Monday <strong>16</strong> <strong>Apr</strong>il <strong>2018</strong> BUSINESS DAY A11
A12 NEWS BUSINESS DAY C002D5556 Adeosun, Emefiele join economic experts to discuss global issues at IMF/World Bank meeting Minister of finance, Kemi Adeosun, and Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) governor, Godwin Emefiele, left Nigeria for Washington DC on Sunday to join other economic experts from around the world to discuss issues affecting global economy. Discussions would take place under the auspices of the World Bank Group and the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The Spring Meetings of the IMF and the World Bank will bring together central bankers, ministers of finance and development, parliamentarians, private sector executives, representatives from civil society organisations and the academia. The experts will discuss issues of global concern, including the world economic outlook, poverty eradication, economic development and aid effectiveness. There will also be seminars, regional briefings, press conferences and many other events with focus on global economy, international development and the world’s financial system. The meetings will hold between <strong>Apr</strong>il <strong>16</strong> and <strong>Apr</strong>il 22, <strong>2018</strong>. Nigeria attends the meet- ing each year because of the quantum of investments and assistance it receives from both the IMF and the World Bank. Although Nigeria currently has zero loans with the IMF, it enjoys technical support from the organisation. The World Bank Group on the other hand is helping to fight poverty and improve living standards in the country through 33 Core Knowledge Product Reports and 29 ongoing National and Regional projects. This is in addition to about 60 Trust Funds. The World Bank Group since 1958 supported Nigeria with loans and International Development Association (IDA) credits worth about $14.2 billion. The group in 2017 fiscal year alone committed $1.51 billion to the country, and so far in <strong>2018</strong>, it already spent $486 million on different development projects across the country. Some of the projects include Electricity Transmission Project, Agro-Processing, Productivity Enhancement and Livelihood Improvement Support Project, Polio Eradication Support Project and Housing Finance Development Programme, among Capital market plan to top discussions as SEC holds first CMC meeting for <strong>2018</strong> ONYINYE NWACHUKWU, Abuja Progress made so far on the capital market master plan implementation and other market initiatives will top discussions as the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) holds its first Capital Market Committee (CMC) meeting for <strong>2018</strong>. The meeting is scheduled to hold in Lagos from <strong>Apr</strong>il 19 to 20. The ten-year plan for the Nigerian capital market, which is expected to help refocus and double the market size as well as grow the economy, was unveiled November 2014. The Commission has so far implemented some initiatives in the Master Plan with the aim of attracting more investors to the market. Some of the initiatives include direct cash settlement, dematerialisation and e-Dividend Registration, as they promote transparency, protect and enhance investors’ confidence in the capital market. Mary Uduk, who was appointed last Friday by minister of finance, Kemi Adeosun, to take over as SEC’s acting director-general, is expected to chair the meeting. Uduk took over from Abdul Zubair, who Adeosun redeployed to external relations department of the SEC. Those who have been invited to attend the expanded session are chief executive officers (CEOs) of all registered capital market firms, including Broker Dealer, Capital Market Solicitors, Custodians, Fund Managers, Issuing Houses, Rating Agencies, Registrars, Reporting Accountants, Trustees, and Consultants, etc. Others are CEOs of the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), National Association of Securities Dealers (NASD), The Financial Markets Dealers Quotations (FMDQ), Africa Exchange Holdings (AFEX), Nigeria Commodity Exchange (NCX), Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS), Chartered Institute of Stockbrokers (CIS); as well as representatives of relevant Financial Services’ Agencies, among others. Monday <strong>16</strong> <strong>Apr</strong>il <strong>2018</strong> Kenya Airways sacks 86% of its Nigerian employees ... unions to picket airline operations IFEOMA OKEKE East African carrier, Kenya Airways, weekend, sacked 22 out of its 26 Nigerian employees, representing 86.4 percent of the affected workers. A source close to the airline told <strong>BusinessDay</strong> that the staff members were issued the disengagement letters at the airline’s office in Lagos, in the presence of stern looking police officers that were engaged by the airline to scare away the affected staff and prevent possible breakdown of law and order. Only four of its Nigerian staff members are retained by the management of the airline after the purging exercise. Those retained are Afeez Balogun, country manager, the station manager, and two other staff. The source disclosed that the affected workers were only given four weeks wages on disengagement, a situation the industry unions are already frowning at. It was gathered that the abrupt sack of the Nigerian workers happened when the airline was still negoti- ating the new condition of service with the industry unions. The source said the carrier’s management took the decision without taking into consideration the Nigerian Labour Laws, which kick against unilateral decision by employers when disengaging workers. It was learnt that plans had also reached an advanced stage by the management of the airline to replace the sacked workers with casuals, as it had already contracted engagement of new workers to a general sales agent in the country. However, there are indications that the sack of the workers may cause disruption to the smooth operations of the airline today (Monday), as the unions have prepared to picket the operations of the airline. Olayinka Abioye, general secretary, National Union of Air Transport Employees (NUATE), confirmed the sack of the 22 workers, saying however that the unilateral sack of the workers by the airline would not be allowed to stand by the industry unions.