BusinessDay 28 Feb 2018

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NEWS YOU CAN TRUST I **WEDNESDAY 28 FEBRUARY 2018 I VOL. 14, NO 555 I N300 @ g 

Visionscape issuing 

N4bn bond priced 

at 15.75% 

... questions raised 

over timing 

LOLADE AKINMURELE 

Visionscape, the new 

waste management 

company employed 

by Lagos State, is issuing a 

N4 billion bond the second 

tranche of its N50 billion debt 

programme to implement 

an initiative to rid Nigeria’s 

economic hub of festering 

Continues on page 38 

MTN sticks to 

June listing for 

Nigeria unit 

... hopeful over SEC, 

NSE approvals 

IHEANYI NWACHUKWU 

The much expected initial 

public offering (IPO) by 

MTN Group for its Nigerian 

unit will not exceed June 

2018, BusinessDay can disclose. 

Ahead of that target, MTN Group 

hopes to get all necessary ap- 

Inside 


Flour Mills 

completes N50bn 

sugar production 

facility P. 4 

China Development Bank, 

UBA sign $100m loan deal to 

support SMEs in Africa P. 38 

Non-oil economy gathers 

momentum in Q4 – NBS 

ISAAC ANYAOGU; ENDURANCE OKAFOR, 

Lagos & ONYINYE NWACHUKWU, Abuja 

Nigeria’s non-oil 

economy grew 1.5 

percent year on 

year (YOY) in the 

fourth quarter of 

2017, its strongest performance 

since 2015, according to GDP 

data from the National Bureau 

of Statistics (NBS) released yesterday. 

This is a reversal of the non oil 

sectors negative growth of -0.76 

percent recorded in the third 

quarter of 2017 and more than 

twice the average growth rate 

recorded in the first and second 

quarter of 2017. 

Overall economic growth for 

Sees strongest expansion since 2015 

Oil refining emerges worst performing sector 

2017 came in at 0.83 percent 

helped by an 8.68 percent growth 

in the oil sector. Even though 

the oil sector accounts for less 

than 10 percent of the country’s 

economic output, the non-oil 

sector remains highly dependent 

on the dollars earned from 

the sector which accounts for 

more than 90 percent of export 

revenue. 

“The non-oil sector recovered 

from the contraction in the prior 


L-R: Lehle Belde, journalist, BusinessDay/moderator; Anthony Osae-Brown, editor, BusinessDay; Peace Hyde, Forbes Africa head, digital media and partnerships, 

West Africa correspondent; Tolu Ogunlesi, special adviser to President Buhari on digital and new media/head, Presidency Office of Digital Engagement (PODE); 

Hercules Venter, co-founder, Kalibrate Africa; JJ Omojuwa, founder/chief strategist, Alpha Reach, and Gbenga Aborowa, broadcast journalist, during the 2018 Social 

Media Week, with the theme “New Media Disruption and Modern Day Journalism: The Challenges and Opportunities” in Lagos, yesterday. Pic by Olawale Amoo

2 BUSINESS DAY 

C002D5556 

Wednesday 28 February 2018

Wednessday 28 February 2018 

BUSINESS DAY 

3


C002D5556 

Wednesday 28 February 2018 

NEWS 

Flour Mills completes N50bn sugar production facility 

... largest agric investment in Nigeria 

CALEB OJEWALE 

Flour Mills of Nigeria 

has increased its 

investments in the 

country’s agricultural 

sector with a N50 billion 

sugar production facility in 

Niger state, as a way of improving 

the company’s capacity for 

backward integration and to 

gradually eliminate the need for 

importation. 

Data provided by the National 

Sugar Development Council 

(NSDC) on its website suggests 

sugar importation cost Nigeria 

$516 million in 2016, as the 

country continues to grapple 

with inability to scale up local 

production. 

The Nigerian Sugar Master 

Plan (NSMP) noted that while 

Nigeria belongs to the International 

Sugar Organization whose 

member countries numbering 

92 (at the time) represent 80 

percent of total world sugar production, 

81 percent of total world 

consumption, 64 percent of total 

sugar exports and 55 percent 

of sugar imports, the country 

however, only belongs to the category 

of sugar importers, where 

Non-oil economy... 

Continued from page 1 

quarter with support stemming 

mainly from Agriculture. The 

growth reflects the main harvest 

season which was above average. 

For us, we perceive favorable 

weather, increased cultivated land 

and sustained focus of the FG on 

the sector via various support programs 

as key drivers for increased 

output during the quarter. Another 

support to the positive non-oil 

growth was trade, following five 

consecutive quarters of negative 

growth. The rebound in trade was 

on the back of increased dollar 

availability, with sector overall 

contribution increasing to 16.8% 

(Q3 17: 15.9%),” ARM Research 

analysts said. 

Accelerated growth in Agriculture 

of 4.2 percent YOY versus 3.1 

percent in Q3 2017, recovery in 

trade 2.1 percent YOY versus -1.7 

percent in Q3 2017, and slower 

contraction in services of -0.8 

percent YOY versus -3.1 percent 

in Q3 2017 largely drove the overall 

economic growth in Q4 2017. 

But analysts have noted that 

the country’s GDP growth of 0.83 

percent in 2017 remains low. 

“The growth rate still lags far 

behind where Nigeria should be,” 

said Razia Khan, chief economist 

for Africa at Standard Chartered, 

although she noted that the fullyear 

growth was higher than the 

0.7 percent forecast by her bank. 

Elsewhere, the services sector 

also saw a slower contraction of 

-0.3 percent (Q3 17: -1.1%) during 

the review period which stemmed 

from the ICT sector (Q4 17: -1.5%; 

Q3 17: -4.5%). Though data from 

the Nigerian Communications 

Commission revealed a downturn 

in industry voice calls (-7% YoY to 

142 million active subscribers), 

mild growth in data services (YoY: 

3% to 95 million subscribers) was 

able to tame its effect on the industry’s 

total output. Oil refining 

remained in negative territory, 

losing -46.2% YoY. 

it ranked 4 in 2009. When compared 

to African neighbours, 

Nigeria is the least food - secure 

in terms of sugar as most of them 

produce substantial proportions 

of their sugar requirements. 

A pre-commissioning fact 

sheet made available to BusinessDay, 

revealed that Sunti 

Golden Sugar Estate (SGSE) 

Limited is a wholly owned subsidiary 

of Flour Mills of Nigeria 

(FMN) Plc, and comprises of a 

cane production area and sugar 

factory. 

“More than N50 billion has 

been invested in Sunti so far, 

making it the largest Agro Allied 

investment in Nigeria so far,” said 

the company in its fact sheet. 

It added that “SGSE is FMN’s 

single biggest investment since 

inception in 1960; its vision for 

agro-industrial transformation 

(in Nigeria).” 

Designed to have an output 

of 100,000 tons of sugar annually 

at full capacity, the facility 

occupies 15,100 hectares of 

land with a potential cane area 

of 5,000 ha out of which 3,000 

hectares is currently under cultivation. 

Majority of the area is 

enclosed within a 35-kilometer 

The Nigerian National Petroleum 

Corporation (NNPC) says it 

wants to raise the country’s refining 

capacity from the current nameplate 

capacity of 445,000 barrels 

per day (bpd) to 662,000 bpd, but 

this data indicates such plans are 

the blueprint for a pipedream. 

According to data from its operations 

and financial report for 

November, the three refineries 

produced 55,187 metric tonnes 

(MT) of finished petroleum products 

and 39,562 MT of intermediate 

products out of 107,748 MT of 

crude processed at a combined 

capacity utilization of 5.92 percent 

compared to 17.63 percent combined 

capacity utilization achieved 

in the month of October 2017. 

“A problem the NNPC will be 

confronted with is speed in getting 

approvals for funding to do 

repairs to increase efficiency of 

the assets, and if it can manage 

the repairs,” said Chuks Nwani, an 

dyke offering flood protection 

from the River Niger where the 

Sugar cane is cultivated under 

irrigation, making it an annual 

crop, and available for processing 

year round. 

Sadiq Usman, a director in 

FMN’s Agro-allied division, told 

BusinessDay by phone, that the 

project started about eight years 

ago with the acquisition of land, 

while actual development commenced 

five years ago. 

The Estate comprising the 

plantation and the mill is described 

in the factsheet as 

FMN’s Backward Integration 

programme under the National 

Sugar Master Plan (NSMP), towards 

the attainment of locally 

produced and refined sugar. According 

to FMN, the facility’s official 

commissioning is a pivotal 

event in propagating not only the 

significant investment in the Mill 

but the company’s growth and 

backward integration story to all 

stakeholders. 

In 2013, implementation of 

the Nigerian Sugar Master Plan 

(NSMP) was started with a goal 

to effectively end sugar importation 

within 10 years, when 

Nigeria should have achieved 

energy lawyer. 

Faster growth in food, beverage 

and tobacco and Textile, Apparel 

and Footwear erved as pillars in 

pushing the manufacturing sector 

back to a positive growth of +0.1 

percent (Q3 17: -2.9%). 

“Consistent with the above-50 

readings in PMI releases over H2 

2017, the manufacturing sector 

expanded 1% y/y driven by gains 

in the key sub-sectors: food, beverage 

and tobacco (up 2.2% y/y) 

and textiles, apparel and footwear 

(up 1.6% y/y) alongside a return 

to growth across most industries 

which helped offset continued 

weakness in refining (down 47% 

y/y) and cement (down 1.6% y/y). 

The improvements reflect an improved 

FX liquidity profile and a 

recovery in consumer demand as 

PMI readings in Q4 2017 showed 

higher new orders, growing inventory 

and rising employment,” said 

Ecobank research analysts in a Feb. 

self-sufficiency. As at last year, 

however, it was reported that 

Nigeria has achieved only 40.3 

per cent of the target set for attainment 

by the first half of the 

10-year lifespan of the sugar 

master plan. 

It appears many companies 

are yet to fully take advantage of 

the opportunities in producing 

more sugar locally, retaining 

more of the foreign exchange 

used for importation, and putting 

the country in a position to 

be more elf-sufficient. 

The sugar production facility 

in Mokwa, Niger state, currently 

employs 3,000 people mainly 

sourced from the surrounding 

communities. Once development 

is completed 10,000 people 

will be employed. CSR projects 

have been done installing drains, 

culverts and roads around host 

communities, including the 

30-kilometer road from Mokwa. 

In addition to the Sugar value 

chain, FMN says it has also 

embarked on significant backward 

integration investments in 

the Cassava/Sorghum/Wheat 

value chain as well as the Edible 

Oil (Palm and Soybean) value 

chains. 

Sitting from 

Left: Jin Tao, 

director-general, 

Global 

Cooperation 

Department– 

Americas and 

Africa, China 

Development 

Bank (CDB), 

with Kennedy 

Uzoka, GMD/ 

CEO, UBA 

plc, signing a 

$100 million 

loan facility 

agreement to 

fund SMEs in 

Africa. Standing 

behind are 

Zheng Zhijie, 

president of 

CDB, and 

Tony Elumelu, 

chairman 

of UBA plc, 

at the UBA 

House in 

Lagos, yesterday. 

27 note to clients. 

“Looking ahead, the stronger 

non-oil growth reading lifts our 

optimism regarding Nigeria’s economic 

growth prospects over 2018. 

We now see telecommunications 

GDP exiting recession in Q1 2018 

given the strength of the quarterly 

recovery over Q4 17 even as a more 

accommodative monetary policy 

stance and improved FX liquidity 

buoys activity in the manufacturing 

and trade sectors. In addition, 

improvements in fiscal revenue 

at both federal and state level are 

likely to allow for further gains 

in the construction and cement 

sectors. For oil GDP, we expect oil 

production to average 2.11mbpd 

(2017e: 1.88mbpd) helped by continued 

peace in the Niger Delta and 

likely on-streaming of the 250kbpd 

Egina oil field in Q3 2018. In all we 

look for real GDP growth of 3% in 

2018 up from our prior forecasts for 

2.6% growth. 

Nigeria’s $2.5bn 

Eurobond could 

trigger yield curve 

normalisation 

BALA AUGIE 

Federal Government of Nigeria’s 

decision to tap the 

international debt market 

with a view to refinancing domestic 

debt and reducing local borrowing 

costs could trigger yield curve 

normalization. 

Investors historically have 

viewed the shape of the yield curve 

as a signal of future growth. 

The yield curve compares interest 

rates at different maturities, 

typically the spread between yields 

on one- and 10-year bonds. 

Ten-year yields historically have 

reflected the market’s growth and 

inflation outlook, while the short 

end of the curve is mainly tied to 

market expectations for central 

bank rates. 

The normal yield curve is one in 

which short term debt instruments 

have a lower yield than long term 

debt instrument of the same credit 

quality. 

Fixed Income analysts have 

agreed that the narrow difference 

between yields on shorter term 

paper of 15.40 percent and the yield 

on long term dollar denominated 

debt of 13.80 percent means there 

is significant downward pressure 

on short term interest rates. 

However, they add that yields 

on short term securities may not 

go down further as the central bank 

could mop up or stem liquidity by 

intensifying on Open Market Open 

(OMO) issuance with a view to attracting 

foreign investors. 

“Because federal government 

plans to bring down borrowing 

costs, they are going to reduce their 

borrowing in treasury bills and that 

will suppress the short term interest 

rates,” said Wale Okunrinboye, 

a fixed income and FX analyst at 

Ecobank Group. 

“More money is going to come 

into the system and that will depress 

yields at the segment so short 

term interest rate will start declining. 

Last year short term rates were 

higher than long term rates,” said 

Okunrinboye. 

Nigeria recently sold $2.5bn 

worth of Eurobond via a dual series 

offering of 12 year and 20 year tenors, 

priced at 7.143% and 7.696% 

respectively. 

Investors have flocked to Nigerian 

Eurobond as improved oil 

production and a flexible exchange 

rate helped the country exist its first 

recession in 25 years. 

Inflation which is a bonds worst 

enemy because it moves in inverse 

proportion to price, fell to 15.10 

percent for a 12 consecutive month 

in January 2018, according to a recent 

report by the National Bureau 

of Statistics (NBS). 

Finance Minister Kemi Adeosun 

said recently that the country 

plans to redeem N762.5 billion 

worth of treasury bills and that it 

would save government N64 billion 

each year after the refinancing 

is completed. 

Eurobonds make up more than 

a fifth of Nigeria’s $15.35 billion foreign 

debt portfolio as of September 

and more than half of interest paid 

in the third quarter, according to 

data from the Debt Management 

Office (DMO). 

Nigeria’s Eurobond portfolio 

now stands at $8.5bn (or $8.8bn if 

the $300 million diaspora bond is 

included), and the total external 

Continues on page 38

Wednesday 28 February 2018 C002D5556 BUSINESS DAY 5

6 BUSINESS DAY C002D5556 

NEWS 

Oil spills: Hope rises for NOSDRA Act 

amendment as N/Assembly supports 

IGNATIUS CHUKWU & INNOCENT IWARA 

Hopes are high 

in the oil region 

that the agency 

set up to fight 

pollution may 

be strengthened to act more 

swiftly and decisively. This 

is as senators and other lawmakers 

who attended a session 

on the matter showed 

total commitment to pushing 

through with the requests for 

an amendment. 

Now, after organising a 

roundtable discussion in 

conjunction with the House 

of Representatives Committee 

on Environment and 

Habitat in Abuja, Niger Delta-based 

group, the National 

Coalition on Oil Spills and 

Gas Flaring in the Niger Delta 

(NACGOND) now believes 

present defects in the Act 

that established the National 

Oil Spills Detection and Response 

Agency (NOSDRA) 

would soon be corrected. 

“I have no doubts that the 

Act will be amended soon,” 

said NACGOND’S national 

… new law may give more powers to punish polluters 

coordinator, Edward Obi, in 

Port Harcourt. 

Obi said the assurances 

NACGOND got from members 

of the National Assembly 

at the Abuja discussion, 

which targeted lawmakers, 

oil companies and regulatory 

agencies like the Department 

of Petroleum Resources 

(DPR), on February 19, 2018, 

were enough for the group to 

believe that a positive outcome 

was imminent. 

“I got assurances from 

the members of the National 

Assembly that they will go to 

work on this matter. There 

is real, ample agreement 

around the table that this 

law needs to be amended 

and NOSDRA needs to be 

strengthened,” he said. 

He said areas that need 

amendment as unanimously 

agreed by delegates include 

funding; regulatory overlap 

with other agencies like the 

DPR; lack of clarity on NOS- 

DRA’s powers to issue penalties 

to oil companies in matters 

relating to gas flaring and 

oil spillage; as well as other 

technical gaps. 

As such, he said, all delegates, 

including members of 

the National Assembly, were 

involved in the drafting of a 

communiqué containing areas 

of loopholes and recommended 

amendments. 

Obi said: “There was 

agreement around the table, 

not only members of the 

National Assembly, but also 

DPR and the oil companies, 

particularly Shell (Petroleum 

Development Company) 

that stayed there and participated 

in the drafting of the 

communiqué. Everybody 

thus sees, now, the need for 

the amendment of the NOS- 

DRA law. 

“There was also a representation 

from the Senate. 

Victor Umeh actually sat 

through the entire event, but 

representing Remi Tinubu 

who is Chairman of the Senate 

Committee on Environment. 

He sat through the 

entire thing and through the 

drafting of the communiqué 

and took a copy of the communiqué 

to the Senate Committee.” 

He said some of the recommendations 

made include; 

“the need for the establishment 

of a National 

Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund. 

NOSDRA (should) be given 

power to enforce compliance 

with the laws relating to oil 

spill management. 

“Adequate and prompt 

compensation be made by 

the facility owner, and such 

compensation must relate 

directly to an ecological, economic 

or property damage 

arising from an oil spill or gas 

leakage. 

“NOSDRA should be a 

one-stop shop for all oil spill 

and gas flare related matters 

to ensure adequate and 

timely response. Communities 

should be recognised not 

only as stakeholders but also 

as shareholders in oil and gas 

exploration and exploitation.” 

L-R: Bliqees Odewale, brand manager (Omo), Unilever Nigeria; Laurel Beaufils, deputy high commissioner, British High Commission; 

Bridget Tose; Stephen Ukpai, both are pupils, Ken Ade Private School Makoko; Nnenna Ikpeme, perfect city manager, 

customer development, Unilever Nigeria; Ayodele Aburo, sustainable business manager, Unilever Ghana & Nigeria, and Polly 

Alakija, painter, Daraja Designs, at the presentation of the creative work of Art made by the pupils of Ken Ade School, Makoko 

as part of the Unilever Perfect City programme, to the Deputy British High Commissioner in Lagos, yesterday. 

EU commits €47m to fight human trafficking, irregular migration in Africa 

IDRIS UMAR MOMOH, Benin 

Ambassador of the European 

Union to Nigeria, 

Ketil Karlsen, 

says the Union has 

committed €47 million to fight 

against human trafficking and 

irregular migration across the 

Africa continent. 

Karlsen, who made the 

disclosure at a roundtable 

meeting on Migration and 

Human Trafficking organised 

by the Senate on Monday in 

Benin City, assured of the Union’s 

readiness to provide the 

needed assistance to end the 

scourge of human trafficking 

and irregular migration in the 

continent. 

He said that in 2017, about 

187,000 registered irregular 

migrants to Libya about 16 

percent of them were from Nigeria. 

In his keynote address, 

the Senate president, Bukola 

Saraki, lamented that Nigerians 

led in the pack of applications 

for asylum seekers rejected 

by European countries. 

Saraki, who noted that the 

EU rejected asylum since 2011, 

said Nigerians accounted for 

nearly 100,000 applications, almost 

three times the number 

of any other African country. 

While assuring that the 

Federal Government will 

adopt a carrot and stick approach 

in its commitment to 

put an end to the scourge of 

irregular migration and human 

trafficking in the country, 

he noted that government 

was losing sleep over the issue, 

which had led to the death of 

over 10,000 Nigeria on the perilous 

journey in five months. 

The Senate president said 

as representatives of the people, 

they were determined to 

seek ways of addressing the 

problem. 

“This is not a blame game. 

Let me make it abundantly 

clear that Nigeria is willing 

to collaborate with countries 

and international partners 

on irregular migration. We 

should be able to work out a 

carrot-and-stick approach that 

gives our people the incentive 

to stay on the continent and 

strive. 

“Every human being deserves 

his or her own place in 

the sun - and for many, that 

place in the sun is here, in Africa 

– but they have to stay in 

order to find it,” he said. 

Saraki, who commended 

President Muhammadu Buhari 

for the initiative to immediately 

commence the repatriation 

of Nigerians stranded 

in countries such as Libya, and 

being sold as slaves, promised 

that Nigeria was willing to collaborate 

with international 

countries and partners in its 

commitment to put an end to 

irregular migration in Nigeria. 

He said the roundtable was 

intended to help identify how 

legislation and policy could be 

brought to bear in addressing 

the problem of irregular migration 

of Nigerians and Africans 

to Europe. 

Emefiele keeps CBN integrity, Akpabio says 

HOPE MOSES-ASHIKE 

Senate minority leader 

and former governor 

of Akwa Ibom 

State, Godswill Akpabio, 

said over the weekend 

that Godwin Emefiele, 

governor of Central Bank 

of Nigeria (CBN), had kept 

the integrity of the CBN and 

maintained the stability of 

the naira. 

Akpabio said this while 

presenting the Special 

Achievement Award conferred 

on him by the Silverbird 

Group in Lagos. 

He said the Senate had 

passed a bill to domicile 

the Nigeria Financial Intelligence 

Unit (NFIU) in the 

CBN, in line with global 

practices. 

Receiving the award, 

Emefiele, who was accompanied 

by Okwu Joseph 

Nnanna, deputy governor, 

Financial System Stability 

(FSS), and other top staff of 

Nigeria records $591m loss, 17,500 deaths 

annually from tobacco consumption 

HARRISON EDEH & CYNTHIA EGBOBOH 

Sub-regional coordinator 

for West Africa 

Campaign for Tobacco-Free 

Kids, Hilda 

Ochefu, says Nigeria records 

an estimate of $591 million 

worth of economic loss and 

17,500 deaths yearly resulting 

from tobacco consumption. 

This comes as experts are 

raising concerns and pointing 

out that the Federal Government 

appears to lack the political 

will to tackle the excess 

consumption of tobacco in 

Nigeria. 

Speaking at a policy dialogue 

on the economics of 

tobacco taxation held on 

Tuesday in Abuja, Hilda said 

an average of 600,000 premature 

deaths were caused 

by passive tobacco consumption 

annually, and of these 

deaths 31 percent occurred 

among children and 64 percent 

among women. 

Meanwhile, the views of 

some experts show that the 

government is managing effects 

of tobacco consumption 

on the health of the people 

Reps ask Buhari to provide security 

across insurgency prone schools 

KEHINDE AKINTOLA, Abuja 

The House of Representatives 

on Tuesday 

urged Federal 

Government to focus 

more on providing adequate 

security for students across 

the insurgency prone North- 

East region of Nigeria. 

The lower chamber also 

resolved to invite all the 

Service Chiefs to an executive 

session on the nation’s 

security situation. The resolution 

was passed following 

the adoption of a motion of 

urgent national importance 

sponsored by Goni Lawan 

(APC-Yobe). 

The motion came few 

days after the Nigerian authorities 

confirmed the 

kidnap of 110 students of 

Government Girls Technical 

College in Dapchi area of 

Yobe State. 

While leading the debate, 

Lawan expressed displeasure 

the CBN, attributed the successes 

recorded by the apex 

bank to the staff of the bank. 

Emefiele said they toiled 

and worked very hard in spite 

of the challenges facing the 

country, saying, “This award 

would further spur the CBN 

to work even harder for the 

benefit of Nigeria and Nigerians,” 

while appreciating the 

Board and Management of 

the Silverbird Group for considering 

him for the award. 

On the other hand, he 

disclosed that since the commencement 

of the Anchor 

Borrowers Programme in 

November 2015, the CBN in 

partnership with states and 

several private sector groups 

had disbursed a cumulative 

sum of N55.526 billion 

to over 250,000 farmers who 

cultivated almost 300,000 

hectares of farmland for rice, 

wheat, maize, cotton, soybeans, 

cassava, etc. 

Two years into the implementation, 

the programme 


because of the acclaimed tax 

they pay and the social responsibilities 

performed by 

these tobacco companies. 

Research shows that tobacco 

companies pay excise 

tax of 20 percent on a unit cost 

of production and 5 percent 

VAT. Meanwhile, the World 

Health Organisation (WHO) 

recommends an excise tax of 

75 percent. Looking at the aggregate 

market consumption, 

Nigeria consumes 18.4 billion 

sticks of cigarettes annually of 

which 12.2 billion sticks are 

domestically produced. 

Chukwuka Onyekewena, 

director, Centre for the Study 

of the Economies of Africa 

(CSEA), said there was need 

for effective control of tobacco, 

noting that tobacco consumption 

accounted for 17,500 

deaths yearly in Nigeria. 

He however recommended 

that the government 

should adopt a specific taxation 

system, increase import 

levy to 50 percent of Cost 

Insurance and Freight (CIF) 

per pack of cigarette, and promote 

tobacco education programmes. 

over indiscriminate abduction 

of unsuspecting students 

and the attendant suffering 

being subjected to by their 

abductors. 

Other lawmakers, who 

spoke in favour of the motion, 

namely: Sadiq Ibrahim 

(APC-Adamawa); Garba 

Tchede (APC-Taraba); 

Nnena Elendu-Ukeje (PDP- 

Abia) and Abdul Sani (APC- 

Bauchi), tasked the Federal 

Government to direct relevant 

security agencies toward 

securing immediate 

release of the schoolgirls. 

The House also expressed 

its sympathy for parents of 

the abducted girls as well as 

the people and government 

of Yobe State. 

To this end, the House 

resolved that a committee 

be set up by Speaker Yakubu 

Dogara to visit Dapchi on 

assessment mission and report 

its findings for further 

legislative action. 

has contributed to the creation 

of an estimated 890,000 

direct and 2.6 million indirect 

jobs. 

Speaking last week on 

‘Engendering the Growth of 

Nigeria’s Poultry Industry, 

at Akure, Ondo State, Emefiele 

said the CBN remained 

committed to working with 

the states in supporting small 

holder farmers and processors 

across other items that 

could be produced in the 

state. 

“Let me assure the state 

governor, and the good people 

of Ondo State that the 

CBN stands ready to collaborate 

with you in supporting 

the development of a viable 

agricultural sector in this 

state. And this readiness is 

directly in harmony with our 

resolve and vision to create 

a professional and peoplecentred 

central bank that will 

act as a financial catalyst for 

job creation and inclusive 

economic growth,” he said.


C002D5556 

BUSINESS DAY 

7 

FG not ready for provision of 

perimeter fencing in 2018 

IFEOMA OKEKE 

Despite the spate 

of runway incursions 

across Nigerian 

airports, 

BusinessDay’s checks show 

that the Federal Government 

may not provide perimeter 

fences across the 

airports in 2018. 

The Federal Airports Authority 

of Nigeria (FAAN) 

Tuesday said it would capture 

the construction of perimeter 

fences in all airports 

in the 2019 budget. 

Experts say 2019 may be 

too late for this development 

as Nigerian airports 

continue to remain porous 

and could be threats to security 

if immediate steps 

are not taken to address security 

lapses at the airports. 

The recent incursion of 

Akure airport runway by 

cows that caused AirPeace 

aircraft to delay landing for 

about 20 minutes, thieves 

opening up cargo hold at 

the airport, the falling off of 

Dana Air door upon arrival 

at Lagos airport and the 

recent theft at the airports 

have again brought to the 

fore the need to improve 

aviation safety through ensuring 

that aircraft, airport 

runways and airside are secured. 

John Ojikutu, member 

of aviation industry 

think tank group, Aviation 

Round Table (ART) and 

chief executive of Centurion 

Securities, told BusinessDay 

that if the NCAA 

had put security fences 

across airports in the 

country, there would not 

be incursion of the runways 

by cows. 

“The NCAA and FAAN 

should be blamed for absence 

of security fences 

across our airports. There 

are certain things we must 

have in place before we 

are certified to operate the 

airport. If NCAA approved 

the airports to be operating 

without perimeter 

fences, the airline should 

know that. 

“This information 

should be in the Aeronautical 

Information Publication 

(AIP). The pilot must 

read it before he departs. 

The operators too should 

be blamed because if they 

are going to Akure, they 

should take precaution on 

landing,” Ojikutu said. 

He recalled that in 

1990s, when he was the 

airport commandant people 

were farming on the 

runway side of the Murtala 

Muhammed International 

Airport (MMIA), until he 

had to put a stop to it. 

On the issue of poaching, 

Ojikutu advised that that 

FAAN should “withdraw 

coy Identity Cards from disengaged 

staff and ensure 

same for ground handling 

staff; limit number of staff 

working in the aircraft and 

apron, and conduct regular 

background checks on all. 

Ensure regular payment of 

salaries; demand for security 

enhanced fences and 

regular patrol of aircraft 

manoeuvring areas.” 

‘Compel oil majors to build refineries, 

power plants, or revoke their licences’ 

IGNATIUS CHUKWU & DAVID EJIOHUO 

The Federal Government 

has been told 

to compel the oil 

multinationals to 

build refineries and bring 

to an end the perennial fuel 

scarcity in Nigeria. 

An engineer, Lucky Akhiwe, 

who is the vice president 

of the South-South Chambers 

of Commerce, made the 

observation when he spoken 

with BusinessDay in an exclusive 

interview at the Port 

Harcourt International Airport, 

Omagwa. 

According to Akhiwe, who 

is also the chairman of Oil 

Flow Services, the only solution 

to end the embarrassing 

fuel scarcity in the country 

was for the Federal Government 

to have strong political 

will and compel the major 

oil exploration companies to 

build at least three refineries 

in the country. 

This decision, he noted, is 

being made all over the world 

and all the Federal Government 

needs to do is to make 

a condition for oil companies 

to have it as part of their lease 

agreement to build refineries 

of at least 300 barrels of petrol 

per day or have their lease 

cancelled. 

These refineries he further 

noted must not be 

modular ones but refineries 

that could produce about 300 

barrels a day and any major 

exploration company that 

failed to do so should have its 

lease agreement terminated 

by the Federal Government. 

Apart from the refineries, 

the oil companies should 

also be made to build power 

plants as part of their obligations 

to the nation and their 

contribution to boost the 

electricity generation in the 

country. 

The chamber of commerce, 

he explained, had on 

several occasions, engaged 

the Federal Government on 

the need to make these decisions 

but regrets that the 

government lacks the strong 

political will to do so. 

This, he said, was unfortunate 

because these companies 

make their money here, 

taking it as an advantage because 

they were not asked 

to plough back their wealth 

into the country. “I tell you, 

if this decision is taken, we 

can buy fuel at N30 per litre 

in this country and we can 

have enough electricity generated 

into our homes and 

industries.’’ 

On the development of 

the modular refineries as 

proposed by the Federal 

Government, Akhiwe explained 

that the modular 

refineries idea was feasible 

but regretted that the 

Federal Government was 

not helping the matter because 

of the bottle neck 

conditions. “How can you 

ask people to start paying 

$150,000 as condition to get 

the license, even when the 

procedure is not clear. How 

can you ask community 

people to pay such amount 

as a condition to start a 

modular refinery, from 

where will they produce the 

money’’? 

NEWS 

Land use charge: OPS mulls 

legal action against Lagos 

… says law inhumane, insensitive to enterprise 

JOSHUA BASSEY 

Organised Private 

Sector (OPS) is 

considering a legal 

option to challenge 

the provisions of the Lagos 

Land Use Charge law assented 

by Governor Akinwunmi 

Ambode on February 7, describing 

the legislation as 

‘insensitive’ and at variance 

with the ease of doing business 

drive of government at 

federal and state levels. 

The OPS through one of 

its bodies – Nigeria Employers’ 

Consultation Association 

(NECA) says the amended 

Land Use Charge Law, 

which replaced the Land Use 

Charge Law 2001, lacks ‘humanness,’ 

which is a major 

attribute of good governance. 

Olusegun Oshinowo, 

director-general of NECA, in 

a statement on Tuesday, said 

the “OPS will not stand hand 

tied up to celebrate impunity 

and cheer disdain. It will fight 

this law by social resistance 

and any other legitimate 

means at its disposal.” 

Oshinowo observed: “The 

new law will expect property 

owners in Lagos State to pay 

an increase of over 200 per 

cent in Land Use Charge 

even when the income of the 

property owner has not experienced 

significant increase 

to justify the charge. 

“There is, also, a penalty 

payment ranging between 

125-200 percent, if payment 

is not made between April 

and August 2018. The new 

charge is, thus, highly insensitive 

and inhumane to 

say the least. It is, therefore, 

unacceptable to organised 

businesses.” 

Although Oshinowo 

commended Ambode for 

“good works and making 

Lagos a model for good 

governance,” he, however, 

averred, “sensitivity and humanness, 

which is part of 

good governance, is missing 

in the amended Land 

Use Charge law of the state.” 

The new law extended 

the period for the payment 

of all annual Land Use 

Charge Demand Notices 

for 2018 to Saturday, April 

14, 2018. The extension is 

to enable property owners 

and affected occupiers 

take the option of enjoying 

the discounts available for 

the prompt and early payment 

of Land Use Charge 

invoices. 

The land use charge law 

as amended seeks to consolidate 

all property and land 

based rates/charges into a 

single property charge. It 

also sets the modalities for 

levying and collection of 

land use charge in Lagos 

State 

The state government 

believed that the law, which 

would expectedly boost the 

revenue profile of the state, 

would significantly contribute 

to the growth and development 

of Lagos as well as 

facilitate the current administration’s 

vision of a globally 

competitive mega city.


C002D5556 



BUSINESS DAY 

9



C002D5556 

COMMENT 

SMALL BUSINESS HANDBOOK 

EMEKA OSUJI 

Dr Emeka Osuji 

School of Management and 

Social Sciences 

Pan Atlantic University 

Lagos. eosuji@pau.edu.ng @Emyosuji 

Poverty reduction war takes back seat 

These are by no means 

the best of times for our 

country Nigeria. The 

most dastardly centripetal 

forces have been 

arrayed against her. And every effort, 

including those that are tested 

and proved efficacious elsewhere, 

have become impotent.The challenge 

of poverty, which was one of 

her biggest enemies, and against 

which microfinancing and other 

economic defence strategies were 

implemented, has suddenly paled 

into oblivion, as more vicious 

enemies take the centre stage. As 

things stand now, it is hard to focus 

on the war against poverty when 

the battle field has widened and 

become very shifty, as terrorists 

ravage the country. A whole region 

of the country, the North East, and 

several portions elsewhere, are 

completely engulfed by a nameless 

war, which is at any rate a great war, 

by any standard – the war waged by 

Boko Haram and herdsmen. 

To make matters worse, Nigeria 

has just transited power essentially 

between two mutually antagonistic 

political groupings that are ideologically 

hard to distinguish. Those 

who inherited power had barely 

settled down when the country 

was struck by all manner of evil, 

akin to share bad luck – collapse 

of the international oil market, 

declining national output of the 

category called recession, and 

what may be termed self-imposed 

disabilities, including obviously 

divisive policies that have widened 

and multiplied the national 

cracks, turning them into gorges 

that may never be filled. 

Evidently, a time like these is 

usually difficult for any country, 

wherever it may be located in the 

world. Sadly such times do not 

encourage objective assessment 

of challenges and hence blur 

the choice of effective solutions. 

Moreover, most governments 

caught up in such situations often 

find themselves living in denial, 

for a number of understandable 

reasons. First, the challenges 

they face are usually rooted in 

the past and hence there is ample 

room for alibi and blame game. 

Second, even where there are 

obvious errors and issues, such 

governments usually prefer to 

deny their existence,especially 

because it may be dangerous to 

easily accept one’s faults when one 

has not established a track record 

of performance. The result often 

is a lot mistrust for government. 

As a consequence of this phenomenon, 

both at national and 

subnational levels, many Nigerians 

are viewing the current state 

of affairs with sociological detachment. 

Those who are apolitical do 

not see their role in anything poli- 

There is need for a complete 

review of the challenges 

facing Nigeria, including 

poverty... The challenge of 

poverty in Nigeria has gone 

beyond hand-outs and 

on-lending facilities. The 

root causes of poverty have 

become bigger than the 

problem of poverty 

ticians do. They sit on the fence. Others 

are downright naïve, and do not 

see how the crisis in the North East, 

for instance, affects them in their 

far away regions.They are fine with 

the suffering or exclusion of other 

groups as long as their group has its 

teeth deep in the pie. This kind of 

atmosphere is very widespread and 

has resulted in what many consider 

incongruent policy responses. Today, 

most politicians have set their 

eyes on 2019 elections without considering 

where the country might be 

at that time, given the wildly blazing 

fire of insecurity and discontent.It is 

hard to fight poverty when interests 

and attention are so far away from 

the challenge of poverty. 

Even the youth, however defined, 

have joined the fray of blurred 

visionaries by seeing only the opportunity 

to rule Nigeria rather than 

to create solutions to its many problems, 

one of which is the absence of 

values among the people, including 

the youth. It is now the opinion that 

the youth have become even more 

insensitive to the needs of the na- 

comment is free 

Send 800word comments to comment@businessdayonline.com 

tion than their faltering elders, by 

focusing on how to get themselves 

into the driving seat of our corruption 

called governance, than 

seeking how to save the country 

from same. What will save Nigeria 

is not that young men will take over 

from elders but the institutions and 

structures that will spew out evil 

men from leadership. That is what 

we need. The recent campaign for 

a reduction of age limits for occupying 

top political leadership 

positions begs the question. It is a 

misplacement of priorities. It gives 

the impression that what is wrong 

with Nigeria is the age of those 

ruling it. Obviously, that would be 

a wrong analysis of the challenges 

that confront a federation that woke 

up one day and discovered that 

the regions had been castrated, 

dispossessed and handed over to 

the central government as vassals. 

There is need for a complete 

review of the challenges facing Nigeria, 

including poverty. Currently, 

the microfinance solution has lost 

traction, largely for no fault of its 

promoters. Although they operate 

in different markets, there are 

still some commonalities between 

microfinance and deposit money 

banks. They both need economically 

active people, poor or rich, to 

serve. It is not realistic therefore to 

expect that microfinance banks will 

function in places where deposit 

money banks avoid, for security 

reasons. Such places are increasing 

in number and dimension. 

The president was quoted recently 

as saying:“My government 

is working hard to reduce the unemployment 

rates through several 

programmes and initiatives including 

the N-power, agriculture, small 

and medium scale businesses, all 

of which are supported by government 

guaranteed loan scheme. 

I encourage you all to key into 

any of them for national growth 

and development.” Those words 

reflect the good intensions of the 

president to minimize the hardship 

that has become emblematic of life 

in Nigeria, not just among the poor 

but in more than one way attending 

to most people. But even the president 

knows that good intensions 

will not do. Hand-out type policies 

can only fill a gap. Real solutions 

are structural and self-propelling 

and often viral in effect. The growth 

of jobs in a construction site marrow 

the growth of a virus. That’s the 

need of the times. 

The challenge of poverty in 

Nigeria has gone beyond handouts 

and on-lending facilities. 

The root causes of poverty have 

become bigger than the problem 

of poverty. There is an urgent need 

to ask certain questions, which we 

have signally avoided. What kind 

of businesses are Nigeria’s poor 

doing currently into which they 

would invest the guaranteed loans? 

Is capital the most important problem 

facing the economically active 

poor people of Nigeria? Given capital, 

would they be able to sustain 

themselves in view of the security 

and infrastructural deficits? Poverty 

is complex and its antidotes 

need to be even more complex. 

Send reactions to: 

comment@businessdayonline.com 

FRANCIS EWHERIDO 

Ewherido, the Managing Director of Titan Insurance 

Brokers Limited, wrote from Lagos. 

One of the biggest challenges 

we have with deepening 

insurance penetration in 

Nigeria is the near absence 

of insurance culture. The insurance 

culture is either not there or not entrenched. 

We do not see insurance as a 

way of life that it is. But we live in a very 

uncertain socioeconomic and political 

clime, which makes insurances even 

more imperative. Insurance is life and 

ordinarily you cannot avoid insurance 

anymore than you can avoid living. 

But there are some classes of insurance 

that are even more important 

to life, especially lives of third parties. 

Consequently, government has made 

these classes of insurance compulsory. 

Perhaps we can start entrenching the 

insurance culture in Nigeria by strict 

enforcement of compulsory insurances. 

Ordinarily, you want people 

to take insurance out of conviction 

and on their own volition, but if third 

parties are involved and some classes 

of insurance have been made compulsory 

to protect them, then they should 

be enforced. 

Compulsory insurances are about 

third parties, who might die, suffer 

bodily injuries or property damage as a 

result of actions, inactions, negligence 

or carelessness of the insured. The insured, 

on his own, might not have the 

resources to indemnify (compensate) 

the affected third parties in the event 

of an incident likely to lead to legal liabilities, 

so these insurances are made 

Deepening insurance penetration with compulsory insurances 

compulsory to ensure that affected 

third parties get compensation. 

The commonest of these classes 

of insurance is Motor (Third Party) 

Insurance. This insurance protects 

the insured against third party legal 

liabilities for death, bodily injuries 

and property damage whilst using his 

vehicle on the road. There is no limit of 

liability for third party death and bodily 

injuries because life is invaluable, 

but underwriters (insurance companies) 

have parameters for calculating 

the benefits. Relatives of a deceased 

third party, who earned N1m per 

annum, for instance, cannot get the 

same compensation as relatives of a 

third party, who earned N12m per 

annum, in the event of death. The 

limit of liability for third party property 

damage is N1m, but an insured can 

increase the limit with payment of 

additional premium. 

Motor (Third Party) Insurance 

premium is N5,000 for private vehicles 

and N7,500 for commercial 

vehicles. These sums should be within 

the reach of every vehicle owner. Unfortunately, 

it is alleged that only one 

in every eight motor insurance certificates 

in Nigeria is genuine. There 

were about 11.5 million vehicles on 

Nigerian roads as at 2017, according 

to the Federal Road Safety Commission. 

This means that if all motorists 

were to get genuine motor insurance, 

about 10 million additional Nigerians 

will automatically have genuine motor 

insurance and be added to the 

insuring pool. This automatically 

deepens insurance penetration. 

Beyond frustrating efforts to 

deepen insurance penetration and 

revenue losses to government and the 

insurance industry, fake motor insurances 

defeat the purpose of compulsory 

Motor (Third Party) Insurance 

because third parties who die, suffer 

bodily injuries or property damage 

might not get compensation from the 

liable motorist because he does not 

have genuine insurance. To ensure that 

your motor insurance is genuine, please 

go the Nigerian Insurance Industry 

Database (NIID), enter your insurance 

policy number or vehicle registration 

to verify your motor insurance status. 

The second class of compulsory 

insurance is Professional Indemnity Insurance. 

Professional Indemnity Insurance 

(PII) is a form of liability insurance 

that helps protect a wide range of professionals 

and companies from bearing the 

full cost of defending themselves against 

a tort claim made by a client and damages 

awarded in such a civil lawsuit in 

the conduct their business. Usually, 

professional indemnity is compulsory 

for doctors and medical practitioners, 

medical establishments, insurance 

brokers, lawyers, chartered accountants 

and some other professionals, but many 

of these professionals do not have this 

compulsory insurance thereby reducing 

insurance penetration. 

In addition, Section 45 of the National 

Health Insurance Scheme Act of 

1999 specifically requires all medical 

professionals, institutions and centres 

to have in place Professional Indemnity 

Insurance. The law makes provisions 

for compensation for the NHIS patients 

who suffer death, sickness, permanent 

disability, partial disability and injury 

from mistakes, negligence, errors 

of commission or omission of insured 

medical practitioners and institutions. 

Many medical personnel and establishment 

do not have this all-important 

compulsory insurance. And they get 

away with it because their patients 

have not held them accountable and 

nobody has made strenuous attempts 

to enforce it. 

The third of the compulsory insurances 

is Occupiers’ Liability Insurance. 

Section 65 of the Insurance Act of 2003 

requires the owners or occupiers of every 

public building to be insured against 

liability for loss or damage to property of 

third parties, and death or bodily injury 

to third parties caused by collapse, fire, 

earthquake, storm or flood. The Act 

defines a public building as one to 

which members of the public have 

access for educational, recreational, 

medical and commercial purposes. 

You can imagine the level of insurance 

penetration if all government buildings 

at the three levels of government, 

shops, malls, restaurants, offices and 

other buildings where members of 

the public have access were to take an 

Occupiers’ Liability Insurance. Beyond 

the penetration, so much wealth and 

so many jobs will be created. 

The fourth compulsory insurance 

is Insurance of Buildings Under Construction. 

The Insurance Act of 2003, 

Section 64, requires every owner or 

contractor of any building under construction 

with more than two floors to 

take out an insurance policy to cover 

his liability arising from construction 

risks such as his negligence or that of 

his servants, agents or consultants, 

which may result in death, bodily 

injury or property damage of workers 

on site or members of the public. 

This insurance policy also covers liability 

for collapse of buildings under 

construction. A census of buildings 

of three floors and above under construction 

has shown that many owners 

and contractors of these buildings 

do not comply with this compulsory 

insurance. Meanwhile, some of such 

buildings have collapsed over time 

and third parties who suffered bodily 

injuries and families of those who lost 

their lives had minimal or no compensation. 

Enforcement this compulsory 

insurance will certainly deepen insurance 

penetration. 

The fifth compulsory insurance 

is the Group Life Insurance for company 

employees. Group Life Insurance 

gained traction since the PENCOM Act 

of 2004 as amended in 2014 made it 

compulsory for employers of labour in 

the private and public sector to provide 

a group life cover for their staff. Since 

then the number of companies with 

Group Life Insurance has quadrupled. 

Beyond being mandatory for companies 

under the PENCOM Act, you cannot 

bid for government businesses and 

those of some big companies without a 

Group Life Policy for your employees. 

This has really helped in deepening 

insurance penetration and growing 

the insurance industry in terms of 

premium income and creation of employment. 

It has also helped to drive 

the argument that other compulsory 

insurances will also gain traction if 

there are government policies to compel 

potential policy holders to have 

these compulsory insurances. But 

there is still a long way to go for even 

group life insurance because many 

companies still do not have Group Life 

Policy for their employees. 

Finally, though no longer under 

the purview of insurance companies, 

is the Employers Liability Insurance. 

Employers Liability Insurance, as 

stated by the Employee Compensation 

Act of 2010 (which repealed 

the Workmen Compensation Act 

of 1987), requires every employer, 

within the first two years of the commencement 

of the 2010 Act, to make 

a minimum monthly contribution of 

1% of the total monthly payroll of employees 

to the Employee Compensation 

Fund. The fund is designated 

to pay adequate compensation to 

employees or their dependants for 

any death, injury, disease or disability 

arising out of or in the course 

of their employment. The Nigeria 

Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF) 

is saddled with the power to implement 

this act. 

Note: the rest of this article 

continues in the online edition of 

Business Day @https://businessdayonline.com/ 


comment@businessdayonline.com


COMMENT 

JOSHUA NWACHUKWU 

Joshua B. Nwachukwu is a lawyer 

and a writer 

From “Sai Buhari” in 2015 to “Kai 

Buhari” 2018 

Three years into his presidency, 

the goodwill that 

accompanied President 

Buhari and his party has 

almost been extinguished. 

Many of his supporters who put 

everything out including their “credibility” 

to campaign for him are now 

reneging and recanting. These former 

supporters – Obasanjo, Mrs. Aisha 

M. Buhari, Fr. Ejike Mbaka, Pastor 

Tunde Bakare, Wole Soyinka, Dele 

Momodu, Oby Ezekwesili – have become 

the opposition. They are more 

potent than the PDP and they have 

given the President’s performance 

low ratings. Dele Momodu captured 

the sentiments of ex-Buharists well 

when he said, “it is indeed shameful 

that those like me who supported you 

so vociferously have become butts of 

jokes everywhere we go”. 

The issues against the President 

range from growing high unemployment, 

disrespect for the rule of the 

law, incompetence, cluelessness of 

his appointees, nepotism, fuel crisis, 

proliferation of weapons, lack of an 

economic roadmap, infidelity to 

campaign promises and most importantly, 

the incessant loss of lives with 

no remedy in sight. Many, including 

the Governors’ of Benue, Zamfara and 

Taraba, have accused the President of 

complacency in defending the lives 

and property of Nigerians. He and 

C002D5556 

BUSINESS DAY 11 

comment is free 

Send 800word comments to comment@businessdayonline.com 

Why can’t the National Assembly impeach President Buhari? 

the relevant security agencies have 

been complicit in the herdsmenfarmers 

crisis. 

His inactions have made many 

Nigerians accuse him of being inhumane 

to and unperturbed by the 

plights of Nigerians. In response, 

his cohorts made a documentary 

called the “Human side of President 

Muhammadu Buhari”. When former 

President Obasanjo joined his voice 

with Nigerians to criticize Buhari’s 

underachievement (except for tackling 

Boko Haram), the Presidents’ 

cohort asked us to tune in to different 

TV and radio programmes to 

know the “giant strides of President 

Buhari as well as the positive impact 

he has made in the lives of Nigerians”. 

If President Buhari has a “human 

side” and has made “giant strides”, 

we should be feeling it daily; there is 

no need for documentaries. 

The idea of documentaries, TV 

and radio programmes take us back 

to Buhari’s 2015 campaign. These 

were the same tools used to sell us 

the story that President Buhari was 

a “converted democrat” and an 

“advocate of one Nigeria”. During 

his campaign, he visited almost all 

the states in the country including 

Benue. In each state he visited, to 

show solidarity, he appeared in their 

traditional attire. Since he won the 

election, all these theatricals have 

been dumped. He has been to Ebonyi 

and Anambra, for personal and party 

ambitions, but too busy to visit Benue 

despite its turbulent situation. He 

has clearly shown his preferences. 

These are nonverbal signs that Nigerians 

read, and conclude that the 

President’s concern are regional not 

federal. This is sad but an eye-opener 

for the future. 

In 2014, I didn’t buy into the 

Buhari change tale, not because of 

any religious or ethnic stereotype. I 

didn’t see a concrete plan from APC 

The issues against 

the President range 

from growing high 

unemployment, disrespect 

for the rule of the law, 

incompetence, cluelessness 

of his appointees, 

nepotism, fuel crisis, 

proliferation of weapons, 

lack of an economic 

roadmap, infidelity to 

campaign promises and 

most importantly, the 

incessant loss of lives with 

no remedy in sight 

to address all the bells and whistles it 

promised. Neither of the major contestants 

addressed issues intellectually 

and systematically –it was, to paraphrase 

Davido, a 30 billion contest. 

The campaign rode on sentiments and 

propaganda. When the opportunity to 

debate came, President Buhari refused 

to participate. As President Jonathan 

rightly said, “propaganda may help 

you win elections, but can’t help you 

govern and, that is what APC has seen 

in the last 32 months”. 

Prior to the elections in 2015, I 

and my friends struggled to identify 

the qualities that qualified President 

Buhari for leadership. (Several times 

this year, Facebook has shared these 

thoughts as memories.) President Buhari 

had only three cards on the table: 

his integrity, the anti-corruption fight 

and the war against Boko Haram. Despite 

his past stints as military Governor 

and head of state, reference wasn’t 

made to any economic achievement. 

Even after his sojourn as a military 

ruler and prior to contesting for the 

Presidency as a civilian, he didn’t 

show acts of leadership. 

Leadership is about service and 

improving the lots of mankind. As an 

elder statesman he could have used 

his reputation for integrity to fight corruption, 

raise funds to tackle poverty, 

polio, high maternal mortality, Islamic 

extremism and illiteracy. Unfortunately, 

none of this happened. He 

wasn’t even entrepreneurial, he did 

not even venture into any economic 

enterprise of considerable value and 

impact. Without these experiences, 

what exactly then qualified him for 

the kind of leadership that Nigeria 

required? All that while he was merely 

concerned about clinching the presidency. 

And now that he wields it he 

cannot seem to use it. A friend once 

said, those who expect to find power 

to make others do things in higher 

levels of the structure soon find it, but 

it does not last. 

I remember telling those that 

cared to listen, that personal integrity 

and zeal to fight corruption though 

good, weren’t the most important 

tools for leadership and this current 

administration has proven me right. 

The lack of leadership has clearly 

shown itself in the past three years. 

My theory has always been that 

Buhari has never been the man in 

charge. In his military era, Tunde 

Idiagbon was considered the de 

facto head of State. Even during the 

2014/2015 campaign, he wasn’t in 

charge; if he was he would have lost 

woefully. Now as president, he isn’t 

in charge as those in charge of the 

presidency outsmarted those who ran 

his campaign. The President has been 

“ponderous” since he took the oath 

of office. He makes demands from 

the judiciary and the legislature but 

drags his feet when executive action 

is required. Sluggish and somnolent 

responses have slowed down the 

country’s progress. The infighting 

among his appointees, his indecision 

to resolve current insecurity challenges 

and the unwillingness to fight 

corruption in his administration, are 

a few examples of executive sloth. I 

agree with Prof. Wole Soyinka who 

said the President is under a trance 

and needs to wake up. 

In civilized democracies where 

true democrats operate, leaders with 

integrity resign from office when 

they realize they are incapable of 

addressing pertinent issues. Where 

such leader refuses to step down the 

legislature can proffer a solution: 

impeachment. Members of the National 

Assembly, notably the likes of 

Dino Melaye, Sani Shehu, Senator Isa 

Misau, Ben Bruce, Kabir Marafa have 

all highlighted and complained at 

different times about the ineffectiveness 

of the present administration. 

Complaining is not the best they can 

offer. The 1999 Constitution under 

Section 143 empowers them. Why 

are they not invoking it? They claim to 

be fearless and ready to die but they 

can’t utilize the tool at their disposal. 

It isn’t hard to find the President guilty 

of gross misconduct; disobedience of 

court orders and legislative orders are 

examples. The appropriation of funds 

for subsidy without legislative permission 

is another. 

As Nigerians, I hope we have 

become wiser, despite the prequels 

of Buhari’s military era; we bought 

his conversion story and gave him an 

opportunity. Now we have seen his 

performance, and thanks to this opportunity, 

he wouldn’t have the honor 

of being called “The best President 

Nigeria never had”. 

Surely we do not need a sequel to 

this horror movie? 


comment@businessdayonline.com 

PAUL PARKS 

Parks is of Carbon Limits Nigeria 

info@carbonlimitsngr.com 

The Nigeria Watch Project 

at the University of Ibadan 

reported that in 2017 more 

than 8600 people were 

killed in Nigeria from civil strife, 

criminal acts, resource-related 

conflicts, and other violent incidents. 

While this number is down 

substantially from the more than 

20,000 deaths at the height of the 

Boko Haram conflict in 2014, the 

level is more than twice as high than 

in the five years before 2010. 

This increase in violence is tied 

to a large degree to land use, natural 

resource development, and disruptions 

in traditional lifestyles. Where 

climate degradation and conflict 

were once seen primarily as a Niger 

Delta issue related to oil development, 

conflict has now become 

endemic in the North East with Boko 

Haram and in the North Central region 

between herders and farmers. 

While these various conflicts have 

diverse causes, climate change is a 

factor in all of them. Climate change 

is causing increasing temperatures 

leading to encroaching desertification, 

rising sea levels leading to 

coastal degradation, variability in 

weather patterns to stresses in the 

agricultural and livestock sector 

resulting in volatile food prices, and 

more frequent and violent storms. 

Climate change is a gradual and 

complex process, and the outbreak 

of violence is related to many factors 

beyond environment, but to quote 

the Norwegian researcher Halvard 

Nigeria: On the front line of climate change and conflict 

Buhring: 

…. take the notion of climate 

change as a “threat multiplier” seriously 

and investigate the conditions 

under which climatic changes may 

accentuate the threat to societal 

stability and peace, and the mechanisms 

through which a destabilizing 

effect might materialize. 

Nigeria is not alone in facing 

this challenge. For example, climate 

change affecting land use 

and herding occur in places as 

diverse as Bhutan in the Himalayas 

to Algeria in North Africa. In sub- 

Sahara Africa, climate change impacts 

traditional herding in Kenya, 

Namibia, and Uganda among others. 

Explaining why his children 

would not follow in his footsteps, 

one Algerian herder said: “It’s not 

like it was before. There isn’t rain.” 

A statement that rings equally true 

in Northern Nigeria. 

Research from institutions as 

diverse as University of Texas, 

Cambridge University, and Peace 

Research Institute in Oslo Norwaydemonstrate 

the links between 

climate change and conflict. This 

has led to serious consideration of 

ways to reduce these risks, which 

is increasingly discussed in international 

forums. In almost all 

the research, Africa is shown to be 

particularly vulnerable to conflict 

augmented climate change. 

Policy makers in Nigeria need to 

understand how climate change acts 

as a threat multiplier and to address 

this on a policy and operational 

manner. Maintaining stable livelihoods 

is a primary objective of any 

government, and changing climate 

is increasingly a determinant in this. 

Consider migration, as national 

resources are degraded and depleted 

by climate related factors, stable 

livelihoods are undermined leading 

to migration. While public attention 

has focused on herders or youth 

attempting to make the crossing to 

Europe, the far more numerous migration 

is from rural to urban areas. 

Rural dwellers are increasingly unable 

to support themselves and are 

forced to seek economic refuge in 

cities, which are often already overwhelmed 

in providing public services 

and employment. 

Considering environmental degradation, 

Lake Chad is a stark warning 

of what can happen. In the 

last thirty years the rainy season in 

Northern Nigeria has decreased by 

30 days and the Sahara has advanced 

southward by 1-10 km a year. Lake 

Chad once the largest fresh water 

lake in the country has now shrunk 

by at least two thirds. Indeed, in 

Nigeria what remains of Lake Chad 

is basically swamps and wetlands. 

The Lake’s disappearance along with 

the tripling of the Basin’s population 

since the 1980s has led to massive 

food insecurity for more than 2 million 

people in Northern Nigeria and 

widespread extreme poverty. This 

poverty, economic fragility, drought 

and environmental degradation has 

provided a fertile ground for nonstate 

armed groups such as Boko 

Haram to contest state authority 

across the region. 

In the international climate 

negotiations, the response to these 

climate impactsis referred to as 

adaptation. The Paris Climate 

Accord, signed by 174 countries, 

recognizes that climate change is 

happening and that adaptation 

measures are urgently needed. 

Nigeria has signed and ratified this 

accord, and submitted to the UN 

its first national climate strategy, a 

large part of which addresses adaptation. 

Indeed, Nigeria has worked 

diligently to be a strong partner in 

the Paris Accord. 

Lake Chad is never going to be 

the lake it once was, yet even in its 

reduced state it provides livelihood 

to two million and food security 

to thirteen million people. The 

World Bank working with Nigeria 

and the other affected countries has 

developed a comprehensive plan to 

improve the lives of the people who 

depend on the lake. The plan looks 

at improving management of the 

remaining fisheries and agricultural 

production, better land and water 

rights, better logistics, renewable 

energy, improved education and 

health of the people. The plan does 

NOT try to refill the lake, instead 

it takes what exists and works to 

improve the lives on the people 

who now, and in the future, will 

depend on it. 

This adaptation approach needs 

to be applied to other climate challenges. 

The current crisis over the 

migrations of the herders needs to 

take into account that farmers too 

are suffering from climate change. 

Variability of rainfall in the Plateau 

States has increased by 20% putting 

pressure on famers lifestyles. 

Given the inexorable, albeit not fully 

predicable, increased aridity and 

desertification; the stress on both 

herders and farmers will only get 

worse in the future. 

For adaptation to be successful, 

greater public discussion about 

active involvement across all stakeholders 

is urgently needed. Climate 

change is with us, and the stress on 

Nigeria will only increase. To be 

successful, adaptation measures 

requires well developed, long-term 

plans that address the complexities 

of the issue, including the reduction 

of violence. These plans will take 

years and much money to implement, 

and require the long-term 

commitment of the government. 

It is encouraging to see the Governor 

of Kebbi state speaking out 

on this. Public dialogue needs to 

expand to all levels of government 

and citizens and lead to actions. Far 

too many Nigerians live on the very 

edge of economic survival and are 

the ones must vulnerable to climate 

impacts and susceptible to the allure 

of violence. Nigeria needs to 

move forward quickly and decisively 

on addressing climate change in 

very tangible ways. 


comment@businessdayonline.com



C002D5556 

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PUBLISHER/CEO 

Frank Aigbogun 

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF 

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EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD 

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Amina Oyagbola 

Bolanle Onagoruwa 

Fola Laoye 

Chuka Mordi 

Sim Shagaya 

Mezuo Nwuneli 

Emeka Emuwa 

Charles Anudu 

Tunji Adegbesan 

Eyo Ekpo 

Dapchi girls’ abduction 

Last week, over 

100 girls from 

the Government 

Girls Science 

and Technical 

College, Dapchi, Yobe 

state were again abducted 

by members of the Boko 

Haram terrorist organisation. 

Media reports 

have it that the terrorists, 

armed with sophisticated 

weapons, invaded Dapchi 

unleashing terror on 

residents before making 

for the college where they 

stole food items and kidnapped 

the girls. This is 

coming exactly four years 

after the terrorist sect 

invaded and murdered 

scores of male students of 

the Government Secondary 

School, Buni Yadi, still 

in Yobe state. 

The Dapchi abduction 

mirrors that of Chibok, 

Borno state, also over four 

years ago where over 276 

girls were kidnapped from 

their school by the terrorists. 

While some of the 

girls managed to escape 

their captors, 100 or so of 

them have only recently 

been freed in exchange for 

Boko Haram militants, in 

negotiations brokered by 

the International Committee 

of the Red Cross. 

Currently, over 100 of the 

abducted girls are still being 

held in captivity despite 

repeated promises by the 

government to secure their 

release. 

Sadly, like it happened in 

Chibok, the security operatives 

stationed in the town 

were said to have left the 

area shortly before the terrorists 

invaded the school 

and made away with the 

girls. Instead of providing 

explanations as to how the 

terrorists, whom the government 

and the army claimed 

to have defeated, were able 

to drive unchallenged for 

tens or even hundreds of kilometres 

with hilux and big 

trucks to abduct innocent 

schoolgirls and then vanish, 

the state government 

and the leadership of the 

army were more preoccupied 

with feeding Nigerians 

false information. First, they 

insisted that no girl was 

missing only for them to 

later claim that the Nigerian 

military had rescued over 50 

of the abducted schoolgirls. 

The state government was 

however forced to retract 

that statement the next day 

clarifying that no rescue 

has been made. Then came 

the unhelpful comments by 

the minister of information, 

Lai Mohammed, alleging 

that the terrorists carried 

out the attack to embarrass 

the Buhari administration. 

He basically sought to cast 

the president as the real 

victim of the attack rather 

than the abducted girls and 

their helpless parents and 

relatives. 

We are still in shock that 

the government could allow 

this to happen. It was 

well aware of the tactics of 

the terrorists and could not 

claim to be caught off-guard 

by the Dapchi abduction like 

the Jonathan government 

claimed with the Chibok 

abduction. The fall-out from 

the Chibok kidnapping and 

the unusual focus on young 

girls and women by the 

terrorist sect, the government 

should never have left 

schools (especially girls’ 

schools) unsecured and unguarded. 

Besides, the government 

must explain how a 

defeated sect could carry out 

such a high profile abduction 

driving across hundreds 

of kilometres to abduct and 

disappear with the schoolgirls 

without any trace? The 

government, of all people, 

should have known that 

after paying huge sums of 

money in ransoms to secure 

the release of some of the 

Chibok girls and university 

lecturers and policewomen 

kidnapped by the sect, the 

sect will naturally be seeking 

to kidnap more girls to 

bolster their revenues. 

We urge the government 

to greatly improve its security 

strategy to be able to 

prevent such needless embarrassments 

in the future. 

Besides, it needs to overhaul 

its information management 

mechanism to avoid 

the many claims and counter 

claims emanating from 

its agencies with regards to 

a particular event. This only 

leads to confusion. 

The government must also 

ensure that it prioritises the 

immediate rescue of the abducted 

girls and not let the 

issue drag on for too long 

like that of the Chibok girls. 

Finally, we urge the government 

to make a stronger commitment 

to not just containing 

the sect, but obliterating them 

entirely. The penchant by the 

government to declare victory 

at every turn while the sect 

continues to grow stronger 

does not inspire confidence 

that the government is capable 

of tackling the sect. 

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COMPANIES 

& MARKETS 

Company news analysis and insight 

BUSINESS 

DAY 

13 

Banks credit to private 

sector to grow in 2018- FSDH 

Pg. 14 

Consolidated Hallmark Insurance sustains 

investor confidence despite market lull 

Modestus Anaesoronye 

Following the recent 

removal of the price 

cap by the Nigerian 

Stock Exchange 

(NSE), and the consequent 

fall in the share price 

of some stocks, especially in 

the Insurance industry, it is 

expected that some shareholders 

may begin to dump 

their shares for fear of losing 

value; but this has not been 

so for Consolidated Hallmark 

Insurance (CHI) Plc. 

The reason is not farfetched. 

The company has 

demonstrated consistent ability 

to deliver returns to its 

shareholders over the years, 

and an analysis of its financials 

shows strong positive 

fundamentals. 

Majority of the shareholders 

of company, have therefore 

continued to hold on 

tightly to their stocks, not 

willing to sell, while others are 

beginning to take positions 

now that the cap has been 

lifted, thereby providing more 

liquidity for the stocks. 

The confidence of CHI’s 

shareholders in the company’s 

performance was 

further reaffirmed during 

the first phase of its capital 

raising exercise, in which 

it offered N500million in 

the form of one new share 

for every six held by its existing 

shareholders in a 

1,000,000,000 unit’s rights 

issue, which was oversubscribed. 

An analysis of the 

deals on the trading floor of 

the Nigerian Stock Exchange 

in the past few weeks indicates 

improved activities on 

the stock of the company, 

with increasing transaction 

volumes, but only 32 million 

units (a paltry 1%), out of the 

7billion shares outstanding 

have been made available 

for purchase on the floor of 

the Exchange, showing a low 

unwillingness by investors to 

sell off their stock. 

A quick glance at the company’s 

fundamentals, show 

why investors may want to 

hold on to CHI stocks, or why 

new investors may want to 

take position. 

Firstly, the company is 

trading at a 12-month price 

to earnings (PE) ratio of 8.9X, 

price to book ratio of 0.39x and 

a dividend yield of 6.9 percent. 

In addition, the company’s 

9-month financials as at 2017 

shows a profitable insurance 

business, with an underwriting 

profit of N836million and 

Eddie Efekoha, managing director, CHI Plc 

retained earnings of N114million. 

The company has also 

grown its total assets value to 

N8.14 billion from N4.6 billion 

in 2007.CHI is one of the few 

insurance businesses that 

delivers value to its sharehold- 

ers in the Nigerian insurance 

market. 

Commenting on the recent 

developments at the 

NSE, Eddie Efekoha, managing 

director/CEO of the company 

who is also the Chairman 

of the Nigerian Insurers 

Association, expressed confidence 

that discerning investors 

would rather scramble 

to take position on the stock, 

at a bargain price now rather 

than sell their valuable stock 

that has consistently made 

returns for them via growth in 

assets and dividend payments 

over the years. He said the intrinsic 

book value of the stock 

is presently over 70 kobo, and 

with its current liquidity levels 

in the market, more market 

players are now gearing up to 

take position while expecting 

an upside in price especially 

against the backdrop of the 

expected 2017 Year End Financials. 

Efekoha therefore assured 

shareholders of the 

company to expect more 

returns in the nearest future 

as recent capacity expansion 

and growth initiatives 

such as the establishment of 

new subsidiaries such as its 

Health Management Organisation 

(HMO), to focus on 

identified growth markets, 

launching of a revamped 

website with retail customer 

and broker interphase, reinvigoration 

of the retail 

network and deployment of 

latest technology will help to 

further grow revenue. 

Efekoha explained further 

that strategies have been put 

in place to improve on the 

bottom line through costcutting 

initiatives in management 

expenses. 

Consolidated Hallmark 

Insurance (CHI Plc) has consistently 

grown revenue since 

the 2007 merger of three legacy 

companies – from N1.506 

billion in 2007 to N5billion 

and has paid dividends to 

shareholders 7 out of 10 years 

post-merger. 

The company is known 

for very high professional and 

ethical standards, with excellent 

customer service and 

prompt claims settlement as 

its key selling points. Claims 

incurred rose from N197 million 

during the 2007 Financial 

Year to N1.185 billion for the 

nine months ended September, 

2017 an attestation that 

the company is “a financial 

institution with satisfactory 

financial condition and adequate 

capacity to meet its 

obligations as and when they 

fall due“, as stated by foremost 

rating agency Agusto & Company, 

during its rating of the 

company in 2016. 

Low investor response: SEC moves to 

extend free e-dividend registration 

Naira in UK pre-approved currencies will 

enhance financial position of SMEs 

Strong indications 

emerged on Monday 

that the Securities 

and Exchange Commission 

(SEC) would likely 

extend its free e-dividend 

registration for the third time. 

This is due to low investor 

response as the Feb. 28 

deadline draws close. 

A source who pleaded 

anonymity told the News 

Agency of the Nigeria (NAN) 

in Lagos that the commission 

would likely extend the free 

registration deadline to give 

room for enrolment of more 

investors. 

The source said that all 

indication points to extension 

due to low response of investors 

going by the available 

statistics. 

NAN reports that e- 

dividend simply refers to 

an online system of paying 

dividends to investors 

when companies declare 

dividends. 

The dividends, which are 

the profits meant for investors, 

are wired to the investor’s 

bank account, instead of 

sending it by post as was the 

old practice. 

The advantage of the e- 

dividend is not only to enable 

investors collect subsequent 

dividends electronically but 

it allows all accrued dividends 

to be credited to investors’ 

bank accounts. 

This will stem the rising 

unclaimed dividends in the 

capital market. 

The source said that 

the free registration may be 

extended for about three 

months, noting that the decision 

underscores SEC’s 

strong focus on market development 

and enhancement of 

investor confidence. 

NAN reports that SEC 

in June 2017, extended the 

underwriting cost of investors’ 

e-dividend registration 

to Dec. 31, 2017, against the 

earlier underwriting deadline 

of June 30, 2017. 

It also on Jan. 18, extended 

the period for the free e- 

dividend registration to Feb. 

28, 2018, to encourage more 

shareholders participation in 

the initiative. 

SEC said in a statement 

that the extension became 

necessary to encourage more 

shareholders mandate their 


The statement said that 

in reviewing the progress 

of the e-dividend registration 

after the Dec. 31, 2017 

deadline, there was still a 

great influx of shareholders 

desirous of mandating their 

bank accounts for payment 

of dividends electronically. 

“In light of the foregoing, 

the SEC, as part of its developmental 

role, has extended 

the period for the free e- 

dividend registration till Feb. 

28, 2018, to encourage more 

shareholders mandate their 


Accordingly, shareholders 

that are yet to register 

should continue to approach 

their banks or registrars 

to mandate their bank 

accounts for the collection 

of their dividends electronically, 

including unclaimed 

dividends, not exceeding 12 

years of issue. 

NAN recalls that the SEC 

had announced that the e- 

dividend registration would 

continue seamlessly in spite 

of the expiration of the initial 

Dec. 31, 2017 free registration 

deadline. 

The UK Export Finance 

Agency preapproved 

status for 

the naira as a medium 

of exchange will enhance 

the financial position of small 

and medium enterprises, a 

financial expert has said. 

Uche Uwaleke, the Head 

of Banking and Finance Department, 

Nasarawa State 

University Keffi, expressed 

the view in an interview 

with the News Agency of 

Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on 

Monday. 

Uwaleke said that with 

such development, the naira 

had joined other 62 pre-approved 

currencies directly 

accepted for trade by the UK 

Government. 

The UK Export Finance 

Agency (UKEF) recently 

stated that it had concluded 

plans to include the naira in 

its list of “pre-approved currencies”. 

The granting of a ‘’preapproved 

currency’’ status 

by UKEF gives exporters from 

the UK the opportunity to offer 

their overseas customers 

UKEF-backed finance in local 

currency of the importers. 

‘‘It will enhance the financial 

position of small and 

medium enterprises as foreign 

exchange risk associated 

with international trade is 

minimised thus eliminating 

a major source of uncertainty 

over debt servicing cost of 

credit facilities. 

‘‘Therefore, business enterprises 

are in a stronger 

position to negotiate better 

terms with their banks in 

Nigeria and avoid variable 

debt service costs linked to 

fluctuations in exchange 

rate,’’ Uwaleke said. 

According to him, the 

bank in Nigeria will receive 

a guarantee for full repayment 

of the loan, it will help 

to improve the quality of risk 

assets of Nigerian banks and 

enhance financial systems 

stability. 

Uwaleke said that the 

expected increase in Foreign 

Direct Investments could 

bring about transfer of technology 

to small businesses 

in Nigeria. 

‘‘The UKEF flexible financing 

solutions have 

been described as the “next 

best thing to concessionary 

financing’’ due to their 

relatively cheap and flexible 

nature which is particularly 

healthy for small business 

enterprises,’’ he said.

14 

BUSINESS DAY 

C002D5556 


COMPANIES & MARKETS 

Banks credit to private sector to grow in 2018- FSDH 

BALA AUGIE 

Banks credit to 

the private sector 

is expected 

to grow in 2018, 

thanks to a drop 

in yields on Treasury bills 

(T-bills), improved consumer 

confidence and, an 

improvement in macroeconomic 

condition, according 

to research house, FSDH 

Merchant Bank. 

The total credit to the private 

sector in 2017 witnessed 

a marginal decrease of 2.34 

percent to N15.74 trillion 

compared with N16.12 trillion 

in 2016, according to the 

National Bureau of Statistics 

(NBS). 

Banks slowed down on 

lending to the private sector 

as an economic recession 

in 2016 brought on by 

a sudden drop in oil price 

and a severe dollar scarcity 

hindered companies and 

government from paying 

back interest on money 

borrowed. 

The most affected of 

these sectors are the transportation 

& storage, general 

commerce, education and 

information and communication. 

Credit to players in 

the transportation and storage 

sub sector declined by 

26 percent to N332.08 billion 

in 2017, down from N450.75 

billion in 2016. From N1.31 

trillion in 2016, credit to the 

general commerce sub sector 

fell by 21 percent to N1.04 

trillion in 2017. 

Also, banks slowed lending 

to the real sector as they 

made money when yields on 

short term government securities 

hovered around 18 percent 

to 21 percent between 

April and October 2017. 

As a result of the aforementioned 

monetary policy, 

13 banks raked in N562.67 

billion in interest income 

from treasury bills in the third 

quarter of 2017, representing 

a 53.55 percent increase from 

2016 of N366.42 billion figure 

recorded in 2016. 

However, yields on 90 

days short-term paper saw 

a sharp decline to 8.75 percent 

in January to finally hit 

its current 13.10 percent as 

government issued more 

dollars denominated debt 

and effectively reduce its 

naira debt. 

Analysts are of the view 

that the sharp drop in asset 

yields on government securities 

will force banks to start 

lending to the real sector as 

the end of free money are 

over. 

They add that a rate cut by 

the Central Bank of Nigeria 

(CBN) will strengthen lending 

to the private sector. 

For the first nine months 

through September 2017, cumulative 

loans and advances 

to customers fell by 2.62 billion 

in September 2017 as 

against N14.08 billion, based 

on data compiled by BusinessDay. 

Tajudeen Ibrahim head of 

research at Chapel Hill Denham 

said that the loan book 

expansion will be underpinned 

by possible financial 

system liquidity as the central 

could cut the CRR and interest 

rates in the first quarter of 

next year. 

“We have seen the apex 

slow the issuance of OMO. 

Market conditions will require 

that they increase lending 

to the real sector. We will 

surely see loan book expand 

on market dynamics,” said 

Ibrahim. 

Credit facilities to the 

players in finance, insurance 

and capital market rose 

by 20.1 percent during the 

period. Mining and quarrying 

players got credit facilities 

18.7 percent more than 

what they received in the last 

quarter of 2016. Also, credit 

facilities to the construction 

sub sector were up by 4.1 

percent. The governments at 

all levels received saw their 

facilities rise by 2.2 percent. 

The agric sub sector did not 

get much attention as facilities 

in the last quarter of 2017 

over the last quarter of 2016 

rose slightly by 0.4 percent. 

TL First Group CEO task FG on utilisation 

of world Bank’s $486m loan 


International Economist 

and Group Managing 

Director of TL First 

Group, Olu Olasode has 

tasked the Federal Government 

of to judiciously utilise 

the $486 million dollars fund 

approved by the World Bank. 

The credit which was 

granted to rehabilitate and 

upgrade the Nigerian electricity 

transmission substations 

and lines, is a welcome 

investment to help alleviate 

the current issues militating 

against the power sector 

in Nigeria, the Economist 

added. 

Responding to questions 

on implications on rising 

debt, Olasode, who is also 

a Chartered Accountant, 

stated “unlike many professional 

colleagues who are 

weary of debts, I have no 

problems with increasing 

your labilities if the resulting 

growth in income, capital, 

assets or national wealth 

far outweighs the debt. In 

essence, it should be about 

spending to save through 

better infrastructure in electricity 

transmission that ultimately 

powers economic 

growth.” 

According to Olasode, effective 

utilisation of the fund 

can benefit small scale business 

owners and contribute 

to adequate and reliable 

electricity supply necessary 

for Nigeria’s continued economic 

development as an effortto 

ease the infrastructure 

constraints these businesses 

currently face.Electricity 

is a significant component 

of virtually any production 

process. As such, limited 

supply has the potential to, 

directly or indirectly, affect 

the economic productivity 

of businesses. An attendant 

effect is the closure of many 

Enterprises in Nigeria in the 

last five years. 

He stated that the Transmission 

Company of Nigeria 

can be better empowered 

to ensure increased 

transmission network and 

provision of additional 

electricity. He further proposed 

that part of the funds 

can be used to adopt new 

models that tap into the 

vitality of the nation’s potentials. 

“For instance, investment 

can be made into 

solar-powered light centres 

that help to increase social 

activity and productivity of 

communities by generating 

light after sundown. These 

light centres can be used to 

power medical equipment 

such as an ultrasound, or 

refrigerators that store vaccines 

at medical centres.” 

“Transmission also has a 

lot to do with logistic and 

planning”, he continued, 

“for example, how effectively 

can we aggregate 

and redistribute the many 

dispersed power generation 

by privately owned 

organisations”. 

Olasode, however, expressed 

concern about the 

sustainability of the nation’s 

rising debt stock, especially 

during a period when the 

country’s socio-economic 

development continues to 

be plagued by myriad of 

challenges.He urged the 

Federal Government to apply 

caution in contracting 

more debt and identify innovative 

ways to mitigate 

the current debt portfolio. 

Olasodesuggested that current 

loan funding available 

to the government should 

be deployed to tap into thenation’s 

creative opportunities 

to facilitate economic 

growth, resolve security 

challenges across the regions, 

address development, 

generate employment and 

reduce poverty. 

South Africa’s JSE to launch 

project bonds in March 

Africa’s largest bourse, 

the Johannesburg 


(JSE), will begin 

listing “project bonds” from 

mid-March, an official said on 

Monday, giving institutional 

investors a window to invest 

in infrastructure projects. 

The bonds will provide 

private firms a chance to get 

a foothold in infrastructure 

projects in Africa’s most industrialised 

economy, where 

project financing has tradi- 

tionally come from banks and 

government. 

“We launch Project Bonds 

in the second week of March,” 

said spokes woman Pheliswa 

Mayekiso, adding that details 

of the listing would be made 

public closer to the launch. 

“Government and banks 

alone cannot fund South 

Africa’s infrastructure programme,” 

the Treasury said 

in a review of the 2018 budget 

released last week. 

“These bonds will be underpinned 

by the cash flows 

of a ring-fenced project, such 

as infrastructure or energy 

projects,” it said. 

Capital markets have already 

reduced lending to 

some state-owned companies, 

such as sole power supplier, 

Eskom. 

South Africa plans to 

spend billions of dollars over 

the next three years to build 

and revamp roads, power stations 

and ports, government 

officials said 

Buffett says ‘terrible mistake’ for longterm 

investors to be in bonds 

Billionaire Warren Buffett 

prodded ordinary 

investors on Saturday 

to stay invested in 

United States stocks, ignoring 

price swings, guidance from 

people with fancy credentials 

and the temptation to load up 

on bonds. 

Buffett said it is a “terrible 

mistake” for investors with 

long-term horizons – among 

them, pension funds, college 

and endowments and savingsminded 

individuals – to measure 

their investment “risk” by 

their portfolio’s ratio of bonds 

to stocks.The long-time bull 

on U.S. companies and the 

economy issued his latest 

letter to Berkshire Hathaway 

Inc shareholders on Saturday. 

Treasury yields have been 

rising since the start of the 

year, stemming from brewing 

inflationary pressures and 

massive bond supply to help 

fund U.S. President Donald 

Trump’s tax overhaul. 

Higher rates have kept U.S. 

equity markets under selling 

pressure, as investors worry 

borrowing costs could hurt 

companies’ profitability. 

Earlier this month, stocks 

suffered their first 10 per cent 

pullback since early 2016. 

High-grade bonds, he said, 

can increase the risk of an investment 

portfolio as inflation 

eats away at the return. 

“There is simply no telling 

how far stocks can fall in a 

short period,” Buffett said. 

“As an investor’s investment 

horizon lengthens, 

however, a diversified portfolio 

of U.S. equities becomes 

progressively less risky than 

bonds, assuming that the 

stocks are purchased at a 

sensible multiple of earnings 

relative to then-prevailing 

interest rates.”

Wednesday 28 February 2018 C002D5556 BUSINESS DAY 15 

COMPANIES & MARKETS 

Oil hits nearly three-week high as Saudi 

Arabia to keep output well below cap 

Oil prices extended 

gains to hit their 

highest level 

in nearly three 

weeks on Monday 

supported by comments 

from Saudi Arabia that it would 

continue to curb exports in line 

with the OPEC-led-effort to cut 

global-supplies. 

Sweet Brent crude gained 

12 cents or 0.2 per cent to 67.43 

dollars. 

United States West Texas 

Intermediate crude for April 

delivery was up 20 cents or 

0.3 per cent at 63.75 dollars a 

barrel. 

Prices were increased after 

Saudi Arabian oil minister Khalid 

al-Falih on Saturday said that 

the country’s crude-production 

in January-March would be well 

below-output-caps with exports 

averaging below seven million 

barrels per day (bpd). 

Saudi Arabia hopes OPEC 

and its allies will be able to relax 

production curbs next year and 

create a permanent-framework 

to stabilise oil markets after the 

current supply cut-deal ends 

this year. 

U.S. energy companies, last 

week, added one oil rig, the fifth 

weekly increase in a row, bringing 

the total count up to 799, the 

highest level since April 2015, 

Baker Hughes energy services 

firm said on Friday. 

Hedge funds and money 

managers upped their bullish 

wagers on U.S. crude oil for the 

first time in four weeks, data 

showed on Friday. 

A powerful 7.5-magnitude 

earthquake struck Papua New 

Guinea’s Southern-Highlandsprovince 

early on Monday, the 

U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) 

said, prompting oil and gas companies 

to immediately suspend 

operations in the energy-rich 

interior. 

Meanwhile, Libya’s National 

Oil Corp said on Saturday it 

had declared force majeure on 

the 70,000 bpd El Feel oilfield 

after a protest by guards closed 

the field. 

Oil price watchers believe oil 

should in truth climb to 70-100 

dollars range. 

High number of Nigerians without insurance 

worries us – Babington-Ashaye 

Business Event 

L-R: Adeola Ambah, head, public sector, Lagos Region of First City Monument Bank (FCMB); Sola 

Oyegbade, head, training academy of the Bank; Obafela Bank-Olemoh, special adviser on education 

in Lagos State, and Felicia Obozuwa, divisional head, corporate services of FCMB, during the faculty 

launch of the ReadySetWork (RSW) initiative designed by Lagos State Government to prepare students in 

higher institutions in the state for work after school in Lagos. FCMB is a major partner of the programme. 

gerians could not revive collapsed 

businesses, buildings or 

repair their vehicles involved in 

accidents because they lacked 

insurance policies that could 

provide fund to mitigate the 

losses. 

“My plea to Nigerians is that 

it is better to be five years early 

than to be five minutes late. 

“I implore Nigerians to 

henceforth take insurance policies 

suitable to their lifestyles.” 

she said 

She urged media practitioners 

to support the industry still 

in its infancy. 

“The insurance industry today 

is in a precarious state due to 

the various unfolding dynamics 

and it is calling for change of 

operations and strategies by 

operators. 

“The industry would be able 

to stave these besetting odds and 

maintain an acceptable image in 

the eyes of the public only if the 

media show understanding and 

appreciation of the times. 

“It is only when the insurance 

industry exists and is thriv- 

Lagos, Feb. 2, 2018 (NAN) 

The President, Insurance 

Industry Consultative 

Council (IICC), 

Mrs Funmi Babington-Ashaye, 

has said the high percentage 

of Nigerians that are still uninsured 

remains a major concern 

to the council. 

Babington-Ashaye said this 

on Friday in Lagos at a seminar 

organised for journalists by the 

council with the theme “Role of 

Media in Deepening Insurance 

Penetration.” 

The IICC was formed with 

the objectives of raising the 

profile of insurance Industry 

and increase its relevance to 

the nation’s economic growth. 

Babington-Ashaye, who is 

also the President of the Chartered 

Insurance Institute of 

Nigeria (CIIN), said over 90 per 

cent of Nigerians were living 

without insurance. 

She said wrong perceptions, 

among others, had hindered 

Nigerians from taking insurance 

policies. 

Babington-Ashaye said Niing 

that insurance correspondents 

could also have a safe and 

comfortable nest.” 

The Executive Secretary, 

Nigerian Council Insurance 

Brokers (NCRIB), Mr Fatai 

Adegbenro, urged Nigerians to 

believe in insurance. 

He said insurance companies 

were regulated by National 

Insurance Commission 

(NAICOM) and the Market 

Development and Restructuring 

Initiative (MDRI) intiated by 

the Commission had enhanced 

prompt claims payment. 

Adegbenro urged media 

practitioners to support the 

industry by clarifying any information 

they obtained before 

publishing. 

Mr Sanya Oni, an Editor 

with the Nations Newspaper, 

decried that only one per cent 

of 180 million Nigerians have 

insurance policy. 

“This denotes that only 1.8 

million Nigerians have insurance 

policy and 70 per cent 

of the insured are with Lagos 

state.” he said 

L-R: Rajneesh Gupta, chief operation coordinator, Wandel International Nigeria Limited; Chinedu 

Ibezimako, chief executive officer, Green Kapital; Soamy Dixit, regional head (East & West Africa), 

Luminous Power Technologies (India) Private Limited, and Suresh Pykkat, business promotion 

strategist, Wandel International Nigeria Limited, during the Luminous Dealers Conference held in 

Abuja 

Making Nigeria’s tourism sector viable for economic growth 

The total contribution 

of travel and tourism 

to Nigerian economy 

has been estimated to 

be $1.1 billion. 

According to a report of 

the World Travel and Tourism 

Council (WTTC), the total contribution 

of travel and tourism 

to the global economy hit $7.6 

trillion in 2016, about 10 per 

cent of the global GDP of $75.6 

trillion. 

Tourism seems to be the 

way following the dwindling 

fortunes of oil and gas. 

The contribution of the 

tourism industry to Nation’s 

economy is not only a tiny fraction 

of the global industry but 

also shows the gulf between the 

present reality and the potential 

of tourism for Nigeria. 

The potential of tourism 

could be further enhanced 

with deliberate focus and more 

attention to turn around most 

of the nation’s tourist sites and 

turning them into wealth. 

Sally Mbanefo, immediate 

past Director-General of the Nigerian 

Tourism Development 

Corporation (NTDC), said the 

sector generated the revenue 

from the more than 6.01 million 

tourists that visited the country 

in 2015. 

“In 2014, about 4.8 million 

people arrived and the related 

expenditure was $853 million. 

“In 2016, about 6.01 million 

came into Nigeria and the sector 

generated over $1.1 billion 

as the expenditure related to 

their arrival in this country.’’ 

Mbanefo explained that 

the situation was an economic 

indication of the value 

that tourism could add to an 

economy where the government 

and the private sector 

spur tourism. 

She said that Nollywood 

alone, created job opportunities 

for more than two million 

persons, 30,000 work in restaurants 

and over 11,000 in the 

hotel business. 

Mbanefo said that in spite 

of this more needed to be done 

to improve the sector to further 

compete globally. 

She said that challenges 

limiting the growth of the sector 

should be address. 

She listed them to include 

access to gathering statistics, 

epileptic power supply, inadequate 

infrastructure, poor access 

to visa, as well as absence 

of uniformed standardisation 

and classification for hotels 

nationwide. 

Ganiyu Tarzan, the President, 

Association of Tourists 

Boats Operators and Water 

Transporters of Nigeria (AT- 

BOWATN), added that tourism 

had a link with all other sectors 

of economy whether religious, 

education, sport, business, agriculture 

and medicine. 

Tarzan, therefore, urged 

the Federal Government, especially, 

the Federal Ministry 

of Information and Culture, to 

channel the allocation meant 

for the sector to rehabilitating 

of tourism projects across the 

country. 

L-R: Bosun Sosanya, executive director, physical security service, Halogen Security Company 

Limited; Uche Mojekwu, associate director, brand and strategic marketing and client account 

management, Halogen Security Company Limited; Edgal O. Imohimi, commissioner of police, 

Lagos State Command, and Wale Olaoye, managing director, Halogen Security Company 

Limited, during the courtesy visit of the Lagos State Commissioner of Police to Halogen Head 

Office at Mobolaji Bank Anthony Way, recently. 

L-R: Olumide Sholanke, human resources director, Nigerian Bottling Company Limited; Rosemary 

Okolo, registrar, Pan-Atlantic University, Lekki; Chidi Nwagu, bursar, Pan-Atlantic University, and 

Ikechukwu Obiaya, dean, School of Media and communication, Pan-Atlantic University, during a 

career fair organized by Pan-Atlantic University held at the university complex in Lagos.

16 

A National Youth 

Service Corps Batch 

‘B’ Stream II member, 

John Luke, 

clearing the drainage 

at Our Lady of 

Loreter on Fadaman 

Mada Road in 

Bauchi on Monday. 

NAN 

BUSINESS DAY 

CITYFile 

FCTA moves to reclaim 

railway right of way 

Federal Capital Territory Administration 

(FCTA) says it is taking 

steps to reclaim obstructed right of 

way of the railway corridors across 

Abuja. 

Muhammad Bello, minister of the FCT, 

who disclosed this, said that relevant agencies 

have been directed to move and clear all 

illegal structures along the railway corridors. 

Bello, during a test-ride of the train service 

and inspection of the rail stations, on Monday, 

preparatory to the opening of test-run 

to the public, said the move was to ensure 

that passengers gain unhindered access to 

the train stations. 

The minister along with staff of the Federal 

Capital Development Authority (FCDA) 

was led on the inspection by officials of 

CCECC Nigeria Limited – the rail construction 

company. He directed the FCDA to 

speed up works on the opening of access 

Police mop up illegal arms in Ondo 

The police in Ondo have given 

residents of the state a 21-day 

ultimatum to submit all illegal fire 

arms to the nearest police station. 

Gbenga Adeyanju, the Commissioner 

of Police in the state, gave the ultimatum 

while briefing newsmen in Akure, on the 

arrest of some robbery suspects. 

The Inspector-General of Police, Ibrahim 

Idris, recently directed commissioners 

of police in states to commence the 

recovery of prohibited firearms across 

the country. 

Adeyanju said the directive was in compliance 

with the order to mop up illegal 

arms and ammunition in the country. 

According to the police boss, anyone 

caught with illegal fire arms after the ultimatum 

would be sanctioned. 

“We wish to inform members of the 

public that in compliance with the directive 

of the Inspector-General of Police, 

we are mopping up illegal fire arms and 

roads to the 12 railway stations. 

The test-ride took the minister and his 

entourage round the 12 railway stations 

spread across the scenic landscape of the rail 

network. The view gave the riders a preview 

of what commuters should expect upon the 

commencement of the train services. 

Bello, who expressed satisfaction with 

the work done on the railway project, commended 

the contractor. 

“We are satisfied with the quality of works 

done. What remains now is to recover the 

railway boundaries, clear the corridors and 

provide access ways to the stations. This we 

hope will be done in the next few weeks to 

enable us commence the test services. 

“We hope to open the stations for operations 

in the next few weeks and we don’t 

want a situation where the train would be 

competing for space with illegal structures 

and settlements,” he said. 

… set up joint task force in Enugu 

ammunition. 

“All illegal fire arms are to be submitted 

to the nearest police office in their domain; 

anyone caught with illegal fire arm will be 

sanctioned after the ultimatum,” he said. 

In Enugu State, the police have also constituted 

a joint departmental task force to 

mop up illegal fire arms and ammunition. 

Mohammed Danmallam, the Commissioner 

of Police in the state, said on 

Monday named Frank Idu, an Assistant 

Commissioner of Police in charge of operations, 

to head the task force. 

The task force comprised personnel 

from State and Federal Special Anti-Robbery 

Squad (SARS), Criminal Intelligence 

and Investigation Department and mobile 

police units. 

“The task force will ensure the mopping 

up of all illegal fire arms and ammunition 

in the state as well as stop all militia groups. 

The task force will ensure that everybody 

holding illegal fire arms and ammunition 

Bello directed the coordinator, Abuja 

Metropolitan Management Council, Shuaibu 

Umar, to commence sensitisation 

meetings with the stakeholders in the various 

railway corridors over illegal settlements. 

The illegal settlements included those 

around Kukwaba, Dei Dei, Gwagwa, Kuchigoro 

and others, with a view to giving them 

enough time to vacate the railways corridors 

and station access ways. 

Kayode Opeifa, the FCTA transport secretary, 

stated that the stadium station would be 

serviced by an underpass tunnel. He added 

that the tunnel was designed to provide traffic 

relief for the city during sporting and other 

social events in the stadium. 

The 12 completed stations included the 

Metro, Stadium, Wupa, Kukwaba 1 and 2, 

Gwagwa and Dei-Dei train stations. Others 

are the Idu, Bassanjiwa, Airport, Kagini, 

Bazango stations. 

will be prosecuted,’’ he said. 

Danmallam urged all persons with fire 

arms and ammunition to re-verify and 

revalidate them in the command within 

14 days. 

He said that anyone caught with illegal 

fire arms and ammunition would henceforth 

be prosecuted according to relevant 

laws of the country. 

“If you have fire arms and ammunition 

with expired licence or not duly registered, 

you must revalidate at the command now,’’ 

he said. 

He said that the enforcement would be 

total and urged members of the public to 

give information on people holding such 

illegal fire arms and ammunition to the 

police. 

“Everybody should assist the police and 

command on this issue; members of the 

public and especially journalists will do 

well to give us intelligence information,” 

he said. 

He said that the state had no militia 

group and had remained very peaceful for 

over two years. 


Youths want Mobil to 

create job opportunities 

ANIEFIOK UDONQUAK, Uyo 

Youths in Akwa Ibom under the aegis 

of Nigeria Youth Initiative Forum 

have urged Mobil Producing Nigeria, 

a major oil company operating in the state 

to provide employment opportunities and 

ensure that those from the catchment area 

are given priority. 

In a letter addressed to the chairman and 

managing director of the company, the youths 

alleged that some 400 qualified seafarers and 

cadet officers from the catchment area had 

been denied employment by 42 marine and 

services companies working for Mobil. 

The youths in the letter signed by 

Sammy Bassey and Godwin Edwards, their 

president and secretary, respectively, specifically 

called on the oil company to direct 

its contractors to source their workforce 

from seafarers and crewmen from the 

catchment area. 

They also urged the oil company to commence 

the immediate rebuilding of Qua 

Iboe Terminal (QIT) jetty and the review of 

its community relations guidelines of 2007. 

They alleged that oil servicing companies 

had not executed any community development 

projects in the catchment area since 2007. 

Idahosa dedicates 

new church building 

IDRIS UMAR MOMOH, Benin 

Margaret Idahosa, an archbishop 

of Church of God Mission, has 

commissioned an ultra-modern 

provincial headquarters in Ugbegun community, 

Esan Central local government 

area of Edo State. 

Idahosa, while commissioning the 

church building, last weekend, said it was 

to propagate the gospel to the nooks and 

crannies of the world. The archbishop, 

who also visited the traditional ruler of 

the community, Samuel Iwuno Obade 

11, in his palace, prayed for God’s blessings, 

wisdom and protection upon the 

community. 

Responding, the traditional ruler of 

Ugbegun, Iwuno Obade II, commended 

the cleric for being a role model. 

“In all ramifications, you have taught 

your followers the good character because 

this is an example of good leadership 

in the Church of God Mission. 

Police recover 39 stolen 

vehicles in Osun 

BOLA BAMIGBOLA, Osogbo 

Osun State police command said it 

recovered 39 vehicles believed to 

have been snatched from owners 

across the southwest region. 

Fimihan Adeoye, the Commissioner of 

Police in Osun, said 19 of the stolen vehicles 

were recovered on January 20, 2018, and 

currently on display at the headquarters of 

the state police command. He said another 

20 vehicles were also later recovered. 

He said that a team of investigators from 

Special Anti Robbery Squad working with 

the command discovered that the vehicles 

were stolen after checking their chassis 

numbers. 

“We discovered that some of the vehicles 

were snatched at gun point. We have 

prepared the details of the vehicles for the 

owners to come and claim,” said Adeoye.


In Association 

with 

C002D5556 

BUSINESS DAY 

17 

Zenith, GTB, Fidelity, UBA, others to pay dividend this year 

Stories by Hope Moses-Ashike 

About nine deposit 

money banks 

would be able 

to pay dividends 

this year despite 

the new policy adjustment 

issued recently by the Central 

Bank of Nigeria (CBN), 

an international research 

firm, SBG Securities (Pty) 

Limited of South Africa said. 

The banks are Zenith 

Bank Plc, Guaranty Trust 

Bank Plc (GTBank), United 

Bank for Africa Plc (UBA), 

Access Bank Plc, Stanbic 

IBTC Plc, Fidelity Bank Plc, 

First City Monument Bank 

Plc, First Bank and Ecobank. 

The CBN had this month 

released a circular making 

an amendment to a previous 

circular dated October 

8, 2014 on internal capital 

generation and dividend 

payout ratio. The new circular 

introduced some conditions 

for banks to be allowed 

to pay dividend, which are 

the Composite Risk Rating 

of the bank, Non-Performing 

Loans (NPL) Ratio and Capital 

Adequacy Ratio. 

While banks do not publicly 

disclose their Composite 

Risk Rating the minimum 

capital adequacy ratio for 

international banks is 15 percent, 

10 percent for national 

banks and 16 percent for systemically 

important banks. 

The circular specifically 

states the following regarding 

dividend payment; No 

bank shall be allowed to pay 

dividend out of reserves, 

banks that do not meet the 

minimum capital adequacy 

ratio shall not be allowed 

to pay dividend, banks that 

have a Composite Risk Rating 

(CRR) of “High” or a Non 

Performing Loan (NPL) ratio 

of above 10 percent shall not 

be allowed to pay dividend. 

The circular further stated 

that banks that meet the 

minimum capital adequacy 

ratio but have a CRR of 

“Above Average” or an NPL 

ratio of more than 5% but less 

than 10% shall have dividend 

payout ratio of not more than 

30 per cent. 

Banks that have capital 

adequacy ratios of at least 

3% above the minimum 

requirement, CRR of “Low” 

and NPL ratio of more than 

5% but less than 10%, shall 

have dividend pay-out ratio 

of not more than 75 percent 

of profit after tax 

There shall be no regulatory 

restriction on dividend 

pay-out for banks that meet 

the minimum capital adequacy 

ratio, have a CRR of 

“low” or “moderate” and 

an NPL ratio of not more 

than 5%. 

Based on the foregoing 

analysis from a CAR perspective, 

analysts from SBG 

Securities have held that 

Zenith, GTB, UBA, Access, 

Stanbic IBTC, Fidelity and 

FCMB were not affected by 

the policy based on their 

nine months 2017 unaudited 

results. 

Going by the results released 

in September2017, 

most of the banks not restricted 

from paying dividend 

have either exceeded 

or are close to their 2016 full 

year profit level. 

Fidelity Bank with a profit 

before tax of N16.2 billion in 

September 2017 has done 

147 percent of its 2016 full 

year profit, Sterling Bank 

with its N6.6 billion profit 

before tax as at September 

2017 has done 131 percent of 

its 2016 full year profit while 

Stanbic IBTC has already 

recorded 123 percent of its 

2016 full year profit before 

tax as at September 2017. 

Other banks close to their 

2016 full year gross profit 

include Zenith, GTB, Access 

and UBA. These banks will 

most likely pay at least the 

same dividend paid in the 

previous financial year. 

The analysts also held 

that banks which belong to 

a HoldCo structure such as 

FBN Holdings Limited could 

still pay dividend which 

would be derived from their 

non-bank subsidiaries while 

the policy did not apply to 

ETI group (parent company 

for Ecobank Nigeria) because 

it is not regulated by 

the CBN. 

According to the analysts 

dividend payout estimates 

are in line with the regulation 

as they had previously 

emphasized the need for a 

reduction in dividend pay 

out to build buffers, remarking 

that for 2017 earnings, 

the highest dividend payouts 

will come from Zenith 

at 50 percent and GTB at 49 

percent. 

They reiterated their 

positive dividend payout 

outlook for 2017 earnings, 

estimating 21 percent average 

growth in dividend per 

share for the listed banks in 

their 2017 estimates, driven 

primarily by strong earnings 

growth. 

Stanbic IBTC shows commitment 

to social media week 

The 2018 Social Media 

Week (SMW Lagos) 

commenced 

on Wednesday as 

Stanbic IBTC, Nigeria’s leading 

end-to-end financial 

services organization joined 

other thought leaders, innovators 

business practitioners, 

entrepreneurs, and pop 

culture luminaries from Nigeria 

and around the world 

to commemorate the week. 

This year’s event, themed 

“CLOSER,” seeks to explore 

the intensifying conflict between 

communality and 

individualism. 

Yinka Sanni, Chief Executive 

at Stanbic IBTC Holdings 

PLC, said a demonstration of 

the organization’s commitment 

towards harnessing 

innovation and technology 

to build communities is underscored 

by its sponsorship 

of and active participation at 

this year’s Lagos Social Media 

Week. He added that the 

organization’s objective is 

therefore to ensure that these 

communities are well served 

with financial knowledge. 

He stated that Stanbic 

IBTC’s pervasiveness on several 

social media platforms; 

including Twitter, Facebook, 

LinkedIn and Instagram, as 

well as the establishment 

of an all-digital branch is 

designed to make financial 

products and services easily 

accessible to a wide array of 

clientele, especially the millennials. 

“In line with our brand 

promise to help move people 

and businesses forward; I am 

delighted to announce our 

participation in the 2018 social 

media week. Participating 

amongst techpreneurs 

and the social community 

shows our openness to both 

connect with various communities 

in a bid to stimulate 

socio economic growth,” 

Sanni said. 

Africa; and connecting 

selected emerging markets 

to Africa by applying sector 

expertise, particularly in 

natural resources, power and 

infrastructure. 

Fidelity Bank’s customers declare promo savings scheme real 

Beneficiaries of promo 

savings scheme 

initiated by Fidelity 

Bank plc have confirmed 

that the ‘Get Alert in 

Millions’ promo reloaded 

is real and has positively 

changed their lifestyle. 

“I got a call from Fidelity 

Bank on February 14 that 

said, ‘you just won yourself 

N2 million’. I said I did 

not do anything how can I 

win N2 million”, said Azeez 

Moreninkeji Adedoyin, a 

customer who won N2 million 

in the fourth monthly 

draw. 

“The next day I went to 

the nearest branch at Abeokuta, 

Ibadan, in fact I was 

ready to sue the bank if at 

the end I did not win the 

money. I did not believe it 

was real and my parent did 

not believe too”. 

“I promised to make use 

of this money wisely. This 

is real. The bank is not being 

bias. I got a call that 

changed my life”, Adedoyin 

said, after receiving the alert 

of N2 million at the formal 

presentation at Mazamaza 

branch, Lagos. 

Another customer, 

Mmereole Salome Obiageri, 

was presented with a cheque 

of N1 million and her account 

was credited immediately. 

She said, “I thank God 

who made me to be one of 

the winners. God will continue 

to give Fidelity Bank 

the strength to expand. The 

promo is real”. 

Speaking at the presentation, 

Richard Ebo, regional 

head, retail banking, said 

the bank through the promo 

had empowered many of its 

customers and businesses. 

He reiterated the bank’s unparalleled 

commitment to 

reward customers for their 

loyalty and patronage. 

The winners in the fourth 

monthly draw emerged from 

a transparent process conducted 

by the bank’s control 

team, witnessed by officials 

of the Consumer Protection 

Council (CPC) and other 

regulators and stakeholders. 

139 more winners emerge in Sterling Bank’s 1dament promo 

More winners 

have emerged 

in the second 

draw of Sterling 

Bank Plc’s 1damemt promo 

introduced to reward new 

and existing customers of 

the bank. 

Henry Bassey chief marketing 

officer of the bank 

disclosed this in a statement, 

remarking that another 136 

individuals and three nonindividual 

customers won 

in the draw. The draw was 

held at the corporate headquarters 

of the bank recently. 

Bassey said the winning 

customers were selected 

via an electronic 

raffle draw system and winners 

emerged from various 

parts of the country. He 

added that the event was 

witnessed by officials of 

the Consumer Protection 

Council (CPC), Lagos State 

Lotteries Board (LSLB), National 

Lottery Regulatory 

Commission and Akintola 

Williams Deloitte as well as 

senior officials of the bank. 

He said a breakdown of 

the winners showed that 

under the one woman winning 

category, three women 

emerged winners of one million 

naira each, five customers 

won an all-expense paid 

holiday destination trip while 

128 individuals and three 

nonindividual customers 

won under the cash prize 

winning category. 

To qualify for the draw, 

a customer of the bank is 

expected to maintain a 

minimum average balance 

of N10,000, N50,000 and 

N100,000 for 30 days. The 

grand prize of the promo is a 

Home in Lekki, Lagos.

18 

BUSINESS DAY 

C002D5556 Wednesday 28 February 2018 

Tax Issues 

Prospects for tax collection brighten 

as FIRS initiatives yield fruits 

STEPHEN ONYEKWELU 

The Federal Inland 

Revenue 

Services (FIRS) 

tax initiatives 

aimed at broadening 

Nigeria’s tax base and 

increasing collection are 

yielding some results. 

The core functions of 

FIRS is to assess, collect, 

account and enforce payment 

of taxes as may be due 

to the government or any of 

its agencies. 

Tax collection has become 

critical because Nigeria 

faces a huge infrastructure 

deficit as documented 

in the recently launched 

Nigeria Economic Recovery 

and Growth Plan (ERGP). 

According to the ERGP 

(2017 – 2020), Nigeria needs 

to invest $3 trillion in infrastructure 

over the next 

30 years. An efficient tax 

system is pivotal in making 

this happen. 

Some of the tax initiatives 

designed to improve 

efficiency in the tax system 

include: innovation, convenience 

and transparency 

(ICT); amnesty: waiver of 

penalty and interest; intensive 

registration of taxpayers 

and extensive nationwide 

tax audit exercise. 

Others include: review 

and revision of national tax 

policy, tax laws and regulations; 

bringing tax offices 

closer to taxpayers; Voluntary 

Assets and Income Declaration 

Scheme (VAIDS); tax 

awareness initiative: Thursday 

declared as a Tax Thursday 

and multilateral/bilateral 

taxation agreements. 

Tunde Fowler, Executive 

Chairman, Federal Inland 

Revenue Services’ (FIRS), 

said at the 2018 edition of 

Nigeria Economic Outlook, 

organised by Deloitte that 

FIRS’ adoption of e-Services 

as a medium to achieve Innovation, 

Convenience and 

Transparency of its operations 

has ensured that every 

effort is made to improve its 

efficiency in collections and 

tax administrations. 

The adoption of these 

e-Services has not only reduced 

the taxpayers’ burden 

but also improved FIRS 

efficiency in collections and 

tax administrations. The 

e-Services include: e-Registration, 

online registration 

of taxpayers in order to do 

business with FIRS. 

Others are: e-Stamp 

Duty, Automation of stamp 

duty levied transactions 

from the comfort of your 

home or office; e-Tax Payment, 

electronic payment 

of taxes through any of FIRS 

preferred payment channels. 

Nigerian Inter-Bank 

Settlement Services (NIB- 

SS), Remita, Quickteller (Interswitch), 

Etranzact Payment 

Gateway; e-Receipt, 

an electronic notification 

will be automatically sent to 

the taxpayer’s email and/or 

phone within 24 hours after 

payment and its verification; 

e-Filing, automation 

of FIRS core tax processes. 

The tax amnesty programme 

has yielded some 

fruits as well. As part of 

efforts by the Service to 

promote voluntary compliance 

and shield taxpayers 

from the burden of carrying 

forward tax liabilities arising 

from penalty and interest, 

the Service granted a waiver 

of penalty and interest for 

three years (2013-2015). 

All defaulting taxpayers 

are considered, provided 

that such taxpayers come 

forward to declare their 

indebtedness, pay at least 

25 perecent of the outstanding 

amount and present a 

payment plan on the outstanding 

tax liability that is 

acceptable to the Service. 

This window was opened 

from 5th October to 24th November, 

2016. A total of 2,400 

companies took advantage 

of the window, from which 

FIRS realised about N27.086 

billion, down payment. 

The intensive registration 

of taxpayers has recorded 

some success. FIRS in 

collaboration with other relevant 

government agencies 

(such as Corporate Affairs 

Commission, Central Bank 

of Nigeria, Nigeria Customs 

Services) undertook a massive 

nationwide registration 

exercise of new taxpayers 

in 2016. The impact is that 

over 814,000 new corporate 

taxpayers registered by end 

of 2016. Over N120 billion 

accrued from the exercise, 

according to Fowler. 

Extensive nationwide 

tax audit exercise has advanced 

both the broadening 

of tax base and increase in 

revenue collection. FIRS 

has conducted audit in collaboration 

with experienced 

tax audit firms on a sectorby-sector 

basis. 

The tax audit firms facilitated 

and gathered data 

from taxpayers’ records 

while FIRS carried out relevant 

reviews, assessment 

and collection of the revenue 

due from the tax liabilities 

that arose. 

This led to increased 

compliance across all tax 

types and all taxpayer categories. 

Over 15,000 noncompliance 

stickers were 

pasted on identifiable 

business premises and recalcitrant 

taxpayers were 

enforced upon and over 

N35.65 billion recovered. 

Voluntary Assets and Income 

Declaration Scheme 

(VAIDS), VAIDS is an initiative 

designed to encourage 

voluntary disclosure of previously 

undisclosed assets 

and income for the purpose 

of payment of all outstanding 

tax liabilities. 

It is being implemented 

by the Federal Inland Revenue 

Service in collaboration 

with the 36 States and FCT 

Internal Revenue Service. 

It offers a grace period 

from July 1, 2017 to March 

31, 2018, for defaulting taxpayers 

to voluntarily declare 

their true tax status and pay 

to government what they 

owe over an agreed period 

of time. 

The scheme is expected 

to help expand Nigeria’s 

tax base and improve the 

low tax to Gross Domestic 

Product (GDP) ratio from 

the current 6% to between 12 

percent to 15 percent in the 

first instance, and so far N17 

billion has been result of this 

initiative from federal taxes. 

United Capital series 

VAIDS: Regularising your tax status 

Regularising one’s 

tax status under 

the Voluntary 

Asset and Income 

Declaration Scheme 

(VAIDS) can only be done 

by remitting all applicable 

taxes to the relevant tax authorities 

including the FIRS 

and SBIRS, depending on 

the type of tax in issue. 

Payments are to be made 

by quoting the entities full 

name and a reference Tax 

Identification Number (TIN) 

through a Bank. The Bank is 

expected to issue a payment 

receipt when payment is 

made. For persons or entities 

who have never paid tax, application 

for a TIN would be 

the first step before payment 

can be made. 

However, the Scheme 

recognizes that many tax 

defaulters who are willing 

to comply may be cashstrapped. 

Thus, VAIDS avails 

defaulter the opportunity to 

enter into arrangements to 

pay outstanding tax liabilities 

in installments. At the 

discretion of the relevant tax 

authority, defaulters may 

be granted up to 3years to 

pay up their tax liability, but 

with the obligation to pay 

the interest accrued on the 

outstanding balance. 

Where a defaulter is unable 

to determine his/her 

tax liability, the scheme also 

made provision for agents of 

the relevant tax authorities 

to help calculate such tax 

liability. But this can only 

be done after a defaulter 

has registered for VAIDS by 

filing the declaration form. 

…Identifying willful tax 

evaders 

On expiration of the 

March 31, 2018 deadline, 

all taxpayers who fail to take 

advantage of the Voluntary 

Assets and Income Declaration 

Scheme(VAIDS) and 

are later found to have under-declared 

their income 

or assets will be treated as 

willful tax evaders and will, 

therefore, face the wrath of 

the law. 

Accordingly, the Federal 

Inland Revenue Service 

(FIRS) has been reported to 

have engaged on retainership, 

the service of some 

of the world’s leading asset 

tracking and recovery firms 

to assist in tracking the true 

assets of those who have 

not participated but are 

believed to have underpaid 

their taxes. The FIRS 

also plan to “Name and 

Shame” defaulters to reveal 

the identities of tax evaders 

to the public. This is to 

be supported by criminal 

prosecution, and recovery 

of taxes due with full penalties 

and interest. 

Furthermore, the Relevant 

Tax Authorities (RTAs) 

are in the process of profiling 

certain categories of 

non-compliant taxpayers 

for ongoing audits and investigations, 

in line with 

the tax compliance reforms. 

A small team within the 

Ministry of Finance has, 

therefore, been quietly gathering 

information to assess 

degree of tax compliance 

over the past 15 months. We 

advise clients to regularize 

their tax status to avoid any 

the reputational risks that 

may arise thereafter. 

IMF, World Bank, others want 

countries to strengthen tax systems 


Domestic resource 

mobilisation presents 

a particular 

challenge for developing 

countries, which 

struggle to raise sufficient 

revenue to provide basic 

services, such as road infrastructure, 

healthcare, and 

public safety. 

Research indicates that at 

least 15 percent of GDP in revenue 

is necessary to finance 

these basic services, but in 

almost 30 of the 75 poorest 

countries, tax revenues 

are below this 15 percent 

threshold. 

Amid these findings, major 

international organisations 

have called on governments 

from around the world 

to strengthen and increase 

the effectiveness of their tax 

systems to generate the domestic 

resources needed to 

meet the Sustainable Development 

Goals (SDGs) and 

promote inclusive economic 

growth. The international organisations 

are International 

Monetary Fund (IMF), Organisation 

for Economic Cooperation 

and Development 

(OECD), United Nations (UN) 

and World Bank Group. 

They noted that all countries 

need to pay greater attention 

to the spillovers from 

their tax policies and step up 

their support for stronger tax 

systems. 

They made the call at a 

conference organized at UN 

headquarters by the Platform 

for Collaboration on Tax (PCT) 

which provided a unique opportunity 

to discuss the role of 

tax in ending poverty, protecting 

the planet and ensuring 

prosperity for all. 

Governments and relevant 

stakeholders also need to 

continue to work together 

on establishing a fair and efficient 

system of international 

taxation, including efforts 

to fight tax evasion and tax 

avoidance. 

During a three-day conference 

at UN headquarters 

on “Taxation and the SDGs”, 

ministers and deputy ministers 

of finance, tax authorities, 

and senior representatives 

from civil society, private sector, 

academia, regional and 

global organisations debated 

the key directions needed for 

tax policy and administration 

to meet the SDGs by 2030. 

This rose includes: how to 

mobilise domestic resources 

for development; tax policies 

to support sustainable 

economic growth, investment 

and trade; the social dimensions 

of taxation (income and 

gender inequality, human 

development); as well as 

capacity development and international 

tax co-operation. 

As an era of unprecedented 

international co-operation 

on tax is underway with the 

advent of initiatives like the 

Automatic Exchange of Information, 

the Base Erosion and 

Profit Shifting (BEPS) project, 

and the active engagement of 

the UN Tax Committee—all 

these initiatives create new 

opportunities for the enhanced 

participation of developing 

countries in international 

tax policy discussions 

and institutions, but also new 

challenges to fully realising 

the benefits of international 

co-operation on tax. 

The conference aimed to 

provide guidance to countries 

and other stakeholders on 

how to better target tax efforts 

to achieve broader development 

goals. Insights from the 

conference helps inform and 

shape the future work of the 

PCT members and partners, 

including the IMF, OECD, UN 

and World Bank.


BUSINESS DAY 

19 

SHIPPING LOGISTICS MARITIME e-COMMERCE 

Terminal operators seek total repair 

of port roads to save businesses 

...SIFAX says total reconstruction not palliative needed 

Stories by 

UZOAMAKA ANAGOR-EWUZIE 

Worried by 

the negative 

impact 

of the poor 

state of the 

roads leading to the Apapa 

and Tin-Can Island seaports, 

terminal operators and owners 

of container off-dock terminals, 

have again called on 

the Federal Government to 

intervene in repairing the 

roads to ease the suffering of 

port businesses within Apapa 

metropolis. 

According to them, the 

situation of the roads especially 

the Tin-Can and Coconut 

axis of the Apapa-Oshodi 

Expressway, has gone beyond 

the state of carrying out palliative, 

as the road now require 

total reconstruction to ease 

movement of cargo out from 

the ports. 

Oliver Omajuwa, general 

manager, SIFAX Off-Dock 

Limited, urged the Federal 

Government to urgently fix 

the road, saying that rehabilitation 

of the road has been 

necessary in order to save 

Cross section of 2018 INTELS WEPSS intakes. 

businesses from shutting 

down due to the deplorable 

state of the Tin Can–Coconut 

port access road. 

Omajuwa, who made 

the appeal in a statement 

issued at the weekend on 

the back of the on-going palliative 

measures currently 

embarked upon by different 

stakeholders, said that the 

situation of the road has 

gone beyond palliatives. 

He noted that with the 

early rains coming in February, 

gives clear indication that 

2018 might likely be a year of 

INTELS to train 125 women in 2018 

WEPSS empowerment programme 

As part of its corporate 

social responsibility 

(CSR), INTELS Nigeria 

Limited has admitted 

125 persons to take part 

in this year’s Women Empowerment 

Programme Synergy 

Scheme (WEPSS). 

WEPSS was established in 

2013 with the vision of empowering 

5,000 community women 

over a 20-year period through 

training in fashion design and 

tailoring. To date, more than 500 

several women have been empowered 

through the project. 

Silvano Bellinato, director 

of INTELS Nigeria Limited, 

said recently that the company 

ENL Consortium Nigeria 

Limited, the 

operator of Terminals 

C and D of the 

Lagos Port Complex Apapa, 

has emerged the Most Outstanding 

Maritime Operator 

of the Year 2017, at the Independent 

Awards organised 

by Independent Newspapers 

at the weekend. 

The award was in addition 

to similar honour 

bestowed on the company 

when it won the Port and 

Container Terminal Development 

Award at the prestigious 

Seatrade International 

Award held in Dubai, United 

Arab Emirates. 

Vicky Haastrup, executive 

vice chairman/CEO of ENL 

Consortium, who dedicated 

the award to “all the hardworking 

management and 

staff” of the company, said 

that all hands must be on 

deck to promote the development 

of the maritime sector. 

Haastrup, who doubles 

as the chairman of Seaport 

Terminal Operators Association 

of Nigeria (STOAN), 

said ENL Consortium has 

made substantial investment 

in human and materemains 

resolute in enhancing 

the lives of people in its area of 

operation and commitment to 

the development of communities 

in the area. 

He said that INTELS has 

acquired and made available 

over 300 specialised sewing machines 

and built a 5000-square 

metres garment manufacturing 

factory at the Federal Lighter 

Terminal, Onne for the purpose 

of the training. 

At the commencement of 

this year’s training session in 

Onne last week, Abhina Ajmani, 

head of WEPSS, said that the 

training is held once every six 

months and this year marks the 

fifth session. 

According to him, about 700 

women applied for admission 

into the 2018 programme, who 

were mostly WASSCE holders 

but only 125 were admitted. 

“This training is free and 

lasts for four months per set. 

Everything has been done to 

ensure the beneficiaries give 

their full commitment to acquiring 

skills that will empower 

them for life,” he said. 

Dorothy Egbe, a 2016 beneficiary 

and graduate of WEPSS, 

said the programme was transforming 

the lives of women in 

Rivers State. “WEPSS has been 

of great help to me. I learnt new 

skills and acquire an industrial 

sewing machine at no cost. I 

now sew clothes for myself, my 

family and friends. 

“I am still in my final year in 

school. After I am done with my 

studies, I plan to start sewing full 

time, on a commercial scale. I 

am equally improving on what 

I was taught, learning how to 

make designs. I intend to direct 

my focus on sewing women and 

children’s clothes,” she added. 

heavy rains, with devastating 

effects on businesses operating 

in the axis as well as other 

road users. 

“With the deplorable state 

of the Tin-Can and Coconut 

axis of the Apapa-Oshodi 

Expressway, there has been 

tremendous delay in container 

transfers from various 

ports. This has resulted in loss 

of revenue as the off-dock 

operators cannot charge client 

until containers are successfully 

received at their 

terminals,” he said. 

According to him, for every 

day containers were delayed 

due to the bad access 

road, bonded terminals operating 

around lose revenue 

in storage, idle man-hour, 

electricity wastage because 

the terminals must be powered 

whether the containers 

come in or not and pay 

overtime and inconvenience 

allowances to staff as well as 

other cost. 

Omajuwa said that the 

road situation poses very 

difficult time for businesses 

located around the Coconut 

axis as their bottom line was 

eroded with various interventions 

on the road. 

He explained that once 

every two weeks, companies 

like SIFAX provides its 

own palliative on the road 

by filling some bad portions 

at Coconut and Sunrise axis 

with about 50 truck-loads of 

hardcore stones. 

“Sometimes when container-laden 

trucks were stuck 

in the craters on the road, the 

company moves out its equipment 

such as reach stackers 

and others to salvage the situation. 

The palliative measures 

embarked upon by stakeholders, 

whose businesses 

are located around the axis 

is not moving as expected,” 

he added. 

Omajuwa said that the 

road, which is in terrible state, 

has become a threat to the existence 

of businesses around 

Coconut area. “Though the 

government has handed over 

the reconstruction of the 

road to Dangote Construction 

Company starting from 

Oworonshoki, we urge, as a 

matter of urgency, that the 

reconstruction of the stretch 

of road should start at the 

coconut axis. 

Vicky Haastrup 

“This has become necessary 

because when the rainy 

season comes, businesses 

will be forced to shut down 

and this would amount to 

revenue loss for the government 

and private companies 

while workers would also 

not be spared as job loss 

usually comes with failed 

businesses,” he said. 

Speaking at a different occasion 

at the weekend, Vicky 

Haastrup, executive vice 

chairman/CEO of ENL Consortium, 

said that despite the 

successes recorded by the 

Federal Government’s port 

concessioning programme, 

that the dilapidated state of 

the port access roads has 

remained challenging to port 

business. 

The major challenge facing 

terminal operators today 

is the dysfunctional state 

of the Wharf Road and the 

Apapa-Oshodi Expressway. 

These roads are the major 

arteries of both the Apapa 

and Tin-Can Island ports. 

If these roads are given due 

attention by government, 

Nigerians will enjoy more 

benefits of port concession,” 

she added. 

ENL Consortium emerges Maritime Operator of the Year 

rial resources to enable the 

country realise the benefits 

of port concession. 

“We have quality staff 

working with us and I am 

happy to dedicate this award 

to the hardworking, committed 

and patriotic staff of 

ENL Consortium, who works 

day and night to ensure that 

ships were promptly discharged 

and cargoes were 

delivered in good time to 

their owners. 

“When we came into the 

port in 2006, the terminals 

were at ground zero. Nothing 

was working. The equipment 

were not functional, there 

were endless ship queues 

even as touts called the shot. 

The morale of workers was 

at its lowest ebb,” Haastrup 

said. 

Haastrup also said that 

terminal operators have 

turned the story around with 

good conditions of service 

for dockworkers and modern 

cargo handling equipment 

to ensure that ships are discharged 

in good time. 

According to her, terminal 

operators embarked on massive 

civil engineering works 

to develop the terminals and 

raised operational standard 

to what is obtainable in the 

ports of advanced countries. 

“To put an end to touting, 

I personally led the 

battle against the category 

of people called ‘wharf rats’ 

who were a menace to the 

system. Today, the terminal 

is professionally run. Things 

are working well inside the 

port and our country is the 

better for it,” she added. 

Ade Ogidan, managing 

director of Independent 

Newspapers, said the awards 

was organised to recognise 

and honour individuals and 

corporate organisations that 

have made significant contributions 

to nation development.



C002D5556 

RESEARCH 

& 

INSIGHT 

A WEEKLY PUBLICATION OF BUSINESSDAY RESEARCH & INTELLIGENCE UNIT(BRIU) research@businessdayonline.com 08106395676 

Why are non-performing loans high 

in oil and gas, 5 other sectors? 

TELIAT SULE 

Indications that the era of high 

NPL was back emerged in 2016 

when the industry non-performing 

loan(NPL) ratio rose 

to 12.8 percent, significantly 

higher than NPL ratio of 4.9 percent 

by the end of 2015. The industry 

benchmark is 5 percent. This is already 

having effects on the performance of 

the economy as by the end of 2017, 

credit to the private sector fell by 2.34 

percent, a signal that some sub sectors 

were starved of funds. 

While the investing public still 

awaits the audited reports of listed 

banks, information derived from the 

analysis of the third quarter unaudited 

reports of banks give us an idea of 

what to expect when those reports 

are out. 

The industry NPL as at the end 

of the third quarter of 2017 was still 

above the regulatory benchmark of 

5 percent. In particular, professional 

services recorded NPL as high as 90 

percent. Others sub sectors with high 

NPL include general commerce, 21 

percent; oil and gas, 32 percent; oil 

and gas upstream, 43 percent; oil and 

gas downstream, 18 percent; education, 

20 percent , and transport, 25 

percent. 

What factors are responsible for 

high NPLs? 

Through analysis, we have identified 

a number of factors responsible for 

high non-performing loans in certain 

sub sectors, and without addressing 

them, the era of high NPL may not be 

over soon. 

Fragile growth 

This concerns the general macroeconomic 

environment as the growth being 

witnessed now depends solely on 

improvement in the crude oil prices, 

meaning that it is not driving by improvement 

in manufacturing activities 

and significant earnings from the 

export non-oil products. Growth in 

some of the sub sectors was negative 

as at the end of the third quarter 2017. 

Year-on-year, the coal mining sub sector 

posted negative 38 percent growth 

even when its entire sector, the mining 

and quarrying, grew by 25 percent. 

Also, economic activities in the entire 

manufacturing sector declined by 3 

percent. But, the impact was more 

felt in oil refining whose activities 

Source: Banks’ audited reports 2015 & 2016 

Source: Banks’ unaudited third quarter reports 2017 

declined by 45 percent just as those 

firms in cement manufacturing had 

their sub sectoral activities reduced by 

5 percent. Besides, motor vehicles and 

assembly recorded lower economic 

activities to the tune of 21 percent 

while other manufacturing activities 

were down by 10 percent. 

In the entire transport and storage 

sub sector, growth was lower by 6 

percent. While there was stagnation in 

growth in rail, air and water, economic 

activities in road transport was lower 

by 6 percent. 

Furthermore, economic activities 

in the telecommunications and 

information services fell by 6 percent. 

Other sub sectors with lower economic 

activities include financial institutions, 

-7 percent; insurance, -2%; 

professional, scientific and technical 

services, -1 percent; and education, 

-1 percent. 

Rising unemployment rate 

For sub sectors such as education 

and general commerce, the rising 

unemployment rate contributed to 

the high NPL in those sectors. In 2017, 

the nation’s unemployment rate rose 

from 14.4 percent in the first quarter 

of 2017 to 18.8 percent by September 

of last year. Many Nigerians lost their 

jobs and that impaired the ability of 

families to pay children’s school fees, 

which in turn affected the capacity 

of private schools to service their 

facilities. 

According to the National Bureau 

of Statistics (NBS), enrolments in private 

secondary schools in the country 

in 2016 declined by 512,547 students 

in both junior and secondary school 

categories. Particularly in 2015, there 

were 1.375 million students in the junior 

private secondary schools across 

the country but the enrolment rate 

fell by 24 percent or a total of 323,469 

students withdrew from private secondary 

schools bringing the total 

enrolments to 1.051 million students 

in 2016. The breakdown shows that in 

the senior private secondary schools, 

enrolments declined by 17 percent to 

911,561 students across the federation 

in 2016 from 1.1 million students in 

2015. The problem was further aggravated 

by the inability of some state 

governments to pay workers’ salaries 

particularly in states that have large 

public sector base. 

High oil prices, subsidy and naira 

devaluation 

Crude oil prices have risen by over 

60 percent from $40.23 a barrel on 

May 10, 2016 to $64.47 a barrel on 

December 29,2017. This has fundamentally 

changed the downstream 

sector which is not allowed to be 

controlled by market forces. In effect, 

the landing cost of the premium motor 

spirit (PMS) now stands at N171 per 

litre. With retail price at N145/litre, it 

means there is a subsidy of N26 a litre 

on fuel. This has made subsidy arrears 

accumulated to the tune of N800 billion. 

The high NPL in the downstream 

is attributed to the non-payment of 

subsidy to petroleum marketers. 

“Most of the NPLs in the oil and 

gas downstream sector are due to the 

non-payment of subsidies to petroleum 

marketers”, Abiola Rasak, head, 

Investor relations, the United Bank for 

Africa (UBA), said. 

Findings also show that the devaluation 

of the naira aggravated the NPL 

imbroglio. This was because many 

deals that were contracted and which 

were viable at N199/$ became unprofitable 

at N400/$. 

“At that time, investors had to 

look for forex partly from the CBN 

and parallel market where the rate 

of exchange was about N450/$, as a 

result, some projects became unprofitable, 

and that impaired the ability of 

businesses to service their facilities”, 

Rasak, added. 

The transport sector was particularly 

hit by the exchange rate devaluation. 

The costs of vehicles and spare 

parts shot up as exchange rate was 

devalued. The immediate impact was 

that transporters could not service 

their vehicles and those who were in 

the process of importing new ones 

to expand their fleet were forced to 

look for more money. For instance, 

between 2015 and 2016, the number of 

number plates produced by the Federal 

Road Safety Commission (FRSC) 

fell by 27.2 percent from 573,069 to 

417,093, a clear pointer to the impact 

of exchange rate devaluation on the 

importation of vehicles. 

Cost of Capital higher than return 

on investment 

With the monetary policy rate (MPR) 

at 14 percent, banks could not afford 

to lend to customers below this level. 

For the better part of 2017, the average 

interest rate charged by banks was 27 

percent. The reality is that most of the 

sub sectors in question have the return 

on capital employed lower than the 

cost of capital. Consequently, businesses 

find it difficult to service their 

debts as at when due. 

“Those sectors having return on investment 

lower than the cost of capital 

will always have challenges servicing 

their facilities”, Kayode Tinuoye, head, 

research desk at United Capital, said. 

Governors’ reluctance to endorse 

letters of consent 

Every loan has collateral backing it 

up. In the event a loan goes bad, there 

are some documents to perfect before 

such assets will be disposed of and 

sometimes, the process requires getting 

the endorsement of the state governor. 

This has not been forthcoming. 

“As we speak now, my NPL is very 

high. I have been trying to get the 

consent of the governor to dispose of 

the assets used as collateral but that is 

not easy to get. Due to this realisation, 

even some profitable ventures will 

deliberately not service their loans’’, 

said a bank’s branch manager, who 

did want his name in print. 

Implications 

Shareholders to lose dividends: 

Late January, the Central Bank of 

Nigeria (CBN) while tacitly anticipating 

a high NPL era made a proactive 

move that would prevent dividend 

payment by banks with NPL above the 

regulatory benchmark. The circular 

reads thus: 

“DMBs and DHs that have a Composite 

Risk Rating (CRR) of “High” or 

a Non-Performing Loan (NPL) ratio of 

above 10% shall not be allowed to pay 

dividend. Also, DMBs and DHs that 

meet the minimum capital adequacy 

ratio but have a CRR of “Above Average” 

or an NPL ratio of more than 5% 

but less than 10% shall have dividend 

payout ratio of not more than 30%. 

“DMBs and DHs that have capital 

adequacy ratios of at least 3% above 

the minimum requirement, CRR of 

“Low” and NPL ratio of more than 5% 

but less than 10%, shall have dividend 

pay-out ratio of not more than 75% 

of profit after tax”, the CBN said in its 

circular. 

In 2015 financial year, the banking 

sub sector paid N274.03 billion 

as dividend. However, dividend payment 

in 2016 declined by 43 percent 

to N156.41 billion. With the CBN 

circular, dividend payment by banks 

may fall further, translating to a loss 

of dividend income for shareholders. 

Fragile growth will remain for a 

while 

Banks have already designated some 

sectors as high risk, implying that 

players in those sectors may not get 

the amount of facilities they need 

to break even. As a result, economic 

growth may remain fragile for a while.

PRIVATEEQUITY 

& FUNDRAISING 


Japual extends winning streak as 

stock makes biggest gain in 4yrs 

LOLADE AKINMURELE 

The share price of 

Japaul Oil & Maritime 

Services Plc, a 

Nigerian oil-services 

company, has rallied 

since it disclosed an agreement 

with private equity firm Milost 

Global Inc. for $350 million 

(N90 billion using N360/$) in 

shares and loans for business 

expansion. 

Japaul rose 9.52 percent to 

N0.46 Monday, according to 

Bloomberg data, its biggest gain 

since June 2014. 

Milost will invest $250 million 

in equity and add another $100 

million in convertible loans, Japaul 

Chairman, Jegede Paul, told 

reporters last week. The fresh 

injection of capital will enable 

the company to fix grounded 

vessels, finance new contracts 

and expand into mining, he said. 

Considering Japaul’s market 

capitalisation is just N2.8 billion, 

the N90 billion credit line offered 

by Milost has raised a few eyebrows. 

Two calls seeking clarification 

from Akinloye Oladapo, 

WORD OF 

THE WEEK 

Japaul’s managing director, on 

Monday were not answered. 

Japaul’s oil and gas operations 

suffered a setback with the 2014 

plunge in crude prices, which 

forced exploration and production 

companies to scale back 

their activities. 

As prices are recovering, the 

company wants to take advan- 

C002D5556 

tage of new business opportunities 

in the industry. The company 

plans to be able to absorb 

future oil and gas price shocks by 

diversifying into mining. 

ROUND: 

A ROUND a financing event whereby professional investors such as venture capitalists invest additional 

funds in a company that was previously financed by founders. The “A” is from Series “A” Preferred stock. 

After the “A” round of financing; subsequent rounds are called “B”, “C”, and so on. 

BUSINESS DAY 

Companies&Markets 

Nigeria’s largest maize 

farm attracts 20% 

equity investment 

JOSEPHINE OKOJIE 

Through a firm called Babban 

Gona, Kola Masha the MIT 

trained former technical assistant 

to an ex-agric minister is now the 

largest aggregator of maize in Nigeria. 

The firm which currently works 

with 18,000 farmers in Katsina, Kaduna 

and Kano, has attracted a 20 

percent equity investment from the 

Bill and Melinda Gates foundation for 

expansion, BusinessDay has gathered. 

The investment which is aimed at 

improving farmers income will help 

Babban Gona upscale its number of 

smallholder farmers from 18,000 to 

40,000 before the end of 2018 and 

boost the country’s local maize production. 

“The investment from the Bill 

and Melinda Gates foundation has 

been instrumental in catalysing our 

investments and our growth and we 

expect this investment will enable us 

reach our target of 1 million farmers 

by 2025,” Masha, managing director, 

Babban Gona told BusinessDay. 

“The investment is a key part that 

has enabled us to grow by six folds 

and also increase our number of 

farmers by six folds. We have been 

very fortunate to have a great partner 

like the Gates foundation with us,” 

Masha said. 

Goodwell acquire minority 

stake in Microfinance 

Bank Oradian 

DAVID IBEMERE 

Goodwell Investments has 

acquired a minority equity 

stake in Oradian, one of the 

world’s fastest growing providers 

of digital solutions for financial 

institutions in frontier markets. 

Oradian is based in Zagreb 

(Croatia) with offices in Lagos (Nigeria) 

and Manila (Philippines). 

The amount of the deal was not 

disclosed. 

The investment will allow Oradian 

to grow its business across 

Africa and strengthen its commercial 

teams. 

The investment will be made 

from Goodwell’s UMUNTHU 

fund, which participates in the inclusive 

economy through the provision 

of risk capital and hands-on 

support to local entrepreneurs and 

institutions in Sub-Saharan Africa. 

Oradian provides microfinance 

institutions (MFIs) with Instafin, 

a cloud-based core banking platform 

to reach more clients in some 

of the most remote, hard-to-reach 

communities. Since signing its first 

customer in northern Nigeria in 

2013, the company has expanded 

to more than fifty financial institutions 

in seven countries, including 

Ghana serving one million endclients. 

Goodwell Investments acquisition 

of a minority equity stake in 

the company, will allow Oradian to 

grow its business across Africa and 

strengthen its commercial teams. 

BusinessDay PRIVATE EQUITY & FUNDRAISING (Team lead: LOLADE AKINMURELE - Analysts: MICHEAL ANI, DIPO OLADEHINDE, ENDURANCE OKAFOR, DAVID IBEMERE ... Graphics: DAVID OGAR ) 

Businessday’s Private Equity and Fundraising section is a weekly publication that provides in-depth analysis on private equity trends and tracks deal activity in Nigeria. 

Email the PE & F team loladeakinmurele@gmail.com 


21

C002D5556 

22 BUSINESS DAY Wednesday 28 February 2018 

In association with 

ag@businessdayonline.com 

Low quality seeds hurt Nigeria’s cotton production 


Nigerian cotton 

farmers have 

identified poor 

seed as the major 

challenge facing the 

cultivation of crop efforts and 

reducing their yield per hectare. 

Access to adequate, secured 

and timely supply of quality cotton 

seeds is a major hurdle on the 

nation’s quest to return to its 

heydays when cotton was a major 

export cash crop. 

Despite efforts of successive 

governments to give farmers 

access to improved seeds and 

seedlings, farmers are still unable 

to get access to good and quality 

seeds. 

“A lot of farmers are abandoning 

their farms because they do not 

have enough seeds to plant. 

Majority of the cotton seeds in the 

market are of low quality,” Anibe 

Achimugu, president, National 

Cotton Association of Nigeria 

(NACOTAN) told BusinessDay in 

a telephone interview. 

“There is also no adequate 

access to finance for cotton farmers 

and when most of the funds come, 

it normally gets to the farmers late 

and the planting of cotton is at a 

particular season,” Achimugu said. 

Cotton production in the 

country is fast on the decline as 

most farmers are abandoning 

farming cotton and moving to 

other crops as the production is 

no longer attractive. 

Cotton which used to be one of 

Nigeria’s major cash crops in the 

80’s was not even among the top 15 

agricultural commodities exported 

in 2016, data from the National 

Bureau of Statistics shows. 

“A lot of farmers are no longer 

growing cotton because of low 

patronage and lack of inputs. 

The inputs we get from the 

government usually come very 

late. When you delay in planting 

cotton, it affects the productivity,” 

said Abubakar Shiyaki, a cotton 

farmer in Niger state. 

“When we buy our seeds 

ourselves, we only buy low quality 

seeds. As a result of all these 

challenges, a lot of farmers growing 

cotton are now growing other crops 

because they cannot break-even 

with cotton,” Shiyaki said. 

This is the case of many cotton 

farmers across the country. The 

number of seed companies in the 

country increased from five in 

2011 to about 80 seeds companies’ 

today yet, most of the hybrid seeds 

in the country are not viable and 

are of low quality. 

“The issue of seeds in the 

country is that farmers are not 

informed and they don’t know 

where to get these quality seeds 

from. Extension service agents 

that are supposed to educate and 

inform farmers hardly visit their 

farmlands,” said Afioluwa Mogaji, 

chief executive officer, X-RAY 

Farms. 

According to stakeholders, the 

closure of most textile companies 

in the country led to the low 

patronage of cotton from farmers 

which have made cotton farming 

less attractive for them. 

Nigeria’s cotton production is 

put at 51,000 metric tonnes on 

253,000 hectares with average 

yield of 202kg per hectare, while 

global cotton consumption is 

put at 24 million metric tonnes, 

according to the International 

Cotton Advisory Committee 

(ICAC) 2016 data. 

Salmanu Abdullahi, chairman, 

Ginners Association of Nigeria, 

said “the total collapse of cotton 

production was as a result of 

government neglect of agriculture. 

We however believe that things 

would be different now that there 

is renewed commitment to the 

sector. 

“Government needs to also 

address the issue of seeds, so that 

farmers can improve their yields,” 

said Abdullahi. 

Stakeholders have blamed the 

failure to increase cotton output on 

ineffective government structures 

that do not allow effective and 

efficient translation of technology 

between research institutes and 

cotton farmers. 

Ibrahim Umar Abubakar, 

director, Institute for Agricultural 

Research (IAR) Zaria said, “the 

failure of extension service delivery 

in the country has contributed 

to the failure of cotton farmers. 

Farmers need to be trained on good 

handling practice, modern farming 

techniques and technology. 

Stakeholders canvass for technology 

to boost agric productivity 


Stakeholders in the 

agricultural sector are 

canvassing for improved 

technology and innovation 

in the sector to boost farmers’ 

productivity. 

The stakeholders who spoke 

during the recent agric social media 

week, organised by Cooperate 

Farmers International and the 

International Institute of Tropical 

Agriculture (IITA) express optimism 

that with modern technology in 

the sector, agriculture would drive 

economic growth. 

Woke Ogunlade, co-founder 

and chief marketing officer, Probity 

Farms said that the country’s ability 

to improve the quality of its seeds 

and seedlings depended on the level 

of technology in the sector, saying 

that lack innovation is fast slowing 

the growth that would have been 

recorded in the sector. 

“Farmers need to start enhancing 

technology in various aspects of 

farm work to improve quality and 

quantity of yields,” Ogunlade said. 

He said lack of technology in 

the sector for farmers has made it 

complex for financial institutions 

to properly evaluate production, 

making it difficult to finance farming 

projects. 

Halina Apaila, country 

representative of Digital African 

Woman said that farmers need to 

be trained on technological tools to 

make them adopt innovative ways 

in farming and marketing strategy. 

Apaila noted that when Nigerian 

farmers embrace technology, they 

would be able to access international 

engagements and investments, 

noting that it has been the major focus 

of her organisation to train farmers 

on modern farming technology. 

“Digital African Woman gives 

a platform for training with 

technological tools to improve 

ideas, seeds marketing, website 

developments and engagements for 

international investors,” she said. 

Also speaking during the event, 

Akin Alabi, co-partner, CFI, said that 

since the country’s agriculture is 

becoming more vibrant, technology 

and digitalisation are inevitable. 

“Farmers need mechanisation 

and innovation to boost productivity 

if we are to feed ourselves as a 

nation,” Alabi said. 

Lack of technology has continued 

to limit the capacity of farmers 

to expand their cultivation areas, 

perform timely farming operations 

and achieve economies of scale in 

food production, stakeholders say. 

Nigeria is populated by 182 

million people who must be fed with 

staple foods ranging from yams, 

rice, cassava to beans, bananas and 

tomatoes. 

However, there is still much 

demand-supply gap in most of the 

staple foods, even as the population 

growth rate stands at 2.6 percent 

per annum. 

The stakeholders stated that for 

Nigeria to attain high level of food 

sufficiency and reduce dependency 

on food imports, it has to adopt 

technology and innovation in its 

food production. 

Available statistics show 

that Nigeria is one of the least 

mechanised farming countries in 

the world with the country’s tractor 

density put at 0.27 hp/ hectare 

which is far below the Food and 

Agriculture Organisation (FAO)’s 

1.5hp/hectare recommended 

tractor density. 

IAR&T partners Reps to train 

youths in poultry production 

AKINREMI FEYISIPO, IBADAN 

Th e Institute of 

Agricultural Research 

and Training (IAR&T) 

Ibadan in conjunction 

with House of Representatives 

committee on agriculture, have 

trained 147 students from colleges 

and institutions in the city in both 

poultry and piggery production. 

The training which held at 

I.A.R&T Ibadan was organised by 

the committee headed by Linus 

Okorie in collaboration with 

IAR&T and Bora Agro Nigeria 

Limited. It had youths drawn 

from Oyo, Ogun, Lagos, Ekiti and 

Ebonyi states respectively. 

Speakers and organisers of the 

intensive training said it was put 

together to improve both poultry 

and piggery production in the 

country. 

In his address, James Adediran, 

executive director, IAR&T, at 

the training tagged, “Training 

and Empowerment of Youth on 

Poultry and Piggery Production, 

Processing and Marketing’ 

maintained that poultry and 

piggery production are one of 

the important sub-sectors of the 

livestock industry in Nigeria. 

Adediran, stated that poultry 

and piggery production, if given 

proper attention, would go a long 

way in reducing the problem of 

malnutrition associated with low 

animal protein intake among 

Nigerians. 

He added that apart from this, 

improved poultry production and 

piggery will also contribute to the 

Gross Domestic Product (GDP) 

of Nigeria, and reduce the rate of 

unemployment in the country. 

Ayodele Adegbite, executive 

director IAR&T who spoke through 

the deputy director of the institute, 

said “the workshop is timely and in 

line with the Federal Government 

initiative of empowering the youth 

to reduce the unemployment 

crisis in Nigeria through poultry 

production.” 

“You are all aware that 

poultry production and piggery 

production in Nigeria is an 

important sub - sector of the 

livestock industry and the most 

practiced of all other livestock 

enterprise. It has contributed and 

is still contributing to the income 

of resource poor smallholder 

farmers,” he added.

Wednesday 28 February 2018 C002D5556 

BUSINESS DAY 23 

ag@businessdayonline.com 

Farm to School Africa trains 1,800 students in agriculture 

…create interest in sustainable farming 


In line with the Federal 

Government efforts to 

make agriculture attractive 

to youths and drive their 

involvement, Farm to School 

Africa has trained a total 1, 800 

students across five secondary 

schools in Akure, Ondo state. 

The Farm to School Africa is an 

initiative of Springboard Nigeria, 

which was setup to help build 

the interest of young people in 

agriculture through training and 

establishment of farms in schools, 

thereby creating and nurturing 

interest in sustainable farming. 

The students were trained in 

various aspects of agriculture such 

as poultry, seeds and seedling 

multiplication and crop production. 

“The Farm to School program is 

to help build the interest of young 

people in agriculture to want to 

study it in the university and take 

it up as a career after graduation,” 

Lawrence Alaba Afere, founder and 

CEO of Springboard Nigeria, said 

during the launch of the project at 

Oyemekun Grammar School, Akure, 

Ondo state. 

“A lot of young people do not 

want to take up agriculture as a 

profession because they do not 

understand the business aspect of 

agriculture. 

Lawrence Alaba Afere, founder and CEO of Springboard Nigeria and Oladapo Babasola Adeniyan, program manager, 

Ondo Agricultural Development Program (ADP) during the unveiling of the mini tractors for the student farms under the 

Farm to School Africa initiative. 

“So the Farm to School initiative 

is catching them young at the 

secondary school level and training 

them on agriculture as a business,” 

Afere said. 

He stated that the initiative is 

being sponsored by the Mitsubishi 

Corporation Fund for Europe and 

Africa and that the organisation is 

working in partnership with the 

Ondo state ministry of agriculture 

and education on the program. 

Afere noted that with the support 

of the state ministry of agriculture 

and rural development, agricultural 

science teachers in the schools are 

trained by extension officers to serve 

as trainers within the schools for 

students. 

“By this we are building 

a sustainable network of agric 

educators,” he said. 

He added that the initiative will 

be replicated in other schools across 

the state. 

Also speaking with BusinessDay 

during the launch, Jemimah 

Ibitokun, project coordinator, Farm 

to School Africa, said that with the 

training and the involvement of the 

students in the entire process of 

farming, their interest in agriculture 

will increase. 

“If we monitor them well and 

closely we would have about 70 

percent of them applying to study 

agriculture in the university not 

because it was the course giving to 

them by the school,” Ibitokun said. 

Steven Temitope Ojo, prinicipal, 

Oyemekun Grammar School, said 

that the program would help the 

country and Ondo state in particular 

address the issue of unemployment, 

as the students have seen how 

profitable farming can be, saying 

that it will encourage many of them 

take it up as a career instead of 

searching for jobs. 

“The program will equip the 

students for the future as they would 

be trained on various aspect of 

agriculture which they can take up 

as a profession after their university 

education,” Ojo said. 

Amo Group honours Toromade 

Amo Group of companies, 

Nigeria’s second largest 

integrated poultry farm 

has commended the 

efforts Francis Toromade, the 

immediate past group head-policy 

and strategy, of the organisation 

for his selfless and meritorious 

service. 

Ayoola Oduntan, managing 

director, AMO Group, commended 

Toromade for his efforts towards 

the development of the company, 

adding that the history of the 

organisation will not be complete 

without the mention of his 

immense contributions. 

“His contributions towards 

the development of the company 

cannot be overemphasized. As a 

matter of fact, the history of our 

company will not be complete 

without the mention of his effort,” 

Oduntan said during a send-forth 

party organised by the company 

for Toromade. 

“He will be missed, and I wish 

him good success in his future 

plans,” he added. 

Many members of staff of Amo 

Ayoola Oduntan, group managing director, Amo Group (middle), flanked by 

Francis Toromade and his wife at the send forth party organised by the company 

in his honour. 

Group who spoke at the occasion 

all described Toromade as a role 

model, hardworking, energetic 

and a team player with a pleasant 

personality. 

In his response, Francis 

Toromode showered appreciation 

on the GMD for giving him the 

opportunity to serve in the 

organisation. “I wish to thank 

everyone for the love shown to 

me and my family. God called me 

to work with Ayoola Oduntan and 

when the time to leave came, God 

told me to move on.” 

“I am most especially grateful 

for the honour of naming the 

company’s feed mill after me. It 

goes a long way to show that my 

hard-work and contributions did 

not go unnoticed,” Toromade said. 

He affirmed that he is only 

retiring to re-fire, while adding 

that he is still so full of energy 

and that his best years are still 

to come. 

Toromade who recently retired 

from the company after spending 

many years as a top management 

staff served as General Manager, 

Sales and Marketing, for thirteen 

years at Amo Byng Nig Ltd. 

NIOMR empowers unemployed youths, 

women in aquaculture production 

BUNMI BAILEY 

The Nigerian Institute 

for Oceanography 

and Marine Research 

(NIOMR) has empowered 

50 unemployed youths and 

women in different aspects of 

fish farming to boost Nigeria’s 

local production in aquaculture. 

The training and empowerment 

program which runs for five 

days is targeted ensuring that 

the country meets its target of 

achieving self-sufficiency in fish 

production. 

According to NIMOR, the 

empowerment program is a 

constituency capital project by 

the House of Senate and House 

of Assembly and participants 

were selected across the country 

by both houses with 20 from the 

lower chamber and 30 from the 

senate. “We are conducting this 

empowerment program for the 

unemployed youths and women 

to make them self-employed and 

contribute to the food security in 

Nigeria”, Gbola Akande, CEO of 

NIMOR, said during the opening 

ceremony of the program. 

“For five days participants 

would be seriously trained in 

the processing, production, 

marketing and value addition 

in aquaculture production. The 

training will include 30 per cent 

lecture and 70 per cent will be 

practical. 

“Participants will also be 

monitored for five months after 

the training and after the five 

months period of monitoring, 

they should be able to produce 

enough fish. After the training 

participants will be given 

certificates which will help 

them to apply for opportunities”, 

Akande said. 

The CEO also said that after 

the training the participants will 

be given starter packs in order 

for them to start their own fish 

businesses. The starter packs 

includes key inputs for fish 

production such as fish feeds, 

medication and equipment 

among others. 

Data from the National Bureau 

of Statistics (NBS) in the last five 

years shows that the country’s fish 

production is gaining traction as 

aquaculture production increased 

by 43 percent within the period. 

Nigeria’s total annual fish 

demand is estimated at 3.5 

million metric tons (MT), while 

the country produces only 1.1 

million MT, leaving a gap of 2.4 

million MT annually, according to 

data obtained from the country’s 

Agricultural Ministry. 

Also speaking during the 

training, Patricia Amyanwu, 

director of research and 

coordinator of the program, 

NIMOR, said that the 

accommodation, food and 

transport allowance of the 

participants were being catered 

for by the government.


24 BUSINESS DAY

BUSINESS DAY 

C002D5556 

DB Rail Academy 

starts Brazilian 

training programme 

Page 27 


25 

‘Convincing Nigerians 

to embrace 

automotive policy 

was herculean’ 

Canadian National 

railway plans record 

€C$2.08bn 

investment in 2018 

Page 26 Page 27 

Striking pictures 

of railways in 

Africa (1) 

Page 27 

Nissan reviews assembly operations in Nigeria 

… To provide expertise and technological advisory support 

Stories by MIKE OCHONMA 

As part of on-going appraisal 

of its vehicle 

assembly project in Nigeria, 

Nissan Motor Co. 

Ltd., last week deployed 

a high-powered delegation from its 

headquarters in Japan to discuss 

compelling strategies with the National 

Automotive Design and Development 

Council (NADDC). 

The strategies are aimed at expanding 

the capacity of the Nissan 

manufacturing facility to produce 

and supply affordably priced vehicles; 

create opportunity for workers 

as well as ancillary firms and the 

communities. 

Leader of the Nissan delegation, 

Peyman Kargar, Senior Vice President 

Middle-East, Africa and India 

(AMI) said: “Our visit to the Nissan 

facility in Nigeria is aimed at helping 

the plant to sustain its status as a 

reassuring brand with proclivity for 

improved performance, sales and 

after sales.” 

Also adding that the time is right 

for Nigeria to sustainably and inclusively 

explore the gains of automotive 

policy to produce vehicles with 

unprecedented value, yet affordably 

priced, Kargar said: “Nigeria is 

one of Nissan’s most outstanding 

markets in Africa growth strategy 

and we are ready to partner with 

the federal government to develop 

the market and explore the country’s 

strategic regional partners in 

the West Coast, to make Nigeria the 

automobile hub for evolving West 

African markets.” 

Nissan he noted remains committed 

to the Nigerian economy, 

which has a strong potential of becoming 

Africa’s wealthiest country. 

Kargar referred to Nigeria’s auto 

policy as exceptionally inclusive 

A 

new chapter was opend 

recently in Lagos, Nigeria’s 

commercial capital 

and home to highest number 

of vehicles in the country when 

Autofit Dunlop Express, an exquisite 

one-stop shop for auto 

maintenance and repairs opned 

its doors to the motoring public. 

He thanked their The centre was 

opened with the collaboration of 

its “technical partners; Garutech 

Ltd and Tyre Express Limited. 

Located at the Alapere axis of 

the Lagos-Ibadan road, the new 

facility is equipped with modern 

and millennium complaint facilities 

to meet the needs of individual 

and fleet owners. 

During the opening ceremony, 

Ayo Oludemi, managing director, 

Autofit Dunlop Express, declared 

that setting up the facility and 

throwing it open for business did 

not come that easy, but that despite 

all odds, the company kept 

L-R: Peyman Kargar, leader of Nissan delegation, Jelani Aliyu DG/CEO, National Automotive Design and Development Council (NADDC), 

Tokunbo Aromolaran, managing director of VON Automobile and Parvir Singh, Stallion NMN managing director during the tour of the 

Stallion NMN facility in Lagos recently. 

and thorough, one of the traits that 

inform Nissan’s eagerness to make 

a greater contribution in the Nigerian 

market. 

“We are happy to continue our 

collaboration with the government 

to transform Nigeria into a notable 

manufacturing and distribution 

hub,” he said. 

The six-man delegation was 

received by Jelani Aliyu, Director 

General/CEO of the National Automotiive 

Design and Development 

Council ( NADDC) before proceeding 

on to inspect the Stallion NMN 

facility at VON Automobile Nigeria. 

Local Nissan custodian - Stallion 

NMN, member of the Stallion 

Group became the first indigenous 

stakeholder in 2014 to roll-out locally 

assembled Nissan vehicles 

consequent upon the ratification 

of the National Automotive Policy, 

assembling four Nissan models including 

Patrol SUV, NP300, NV350 

and Almera. 

The company has since inaugurated 

11 Nissan dealerships across six 

geopolitical zones of the country, and 

achieved 10% market share in FY14 

and 18% market share in FY15 coupled 

with notable presence in Victoria 

Island and Gbagada Lagos as well as 

in Abuja and Port-Harcourt. 

Nissan seeks to continue to provide 

expertise and technological 

adivisory support to boost Nigeria’s 

economic diversification strategies, 

using the automotive sub-sector to 

achieve inclusive and shared growth. 

Stallion NMN Managing Director 

Pavir Singh said they are midful 

of the challenges of affordability, 

saying the company is keen on producing 

qualitative standard and affordably 

priced vehicles to cater for 

different spheres of needs. 

“We as manufacturers are willing 

to sign a Memorandum of 

Understanding with the federal 

government, making vehilces affordable 

for everyone. We have 

demonstarted the capacity of our 

plant, which can produce 100,000 

vehicles annually. 

“The auto industry worldwide 

contributes an average of 11.5 percent 

to the GDP of their respective 

countries and the same can be replicated 

here in Nigeria,” Singh assured. 

Other delegates include Mike 

Whitfield, Managing Director/ 

CEO, Nissan South Africa, Xavier 

Gobille,Sales and Marketing Director, 

Jim Dando Sales and Operations 

as well as Africa, Middle East 

and India Managing Director Frederic 

Posez and Nissan Motor Co., 

Ltd. Programme, Product, Marketing 

Intelligence General manager 

Vincent Valdmann. 

Autofit Dunlop Express Centre promises quality fitment, auto care 

L-R: Davidson Akhimien, national president, Association of Licensed Private Security Practitioners 

of Nigeria and chairman, (King David Security), Gbenga Emmanuel, GM, Autofit 

Maintenance Center, Ayo Oludemi, MD, Autofit Dunlop Express, Gautam Ghai, executive 

director, Tyre Express Nigeria Limited and Jair Uto-Dieu GM, Operations,Tyre Express 

Nigeria Limited at the opening of the Autofit Dunlop Express centre in Lagos recently 

moving ahead in its firm conviction 

that its customers deserve 

the best. 

Oludemi expressed satisfaction 

that Autofit Dunlop Express 

aligned Sumitomo Rubber Industry, 

South Africa, owners of 

the Dunlop brand and promoted 

in Nigeria by Tyre Express Limited 

to change the experience of buying 

tyres. 

“Furthermore, we also intend 

to have a skills acquisition centre 

for our youths, where they 

will equip themselves with various 

technical skills such as panel 

beating, spray painting, tyre and 

mechanical repair knowledge. 

He further disclosed that 

the vision of the partnership 

is to try and get the youths and 

eliminate the thoughts of going 

to countries like Libya in search 

of greener pastures. We want 

to make them believe there is 

hope in Nigeria and make them 

responsible citizens. Oludemi 

assured prospective customers 

that the outfit will not relent in 

providing the best services available”. 

Commenting on the auto experience 

centre, Jair Uto-Dieu 

said, “Tyre Express Nigeria Limited 

is the Dunlop Distributor 

for Nigeria, adding that “Tyre is 

a grudge-purchase, you only buy 

tyres when you must buy tyres, it 

is difficult to find somebody happy 

and anxious to buy tyres like 

Jag’s all-electric I-Pace 

front-row seats for 

global premiere 

Jaguar will livestream the global 

premiere of its first electric vehicle 

(EV), the I-Pace on Thursday, 

1 March, even as customers across 

the world have already pressed the 

‘I want one’ button on the Jaguar 

website, to register their interest in 

the hotly anticipated electric performance 

SUV. 

Jaguar is responding by hosting an 

online broadcast on its social channels, 

revealing I-Pace to the public 

and entire world. Specifications will 

be announced, and the configurator 

on the Jaguar website will offer consumers 

the option to configure their 

own. 

The is Jaguar’s newest member of 

the Pace family and is the EV drivers 

have been waiting for, delivering sustainable 

sports car performance, allwheel-drive 

agility and five-seat SUV 

practicality. 

In the words of Ian Callum, Jaguar 

Director of Design: “Since revealing 

the I-Pace Concept in 2016, we have 

been counting down to this moment. 

The all-electric model is not only a 

pioneer within our business, it promises 

to revolutionise the industry. I 

cannot wait for the world to see everything 

we have achieved with this car.” 

The I-Pace will be capable of rapid 

charging from zero to 80 per cent in 

45 minutes and has been rigorously 

tested across extremes of terrain and 

temperatures from -40°C to 40°C. 

With over 2.4 million test kilometres 

and a further 11,000 hours of rig 

simulations completed by more than 

200 production prototypes, Jaguar’s 

design and engineering teams have 

created a world-class all-electric SUV. 

The official public debut of I-PACE 

will be at the Geneva Motor Show on 

6 March. 

going to buy that dress, or suit or 

designer wristwatch.” 

“We make buying of tyres a 

comfortable experience as much 

as possible. In Nigeria today, we 

need a place where you are sure 

you can get original tyres at the 

best price without any doubt.” He 

stated. 

“As a company we aspire to be 

the preferred choice for tyre purchase. 

We endeavour to stock the 

complete range of tyres needed in 

the Nigerian market, while being 

competitively priced. Our trained 

staff will serve the needs of our 

customer with single-minded focus 

of “customer first”. He noted. 

In the words of Uto-Dieu, the 

new centre comes ultra-modern 

layout; clean and aesthetically 

appealing bays and lounge areas; 

comfortable rest rooms; branded 

products offering the best quality 

products across the PCR, 4×4 & 

Truck range.



C002D5556 

‘Convincing Nigerians to embrace 

automotive policy was herculean’ 

Since the introduction in 2013 of the National Automotive Policy , which among other objectives, seeks to make Nigeria self-sustaining in local auto 

assembly, the move by the Federal Government has generated a lot of reactions. In this exclusive interview with MIKE OCHONMA, BusinessDay’s 

Motoring Editor in Abuja, LUQMAN MAMUDU, the immediate past Director of Policy and Planning in the National Automotive Design and Development 

Council (NADDC) who recently retired from the public civil service and is now CEO, Transtech Industrial Consulting Limited, took time to 

respond to salient issues concerning Nigeria’s local auto industry. He is an ISO certified quality systems auditor and Fellow of both the Institute of 

Professional Industrial Management Development and The Institute of Management Consultants. 

Projection of local 

assembly plants 

in Nigeria in the 

next five years 

The NAIDP became effective 

in 2014 due to certain delays 

arising from petitions after the 

first launch in October 2013. 

This means that as a 10-year 

program it is already halfway, or 

five years into its life. 

The expectation was that in 

the next five years leading up to 

2023, all the support programs 

or the five pillars would have 

been reasonably entrenched 

for a truly indigenous automotive 

sector with high local 

content, supported by a robust 

local components industry. 

The five pillars in the policy 

document are very comprehensive 

and well thought out. 

These are market development 

for the made or assembled 

in Nigeria automobile, 

standards and quality development, 

human capital development, 

industry infrastructure, 

and a dynamic fiscal 

policy environment. We shall 

reach our goals if these five elements 

are diligently pursued. 

The programs are clearly spelt 

out in the policy provisions. 

Challenging period as a top 

official of NADDC 

This is definitely the period 

between 1993 till 2013 

when we tried to get several 

regimes to adopt an automotive 

program but the challenge 

reached its height during 

the first two years of the program 

after government finally 

adopted it in 2013. All hell 

broke loose. 

The only people that wanted 

it were those that had acquired 

the defunct assembly 

Plants viz: PAN Kaduna, 

Stallion Group Lagos, Styr in 

Bauchi, NTM Kano, Leyland 

in Ibadan, ANAMMCO Enugu, 

Innoson Nnewi and Dunlop 

Tyres. 

Every other automotive 

dealer, including maritime organisations, 

politicians and all 

manner of automotive interest 

groups, fought tooth and nail 

to ensure that the policy didn’t 

see the light of day. These were 

indeed trying times. 

We had sleepless nights trying 

to convince everyone that it 

was for the overall good of the 

country. I am happy to say that 

Mamudu 

most of those against us then, 

are now quite active in the industry 

by way of assembly but 

we must continue to encourage 

them because the investment 

environment is still very challenging. 

What areas are the local 

auto plants lacking in readiness 

for the task ahead 

The assembly plants have 

signed very good technical support 

agreements with global 

original equipment manufacturers 

(OEMs) for full vehicle 

manufacturing but at the moment, 

most are only engaged in 

Semi Knocked Down Assembly 

(SKD). 

This is good for the host 

country for the development of 

its automotive industry because 

it is a good orientation for the 

operators in readiness for deeper 

activity but the OEM partners 

are definitely not enthusiastic 

about it. 

The reason is that it is like 

building a vehicle and then disassembling 

it to re-assemble in 

another country. It is expensive 

for them and in order to be 

competitive, they have to give 

good discounts to the Nigerian 

partners. 

Profit margins in automotive 

assembly are very thin. The rea- 

The five pillars in the 

policy document are 

very comprehensive 

and well thought 

out. These are market 

development for the 

made or assembled in 

Nigeria automobile, 

standards and quality 

development, human 

capital development, 

industry infrastructure, 

and a dynamic 

fiscal policy environment 

son they are involved include 

the NAIDP high tariff barrier 

and the good prospects of selling 

spare parts to support their 

products. 

OEMs really desire to set 

up Completely knocked Down 

(CKD) operations in Nigeria 

and will be happier if they can 

source part locally. Yes, No 

OEM will like to drag parts like 

seats, tyres, glass and batteries 

across thousands of miles, if 

they can find them locally on 

time at the right price and of 

global standard. This is what 

we all need. So my answer is 

that the assembly plants are 

ready. What they lack is the enabling 

environment and challenges 

posed by unnecessary 

bureaucracy. This thing is real, 

lets get real. There is no time 

for fancy stuff. 

Can Nigeria can achieve the 

10 year of NAIDP plan by 

2023 

Of course. The main milestone 

has been achieved. This 

is getting the OEMs to open 

a pipeline of investment in 

Nigeria. This they have done 

by signing very far reaching 

agreements with Nigeria’s automotive 

promoters, most of 

whom were former automotive 

dealers. 

Factories have been built, 

some leased long term and various 

contract assembly agreement 

signed. Installed capacity 

as at the last time we assessed 

the industry was above 500,000 

automobiles per annum although 

only about 10% of this 

was operational. The thing 

holding back capacity is the 

implementation of the five pillars 

of the automotive program 

which I earlier highlighted. 

Time is running out, we should 

try and implement these programs 

quickly to reach our objective 

in 2023. 

There should be a midterm 

review now, to examine challenges 

and forge the way forward. 

The investors and OEMs 

can run out of patience and the 

program will be doomed. This 

will make me very sad. I urge 

those in charge to please pay 

attention to these programs. 

We shall continue to provide 

advice on the side line. 

Recently, the CAC registered 

myself and a few friends of the 

industry as Resident Automotive 

Components Dealers Association 

of Nigeria (RACDAN). 

The organisation is a platform 

for standards in the automotive 

components sector. 

It will support dealerships 

and eventually backward integration 

into producing components, 

to serve the Nigeria 

Assembly Plants. We are at the 

moment networking with OEM 

components industries worldwide. 

I chair RACDAN. 

My consulting company 

Transtech Industrial Consulting 

Nigeria Limited is still very 

active in working with Nigerians 

to invest in automotive Assembly 

and Components manufacture. 

Right now, we are 

talking to major haulage and 

passenger companies to set up 

their brands and the reception 

is good. 

Serving under the NADDC 

at top management level 

It was a great feeling. I felt 

as if we were laying a foundation 

that those following would 

build on. The development of 

the auto industry is long term 

and we were already near 

our retirement at the time we 

found government acceptance 

and support for the industry. 

I think we laid the foundation 

and am very grateful for industry 

support as well. 

What other wrongs can you 

put right if given another 

opportunity? 

The policy and program 

was well thought out and we 

were all very determined to 

succeed but political will was 

lackadaisical and bureaucracy 

diminished most of our momentum... 

It’s not about what 

we did wrong. 

Where is Nigeria with auto 

component manufacturing 

companies? 

The automotive component 

industry is waiting to happen. 

We are not doing enough or 

fast enough to receive so much 

investment waiting to flow in. 

China, South Africa, including 

the Morocco components 

industry have variously indicated 

the desire to establish 

here in Nigeria. Usually they 

follow their OEMs wherever 

they go and the OEMs are here. 

We should hasten up with the 

supplier park projects.


C002D5556 

BUSINESS DAY 

27 

Modern train hub underway for NRC district HQ 

Stories by MIKE OCHONMA 

As part of efforts to modernise 

Nigeria’s railways 

infrastructure, an 

international train station is in 

the pipelines the district head 

office to replace the old and 

fading structure used as the 

district head office. 

Recently, it was reported 

that about 150 houses occupied 

by staff of the Nigerian 

Railway Corporation (NRC), 

are also affected by the impending 

exercise. This also 

includes the railway district 

headquarters at Ebute Metta, 

in the Yaba area of Lagos. 

In the same vein, similar ultra-modern 

stations are being 

planned for Agbado, Oshodi, 

Ijoko, Agege and Ikeja where 

the structures housing the 

narrow gauge train stations 

had once stood. 

In Agege where one of the 

modern train stations is to be 

located, the proposed Agege 

rail station it was gathered 

is a just 20 metres away from 

the on-going Agege Flyover 

Bridge, being constructed by 

the Lagos state government. 

Houses pencilled down for 

demolition are located between 

Ebute Metta to Agege 

for the expansion of the Lagos-Ibadan 

standard gauge 

line as no fewer than 200 

houses occupying the right 

of way of the new rail line are 

currently being pulled down. 

This impending demolition 

is generating a lot of uneasy 

calm among the residents. 

NRC workers affected by 

the exercise have been given a 

three months deadline to relocate 

so as to allow for uninterrupted 

job progression along 

the corridor. 

Freight operator Canadian 

National Railway (CN) 

has announced a record 

C$3.2 billion (∼€2.08 billion) 

for major infrastructure projects 

in 2018 to meet a growing 

demand for rail freight. 

Luc Jobin, President and 

CEO said the programme will 

see CN invest more than it ever 

has before in network safety, 

efficiency and resiliency. 

For the third year running, 

CN plans to invest approximately 

C$1.6 billion (€1.04 

billion) on track and railway 

infrastructure maintenance, 

including the replacement of 

2.1 million rail ties and more 

than 600 miles of rail, plus 

work on bridges and other 

track maintenance. 

Approximately C$400 million 

(€260 million) is expected 

A very reliable source at 

the Nigerian Railway Corporation’s 

Headquarters in Oyingbo, 

who does not want to 

be mentioned, revealed. 

During one of his monthly 

visits to the Lagos-Ibadan 

railway projects sites along 

the corridor, Rotimi Amaechi, 

Minister of Transportation 

said that the Federal Government 

is committed to paying 

full compensation to owners 

of all affected structures along 

the project’s right of way, in 

order to reduce the pains of 

those whose only source of 

livelihood are being affected 

in the exercise. 

According to another 

source, “The Federal Government 

has ensured that full 

compensation was paid directly 

to those whose houses 

were being pulled down. This 

is to reduce the pain and assuage 

for the loss of their 

sources of livelihood, while 

staffs affected by the demolition 

have been told to look out 

for alternative accommodations”. 

The source who would not 

wanted the identity made 

public said that Nigerians 

would come to appreciate the 

beautiful stations that would 

replace these old edifices 

once they spring up at the designated 

railway stations. 

Another issue of very serious 

concern for the railway 

authorities is the influx of illegal 

traders on the rail tracks at 

Oyingbo, following their eviction 

from the market by the 

state government. 

The NRC is at a dilemma 

about the illegal squatters on 

the rail lines as they aware that 

their trading activity within 

the environs puts food on 

their table on a daily basis. 

At commencement of the 

Lagos-Ibadan rail project, the 

NRC, during a press briefing 

had said all properties within 

50 feet of the rail tracks will be 

demolished. 

NRC Fidet Okhiria, NRC 

managing director, any property 

within this range would 

be pulled down because the 

corporation did not grant the 

owners such lands for use. 

“We are going to demolish all 

properties within 50 feet of 

the rail lines because those 

properties are sitting on illegal 

space and land. 

He said this is except properties 

that were given out to 

owners by the corporation on 

lease, and such property owners 

must show us documents 

backing up their lease agreement 

with the NRC. “Aside 

this, every property within 50 

feet radius will have to give 

way to the Lagos-Ibadan railway 

expansion project,”. 

Canadian National railway plans record €C$2.08bn investment in 2018 

to be spent on equipment, including 

the acquisition of 60 

new GE locomotives in 2017 

as part of a three-year order of 

200 units. 

In addition, around C$400 

million (€260 million) is due 

to be spent in 2018 on the implementation 

of positive train 

control (PTC) along 3,500 

route miles of its network in 

the US. In total CN said it plans 

to invest US$1.4 billion (€1.12 

billion) on PTC by 2020. 

A further C$800 million 

(€521 million) will go towards 

initiatives to increase capacity 

and enable growth, such as 

track infrastructure expansion 

and in intermodal terminals, 

as well as on technology to 

improve safety performance, 

operational efficiency and customer 

service. 

Luc added: “These record 

investments, a substantial portion 

of which will go to new capacity 

and growth projects, will 

improve our network fluidity, 

allowing us to deliver superior 

service to meet our customers’ 

growing freight volumes.” 

Local and global rail news as it breaks 

DB Rail Academy 

starts Brazilian 

training programme 

Working with local sector 

organisations, DB Engineering 

& Consulting has 

launched the country’s first internationally 

certified training programme 

for rail and logistics managers. 

Under the DB Rail Academy 

programme, an initial tranche of 

35 managers from rail freight and 

passenger operators began an 

18-month course in Brasilia on 

February 19. The course is primarily 

aimed at companies which are 

members of the rail freight operators 

association ANTF or the passenger 

equivalent ANPTrilhos. 

Brazil’s National Transport 

Learning Service SEST SENAT has 

commissioned DB Engineering & 

Consulting to lead the programme 

under a long-term contract signed 

in December. The aim is to raise the 

general level of transport education 

to international standards and 

strengthen the competitiveness of 

Brazilian companies. The rail-specific 

initiative forms part of a broader 

Advanced Transport Training 

Programme to improve knowledge 

and promote innovation across all 

modes. 

Through its Global Rail Academies 

business unit, DB Engineering 

& Consulting has provided training 

services for railways in a number of 

countries. 

The initial programme for Brazil 

is intended to provide an overall understanding 

of the principles of rail 

systems and the connections between 

each component to ensure 

efficient and safe operations. 

Striking pictures of 

railways in Africa (1) 

Across Africa projects are 

underway to improve connectivity 

and boost economies 

by repairing existing railway 

lines and constructing new ones. 

The continent’s first railways 

were built in the colonial-era but 

many were neglected and left to 

deteriorate before the recent effort 

to revitalise them. 

Set in Africa’s unique landscape, 

between the gorgeous 

backdrops of the African plains 

and deserts and the continent’s 

socio-economic challenges, the 

railways’ embodiment of industry, 

connectivity and progress 

makes for striking pictures. 

We will begin this week to 

publish photos taken recently of 

railways in Africa, providing an 

insight into the condition of the 

continent’s public and private infrastructure.

28 BUSINESS DAY 


Leadership 

SHAPING PEOPLE INTO A TEAM 

How the data that internet companies 

collect can be used for the public good 

From climate change to terrorism, 

the difficulties confronting 

policymakers around the 

world are unprecedented in their 

variety and complexity. Our existing 

policy toolkit seems stale and outdated. 

Increasingly, it’s clear that 

we need not only new solutions 

but also new methods for arriving 

at solutions. 

Data, and new methods for organizations 

to collaborate in order 

to extract insights from that data, 

are likely to become more central 

to meeting these challenges. 

We live in a quantified era. It is 

estimated that 90% of the world’s 

data was generated in the last two 

years — from which entirely new 

inferences can be extracted and 

applied to help address some of 

today’s most vexing problems. 

In particular, the vast streams 

of data generated by social media 

platforms can offer insights into 

societal patterns and behaviors. 

This information poses its own 

challenges, particularly those associated 

with privacy and security, 

but it also represents a tremendous 

potential for mobilizing new 

forms of intelligence. 

In a recent report, we examine 

ways to harness this potential 

while addressing the challenges. 

Developed in collaboration with 

Facebook, the report seeks to understand 

how public and private 

organizations can join forces to 

use social media data — through 

data collaboratives — to mitigate 

and perhaps solve some of our 

most intractable policy dilemmas. 

DATA COLLABORATIVES: 

PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNER- 

SHIPS FOR THE DATA AGE 

For all of data’s potential to 

address public challenges, most 

data generated today is collected 

by the private sector. Typically 

ensconced in corporate databases, 

and tightly held in order to maintain 

competitive advantage, this 

data contains tremendous possible 

insights and avenues for policy innovation. 

But because the analytical 

expertise brought to bear on it 

is narrow and access is limited by 

private ownership, this data’s vast 

potential often goes untapped. 

Data collaboratives offer a 

way around this limitation. They 

represent an emerging publicprivate 

partnership model, in 

which participants from different 

areas , including the private sector, 

government and civil society , 

come together to exchange data 

and pool expertise in order to create 

public value. 

While still an emerging practice, 

examples of such partnerships exist 

around the world. For example, 

the California Data Collaborative 

is a data pooling effort involving 

a coalition of water utilities, cities 

and water retailers dedicated to 

creating an integrated, Californiawide 

platform to provide accurate 

technical analysis and improved 

operational decision-making. Recently, 

we announced the creation 

of a data collaborative in partnership 

with UNICEF, Universidad del 

Desarrollo, Telefónica R&D Center, 

ISI Foundation and DigitalGlobe 

to leverage mobile phone and 

satellite imagery to increase our 

understanding of how megacities 

like Santiago, Chile, can create safer, 

more-efficient mobility solutions for 

women and girls. 

HOW THE EXCHANGE OF 

DATA CAN HELP SOLVE PUBLIC 

PROBLEMS 

At a broad level, data collaboratives 

can help to unlock insights 

from vast, untapped stores of private 

sector data. But toward what 

purpose? Our research, applied to 

social media data and viewed more 

generally, indicates five public-value 

propositions. These include: 

SITUATIONAL AWARENESS 

AND RESPONSE.Social media data, 

including shares, tweets, updates 

and search data, can help nongovernmental 

and humanitarian 

organizations better understand 

demographic trends, public sentiment 

and the geographic distribution 

of various phenomena, such 

as disease. 

Consider Facebook’s Disaster 

Maps initiative, which seeks to fill 

any gaps in traditional data sources 

and to inform relief efforts. Following 

natural disasters, Facebook 

shares aggregated location, movement 

and self-reported safety data 

collected through its platform with 

partner organizations, including 

UNICEF and the World Food Program. 

KNOWLEDGE CREATION AND 

TRANSFER. Data collaboratives can 

bring together (or “join”) widely 

dispersed data sets, in the process 

creating a better understanding 

of possible correlations as well as 

which variables make a difference 

for which types of problem. For example, 

the Massachusetts Institute 

of Technology’s Electome Project 

analyzed massive Twitter data sets 

to improve reporting during the 

2016 U.S. presidential election. 

PUBLIC SERVICE DESIGN AND 

DELIVERY. Private data sets often 

contain a wealth of information 

that can enable more-accurate 

modeling of public services and 

help guide service delivery. For 

example, Waze has partnered with 

over 60 cities to share its crowdsourced 

traffic data to improve 

urban planning and ease urban 

congestion. 

IMPACT ASSESSMENT AND 

EVALUATION. Finally, data collaboratives 

can aid in monitoring, 

evaluation and improvement. 

By leveraging social media data, 

public-interest actors can rapidly 

assess the results of their actions to 

iterate on products and programs 

when necessary. This is what Sport 

England did, for instance, when it 

used Twitter data to better understand 

women’s views on exercise 

as part of its #ThisGirlCan campaign 

aimed at improving women’s 

health and physical activity. 

PROFESSIONALIZING THE 

RESPONSIBLE USE OF PRIVATE 

DATA FOR THE PUBLIC GOOD 

For all its promise, the practice 

of data collaboratives remains ad 

hoc and limited. In part, this is a 

result of the lack of a well-defined, 

professionalized concept of data 

stewardship within corporations. 

Today, each attempt to establish 

a cross-sector partnership built 

on the analysis of social media 

data requires significant and timeconsuming 

efforts, and businesses 

rarely have the personnel required 

to undertake them. 

As a consequence, the process 

of establishing data collaboratives 

and leveraging privately held data 

for evidence-based policymaking 

and service delivery is onerous, 

generally one-off, not informed by 

best practices and prone to dissolution 

when the champions involved 

move on to other functions. 

By establishing data stewardship 

as a corporate function and 

by creating the methods and tools 

needed for responsible data-sharing, 

the practice of data collaboratives 

can become regularized and 

de-risked. 

If early efforts toward this end 

are meaningfully scaled and expanded, 

data stewards across the 

private sector can act as change 

agents responsible for determining 

what data to share and when, and 

how to act on the insights gathered. 

Still, many companies continue 

to balk at the prospect of sharing 

“their” data, which is an understandable 

response given the reflex 

to guard corporate interests. But our 

research has indicated that many 

benefits can accrue not only to data 

recipients but also to those who 

share it. Data collaboration is not a 

zero-sum game. 

(Stefaan G. Verhulst is co-founder 

and chief of research and development 

at the GovLab, based at New 

York University’s Tandon School of 

Engineering. Andrew Young is director 

of knowledge at the GovLab.) 

c 

2017 Harvard Business School Publishing Corp. Distributed by The New York Times Syndicate


C002D5556 

BUSINESS DAY 

29 

E-mail: insurancetoday@businessdayonline.com 

L-R: Sunday Thomas, deputy commissioner for Insurance, Technical, NAICOM; Funmi Babington-Ashaye, 

president, Chartered Insurance Institute of Nigeria (CIIN); Lucy Newman, managing director, FITC and 

Biodun Adedipe, managing director, B. Adedipe and Associates during the Business Outlook Seminar of CIIN 

held in Lagos 

L-R: Olufunmilayo Balogun, permanent secretary, Ministry of Finance; Folasade Adesoye, head of Service 

(HOS) of Lagos State; Oladimeji Olona, general manager, life business, LASACO Assurance and Muyiwa 

Anwoju, general manager, Business Development, LASACO, presetting insurance death benefits cheque to 

beneficiary of a deceased Lagos State public servant in Alausa, Lagos 

Insurers look to 2018 budget, 

policies for growth opportunities 

Stories by 


As stakeholders in the 

economy expects passage 

of the 2018 budget 

amidst policies of 

government hopped 

to bring stability post-recession, 

insurers are confident that its role 

will still be needed in key implementation 

areas. 

According to the industry, 

economic recovery and long term 

prosperity cannot be achieved if 

insurance is not given its prime 

place in government policies and 

decisions. 

“Though economic recovery 

is still fragile, most economic 

agents remain upbeat and optimistic, 

says Biodun Adedipe, 

managing partner, B. Adedipe 

Associates Limited. 

Adedipe who presented the 

lead paper at the Chartered Insur- 

ance Institute of Nigeria (CIIN) 

Business Outlook Seminar held in 

Lagos with the theme “Economic 

Policies of Government in 2018: 

Issues, Challenges and Prospects” 

said: “The Nigerian economy can 

still get into trouble if government 

does not give more serious attention 

to strengthening the non-oil 

sector to truly diversify foreign 

earnings and reduce reliance on 

imports consumption.” 

According to him, opportunities 

however, exist in every space 

of the Nigerian economy looking 

at the sectoral contributions 

to the GDP, stating that, what 

will then matter is the ability to 

identify the opportunities and 

expropriate them. 

Adedipe further stated that 

going forward, it is will be business 

unusual in insurance, while 

warning operators to watch out 

for business disruptions coming 

from Fintechs. 

Funmi Babington-Ashaye, 

president, Chartered Insurance 

Institute of Nigeria(CIIN) in her 

earlier remarks gave the synopsis 

of the 2018 budget, stating that: 

“The 2018 Budget of consolidation 

was designed to build on the 

achievements of the 2017 fiscal 

year, in which Nigeria strategically 

exited economic recession. 

To further spur on economic 

activities, the government plans 

to spend N8.61trillion, while 

it’s expected revenue from all 

sources was estimated to be 

N6.60trillion leaving a funding 

gap of N2.01trillion.” 

According to her, the 2018 

budget is largely a deficit budget, 

implying that government will 

need to borrow from local and 

international institutions to augment 

the expected shortfall in 

budget. 

She however stated that the 

2018 budget is not all about 

negative impact. “The point must 

also be made that if the current 

price of crude oil, Nigeria’s main 

source of revenue, is sustained 

all year round, the need for borrowing 

by the government may 

reduce. This is based on the fact 

that the budget was predicated 

on $45 per barrel whereas, the 

price since the beginning of the 

year has been above$60.00. With 

higher revenue, Nigerians should 

expect better implementation of 

the budgetary provisions.” 

Babington-Ashaye also stated 

that considering the fact that 

the government has allocated 

N181.19 billion to the payment 

of pensions and gratuities of 

public servants while N15 billion 

has also been set aside to meet 

MDAs’ life assurance premium 

obligations, the insurance sector 

should experience increased 

business momentum. 

“On the whole, the Insurance 

industry, in my view, has more to 

cheer from the budget. In other 

words, the business outlook for 

the Insurance industry is mixed 

but very promising. As players 

and risk managers, we need to 

open our inner minds and take 

those business decisions that 

will help us reposition of industry 

in the unfolding 2018 business 

year.” 

Sunday Thomas, deputy 

commissioner for Insurance, 

Technical, National Insurance 

Commission (NAICOM) in his 

presentation titled “Insurance 

And Stability Of The Economy: 

The Roles Of The Regulator And 

Strategies For The Future Of The 

Insurance Industry” said for 

insurance companies to take 

advantage of the opportunities in 

the economy and remain relevant 

even in the future is looking at 

what should be expected beyond 

the present. 

According to Thomas, focus by 

insurers should be more on profitable 

growth rather than top-line 

or volume growth. 

Continental Re, directors adjudged high 

on corporate governance practice 

Continental Reinsurance 

Plc has been recognised 

as one of the listed companies 

on the Nigerian 

Stock Exchange for attaining high 

ranking in the Corporate Governance 

Rating System.The company 

received the award during 

the CGRS certification ceremony 

in Lagos on Thursday night. 

Six of its directors of the company 

were also recognised for 

passing the Fiduciary Awareness 

Certification Test during 

the event. 

The directors are Olufemi 

Oyetunji, Ahlam Bennani, Paul 

Kokoricha, Foluso Laguda, 

Lawrence Nazare, Merrick Oeschger, 

David Sobanjo and Ian 

Tofield. 

Soji Apampa, co-founder and 

chief executive of the Convention 

on Business Integrity, said 

the organisation honours companies 

and individual directors 

that distinguish themselves in 

their roles despite the difficult 

business environment, and 

demonstrated their preparedness 

to do the right thing. 

He said, “This is worthy of 

celebration because for decades, 

those who habitually did 

the wrong things and did things 

wrong seems to have got away 

with it and even prospered than 

those who have been right in 

their doings, who refused to join 

them and risk appearing uncompetitive 

or joined them and risk 

damaging your business in the 

long run. 

Oscar Onyema, chief executive 

officer, Nigerian Stock Exchange 

in his remark at the 

event, congratulated the recipients 

of the awards. 

He said that their success 

was a testament that they were 

promoting the CGRS and that 

good corporate governance will 

improve their profitability. 

“The CGRS certification is 

based on standards set by the 

Companies and Allied Mat- 

ters Act, the Code of Corporate 

governance by the Security and 

Exchange Commission, and 

the Corporate Affairs Commission, 

regulation of the Nigerian 

Stock Exchange, Anti-corruption 

principles of the United Nations 

Global Compact,” he added. 

CGRS enhances regulatory 

efforts of government and self 

regulatory ambition of businesses. 

Continental Reinsurance 

is a composite reinsurer, writing 

business in more than 50 

countries across the African 

continent. 

Established in 1985, and listed 

on the NSE in 2007, Continental 

Reinsurance provides support to 

over 200 insurance companies 

in Africa with its main offices in 

Nigeria, Cameroon, Kenya, Côte 

d’Ivoire, Tunisia and Botswana. 

It also has a specialist subsidiary 

– Continental Property 

and Engineering Risk Services 

registered in South Africa. 

Africa Re Karekezi inducted in 

the AFRICA’S CEO’s Hall of Fame 

Corneille Karekezi, the 

group managing director 

and CEO of African Reinsurance 

Corporation (Africa 

Re), has received another award, 

the Business Excellence Award, as 

the leader of the leading reinsurance 

company in Africa and the Middle 

East and member of the coveted list 

of the Top 50 Global Reinsurance 

Groups published earlier by the 

leading rating agencies A.M. Best 

and Standard & Poor’s. 

The award is part of the Persons 

of the Year Awards organised by the 

African Leadership Magazine, an 

institution based in London, UK. 

The event took place at the Sandton 

Convention Centre, Johannesburg, 

South Africa 

Among other leaders celebrated 

that evening are, Paul Kagame, president 

of Rwanda, as the African of 

the Year, President Marc Ravalomanana, 

former president of Madagascar, 

as the African Political Leader of 

the Year, and other African Leaders 

working in various industries and 

social activities. 

Africa Re achieved in 2017 a premium 

income (turnover) of $747 

million, paid more than $500 million 

in settling claims and maintained its 

A financial rating with A.M. Best and 

A - with Standard & Poor’s, all with 

stable outlook. 

Later in the same evening, 

Corneille Karekezi was inducted 

in the 2018 Africa’s CEOs Hall of 

Fame, during a grandiose ceremony, 

another recognition, 

among many more in the past, 

of his visionary and transformational 

leadership in the insurance 

and reinsurance industry of the 

African continent. 

Responding Corneille Karekezi, 

said that “He is proud and honoured 

to be inducted in the African Leadership 

CEO’s Hall of Fame and to be 

considered as one the few persons 

who did their best for the development 

of Corporate Africa”. 

He added that his company, 

Africa Re, will continue to work for 

a speedy development of the continent 

and its people and to be a 

leading and inspiring example that 

Africa can produce the best in the 

business world.



C002D5556 

E-mail: insurancetoday@businessdayonline.com 

Leadway 

Assurance 

embarks on 

second phase of 

journalist 

empowerment 

Corneille Karekezi, the group managing director and CEO of African Reinsurance 

Corporation (Africa Re) receiving award in S/Africa. 

Bereaved families of Lagos public servants get 

reprieve, as insurance pays death benefits 

..LASACO, Ministry of Finance excited about partnership 

Stories by 


Thirty-two families 

of bereaved 

Lagos State public 

servants has 

got a reprieve, 

following a partnership 

between the State Ministry 

of Finance and LASACO 

Insurance Plc, where they 

received payment of insurance 

death benefits for their 

loved relatives who died 

while in service. 

Beneficiaries of the deceased 

got a total of N85 

million as insurance compensation 

for death of their 

relatives, which is part of the 

State government’s welfare 

package in compliance with 

the Pension Reform Act to 

motivate public servants 

to give their best while in 

service. 

Folasade Adesoye, head 

of Service (HOS) of Lagos 

State who speake at the 

cheque presentation ceremony 

held for the beneficiaries 

of deceased members 

of staff of the state 

public service in Alausa 

said: 

“The payment of Death 

Benefits to the families of 

deceased members of staff 

is neither a favour nor a largesse, 

for which we expect 

special accolades, but it is, 

instead, the responsibility 

of the State Government 

and an obligation that is 

not only personal to Akinwunmi 

Ambode, the Governor 

of Lagos State, but 

one, which he accords the 

highest priority.” 

Adesoye said the importance 

that Lagos attaches 

to the provision of insurance 

packages among other 

welfare initiatives, derives 

mainly from government’s 

prioritization of its workforce 

as its most important 

asset. 

“The primary policy objective 

of the payment of 

Insurance Death Benefits 

is, therefore, essentially 

for the funds to serve as 

succour for the immediate 

families, dependents and 

other beneficiaries of the 

deceased. It is the hope 

and expectation of Government 

that the immediate 

needs of feeding, clothing, 

schools fees, house 

rent, transport, medicals 

and general family wellbeing 

would be substantially 

addressed (even if 

not totally) in the period 

between the demise of the 

family’s bread winner, the 

release of his entitlements 

and the institution of more 

permanent support structures.” 

She appealed to beneficiaries 

to ensure judicious 

use of the fund and due 

diligence as well as proper 

planning in all the expenditure 

you may need to make, 

particularly, in the areas of 

business and investments. 

“Please endevour to seek 

guidance and professional 

advice from financial consultants 

and small business 

experts before taking decisions 

which could significantly 

impact your families, 

she advised. 

Adesoye also commended 

all stakeholders, 

particularly the Ministry of 

Finance, State Treasury Office 

and LASACO for their 

part in ensuring the sustenance 

of best practices 

towards making life much 

better and rewarding for 

the families of deceased 

members of staff of the 

State Public Service under 

the Global Insurance 

Scheme Policy. 

Oladimeji Olona, general 

manager, life business, 

LASACO Assurance Plc in 

his remark commended 

the Lagos State government 

for imbibing the culture 

of insurance, stating 

that what has happened 

today is the fulfillment of 

Lagos State government’s 

commitment towards improving 

the welfare of its 

public servants. 

“The biggest thanks here 

goes to the state governor 

and the government of Lagos 

State who ensured that 

premium for insurance 

was paid regularly and as at 

when due. If premium was 

not paid, we wouldn’t have 

been here today, Olona 

stated. 

He therefore called on 

the beneficiaries of the 

Adeduro sees insurance potential in travel, tourism industry 

Given the close 

relationship between 

insurance 

and the Tourism 

and Travel sectors because 

of the formers role in helping 

the later manage risks 

for business protection and 

survival, expert has advocated 

stronger partnership 

between the two sectors. 

Mayowa Adeduro, an 

insurance expert and former 

managing director of 

Anchor Insurance Company 

Limited said both 

sectors must work together, 

come up with products 

that meet the risk appetite 

of the business, particularly 

now that tourism and 

travel business is becoming 

a major contributor to 

Nigeria’s gross domestic 

products (GDP). 

Adeduro made the remark 

in a presentation with 

the theme “The corollary 

of tourism and insurance 

– why insurance industry 

should play an active role 

for sustainable tourism 

business in Nigeria”. 

He said “Insurance industry 

in Nigeria must es- 

L-R: David Iornem, director - general, Institute of Management Consultants presenting a 

certificate to Paddy Ezeala, regional manager, South - East, Premium Pension Limited 

during Ezeala’s induction into the Fellowship of the Institute in Abuja. 

tablish a formal connection 

to the Travel and Tourism 

sector for a mutually rewarding 

relationship. A 

special product must be 

designed for municipal and 

remote tourist sites.” 

According to him, insurance 

industry lave lost billions 

of Naira in gross premium 

income from uninsured 

and under insured small 

and medium size hotels and 

recreational facilities scattered 

all over the federation. 

“Many visitors and tourists 

have suffered unreported 

losses and liabilities in some 

hotels and parks.” 

He noted that insurance 

industry must team together 

to build a coherence and 

all inclusive arrangement 

with IATA Travel Agencies 

and NANTA members 

money to make judicious 

use of it to ensure that children 

of the bereaved get 

necessary education that 

will enable them become 

responsible members of 

the society. 

Olufunmilayo Balogun, 

permanent secretary, Ministry 

of Finance; Fuyinfun 

Ogubanke, permanent 

secretary, Public Service as 

well as Bamidele Olayide, 

chairman, Association of 

Senior Civil Servants in Lagos 

State, in their remarks 

consoled the bereaved families, 

while paying God to 

comfort them particularly 

at this time. 

They also urged them to 

make judicious use of the 

money, avoid risking the 

money in ventures that will 

not give the dead joy wherever 

they are, as believed in 

African culture. 

“This is not the time to 

send your children abroad, 

as most what we hear about 

those places are not always 

true. Invest the money here 

in Nigeria, and God will 

make it prosper, the beneficiaries 

were advised. 

with potential to facilitate 

smooth operations of members 

of these trade groups. 

“When risk is shared it 

becomes difficult, if not 

impossible, for chronic defaulters 

to run from one 

company to another, which 

has been the bane of profitable 

underwriting in some 

classes of insurance.” 

He concluded by saying 

that insurance industry 

has a huge role to play in 

entrenching a sustainable 

tourism development in 

Nigeria, however nature 

abhors vacuum so the ball 

is in the court of insurance 

industry to take up proactive 

engagement or to lose 

yet another opportunity to 

be reckon with by the government 

and the insuring 

public. 

Leadway Assurance 

has announced 

the second edition 

of the Leadway 

Journalism training 

organized in partnership 

with the National Insurance 

and Pension Correspondents. 

The initiative, which is 

in its second edition is a 

capacity building initiative 

organised by Leadway Assurance 

to empower journalists 

in the discharge of 

their duties by equipping 

them with the requisite 

knowledge on the industry 

and its business operations. 

Olubunmi Adeleye, 

head of Corporate Communications/Services, 

at 

Leadway said this edition 

of the capacity development 

initiative will focus 

on the key areas of financial 

reporting in insurance, 

understanding life 

annuity, micro insurance 

business among others. 

Speaking on the initiative, 

Adeleye highlighted 

the important role that 

journalists play in raising 

the level of insurance 

awareness and how it 

works, hence, the need 

to continuously equip 

them within such capacity 

building initiatives. 

She said, “The training 

will further enlighten journalists 

on the inner workings 

and technicalities 

of the insurance sector, 

keeping them abreast of 

the latest industry trends 

both locally and globally.” 

The initiative which is 

scheduled to hold at the 

Leadway Assurance Training 

School on Wednesday, 

28 February, 2018 will 

have in attendance over 40 

journalists culled from the 

Insurance and Pensions 

news sector. 

It will be recalled that 

in October 2017, Leadway 

Assurance collaborated 

with NAIPCO to organize 

the first of its kind 

comprehensive training 

workshop for members as 

part of the 2017 NAIPCO 

Conference to facilitate 

capacity building for insurance 

correspondents.


Pension Today 

C002D5556 

BUSINESS DAY 

In Association with 

31 

More insights into micro-pension scheme 

A 

micro-pension 

plan has a distinct 

accumulation 

phase as 

well as a payout 

phase. During the accumulation 

phase, a member 

contributes towards accumulating 

balances. The 

value of such accumulation 

depends on the amount 

of contributions less preretirement 

withdrawals plus 

returns (net of investment 

management expenses) obtained 

from the investment 

of funds. 

It is usual for administrative 

expenses to be borne by 

the members collectively. 

These however need to be 

transparent and benchmarked. 

The accumulation 

phase is followed by the 

pay-out phase, which commences 

after retirement 

in most cases. During this 

phase, the member receives 

income from the pension 

fund either as a lump sum 

or in a phased manner. 

Product Features 

A pension product for 

low-income groups should 

be designed to take into account 

the constraints faced 

by, and the needs of these 

individuals. As income 

streams may be uncertain or 

volatile, the product should 

offer a degree of financial 

flexibility calling for low 

or no minimum contribution 

requirements so as to 

encourage membership. 

However, contributions that 

are set too low or which are 

paid in a sporadic manner 

may not provide sufficient 

income security. 

Experience with micro-savings 

indicates that 

low-income groups prefer 

lower-value and frequent 

deposits rather than infrequent 

larger-value deposits. 

As there are competing 

demands on their resources, 

it is difficult for these 

groups to accumulate large 

amounts. In order to facilitate 

the making of frequent 

deposits and to remove 

prohibitive time and travel 

costs, convenient door-todoor 

deposit collection is 

favoured.Furthermore, the 

product features should be 

uncomplicated to enable all 

individuals, including those 

with low levels of financial 

literacy understand and 

monitor them. 

The duration of pension 

products should be longterm, 

though a roll-over 

option after each ten-year 

term may be less daunting 

for low-income groups. The 

age at which the first withdrawal 

is permitted may or 

may not coincide with the 

retirement age. 

The other design alternatives 

are to provide either 

easy withdrawal options 

or loans against deposited 

amounts. But these features 

result in increased transaction 

costs and reduces the 

period over which compounding 

occurs; resulting 

in a lower level of accumulated 

balances and hence 

retirement income. The 

tradeoffs between current 

needs and future income 

security in retirement. 

Risk Management 

In the pay-out phase, 

longevity, investment and 

inflation risks need to be addressed. 

In addition, survivors’ 

benefits and disability 

insurance are also essential. 

Survivors’ benefits are particularly 

important. 

Longevity risk derives 

from the fact that although 

each individual will die 

eventually; the age, the 

cause, and the place of his 

or her death are not known. 

Some may die within a short 

period after retirement, 

while others may live for a 

much longer period. The 

latter category of persons 

may find their financial 

resources exhausted, while 

those dying early in retirement 

may not face this challenge. 

The earlier the age at 

which the first withdrawal 

is permitted, the longer 

the period for which the 

accumulated balances will 

be required to be used to 

finance income in old age. 

Investment risk refers 

to the risk of return from 

the portfolio that the pension 

fund invests in. In the 

risk-return continuum, a 

lower degree of risk is desirable 

for micro-pension 

plans because of the lower 

risk-bearing capacity of the 

low-income population. In 

order to ensure an adequate 

rate of return on small deposits, 

the transaction costs 

involved need to be kept 

low. This is a challenge that 

must be met both through 

technology-based solutions 

and deliberate efforts to 

realize economies of scale 

Micro-pensions 

must offer a 

reliable means 

for the collection 

of small-value 

deposits on a 

frequent basis 

at locations 

convenient to the 

customer 

and scope. 

Taking into account the 

lengthy time horizon within 

which micro-pensions operate, 

inflation risks are 

important, and particularly 

so in view of the limited resources 

of the poor. In much 

of Africa, inflation risk is 

one of the main reasons 

why savings for old age are 

placed in assets, such as by 

investing in land, housing 

and livestock. 

Micro-pensions must 

offer a reliable means for 

the collection of small-value 

deposits on a frequent basis 

at locations convenient to 

the customer. Given the 

large demography in Nigeria, 

a challenge is to put 

in place a truly nationwide 

distribution channel for 

micro-pensions. 

Micro-credit loans are 

essentially short-term in nature 

and range between one 

and three years, with a oneyear 

term being the most 

common. Although repeat 

loans are often observed, 

the time horizon is usually 

not as long as that of micro 

pension schemes. Hence, 

the two financial services 

(loans and deposits) may 

not overlap entirely and to 

that extent there may not be 

cost savings. 

Micro Pensions functions 

include the following; 

firstly, the reliable collection 

of contributions, taxes and 

other receipts, including 

any loan payments. The 

second concerns the payment 

of benefits for each 

of the schemes in a timely 

and correct way. The third 

involves securing financial 

management and productive 

investment of provident 

and pension fund assets. 

The fourth core function 

is maintaining an effective 

communication network, 

including the development 

of accurate data and recordkeeping 

mechanisms to 

support collection, payment 

and financial activities. The 

fifth is the production of 

financial statements and 

reports that are tied to providing 

effective and reliable 

governance, fiduciary responsibility, 

transparency, 

and accountability. The 

sixth function, it is to provide 

customers with appropriate 

financial education 

and to increase financial 

literacy. 

Communication 

The communication 

strategy with potential customers 

should be creatively 

managed. For instance; for 

products such as micropensions 

that operate with a 

lengthy time horizon, offering 

fixed interest rates may 

be difficult; accordingly, 

flexible interest rates may 

be more appropriate. The 

concept of flexible interest 

rates may however be hard 

to explain to customers 

with low levels of financial 

literacy. It is therefore incumbent 

upon institutions 

to effectively explain the 

product to customers, it’s 

important that the potential 

customers are equipped 

with sufficient knowledge 

to enable them to explain 

the products to their family 

members.

32 BUSINESS DAY C002D5556 Wednesday 28 February 2018


BUSINESS DAY 

33


C002D5556 



Live @ The Stock Exchange 

C002D5556 

BUSINESS DAY 

35 

Stock market fails to sustain gains 

Stories by 

Iheanyi Nwachukwu 

The Nigerian 

stock market 

failed to 

sustain last 

Monday’s 

gains following a loss of 

N100billion recorded at 

the close of trading on 

Tuesday. 

While only 18 stocks 

gained, 37 companies 

recorded share price 

decline as the bears resurfaced. 

Despite selloffs in 

yesterday’s session, 

research analysts at 

Lagos-based Cordros 

Capital said their theme 

on the equities market 

remains positive, “amid 

strengthening macroeconomic 

fundamentals.” 

At the close of trading 

on Tuesday, the Nigerian 


(NSE) All Share Index 

(ASI) decreased by 

0.66percent, while the 

Year-to-Date (Ytd) return 

stood at 10.61percent. 

The All Share Index 

closed at 42,299.56 

points as against the 

preceding day close 

of 42,579.48 points 

while Market Capitalisation 

decreased to 

N15.180trillion against 

preceding day close of 

N15.280 trillion. 

Seplat Petroleum Development 

Company 

Plc recorded the biggest 

dip, from N671.4 to 

N657.9, down by N13.5 

or 2.01percent. 

International Breweries 

Plc followed after 

its share price declined 

from N59.85 to N57, 

down by N2.85 or 

4.76percent. Dangote 

Cement Plc lost N2, from 

N259 to N257; down by 

0.77percent. 

Lafarge Africa Plc 

declined from N51.3 to 

N50, down by N1.3 or 

2.53percent; while Julius 

Berger Nigeria Plc 

lost N1.1 or 4.24percent, 

from N25.95 to 

N24.85. 

Nestle Nigeria Plc 

shares advanced most, 

after rising from N1,378 

to N1,400, up by N22 

or 1.60percent. Total 

Nigeria Plc followed 

from N217 to N232, up 

by N15 or 6.91percent. 

Mobil Oil Nigeria Plc 

stock price increased 

from N180.5 to N183.9, 

up by N3.4 or 1.88percent. 

Conoil Plc share 

price rose from N32.1 

to N35.25, up by N3.15 

or 9.81percent; while 

Cement Company of 

Northern Nigeria Plc 

advanced from N16.85 

to N18.2, an increase 

of N1.35 or 8.01percent. 

Transcorp Plc, Diamond 

Bank Plc, FBN 

Holdings Plc, Fidelity 

Bank Plc and Access 

Bank Plc were actively 

traded stocks on the Nigeria 

bourse Tuesday. 

The volume of 

stocks traded increased 

by 13.98percent, 

from 384.86million 

to 438.65million, 

while the total value 

of stocks traded increased 

by 60.76percent, 

from N5.474 billion 

to N8.800 billion 

in 5,433 deals. 

The Financial Services 

sector led yesterday’s 

activity chart with 

310.86million shares 

exchanged for N3.226 

billion; followed by conglomerates 

next with 

46.53million shares 

traded for N109 million. 

Standard Chartered results show significant 

improvement in profitability, returns 

Standard Chartered 

Plc has released its 

results for the year 

ended December 

31, 2017. The group financial 

performance for 

the year shows significant 

improvement in profitability 

and returns. Profit before 

tax (PBT) of $3billion 

was up 175percent and up 

71percent excluding Principal 

Finance. 

Statutory profit before 

tax of $2.4billion is stated 

after restructuring and 

other items and was $2billion 

higher. Returns on 

Equity (RoE) improved 

from 0.3percent to 3.5percent; 

just under half-way 

towards the Group’s initial 

milestone of 8percent. 

Basic earnings per share 

increased from 3.4 cents in 

2016 to 47.2 cents in 2017. 

The Board has recommended 

resuming a dividend 

given improving financial 

performance and 

strong capital; full year 

dividend of 11 cents per ordinary 

share proposed for 

2017. Standard Chartered 

Bank intends to increase 

the dividend per share 

over time as the Group’s 

performance improves. 

Bill Winters, Group 

Chief Executive Standard 

Chartered Bank stated 

“The transformation of 

the Group continued in 

2017 with the significant 

improvement in underlying 

profits, a strong capital 

position and emerging 

clarity on regulatory capital 

requirements allowing 

us to resume paying 

dividends. We are encouraged 

by our start to 2018 

and remain focused on 

realising the Group’s full 

potential.” 

Operating income of 

$14.3billion was up 3percent 

despite a 4percent 

drag from Financial Markets; 

13percent income 

growth from key areas of 

investment (half of total), 

with particular strength 

in liability-led products; 

industry-wide low volatility 

during 2017 impacted 

performance in Financial 

Markets; income was 3percent 

lower quarter-onquarter 

(qoq) due partly to 

the early achievement of a 

bonus in Wealth Management. 

In its outlook, Standard 

Chartered Bank is encouraged 

by its start to 2018 

with broad-based doubledigit 

year-on-year income 

growth, adding that operating 

leverage and continued 

focus on risks is expected to 

deliver RoE above 8percent 

in the medium term. 

In the review 2017 financial 

year, the group 

net interest income (NII) 

increased 5percent and 

the net interest margin increased 

slightly to 1.55percent. 

Other operating expenses 

of $8.6billion were 

well controlled, rising 2percent 

due primarily to variable 

pay. Over 85percent 

of the four-year $2.9billion 

gross cost efficiencies target 

has been achieved with 

a year to go. 

Gross savings funded 

investment of $1.5billion 

(2016: $1.4billion), 

50percent over the 2015 

level. Regulatory costs rose 

15percent, with several 

large programmes including 

MiFID II and IFRS 9 being 

implemented. The bank 

made further significant 

progress in implementing 

financial crime prevention 

capabilities. 

Asset quality overall has 

improved with the focus on 

better quality origination 

within a more granular 

risk appetite. Loan impairment 

of $1.2billion halved 

as management actions 

resulted in improvement 

across all client segments. 

Profit from associates 

and joint ventures rose 

$185million following better 

performances in China 

and Indonesia. 

The bank’s capital and 

liquidity ratios remain 

strong; liquidity coverage 

ratio was 146percent with a 

prudent surplus to regulatory 

requirements. 

The bank saw strong 

and broad-based balance 

sheet growth in both customer 

loans and advances 

and customer deposits. 

The impact of adopting 

IFRS 9 and implementing 

final Basel III reforms is 

considered manageable by 

the bank.

36 

BUSINESS DAY 

C002D5556 


Supported 

Financial Inclusion is a stepping 

stone to attaining the SDGs 

IBUKUN TAIWO & 

OLAYINKA DAVID-WEST 

Imagine an Africa where 

we have finally eradicated 

poverty and 

hunger, malaria and 

typhoid rarely if ever, 

claim millions of lives, girls 

are empowered to get an 

education and pursue their 

dreams and careers, just like 

boys, and a vibrant economy. 

This is the future the United 

Nations is trying to forge 

through the 17 Sustainable 

Development Goals (SDGs). 

By 2030, the plan is to have 

a planet that is significantly 

better off than it is today. 

Since 2016, individuals, 

governments, institutions and 

organizations from all over 

the world have bought into 

the vision and have executed 

to the best of their ability, 

projects which will address 

one or more of these goals. 

We in the financial inclusion 

space strongly believe 

that increased inclusion will 

aid and catalyse several of 

these SDGs and with good 

reason. In at least 6 of the seventeen 

SDGs, financial inclusion 

is mentioned (sometimes 

explicitly) as a metric used 

to determine the success of 

the SDG. These include SDG 

1 - Eradicating poverty; SDG 

2 - Zero Hunger; SDG 3 - Good 

Health and Well-Being, SDG 

5 - Gender Equality; and SDG 

8 - Economic Growth and 

more Jobs. 

In Nigeria’s quest to fulfil 

the SDGs, addressing financial 

inclusion will have far 

reaching and cross cutting 

effects as it enables us kill 

multiple birds with one stone 

on the national development 

order. In fact, the National 

Financial Inclusion Strategy 

is so ambitious that should 

it succeed, will result in a 

turnaround in the national 

economy, personal income, 

and general well being of 

many Nigerians. 

We’ve seen similar results 

in Kenya. In an MIT study, the 

incredible success of M-PESA 

was found to have lifted as 

many as 194,000 households 

– 2% of the Kenyan population 

– out of poverty, and has also 

improved the economic lives 

of poor women and households 

where a woman is the 

breadwinner. 

SDG 1 (Eradicating Poverty): 

in particular holds a special 

significance for Nigeria as we 

have struggled to tackle the 

high poverty level over the last 

three decades. In the World 

Bank’s 2017 Atlas of Sustainable 

Development Goals, 

a publication tracking the 

progress countries are making 

to meet the SDGs, Nigeria 

recorded an increase in the 

number of citizens who live 

in extreme poverty (less than 

$1.90) over the period of the 

study. In fact, between 1990 

and 2013, 35 million more 

people sunk into extreme 

poverty. 

One of the ways we can 

flip this script is increased 

financial inclusion. Financial 

inclusion is the access to and 

use of financial services. Access 

to savings, credit, microinsurance 

and the like have 

been shown to be powerful 

levers in the transition out 

of poverty. Research also 

shows that access to financial 

services is a key indicator of 

how an individual builds and 

maintains reserves, plans, 

prioritises, manages and recovers 

from financial shocks. 

Such savings, when invested 

in small businesses, provide 

income flows that helps pay 

for food, education and health 

which are all indices for poverty 

measurement. 

Financially included individuals 

are better equipped to 

save and plan, thus, improving 

their economic well being 

and standard of living. Access 

to credit also empowers lowincome 

earners to invest in 

agriculture ( a main source of 

livelihood in rural regions) thus 

improving production, food 

security and increasing the 

sector’s contribution to GDP. 

SDG 2 (Zero Hunger): Financial 

inclusion plays an 

instrumental role in eliminating 

hunger, especially among 

those trapped in poverty - 

living in rural areas and excluded 

from formal financial 

services. 

80% of the food consumed 

in the developing world is 

produced by farmers who 

themselves live in poverty. 

These farmers live majorly 

in rural areas that are sparse 

of infrastructure and have 

seasonal income (due to the 

inherent nature of farming 

seasons). As such, they are 

vulnerable to natural disasters, 

climate change, or war. 

Access to financial services 

such as microcredit or insurance 

can directly impact 

the small farmer’s financial 

health and food security. 

Under the auspices of the 

Federal Ministry of Agriculture, 

the Growth Enhancement 

Scheme (GES), operated by 

FETS ensures agricultural inputs 

are distributed to farmers. 

SDG 5 (Gender Equality): 

Studies have revealed a financial 

inclusion gender gap 

in Nigeria i.e. higher rates of 

exclusion exist among women 

than men. Access to financial 

services enables women to 

manage their finances and 

be less dependent on their 

spouses. Addressing gender 

equality means figuring out 

ways to bring access to females 

since research has also shown 

that women tend to invest savings 

returns on their families 

and communities (which has 

potentially broad economic 

benefits). This premise has 

informed a few initiatives such 

as the partnership between 

Diamond Bank and Women’s 

World Bank which specifically 

empowers women with bank 

accounts. 

With increasing efforts 

towards increasing women’s 

access to financial services, 

several economies are now 

promoting policies that give 

women the right to full eco- 

nomic participation, thus 

lowering gender inequality. 

SDG 8 (Economic Growth): 

There exists a positive and 

substantial relationship between 

the access to and use 

of financial services and economic 

growth in Nigeria as 

evidenced in a technical paper 

we published last year. 

The research suggests that 

increasing financial inclusion 

would restore vitality to 

Nigeria’s economy and maybe 

even sustain it. Access to 

savings and credit stimulates 

economic activity that 

ultimately increases employment, 

gross domestic product 

(GDP) and economic growth. 

The numerous links between 

financial inclusion and 

SDG fulfilment are undeniable. 

The more people get 

included and gain access to 

financial services, the easier it 

will be for us to attain the Sustainable 

Development Goals. 

And the better our collective 

future will be. 

Olayinka David-West and 

Ibukun Taiwo are members 

of the Sustainable and Inclusive 

Digital Financial 

Services initiative of the 

Lagos Business School


Nigeria’s 12.08% Q4 2017 air transport 

growth hinged on stable economy 

IFEOMA OKEKE 

Experts in the Nigerian 

aviation sector 

have hinged 

the growth experienced 

in the air 

transport sector in 2017 on 

relatively stable economy. 

According to National Bureau 

of Statistics (NBS) report 

on Nigerian Gross Domestic 

Product (GDP) on fourth 

quarter of 2017, the fastest 

growing activities in this 

quarter were road transport 

at a rate of 27.23 percent, and 

air transport at a rate of 12.08 

percent year-on-year. 

Transport contributed 1.74 

percent to Nominal GDP, an 

incline from the 1.50 percent 

recorded in the corresponding 

period of 2016, and higher 

than 1.43 percent recorded in 

the third quarter of 2017. Annual 

growth and contribution 

stand at 13.60 percent and 1.57 

percent, respectively. 

However, the water transport; 

air transport; transport 

services, and post and courier 

services sectors grew 

… as airlines increase frequencies, open more routes 

by 24.10 percent in nominal 

terms in the fourth quarter 

of 2017 (year-on-year). This 

rate is higher relative to figure 

recorded at 10.55 percent 

for the corresponding 

quarter of 2016 and 0.58 percent 

in the previous quarter. 

The direct impact of the 

growth is that airlines are 

increasing frequencies into 

the country and opening 

more routes. 

Philip Akesson, country 

manager, Travelstart Nigeria, 

who confirmed this development, 

said the increase 

in ticket sales experienced in 

Nigeria lately was an indication 

that the stable economy 

was helping to give more 

trust such that the airlines 

would keep investing. 

“Delta Airline is commencing 

Lagos to New York flights, 

RwandAir is also adding more 

flights and a lot of the airlines 

are adding more flights and 

new routes. Some airlines that 

flew three times into Nigeria 

before are now doing daily 

now. The market is not like it 

was two years ago, it is improving 

and a lot of this is because 

of stability, and it is good for 

business,” Akesson said. 

BusinessDay’s checks 

show that Nigerians have continued 

to embrace air travel as 

ticket sold by foreign airlines 

in 2017 was more than N200 

billion higher than in 2016. 

In 2017, air travel still recorded 

ticket sales of N511 

billion ($1.4bn) from January 

to October 2017. The 2016 

tickets sold as released by Nigerian 

Civil Authority (NCAA) 

put earnings of 30 foreign 

carriers on Nigerian routes at 

N330,548,324,796.84, a little 

less than N385,909,897,028. 

80 sold between January and 

December in 2015. 

Bankole Bernard, president, 

National Association 

of Nigeria Travel Agencies 

(NANTA), said the huge tickets 

sold by foreign airlines 

showed that Nigeria’s economy 

was on the upswing. 

Bobby Bryan, commer- 

Trade, investment activities employ 10.8m Nigerians in 2017, account for 18% of GDP - report 

cial director, West, East, Central 

and Lusophone Africa for 

Delta Airlines, told Business- 

Day that the introduction 

of flights from Lagos to New 

York was an important step, 

as the economy and Delta 

Airlines rebuild after the financial 

crisis in Nigeria. 

“The New York route is 

the largest unserved route 

from the United States to Nigeria. 

This means there are a 

lot of people who want to go 

there. So, it is important that 

the need be met. The clients 

that will be going from here 

are important to us. It is the 

financial market; we are the 

capital finance in Nigeria. We 

saw a market that was not being 

served and we thought we 

had an opportunity to do so,” 

Bryan said. 

Competition will also 

deepen for airlines going to 

Dubai, Sharjah and London 

routes, as one of Nigeria’s 

leading airlines AirPeace will 

commence flight operations 

into these locations this year. 

L-R: Ekuah Abudu, director of administration, Greenwood House School; Atunyota Alleluya Akpobome (Alibaba ); Olubunmi 

Aboderin Talabi, author/publisher, Clever Clogs Books, and Funke Fowler-Amba, director, Vivian Fowler Memorial College, at 

the launch Clever Clogs Books in Lagos. 

Pic by Pius Okeosisi 

C002D5556 

BUSINESS DAY 

37 

NEWS 

Anti-human trafficking campaign driven by legal 

structures, not social project – Edo attorney general 

Edo State Attorney 

General and Commissioner 

for Justice, 

Yinka Omorogbe, says 

the state government’s campaign 

against human trafficking 

and illegal migration is 

rooted in legal structures and 

is not run as social project. 

Omorogbe, who is also 

the chairperson, Edo State 

Task Force Against Human 

Trafficking, disclosed this in 

Benin City, the state capital, 

noting, “The strategy adopted 

by the Governor Godwin 

Obaseki-led administration 

to curb human trafficking 

and illegal migration is driven 

by legal structures and is 

being institutionalised with 

the incoming legislation to 

stem the menace. 

“This is not a social project. 

Obaseki’s vision is to 

make human trafficking and 

illegal migration history in 

the state, as he is desirous 

that trafficking ends while 

he is still governor.” 

The move to use legal 

structures in the fight against 

human trafficking is informed 

by the fact that similar 

efforts in the past only focused 

on providing social 

safety nets, which did not 

solve the problem for years. 

According to Omorogbe, 

“It is important to have legal 

backing for the campaign 

against human trafficking. If 

there is no legal teeth in the 

fight against human trafficking 

and all you are doing is 

social project, you will not 

be sending a strong message 

against traffickers, who benefit 

from the illicit trade.” 

She added, “The state 

government domiciled the 

taskforce under the office of 

the Attorney General to give 

the campaign against human 

trafficking the needed 

legal structures it requires. 

It must be noted that 

the state government is 

not against migration, but 

will continue to encourage 

those with interest to migrate, 

to do so legally and 

with the right papers and 

qualification.” 

We are keeping to our promise on 

homeowners’ charter – Amosun 

Ogun State governor, 

Ibikunle 

Amosun, says his 

administration 

was keeping to the promise 

made in 2013 that all successful 

applicants under 

Homeowners’ Charter Programme 

would collect their 

documents unfailingly. 

He stated this during the 

28th edition of the distribution 

of Certificate of Occupancy 

(C of O) and building 

plan approval to another 

batch of beneficiaries at 

the Arcade Ground, Oke- 

Mosan, Abeokuta. 

Amosun, represented 

by the commissioner for 

forestry, Kolawole Lawal, 

said the consistency in the 

distribution of C of O was a 

prove that government was 

working towards the development 

of the state and to 

also showed that the properties 

belong to the successful 

applicants. 

‘’This is the 28th edition 

of the programme, which 

means promise made, 

promise kept. If the state 

government had not been 

consistent, applicants won’t 

have been opportune to 

benefit from it,’’ he said. 

The governor said the 

issuance of C of O in the 

past was challenging until 

the introduction of Home 

Owners’ Charter, which 

has made it easier for thousands 

of people to benefit. 

Earlier in his remarks, 

the coordinating consultant 

of the programme, Niyi 

Oguntula, said the state 

government was committed 

at ensuring that all applicants 

who meet the requisite 

criteria set out for the 

programme were issued 

with the documents. Speaking 

on behalf of the beneficiaries, 

Bello Rasheed 

from Obantoko, Abeokuta, 

thanked the governor for 

keeping to the promise 

made. 

Reps probe non-payment of N9.1trn to local contractors 

is first three quarters of 2017. 

that the N9.1 trillion was 

HARRISON EDEH, Abuja which Nigeria is building KEHINDE AKINTOLA, Abuja Government can reflate the 

At the launch, Enelemah strategic trade and economic 

relations. Switzer- 

Nigeria’s House of Government’s indebtedness Contractors, thereby creating 

approved to offset Federal economy by paying Local 

Federal Government also pointed out a positive 

on Tuesday said rebound in trade and investment 

related activities in many useful lessons can be 

is set to beam its “Federal Government the purchasing power of Niland 

is a country from which 

Representatives spanning over three years. employment and boosting 

trade activities, both 

import and export, 2017, impacting positively learned, from economic organisation, 

to its world-class the allegations bothering tune of N9.1 trillion to local He maintained that the 

searchlight on has been indebted to the gerians,” the lawmaker said. 

employed over 14 percent on the economy. 

of the Nigerian workforce, On the highlight of the report, 

the minister said, “The development model, to its trillion appropriated for years as reflected in the remarked 

in the 2017 budget 

apprenticeship and skills on non-payment of N9.1 contractors in the last three sum of N20 billion was ear- 

equivalent to 10.8 million 

Nigerians, adding that trade report identifies the priorities 

in Nigeria’s trade policy, ness models. 

past few years. 

Nigeria and the Debt Mancal 

contractors and other 

high-technology and busi- 

local contractors over the ports of the Central Bank of to settle debts owed to lo- 

accounted for 18 percent of 

the GDP, which is second to and our use of trade policy as “Third, the NATPOR provides 

a stewardship account obtained by BusinessDay, “The House notes that the “Some of those contrac- 

According to the report agement Office. 

liabilities. 

agriculture that accounted an instrument for structural 

for 29.1 percent of the GDP. transformation for diversification, 

modernisation, of the NOTN, from its estab- 

was approved in the 2017 ernment to finance the 2017 loans from various com- 

of the efforts and accounts a paltry sum of N20 billion inability of the Federal Govtors 

may have collected 

Okechukwu Enelemah, 

minister of industry, trade construction of regional and lishment on 10th May, 2017, Appropriation Act to offset budget deficit and meet its mercial Banks or other 

and investment, gave the global value chains, welfare by the decision of the Federal 

Executive Council.” Federal Government. 

Ministry of Finance to source would be yielding interest 

the debts incurred by the other obligations made the Financial Houses which 

information at the official enhancement, job creation. 

launch of the 2017 Nigerian “Gradually, working in In her earlier remarks, The resolution was for funds from commercial on daily basis or may have 

Annual Trade Policy Report, close coordination with Anne-Beatrice Bullinger, passed by the House sequel banks and the Capital Market 

through ‘Sukuk’ etc, while obtain such loans. 

lost the collateral used to 

NATPOR. 

the Industrial Policy and deputy head of mission, Embassy 

of Switzerland, lauded tion sponsored by Magaji the said fund has not been “The House is aware that 

to the adoption of a mo- 

The policy, which is first Competitiveness Advisory 

of its kind by the present Council, we shall phase out Federal Government’s efforts 

on the ease of doing concern over the plight of tractors. 

have dependents, responsi- 

Da’u Aliyu, who expressed used to pay indigenous con- 

most of those contractors 

administration, is facilitated export of primary products 

by the Nigerian Office for to which value has not been business, pointing out, “The thousands of local contractors 

amid lingering socio- 

that with the country exit- 

commitments, especially at 

“The House further notes bilities and various financial 

Trade Negotiations, headed added.” 

Switzerland economic minister 

would visit Nigeria next economic crisis. 

ing from economic reces- 

these trying times when the 

by Chiedu Osakwe and the He also pointed out, 

Statistician General of the “There is strategic focus in month to deepen stronger In his lead debate, Aliyu, sion which had adversely economy is experiencing difficulties 

and unemployment 

Federation, Yemi Kale, in the this first edition on Switzerland, 

as a country with tween both countries.” tion of the House, observed ing of Nigerians, the Federal is rife,” Ahmed 

economic relationship be- 

who called for the interven- 

affected the standard of liv- 

period under review, which 

observed.


C002D5556 


NEWS 

China Development Bank, UBA sign $100m 

loan deal to support SMEs in Africa 


United Bank for Africa 

(UBA) Plc, a pan-African 

banking group 

and China Development 

Bank (CDB), 

the world’s largest development 

finance institution, on February 

27, 2018 announced the signing 

of a $100 million seven-year loan 

agreement to finance the development 

of small and medium 

enterprises (SMEs) in Africa. 

The $100 million loan will enhance 

UBA’s capacity to provide 

access to finance to small and medium 

enterprises (SMEs) across 

the 19 African countries where 

UBA currently operates. 

“We are excited to partner with 

China Development Bank (CDB), 

the Development Financial Institution 

of the Chinese Government, 

on this historic transaction, as we 

strongly believe that the facility will 

serve as a catalyst to the sustainable 

development of commerce 

and industry in Africa through 

provision of critical financial interventions 

to SMEs across our 

presence countries,” said Group 

Managing Director/CEO, UBA Plc, 

Kennedy Uzoka. 

Uzoka noted that this line of 

credit is timely, as it should complement 

the recovery of economic 

activities. It will also further encourage 

African entrepreneurship 

particularly as the funds will be 

applied to SMEs, which are important 

for inclusive growth on the 

continent. 

Speaking during the signing 

ceremony, Chairman of UBA Plc, 

Tony Elumelu said that the fund 

will boost small and medium scale 

enterprises across Africa, noting 

that CDB’s interest in supporting 

SMEs aligns with UBA’s vision in 

growing business across Africa. 

“In UBA, CDB would have an 

enduring partner in reaching out to 

Africans as UBA provides banking 

services to over 14 million people 

across 20 African countries, and 

like CDB, UBA funds critical infrastructural 

projects on the continent 

“ Elumelu said. He expressed that 

he would like to see an even stronger 

relationship grow with CDB 

and UBA as well as with China and 

Nigeria. 

Also commenting, the President 

of CDB, Zheng Zhijie, said 

the agreement is the beginning 

of cooperation between UBA and 

CDB that would translate into an 

enduring business relationship 

between China and Africa and 

Nigeria in particular. 

“UBA is a leading and dependable 

bank not only in Nigeria but 

Africa, and this partnership will 

help our Bank to accelerate its 

business objectives in Africa, more 

importantly as we deepen our investment 

in energy, road and rail 

constructions, infrastructure in 

Africa,” Zhije said. 

UBA, Africa’s global bank, is 

one of the largest commercial 

banks in Nigeria incorporated 

which operates in 19 African 

countries whilst providing a wide 

range of products and services. 

UBA is a leading bank in infrastructure 

financing particularly in 

the Power, Telecoms and Transport 

sectors. UBA leads in social 

infrastructure such as hospital 

and education facilities to various 

countries in Africa. In Nigeria, the 

bank operates in each of the country’s 

36 states, helping to deepen 

financial inclusion through its 

brick and mortar network as well 

as through its cutting edge digital 

platforms. Globally, UBA has over 

1,000 branches and customer 

touch points, serving over 14 million 

customers. 

Adesola Adeduntan (m), MD/CEO, First Bank of Nigeria Limited, receiving the African Banker of the Year 

Award from Joseph Beasley (2nd r), chairman, African Leadership Advisory Board; Lalao Ravalomanana (r), 

Mayor of Antananarivo; Seyi Oyefeso (l), group executive, commercial banking group, FirstBank, and Abdullahi 

Ibrahim (2nd l), executive director, public sector directorate, FirstBank, at the African Leadership Magazine 

Persons of the Year Award in Johannesburg, South Africa. 

Visionscape issuing N4bn bond priced at... 


waste dumps marring its street 

corners. 

The offer which opened on 

February 26 and closes today is 

being priced at 15.75 percent and 

has a 4.5 year tenor, according to 

sources familiar with the matter. 

Dubai based Visionscape undertook 

the Series 1 of the debt 

programme last year, raising 

a five-year N27 billion note at 

around 17 percent. 

The first coupon for the N27 

billion bond falls due March 5, the 

same day Visionscape is asking 

investors interested in series 2 to 

fund the debt. 

That timing is probably a coincidence 

rather than a case of Visionscape 

borrowing to make coupon 

payments for previous debt, one 

source told BusinessDay. 

An email to an address available 

on Visionscape’s website 

seeking comment went un-replied. 

“I suspect the bond offer is to 

manage their liquidity position 

rather than fund debt servicing, 

after all they didn’t raise the full 

amount they wanted last year; 

opting instead to do it in tranches,” 

a source who invested in last year’s 

bond told BusinessDay. 

“Perhaps, they will be in a tight 

position after paying the coupons 

and are not up for that,” the source 

added. “Revenues are probably 

low and they need to buy more 

trucks. Moreover, it’s just N4bn 

which can be raised in two days 

given they have the backing of 

Lagos state.” 

The first series last year was 

backed by an Irrevocable Standing 

Payment Order by the Lagos state 

government. 

Visionscape, whose workers 

spot lemon overalls with boots to 

go, popped up the scene last year 

after contracts with the indigenous 

Private Sector Operators 

then under the management of 

Lagos Waste Management Authority 

(LAWMA) broke down. 

The Lagos State Government 

launched the Clean Lagos Initiative 

(CLI), backed by Environmental 

Management and Protection 

Law, last September to protect the 

environment, human health, and 

social living standards of Lagos 

residents. 

The initiative led to the introduction 

of a Public Utility Levy 

and the establishment of an enforcement 

task force, the Lagos 

State Environmental Sanitation 

Corps (LAGESC), to facilitate 

enforcement. 

It is unclear if the levy is being 

paid duly by Lagos residents. 

Visionscape is said to have 

requested a guarantee from the 

Lagos state government, because 

it the firm was unsure when the 

Public Utilities Levy would be paid. 

Visionscape’s revenues come 

from these levies and if Lagos state 

doesn’t start collecting the levies, 

the latter doesn’t want to be left 

with the short end of the stick, a 

source told BusinessDay, explaining 

why Visionscape demanded 

a guarantee from Lagos- whose 

domestic debt stood at N312 billion 

and foreign debt of $1.5 billion 

as of June 2017, according to data 

by the Debt Management Office 

(DMO). 

There have been a lot of speculations 

about the ownership 

structure of Visionscape and why 

Lagos state Governor Akinwumi 

Ambode decided to dump an arrangement 

which had, to a large 

extent, helped Lagos rid itself of 

its unenviable status of ‘filth capital 

of world,’ for a new, untested 

model of waste evacuation. 

Since Visionscape began operations, 

the heaps of refuse on 

Lagos streets have taken a turn 

for worse, indicating a regression 

in waste management that has 

irked most. 

Lagos state residents complain 

on social media, using snapshots 

of mounting refuse dumps in their 

areas, that Visionscape usually 

allow refuse to pile up for days 

before sending their trucks and 

workers to evacuate them 

Abiodun Bamigboye, the Permanent 

Secretary of the Ministry 

of Environment, said last month 

that the levy would be handled 

by a unit in the ministry known as 

the Public Utility Monitoring and 

Assurance Unit and that the levy 

will start being charged when “we 

start the full activity of Visionscape 

packing the wastes on the roads.” 

With refuse taking over major 

roads, highways and inner streets 

in the state, threatening epidemic 

across the state, concerns have 

grown among the populace over 

a probable outbreak of cholera 

and other diseases in the state as 

a result of the improper disposal of 

waste in the last couple of months. 

MTN sticks to June listing for Nigeria... 


provals for the listing including 

that of the Securities and Exchange 

Commission (SEC) and 

Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE). 

MTN Group agreed to list the 

Nigerian unit on the Nigerian Stock 

Exchange this year as part of a June 

2016 agreement to pay a $1 billion 

fine for missing a deadline to disconnect 

unregistered subscribers 

amid a security crackdown. 

An insider with knowledge of 

the MTN Nigeria listing said, “We 

are sticking to the June date for 

coming to the market.” 

BusinessDay reported earlier 

that new highs of 10.61percent return 

seen this year at the Nigerian 

stock market forced the advisors 

to proposed MTN Nigeria shares 

listing to renter their boardrooms 

for proper pricing of their shares. 

Standard Bank Group Limited 

and Citigroup Incorporated 

have been advising Africa’s largest 

mobile-phone company on the 

disposal of as much as 30 percent 

of the Lagos-based unit on the 

Nigerian Stock Exchange. 

The Nigerian stock market rose 

by 42percent last year. MTN group 

announced in November that it 

had commenced processes for the 

proposed listing of its Nigerian unit 

on the NSE in 2018. 

MTN crossed major huddles 

to the Nigeria unit listing after 

three different Emergency General 

Meetings (EGMs), the latest 

of which was held on Thursday 

last week. 

At the latest Emergency General 

Meeting, issues of complaints by 

different categories of shareholders 

and that of LATE shares managed 

by IBTC, among others were 

resolved. 

Oscar Onyema, Chief Executive 

Officer, Nigerian Stock Exchange 

told BusinessDay on the sideline 

of the 2017 market recap and 2018 

outlook that the Nigerian bourse is 

hopeful MTN Group will fulfil its 

statement on listing the shares of 

its Nigerian units this year. 

“We have always said the Nigeria 

listing is obviously subject 

to market conditions but it would 

seem at this stage more likely a 

2018 event,” Ralph Mupita, CFO, 

MTN Group had said while presenting 

the group’s third-quarter 

(Q3) results. 

He said that the group feels 

pretty confident that it is seeing 

value share increase off the back 

of the investment that they have 

made in Nigeria. “So a very pleasing 

growth in service revenue level 

in Nigeria”. 

Top on the assignment of the 

advisers is to reach an acceptable 

pricing (valuation) of the shares to 

be listed. 

MTN is also preparing to raise 

as much as 2 billion cedis ($447 

million) through listing 35 percent 

of the subsidiary on the Ghana 

Stock Exchange in what will be the 

largest share sale in the country’s 

history. 

Nigeria and other sub-Saharan 

African governments are trying 

to gain more from international 

mobile-phone operators taking 

advantage of rising smartphone 

use and faster data speeds. 

Nigeria’s $2.5bn Eurobond could trigger... 


borrowing is $20.9bn, narrowing 

the NGN-USD debt mix to 66:34 

(compared to 73:27 in Sept-2017), 

according to data compiled by 

research house United Capital 

Limited. 

“This indicates that the FGN is 

one step closer to its fiscal desire 

to adjust the debt mix to 60:40 

by 2019,” said analysts at United 

Capital. 

Ayodeji Ebo, managing director 

and CEO of Afrivest Securities 

Limited argued that while an 

increase in Gross Domestic Product 

(GDP) in 2017 after shrinking 

by 1.58 percent in 2016 presents 

an opportunity to raise cheaper 

funds, the expected hike in interest 

rates by the United States Federal 

Reserve (Feds) may negate this opportunity. 

The U.S 10-year Treasury yield 

spiked and held above 2.9 percent 

on Federal Reserve Chairman 

Jerome Powell’s assessment that 

the central bank won’t rush to raise 

rates even though he expects the 

economy to pick up steam.


R-L: Henry 

Egbiki, EY 

Nigeria, 

country 

leader, with 

Titilayo 

Margaret 

Solarin, tutor-general/ 

permanent 

secretary, 

representing 

Lagos State 

Ministry 

of Education, 

at the 

official commissioning 

of a new 

refurbished 

library 

at Elegbata 

Senior 

Secondary 

School, Olowogboro, 

Lagos, refurbished 

by 

EY Nigeria. 

Global business fraud jumps a 

record high to 49% in 2018 

DANIEL OBI 

Global economic 

crime in business 

has risen 

to a record high 

of 49 percent 

from 36 percent in 2016, as 

reported by PwC’s bi-annual 

survey of business crime. 

In the Global Economic 

Crime and Fraud Survey, 

which examined over 7,200 

respondents from 123 countries 

including Nigeria, 49 

percent of the respondents 

globally said their companies 

had suffered fraud in 

the last two years, up from 

36 percent in 2016. 

The survey said regionally 

Africa recorded 62% up 

from 57%; North America 

54% up from 37%, and Latin 

America 53% up from 28%. 

These figures are highest levels 

of economic crimes. 

According to the survey, 

the findings from Nigeria 

followed a similar pattern 

with more than half of respondents 

(57%) reporting 

Lassa fever hits 18 states with 90 deaths, 1,081 suspected cases 

ANTHONIA OBOKOH 

More states of the 

federation are 

at risk as Lassa 

fever continues 

to spread in Nigeria with 

1,081 suspected cases and 90 

deaths in 18 states, according 

to a press statement by the 

Nigeria Centre for Disease 

Control (NCDC) on Tuesday. 

According to the agency, 

following the increasing 

number of Lassa fever cases, 

within a week, 54 new confirmed 

cases were recorded 

from eight states with 10 new 

deaths in confirmed cases 

from five states. 

“From 1st January to 25th 

February 2018, a total of 

1,081 suspected cases and 90 

deaths have been recorded 

actively in Edo, Ondo, Bauchi, 

Nasarawa, Ebonyi, Anambra, 

Benue, Kogi, Imo, Plateau, 

Lagos, Taraba, Delta, Osun, 

Rivers, FCT, Gombe, and Ekiti 

states, making 18 states. 

… procurement fraud most prevalent in Nigeria 

that their organisations have 

been victims of economic 

crime in Nigeria within the 

last two years up from 26% 

in 2016. 

“Globally, asset misappropriation 

(45%) continues 

to lead in economic 

crime experienced by organisations 

in the last 24 

months, cybercrime (31%), 

consumer fraud (29%) and 

business misconduct (28%) 

are close behind,” according 

to the report. 

The report said that Nigeria 

presents a slightly 

different picture with respondents 

indicating that 

Procurement fraud (38%) 

is the most prevalent economic 

crime in Nigeria in 

the last 24 months. This is 

followed by Bribery and 

Corruption (33%), Accounting 

fraud (32%) and 

Business misconduct at 

31%. 

“This year’s survey revealed 

a significant increase 

“This year, 69 percent of 

all confirmed cases are from 

Edo (43%) and Ondo (26%) 

states. Fourteen health care 

workers have been affected 

in six states Ebonyi - 7, Nasarawa 

-1, Kogi - 1, Benue - 

1, Ondo - 1 and Edo -3) with 

four deaths (Ebonyi - 3 and 

Kogi - 1),” the report states. 

Lassa fever is an acute 

viral haemorrhagic illness, 

transmitted to humans 

through contact with food or 

household items contaminated 

by infected rodents. 

Person-to-person transmission 

can also occur, particularly 

in hospital environment 

in the absence of adequate 

infection control measures. 

The agency further states 

that since the onset of 2018, 

325 cases have been classified 

as: 317 confirmed cases, 

8 probable cases with 72 

deaths (64 in Lab confirmed 

and 8 in probable); Case Fatality 

Rate in confirmed and 

probable cases is 22 percent. 

(+6% to 52%) in the share of 

economic crime committed 

by internal actors. There was 

also a jump in the percentage 

of those crimes attributed 

to senior management 

(from 16% in 2016 to 24% in 

2018). However there are regional 

variations. In Australia 

(64%), the UK (55%), Canada 

(58%); Argentina (44%) 

and the US (48%), most reported 

crime was committed 

by external actors”. 

The results underline 

the greater awareness and 

understanding of the types 

of fraud, perpetrators, the 

role of technology, and 

fraud’s potential impacts 

and costs for a business, 

comments Cyril Azobu, 

PwC Nigeria’s Consulting 

Leader in the report 

“We can’t equate higher 

levels of reported crime with 

higher levels of actual crime. 

What the survey is showing 

us is that there is far more 

understanding of what fraud 

“There is need for the public 

to ensure and maintain 

adequate personal hygiene 

and environmental sanitation 

at all times as part of prevention 

and control measures 

against the spread of Lassa 

fever in the state,’’ Jide Idris, 

Lagos State commissioner for 

health, said in an interview 

with BusinessDay. 

The commissioner urged 

people to dispose refuse 

properly at designated 

dumpsites and not into the 

drainage, and store food 

items in rodent-proof containers. 

“Currently, Lassa fever 

are being followed up and 

testing across three laboratories 

in the country. The 

NCDC is working in collaboration 

with The Alliance 

for International Medical 

Action (ALIMA) and World 

Health Organisation (WHO) 

scaling up its support of the 

response at national and 

state levels,” the report says. 

is and where it is taking 

place. It’s particularly true 

of cybercrime, where there’s 

a much greater understanding 

of the issues, investigations, 

analysis, and greater 

investment in controls and 

prevention. 

“However, despite the 

progress in understanding 

and reporting, the fact 

that just over half (51%) of 

respondents say they have 

not, or don’t know if they 

have experienced fraud in 

the past two years, suggests 

blind spots still exist in many 

organisations” he said. 

CHANGE OF NAME 

I, formerly known and addressed as 

Miss Stella Ebalehita Aghedo now 

wish to be known and addressed as 

Mrs Stella Ebalehita Ibifunmilola. 

All former documents remain valid. 

General Public please take note. 



Mrs Ifeyinwa Joy Nwosu now 

wish to be known and addressed 

as Mrs Ifeyinwa Joy Igboanugo. 



CORRECTION OF NAME 

My name was wrongly written as 

Worgu Future Adindu by my bank 

instead of my correct name which is 

Worgu Future Oyekachi. All Banks 

and General Public Please take note 



Miss Kalu Helen Ijeoma now 


as Mrs Aneyo Helen Ijeoma. All 

former documents remain valid. 


ADDITION OF NAME 


Abbey Adeyemi but now am 

adding Matthew. And i now 


as Adeyemi Abbey Idowu. 

genral public please take note. 

C002D5556 

Continued from back page 

from this humble pastor who 

was a Field Marshal in God’s 

vineyard! 

Billy Graham was the 

moral sentinel of America 

and easily one of the towering 

figures of our century. He 

condemned the debaucheries 

of our decadent age; 

objecting to homosexuality 

and same-sex marriage on 

moral grounds. A counsellor 

to presidents and monarchs; 

he reinvented the Christian 

faith to meet the worldview 

demands of our cruel, nihilistic 

age. He was a friend of 

American presidents Dwight 

Eisenhower, Richard Nixon, 

Gerald Ford, Bill Clinton and 

the two Bushes. According 

to Clinton, “When he prays 

with you in the Oval Office or 

upstairs in the White House, 

you feel he’s praying for you, 

not the president”. 

He was particularly close 

to Queen Elizabeth II of Britain. 

According to him, “No 

one in Britain has been more 

cordial toward us than Her 

Majesty Queen Elizabeth…I 

have always found her highly 

intelligent and knowledgeable 

about a wide variety 

of issues, not just politics.” 

Her Majesty once confided 

to him, “You do speak with 

such wonderful clarity and 

certainty…Above all things, 

I do think of myself as just a 

simple Christian.” 

Billy Graham was one of 

the architects of the ecumenical 

movement. He financed 

the Lausanne Conferences 

on World Evangelism; working 

tirelessly for unity in the 

body of Christ. A confidante 

to a succession of popes, he 

was awarded an honorary 

doctorate by Belmont Abbey 

College, a conservative 

catholic institution -- the 

first protestant leader to be 

so honoured. 

He was also close friends 

with Martin Luther Jr, whom 

he once bailed out when he 

was jailed in Alabama. He 

forbade segregation in all his 

crusades while ensuring that 

his evangelistic associates 

BUSINESS DAY 

39 

NEWS 

Billy Graham, moral man and immoral... 



Meeting Jolly now wish to be known 

and addressed as Meeting Jolly 

Teleba. All former documents remain 

valid. General Public please take note. 



Alao Abayomi Oritsetimeyin now 

wish to be known and addressed as 

Abayomi Oritsetimeyin Olatinwo. 





Ukatu Chioma Esther now wish 

to be known and addressed as 

Oleru Chioma Esther. All former 

documents remain valid. 




Esther Jumai Amodu now wish to 

be known and addressed as Esther 

Shaibu. All former documents remain 

valid. General Public please take note. 

were mixed-race. He once 

warned white Americans 

that their racial arrogance 

will stand in judgement 

against them at the gates of 

heaven. 

The passing of his beloved 

Ruth in 2007 was one of the 

lowest points in his life. He 

himself was gradually overcome 

with several geriatric 

illnesses which necessitated 

his eventual retirement. The 

BGEA is currently headed 

by his son Franklin Graham. 

Tributes have come from 

far and wide. President 

Donald Trump has tweeted: 

“The great Billy Graham is 

dead. There was nobody like 

him! He will be missed by 

Christians and all religions. 

A very special man.” Vice- 

President Pence described 

him as a matchless voice 

that “changed the lives of 

millions”. Barack Obama 

describes him as “a humble 

servant who prayed for so 

many - and who, with wisdom 

and grace, gave hope 

and guidance to generations 

of Americans”. The Archbishop 

of Canterbury Justin 

Welby noted that “the debt 

owed by the global church 

to him is immeasurable and 

inexpressible”. Back home in 

Nigeria, Musa Asake, Publicity 

Secretary of the Christian 

Association of Nigeria, 

described Billy Graham as 

“a faithful preacher who 

worked for God and has gone 

to be with the Lord”. 

An ancient Jewish belief 

holds that the earth has 

been saved from perishing 

because of the devotions of 

a secret conclave of 30 holy 

ones, the Tzadikim Nistarim. 

I believe Billy Graham belonged 

among the Tzadikim. 

Regardless of your religion or 

belief system, we can agree 

in the innate value of having 

devout and righteous men 

and women who redeem the 

earth and serve humanity 

with loving-kindness, truth, 

justice and compassion. Billy 

Graham was such a man. In 

the inimitable language of 

Paul the Apostle, “he was all 

things to all men”. 

Billy Graham made 

friends across racial, class 

and religious barriers. He 

disagreed with his son Franklin 

Graham when he made 

rather uncomplimentary 

remarks about Islam. The 

awards and honours showered 

on him during his lifetime 

are far too numerous to 

be recounted here. He leaves 

behind five children and several 

grandchildren and great 

grand children. 

President Donald Trump 

has ordered that his simple 

coffin will lie in state on Capitol 

Hill before being moved 

for final interment on Friday 

2nd March in his hometown 

of Montreat, North Carolina. 

His funeral will be graced by 

present and former American 

leaders, among other 

distinguished personalities. 

Years ago he commented 

on the prospects of his own 

death: “Someday you will 

read or hear that Billy Graham 

is dead. Don’t you believe 

a word of it. I shall be 

more alive than I am now…I 

will have gone into the presence 

of God.” 

It is a fitting epitaph to a 

remarkable life.

WEST AFRICA 

ENERGY intelligence 

oil gas power 


C002D5556 

BUSINESS DAY 

interview 

‘The world is rapidly 

moving towards 

an age of cleaner 

sources of energy’ 

Page 4 

finance people 

appointments 

L-R: Bayo Ojulari (MD,SNEPCo); Saidu Mohammed(GED/COO-Gas & Power, NNPC); Joe Ezigbo (MD, Falcon Corporation); Sadeeq Mai-Bornu(DMD,NLNG); 

Ibe Kachikwu (Minister of State for Petroleum); Dada Thomas(President, NGA); Abdulrazaq Isa(MD, Waltersmith Petroman) during the gas session of the 

Nigeria International Petroleum Summit(NIPS2018) held recently in Abuja. 

Sea Trucks Group 

debunks WAV 

allegation 

Page 6 

OPEC weekly basket price 

DAY 

PRICE 

23/2/18 63.08 

15/2/18 61.17 

9/2/18 63.8 

2/2/18 66.87 

26/1/18 67.64 

Source: OPEC 

Debrief 

Should NLNG model be gold standard 

for gas contracts in Nigeria? 

ISAAC ANYAOGU 

At the executive roundtable 

discussion first 

Nigeria International 

Petroleum Summit 

(NIPS) in Abuja, last 

week, Sadeeq Mai-Bornu, deputy 

managing director of Nigeria 

LNG Limited (NLNG) said the 

NLNG business model needs to 

be replicated in order to generate 

opportunities for the power and 

gas sectors in the country. 

“We sign a 20-year contract 

for the supply of molecules and 

we can actually go to the bank 

and get the funding we need. 

When NLNG was set up, it had 

guarantees and incentives that 

safeguarded investments and 

returns. There was also the sanctity 

of contracts. That is what has 

helped NLNG. This model needs 

to be developed in the upstream 

and downstream,” was quoted as 

saying. 

Mai-Bornu also said, “Moving 

forward, NLNG is investing 

in expansion with a Train 7 project. 

It involves a huge amount of 

money but because the markets 

are there, we are in the position 

to invest up to $5 to $10 billion 

both in the upstream for the gas 

supply and in the infrastructure 

to construct the Train. There is 

opportunity in that area.” 

It is important to note certain 

critical factors that have helped 

the NLNG achieve success. The 

company operates in the midstream 

sector which means 

that the bulk of the risks of gas 

exploration have been taken by 

the upstream companies. Also, 

International Oil Companies 

(IOCs) have participated in the 

NLNG because of strong assur- 

ances and commitments from 

Nigeria which literally elevated 

the NLNG Act to the status of a 

treaty. This helped to insulate 

the contract from the vagaries 

of regulatory uncertainties until 

now. 

Last year, the House of Representatives 

amended the NLNG 

Act compelling it to make contributions 

to government agencies 

including NDDC removing the 

assurance and guarantees it had 

hitherto enjoyed. 

This occurred at a time the 

NNPC is negotiating Train 7 of 

the NLNG with various parties 

to the contract. The lawmakers 

did not care about the bigger 

picture: the need for the country 

to monetise its gas resources 

using the NLNG model which 

has proven effective, the possibility 

of Trains 7 and 8 adding 

new 18,000 jobs. 

The senate has not amended 

the NLNG Act as the lower 

house has done which remains 

the hope of the Act for now. Nigeria 

was willing to forego benefits 

of billions of dollars in taxes 

and dividends just to ensure 

the NLNG pays a 3 percent annual 

budget to NDDC. It did not 

matter that paying a 3 percent of 

NLNG budget to NDDC would 

not create the same amount of 

jobs and investments. 

Nigeria’s LNG could not kick 

off after it was first proposed in 

1968 because of the huge capital 

investment required which 

Nigeria did not have. Investors 

wanted assurances and guarantees 

that they will recoup their 

investments. In 1990 Nigeria 

granted the investors a ten year 

pioneer status as well as generous 

concessions that prohibited 

further taxation and levies.



C002D5556 

WEST AFRICA 

Outlook 

Gambia: 

New funding for offshore Gambia 

FAR Ltd has 

signed a farmout 

agreement 

with a subsidiary 

of Petronas 

for a 40 percent interest 

in each of The Gambia’s 

blocks A2 and A5. Following 

the deal, Petronas will 

fund 80 percent of the total 

well costs of the Samo- 

1 exploration well, up to 

a maximum total cost of 

$45 million. Petronas will 

also fund FAR’s share of 

non-well costs up to a 

maximum amount of $1.5 

million. 

FAR will retain a 40 

percent interest in each 

of the A2 and A5 licenses 

and will remain operator 

through the exploration 

phase. Samo-1 is expected 

to be drilled in late 

2018 and will be the first 

exploration well offshore 

The Gambia since 1979. 

FAR Managing Director 

Cath Norman said 

the deal is a testament to 

the emerging value of the 

broader West African basin. 

“Success in this well 

would be of significant 

value to our shareholders 

and truly transformational 

for the people of 

The Gambia,” she said in a 

statement. 

An audit of geotechnical 

data show the Samo 

and Bambo prospects off 

the coast of Gambia hold 

combined best estimate 

Libya: 

Production may suffer on budget delays 

Libya’s crude oil 

output, which is 

reportedly now 

more than 1 million 

b/d, could suffer as 

state-owned National Oil 

Corp. continues to wait for 

its budget from the government, 

the company’s CEO 

said. 

“The entire sector is suffering 

from these problems 

because of the delay of the 

Ministry of Finance in disbursing 

the budgets for the 

corporation this year,” CEO 

Mustafa Sanalla said. 

NOC receives its budget 

prospective reserves of 

1.1 billion barrels. The 

Samo prospect in particular 

holds substantial 

promise, with an estimated 

chance of success of 

more than 50 percent. 

FAR stays on as the 

operator through the exploration 

phase offshore 

Gambia, and PETRONAS 

has the right to become 

the operator once development 

begins. Drilling 

from the Central Bank of 

Libya, which is authorized 

by the internationally recognized 

government in 

Tripoli. 

Sanalla’s comments 

come after meetings with 

NOC subsidiary Al-Jouf 

Oil Technology Co. and 

Spain’s Repsol, a key partner 

which operates the 

300,000 b/d Sharara oil 

field in the southern Murzuq 

basin. Al-Jouf specializes 

in oil field services for 

exploration, drilling and 

production. 

“This slowdown will 

have serious consequences 

for the entire sector, 

which will lead to a decline 

in the level of production 

again in large proportions 

in addition to having a 

negative impact on development 

projects,” Sanalla 

said. 

Sanalla has complained 

is expected late this year 

in what will be the first 

exploration campaign 

for Gambia in nearly 40 

years. 

FAR’s permit area offshore 

Gambia, which covers 

1,000 square miles, 

is adjacent to its flagship 

SNE discovery offshore 

Senegal. The initial oil 

discovery offshore Senegal 

was made in 2014 

and met the minimum 

threshold for a commercial 

opportunity by the 

third quarter 2016. 

West African countries 

have been at odds over 

their maritime borders, 

while officials there have 

been vetting their corporate 

options as the potential 

for oil evolves. In October, 

African Petroleum 

said its subsidiaries in 

Gambia filed requests for 

arbitration at an international 

dispute chamber to 

protect two of its offshore 

licenses. 

about the problem before, 

telling a Chatham House 

conference in London in 

late January that NOC received 

only 50 percent of 

its capital spending allocation 

from Tripoli last year. 

He has also previously said 

the lack of money caused 

the loss of 90,000 b/d. 

Libya produced around 

980,000 b/d in January, according 

to the latest S&P 

Global Platts survey of 

OPEC producers. This is 

well below the 1.6 million 

b/d output seen before 

the country’s revolution in 

2011. 

Production has since 

fluctuated due to the lack 

of finances available, as 

well as disruptions from 

frequent protests and security 

threats. The lost revenues 

from exports have 

further exacerbated the 

country’s cash flow problems. 

Brief 

Kenya: 

Kenya Pipeline boosts oil-storage 

capacity by 22 percent with tanks 

Kenya Pipeline 

Co. will spend 

$52 million 

building four 

new tanks that will increase 

its storage space 

by more than a fifth, Joe 

Sang, Managing Director 

said. 

KPC is adding capacity 

to meet growing demand 

for fuels in East 

Africa, the continent’s 

fastest growing subregion, 

according to the 

African Development 

Bank. The additional 

tanks will accommodate 

increased volume 

from a new pipeline being 

built from the port of 

Mombasa to the capital, 

Nairobi that will be 

completed in April Sang 

said. 

“The project will 

enhance operational 

flexibility, capacity of 

product receipt and 

evacuation of product 

in Nairobi once the new 

Mombasa-Nairobi pipeline 

is operational,” he 

said. 

The tanks will be 

built in Nairobi by May 

oil 

and each hold 33.4 million 

liters, increasing the 

state-owned company’s 

capacity to 745 million 

liters from 612.3 million 

liters. The Nairobi-Mombasa 

pipeline, known as 

No. 5, will have a 20-inch 

diameter and replaces an 

existing 14-inch conduit. 

Kenya’s strategic petroleum 

reserves will triple 

to 90 days once the new 

tanks are commissioned 

and when an old refinery 

in Mombasa, which is 

now being used as storage, 

is refurbished, Sang 

said. Increased storage 

capacity will also save 

fuel-importers demurrage 

charges they’ve been 

incurring as vessels wait 

at the Mombasa port to 

discharge fuel into KPC’s 

system, he said. 

Kenya distributes fuel 

to neighboring countries 

including Uganda, Rwanda, 

Burundi and eastern 

Democratic Republic of 

Congo. KPC is currently 

building an oil jetty on 

Lake Victoria to improve 

the reliability of its supplies.


gas 

Brief 

Nigeria: 

Global energy market forecast favours 

gas - Tony Attah 

The Managing Director 

and Chief 

Executive Officer 

of Nigeria LNG 

Limited (NLNG), Tony Attah, 

said projections put 

gas in the top quartile of 

the most competitive and 

strategic investments in 

the global energy market. 

Attah spoke at an executive 

roundtable discussion 

titled “Growth 

Outlook and Strategies for 

Staying Competitive after 

a Global Downturn” at the 

first Nigeria International 

Petroleum Summit (NIPS) 

holding in Abuja. 

Attah remarked that 

a combination of factors 

will give gas an edge as the 

preferred energy of the future, 

adding that the global 

LNG trade is projected to 

nearly triple, from about 

12 Trillion Cubic Feet (Tcf) 

in 2015 to around 31 Tcf in 

2040. 

“Electric power sector 

carbon emissions are projected 

to be flat through 

2050 as a result of favourable 

market conditions for 

natural gas and supportive 

policies for renewables 

compared with coal. The 

projections are underpinned 

by the prospect of 

the global economy growing 

at an average rate of 3.4 

percent per year, a population 

that expands from 

7.4 billion today to more 

than 9 billion in 2040, and 

a process of urbanisation 

that adds a city the size of 

Shanghai to the world’s urban 

population every four 

months. 

Mozambique: 

Mozambique LNG signs first binding 

long-term contract with France’s EDF 

Mozambique 

LNG and 

France’s EDF 

have signed 

a long-term LNG sale and 

purchase agreement for the 

supply of 1.2 million mt/ 

year of LNG over 15 years, 

project operator Anadarko 

Petroleum Corporation 

said in a statement. 

Mozambique LNG has 

signed supply agreements 

for a combined of more 

than 5 million mt/year, but 

this is the exporter’s first 

binding contract. A 20-year 

SPA, Mozambique LNG’s 

first, signed with Thailand’s 

state-owned PTT in September 

for the delivery of 

2.6 million mt/year, is still 

pending approval by the 

government of Thailand. 

“This SPA gives us flexible 

access to Europe, which 

is one of our key strategic 

markets,” said Mitch Ingram, 

Anadarko executive 

vice president, International 

and Deepwater Operations 

and Project Management. 

“EDF is one of the 

world’s largest electric utilities, 

and reaching this SPA 

continues to validate Mozambique 

LNG’s position 

as a competitive long-term 

LNG supplier and as one of 

the world’s leading greenfield 

projects.” 

KELECHI EWUZIE 

C002D5556 

BUSINESS DAY 

03 

WEST AFRICA 


West Africa needs to make her 

abundant gas resources count 

West Afr 

i c a n 

growing 

gas 

hotspots 

are becoming increasingly 

attractive to global 

investors and exploration 

companies. Recent 

trends are indicative of 

the fact that interest in 

established and emerging 

gas regions in Nigeria and 

Ivory Coast point to an 

increase possibilities for 

investors to tap into gas 

sector. 

A cursory look at the 

West Africa region show 

that the abundant natural 

resources have played 

a central part in the economic 

development of 

many of its constituent 

nations. 

Report shows that increased 

exploration activity 

in the gas sector has 

generated a raft of discoveries 

both offshore and 

onshore. According to 

figures from International 

Energy Agency, a third of 

all gas discoveries in the 

last five years were made 

in sub-Saharan Africa, 

this is a trend that looks 

set to continue for the 

foreseeable future. 

Industry watchers observed 

that this is a reflection 

of an investment 

shift in the industry including 

majors but especially 

mid-level frontier 

exploration companies 

to gradually disengage 

from mature markets with 

strict regimes and move 

towards high-potential 

emerging resource regions 

in the hopes of 

making a big find. 

They maintain that the 

steady rise in foreign investment 

in African offshore 

is a reassuring indication 

that geographical 

risk on the continent is 

becoming less of an issue 

for many investors and 

exploration companies. 

The flurry of gas exploration 

offshore Mauritania 

is encouraging news 

for a country in need of 

new sources of revenue 

and employment. 

Those who know in 

the industry observed 

that challenges and risks 

still exist in West Africa, 

especially in the form of 

regulatory uncertainty as 

countries, some of which 

are new entrants to the 

gas sector, work to establish 

regimes that will attract 

foreign money while 

also spreading a fair share 

of the economic benefits 

to people at a local and 

national level. 

According to them 

“Country by country, examples 

has emerged that 

provide insight into what 

to expect for overseas investors 

looking for opportunities 

in West Africa’s 

gas sector. 

Nigeria has long been 

an energy titan in Africa, 

especially in West Africa 

leading the continent in 

oil production and attracting 

exploration companies 

to increasingly 

move into deepwater 

blocks. 

In the opinion of experts, 

despite the impressive 

accomplishments 

being made offshore in 

Nigeria, now is a crucial 

and arguably precarious 

time for the nation’s gas 

sector. 

Nigeria’s desire to create 

a more modern, reliable 

and stringent set of 

regulations for gas producers 

are important 

because a stable regulatory 

framework can help 

reduce the uncertainty of 

potential investors. 

To analysts, the PIB 

could have a decisive influence 

on Nigeria’s prospects 

as a gas investment 

hotspot, especially as 

onshore and shallow water 

projects may receive 

a boost under the Petroleum 

Industry Bill (PIB). 

Nigeria is facing increased 

gas competition 

in West Africa, from established 

and well-developed 

rivals like Angola 

and Ghana to offshore 

wildcards like Mauritania 

and Sierra Leone, all of 

which hold significant investment 

potential. 

Ivory Coast is looking 

to diversify its economy 

by further exploiting its 

offshore gas resources. 

The country’s waters are 

busy with exploration 

activities and significant 

discoveries have been 

made by companies.



C002D5556 

WEST AFRICA 


Maximising Nigeria’s huge 

potential oil and gas sector 

feature 

CYNTHIA EGBOBOH, Abuja. 

plained that tackling the challenges of 

the industry, the State has embarked 

on reforms of the gas and power sector 

as the need power cannot be generated 

without gas. 

Moving forward, Wale opined that 

there is need for collaboration between 

the state and federal government to enhance 

effective policy and regulation in 

the industry. 

“In Lagos what we did was to embark 

on reforms for the power and gas sector, 

noting that we cannot generate the 

needed power without gas, so what the 

Lagos state governor has done is to put 

together the energy program aimed at 

achieving a 3000 mega-watt of electricity 

within the next 3-5 years”. 

However, the minister of petroleum, 

Ibe Kachikwu looking at the future 

identified the present challenges 

of the sector to include ineffective 

regulatory system, lack of transparency 

in operations, insecurity, cost of 

operation and policies yet to be implemented. 

Speaking on these challenges, the 

minister said that there is need to reevaluate 

the regulations governing the 

activities of the sector to make it attractive 

for investment stressing that there 

are some policies that are yet to be implemented. 

On security, the minister said that the 

government has put measures in place 

to address the insecurity issues faced in 

Niger delta explaining that measure has 

been put place to incorporate them into 

the oil sector initiative and the Nigeria 

economy as a whole. 

Experts also showed concern at the 

level of transparency with data in the in- 

Experts have suggested ways 

that Nigeria’s oil and gas sector 

could maximise its huge 

potential at the week-long 

Nigerian International Petroleum 

Summit-An African Petroleum 

Technology and Business Conference 

(APTC) held last week in Abuja. 

Don Obot Etibet, former minister 

of state for petroleum at the 2018 Nigeria 

International Summit explained 

that Nigeria oil and gas sector has for 

long been held down by politics, nepotism, 

corruption, and a host of others 

so much so that the industry grew 

around friendship, relationship and 

proxies and these led to doing things 

without following due processes. 

What should have been done properly 

was not done and it led to control by 

the government which needed someone 

to resist it. 

“What should have been done properly 

were not done and it led to control 

by the government”, Etibet said. 

Alex Neyin, Managing Director, GAC- 

MORK Nigeria Limited stressed that one 

of the things worth noting from the past 

is the instability of price which threatened 

the integrity of the management 

of the industry, identifying that Low oil 

price is a lesson to Nigeria and we must 

sustain the low price knowing that when 

prices are low profit will increase. 

Markson Fefegha, Commissioner 

of Mineral Resources, Bayelsa explained 

that with the recent crisis led 

by the Niger delta youths which resulted 

to the destruction of pipelines 

and losses, it is worth noting that the 

fiscal policy is not effective at the indigenous 

places where oil production 

are carried out. 

“There is therefore need for the development 

of a federal fiscal policy 

that will regulate the operations of 

both the state and federal players in 

the industry. When regulations are not 

properly communicated to the people 

in a way that it will benefit them, there 

is bound to bound to problems”, said 

Fefegha 

Oluwo Wale, commissioner for energy 

and mineral resources, Lagos exdustry 

noting that it is a major contributor 

to price fluctuation. 

Odulaja Dapo, Head, Data Service 

Department, Research Division OPEC, 

explained that Non-transparency with 

data in the energy industry is a major 

contributor to price fluctuation in the 

country. 

“The industry has gone through cycles 

of price fluctuation and this is not 

convenient for the producers and consumers 

alike. There is need to promote 

more data collection as the industry is 

becoming data intensive”. 

According to him, Africa should not 

be left behind in the contribution to data 

gathering initiative that was recently 

launched by OPEC and others adding 

that the initiative is being embraced by 

more countries but only few contribution 

from the Africa countries. 

L-R: Chizor Malize, managing partner, Brandzone Consulting LLC; Joseph Ezigbo, managing director, Falcon Corporation Limited; Dada Thomas, 

president, Nigeria Gas Association/managing director, Frontier Oil Ltd; Audrey Joe-Ezigbo, co-founder/executive eirector, Falcon Corporation 

Limited; Demola Adeyemi-Bero, chairman, Independent Petroleum Producers Group/ managing director, First E & P Ltd recently at the Nigeria 

International Petroleum Summit Abuja.

Wednesday 28 February 2018 C002D5556 BUSINESS DAY 05 

INTERVIEW 

WEST AFRICA 


‘The world is rapidly moving towards 

an age of cleaner sources of energy’ 

CHIKEZIE NWOSU is the Chairman, Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE) NIgeria Council. In this interview with Frank Uzuegbunam, Editor, 

West Africa Energy Intelligence he talks about the forth coming 18th Oloibiri Lecture Series and Energy Forum amongst other issues. Excerpts: 

What are the consideration behind the 

Annual Oloibiri Lecture Series and Energy 

Forum? 

The SPE OLEF is an annual lecture 

series focused on contributing to 

oil and gas policy development 

of Nigeria in commemoration of 

the first oil well drilled in Nigeria 

by Shell Darcy at Oloibiri, in Ogbia, Bayelsa 

State in 1956. It has become a forum where 

SPE NC brings together the key industry 

players from policy / legislature, regulatory 

/ federal executive, investors, operators, service 

companies etc. to discuss on topical issues 

in the oil and gas industry, with a view 

to influencing the right policy direction to 

enable the growth of the industry and the 

Nigerian economy, thereby impacting positively 

on the all Nigerians. 

Looking back from the inception of 

this annual dialogue, what are the tangible 

benefits of this initiative you can relate 

with? 

This is the 18th edition of the SPE OLEF 

series, and from the first edition the expansion 

into Deep Water, marginal fields policy, 

local content policy, the Gas Master Plan, 

Fiscal policy, cost effectiveness challenges 

in the Nigerian business environment, gas 

flaring policy, Regulations and transparency, 

energizing the full gas value chain (from 

producers to end users), amongst other 

critical topical issues, have helped to shape 

current and emerging policy directions in 

Nigeria. 

Of note is the Ministry of Petroleum Resources 

consolidation of a lot of these issues 

into the ‘7 Big Wins’ policy document that is 

being driven with such energy and passion 

by the Honorable Minister of State for Petroleum 

Resources, Dr. Emmanuel Ibe Kachikwu, 

with the support of the GMD NNPC, Dr. 

Kachalla Maikanti Baru and the heads of 

parastatals within the Ministry of Petroleum 

Resources. 

The major challenge is the stability and 

sustainability of these policies beyond the 

term of office of the key drivers, and this is 

where SPE and similar professional organizations 

like NAPE, NMGS, NSE, NAE, PET- 

AN, OGTAN etc. can play a major role. 

How has Society of Petroleum Engineers 

(SPE) a global professional association 

impacted the Nigerian oil and gas 

sector generally? 

The SPE is a non-profit and apolitical 

professional organization, regulated by international 

best practices through the SPE 

International (established in 1957). We are 

therefore in a unique position to provide 

unbiased advice to the authorities for the 

better good of Nigeria, without the accusa- 

tion of working in our own, or anyone else’s, 

personal interest. In addition, we provide 

an international perspective, through both 

our relationship with SPEI, but especially 

through a lot of our members who have 

many decades of experience working internationally. 

Of recent, as noted, many policy 

directions the Nigerian Government have 

taken are supported either indirectly by SPE 

NC or directly through our members who 

consult for both the National Assembly and 

the Federal Executive. 

This international perspective is perfectly 

balanced with our local knowledge and 

provides a powerful tool to influence and 

support Government policy. Of note is our 

ability to attract foreign direct investments 

(FDIs) to Nigeria through our annual flagship 

event, the SPE Nigerian Annual International 

Conference and Exhibition, which 

has been a resounding success in bringing 

the World to Nigeria. 

In line with this, the very successful Nigeria 

International Petroleum Submit (NIPS) 

championed by the Honorable Minister 

of State for Petroleum Resources, and held 

from 18 – 22 February in the ICC Abuja, had 

SPE NC Resource persons supporting this 

event. 

Within the country, we continue to provide 

world class courses at heavily subsidized 

rates (sometimes entirely free) 

through our Distinguished lecture series 

(about 10 a year), monthly Technical sessions 

across the five sections in Nigeria 

(Abuja, Lagos, Port-Harcourt, Benin & Warri), 

short courses by our most experienced 

members, a Professional Development program 

for our ‘members in transition’ and an 

annual Students Technical Symposium & 

Exhibition (STSE – hosted by the Nile University 

of Nigeria, Abuja from 15 -17 March 

2018). 

These courses cover technical and commercial 

areas in the oil & gas business, but 

also ethical and strategic leadership courses 

to prepare the next generation of practitioners 

in the industry for the challenges 

ahead. 

We also have embedded in SPE, the 

Committee of Heads of Petroleum Engineering 

Departments (CHPED) which is 

rebuilding the curriculum for Petroleum 

Engineering in Nigerian Institutions, in collaboration 

with the Nigerian Society of Engineers 

(NSE) and as directed by the Council 

of Registered Engineers (COREN), to ensure 

graduates of Petroleum Engineering are ‘industry-ready’. 

We are also socially responsible 

through our various charity events across 

all our sections, outreach programs in primary, 

secondary and tertiary institutions 

that teach about the responsible uses of 

Energy. 

Finally, SPE NC is collaborating with the 

NCDMB to create an indigenous R&D environment 

and culture, which will ensure 

technology adaptation (utilizing our vast local 

resources) and innovation keep Nigeria 

at pace with, or ahead of, the fast-changing 

world of technology. 

What make the theme of OLEF 2018 

relevant at this time? 

In line with our well-established tradition, 

this year’s SPE OLEF is themed along 

a critical and topical issue ‘’The Nigerian 

Oil Industry in a World of Changing Energy 

Supply: Are we prepared?’ 

It has become clear that, with anticipated 

growth in energy demand, the world 

is rapidly moving towards an age of cleaner 

sources of energy. For fossil fuels, this will 

mean a greater reliance on gas and less reliance 

on oil and, especially, coal. In addition, 

hydroelectric and gas powered cars will replace 

diesel engines and, with time, gasoline 

engines. 

Add to this the growing investments in 

renewable sources of energy such as Solar 

and wind, and it becomes evident that Nigeria 

must rethink (or rejig) its energy policy to 

solidify on the gains in the oil & gas industry 

(the 7 Big Wins), and leverage on these 

learnings to prepare for an energy mix that 

will become less reliant on the more polluting 

fossil fuels. 

There are many opinions on how long reliance 

on fossil fuels will last- many of these 

opinions are predicated on the huge remaining 

resources of oil and gas. However, 

one must note the oft quoted statement that 

‘the stone age did not end because mankind 

ran out of stones, and the oil age will 

end long before we run out of oil’. The pressure 

from the next generation of leaders will 

drive technological advances that will result 

in less reliance on environmental damaging 

energy, and we (Nigeria) must be ready 

now. 

Fate has played a major role in ensuring 

that we can stay ahead – abundant energy 

from the sun, wind energy in many Northern 

parts of the country and an estimated 

190Tcf of gas (and prospective resources 

that could be as high as 600Tcf), 

What do you see in the future for SPE 

and the Oil sector in Nigeria in the few 

years you have lead the society? 

The SPE will continue to play a strong role 

in policy direction and execution through 

ensuring that the outcome of its engagements 

are well documented and presented 

to the authorities, encouraging its members 

to provide the expertise in their field/s to 

Government either through consultancy 

or service, provide forums for bringing the 

world to Nigeria and Nigeria to the world, 

collaborating with Government agencies 

in such areas as indigenizing R&D capacity 

and capability, supporting the provision of 

pedagogical aids to Universities and Training 

Institutes, ensuring the curriculum for 

PE & Geosciences and related disciplines 

in the University delivers industry-ready 

graduates and supporting the strategic and 

ethical leadership of the next generation of 

entrepreneurs, employers and workers in 

the energy industry. All aligned with the ‘7 

Big Wins’.



C002D5556 

WEST AFRICA 


Brief 

TOTAL Nigeria presents Starter Packs 

to graduands of its 2016/17 Skills 

Acquisition Beneficiaries 

Total Nigeria has 

presented Starter 

Packs to 2016/17 

Skiils Acquisition 

beneficiaries in Koko, 

Delta State. 

During the presentation 

event, Jean-Philippe 

Torres, managing director, 

TOTAL Nigeria PLC 

said that building strong 

partnerships for sustainable 

development is part 

of Total Nigeria Plc’s corporate 

philosophy and 

one that is central to all 

our decision making processes. 

“Our societal approach 

to corporate social responsibility 

aims at building 

strong relationships 

with our stakeholders 

through structured and 

constructive dialogue, 

and addressing the identified 

need areas from our 

shared perspectives. This 

helps us to better understand 

our stakeholders’ 

expectations, and where 

legitimate, meet them”, 

said Torres. 

Torres said that capacity 

building provides more 

sustainable contribution 

to economic and social 

development of people 

and communities, than 

support to investments or 

running cost. 

The Total Skills Acquisition 

Program is 

a sustainable youth 

development scheme 

were less privileged 

youths of our host communities 

are trained 

in vocations of their 

choice which include 

Welding & Fabrication, 

Furniture Making, Hair 

Dressing, Fashion & Designing, 

Fish farming, 

Computer Studies. 

Graduands of the 

program undergo a 

screening and pre-selection 

process prior to 

their placements in certified 

training centers. 

Training materials and 

allowances are provided 

for them and their trainers 

to ensure they are 

well equipped with the 

necessary learning tools 

throughout the duration 

of their training. 

Upon completion of the 

training, which usually 

spans one year, Total 

Nigeria Plc fully establishes 

these youths in 

their various vocational 

fields by providing them 

with tools and resources 

by way of Starter packs 

being presented here 

today. 

Albert Mabuyaku (Corporate Affairs Manager) and Chinwe 

Ifechigha (Corporate Social Responsibilty Manager) of Total 

Nigeria Plc present Starter Packs for the Skills Acquisition 

Program in Koko, Delta State. 

finance people 

appointments 

Sea Trucks Group debunks WAV allegation 

Sea Trucks Group 

(STG) have debunked 

recent 

media reports 

alleging that 

expatriates brought on 

board to manage West 

African Ventures (WAV), 

a Nigerian company providing 

offshore engineering 

services, have allegedly 

conspired to hijack the 

business from its owner. 

STG in a public statement 

stated that WAV has 

undertaken an untruthful 

press campaign to dispute 

this position adding that 

the STG and its subsidiaries 

are the legal owners of 

33 vessels that has been 

subject of dispute. The 

vessels; Jascon (“J”) Vessels 

J2, J3, J8, J9, J12, J23, 

J24, J26, J27, J30, J33, J39, 

J40, J45, J51, J52, J53, J55, 

J57, J60, J61, J62, J63, J64, 

J65, J67, J68, J69, and Walvis 

1, Walvis 5 and Maro, 

are all located in Nigeria. 

“Most if not all of the 

Vessels are subject to 

mortgages which Sea 

Trucks granted in 2013 in 

return for a US$575 mil- 

GE & Marinus Energy to build first-of-itskind 

waste gas to power plant in Ghana 

As developing 

countries embrace 

innovation 

that will guarantee 

faster solutions to energy 

challenges, GE Power 

and Marinus Energy announced 

a pilot project 

to capture Isopentane gas 

and use it as a fuel source 

for generating electricity. 

The Atuabo Waste 

to Power Independent 

Power Project will be the 

first TM2500 power plant 

in Sub-Saharan Africa to 

use Isopentane gas as a 

fuel source and will run 

on GE’s latest TM2500 gas 

turbines. This Isopentane 

gas would otherwise have 

been flared. 

“Not only is the Atuabo 

waste to power plant 

enabling our company 

to lead in innovative en- 

lion loan. STG is beneficially 

owned by Jacques 

Roomans. Despite recent 

allegations that he has 

unduly influenced by employees, 

Roomans had legal 

and practical control 

of Sea Trucks at the time 

it entered into the Loan, 

and at the time it went 

into default. 

In December 2016 as 

a consequence of the default 

and concerns over 

improper governance, 

Roomans and his partner 

ergy solutions in Ghana, 

but by using a fuel source 

which would otherwise 

have been flared as waste, 

we are further reducing 

emissions and costs,” said 

Mr. Fred Asamany, Strategic 

Advisor, Marinus Energy. 

“This is good for our 

were removed as directors 

of STG. In May 2017 

STG entered liquidation 

following attempts by 

Roomans to undermine 

Sea Truck’s business. 

Since then Roomans has 

had no direct involvement 

at all”, the company 

stated. 

The statement further 

went on to state that 

“Roomans also owns and 

controls WAV. WAV is not 

part of Sea Trucks as has 

been reported, but a sis- 

business, the climate and 

eliminates the potential 

environmental hazards 

facing the local community. 

GE is offering an innovative 

solution which 

gives us the confidence to 

move from pilot to commercial 

operations” he 

ter company by virtue 

of common ownership. 

Historically, WAV operated 

the Vessels (except 

J30), under various charter 

agreements with Sea 

Trucks. 

WAV’s refusal to comply 

with the terms of these 

charter agreements led 

the relevant Sea Trucks 

vessel owning companies 

to terminate the agreements 

in October 2017. 

WAV thus continues to 

illegally hold and utillise 

the Vessels (including the 

J30) which rightfully belong 

to Sea Trucks”. 

STG stated that “there 

is no foreign conspiracy, 

as WAV alleges, to rob 

WAV of its assets or render 

people unemployed. 

WAV does not own the 

Vessels, and upon recovery 

Sea Trucks will ensure 

that the Vessels will be 

available to service the 

needs of the Nigerian Oil 

and Gas industry under 

the management of indigenous 

Nigerian operators, 

safeguarding Nigerian interests 

and employment”. 

said. 

In the first phase, Atuabo 

will convert the Isopentane 

fuel into up to 25 

megawatts (MW) of power, 

generating enough electricity 

to supply power for 

more than 100,000 Ghanaian 

households. As additional 

gas is brought onshore, 

the plant is expected 

to add on additional gas 

generating units up to a 

capacity of 100 MW. Additional 

Isopentane fuel will 

eventually be stripped off 

an offshore gas supply and 

processed at Atuabo by the 

Ghana National Gas Company. 

The gas turbine will 

start on lean gas and transfer 

to the Isopentane mix 

over time, and the power 

plant is intended to operate 

at base load throughout 

its life.


marketinsight 

Decline in US crude stocks drives oil prices higher 

Decline in 

the US 

crude oil 

inventories 

n u d g e d 

oil prices higher, the 

US Energy Information 

Administration (EIA) 

data showed. Commercial 

crude stocks fell 1.6 

million barrels, or 0.4 

percent, to 420.5 million 

barrels for the week 

ending February 16, EIA 

data reported. However, 

the market expectation 

for crude inventories 

was an increase of 1.8 

million barrels. 

After crude stocks surprisingly 

fell against expectations, 

oil prices increased 

their gains. 

International oil 

benchmark Brent crude 

was trading at $66.28 a 

barrel with a 1.3 percent 

daily gain, while American 

benchmark West 

The Organization 

of the Petroleum 

Exporting Countries 

(OPEC) and 

participating non-OPEC 

countries achieved the 

highest level of 133 percent 

in January, OPEC announced. 

According to the statement, 

the Joint OPEC and 

Non-OPEC Ministerial 

Monitoring Committee 

(JMMC) declared that 

member and participating 

countries started 2018 

with an outstanding conformity 

level with their 

voluntary adjustments in 

production. 

“Throughout 2018, the 

JMMC will focus on striving 

to maintain or exceed 

full conformity by all participating 

countries,” the 

statement read. 

The JMMC expressed 

satisfaction with the overall 

results and stressed the 

importance of vigilance 

and the need to avoid 

complacency amid the 

recent market volatility. 

Texas Intermediate was 

at $62.70 per barrel with 

a 1.6 percent daily gain. 

“The performance was 

not uniform and conformity 

was boosted by 

several over-performing 

countries,” said the 

JMMC, which urged all 

participating countries 

to continue intensifying 

their collective and individual 

efforts to expedite 

the rebalancing of the oil 

market. 

“This solid performance 

during the first 

month of the second 

Strategic Petroleum 

Reserves, which are not 

included in the US com- 

mercial crude stocks, fell 

by 0.7 million barrels, or 

0.1 percent, to 664.9 million 

barrels for the week 

ending February 16, the 

EIA data showed. 

The US crude oil production 

decreased slightly 

by one thousand barrels 

per day (bpd) to 10.27 

million bpd for the week 

ending February 16, according 

to the EIA. 

Decline in crude output 

was caused by a fall 

in production in Alaska 

by 11,000 bpd to 508,000 

bpd. In the Lower 48 

states of the US, crude oil 

production increased by 

10,000 bpd to 9.76 million 

bpd. 

The US crude oil exports 

rose 722,000 bpd 

to 2.04 million bpd while 

imports of crude oil declined 

867,000 bpd to 7.02 

million bpd, according to 

the EIA data. 

Oil output cut records highest conformity level in January 2018 

year of the Declaration of 

Cooperation continues 

a remarkable upward 

trend seen throughout 

2017,” said the organization 

and added that it 

demonstrates the commitment 

of participating 

countries to the restoration 

of market stability, 

in the interests of producers, 

consumers and 

the global economy. The 

JMMC’s next meeting 

will be held in April, in 

Saudi Arabia. 

The first joint OPEC 

and Non-OPEC Producing 

Countries’ Ministerial 

Meeting was held on 

December 10, 2016 to 

accelerate the stabilization 

of the global oil market 

through adjustments 

in total oil production of 

around 1.8 million barrels 

per day. As a result, member 

and participating 

countries decided to adjust 

oil production from 

January 1. 

At the second joint 

ministerial meeting, held 

on May 25, participants 

decided to prolong the 

output deal for another 

nine months starting July 

1. Furthermore, at the 

third meeting on Nov. 30, 

the countries’ ministers 

agreed to extend the oil 

cut pact until 2018. 

The JMMC was established 

based on a decision 

taken following 

OPEC’s 171st ministerial 

conference on November 

30, 2016. 

C002D5556 

OPEC Flakes 

OPEC wants to 

ensure enough 

upstream investment 

to 

adequately supply the 

market in the decades to 

come, providing the impetus 

behind efforts to 

formalize its cooperation 

with Russia and other 

allies beyond their production 

cut agreement, 

Suhail al-Mazrouei, UAE 

energy minister said. 

Mazrouei holds the 

rotating OPEC presidency 

this year. He said 

finalizing a pact with 

non-OPEC partners on 

continued oil market 

management was a personal 

“aspiration” of his. 

But he had no details 

on what parameters the 

agreement would entail, 

saying it was still in the 

“draft stage” and needed 

to be discussed with other 

ministers. 

The minister reiterated 

that despite over 

107 percent compliance 

by OPEC/non-OPEC in 

2017, their job is not yet 

OPEC and its allies, 

including 

Russia, may 

next year ease 

the crude-output curbs 

that have helped prices 

recover from the worst 

crash in a generation, 

according to Khalid Al- 

Falih, Saudi Arabia’s oil 

minister. 

With the market moving 

toward equilibrium 

and bloated inventories 

shrinking, the next step 

for global producers 

BUSINESS DAY 

07 

WEST AFRICA 


OPEC seeks more upstream 

investment to meet future demand 

complete. “2018 is going 

to be a year of solid commitment,” 

he said. 

“The intention for the 

goal is to work together 

in the future to ensure we 

have enough adequate 

actions to help market 

stability.” 

“Let’s not assume 

there is something to be 

shared today,” Mazrouei 

had said earlier in the day 

“The level of understanding 

we have seen in this 

group and achieving a 

mutual interest has contributed 

to the balance 

in the market and also to 

the world economy, giving 

us hope that we can 

draft something that is 

acceptable to everyone.” 

OPEC, allies may ease output curbs 

will be to phase out the 

reductions, Khalid Al- 

Falih said. The nations 

taking part in the supply 

curbs are currently 

studying what a crude 

re-balancing will entail, 

and will announce their 

next steps once that is 

analyzed, he said. 

The production curbs 

may be eased “sometime 

in 2019, but we do not 

know when and we don’t 

know how,” Al-Falih said. 

“What we know is that 

it’s going to be done in a 

way that it will not in any 

way disturb the balance 

and undo the hard work 

since 2016.” 

A deal between the 

Organization of Petroleum 

Exporting Countries 

and its partners 

aimed at shrinking a 

global glut began in 2017 

and runs through the 

end of this year.



C002D5556 

WEST AFRICA 


In association with 

Cost of production key as Nigerian volumes task OPEC limits 

talking points 

ISAAC ANYAOGU 

Ibe Kachikwu, minister of state for 

petroleum resources in an interaction 

with journalists at the inaugural Nigeria 

International Petroleum Summit 

(NIPS) in Abuja last week told journalists 

that with about 500,000 bpd expected 

Engina FPSO and Zabazaba fields, cost of 

production has become critical to determine 

which volumes goes to the market. 

“We are still under the exemption, but the 

expectation looking at our numbers is that 

we should not exceed 1.8mbd. We have said 

that it covers pure crude, it does not cover 

condensates. A combination of both what 

we are producing today, which is in excess 

of 1.76mbd and the condensates which is in 

the region of 400,000 barrels will take us to 

the 2.2mbd. We are slightly below that and 

we will like to be able to move that. 

“Challenges will come when you then 

hit 2.5mbd. Egina has 200,000bd in the next 

couple of months (which is) the last quarter 

of this year, Zabazaba potentially late end of 

next year, another 250,000bd. So, you begin 

to struggle with what you do with those volumes 

and that is why I said today that it is a 

signal to oil companies that we are going to 

be watching cost. 

“I will hate to take a costly barrel to the 

market when I have a cheap barrel. So, what 

it means is that everybody needs to begin to 

drive down to that $15 (per barrel) concept 

that we have set as the ideal cost of production 

in this country, not $22 or $23. Like I 

said two of the companies have met that and 

we will like to get other companies to begin 

to do that. So, there will be incentives both 

in terms of your access to the market, our 

willingness to produce and also incentives 

in terms of what we are going to give to you 

for being a least-cost producer. We are going 

to work that out.” 

But the challenge is what becomes of 

the extra volumes the minister is proposing 

not to take to the market on account of their 

cost? Nigeria has one of the highest cost of 

production among OPEC peers and this 

largely due to risks involved in producing the 

volatile Niger Delta, regulatory uncertainties 

and multiple conflicting regulatory agencies 

which makes business planning impossible. 

It would seem pragmatic to deal with these 

issues first. 

The minister is proposing domestic utilisation. 

“Once we begin to hit the 2.5mbd, if 

these agreements were foreseeably to last 

for five years – I hope not, I hope the market 

would have become that tight that there 

would be need for agreements and we can 

produce freely. But assuming that it doesn’t 

and shale continues to surge and maintain 

the sort of equilibrium misbalance, then 

obviously, what we need to do is to begin to 

look at how do we process a huge amount 

of our oil. 

“Exporting crude is like exporting raw 

materials for our agricultural products, it is 

not the way to go. I will like to see a policy 

whereby oil companies begin to refine heavily, 

process heavily and take out their finished 

products. I am hoping that by the time we 

begin to hit those challenging numbers, local 

processing and refining would have improved 

to a level where in fact that is no longer an 

issue to us,” the minister said. 

However the challenge with this is a policy 

on petrol subsidy that makes it meaningless 

to produce locally. The critical action is to 

remove these subsidies and allow marketled 

pricing structure which can encourage 

domestic refining. While both strategies are 

sensible, but they cannot solve the problem 

because of the challenging operating environment.

BUSINESS DAY 

Opinion 

OPEYEMI AGBAJE 

opeyemiagbaje@rtcadvisory.com 

Nigeria’s current 

political and 

constitutional 

status quo is 

clearly and evidently 

unsustainable and the 

cries of “marginalization”, 

“secession”, “true federalism” 

and “sharia”; as well as abject 

socio-economic conditions 

of poverty, unemployment, 

rural misery and neglect, 

decrepit infrastructure and 

urban slums, militancy, insurrection 

and widespread 

insecurity being experienced 

all over Nigeria are symptoms 

of the nation’s critical 

dysfunctionality. The status 

quo is not an option and the 

nation must heed calls for 

“restructuring” or else serious 

problems may lie in the 

horizon. We must restructure 

Nigeria to re-establish the 

principles of federalism as 

our founding fathers freely 

decided in the negotiations 

that led to independence. 

That federal ideal was subverted 

by the military as they 

sought to transform Nigeria 

into a unitary state which 

now undermines Nigeria’s 

unity, stability and development. 

The alternative to a 

proactive embrace of “restructuring” 

may be ruinous 

NEWS YOU CAN TRUST I WEDNESDAY 28 FEBRUARY 2018 

The imperative of restructuring and federalism in Nigeria 

ment and dysfunction! 

The required restructuring 

of Nigeria is essentially to 

restore our federal structure 

and will involve devolution 

of powers back to the states 

or regions and drastic reduction 

of the matters contained 

in the exclusive legislative list 

in our constitution (which 

are restricted to the federal 

government) with more matters 

returning to the concurrent 

list (where federal 

and state/regional powers 

coexist) and residual powers 

reserved for the states. It 

would involve re-establishing 

fiscal federalism based 

on the principle of derivation 

including modifying the revenue 

allocation formula in 

favour of regions and states 

consistent with devolution 

of powers, and restoring 

state powers over sales tax 

(or VAT), inland waterways 

except the few that traverse 

two or more states, solid 

minerals and other matters 

best suited to state control. 

Matters like electricity transmission, 

ports and harbours 

and railways should become 

concurrent matters in which 

both regional/state and federal 

authorities can co-exist. 

The absurdity in which 

state legislatures can create 

crimes but state governments 

which have primary responsibility 

for law and order within 

their states do not have any 

mechanism for enforcing 

their laws would be rectified 

with the legalization of state 

police. There is no sensible 

rationale or justification for 

listing local governments 

in a federal constitutionthere 

should be only two or 

three tiers of government as 

is the global practice in federal 

constitutions-the federal, 

regional and state governments. 

We should reject the 

subtle attempt to recognize 

local governments as a thirdtier 

of government under the 

guise of “LG Autonomy” and 

view this attempt as a mischievous 

attempt to drive the 

nail in the coffin of Nigerian 

federalism. It is a strategy of 

“divide and rule…and conquer” 

which will finally destroy 

the concept of regions 

or states as federating units in 

Nigeria and foster a situation 

in which through movements 

of population, political control 

of any local government 

anywhere in the country can 

be achieved! In effect, “LG 

Autonomy” would turn out 

to be a strategy for achieving 

de facto “colonies” all over 

Nigeria!!! 

The Yoruba people unanimously 

decided at the historic 

Yoruba Summit of September 

7, 2017 at Adamasingba, 

Ibadan on federalism encompassing 

a six-region federal 

structure with federal, regional 

and state governments; 

regional constitutions, with 

power to create local governments 

vested in the states; 

and a revenue allocation 

formula weighted in favour 

of the states and regions. The 

Summit also unanimously 

agreed on a significantly narto 

the Nigerian state! 

With particular reference 

to the Yorubas of Western Nigeria, 

we recognize that it is 

not a mere co-incidence that 

our modern golden age was 

the period during which we 

enjoyed relative autonomy 

over our own affairs under a 

democratic, regional government 

and federal constitution 

under the leadership of 

Chief Obafemi Awolowo and 

later Chief Samuel Ladoke 

Akintola, until that era was 

truncated by military rule. 

It is not simply an accident 

of history that Cocoa House 

remains the tallest building 

in Ibadan; that Liberty 

Stadium,one of the most 

modern sporting edifices 

in the world when it was 

built, now lies desolate; that 

the Western Region which 

built the first television station 

in Africa, well before 

many European nations at 

the time does not now have 

any world-class broadcast 

media; that the wonderful 

University of Ife built by the 

Western Region government 

in 1962 is now simply another 

broken federal institution; 

and that our public education 

system lies in ruin with 

our young men and women 

unable to get the right skills 

and jobs!!! Without the freedom 

and autonomy to run 

our affairs, all of Nigeria 

has descended to a lowest 

common denominator of 

mediocrity, corruption, ignorance, 

idleness, disease, 

insecurity, under-developrower 

exclusive legislative list. 

There are strong economic 

arguments in favour of returning 

to a regional system 

of government based on the 

defacto six geo-political zones 

of South-West, South-South, 

South-East, North-Central, 

North-West and North-East 

with adjustments based on 

the wishes of the population 

in any local government or 

state as may be ascertained 

through a referendum or 

plebiscite. 

There are also economic 

arguments in favour of 

rationalizing the current 

excessively high cost of governance 

by returning to a 

parliamentary system of 

government at the federal, 

regional or state levels. A 

system in which only one set 

of elections into parliament 

are conducted; and then 

ministers are selected from 

elected parliamentarians as 

practiced in the first republic 

is cost-efficient, and more 

democratic and legitimate, 

and would strengthen our 

democracy. The practice of 

appointing persons who are 

unknown to the electorate as 

ministers or commissioners 

perpetuates corruption and 

distances government from 

the people who are the essence 

of democracy. 

As I wrote earlier, the 

calls for secession from “Biafra”; 

the calls for Sharia in 

the Muslim North-West and 

North-East; the grumbles 

in the Middle-Belt of Nigeria 

which is getting more 

Billy Graham, moral man and immoral society 

C002D5556 

intense with the killings by 

Fulani herdsmen; the unrest 

and militancy in the Niger- 

Delta; and the unceasing 

calls for “true federalism” 

in Western Nigeria are evidence 

that the status quo 

is unsustainable and about 

to collapse. The vision of a 

unitary Nigeria in which a 

minority seek to establish 

a permanent hegemony 

over the nation will not succeed 

and has produced only 

a corrupt, unproductive, 

unstable and disunited nation. 

It has produced “boko 

haram” in the North-East; 

sabotage and militancy in 

the Niger-Delta; widespread 

poverty, illiteracy and tens of 

millions of children outside 

schools in the North-West 

and North-East; murderous 

conflicts between Fulani 

herdsmen and farmers and 

indigenes across the whole 

country and particularly in 

the North-Central; disgruntlement 

in the South-West; 

and growing calls for secession 

and independence in 

the South-East. In the whole 

of Nigeria, all that unitarism 

has generated is poverty, 

unemployment, inequality, 

a massive infrastructure 

deficit and socio-political 

crises. There can be no justification 

for proceeding 

further on this path to ruin! 

*This article is the final 

instalment of a three-part 

series on the Yoruba Nation 

and the Quest to Re-establish 

Federalism in Nigeria. 

OBADIAH MAILAFIA 

Dr Mailafia is a development 

economist and a former Governor 

of the Central Bank of Nigeria. 

obmailafia@gmail.com. 

Reinhold Niebuhr 

was one of the most 

influential theologians 

and philosophers 

of the twentieth century. 

His famous book, Moral 

Man and Immoral Society: A 

Study in Ethics and Politics 

(Charles Scribner’s Sons 

1932), made a huge impact 

when it was published. His 

main thesis is that human 

beings are more prone to 

evil as a group rather than as 

individuals. Human beings 

may be selfish and wicked, 

but they can also reflect the 

better angels of our nature. 

For him, faith and individual 

agency are vital in the renewal 

of societies and nations. 

The book in many ways 

prefigured the emergence 

of Hitler and Nazism which 

plunged Europe into dark- 

ness for more than a decade. 

The American protestant 

pastor and evangelist 

Billy Graham who died last 

week epitomised the ideal 

of Nieburh’s moral man in 

an immoral and unjust society. 

Graham passed away 

peacefully in his sleep on 

Wednesday 21 February in 

his home in Montreat, North 

Carolina, USA, age 99. 

For everyone on earth 

that is live, there is a day to 

be born and a day to die. It 

is appointed to a man once 

to die, and then there comes 

the judgement, says the Old 

Book. Death sums up a human 

life more than anything 

else does. Death exposes the 

vanity of life. All the pomp 

and power and pageantry 

will come to an end sooner 

or later. For some, it comes 

peacefully in their sleep; 

for those less fortunate, it 

comes violently. It is often 

granted to the righteous to 

die peacefully. 

No one knows the day 

or hour. Indeed, the French 

writer and existential philosopher 

Albert Camus once 

declared that a man has never 

started to live until he has 

come to terms with his mortality. 

It was perhaps for this 

reason that the old psalmist 

in the Old Testament Bible 

counsels everyone to number 

their days “that they 

may apply themselves unto 

wisdom. 

William Franklin Graham 

Jr was born on 7 November 

1918 on a dairy farm outside 

Charlotte, North Carolina, of 

Scottish-Irish Presbyterian 

stock. Graham was brought 

up on a diet of rural Calvinistic 

values. He had to 

wake up at 2.30 am to milk 

the cows and shovel off tons 

of manure. At a tent revival 

organised by the travelling 

evangelist Modercai Ham, 

the sixteen year Graham 

made the life-changing decision 

to commit his life Jesus 

Christ as Lord and Saviour. 

In 1936 he enrolled at Bob 

Jones College, a Christian 

liberal arts institution in 

Greenville, South Carolina, 

but soon left because he 

found the atmosphere rather 

stifling. The following year he 

transferred to Florida Bible 

Institute, where he apparently 

bloomed. He found in 

his new academic home “a 

unity of God’s people who 

sincerely held Jesus at the 

centre of their lives”. During 

a solitary walk in the woods 

one evening, he knelt down 

and offered his future and 

destiny to serve the Lord 

as pastor and evangelist if 

this was His will for his life. 

Happy is the young man who 

discovers his life-purpose 

and vocation early enough. 

Graham was one of those 

lucky ones. Barely in his 

teens, he declared: “My one 

purpose in life is to help 

people find a personal relationship 

with God, which, 

I believe, comes through 

knowing Christ.” In February 

1939 he was ordained as 

a Southern Baptist minister. 

He later proceeded to the 

better-known Wheaton College 

Illinois, where he graduated 

in 1943, majoring in 

anthropology -- a discipline 

that broadened his mind and 

enabled him to see beyond 

the narrow waspish culture 

of his forebears. At Wheaton 

he also met the woman that 

would become his wife, Ruth 

Bell, daughter of medical 

missionaries in China. It was 

a marriage made in heaven. 

In 1944 Billy Graham began 

his ministry as a pastor 

with the Youth for Christ 

evangelistic mission. In 1950 

he founded the Billy Graham 

Evangelistic Association, 

BGEA. His style combined 

the traditional open tent 

crusades in football stadiums 

with broadcasting in 

radio and television in over 

140 countries. He ministered 

directly to more than 

200 million people, and, 

indirectly, 2 billion. Some 

3 million people are said to 

have responded directly to 

his altar calls. 

Billy Graham has won 

more souls to Christ than any 

single individual in history. 

His secret lay in a simple 

message: “Jesus loves you. 

Let Him into your life and 

your sins will be forgiven.” He 

often startled his audience 

with a rather unsettling question: 

“What would happen to 

you if you died on your way 

home?” It was an existential 

question that demanded 

an existential decision. For 

decades his Hour of Decision 

broadcast, delivered in 

a uniquely mellifluous voice, 

haunted listeners throughout 

the world. A mentor of 

mine, a brilliant chemical 

engineer, confessed to me 

that after listening to the 

Hour of Decision in his undergraduate 

dorm room in 

Ile-Ife in the early seventies, 

knelt down and tearfully surrendered 

his life to Christ. 

Graham’s secrets lay in 

the simplicity of his message, 

his purity of soul and the radiance 

of a consecration that 

shone through his persona 

-- a man with no guile. He 

preached a simple gospel 

of grace, repentance and 

holiness. He was steadfast 

in avoiding the scandals over 

money and sex that bedevilled 

tele-evangelists such as 

Jim Bakker and Jimmy Swaggart. 

He made it a policy never 

to be found alone in a car 

or room with another female 

other than his wife -- later to 

be known as “the Billy Graham 

Rule”. He also empowered 

the BGEA board with 

strong leaders while placing 

himself on a fixed, modest 

salary. All the funds from his 

speaking engagements and 

books went to God’s work 

and for humanitarian action. 

He never boasted of miracles 

nor did he pitch his faith on 

prophecy. He preached a 

simple message of faith, love, 

repentance, forgiveness and 

salvation. 

How I wish our avaricious 

and grasping “General Overseers” 

in Nigeria could learn 


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BusinessDay 28 Feb 2018

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