s broad money supply (M3) reached a record high of N95.56 trillion, defying the Monetary Policy Committee’s (MPC) tightening stance. This amount shows a significant year-over-year gain of N42.26 trillion, a whopping 79.29% increase from the N53.3 trillion recorded in February 2023. Furthermore, this amounts to N1.84 trillion, or 1.96% more than the previous month of January 2024, recorded at N93.72 trillion. This information was made public by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in its most recent money and credit statistics. In February 2024, Nigeria’s Money Supply (M2) reached a historical high of N93.9 trillion, surpassing…
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) sold dollars to the Bureau De Change (BDC) Operators for N1,251, which resulted in the naira strengthening on Monday throughout the foreign currency (FX) markets. In February 2024, the CBN committed to selling BDCs for $20,000 every week at N1,301. The central bank instructed the BDCs to sell to qualified clients at a rate not to exceed 1.5% above the purchase price, according to a CBN circular. As the dollar was quoted at N1,408.04 on Monday, greater than N1,431.49 posted on Friday at the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NFEM), the naira appreciated by…
In an effort to reduce financial crimes in the banking industry, the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) have promoted cooperation. In a statement, the Corporation stated that it is still dedicated to making sure that individuals who cause bank failures are adequately looked into and prosecuted. The statement was made by NDIC Chief Executive and Managing Director Bello Hassan during a polite visit by NDIC management to Ola Olukoyede, the Executive Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), at the EFCC Headquarters in Abuja. Hassan clarified that the NDIC’s mandate,…
Nigeria’s communication infrastructure is in danger due to increased diesel prices; in February, telecommunications companies spent N50.28 billion on fuel. This represented a 9.02 percent rise from the N46.12 billion (at N1,153.01/litre) spent in January and a 50.20 percent increase from the N33.48 billion (at N836.91/litre) they spent in the same time of 2023. Since 2022, diesel prices have been skyrocketing. Because grid electricity is unstable, telecom infrastructure, such as base stations, depends on diesel to run their generators. According to industry data, operators power telecom installations with an average of 40 million litres of diesel per month; in February…
Apple is facing legal action from the US Department of Justice and sixteen US states for allegedly engaging in anti-competitive behavior aimed at preserving its hegemony in the smartphone industry. The complainants in the case filed on Thursday claimed that Apple was pressuring users to stick with its products by making it harder for them to move to rival devices. The lawsuit focuses in particular on the iPhone maker’s market share in the high-end smartphone market. It charges that the business is making it harder for people to move to the competitors. This covers items like as “contractual restrictions” and…
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) said on Wednesday that it had finally paid off all legitimate foreign exchange backlogs, processing claims totaling US$7 billion in inheritance. Acting Director of Corporate Communications at CBN, Hakama Sidi Ali, included this in a statement that was mailed. According to her statement, the CBN has completed the payment of $1.5 billion to resolve bank customer commitments, thereby resolving the remaining amount of the foreign exchange backlog. She also revealed that these transactions were carefully examined by independent auditors from Deloitte Consulting, who made sure that only valid claims were honoured and that fraudulent…
Since the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) cleared all foreign currency (FX) backlog, the value of the naira has steadily improved, gaining 4.55 percent against the dollar on increased dollar supply. According to data from the FMDQ Securities Exchange Limited, the summary of the FX trading auction showed that the naira increased by 4.55 percent as the dollar was quoted at N1,492.61 on Wednesday, stronger than N1,560.57 reported on Tuesday at the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM). Wednesday’s intraday high finished at N1,620 per dollar, which was higher than Tuesday’s closing price of N1,626.50. Additionally, on the same day,…
43 businesses have invested a total of N8.6 billion to get the licences necessary to offer telecommunications services in Nigeria via the Mobile Virtual Network Operator (MVNO) framework. Stakeholders are concerned that because the established mobile network operators (MNOs), which include MTN, Airtel, Globacom, and 9mobile, are now controlling the market, the new operators may find it difficult to attract new clients. The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) reports that as of December 2023, there were 224.4 million active subscriptions among the four mobile network operators. With the exception of the continuous implementation of the NIN-SIM linking ban, which may result…
Tuesday’s closing rate for the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange (NAFEM) was N1560.57 to $1, indicating a significant increase. Compared to Monday’s closing rate of N1,597.24/$1, this indicates a notable increase of N36.67 or 2.35%. The Naira also continued to trade below the N1,600/$1 level for the second day in a row, continuing a nine-day streak that began on March 5, 2024. Additionally, Tuesday’s trading activity showed growth, as the daily turnover reached $195.13 million, a significant 38.93% increase from Monday’s $140.45 million. Additionally, data from FMDQ Securities shows that the daily turnover from the start of the year to March…
The 2024 Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Statutory Budget was passed by the Senate, totaling N1.282 trillion—a sum that was N135 billion higher than what the Ministry of FCT had first suggested. This decision followed the Tuesday plenary session’s examination of the joint report from the FCT committees of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The report was delivered by Sen. Ibrahim Bomai, the chairman of the senate committee on the FCT. He mentioned the initial N1.15 trillion budget plan for the FCT for 2024. Bomai brought up the committee’s recommended N1.28 trillion budget during the discussion of the report,…
In just 6.63% of the N10.39 trillion loan that was disbursed to different sectors as intervention programmes, the Central Bank of Nigeria supported Micro, Small, and Medium-Sized Enterprises (MSMEs). This was done over ten years. According to a thorough analysis by the apex bank, the industry received N689 billion in funding between August 2013 and September 2023. The health sector only makes up 1% of all intervention programmes, and the export sector receives a pitiful 2% of the allocation, while the MSME sector comes third in terms of the least amount among the intervention programmes, according to the report. Among…
The naira strengthened to N1,572.86 per dollar on the official market on Monday, following N1,602.75/$1 on Friday, signaling a solid start to the foreign currency market. The country’s currency closed at N1,590 per dollar on the parallel market on Monday, up from N1,605/$1 on Friday. The Central Bank of Nigeria’s policy initiatives have caused the naira to stabilize further this week, according to some analysts. The naira strengthened versus the dollar on both official and black market exchanges last week, contributing to the FX market’s bullish conclusion. The dollar that FX market participants supplied fell by 20.99 percent to…
Arsenal is supposedly ahead of Chelsea in the race to capture Victor Osimhen during the forthcoming summer transfer window, according to claims from Team Talk. The Gunners have the financial strength to match Osimhen’s wage demands and are ready to outbid Chelsea, making the Emirates Stadium an alluring option for the Nigerian striker. Osimhen, who is wanted by many European teams, is expected to leave Napoli during the upcoming transfer window. Among the great clubs, Arsenal is the front-runner due to Osimhen’s €130 million release clause. TEAMtalk states, ‘Chelsea fears losing out on Victor Osimhen this summer, as PSG and…
This week, the naira is predicted to stabilize even more as demand pressure moderates and the supply of dollars declines. The naira strengthened against the dollar on both official and black market exchanges last week, contributing to the favorable conclusion of the foreign exchange (FX) market. According to data obtained from the FMDQ Securities Exchange, the naira gained 0.95 percent last week as the dollar was quoted at N1,602.75 on Friday, greater than N1,617.96 posted on Monday, the start of the trading week, at the official FX market. The local currency at the parallel market ended the trading week flat,…
The nation’s unemployment rate will rise as a result of the states’ declining ability to draw in foreign investment, and the subnational governments’ ability to generate internally generated income (IGR) would be diminished. According to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), The News Chronicles reported last month that only four states received foreign investments in the fourth quarter of last year, which is the lowest number in nearly three years. The states of Lagos, Abuja, Ekiti, and Rivers received $1.09 billion in Q4 as opposed to $654.6 million in Q3 for the six states. In Q1, the number increased to…
Private jet owners who possess a Permit for Non-Commercial flying (PNCF) are being warned by the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) to immediately stop conducting commercial flying activities or risk severe penalties, including having their permit revoked. According to Michael Achimug, the NCAA’s director of public affairs and consumer protection, owners of PNCF are not allowed to utilize their aircraft for commercial operations or charter services that involve the carriage of passengers, freight, or mail for hire or reward. Achimugu said in a statement on Wednesday that the NCAA “will not hesitate to initiate enforcement actions against any PNCF holder…
In Nigeria’s oil sector, three new guidelines have been put into place to try and stop the departure of international oil firms (IOCs). However, analysts believe that the largest challenge that lies ahead is getting these instructions put into action. The largest economy in Africa depends heavily on oil. It contributes significantly to the government’s global presence, around half of its revenue, and almost all of its foreign exchange earnings. However, in the 64 years since Royal Dutch Shell initially tapped a well in the Niger Delta’s marshes, it has also been underutilized as a resource for Nigeria’s 200 million…
Nigeria, the most populous country in Africa, has drawn N23.8 billion in investments from food processors to help reduce its dependency on imports despite its slow development and high cost of doing business. In an effort to decrease the nation’s reliance on tomato paste imports, GB Foods recently inaugurated a N20 billion, cutting-edge tomato processing facility in Kebbi State. The 1,500-hectare farm and factory produces 2,000 employment, which GB Foods intends to quadruple during the next phase of growth. It also has a processing plant capable of producing 620 metric tons of goods each day. This indicates that 226,300 metric…
