thisday0518

THISDAY • MONDAY, MAY 18, 2015
BUSINESSWORLD
Shareholders Hail Nigerian Breweries
for Paying N37.2bn Dividend
Goddy Egene
Shareholders of Nigeria
Breweries Plc last week
commended the company for
its performance in the 2014
financial year and the payment
of N37.205 billion in dividends
for the year.
The shareholders, who spoke
at the company’s 69th annual
general meeting (AGM) in
Lagos, hailed the company’s
management, especially for the
recommendation of a total
dividend of N37.205 billion
, the biggest cash payout in
the history of the company.
The amount translates into
N4.75 per ordinary share of
fifty kobo each.
Speaking at the AGM, Chairman
of Nigerian Breweries,
Chief Kola Jamodu, said the
company had earlier paid an
interim dividend of N9.453
billion, representing N1.25
per ordinary share in October
2014 before a final dividend
of N27.752 billion (N3.50 per
PZ Cussons Nigeria Plc
has signed a Memorandum
of Understanding (MoU)
with the National Office for
Technology Acquisition and
Promotion (NOTAP) to boost
research and technology in
Nigeria.
PZ in a statement issued
to THISDAY said under
the terms of the MoU, the
company has agreed to fund
the upgrade of the chemical
laboratories in two Nigerian
Universities and one Research
Institute while NOTAP will
coordinate the project.
The benefiting institutions
include University of Calabar,
Modibo Adama University
of Technology, Yola and the
National Research Institute for
Chemical Technology, Zaria.
According to the company,
the intervention is borne
share) that was paid to all
shareholders whose names
appear on the company’s
register of members at the
close of business on March
4, 2014.
The ended 2014 with a profit
before tax of N61.4 billion and a
profit after tax of N42.5 billion.
According to Jamodu, the
company was able to return
creditable results for the year
in spite of the challenging
business environment, due
in part to its cost leadership
and innovation agenda.
He explained that synergies
from the recently concluded
merger between the legacy
Nigerian Breweries Plc and
Consolidated Breweries Plc
have positioned the enlarged
company to deliver improved
returns on investments for all
stakeholders of the company.
The Managing Director of Nigerian
Breweries, Mr. Nicolaas
Vervelde had recently assured
stakeholders the company had
been positioned for sustained
out of its concern to fill the
infrastructural gap in Nigeria’s
institutions, pointing out that
the intervention is to assist
the institutions acquire and
install state-of-the-art equipment
to facilitate the conduct
of robust research activities
that will produce high calibre
Research & Development
(R&D) personnel.
Director General, NOTAP,
Dr Umar Bindir, advised that
Nigeria can only develop if
the bulk of research findings
and papers lying in the nation’s
research centres are
put to use in solving our
problems.
He noted that it is
through such partnerships
that Nigeria will be able to
‘transform knowledge into
socio-economic solutions
and assets that will bring
growth and deliver more
returns for its shareholders,
following the successful merger
with Consolidated Breweries
Plc.
According to him, postmerger
Nigerian Breweries will
be able to meet the demands
of a changing Nigerian beer
market, deliver significant cost
and revenue synergies and gain
access to new markets with
broader product offerings,
among other things
Stressing that the company
remained committed to cost
leadership and outperforming
the market, he said through
the elimination of duplication
in its operations and the use
of one management and one
office, and other efforts, the
company would remain true
to its strategies and values.
Stressing that the company
remained committed to cost
leadership and outperforming
the market, he said through
the elimination of duplication
in its operations and the use
about sustained national
development.’
Under the partnership
agreement, PZ Cussons
funding will focus on R&D
activities, development of
Ph.D. holders that will be
part of the institutions’
scholarship pool and forging
viable research projects for
students.
He commended PZ Cussons
for blazing the trail and called
on other companies to emulate
the kind gesture.
In his response on behalf
of the beneficiaries, the Vice
Chancellor, Modibbo Adama
University of Technology, Yola,
Professor Kyari Mohammed
expressed his happiness with
industry/academia collaboration.
He assured the company
that the resources to be
of one management and one
office, and other efforts, the
company would remain true
to its strategies and values.
He explained that the
company embarked on cost
reduction strategies such
as logistic cost and cost of
raw materials to reduce the
impact of unfriendly operating
environment on its operational
performance.
On the company’s outlook
for the year, Vervelde, who
said the economic challenges
of 2014 had persisted into the
first quarter of 2015, said he
was confident that the year
would be positive for the
company.
Nigerian Breweries recorded
a revenue of N266.37 billion
compared with N268.61 billion
achieved in the corresponding
period of 2013. Profit before
dropped to N61.46 billion from
N62.24 billion posted in 2013,
while profit after tax stood at
N42.52 billion against N43.08
billion in 2013.
LUCKY WINNERS
L-R; Omotayo Ogunnaike from Lagoon Secondary school,Lagos; Fatimah Aliyu Gebi of the International Community School, Abuja; Minister of
Communications Technology, Dr Omobola Johnson; and Praise Sanni Adeniyi of the International School Lagos during the presentation of prizes
to winners of an ICT Innovation Competition tagged “’My ICT innovation” to commemorate the international Girls in ICT Day 2015 in Abuja in
Abuja...recently
PZ Cussons, NOTAP Sign MoU to
Boost Research, Technology
expended on the upgrade
will be judiciously applied
and put to utmost use.
The signing ceremony,
which took place at PZ
Cusson’s Head Office, was
attended by management
of the company led by the
Chief Executive Officer, Mr.
Christos Giannopoulos and
representatives of the other
two institutions and other
directors of NOTAP.
PZ Cussons Nigeria PLC
has been in the business of
household goods manufacturing
and at the forefront
of promoting scholarship
in chemical sciences. The
company is the sponsor
of the annual PZ Cussons
Chemistry Challenge that
seeks to promote learning
of Chemistry in secondary
schools.
Chinedu Eze
In furtherance of its commitment
to the development of
education in Nigeria, Sterling
Bank Plc in partnership with
Caleb Group of Schools has
concluded plan to hold the
second edition of the parenting
workshop under the bank’s
‘One Education’ initiative. The
workshop is aimed at educating
parents and guardians on how
to nurture their children and
bring out the best in them.
The event will hold in Lagos
on May 23, 2015. The theme of
the workshop is ‘Enhancing your
child’s capacity for learning’.
The bank in a statement
signed by its Group Head,
Strategy and Communications,
Mr. Shina Atilola described the
parenting series as a family
growth and education initiative
designed to support parents’
desire to optimise the potential
and talents of their children.
He noted that the purpose of
the workshop is to aid parents
and guardians in dealing with
topical issues that affect the
upbringing and training of
their wards in the 21st century
vis-à-vis the practical day-to-day
realities of life in Nigeria.
The bank’s chief strategist
said the involvement of the
3 5
NEWS
African Aviation Experts
Canvass Two Big Airlines
for Nigeria
For its large population
and increasing passenger
traffic, aviation experts who
attended the recent African
Aviation Summit 2015 in
Johannesburg, South Africa,
have proposed that Nigeria
should establish two strong
carriers that could compete
with international airlines
if the country must benefit
from its growing number of
air travellers.
Over four million Nigerian
travel overseas annually and
projections indicate that in few
years this number may increase
to eight million. However, over
94 per cent of these travellers
are airlifted by international
carriers that do not contribute
in any way to the development
of aviation in Nigeria.
Partner, Ernst and Young,
Ethiopia, Mr. Zemedeneh
Negatu said Nigeria must
have to establish at least one
strong national flag carrier
and enforce the merger of
some of the existing ones
in order to have two strong
airlines with high capacity to
meet the growing number of
air travellers and to become
competitive in the international
air transport market.
Negatu recalled that the
defunct Virgin Nigeria, which
the federal government had
an input in was established to
become a very strong Nigeria
carrier but the objective was not
realised because the structuring
of the airline was wrong.
He said that Nigeria should
learn a lesson from that and
now a new administration was
set to take over government,
it would be reasonable for the
country to have two or three
multibillion dollar airlines.
“We don’t expect the Nigerian
government to run those
airlines, but Nigeria deserves to
have at least one national flag
carrier, then support should
be given to Arik and Aero to
become very large carriers
to support Africa’s biggest
economy.
“Somebody with core
competence should be engaged
to manage the airline. Nigeria
should follow the style of the
Asian tigers, but government
must play stronger roles by
deploying funds for the
development of the industry
and also give support to the
establishment of the airlines”,
Negatu said.
But the Legal Advisor, African
Civil Aviation Commission
(AFCAC), Sam Gaya said that
Nigeria could only succeed in
establishing a successful carrier
if government is transparent
and has zero-tolerance to
corruption and impunity,
noting that these elements
brought about the collapse of
the defunct Nigeria Airlines
Limited (NAL) and to some
extent Virgin Nigeria Airways.
“There must be openness,
there must be transparency,
it must follow the Ethiopian
model whereby government
official that needs the service
of the airline will pay for it
in advance. There should be
no interferences,” Gaya said.
The CEO of African Aviation
Services Limited and former
Secretary-General of African
Airlines Association (AFRAA),
Nick Fadugba, said Nigerian
needs a minimum of two major
carriers, adding that Nigerian
airlines must cultivate the habit
of paying their bills on time,
adding that they should pay
for the services rendered by
the aviation agencies, pay the
lessors that leased them aircraft
and others.
Sterling Bank Partners Group
bank in the second edition of
the workshop was informed by
the overwhelming turn-out of
parents who attended the first
edition, adding that the bank will
continue to invest in initiatives
that add value to the lives of
people in line with its purpose.
“The level of attendance
by the parents at the first
workshop exceeded our
projection. The workshop was
well attended by both parents
(fathers and mothers) with their
children. This shows the value
parents place on the workshop
and the need to bring up their
children in a worthy manner,
not only to themselves but
the family and the country
at large. Their contributions
are noteworthy,” he added.
Speaking on the bank’s
involvement in the education
sector, Atilola who assured of
Sterling Bank’s continuos investment
in initiatives aimed at
supporting the sector, added
that the private sector must
come in and invest in the
education sector if “we really
want our children to get quality
education. Sterling Bank’s
intervention in the sector will
help to ameliorate some of the
challenges the sector faces”.