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+{"doc_id": "017380aa0fae8fa6357d8f60dadd7bd7", "text": "World Diabetes Day\n23 Nov\nDiabetes Association of Nigeria, Ondo State chapter, has raised concerns over the large number of Nigerians living with undiagnosed diabetes, stressing the potential for severe complications if left unattended. The chairman of the association in the state, Dr. Adenike Enikuomehin, issued the warning during a sensitization visit to Aquinas College, Akure, the state capital, on…\n15 Nov\nEight in 10 people living with diabetes (80 per cent) in Nigeria only know, after developing complications associated with the condition. Moreover, almost all (94 per cent) of those surveyed in the country have experienced one or more complications...\nLatest\n1 hour ago\nTerrorism in 2023 has remained a global threat as a record of 8,352 deaths representing 22 per cent increase from the previous year remains the highest, since 2017.\n1 hour ago\n• NEMA denies attack on Abuja facility • Police arrest 15 suspected warehouse vandals in FCT • Shettima: Protest against hardship in a responsible manner The reality of Nigeria’s grim food insecurity exacerbated by rising food cost became apparent yesterday when hoodlums in Abuja went on a looting spree, carting away food items from public and private facilities.…\n1 hour ago\nFoundation member of All Progressives Congress(APC), Osita Okechukwu,has saidthe 36 state governors should be held responsible for the setback recorded in restructuring the country.\n1 hour ago\nHouse of Representatives Committee on Public Accounts has asked private airlines to explain how they expended N4 billion they collected from the Federal Government as COVID-19 intervention funds or refund the money to the government treasury.\n2 hours ago\nNigeria Union of Journalists has conferred its Internal Security Meritorious Award on the Chairman of Tantita Security Services, Government Ekpemupolo, alias Tompolo.\n2 hours ago\nNo fewer than 600 African and Australian governments, private sector executives, investors, multilateral stakeholders, business leaders, innovators and manufacturers are expected to gather in Melbourne, Australia from May 12 to 14, 2024 for this year’s Australia-Africa Business Summit.\n2 hours ago\nWith the increase in value for personal development, motivational experts have said self-awareness and mindset are crucial to achieving individual growth.\n2 hours ago\nNigeria Navy Dockyard Limited and its Benin Republic counterpart weekend at Yaoundé signed an agreement that would empower the Naval Dockyard to carry out repair works on six of its non-functional platforms.\n2 hours ago\nNational Institute of Credit Administration (NICA) has promised to boost awareness on consumer credit services, urging the Federal Government to enforce appropriate laws that will instill decency, discipline and honesty in Nigeria’s credit system", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://guardian.ng/tag/world-diabetes-day/"}

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+{"doc_id": "018d5e5734f042221649afc80606d22c", "text": "The G-20’s upcoming meeting in Brisbane, Australia, comes at a time when a precarious global economy requires big decisions to be made. But it is far from clear who will provide the decisive voice needed to set a bold agenda – and then shepherd its implementation.\nEconomic data reveal that the global economy is shakier than at any time in the past two years. Capitalism is struggling to generate adequate demand. Wealth and income have become increasingly concentrated, while middle-class incomes in the developed world have stagnated. Tax avoidance by multinational companies is draining developing-country incomes, limiting their ability to invest in education and infrastructure. And much more action is needed to address the largest and most urgent structural weakness of all – climate change.\nMany leading economists and policymakers are forecasting continued economic gloom. Stephen Roach has suggested that in the post-crisis global economy “relapse is the rule”; economist Brad DeLong, speaking of the “consequences of our lesser depression,” argues that the pretense of a eurozone recovery has collapsed; and European Central Bank President Mario Draghi has acknowledged the need not only for structural reform, but also fiscal expansion to boost aggregate demand.\nAt the heart of their concerns is the lack of sustained demand needed to drive growth. While structural reforms – particularly on the supply side – are required in developed and developing countries, they are not sufficient to address what former US Treasury Secretary Larry Summers has called “secular stagnation” – that is, the difficulty of sustaining sufficient demand to permit normal levels of output.\nThe G-20’s central task, therefore, must be to establish a framework for strong and sustainable growth. Member states need to introduce reforms aimed at achieving a 2% annual growth target, as agreed earlier this year by finance ministers.\nOne structural reform that could drive global growth is substantial infrastructure investment in developing and developed countries alike. Unfortunately, no G-20 leader has seriously articulated this need, let alone lobbied for a solution. Apart from a World Bank presentation for a possible pilot infrastructure program, there is little to suggest how the 2% target could be met over the medium term.\nG-20 governments, especially those with strong balance sheets, should be calling for large-scale public and private infrastructure investment to expand the productive capacity of member economies. In the area of tax avoidance, discussion needs to broaden beyond developed economies; as the International Monetary Fund recently pointed out, developing economies’ budgets are disproportionately affected by multinational companies’ savvy accounting strategies.\nUnfortunately, judging by the initiatives already on the Brisbane agenda, the summit looks set to take a business-as-usual approach. If the G-20 fails to put policy meat on its rhetorical bones, it will risk looking weak and irrelevant. Its very credibility is on the line. Indeed, some in the developed world would prefer a smaller, more exclusive body – a G-14 or even a new G-7. Such a move would hurt the developing world, especially the Asia-Pacific region, including Australia.\nOne reason why some want a tighter group is that the G-20 struggles to achieve consensus. But this misses the point: It is harder to reach agreement precisely because all of the key leaders (representing around two-thirds of the world’s population and 80% of global GDP), whose support is needed for any truly global decision, are in the room.\nThe Brisbane Summit therefore needs to rediscover the activism that it displayed in 2008 and 2009, during the height of the financial crisis. It must be led by the United States and other advanced economies, and backed up by major emerging economies.\nAustralia, as host, also has a role to play. The country is respected by developed and developing countries alike, often bridging the interests of both, and is widely viewed as an honest broker.\nUnfortunately, the current government has had little to say about the big structural problems that underlie the world’s economic malaise. The modest initiatives on the table reflect the government’s anti-public-sector rhetoric. Worse, as developed and developing countries are starting to take climate change seriously, Australia is moving in the opposite direction.\nThe Brisbane summit will be a crucial test for Australia, the G-20, and the possibility of truly global policy coordination.\nWayne Swan", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://businessday.ng/analysis/article/the-g-20-to-the-rescue/"}

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+{"doc_id": "03331a1fe536acaddea581d635367e88", "text": "Maternal/ newborn deaths\n17 Aug 2023\nLatest figures from the World Health Organisation (WHO) indicate that Nigeria is the country with the second highest maternal and newborn deaths in the world. It is estimated that 58,000 women die yearly in Nigeria as a result of childbirth. As part of efforts to reverse the trend, the Federal Government had in June, last…\nLatest\n10 mins ago\nProf. Ango Abdullahi, a member of the Northern Elders Forum, has endorsed moves by some lawmakers to return Nigeria to the Parliamentary System of Government.\n31 mins ago\nAfrica’s top ten songs to hit their peak have been carefully curated for you, with each topping the charts at different times of the week. they are the most streamed on major platforms like Spotify and Billboard. Tyla’s grammy winning “Water” caps it on the Billboard dominating Nigeria's Grammy nominees, Ayra Star, Tems and Burnaboy.…\n32 mins ago\nTo some extent, the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) and the Defence Headquarters (DHQ) play strategic roles in ensuring that the public is adequately informed about the efforts and accomplishments of the security services, especially ongoing military operations. Behind the scenes, the National Security Adviser (NSA), Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, facilitates inter-agency collaboration and…\n1 hour ago\nThe Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, said the government is implementing solutions to ease the hardship being experienced by citizens. Edun in an interview with Channels TV addressed several issues impacting Nigeria's economy, including rising inflation, food insecurity, and support for vulnerable groups. He acknowledged the rising cost of…\n2 hours ago\nCalvin Bassey said Fulham will head to Old Trafford with a positive mindset that they can defeat Manchester United in an English Premier League encounter on Saturday. Bassey who recently returned from the 2023 African Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Ivory Coast said this during an interview with the official Fulham website on Thursday. “We…\n2 hours ago\nAlex Iwobi says that he and his colleagues at Fulham will analyze Manchester United and see where they can hurt the Red Devils when both sides clash this weekend. Iwobi is set to make his 20th Premier League appearance of the 2023/24 season when Fulham visit the in-form Manchester United at Old Trafford on Saturday…\n3 hours ago\nFormer president of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Olumide Akpata, has emerged the flagbearer for Labour Party (LP) ahead of the September 2024 governorship election in Edo State. Akpata polled 316 votes to secure the ticket in the primary held in Benin City, Edo State on Friday. Deputy Governor of Abia State Ikechukwu Emeta announced…\n3 hours ago\nGunmen, driving in a Sienna Bus, fired at police officers conducting a stop and search operation in Port Harcourt, killing one officer in the process.\n3 hours ago\nRenowned Single Malt Scotch Whisky, Glenmorangie hosted an exclusive VIP experience for its esteemed guests at the 2024 NPA Lagos International Polo Tournament, spanning a three-week period from February 3rd to 18th, 2024. The day’s affair took place in an outdoor terrace for an up-close view of the game. Guests were treated to an exclusive…", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://guardian.ng/tag/maternal-newborn-deaths/"}

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+{"doc_id": "07bd913960dd853fd38417922ee43242", "text": "Budding Nigerian financial technology firm, TeamApt, has disclosed ongoing plans to expand its oepration into Latin America countries by the third quarter of the year.\nThe company’s Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Mr Tosin Eniolorunda, made the disclosure recently during an interview. According to Mr Eniolorunda, the company intends to push growth in other areas and expand its internal operations.\nThe company recently raised $5.5 million – TeamApt, which was founded in 2015, develops digital banking and payments infrastructure solutions. In February this year, it raised the sum of $5.5-million in a Series-A round led by Nigerian private equity firm Quantum Capital Partners, last month.\nThe money will facilitate the expansion effort – Mr Eniolorunda Techcrunch that it will use the funding to expand its white label digital finance products and pivot to consumer finance with the launch of its AptPay banking app.\nAlready present in such African countries as Ghana, Kenya, Liberia, and South Africa, TeamApt is also looking to enter Senegal, Cameroon, and Ethiopia by the second quarter of this year and Latin American country by the third quarter, with plans to scale to Canada and the US by the first quarter of 2020.\nHow was TeamApt founded – TeamApt CEO Eniolorunda speaking with Ventureburn said he always had a niche for fixing things and have always seen himself as an engineer and entrepreneur.\nStarting his tech entrepreneurship right from his junior secondary school, where he fixes electronics, to his university days where he sells hardware and software projects to fellow students even companies, Eniolorunda said all that grew his entrepreneurship drive.\nIn 2009, Eniolorunda joined Interswitch, a Lagos-based payment processing firm as a software engineer, and in 2014 he was raised to the position of a product manager.\nWhile he was at Interswitch, he designed and built a virtual machine for point of sales (POS). Through the knowledge he got with the project, Eniolorunda became more interested in creating value to financial prosperity.\nAfterward, he added he left Interswitch to start up his own firm TeamApt in other to maintain his identity and follow his dreams.\nDownload Nairametrics App for breaking news and market intelligence.", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://nairametrics.com/2019/03/15/nigerian-fintech-teamapt-to-expand-to-the-americas-later-this-year/"}

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+{"doc_id": "0982dfbfd9ddc1e6cdda6caf20ef8734", "text": "Energy access crucial to achieving SDGS in africa, says Seplat boss\nAccess to affordable, reliable and sustainable energy is crucial to Africa achieving all 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Also, energy access would be the biggest driver of social and economic development in Africa going forward.\nThe Chief Executive Officer, Seplat Energy Plc, Roger Brown said this at the opening ceremony of the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE) Nigeria Annual International Conference & Exhibition (NAICE) 2023 in Lagos.\nHe, therefore, emphasised the need to create a resilient and efficient power grid and an attractive regulatory and pricing regime to encourage investment and innovation across the energy value chain.\nHe said: “It is important to recognise that gas has a place as a transition fuel and Africa has a right to use its resources. The country needs to encourage off-grid solutions for remote areas, leapfrog technologies by moving straight to renewables where it makes sense, and develop sales and distribution infrastructure for clean cooking fuel like bottled gas,” Brown said.\n“Pricing must balance affordable energy with attractive returns for the companies providing it. We have to improve governance and attractiveness of African energy providers to ensure lowest cost of capital. There is the need to also increase investment in African energy from just three per cent of global energy investment today. Cleaner cooking fuel must be a more attractive proposition than collecting wood, which is free,” he added.\nGlobal investment needed to achieve net zero target by 2050 is projected at $3.5 trillion per annum (around 1.3% of annual global GDP), Brown said, pointing out that the headline figure hides some divergent dynamics and frictions.\nHe called for allocation of capital to developing economies, which will be responsible for most of the growth in emissions, reallocation of capital away from hydrocarbon sector (divestment, restricting capital, engagement), and allocation of capital to low-carbon technologies.\nSpeaking on the need to ensure sustainability, the Seplat boss said that increasing Africa’s access to energy should not come at the expense of the environment.\n“Africa has huge natural gas resources that can be utilised to deliver significant social and economic gains at low cost to the environment. Renewables were essential to achieve universal energy access across Africa. Africa also has significant mineral resources essential for batteries and fuel cells,” he explained.\nBrown noted that: “Delivering universal access to energy across Africa will deliver huge social and economic benefits. But it will only be attractive if governments can create the right pricing and regulatory regimes to make it both attractive to invest, and affordable for consumers. Africa has the right to develop and must use its natural resources to do that.\n“The transition cannot be funded solely by debt. Access to energy and energy security is critical and Africa needs affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern electricity for all as SDG7.”\nNigeria, he stated, needs to move away from reliance on diesel/petrol generators; as such a move would improve health, and lower cost of electricity, which is severely holding back development in all sectors.\n“Gas is the transition solution. Upstream oil and gas development is critical to fund the transition but needs to be much more efficient, as we need to eliminate theft, flaring, leaks, and operate with lower carbon intensity. Africa needs to balance the environment and social development and North and South must work together in a balanced way, which means we must balance energy security with affordability and sustainability,” the Seplat boss advised.\nGet the latest news delivered straight to your inbox every day of the week. Stay informed with the Guardian’s leading coverage of Nigerian and world news, business, technology and sports.", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://guardian.ng/business-services/energy-access-crucial-to-achieving-sdgs-in-africa-says-seplat-boss/"}

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+{"doc_id": "09f759c2979b979bb9f66610ca78bdd7", "text": "Justice Mary Odili\n3 Jul 2023\nThe suspension of the Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele and his subsequent arrest and detention by the Department of State Services (DSS) may appear plausible, even predictable to many Nigerians who readily blame the apex banker for their financial woes, particularly in the last days of former President Muhammadu Buhari government.\nLatest\n4 mins ago\nEverton's penalty for breaching Premier League financial rules has been reduced from 10 points to six following an appeal, the English top flight announced on Monday.\n7 mins ago\nThe Ogun State Government has warned its residents about a misleading message circulating online on the offer of N10,000 in cash palliatives per person from Governor Dapo Abiodun. The message reportedly appeared on various social media platforms, prompting individuals to apply for the proposed cash palliative through a provided link. Abiodun's spokesperson, Kayode Akinmade, in…\n16 mins ago\nChris Gauthier, a Canadian actor known for his roles in “Once Upon a Time,” “Smallville,” and “Eureka,” has tragically passed away at the age of 48. According to his management, Gauthier passed away due to an unspecified short illness. In a heartfelt statement posted on Facebook, Chad Colvin from TriStar Appearances confirmed the devastating news.…\n21 mins ago\nIn an interview with OAP Dotun on Cool FM, rising Nigerian artist Logos Olori disclosed that he is the mastermind behind Davido’s Grammy-nominated hit song “Unavailable.” Logos Olori, born Olamilekan Emeka Taiwo, is a singer and songwriter signed to Davido’s record label, DMW. During the interview, he spilled the beans on how “Unavailable” came to…\n55 mins ago\nThe National Examinations Council (NECO), has released the 2023 Senior School Certificate Examination (SSCE), external results with a total of 50,066, out of 74,342 candidates, representing 67.35 per cent, securing five credits and above including English Language and Mathematics.\n1 hour ago\nNigeria Africa Cup of Nations stars Calvin Bassey and Alex Iwobi scored as Fulham shocked Manchester United 2-1 in the Premier League at the weekend.\n1 hour ago\nAn attack on a mosque in eastern Burkina Faso has killed dozens of Muslims on the same day as another deadly attack on Catholics attending mass, local and security sources told AFP on Monday.\n1 hour ago\nDrinking Ice water is back, but it's definitely not one naira, as it was during the early 80’s and late 90s. Nigerians are surely reacting to this latest development. The current economic conditions have pushed Nigerians resorting back to their old styles, currently the NBS report placed Nigeria’s food inflation on an all time high.…", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://guardian.ng/tag/justice-mary-odili/"}

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+{"doc_id": "0a1356f05adc2a33ecfe1c1fe528ef3d", "text": "Venezuela claims ‘thousands’ of migrants want to come home\nThousands of Venezuelans are clamoring to return home to recession, hyperinflation and a collapsing economy, President Nicolas Maduro’s government claimed on Wednesday as Brazil sends troops to the border with its crisis-ridden neighbor.\nA day after Maduro told the hundreds of thousands of his compatriots who have already fled the region’s worst economic crisis in recent memory “to return from economic slavery: stop cleaning toilets abroad and come back to live in your homeland,” Communications Minister Jorge Rodriguez claimed many are trying to do exactly that.\nRodriguez said Venezuelan embassies around the world are inundated with requests from citizens to return home, but that the government “cannot publicize it until it’s happening in real time” for fear of “retaliation against those Venezuelans seeking repatriation.”\nAccording to the United Nations, some 1.6 million Venezuelans have fled the country since 2015, with the numbers accelerating all the time.\nOn Monday, Venezuela chartered an airplane to bring 89 citizens back home from Peru, where Maduro said they had suffered “racism, contempt, economic persecution and slavery.”\nPeru recently tightened its border controls, requiring Venezuelans fleeing poverty and an economic meltdown to show a passport to enter after saying that more than 400,000 were already living in the country.\nRodriguez singled out Peru, Ecuador and Colombia for special criticism as countries where Venezuelans have been the victims of “xenophobia and hate crimes.”\nAnd he said Venezuela would petition the UN Refugee Agency to demand a response from Lima, Quito and Bogota.\n‘Tragic’ exodus\nHe made no mention of Brazil, though, which is sending troops to its border following a violent attack by locals earlier this month that drove 1,200 migrants back into Venezuela.\nBrazil President Michel Temer said the troop deployment was aimed at providing “security for Brazilian citizens but also Venezuelan immigrants fleeing their country.”\nTemer didn’t specify how many soldiers would be sent but the move suggested a hardening of attitudes towards Maduro’s government.\nTemer called on “the international community to adopt diplomatic measures” to halt the “tragic” exodus of Venezuelans that “threatens the harmony of practically the entire continent.”\nBut he added: “Brazil respects the sovereignty of other states, but we have to remember that a country is only sovereign if it respects its people and looks after them.”\nRegional leaders are showing signs of wanting to act as the Organization of American States (OAS) called a meeting for September 5 to discuss the crisis.\nOAS chief Luis Almagro said Maduro’s “dictatorial government” had created an “exasperating” situation and shown “a complete disassociation from the people’s problems” as well as an “absolute inability” to provide “basic necessities.”\nEcuador is also organizing a meeting of 13 Latin American countries on September 3-4 to talk about Venezuela.\n“None of the countries is prepared to be able to deal with the migrants or the impact of their arrival,” said Peter Hakim of the Inter-American Dialogue think-tank.\nExperts believe the migration problems will increase pressure on Maduro.\n“He has challenged many patterns of political behavior in the region,” which “now has a collective motivation to put Venezuela back” on the path of democracy, said David Smilde of the Washington Office of Latin America (WOLA) research center.\n‘Right-wing campaign’\nFar-left leader Maduro has branded the exodus a “right-wing campaign” and says he’s sure the migrants will return to take part in the country’s rebuilding following his raft of reforms aimed at breathing life into Venezuela’s dying economy.\nIndustry is operating at just 30 percent, hyperinflation is predicted by the International Monetary Fund to reach one million percent this year and oil production, on which Venezuela is almost entirely dependent, has dropped to a 30-year low of 1.5 million barrels a day, according to the Organization of Oil Producing Countries, compared to a record high of 3.2 million 10 years ago.\nThe UN says 2.3 million Venezuelans out of a population of 30.6 million are living abroad, many in nearby countries such as Peru, Ecuador and Chile, as well as neighbors Colombia and Brazil.\nReforms include increasing the minimum wage by 3,400 percent, redenominating the currency — removing five zeros — that was also devalued by 96 percent and fixed to the value of Venezuela’s largely discredited cryptocurrency, the petro.\nThere’s also been an increase in the value added tax (VAT) and reduced gasoline subsidies — Venezuelans pay the lowest prices in the world for fuel — as well as a new tax on remittances sent home from foreign-based citizens.\nThey have failed to convince locals, though.\n“It’s a disaster, we don’t have basic foods. The measures are pure lies, they’ll bring more hunger and unemployment,” 34-year-old doctor Marielsi Ochoa told AFP.\nExperts also doubt these reforms will stem the tide of immigrants.\n“How can ordinary people remain in Venezuela with massive food shortages, medicines and medical care virtually unavailable, jobs scarce or badly paid, schools without teachers, escalating crime rates and no signs of relief?” said the Inter-American Dialogue’s Hakim.\nGet the latest news delivered straight to your inbox every day of the week. Stay informed with the Guardian’s leading coverage of Nigerian and world news, business, technology and sports.", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://guardian.ng/news/venezuela-claims-thousands-of-migrants-want-to-come-home/"}

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+{"doc_id": "0b2298ec20826a65c6a18aa4f90dcccd", "text": "Civil Servant\nLatest\n49 mins ago\nTerrorism in 2023 has remained a global threat as a record of 8,352 deaths representing 22 per cent increase from the previous year remains the highest, since 2017.\n1 hour ago\n• NEMA denies attack on Abuja facility • Police arrest 15 suspected warehouse vandals in FCT • Shettima: Protest against hardship in a responsible manner The reality of Nigeria’s grim food insecurity exacerbated by rising food cost became apparent yesterday when hoodlums in Abuja went on a looting spree, carting away food items from public and private facilities.…\n1 hour ago\nFoundation member of All Progressives Congress(APC), Osita Okechukwu,has saidthe 36 state governors should be held responsible for the setback recorded in restructuring the country.\n1 hour ago\nHouse of Representatives Committee on Public Accounts has asked private airlines to explain how they expended N4 billion they collected from the Federal Government as COVID-19 intervention funds or refund the money to the government treasury.\n1 hour ago\nNigeria Union of Journalists has conferred its Internal Security Meritorious Award on the Chairman of Tantita Security Services, Government Ekpemupolo, alias Tompolo.\n1 hour ago\nNo fewer than 600 African and Australian governments, private sector executives, investors, multilateral stakeholders, business leaders, innovators and manufacturers are expected to gather in Melbourne, Australia from May 12 to 14, 2024 for this year’s Australia-Africa Business Summit.\n1 hour ago\nWith the increase in value for personal development, motivational experts have said self-awareness and mindset are crucial to achieving individual growth.\n1 hour ago\nNigeria Navy Dockyard Limited and its Benin Republic counterpart weekend at Yaoundé signed an agreement that would empower the Naval Dockyard to carry out repair works on six of its non-functional platforms.\n2 hours ago\nNational Institute of Credit Administration (NICA) has promised to boost awareness on consumer credit services, urging the Federal Government to enforce appropriate laws that will instill decency, discipline and honesty in Nigeria’s credit system", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://guardian.ng/tag/civil-servant/"}

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+{"doc_id": "0bf83cce536f1f70c8eb3a1fcac6cd7a", "text": "Deadly protests that paralysed Mozambique's capital last week were spurred by an SMS in Maputo, signalling the power of new technology.\nDeadly protests that paralysed Mozambique’s capital last week were spurred by an SMS in Maputo, signalling the power of new technology.\nIt is difficult to find a cellphone user who did not get the anonymous SMS message presaging the three days of violence which left 13 dead and about 400 wounded as police clashed with Maputo residents protesting sharp increases in the cost of living.\n“Mozambican, prepare yourself to enjoy the great day of the strike,” said the SMS.\n“Let’s protest the increase in energy, water, mini-bus taxi and bread prices. Send to other Mozambicans.”\nThe SMS, and the ensuing unrest, shows the new\norganisational power cellphones have brought to the poor in a country where 65% of the population lives in poverty but exercises little political clout.\n“That message went around to the whole world,” said Samira, a 35-year-old who lives in Mafalala, a neighbourhood of tin shacks on the edge of Maputo that saw some of the deadliest violence.\n“Even me, when I saw the message I forwarded it to other people. To my friends, my sister. ‘I’m asking you, please read this message’.”\nProtest organised by SMS\n“There have been protests before, but they were never organised by SMS,” said Hares Serafim Mulango, an 18-year-old high school pupil from Mafalala.\n“SMS is easier, because with SMS they tell you about situations far away from you.”\nOrganising formal protests is difficult in Mozambique, where getting a permit to march is a time-intensive bureaucratic procedure.\nCellphones have given Mozambicans access to a political platform unavailable to them before.\n“This technology is a new way of giving a voice, of giving power, of giving a means of expression that poor people themselves don’t have,” said Joao Pereira, director of the Mozambican Civil Society Support Mechanism.\n“That group is never represented. That group is made up of the people who vote the least,” he said.\nOnly about a quarter of Mozambique’s 20-million people have cellphones, about twice as many people who have access to electricity.\nThe SMSes added to the embarrassment the protests posed for President Armando Guebuza and ruling party Frelimo, in power since Mozambique gained independence from Portugal in 1975.\nGuebuza swept to victory in a 75% landslide in elections last year, but his government has been unable to stop the recent slide of Mozambique’s currency, the metical, which has plunged 43% against the rand.\nInstrument of empowerment\nThe drop in value has made residents of the import-dependent country struggle to buy basic necessities.\nAfter an emergency Cabinet meeting on Thursday ended with an appeal for calm and a statement that price increases were “irreversible”, more SMSes circulated criticising the government’s response.\n“Mozambicans, the government appears to have met just for a coffee and whiskey and not to resolve the problems of the people,” said one message.\nPereira said cellphone technology was giving the poor a voice in politics in a country with a weak opposition, and where the media is dominated by the state-owned newspaper and television station.\n“It’s an instrument of empowerment. It’s a way of increasing the participation of the most marginalised parts of this society in the democratic system,” he said. – AFP", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://mg.co.za/article/2010-09-07-mozambique-unrest-shows-power-of-the-sms/"}

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+{"doc_id": "0c2b240cd22f738c1b7e3d15478b3c6f", "text": "Samuel Felix Ekanem\n17 Aug 2023\nA Nigerian graduate and creative writer, Samuel Felix Ekanem, has been admitted into five universities in the United States on a fully-funded scholarship for the Master of Fine Arts in creative writing.\nLatest\nNOW\nAlthough the Nigerian Association of Road Transport Owners (NARTO) suspended its strike on Tuesday, fuel queues have started spreading across the country as motorists now spend longer time at filling stations in Abuja\n2 mins ago\nAll seems not to be well with the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Edo State as the jostle for the governorship ticket is further widening the gulf among factions.\n3 mins ago\nAfrican Export-Import Bank African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) has signed a $1 billion partnership agreement with the Federal Government to support the development of Nigeria's healthcare sector under the Presidential Initiative for Unlocking Healthcare Value Chains (PVAC).\n7 mins ago\nThe Director-General of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala; former President of Liberia, George Weah and Chairman/Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Vista Equity Partners...\n9 mins ago\nBorno State government has engaged traditional rulers to implement the Borno Model on the de-radicalisation and re-integration of repentant Boko Haram fighters and their families into the society.\n12 mins ago\nThe United States (U.S.) Government has said it would do a lot in the agric sector to support Nigeria to overcome food security challenges and post-harvest losses suffered by the country that lead to hunger and hardship.\n13 mins ago\nResidents of communities in Ekiti State, under the auspices of Ekamefa Peoples Congress (EPEC), consisting of six ancient communities of Iyemero, Irele, Oke-Ako, Itapaji, Ipao and Ijowa-Ekiti\n14 mins ago\nFormer Head of State, General Yakubu Gowon (rtd), has canvassed the lifting of sanctions against Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger Republic by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS)", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://guardian.ng/tag/samuel-felix-ekanem/"}

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+{"doc_id": "0e77851e649341d1b4611ea4d5016981", "text": "The African Union joined the Group of 20 leading economies at its summit on Saturday, giving the continent more of a voice on the global stage, with host Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi saying it turned the often divided bloc into the \"people's G20\".\n\"With everyone's approval, I request the African Union head to take his seat as a permanent G20 member,\" Modi said in his opening address, banging a ceremonial gavel.\nModi has painted the summit as India's diplomatic coming of age and is pushing for his country -- which wants a permanent seat on the UN Security Council -- to be seen as a voice of the Global South.\nAt full strength the African Union has 55 members, but six junta-ruled nations are currently suspended. Collectively it has a GDP of $3 trillion with some 1.4 billion people.\nAs the G20, the grouping included 19 countries and the European Union, representing 85 percent of the world GDP, with South Africa its only member state from the continent.\nIt was conceived in the throes of the 2008 financial crisis as a way of managing the global economy, but finding consensus among members has been increasingly difficult in recent years.\nThe AU membership could be among the most tangible outcomes from the summit itself, with Modi trying to forge consensus on a host of contentious issues, and key G20 members deeply divided over Russia's war in Ukraine and how to pay for climate change.\nInfrastructure plan\nOn the summit sidelines, G20 partners will unveil ambitious plans Saturday to bolster trade between India, the Middle East and Europe, the United States said.\nIt is a modern-day Spice Route that could more closely bind three regions that account for about a third of the global economy -- and represent an alternative to China's vast investment in global infrastructure.\nWashington, Saudi Arabia, the EU, UAE and others will sign an agreement on the sidelines of the G20 summit to explore a railway and port project to augment trade flows between Europe and India, officials said.\nThe agreement comes with Washington actively engaging with Riyadh, a major oil producer and security partner, as it encourages the kingdom to normalise ties with Israel.\nJon Finer, US deputy national security advisor, said the announcement came after \"months of careful diplomacy, quiet, careful diplomacy, bilaterally and in multilateral settings\".\nThis project \"has enormous potential\" he said. \"But exactly how long it takes, I don't know\".\nThe project is still in the early stages, with participants studying how best to link India's vast 1.4 billion population and quick-growing economy with markets to the west.\nBut Michael Kugelman, South Asia Institute director at The Wilson Center, said the plan could be a significant response to China's much-vaunted Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) -- which has spread Chinese influence, investments and commerce across Europe, Africa, Asia and Latin America.\n\"If finalised, it would be a game changer that strengthens connectivity between India and the Middle East and would aim to counter BRI,\" Kugelman posted on X, formerly known as Twitter.\nThe plans will include data, rail, electricity and hydrogen pipeline links, EU officials told AFP.\nXi absence\nChinese leader Xi Jinping himself is skipping the summit, sending his number two, Premier Li Qiang, to India instead in a move that called into question the meeting's importance.\nNo official reason was given for Xi's absence, but the Asian giants have been at loggerheads over a border dispute and other issues, while Beijing is seeking to make US-led groupings such as the G20 more amenable to its own interests.\nRussia's seat is taken by Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, with diplomatic opprobrium and war crimes charges keeping the country's leader Vladimir Putin from the summit.\nUnited Nations chief Antonio Guterres warned Friday of growing global divisions, insisting countries must assume responsibility regardless of \"whether it's the president or the prime minister or the vice president\" who is in New Delhi.\nThe backdrop to the talks could hardly be starker: the European Union's climate monitor has said this year is likely to be the hottest in human history, with Guterres declaring on Friday the \"climate crisis is spiralling out of control\".\nG20 countries account for around 85 percent of global climate war.", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://nation.africa/africa/news/group-of-20-admits-african-union-as-permanent-member-4363188"}

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+{"doc_id": "0e8d5e78c009c2b3adc23084ebcc2d05", "text": "‘Why we rejected goverment’s creative industry committee on Covid-19’\nWith more than 3.9 million people testing positive for the coronavirus worldwide, according to data from Johns Hopkins University, and over 273,000 deaths, the world continues to battle the COVID-19 pandemic, which has had a substantial impact on the arts and cultural heritage sectors.\nThe Guardian’s checks revealed that by late March, most cultural institutions had been indefinitely closed, and events postponed or cancelled, either voluntarily or by government mandate. These included libraries, archives, museums, film and television productions, theatre and orchestra performances, concert tours, zoos, as well as music, arts festivals and exhibitions.\nRecognising that the pandemic has had an unprecedented effect on jobs and that many individuals will temporarily or permanently lose contracts or employment, governments world over are introducing measures to support workers and businesses affected by the COVID-19 that apply to all sectors of the economy, including those who work in the culture sector. Governments across the world understand that financial stimulus from them and charities for artists would provide the fillip for the sector’s growth.\nTaking a cue is the Federal Government of Nigeria. It recently approved the appointment of comedian Ali Baba, Segun Arinze and others into a committee of creative industry stakeholders to advise it on the best way to mitigate the effect of COVID-19 pandemic on the industry.\nThe Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, announced this at a meeting with the Broadcasting Organisations of Nigeria, BON, on Wednesday, May 8, in Abuja.\nAlhaji Mohammed noted that the creative industry is a very critical sector of the nation’s economy and a major plank of the economic diversification policy of the Buhari administration, as it creates the highest number of jobs after agriculture.\nHe also stressed the need for a collective and government-supported approach in dealing with the immediate, short and long term palliatives and initiatives for the industry, in order to mitigate the effect of the pandemic on the industry.\n“We have, therefore, decided that instead of addressing this problem piecemeal, we should do so holistically for a more positive outcome,” he said, noting that the creative industry is a very critical sector of the nation’s economy.\nThe terms of reference of the committee include assessing the expected impact of the pandemic on the industry in general and advising the government on how to mitigate job and revenue losses in the sector, as well as to create succour for the industry small businesses.\nAccording to the minister, the committee is also to suggest the type of taxation and financing that is best for the industry at this time to encourage growth and also advise the government on any other measure or measures that can be undertaken to support the industry.\nThe committee, which is led by Atunyota Alleluya Akpobome, professionally known as Ali Baba, has Anita Eboigbe of the News Agency of Nigeria, NAN, as Secretary. Other members of the Committee are Bolanle Austen Peters, Charles Novia, Segun Arinze, Ali Jita, Baba Agba, Kene Okwuosa, Efe Omoregbe, Prince Daniel Aboki, Chioma Ude, Olumade Adesemowo, Dare Art Alade and Hajia Sa’a Ibrahim.\nThe committee will also include representatives of the fashion, publishing, photography, hospitality and travel sectors. Less than two days after, a coalition of Nollywood groups kicked against their non-inclusion in FG’s COVID-19 committee on creative industry\nIn a statement jointly signed on Thursday, the coalition — made of about 18 guilds and associations — said it was unfortunate that the government would take such action without considering the leadership structure of the industry.\nThe statement was jointly signed by: Ralph Nwadike, Association of Movie Producers (AMP); Emeka Rollas, Actors Guild of Nigeria (AGN); Fred Amata, Directors Guild of Nigeria (DGN); Yinka Ogun, Screen Writers Guild of Nigeria (SWGN); Daisy Madu-Chikwendu, Association of Nollywood Core Producers\n(ANCOP); Ahmad Sarari, Motion Pictures Practitioners Association of Nigeria (MOPPAN); Sele O. Sele, Creative Designers Guild Of Nigeria (CDGN); Emeka Aduah, Film and Video Producers and Marketers Association of Nigeria (FVPMAN); Yinka Oduniyi, Independent Television Producers Association of Nigeria (ITPAN), Izu Osuigwe, Media Contents Distributors Association, Nigeria [MCDAN], CEMP Peddie Okhao; Theater Arts and Motion Pictures Producers Association of Nigeria (TAMPAN); Israel Eboh of National Association of Nigerian Theatre Arts Practitioners (NANTAP) and others.\nAccording to Eboh, ”this is a proof of government’s insensitivity to the creative industry. Why would government refuse to get the stakeholders involved in such an issue policy formulation?”\nHe said, “we decided to come out with the statement because of the non recognition of our sector. “If guilds like the Nigerian Bar Association, Nigerian Medical Association among others are engaged as strategic stakeholders by the government through their recognised association’s leadership then the creative industry deserves the same.”\nHe noted, “it is an incontrovertible fact that, the Nigerian creative industry with over 20 guilds, employs about 2.5 million Nigerian youths; and is recognised globally as the fastest growing creative industry.”\nReechoing the statement of the coalition, Eboh said, “these 2.5 million Nigerians belong to associations and organisations generally referred to as guilds, whom they have willingly through legitimate elections handed over the incumbency of their mandates; saying in essence speak and act on our behalf on matters affecting our interests, welfare and wellbeing!”\nHe asked, “under which mandate are these people speaking? How can they speak for the sector? Why do we have leadership? As leaders, we are more in touch with our members. Who can be more stakeholders than the associations and guilds?”\nHe added, “it is indeed compelling that any discussion concerning the welfare of the industry should as a matter of equity and transparency involve the participation of those guild heads.”\nThe coalition also urged the minister to reconstitute the committee to reflect the industry’s leadership representatives and not only “hand-picking a few practitioners no matter how prominent they may be.”\nGet the latest news delivered straight to your inbox every day of the week. Stay informed with the Guardian’s leading coverage of Nigerian and world news, business, technology and sports.", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://guardian.ng/art/why-we-rejected-goverments-creative-industry-committee-on-covid-19/"}

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+{"doc_id": "100d56a545f07211b2bd8de845b57d68", "text": "NCDMB\n1 day ago\nDefending champions, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), began their campaign in the 19th edition of the Nigeria Oil and Gas Industry Games (NOGIG), yesterday, with a 1-0 defeat of Petroleum Training Institute (PTI).\n20 Jan\nBayelsa State Governor, Senator Douye Diri, has charged the new management of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) to improve on its performance, saying his administration will continue to support the organisation’s effort to develop local content.\n11 Jan\nThe Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) has revealed a plan to raise participation of Nigerian insurance’s participation in the oil and gas business to 70 per cent.\n6 Dec\nNigeria's local content across the oil and gas sector stagnated at 54 per cent this year to create serious concerns after a 13-year upward outlook amid rising divestment by international oil companies and over $25 billion investment by indigenous organisations.\n22 Nov\nEminent nationalists in the country, yesterday, urged President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to initiate the process of implementing the 2014 National Conference report, saying decisions reached at the conference enjoy the support of the majority of Nigerians.\n2 Nov\nThe Federal Government (FG) has launched a new Monitoring and Evaluation Reporting Template for stakeholders of the oil and gas industry in Nigeria.\n1 Nov\nThe Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE) has sought review of the Electricity Regulation Act, 2023, stating that the technical aspect of the electricity supply industry was not properly articulated in the new law.\n25 Oct\nThe Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC) has released its 2023 Biannual Executive Order 001 (EO1) Compliance Report, showing Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), Standards Organisation of Nigeria ..\n5 Oct\nNigerian Content Development Monitoring Board (NCDMB), yesterday, said the current wave of divestment by international oil companies (IOCs) from the country is a plus, especially for development of local content.\n26 Sep\nNigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) and Nigerian Content Development & Monitoring Board (NCDMB), yesterday, signed a Memorandum of Understanding with international oil companies (IOCs) to reduce the contracting cycle to 180 days ....\n8 Aug 2023\nImbibing principles of corporate governance will sustain the operations of oil and gas companies, the Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), Simbi Wabote, has said.\n2 Aug 2023\nPlans are underway by the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) to establish a low-cost manufacturing hub for equipment components and spare parts used in the oil and gas industry in Ondo State.", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://guardian.ng/tag/ncdmb/"}

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+{"doc_id": "1092b69c35469d5402d9b139a0188e74", "text": "Dream, excitement, ambition, fulfillment and the final word, death, are some of the words that have described the year 2018 as it enters its last day on December 31, tomorrow. As life’s a stage, Funke Olaode, in this piece, reflects on the personalities – dead or alive – who have shaped 2018 as the year draws to an end. The list is by no means exhaustive, however, it parades the good, the bad and the ugly of 2018\nPrince Harry and Megan Markle’s Marriage\nThey shook the entire world with their romance as doubting Thomases were placing bets on the relationship as one of those flings. One is a royalty and the other, a divorcee -an American with an African-American heritage. Indeed, it was a relationship that broke royal protocol of 350 years. Against all odds, Prince Harry’s relationship with Meghan Markle, an American actress best known for her role in the Canadian-American legal-drama television series, Suits, was officially acknowledged on November 8, 2016, when a statement was released from the royal family’s communications secretary addressing the “wave of abuse and harassment” directed toward Markle. A year after, on November 27, 2017 to be precise, Clarence House announced that Prince Harry would marry Markle in the spring of 2018. And on May 19, the marriage was sealed at George Chapel in Windsor, England and watched by billions of people across the world. The couple announced that they are expecting their first child in spring of 2019. As the world looks forward to royal baby due in Spring of 2019, no doubt Harry and Megan are one of the most powerful personalities that shaped our world in this outgoing 2018.\nLinda Ikeji’s baby drama\nToday, she is being referred to as a billionaire and one of the most successful bloggers in Africa. Linda Ikeji debut as a model while pursuing her undergraduate study at the University of Lagos. She has since conquered her world as a successful media mogul and top blogger, raking millions of Naira in her exploits. Though in the public glare, Linda drew the entire world deeper into her private life early this year when she got pregnant outside wedlock and the rumoured engagement to a mystery man. For someone who has always emphasised a life of celibacy, she received a lot of criticisms. Linda has since put that behind her as she welcomed her first baby on September 17. She later confirmed that the billionaire oil magnate, Sholaye Jeremi, was the father of her boy. Though the duo has since gone their separate ways, 2018 has been a year of blessing as she became a mother. The baby’s dedication paraded who-is-who in Nigeria, including the Peoples Democratic Party’s presidential candidate’s running mate, Peter Obi, among other dignitaries.\nOoni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi’s remarriage\nAfter two failed marriages, first to Olori Adebunkola and then Zaynab, His Royal Majesty, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi shocked naysayers when the news of his new royal bride, Olori Moronkeji Naomi Silekunola Ogunwusi from Akure surfaced. It came as a shock to many who didn’t have any clue of their relationship. To quench the fire of rumour, the monarch also took to social media and wrote: “I waited patiently upon the Almighty, the King of kings; he eventually did it in the midst of many trials. Shilekunola, Moronkeji, Naomi; the greatest arsenal you can apply on this highly revered throne with many rules and regulations in the midst of undiluted tradition, heritage and culture is the ‘Fear of God In You’. It is the beginning of your wisdom on this throne of Oduduwa. You are welcome home my beautiful and adorable queen.” His royal majesty is currently enjoy marital blissful with the 25 year old damsel.\nNaomi Osaka’s triumph\nShe is a young tennis player who put an end to two decades of Serena Williams’ dominance in the tennis court. Naomi Osaka, a Japanese-born US-based tennis player took the tennis by storm during US Open in New York from August 27 to September 9. Naomi Osaka won the US Open after an angry Serena Williams accused the umpire of being a “thief” in some of the most dramatic scenes at a Grand Slam final.\nWilliams was given a game penalty for her outburst, which followed racket smashing and another code violation as Osaka won 6-2 6-4 in New York. Osaka, 20, kept her focus to become the first Japanese to win a Grand Slam. The American, 36, graciously congratulated Osaka at the net after the 20th seed completed an extraordinary victory and, although Williams’ behaviour will grab the attention, nothing should detract from a classy and composed display from Osaka at Flushing Meadows.\nGeorge Bush and wife, Barbara’s final passage\nHe was a public figure and once referred to as the most powerful man in the world. The curtain fell on H.W. George Bush, the 41st American president who died early December, months after his wife of over 70 years passed away. The former American president and father to both President George Bush and former presidential candidate Jeb Bush was hospitalized on and off after his wife Barbara’s funeral in April. Over the past few years, the former president had suffered several intense medical predicaments, including pneumonia, bronchitis, and a broken neck bone. In 2017, Bush was hospitalized after contracting pneumonia while already suffering vascular Parkinsonism. He was given a state funeral that spanned almost one week from his home state of Houston, Texas and Washington DC. His funeral drew world leaders across the globe and watched by millions globally.\nJamal Khashoggi’s murder\nIn what could be termed as occupational hazard the world woke up October 2, to the news of disappearance of Jamal Khashoggi, a Saudi dissident, journalist for The Washington Post and former general manager and editor-in-chief of Al-Arab News Channel after entering Saudi consulate in Istanbul, Turkey. Khashoggi had entered the consulate in order to obtain documents related to the marriage he and his fiancée were planning. Because no security camera footage of him exiting the building could be found, he was declared a missing person amid news reports claiming that he was assassinated and dismembered inside the consulate. When the disappearance of Khashoggi was first reported by the news media, Saudi Arabia claimed he had left the consulate and denied having any knowledge about his fate. Turkish media published evidence suggesting that Khashoggi never came out of the consulate. Saudi Arabia subsequently denied any involvement in his disappearance. Government officials of several countries, including Saudi Arabia, Turkey, the United Kingdom, France, and Germany, believe Khashoggi was murdered. Turkey in particular believes it was premeditated murder and anonymous Saudi officials have admitted that agents affiliated with the Saudi government killed him. Almost three months after his disappearance, the exact cause of his death is unknown since his body has never been located or examined. Kashoggi’s unresolved murder remains one of the incidents that shaped 2018.\nAretha Franklin’s last ‘serenade’\nShe dazzled the world with her captivating and enchanting voice with soulful music. Her always eclectic and excellent performances earned her the sobriquet, ‘Queen of Soul’. But the beat stopped for Aretha Franklin, American singer, songwriter, civil rights activist, actress and pianist who ruled the world of music and left indelible marks on music. The queen of music bade the world farewell in August 16 after a long battle with pancreatic cancer. Her funeral in her home state of Detroit, Michigan drew who is who in entertainment, religious community and world leader including former President Bill Clinton. The world will not forget the ‘You make me feel like a natural woman’ crooner in hurry.\nOPC founder, Frederick Fasehun’s final battle\nHe was a renowned medical doctor whose activities as founder of the Oodua People’s Congress (OPC) would later overshadow his early calling as a medical doctor. The OPC boss breathed his last in December after a prolonged battle with diabetes at the age of 83.\nPrince Louis’ royal baby number three\nAs the most respected monarch in the world, any news coming from the stable of the British monarch, Queen Elizabeth II, always sends excitements to royal admirers. After their royal weeding of April 29, 2011 which was watched by billions across the globe, and arrival of Prince George and Princess Charlotte, the royal watcher was delighted when it was announced that the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, Prince Williams and Kate Middleton will be welcoming their third child. Apart from the queen herself who has four children, her offspring – from Prince Charles to Prince Edward have two children. With the arrival of Prince Louis in April, onlookers believe Kate must be following in her mother-in-law’s footstep. Will the world welcome royal baby number four in the nearest future? Time will tell.\nAlex Badeh’s epitaph\nThe former Chief of Defence Staff, Alex Badeh, was not just an ordinary man. He was once sat atop the security of the nation under former president Jonathan. In what could be termed an irony of life, the former top security chief was killed along Abuja-Keffi road on December 18 while returning from his farm. Considering unresolved high profile murders in the past, the question remains: would the federal government fish out Badeh’s killers?\nEx-CBS boss, Moonves’ sex and sack\nLes Moonves, the former boss of CBS, will not receive a $120m (£95m) severance package after an inquiry into alleged sexual misconduct. The US broadcaster said that he misled the company over the allegations and failed to work with investigators, meaning it had grounds to fire him.\nMoonves stepped down in September following fresh claims he had sexually harassed or assaulted six more women. He said that the accusations made in The New Yorker magazine were untrue. In a statement, CBS said Moonves had displayed “wilful and material misfeasance” and failed to cooperate fully with the company’s investigation into the allegations against him. It also said he had had violated company policy and was in breach of his employment contract and as a consequence he would not receive any severance payment from CBS. At the time of Moonves’ departure as chairman and chief executive at CBS, where he had worked for 23 years, the company said it had set $120m aside as a possible payment to him pending an investigation.\nOthers\nFrom politics to entertainment and financial sector, 2018 will remain evergreen. In politics, after seemingly foot-dragging, President Buhari finally threw his hat in the ring seeking reelection. He has a nemesis in former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar.\nThe banking sector witnessed a tsunami as Skye Bank became Polaris Bank under new ownership while Diamond Bank was acquired by Access Bank.\nThe entertainment industry flourished under the likes of Wizkid (international collaboration) and David Adeleke aka Davido (ruled the entertainment world from January to December).", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://www.thisdaylive.com/index.php/2018/12/30/2018-the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly"}

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+{"doc_id": "10e1955416fcc11a9be883505833a2cc", "text": "Nigerian authorities say they are worried after hundreds of people took to the streets of central Niger state and northwest Kano state Monday to protest the rising cost of food.\nFinance Minister Olawale Edun, speaking in Abuja on Monday during a meeting with a visiting German delegation, said the government is concerned about the surge in prices and working to fix the problem.\nHe blamed the recent increase in food prices on rising demand, saying the only way to address the situation is to boost agricultural production.\n\"The president has intervened in that sector to provide grain, fertilizers to farmers and to bring rice, wheat, maize, and cassava under additional acreage, additional production in order to increase the output and thereby bring down prices and that will help bring down the inflation,\" Edun said.\nPolice authorities in the Niger state capital, Minna, said they dispersed the protesters using \"minimum force,\" but the demonstrators threatened to reconvene.\nFor months, Nigerians have complained over the state of the economy, which has remained sluggish amid the government's reform policies.\nPresident Bola Tinubu announced bold economic reforms last May, including the scrapping of subsidies on fuel and the floating of the national currency, the naira.\nAuthorities say the policies will help restore Nigeria's economy in the long term, but acknowledged that there will be challenges.\nEconomic analyst Isaac Botti agreed.\n\"I feel that it will take some time, policies don't yield results immediately,\" he said. \"When we look at some of the programs and policies that the government is rolling out, within the next six months, if they're truthful with their plans, Nigeria should see some changes. Within the next six months, if government is able to achieve its benchmark on local fuel production, it will bring down the cost of goods and services, transportation.\"\nIn December, inflation reached a 27-year high, triggered by the rising cost of food items, a side effect of the increase in fuel prices.\nNigeria's economy is heavily dependent on proceeds from oil sales. But for years, the country has struggled with massive crude oil theft. The country's four refineries are moribund, and so it also relies on imports of fuel and other petroleum products.\nOn Tuesday, Tinubu's ruling All Progressives Congress party said in a statement that the administration was \"solidly committed to doing everything in its power to mitigate the transient pains of reforms that are crucial to economic recovery.\"\nFelix Morka, the national publicity secretary of the APC, said: \"This is a mono product economy for a population of over 200 million people. We can't simply put all of our eggs in the basket of crude oil sales, especially when we're not able to sustain the kind of productive levels that can support our economy and our naira. To come out of the situation we're in for a more sustainable future requires also some level of endurance. At the end of the day, the benefits of reforms will far outweigh the transient difficulties.\"\nNigeria is working to resume local refining of fuel. In December, authorities announced that all four refineries will undergo rehabilitation to restart operations by the end of 2024.\nStay informed. Subscribe to our newsletter\nExperts say if that happens, it will address Nigeria's problems significantly.", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://www.standardmedia.co.ke/africa/article/2001489725/nigerian-authorities-voice-worry-as-rising-cost-of-living-sparks-protests"}

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+{"doc_id": "11b9d1e79fafa66c94d696cfac9a8dcf", "text": "Nigeria’s Crude Palm Oil (CPO) imports from top global producer – Malaysia has risen by 18.4 percent in 2019 amid border closure, data from Malaysian Palm Oil Council (MPOC) shows.\nThe country’s CPO import from Malaysia increased to 286,964 metric tons (MT) in 2019 from 242, 388MT in 2018, up by 44,576MT on a year-on-year basis, the data states.\nIn a bid to tackle smuggling and boost local production of agricultural produce in the country, the government had since August 2019, shut the Nigerian borders with neighbouring West African countries.\nExperts say that the border closure is having an impact on the oil palm industry as importers who would normally import to neighbouring countries and bring it into Nigeria through the land borders are now importing directly into the country.\nThey also stated that palm oil imports have continued to rise because Nigeria’s CPO has remained less competitive to the imported ones owing to high production cost among others.\nAccording to them, this makes local manufacturers who use CPO as raw material for production result to importing rather than patronising local producers.\nThis is evident in Presco and Okomu’s – Nigeria’s two largest oil palm producers’ full-year 2019 financial statements.\nREAD ALSO: Revisiting the African Continental Free Trade Area: Impact, challenges and opportunities\nOkomu Oil posted its biggest profit decline in over five years as profit hit a four year low while Presco saw its profit hit the lowest since 2015.\nOkomu Oil posted a profit of N5.5billion for 2019, 35.3percent lower than what it raked in 2018 while Presco made 8.16 percent less as profit at 3.9billlion.\nSimilarly, to protect the country’s palm oil industry and spur the industry growth, the Nigerian government had imported a 35 percent tariff (10 percent duty and 25 percent levy) on palm oil imports into the country.\nCrude palm oil is also listed on the Federal Government 41 items restricted from forex access.\nDespite this, oil palm imports into the country are still on the rise owing to the huge demand-supply gap.\nNigeria’s palm oil output is estimated at 900,000-1.3 million MT, experts say. Import is estimated at over N500 billion annually. With national demand of 2.1 million MT, the supply gap is around 800,000MT.\n“Since the inclusion of CPO in the country’s import prohibition list, Nigeria has significantly increased its production in the last 10 years,” Fatai Afolabi, executive secretary, POFON said in a statement last year.\n“But Nigeria is still importing a lot of CPO into the country and many are smuggled through the land borders,” Afolabi said.\nLast year, the Nigerian government also announced the provision of financial support to smallholder farmers which currently produces 80percent of the country’s total oil palm production.\nNigeria’s apex bank says it has disbursed over N30 billion to the oil palm sector.\nOil palm can produce more oil than any other oilseed crop. About 90 percent of palm oil is used in the production of foods, while the remaining 10 percent is used by the non-food industry, industry players say.\nFoods like noodles, vegetable oil, biscuits, chips, margarine, shortenings, cereals, baked stuff, washing detergents, and even cosmetics are made from palm oil.\nSince losing its position as one of the world’s largest palm oil producers, Nigeria is yet to recover and take its proper place in the comity of crude palm oil-producing nations owing to the discovery of oil, which changed the country’s palm oil narrative of the 60’s.\nAs a result, Indonesia and Malaysia have now surpassed Nigeria’s production becoming the global leaders in oil palm production.", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://businessday.ng/agriculture/article/nigerias-2019-palm-oil-import-from-malaysia-rises-18-4-amid-border-closure/?utm_source=auto-read-also&utm_medium=web"}

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+{"doc_id": "1258553eeafbb7f923cf72efc2bc48d3", "text": "It is beyond question that an industrial revolution is ensuing in Nigeria. In the past, when an agent of the government made this claim, it was usually viewed as a public relation spin; seen to be completely devoid of any bearing with the reality on the ground. It is therefore gladdening that the validation of the progress which we have made as a country with regard to the revival of industrial activities in Nigeria is not only coming from policymakers; it is readily provided now by different stakeholders in the economy.\nAt meal time, Nigerians across the age brackets validate the leap in food processing with their menu. For instance, there was a time when Italian spaghetti brands were all we had for pasta. Today local brands dominate that food segment. Similarly, domestic production has dominated the packaged fruit drinks subsector. The strong push to leverage the status of the country as the largest producer of cassava in the world to the largest processor of the produce is well underway.\nLast month, one of Nigeria’s more influential, non-partisan trade associations, Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), attested to successful outcomes of government’s policy interventions in the manufacturing sector in a well publicised media statement. Same January, Nigeria’s foremost industrialist, Aliko Dangote, was the cynosure of all eyes at World Economic Forum 2014 in Davos. His success, being rooted in manufacturing, underlines the performance of private investment in non-rent-seeking activities, and the consumption capacity in Nigeria – a country of 170 million people, with a fast-growing middle class. What’s more; the NSE Industrial Index grew by 78% in 2013.\nThe recent successes in the manufacturing sector have been long in coming. Successive Nigerian governments have always looked for ways to lift the real sector. In spite of the fact that oil revenue has been significant as Nigeria maintains the profile of Africa’s highest oil exporter, policy measures to engineer and support real sector growth have always been in the policy mix. The enthusiasm to do something to incentivise industrial production had in the distant past led to even opposing policy measures being aimed at achieving the same results, amid a raft of policy interventions under very unpredictable governance environment of military dictatorship. This led to the coinage: “policy somersault.” Its negative connotation nevertheless suggested that government was anything but inert with regard to using the policy framework to boost the manufacturing sector, even though there was agreement that more political will was needed to back the policies.\nFrom the foregoing, three critical factors are to be held to be responsible for the take-off of the “industrial revolution” in Nigeria. They are improvement in governance under the current democratic dispensation, stable macroeconomic environment, and wider reach of government’s incentive system, especially under the Administration of President Goodluck Jonathan.\nImproved Governance Framework\nNigeria’s new democratic dispensation reaches a decade and half in May. The incontrovertible point of this is that governance of the country is now quite predictable. Democratic norms of regular elections have taken roots. This is good for policymaking and policy implementation. Unlike in the past when a cocktail of (conflicting) policies by successive military dictatorships that held sway for about three decades before 1999 brewed uncertainty, democracy and the entrenched electoral cycle has mitigated risks of policy volatility. This is even made better by the appetite for policy continuity as one administration gives way to the other through the electoral process.\nNo doubt, perception of high political risk had been a mitigating factor for long-term investment in Nigeria. By its nature, investment in manufacturing requires medium-to-long-term political risk outlook that is subdued. This holds to be true whether or not we refer to private domestic investment or foreign direct investment. Therefore, both local and foreign investors are responding to the brighter outlook of the governance framework in Nigeria. Indeed, the level of confidence in the governance environment is not better expressed than that Nigerians, who understand best the risk profile of the country, are now investing in long-term businesses. There is no sector of the economy where you do not have substantial investments by Nigerians in the private sector. Agro-processing and manufacturing are going to be the driving force for private sector prosperity as Nigeria continues to face the future with certainty. The prospering Nigerian businesses in these sectors are further attractions for inflow of investment from foreign entities.\nStable Macroeconomic Environment\nNigeria is evidently committed to macroeconomic stability. Why would we not? It could be said that we learnt a hard lesson. We saw the negative impacts that unstable and unsustainable macroeconomic policy can have on public finance and citizen welfare before we started to fight it off at the turn of the millennium, as we ushered in the nascent democracy that continues to entrench. We did the deal to exit the Paris Club debt overhang in 2005. The deal not only freed funds for social programming and development projects, it has signposted Nigeria’s commitment to sustainable public debt. Counter-cyclical measures have since been imbued in federal budgeting, and the sub-national governments are raising tax revenue to reduce dependency on shared oil revenue.\nFrom the height of 27% in 2003, inflation rate has been brought down to single digit by the end of 2013. Nigeria’s 2014 budget (awaiting passage by the National Assembly) demonstrates the commitment of the fiscal authority to price stability in line with the monetary policy objective which the Central Bank of Nigeria has continued to pursue. Also, the CBN’s exchange rate policy which delimits a band outside of which the local currency would not be allowed to depreciate, limits currency risks to foreign investment flows to the country. Overall, Nigeria is a responsible player in the international system that looks to contribute to stability of the global economic space.\nMacroeconomic stability is important for Nigerian manufacturers. It helps to ensure that they are not paying high premium on international credit. Nigeria risk is now priced at par with peer emerging market economies. Therefore, as the Nigerian Export Import Bank (NEXIM Bank) has facilitated several transactions in the manufacturing sector, a lot of Nigerian manufacturers are now able to import machineries and tools to modernise their operations and scale up production capacities. Previously, the rate of inflation made this very difficult to happen. Aversion to Nigeria risk attracts pricing that is beyond what is operationally doable for Nigerian real sector firms. A more stable currency outlook is not divorced from the rising new investment in manufacturing in Nigeria by foreign entities that long ago or recently shed the little-warranted phobia for investing in the country. Recent re-investments by Procter and Gamble, GSK, PZ, SABMiller and others tell the tale that Nigeria is a good place to invest.\nWider Reach of Incentive System\nNigeria has always incentivised investment in manufacturing. Its generous offer of incentives for investing in the sector is currently undergoing reforms to ensure wider reach for investors and create a level-playing field. In the past, the incentive system was administered in a manner that market participants saw to be preferential of persons and not just of industries. We are going past this learning curve. Under the President Ebele Goodluck Jonathan’s Administration, the incentive system has been ‘democratised.’ Qualifications for the incentives are now well defined to apply more generally. Under this regime, supports for SME manufacturers, including special funds which lend at affordable rate, are known in the market. NEXIM Bank has been a significant player in this subsector with our loan portfolio to SMEs reaching N30.99 billion and we have issued guarantees worth $27.30 million to the sector in the last four years.\nConclusion\nMr. Kola Jamodu, President of MAN notes: “There is a clear evidence of the positive impact of the sector based incentives. Incentives and concessions given to the cement industry have contributed to the phenomenal increase in national cement production from less than 2 million tons in 2002 to over 20 million tons in 2013. As a result, from being a net importer, Nigeria has become a net exporter of cement. This was achieved in less than a decade thanks to the enabling environment fostered by government policies.”\nNigeria has got comparative advantage with regard to manufacturing. We have the population to support the sector. Government policies and the indefatigable entrepreneurial spirit of Nigerian manufacturers have seen the operators through the period when they operated marginally, because infrastructural challenges exacerbated cost, and there were difficulties in accessing the investment incentives and affordable finance. All the problems are not solved yet. However, with the commitment of the Administration of President Jonathan, the power sector reform nears fruition. The playing field is now level in administering investment incentives. The infrastructural gap is gradually being bridged and we are now in more predictable environment.\nNEXIM Bank is especially excited by these developments because we know the industrial sector is the bedrock of sustainable job creation for Nigerians. Our activities in manufacturing, agro-processing, solid mineral and services that support the value-chains (under our MASS Agenda) will continue to help the government to diversify its sources of foreign exchange earnings to make our national economic growth to be more robust and assure the attainment of shared prosperity.\nBy: Roberts Orya", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://businessday.ng/analysis/article/reasons-for-the-lift-in-industrial-production-in-nigeria/"}

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+{"doc_id": "12e1355809a0f90733f0dbb10d1986e0", "text": "executive powers\n29 Jul 2023\nTwo years after Tunisian President Kais Saied suspended parliament and extended his executive powers, our correspondents report on where the situation currently stands. Also in this edition: Zimbabwe is gearing up for an election in one month's time, but rising inflation could affect the way the vote goes and upset the status quo.\nLatest\n11 mins ago\n45-year-old Nigerian standup comedy star Basketmouth made a stop in Berlin on his European tour to thrill the crowd with his socio-political commentary on a range of topics — including his country's ongoing currency crisis.\n23 mins ago\nMedia reports on Tuesday said that tech giant Apple was pulling the plug on its \"special projects group\", which was developing the brand's own electric vehicle.\n24 mins ago\nThe decision by West Africa's regional bloc ECOWAS to reverse key sanctions on military-ruled Niger has been welcomed by analysts inside and outside the country. But how will it affect ordinary Nigeriens?\n2 hours ago\nFind these stories and much more when you grab a copy of The Guardian on Saturday.\n1 day ago\nElection will see candidates compete for a seat in the 290-member parliament. New members of Iran's Assembly of Experts will also be elected.\n1 day ago\nThe US, Japan and South Korea have concluded their trilateral summit at Camp David with a security pact and a pledge to step up economic cooperation. The meeting took place against the backdrop of North Korea's missile program and China's maritime claims in the South China Sea.", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://tv.guardian.ng/tag/executive-powers/"}

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+{"doc_id": "15f48ece28a6395724ca71ee62b91fa8", "text": "Josephine Baker\n21 May 2023\nJosephine Baker was a renowned revue star, a diva, a freedom fighter, and an activist. The Bundeskunsthalle in Bonn is dedicating a new exhibition to the legendary African American performer from the 1920s.\nLatest\n5 hours ago\nAs tensions escalate in the Gaza Strip, many displaced Palestinians are now gripped with fear about Israeli forces launching a relentless assault on the city of Rafah.\n5 hours ago\nIn an interview with FRANCE 24, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said he expected that \"regardless of the outcome of the US elections\", Washington \"will continue to be a committed NATO ally\".\n6 hours ago\nDoctors in the U.S. are struggling to contend with burnout, staffing shortages and overwhelming administrative workloads, according to a new survey. Despite these challenges, 83% of doctors in the survey said they believe AI could eventually help. More than 1,000 doctors were surveyed between Oct. 23 and Nov. 8 in the study, commissioned by Athenahealth.\n6 hours ago\nOn January 6, the US aviation regulator FAA ordered the temporary grounding of certain Boeing 737-9 MAX aircraft operated by US airlines or in US territory, affecting 171 planes.\n7 hours ago\nRussian investigators have said they are carrying out a 14-day forensic \"investigation\" of the opposition leader's body. Navalny's family has so far been refused access to his remains.\n7 hours ago\nIsrael's GDP fell by 19.4 percent in the last quarter of 2023, according to preliminary figures published by the country's Central Bureau of Statistics on Monday. It's the biggest contraction the economy has seen since the early days of the Covid pandemic, and can be attributed to the impact of the war on Gaza following the October 7 Hamas attacks.", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://tv.guardian.ng/tag/josephine-baker/"}

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+{"doc_id": "166572eaf959dd763e9d1487efc9efe6", "text": "The government of Bahamas has taken a giant step towards establishing business connections between the Caribbean nation and Ghana, where most of its citizens are believed to have been taken from as slaves four centuries ago.\nAn Africa- Carribbean Trade Mission has therefore been established in Accra to facilitate the connection between Ghana and the country which is known largely for its huge tourism industry.\nAt a short ceremony to open the centre in the Accra suburb of Ashaley Botwe, High Commissioner Designate of the Commonwealth of Bahamas to Ghana, Andrew Wilson said this marked the dawn of.\nA new era for Africans taken into captivity through the slave trade to come back 'home', re-establish contacts with their motherland and bring their talents in support of the growth and development of Ghana and Africa.\n“Ghana has opened its heart to the Diaspora. In fact, it has become the gateway to Africa. The Year of Return, has demonstrated the desire within the Diaspora to re-connect with Africa. I believe that through trade, enterprise, and investment we can build durable partnerships that can increase growth and revenue for Ghanaian businesses, while also providing economic opportunities for Africa’s vast global Diaspora,” he said.\nThe move to establish the trade center is in furtherance of Bahamas establishing its High Commission in Ghana with Mr Wilson having been appointed to lead it.\nThe center would be seeking to build strategic partnerships between Ghanaian and Bahamian businesses and entrepreneurs, developing the comparative advantages of each party to plug the needs of people in the diaspora and those in Ghana. it would be partnering with businesses in the area of textiles, fashion and tourism which is one of the biggest experts in the Caribbean nation.\nThe economy of Bahamas is almost entirely dependent on tourism and financial services to generate foreign exchange earnings. Tourism alone provides an estimated 60% of the gross domestic product (GDP) and employs about half the Bahamian workforce.\nThe country, officially known as the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is a country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the West Indies in the Atlantic. It takes up 97% of the Lucayan Archipelago's land area and is home to 88% of the archipelago's population.\nThe people who populate the island country have a unique connection to Ghana and especially the Ahanta people of Ghana’s western region. Majority of the first slave ships that went from West Africa to the country were taken from the Ahanta area specifically from Princess Town- a small community in the Ahanta West Municipality. A good number of the slaves are believed to have been taken through the Fort Groß Friedrichsburg.\nThis group of slaves who went on to settle and populate Bahamas included Jan Kwa, an Ahanta chief who is known to have stood fiercely against the slave trade.\nJan Kwa is the person who started the Junkanoo festival- a celebration popular in the Caribbean and parts of America that are believed to have been mimicking the Kundum festival of the Ahanta and Nzema people.\n“The opening of the Afri-Bahamas trade office. I today represent the descendent of one of the many stolen children of Africans who have returned home. Today, we take a small step of forging a lasting trade relationship between ghana and the wider african continent to the Bahamas and the wider African diaspora especially in the Caribbean region,\" says Dr Michael Pateman, an Archaeologist who has been doing a lot of studies on historical relations between Ghana and the Caribbean.\nThe building of the center also follows visits to Ghana by the First Lady of Bahamas to re-establish diplomatic ties earlier this year.\nAngelique F McKay works with the organisation of the Junkanoo festival around the world and has also recently been enstooled as Queen Mother Asafokyereba of Pokesu and the Ahanta people of Western Ghana.\nShe said the establishment of this center would open new doors for collaboration between people who are into the curation and development of the arts in Ghana and in the Caribbean for mutual benefit.\n“The most important thing I have learnt is that all the ingredients for enterprise growth and development are already here. There is no need to re-invent a wheel. We just need to put that wheels on the wagon, the wagon on the road and move “forward, upward onward together,” said High Commissioner-designate, Wilson\nLatest Stories\n-\nBurkina Faso: At least 15 dead in Catholic church attack\n-\nMorgan Heritage lead singer Peter Anthony Morgan dead\n-\nMahama chastises government for slow pace of development in new regions\n-\nPlayback: The Probe discussed Ghana’s unemployment crisis\n-\nICGC’s 40-year journey: Pastor Mensa Otabil’s testament to faith and inspiration\n-\nWorks & Housing Ministry appoints Manasseh Atta Boahene as spokesperson\n-\nMan sets himself on fire outside Israeli embassy in Washington DC\n-\nGPL 2023/24: Hearts of Oak beat RTU; Olympics triumph over Bofoakwa Tano\n-\nKMJ named as Board Member for Ohio African Community Excellence Awards USA\n-\nJurgen Klopp calls Carabao Cup win ‘absolutely insane’\n-\nVan Dijk scores winner against Chelsea to help Liverpool win Carabao Cup\n-\nStruggling gospel singer Edward Boateng receives massive support from Prophet Bernard El Bernard\n-\nGalaxy International School holds 18th Inter-cultural Festival; urging all to embrace diversity\n-\nHassan || Golf Trophy: Argentina’s Ricardo Gonzalez bags $320,000 for winning competition\n-\nSammi Awuku woos European Lotteries in illegal gambling fight", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://www.myjoyonline.com/africa-caribbean-trade-mission-opens-in-accra/"}

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+{"doc_id": "16afabcbaa085c75975efe0fd8f35e66", "text": "CAPE TOWN - South Africa might be a small country relative to its BRICS partners, Russia, China, Brazil and India, but it punches well above its weight - and can do so much better if it channels more of its focus to collaborating with other emerging economies.\nIt’s a no-brainer, believes Dr Iqbal Survé, the chairman of Sekunjalo Investment Holdings and current chair of the South African chapter of the BRICS Business Council.\nWith access to a market of more than\n3 billion people and a combined gross domestic product (GDP) of around R19trillion - or 23percent of the gross world product - South Africa’s engaged membership of BRICS is central to its ability to meet President Cyril Ramaphosa’s plan to raise R1.2trillion in new investment.\nWeeks before the annual BRICS Summit, which will be held in Joburg from July 25 to 27, Dr Survé said the BRICS Business Council was on track to receive more than 750 delegates in Durban, including 100 dollar billionaires, business leaders, and the heads of state of five neighbouring countries, on July 22 and 23.\nIt’s the second summit in South Africa: the first rotational summit was held in 2013, three years after the country was admitted to the association of major emerging economies.\nThe councils comprise five prominent people in business: the chairperson is appointed by the cabinet.\n“The way we’ve structured our council, in consultation with the ministers of finance and of trade and industry, is to include a representative of Business Unity SA, the Black Business Council, a state-owned enterprise, and two business leaders or entrepreneurs,” he said.\n“The council has 25 members, but in each country there are working groups. There are currently nine working groups: on financial services; agriculture; the green economy; infrastructure; manufacturing; the digital economy; deregulation; and skills development.”\nThe working groups essentially carve policy direction for their governments, aligning the positions of business to the government on things like deregulation.\n“We are not there to execute those things; business people, working with the government, do that. We are there to facilitate and set policy.\n“So, if someone says we want to do business between India and South Africa, or Brazil and South Africa, but it’s impossible to get visas or it’s difficult to get registration about businesses, or we want verification that the people we will be doing business with are legitimate and we’re not dealing with any nonsense, our role is to create platforms for people to be able to do all of that. It’s about transfers of technology, sharing of knowledge.”\nBRICS isn’t only an economic partnership; during the summit, in parallel to the business and politicos meetings, there are think-tank meetings, in which academic institutions discuss collaborations; as well as meetings of labour and youth groupings.\nAt the Durban meeting, which the South African chapter is hosting in partnership with the KwaZulu-Natal provincial government, the council is pulling out all stops. Not only is it responsible for the full organisation, including logistics, security and hotel accommodation, it has also set aside a session to attract investment.\n“The president has asked for a R1trilllion investment into the country, so we’ve set aside a special session presented by Mcebisi Jonas and Trevor Manuel. The president might come on the second day of the summit, subject to his availability, because there’s a state visit from China.”\nThe council meeting is very important, because it’s an opportunity to showcase our excellence.\nDr Survé said the Chinese government spent $100 million (R1.37billion) on their business council meeting, which was “world class, fantastic”, but this meeting was mostly funded by South African business and the KwaZulu-Natal government.\n“We’re not spending a fraction of what the Chinese did, but I think we’ve done well, with less. Our attendance for this meeting has already exceeded China’s, which was held last year. With less than two weeks to the meeting, Durban already has 450 confirmed attendants. We were actually quite surprised that we have such a huge number of people coming. I believe we’ll punch above our weight and give the meeting a Southern African flavour.\n“This is our opportunity to host 500 of the wealthiest people from BRICS, showcasing our country and telling them what a great place it is to invest in. But sometimes we don’t think that way.”\nAs the longest-serving member of the council, Dr Survé said he was proud of his contribution over the past eight years.\n“Are we equal partners in BRICS? Absolutely - but we never acted like that until I took over. We hadn’t seen real exports from South Africa to BRICS countries. We started engaging in meetings on more of an equal footing. We sort of woke up, started giving the other countries a hard time and not giving them their way all the time. Instead, we put forward our position as South Africa and Africa.”\nThe point of BRICS was not to oppose the West, he said, but was to promote multilateralism.\n“We live in a multipolar world, which is very healthy. It’s not about us not using the World Bank and using the New Development Bank; it’s about having access to all of them. In any case, the biggest creditor for the US government is the Chinese government. So why are people complaining about us getting funds from China, because if China had to sell its US bonds, the US would be in huge trouble, to the value of $3 trillion.”\nJoining BRICS was a significant achievement, Dr Survé said. “Whatever anyone says about former president Jacob Zuma and his foreign minister, Maite Nkoana-Mashabane, we shouldn’t squander this opportunity because it was a Zuma project: that would be a terrible mistake.\n“I think it’s a gift that we got to participate in BRICS. We need to get rid of any notion that BRICS is from the Zuma era, that it’s being anti-West: it’s a fantastic opportunity to actually get foreign investment into our country.”\n“We have too much debt, reaching 70percent of our GDP, which means you have to service debt with no money for schools, health, housing. We’re spending $80bn just in interest on debt.\n\"The government isn’t going to be able to create jobs; the private sector has to create the jobs, start investing in job creation projects, or if foreign investors start investing in projects that create jobs.”\nCiting the example of China’s transformation into a superpower, Dr Survé said that 35 years ago, the country was one of the poorest in the world, with mass starvation. In 1978, Deng Xiaoping was appointed leader and instituted far-reaching market reforms.\n“He came in and basically said that if he doesn’t open up the economy, Chinese will starve. Money started pouring in, and even today, China still receives huge amounts of foreign direct investment.\n“In just over a generation, China was able to move from an extremely poor country to almost a middle-income country.”\nWith 66percent of South Africa’s population aged below 35 and about 70percent of them unemployed, Dr Survé said we needed to create opportunities for the youth on the continent by partnering with other emerging economies.\n“This opportunity for us to be part of a much bigger economy (through BRICS), to engage with other investors to attract capital in order to create jobs, is vital.\n“It’s difficult for us to export to the US, because they’ve got so many tariffs; the EU is also difficult. But by creating this wider market for your goods and services and products, we can access the Chinese and Indian markets with more than 3billion people.”\nIt was about having the vision as entrepreneurs to think differently about other countries and to get out of traditional comfort zones and not targeting “safe” markets, because the youth were the engine for growth.", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://www.iol.co.za/business-report/brics/brics-its-time-for-business-to-get-out-of-its-comfort-zones-15843964"}

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+{"doc_id": "1a07de151fc5975cdc9dd667e86ebf01", "text": "The January global food price index fell further by one percent, the lowest value in nearly three years, according to the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) latest food price index report.\nThe FAO’s global food price index report released Friday showed that January’s global food price index, which averaged 118.0 points, declined by one percent from December 118.5 points, making it the lowest value since February 2021.\nThe global food price index, which tracks changes in the international prices of a set of globally traded food commodities, is led by the decrease in prices of cereals and meat, which more than offset an increase in sugar prices.\n“The FAO meat price index declined for the seventh consecutive month by 1.4 percent from December, as abundant supplies from leading exporting countries drove down international prices of poultry, bovine and pig meats,” the report stated.\n“By contrast, international ovine meat prices increased on high global import demand and lower supplies of animals for slaughter in Oceania,” the report said.\nThe meat price index averaged 109.8 points, fell 1.5 points from December 111.3 points, and dipped further on a year-on-year basis, from 131.6 to 118.0 points, in January 2023 and January 2024, respectively.\nOn a year-on-year basis, the January food price index was down 118.0 points from 131.6 points in January 2023.\nThis decline in the food price index report further eases concern over global food price inflation.\nThe agency’s sugar price index showed the most increase with 135.3 points from 116.8 points in January 2023. It also increased 0.8 percent from the previous month, hinged on concerns over the likely impact of below-average rains in Brazil on sugarcane crops to be harvested from April, coupled with unfavourable production prospects in Thailand and India.\nThe sugar price index, however, had declined 16.6 percent in December last year from November.\nCereal prices declined 2.2 percent from the previous month and fell 18.6 percent from their previous year’s value.\nWheat and maize fell sharply on a month-on-month basis driven by strong competition among experts and the arrival of recently harvested supplies in southern hemisphere countries.\nThe decline in maize reflects improved crop conditions and the start of the harvest season in Argentina and larger supplies in the U.S.\nFor the year as a whole, cereal prices were 15.4 percent below their 2022 average, reflecting well-supplied markets, although the FAO’s All Rice Price Index, which is a part of the FAO Cereal Price Index, increased by a further 2.1 percent, largely reflecting a rise in prices of higher quality India’s rice due to strong pace of Thai and Pakistani shipments and additional purchases by Indonesia.\nThe vegetable oil price index dipped by 17.8 percent below its 2023 corresponding month and averaged 118.9 points, virtually unchanged from December’s value.", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://businessday.ng/agriculture/article/january-global-food-price-hits-3-year-low/"}

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+{"doc_id": "1a2006b5881a6dcfaf7139db61c4b323", "text": "Taxi hailing firm, Bolt, has increased fare prices in the wake of increasing fuel prices.\nBolt will charge Sh26.90 per kilometre on a trip under the budget ride, Bolt Lite, in Nairobi, up from Sh25 per km.\nThis follows protests by drivers to the ride-hailing firms over lower fares and commissions despite increased fuel prices.\n“We acknowledge the huge financial burden on the customers and drivers with respect to the increased fuel prices in the country. Our pricing has always been informed by market forces and driver earnings,” Bolt East Africa regional manager Micah Kenneth said.\n“We trust that our evaluation on fluctuating fuel costs and the action to mitigate the impact, will stabilise the growth and sustainability of driver earnings and cost of doing business.”\nThe drivers have in the past years held regular strikes and protests citing high operating costs making them to take home low earnings, a move that has prompted the operators to make occasional increases.\nPetrol prices jumped to a record a high of Sh126.37 per litre in Nairobi in the recent review for May by the Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority (Epra), increasing by Sh3.56 per litre from the previous month.\nDiesel is also at a two-year and three-month high since January 2019 retailing at Sh107.66 per litre in Nairobi, even though it remained constant in three consecutive months to May\nBolt said the prices will be revised in all ride categories and all towns where it currently operates including Mombasa, Thika, Kisumu, Kakamega, Nakuru, Naivasha, Eldoret, Kitale, Nyeri, Meru, Embu, Nanyuki, Karatina, Kilifi and Malindi.\nPrices will vary in line with the Epra fuel prices per town.\nThe Base category will now attract an addition Sh2.10 per km in Nairobi and Sh1.70 per km in Mombasa, while riders in the economy, Lite category will pay an additional Sh1.50 per km in Nakuru and Kisumu towns.\nTuk Tuk and Boda boda services in Mombasa, will each attract an increment of Sh0.60 per kilometre.", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://www.businessdailyafrica.com/bd/corporate/companies/bolt-fares-up-on-increased-fuel-prices-3408232"}

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+{"doc_id": "1f3e3aef386b28599c3ad2f25aab0ff7", "text": "Uche Okechukwu\n18 Oct\nSuper Eagles former captain, Uche Okechukwu and Enyimba’s striker in the CAF Champions League winning teams of 2003 and 2004, Emeka Nwanna, are among members of the newly constituted executive boards of Enyimba and Abia Warriors respectively.\nLatest\n12 mins ago\nThe House of Representatives Committee on Petroleum Resources (Downstream) yesterday read the riot act to fuel racketeers and downstream sharp practices in the country.\n12 mins ago\nThe Acting Vice Chancellor, Trinity University, Yaba, Lagos, Prof. Clement Olusegun Olaniran Kolawole, has reiterated the call to add private universities to the beneficiaries of Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFUND), saying this is the way to go for the advancement of education in Nigeria.\n1 day ago\nTwo women who filed lawsuits against singer Trey Songz alleging sexual assault in 2015 have voluntarily dismissed their cases, according to court documents obtained by TMZ. The lawsuits, filed in October 2023, accused Songz of non-consensual sexual acts at a party at his home. Neither party has provided a reason for dropping the lawsuits. Songz…\n1 day ago\nThe Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on Friday said it is considering raising the minimum capital requirements for Bureau De Change (BDC) operators to N2 billion for Tier 1 licenses while it would be N500 million for Tier 2 licenses.\n1 day ago\nApple has officially debunked the age-old myth of using uncooked rice to rescue waterlogged iPhones. The company’s advice? Don’t put your iPhone in a bag of rice. Here’s why. For years, desperate iPhone users have turned to a bowl of uncooked rice as a last effort to save their water-damaged devices. The idea was that…\n1 day ago\nSuper Falcons of Nigeria held Cameroon's Indomitable Lionesses to a 0-0 draw in Douala, in the first leg of the Paris 2024 Olympic qualifiers on Friday. The Falcons are targeting a first Olympic appearance since Beijing 2008. Since the 2008 games, the former African champions have missed three consecutive editions (2012, 2016, 2020). Friday's game…\n1 day ago\nProf. Ango Abdullahi, a member of the Northern Elders Forum, has endorsed moves by some lawmakers to return Nigeria to the Parliamentary System of Government.\n1 day ago\nAfrica’s top ten songs to hit their peak have been carefully curated for you, with each topping the charts at different times of the week. they are the most streamed on major platforms like Spotify and Billboard. Tyla’s grammy winning “Water” caps it on the Billboard dominating Nigeria's Grammy nominees, Ayra Star, Tems and Burnaboy.…\n1 day ago\nTo some extent, the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) and the Defence Headquarters (DHQ) play strategic roles in ensuring that the public is adequately informed about the efforts and accomplishments of the security services, especially ongoing military operations. Behind the scenes, the National Security Adviser (NSA), Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, facilitates inter-agency collaboration and…\n1 day ago\nThe Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, said the government is implementing solutions to ease the hardship being experienced by citizens. Edun in an interview with Channels TV addressed several issues impacting Nigeria's economy, including rising inflation, food insecurity, and support for vulnerable groups. He acknowledged the rising cost of…", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://guardian.ng/tag/uche-okechukwu/"}

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+{"doc_id": "1fa768925548614d01cf096afe530913", "text": "The International Monetary Fund should be helping impoverished Swaziland, not calling for budget cuts, the Southern African country’s embattled king said on Wednesday.\nMswati III, who critics accuse of living lavishly, complained in a speech about IMF calls for cutting civil service salaries.\n“When they come to visit us, they do not come in the same spirit and that is a cause for concern,” he said at the opening of a two-day “dialogue” that the palace is promoting as a step out of its crippling financial crisis.\nMswati, who arrived at the meeting in a luxury car, admitted that his country’s economy was “not a good sight to see”.\nIMF officials in Washington said they would not comment beyond a statement issued after fund experts visited sub-Saharan Africa’s last absolute monarchy in August. The experts expressed concern about the kingdom’s deepening crisis and its failure to meet IMF targets to stop borrowing from the central bank and cut wage, travel and defence spending in favour of funding education and health.\n“We are given timelines that are difficult to meet,” Mswati complained of the recommendations.\n“I am quite confused as to which advice to take. The IMF has its own advice, the ILO [International Labour Organisation] has its own advice and the UN has its own advice. This puts us in a predicament, knowing the state of the economy,” he said.\nBut the king said cutting public workers’ wages was difficult when “some of the civil servants are bread winners for large families”. He added such cuts also would require consultations with unions.\n“It is lies that we refuse to embrace IMF programmes,” he said. “What we want is that the IMF hear our side of the story as a country. Something which it refuses to do.”\nMswati complained that countries such as Greece and Portugal have received bailouts. But he did not mention that Greece has taken such steps as cutting its public sector and shutting down state enterprises.\nThe IMF said consultations with Swaziland would continue.\nSwaziland is several months into a financial crisis that forced it to stop paying to treat cancer patients and close its university for a time. Public school principals say they are unable to pay secretaries’ wages or utility bills or buy chalk and other supplies.\nThe cuts have led to protests by civil servants and others, with some Swazis saying the king should rein in the lifestyle enjoyed by his family, which includes 13 wives. Pro-democracy activists have tried to exploit popular anger over the budget crisis, but many Swazis remain attached to the idea of a monarchy, if not to the current monarch.\nMswati has ruled this nation of about 1.2-million since 1986.\nSouth Africa last month agreed to give Swaziland a R2.4-billion loan contingent on economic and political reform. South Africa has yet to begin paying out the money.\nAs a condition for the loan, Pretoria insisted that Mswati open a “national dialogue”, which the meeting on Wednesday was intended to address.\nAbout 1 000 people attended the talks, including students, business leaders, academics and government officials. – Sapa-AP, AFP", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://mg.co.za/article/2011-09-15-swazi-king-moans-about-the-imf/"}

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+{"doc_id": "20456c0acff93e1bf8fadca41e910628", "text": "Kenyan banks are racing to secure their systems against a new wave of cyber crime that has seen them lose hundreds of millions of shillings to fraudsters and eroded consumer confidence in technology-based banking services.\nThe Central Bank of Kenya’s latest supervision report indicates that commercial banks are losing an average of Sh100 million to fraudsters every month – signalling the level of threat in the industry and the amount of investment that needs to be made to keep customer deposits safe.\nCBK’s fraud department data indicates that the incidence of banking fraud rose to three per cent of total financial transactions last year, from 0.5 per cent five years, helped by increased bandwidth that came with fibre connectivity and increased use of technology by banks.\nCentral Bank says that although most criminals still use traditional methods of stealing cash through bank break-ins, use of fraudulent cheques or electronic fund transfer taps has pushed up computer related fraud and compromised point of sale devices.\nConcern over cyber security has been rising in recent months after a number of financial institutions reported illegal activities targeting their operations with millions of shillings at stake.\nIn the past six months, anti banking fraud experts have reported the copying of a bank’s website and its posting online to capture sensitive client information.\nA foreign national has been caught withdrawing large amounts of money from a bank’s ATM hall and an international bank’s ATM has been hacked, resulting in loss of customers’ money.\nCard theft, information skimming (insertion of electronic devices in ATM machines to capture customers’ personal data), compromised PINs, vandalism and cash trapping are top on the list of the most common forms of banking sector-related cybercrime.\nAnalysts reckon that the introduction of online payment portals for e-commerce could be the next frontier for cyber criminals.\n“Hackers were originally kids trying to show off. But it is no longer about fame and showing off, it is about making money and harming the individual,” said Mwenesi Muasalia, the Country Manager at Symantec, an online security company.\nThe growing threat posed by this sophisticated breed of criminals has forced financial institutions to look into their processes afresh.\nThough the amount of money lost to cyber criminals is big enough, bankers insist the real damage is on increased operational costs, a build-up of bad debt, erosion of customer confidence and steep drop in revenues as banks are forced to invest in new technology to protect customer information.\nIn the past two years, the banks have invested more than Sh20 billion in security solutions meant to safeguard their clients from cyber attacks mainly targeting new product lines such as online banking, card-related businesses and e-commerce channels.\nBankers say the increased number of ATM networks and use of credit cards in ordinary business transactions is posing the greatest challenge to securing their online operations.\nEquity Bank, Kenya’s biggest financial institution by customer base, recently admitted that its on-line security needs had significantly increased and clinched a deal with a Belgian business partner for a card management system that speeds up transactions made at more than 3,000 points to curb fraud.\nBanking sector insiders say the industry faced its most blatant attack in mid January.\nA joint operation by a group of local banks succeeded in apprehending an individual who was using several cards to withdraw money from different customer accounts from ATMs in Nairobi.\nArmed with more than 100 PIN numbers and debit cards the man — identified as of Slavic origin — withdrew more than Sh140,000 from several accounts in a couple of minutes.\nAlthough the case is still under investigation, bankers say the attack exposed a problem they have to deal with on an hourly basis.\n“We cannot determine which bank accounts he attempted to access. This will be known once the investigations are complete,” said Adan Mohamed, the Regional Managing Director for East and West Africa at Barclays.\nOnline security analysts however insist that the more alarming threat remains in the large amounts of money lost through ATM and credit cards.\nITU, a global cyber security firm, says global revenues from cyber crime exceeded $100 billion in 2007, outpacing illegal trade in drugs for the first time. Much of this was fuelled by global card cartels.\nAlthough many analysts say Kenya is not yet part of this global syndicate, there is increasing evidence that the country’s exposure has increased with the arrival of high speed internet mid last year.\n“The exposure originates with the merchants, who do not check that names or signatures match. Customers are also not securing their PINs enough,” said Reshma Sookran, who heads Visa’s Fraud Control for sub-Saharan Africa.\nStolen cards\nMs Sookran says there has been a marked shift in types of fraud that financial institutions face in Kenya.\nFive years ago most incidents of fraud were related to lost or stolen cards with almost no counterfeiting.\nBut last year, the number of counterfeit cards rose significantly to become the most virulent threat.\nA locally based international bank recently learned the hard lesson when its ATM was hacked into and a skimming or copying device used to capture customers’ personal information for use in card cloning.\nThe criminals use a simming device placed at the mouth of the ATM card slot to capture details on the magnetic stripe on cards.\nThat devise enables the criminals to capture the customers’ PIN numbers and card details that are then used to print counterfeit cards — also known as clones — that are commonly used in fraudulent cash withdrawals.\nLegal experts blame the trend on ineffective laws.\nCybercrime is defined as offences against the confidentiality, integrity and availability of computer data and systems; computer-related offences; content-related offences; and copyright-related offences.\nAlthough the Kenya Communications Amendment Act contains specific legislation against hacking and unlawful intrusion of computer systems, cyber security experts say the law has failed to define and capture the dynamic character of on-line crime.\n“Most hackers use fake cyber identity and getting a hacker’s true identity for purposes of prosecution remains difficult,” said Cathy Mputhia, a lawyer.\nCybercrime often has an international dimension.\nThe setting-up of procedures for quick response to incidents, as well as requests for international cooperation, is vital.\nGiven the international nature of cybercrime, the harmonisation of national laws and techniques is vital in the fight against the crime.", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://www.businessdailyafrica.com/bd/corporate/technology/banks-fight-to-secure-customer-deposits-from-cyber-criminals-1957412"}

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+{"doc_id": "20ae49faee3369a3ff2236dcb42fcb8f", "text": "South Africa’s rand touched a fresh 14-year low against the dollar on Wednesday amid concerns about the ailing local economy and after a U.S. Federal Reserve official backed a U.S. rate hike in September.\nInvestors are worried that growth in Africa’s most advanced economy has remained subdued since a 2009 recession with output seen below 2 per cent in 2015, partly due to the worst electricity crisis in seven years.\nThe economic development minister said key the mining sector, which accounts for about 7 per cent of GDP, was in `trouble’ as it struggled with widespread job losses and lower commodity prices.\nThe rand hit a session low of 12.7725, its weakest since December 2001 according to available data.\nThe local unit was trading at 12.7580 by 0631 GMT, down 0.1 percent from Tuesday’s close.\nThe move partly reflected a stronger dollar after a U.S. Fed official expressed support for an interest rate hike in September.\n“The rand’s upward assault on 12.80 continues, albeit at a far more measured pace than the previous week.\n“Movements are indicative of dulled investor sentiment toward the broader emerging market complex as evidenced by the continued weakness in the rand’s commodity-linked peers,” Rand Merchant Bank’s John Cairns said in a note.\nSouth African government bonds were also sold in early trade, with the 2026 benchmark yielding 5.5 basis points higher at 8.275 percent.\n(Reuters/NAN)", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://businessday.ng/africa/article/south-africas-rand-hits-14-year-low-as-economy-struggles/"}

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+{"doc_id": "20e1d37fa032ecb060c09d062371abf8", "text": "The Kenya Deposit Insurance Corporation has stepped up surveillance on banking institutions after it invested Sh229 million ($2 million) in a modern system for collecting and analysing data on the industry.\nKDIC—the agency which manages the deposit insurance scheme for customers — says its data warehouse will go live in less than a year, boosting early detection of suspicious financial transactions and malpractices that could lead to the collapse of a bank.\n“The data warehouse will help in mitigating bank failures because we will get data timely, analyse the data and it can quickly inform corrective decisions from some of the data,” chief executive Mohamud Ahmed Mohamud said.\n“It is a proper value addition because even banks will be more careful on the kind of data they are going to feed in there. It can, for example, quickly pick for you if there are misalignments in the data which you may not see with naked eyes.”\nKDIC is among state agencies with powers to monitor financial institutions and detect any suspicious financial transactions and financial malpractice. Others are the Central Bank of Kenya — the financial services regulator — and the Financial Reporting Centre, the anti-money laundering agency.\nRecent bank collapses – including Dubai Bank in August 2015, Imperial Bank in October 2015 and Chase Bank in April 2016 – have been a result of fraud and insider dealings.\n“All data from the banks will now be deposited in that electronic data warehouse to ensure its integrity, accuracy, and timeliness,” Mr Mohamud said.\n“This is something that will be a game-changer for us so that at a click of a button we can get whatever data we want.”", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://www.businessdailyafrica.com/bd/corporate/industry/kdic-steps-up-bank-surveillance-with-new-data-system-3770266"}

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+{"doc_id": "22cff9a8067620a19d67be66c75f1f4e", "text": "Fela\n22 Jan\nNigerian producer extraordinaire, Sarz, has become the latest voice to sing the praises of Afrobeat legend Fela Kuti, highlighting his enduring influence on contemporary artists like Wizkid, Burna Boy, and Rema. In a recent interview with ARZ, Sarz not only acknowledged Fela's impact but also revealed his own artistic engagement with the icon's vast musical…\nLatest\n8 mins ago\nA former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, Godwin Emefiele, has threatened legal action against the senate president, Godswill Akpabio, for alleged defamation of character.\n35 mins ago\nA governorship aspirant on the platform of the Labour Party (LP), Martins Okoukoni on Wednesday said he has withdrawn from the Edo governorship race and would not be participating in the LP primaries scheduled for Friday, February 23rd. Okoukoni made this known in a letter of withdrawal he signed and addressed to Barrister Julius Abure,…\n39 mins ago\nNigeria Customs Service says it is determined to intensify efforts to curtail the menace of illegal exportation of Nigeria’s grains to other African countries, to ensure adequate food security for citizens.\n50 mins ago\nAdult film star Kagney Linn Karter, aged 36, has tragically passed away by suicide in her residence as reported by a GoFundMe page created by friends on behalf of Kagney's mother to fund her funeral. Kagney’s friends Rachel and Megan revealed that despite Kagney’s numerous accomplishments and talents, she had been dealing with mental health…\n50 mins ago\nThe Department of State Services (DSS) has revealed that there are plans by certain elements to use the planned protest by the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) to cause crisis in the country. Last Friday, the NLC announced that it would hold a two-day nationwide protest over the hardship being experienced by Nigerians. NLC President, Joe…\n54 mins ago\nThe House of Representatives has resolved to investigate the privatisation and concession of federal government silos across the country.\n58 mins ago\nThe Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has declared Leno Adesanya, promoter of Sunrise Power and Transmission Limited, wanted in connection with an alleged \"conspiracy and corrupt offer to public officers\" related to the $6 billion Mambilla hydropower contract.\n1 hour ago\nThe Nigerian government should address \"arbitrary and ever-increasing\" customs duties, as they are crippling businesses and posing danger to the economy, Peter Obi said.\n1 hour ago\nThe Nigerian government has revealed that the Zungeru hydropower project will produce 2.64bn kWh of electricity annually in the country.\n1 hour ago\nGlobal Pop star Beyoncé has hit a major milestone by landing two new songs on Billboard's Hot Country Songs chart. Her tracks \"Texas Hold ‘Em\" and \"16 Carriages\" debuted at No. 1 and No. 9 respectively. These songs, released on Feb. 11, also made waves on the overall Billboard Hot 100 chart, ranking at No.…", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://guardian.ng/tag/fela/"}

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+{"doc_id": "240d9c999f5dd37acea700c6914269b7", "text": "Victor Lindelof\n11 Nov\nVictor Lindelof was Manchester United's unlikely hero as they moved into the Premier League's top six with a 1-0 win over Luton on Saturday. The Swedish defender scored his first goal for nearly three years by smashing in from close range after Luton failed to clear a corner.\nLatest\n2 mins ago\n• Says leaders solve problems, make life better, not give excuses • Reduces work hours for civil servants, promises free services in govt hospitals As part of efforts to cushion the effect of the biting economy on citizens, Lagos State Governor, BabajideSanwo-Olu, yesterday, unveiled palliatives across sectors of the economy, including a 25 per cent…\n4 mins ago\nThe Yoruba Nation activist, Sunday Adeyemo, popularly known as Sunday Igboho, has returned to Nigeria two years after his sojourn in Benin Republic while on exile.\n19 mins ago\nThe Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Gboyega Oyetola, yesterday, said the $800 million needed for rehabilitation of the country’s ports was almost ready.\n20 mins ago\nNigeria's economy grew 3.46 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2023, sustaining the third consecutive expansion since President Bola Tinubu assumed office as president.\n26 mins ago\nCrypto enthusiasts exchanged a total value of N1.9 billion via USDT-naira pair on Binance 24 hours after the government’s clampdown on leading digital currency exchange.\n30 mins ago\nInfraCredit, an infrastructure credit guarantee institution, has announced the credit enhancement of ACOB Lighting Technology Limited, a renewable energy company's debt issue.\n39 mins ago\nThe Nigeria equities market halted its gaining streak to close on a downward note, yesterday, as the index dipped by 0.2 per cent amid losses in 28 stocks.\n40 mins ago\nA new application developed by Nigerian a United Kingdom-based technology expert is looking at solving financial and social engagement challenges.\n47 mins ago\nCardinalStone has been recognised by Euromoney as a market leader in Nigeria’s investment banking, in its latest ranking exercise.\nCardinalStone has been recognised by Euromoney as a market leader in Nigeria’s investment banking, in its latest ranking exercise.\n53 mins ago\nThe African Development Bank has committed $80 million in loan financing for this state-led pioneering special economic zone project, designed to foster linkages between educators, researchers, innovators, entrepreneurs, and industries, all within one location.", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://guardian.ng/tag/victor-lindelof/"}

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+{"doc_id": "26ad71eb8e26a0d0613b5040baf9ee65", "text": "Medical insurers posted their highest-ever underwriting profit in the six months ended June last year on reduced bills, as patients avoided hospitals for fear of contracting the coronavirus.\nLatest data by the Insurance Regulatory Authority (IRA) shows that medical insurance firms made Sh891.05 million in underwriting profit over the half-year period— a record performance for the firms which have over the years posted losses.\nTom Gichuhi, the chief executive of the Association of Kenya Insurers (AKI), attributed the performance on substantial reduction in claims payment due to reduced visits to hospitals.\n“Many people avoided going to hospitals for fear of contracting Covid-19. There was highly reduced traffic to hospitals and even those seeking elective surgeries were also postponing,” he said.\n“People were also working from home and therefore for simple ailments which could otherwise drive heavy traffic to hospitals, people avoided.”\nThe Sh891.05 million profit was 3.2 times higher than the Sh280.37 million posted in the preceding half year, placing medical insurers on a strong footing to continue with the recovery from the Sh1.1 billon loss they booked in 2018.\nOut of the 24 medical insurers, only seven posted underwriting losses, a big improvement from a similar period the previous year when a majority (16) of the firms were in the red.\nKenya Alliance posted Sh202.9 million medical underwriting loss followed by Madison (Sh143.9 million), Takaful (Sh63.85 million), Pacis (Sh17.67 million), ICEA Lion (Sh17.58 million) and Tausi (Sh1.24 million).\nKenya reported the first Covid-19 case on March 13, prompting the State to impose measures such as a dusk-to-dawn curfew, social distancing and work-from-home calls.\nMedical claims paid during the six months fell by Sh362 million to Sh9.75 billion, marking the first time in over eight years they didn’t grow.\nReduced hospital visits spared insurers’ huge bills, with official data showing that the cost of healthcare rose sharpest in October due to a surge in Covid-19 infections.\nStatistics by the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) show that health inflation hit an all-time high of 3.04 percent in October from 0.05 percent at the start of last year.\nReduced hospital visits translated to reduced revenues for health facilities, prompting some to implement layoffs and salary cuts amid assurances by health officials that sufficient measures had been taken to lower Covid-19 infections in hospitals.\nThe government at one point mulled over making it mandatory for patients being admitted to hospitals to be first tested for Covid-19 as a precautionary measure to reduce the risk of infections to healthcare workers.\nMedical insurers also closed the review period with the best incurred loss ratio—proportion of collected premiums that were paid out as claims— since the IRA started providing data on the sector.\nThe incurred claims ratio dropped from 72.6 percent to 69 percent— compared to 83.9 percent seven years ago.\nThe improved performance in medical cover helped general insurers to rebound from an underwriting loss of Sh1.26 billion in mid-2019 to a profit of Sh62.45 million.\nInsurers had raised the alarm about high Covid-19 infections substantially raising medical bills.\nHowever, the muted rise in Covid-19 claims and the limiting of virus covers to patients seeking care in public facilities helped shield insurers from high payouts.\nInsurance companies had paid Sh108.2 million on Covid-19 death claims by mid-June last year, according to IRA data.\nThe regulator said total claims hit Sh109.6 million, including Sh1.45 million paid for general health cover.\nMedical insurance is the second-largest class of short term insurance business after motor insurance, in terms of gross written premium.\nHowever, the business has been struggling over the years, with underwriting losses doubling to Sh1.1 billion in the year ended December 2018. Only six medical insures posted a profit then.\nInsurers last year suspended Nairobi Women’s Hospital from their list of accredited facilities in light of allegations of cost inflation.\nThe services were, however, reinstated after insurers reviewed the operations of the hospital and threatened to blacklist any other that would in future be found to be inflating bills.\nMedical insurers have also been at loggerheads with hospitals over the number of tests administered to patients, the use of the expensive branded drugs as well as choosing expensive procedures such as Caesarean-Section delivery.\nAn April 2019 report by Nairobi County Assembly Health Services committee showed that out of the 9,043 health facilities in the city, only 1,079 were registered and licensed to operate.\nThis means over 3.5 million people living in Kenya’s capital are more likely to seek services from health facilities whose quality is not assured, leading to wrong diagnosis and repeat visits to hospitals.", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://www.businessdailyafrica.com/bd/corporate/industry/health-insurers-sh891m-profit-on-covid-19-3257658"}

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+{"doc_id": "290511b19c94be5947ef7cffbb0a8b47", "text": "Taxi Star\nTaxi Star is a leading transport service company that proudly partners with Yango, providing a seamless and lucrative opportunity for drivers in the ride-hailing industry. At Taxi Star, we understand the challenges faced by drivers, and our mission is to empower them by offering a hassle-free and profitable solution.\nOur Unique Partnership with Yango: We are honored to be a trusted partner of Yango, a prominent player in the ride-hailing sector. Our collaboration opens doors for drivers to access a fleet of high-quality vehicles and seamlessly join the Yango network, allowing them to maximize their earning potential.\nDriver-Centric Approach: Unlike traditional models, Taxi Star is committed to relieving drivers of the burdens associated with vehicle ownership. We provide a comprehensive solution that includes vehicle rental, ensuring that drivers can focus on what they do best – driving – without worrying about maintenance, servicing, or other logistical concerns.\nFlexible Payment Systems: Recognizing the diverse needs of our drivers, we offer a flexible payment system tailored to their preferences. Our aim is to create a partnership that is not only financially rewarding but also adaptable to the dynamic nature of the ride-hailing industry.\nProfitability Redefined: At Taxi Star, we have meticulously designed a system that goes beyond just convenience – it's about profitability. Our drivers experience a lucrative framework that maximizes their earnings, allowing them to thrive in their chosen profession.\nWhy Choose Taxi Star? Quality Fleet: Our fleet comprises well-maintained, top-tier vehicles, ensuring a comfortable and safe ride for passengers. Maintenance-Free Driving: Forget about the hassles of servicing and maintenance; focus solely on driving and earning.\nTransparent and Flexible Payments: Our payment systems are transparent, flexible, and tailored to suit the individual needs of each driver. Profitable System: We have a proven track record of providing drivers with a highly profitable and sustainable model.\nJoin Taxi Star today and experience a transformative partnership that redefines your journey in the ride-hailing industry. Drive with us, thrive with us!\n.", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://www.businessghana.com/site/directory/ride-hailing-companies/475032/Taxi-Star"}

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+{"doc_id": "29e6552c2bf8dd2b26a01c1496156422", "text": "The U.S. Justice Department announced a sweeping crackdown on the global fentanyl network, charging eight Chinese chemical companies and 12 of their employees in connection with the deadly opioid crisis ravaging the United States.\nIn eight separate indictments unsealed in Florida, federal prosecutors accused the companies and their employees of producing fentanyl and methamphetamine, distributing synthetic opioids, and supplying precursor chemicals for the illicit drug.\n\"We know that the global fentanyl supply chain, which ends with the deaths of Americans, often starts with chemical companies in China,\" Attorney General Merrick Garland said at a news conference in Washington.\n\"The United States government is focused on breaking apart every link in that chain, getting fentanyl out of our communities, and bringing those who put it there to justice,\" he said.\nThe Treasury Department on Tuesday announced sanctions against 28 people and entities in China and Canada, including the China-based network accused of manufacturing and distributing illicit drugs in the United States.\nThis is the second time the U.S. Justice Department has charged Chinese companies and their employees for trafficking fentanyl precursor chemicals into the United States.\nIn June, four Chinese chemical manufacturing companies and eight executives and employees were indicted for illegally trafficking chemicals used to make fentanyl. Two of the defendants were arrested.\nA spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy in Washington could not be reached for comment on the latest charges.\nIn June, the Chinese Foreign Ministry blasted the first round of U.S. indictments as \"bullyism that tramples on international law.\"\nDeadly drug threat\nFentanyl, a synthetic opioid that can kill with a dose as tiny as a few grains of salt, is wreaking havoc on the nation.\nMore than 105,000 Americans died of drug overdoses from February 2022 to January 2023, according to the U.S. Justice Department. Most of these deaths involved fentanyl or its analogues, which are chemically similar but often more lethal.\nToday, fentanyl is the leading cause of death for Americans ages 18 to 49, making it the deadliest drug threat the U.S. has ever faced, according to law enforcement officials.\nStay informed. Subscribe to our newsletter\nAttack on supply chain\nThe fentanyl crisis is fueled by a global supply chain that extends from China, where the chemicals are produced, to Mexico, where cartels mix the drug and smuggle it across the border into the United States.\nThe DEA says it is attacking every aspect of this global supply chain, targeting the producers, traffickers and distributors of fentanyl.\n\"These eight cases are the result of DEA's efforts to attack the fentanyl supply chain where it starts — in China,\" Drug Enforcement Administration Administrator Anne Milgram said at the news conference.\nIn addition to fentanyl precursors and analogues, Chinese firms are exporting dangerous additives — xylazine and nitazenes — into the U.S. and Mexico, she said.\n\"DEA will not stop until we defeat this threat,\" Milgram said.\nThe cases announced on Tuesday span two Florida districts, where the defendants allegedly shipped the drug and its precursors.\nIn the Middle District of Florida, five Chinese companies and eight nationals face charges of illegally importing fentanyl and fentanyl-related chemicals into the United States.\nProsecutors say the defendants openly advertised their ability to evade U.S. customs and deliver fentanyl to Florida and elsewhere in the United States.\nIn the Southern District of Florida, three Chinese companies and four officers and employees face charges of trafficking fentanyl and synthetic opioids, importing precursor chemicals, defrauding the U.S. postal service, and making and using counterfeit postage.", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://www.standardmedia.co.ke/america/article/2001482838/us-charges-8-chinese-firms-12-nationals-in-fentanyl-trade"}

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+{"doc_id": "2ff0e3cb8af8a6fe50773b641bdcac0a", "text": "UNODC\n21 Jun 2023\nThere is rising panic over the reported target of commercial vessels by oganised crime syndicates to facilitate the global trafficking of illegal drugs.\n19 Jun 2023\nUnited Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, (UNODC), has called for action from stakeholders to tackle rising grug abuse among school children in Nigeria.\n24 Apr 2023\nIt is a known fact that drug trafficking and abuse are at a level that calls for all to roll up our sleeves and join the ongoing effort to wrestle the scourge to the ground in Nigeria.\n19 Apr 2023\nUnited Nations Office of Drugs and Crime (UNODC) has deplored what it described as organised criminal trading in wildlife and forest products through Nigeria’s ports.\nLatest\n2 mins ago\nA leading opponent of Chad's ruling junta Yaya Dillo Djerou has been killed in an army assault on his party headquarters, a government spokesman told AFP Thursday.\n25 mins ago\nInflation in Germany, France and Spain eased further in February, data showed Thursday, a development likely to be welcomed by the European Central Bank as it weighs when to begin cutting interest rates.\n33 mins ago\nParis Saint-Germain coach Luis Enrique on Thursday promised that the French giants will have a stronger team next season despite the impending departure of Kylian Mbappe when the superstar forward's contract expires.\n44 mins ago\nA bill to include Anambra State in the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) has been rejected by the Nigerian Senate on Wednesday. The bill, sponsored by Senator Tony Nwoye, representing the Anambra North district, was presented on Wednesday but failed to pass the second reading, facing strong opposition from a majority of senators. Currently, the…\n45 mins ago\nThe City of Boston has officially declared March 2nd as \"Burna Boy Day\" to honor the renowned Nigerian singer and songwriter. The City of Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. This recognition comes in light of Burna Boy's significant contributions to music and his…\n50 mins ago\nThe candidate of the Labour Party during the 2023 presidential election, Peter Obi, has projected that the new Monetary Policy Rate (MPR) of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) will worsen the country's economy, cause job losses and lead to other negative results. The Central Bank recently decided through the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) to…\n52 mins ago\nThe House of Representatives has urged the Ministry of Education to collaborate with the Ministry of Health to develop a mandatory drug test for secondary school students in Nigeria.\n57 mins ago\nThe Lagos state government loses over N4 trillion annually to traffic congestion, according to reports. This was made known on Thursday in a statement issued by presidential media aide Dada Olusegun. \"Reports out there say Lagos state loses over N4 trillion annually to traffic congestion as thousands of productive hours are lost in “go slow”…\n1 hour ago\nThe Federal Government inaugurated the Odo-Ape Dam in Kabba/Bunu Local Government Area of Kogi on Wednesday, the Ministry of Water Resources and Sanitation, stated in Abuja on Thursday.\n2 hours ago\nFrance star Paul Pogba has been given a four-year ban from football by Italy's anti-doping tribunal after testing positive for testosterone last August, his club Juventus said on Thursday. A spokesman for the club told AFP it had been notified of the decision against the 30-year-old World Cup winner, who had been provisionally suspended in…", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://guardian.ng/tag/unodc/page/2/"}

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+{"doc_id": "30e56ff2409d57b07d199bf41f06db8a", "text": "Oil marketers worry about possible unrest when prices rebound\n…seek passage of PIB to support deregulation\nPetroleum marketers have urged the Federal Government to take decisive steps in addressing deregulation concerns in the downstream sector to avoid a civil unrest that may arise when oil prices rebound.\nAccording to the Major Oil Marketers Association of Nigeria (MOMAN), there is a need for legal framework or an enabling legislation backing deregulation like the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB).\nOil prices have continued to hover between $40-$42 per barrel within the last few weeks with the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), and other market analysts expressing cautious optimism on oil rebound till the end of the year.\nMOMAN’s Chairman, Tunji Oyebanji made the call during a webinar organised by the National Association of Energy Correspondents (NAEC) on the “Challenges and Impact of a Deregulated Downstream Sector on Nigeria’s economy.”\nOyebanji said while MOMAN was in full support of the deregulation of the downstream sector and allowing market forces to determine prices, the association believes that there should be regulations in place to check price gouging.\nHe also called for the regulation of the sale and distribution of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG), following recurring cases of gas explosions in Nigeria.\nAccording to him, the quality and quantity of petroleum products being sold to customers need to be regulated to ensure that they meet the minimum standards.\nHe expressed concern on the proliferation of LPG (cooking gas) plants across the country as well as usage of unsafe trucks in conveying petroleum products.\n“Most of these trucks do not have modern safety gadgets in case of a roll over. They don’t have tracking devices because their owners don’t have funds to invest on new fleets.\n“We believe that with the deregulation of the downstream sector, more investments will come in across the value chain,” Oyebanji said.\nHe said MOMAN was working with the National Assembly and the Ministry of Petroleum Resources to ensure that the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) would enhance the development of the industry when passed into law.\nOyebanji, who is the Managing Director, 11Plc, noted that the PIB would create a new regulator that would focus solely on the downstream sector unlike the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR).\nHe said the deregulation of the downstream sector and the passage of the PIB would encourage more investments in Nigeria’s oil and gas industry and make the country a refining hub.\nOyebanji said, “Investors were not encouraged to invest because our market was not deregulated and there was a lack of governance policy and regulations.\n“Deregulation is a win-win for the Nigerian consumer, we as industry stakeholders and the country as a whole.\n“In 2019 alone, about N752 billion was spent on petrol subsidy.\n“Now that subsidy has been removed, the government should deploy the funds on road construction, healthcare, education and other areas for the benefit of Nigerians.”\nHe said the removal of subsidy on petrol had discouraged smuggling of the product across the borders and reduced the strain on the nation’s foreign exchange reserves.\nThe MOMAN chairman, however, urged the government to create a level playing field for importation of fuel into Nigeria in order not to defeat the purpose of the deregulation.\n“Deregulation works best when there are many players. The competition will help drive lower prices for the benefit of Nigerians.\n“A situation where some people get forex at a cheaper rate than others to import products will only create a monopoly,” he added.\nEarlier, Ugo Amadi, Acting Chairman, NAEC, said the webinar was organised to appraise the impact of the deregulation of the downstream sector on Nigeria’s economy.\nAmadi said the country was plagued by multiple challenges such as the COVID-19 pandemic, low oil earnings, threats of terrorism, among others, adding that the government must take decisions for the people’s good.\nGet the latest news delivered straight to your inbox every day of the week. Stay informed with the Guardian’s leading coverage of Nigerian and world news, business, technology and sports.", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://guardian.ng/business-services/oil-marketers-worry-about-possible-unrest-when-prices-rebound/"}

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+{"doc_id": "33909ce62e5bc175af98f04ecaf712ab", "text": "Nigerian cocoa farmers must prioritise the quality and quantity of their production leveraging climate-smart agriculture and initiatives to improve traceability along the cocoa supply chain.\nNene Akwetey-Kodjoe, the chief of party, Traceability and Resilience in Agriculture and Cocoa Ecosystems of Nigeria (TRACE) project, stated this at a recent monitoring, evaluation and learning workshop, in Akure, the Ondo State capital.\nAkwetey-Kodjoe said TRACE was being implemented by Lutheran World Relief, a member of Corus International, in partnership with Nigeria’s ministry of agriculture and rural development, Cocoa Research Institute of Nigeria (CRIN), International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), C-Lever.org, and Ecometrica.\nSpeaking on the objectives and overview of the workshop, Akwetey-Kodjoe said; “TRACE, which is funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Food for Progress programme, is a five-year project being implemented in six cocoa-producing states in Nigeria, including Abia, Akwa Ibom, Cross Rivers, Ekiti, Ondo, and Osun.\n“The project has two main objectives; one is to support cocoa farmers to increase productivity by using climate-smart agriculture to combat the effect of the climate change in agriculture in the dry season and dry conditions and provide interventions in irrigation.”\n“Also, to expand the trade in cocoa of Nigerian origin by improving traceability cocoa supply chains. We also work with the Cocoa Research Institute of Nigeria to trace the planting materials to increase the market for Nigeria cocoa.”\nHe said Ondo State was picked for the three-day workshop because it is the largest cocoa-producing state in Nigeria and also hosts the TRACE project office.\n“So, in addition to established industry stakeholders, we are working towards reaching the new farmers through the Cocoa Farmers Association of Nigeria. We believe that within their supply chain, the farmers will benefit from these interventions we are talking about.\n“We are working with state governments for the full implementation of this project. We have concluded our baseline study for which we await USDA approval, but we are still engaging commissioners for agriculture and other officials on how to synergise towards moving the cocoa industry forward.\nRead also: Egypt to strengthen ties with Nigeria in agriculture, education, telecom\n“Cocoa is important to Nigeria and a lot of farmers are engaging in cocoa farming. So, we call for more support as we proceed towards implementation in the field,” Akwetey-Kodjoe said.\nAlso speaking, Onwusogbolu Chinedu, of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, said the workshop was organised for the stakeholders to brainstorm on increased cocoa productivity in Nigeria.\nAccording to him, the Federal Government has done a lot towards providing improved hybrid seedlings (CRIN TC1-8), agrochemicals and training of farmers to produce cocoa in conjunction with CRIN.\nChinedu, therefore, advised farmers to key into what the government “is doing to move the cocoa industry forward.”\nHe also advised the youths to embrace farming, saying “There is a new technology in farming and there is money in cocoa plantation.”\nPatrick Adebola, executive director, Cocoa Research Institute of Nigeria, Ibadan, called on government at all levels to roll out programmes that will encourage youths to return to the farm.\nHe said: “The cocoa value chain in Nigeria is currently deregulated and we have seen a lot of sharp practices being carried out leading to substandard products sent to the international market.\n“I believe there should be a body or agency to regulate the activities in the cocoa value chain in order to reduce the incidence of the rejection of our cocoa beans in the international market,” he added.\nRanjana Bhattacharjee, a senior scientist at the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) Ibadan, noted the drop in Nigeria’s cocoa production from 1960’s and 1970’s, saying other countries such as Ghana, Cameroon and Cote D’Ivoire have accelerated ahead of Nigeria, although cocoa was still one of the major contributors to the GDP of the country after petroleum.\nBhattacharjee also said; “There is a need for Nigeria to develop market and process cocoa in-house like many other countries such as Ghana and Cote D’Ivoire, and this will help build the reputation and recognition for Nigerian cocoa in the international market so that the farmers can get a premium price for producing good quality cocoa.\n“There is an urgent need to ensure that the entire cocoa sector gets a kind of regularisation and establish a cocoa board so that farmers can get incentives and also value of producing quality versus non quality cocoa beans.\n“Farmers should also engage themselves and come together through CFAN, CAN and other cocoa associations/private firms and learn from each other to keep up with the newer modern technologies such as use of smart phones, use of good agricultural practices, use of climate smart technologies, among others.”", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://businessday.ng/agriculture/article/how-nigeria-can-increase-cocoa-production-compete-in-global-market/?utm_source=auto-read-also&utm_medium=web"}

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+{"doc_id": "33c56b988926dcb397047d690881b98c", "text": "At the outskirts of Ajokete village in Iseyin Local Government Area of Oyo State is four hectares of land belonging to Temidayo Adegoke, a 62 years old farmer who farms maize, vegetables and cassava.\nDespite being a farmer for over 10years, Adegoke is still unable to improve his livelihood and does not want any of his seven children to be a farmer.\n“For many years I have worked so hard on my farm and yet I have very little to show for the hard work,” he told BusinessDay.\nThis is because he has recorded a particular yield per hectare over these periods, as he is unable to find the right hybrid seeds and seedlings for cultivation.\nIn the past, he has purchased several seeds labelled as hybrid from the market only to later discover that they are adulterated or fake.\nThis forced Adegoke to result to replanting the grains harvested from his farm for maize and vegetable production as well as stems for cassava.\nAs a result, he has maintained 1.2MT tons per hectare for maize and 2MTtons per hectare for cassava, when his peers in other African countries are growing between 3MT and 6MT per hectare.\nThe situation has made Adegoke income remains’ perpetually low with it having a negative impact on his livelihood.\nData from the Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) shows that Nigeria records the least yield per hectare among its peers. For tomatoes, the average yield per hectare in Nigeria is 7 metric tons (MT), Kenya’s average yield for the crop is 20MT, Ghana tomato yield is 8MT and South Africa’s average yield for the crop is 76MT.\nSimilarly, for maize – which is the most consumed grain on the continent, Nigeria’s yield per hectare is 1.6 on the average despite being the second largest grower of the crop while Kenya and Ghana have same average yield of 2MT per hectare and South Africa’s average yield is 6MT per hectare.\nFor potatoes, which is the best rounded and nutrient root in all of Africa, Nigeria’s yield per hectare for the crop is 3.7MT, Kenya average is 15.5MT and South Africa average yield for the crop is 38.8MT.\nNigeria’s average yield per hectare for rice paddy which is the most consumed staple in the country is 2MT, while Kenya, South Africa and Ghana has same average yield per hectare of 3MT\nAccording to a recent data by the World Poverty Clock, Nigeria is now the poverty capital of the world with 91.8 million people living in extreme poverty.\nA 2010 data from the World Bank collection of development indicator states that rural communities account for 52.8 percent of poverty rate in Nigeria.\nSmallholder farmers accounts for the larger population in rural communities and have remained poor despite the enormous potential in the agricultural sector.\nTheir limited access to improve seeds and seedlings have made Nigeria’s farm yield and income from farming activities remain perpetually low, thus, leading to high production cost and making the sector unattractive to the younger population.\nIn addition, farmers failure to adopt good agronomy practices has also made yields per hectare for various crops to remain low.\nOwing to the low crop yields, Nigeria now records huge demand-supply gaps in most of its staple foods, even as the population growth rate stands at 2.6 percent per annum and projected to surpass the 300 million people mark by 2050, according to The World Population Prospects 2017.\n“Nigeria has the lowest yields per hectare globally. We abandoned agriculture for a very long time when other countries were developing theirs. It is now we are coming back to it and there is still a lot that has to be done,” Emmanuel Ijewere, vice president, Nigeria Agribusiness Group (NABG) said at CEO’s breakfast meeting in Lagos last year.\n“In tomatoes for instance only one percent of Nigerian farmers plant their tomatoes using hybrid seeds and seedlings. In Ghana 40 percent of their farmer’s farm with hybrid seeds and in Kenya it is 68 percent of their farmers that use improved seeds and seedlings,” Ijewere said.\nApart from low yields, infrastructural deficit across the country is also a challenge to farmers’ income, as it has continued to erode their profit and impact their capacity to expand production negatively.\nHalf of the fruits and vegetables grown in Nigeria often get riot on farms before they get to the markets owing to inadequate storage facilities and huge road deficits, experts say.\n“Post-harvest losses in Nigeria are huge due to inadequate storage facility in the country,” said Mawuli Coffie, team leader, West Africa Food Markets Programme.\nCoffie stated that the despite the country is not growing enough owing to low yields per hectare, he says most of what is grown often rots in the field because it is difficult to move them easily from the farms to the market and the facilities to store them are lacking also.\nInvestments in the country’s primary agricultural infrastructure will help integrate the poorer sections of the population into a sustainable process of economic growth and development, experts say.\nIn turn this will reduce poverty by providing jobs directly and indirectly that will serve as a stimulus to the Nigerian economy and agricultural sector specifically.\nAlso, high logistics cost has limited farmers to easily access markets with their produce while reducing their profits.\n“Farmers pay so much transporting their produce from the farm to the market because the roads are very bad. This further increase the cost of production and deter farmers from easily accessing the market and moaking most to resolve selling their produce to middle men who reap them off,” Lawrence Afere, founder and CEO of Springboard Nigeria.\nAfere said that Nigeria can only feed itself and improve farmers livelihood when infrastructures needed to boost productivity across the value chain are provided, stating that infrastructural facilities such as storage, good road and adequate access to quality seed varieties will lift farmers out of poverty.\nExperts say that the country can only tackle its poverty issue when the incomes of smallholder farmers who account for 65percent of the rural population are improved.\nThey say that the government must create the enabling environment for growth in the sector and for it to attract seed investors that does not just export put develop and breed their seeds here.\nIsaac Ogara, secretary, MSN and a lecturer at the department of Agronomy, Nasarawa State University said that there is need for capacity building for farmers on good agronomy practises.\n“Farmers must also ensure that they carry out good farming practices by ensuring that they carry out all the cultivation practices according to recommendations and dry their crops properly. Crops must be properly dried with moisture content of about 12-14 percent,” Ogara said.\nJosephine Okojie", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://businessday.ng/agriculture/article/bridging-nigerias-farm-yields-gap-to-tackle-rural-poverty/"}

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+{"doc_id": "367653350919e2ae05eeec996eba12b2", "text": "Seafoods are animals and plants obtained from bodies of water such as the sea, rivers, lagoons and oceans. The truth, however, is that not every animal or plant in the water is edible, as some are found to be poisonous! Also, the kind of seafood eaten depends on the region where they are most common. The most known seafood in Nigeria, especially in riverine and coastal states include crayfish, crabs, clams and periwinkles. Crayfish, (Cambarellus diminutus), sometimes called crawfish, is a freshwater crustacean resembling small lobsters to which they are related.\nBefore delving into the economic benefits of seafood it is important to know their nutritional benefits to man. According to HealthGuide NG apart from the popular catfish, Nigerians also eat tilapia, crayfish, croaker, salmon, mackerel (sardines) and also stockfish which is mostly 8imported.\nAccording to World Fish Centre, fish accounts for about 40 percent of Nigeria’s protein intake, with fish consumption at 13.3 kg per person annually. It is usually used in preparing dishes like soups, stews, and even porridge. It can be boiled, fried, or even roasted.\nFish is a good source of animal protein and is also rich in Omega-3 fatty acids, which reduces bad cholesterol levels in the blood as well as boosts the function of the brain. Fish also contains fewer calories than other kinds of food, which makes it a great addition for those who want to lose weight.\nShrimp is rich in nutrients like vitamin A, B vitamins, protein, copper, selenium, iron, zinc, Omega-3 fatty acids, and so on. This makes it a very healthy addition to your diet.\nPrawns are like shrimp but much bigger in size. Unlike shrimps, prawns can serve as toppings as they are quite fleshy, which means there is a lot to eat. Prawns are a great source of Vitamins B-6, B-12 and Niacin, which help the body produce energy, build muscle and replenish red blood cells. Prawns contain significant amounts of iron, a mineral that is essential for the body to effectively distribute oxygen.\nRead also: $150bn global seafood market creates opportunity for Nigerian entrepreneurs\nAs for periwinkles, also known as sea snail, is mostly used by people from the South-South region of Nigeria, where it is used in making soups. Banga soup and Afang soup both go well with periwinkles. It is small and has a hard shell, which has to be removed before it can be used to cook. Periwinkles are rich in omega-3 fatty acids, selenium, and magnesium and are also an excellent source of protein. All these make periwinkles one of the healthiest seafoods in Nigeria.\nWhen it comes to maximizing the economic benefits of seafood, WealthResult.com insists that the profit margin of fish will always be high. This is because they sell very well in Nigerian restaurants, eateries, night bars and for home cooking. There are various uses of fish; hence, there is a steady demand for fish. Fish when given appropriate feeding grows very fast so the period of return on investment (ROI) is short.\nThe advantages of investing in frozen food in Nigeria include helping to maintain the flavour and nutrients of the food. Besides, it is cost effective, because frozen foods keep longer than fresh, refrigerated foods. The freezing process suspends enzyme activity that causes the food to rot.\nIt provides safety for storage since freezing suspends microbial and fungal activity in the food. As long as the food remains frozen, it is safe. Frozen foods give busy people a way to feed themselves and their families with healthy meals in minutes. Sometimes frozen foods are a better choice than fresh ones, such as in cases of food pathogen outbreaks and when there is a shortage of fresh food.\nFurthermore, Wealthresult.com states that: “The rising demand for it is further boosted by the increasingly busy lifestyle of most Nigerian families, especially the middle class. Unlike in the rural areas where fresh food is readily available, the story is not the same in urban areas and for this reason, frozen food is preferred for convenience and ease of preservation”.\nFor instance, a kilogram of frozen chicken goes for a minimum of N650.00. It can even cost above a thousand naira depending on the size and location. That is why the business is very profitable. However, it has some level of risk as well as the problem of electricity experienced in the country. It also adds up to the cost of running the business.\nSo in setting up the business, one should consider these factors very carefully. The average standard frozen food store makes N200,000 profit monthly (some make much more than that while some make less). As well as knowing much about the competition.\nIt is necessary to raise your business capital. Before thinking of starting anything like a business venture, there must be money set aside for it. The level you begin with is determined by the amount of capital available to you. You can source your start-up capital through multiple means\nApart from the fact that equipment should be purchased and the refrigerators need to be stocked with goods, you need enough money for maintenance and running costs that will last for some five months. Amongst the needed equipment for the frozen food business in Nigeria: are freezers, tables, and chairs. knives (big and small), chisel, generator, work space, fans/air conditioner. Others are water containers, cartons of food to be sold, wooden board, aprons, cabinets, bowls or buckets and waste bins.\nIt is imperative to decide on your product line. You have to know what species of fish people in that area consume more. That will give you an idea of which one to start with. Also remember that if you are going to start with maybe fish and poultry food, that means there will be two refrigerators. That is because fish gives an awful smell and not everybody eats it. Storing it together with chicken will give you bad business.\nRead also: Nigeria missing out in global seafood market despite strong forex potential\nStudy the environment where you want to situate the business and be able to forecast what the turnover of the business will look like in a year or two.\nRegistration with the relevant associations is also a necessity. Every business line usually has an association that oversees its affairs. Good enough, some Associations can even provide credit facilities for their members. But avoid those that are prone to asking for multiple levies, thereby affecting your profit margin.\nOne has to be knowledgeable in building your customer base. This should form part of your business plan and research findings before you embark on the business. Good customer relations will act as a catalyst to improve the business performance.\nOther significant steps to take include the proper planning of your storage system, getting an adequate power supply generator and your logistics for home delivery.\nTo succeed, put in efforts to reduce the disadvantages of sea foods such as too much salt content; that is high levels of sodium that can increase the risk of developing high blood pressure and heart-related disease in the consumers.\nAlso necessary is for one to go for training programs on hi-tech marketing gimmicks, customer relationships, branding, food processing and safety.", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://businessday.ng/agriculture/article/making-millions-from-seafood-business/"}

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+{"doc_id": "37f227d7cc2074a986e516faee991405", "text": "(Delwyn Verasamy/M&G)\nAs Africans we are no strangers to large-scale human loss. Memories of the HIV epidemic weigh heavily on our collective psyche. We remember what it was like to lose large groups of our community to a virus while the world scrambled to find treatments. Our doctors know how health systems and staff can crumble under the pressure of having to provide care. Then came antiretrovirals and we allowed ourselves to take a collective deep breath. We weathered the global storms of H1N1 and SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome). Then there was Ebola, and it was a grim picture that West Africa presented the rest of the world.\nA fatalist could say that this is our cross to bear and that we must persevere. The reality is that nature will do what she has to do, but humans have choice. How we are placed to cope with pandemics and disease is a consequence of priorities, policy and leadership.\nDuring and after the Ebola epidemic, there was a recognition that regional co-ordination was needed and the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention was established with international funding. On paper it looks promising, committing to support countries in many areas including surveillance and disease intelligence, information systems, and public health research. Although a regional co-ordinating body such as this one is essential, the reality is that when policy moves down to a national level, fault lines become very evident.\nPresident Cyril Ramaphosa’s address last week ticked all the right boxes including calling for the appropriate travel bans, social distancing and school closures. In terms of public relations, Ramaphosa delivered — cutting a strong leadership figure and making timely and decisive calls. The irony is that this type of decisive leadership is exactly what’s needed during inter-epidemic times to secure the very building blocks that aren’t in place now, the lack of which will severely expose our vulnerabilities as coronavirus hits our society.\nSouth Africa’s fault lines\nMany of our fault lines hinge on inequalities, ranging from the economic to health systems. Policy is only as good as its implementation and it’s not pessimism to wonder how social distancing and adequate hygiene can occur in a country in which about 13.6% of the population live in informal settlements, where overcrowding is rife and access to adequate water and sanitation is not secure.\nThose people with contract jobs may have some security and financial buffering during these uncertain times but with an estimated 20% of total employment falling within the informal sector, staying home with paid sick leave is not an option, making social-distancing calls unrealistic (but not unimportant). With a large proportion of South Africa’s population commuting using public transport and private minibus taxis, which are usually packed to capacity, effective social-distancing becomes a practical challenge.\nDuring the best of times, South Africa’s public health system is strained to capacity. The public-private gradient means that financial and human resources are unevenly spread, in favour of the smaller, more affluent societal grouping. The proposed National Health Insurance is meant to address this issue — and provide redress — but it remains to be seen whether the specifics around policy, roll-out and implementation will truly favour health equity. It’s only through quality and equitable health services that we will have fewer medically vulnerable populations when it comes to pandemic vulnerability and morbidity and mortality.\nThe pathways by which poor health services create economically vulnerable populations are multiple. It is these economically vulnerable populations who face increased risk due to the primary and secondary effects of pandemics.\nThe coronavirus will not be the last pandemic that Africa will have to contend with. As a consequence of accelerated globalisation, humanity will have to prepare itself for intermittent disease outbreaks in the future.\nEven the best infectious control response is still a reactive measure. In addition to multisectoral pandemic preparedness, a more equitable society will mean that there will be fewer vulnerable and at-risk populations. A society and policies based on social justice and social solidarity would mean that when future pandemics do occur, fewer people would become vulnerable.\nAyesha Jacub is a medical doctor and global health policy analyst. She previously worked in the South African public health system and is now based in Istanbul", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://mg.co.za/africa/2020-03-22-the-coronavirus-and-africa-exposing-our-vulnerabilities-and-inequalities/"}

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+{"doc_id": "384d9772c05ff58e4375d8690699edee", "text": "On the global scene, the world is still smarting from the global crisis that engulfed most economies in the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis. World output growth was continually revised downwards by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), from 3.2% in their World Economic Outlook (WEO) released in April, to 3.1% in July, and 2.9% in October. Emerging specters of hope across the globe, however, suggest 2013 might be the trough, with 2014 global activity expected to accelerate.\nThe cautious optimism for 2014 is indeed warranted as the US continues to lead the recovery charge amongst the advanced economies, with their 4.1% Q3 activity growth rate fastest since the end of 2011. This was largely due to stronger consumer spending and higher nonresidential investment; US unemployment rate also hit a five-year low of 7% in November. The Euro area finally emerged from a record 18-month contraction in Q2 2013, as the bloc’s GDP expanded by 0.3%. This was followed by a marginal 0.1% growth in Q3, suggesting that activity in the area is still struggling to gain the much needed momentum. In Japan, Shinzo Abe’s three arrows aimed at expanding the economy while curbing the effects of deflation, and improving capacity and productivity, seem to be yielding the much needed fruits. The economy expanded by 0.9% in Q2 and 0.5% in Q3 2013, and Prices are also emerging from a protracted period of deflation, moving closer to their 2% target.\nIn the emerging economies, China continues to grow, but at a slower rate. The 7.7% activity growth recorded in the first nine months of 2013 is the slowest in 23 years, although it’s higher than Beijing’s growth target of 7.5% for 2013. In Brazil, disappointing growth is the new normal, as 2013 estimated growth in the world’s 7th largest economy was again revised downwards to 2.5% from the 3% earlier projected. This is however, an improvement from the 0.9% growth recorded in 2012. In India, output growth in 2013 continues to disappoint, recording 4.6% growth for the first nine months, the lowest since 2004.\nOn the domestic scene, coming off the back of a challenging 2012 that started with the New Year gift of partial fuel subsidy removal and the ensuing upheaval, followed by the mid-year transition into the second phase of the electricity multi-year tariff order, and ended with flooding taking out a significant portion of output, it was indeed a trying year for many households. This saw household consumption drop by 14% in 2012 compared to 2011, and as a proportion of output, it dipped from 60% to 47%. A 2013 devoid of the challenges of the previous year, therefore, held so much promise for many households. Indeed, available proxies for household spending suggest an improvement over 2012.\nThe monetary conditions remain tight, as the monetary authorities succeeded in their key responsibility of maintaining the value of the Naira both domestically- inflation, and internationally- exchange rate. Inflation is poised to remain in single digit through 2013, and touched a five-year low when it dipped below 8% in October. The Naira/USD exchange rate at both the official and interbank markets remain within the set band, although the BDC and Parallel markets’ rates have since crossed the band once the CBN introduced more stringent measures to curb speculative attacks on the Naira.\nThe Fiscal conditions, however, remain loose, as Nigeria failed in many respects to capitalize on the global tailwind that prevailed throughout the better part of 2013. Federal government revenue fell short of projections mainly due to dwindling oil production numbers despite Nigeria’s reference oil price averaging above $110 per barrel through the year. The foreign reserves that started the year at $44.3bn, and touched $48.9bn as early as April, is now down to $44.1bn. The Excess crude account that started the year at $9.5bn is now at $3.3bn. At the same time, government borrowing continues at an unsustainable rate. In failing to shore up the buffer for the uncertain electoral cycle, year 2013 would therefore be remembered as the year of lost opportunity.\nAlthough activity grew for the first nine months of the year by 6.5% over 2012, this is just 0.1 percentage points better than 2012 growth for the same period. A better performance was expected in 2013 due to the complexities and challenges witnessed in 2012 which were absent in 2013. Slowing telecoms, and wholesale & retail growth rates are sore points in the 2013 activity numbers. In terms of expectations, and potential, output in 2013 failed to deliver.\nRegarding financial flows, and financial markets, foreign direct investment estimated at $8.9bn for 2013 affirms Nigeria as the destination of choice in Africa. Net foreign portfolio investment continues to be positive, and Diaspora transfer remains healthy at $21bn- this is about half the size of Nigeria’s liquid foreign reserves. The Nigerian All Share index has also benefited from both foreign and domestic patronage, returning about 46% so far this year.\nFrom all indications, 2014 promises to be a better year for many countries. On the global scene, we expect recovery to continue steadily, albeit at a slow pace in the advanced economies. The commencement of tapering in the US in January 2014 at $10bn a month still leaves $75bn injection into the economy on a monthly basis. We, however, expect an increase in the size of the tapering in H2 2014. Activity in many of the emerging economies is also expected to pick up in 2014; although it is projected that China’s economy will slow in the coming year.\nIn Nigeria, monetary policy is expected to remain tight as the monetary authorities will most certainly be pre-occupied with managing the fallout from loose fiscal environment. The three tiers of government are expected to increase spending as the election year beckons which will put pressure on prices, and the Naira, but we expect inflation to remain in single digit, and the Naira to stay within the current band for at least the first half of the year barring any unforeseen shock.\nOil price is expected to stay above the budget benchmark, but production projection at 2.39million barrels per day is overly optimistic, and unlikely to be met. Activity in Nigeria is expected to grow between 6.7% and 7.2% in 2014 using the 1990 base year. The rebased GDP numbers, expected in February, will see growth rate slow, off a larger base.\nAll in all, I hope for a better and brighter Nigeria, devoid of rancor, ethnic, and religious tension.\nBy: Olugbenga A. Olufeagba", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://businessday.ng/analysis/article/looking-back-on-2013-and-forward-to-2014/"}

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+{"doc_id": "3b0ce31232eec19f9821561c8f91a73f", "text": "In its continued intervention in the foreign exchange market, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) injected a cumulative sum of $2.04 billion to further sustain the improved liquidity and relative stability in the market.\nAccording to the latest CBN’s monthly economic report covering the month of May 2019, Nigeria’s apex bank sold the whopping sum of $2.04 billion to authorised dealers in May, compared to $2.43 billion supplied in the previous month. This indicates a decline of 16.1%.\nKey Numbers: A breakdown of the Central Bank’s intervention in the foreign exchange (FX) market in the month of May 2019 reveals that Interbank sales fell by 10% to $0.09 billion, to the level in the preceding month.\nCurrency sales to the Bureau De Change (BDC) rose by 6.3% and estimated at US$1.05 billion.\nSwaps transactions remained unchanged from the previous month and it was estimated at $0.01 billion.\nThe average exchange rate of the naira to the US-dollar, at the inter-bank segment, was N306.95/US$, representing an appreciation of 0.003%\nThe average exchange rate at the BDC segment, at N360.00/US$, depreciated by 0.3% relative to the level at the end of the preceding month.\nAt the “Investors” and “Exporters” (I&E) window, the average exchange rate of the naira vis-à-vis the US dollar, was ₦360.74/US$ indicating that naira appreciated by 0.01%.\nNumbers Explained: The lower sales of FX in the month of May was as a result of less demand for FX at the inter-bank segment, a 6.3% decline. The reason for the decline may be as a result of low demand for forex at the interbank level, possibly due to the delays, policy, and other bureaucratic issues.\nUnlike the interbank segment, demand for FX surged at the BDC segment. This means that the Central Bank had to increase its supply of forex to ease pressure on the Nigerian Naira. This reflected in the depreciation of the exchange rate on this segment, signifying a surge in the demand for FX for the month under review.\nOn the other hand, the fragility of Nigeria’s exchange rate system was further established as the Central Bank increased the supply of forex to the all-important I&E window where foreign investors trade. Accordingly, the naira exchange rate appreciated by 0.01% in the I&E segment in the month, indicating strong stability in the segments likely occasioned by an oversupply of FX by the Central Bank.\nMeanwhile, Reserves Depleted by $48 million: While the CBN is bent on continuing its intervention in the FX market, burning through the reserves means the apex bank is sacrificing FX savings for naira stability.\nAnalysis of data obtained from the Central Bank of Nigeria shows that in the last month, despite an increase in forex receipts, external reserves depleted by US$48.3 million. This shows that the Central Bank’s intervention is gradually eating up Nigeria’s external reserves. Here are highlights of Nigeria’s reserves in May 2019\nThe gross external reserves stood at US$44.85 billion, at end May 2019, indicating an increase of 0.9% above the US$44.47 billion recorded at end-April 2019\nA breakdown of the external reserves by ownership showed that the share of Federation reserves was US$0.004 billion (0.01%)\nFederal Government reserves were estimated at US$7.37 billion (16.4%)\nCentral Bank’s reserves stood at US$37.47 billion (83.6%) of the total\nThe increase was mainly due to rising receipts from foreign exchange purchases, receipts from oil-related taxes, receipts from joint venture companies (JVC cash call funding) and receipts from third parties\nThe external reserves position could cover 6.5 months of import cover for goods and services, and 10.4 months for goods only, using the import figure for the first quarter, 2019.\nThe Upshots: Despite the recent report that the Central Bank is heading towards floating the naira in order to allow market dynamics dictate the price of the naira exchange rate, the apex bank’s Governor, Mr Gowin Emefiele, the bank is committed to continuing its intervention policy in the FX market to stabilise the naira.\nWhile the intervention will keep the naira stable, for now, analysts are of the opinion that it is only a matter of time before the CBN will float the naira in the face of rising tension in the middle east, and on-going trade war capable of crashing oil prices which is Nigeria’s main source of FOREX earnings.\nWhy use the term ‘blow’ when the currency was simply being exchanged for Naira? The term gives the impression that $2 Billion evaporated into thin air when in fact it still exists in the treasury as Naira.", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://nairametrics.com/2019/06/28/cbn-blows-2-04-billion-to-defend-the-naira-in-may-as-reserves-deplete/"}

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+{"doc_id": "3e1af8803983f434200736fd8e5067ce", "text": "Nigeria, others battle for World Championships’ relay tickets in Togo\nTeam Nigeria and eight other countries will today, in Lome, Togo, battle for relay tickets to the 2023 World Championships holding in Budapest, Hungary, in August. All nine countries arrived in Lome, the Togolese capital, yesterday to compete in the African Region 2 relay events.\nAfter the completion of some major events at the National Trials at the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium in Benin City on Thursday, the Nigerian team left for Lagos enroute Togo for the relay events.\nNigeria has secured relay tickets in the women’s 4x100m as well as the mixed relay, but the men’s 4×100 and 4×400 teams are yet to earn their slots, same with the women 4×400 team.\nOn the trip to Togo are U.S.-based World number two 200m runner at the moment, Udodi Onwuzurike, who joined the team from Lagos. Udodi and his father had landed in Lagos in the early hours of Wednesday, but were told by the AFN to wait for the team in Lagos instead of coming to Benin City.\nOther athletes in the team are U.S.-based Nwachukwu Dubem, who has the best record of 44.81 seconds in the 400m at the moment.\nNew national champion in the 100m, Usheoritse Itsekiri, leads the 4x100m relay squad, which has Seye Ogunlewe, Alaba Akintola and Favour Ashe.\nIn the women’s 4x400m team are, Yvette Mckoy, veteran Patience Okon, Imaobong Nse Uko, Queen Usunobun, Omolara Omotosho and Ella Onojuvwevwo, just as home-boy, Samuel Ogazi, is listed in the men’s 400m team alongside Sani Mohammed, Johnson Chidera Nnamani, Chidi Okezie and Ezekiel Nathaniel.\nAFN technical director, Samuel Onikeku, Benjamin Dalton, Solomon Aliyu, Gabriel Okon and head coach, Seigha Porbeni, completes the list of the coaches that departed Benin City at about 2.00 p.m. Thursday for Togo.\nAFN President, Tonobok Okowa told The Guardian in a telephone chat on arrival in Togo, yesterday, that he is confident of the team securing the relay tickets.\nGet the latest news delivered straight to your inbox every day of the week. Stay informed with the Guardian’s leading coverage of Nigerian and world news, business, technology and sports.", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://guardian.ng/sport/nigeria-others-battle-for-world-championships-relay-tickets-in-togo-2/"}

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+{"doc_id": "4023c8d21078f97f07eb76d8e65fe7ff", "text": "Perhaps we should call 2013 the year of Winehouse economics. As the late English chanteuse Amy Winehouse sang: “They tried to make me go to rehab, but I said ‘No, no, no.’” In 2013, the singers were the world’s most important central banks, led by the Federal Reserve.\nIn the summer, both the Fed and the People’s Bank of China signaled their intention to normalize monetary policy. Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke talked openly of “tapering” the Fed’s policy of open-ended bond purchases, also known as quantitative easing (QE). PBOC Governor Zhou Xiaochuan actually did try to rein in his country’s runaway credit growth. But when markets in both countries reacted more violently than expected – with bond yields soaring in the United States and inter-bank lending rates spiking in China – the monetary authorities backed off.\nIt is a problem many a pop singer has encountered: After years of stimulus, rehab is just not that easy.\nTrue, there remain strong intellectual justifications for continued economic stimulus of one sort or another. In November, the man who once seemed poised to succeed Bernanke, Larry Summers, suggested that the US economy might be in the grip of “secular stagnation.” Other economists continue to fret that in Europe, if not in America, the benign disinflation of recent decades could yet turn into malign deflation.\nAnd yet there are indications that the world economy as a whole is perking up. The International Monetary Fund forecasts that annual global growth will accelerate from 2.9% this year to 3.6% in 2014, and will be 4% or higher for the next four years – above the average growth rates recorded in the 1980’s, 1990’s, and 2000’s.\nThe mismatch between advanced-economy under-performance and resurgent growth in the rest of the world raises (at least) seven questions, especially for the major central banks themselves. Each of these institutions has some kind of national mandate. Yet, in our interconnected world, their decisions inevitably have global consequences.\nQuestion 1: What exactly will the Fed do under its new boss, Janet Yellen? She certainly sounds as if she favors ongoing medication over cold turkey. The tapering of QE has to happen sooner or later, but Yellen’s genuine concern about the state of the US labor market suggests that she will promise lower interest rates for longer than might seem warranted by other indicators. The challenge will be to make this new regime of “forward guidance” work if other indicators suggest that recovery is underway (just ask Mark Carney, Governor of the Bank of England).\nThe US is on the mend in more ways than one. Shale gas and oil have brought an energy bonanza. Silicon Valley is thriving. The stock market is hitting record highs. And, amazingly, a deeply polarized US Congress has just struck a two-year fiscal deal that will boost spending slightly in the short run, while reducing the deficit in the long run.\nThere is a strong possibility that markets will react to this and other good news by ignoring forward guidance, focusing on the tapering of QE and nudging up long-term rates. And one short-run consequence of this might be the kind of sharp stock-market correction that we saw in 1980 and 1987. Wall Street likes to test a new Fed chairman.\nQuestion 2: How will other central banks react to a changing monetary policy regime in Washington? In Frankfurt, the European Central Bank knows that the eurozone periphery is not ready for higher interest rates yet, even if Spain, Ireland, and Greece are showing signs of economic life. Unemployment on the eurozone periphery remains appallingly high. Moreover, the biggest political risk in Europe is still populism – and next year’s European parliamentary elections will give the likes of France’s far-right leader, Marine Le Pen, a golden opportunity.\nQuestion 3: Will the populists do well enough to disrupt the complex process of establishing a banking union, a prerequisite for the sustainable recovery of Europe’s financial system? Probably not. Indeed, populist success may even encourage Social Democrats and Christian Democrats to form a “grand coalition” in the European Parliament – which would represent another step in the European Union’s quiet Germanization.\nMeanwhile, in Japan, there is even less enthusiasm for monetary rehab: the Abe government clearly expects more, not less, stimulus from the Bank of Japan. Without it, hopes that “Abenomics” will get Japan’s annual inflation rate up to 2% will surely be dashed.\nQuestion 4: Will Japan be able to maintain QE while the US tapers? Probably, but the extent to which it serves the cause of sustained growth and higher inflation depends on the so-called “third arrow” of structural reform, which has yet to hit real targets.\nThe contrast with Japan’s neighbor and strategic rival, China, is striking. There is at least some evidence that the PBOC has already resumed monetary tightening in an effort to impose a controlled credit crunch on the country’s shadow banking sector. That brings me to the final three questions:\nQuestion 5: Can China really sustain growth while simultaneously deflating a credit bubble and implementing the structural reforms announced after the Communist Party Central Committee’s Third Plenum?\nQuestion 6: How will China’s vast new middle class react if the answer to question 5 is “No”?\nQuestion 7: Will the leadership in Beijing respond to domestic discontent with more of the foreign-policy saber rattling that we have seen this year?\nI do not pretend to know the answers to these last questions. But they may prove to be the key to how well – or badly – a “Rehab World” turns out.\nBy: Niall Ferguson", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://businessday.ng/analysis/article/rehab-world/"}

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+{"doc_id": "40507b342b93e005725a19c1c3ba1162", "text": "The suspension of Nigeria’s central bank governor, Lamido Sanusi, has led to increased market volatility within the country (Figure 1 and Table 1). Bloomberg reported on Friday that the Nigerian naira slumped to its lowest level since 1999 after reaching 168.9 per dollar on Wednesday. That day, trading in the domestic bond market was halted, and the benchmark stock index fell to its weakest level in three months. However, eurobond yields were little changed at 6.32 percent after jumping the most on record by 12 basis points. The current event is reminiscent of the financial turmoil in Indonesia in 2010: In that case, the local stock exchange fell 3.8 percent (the sharpest in 17 months), and the rupiah lost 1 percent against the dollar following the resignation of Finance Minister Sri Mulyani.\nMr. Sanusi’s sacking has come after he submitted to the Senate a report detailing the failure of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNCP) to transfer $20 billion to the government. Although the NNPC dismissed the governor’s claims, there has been increased criticism of President Goodluck Jonathan’s resolve to fight corruption. The former governor was a darling of foreign investors who liked his solid track record fighting inflation and safeguarding financial stability. It is therefore no surprise that market participants are being unnerved by his dismissal. Furthermore, market participants are questioning the independence of the central bank, now that its governor has been dismissed by politicians.\nThe timing of Governor Sanusi’s sacking could not be worse, as Nigeria was already battling the spillover effects of the tapering of the United States Federal Reserve. The central bank is now facing additional pressure on its currency. So far, central bank intervention has helped slow the fall of the naira, but that has been at the cost of losing foreign currency reserves. It is therefore not surprising that Finance Minister Okonjo-Iweala has made statements to reassure the markets, and the president quickly announced a replacement to Governor Sanusi.\nLate last year, the International Monetary Fund warned that, although Nigeria’s outlook is positive with growth projected to increase to about 7 percent in 2014, the country could be affected by a number of risks. IMF economists identified potential shocks such as a decline in oil prices, the pace of recovery in global economic and financial conditions, capital outflows, continued losses in oil production, and increased security concerns. It also cautioned against the temptation of procyclical election spending (elections are scheduled to take place next year). The IMF statement now appears to be prescient.\nWhether the extent of the market effect of the dismissal will be short- or long-lived is not clear. But what is clear is that it does not augur well for Nigeria. In the end, what really matters will be how strong Nigeria’s fundamentals will be. The country relies heavily on oil exports (70 percent of government revenues) and is riding on current high oil prices. But the Nigerian government should realize that a central bank not subordinated to political demands is a key tool in establishing strong economic fundamentals. An independent central bank can help fight inflation effectively, ensure predictability, anchor investors’ expectations, and, in bad times, resist printing money to fund the budget. Moreover, if Nigeria is to play a leading role in fostering regional economic integration, it has to continue leading the way in building an effective monetary institution.\nBy: Amadou Sy Letmathe\nSource: Brookings Institution", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://businessday.ng/analysis/article/how-much-will-it-cost-to-sack-nigerian-central-bank-governor-sanusi/"}

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+{"doc_id": "417c7cd0b3e1cc4969518d34e4906802", "text": "‘For the world to respect Africa …’ – Part 3\nTo fix this and break this cycle of dependence, the African Development Bank launched a $3 billion facility to support the development of local pharmaceutical companies in Africa.\nTo assure the companies can have access to intellectual proprietary technologies and processes to manufacture vaccines, the African Development Bank established the Africa Pharmaceutical Technology Foundation.\nThe Foundation will intermediate between African pharmaceutical companies and the global pharmaceutical companies to access the technologies, active pharmaceutical ingredients and antigens they need to produce quality drugs and vaccines in Africa.\nThe Foundation, whose Eminent Advisory Council is co-chaired by President Kagame of Rwanda and former German Chancellor Angela Merkel, will officially open its offices in Kigali in December.\nTo further improve access to quality health services, the African Development Bank has also launched a $3 billion program to build Africa’s health infrastructure. When Africans have access to quality health care services, medicines and vaccines, it will boost productivity, life expectancy and eliminate the $2.6 trillion of GDP lost annually from diseases and illnesses.\nA healthier Africa will be a much richer Africa.\nAfrica will earn respect when it deepens good governance and the rule of law.\nFor now, the erosion of the democratic space in several African countries is disturbing. The Mo Ibrahim governance index declined in 2022-2023. The return and rise in the number of military coups in parts of Africa, especially in the Sahel, poses a potent and imminent danger to reversing the continent’s stability, growth, and development.\nFixing this, however, requires understanding that the Sahel region has continued to suffer for decades from climate change, desertification, and extreme poverty, and more recently from terrorism.\nTerrorists don’t just appear. They thrive where three drivers exist —extreme poverty, high youth unemployment and climate and environmental degradation — what I call a “disaster triangle.” Anywhere this disaster triangle is found, terrorisms and insecurity thrive just as it does currently in many parts of Northern Nigeria.\nSeveral countries now spend more resources on security, increasingly displacing financing for development in a context where 85 per cent of the continent’s population is either living in or sharing borders with a conflict-affected country.\nWe must urgently and comprehensively tackle this challenge to prevent reversals of gains in development.\nThis calls for the strengthening of the overall security architecture, rebuilding of damaged physical and social infrastructure (such as schools, health care facilities, water, and sanitation) in conflict-affected areas, and protecting areas where strategic resources exist.\nAfrica will garner the respect it deserves when it can assure the security of its nations and territories, itself.\nThat is why just two weeks ago, I met with seven governors from Northwest Nigeria who visited me in Abidjan. The African Development Bank will support them to reduce insecurity and vulnerabilities in the region, through significant investments in agriculture, infrastructure, and electricity, to boost the economic prospects of the region.\nSignificantly raising the size of the peace and security fund of the African Union, with standby forces that can intervene to restore stability in areas experiencing conflicts, will also garner more respect for Africa.\nThe call for “African solutions to Africa’s problems” is loud, but it will only be respected when “Africa’s problems are financed by Africa’s resources.” Political sovereignty must be backed by economic and financial sovereignty.\nAfrica will earn respect when it is able to mobilize financing for its own development.\nToday, Africa’s high debt levels are of great concern. Buoyed by low global interest rates following the 2008 global financial crisis,, several African countries rushed to the global capital markets to source cheaper loans to develop their economies, especially to build critically important infrastructure.\nThe Eurobond euphoria saw the number of countries which issued Eurobonds increase from 2 to 21 between 2007 and 2022. They collectively issued $140 billion worth of Eurobonds. Several African countries also rushed to secure cheaper loans from China, as the volume of Chinese loans exploded.\nNow the debt load is heavy as debt service payments have been increasing as global interest rates rise to tame global inflation.\nSub Saharan Africa’s debt ratio has doubled in just a decade and reached 60 per cent of total GDP in 2022. The region’s ratio of interest payments to revenue has more than doubled since the early 2010s and is now close to four times the ratio in advanced economies: African countries now spend on average 7.6 per cent of their GDP to service debt.\nRight here, in Nigeria, 98 per cent of government revenue is used to service debt.\nAfrica must find a better and more sustainable way to finance its development. Africa can do this if it manages its natural resources well. That’s because Africa’s natural resources are estimated at $6.5 trillion. Given Africa’s enormous wealth of natural resources, Africa should not be a poor continent.\nIt is high time for Africa to truly assert its aspiration, to move up from being low income and highly indebted nations, and become a donor to other less privileged nations.\nGlobal respect comes when nations do not overly depend on others.\nIf such dependence did not exist, single nations would not be in a position to convene summits with Africa, a whole continent. Rather, it would be the opposite: they would be lining up in Africa, for Africa’s Summit with them.\nIf we can dream it, we can achieve it.\nAfrica will earn respect when it takes care of its youth and unleashes their potential.\nThe continent has the largest population of youth in the world, with over 477 million between the ages of 15 and 35. By 2050, one out of four people in the world will be Africans.\nJust a few weeks ago, the New York Times newspaper published an interesting article emphasising that the world was becoming African. It posited that Africa is going to play a much more important role in the world, especially given that demographically, Africa’s population growth—most notably its youth bulge—surpasses population growth in other regions of the world.\nThis is something I have highlighted for some time, based on demographic trends and related facts. So, it was gratifying to see this perspective now echoed in the New York Times too.\nHowever, I have also been very clear that the demographic dividend is not given. We still have much work to do to ensure that we reap the benefits of this youth potential.\nOne other area that gives me great concern is that our continent is still not able to take care of and create jobs for our young people, who constitute the majority of the Africa’s ’s population. We must turn our youth bulge into a powerful and productive youth dividend.\nThe lack of opportunity for our youth is why we see disturbing migration journeys played out on our TV screens. This has produced a migration crisis in Europe. It has led, in many instances to ever stronger anti-immigrant sentiment in Europe and more extreme national movements.\nAnd Africans are often the main targets.\nWe must turn our demographic growth into an asset, not a liability. Right now, continued waves of illegal migration ensure that what is an asset is a liability … for us and for others. We must therefore harness our youth asset and create conditions and environments that are conducive for them to find jobs and prosper.\nAfrica’s youth are well skilled, knowledgeable and are deploying their talents across various fields, from creative industry, fintech industry for digital payments, artificial intelligence, food and agribusiness, and music.\nToday, Nigeria’s Nollywood has become the second largest in the world after Hollywood. From Nigeria to South Africa, Morocco, Egypt, Kenya and Rwanda, young Africans are blazing the trail in the fintech industry, which raised over $5.2 billion last year.\nAfrica has 7 unicorns, start-up companies which have grown to be worth $1 billion. However, Africa accounts for only 1 per cent of the source of their venture capital funds. That means Africa is losing its businesses to others outside of Africa, who see and value their talents.\nAfrica must finance the businesses of its young population, at scale.\nThat is why the African Development Bank launched Youth Entrepreneurship Investment Banks. They are new financial institutions that will build and support the enterprises and businesses of young people at scale. Our goal is simple: unleash the creation of youth-based wealth and jobs across Africa.\nRight here in Nigeria, the African Development Bank, Islamic Development Bank, and the French Development Agency jointly provided $614 million in financing for the I-DICE program (Digital Innovation and Creative Enterprises). The initiative will support hundreds of digital small and medium-sized enterprise and creative enterprises, create 6 million jobs, and add $6.4 billion to Nigeria’s GDP.\nThere is no doubt that the future is bright for Africa.\nAnd investors know this.\nAt the Africa Investment Forum held in Marrakesh, Morocco, last month, we were able to secure $34.8 billion of investment interests for projects in Africa.\nIn the past five years, since the inception of the Forum, it has secured $177 billion in investment interest across Africa. This includes $15.2 billion for the construction of the Lagos to Abidjan highway corridor, which will transform the economies of West Africa. It also includes the $24 billion liquified natural gas project in Mozambique, which will make it one of the largest exporters of liquified natural gas globally.\nThe African Development Bank has also provided $400 million to the Dangote Refinery, $400 million to Indorama, both of which are critical Nigerian fertilizer producers, $100 million to the BUA cement company.\nThe African Development Bank has provided a cumulative total of $10 billion to Nigeria since it commenced its operations, with $ 4 billion in current operations.\nWe see huge opportunities in Nigeria, and we believe in Nigeria.\nI am optimistic about Nigeria.\nI am optimistic about Africa.\nI believe in Africa.\nThe African Development Bank Group continues to work hard to help improve and transform the economic prospects and trajectories of Africa.\nThe African Development Bank takes considerable pride in our role as Africa’s premier financial institution, which in itself has garnered global respect.\nIn 2022, the African Development Bank was ranked as the best financial institution in the world.\nAnd in 2023, the African Development Bank was ranked as the most transparent financial institution in the world.\nThat is a testimony to African respect and recognition.\nAnd it all comes from doing the right things.\nWe stand, now, at an intersection point in world history.\nLet’s bring Africa’s prosperous future into the present.\nA more prosperous Africa will be a more respected Africa.\nAn Africa that unleashes its full potential.\nAn Africa, which like a lighthouse at the harbour, will attract all ships to it.\nAn Africa that cannot be ignored.\nAn Africa that develops with pride.\nAn Africa that asserts itself globally.\nAn Africa that’s a beacon of hope for all of its people.\nTogether, let’s make it happen.\nThank you all very much.\nBeing keynote speech by Dr Akinwumi A. Adesina President, African Development Bank Group (AfDB) at the 40th anniversary of The Guardian on November 28, 2023.\nGet the latest news delivered straight to your inbox every day of the week. Stay informed with the Guardian’s leading coverage of Nigerian and world news, business, technology and sports.", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://guardian.ng/politics/for-the-world-to-respect-africa-part-3/"}

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+{"doc_id": "441efce47e6b9d45ba11d24ac8f03f04", "text": "Kikelomo Fisayo-Okusanya\n4 Oct\nIn a demonstration of its commitment to talent development and its diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) agenda, British American Tobacco Nigeria (BAT Nigeria) has announced the elevation of Kikelomo Fisayo-Okusanya from her former role as the Area Head of 360 Activation and Marketing Operations to the position of Marketing Deployment Director for the West and…\nLatest\n2 mins ago\nSaudi Arabia's football governing body suspended Cristiano Ronaldo for one game on Thursday over a gesture he made on the pitch last weekend that was judged a \"provocation\".\n3 mins ago\nEvery month signifies something special to everyone, but for leap years there are major significant things to know. From how often we come across them, to how those born on this date are named, well they are called “Leaplings”. Below we have curated the top four significant things to know about the leap year and…\n5 mins ago\nThe Federal Government has announced that Nigeria will make a total of $22.8 billion from about 1,068 oil and gas projects approved between 2022 and 2023. Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (oil), Heineken Lokpobiri, said this on Wednesday at the ongoing Nigeria International Energy Summit (NIES) in Abuja. Lokpobiri disclosed 51 Field Development Plans…\n19 mins ago\nThe Infinix HOT 40 Pro is designed to cater to the dynamic needs of today's users. Whether you're a professional, gamer, or photography lover, this smartphone combines cutting-edge technology with a user-centric design to enhance daily life in multiple aspects. Here are 10 ways the Infinix Hot 40 Pro can transform your daily experiences.\n47 mins ago\nWildfires raging across north Texas reportedly killed at least one person on Wednesday, as firefighters struggled to control one of the largest blazes in state history which has destroyed property and prompted evacuations.\n1 hour ago\nNigerian striker Victor Osimhen matched the late Diego Maradona's scoring achievement at Napoli after scoring a hat-trick in a 6-1 win at Sassuolo on Wednesday. It was Osimhen's second hat-trick in the Serie A. Osimhen's second goal against Sassuolo which put Napoli 3-1 up, took his league goals for the season to 10. According to…\n1 hour ago\nNorway's King Harald V, aged 87 and in poor health, is \"improving\" from an infection that forced him to be hospitalised while on holiday in Malaysia, according to his office.\n2 hours ago\nKylian Mbappe will face former club Monaco for the final time as a Paris Saint-Germain player on Friday, provided coach Luis Enrique selects his star player.\n2 hours ago\nThe US Supreme Court agreed on Wednesday to hear Donald Trump's claim that, as a former president, he is immune from prosecution, further delaying his trial on charges of conspiring to overturn the 2020 election.", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://guardian.ng/tag/kikelomo-fisayo-okusanya/"}

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+{"doc_id": "4765b1f077c298dd1c9ea91b83517266", "text": "Ahead of expectation of high international traffic in 2014, airlines are falling heads over heels as they advance plans to meet the challenges the year will pose.\nEtihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, has announced plans to introduce three more destinations to its core international network in 2014.\nThe eight new routes will increase Etihad Airways’ worldwide network to 102 destinations next year.\nAccording to James Hogan, president and chief executive officer of Etihad Airways, “This is part of a measured and strategic growth plan, which will reinforce the future of the national carrier of the UAE and the vital role it plays in the emergence of Abu Dhabi as a global aviation hub.\n“Together with our code-share and equity alliance partners, we have created a virtual network of more than 375 destinations. But more importantly, it strengthens our customer proposition by offering more choice and better connections across our hub in Abu Dhabi.”\nEtihad Airways’ equity alliance airlines presently include airberlin, Aer Lingus, Air Serbia, Air Seychelles,Darwin Airline (subject to regulatory approval), Jet Airways and Virgin Australia.\nThe 2014 network plan also makes provision for increases in frequency and connectivity on existing routes, with more than 20 percent growth expected in weekly departures.\nTo support the next phase of its global network expansion, Etihad Airways will receive 20 aircraft deliveries next year, including the much-awaited arrival of its first 787-9 Dreamliners and Airbus A380s.\nAccording to Tim Clark, president, Emirates Airline, “Our customers love the A380 – from the quieter cabins and spacious layout on the main deck, to the on-board lounge and shower spas in our premium cabins.\n“It is a beautiful aircraft which we have packed full of the best in-flight comforts and products. From an operator standpoint, the A380 is still one of the most fuel efficient aircraft per seat. It offers us some flexibility in range and also helps us to meet demand at slot-constrained airports.\n“Continuous improvements are being made to the A380, by the manufacturer as well as by Emirates in terms of our on-board product. For instance our latest A380s have been fitted with even bigger high definition LCD TV screens to enhance the in-flight entertainment experience.\n“We’ve also introduced new touch-screen tablets that allow passengers to control all their seat functions and movie selections with just one swipe. Small details, but all these add up to provide a great flying experience,” he added.\nIn 2013, Emirates received 13 A380 aircraft and it expects to receive another 13 in 2014. The airline still has 96 more A380s worth USD 43 billion on order, of which 71 are expected to be delivered over the next five years, before the end of 2018.\nFrom its Dubai hub and dedicated A380 terminal, Emirates’ A380s crisscross the globe flying to 24 destinations spanning Los Angeles to Auckland. Illustrating the range of the A380, Emirates’ currently operates the world’s longest non-stop A380 service (13,414 kilometres), with its daily A380 flight between Dubai and Los Angeles, launched earlier this month.\nEmirates’ current A380 destinations are: Amsterdam, Auckland, Bangkok, Beijing, Dubai, Hong Kong, Jeddah, Kuala Lumpur, London Heathrow, Los Angeles, Manchester, Mauritius, Melbourne, Moscow, Munich, New York JFK, Paris among others.\nBy: Sade Williams", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://businessday.ng/art-and-travel/article/intl-airlines-strengthen-networks-increase-fees-ahead-2014/"}

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+{"doc_id": "4805a4c0eb6332278bc816150167cfa3", "text": "economy\n21 Oct\nChina's National Bureau of Statistics has released a new raft of data on the health of the Chinese economy, the world's second largest. Annual GDP growth in the third quarter reached 4.9%, beating analysts' expectations. The authorities' efforts to support growth are bearing fruit, although retail sales remain low and the property sector continues to struggle.\n30 Aug\nEurope's largest economy has flatlined recently, showing no signs of recovery from a winter recession. The International Monetary Fund has predicted Germany will be the only major advanced economy to shrink in 2023.\n8 Aug 2023\nGermany's economy is in decline. Now the main opposition party, the center-right CDU, has presented an emergency program to combat the recession, stepping up pressure on Chancellor Olaf Scholz.\n25 Jun 2023\nFollowing the reelection of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, analysts are asking whether Turkey sticks to the unorthodox low interest rate policy he has supported. The crisis-ridden market may be heading for a turnaround.\n10 Jun 2023\nIn mainland Europe's westernmost country, water is becoming scarce. Still, Portuguese politicians continue to focus on economic activities that consume particularly large amounts of water, activists say.\n15 May 2023\nSky-high inflation and a plunging lira continue to be at the forefront of Turkish voters' minds as the country appears set for a runoff election between President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his challenger Kemal Kilicdaroglu. Erdogan's unorthodox economic theories have unnerved investors and analysts as he contradicts mainstream methods to tame the country's cost-of-living crisis.\n15 May 2023\nBeijing's huge stimulus program helped the West to recover from the 2008 financial crisis. This time, however, China's post-COVID recovery is patchy and geopolitical issues mean it is unlikely to stop a global recession.\n9 May 2023\nWith food and fuel prices soaring and a currency in freefall, many young Nigerians are worried they will never experience financial stability. But is the situation really hopeless? We ask young entrepreneurs and business owners in Abuja how they are securing their future against the odds.\n15 Apr 2023\nThe Dutch coalition government survived a no-confidence vote on April 5. But its problems are far from over – with pressure from the farmers' movement causing tensions inside the coalition. The pro-farmers' BBB party made a breakthrough in the provincial elections in March, rattling the political establishment.\n23 Mar 2023\nWith food and fuel prices soaring and a currency in freefall, many young Nigerians are worried they will never experience financial stability. But is the situation really hopeless? We ask young entrepreneurs and business owners in Abuja how they are securing their future against the odds.\n13 Mar 2023\nUS President Joe Biden unveils a $6.8 trillion budget proposal with key provisions aimed at boosting American competitiveness against China, while Beijing rails against economic containment and suppression. Plus, a sell-off in US bank shares sparked by a run on a small California lender spreads to Asia and Europe as markets tumble.", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://tv.guardian.ng/tag/economy/page/2/"}

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+{"doc_id": "4a652c99a41db064bbbd3ee58a6920d8", "text": "South Africa’s Finance Minister, Enoch Godongwana, will table his national budget on 21 February next month.\nThe country’s finance boss will have a tough task ahead of him as he tries to get the nation’s finances in order.\nThe Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement (MTBPS) that was presented in November last year painted a gloomy picture.\nProfessor Raymond Parsons, North-West University Business School in his economic review of the year ahead, said, “Another source of uncertainty for the economy has been the serious deterioration in South Africa’s public finances which was captured in the MTBPS. Several of the serious risks facing the fiscal outlook acknowledged in the MTBPS still await to be addressed in the main Budget in February.”\nParsons further added, “On the fiscal front the danger to be avoided is that the combination of weak growth, unfunded spending pressures or the emergence of contingent liabilities could increase borrowing costs, and crowd out both private and public investment. The fiscal balance needs to be restored in the Budget without having to resort to unsustainable borrowing or damaging tax increases.”\nParsons had also said government bailouts to struggling state-owned enterprises remained a persistent problem.\nParsons said a long-range fiscal plan was, therefore, now needed to steadily wind down spending and debt and bring them under control in a way that establishes clear priorities for the future.\n“Fiscal policy will inevitably have to be pragmatic and realistic to deliver sensible trade-offs in order to project a credible medium-term budget that offers more predictability and certainty,” Parsons said.\nBUSINESS REPORT", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://www.iol.co.za/business-report/budget/godongwana-to-table-2024-budget-next-month-29978533-523d-4073-9204-60db205bfa16"}

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+{"doc_id": "4a829aafb89ffe14d0bdfcea066e2aa8", "text": "Activists and others are joining forces at a conference which aims to yield a declaration on access to information.\nMedia freedom activists, academics, policymakers, editors and nongovernmental organisations will join forces at a conference in Cape Town this month, which aims to yield a declaration on access to information in the mould of the watershed Windhoek Declaration on press freedom.\nMore than 1 000 delegates from up to 50 African countries will gather for the Pan African Conference on Access to Information from September 17 to 19. It is a civil society response to threats to media freedom facing South Africa and other African countries.\nSouth Africa's Protection of Information Bill, despite major perceived flaws, including its exclusion of a public interest defence for those who possess or publish classified information, has been referred to the National Assembly for enactment. The parliamentary deadline for the Bill to be passed is September 23.\nOnly six of 54 African countries — South Africa, Uganda, Angola, Ethiopia, Liberia and Nigeria — have access-to-information laws, although their implementation is often seen as inadequate.\nExperts from India, Canada, the United States and Australia will participate in the Cape Town event, which marks the 20th anniversary of the Windhoek Declaration, which gave rise to World Press Freedom Day.\nThe Windhoek Declaration emphasises the importance of an independent press, transparency, freedom of expression and the free flow of information, and the need for journalists to be protected by democratic rights.\nThe Cape Town conference, being held in partnership with the African Union Commission, Unesco and the UN special rapporteur on freedom of expression, will broaden the issue of the right to information beyond the media.\n\"At this point in history, the emphasis is on the other side of the media freedom coin — on access to information,\" said one of the organisers, Professor Guy Berger of Rhodes University's school of journalism and media studies.\nThe September declaration would be designed to serve as a platform for further action, Berger said, and was likely be known as the African Platform on Access to Information.\n\"In many African countries, press freedom and freedom of expression are constitutional rights and the media market is diverse, liberalised and growing. However, as regards access to information, most of Africa has lagged behind, including in the areas of transparency and ICT [information and communications technology] development.\"\nThere would be 65 speakers at the conference, which would seek to partner the African Union Commission in making the declaration enforceable in all AU member countries, Berger said.\nOne of the aims of the conference, said Berger, was to have the proposed World Access to Information Day recognised by the African Union Commission and the other partners involved. If the public had access to information, he said, it would be able to use and evaluate it to advance democratic values.\n* Got a tip-off for us about this story? Email [email protected]\nThe M&G Centre for Investigative Journalism, a non-profit initiative to develop investigative journalism in the public interest, produced this story. All views are ours. See www.amabhungane.co.za for all our stories, activities and sources of funding.\nGlenda Daniels serves on the R2K national working group", "source": "cc", "stratum": "cc", "fetch_date": "", "url": "https://mg.co.za/article/2011-09-09-push-for-access-to-information/"}