Businessday 20 apr 2018

NEWS YOU CAN TRUST I **FRIDAY 20 APRIL 2018 I VOL. 15, NO 37 I N300

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Young people to Buhari: If you can’t help us, don’t spoil our ‘hustle’

BY OUR REPORTER

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L-R: Jim Yong Kim, president, World Bank Group; Tony Elumelu, chairman, Heirs Holdings and founder, The Tony Elumelu Foundation, and Jeff Weiner, CEO, Linkedin, after a roundtable discussion on the Digital Economy for Africa at the 2018 Spring meetings of the IMF/World Bank in Washington DC, USA, yesterday.

country badly in need of reputation make over, now has its chief marketing officer, demarketing it.

President Muhammadu Buhari, the CEO of the Nigerian enterprise, who should naturally double as the country’s chief marketing officer, is sadly doing significant damage to the country’s reputation.

Even sadder is the fact that he chooses the most impactful international platforms to inflict the worst reputational damage

on the country he was elected to promote and market to the international community.

The latest de-marketing camContinues on page 34

Premium Board exposes high concentration risk in stock market …Only seven companies worth N7.06trn ... represent 50% of total equity market cap

Nigeria in need of financial inclusion T champions as access slumps

IHEANYI NWACHUKWU

he shallowness of Nigeria’s stock market which gives stock investors little or no options to diversify their portfoContinues on page 34

Inside

DIPO OLADEHINDE & ENDURANCE OKAFOR​

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igeria is being left behind despite a global trend of rising financial inclusion and as such is in need of financial inclusion champions to help quicken access to financial services by its populace.

World Bank data show regression since 2014 Mobile money driving inclusion in SSA This is following the latest World Bank’s Global Findex Database released 19, April 2018 which revealed a slump in the

level of financial inclusion in Africa’s largest economy.

“Financial inclusion is on the rise globally, accelerated by mo-

ABIOLA ADEKOYA, working her way to the top

bile phones and the internet, but gains have been uneven across countries,” the World Bank said Continues on page 4

Judicial precedence shows no case against 9mobile sale ...Page 35

Russia pumps $5bn into transport infrastructure across 11 host cities

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businessday market monitor Commodities Brent Oil

Biggest Gainer

$74.24

Dangcem N252.5

Cocoa

US $2,798.00

Biggest Loser

1.41pc

Everdon Bureau De Change

Bitcoin

NSE Mobil N181

40,874.09

-4.74pc

2,894,777.06

+1.36pc

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FMDQ Close FOREIGN EXCHANGE Market

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I&E FX Window 360.31 CBN Official Rate 305.60

3M -1.19 10.46

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Oil prices hit fresh four-year high DIPO OLADEHINDE

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igeria’s benchmark oil grade rallied to fresh high of $74.44 a barrel, the strongest since Nov. 27, 2014.

“It’s a positive development for Nigeria as foreign receipts will increase which will help the oil dependent economy; also, It will help increase foreign reserves, protect the value of the naira and if judiciously utilised will impact the common man,” Adeola Adenikiju, Director, Centre for Petroleum and Energy,

University of Ibadan said.

Production cuts by Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and Russia over the past 16 months have helped crude prices rally, with the latest increase also tracking rising geopolitical risks to supplies, from Venezuela’s economic spiral to the risk of the US re-imposing sanctions on Iran.

“The Middle East is the highest concentration of the major oil producing countries, so any issues or tensions there will affect oil supply leading to higher price,” Abayomi Fawehinmi, an

energy analyst at a Lagos-based consulting firm said.

The recent rally in global oil prices and stable production has boosted public revenues, helping the economy expand for the first time since 2015.

“Oil is a volatile commodity; It’s important we have a saving mechanism so our economy will be strong to survive any shock and reduce our reliance on increasing debt which IMF said is a major problem,” Adenikiju who is also a member of Monetary policy committee of Central of Bank of Nigeria said.

FGN BONDS

TREASURY BILLS

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) warned this week that about 40 percent of the low income countries are on a high risk of distress following increase in public debt.

The Fund’s Assistant Director, Fiscal Affairs Department, Catherine Pattillo, said this on Wednesday in Washington D.C. at the on-going IMF/World Bank Spring meetings.

She advised the Nigerian government and other countries to deliver on their fiscal plans for adjustments and use borrowed Continues on page 35

FG eyes N43.2bn private capital for 9 truck transit parks ODINAKA ANUDU

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n a bid to reduce losses and pilferage during movement of goods out of ports, the Federal Government is seeking N43.2 billion from the private sector for the construction of nine truck transit parks (TTPs) across the country.

Through the Nigerian Shippers’ Council, the Nigerian government has concluded plans to build TTPs in Lokoja, Kogi State; Continues on page 34

Nigeriainneedoffinancialinclusionchampions...

Continued from page 1

in a statement.

Nigerian adults who are 25 years and above with bank accounts declined by 5 basis points from 49 percent in 2014 to 44 percent in 2017.

This was not different with account holders over 15 years, as their numbers fell 4 percentage points from 44 percent in 2014 to 40 percent in 2017, as compiled from the latest World Bank’s Global Findex Database.

The data shows that 51 percent of Nigerian males had a bank account in 2017 compared to the 27 percent recorded for females; this brings the gap between the male and female to 24 percentage points.

This is however a bigger than the 20 percentage points gap that was recorded in 2014 when the total male with an account was at 54 percent with females at 34 percent.

“Nigeria stands a better opportunity in exploring telecoms to help spur financial inclusion and as such there is need for accelerated regulatory framework between National Communication Commission (NCC) and Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), as the world is moving on very fast with regards to mobile money,” Tajudeen Ibrahim, Head of Research at Chapel Hill Denham Securities Limited said.

In 2011, just 30 percent of Nigerian’s who are 15 years and above had an account with a financial institution; however there was an improvement with 44 percent in 2014, while in 2017 it falls to 40 percent.

Also young adults within the age of 15 and 24 with an account in 2011 stood at 21 percent while 2014 and 2017 recorded 36 percent and 33 percent respectively.

“Apart from encouraging the collaboration between the telecoms and banks, through mobile money to spur financial inclusion, there is need to reduce the cost of financial transactions, as mobile money is more expensive than core banking,” said Wale Okunrinboye, a Lagos-based Investment Researcher.

As at the time Nigeria was considering the optimal approach needed to leverage new, innovative technology to deliver financial services to its people, the Central

Bank analysed in some detail how to structure the guidelines and the regulatory environment to deliver the benefits on offer, without compromising the integrity of the financial system.

Africa’s largest economy needed to see how the regulation of mobile money could evolve owning to significant volumes of currency that could be circulating in mobile wallets, and may not be visible to the regulatory authorities.

As such it was clear that a better balance between the market and the regulatory structures was required.

Meanwhile since then there has been an explosion in mobile money wallet usage in Kenya and other Africa peers, the Nigeria’s CBN was rather focused on an independent bank led model that would supplement and support the existing banking system.

“When loans and credits are given to individuals who have basic bank accounts especially those in the informal sector, (as they contribute to the larger population of the country), they will be encouraged to operate formally in the financial circle other than their normal traditional way of carrying out financial transactions,” Okunrinboye said.

“The fundamental obstacle to the rapid expansion of financial inclusion in Nigeria is the failure of the private sector actors in the telecoms and financial services ecosystem to collaborate effectively,” an analyst said in a statement According to the World Bank report, mobile money drove financial inclusion in Sub-Saharan Africa, as only eight countries in Africa which included Burkina faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Gabon, Kenya, Senegal, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zimbabwe recorded 20 percent or more adult using only a mobile money account. Although the World Bank also noted there are immense opportunities in the region as about 95 million unbanked adults in the region receive cash payments for agricultural products, and roughly 65 million save using semiformal methods.

Between 2014 and 2017, the World Bank noted that there has been a significant increase in

L-R: Oladele Afolabi , director of portfolio management department, Debt Management Office (DMO); Patience Oniha, representative of the minister of finance and director-general of DMO; Edward Parker, managing director of Fitch Ratings Agency, and Paul Gamble, Fitch Ratings senior director and head of emerging Europe Sovereign and supranational group, during a meeting between Nigeria and officials of Fitch Ratings at the World Bank headquarters, Washington DC, yesterday.

the use of mobile phones and the Internet to conduct financial transactions which contributed to a rise in the share of account owners sending or receiving payments digitally from 67 per cent to 76 per cent globally, while developing countries recorded 57 percent to 70 per cent.

Globally, about 1.7 billion adults remain unbanked, yet twothirds of them own a mobile phone that could help them access financial services, the study noted. It concludes that digital technology could take advantage of existing cash transactions to bring people into the financial system.

“In the past few years, we have seen great strides around the world in connecting people to formal financial services,” World Bank Group President Jim Yong Kim said.

The report noted that paying government wages, pensions, and social benefits directly into accounts could bring formal financial services to up to 100 million more adults globally, including 95 million in developing economies,” the report said.

“Financial inclusion allows people to save for family needs, borrow to support a business, or build a cushion against an emer-

gency. Having access to financial services is a critical step towards reducing both poverty and inequality, and new data on mobile phone ownership and Internet access show unprecedented opportunities to use technology to achieve universal financial inclusion,” the world bank president said.

Global Findex database report admitted that there are other opportunities to increase account ownership and use through digital payments as more than 200 million unbanked adults who work in the private sector are paid in cash only, as are more than 200 million who receive agricultural payments.

The report revealed that 3.8 billion people around the world, or 69percent of all adults, have a bank account or mobile money provider in 2017, which was an increased compare to 62 percent recorded in 2014. Also, about 1.2 billion adults have obtained some sort of formal financial account since 2011, when the rate of financial inclusion was just 51percent.

Still, there are 1.7 billion people around the world who remain outside of the formal financial system.

The study also finds that men remain more likely than women to have an account, this is up from 62 per cent in 2014 and just 51 per

cent in 2011. From 2014 to 2017, 515 million adults obtained an account and 1.2 billion have done so since 2011.

“While in some economies account ownership has surged, progress has been slower elsewhere, often held back by large disparities between men and women and between the rich and poor,” the global lender noted.

Launched with funding from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation,the Global Findex database is the world’s most comprehensive data set on how adults save, borrow, make payments, and manage risk.

The database has been published every three years since 2011. The data are collected in partnership with Gallup, Inc., through nationally representative surveys of more than 150,000 adults in over 140 economies.

“The data offer a wealth of information for development practitioners, policymakers and scholars, and are helping track progress toward the World Bank Group goal of Universal Financial Access by 2020 and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals,” World Bank Development Research Group Director Asli Demirgüç-Kunt said.

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CBN mops up N400bn via Treasury Bill sales HOPE MOSES-ASHIKE

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entral Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on Thursday auctioned a total of N400 billion Treasury bill through Open Market Operation (OMO), being the first in the week since last week Thursday.

The results of the OMO auction show that N100 billion was offered for 105-day tenor at the stop rate of 10.9 percent.

The offer, which matures on August 2, 2018, was under subscribed by N30.3 billion with a total sale of N27.6 billion.

For longer days tenure of 245 days, the apex bank offered the sum of N300 billion to investors who paid a total of N472.4 billion at the stop rate of 11.95 percent.

The offer, which was oversubscribed by N856.7 billion, will mature in December 20, 2018.

“There is a lot of liquidity in the system since the CBN has not been mopping up and rates have been dropping significantly,” Ayodeji Ebo, managing director, Afrinvest Securities Limited, said.

The last OMO auction by

the CBN was held in April 12, 2018, where a total of N500 billion treasury bills were offered to investors.

Godwin Emefiele, governor of CBN, had noted that the regulator embarked on a cycle of policy tightening to rein in inflation using increasing Monetary Policy Rate (MPR) and aggressive Open Market Operations.

Last week Thursday, system liquidity opened at a significantly higher level of N1.1 trillion, necessitating N500.0 billion OMO mop-up by the CBN across 112-day for N100.0 billion offer, it was subscribed by N1.2 billion, and N1.2 billion, was allotted at marginal rate of 12.2 percent. It offered N400.0 billion for 245 days tenor. It was subscribed by N963.9 billion, allotted: N498.7 billion, at the rate of 13.99 percent maturities.

The Open Buy-Back (OBB) and Overnight (OVN) rates inched 0.3ppts and 0.5ppts higher to 3.0 percent and 3.8%, respectively.

“As the impact of a moderating inflation continues to anchor yield expectation, we anticipate more subscriptions in

longer tenored instruments as investors lock in higher rates ahead of yield moderation,” analysts at Afrinvest said.

In the Treasury Bills market, performance was largely flattish as average rate across benchmark tenors trended higher albeit marginally on 3 of 5 trading sessions save for Tuesday. The bearish start of the week, with average rate rising 2bps to 13.1 percent, had been reversed on Tuesday following 4bps decline in average yield; but rose 3bps mid-week in the absence of a Primary Market Auction and stayed flattish till the end of the week. Rates closed 17bps lower by weekend.

“We anticipate a largely bullish performance in the Treasury Bills Market sequel to the reduction in the amount to be rolled over in line with the planned reduction and substitution of expensive domestic short term debt with cheaper long term foreign debt by the Federal Government,” the analysts said.

A total of N116.9bn across the 91-day, 182-day and 364day instruments will be maturing while only N58.4bn is scheduled to be rolled over.

Secretariat buildings, street lights to be powered

by Ossiomo Power before December – Edo

... Benin to get judiciary hub status in S/South

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do State governor, Godwin Obaseki, says the state secretariat buildings and streetlights in the state capital will be powered by a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) signed between the state and Ossiomo Power before the end of the year.

Obaseki disclosed this when he inspected ongoing construction work at the High Court Complex Extension and Block C of the Secretariat Building, along Sapele Road in Benin City, the state capital.

The governor, who expressed satisfaction with the pace and quality of work done, said, “We have secured most of the clearance from Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC). With this, we are optimistic that before the end of the year, when work on the buildings would have been completed, the PPA agreement with Ossiomo Power for 5mw of electricity will be activated to provide power to the Secre-

tariat Complex.”

He said government offices at the complex would be powered in the day using the power from Ossiomo plant, and at night, the streetlights in the state capital would hook on to the power facility.

He noted that going by the work programme of the contractor handling the High Court Complex Extension, the project was expected to be completed within 16 to 20 weeks, adding, “The work is of high quality. The standard is as can be obtained anywhere in the world. I am optimistic that by the last quarter of the year, the Court House will be ready for furnishing.”

He said the state was liaising with the Ministry of Interior and the Nigerian Prison Service to relocate the Benin Prison along Sapele Road to a more remote and secure location.

“We are working seriously on this issue and once we agree on the design for the new

prison, the present facility on Sapele Road will be relocated.

This will enable the state carry out more expansion work to accommodate the court complex, which will be sited at the present location of the prison,” he said.

He explained that the state was concluding plans to site an Industrial Court in Benin City, to make the state capital a judicial hub in the South-South region.

At the twin 9-story Block C Secretariat Building, commenced over 40 years ago by late Samuel Ogbemudia’s administration, the governor said the construction work commenced after an integrity test was done on the building and the result showed that it was in good condition.

He stressed that he is satisfied with the support from public servants for the reforms being undertaken by his administration.

Lazy youths: Siasia tells President to apologise to Nigerian youths IFEOMA OKEKE

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former 2015 Bayelsa State governorship candidate, Moses Siloko Siasia, has condemned in the strongest terms the statement by President Muhammadu Buhari that Nigerian youths are lazy.

Siasia, who is the chairman of the Nigerian Young Professionals Forum, said the President should use such exalted platforms to tell the world what his administration was doing to create employment for the teeming youths population and the new things his administration had brought to our people who have been disillusioned and impoverished by government at all levels.

In a statement issued on Thursday, Siasia stressed that President’s statement is an insult

to the sensibilities of Nigerian youths.

“The President has clearly stated that the majority of youth who brought him to power are also lazy, and all those young men and women in the armed forces trying to protect the territorial integrity of the country are lazy, and the young ones who are in the Nigerian Police Force to protect lives and property are also lazy.

“I believe, from that statement, that the President is unaware that those who contribute up to eighty per cent of Nigeria’s gross domestic product GDP (through the SMEs) are youths. The President also ought to know that the youth from our sports and entertainment industry are the ones bringing glory to our country and not his own generation.

“The youth in our entertainment industry are also creating enormous employment for other young people without any support or incentives from Government. Those winning medals for our country are youths and not old men. We have the likes of Asisat Oshoala, 2017 African Women Player of the Year; Patience Okon George – Nigerian best female quarter liner; Blessing Okogbare, Victor Moses, etc.”

The former governorship candidate asked the President to apologise to Nigerian youths or risk being voted out by the youths come 2019.

“Who is the President referring to as lazy? I am calling on the President to apologise to Nigerian youths, or else the lazy youth will not vote for him in 2019,” he said.

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Obiano appoints Anabel’s boss chairman of youth entrepreneurship council

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overnment of Anambra State, in a strategic move to tackle youth unemployment,createreliable database of entrepreneurs forresourcefuluseofitsyouthdevelopment initiative as well as to develop a framework to engage, empower and advise government on youth-related issues, has inaugurated a 13-member council to actualise its objective.

To this end, Governor Willie Obiano has announced the appointment of the CEO of Anabel Group,NickyOkoye,aschairman of the council. The council has the mandate to mobilise strong support for Anambra State Entrepreneurshipcommunityboth at home and in the Diaspora for a collective development of the state.

Governor Obiano, while inaugurating the council, tasked members of the council to bring their wealth of experience, competence and capacity at this time to make a difference in its effort at drastically reducing unemployment among youths in the state.

Obiano urged the council to look beyond their stipulated terms of reference to develop initiative that government and theprivatesectoralikecouldfund to make life more meaningful for the youths, assuring them of the fullsupportofhisadministration.

Chairman of the council and formal group executive director, Transcorp plc, Okoye, hailed the creation of the council, saying, “It is a clear indication that the government is thinking creatively and understand that the major challenge of our nation is unemployment, and he is ready to address it.”

Appreciating the governor, Okoye said, “We shall work assiduously with other member of the council to add value to the state and make Anambra’s unique position as the state with themostdynamicentrepreneurs will be brought to bear to transformAnambraintothestatewith the least unemployment.”

Furthermore, he assured that they would tap into the benefit of the creative economy, including emerging technologies, software development, beauty, fashion, movies and music to make Anambra State a model in terms of entrepreneurship and youth development in Nigeria and Africa at larger.

Other members of the council are the commissioners in charge of relevant ministries - Youths Entrepreneurship, Culture, Tourism and Diaspora Affairs, Agriculture Mechanisation, Processing and Export and Budget and Economic Planning, Anambra Small Business Agency, among others.

Edo determined to revamp state-run tertiary educational institutions

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overnor Godwin Obaseki of Edo State has reiterated government’s commitment to improved standards and structures intertiaryinstitutionsrunbythestate.

Obaseki disclosed this when he received members of the Committee of Benin Elders, who paid him a courtesy visit at the Government HouseinBeninCity,thestatecapital.

He said efforts were underway to revamp the existing structures at the colleges and universities owned by the state, noting “Edo South has remained educationally disadvantage. This is not because of lack of institutions but because of dearth of quality of education offered and the dilapidated structures in these tertiaryinstitutions.

“We will continue to invest re-

sources to fix standards and structures in these institutions of higher learning. We are addressing these problems first by focusing on basic educationwhichisthefoundation.”

Explaining the role of education in driving development, the governor said, “We cannot afford to play politics with the sector. Having institutions does not translate to quality education.

For us, institutions should have impact on the lives of the students and society.

“With our reforms, we will change the negative perception the global community has about this state, as a place with the highest number of trafficked persons, especially youths who are not interested in gaining an education.”

L-R: Funlola Odunlami, permanent secretary, Lagos State Ministry of Justice; Adeniji Kazeem, attorney general/commissioner for Justice; Habib Aruna, chief press secretary to the governor; Idowu Ajanaku, special adviser to the governor on information/strategy, and Kofoworola Awobamise, permanent secretary, Ministry of Information and Strategy, during the ongoing year 2018 ministerial press briefing as part of activities to mark the third year in office of Governor Akinwunmi Ambode, at the Bagauda Kaltho Press Centre, the Secretariat, Alausa, Ikeja, yesterday.

World Bank urges African leaders to invest in human capital ONYINYE NWACHUKWU, Washington DC

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he World Band has advised African leaders to invest in human capital to be able to keep up with the obvious consequences of fast expanding global digital economy.

The World Bank particularly fears that African economic risk job losses if they do not align with the trend as advanced technologies like 3D printers, robots, and artificial intelligence grow and is poised to take over massive jobs.

“We are extremely concerned that many African countries are not prepared to compete in what is becoming a digitalised economy,” World Bank Group President, Jim Kim, said on Thursday in Washington DC at a press conference which officially opened the 2018 IMF/World Bank Spring Meetings.

“Everyone, I think, understands the need for physical capital, for physical infrastructure and investments in infrastructure.

‘Small businesses are big winners in tax reform’ DAVID IBEMERE

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icro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) are the biggest winners in the government’s tax reform programme, according to the government.

This was disclosed at the sensitisationtownhallmeetingforBusiness Membership Organisations (BMOs) on tax payment and their rights as taxpayers, organised by theFederalInlandRevenueService (FIRS), Joint Tax Board (JTB) and theSmallandMediumEnterprises DevelopmentAgency(SMEDAN) held at the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry, conferenceandexhibitioncentre,inIkeja on Wednesday.

Tunde Fowler, executive chairman of FIRS, said MSMEs were the engine of economic growth and the government was very concernabouttheirwell-beingand improvement.

It was on the basis of the sensitisation forum, Fowler, who was representedbyKunleOseni,director, Federal Engagement and Enlightenment Tax Teams (FEETT), said this.

“The MSMEs are recognised as the engine of economic growth and development in the developing economieswiththe capacityto effect wealth and income distribution as well as creating jobs even in stagnant economies.

“The essence of this programme is to ensure that the process of tax payment is made less onerous,” he said.

The FIRS has taken various steps to support the MSMEs, such as supporting the revision of the NationalTaxPolicy(NTP)toreflect the realities of the economy; makingtaxpaymenteasierastaxpayers cannowpaytheirtaxesonlineorat the FIRS office closer to them, and creating the FIRS FEETT, he said.

Also, Umaru Radda, CEO,

SMEDAN, said SMEDAN was working to ensure optimum performance of the MSMEs and to protect their interests.

On his part, Radda, who was represented by Monday Ewans, director of Policy, Advocacy and Coordination, said: “The role of the MSMEs is for job creation and serve as a tool for economic development.

“SMEDAN works with them to help to reduce unemployment.

TheneedtosensitisetheMSMEsis fortheMSMEstoknowtheirright.”

For Oseni Elamah, executive secretary, JTB, called on business owners in the country to key into the various incentives provided by the government.

“The government is particular about bringing many taxpayers into the tax net. VAID is a good platform SMEs must key into.

These laws are already there, if you don’t declare, the normal tax law provision apply,” Elamah said.

But I think there’s still an under appreciation of the importance of improving health and educational systems.

“We are also seeing lots of evidences that suggest that many of the low skill jobs will be taken over by technology. We hope that technology will help many African countries grow and find new ways of driving economic growth,” he said.

Kim advised Nigeria and other African countries to invest more in education, which he said was the only way to take advantage of the growing economic digitalisation.

“Without adequate education, Africans would learn less and earn less in the future. We have good data on that.

“What we’ve been able to learn is that if you look at what we call learning adjusted years of schooling, in other words, not just how many years you’ve been in school, but how much you’re learned in those years of school, and we have so much better data

now on how much children are actually learning.

“When stunting rate is over 30 percent and sometimes close to 50 percent, that group of young children will not be prepared to compete in a digital economy in the future. So, human capital is a huge issue,” he said.

The World Bank sees relationship between health outcomes and educational outcomes only becoming stronger over time as economies become more digitalised.

“And I so I think it’s time for all countries to really take a hard look at how well they’ve invested in their own people because that is likely going to be the most important determinant of whether they’ll be able to keep up with economic growth,” Kim told journalists attending the meetings.

He said that the concerns being raised around learning is not just for children but also skills programs for adults. “The human capital agenda, I think, has been neglected for far too long,”

he stressed.

Meanwhile, the World Bank says the global economy is showing solid momentum and expects global growth to edge up to 3.1 percent in 2018, its strongest performance since 2011, as the recovering investment, manufacturing, and trade continues, and as commodity exporting developing economies benefit from firming commodity prices.

Sub-Saharan Africa’s growth is projected to peak at about 3.1 percent this year and to average 3.6 percent in 2019-20.

The forecast is premised on expectations that oil and metal prices will remain stable, and that governments in the region will implement reforms to address macroeconomic imbalances and boost investment.

Kim, however, says the challenge now is how to ensure that strong growth will translate into inclusive growth so that the benefits of global economic integration are enjoyed by all members of society.

Nigeria plans power tariff overhaul by 2021 to attract investment ISAAC ANYAOGU

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igeria plans to overhaul its energy tariff system by 2021 to try to attract investment and improve power supply, the vice chairman of the country’s electricity regulator said.

Only about half of the 190 million people in Africa’s most populous country have access to power. The problem has been exacerbated by prices that are capped below what it costs to generate and deliver power, Reuters reports.

Nigeria’s ailing power infrastructure, which forces businesses and households to run costly fuel generators, is often blamed for hobbling growth and is likely to be major issue in campaigning ahead of next February’s presidential election.

Sanusi Garba, vice chairman of the National Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), told a panel at the Developing Market Associates’ UK-Nigeria Trade and Investment Forum in London that NERC had devised a “recovery plan” that would fix the tariff issue.

“Under the plan, by 2021, tariffs, regular tariffs, will reach parity with cost-reflective tariffs,” Garba said.

He said increasing tariffs was difficult given the lack of regular power supply and the relatively few paying customers in the system; he said there are currently just eight million customers on the billing platform.

“The few that are paying are actually paying for others that are not paying,” he said of the current system.

Garba said the reset plan

would bring in more investors in order to add generation capacity, diversify power sources away from the gas that most of the grid relies on now, expand the transmission system and, crucially, add 10 to 20 million customers to the billing platform.

He said that while investments were currently stalled, the government would soon invite utilities to submit the investments they need so the government can choose the most crucial projects, facilitate outside investment - and hold those who do get the money accountable for what they do with it.

Garba said the potential millions of new customers, was a “tremendous opportunity” for those looking to place money in Nigeria.

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Interest rates, youth and Nigerian agriculture AUDU OGBEH Ogbeh is the Honourable Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development

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pon a reflection over the award I received few days ago in Lagos, the remarks below were considered necessary. Personally, let me state that I appreciate the prize and I am really grateful to Zik Prize Committee because it is an encouragement. It’s a fitting reward for one who has come into a certain line of public service with a great deal of personal action.

I have been in agriculture for virtually all my life, even in the days when I was in and out of government. But I am very grateful to Nigerians because, in spite of the many difficulties Nigerians are facing today, they have responded well to the call by government to return to agriculture.

Farmers are beginning to make money for the first time in their lives and they are happy. Young people are returning to agriculture in droves, only waiting

NANTIM M. JOSEPH Nantim T. Joseph is a public policy analyst

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he famed agricultural successes of the First Republic, symbolized by the groundnut pyramids in the north and the cocoa and palm plantations in the west and east were achieved on the back of robust policies and effective agricultural extension systems. But this second factor has not been given adequate emphasis in recent efforts to rejuvenate the sector.

This is one of the reasons why a once food sufficient and food exporting country has become one in which only 20 percent of the food consumed by its population is grown at home.

The consequence of this is the current heavy dependence on imported food products to feed a teeming population which according to the World Bank, is expected to surpass the population of the United States which currently stands at 324,459,463, by 2050.

Many recommendations have been made to fix this existential economic challenge confronting Nigeria.

However, the consensus is that Nigeria must hike its food production substantially to keep up with that population growth. These are the core concerns of the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP) and the Agricultural Promotion Programme (APP) of the Buhari administration which are designed to tackle rising food imports and declining levels of national food self-sufficiency. In this connection, key challenges that undermine agricultural production include reliance on rain fed agriculture, smallholder land holding, and low productivity due to poor planting material, low fertilizer application, and a weak agricultural extension system amongst others.

Aliyu Abdulhameed, MD/CEO of the Nigeria Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agriculture (NIRSAL), believes that establishing an effec-

for government’s support which we have to provide for them.

We are now working towards reducing the interest rate on agriculture to five per cent, especially for the small borrowers. For us, the major achievement if we succeed in bringing interest rate to five per cent is, we believe in the next two to three years, this country will become a major force in agriculture worldwide. So I am grateful to Nigerians, the media, young and old, to the President for the opportunity given, but most grateful to a society that is passing through trials but is still good enough to say we recognise what you are doing.

I am of an advanced age, and the youth have the energy and the willingness. Don’t give up. Do what you must.

I appreciate the honour and I will continue to do my best until we round off what we are doing, hoping then that agriculture will take off and climb to heights that it has never achieved in this country.

On my direct statements, which sometimes appear like self-criticism or criticism of the same government, I need to explain this. The frank talk comes from the fact of 40 years of participation in and out of government.

I got into the contest for the House of Assembly 1978, became a Deputy Speaker 1979. Before then, I was a

Where in the world do you have interest rate regimes high, hovering between 25 and 35 per cent for nearly 40 years and the economy grows? People can’t take a loan. Young people have nowhere to look to. They have ideas, they can’t borrow and do what they want to do because I personally feel that Nigeria could very well be the capital of private enterprise in the world teacher in the University in Zaria, teaching French at the institute of Education.

But in and out, I have been in politics for 40 years. I have seen quite a bit of where the problems came from and if you can’t bring that experience to bear, then your presence is no value to your country.

That is part of the country’s investment in a human asset; that investment has to pay off.

So, when I speak about these things, sometimes, I offend certain tastes. When I speak frankly that this economy has not really been growing, but that the only thing that has really been growing is poverty and hunger, I am not criticising the government, and after all, I am part of it. The truth is, that is what is happening.

Where in the world do you have interest rate regimes high, hovering between

25 and 35 per cent for nearly 40 years and the economy grows? People can’t take a loan. Young people have nowhere to look to. They have ideas, they can’t borrow and do what they want to do because I personally feel that Nigeria could very well be the capital of private enterprise in the world. Every Nigerian wants to do something for himself. But if you can’t borrow, how do you remove corruption?

If people can’t be free to do it the way they want to, pay their tax and live their lives freely, how do you want the economy to grow? MSMEs don’t exist because nobody is funding them. I have raised this issue with bankers steadily and they keep telling me “the interest rate cannot be lower than the inflation rate.” How did Ghana bring down interest rate three times last year and also brought down inflation? Interest rate also fuels inflation. Why must we run an economy of traders? Import apples, sell; then the bank is happy with you.

You want to produce apple; they don’t want to get involved in that. These are the issues and when I speak, I am speaking because I have seen how we went through, what we went through and I think we can never get it right unless we correct those mistakes.

I have this theory that no government in Nigeria will be popular for

more than two years. If you like, bring an army of angels from heaven. If you don’t restructure and deal with your monetary policy, which I think is wrong, dissatisfaction will never stop.

Our children will not stop crossing the desert. Now the vogue is that they all want to go to Canada. Why should young people in our country look elsewhere for survival when there is so much opportunity here? But you are importing rice, sugar, milk, toothpicks, toothpaste, tomato paste, honey, everything, shipment. We thought it was a fantastic theory. Why are you sustaining other economies when yours is dying?

So these are the issues. I speak frankly, but I don’t mean any harm. I am saying we can do great things. Our younger people can even be happier than we were. As it is, it is not so. I know occasionally I may ruffle certain emotions. I may also upset certain people but the truth is, it is for the good of our country. At my age, all I want to wish my society is a happier future than what we saw. As it is, we saw a happier past than what our children are seeing.

That itself doesn’t give me a good sleep.

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NIRSAL’S PMRO scheme: Boosting agricultural productivity through improved agric extension systems tive modern agricultural extension service to support the ERGP and the APP is key to the revitalization of Nigerian agriculture. And this is the vision behind NIRSAL’s game changing Project Monitoring Reporting and Remediation Offices (PMRO) scheme launched in 2017.

He explains the thinking and focus of the scheme: “The PMRO structure is very critical to our operations. Agriculture is a field business.

The PMROs would act as our eyes to ensure that agricultural projects that we facilitate finance for are executed in line with agreed terms and also serve to extend the reach of our interventions”.

Achieving this will not be easy.

Previous efforts by successive administrations to repeat the agricultural extension feats of the 60s-70s and reduce the over-reliance on imports, have not been very successful. One challenge is that Federal and State governments still struggle with attracting investment to the sector, hence low agricultural budgets continue to hamper efforts to grow the sector significantly despite numerous colorfully advertised programs. The sector also struggles with outdated practices, inefficient technologies and weak monitoring.

For each of these challenges, NIRSAL has responded with a robust structure to tackle the negative effects sustainably and the PMRO scheme is the latest in the battle to boost agricultural productivity and food security. NIRSAL itself is a product of government’s efforts to properly organize and fund the agricultural sector, reduce the risk of investing in the sector, while seeking areas of new funding for the sector to grow. With the coming of the PMROs, players in the sector can now expect to have at their disposal modern best practices in planting, processing, packaging

and even in funding. As a result, inefficient technologies are systematically done away with while the sector benefits from the specialized monitoring the scheme brings with it.

The PMRO structure which already covers 225,000 farmers is set to boost the status of agriculture as a business and a sector capable of earning huge foreign exchange to add to the coffers of the national treasury.

To improve the chances for success, the PMRO scheme is fashioned to be a formidable ally to all stakeholders along the agricultural value chain chiefly the smallholder farmers and investors, providing robust all-round support for all parties.

Another strong feature of the scheme is a focus on capacity building anchored on Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) such as effective production, safe processing and sustainable post-production techniques, including equipping the smallholder farmers with the technical and business knowhow required to operate modern technologies and attract the requisite funding for projects as well as supervising funded projects.

The farmers work with the PMROs from conception to actualization of their projects, learning how to produce food products that meet global standards, through modern planting techniques and efficient use of farming resources such as fertilizers and pesticides. The PMROs will also assist them with business development, helping them attract the kind of funding required for their projects, from the right financial institutions.

On the other hand, the PMRO scheme will play the roles of liaison, eyes on ground and facilitator to the agricultural projects that it supports, including the those to which STANBIC IBTC and Union Bank have already collectively committed 20 billion Naira.

In fact, Abdulhameed sees the PMRO scheme as a first line defense and secu-

rity to ensure that projects that rigorously conceptualized and technically sound agricultural projects achieve their objectives.

As Abdulhameed noted when NIRSAL signed an MOU on a N10 billion agricultural finance scheme in November 2017, “To ensure proper use of the loans and success of the projects, NIRSAL will leverage its Project Monitoring, Reporting and Remediation Offices (PMRO) located across the 36 states in the country. The PMROs will closely supervise projects to ensure proper use of the loans by beneficiaries.”

With such investments already coming into the programme, the PMRO scheme’s multifaceted approach to agricultural extension systems places it at the epicenter or epicenters of agribusiness in Nigeria, as they operate from all 36 states including the Federal Capital Territory.

The investors/financial institutions, working hand in hand with the PMROs as part of NIRSAL’s risk management framework, for handling investments in agriculture, will serve as supervisor and monitor to ensure strict adherence to terms agreed with beneficiaries, and as a result reduce the risk of doing business in the sector.

Some of the risks include but are not limited to loan diversion. To help deal with this, the PMRO structure will complete NIRSAL’s institutional strategy of only providing inputs in lieu of cash to farmers by physically ensuring that they are rightly deployed and that timelines for projects are complied with. It is also a good thing that NIRSAL has empowered them with the technology tools for remote monitoring and reporting of events as they occur on the field for appropriate steps to be taken, when there is a need.

The scheme’s close progress tracking feature also enables NIRSAL to identify risk events, take steps to mitigate them

to avoid loss.

A critical part of the PMRO scheme is the leadership it has at state level, which enables it to effectively carry out this tracking and feedback system. Led by financial experts mostly from the private sector and senior level former directors from the public service. These PMRO Heads leverage their private sector experience and technical knowhow in agribusiness to play very vital roles at the points where they are most needed. These include providing technical support, mentorship, business advisory services such as writing business plans, financial management to agricultural players operating at the state levels.

Overall, the introduction of the PMRO structure into the Nigerian agricultural space by NIRSAL under the leadership of Abdulhameed is timely, necessary and commendable. It is a physical evidence of the institutional efforts by the risk-mitigating agency to win the confidence of commercial banks who see putting money into agriculture as a sinking it into a dark hole. It’s nationwide presence and trained field staff, ability to monitor agricultural projects, track and report risk events, guide and support agricultural producers helps fill a worrying gap left by the extension services of old. The institutional role of enabling access to relevant information by grassroots agricultural players makes them highly relevant in government’s efforts to increase farmer yield, boost productivity and reposition agriculture as the mainstay of the country’s economy. The management of NIRSAL deserves commendation and should be supported by stakeholders to ensure its sustainability and impact as a pillar of the Buhari administration’s agricultural promotion policy.

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How fast is your organization adapting to the changing world?

WITH

W

‘UJU ONWUZULIKE

Uju Onwuzulike is Nigeria’s leading authority on Systems Thinking and Strategic Management. He was a Steve Haines trained strategy and systems thinking expert and a former global partner of Haines Centre for Strategic Management, California, USA. He is the founder and Chief Results Officer of MCL – a strategy and outstanding performance specialist firm. He can be reached on 09091142093 or uju.onwuzulike@mclgroup.net.

ithout giving their consents, organizations in Nigeria and globally have been pushed into the realities of the ‘VUCA’ world – ‘VUCA’ stands for Volatile, Uncertain, Complex and Ambiguous. Before now, organizations can afford to do things their own way, their own time and in their own terms. It was also easy seeing some organizations back then thinking they were fully in charge of events and situations in and around their industry (they were literally saying in their minds- no cause for alarm, we are in control). Because of their ‘perceived’ size, financial strength and positioning, these organizations find themselves too ‘big to fail’ and alas start breathing the ‘air of invincibility’. My big question is: can this kind of mindset or thinking still exist in today’s ‘VUCA’ business world?

The reality is that with the rate of change, uncertainty and disruptions in the business world of today, it is not advisable for any organization to still have the ‘air of invincibility’ or ‘too big to fail’ mentality – no

matter how big your balance sheet size is or your market share. It is not safe for organizations to think that they are invulnerable to failure or losing marketplace positioning.

Whenever I have the opportunity to share with leaders and participants in our Leading Strategic Change and Innovation program, I always point out that change is a shift in the external world and not from the internal.

If those shifts in the external world are not managed strategically in the best interest of the organization, there might be a looming danger. A general case for all organizations is that change happens to all of them.

But the speed of adapting to the change differs from one organization to the other. Leaders should take change seriously as planning and change are their primary roles.

Interestingly, it is no more a question of whether an organization wants to push itself hard or not in adapting to the changing world; now it is a must do. Like we have all known in the time past that some things in life are inevitable and are bound to happen, so also is disruption – and changing land-

A general case for all organizations is that change happens to all of them. But the speed of adapting to the change differs from one organization to the other.

Leaders should take change seriously as planning and change are their primary roles scapes in our organizations. So, one message I would like to drive home is that ‘disruption is inevitable in our organizations’. It has come to stay. Any CEO, leader or manager that does not pay attention to disruptions would be doing that to his or her peril. In the recent times, one of my favourites quote is the one from Budi Sadikin (the former CEO of Indonesia’s Bank Mandiri), he said “we have to keep disrupting ourselves; otherwise we will be disrupted by somebody else”.

With my experience working with CEOs and business leaders across various industries, I have found out that some business leaders’ major challenge is that they allowed disruptions to catch up with them and eventually overtake them. They were simply not ahead of the game. Now the only option left for any wise CEO, leader or manager is to be proactive – and to me, being proactive simply means being on top of your game –

and avoid fighting fires that would have been prevented.

Years back, I was speaking for Institute of Directors (IoD) on board strategic thinking, and someone said something that got me thinking.

She mentioned about three global and formally respected companies that failed and said “these companies are now used as case studies”.

Remember I said initially that no company or organization is too big to fail. Interestingly, a particular organization might even be No.1 currently in their industry, but that does not guarantee longevity and sustainability if changes from the outside exceed the internal or inside changes in that particular organization (this might sound harsh, but is the truth). Individually, we know those big companies that have failed and we also use them to cite examples, but then, the only way we will be different and better than those failed companies is when we learn to run fast and adapt to the changing world.

Final note: To succeed in these difficult times will require leaders of organization to push hard and run fast. Like Budi Sadikin (the CEO of Indonesia’s Bank Mandiri) said, let the disruption start internally for organizations, that will help them prepare and get ready for the changing world as opposed to allowing disruptions to jump on them from the outside. No matter how big an organization might be, an outside and unforeseen disrup-

tion might mean the end of business for some and to others making them irrelevant. Since the changing world has come, pushing hard to adapt to that changing world is in your organization’s best interest. Always remember that what brought success to your organization yesterday might not be relevant again today – so we need to move from “this is how it has worked to “how can it work today” in the midst of uncertainties. Always, always, always remember that the business world of today has become so funny and interesting that small companies that are fast are beating big companies that are slow.

The most practical step everyone in your organization would have to take is to break the status quo mentality, and become more strategic and systemic in managing all facets of their business operations.

Finally, the world is changing very fast – so also the business landscape, and personally I think we shouldn’t be saying again things like: “this is a big bank or this is a big company and that is a small bank or small company, but instead we should be saying things like: ‘this is a fast company and that is a slow company”.

And I like the way Rupert Murdoch captured it, big will not beat small anymore. It will be the ‘fast beating the slow’.

So, how fast is your organization running and how fast are your people breaking the status quo?

All to your success,

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How to pick economic policy tools in Nigeria

MICHAEL FAMOROTI Michael Famoroti is Chief Economist at Vetiva Capital Management

I

t is tempting, if the only tool you have is a hammer, to treat everything as if it were a nail.”

– Abraham Maslow The Nigerian policy-maker is yet to meet an economic problem that a subsidy or ban cannot fix. When external competition threatens an uncompetitive local industry, the call is not for reform and development, but for embargoes on imports. And as the crash in oil prices pressured the naira post-2014, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) dug its heels in to defend the currency, and in the process, restricted foreign currency access for products like toothpicks and cement while subsidising others like petrol and raw materials for industry.

It is not that subsidies or embargoes are bad, but that they are sometimes blunt instruments for addressing economic challenges.

The economic policy toolkit is considerably more diverse.

Standing as one of the most ambitious economic experiments in modern times, it is no surprise that the European Union (EU) has been notably bolder in choosing policy

“

instruments. Sometimes, this has been accidental. Recent experience on the continent showed that although an expanded EU had to deal with issues around social inclusion and congestion in infrastructure due to the free movement of labour, it turned out to be an effective way of tackling regional poverty. Other inspired policy choices have been more intentional. The shift from regulation to carbon taxes in dealing with corporate carbon emissions had raised revenue without really tackling energy efficiency.

The EU then set up the EmissionsTrading Scheme, a platform that assigns emission quotas to firms and allows them to trade the permits among themselves. The scheme has proven successful in ensuring that those who pollute the most also pay the most, and in encouraging innovation in clean technology, a prerequisite for driving long-term energy efficiency.

In Nigeria, our policy choices are less inspired.We have stuck with distortionary and corruptible subsidies in order to artificially depress the national price of petrol when we could simply use subsidy funds to provide handouts – cash or fuel vouchers – to low-income earners.

Meanwhile, even as a new (and higher) national minimum wage creeps towards implementation, it remains a puzzle how the country survives without a proper social safety net for job-seekers.Safety nets such as unemployment benefits would be more effective than,

or at least complement, minimum wage hikes when it comes to boosting wages. Note a common theme between the cash/petrol handout and unemployment benefits options: both avoid direct market intervention and instead empower consumers/ workers to make better choices.

Today, Nigeria faces a raft of pressing economic challenges: limited access to credit, low government non-oil revenue, a sizable infrastructure deficit, etc. To fix these, we must select the most appropriate policy tools from the available options. For example, there are many ways of driving credit to agriculture: direct CBN lending, setting lending quotas for commercial banks, addressing information gaps in the economy, developing funding instruments such as agri-bonds, etc.

The choice of policy tool is important because our chosen policy will create winners and losers even when it raises overall welfare. Thus, selecting policy isn’t only about maximising efficiency, but determining where to allocate costs and responsibility.

This plays out in the economy every day. National Bureau of Statistics data shows that subsidies do not keep actual petrol prices low, a reality many would agree with. Instead, the primary beneficiaries are those that can benefit from the arbitrage. The choice of policy tool also determines the price we pay for progress. Direct CBN lending to farmers may boost credit to agriculture but comes at the expense of a bloated central bank balance sheet and increased credit risk exposure in the apex

bank. And some costs are indirect; setting up bad banks such as AMCON to address non-performing loans in the banking sector may instantly clean up the industry but could also create moral hazard where banks are inclined to make riskier bets in the future, knowing others will clean up their mess.

Thankfully, policy tools will usually not be mutually exclusive, and some may even work best in tandem. For example, initiatives to address information asymmetry – perhaps by strengthening credit bureaus and ratings agencies –are probably a necessary element of a broader package to stimulate credit to the real economy, whether through commercial banks, development banks, or capital markets.

Policy-makers must just become more sensitive to options available.

The proposed Special Economic Zones would be an excellent place to practice – incentives alone have not worked in the country, and adequate regional infrastructure and institutions would be needed too.

We can also learn from abroad; from success stories like the EU to trainwrecks like India’s recent attempt to tackle financial crime by scrapping high-denomination bills.In the last decade alone, governments have unearthed new ways of tackling old problems, from quantitative easing as a monetary policy response to the last financial crisis, to the use of behavioural insights to “nudge” citizens to act in a desired way.

Once we begin to utilisea broad-

er spectrum of policy instruments, we are likely to encounter an uncomfortable reality: policy choice is not only subject to welfare and equity considerations but also to legal and political constraints. For example, Scotland recently implemented a price floor on alcohol prices mainly because only the central UK government is legally empowered to change excise duties. Closer to home, critics of the government’s pioneer tax incentive scheme have pointed to incidental abuse of the policy as an indication that it has largelybeen used for political favouritism.In some ways, this is an inevitable feature of operating a democratic political economy,and the responsibility lies with citizens to hold policy-makers to account.

Economic policy should remember the idiom that advises there are “many ways to skin a cat” and move towards bolder, more creative policy solutions. This means unshackling ourselves from our usual remedies; subsidies will not save Nigeria, and there are no prizes for policy favourites.In the words of China’s reformist leader, Deng Xiaoping, “It doesn’t matter whether a cat is black or white, as long as it catches mice.” *The views expressed in this article are personal to the author and may not reflect the opinion of Vetiva Capital Management Limited or any its affiliates

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Editorial PUBLISHER/CEO

Frank Aigbogun EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Prof. Onwuchekwa Jemie EDITOR Anthony Osae-Brown DEPUTY EDITORS John Osadolor, Abuja Bill Okonedo NEWS EDITOR Patrick Atuanya EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, SALES AND MARKETING Kola Garuba EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, OPERATIONS Fabian Akagha EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, DIGITAL SERVICES Oghenevwoke Ighure ADVERT MANAGER Adeola Ajewole MANAGER, SYSTEMS & CONTROL Emeka Ifeanyi HEAD OF SALES, CONFERENCES Rerhe Idonije SUBSCRIPTIONS MANAGER Patrick Ijegbai CIRCULATION MANAGER John Okpaire GM, BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT (North)

Bashir Ibrahim Hassan

GM, BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT (South) Ignatius Chukwu HEAD, HUMAN RESOURCES Adeola Obisesan

Friday 20 April 2018

Nigeria’s collapsed health sector

I

t is no longer news that the Nigerian health sector is in dire straits. Available data show that the country has one of the worst health records in the world. A 2014 World Health Organisation (WHO) report on healthcare delivery, which surveyed 200 countries, placed Nigeria at an abysmal 197th position, just ahead of Congo Democratic Republic, Central African Republic (CAR) and Myanmar. Its verdict was damning: “Nigeria lacks a serious approach to healthcare.”

This is obvious from the country’s budgetary allocation to healthcare. According to the Who, for countries to effectively fund the health sector, they need to allocate not less than 13 percent of their annual budget to the sector. Nigeria, one of the 194 member nations of the WHO, is a signatory to this recommendation, just as it also signed the 2001 Abuja Declaration by all African Union member countries which stipulates a budgetary allocation of 15 percent on the minimum to the health sector to be able to catch-up with other developed countries in healthcare delivery to their citizens.

Available figures show that since the declaration was made, Nigeria has not allocated more than 6.57 percent of its budget to health sector. Unsurprisingly, the proposed 2018 budget allocated only N340.45 billion, representing 3.9 percent of the N8.6 trillion expenditure plan to the health

sector.

The consequence has been catastrophic as expected. Primary healthcare in Nigeria, which ought to be the first port of call for every citizen seeking medical care, are either ineffective or moribund thus pilling pressure on the tertiary healthcare facilities that are also grossly inadequate. Nigeria is the second-largest contributor to underfive and maternal mortality rate in the world. A recent UNICEF report indicates that 145 women die daily during childbirth in the country.

In the country’s worst affected areas, 1 in 13 women die during childbirth. Nigeria also loses about 2,300 under-five year olds every single day, 25 percent of whom are new-born babies. More worrisome is the fact that more than 70 percent of the estimated under-five deaths in Nigeria are caused by preventable or treatable infectious diseases such as malaria, pneumonia, diarrhea, measles and HIV\AIDS Similarly, the figures for cancer are even more mind-boggling. Nigeria has a cancer death ration of 4 in 5, one of the worst in the world.

According to the WHO, over 100, 000 people are diagnosed with cancer annually in Nigeria, and about 80, 000 die from the disease, amounting to 240 daily. Furthermore, cervical cancer, which is virtually 100 percent preventable, kills one Nigerian woman every hour while breast cancer kills 40 Nigerian women daily.

The collapse of the Nigerian health sector is almost total as both

government officials, no matter how patriotic they claim to be, fly abroad for every minor health problem and health workers also jostle to leave for greener pastures abroad where they could earn decent wages. For instance, Nigeria losses over $2.5 billion annually to what has now being termed “medical tourism”.

The collapse of health infrastructure isn’t limited to the ordinary citizens alone. Even in Aso Rock, where the clinic reportedly receives a budgetary allocation of N4 billion naira, the President’s wife and daughter recently alleges that the clinic couldn’t even boast of common syringe or paracetamol. For Mrs Buhari, even though the clinic was supposed to cater for the immediate health needs of the first family, ministers and presidential aides, her aides advised her not to use the facility because it wasn’t functional and they advised her to seek medical treatment abroad for any medical complaints. Currently, the president’s son was involved in an accident but had to be rushed to a private hospital in Abuja because no one has any confidence in the Aso Rock clinic.

Another repercussion of the poor funding of the health sector is in the area of training of doctors and other health workers. According to key insiders in the sector, beyond the attitude problem of our health workers is the issue of incompetence due to the poor quality of training received by doctors in residency training and even medical students in the

universities. These insiders allege that the current mode of training is so deficient it throws out half-baked and incompetent.

Was it any wonder therefore that Prof Thomas Agan, Chief Medical Director (CMD), University of Calabar Teaching Hospital (UCTH) and Chairman, Committee of Chief Medical Directors of Federal Tertiary Hospitals in Nigeria alleges that over 90 percent of deaths in our hospitals are due to poor attitude of health workers?

What is more, due to the terrible working conditions, Nigerian doctors have been deserting the country in droves in search for better working conditions in other countries. According to the Nigerian Medical Association, more than 40, 000 out of the 75,000 registered Nigerian doctors were practicing abroad while 70 percent of those in the country were thinking of picking jobs outside. It also came to light recently that over 100 doctors resigned from the University College Hospital, Ibadan, in 2017 while about 800 resigned from Lagos state hospitals in the last two years.

Perhaps, we need to declare a state of emergency in the health sector and take radical steps to rebuild our healthcare infrastructure. One of such radical steps may be to ban foreign medical treatments for all government officials beginning with the president.

Then, they will have no option than to take the issue of healthcare seriously.

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Friday 20 April 2018

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MoneyInsight Personal Finance: Investing Retirement

Taxes

Credit Cards

Home Buying

Small Business Shopping

Financing

How SPVs can drive real estate investments Jumia gross merchandise … As TAGEXPO property fair draws keen enthusiasm

volume surges 42%

ISAAC ANYAOGU

FRANK ELEANYA

nvestors bank on Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV), which is a subsidiary company with an asset/liability structure and legal status that makes its obligations secure even if the parent company goes bankrupt, to isolate financial risk when making investment decisions.

The team at ‘The Anirejuoritse Group’ Nigeria Limited (T.A.G) organising this year’s edition of its annual Real Estate Expo (TAGEXPO), which seeks to guide Nigerians in the diaspora to credible real estates in Nigeria says they are creating a special purpose vehicle to facilitate investments.

According to the organisers, the SPV will allow up to five people pay for a single property and own blocks.

“For every property, we would get people who will come together, say it is N60m, we can sell it to five different people and then each person can buy a block, or one fifth of that property, which ensures that no matter who attends the event, more people will buy the property.

“We create an SPV and the SPV now owns the property, with the names of the buyers, this is strictly for investment purpose, not owner occupier scheme,” says Michael Ejoh, the convener and chief marketing officer of T.A.G. Nigeria at

i g e r i a’s b i g g e s t ecommerce platform, Jumia, said it grew its gross merchandise volume (GMV) year-onyear (y-o-y) by 41.8 percent, from 357.5 MEUR (Monthly Equipment Utilisation Report) in 2016 to 507 MEUR in 2017.

Gross merchandise volume refers to the total sales dollar value for merchandise sold through a particular marketplace over a certain time frame. It is calculated by the sale price charged to the customer multiplied by the number of items sold.

Detail of the financial report, BusinessDay received showed that Jumia’s GMV rose 64.5 percent to 197.9 MEUR (+113% in constant currency) in the fourth quarter of 2017, compared with 120.2 MEUR in fourth quarter 2016. The company’s marketplace platforms saw an increase in amount of orders from customers with a YoY growth of +94 percent in the fourth quarter of 2017.

“This growth is demonstrating the robust momentum in our core businesses and markets, and the increased adoption of online services by African consumers,” Jeremy Hodara, co-CEO of Jumia, “We are also seeing good results

I

N

A cross section of guests at the event

a stakeholders breakfast meeting, in Lagos on April 12.

Every year, TAGEXPO takes interested real estate developers from Nigeria to the United Kingdom and the United States to showcase their property in a fair where they convince Nigerians abroad to procure property in the country for investment or occupancy.

They can leverage on the weak naira to buy properties ranging from up N9million to about N200million.

“The continued theme for the TAGEXPO is to “Meet, Invest, Secure” – encompassing the core responsibilities on Real Estate purchase to connecting and negotiating, making a commitment and insuring your commitment.

This year we are looking

to go bigger than we have in the past two years, so much has been learnt on this journey and we hope to incorporate all the lessons to produce an even more engaging event for developers and attendees. We are also including properties from eastern parts of Nigeria as we have had inquiries about properties from there The organisers say the TAGEXPO is open to real estate developers in Nigeria, all financial institutions with facilities for loans and other real estate acquisition services, Insurance companies, mortgage firms, and Nigerians in the diaspora.

TAG says it has been invited to take a stand at the Offshore Technology Conference (OTC) holding in Houston, United States to hold one-leg of the fair.

“Apart from the two locations, there would be road shows to specific locations of interest where members of Nigerian professional bodies are engaged further on behalf of interested developers. “In 2016, the road show took us to Milton Kenyes and Manchester; we also explored Oxford and Dallas in 2017. This year, there are plans to meet up with Nigerians in the New Jersey and DC area of America”, Ejoh added.

Morenike Peter-Thomas, the communications Lead of the EXPO in her welcome speech said that TAGEXPO is all about credible Real Estate synergy. The breakfast event is aimed at allowing developers interact with the team and also get a brief of the plan for the year’s activities.

from our strategy to further develop our logistics platform and our payment platform. Our customers continue experience and the tremendous convenience of being able to shop online.”

Visitors from across Africa to the Jumia platforms also hit 550 million in 2017 while number of products available on the platform grew from 50,000 in 2012 to over 5 million in 2017.

The company’s Black Friday campaign recorded more than 100 million visits, marking a new milestone across all topline drivers.

Other highlights for the financial year include launching JumiaPay, to facilitate between merchants and consumers and tailor its solutions to specific local needs and requirements.

It also unveiled Jumia One, a consumer-facing payment mobile application, enabling customers to easily access digital services such as airtime and data, TV, utilities. The app is constantly adding features to integrate more online and financial solutions to help consumers save time and money and access a large set of different services from one place.

“Over 8 million packages were handled through the Jumia logistic platform, a unique achievement,” the statement noted.

‘I believe in keeping money local and growing economy from within’ MAJIRI OTOBO is the CEO of Kui Care, a Nigerian personal care brand with a range of products designed for natural hair. She recounts her start-up journey to BusinessDay’s STEPHEN ONYEKWELU. Excerpts:

H

ow did you get into this business?

My passion for hair care began when I decided to go natural. After my own personal hair journey began I realised the opportunity for the same journey to be achieved in the African market was not fully developed.

With my degree in Chemical Engineering from Imperial College London, and my three years’ experience in a global food manufacturing company as a Process Engineer, I moved back to Nigeria and started KUI post National Youth Service Corps (NYSC).

KUI, derived from Bai Kui which means morning STAR in the Ijaw tribe (as my mother is Ijaw), is a personal care brand focusing on making products that helps you realise your potential.

Although the current products are designed for

natural hair, all hair types can benefit from KUI. How did you proceed with this idea?

To achieve this, I needed to find a factory. This led me to Indonesia, in 2013, where I took a look at some factories but the naira dropped drastically. Actually, I attended one of those beauty conferences and saw a couple of factories. I inquired to know what products they make, we had some back and forth, it was during this period that I quit my job in Germany, and moved back to Nigeria.

Around this time too, my parents convinced me to go for the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC). The NYSC was really helpful. I left Nigeria for schooling abroad, when I was ten years old. So, the NYSC helped me understand better

Majiri Otobo

who my market is. How much they earn and how much people are willing to spend on products. There are many products targeted at natural hair that are imported at the moment, which are twice the price of my products, because of import duties.

By the time I decided to produce locally, I had al-

ready made some hair cream and felt the market pulse with relevant feedbacks. I needed to commit to the required volumes and the whole process of doing that gave me insight into what I needed to do if I were to go large scale.

After this, I started looking for local partners that can manufacture properly, I searched for local containers, labelling and others. This cut out the middle man. I finally got my NAFDAC in June 2016. This was also when the market really started to go crazy. They naira dropped and I was very glad I had stayed local, because I was dealing with local currency.

What are some of the challenges you face as a company?

The challenges of being an

entrepreneur are the various additional issues one has to consider in Nigeria that increases the possibility of your business failing. As my products are manufactured in Nigeria my most tasking difficulties include; My biggest challenge is inconsistent electricity provision leading to higher manufacturing and daily business expenses when other African countries including, Rwanda, Algeria, Egypt provide more dependable electricity.

Nigeria with over 160 million people generate 4000MW of light when, “the rule of thumb for any developing industrial nation is that at the least one gigawatt (1000MW) of electricity generation and consumption is required for every one million population,” according to Otunba Sunday Oduntan, the Executive Director, Association of

Nigerian Electricity Distribution Companies (ANED).

Underdeveloped transport systems leading to an intermittent logistic network where we have to rely on neglected roads when other developing countries such as India utilise faster rail systems. An unstable currency that has nearly halved the value of the revenue made from materials that were bought when the Naira to dollar ratio was stronger.

Lack of consistent/concise information and extensive bureaucracy with required documents and approvals needed when starting a business Inconsistent material supply. It’s a necessary evil that your business will rely on how another business is run. Therefore your risk is also the exposure to the decisions made outside of your control.

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Influencers

POLICY

Duty on solar panels: Customs says it wants to encourage local manufacturing Stories by ISAAC ANYAOGU

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gainst the groundswell of opposition to an unpopular 10 percent duty on solar panels, the Nigerian Customs Service says it is enforcing the tax to encourage local manufacturing of solar panels.

Anthony Anyalogu, head of classification at the Nigerian Customs Service, in a presentation at the Nigerian Energy Forum on Wednesday, explained that a key reason for the duty on solar panels was to encourage local manufacturing of solar PVs and that it was only enforcing the government fiscal policy, not inventing a new one.

Anyalogu, in his presentation, said the tariff was not a new one and agitations against the tariff did not factor in explanatory notes to HS Codes 8501 that explained inclusions and exclusions of the tariff codes.

“Photovoltaic generators consist of panels of photocells combined with other apparatus, like storage batteries and electronic controls, voltage regulator,

L-R: Ify Malo, Power for All Nigeria Country Director; Segun Adaju, president, Renewable Energy Association of Nigeria; Anita Okuribido, president, Council for Renewable Energy in Nigeria (CREN); Basheer Abdulkadir, Federal Ministry of Finance; Comptroller Hamza Gummi, Nigeria Customs Service; Wiebe Boer, CEO, All On during the renewable energy industry dialogue on import duties on solar products facilitated by the Power For All Distributed Renewable Energy Task Force held in Lagos.

and inverter, among others.

“It also covers panels or modules equipped with elements, however simple (for example diodes to control the direction of the current), which supply the power directly to, for example, a motor, an electrolyser etc. As long as these are included, it attracts duty,” “These solar panels are not even manufactured in Nigeria. So, should we not encourage local industries?” he asked.

“Furthermore, the rel-

evant exclusion notes from the provisions of the explanatory note, Vol. 5, p – XVI-8541-3 on Heading 8541, which clarifies that, “the Heading does not cover panels or modules equipped with elements, however simple (for example, diodes to control the direction of the current). This implies that such panels are classified under Heading 8501 (which requires duty).”

The Nigerian Customs’ position is that only solar panels that are imported

into the country without a charge controller, which can only be used as signal, is exempt from import duty.

“All importations of solar panels made up of the solar modules, diodes and junction boxes should be classified on the appropriate commodity code of heading 8501 according to the power capacity at 5% duty and 5 percent VAT in tandem with extant ECOWAS Common External Tariff (CET) 2015 – 2019,” said Anyalogu.

While this rule has been

in the books for a long time, the Nigerian Customs Service began its enforcement this year when it found out that the volume of containers bringing in solar panels into the country driven by new off-grid investments have quadrupled.

While it is Nigeria’s fiscal policy, the Customs has largely ignored its enforcement for many years and has suddenly woken up to the reality and without notice to the operators, began demanding the tariff. This is why many operators at first, thought it was a new rule.

“Even if they have to introduce a new tariff, they should at least give operators a moratorium of at least 6 months so we can change our business models,” Femi Adeyemo, a co-founder of Arnergy Solar Ltd said.

The challenge for operators is that many of these containers trapped in the port due to the introduction of this duty were purchased based on calculations that excluded duties and would be retailed on this assumption.

A key challenge for foreign direct investments into Nigeria, according to analysts, is regulatory uncertainty. This is why Nigeria is

perceived as unserious since fiscal policies show lack of intellectual rigour and the absence of a blueprint.

Operators say this new tariff will kill this bourgeoning sector but a government that is only short-sighted will see improvements in its temporary revenue rather than an opportunity to provide gainful employment for millions of its citizens without jobs.

Anyalogu’s argument that the tariff is to encourage local manufacturing rings hollow, considering that Nigeria still imports pencils and toothpicks. Private schools import uniforms for primary school students and a local solar panel assembling firm said it is cheaper to import a container load of panels from China than to move it from Lagos to Aba. Power cost eats up to 40 percent of all expenses for manufacturers. Nigeria is the world’s biggest importer of generators, roads are deplorable and the country’s obsession with crude oil has led to neglect of other critical sectors. It is incredulous the government will suddenly start encouraging the manufacture of solar panels.

INSIGHT

How China became world’s biggest solar panel manufacturer … what ​we wish ​Nigerian officials can learn​from it

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ccording to China Photovoltaic Industry Association data, the country exported 37.9 gigawatt (GW) of solar panels last year – equivalent to 37 per cent of global solar installation – up 78 per cent from 2016.

Its solar manufacturing industry accounted for 55 to 83 percent of global supply of products, ranging from raw material polysilicon to solar panels last year.

The grandstanding from the United States, nonetheless, the country is poised to surpass this achievement as it continues to find alternative markets after tariffs were imposed on exports to the United States.

However China did not achieve this feat by a stroke of luck or on a whim. It is the product of patient planning,

strategic thinking, hard work and grit, qualities sorely lacking in those who pretend to govern Nigeria.

In the early 1990s, solar installations were mostly for rural folks, a government programme to subsidise energy access for the poor.

About this time, Germany began a programme to promote rooftop solar panels.

The country provided capital, technology and experts but it could not meet rising demand. It decided to lure China into making solar panels to meet its need.

“The Chinese took it and basically ran with it,” said Donald Chung, one of the authors of a report on the subject matter, published by the Scientific American.

Chinese companies became intrigued by the income from manufacturing

solar panels for exports to Germany that when Spain and Italy began a similar programme, the demand grew and “China began scouring the world, hiring more solar experts and shopping for machinery and polysilicon supplies to meet the expected surge of orders for solar panels,” said ClimateWire.

Experts say China bought solar companies and invited others to move to China, where they found cheap, skilled labour. Instead of paying taxes, they received tax credits and found favourable business climate.

Making solar panels was hard enough and to profit the economies of scale is required. To make the process efficient semiautomated, factories were encouraged.

The government poured in $47billion to help build

its solar manufacturing into a strategic industry over a five year period. Expanding renewable energy became one of seven categories of businesses that received special attention, including loans and tax incentives for five years.

“The result was that in building up the world’s largest solar manufacturing industry, one that became the price leader in most aspects of the world’s market—beginning with cheaper solar panels—China had helped create a worldwide glut.

There were roughly two panels being made for every one being ordered by an overseas customer,” said ClimateWire.

When its dominance has been established, China decided to follow Germany’s lead, by developing its own ‘feed-in tariff’ that paid

handsome prices for electricity generated by rooftop solar. The result was a surge in domestic demand for solar. The demand was so great that in two years, by 2015, China’s domestic market bypassed Germany’s to be the largest in the world.

China tried to reduce the subsidy this year by setting a deadline for ending it, but that spurred another surge in domestic buying. China added 20 gigawatts in the first half of 2017 while the entire U.S. capacity is around 31 GW. Meanwhile US holds the patent to solar panel.

At different forums, Nigerian officials talk about diversifying the economy but the government has no credible blueprint to put the plans in motion. It is unclear any Nigerian government will have the patience to see

Isaac Anyaogu, Email: isaac.anyaogu@businessdayonline.com, 07037817378, Graphics: Joel Samson

through a five-year plan.

Since this tariff began to be enforced, many operators have opened talks to move to East Africa. The clearest evidence of a dearth of vision is to sign a Paris Agreement, which commits you to deepen renewable energy access, and barely two years later begin enforcement of tariffs on solar panels. Analysts say it is improper for a government to sell green bonds, while demanding taxes for solar panels at the same time.

The ministry of Power, Works and Housing said it is working on a plan of incremental power, which essentially means taking power from wherever and however it can be sourced and nary a word has been said by the ministry about this policy.

Friday 20 April 2018

COMPANIES & MARKETS

BUSINESS

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Nestlé Nigeria introduces Golden Morn Puffs breakfast cereal

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Co m pa n y n e w s a n a ly s i s a n d i n s i g h t

GTBank’s Q1 profit up on revaluation gains by 41.34 percent to N27.45 billion in December 2017, from N19.42 billion the previous year.

Gross earnings increased by 4.54 percent to N108.32 billion in December 2017, from N103.52 billion as at December 2016.

GTBank’s has been utilising the resources of shareholders in generating higher profit more than any other lender in the country.

Its net margins of 44.67 percent in the period under review are the highest in the industry, based on data compiled by BusinessDay. This means it has turned each Naira invested in sales into higher profit.

GTBank’s loans and advances contracted by six percent to N1.41 trillion in the period under review from N1.50 trillion as at March 2017, due to cautious effort to derisk the balance sheet, repayment of US Dollar term loans and unwinding of USD trade obligations.

BALA AUGIE

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uaranty Trust Bank (GTBank) Plc, Nigeria’s largest lender by market value, has once again surmounted the tough and volatile macroeconomic environment as first quarter profit increased, thanks to foreign exchange revaluation gains.

For the year ended December 2017, GTBank’s net income increased by 7.71 percent to N44.67 billion in December 2017, from N41.67 billion the previous year.

The growth at the top line (profit) was largely due to foreign exchange gains of N5.23 billion in the period under review.

Operating profit, which comprises net fees and commission income, other income and net gains on financial instrument, increased

Segun Agbaje, MD/CEO GTBank

Sub-Saharan Africa to grow by 3.1% in 2018 – World Bank

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he World Bank projected that the economy in sub– Saharan Africa would grow by 3.1 per cent in 2018 and to average 3.6 per cent between 2019 to 2020.

Albert Zeufack, Chief Economist, Africa, said this on Wednesday in Washington, at the launch of Africa’s Pulse, a bi-annual analysis of the state of African economies conducted by the World Bank.

The launch of the publication was streamed live in Abuja and other African cities.

Zeufack said though growth had rebounded in Africa, it was not enough as the continent was still far from the pre-crisis growth levels.

He said the growth forecasts were premised on expectations that the prices of oil and metals would remain stable.

He added the forecast was also based on expectation that governments in the region would implement reforms to address macroeconomic imbalances and boost investment.

He also said Africa must leverage on innovation to provide access to affordable and sustainable electricity.

“African governments must speed up and deepen macroeconomic and structural reforms to achieve high and sustained levels of growth.

“By fully embracing technology and leveraging innovation, Africa

can boost productivity across and within sectors, and accelerate growth,” said Zeufack.

According to him, the moderate pace of economic expansion reflects the gradual pick-up in growth in the region’s three largest economies: Nigeria, Angola and South Africa.

“Elsewhere, economic activity will pick up in some metals exporters, as mining production and investment rise.

“Among non-resource intensive countries, solid growth, supported by infrastructure investment, will continue in the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU), led by Côte d’Ivoire and Senegal.

“G ro w t h p ro s p e c t s h av e strengthened in most of East Africa, owing to improving agriculture sector growth following droughts and a rebound in private sector credit growth.

“In Ethiopia, growth will remain high, as government-led infrastructure investment continues,” he said.

Punam Chuhan-Pole, World Bank Lead Economist, said African countries should pay more attention to rising debt as the composition and structure of debt in Africa had changed causing certain risks.

She said the composition and structure of the debts raised the risks of what countries would face when they needed to refinance debt in the future.

She added that they needed to focus on managing these risks and debt in general.

“Public debt relative to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is rising in the region and the composition of debt has changed, as countries have shifted away from traditional concessional sources of financing toward more market-based ones.

“Higher debt burdens and the increasing exposure to market risks raise concerns about debt sustainability as 18 countries were classified at high-risk of debt distress in March 2018, compared with eight in 2013.

“For many African countries, the economic recovery is vulnerable to fluctuations in commodity prices and production and this underscores the need for countries to build resilience by pushing diversification strategies to the top of the policy agenda,” she said.

Also, Mr Michael Toman, World Bank Research Manager, said that no economy could fully exist without subsistent electricity.

He said electricity was very important to women’s wellbeing as they needed it to carry out various activities in their homes.

He said individuals could not provide the level of electricity needed to sustain them and their businesses.

Another contributor, Mr Khairy Al-Jamal, Head of Office, Abuja, said the World Bank would continue to support Nigeria in

implementing reforms to tackle macroeconomic imbalances and boost investment, in agriculture, power, water, transport, education and health sectors.

He also said the report recognised Nigeria as one of the few sub-Saharan countries undertaking significant regulatory reforms to lower barriers in mini-grid investment.

“The report highlights a moderate strengthening of economic growth and we are fully committed to support long-term growth.

“We will continue to work with the Nigerian government so they can collect sufficient revenue, spend their resources well, adopt the policies that enable private sector investments and improve governance overall,” he said.

The 17th issue of Africa’s Pulse focuses specially on the role of innovation in accelerating electrification in Sub-Saharan Africa and its implications of achieving inclusive economic growth and poverty reduction.

The report says achieving universal electrification in Sub-Saharan Africa will require a combination of solutions involving the national grid, as well as “mini-grids” and “micro-grids” serving small concentrations of electricity users, and off-grid home-scale systems.

It also says improving regulation of the electricity sector and better management of utilities remain key to success.

Deposits form customers were up 7.94 percent to N2.31 trillion in March 2017, from N2.14 trillion as at December 2016.

Inspite of the decline in risk assets, net fees and commission income improved by 10.69 percernt to N14.48 billion from improved level of activity evidenced by growth in transactional volumes on the back of our strong retail franchise as well as improved innovation across all the lender’s electronic channels.

GTBank’s other operating expenses increased by 3.06 percent to N32.25 billion in the period under review from N31.29 billion as at March 2017, lower than March inflation figure.

The lender is known for its cost control strategy that has helped strength cost to income ratio.

GTBank’s share price closed at N44.35 as of 2:00 pm April 18, valuing it at N1.30 trillion.

CBN injects another $210m into FX market

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he Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) says it has again injected 210 million dollars into the Foreign Exchange (Forex) market in continuation of its intervention in the sector.

A statement by Isaac Okorafor, Acting Director, Corporate Communications Department, in Abuja on Wednesday, said the intervention was to enable market operators meet the requests of customers.

Giving a breakdown of the figures he said CBN offered 100 million dollars to authorised dealers in the wholesale segment of the market.

He said 55 million dollars each was allocated to the Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) segment and the invisibles segment to meet the needs of tuition fees, medical payments and Basic Travel Allowance (BTA), among others.

He said that the continued intervention by the bank was in line with Mr Godwin Emefiele, the CBN Governor’s commitment to ensure liquidity in the market and reduce pressure on the naira. Okorafor said that the CBN was pleased with the current market situation brought about by policies it had put in place to check forex speculators, round trippers and rent-seekers.

According to him, these policies have helped to stabilise the exchange rate in addition to the establishment of the Investors-Exporters window, which has increased forex supply with over 20 billion dollars inflow since its inception.

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COMPANIES & MARKETS Nestlé Nigeria introduces Golden Morn Puffs breakfast cereal

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estlé Nigeria has introduced its new breakfast cereal, GOLDEN MORN® Puffs. Made from grains and cereals, it provides families with even more choices of tastier, healthier food. GOLDEN MORN® Puffs is proudly produced in Nigeria for Nigerians. It is fortified with vitamins and iron to contribute to the efforts to address micronutrient deficiency in the country.

Micronutrient deficiency is the lack of essential vitamins and minerals required in small amounts by the body for proper growth and development. According to WHO, 2

billion people in the world are affected by iron deficiency, which is the most common micronutrient disorder in sub-Saharan Africa. The major health consequences of deficiency in essential micronutrients include impaired physical and cognitive development, which translates to reduced performance of school-aged children among others. It is important to note that annually, Nigeria loses over US$1.5 billion in GDP directly and indirectly to vitamin and mineral deficiencies.

At the product presentation to media executives at a breakfast meeting with Nestlé Nigeria, Mr. Aboubacar Coulibaly,

Mauricio Alarcon, MD/CEO of Nestlé Nigeria

Category Manager, Dairy, said that NESTLÉ GOLDEN MORN® Puffs, a breakfast cereal made from maize, millet, oats and soya, is fortified with GRAINSMART® - a unique combination of vitamins and iron.

“Food fortification is a strategy that Nestlé has adopted to help address the burden of micro-nutrient deficiency. With 50% of our portfolio already fortified with micronutrients, the introduction of Golden Morn Puffs breakfast cereal today is another step towards the fulfilment of our commitment to provide healthier, delicious food choices for all age groups, a journey we have been on for the past 57 years in Nigeria.”

He went on to disclose that 94% of the grains and cereals used in the production of Golden Morn Puffs is sourced locally. “We are very happy to announce to you today that the work we have been doing with local farmers for the past 7 years on capacity building and grain quality improvement is yielding results.

94% of the agricultural raw materials for the product we are launching today, Golden Morn Puffs was supplied by Nigerian farmers.”

Nestlé Nigeria continues to invest in the development of nutrient rich delicious food to fulfil its purpose, which is enhancing quality of life and contributing to a healthier future.

Business Event

Ibrahim Gwarzo, chairman, governing board of FIIRO (4th from right), Gloria Elemor, DG, FIIRO and Secretary to the Board (4th from left) flanked by other members of the board during the inaugural meeting at FIIRO headquarters in Lagos.

L-R: Tope Dare, director, infrastructure business, Inlaks; Hosoo Lake Lee, associate/global sales team 2, Hyosung Inc.; Chinenye Mba-Uzoukwu, vice president, Nigeria Computer Society; Olumide Ajibawo, MD/CEO, Tenol Alpha, and Oladimeji Koyejo, director, VAS and innovations, Inlaks, at the unveiling of Inlaks certification award on ISO 9001:2015 and 20000:2011 in Lagos.

Pic by Olawale Amoo

SunTrust Bank Bags ISO and PCI DSS Certifications DAVID IBEMERE AND ANGEL JAMES

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unTrust Bank Nigeria Limited has been awarded ISO 2007:2013 and PCI DSS Certification by the PECB Canada, a leading organization in audit management systems and processes.

The certification is the world’s highest accreditation for Information Security Management System (ISMS).

The bank was awarded the ISO/IEC 27001:2013 Certification after undergoing series of intense implementation exercise and audit processes which began in October 2017 last year.

Speaking on the award Managing director/CEO of SunTrust Bank Nigeria Limited, Muhammad Jibrin, said: “This certification is a proof of our commitment to provide all our participants

with maximum protection.

This process involved auditing and verification of our Information Security Management System (ISMS) practices by PECB. “The certification is a clear indication of the strength of our investments in people, process and technology for enhancing the customer experience by improving adequate information security.

“It is the only auditable international standard which defines the requirements to ensure that sufficient security controls are instituted within the certified organization.

The Bank is required to undergo an annual audit review and three-year recertification process such that the information security standard is maintained, while Internal Audit will also conduct bi-annual audit review as part of requirement.

“The PCI DSS scope comprises of the people,

processes and technology involved in the storage, processing, and transmission of cardholder data/sensitive authentication data in SunTrust Bank. The scope of the PCI DSS was carefully determined to give SunTrust maximum value. The scope will be reviewed annually to ensure that new changes have not impacted the scope and thus no system which may impact the Card Holder Data Environment is out of scope.”

The PCI DSS scope was determined by reviewing network diagrams, business processes, system components included in or connected to the cardholder data environment (CDE), and associated personnel.

The certification would ensure that the Bank business data are secured, boosts customer’s confidence by protecting their data as well as assisting the bank to avoid fines from regulatory bodies and lawsuits.

L-R: Niyi Famuyide, church administor, Trinity House; Britt Lode, executive director, Holy Tree Foundation, and Rex Ajenifuja, chief executive officer, Istandwithisreal, during a press conference to announce the 70th anniversary of the founding of the Isreali Nation in Lagos.

L-R: Oluwayemi Cecilia Ogun, medical director, Federal Neuro Psychiatric Hospital, (FNPH) Yaba, Lagos, Nkolika Okoli, head, personal banking, Ruby Onwudiwe, head, private banking ; and Olajumoke Bello, head, workplace banking, all of Stanbic IBTC Bank, during the personal banking team’s corporate social investment initiative and donation of relief materials to FNPHYaba, Lagos, recently

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CITYFile Lagos says Blue Line rail at 95% completion JOSHUA BASSEY

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Operatives of Lagos Police Command destroying shanties and dislodging miscreants from Olusosun Dumpsite, near Ojota, on Wednesday.

Inner roads: Lagos contractors get N5.6bn mobilisation JOSHUA BASSEY

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o fewer than 57 contractors have been mobilised with N5.56 billon to begin work on 181 inner roads across the state as part of efforts to open up the local communities in Lagos.

The 181 road project is a follow-up on the 114 inner roads undertaken by the state government in 2016 to ease movements of residents.

Ade Akinsanya, the state commissioner for works and infrastructure, who disclose this, also said that the state would be adding 82.74 kilometres of roads to the existing inner roads in the state upon the completion of the 181 roads.

Akinsanya said the road and other projects embarked being embarked

upon were aimed at further boosting the economy and the tourism potential of Lagos.

He listed some of the completed road projects in the state between May 2017 and date to include pedestrian bridges, lay byes and slip roads in Ojodu Berger, construction of bridges in Abule Egba, Ajah and Aradagun-Iworo Ajido Bridge in Badagry local government.

The commissioner said that 48 building projects were also delivered within the period being reviewed, adding that 25 roads and 17 buildings were at various stages of completion.

Akinsanya listed ongoing projects to include the Murtala Mohammed International Airport road, Agric-Ishawo-Arepo Road in Ikorodu and the construction of reinforced concrete flyover at Agege Pen

Cinema.

“The cumulative impact of these projects cannot easily be quantified.

“Apart from ensuring the smooth flow of traffic along the length and breadth of the state, especially, in the areas where the roads are located, they have also transformed the landscape of the areas.

“This has been given new pleasant experiences to motorists and road users.

“They are further boosting commercial activities, supporting economic growth and significantly reducing travel time as well as other costs associated with traffic challenges.

“The gamut of infrastructural expansion and upgrading signpost the beginning of a new era of development that will enhance the standard of living of all Lagosians,” he said.

Ekiti puts cost of 1.3km overhead bridge at N6.4bn AKINREMI FEYISIPO

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he total cost of the Fajuyi-Ojumose 1.3 kilometers overhead bridge in Ado Ekiti has been put at N6.4 billion.

Giving a breakdown of the expenditure, the state commissioner for finance, Toyin Ojo said that the cost increased from the initial estimate of N5.2 billion to N6.4 billion to accommodate additional expenses that were not captured in the initial budget for the project.

The commissioner, who made this known in Ado Ekiti, said that the amount was far below the figures being peddled about as the cost of the bridge.

He highlighted the supplementary works on the project to include extension of the bridge, beautification of the area, construction of alternative roads

as well as payment of compensation to owners of properties that gave way for the project.

Describing the project as part of the development and urbanisation schemes of the Governor Ayo Fayose-led administration, Ojo stressed that the bridge would ease traffic flow and decrease time wasted by commuters on the road and eliminate unnecessary stress.

The commissioner appealed to the Federal Government to refund the expenses incurred by the state for the reconstruction and rehabilitation of federal roads, adding that the state has filed all necessary documents and obtained the concurrence of the federal ministry of works.

He said like most states in the country, Ekiti was under dire financial constraints and would appreciate a quick refund of all

outstanding money owed it to enable the state government fulfill its obligations to the people.

Ojo, however, assured that the state government would continue to work to improve the lots of the people in spite of the economic impediments.

Disclosing that the State has set a benchmark of N400 million as its monthly Internally Generated Revenue (IGR), the commissioner assured that all funds would be judiciously utilised on projects that impacted the people.

He described the fiscal responsibility bill passed by the state House of Assembly as a display of commitment to transparency and accountability adding that all contracts must be cleared by the ministry of finance before being presented at the State Tenders’ Board to guarantee budget discipline.

commissioner in Lagos State, Ladi Lawanson has put the completion level of first phase of the Blue Line rail construction spanning Mile 2 to Marina at 95 percent.

Lawanson told journalists that the construction now focuses majorly on the National Theatre-Marina segment which itself had attained 65 per cent completion.

He was, however, specific on when commercial operations will begin on the rail line, but stated that the government was working towards that goal.

“We have achieved 95 per cent completion of the blue line rail in Lagos and currently we are focusing on National Theatre-Marina segment.

“Ongoing works include boring of piles, construction of pile caps, pre-inspection of pier positions to determine underground utilities as well as boring of piles across the lagoon,” Lawanson said.

According to him, all bailey beams have been completed at Marina while fabrication of steel cages and casing, painting of reinforcement with anti-rust, seawall strengthening and the removal of shipwrecks in the lagoon are on course.

Lawanson said the state through Lagos State Metropolitan Area Transportation Agency (LAMATA) had procured a Singledesk Electric Multiple Units (EMU) rolling stock of 2T+2M. He said that the EMU was already on site awaiting final testing and certification.

Lawanson said the state government had received the right of way approval from the Federal Government for the 37-km Agbado-Marina rail routes. He said discussions were being held with Marina Express Train Services Ltd for its development.

The commissioner added that project development agreement of the company was being reviewed before the commencement of the project.

NEMA warns of impending flooding in S/East REGIS ANUKWUOJI, Enugu

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he National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) has warned that at three of the five states in the Southeast zone would be heavily flooded during the rainy season, except some urgent preventive steps are taken by the state governments.

In the three states, Enugu, Ebonyi and Anambra, not less than 14 local governments are in danger list of being massively flooded.

Southeast zonal coordinator of NEMA, Walson Ibarakumo Brandon said in Enugu that Enugu, Ebonyi and Anambra were most prone to the impending flood disaster; and advised on the need for the public to embark on clearance of drainages and waterways to reduce the impact or eliminate the disaster entirely.

According to him, NEMA recently met with sister agencies such as Nigeria Metrological Agency (NIMET), Nigeria Hydrological Services Agency, to establish and map out strategies on how to mitigate the disaster, and embark on massive public enlightenment campaigns.

“From the recent annual flood outlook in Enugu State, we have Enugu South, Enugu East and Oji River local governments. These are the three councils that are characterised as high risk areas under the annual flood released by Nigeria Metrological Agency,” Brandon said.

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BUSINESS DAY

FINTECH News

Products Review

Technology Review

Personality Review

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Company Review

COMPANY REVIEW

Grants account for 60% of funding to Nigerian tech startups in Q1 2018 Stories by FRANK ELEANYA

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rants made up 60 percent of funding secured by 14 Nigerian startups in the first quarter of 2018, according to a study conducted

by TechPoint Nigeria.

TechPoint highlighted three other forms of funding in its report, namely seed funding, bridge funding and equity funding.

G ra nt re f e r s t o n o n payable funds or products disbursed or gifted by one party (grant makers), often a government department, corporation, foundation or trust, to a recipient, often (but not always) a nonprofit entity, educational institution, business or an individual.

Seed funding, also known as seed money, is a form of securities offering in which an investor invests capital in

exchange for an equity stake in the company. Bridge funding meanwhile, is an interim financing option used by companies and other entities to solidify their short-term posi-

tion until a long-term financing option can be arranged.

Equity funding or stock fund on the other hand is a mutual fund that invests principally in stocks and can be

actively or passively managed.

According to the report, equity investment which hit $5 million accounted for more than half of the total $9,241,196 funding. Bridge

funding was $3.5 million, seed funding $250,000 while grants was at $491,196.

Startups in healthcare, production and media received the most funding.

The start-ups however, with the most funding successes include Terragon Group (media) which secured $5 million in equity investment from TLcom; Rensource (energy) received $3.5 million from Amaya Capital Partners, Omidyar Network and CRE Venture Capital; and FarmCrowdy’s $325, 000 in grant from GSMA Ecosystem, Accelerator Innovation Fund in February.

LifeBank, a healthcare startup secured $200,000 in seed funding from EchoVC and CcHub Growth Capital.

Unsurprisingly, funds that came from foreign investors were the largest and most frequent in the first quarter.

The biggest Nigerian investor in the period under review is Yomi Martins, a non-institutional private investor who put a $50,000 fund for Handyman Nigeria, an online marketplace.

NEWS

African startups win big at SeedstarsWorld pitching competition

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t a r t u p s f ro m t h e African continent squared up shoulder to shoulder with counterparts from other parts of the world at the Seedstars World pitching competition on Sunday, 12 April and impressed big.

AgroCenta, a Ghanaian agribusiness platform that connects smallholder farmers directly to the market online market was crowned the global winner of the pitching competition which comes with $1 million in equity investment prize. Nigeria’s Edves – a digital teaching and training platform, went home with the

prize for Transforming Education in Emerging Markets.

Seedstars World, now in its fifth year, is a global startup competition event that focuses on emerging fast-growing markets. Every year, it hosts around 80 local competitions, organises five regional summits before convening in Switzerland for the global competition.

Seedstars World 2018 was the largest to date, welcoming over 1,000 participants, investors, enthusiasts and over 65 selected startups from Central and Eastern Europe, the Middle East, Latin America, Asia and Africa at the Swis-

sTech Convention Center in Lausanne, Switzerland for a chance to win the $1 million in equity investment. Twelve startups were chosen to pres-

ent their final pitches during the day for the chance to win the prize.

The startups cover a wide range of industries including

financial technology (Fintech); Education technology (Edtech); medical and bio technology (Med/BioTech); Insurance technology (InsurTech); clean energy technology (Cleantech); and nano technology.

Africa’s representatives at the Seedstars World included Medsaf (Nigeria), a health tech startup that won the regional competition in Lagos State, Solar Freeze (Kenya), which pioneered mobile cold-storage units powered by renewable energy, EMGuidance (South Africa), a healthcare startup; AgroCenta (Ghana) and

Edves (Nigeria).

Michael Ocansey, a cofounder of AgroCenta, explained that “The northern part of Ghana is less developed than the southern part so a lot of the farming communities are really underdeveloped and a lot of the farmers are poor and do not know how to read or write.

“Last year, we gave them (farmers) seeds, fertilisers, and other services. The vision of AgroCenta is to improve the financial livelihood of every farmer and help them move from one to three or more acres and have more commodities to sell.”

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Avon HMO is driving healthcare inclusion in retail sector – Ukiri ADESIMBO UKIRI, the Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of Avon Healthcare Limited, with years of experience spanning financial services, and telecommunications, has over the past five years, nurtured the company into one of Nigeria’s leading HMOs. She spoke with OBOKOH ANTHONIA & MICHAEL ANI on a number of issues including why Avon is leading the charge to penetrate the retail sector with affordable health insurance packages and the state of affairs in Nigeria’s health sector. Excerpts:

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our years down the line, how has Avon cracked the retail sector?

First, let me clarify that our business model is hinged on the Managed Healthcare model as opposed to the Health Insurance model. The difference is that the typical health insurance company underwrites people individually. For instance, they will assess the risk profile of an individual and charge a premium based on the risk assessment. However, another customer of exactly the same age but with a different health risk profile will be charged a radically different premium by the same company.

What Avon does is to manage people’s healthcare based on their subscription to specific health plans.

So, unlike the health insurance model which underwrites people individually, our model is to get a pool of people together and make some assumptions about their health status like; how many people will be ill at any point in time within the pool, what kind of illness they will have, etc. That way, everybody pays exactly the same fee as long as they are subscribed to the same health plan. The bottom-line is that the system doesn’t discriminate. For us, no matter the health plan you choose you will pay only what others in that particular category are paying.

Now to your question about Avon’s efforts in cracking the retail sector; prior to our entry into the market, there were about 70 licensed Health Maintenance Organizations (HMOs), many of which had been in existence for about 10 years or more.

However, none was able to penetrate the retail sector.

When we started operations about five years ago, penetration was low. I think we had less than three percent of the

total population covered at the time. But we also knew that in Nigeria, the informal sector is way bigger than the formal sector and we saw that as a great opportunity. Therefore, we came into the market with health subscription offerings specifically tailored to meet the needs of people in the retail sector. That is not to say that we turned our backs on the corporate segment of the market. However, while our peers were busy looking for the corporates, we studied the retail sector and came up with bespoke health plans that answered their specific needs.

Not too long ago, we announced the introduction of new plans to meet the needs of unserved Nigerians who do not fit into the traditional HMO target market. We have gotten excellent feedback from these efforts.

Avon’s HMO recently introduced a new bouquet designed for un-served Nigerians, what distinguishes this from others?

Avon HMO came up with about six plans that are specifically created for the retail sector to ensure that Nigerians get quality access to affordable healthcare.

We have the Life Starter plan, which is very affordable and is mostly targeted at the younger demographic. There is the Couples Plan targeted at people who are into committed relationships. One of the unique things about the plan is that it offers pre-marital medical tests like blood group, genotype, etc. After 18 months on this plan, subscribers are entitled to fertility tests and access to maternity cover. The Life plus Plan has a wider coverage compared to the previous two plans; it offers higher benefits and is mostly targeted at people approaching middle age. Premium Life is also targeted at people who fall into the middle-age and above category and it offers a robust

cover of advanced diagnostic tests, extended benefit of annual wellness tests amongst others. The Boss Plan provides access to some of the best hospitals in the country while the International Plan takes care of individuals who travel a lot and who want to access health care whilst abroad. It also includes emergency air evacuation outside the country.

At Avon, we looked at the retail sector segment of the economy and came up with these plans that will cater to each person’s healthcare

needs depending on what stage of life they are at. Also, we looked at the different plans for Small and Mediumsize Enterprises (SMEs) in ways they can afford it so that their staff can be productive.

We are more than just a HMO. We are committed to looking after the health of our clients’ staff.

What is your view on hospitals discriminating against HMO enrollees?

To be honest, what you just

mentioned used to happen in the past; say five to seven years ago.

Now, most hospitals have identified the financially stable HMOs who pay their bills on time and in full as contracted. The reason why it happened in the past was that some HMOs were in the habit of defaulting on payment of their claims and capitation fees due to the hospitals.

When they do pay, they arbitrarily slash the hospitals’ fees. However, the pressure on non-performing HMOs from the ever vigilant press and the regulator (Nigerian Health Insurance Scheme) has been huge and this has forced a change of at-

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titude. Now hospitals prefer patients with HMOs that pay promptly. I can say categorically that all hospitals working with Avon HMO give preferential treatment to our enrolees and the reason is because we pay as and when due.

What are Avon’s contributions towards achieving the Universal health coverage objective?

Universal health coverage is the dream of every country and only a few countries like Sweden and Netherland have achieved the feat.

Bringing it home to Nigeria, we can only achieve UHC with the appropriate political will. We need to put in place an efficient and effective network of healthcare facilities to meet the needs of the populace.

Bringing it down to the HMO space, I think all operators, need to take a critical look at the attendant issues to make the industry more efficient in order to attract foreign and local investors into the sector. Remember that one of the core responsibilities of HMOs is enabling accessibility to quality and affordable healthcare which is also a key component of Universal Health Coverage. So, by simply doing our jobs better, HMOs will be contributing in no small measure towards the actualization of the UHC. What is your assessment of the healthcare system in Nigeria?

Let me start with my primary constituency. The NHIS, our regulatory body, has done very well in providing health cover for public civil servants at the federal level and they deserve commendation for that. However, it must be said that penetration at the private sector level has been poor. We have less than 10 percent of coverage in the country today and the bulk of that is from the public sector. So, we need to ramp up the numbers.

Then, there is the issue of healthcare financing. The fact is that government expenditure on health is totally insufficient and simply cannot meet the health needs of the country’s growing population. The Minister of Health did promise to renovate 10,000 Primary Healthcare Centres and that is a very bold move. Still, we will achieve more if both the private and the public sector collaborate. It’s time we stopped seeing health as a social investment and approach it as a business that is worth investing in. We cannot continue waiting for government.

In America, healthcare is probably one of the biggest business sectors and Nigeria should be no different. There are bountiful opportunities in the health sector for investors and if the right incentives can be put in place, people will invest in any venture that will give them good returns.

HBL TEAM

End to malaria in Africa may be impeded …as the fight to eradicate the ailment suffers setback in war zones KEMI AJUMOBI

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early half of the world’s population is at risk of malaria.

According to WHO, In 2015, there were roughly 212 million malaria cases and an estimated 429 000 malaria deaths. Increased prevention and control measures have led to a 29% reduction in malaria mortality rates globally since 2010. Sub-Saharan Africa continues to carry a disproportionately high share of the global malaria burden.

In 2015, the region was home to 90% of malaria cases and 92% of malaria deaths.

Globally, malaria deaths have fallen from 655,000 in 2010 to 445,000 in 2016, but data recently compiled by the World Health Organization (WHO) shows that while malaria is present in 91 countries, at least 80 percent of malaria infections and deaths are now concentrated in just 18 of them.

Researchers have presented WHO data showing that over this same six-year period, many of these countries including Nigeria, Ivory Coast, South Sudan, the Central African Republic and other regions experiencing armed conflict, saw infections and deaths surge.

Various organisations have in their own capacities, enlightened the public through research and investigations on malaria and how to put an end to the spread, using

proven facts that work. One of such organisations is The Multilateral Initiative on Malaria (MIM).

MIM was established in 1997 in Dakar with a mission to strengthen and sustain through collaborative research and training, the capacity of malaria-endemic countries in Africa to carry out research that is required to develop and improve tools for malaria control and to strengthen the research-control interphase.

A study at MIM presented

by Christian Lengeler of the Swiss Tropical and Public Health (Swiss TPH) and led by his colleague, Laura Ruckstuhl, recognised the attempt carried out in Central African Republic, where communities engaged in hostilities were able to institute a group of community members who were tutored particularly to detect and treat malaria.

For Richard Allan, head of an NGO called The Mentor Initiative, which focuses on fighting malaria in areas experiencing humanitarian crises, “The global battle against malaria is going to fail unless we get real about where the malaria burden is today and expand the tools and techniques we use to fight it.”

In his view, “with the right mix of tools and tactics, you can drive down malaria infections and deaths even in very chaotic circumstances.”

Furthermore, he revealed that from his understanding

KEMI AJUMOBI, Editor - kemi@businessdayonline.com

about fighting malaria in conflict zones through his study, he observed that of the 200,000 people treated by the health workers, 81 percent tested positive for malaria and in almost all cases, 98.9 percent, they were “appropriately treated.”

Sharing his view on this, the WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom cautions “If we continue with a business as usual approach, these malaria hot zones could reverse hard-fought progress against the disease.”

“In conflict zones we find that many malaria deaths occur while people are on the road trying to get to treatment.

Saving their life requires embracing pragmatism in places where medical perfection is a distant dream.” Allan said.

In a different study, presented by Olivier Briet of Swiss TPH, it showed that the aftermath of the Boko Haram attacks in Borno State of Nigeria, swiftly taking care of large number of children with malaria drugs, whether or not they have been tested for the ailment or not, after having being given long-lasting insecticide-treated nets (LLNs) in large quantities, have the tendency to ward off a huge part of malaria mortality in the region. The evaluation was founded on an arithmetical representation. However, a large mass drug administration (MDA) movement aiming 1.2 million children was initiated

in the region in July of 2017, and Briet reports that “early results” propose a decrease in malaria contagion.

A 2012 study from Chad found that after 14 months, only about a third of LLINs distributed to people displaced by conflict were still usable.

To this end, Allan noted that new tools are needed to fight malaria. He identified the problem of wear and tear as regards the distributed LLINs, adding that the LLNs have helped in reducing the trouble of the disease in the plagued areas.

Proffering a way out, Allan says that waging effective anti-malaria campaigns in areas experiencing conflict and crisis requires studying what works, embracing a wider assortment of tools and tactics, and being willing to spend more than it costs to fight the disease in relatively stable settings. He observed that global progress against malaria over the last 10 years, while substantial, is partly the product of harvesting the low hanging fruit.

For him, the burden of malaria that persists in Africa could get worse, and not just because of conflict. “Drought and famine that is becoming more widespread in the region is also an issue, as it leads to malnutrition, which weakens the immune system and, especially in children, limits absorption of anti-malaria drugs”. He said.

ANTHONIA OBOKOH, ANI MICHAEL, Reporters I David Ogar, Graphics

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BUSINESS DAY

Harvard Business Review

Friday 20 April 2018

ManagementDigest

If your data is bad, your machine learning tools are useless

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oor data quality is enemy No. 1 for the widespread, profitable use of machine learning. While the caustic observation, “garbage in, garbage out” has plagued analytics and decision-making for generations, it carries a special warning for machine learning. The quality demands of machine learning are steep, and bad data can rear its ugly head twice — first in the historical data used to train the predictive model and second in the new data used by that model to make future decisions.

To properly train a predictive model, historical data must meet exceptionally broad and high-quality standards. First, the data must be right: It must be correct, properly labeled, de-duped and so forth. But you must also have the right data — lots of unbiased data, over the entire range of inputs for which one aims to develop the predictive model. Most data quality work focuses on one criterion or the other, but for machine learning, you must work on both simultaneously.

Yet today, most data fails to meet basic “data are right” standards. Reasons range from data creators not understanding what is expected, to poorly calibrated measurement gear, to overly complex processes, to human error. To compensate, data scientists cleanse the data before training the predictive model. This is time-consuming, tedious work, and the problem data scientists complain about most. But even this cleansing won’t detect or fix all of the errors. What’s more, bad data can lead to outright discrimination, as reports of bias in facial recognition and criminal justice attest.

Increasingly complex problems demand not just more data, but more diverse, comprehensive data. And with this comes more quality problems.

Data quality is no less troublesome in implementation.

Consider an organization seeking productivity gains with its machine learning program.

While the data science team that developed the predictive model may have done a solid job cleaning the training data, it can still be compromised by bad data going forward. Again, it takes people — lots of them — to find and correct the errors. This, in turn, subverts the hoped-for productivity gains.

Further, as machine learning technologies penetrate organizations, the output of one predictive model feeds the next, and the next, and so on, even crossing company boundaries.

The risk is that a minor error at one step will cascade, causing more errors and growing ever larger across an entire process.

These concerns must be met with an aggressive, well-executed quality program, far more involved than required for dayto-day business. It requires the leaders of the overall effort to take the following five steps.

FIRST, CLARIFY YOUR OBJECTIVES AND ASSESS WHETHER YOU HAVE THE RIGHT DATA TO SUPPORT THESE OBJECTIVES. Consider a mortgage-origination compa-

ny that wishes to apply machine learning to its loan process.

Should it grant the loan and, if so, under what terms? Possible objectives for using machine learning include: — Lowering the cost of the existing decision process. Since making better decisions is not an objective, existing data may well be adequate.

— Removing bias from the existing decision process. This bias is almost certainly reflected in its existing data. Proceed with caution.

— Improving the decisionmaking process — i.e., granting fewer loans that default and approving previously rejected loans that will perform. Note that while the company has plenty of data on previously rejected mortgages, it does not know whether these mortgages would have performed. Proceed with extreme caution.

When the data falls short of the objectives, the best recourse is to find new data, scale back the objectives or both.

SECOND, SET ASIDE PLENTY OF TIME TO EXECUTE DATA QUALITY FUNDAMENTALS. For training, this means four months of cleaning for ev-

ery person building the model, as you must measure quality levels, assess sources, de-duplicate and clean training data, much as you would for any important analysis. For implementations, it is best to eliminate the root causes of error and so minimize ongoing cleaning.

Doing so will have the salutary effect of eliminating hidden data factories, saving you time and money in operations as well. Start this work as soon as possible and at least six months before you wish to put your predictive model to use.

THIRD, MAINTAIN AN AUDIT TRAIL AS YOU PREPARE THE TRAINING DATA. Maintain a copy of your original training data and note the steps used to create it. Doing so is simply good practice and it may help you make the process improvements you’ll need to use your predictive model in future decisions. Further, it is important to understand the biases and limitations in your model and the audit trail can help you sort them out.

FOURTH, CHARGE A SPECIFIC INDIVIDUAL (OR TEAM) WITH RESPONSIBILITY FOR DATA QUALITY AS YOU TURN

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

YOUR MODEL LOOSE. This person should possess intimate knowledge of the data, including its strengths and weaknesses, and have two focuses. First, the employee should set and enforce standards for the quality of incoming data. If the data isn’t good enough, humans must take over. Second, the employee must lead ongoing efforts to find and eliminate the root causes of error. This work should already have started and must continue.

FINALLY, OBTAIN INDEPENDENT, RIGOROUS QUALITY ASSURANCE. As understood here, quality assurance is the process of ensuring that the machine learning program provides the desired results. The watchword here is independent , so this work should be carried out by an internal quality assurance department or a qualified third party.

Even after taking these five steps, you will find that your data isn’t perfect. You may be able to accommodate some minor data quality issues in the predictive model, such as a single missing value among the 15 most important variables. To help improve your results, pair data scientists and your most experienced businesspeople when preparing the data and training the model. Laura Kornhauser, of Stratyfy Inc., a startup focused on bringing transparency and accountability to artificial intelligence, put it this way: “Bring your businesspeople and your data scientists together as soon as possible.

Businesspeople, in particular, have dealt with bad data forever, and you need to build their expertise into your predictive model.”

Seem like a lot? It is. But machine learning has incredible power and you need to learn how to tap it.

(Thomas C. Redman is the president of Data Quality Solutions.)

BUSINESS DAY

Friday 20 April 2018

Hotels ‘We enhance our staff skills regularly to meet changing needs of modern business traveler’ With almost a decade of operation in the Nigeria hospitality market, Southern Sun Ikoyi Hotel has embraced human capital development for enhanced customer experience and quality service delivery. CORNELIUS ONWAH, human resource manager at hotel, tells OBINNA EMELIKE in this interview, the importance of translating business management thinking into actionable steps by investing in the development of the hotel employees.

So far, what are the measures in place to ensure quality customer service and delivery standards since opening in 2009? ur knack for training is second to none and our reputation is revered within the industry in Nigeria. Over the years, Southern Sun Ikoyi has collaborated with catering departments in various vocational and hospitality management schools and centers across the state and the entire country, viably and strategically contributing to the training and development of necessary skills and manpower required for sustainable growth in the industry. This is also particularly done through the placement of students from the various schools and centers for their student industrial work experience scheme (SIWES) training and industrial training at the hotel. On the development activities for our internal staff, Bitrus John, a chef in our Kitchen just returned from a one-year training programme at the Christina Martin Culinary School Art Studio in George, South Africa. The chef and other staff who have undergone such trainings can give firsthand account of the impact of the

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Cornelius Onwah

training they have received.

Are there trainings for the employees that spread across a broad spectrum at the hotel?

Staff training is one aspect of human resource development that the group takes very seriously and this has been demonstrated over the years through the learning interventions engaged upon by management. The group (Tsogo Sun) has a fullfledged training academy located in Johannesburg in South Africa and the responsibility of the academy, apart from setting the standard for the learning culture of the entire group, ensures

that skills are enhanced and up to date to meet the ever changing needs of the modern business traveler across the globe.

So, we enhance our staff skills regularly to meet the ever changing needs of the modern business traveler.

In recognition of the importance of learning to enhance the level of service given to our guests, management trained the entire contingent of the frontline staff comprising the front office and Food & Beverage department to a one week ‘First Impressions Customer Service’. The training was well received by the general-

ity of the staff that, other departments are in the process of receiving same. As well, all the supervisors in the hotel were again exposed to a three-day intensive training session on ‘Effective Leadership’.

Your industry is one prone to health and safety hazards. How often do you train your staff in this area?

Yes, our industry is indeed prone to daily health and safety hazards and we know that we cannot truly redefine customer experience on our premises if we do not first equip our employees with the adequate knowledge. Health and safety are taken very seriously at Southern Sun Ikoyi and our members of staff from all the departments are regularly trained all through the year on Basic First Aid, CPR and AED training to help the generality of staff in the event of emergencies.

First Aiders at our hotel are retrained and recertified every two years to enable utmost functionality in their capabilities. Our Food and Beverage department particularly received further training for additional two weeks on this. We also know that imparting knowledge is a skill and so trainers at the hotel are also frequently trained in dedicated trainer courses for efficiency.

Marriott International unveils unified loyalty programmes with one set of benefits

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arriott International has announced it will introduce one set of unified benefits across Marriott Rewards, The Ritz-Carlton Rewards and Starwood Preferred Guest (SPG) for its members in August 2018. This will create an incredibly rich hospitality loyalty program in which members will earn more points faster than under the prior programs -- on average 20 percent more points for every dollar spent. For the first time, members will have access to book stays and earn or redeem points among 29 participating global brands comprising 6,500 hotels in 127 countries and territories. Additionally, the Moments experiential platform is expanding, with more than 110,000 experiences in 1,000 destinations

from must-see attraction tickets and tours for purchase with cash by all guests, to once-in-alifetime events only available to members using points, including the new bespoke Moments Live event series.

“We listened to the travel aspirations of our members and set our sights on unlocking the full potential of our loyalty programs,” said David Flueck, Senior Vice President of Global Loyalty, Marriott International.

“We are excited to announce that this August, our members can enjoy one set of benefits across our extraordinary portfolio of hotels from iconic full and select service, to extended stay, to unique boutiques and luxury brands. We hope to inspire our members whatever their travel passion, whether it is resorts featuring overwater bungalows, peaceful secluded

island settings, ski-in / ski-out mountain resorts, towering hotels with picture-worthy views or even former palaces converted into hotels.”

Beginning in August, members will be able to combine their separate Marriott Rewards, The Ritz-Carlton Rewards and SPG accounts into a single account spanning the entire loyalty portfolio. The Marriott Rewards, The RitzCarlton Rewards and Starwood Preferred Guest (SPG) names will continue to live on under the new set of unified benefits until a new program name is introduced in 2019.

Also beginning in August, travelers will have the ability to book stays across the entire portfolio for the first time on Marriott.com, SPG.com and the Marriott and SPG apps, or by contacting customer en-

gagement centers.

“There are no more important customers than our loyalty members,” said Karin Timpone, Global Marketing Officer, Marriott International. “With good news for our members, we decided to announce the new benefits now and launch them as quickly as possible, so members could take full advantage.

At the same time, we will continue to introduce more exclusive member experiences throughout the year on our Moments platforms. “ Marriott is also announcing Moments Live, a collection of premiere musical and culinary events powered

by Marriott’s partnership with Universal Music Group (UMG) and its newest partnership with LITV Entertainment Group.

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Top BusinessDay Partner Hotels

Four Point Hotels (Oniru Chiefatancy Estate,Lekki)

Transcorp Hilton Abuja 1 Aguiyi Ironsi Street Maitama, Abuja Tel: +234-708-060-3000

The Wheatbaker #4 Onitolo(Lawrence Road), Ikoyi, Lagos.

Tel: 01 277 3560

Hawthorn Suites by Wyndham Abuja 1 Uke St, Garki, Abuja.

Tel: +234 9 4603900, +234 805 7522500

InterContinental Lagos Plot 52, Kofo Abayomi St, Lagos Tel: 01 236 6666

Renaissance Lagos Ikeja Hotel #38/40 Isaac John St, Ikeja GRA100271, Ikeja Tel: +234-908-780 5555

Best Western Hotel Hotels 12, Allen Avenue C/O Funmi (Front Office Manager)

Protea Hotel (GRA Ikeja) GRA Ikeja

Protea Hotel (V/Island) Off Ajose Adeogun Street, V/ Island

Radisson Blu Anchorage Hotel 1A,Ozumba Mbadiwe,Victoria Island.

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Jazz genre soars with growing fans …as Lagos sets for jazz festival April 30th OBINNA EMELIKE

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n April 2008, Inspiro Production, a Lagos-based entertainment outfit, took the already burgeoning entertainment scene of Lagos to another level with the introduction of Lagos International Jazz Festival.

The festival, which is also known as Lagos Jazz Fest, was the first of its kind then because it celebrated music, particularly jazz in a larger scale. It also came with innovations, especially infusing African beats and culture in the various Jazz performances, while offering many indigenous jazz artistes opportunity to share same platform and collaborate with the more celebrated foreign artistes at the festival.

The maiden edition of the festival in 2008 witnessed for the first time on a Nigerian stage, Freshly Ground, an award-winning South Africa jazz artiste and Courtney Pine from United Kingdom, who headlined the show at Studio 868 in Victoria Island, Lagos.

While that was the smallest venue and the least artistes lineup for the show, the organisers appreciate the show’s days of little beginning, especially considering how it has grown from a studio venue hosting fewer guests to multiple venues hosting thousands of jazz and culture aficionados thrilled by many global jazz artistes that keep surpassing their previous performances at each festival.

Ten years down the line, the La-

Freshly Ground performing at the first edition of Lagos Jaz Festival in April 2008

gos International Jazz Festival has lived up to the expectations of its founders, creating more awareness of the jazz genre of music among Nigerians, especially the youths, encouraging and creating platforms for indigenous jazz artistes to thrive and enable more people to see jazz from a global perspective. As well, it has grown from a one-day to a three-day event, keyed into the commemoration of the month of April as Jazz Appreciation Month and ultimately, lead Nigerian Jazz fans to join the

global celebration of UNESCO International Jazz Day on April 30 of every year in the last 10 years.

However, credit goes to Ayo Sadare, founder and festival director who doubles as the CEO of Inspiro Productions, for creating the festival, seeing it through its teething period and improving on the feats achieved in every past edition.

Of course, Sadare is rolling out drums in celebration of the 2018 edition of the Lagos International Jazz Festival.

For him, it is two celebrations

All eyes on Biggie’s N45m grand prize

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n Sunday April 22, 2018, the curtain will close on the ongoing Big Brother Naija reality TV show.

The intrigue of the show, which was launched on January 28, 2018 on DStv channel 198, is that only one out of the 20 housemates will smile home with the N45 million worth of prizes, the grand prize for the show. Of course, such is peculiar to all winner-takes-it-all shows and also reason the house-

mates employed all tricks, formed alliances and manipulations to outwit each other for the grand prize for the 12 weeks (84 days) the show lasted.

The show, which is the third season of the Nigerian version of Big Brother the reality show, lived up to its tagline of ‘Doubel Wahala’ from pairing of the housemates, retuning of evicted housemates to other twists never seen in the previous editions.

Currently, five housemates

have survived the several onslaughts from each other and even Big Brother himself and these five are the last contestants standing whose fate will be known this Sunday, when the show comes to an end and the Big Brother house is closed.

Vying for the grand prize of N45 million naira worth of prizes are; Miracle, Tobi, Cee C, Nina and Alex with the finale poised to go down in history.

Before the emergence of the last five contestants, Anto, Lolu and Khloe, the trio who polled the least number of votes, were evicted from the BBNaija house last Sunday.

While fans of the show, especially voters look forward to the finals this Sunday, the winner of the show depends on their votes as well.

Voting for the winner of the Big Brother Naija third edition ends today Friday by 9pm, and viewers can vote via SMS, mobile and website.

in one as Inspiro Productions host the 10th anniversary of the Lagos International Jazz Festival and the UNESCO International Jazz Day both on Monday April 30, 2018 in Lagos.

The one day multistage event takes place at Freedom Park, Lagos, the arts and cultural hotspot in the heart of Lagos. Also, this year’s edition is dedicated to memory of Hugh Ramapolo Masekela, the late music icon and father of South African Jazz who recently passed on.

“It is with great pleasure that

on our 10th anniversary we are honouring Hugh Masekela, the late legendary international jazz icon, cultural statesman and father of South African Jazz H on the LIJF platform though post mortem.

Hugh was an inspiration to the Jazz community locally and globally, though he never performed on the LIJF stage. We believe we owe him a duty to celebrate his long and impactful life. Hugh Masekela’s spirit lives on through his music, which will be with us for a long time”, Sadare said.

Yemi Alade in UK for the Black Magic Tour

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overs of Nigerian music and fans of Yemi Alade, Nigerian Afropop singer and songwriter, are anticipating a thrilling performance from their star female music artiste who is billed to perform today at the O2 Academy in Islington, London.

Tagged ‘The Black Magic Tour with Yemi Alade”, the show organised by Smade Entertainment follows the just concluded Falz the Bahd Guy concert, which ran from March 30th till April 2, 2018.

As well, the show is Smade Entertainment’s fourth concert in 2018 and the second in the month of April.

Speaking on the show after receiving Yemi Alade and her entourage at Heathrow Airport, London recently, Junior Adeosun, CEO of the entertainment outfit, said his outfit is bringing a fresh vibe to the people of London with the Black Magic Tour.

He is also anticipating another sold-out show at the 02 Academy because it will be Yemi Alade’s

first performance at the O2 Academy in London since 2016, and the artiste is going to rock the venue with her energetic performance.

The CEO also noted that Alade would be performing all her hits, as well as, bringing African Magic to life with every song she performs.

Alade made her musical debut in an all-girl group called Noty Spices in 2005, but her music became widely popular after she won the Peak Talent Show in 2009.

She later released her first single “Fimisile” under the Jus’ Kiddin’ label.

Friday 20 April 2018

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BUSINESS DAY

27

Business Etiquette

with Janet Adetu

Movie Review 14- ACRIMONY

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t’s being such a very long time, since I last a fantastic well written sorrowful, yet exciting story. This movie had loads of lessons to pass across; one that words couldn’t really explain except you saw the movie yourself. There were mixed feelings in the cinema that night and all my years of watching movies, I had never seen a movie like this that made strangers argue and debate who was right and wrong, who was wicked and fair, even while the movie went on, for some they felt the man should have stayed and begged her more, for me I wondered for how long and for others they argued that Melinda whose real name is “Taraji P.Henson” should have being more patient with her man.

The million dollar question that kept cropping up in my head all through this move was, how long does a partner need to wait and cope up without another who had beautiful dreams with no job and no money? What exactly would be tagged as adequate patience in marriage? After all she had waited 18 years of her life for this man to succeed and yet he didn’t, till she got fed up and asked for a divorce. Life as most people would say isn’t always fair on all of us, and Melinda felt the wrath of this unfairness, or so she taught. As her husband who she had tagged as a failure, a looser and a good for nothing, finally met his million dollar breakthrough through his rechargeable battery “G force wind sample”. These batteries as it were could charge themselves making the noble idea worth millions dollar in the market.

The movie was fun, exciting, complicated and caught 100% of everyone attention, it was so difficult to predict the end as Melinda just couldn’t control her anger.

Tyler Perry who was the director and the writer, had a well thought out story, one that would leave you thinking even weeks after the movie, wondering what would have happened differently, if it didn’t have this twist. Although some people didn’t quite understand and like the movie, for great movie thinkers, it was a story that left so many untold sides, one would have wished didn’t end the way it did.

The location chosen weren’t a lot but ideal, the cast and costumes chosen were also okay. They was also a nice blend between switching roles, from when they much younger to when they became older.

Melinda was a very pretty young girl in collage, she had three sisters and her mum, who took good care of them, they were a very happy family as they love each so much, and were always out to have

For the love of the job!

Do you love your job? How productive are you? once worked with a colleague who was nicknamed ‘workaholic’. He was always found working at his desk with his head down writing something.

If you ever came across him in the corridor he would always appear so rushed, barely offering a greeting, he never had the time to stop for any discussions.

He eventually became the favourite of clients as he looked busy, efficient and passionate about his job. It took a while for us to realize especially with the overflowing pile of work at his desk that what appeared to be was never. He was indeed identified as a productivity fraud spending precious time busy doing nothing. The lesson here is that it is one thing to be busy and another to be productive.

For me once I have prepared my’ to do’ list for the day, I am of the initial opinion I will get all done effectively. However half way through the day I am always wishing that the day is 30 -36 hours instead of 24hours because the day goes by so quickly. The question is : Do I feel productive especially when I am yet to complete my daily tasks?

The truth is that many of us are working more than we planned, we are operating at 120% but still feel like we cannot keep up. So in reality the trick to life is for us to work SMARTER not HARDER. We are living in a very stressful global world where high technology is fast taking over, so much so that some of us are trying hard to stay with the flow.

Social media has revolutionized the act of communication making it easier and faster.

Goals and aspirations have become wilder, riskier, and more competitive. The want to achieve, improve the quality of life and become more promotable has never been more apparent. Therefore the quest for positive successful personal and professional productivity is a task that must be accomplished if you want to stay relevant. In order to maximize priorities and productivity it is time to discover your best, run with it and make it happen.

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Cast: Taraji P. Henson, Lyriq Bent, Jazmyn Simon, Antonio Madison, Nelson Estevez, Ptosha Storey, Bresha Webb, Kendrick Cross, Crystle Stewart, Ajiona Alexus, Danielle Nicolet Genre: Mystery & Suspense Director: Tyler Perry Ratings: R (for some violence, sexual content, language ) Written by: Tyler Perry Runtime: 120 mins Studio: lionsgate the back of one another. One day as Melinda was running out in the rain she mistakenly bumped into Robert, was so angry insulted him and ran away, little did she know, he had her papers and she had his. This was the beginning of their long term romantic relationship.

Robert was from a very poor background, with no parents, struggled to pay his fees from school loans and scholarship and leaved in a Caravan on his uncle drive way.

Everything totally change when he met Melinda, who loved him with all heart, body and soul, she gave him everything he ever wanted.

Melinda’s mum passed away and Robert was there for her, but unknowingly took advantage of the love she had for him, her mother left her an inheritance of $350,000 and a house. She spent all the money and mortgaged the house all for Robert. She paid Roberts fees, bought him a car, and worked 2 jobs just to keep the house running because Robert couldn’t work and study at the same time, while also working on his big idea, so he said.

When she thought that things were going to get better after he graduated, it was just a night mare as all the companies turned him down, because of the bad record he had when he was 15 and he never told his wife, so it meant he could never get a good job. Melinda continued until one day her sisters bring a purse of a woman in the truck they worked with, and who was it, it was that of the girl she had caught him cheating with 18years ago, where in the range of her own anger drove into the caravan and lost her womb, which meant she couldn’t

have any children of her own. All her dreams and aspirations were chattered that faithful day, when she concluded she wanted a divorce due to the pressure of her sisters, who were actually unhappy in their homes, which she found out later.

The end of this movie was the intriguing part as Robert begged and begged and Melinda adamantly refused and she signed the divorce papers. 3 months down the line Roberts idea makes a mega hit with $75,000,000 dollars, he comes back pays her $10m dollars for all the stress, buys her mother’s home back and moves on with Diana. This was when hell went lose from Melinda, she wanted him back and didn’t want any woman to take her abandoned place, she felt Robert owed her his life, but did he? I don’t think so at all.

To my verdict, I would score this movie 8.5/10, I really did enjoy the story and twist in this movie, the end was even more heart breaking and sad, at how one could let anger, bitterness and pain control the best of her reasoning to the point not forgiving and letting everything go, just to get revenge. A good recommendation for those still single and even those already married make your decisions wisely and when you do, you must always learn to forgive and let go.

Feel free to review any movie of your choice in not more than 200 words, please send us a mail to linda@ businessdayonline.com and stand a chance to win a free movie ticket Linda Ochugbua @lindaochugbua

Keys to Maximizing Your Productivity i. Identify Your Positive & Negative Qualities: Conduct an in-depth appraisal of yourself finding facts and not faults. This will help you form a basis for improvements.

Emphasize more on your positives and do not dwell on your inadequacies. Include in your list those things that matter most to you, make them your priority. Identifying your posi-

tive traits will help you stay focused and assist in increasing your productivity both personally and professionally. ii. Be Goal-Oriented and Forward Thinking Working endlessly without a goal can be futile. To be productive you need direction that is time bound and achievable.

When setting your goals you should visualize your success with a positive attitude. Your passion for your vision will drive your productivity up and set you on the right path. Along the way be open yo possible changes, a few risks but always believe you can do it. iii. Associate with Positive People It goes without saying that when you surround yourself with

negative people chances are they will put your ideas down or discourage your efforts. This in turn will demoralize you and sabotage your self-esteem. An optimistic boss will always encourage his / her subordinates.

Surround yourself with people who you find encourage, inspire and motivate you. This will boost your energy, spur you to increase your knowledge base and discipline you towards ensuring that you achieve that which you have set out to achieve. In such a competitive environment we live in you need to be constantly encouraged to relieve yourself of the impending stress you experience daily. Positive leaders bring positive attitude. iv. Polish yourself Image Your image is everything, the beginning of you creating a good or bad first impression.

A successful person has a deep sense of self -worth and a good self –image. Having a good selfimage is the foundation from which you’re self – esteem, self – confidence and attitude arises from. When you polish your image you say a lot about yourself without saying a single word.

When you feel good about yourself you are confident to excel in any project or mission. Dress the way you would like to be addressed. Be sensitive and pay attention to detail when choos-

ing what to wear daily. Dress appropriately recognizing the occasion, day of the week, time of day. Ensure your clothes fit properly, accentuate your body and feel comfortable. Try to colour coordinate your dress sense effectively, compliment your appearance with the correct accessories and spice your look with fabulous shoes. Your image is incomplete with me talking about the importance of grooming and hygiene. The easiest way to sabotage your image is to look unkept, give off an overwhelming odour and appear unapproachable.

Identify a smell you like and are comfortable with, take care of your hair, nails, face and feet regularly. Your objective in being productive is for people to see you and trust you enough

to want to do business with you. Creating, establishing and maintaining relationships is key to maximizing productivity. v. Be a Team Player ‘No man is an island’ - is a popular saying that could not be further from the truth.

Just like I explained about my colleague who was busy doing nothing, this is because he operated alone. He was never a team player so became quite anti-social and inefficient. In being a team player you are able tap from a wider pool of knowledge. You therefore gain more and can direct your level of productivity positively. A team player should equally share information, be open to opinions, constructive criticism, new ideas and advice. When you work in a team you work in common agreement towards a common goal. As a team your achievements are greater, provided you are able to get everybody to follow the vision, accomplish their individual and collective tasks and motivated to achieve. With all these in check as you increase your productivity you will automatically increase that of the team.

Just love that job!

Facebook / Twitter / Instagram : JSK Etiquette Consortium Janet.adetu@gmail.com

28

BUSINESS DAY

Friday 20 April 2018

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BUSINESS SOUTH-SOUTH

COMPLETE COVERAGE OF SOUTH-SOUTH / SOUTH-EAST

IEOM’s export master class training hones budding exporters in non-oil products

NEPZA mulls upgrading C-River Industrial Park to EPZ status

…as NCS briefs participants on export startup, tour Area 1 Port …open links with shipping line, port terminal operator

BEN EGUZOZIE

BEN EGUZOZIE, Port Harcourt

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n recent time, so many economic experts have been advocating for Nigerians, particularly those in the private sector, to actively engage in international export trade, as a way to pull in needed foreign exchange required to add up to diversify the oilplummeted economy. Most of the expert advices border on engaging in export of non-oil products.

For instance, Utchay Princewill, a foremost exporter of shrimps and prawns to Europe and America, with 28 years’ experience, said last month in Port Harcourt, at an export breakfast meeting that: “We must export to grow. Very soon, export business would take over as the main stay of economy of countries in the Gulf of Guinea.”

Last week, about half a dozen persons, who, either own their company or in the process of establishing one in the SouthSouth/ South East zones, with aim to engage in the export of non-oil products business, honed their skills further in an ‘Export Master Class,’ organized by the Institute of Export Operations and Management (IEOM) Nigeria.

After the training in Port Harcourt, participants undertook a field trip to the Area 1 command of the Nigerian Customs Service (NCS) at the premier Port Harcourt Port, where Yakubu Salihu, deputy controller of Customs, Revenue and ASYCUDA Project, briefed them on export startup.

The NCS equally gave the trainees the 11 important documents required to become an exporter.

Earlier, the Export Master Class trainees were at the operational office of Ports and Terminal Operators Limited (PTOL), one of the concessionaires of the Area 1 Port, where they opened links with the port terminal operator. They equally received briefing on how to begin shipping export product by Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC), a key shipping line that uses the Port Harcourt Area 1 Port.

IEOM is Nigeria’s foremost export institute, with strategic partnerships from the International Trade Centre (ITC), the centre for International Food Safety and Agricultural Law, International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) Ibadan, Nigerian Export-Import Bank (NEXIM), Nigeria Export Promotions Council (NEPC) and the Federal Ministry of Labour and Productivity.

The Export Master Class is a practical 4-day intensive course designed to prepare participants (usually would-be exporters) for important aspects of international trade. It is designed to give a general overview of all export processes, and is ideal for those with little or no knowledge of export procedures. It is intended to help the upcoming exporters learn about how their company in Nigeria can do business in the world marketplace.

The Export Master Class “concentrates on the overall principles of exporting, and describes the processes that businesses commonly use to develop

export strategies tailored to their needs.

It highlights the requirements for export processes and helps to you identify the support services available to exporters through government and non-governmental organizations,” said Ofon Udofia, Executive Secretary and Chief Executive of Institute of Export Operations and Management – IEOM. He said the course will guide a trainee to, among other things; assess your company’s export readiness, build an export plan, research and select your target market, determine the best methods of delivering your product or service to your target market and understand the key legal aspects of international trade. “It is being delivered via an innovative learning approach which combines in-class training with unique custom-built online learning tools and field tour of seaports and other agencies/ facilities that help facilitate international trade.”

According to the IEOM Executive Secretary and Chief Executive, the objectives of the export master class include, but not limited “to identify the steps in the exporting process, ascertain company’s export readiness, create awareness of the benefits of exporting, identify support services available to exporters, highlight international trade requirements, highlight some standard and certification (voluntary and non-voluntary) and their application in exporting process.” Others are: to identify export risks and management, and to identify exportable and prohibited products from Nigeria.

Jude Nwosu emerges new president of Aba Sports Club GODFREY OFURUM, Aba

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ba Sports Club, 1926, one of the foremost exclusive sports clubs in Nigeria, will today, April 20, hand over the leadership role of the Club for the next two years to Mazi Jude Nwosu, managing director, Crunchies Fried Chicken Limited.

Nwosu, an astute entrepreneur and a Paul Harris Fellow (PHF) succeeds Geoffrey Uzoagbara, who has served out his tenure as the president of the club.

Consequently, the crème de la crème in Aba and beyond are expected to attend the investiture, which holds at the Aba Sports Club auditorium, Old GRA, Aba. Mazi Nwosu’s contribution to the development of the club, according to stakeholders, was instrumental to his landslide victory at the elections, which took place in December, 2017. The stakeholders are also optimistic that his

tenure would attract more patronage to the Club.

Mazi Nwosu, who holds the title of Ugwu Aro of Arochukwu Ancient Kingdom in Arochukwu Local Government Area of Abia State, is an astute businessman and philanthropist. He holds a Bachelor of Science and Master’s Degree (M.B.A) in Management, obtained from Morgan State University, Baltimore, Maryland, United States of America.

He worked for McDonalds and Churches, also a fast food chain before returning to Nigeria. He is married and the marriage is blessed with children.

He is a devout and practicing Christian, whose watchword is “Love” for one another.

Mazi Nwosu is a prominent member of the Gulf Section of Aba Sports Club 1926.

Recall that the front office of Aba SportsClub-1926,whichisnowwearinga newlook,wasremodeled,bythemanagementofCrunchiesFriedChickenLimited, the foremost fast food outlet in the South-

munities. He stated that such gestures will not only improve the wellbeing of the people, but serve as a pointer for the young ones to emulate.

The Aba Sports Club front office, now called the “Millennium Reception” after remodeling, was achieved in line with the corporate social responsibility (CSR) of Crunchies Fried Chicken Limited, which is geared towards giving back to its host community.

The essence of Crunchies Fried Chicken according to Nwosu, is not only toprovidequalityfoodforpeople,butalso to create an environment that is conduciveforpeopletoinhabit,whichtheyhave extended to Aba Sports Club.

Aba Sports Club was founded as Aba European Club in 1921 and incorporated as such on 12th March, 1926. Its membership was then exclusively European, but by 1926, it had admitted 12 Africans.

Thereafter, African membership of the Clubincreased;andin1970,thefirstNigerian president of the Club, Raleke Nwosu, was elected. The changes brought about

Aba sports

Jude

East/South-South regions of Nigeria.

Mazi Nwosu, while handing over the keys of the refurbished edifice to Uzoagbara, his predecessor, urged wellto-do individuals in the society to assist in providing infrastructure in their com-

by independence led to the re-naming of the Club as Aba Club, and with the growinginterestoftheClubinSports,thename wasagainchanged on 14th October1982, to Aba Sports Club, which it has retained till today.

N

igeria Export Processing Zones Authority (NEPZA) is considering upgrading the Cross River Industrial Park (CRIP) to an Export Processing Zone (EPZ), if all goes well with take-off of the park by the Ben Ayade administration.

The state government has written to NEPZA for a license to operate the industrial park as an EPZ, which is yet to be approved. Final approval of the industrial park as an EPZ would be done by President Muhammadu Buhari, upon the recommendation of the NEPZA. According to NEPZA managing director, Emmanuel Jime, the Industrial Park in Cross River comes off as the best conceived by a state government.

Jime said in Calabar, Cross River capital when he and members of the NEPZA management team embarked on onthe-spot inspection of the industrial park situated along Goodluck Jonathan Bypass, Calabar.

“If you ask me, and without being immodest, I will say that this is the best industrial site that has been conceived by a state government during my time as the MD of NEPZA. If I have my way, I would have granted the license that is demanded. Unfortunately, it is not entirely in my capacity to do,” said Jime.

He intimated that President Buhari will grant the park an EPZ status; adding that NEPZA led by him will make a compelling case for award of the license to CRIP. He assured that all the require-

ments were already in place to get the industrial get a license approved by the Presidency to operate an EPZ. The NEPZA boss explained that their inspection of the CRIP by the NEPZA was normally a duty performed by officers under the line, but that he personally undertook the inspection, seeing the importance the project portends for the state and its citizens.

Jime commended the Ayade administration in industrializing the state, which in 2008, was told by the nation’s Supreme Court that, it no longer has crude oil, having ceded its 76 oilwells to neighbouring Akwa Ibom State. This was after the International Court of Justice (ICJ) at the Hague, Switzerland had stripped Cross River of its crude oil at Bakassi Peninsula to Republic of Cameroon.

The incoming Cross River Industrial Park would be powered mainly by solar energy. Solar power panels were being installed at the area, which would make it operate clean and green energy.

Engineers on site hinted that the solar power in place would make the industrial park go without major power outage in about 30 years.

The NEPZA boss hinted on the location advantage of the CRIP, as it being sited close to the Margaret Ekpo International Airport and the Atlantic Ocean.

He disclosed that the report of the NEPZA inspection team will soon be presented to the President, to enable the park be granted the required EPZ cover it deserves; expressing strong hope that CRIP will be successful because it meets all the requirements of similar successful industrial parks he had visited.

NEPC boosts yam production in Cross River in synergy with IITA …850 yam farmers trained in Yakurr MIKE ABANG, Calabar

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n its efforts to diversify the nation’s economy, the Nigerian Export Promotions Council (NEPC), Calabar Smart Office has commenced activities to boost yam production in Cross River State.

To achieve this objective, NEPC, in collaboration with the International Institute for Tropical Agriculture (IITA), Ibadan have commenced the training of farmers on Yam Seed Multiplication Technology in Cross River State.

At the just concluded training programme in Yakurr Local Government Area in the Central Senatorial District of Cross River State, 850 farmers were trained on the Seed Multiplication Technology.

In a keynote address, Emmanuel Etim, the Trade Promotion Advisor at NEPC, Calabar Smart Office, said, “the motivation for launching the pilot phase of this programme is in recognition of enormous agricultural potentials in Cross River which can be aggressively harnessed to boost the national economy through increased non-oil export.”

He said over the years, Cross River has widely been credited with a rich agricultural economic heritage, but often times, produce from the farming activities lack modern technological trends, lack quality standards requirements for exports, due to absence of modern agricultural practices, poor post-harvest handling techniques, and non-compliance to global food safety management systems. Hence, their consumption is localized and not fit for export.

Similarly, Azeez Oyeyemi, the Seed Production Officer at IITA, said, the institute which has existed in Nigeria

for over 50 years, has the mandate to do research on yam, cassava, plantain, banana, cocoa and several other agricultural products.

He said that the value and quantity of yam production in Nigeria was much, and can therefore, not be compromised.

The training programme, which was both theory and practical on seed yam technology, attracted a large turnout of farmers from Mkpani community in Yakurr Local Government Area of Cross River.

State chairman, All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN), Etim Nelson urged participants and indeed, all farmers in Cross River to liaise with the State Ministry of Agriculture and access credit facilities and other inputs, so as to boost their productivity.

The commissioner for Commerce and Industry, Peter Egbe, represented by the deputy director Administration, Joshua Abebbah said developing Cross River State yam for export is a necessity, and thanked NEPC for organizing the workshop.

The project Monitoring and Reporting Officer at Nigerian Incentive-Based Risk Sharing system for Agricultural Lending (NIRSAL), Progress Uduzeli advised participants to take advantage of the training for improved productivity.

Before declaring the seminar open, the state commissioner for Agriculture, Anthony Eneji, who was represented at the occasion by his permanent secretary, Joseph Ugbe, urged the farmers to take advantage of the training so as to better their lots.

The farmers expressed appreciation to the organizers of the event, and assured that they will put into practice what they have learnt.

Friday 20 April 2018

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BUSINESS DAY

29

FEATURE

Nigeria pay-TV market: How revolution started StarTimes’ entry into the Nigerian market in 2010 has brought dynamism in the pay-television market.

With the democratisation of the market, the brand did not only bring entertainment to viewers at affordable price, but it also put competitions on their toes. Odinaka Anudu looks at the rise of StarTimes and how it has fared so far.

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a ny p ro m o t e r s of pay-television companies have always seen Nigeria as a land of opportunities. The country’s demography and its growing middle-class are big attractions.

In the last few years, a number of operators have tried to penetrate the market, but most of them died on arrival. At a point, some observers wrote off the market as a monopoly.

However, in 2010, the scenario changed when a Chinese firm – StarTimes Group--entered the market with pomp and ceremony. As a result of what became the outcome of such adventure by CTL, FSTV, DAARSAT and HiTV, not a few analysts dismissed the promoters of the StarTimes brand as bunch of jokes. The firm was received with scepticism.

But like a magic wand, the decision of the management of the company to target low income earners changed the story. The strategy has helped the brand to hold the large subscriber base in Nigeria.

Beyond Nigeria, records have shown that StarTimes’ arrival on African market disrupted traditional model of TV industry by making PayTv affordable to every family. As of May 2017, StarTimes operated in 30 countries and served over 10 million subscribers.

Perhaps, another thing that worked for the brand in Nigeria was the partnership it entered into with the NTA and its wide network, which helped StarTimes to quickly cover the largest market and record huge subscribers’ base in a shortest possible time.

This is seen as a miracle given the way HiTV, which used Hypercable Digital Terrestrial technology and launched Direct to Home (DTH) Satellite technology in 2007, failed by 2011 due to financial crisis.

Daarsat, another pay TV platform, came but remained epileptic while it lasted. As a result of this, DSTV became the only dominant player in the pay TV market.

In 2011, StarTimes hosted the First African Digital TV Development Seminar. The seminar, which has since been held for seven years, is an important platform for African countries to discuss how to realise the digital migration in Africa.

At the last edition held in May 2017, over 400 delegates from 46 African and Asian countries were present at the seminar, including more than 30 ministers of information and communication from African countries, like Nigeria, Central Africa Republic, Chad, Guinea, Liberia, Malawi, Zambia, DRC Congo and Ethiopia.

How it all began At the launch of the StarTimes brand in 2010, Pang Xin Xing, chairman of

the company, boldly stated his mission in the country. “With StarTimes, pay TV is no longer a luxury in Nigeria,” Xing said to a crop of journalists, who spoke with him on the mission of the brand in the market.

At its official launch in Abuja early 2010, the management of the technology company, which also pioneered pay television industry in China, promised Nigerians greater access to pay television services at an affordable price. StarTimes Television Network Limited then provided its customers with over 35 cable television channels for just N1, 000 monthly subscriptions. Unlike other cable television services already operating in the country, StarTimes uses Digital Video Broadcast on Terrestrial (DVB-T), a technology, which does not require a dish. It then came with just a decoder, which was sold for N9, 000. The technology has now been upgraded to DVB-T2.

This technology, which requires no dish, coupled with minimal effect on the pocket, made many subscribers to see StarTimes as a viable alternative.

from December 1, 2013 to January 31, 2014, was in partnership with SPAR, Dangote and Lagos Television (LTV).

Also towards the end of 2014, StarTimes began a promotion tagged, ‘StarTimes Christmas Extra Goodies’. The promo, which lasted till January 31, 2014, offered subscribers the opportunity to buy a decoder for N5, 900 with a month’s unique bouquet with 80 channels, or buy a decoder for N5,900 with a month’s unique bouquet and a Yagi antenna with 10-metre cable for N1,000.

StarTimes unveiled another round of promo tagged, ‘Extra Time Promo’ in May this year, where customers would be rewarded with two extra viewing days on every of its recharge cards, including its soccer themed card developed to show support to the Nigerian Super Eagles during the 2014 edition of FIFA World Cup season.

Response to competition In what looks like the most conspicuous response to competition, in 2012, Multichoice launched GOtv into the market.

Like its predecessor, StarTimes, the Pay-TV service does not require a satellite dish and installation cost except a decoder and a stub or grid antenna. It was first launched in Ibadan, the capital of Oyo State.

As it were, there is a serious fight for the market share, as players use promotions and price as bait. For instance, in 2013, Gotv unveiled a N50 million worth of promo tagged, ‘GOcarry am’. The promo, which ran

This is seen as a miracle given the way HiTV, which used Hypercable Digital Terrestrial technology and launched Direct to Home (DTH) Satellite technology in 2007, failed by 2011 due to financial crisis

Sustaining market leadership Since the beginning of its opera-

tion in the market, StarTimes has leveraged on various positioning platforms to sustain its market relevance. However, the decision of the promoters of the brand to appoint ex-international and world football icon and superstar, Kanu Nwankwo, as new brand ambassador in Africa can be described as a watershed.

Aside Kanu’s global appeal, Nigerian consumers, in particular saw his appointment as patriotic on the part of the brand.

With the official announcement of a three-year partnership deal signed in Lagos, Kanu became the new face of StarTimes PayTV across 12 African markets where it presently operates, including Nigeria, Tanzania, Mozambique, South Africa, Kenya, DRC, Uganda and others.

Since then, the ex-international has featured in StarTimes brand commercials, made special guest appearances at major StarTimes events and assisted in promoting the StarTimes brand across Africa amongst other activities ahead of the digital TV switch over.

CSR Initiatives: Village 10,000 Africa Project In line with its corporate social responsibility (CSR) and fulfilment of its promise to ensure its products and service are accessible across locals and national frontiers, StarTimes in collaboration with the Chinese Government kicked off with the launch of a pilot satellite TV project held in Hulumi village in the suburbs of Abuja, the capital of Nigeria, on Thursday August 10, 2017 The project is a fruit of one of the resolutions of the 2015 Summit of Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, in Johannesburg, South Africa,

in which the Chinese government pledged to provide satellite TV to 10,000 African villages.

In Hulumi, the Chinese firm presented the community with sets of direct-to-home decoders for 20 households each, together with free installation of two sets of digital TV projector with solar panels as well as voluntary renovation works at the local primary school and donations of educational and recreational materials to the pupils.

Every evening, locals who had no television or lacked electricity supply gathered at the village square to watch their favourite channels on a large projection screen provided by StarTimes.

As a pioneer digital terrestrial TV provider in Nigeria, StarTimes has been able to disseminate digital terrestrial television in at least 80 cities across the West African country in seven years.

With its simple-to-install decoders coupled with its affordable tariffs, StarTimes, in partnership with the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA), has brought digital TV within the reach of many Nigerians since 2010. The satellite TV provides the opportunity for locals to watch digital TV programs of both local and international contents Guo Ziqi, vice president of StarTimes, while speaking at the satellite pilot in Hulumi village, said the aim was to change the situation that only the top class could enjoy and have access to digital TV. Ziqi revealed that StarTimes presently ran its operations in more than 30 countries in sub-Saharan African with almost 10 million subscribers.

Ziqi explained that in Nigeria, StarTimes and NTA started a joint venture seven years ago, stressing that StarTimes had been insisting to leverage local strategies to operate, which had not only helped to boost television industry in Nigeria but also created employment opportunities.

She revealed the vision of President Xi of China to provide satellite TV reception to 10,000 African villages on the Forum of China-Africa Cooperation. As one major channel of getting information from the world, satellite TV is a door to connect villages with outside world Meanwhile, Dimas Hakimi, a top chief of Hulumi district, who could not hide his excitement disclosed that the Chinese satellite TV had brought everlasting joy to the people of Hulumi, adding that the residents had only been familiar with analogue TV, thereby lacking the opportunity to watch some of the exciting satellite TV channels enjoyed by people in other towns and cities in the country.

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Live @ The Stock Exchange Top Gainers/Losers as at Thursday 19 April 2018 GAINERS Company

Market Statistics as at Thursday 19 April 2018

LOSERS Opening

Closing

Change

DANGCEM

N249

N252.5

3.5

OANDO

N9.05

N9.6

0.55

ETERNA

N6.22

N6.52

FIDSON

N5.77

WAPCO

N45.65

Company

Opening

Closing

Change

N190

N181

-9

GLAXOSMITH

N34.15

N33.2

-0.95

0.3

INTBREW

N48.95

N48

-0.95

N6.04

0.27

GUARANTY

N44.35

N44

-0.35

N45.85

0.2

N12.5

N12.25

-0.25

MOBIL

FBNH

ASI (Points) DEALS (Numbers) VOLUME (Numbers)

A

s part of its vision of becoming the choice hub for capital formation in West Africa, the NASD OTC Securities Exchange has launched its enterprise portal (NASDEP) at an event that brought together stakeholders from the policy, economy, business, financial and capital market space. The Enterprise Portal is geared towards galvanizing entrepreneurial development in Nigeria.

Okechukwu Enelamah, Minister of Industries, Trade and Investments who described NASDEP as apt and timely to deepen the financial and capital markets and provide liquidity also noted strong correlation between deepened capital market and economic growth.

Enelamah said the Federal Government is partnering with private capital to drive the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP) plan,

Bola Ajomale, chief executive officer, NASD Plc

and believes the enterprise portal will complement its plans. He sees the need to build the platform on trust to instill market confidence.

“The enterprise portal is expected to transform the investment environment in Nigeria. The initiative was coming at the time the Federal Government is energising its Economic Recovery and Growth Plan” said Olutola Mobolurin, chairman, NASD OTC. He said that NASDEP is focused on addressing three issues – the information gap on investment activities go-

Lafarge Africa joins Premium Board of NSE

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afarge Africa Plc has joined three other companies in the elite Premium Board of the Nigeria Stock Exchange. The other companies that were migrated along with Lafarge at a grand ceremony on the floor of the Nigeria Stock Exchange on Monday the 16th of April 2018 were Access Bank, United Bank for Africa (UBA) and Seplat Petroleum Development Company Plc. The Premium Board is the NSE’s listing segment for showcasing companies who are industry leaders in their sectors. The Premium Board features companies that adhere to international best practices on corporate

governance and satisfy the NSE’s highest standards of capitalization and liquidity.

It also serves as a benchmark for investors looking to track the performance of large firms with excellent corporate governance and sustainable business models. The Premium Board of the Nigeria Stock Exchange opens new frontiers to attract investment from global fund managers and thematic portfolio investors.

Speaking at the wellattended event, Michel Puchercos said Lafarge Africa has adopted the LafargeHolcim Code on Ethics and Business Conduct which ensures that all directors, officers and employees share a common commitment to conducting business with integrity and, compliance with existing rules and regulations relevant to the Company’s operations.

He urged the other companies on the premium Board to leverage their new status for the overall good of the investing public.

ing on in the economy, the documentation problem that companies face in reporting their performance to a relevant audience that can provide the much needed capital; and capturing a more accurate picture of the size, scope and direction of significant primary private capital market activity.”

“It took three years for the evolution and realisation of the enterprise portal. NASDEP was designed to develop a community of genuine entrepreneurs, who can access long-term cash and expand their business fron-

I

740,517,310.00 8.914

MARKET CAP (N Trn

tiers. The platform creates channel for key deals, where private equity and venture capitalists can finance enterprise development”, said Bola Ajomale, CEO of NASD; who added that the portal was premised on the values of transparency.

In his remark, Tajudeen Yusuf, chairman, House Committee on Capital Markets commended NASD OTC for providing a platform for the growth of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in the Nigerian economy.

“No economy grows without providing opportunities for enterprises, and the 8th National Assembly is committed to taking the Nigerian capital market, to the global competitive stage,” Yusuf said.

Ahmadu Sanda, representative of the acting Director-General of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) assured stakeholders that the apex market regulator will continue to support initiatives that are targeted at market development.

Fidson grows FY’17 PBT by 256%

ndigenous Pharmaceutical industry giant, Fidson Healthcare Plc has reported a 256percent growth in Profit Before Tax (PBT) for full year 2017.

Details of this impressive performance were released recently in the audited financial result submitted to the Nigerian Stock Exchange.

Fidson reported an outstanding growth of 84percent in turnover from N7.6billion in 2016 to N14billion in 2017. The company’s Cost of Sales increased by 91percent from N3.6billion in 2016 to N6.9billion in 2017.

The company’s PBT, which increased from N443million in FY2016 to 1.57billion in FY 2017, ultimately saw the Earnings Per Share increased over three-fold from N0.21kobo to N0.71kobo.

Following this impressive result, the company would be proposing dividend per share of 20kobo, a 400percent increase in over the previous year.

The significant competitive advantage of the com-

5,554.00

VALUE (N billion)

NASD Enterprise Portal to transform Nigeria’s investment environment Stories by Iheanyi Nwachukwu

40,874.09

pany’s World Health Organization Certifiable Plant is already evident after one full calendar year in operation.

Products from the new facility as well as volume increase from existing products were largely responsible for this remarkable growth. The plant increased the company’s factory-based revenue by over 200percent in 2017— primarily due to an increase in production volumes and the introduction of new product lines. A portion of its new products are medicines that cater to low income earners, with the quality consumers have come to expect from Fidson, assured.

The financial reports showed a 53percent increase in total overhead (administrative and selling & distribution expenses) from N3.1bn in FY2016 to N4.7bn in FY2017, which is due to an increase in the marketing and distribution expenses.

Finance cost also increased by 45percent from N690million in 2016 to N1billionn in 2017.

14.764

FCAM Legacy USD Bond Fund IPO oversubscribed by 144.4%

L

egacy USD Bond Fund, a mutual fund managed

by First City Asset Management Limited (FCAM), recorded an impressive 244.44 percent subscription in its Initial Public Offering (IPO).

The result of the IPO, which has been approved by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), implies that the Fund attracted $6.111million, which represents an oversubscription of 144.44 percent above the $2.5million offered to prospective unit holders during the Offer period from January 8, 2018 to February 14, 2018.

This is an indication of the high level of investor confidence in the Legacy USD Bond Fund and FCAM, a member of FCMB Group Plc. The Legacy USD Bond Fund is an open-ended investment vehicle registered with the SEC and managed by FCAM. It gives investors the opportunity to invest in US Dollar denominated fixed income securities on a continuous basis. It also provides flex-

disclosed that a total of 67 applications for 6,111,000 units were received with none of the applications found to be invalid. Details of the applications and allotment of the Offer, according to FCAM, shows that 17 applicants purchased the minimum number of units of 5,000.

James Ilori, Chief Executive Officer of FCAM said, “We are delighted at the level of participation of the investing public, in the Legacy USD Bond Fund Offer. The Fund provides an excellent opportunity for investors to regularly save in US Dollar and has now re-opened to new and existing investors. FCAM’s internationally trained investment team will manage the Fund in line with the investment objective of income generation. We remain committed to creating additional value for individual and institutional investors”.

FCAM, which also manages two of Nigeria’s leading mutual funds -Legacy Equity Fund and Legacy Debt Fund -, provides services that

ibility with respect to the timing of investments in, and redemptions from the Fund.

The objective of the Legacy USD Bond Fund is to generate stable income over the long-term. The Fund is being managed as a unit trust scheme designed for investors seeking an efficient way to earn stable income in US Dollar, from investing in a portfolio comprising of high quality, registered, and tradeable US Dollar fixed income securities.

FCAM in a statement

cut-across collective investment schemes such as mutual funds, which are predominantly for retail investors, as well as specialised discretionary portfolio management, for ultra-high and high networth individuals and institutional investors.

The company has consistently focused on delivering international standard wealth and investment management services, aimed at meeting investors’ desire for safety of investments, diversification and good returns.

Friday 20 April 2018

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Markets + Finance ‘Providing proprietary research, commentary, analysis and financial news coverage unmatched in today’s market. Published weekly, Markets & Finance provides all the key intelligence you need.’

Income from Murabaha underpins Jaiz Bank’s profit BALA AUGIE

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hoever says Islamic banking cannot work in Nigeria is a big liar and such a person is living in a world of illusions and fantasies.

In the world of reality where pragmatism supersedes the rule of thumb, Jaiz Bank Plc, a non interest banking institution, has proven that with focus and market strategies, a company can thrive amid the tough and unpredictable macroeconomic environment.

Jaiz Bank has released its 2017 financial statement that showed it recorded a double digit growth at top line (revenue) and bottom line (profit) with improvement in key ratios.

The bank has grown steadily since it started operation in 2012. From a capital base of N5 billion, it has grown its capital base to about N50 billion. From a deposit of N3. 5 billion, the Islamic bank has grown its deposit to about N60 billion.

From the initial three branches as a Regional bank, Jaiz Bank has grown into a National bank with 30 branches across the nation.

History The bank was created out of the former Jaiz International Plc which was set up in 2003/2004 as a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) to establish Nigeria’s first fullfledged Non-Interest Bank.

It obtained a Regional Operating Licence to operate as a Non-Interest Bank from the Central Bank of Nigeria on the 11th of November 2011 and began full operations as the first Non-Interest Bank in Nigeria on the 6th of January, 2012 with 3 branches located in Abuja FCT, Kaduna and Kano. The Regional Licence allowed the bank to operate geographically in a third of the country. Also, based on recommendations from Islamic Development Bank (IDB), which is also a shareholder of the bank, Jaiz Bank PLC had partnered with Islamic Bank of Bangladesh (IBBL) for Technical and Management Assistance.

About Islamic Banking Non-Interest Banking is a profitable growing global phenomenon practiced in nearly 70 countries across the world including the United Kingdom, Canada, the United States of America, the United Arab Emirate, Malaysia, China, Singapore, South Africa, Kenya etc. Global Banks like HSBC, Citibank, Barclays Bank etc. are also offering non-interest banking products and service.It is an alternative financial service offering which is open to all irrespective of race or religion. It is based on the ethical principles of fairness, transparency and objectivity.

Non-Interest Banking offers almost all the services of conventional banks. The difference is that non-interest Islamic Banks do not give or receive interest, nor finance anything that is harmful to

Hassan Usman, managing director/CEO, Jaiz Bank Plc

society like alcohol, tobacco, gambling etc. They also seek to avoid gharar- speculation, uncertainty deception and more.

Currently, about 50% of Nigeria’s total population of 183 million are craving for such Non-Interest banking services. These people are desirous of ethical banking services which provide for socially responsible investment outlets. In a nutshell, Non-Interest Banking is realeconomy oriented and profit and loss sharing arrangement where the mode of financing is mostly on mark-up, leasing and partnership basis.

The Investment Opportunity Jaiz Bank Plc upgraded to

a National operating license in 2016. The upgrade has enabled it to operate in all 36 states of the Federation including the Federal Capital Territory. Consequently, it increased its authorised Share Capital from N15 billion (USD $47.8 million) to N25 billion (USD $79.6million). (Note that the exchange rate used was the prevailing rate at the end of 2016.)

Financial Performance for the year end December 2017 Total revenue increased by 29.56 percent to N6.31 billion in December 2017 from N4.87 billion the previous year.

Income from financing contract rose by 18 percent

to N6.23 billion in December 2017 from N5.28 billion as at December 2016; driven largely by a 35.91 percent increase in Murabaha profit Corporate to N2.46 billion in December 2017 from N1.81 billion as at December 2016.

Bank’s share as a Mudarib/Equity investor was up 29.13 percent to N5.54 billion in the period under review as against N4.29 billion the previous year.

Non-interest revenue, which comprise of fees and commission income and operating income, increased by 91.24 percent to N930.60 million in the period under review as against N486.61 million as at December 2016.

Jaiz Bank’s profit before tax surged by 160.63 percent to N894.0 million in the period under review from N343.01 million as at December 2016.

Profit after tax followed the same growth trajectory as it spiked by 72.55 percent to N537.11 million in December 2017 from N311.27 million as at December 2016.

Staff costs were up 19.85 percent to N2.33 billion in the period under review from N1.94 billion as at December 2016. Other operating profit increased by 24.87 percent to N2.56 billion in the year under review from N2.56 billion from N2.05 billion as at December 2016.

Jaiz Bank has utilized the resources of its owners in generating higher profit as return on equity (ROE) increased to 3.90 percent in December 2017 from N2.33 billion as at December 2016.

Net margin, a measure of efficient, moved to 8.50 percent in December 2017 from 6.38 percent as at December 2016.

Jaiz Bank’s total assets increased by 32.18 percent to N87.31 billion in December 2017 from N66.05 billion as at December 2016.

Total Sukuk Investment increased surged by 471.69 percent to N6.06 billion in December 2017 as against N1.06 billion as at December 2016. Due from Banks and Financial Institution was up 272.47 percent to N5.48 billion in December 2017 from N1.47 billion as at December

BD MARKETS + FINANCE (Business Team lead: PATRICK ATUANYA - Analysts: BALA AUGIE and LOLADE AKINMURELE)

2016.

Investment in Assets Held for Sale surged by 652.048 percent to N3.67 billion in the period under review from N3.67 billion as at December 2016.

JAIZ Bank, idb sign $20m smes financing Jaiz Bank PLC and Islamic Corporation for the Development of Private Sector (ICD), the development arm of Islamic Development Bank (IDB), recently signed a $20 million line of agreement to finance Small and Medium Sized Enterprises (SMEs) in the country.

The line of financing would cover sectors such as industry, communications, technology, health, manufacturing, agriculture among others.

Managing Director/ CEO of Jaiz, Hassan Usman signed on behalf of the Bank, while the Regional Office Director of ICD, Okan Altasil signed for the Corporation.

The Jaiz’s MD who was delighted over the agreement promised to judiciously use the facility to promote financial inclusion and development of the grassroots.

He said: “We would ethically deploy the funds to develop SMEs which is our focus area. We are going to use it to finance the retail end of the economy with the hope of bringing financing to those financially excluded, in line with our mission of making life better for people through ethical financing.”

The ICD management said the reason for extending such financing to some Nigerian Banks was because SMEs have crucial role to play in a country’s growth and development and “ICD has big plans for them.”

It said: “This is an important niche in all the member countries, especially in Africa. ICD is now focusing on increasing access to funding to the private sector by channeling the funds to established financial institution in its member countries.”

The ICD had previously extended a total of $120 million Line of Financing facility for the development of SMEs in Nigeria.

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Sports

ICC World T20 Africa Qualifier: Nigeria, Ghana renew rivalry in final battle Stories by Anthony Nlebem

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fter losing the only game of the International Cricket Council World T2O Africa ‘A’ qualifier against bitter rivals Ghana on Tuesday, April 17, 2018 at the prestigious Tafawa Balewa Cricket Oval.

All is now set for the final day on Saturday, April 21, 2018 as Nigeria Cricket National Team A.K.A (Yellow Green) looks to revenge the painful 7 wicket loss on Match Day 3 while their Ghanaian counterparts are ready to complete a double over the host to confirm their supremacy.

Nigeria versus Ghana at any level and any sport would always be feisty and the game on Tuesday was nothing short of action up until the final over that handed victory to the Coach Kodam Kofi Anafie tutored

Basiru Jaye (Gambia) bowls Chimezie Onwuzilike (Nigeria’s Captain).

side.

Speaking ahead of the deciding game Captain Micheal Isaac Aboagye, was grateful to his entire team for the superlative performance

they have put up throughout this tournament which is a clear indication of how their cricket has evolved.

“Before we came to Nigeria we had an unanimous de-

Eight schools qualify for MILO Basketball Championship National finals

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ight secondary schools in both male and female categories have, so far, qualified for the 2018 National Finals in the ongoing MILO Secondary School Basketball Championship. They are Belary School, Yenagoa, and St. Jude’s Girls Secondary School, Amarata, both in Bayelsa State; Government Secondary School, Karu, FCT Abuja; Gen. Murtala Mohammed College, Yola, Adamawa State; Father O’ Connel Science College, Minna, Niger State; Government Secondary School, Gboko, Benue State; International School University of Lagos; as well as Wesley Girls Secondary School, Yaba, Lagos. Four other schools will

join after the completion of the draws for the best losers, according to information available from the National Collegiate Sports Foundation (NCSF). The National Finals will be held at the Indoor Sports Hall of the National Stadium in Lagos, between 3rd and 10th of May 2018.

Currently, in its 20th edition, the 2018 MILO Basketball Championship commenced earlier in the year with State Preliminary Games after the National School Sports Federation (NSSF) registered over 9, 000 schools across the 36 States and FCT Abuja. Out of these over 9, 000 schools, 74 schools comprising of both Boys and Girls teams qualified

International School Unilag (representing Lagos State) vs. Victor roti Private Secondary School, Olokuta, Idi-Aba (representing Ogun State) at the Western Conference Boys Final, held at the Indoor Hall of Adamasigba Stadium, Ibadan, 17th April 2018.

for the regional conferences which held in Benin, Abuja, Ilorin, and Ibadan, over a period of four weeks.

Throughout the two decades of the Championship’s existence, MILO Basketball Championship has played a crucial role in grassroots sports development in Nigeria and Nestle Nigeria has remained committed to sustaining this development since the inception.

“A good number of players in the Premier Basketball League in Nigeria have participated in the MILO Basketball Championship at one point or the other while some of our champions are also currently playing in other international Premier Basketball Leagues in USA, Europe, and other places,” Lanre Balogun, NCSF’s Executive Secretary informed.

MILO uses sports as a metaphor to teach schoolchildren important life skills such as determination, confidence, discipline, teamwork, and respect. This stems from the belief that schoolchildren who are physically active in exercise and sports are most likely to do well all-around. The championship is organize by Nestle Nigeria Plc in partnership with Nigeria Schools Sports Federation (NSSF) with technical support from National Collegiate Sports Foundation (NCSF) and the Nigeria Basketball Federation (NBBF).

cision of winning the competition as well as go unbeaten and we would not soft pedal until victory is assured.

“Though we convincingly defeated them in our

first game but I immediately warned my teammates that it will be foolhardy of us to continue to bask in the euphoria of defeating Nigeria because Saturday’s game is the most important match of our career and we remain focused as a team, ” he noted Coach of Nigerian Cricket National Team, Uthe Ogbimi, felt disappointed that they allowed the Ghanaians to currently hold the aces after Tuesday’s loss but they have forgotten about it and all focus is geared towards gaining revenge against their opponent in what is tagged “Win or Bust”.

“The Nigerian Cricket Federation has provided all we need to excel at this tournament and all we can do to compensate the great efforts put in by the NCF Board in organizing this competition is to win it and in doing so we have to avenge the 1st leg loss against Ghana so as to bring back believe to our teeming fans that have sup-

ported us all the way”.

Going into Saturday’s match players to watch out from Ghana include: Micheal Isaac Aboagye (Captain), Julius Horlali Mensah (Wicket Keeper), Peter Ananya, James Vifah, Rexford Bakum, David Ankrah, Kofi Bagabena, Awe Awiah, Simon and Vincent Ateak.

Nigerian players expected to be on parade are: Chimezie Onwuzulike (Captain), Joshua Ayannaike (Wicket Keeper), Ademola Onikoyi, Dotun Olatunji, Saheed Akolade, Isaac Okpe, Shola Anyia, Sulaimon Runsewe, Taiwo Mohammed, Bimbo Adu, Sylvester Okpe and SeyeOlympio.

Based on this star cast that would be on parade for their respective teams on Saturday, April 21, 2018 and the huge importance attached to this fixture there is no gain saying that cricket fans are in for superb bowling, inspired batting, exquisite wicket keeping and eye-popping catches.

Fed Cup semi-finals live on Kwesé TV

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wesé TV through its exclusive sports channel, Kwesé Sports 2 will continue its coverage of the Fed Cup by bringing its audiences the semi-finals scheduled for 21- 22 April.

France will host the USA in the semi-finals of the Fed Cup on an indoor clay court in Aix-en-Provence, France.

USA is pitted against France’s Kristina Mladenovic, Pauline Parmentier and Amandine Hesse while in the USA roster are; US Open champion, Sloane

Stephens; world number 13 and US Open runnerup, Madison Keys; 16thranked Coco Vandeweghe and former doubles player, Bethanie Mattek-Sands.

In another semi-final match, 10-time Fed Cup champions, Czech Republic will face-off with Germany at the Porshe Arena in Stuttgart, Germany. This showdown will also air on Kwesé Sports 2, channel 305.

Kwesé Sports 2, is the home of tennis on Kwesé TV broadcasting the Fed Cup, Davis Cup and WTA Tour. Kwesé Sports 2 will

continue its coverage of the WTA Tour with the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart from 24 - 29 April, J&T Banka Prague 2018, Madrid Open 2018 and more.

Kwesé Sports holds rights to some of the most popular sporting leagues such as the Carabao Cup, Copa del Rey, NBA and NFL. It holds rights for the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia and will broadcast all 64 matches LIVE from 14 June to 15 July 2018. Kwesé is also the exclusive home of ESPN offering 24 hours of comprehensive sports coverage.

Winner of Okota marathon to cart away N100,000

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ll is set for the second edition of the Okota HIIT Run which takes place on April 21, 2018. According to the race organizer, Wordbase Assembly, the first prize winner will take home N100,000. The second and third prize winners will be rewarded with N50,000 and N25,000 respectively. Consolation prizes will also be up for grabs.

Commenting on the race, the General Overseer of Wordbase Assembly, Bishop Humphrey Erumaka said the church initiated the marathon as part of its corporate social responsibility and to sensitize residents of Okota on the ben-

efits of healthy living through exercise. According to Erumaka, “Social responsibility is not out of the church’s purview and Wordbase Assembly has been involved in social responsibility for many years.

The Okota HIIT Run is one of the ways that we hope to sensitize people on the need to live healthy” He further stated that ‘running is the king of cardio.

Running for even five to ten minutes a day, at slow speed is associated with a drastically reduced risk of dying from cardiovascular disease. 20-25 minutes of running can transform your mind, body and soul. These benefits are backed

by various scientific studies. It prepares you to cope with daily stress challenges without getting panicked”.

According to Chuma Okafor, Chairman of the organizing committee, the race will commence at 6am and ends at 9am. He said the race will start from Ago Palace Way round about and end at the Ago bridge. Concerning eligibility for participation, Okafor said, “anybody living in Okota is free to register and participate.

You may be a student, entrepreneur, professional, male or female, the race is for you. Registration is absolutely free and registration is via the website: www.worbase.com.ng”.

34 BUSINESS DAY NEWS Premium Board exposes high concentration...

Continued from page 1

lio has further manifested in the recent increase in the number of Premium Board listed companies.

The cumulative value of just seven listed companies on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) elite Board represents approximately 50 percent of entire equities market capitalisation at N14.8trillion, BusinessDay check shows.

Access Bank Plc, Lafarge Africa Plc, Seplat Petroleum Development Company Plc and United Bank for Africa Plc were on Monday April 16, 2018migratedtothePremiumBoard.

Thesefourcompaniesjoinedthelikes of Dangote Cement Plc, FBN Holdings Plc, and Zenith International Bank Plc who were migrated to the Premium Board in 2015.

As at Thursday April 19, 2018 the seven Premium Board companies were cumulatively valued at N7.055trillion with Dangote Cement Plc leading the pack at N4.302trillion.

Others are: Lafarge Africa Plc (N397.676billion), Zenith Bank Plc (N847.705billion), United Bank for Africa Plc (N381.323billion), Access Bank Plc ( N326.886billion), FBN Holdings Plc (N439.717billion) and

Seplat Petroleum Development Company Plc (N413.088billion).

“I know that one of the key things the Nigerian Stock Exchange targets is to deepen the market by attracting more listings. If you take away banks and a few consumer goods, there is no other option for investors. In our conversation with investors, their concern is always that many stocks are not traded,” said Christian Orajekwe, head research and strategy at Cordros Capital by phone.

Orajekwe admits that there is a high concentration risk which capital market regulators and government need to improve upon.

“It calls on the leaders of the country to create enabling environment for business growth and attract more growth companies to list on the NSE. From international perspective, report on Foreign Direct Investment is not impressive,” Orajekwe added.

“Stockbrokers will continue to count on these stocks on the Premium Board to ensure the market is sorted out,” said Emeka Madubuike, Managing Director of Compass Securities Limited who is also immediate past chairman of Association of Stockbroking

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Houses of Nigeria (ASHON).

Companies on the Premium Board are already enjoying the highest levels of visibility and appeal to investors looking for large companies with highest standards of corporate governance.

“From inception to date, the Premium Board Index continues to outperform the benchmark NSE All Share Index (ASI) with the Premium Board recording a total return of 84.99percent versus the NSE ASI’s 41.79percent as at April 11, 2018,” said Oscar Onyema, Chief Executive Officer, NSE. “It shows you that the market does not have enough depth. The bluechips dominate the market. Going by the way the market is currently, it will always be driven by the Premium Boardstocks.MTNlistingwillenhance bothdepthandliquidityofthemarket,” Victor Chiazor, head research and investmentatLagos-basedFSLSecurities told BusinessDay on phone.

“The premium list could also be referred to as the new bluechip stocks for the Nigerian Stock Exchange. You can safely buy them knowing that they respond only to market fundamentals,” said research analysts at Capital Bancorp Plc in a recent note to investors.

FG eyes N43.2bn private capital for 9 truck...

Jebba, Kwara State; Onitsha, Anambra State, and Obolo-Afor, Enugu State.

Other designated sites for trucks are Ore, Ondo State; Mararaban, Plateau State; Ogere, Ogun; Porto Novo Creek, Lagos; and Illela, Sokoto State, Hassan Bello, chief executive officer of the NSC, said in Lagos on Thursday.

TTPs are public rest areas located off highways, designed to provide temporary rest location for truck drivers. They are targeted at enabling truck drivers have proper rest to reduce the spate of accidents on highways while cutting down on traffic gridlocks.

“More than 90 percent of freight transport in Nigeria is by trucks. There are truck nuisance on our highways and high rate of accidents involving trucks. Statistics show that the main cause of accidents is fatigue,” Bello said at the breakfast meeting of the Nigerian American Chamber of Commerce (NACC) held in Lagos.

“This is already telling on investors and the economy, and we cannot afford to continue with this chaos.”

Bello explained that the truck parks will be operated by only five or six trucking companies with a minimum share capital.

He said investors are already looking at the return on investment, while Enugu State government has already donated land for the project.

According to Bello, the project could be a public-private partnership, enabling shippers and truckers to safely deliver their cargoes in faraway locations from the ports.

“I believe that TTPs will help in employment generation and reducing pressure of trucks sitting

on the roads. It is also a source of government revenue,” Oluwasegun Alabi, CEO of Factotum, a customs broker and shipping agency, told BusinessDay. Nigeria loses N1 trillion each year to avoidable delays caused by paper work done by 14 government departments at the ports, some of which are performing overlapping functions, according to a recent report by the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI). Nigeria has six major ports, which include Apapa Port, Tin-Can Island Port, Calabar Port, Onne Port, Rivers Port, and Warri Port but Apapa and Tin Can make up 80 percent of the entire traffic of goods from the ports.

In Nigeria’s seaport, cargo dwells for 19-25 days; in Cotonou, 12-14 days; in Durban port, South Africa, four days, while in Mombassa port, Kenya, cargo stays a maximum of 5.7 days, a study by NSC says.

The Federal Government has initiated a number of policies to reform the country’s ports and transport system but delays are still not over.

Truck accidents have continued to occur on Nigerian roads due to poor infrastructure, fatigue and carelessness on the part of largely youthful drivers on the roads.

More than 1,000 Nigerians lost their lives between December 2016 and January 2017 to auto crashes caused by tanker and trucks drivers, according to Boboye Oyeyemi, Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) corps marshal.

“The level of losses we incur from the ports to factories is so high. If you are an exporter, your goods can stay for over 21 days and your raw materials can even stay longer depending on the location of your factory,” a manufacturer in a multinational firm said.

which had in attendance top business men and women from all over the world. There is no doubt that many investors in the room had their eyes on Nigeria, the biggest market on the continent. It was a great platform to put the country’s best foot forward.

Instead, Buhari decided to downgrade the country’s biggest strength in attracting foreign investment, an abundant and well educated youthful population.

Imagine the reaction of investors present when told by the president of the country that they are planning to invest in that they will have to deal with a ‘lot of uneducated and lazy youths.”

Even more worrying is the fact that the president’s statement was a total misrepresentation of the youths of the country he governs.

The World Bank puts Nigeria’s youth literacy rate at 72.8 percent as at 2015, the year Buhari was elected president largely with the support of Nigerian youths. This means that a ‘lot of Nigerian youths’ are actually literate, and they can read and write in English, the global language for business.

However, despite having a highly literate youth population, youth unemployment and underemployment is at a significant 52 percent a challenge which Buhari was elected to resolve.

This means that one out of two young person on the street is actively seeking for a job but is unable to get one or can only get one that

is below his or her qualifications.

Data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) show that youth unemployment has actually risen from 14.9 percent in July 2015 to a current rate of 33.1 percent. This means that under Buhari, youth unemployment rate has actually more than doubled, meaning that whatever policy Buhari has put in place to end youth unemployment is definitely not achieving the desired results.

Young people online reminded Buhari that a lot of youths have not ‘turned’ lazy because they cannot find jobs.

They are engaged in different forms of productive ventures, many of which have gained international recognition and attention.

The Yaba tech hub has gained international recognition and so many tech hubs across the country.

The innovation that is going on at the Yaba Tech hub attracted Mark Zuckerberg to Nigeria, a visit that the Buhari government later took advantage of.

Sadly, Nigeria has not been supportive of the thousands of youths struggling to make ends meeting.

Young tech entrepreneurs are harassed daily by the Nigeria Police because of their instrument of trade, their lap tops and phones.

They have complained about it without Buhari intervening or doing anything major to stop this daily harassment.

Funding opportunities are also few and when available they are costly. Lending rates are as high

as 30 percent. Venture capital funds are scarce. Government aid or grants for innovation is almost absent. The environment for doing business is tough. While Nigeria has moved 20 places on the ease of doing business ranking, the country is still down at the bottom of the global ranking.

Even little efforts like Youwin Connect and N-Power which the Buhari government claims to have put in place to stem youth unemployment have largely failed to make any impact.

Youwin Connect winners are currently claiming that they are yet to receive any form of funding after going through some rigorous training programme that was supposed to enable them start their own businesses.

Nonethless many Nigerian youths have defied the very difficult Nigerian operating environment to succeed in their individual hustle.

This has been shown with their social media responses under the hash tag ‘#LazyNigerianYouths.’

For @NnadiArts: The president says we are lazy but we are not the ones riding the motorbikes up and down for fun all day. These are the results of our laziness #LazyNigeriaYouths. @fabokai twits : I am a UAV pilot and I also fix drones, laziness does not run in my DNA #LazyNigerianYouths, while for @LadyPainterNG: I am Nigerian. I paint homes and offices for a living. @MBuhari I am not lazy, we are not lazy.

Edo State governor, Godwin Obaseki (2nd r); chief of staff to the governor, Taiwo Akerele (r); vice president, Nigerian American Chambers of Commerce (NACC), Abayomi Adigun (2nd l), and director-general, NACC, Joyce Akpata, during a courtesy visit by officials of NACC to the governor at Government House in Benin City, Edo State.

Young people to Buhari: If you can’t help us...

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paign embarked by the country ‘chief marketing officer’ has been a statement attributed to him while speaking with other world leaders as a panellist at the Commonwealth Business Forum in London.

Buhari is quoted to have said that ‘a lot of Nigerian youths are uneducated and lazy’ expecting to receive freebies from their ‘oil rich country.’

What Buhari described as freebies are ‘housing, education and healthcare’ three basic necessities that any responsible government anywhere in the world would provide for its citizens not necessarily for ‘free’ but by putting in place the right policies to enable ease of access.

As a result of the President’s speech, many Nigerian youths have taken to social media platforms such as Twitter to distance themselves from the “lazy” and “uneducated” categorisation.

Below are a few of the tweets with the hashtag #LazyNigerianYouths: @Ugovations said: My name is Ugochukwu, a Nigerian. I am an innovator. I founded @Ugovations Engineering. I produce power inverters, automatic switches and printed circuit boards (PCBs). I am very hardworking and I am not one of the #LazyNigerianYouths.

For @Oagboneni she tells Buhari: Hello @mBuhari, I am a proud female mechanic and I run

an auto service centre @NenisAutocare. I hustle everyday to get and retain clients. I am here because I was empowered by @TonyElumeluFDN @EDC4SME @VitalVoices @riseupforgirls.

Meanwhile @vincentafolabil twitted: I am a graduate of Urban and Regional Planning with diploma in Project Management without job. I took to photography and online freelance to pay for my bills and N250k house rent in Abuja. Government has failed us but we refuse to fail ourselves. We are not #LazyNigerianYouths.

The young Nigerians reacting on twitter are asking what Buhari has done or what policy has he proposed in the last three years to make it easier for Nigerian youths to have access to these necessities of good governance?

They note that Buhari and his family have incidentally displayed a preference for foreign medical facilities than use the local ones. The President is currently on the longest ‘official trip’ to a single country embarked upon by any president.

He is the first president to have arrived for the Commonwealth Heads of Government meetings.

What is even more disheartening to young people online is the choice of the forum the president chose to talk down on the youths of his country.

This was a business forum

Friday 20 April 2018

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Friday 20 April 2018

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35 NEWS

BUSINESS DAY

precedence Serious famine looms if killing of farmers Judicial shows no case against 9mobile sale

by Fulani herders persists - Soyinka BOLADALE BAMIGBOLA, Osogbo

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obel Laureate and Emeritus of Professor of Dramatic Arts, Wole Soyinka has declared that serious famine awaits Nigeria if unjust killing of farmers by Fulani herdsmen does not stop, saying it is high time government faces the ugly situation frontally.

The Emeritus Professor of Dramatic Arts who spoke figuratively, using object of war - swords and object of farming ploughshears to describe unjust carnage going across the country at this trying time in the nation, added that the ugly situation shows irresponsiveness and irresponsibility of government, especially the Federal Government.

Speaking in Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile Ife, Osun state at the launch of 2018 OAU Ife Festival of Foods and Identity logo organised by OAU Institute of Cultural Studies, Soyinka said despite the harsh times, Nigerians must not allow destruction of the moment to overwhelm them, and the triumph of evil over good.

Soyinka said between the time of the launch of the logo and the period the festival would begin in July, the country must have seen the reversal of the evil and the triumph of good.

He said: “This is not the best of times for this nation. For us as a people, it is not the most cheerful of times, we have a responsibility to ourselves as living beings not to allow destruction to overtake or overwhelm our creativity.

“We shall beat swords into ploughshears, it means the instrument of cultivation, must overcome the instrument of destruction.

“Between the time of the launching of this logo and the action manifestation of the festival itself, we should have seen signs that the clash between swords and the plougshears is reversed.

This would have given us total fulfilment as people with culture, peace and harmony.

“We cannot continue to see the seeming triumph of the guns over the ploughshears. We want to see this government’s reversal of the triumph

funds for high return investments.

“I think we can all agree that for Sub Saharan African countries that sustained development and increasing per capita income, which is built on macro stability is the main priority and IMF has been working with African countries to help build

means we have no government.

Let us all join hands to beat the sword into ploughshares.”

Earlier, OAU vice chancellor, Eyitope Ogunbodede, said the importance of food to the healthy living could not be overemphasised as the Festival of Food and Identity is set to place emphasis and discourse of good culturally food that promotes African traditional identity.

He added that the institution would continue to promote ventures with capacity to project positively Yoruba culture, Nigerian culture and entirely, the African culture.

Yesterday April 19 in London, UK, Nigeria’s minister of Industry, Trade, and Investment, Okechukwu Enelamah, opened the market at the London Stock Exchange (LSE), alongside UK minister of State for Trade Policy, Greg Hands MP. They were received and hosted by David Warren, Interim Group chief executive officer and group chief financial officer of the London Stock Exchange Group. Also present were the wife of Nigeria’s High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, Modupe Oguntade; co-founder Sahara Group, Tonye Cole; group managing director/CEO, Shoreline Energy International Limited, Kola Karim, and vice president, corporate and government relations, Olam Nigeria, Ade Adefeko.

Oil prices hit fresh four year highs...

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of the swords over the ploughshears.

If this has not taken place, it means we have no government.

“Between the annunciation of this festival and the manifestation of the festival itself we want to see from this government a reversal of a seeming triumph of the gun, if that has not taken place, let us not lie to ourselves, it means that we don’t have a government.

“If those who had been displaced, the farmer that has been displaced in their hundreds from various parts of this nation especially in the north, if the farmers have not been taken back to their productive environment, it

tax capacity so that countries can sustain levels of public debt and also so they can mobilise spending for health, education, infrastructure,” Pattillo said.

Although relative to Gross Domestic Product (GDP), the country’s debt level remains low by global standards, but it has put a strain on government revenues due to associated high

debt service cost.

Nigeria’s external debt rose to $18.91 billion (N5.787 trillion) as at the end of December 2017, while domestic debt rose to $41.142brillion (N12.589 trillion), bringing the total debt stock of the country to N21.725 trillion ($70.92 billion), latest data released by the Debt Management Office (DMO) has shown.

Former Coordinating Minis-

ter of the Economy and Minister for Finance Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala estimated that Nigeria needs N10.63 trillion ($67 billion) annually to build hospitals and schools, fix the energy sector, and repair bridges and roads.

Though the country budgets an average of $5.9 billion to fund infrastructure yearly, endemic corruption, nepotism and poor implementation have ensured little progress.

In contrast to international benchmarks of 70 per cent, Nigeria’s core infrastructure stock is estimated at only 20-25 per cent of GDP, the equivalent of less than $100 billion in 2012, the reason for Nigeria’s poor global competitiveness despite its stature as Africa’s biggest economy becomes more glaring.

Oil production hit 1.8 million barrels daily in April 2018, representing a 50 percent increase from the 1.2 million barrels produced in the thick of militant attacks, according to the most recent OPEC data.

“Although oil price is rallying, we should learn from past experience and create a stabilization system such as the sovereign wealth fund which will help us in funding infrastructure,” Adenikiju concluded.

JUMOKE AKIYODE-LAWANSON

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he 9mobile sale will still go on regardless of the latest high court ruling in Abuja which attempts to stop the planned sale of the telecommunications company on the basis that some investors in the former Etisalat have demanded a refund of their invested funds, experts say.

This is because judicial precedence from similar cases in the past, by law should be applied.

Before the complains from Afdin Ventures Limited and Dirbia Nigeria Limited who claim to have invested a total of $43,330,950 million in Etisalat in 2009, Spectrum Wireless, another non-bank investor had gone to court demanding a refund of about $35 million, stating the same reason as not being recognised or carried along in the transition of the former Etisalat, now 9mobile.

However, despite earlier ruling

by Justice Ibrahim Buba of the Federal High Court Ikoyi Lagos, on Friday 12, January 2018 which nullified the interim board of 9mobile and issued a buyers beware (caveat emptor) to bidders interested in the sale of 9mobile, judicial precedence applied and Barclays Africa was able to continue with the bidding process, after which Teleology emerged as the preferred bidder to take over 9mobile.

“The issue surrounding minority shareholdings in a private company such as 9mobile has precedence already set by the various change of ownerships in what is now Airtel from Econet,” Olusola Teniola, President Association of Telecommunications Companies of Nigeria (ATCON) told BusinessDay. “Being a private shareholder, the investments made by them may appear to be passive as the majority shareholders in 9mobile have now walked away and left their shares to a trustee that has now engaged Barclays Africa to find a purchaser to ensure that EMTS- owners of the defunct Etisalat- is a going concern and able to meet its outstanding liabilities,” Teniola said.

According to him, this situation is not new to the industry and though each one is unique, the common thing is that it involves private limited companies operating in a very highly competitive industry and guarantees on return on investments are not assured.

Industry watchers are concerned that it is more than likely that the interruptions and tactics to derail the sale of 9mobile will dissuade investors in bringing in foreign direct investment (FDI) into Nigeria’s telecommunications sector, already grappling with lower FDI. Foreign Direct Investments (FDI) into the Nigerian telecommunications sector dropped to its lowest in the last three years, declining by 35 per cent in 2017 to $606.6 million from $931.2 million in 2016, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

The 2017 FDI figure was the lowest in the last three years as the annual downward trend, which began in 2015 worsened. In 2015, FDI into the sector had decreased from $994.3 million the previous year to $938.1 million, representing a 5.7 per cent dip.

•Continues online at www.businessdayonline.com

Friday 20 April 2018

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Soot: Rivers set to sue FG, oil majors … ‘it is a plot to depopulate Rivers’ IGNATIUS CHUKWU

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ivers State government is set to sue the Federal Government and some oil companies over the black clouds in the city of Port Harcourt and environs by what is called soot.

The governor, Nyesom Wike, told a team from the United Nations and the Federal Ministry of Environment that he had instructed the state attorney-general to file a suit.

He said the Federal Government deliberately planned to eliminate a greater percentage of the state’s population by the failure to act on the soot and its primary causes.

The threat to sue comes on the plans by the residents to begin protest marches around the state capital. The state government has thus begun to direct where the anger should fall. Several pro-Wike groups have been pointing fingers at the Federal Government. Now, a suit against the soot may be in the offing.

Addressing the delegation of the UN in Port Harcourt on Wednesday, during a meeting

to tackle the soot, the governor called on the United Nations to prevail on the Federal Government to act on the soot.

“The problem of soot is not caused by the Rivers State government. It is caused by federal agencies that are practically damaging the environment by their illegal activities.

“The Rivers State government does not own companies that refine crude. We have made representations to the FG and her agencies on the issue of soot, to no avail.

“We have called on the security agencies to find more refined ways of destroying the illegal refineries. We have informed the National Council of Environment, the Military and all federal regulatory agencies, but they are not interested in intervening,” he said.

The governor said the refusal of the Federal Government to act on all data supplied on the soot was a deliberate ploy to make Rivers people suffer health hazards, which would lead to untimely deaths.

“We want the international community to come to our aid and pressure the Federal Government not to politicise

environmental issues. We are ready to work with the international community to address this challenge.

“All the Federal Government is doing is to chase shadows, organising people to protest. Until they stop politicising very serious issues and focus on governance, we will head nowhere,” he said.

He wondered why the Federal Government would withdraw $1 billion for security challenge and not withdraw same amount for environmental challenge in the Niger Delta. He said the $1 billion withdrawn by the Federal Government was mainly for election purposes and not for security.

Leader of the UN delegation to Rivers State, Charles Ekong, said the mission of the delegation was to investigative the nature so as to determine a lasting solution to the soot challenge in the state.

In his remarks, assistant director, Federal Ministry of Health, Adebayo Durojaiye, said the UN delegation met with officials of the Rivers State government on the soot challenge.

A1 NEWS

BUSINESS DAY

IO Furniture partners Manufacturers seek review of environmental PWAN Plus to deepen levy, petroleum storage permit to lower cost are expected to pay. Recently, the AMAKA ANAGOR-EWUZIE brand trust state signed into law the Land Use

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O Furniture Limited, a Lagos-based furniture making company, and PWAN Plus, also a Lagosbased network marketing real estate solution-providing firm, have gone into partnership aimed at tapping into the opportunities that working together offer.

The recently consolidated synergy will see the two organisations work in partnership for a mutually beneficial interest using cutting-edge technology and creativity to drive their set goals.

At a press conference held at the IO Furniture head office in Lagos, the founders of the organisations spoke on the importance of the collaboration and why they chose the option of combined efforts.

Speaking at the conference, Muni Shonibare, managing director/CEO, IO Furniture, explained the rationale for synergy with PWAN Plus, saying the current dynamics in global businesses had necessitated the two organisations to seek cooperation with definite terms in order to advance their brands and earnings.

“Working together would bring fresh and valuable perspectives to creating new designs that are appealing to clients through synergy of ideas and expertise,” she said.

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anufacturers, under the aegis of the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), have appealed to the Lagos State government to review downward, the Environmental Development levy and the petroleum storage permit payable to the Lagos State Environmental Protection Agency (LASEPA).

According to them, LASEPA recently increased the Environmental Development levy by 150 percent, adding that the yearly review of the Environmental Audit Report by LASEPA as against the three-yearly review of same document by the National EnvironmentalStandardsandRegulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA) has imposed huge cost on manufacturers.

Speaking at the MAN Ikeja branch2018breakfastmeetingfor managing director and CEOs on Thursday,FrankJacobs,president of MAN, said manufacturers were facing numerous challenges that cut across dearth of supporting infrastructure,overregulationand payment of multiple taxations.

Jacobs, who commended the Lagos State government for its efforts towards helping manufacturers out of the challenges facing their businesses, said members of MAN had also complained that the state government had failed to implement the agreement on inspection of factories and workplaces.

“Manufacturers in Lagos have been challenged by the introduction of some tax heads and increment in taxes/levies without consultation with stakeholders, who

Charge 2018, which reviewed upward payment of land use charge.

This has further compounded the woes of manufacturers who are at the verge of collapse on the weight of high operating cost,” Jacobs, who was represented by Issac Agoye, vice president, Lagos zone and national treasurer, said.

Paul Usoro, guest speaker, who presented a paper on Federal Government Policies on EaseofDoingBusinessinNigeria,’ listed issues such as insufficient power supply; high cost of foreign exchange, unpredictability of government policies and difficulties in raising capitals for starting business as major setback to the manufacturers businesses.

According to Usoro, some policies of the Central Bank have frozen the lending abilities of commercialbanksandalsomake credit facilities very costly for businesses. These issues, he said, constitute serious economic instabilitythataffectsmanufacturers negatively.

“Apart from the duplication of functions by government ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs), there is issue around the multiplicity of government agencies present at the seaports, and this not only delays cargo clearancebuthashugecostimplication on businesses,” Usoro said.

Reacting to this, Governor Akinwumi Ambode, who described members of MAN as partners to the progress made so far by the state, promised to look into the submissions of MAN in ordertocreateawin-winsituation forbothpartiesaswellascreatean enabling environment for businesses to grow.

Immigration Service generated N35.7bn local revenue in 2017 … figure down 0.9% compared to 2016 CYNTHIA EGBOBOH, Abuja

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he Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) i n 2 0 1 7 g e n e ra t e d N35,724,482,338.26 in 2017, as against N36,175,778,205.77 local revenue generated in 2016, said National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) in its April 2018 report.

According to the report, statistics revealed that the revenue dropped from N13, 361,621,621.77 in 2016 to N13, 173,254,969.00 in 2017.

This figure represents 0.97

L-R: Henry Rowlands, acting executive commissioner of corporate services, Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC); Isiaku Tilde, acting executive commissioner for operations, SEC, and Mary Uduak, acting director-general of SEC, during the First Capital Market committee meeting for 2018, in Lagos, yesterday.

Kidnapping: Evans won’t escape justice, Lagos insists JOSHUA BASSEY

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illionaire kidnapper, Chukwudumeme Onwuamadike, popularly known as Evans, who is still in the custody of the police, will not escape justice, the Lagos State government has insisted.

Evanswasarrestedathismultimillion naira mansion in Magodo area of Lagos in June 2017, for alleged involvement in high profile kidnap cases in which victims reportedly paid billions of naira ransom to secure their freedom.

The alleged kidnap kingpin alongside members of his gangs also reportedly demanded and got ransom in the US dollars from their victims.

Among the several kidnap victims linked to Evans’ exploits while he held sway included Mbarikatta William Uboma, 35, kidnapped June 16, 2012, on his arrival from Hungary; Paul Cole, 34, from Ohafia in Abia State; Mohammed Jamal, 22, a Lebanese, kidnapped onAugust19,2012atAjah;Kingsley Nwokenta,34,kidnappedSeptember 19, 2012 after he left Lebanana BarinFestacatMile2underbridge; Anthony Ozoanidobi, 41, kidnapped in October 10, 2012 along Marwa Road, Satellite Town.

Since his arrest last year, Evans has been in and out of court, but the wheel of justice seems to have been very slow, as the kidnap kingpin who first admitted guilt, later recanted, and pleaded not guilty

to the criminal charges preferred against him by the state.

Adeniji Kazeem, the Lagos State attorney general and commissioner for justice, who gave an updateonthecaseatamediabriefing on Thursday, said there was no going back on the prosecution, insisting that the case would be prosecutedtoitslogicalconclusion.

“OntheEvans’matter,thecases filed against him are ongoing in court. The issue is that the lawyer representing him is trying to play some games to delay the matter but in all his games, we have been defeating him in court.

“We have filed different cases.

Someareforkidnappingandsome bordered on murder and his lawyerisfightingallthecasesbutwhatI

canassurethepeopleisthatweare committed to ensuring the matter is concluded and defeat him at the end of the day,” Kazeem said.

Speaking on another high profile cases including the collapse of Synagogue Church building in which over 100 people died in 2014, Kazeem said the was progressing in court. He noted that a no case submission filed by the counsel to the accused was recently dismissed in court, while the general overseer of the Christian Praying Assembly, Rev. Chukwuemeka Ezeugo, also known as ‘Reverend King,’ who is presently on death row, would have his fate determined in due course.

percent difference from the previous figure recorded in 2016. While the number of applicant during the period also dropped from 3,684,288 in 2016 to 720,958, representing 80.43 percent drop.

On the heels of this development, industry watchers attribute this shortfall to economy constraints, which have slowed down the travelling power of citizens and caused some industrialists to look inward for their secondary materials instead of travelling to get them abroad.

Nigeria America Chamber set to build AGOA Export Park in Edo

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igerian American ChamberofCommerce(NACC) has expressed readiness to partner the Edo State government in the development of an export zone to explore opportunities in the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA).

This was disclosed by delegation of the Nigerian American Chamber of Commerce led by the chamber’s vice chairman, Abayomi Adigun, on a courtesy visit at the Government House in Benin City, Edo State.

Adigun said the chamber reached a decision to set up the AGOA Park in Edo State to facilitate export of Nigerian products to the US. Adigun said the NACC would partner the state to promote investment in tourism, sports and entertainment, adding, “NACC has the capacity to assist the state in training women and youths

throughworkshopsandseminars which will focus on economic empowerment.”

Governor Godwin Obaseki said the project would expand opportunities for industries as well as small and medium scale enterprises to be situated in the Benin Industrial Park complex.

He noted that the visit by the NACC was timely, as the state was committed to attracting investments that would exploit her abundant natural endowments and engage the teeming youth population.

According to Obaseki, “The state’s institutional reforms would serve as enablers for sustainable industrial growth which would create prosperity for the people.

We are ready to partner with NACC to explore opportunities offeredbytheAGOAandpromote the economic potentials of the state on the global stage.”

A2 BUSINESS DAY NEWS 2019: Proliferation of political parties a concern - group OWEDE AGBAJILEKE, Abuja

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head of the 2019 general elections, the Nigerian Election Working Group has decried the proliferation of political parties in Nigeria.

It therefore called on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to propose an amendment to the 1999 Constitution and the Electoral Act to ensure that only parties with reasonable popular support have access to the ballot paper.

Convener of the group, Adele Jinadu, a professor, stated this at a press conference in Abuja on Thursday, saying that too many political parties not only cost money but also confuse the electoral empire and electorates.

According to INEC, there are currently 68 registered political parties in Nigeria with over 100 applications from political associations.

Jinadu said: “The number of political parties registered in Nigeria is becoming excessive and INEC has no legal basis to

UNIDO targets economic zones, industrial parks as 2018-2022 country programme takes off with $50m HARRISON EDEH, ABUJA

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heUnitedNation’sIndustrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) on Thursday took offitscountryprogrammeof20182022 with $50 million provisional funding, while focusing on special economic zones, industrial parks and private sector investor development programme.

Other country programmes theorganisationwillbefocusingon include:Industrialgovernance,research and statistics programmes.

Also in the organisation’s radar include:Micro,smallandmedium andenterprisesdevelopmentprogramme; innovation, science and technology management.

Also included in their country programmes for the year in focus includes: Minerals and metals development programme; trade capacity building programme, renewable energy development programme, and environmental management programme.

Jean Bakole, the country director of UNIDO, told the press at the validation workshop for the take off of the country programme on Thursday in Abuja that UNIDO would be relying on the continuous support of the Nigerian government in terms of mobilisation ofthesupportsfunds,whichwould enable us attract more resources from other partners.

According to Bakole, “What we need is massive investment, and may be we could exceed $50 million, because of the programmes we are looking at such as in job creation and sustainable economic growth.”

He pointed out further that, “Nigerian government as the biggesteconomyinAfrica,andthereis no good way we could sustain our economic growth without industrialising in a sustainable manner.

Wewouldkeepsupportingbyproviding the needed human capital that sustains the industrial sector.”

Speaking further on the just concluded country programme, he said, “The Nigerian government supported us with a contribution of $10 million in the just concluded programme.

In the current programme of 2018-2022, we are relying on the support of the Nigerian government as they lead the way in the support, even as we talk to our bilateral partners to support Nigeria to move ahead on the focused sectors.”

constrain the process because successive Supreme Court judgments have compelled INEC to register almost all applicants.

“INEC should begin engagement with various stakeholders, especially citizens, civil society, the political parties and the National Assembly, to ensure that only parties and candidates with demonstrable support can get onto the ballot.

“INEC should propose an amendment to the Constitution and the Electoral Act to ensure that only parties with reasonable popular support have access to the ballot paper.”

He also charged the electoral umpire to establish a process of debriefing its ad-hoc staff after every election, in order to document their experiences and generate lessons from them for future exercises.

On the July 14, 2018 governorship election in Ekiti State, Jinadu urged election officials and voters not to be deterred from participating in the electoral process by excessive deployment of security personnel.

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EIB, AfDB to support private sector with DBN backing LAIDE AKINBOADE-ORIERE

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uropean Investment Bank (EIB) and the African Development Bank (AfDB) have agreed to support the creation of the new Development Bank of Nigeria (DBN) to strengthen lending for business and agriculture investment in Nigeria.

The EIB has finalised a $20-million equity stake in the new financing institution, alongside $50-million equity participation from the AfDB. The DBN has been created by the Federal Government to address financing challenges hindering private sector investment in the country.

The bank is called to play an important and catalytic role in providing funding and risk sharing facilities to micro, small and medium enterprises as well as small corporates.

“The DBN will overcome the funding gap in the micro-,

small- and medium-scale enterprises space and help businesses unlock opportunities across Nigeria. DBN’s ambition is strengthened by the financial and technical support of international partners, including the EIB and AfDB. “ The new institution builds on international experience and uses a business model that has demonstrated proven success to enhance private-sector investment across Africa and around the world where other financing options are inadequate or absent,” Tony Okpanachi, managing director, DBN, said.

“Private sector businesses are critical to the development of the Nigerian economy as they possess huge potential for employment generation and output diversification. Nevertheless, there has been under-performance of these businesses and this has undermined their contri-

bution to economic growth.

“Among the issues affecting their performance, the shortage of finance, particularly investment finance, occupies a very central position.

The DBN is expected to contribute to mobilising significant long-term financing to an important yet underserved sector with high development potential,” Stefan Nalletamby, director of the Financial Sector Development Department at the AfDB, said.

“New private sector investment is crucial to create jobs and enable business to expand and limited access to long-term financing holds back economic growth. The European Investment Bank is pleased to support the new Development Bank of Nigeria to strengthen private-sector investment in Africa’s largest economy.

“We look forward to continued close cooperation with Nigerian and interna-

tional partners to ensure that once fully operational the new Development Bank of Nigeria can help harness the country’s economic potential,” Ambroise Fayolle, vice-president, EIB, said.

“The European Union is committed to supporting private-sector investment in Nigeria. The new backing for the Development Bank of Nigeria by both the EIB, the bank of the European Union and the AfDB, with 13 EU member state shareholders, will make a clear contribution to tackling the lack of access to credit by entrepreneurs and businesses across the country.

“With more investment, we hope to promote a vibrant economy and stimulate growth, employment and increase opportunities, especially for youth,” Ketil Karlsen, head of the European Union Delegation to Nigeria and the ECOWAS, said.

No work no pay threat: Health workers vow to continue indefinite strike LAIDE AKINBOADE-ORIERE

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ational chairman of Joint Health Sector Union (JOHESU), Josiah Biobelemoye, on Thursday, vowed to continue its ongoing strike despite government’s “no work, no pay threats.”

Biobelemoye, speaking in an exclusive telephone interview with BusinessDay in Abuja, on Thursday, said government’s threats to replace the health workers would not deter them.

JOHESU, which comprises about 95 percent of the professional groups in the health sector, had embarked on the indefinite strike since April 16, 2018, after several fruitless efforts to get government agree to its demand for better condition of service.

This development is coming on the heels of Federal Government’s threats to invoke labour law of ‘no work no pay’ rule if the JOHESU continued their strike, which has crippled health care delivery in Federal Government health institutions.

JOHESU is demanding among other things - adjustment of CONHESS salary, as done for CONMESS since January 2014, abolition of scale promotion, payment of outstanding arrears on promotion, skipping and relativity, autonomy for teaching and specialist hospitals.

Others include implementation of all court judgments and review of retirement age from 60 - 65 years, as done for the tertiary education sector.

According to Biobelemoye, “For the benefit of Nigerians, I wish to inform them that, what the Federal Government is doing is that after using machete on a child, you are now telling the child not to cry.

“We entered into an agreement with the Federal Government about six months ago, an agreement that is suppose to have been implemented in five weeks, and the Federal Government failed to implement the agreement.

L-R: Natalie Kolbe, non executive director, Sigma Pensions; Umaru Modibbo, MD/CEO and founder; Mark Collier, director, and Rasaki Oladejo, outgoing chairman, Sigma Pensions, during retirement and send forth-party in honour of the past chairman in Abuja.

Police return stolen mace to Senate … as Senate summons IGP, DSS DG OWEDE AGBAJILEKE & STELLA ENENCHE, Abuja

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he Senate stolen mace carted away by thugs during Wednesday plenary has been re-

turned.

The development comes as the Senate summoned the Inspector General of Police, Ibrahim Idris, and director general of the Department of State Services (DSS), Lawan Daura, to appear before it next week to explain how far they had gone in apprehending and prosecuting the perpetrators of the act.

Deputy inspector general of police (DIG), operation, Joshak Habila, returned the mace to the Clerk of the National Assembly, Sani Omilori on Thursday.

He handed over the instrument of authority at the entrance of the central lobby of the National Assembly where the two hallowed chambers are located.

Deputy Senate president, Ike Ekweremadu, had given the inspector general of police and director-general of the DSS

24 hours to retrieve the stolen mace.

Recall that on Wednesday, thugs suspected to be loyalists of the suspended senator, Ovie Omo-Agege, had invaded the Senate, disrupted plenary and stole the mace.

However, the suspended lawmaker, who stormed the chamber on Wednesday alongside his supporters, was conspicuously absent at Thursday plenary.

In his remarks, Ekweremadu said the security in the National Assembly was outside its control, saying the parliament would summon the two security heads on the matter next week.

He said: “We hold that it will be a detour to the state of nature where life was lawless and brutish if what happened yesterday is allowed to go unpunished or to be swept under the carpet. It will never happen. We will get to the roots of the matter.

“We call on the Inspector General of Police and DirectorGeneral of the State Security Service to ensure that all those, who plotted, aided, abated, and executed this dastardly affront

on our democracy and belittled Nigeria before the international community must be brought to book to serve as a deterrent to others.

“We will be inviting them next week to brief us on the state of the investigations.”

The police said the mace was found under the National Stadium flyover, few meters before the city gate in the Federal Capital territory, Abuja.

A statement made available to BusinessDay early Thursday morning by the Deputy Force Public Relations Officer of the Nigeria Police Force, Aremu Adeniran, said a patriotic passer-by alerted the police on sighting the mace, where it was abandoned.

Adeniran noted that the IGP had, following the incident on Wednesday, “immediately instituted a high-powered Police Investigation and Intelligence Team coordinated by the IGP Monitoring Unit of the Force and further directed a total lockdown of the Federal Capital Territory with intense surveillance patrol and thorough Stop and Search Operations at various Police check-points with a view to arresting perpetrators and

possible recovery of the stolen mace.”

The police teams also engaged in massive raids of identified criminal spots/flashpoints, stop and search operations The quick response “forced the suspected miscreants to abandon the Mace at a point under the flyover before the City Gate, where a patriotic passerby saw it and alerted the police.”

He said, “Discreet investigation into the incident is still ongoing to arrest and bring the perpetrators to justice” The police commended members of the public, especially motorists within Abuja metropolis for their support, cooperation and timely information during the rigorous stop and search operations for the recovery of the mace.

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Cyril Ramaphosa outlines blueprint to revive South Africa economy

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FCA calls on preference share issuers to review investor advice

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Investors increase bets on Fed rate rises Expectations of three or even four hikes this year rise as growth worries persist were the stock market, there would JOE RENNISON, PETER WELLS AND be a ‘Markets in Turmoil’ special JOHN AUTHERS tonight on CNBC,” said Peter Atwanvestors this week sharply in- ter, a market analyst with Financial creased their expectations that Insyghts in Virginia.

Markets are expecting higher the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates three or possibly short-term rates despite the recent four times this year, even as geopolitical tension regarding Syria yields on long-term bonds showed and the trade spat between the US and China. Many investors noted concerns about growth.

The mixed message from the that heightened stock market volatilmarkets suggests investors increas- ity in February did not deter the Fed ingly believe that the US central from raising rates in March, and that bank will move aggressively to tamp it has since stuck to its hawkish tone.

However, longer-dated Treasury down inflationary pressures, but are worried that the longer-term yields have not followed short-dated implications could be counter- rates higher. That means the difference between two-year and 10-year productive.

“You have this tug of war with Treasury yields, a measure known the Fed trying to match policy to ris- as the yield “curve”, has compressed, ing inflation expectations without falling to as little as 41 basis points taking the wind out of the sails of on Wednesday, down 10 basis points the economy,” said Charlie Ripley, since the start of this year.

This is the “flattest” curve on senior investment strategist at Althis measure since 2007, before lianz Investment Management.

The probability that the Fed will the financial crisis. An outright raise rates three times in 2018, de- “inversion” of the curve, in which rived from prices in futures markets, long-term rates are lower than shortrose above 80 per cent on Wednes- term rates, is widely regarded as an day, up from 66.3 per cent a week indicator of a coming recession.

“We have had a real flattening ago. Investors are now also giving credence to the possibility that the of the curve,” said John Herrmann, central bank will surpass its own an interest rate strategist at MUFG projections and add a fourth rate Securities. “It reflects the more conrise as well — a chance now put at sistent messaging from the Fed that the base case will be three to four above 30 per cent.

Meanwhile, two-year Treasury hikes this year followed by two to yields — which are linked to the three in the following year.”

March readings on producer Fed Funds rate — rose to their highest level since before the Lehman price inflation came in higher than Brothers bankruptcy in 2008. They expected, while core consumer price now stand at 2.43 per cent, up from inflation ticked above 2 per cent for the first time since early 2017 and 1.26 per cent last September.

“If the two-year US Treasury note retail sales growth topped forecasts.

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Ethereum’s Vitalik Buterin on the bitcoin bubble and running a $125bn blockchain The coder on the highs and lows of being at the helm of one of the most successful cryptocurrencies

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p in San Francisco’s Monterey Heights district stands a modest detached house; a house that would be perfectly ordinary, were its wide windows not covered in neon green scribbles — half-finished equations, anatomies of computer architecture. They are marks left by the coders who use this place as a hide-out.

The troupe of five or so developers, clad in hoodies and jeans, have an air of Peter Pan’s lost boys. They may be young — in their early to mid-twenties — but these programmers are the heart of the most extraordinary financial story of recent months: cryptocurrencies, digital tokens with no intrinsic value, suddenly worth billions. I’m here to meet the coders’ leader, Vitalik Buterin, the Russian-Canadian creator of Ethereum, arguably the most successful of the hundreds of copycat cryptocurrencies to have emerged in the seven years since bitcoin rose to prominence. On the damp, overcast

morning earlier this year when I take a Lyft car (an Uber equivalent) to his San Francisco headquarters, Ethereum’s market value was some $125bn — second only to bitcoin.

Once I’ve squeezed past his earnest acolytes, the angular young man I recognise from tech conference stages shakes my hand gingerly, his fingers flattened. With hollow cheeks and downy brown hair, he is more mathematics prodigy than tech magnate.

We had booked a fancy Mexican restaurant in San Francisco’s Latininflected Mission district, but at the last minute I was told he would prefer a quiet takeaway here at Ethereum’s San Francisco home-from-home.

He’s dressed in a loose canary yellow T-shirt featuring a cartoon character, black tracksuit trousers and a watch with a pink plastic strap. Its face is a cat, whose transparent Cheshire grin exposes the mechanism. I ask for his precise age. He answers without hesitaContinues on page A4

Jay Powell, Fed chair © Bloomberg

China demands Qualcomm concessions over NXP deal Beijing delay raises fears of $44bn takeover becoming bargaining chip in US trade spat TOM HANCOCK AND NIC FILDES

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S chipmaker Qualcomm must make further concessions over market competition to win Beijing’s approval for its proposed $44bn purchase of Dutch company NXP Semiconductors, China’s commerce ministry said on Thursday.

The ministry said Qualcomm had resubmitted its application to the authorities on Monday, amid fears Beijing might use its crucial approval of the deal as a bargaining chip in trade disputes with Washington.

“This deal has a wide influence and may have a negative impact on market competition,” Gao Feng, ministry spokesman, said.

The US chipmaker had submitted a remedy plan to resolve such problems but “an initial investigation shows Qualcomm’s plan cannot easily solve the problems relating to market competition”.

The commerce ministry’s first public comments on the deal came days after Washington banned component sales to Chinese electronics company ZTE, which relies on the US for microchips.

They heighten fears that US-China tensions over trade and security are seeping into regulatory approvals for deals.

“The crude logic would be ‘you hit ZTE so we’ll hit Qualcomm’,” said Andrew Gilholm of consultancy Control Risks. “Sitting on [the deal] is one thing and blocking it is another matter, and I think Beijing are in wait-and-see mode.”

The US is poised to make its final decisions on tariffs and fresh legislation to block more Chinese acquisitions.

“I think everything is in play and it doesn’t matter if it’s reviews of transactions, or stepped up customs inspections,” said James Robinson, managing director of consultancy APCO World-

wide. “Both sides, but particularly China, will be exerting quiet pressure in places that it knows can inflict pain on the other side.”

National regulators are key players in cross-border mergers and acquisitions. US-Sino sensitivities have been heightened by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States’ decision last month to block the $142bn hostile takeover of Qualcomm

by Singapore-based Broadcom on national security grounds. The committee had already stalled several deals

by Chinese companies in the past year.

China has increasingly asserted its influence in global mergers, with the ministry of commerce exercising powers over any deal worldwide involving companies with more than Rmb2bn ($319m) of turnover in China.

Mr Gao said a decision on Qualcomm’s deal for NXP had taken “a long time to collect and analyse evidence” and that the matter would be dealt with “openly and fairly”.

P&G to buy Merck’s consumer health business for €3.4bn Deal will increase presence in biggest over-the-counter healthcare markets CAMILLA HODGSON AND ANNA NICOLAOU

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rocter & Gamble has agreed to buy the consumer health business of German drugmaker Merck for €3.4bn, as the US group struggles to ignite sales of its household superbrands.

The acquisition will give P&G, which owns a wealth of brands from Pampers nappies to Gillette razors, control of vitamin makers including Seven Seas and Neurobion, which are faster-growing than P&G’s household products.

David Taylor, chief executive of P&G, noted that the over-the-counter healthcare business offers “steady, broad-based growth”.

P&G could use the help. The deal was announced the same day the company unveiled another quarter of anaemic sales growth and shrinking profit margins, as it grapples with discounting from retailers and declining pricing power among its decades-old brands.

Organic sales rose 1 per cent in the

third quarter, missing analysts’ forecasts for 1.8 per cent. Prices declined 2 per cent in the quarter, a fall that Ali Dibadj of Bernstein said spooked investors, sending shares down across the sector.

Shares in P&G fell 2.7 per cent, while Colgate-Palmolive slipped 2.6 per cent and Clorox lost 4.9 per cent.

Mr Taylor on Thursday sought to reassure investors that sales would pick up next year. “I don’t think investors have to wait too long . . . we’re taking steps to change,” he said in an earnings call, after warning that the company operated in “several difficult markets” that were being “disrupted and transformed”.

P&G executives hope Merck’s faster-growing brands will boost its prospects. Merck’s consumer healthcare business generated sales of €911m in 2017, with growth of 6 per cent over the past two years.

However, “it feels a little bit like a broken record”, said Mr Dibadj. The Merck deal “feels incremental, and doesn’t really change the complexion of the company”.

The acquisition marks P&G’s first move since Nelson Peltz, the billionaire activist, joined its board last month. P&G spent much of last year at war with Mr Peltz, who argued that the sprawling company had been too slow to adapt to changing consumer demands.

P&G’s gross profit margins slipped 1 per cent to 48.8 per cent in the quarter, amid pricing pressures and rising commodity and transport costs.

Jon Moeller, chief financial officer, cautioned that “intensifying competition” among retailers such as Walmart and Target had led to lower prices, particularly in items such as baby care.

Merck offered a “branded goods business which carries higher than average company margins”, Mr Moeller told reporters. “So it should be a very good strengthening move to the overall portfolio.”

The maker of Tide detergent and Crest toothpaste reported core profits of $1.00 a share on net sales of $16.3bn, just beating Wall Street forecasts for 98 cents on $16.2bn.

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Cerberus appoints ex-JPMorgan COO as president Matt Zames will oversee all financial service sector deals at US buyout firm MARK VANDEVELDE

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att Zames, the former JPMorgan Chase banker who was once seen as a potential successor to chief executive Jamie Dimon, has taken a top position at Cerberus, the US private equity group behind a series of bold moves on European banks.

As the firm’s “president”, Mr Zames will oversee all financial services investments, as well as take on broader roles in strategic and operational initiatives, the company said in a statement.

In the past year, Cerberus has become a top shareholder at two of Germany’s biggest banks, Deutsche Bank and Commerz-

bank. It also led a deal to buy HSH Nordbank from two German states, and bought a large real estate business from Spanish lender BBVA. Mr Zames, whose appointment was first reported by the Wall Street Journal, left JPMorgan last year after spending half a decade as chief operating officer.

He had served under one of

the longest-serving CEOs on Wall Street, and “didn’t want to wait any longer” to gain further power and influence, a former colleague said at the time. He was also keen to run a business, another person familiar with his plans told the FT last June.

“Cerberus has always focused heavily on operationally-oriented

investing,” said the firm’s billionaire founder Steve Feinberg in a statement, calling Mr Zames “a world-class operating executive.”

The firm also announced that Mr Feinberg would share his chief executive role with Frank Bruno, a longtime dealmaker who was previously designated the firm’s “president”.

Ethereum’s Vitalik Buterin on the bitcoin...

Miguel Díaz-Canel opens a new chapter for Cuba

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President in waiting represents the possibility of crucial change for younger generation

tion: “23.96”.

It was his father Dmitry, also a computer scientist, who first introduced his son to the idea of blockchain and cryptocurrency. He had encouraged his son to build video games from the age of 10.

Then in 2011 he told him about bitcoin.

Created two years earlier as the world reeled from the failures of the banking system, bitcoin lets people exchange cash online without a bank mediating the transaction. Bitcoin’s enigmatic creator remains unidentified, but among its godfathers were cypherpunks: hackers dedicated to privacy, determined to undermine authorities who led us to the financial crisis.

The then 17-year-old Vitalik initially dismissed the idea, but then did his own research into virtual money.

Soon he was writing articles — paid for in bitcoins — while studying computer science at Canada’s University of Waterloo, eventually leading him to co-found Bitcoin Magazine. Back in 2011, bitcoin was considered so radical many believed governments would ban it, pointing to the dark market it supported. Yet it survived, trading at highs of $19,000 at Christmas, although a crash followed.

A blockchain is “an interesting and new kind of organism” Buterin says after we have slid across floorboards through the open-plan living room to a wooden dining table. That is something of an understatement, I think.

Simply put, a blockchain is a ledger stored across thousands of computers. Spreading the record out this way, and securing it with Byzantine mathematics called cryptography, makes it harder to tamper with than traditional information hoards. Centralised data troves, such as your brain, are liable to lose things — and, as Equifax found via the hacking of its customer data files, are vulnerable to attack. By contrast, blockchain ledgers are open for all to read and not controlled by a single entity.

Buterin’s particular genius was to see the potential to create a blockchain of his own, Ethereum, that other services could build on, from payments to games. It quickly grew a life of its own, with everyone from scientists to banks and entrepreneurs clamouring to build on it. Aged just 19, Buterin quit university to guide it.

We both make for a bench; after some awkward hovering, he folds his bony frame into a chair. We dither about food. I suggest tacos or pizza.

His collaborator, Thomas Greco, a developer who says he has worked with Buterin for years, suggests Thai.

Before I have time to find a menu on my phone, Greco has whizzed through options for nearby Chaiya Thai Restaurant and is ordering with his thumb.

JOHN PAUL RATHBONE

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Cyril Ramaphosa in London on Wednesday. He has appointed four ‘lions’ to help in his hunt for $100bn of investments © Charlie Bibby/FT

Cyril Ramaphosa outlines blueprint to revive South Africa economy New president wants to create ‘conducive investment climate’ after years of scandal DAVID PILLING, LIONEL BARBER AND ALEC RUSSELL

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yril Ramaphosa, South Africa’s new president, is confident he can attract more than $100bn of investments as he sets out an ambitious business-centred strategy to resurrect the stuttering economy.

In a wide-ranging interview with the Financial Times, he said he would draw a line under a decade of malaise in Africa’s most industrialised nation, pledging that the focus of his economic blueprint was “to get investments going”.

“I may be short-changing myself when I say $100bn,” said Mr Ramaphosa, who has appointed four senior figures, including former finance minister Trevor Manuel, as “lions” to hunt for investments.

Mr Ramaphosa said he would look to both western and Chinese funding to back his plans. Beijing was standing by to invest, he said, citing officials close to President Xi Jinping and highlighting China’s role in backing a $10bn dam in

the Eastern Cape, one of South Africa’s poorest provinces.

“I say, ‘Hell, we need the money’,” he responded, when asked if he was concerned about China’s dominant role in Africa. “I am going to ensure that we get the conditions that are suitable for our needs.”

Mr Ramaphosa replaced scandalwracked Jacob Zuma as president in February after a ferocious struggle within the governing African National Congress.

Asked for his strategy for reviving the economy, Mr Ramaphosa said he would create a “conducive investment climate”, including through incentives, highlighting sectors such as tourism, agriculture and manufacturing.

“I’m approaching it with a privatesector lens,” said Mr Ramaphosa, who left politics in the mid-1990s to become one of the country’s most successful black business leaders. “When I was in the private sector, you built a book and that’s how I’m approaching it. I want to build a book of investment.”

Mr Ramaphosa, who has inherited a country blighted by years of scandal, acknowledged that as frustrations mount over rampant poverty in one of the world’s most unequal countries, he has to balance business-friendly policies with pent-up demand for social and economic justice.

In an effort to neutralise more radical views, including those of Julius Malema’s breakaway Economic Freedom Fighters, the president backed a motion to consider a constitutional amendment that would make it easier to expropriate land without compensation. But Mr Ramaphosa said addressing the “gaping and bleeding” wound caused by the hunger for land need not threaten either business or the white minority.

“We are not going to go for a smashand-grab,” he said. “We are seeking to create a very good, solid and durable environment for investment.” That could only be achieved through inclusive growth, he said. Responding now to people’s “yearning for land”, he added, would insure against “policy mishaps” in future.

General Electric sets out on road to regaining investors’ trust First-quarter earnings will show how much progress chief is making ED CROOKS

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n General Electric’s annual report in February, chief executive John Flannery told investors that he wanted to “dedicate 2018 to earning back your trust and delivering for you”. They were carefully chosen words. His job was not only to turn round GE’s dismal performance, but also to give investors confidence that the improvement is real.

Mr Flannery’s first nine months as chief executive since taking over from Jeff Immelt in August last year have been dominated by a barrage of bad news, including a dividend cut, payments of $15bn needed to meet liabilities from long-discarded insurance operations, and a sharp downturn in demand for gas turbines for power generation.

Last Friday GE published restated earnings for 2016 and 2017, recast to reflect a new US accounting standard for recognising revenue from long-term contracts, which brought into focus the scale of the challenge he faces. Earnings for the first quarter of 2018 on Friday will show how much progress he is making.

Although GE is being investigated by the Securities and Exchange Commission over its revenue recognition practices, its restatement of past years’ earnings is not unusual. Every US company has had to adopt the new accounting standard, known as ASC 606, and several including Boeing and General Dynamics have opted to revise past earnings. The new standard affects only accounting revenues and prof-

its, not cash flows or the underlying economics of the contracts, said GE. What the restatement of earnings does affect is how GE’s performance is presented to investors. Under the lens of the new standard, the company’s grim earnings reports for last year look even worse than they had previously appeared.

The revisions resulting from ASC 606 have been much greater for GE than for some of its peers. Boeing revised its 2017 operating earnings of $10.3bn up by $66m. Lockheed Martin shaved just $8m from reported 2017 operating profits of about $5.12bn.

United Technologies said in February that it expected the new standard to have “an immaterial impact” on net income this year. For Microsoft, reported operating income for 2016-17 was revised up from $22.3bn to $29bn.

fter the Soviet Union collapsed, Miguel Díaz-Canel used a bicycle to get around his hometown of Santa Clara, a move that helped burnish the provincial party leader’s popular touch — but one that also allowed him to turn up stealthily at work centres to check that nobody was stealing scarce goods.

Thirty years later, Mr Díaz-Canel was this week named as Raúl Castro’s replacement as Cuba’s president in a carefully managed succession from the Castro brothers’ rule.

Lacking their charisma and revolutionary credentials, the 58-year-old party apparatchik will again need all the stealth and popular goodwill he can muster to confront the challenges that the socialist island faces.

Much as when the USSR ended and pulled the plug on generous subsidies, Cuba’s Soviet-style economy is on the rocks, US rhetoric and actions are rising, traditional allies such as Venezuela are in crisis and Cuba’s ruling Communist party faces an uncertain future.

“The received wisdom is there will be no change under Díaz-Canel, and he will spend his first year consolidating his position,” said a European diplomat in Havana. “But then he will have to deliver at least a sense of improved well being to Cubans — even as he lacks the means to do so.”

Tall, broad-shouldered and with something of the good looks of actor Richard Gere, the silver haired Mr DíazCanel was born into a family of factory workers in Santa Clara in central Cuba.

His enjoyment of rock music, promotion of LGBT rights and use of an iPad seemingly casts him as a moderniser.

His youth, and the fact that he is often accompanied at public functions by his second wife, Lis Cuesta, also contrasts with the gerontocratic “historic generation” that led the 1959 revolution and has ruled since. That is a crucial change for younger Cubans, who no longer respond to tired stories of revolutionary heroes and pompous exhortations to sacrifice.

“His comfortable informality and accessibility suggests a different personal style than the retiring generation,” said John McAuliff of the Fund for Reconciliation and Development, a nonprofit that supports closer ties between the US and former adversaries such as Vietnam, who recalls meeting him several years ago at a Havana reception.

“He and his wife walked through the crowd enjoying the music of Los Van Van, working it like a US politician.”

Yet Mr Díaz-Canel is no liberal.

Often unsmiling, and with a reputation for managerial efficiency, he worked his way up the Communist party by saying and doing all the right things until he became vice-president in 2012.

He led Cuba’s delegation to the London Olympics that year and met Kim Jong Un in North Korea in 2015, but his public profile is so low that until recently very few Cubans were aware of him.

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HASHTAGS How Nigerian youths responded to Buhari’s “Lazy” comments on Twitter FRANK ELEANYA

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resident Muhammadu Buhari sparked off a nationwide maelstrom on

Wednesday, while making a speech at the Commonwealth Business Forum in London where he described young people in Nigeria as largely “lazy”

and “uneducated”.

Buhari was quoted to have said that “More than 60 per cent of the population is below 30. A lot of them haven’t been to

school and they are claiming that Nigeria is an oil producing country, therefore, they should sit and do nothing, and get housing, healthcare, education

free.”

As a result of the President’s speech, many Nigerian youths have taken to social media platforms such as Twitter to dis-

tance themselves from the “lazy” and “uneducated” categorisation. Below are a few of the tweets with the hashtag #LazyNigerianYouths:

@LadyPainterNG: I am Nigerian. I paint homes and offices for a living. @MBuhari I am not lazy, we are not lazy. @fabokai: I am a UAV pilot and I also fix drones, laziness does not run in my DNA #LazyNigerianYouths @Ugovations: My name is Ugochukwu, a Nigerian. I am an innovator. I founded @Ugovations Engineering. I produce power inverters, automatic switches and printed circuit boards (PCBs). I am very hardworking and I am not one of the #LazyNigerianYouths

@osaeB: These very young Nigerians served me breakfast at The Place this morning. They wake up 4:30 a.m every day to get ready for work. They jump buses and Okadas in Lagos traffic. They are not lazy @MBuhari. They just need more opportunities to excel #LazyNigerianYouths

@NnadiArts: The president says we are lazy but we are not the ones riding the motorbikes up and down for fun all day. These are the results of our laziness #LazyNigeriaYouths:

@vincentafolabil: I am a graduate of Urban and Regional Planning with diploma in Project Management without job. I took to photography and online freelance to pay for my bills and N250k house rent in Abuja. Government has failed us but we refuse to fail ourselves. We are not #LazyNigerianYouths

@Oagboneni: Hello @mBuhari, I am a proud female mechanic and I run an auto service centre @NenisAutocare. I hustle everyday to get and retain clients. I am here because I was empowered by @TonyElumeluFDN @EDC4SME @VitalVoices @riseupforgirls.

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Highlight of the news reports on our digital platforms this week

Best five stories this week Nigeria to achieve self-sufficiency in rice by 2020 – FG The Federal Government says Nigeria will achieve self-sufficiency in rice production by 2020 with sustained implementation of the Anchor Borrowers’ Programme launched on November 17, 2015.

Bill Gates’ epistle to Nigeria It is Noah Webster’s thinking that in selecting men for office, the electorate should let principle be their guide. He advises that regard should not be given to the particular sector denomination of candidates, but we must look to their character.

Directors of 4 banks pocketed N3.02bn in executive compensation for 2017 Directors of four commercial banks operating in Nigeria pocketed about N3.02 billion in executive compensation and retirement benefits in 2017, the annual report of the lenders show. This is a 34.82 percent increase from N2.24 billion executive at the top echelon of banks got in compensation as at December 2016.

BD INVESTIGATIVE SERIES: Passport scarcity worsens as immigration owes foreign printers

Video of the week

The scarcity of Nigerian passports at immigration offices nationwide has worsened with resultant hardship for citizens intending to procure the document for overseas travel.

Half-empty FEC, stolen mace herald governance slow down, tension ahead of 2019 It was a half empty Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting that Vice President Yemi Osinbajo presided over yesterday as most key ministers are out of the country on official assignment.

Cartoon of the week

Poll of the week

Tweet of the week

POLL RESULTS: So we conducted a poll across our social platforms to see what Nigerian thought about the stolen mace and who should be punished for the lack of security in the Nigerian Senate, seeing that the Mace that must be used for carrying our plenary meetings was stolen.

82% thought the security should be punished, 6% thought the thugs should be punished and the remaining 12% were of the opinion that the CCTV cameras be punished.

That’s just on the humorous side but the ugly truth is that a nation cannot lose its Mace. It was reported found on 19 April, but a government building should not be porous.

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In Association With

Impact Investing: Nigeria, renewable energy and the journey thus far Innocent Unah & ABISinuola David-Olusa

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t has been established that Nigeria is among the countries in Africa with the lowest electricity consumption rates per capita. According to the United Nations, Nigeria has a population of approximately 195 million people with a population growth rate of 2.6 per cent. The World Bank estimates Nigeria’s installed electricity generation capacity from both hydro and thermal sources at 12,522 Megawatts.

This implies a per capita electricity generation capacity of 64.22 Watts.

This compares with South Africa that has a per capita electricity generation capacity of 839.29 Watts. South Africa’s population is projected at close to 56 million and the country has a power generation capacity of 47 thousand Megawatts.

Worse still, the electricity generation sources are operating at 55 per cent capacity utilisation as millions of Nigerians are left yearning daily for electricity to power their lives in various ways. Given that electricity is at the heart of almost all the economic activities in the country, this means that Nigeria’s output (GDP) growth will be curtailed.

According to the Chairman of the Nigeria National Committee of the World Energy Council, planning experts estimate that the Nigerian economy needs to grow at close to 10 per cent per annum in order to sustain the population. Hence, the country’s electricity generation capacity must reach 30,000 MW by 2020, and 78,000 MW by 2030.

Given that impact investing aims to create measurable benefits in the community through investments in sustainable social projects, renewable energy is a vital area that Nigerian impact investing gladiators should channel their investment arsenal to.

As the Nigerian Electricity Regulation Commission targets to generate a minimum of 2,000MW of electricity from renewable sources in 2020, several impact investments have been made in the sector by different investors as described below.

Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC): Renewable Energy Division (RED) RED was established in 2005 to develop solar and other renewable energy sources as well as to pioneer and coordinate the Automotive Biofuels Industry development in Nigeria by engaging in commercial production of Biofuels, exploiting other renew-

able energy sources and earn carbon credits from Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) projects.

Dr Rabiu Suleiman, Group General Manager of the Corporation’s Renewable Energy Division, said that the corporation has acquired 20,000 hectares of land in Benue State to establish a $400 million dollar project for the cultivation of sugarcane and other agro-products to generate ethanol, as a renewable energy source.

Rensource Rensource, Nigeria’s fastest growing provider of off-grid power, raised $3.5 million from a syndicate of energy investors for investment in a clean energy project. The company provides clean and reliable power to consumers, small businesses and industrial clients. It has a subscription-based Power-as-a-Service

(PaaS) model that used solar-hybrid systems installed on the user’s premises, through which it delivers clean energy to consumers. It is anticipated that upon completion of the project, the 1.3MW of standalone solar system will generate clean and sustainable energy to over 12,000 SMEs. All-On All-On is an impact investing company that works with partners to increase access to commercial energy products and services for underserved and unserved markets in Nigeria. With a start-up capital of $3 million partnership with the U.S Africa Development Foundation (USDAF), All-on seeks both financial returns and social impact to provide or improve access-to-energy for millions of households and SMEs.

The company has provided a debt facility to Lumos Global BV to facilitate a quick rollout of its Solar Home Systems (SHS) in the Niger Delta, and also provided a convertible debt facility to ColdHubs, another indigenous clean energy service provider, to enable it expand its solar-powered marketplace cold storage business to new markets in the same region.

Nigerian Solar Capital Partners (NSCP) In September 2016, NSCP entered into a Joint Development Agreement with Globeleq Advisors Limited and the ARM-Harith Infrastructure Fund to finance and co-develop a 100MW solar PV project in Bauchi State, Nigeria. The project has a signed 20-year Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) with the Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading plc.

NSCP chose to develop this project in northern Nigeria to bridge the region’s yawning power gap. Northern Nigeria has the largest power deficit and highest costs of electricity in the country.

Clean Technology Fund (CTF) In 2010, the CTF Trust Fund Committee validated a $250 million Clean Technology Fund Investment Plan for Nigeria for various projects such as Bus Rapid Transit Lagos (LUTP2), Bus-based mass transport support for Abuja, Kano and Lagos (NUTP), Financial Intermediation for clean energy/energy efficiency, Utility-scale solar PV(World Bank), Utility-scale Solar PV (AfDB). Also, some impact investments are carried out on hybrid energy projects.

AIIM and Helios African Infrastructure Investment Managers (AIIM) and Helios Investment Partners have invested $30million in StarSight Power Utility, a Nigeria-based energy company providing solar-diesel-battery hybrid and efficient cooling and lighting solutions to commercial and industrial clients. StarSight is currently planning to offer its services to a number of core clients in the financial services and energy sectors, focusing on a target pipeline of over 1,000 sites.

Prospective Impact Investment Areas in Nigeria Nigeria presents the biggest and most attractive off-grid investment opportunity in Africa. With a population of 195 million people, GDP of $405 billion that continues to grow at close to 3 per cent each year, it is the largest economy in Sub-Saharan Africa. A significant amount of the country’s economy is already powered largely by small-scale generators (10–15 GW) and almost 50 per cent of the population have limited or no access to the national grid.

As a result, Nigerians and their businesses spend almost $14 billion annually on expensive, inefficient, polluting, poor quality electricity sources. Developing off-grid alternatives to complement the grid could create a $9.2 billion market opportunity each year for mini-grids and solar home systems, saving Nigerian homes and businesses up to $4.4billion every year.

Furthermore, there is large potential for scaling as 10,000 mini-grids of 100 kW each could be installed in the next 10 years to meet 30 per cent of anticipated demand. The combination of large revenue opportunity (USD $9.2 billion per year), a supportive government, and a dynamic entrepreneurial environment make Nigeria the ideal location for impact investing in renewable energy.

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HOTELS INFLATE PRICES AHEAD OF WORLD CUP GAMES FINIDI, AMUNIKE CAUTION SUPER EAGLES AGAINST COMPLEXITY RUSSIA PUMPS $5BN INTO TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE ACROSS 11 HOST

CITIES

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ANALYSIS

RUSSIA PUMPS $5BN INTO TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE ACROSS 11 HOST CITIES

with special routes.

Meanwhile, regional authorities are building roads for the World Cup that will improve communication between city neighborhoods. According to Yekaterinburg Region Governor YevgenyKuibashev, Moscow has allotted 1.5 billion rubles ($22.5 million) for the completion of a ring road in Yekaterinburg that was started more than 20 years ago in 1994.

According to Konstantin Trofimenko, head of the Center for Studying Transportation Problems in Metropolises at Moscow’s Higher School of Economics, fans will be ferried around the host cities using public transport and shuttle buses.

“In the big cities that have a metro, such as Moscow, St. Petersburg and Kazan, the fans (50,000-80,000 people) will unite with the passenger flows, while in other cities they will use the bus,” said Trofimenko.

“FIFA has detailed instructions on how to guarantee transportation. This is a standard procedure, which is why in Russia it will be organized the way it was in Germa-

…as it prepares for FIFA World Cup 2018 Stories by Anthony Nlebem

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he excitement is building in less than two months to the start of the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. The tournament will see 32 nations compete for the biggest football price money.

The event will take place in 12 stadiums in 11 cities in three different time zones.

The average distance between the cities is 644 kilometres, while between Yekaterinburg and Kaliningrad, the westernmost and easternmost cities, the distance is 3, 219 kilometres. Russian authorities and transport experts say that such distances require a special approach to organizing transport for the tournament.

The Russian government is allotting 664.7 billion rubles (about $10 billion) to the preparation of key infrastructure for the 2018 World Cup. Half of that amount (337.4 billion rubles) will go towards the development of transportation infrastructure.

Due to the ongoing economic crisis in the country, the final sum has been reduced almost threefold. In this year alone the budget was cut twice: In June hotel expenses were cut by 30 million rubles

($450,000), while in August another 150 billion rubles ($1,350,000) was slashed from the budget. One of the high-profile casualties of the cuts was a 240-meter-high TV tower to be built in Samara.

The budget’s transportation component, however, has not been changed. The money will be destined to the reconstruction and construction of more than 100 transport sites and facilities, with airport infrastructure and the road network the top priorities.

According to Russian Transport Minister Nikolai Asaul, the federal and local authorities are currently developing logistics solutions based on estimates of passenger flows. Part of the work has already been completed: Pulkovo Airport in St. Petersburg has been reconstructed and a new terminal has been added to Samara’s Kurumoch International Airport.

The reconstruction of St. Petersburg’s airport took three years. Originally there were plans to connect Pulkovo Airport to the city center with a light-rail tramline, but due to the economic crisis the local authorities abandoned the idea. Fans will be now transported to the city in buses

Editor: Anthony Nlebem Tel: +234 803 836 9508 Email: tony@businessdayonline.com

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ny, Brazil and South Africa,” he said.

Transporting fans from city to city, however, will require original solutions from Russia, considering the dense match schedule and the long distances involved.

Trofimenko says that Russia still does not have a detailed plan for this.

“In the 18 hours separating the matches, transportation for fans with tickets should be free,” he said. “How this will be done is still not known, since it hasn’t been decided on a federal level. But it is clear that transportation between cities will be provided by means of buses, trains and planes. Here Russia can adopt Brazil’s experience, in which fans traveled between cities for free.”

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ANALYSIS

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s the kick off date for the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia draws closer in June 14, the world football governing body FIFA has disclosed that 1.7 million tickets have been allocated both to domestic and international football fans after the closure of the second period of Phase 2 of ticket sales.

“With just 72 days left until the start of the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia, another ticket sales period drew to a close today,” the world’s governing football body said in its statement.

“During the first-come, first-served sales window which opened on 13 March, a total of 394,433 tickets were allocated to fans across the world,” according to FIFA. “Most of the tickets during this sales period were allocated to Russian fans (216,134), followed by fans from USA (16,462), Argentina (15,006), Colombia (14,755), Mexico (14,372), Brazil (9,962), Peru (9,766), China (6,598), Germany (5,974), Australia (5,905) and India (4,509) - the top ten countries from abroad,” the statement said.

The FIFA also stated “1,698,049 tickets have been allocated to fans worldwide since sales started in September 2017, with the overall international demand accounts for 53%” The Phase 2 of ticket sales for the quadrennial world football championship was divided into two periods, just like during the preceding Phase 1.

The first period of the Phase 2 of ticket sales was launched on December 5, 2017 and closed on January 31, 2018. The second period of Phase 2 dubbed as the “First-come, first served” will open on March 13 and provide sales services until

TRAVEL

its closure on April 3.

Phase 3, dubbed as the “Last Minute Sales,” will run from April 18 up until the final match day of the competition and the remaining tickets will be available for purchase on a first-come first-serve basis.

The 2018 FIFA World Cup kicks off in 54 days with the opening match in the Russian capital of Moscow.

Russia selected 11 host cities to be the venues for the matches of the 2018 World Cup and they are Moscow, St. Petersburg, Sochi, Kazan, Saransk, Kaliningrad, Volgograd, Rostov-on-Don, Nizhny Novgorod, Yekaterinburg and Samara.

The matches of the 2018 World Cup will be held between

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ussia’s transportation infrastructure for the 2018 FIFA World Cup this summer is 90% ready, an official with the Local Organizing Committee (LOC) Russia-2018 said.

“The transportation infrastructure is 90% ready,” Kirill Polyakov, the head of the LOC Russia 2018 transportation department, confirmed. “As of today, we are still working on the flights schedule.”

“We are in the active stage of introducing additional flights for the championship, monitoring the availability of free seats at popular flight routes and are working not only to increase the number of flights but the seating capacity as well,” he said. “The most pop-

June 14 and July 15 at 12 stadiums located in the 11 mentioned above cities across Russia. Two of the stadiums are located in the Russian capital.

Fan-IDs for ticket holders The Fan-ID plays an important security role during the major football tournament in Russia as it grants admittance to the stadiums and also serves as visa for foreign visitors to enter the country.

A Fan-ID holder is allowed to enter the country without having a Russian visa and stay for the duration of the global football tournament. Fan-IDs are obligatory, in addition to purchased tickets, in order to attend matches of the 2018 World Cup tournament in Russia.

ular flight destinations at the moment are Saransk, Volgograd, Samara and Kaliningrad.”

The 2018 FIFA World Cup kicks off in 54 days with the opening match in the Russian capital of Moscow.

Russia selected 11 host cities to be the venues for the matches of the 2018 World Cup and they are Moscow, St. Petersburg, Sochi, Kazan, Saransk, Kaliningrad, Volgograd, Rostov-onDon, Nizhny Novgorod, Yekaterinburg and Samara.

The matches of the 2018 World Cup will be held between June 14 and July 15 at 12 stadiums located in the 11 mentioned above cities across Russia. Two of the stadiums are located in the Russian capital.

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NEWS

Former Super Eagles striker, Emmanuel Amunike

FINIDI, AMUNIKE CAUTION SUPER EAGLES AGAINST COMPLEXITY

S

ince the Super Eagles suffered a shocking defeat to Serbia in a friendly game in preparation for the World Cup, many Nigerian soccer fans are now worried about the Super Eagles ability to put up a brilliant performance in Russia.

But some ex-internationals are optimistic the Eagles will fly the flag high and surpass expectations.

Former Super Eagles right winger, Finidi George believes there is no need to press the panic button, but charged the team to make it to the next level at the World Cup. “The team has done well in Africa, this is not the first time, but we want the Super Eagles to take Nigeria to next level, getting to the quarter finals, semi finals of perhaps play at the final; we are used to the Round of 16 and we get knocked out, said the former Ajax player.

Finidi expressed confidence that

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Former Super Eagles right winger, Finidi George

the Gernot Rohr’s Super Eagles squad can compete at the World Cup. “As I said earlier, there are different ways of competing; you can compete and get knocked out at Round 16 but the question is how do you get further, do we have a team that can take us there?

He however advised Super Eagles technical adviser, Gernot Rohr to always play his best legs.

Former Super Eagles right winger, Finidi George “I have been in the game for so long; I have watched football, coached at youth level with different teams in Spain. I know that the success of a coach lies in the quality of players he has. My advice for Rohr is that he should play his best players and make good substitutions.

he president of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), Amaju Pinnick, has promised that the Super Eagles players stand the chance of pocketing 24 million dollars if they play in the final of the 2018 World Cup. Pinnick told journalists in Abuja on Wednesday that the money was part of the agreement reached with the players to share 50-50, whatever would accrues to the country if they get to the final and lift the trophy.

“I don’t put players under pressure. Pressure can be put on them unconsciously because we are

creating enabling environment for them. If for example we don’t have money to prepare them, they can now relax but now, we have given them everything upfront and they should deliver. If today they get to the final, the World Cup money will be shared 50-50 between the team and the NFF. “Winning the final is 48 million dollars, it means the team will get 24 million dollars and the football house will take the remaining 24 million dollars,” Mr Pinnick said.

He also said the adequate preparation including grade A friendly matches have been secured with England and Czech Republic to ensure the team do well at the World Cup. The NFF boss further said that the

Emmanuel Amunike advised that the team should be focused and take all the games seriously.

“It’s going to be a tough competition for us and we must be ready to work hard. The players know that playing at the World Cup is serious business. For you to achieve success there must be a tougher opposition; no team is coming to the world cup as underdogs. All the teams are participating with the aim of winning the tournament and have equal opportunity of winning the World Cup, but that depends on their readiness and ability to compete,” said the former U-17 coach.

Amunuke cautions fans against the Super Eagles in their last two friendlies with Serbia and Poland “Playing friendly games is good for the team; it’s a way of insight to know the team’s strength, players and what to expect at the World Cup. Playing friendly games is not about winning, but it gives the coaches the ability to assess other players in his team.

I hope that we learn from the two friendly games and make appropriate corrections.

“We should not dwell on our qualification in Africa; we should understand our opponents, we must be ready psychologically, physically, tactically, mentally and technically to be able to compete very well.

“I have listened to various analysts as regards Nigeria’s chances in qualifying from Group D; I can tell you that that group is a difficult group. When you look at Iceland, it’s a team without big names, loyal to their style of playing and system. The technical crew must critically study our opponents.

We wish the boys all the best; my belief is that this is their time and they must embrace it with all honesty and hardwork.

The most important thing is that his players must be able to understand how he wants them to play.”

glass house had already secured 2.8 million dollars to pay the players allowances and bonuses during the mundial.

“We are ready to play against England on June 2 in London in an international friendly. We had a conclusive meeting with the England FA. “After the England match, we will play Czech Republic and from there we move to Russia. As it is everything is going on very well.

“For the world cup, I don’t think we have any problem, I am in touch with the technical committee. It is the desire of every Nigerian to see the Super Eagles do well at the World Cup.” The World Cup will hold from June 14 to July 15 in Russia.

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NEWS

NFF PASSES VOTE OF CONFIDENCE ON EAGLES COACH ROHR L-R: Francis Peters, Aiteo Group Deputy Managing Director with Amaju Pinnick, NFF President at the unveiling of Aiteo as NFF’s Official Optimum Partner.

…. Commends Buhari, Dalung, AITEO, Gov. Udom for commitment in Nigerian football

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n a bid to ensure that Super Eagles get adequate preparations and delivers brilliant performance in at the Russia 2018 FIFA World Cup finals, the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) is leaving no stone unturned.

In a meeting held on Tuesday, 17th April 2018 where key issues in Nigerian Football were deliberated.

The Executive Committee expressed immense gratitude and appreciation to the President Muhammadu Buhari for his abiding support and encouragement for all the National Teams. The members said that the Super Eagles could not have emerged as one of the 32 participating teams at the Russia 2018 FIFA World Cup without the support of President. They

also heaped praises on the Honourable Minister of Youth and Sports, Barrister Solomon Dalung, for his huge support and understanding.

The Board expressed satisfaction with the ongoing preparations of the Super Eagles for the Russia 2018 FIFA World Cup finals, including the results from the first three pre-World Cup friendlies (Argentina, Poland and Serbia).

Members commended the players, technical crew and the backroom staff, and also charged them to double their effortin the last three friendly matches against; Democratic Republic of Congo, England and Czech Republic and the FIFA World Cup finals proper.

The Committee heaped encomiums on premium partner AITEO, for paying part of its rights fee as Official Optimum Partner of the NFF for the year 2018, which has enabled the Federation to pay all the coaches in its employ, with coaches of the Senior Men National Team, Super Eagles, now fully paid till the end of the 2018

‘NIGERIAN REFEREES GOOD ENOUGH TO OFFICIATE AT WORLD CUP FINALS’

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ollowing the backdrop of no Nigerian referees listed among the six referees and 10 assistants selected by the Confeder-

FIFA World Cup. It lauded the leading energy solution company, which also bankrolls the Federation’s annual football competition and its new annual Football Awards, for its sincerity of purpose and worthy investment in Nigerian Football.

The Committee also praised the financial support of Governor Udom Emmanuel of Akwa Ibom state towards the qualification of the Super Eagles for the Russia 2018 FIFA World Cup finals.

The Executive also directed the Secretariat to work at a fast pace to finalize within the next few days all travel, logistics and accommodation arrangements in Russia for the Nigerian Contingent to the 2018 FIFA World Cup finals.

The Board mandated the relevant committees to meet and conclude all arrangements for the camping of the Super Eagles in Nigeria ahead of the 2018 FIFA World Cup Send Forth match against the Simba of the Democratic Republic of Congo, scheduled for Monday, 28th May 2018.

ation of African Football to officiate at the Russia 2018 FIFA World Cup. A retired FIFA licensed referee, Abubakar Ago, has rallied support for Nigerian referees. He affirmed that Nigeria has qualified and trusted professional referees that can officiate at the FIFA World Cup finals.

“Contrary to what a lot of Nigerians think, we have quality referees in this country and if given the opportunity, can handle any match in the World Cup finals,’’ he said.

He however advised Nigerian referees to improve themselves and interpret the games effectively.

“They should also interpret the laws of the game properly, because they will have to defend any decision taken on the field of play.”

No Nigerian referee has ever featured in FIFA football tournament.

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STADIUM

TEST MATCH AT KALININGRAD STADIUM GOES SUCCESSFUL

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ccording to reports from Russia’s consumer rights watchdog that have carried an inspection on over 12,000 hotels, 1,500 hotels are found to have violated administrative rules.

The reports revealed that hotel accommodation overpricing had been registered across the country in cities selected to host matches of the 2018 FIFA World Cup. “A total of 561 cases of hotel accommodation overpricing have been exposed (22 such cases during the week). As many as 113 hotels have been found to have no classification certificates,” the Russian Federal Agency for Consumer Rights Protection (Rospotrebnadzor) said in a press statement.

The agency said it had inspected more than 12,000 hotels to find some 1,500 administrative violations. Fines to a total sum of six million rubles (96,060 US dollars) have been imposed and 187 warnings have been issued.

The 2018 FIFA World Cup kicks off in 63 days with the opening match in the Russian capital of Moscow.

Russia selected 11 host cities to be the venues for the matches of the 2018 World Cup and they are Moscow, St. Petersburg, Sochi, Kazan, Saransk, Kaliningrad, Volgograd, Rostov-on-Don, Nizhny Novgorod, Yekaterinburg and Samara.

The matches of the 2018 World Cup will be held between June 14 and July 15 at 12 stadiums located in the 11 mentioned above cities across Russia.

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ussian deputy prime Minister VitalyMutko, says an inaugural test match at the new football stadium in Kaliningrad, one of Russia’s 11 cities selected to host matches of the upcoming 2018 FIFA World Cup, was a total success.

The new stadium in Kaliningrad will host four group stage matches of the 2018 World Cup: Croatia vs. Nigeria on June 16, Serbia vs. Switzerland on June 22, Spain vs. Morocco on June 25 and England vs. Belgium on June 28.

The new stadium in Kaliningrad held its first test match on Wednesday between local football club Baltika and guests KrylyaSovetov FC from Samara within the frames of the National Football League tournament.

Some 15,000 people attended the match, which ended 1-0 in favor of the hosts.

“This was a totally successful test match,” Mutko said. “There are still questions remaining and we will discuss everything in detail today.”

“About 200,000 watched this game on social network websites and this is incredible,” he said. “I am glad for the residents of Kaliningrad as this city received a luxurious stadium and an opportunity for the future development of this territory.”

Located in Russia’s westernmost

enclave the city of Kaliningrad built a completely new stadium for the 2018 World Cup on the Oktyabrsky Island. The stadium’s construction met the previously set deadline and the new facility may be one of the cheapest built for the global championship in Russia after FIFA allowed to reduce the seating capacity to 35,000.

Russia’s old city of Kaliningrad already had one stadium. The 14,660seat Baltika Stadium was constructed in late 19th century on money donated by philanthropist Walter Simon.

At that time, the stadium was located within Germany’s Konigsberg, which became Russia’s Kaliningrad after the World War II. The 2018 FIFA World Cup kicks off in 54 days with the opening match in the Russian capital of Moscow.

Russia selected 11 host cities to be the venues for the matches of the 2018 World Cup and they are Moscow, St. Petersburg, Sochi, Kazan, Saransk, Kaliningrad, Volgograd, Rostov-on-Don, Nizhny Novgorod, Yekaterinburg and Samara.

The matches of the 2018 World Cup will be held between June 14 and July 15 at 12 stadiums located in the 11 mentioned above cities across Russia.

Two of the stadiums are located in the Russian capital.

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ANALYSIS

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he FIFA World Cup is the biggest stage of international football and as the countdown begins, here, we take a look at fifteen World Cup trivia 1. The first World Cup soccer match kicked off on July 13th, 1930 with France beating Mexico 4-1.

2. Thirteen teams participated in the first World Cup besides the host Uruguay. They include: Argentina, Belgium, Brazil, Bolivia, Chile, France, Mexico, Paraguay, Peru, Romania, the United States and Yugoslavia.

3. South American and European countries have won the World Cup nine times and ten times respectively? No other continent has produced a World Cup Champion.

4. Brazil has won the World Cup more than any other nation.

Brazil 5, Germany 4, Italy 4,

WORLD CUP TOP SCORERS

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or every World Cup tournament, a golden boot winner always emerges. The record for the most goals at a single World Cup is 13 set

by Frenchman Just Fontaine in 1958edition, which he achieved in six games. The overall top goal scorer in the World Cup is German player MiroslavKlose, who has scored 16 goals overall.

List of World Cup Top Goal Scorers

The current rules for a tie-breaker, is that if there is a tie for the most number of goals in the tournament, the award goes to the player who has given the most assists (as decided by the FIFA Technical Study Group). If there is still more than one player, the tie-breaker goes to the player who has played the least amount of time. Goals scored from penalty shoot-outs are not counted.

Uruguay 2, Argentina 2, England 1, France 1 and Spain 1.

5. Out of the 20 World Cups so far, the host country has won six.

6. Due to World War II, the World Cup was not held between 1938 and 1950. Italy was the reigning Champions for a record 16 years (from 1932 until 1950).

7. Bora Milutinovic is the only coach that has taken five different countries to every FIFA tournament between 1986 and 2002: Mexico, Costa Rica, USA, Nigeria and China.

8. Colombia goalkeeper Faryd Mondragon is the oldest player in FIFA World Cup history after appearing in a 4-1 win over Japan on 24 June 2014 at age 43.

9. The highest attendance at a World Cup match was 199,854 at the Maracana Stadium in Rio de Janerio for the 1950 decider between Uraguay and Brazil.

10 The record for the lowest attendance for a World Cup match was Peru vs. Romania in 1930, where just 300 people watched the game.

11. The 1966 World Cup is the only World Cup to have been boycotted by an entire continent in protest to having to play off against the Asian champion for the one place in the finals, and also against the readmission of South Africa to FIFA. 12. Brazil are the only country to have appeared in every tournament, 21 finals tournaments from 1930 to 2018.

13. No host country had ever been eliminated in the first round - until South Africa in 2010.

14. It can be claimed that the 2018 World Cup will be held in both Europe and Asia, as some matches will be held in the Russian city of Yekaterinburg, considered to be part of Asia.

15. Iceland qualified for the first time in 2018, becoming the smallest country (in terms of population) to reach the World Cup.

WOMEN’S HUB Friday 20 April 2018

BUSINESS DAY

‘‘

I never back away from a challenging role or situation; I stay till I find a solution that is workable

‘‘

ABIOLA ADEKOYA, working her way to the top

EDITOR’S NOTE Welcome to another exciting edition of Women’s HUB. This week, as our cover personality and LEADING WOMAN, Abiola Adekoya, truly worked her way to the top. She is currently the MD/CEO of RMB Nigeria Stockbrokers, a subsidiary of the First Rand Group, a leading financial service group in Africa with footprints across the globe. Her story is truly inspirational.

Read Ogo Maduewesi’s touching story in AGAINST ALL ODDS on her Vitiligo Journey.

Itoro Ugorji caters primarily to children aged 0 to 5 years. She is the CEO of The Baby Lounge, a provider of unique and innovative childcare solutions that are designed to support and address the pain points of working mothers. You will find this enlightening. It’s in our ENTREPRENEUR section.

In WORKPLACE PALAVER, Tina needs to focus at her workplace but will Tobi let her? Find out in that section.

These and more we have for you this week.

Enjoy!

KEMI AJUMOBI kemi@businessdayonline.com

Leading Woman

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Friday 20 April 2018

BUSINESS DAY

WOMEN’S HUB

ABIOLA ADEKOYA, working her way to the top ABIOLA ADEKOYA is a financial expert with over 18 years’ experience working with leading financial service firms whose activities span across various continents. She is currently the MD/CEO of RMB Nigeria Stockbrokers, a subsidiary of the First Rand Group, a leading financial services group in Africa with footprints across the globe. She speaks with KEMI AJUMOBI on her career in financial services, being a female boss, her love for youth engagement, cooking and more. Excerpts.

Early years grew up as the first child of 4 children and was brought up to see myself as a leader, most especially as a trailblazer for my siblings. At a very young age, my parents emphasised the importance of setting good examples for my younger ones in my conduct and also academically. My parents raised me to believe that there was nothing I couldn’t do, my mum was very entrepreneurial by nature and was very resilient and my dad, also a first born, instilled in me a strong sense of responsibility especially for my siblings and the family as a whole. I was tasked to take charge of many situations from a tender age and shown how to handle different situations when confronted by them. My family was my first point of exposure when it came to the development of my leadership skills. I am from a family that believes in democracy, so I have always approached every situation first as “a leader” with a desire to succeed, while being a good team player to ensure that everyone is carried along in achieving the objective(s). For me, leadership is not about serving myself, it’s more about serving others, so that they can buy into actualising the collective goal(s). I learnt early in my life, that if you give people a sense of belonging and they’ll not only see the goal(s), but they’ll become invested in it and go the extra mile.

Being the MD/CEO, RMB Nigeria Stockbrokers and your experience so far In my career in financial services, I have had various roles, which included heading and setting up a high performance team and also restructuring and repositioning a business. My various roles across board have impacted positively on my growth in the industry. RMB is a member of the First Rand Group, one of the largest financial services groups in Africa and when the chance came to work with them, I saw this as a significant opportunity to build a business on the platform of an international brand that had the expertise of establishing successful financial services business across Africa and internationally.

The opportunity to work with RMB Nigeria Stockbrokers was different from any other as it required me to build a business where I would be responsible for crafting the overall business strategy of the firm and also creating structures around People, Processes and Products (my 3 Ps).

Each one comes with its own personal challenges and I have had to be innovative and leverage on the support of the organisation to ensure that the business goals are achieved.

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Being MD, FBN Securities First Bank is one of the leading and largest financial services firms in Nigeria and it was important to me that it maintained that top position in the equities business. The business already had a strong presence in the equities market as a trading house and also as a broker for ECM transactions. However, it was important to consolidate the business by refocusing the business strategy to align with the overall vision of the firm and the changes in its operating environment. The most important task was to review and assess the existing structure of the business.

Engaging with team on ground was also key as I needed their support in this journey. I focused on fostering a better relationship within the team and organised team retreats to motivate and improve communication within the team. Improved operational efficiency was achieved by streamlining process and leveraging on technology. There was also an active focus on product innovation and building human capacity via training and recruitment to fill in some of the skill gap. With these new developments, we deepened existing business relationships and signed up new clients which helped to achieve our business goals of improved market share, turnover and income.

How has your experience in equity capital market transactions helped in your transactions and dealings?

The Equities Capital Market is one of the most important markets for corporations seeking to raise capital and for entrepreneurs looking to unlock wealth. I joined the market in 2006 when banks were seeking to raise capital and entrepreneurs were also seeking to unlock wealth by offering their shares for sale to investors. My firm participated in a number of those deals as stockbroker to the issue and we handled transactions in various sectors including banking, consumer, conglomerates and construction. Some of these deals were pioneer deals either because of their size, biggest deal on the Nigerian Stock Exchange, or their sectors.

I also had the opportunity to engage with various investors including High Networth Individuals and institutional investors – Pension Fund Managers (PFAs), emerging market and frontier fund managers, sovereign wealth funds both domestically and internationally. I participated in domestic and international road shows as we engaged clients on the details of the transactions.

Early years in banking My first banking experience was during NYSC as a bulk teller in a market branch and when I got to the branch, my first reaction was “get

me out of here” with a tear rolling down my eye. But after I calmed down, walked around and met some amazing people, I decided to stay. It was one of the best decisions of my life.

That decision further reinforced my resilience to succeed in the face of challenges, I never back away from a challenging role or situation, I stay till the end or till I find a solution that is workable. I also learnt the importance of managing your boss. Usually, we expect our bosses to manage us but the best way to get a fantastic working relationship is to manage your boss. I call it managing up and when you do it successfully; your boss becomes your biggest cheerleader.

How do you help to promote the growth and development of young people?

I love young people, their energy and enthusiasm is so infectious. Young people for me are the salt of any institution, be it the family, the workplace or the society in general and they need to be careful mentored and empowered. I have a lot of

young people family, children of family friends, young associates in various organisations and other young people who reach out to me regularly to provide guidance and support for them as they make major life decisions in career, education or even relationships. What is important for me is to understand the person especially their skills, upbringing, societal and religious beliefs and finally habits.

I encourage and push them to chase their goals, provide feedback and admonish where necessary, share my experiences where relevant and offer guidance based on my knowledge of the subject matter. However, I leave them to make their decision and in my experience they usually make good decisions. Because of this approach, a lot of them use the tools they’ve learnt from me to make decisions in other areas of their lives. The best reward for me is when I see them thriving, I’m always proud and excited to recommend them to others.

Mentorship Like I said earlier, I’m a firm believer in mentorship as I have benefitted greatly from being a mentee over the years.

I learnt at an early stage in my career that feedback was important to grow. Some of my mentors were my previous bosses and I still revert to them today when I need advice on certain career and life decisions. I also actively cultivate strong relationships with leaders, both within and outside the financial sector, especially with women because I need to leverage my business and managerial skills to be successful in my role while not compromising on my core values.

Through active mentorship, I’ve sharpened my leadership skills and also built a strong network of relationships that has impacted my career and general life positively. Most of my direct reports see me not only as their line manager but also as a mentor because my approach is to ensure that we can align their personal goals with that of the organisation, which has proven to be a key catalyst in building a high performing team.

As a leader, when those you lead start leading others, build high performance teams or excel as trail blazers, that for me is the greatest sense of fulfilment and achievement. It makes me believe it was worth it and should be repeated.

Women on boards in Nigeria, are they sufficient?

In the last few years, some organisations have taken active steps to increase female representation on their boards and data shows that women gained more board seats than men in 2017.

Also, companies are increasing the number of seats to accommodate more women on their boards. These achievements are significant and are laudable but there is still a gap in female representation on boards. Women create a much needed balance and provide a diversified and objective perspective to business strategy that is invaluable to the success of a firm.

I ’ m proud t o be a

woman in this time in history, as so many barriers were broken by those ahead of me that allowed me to strut in, in my heels with my s u p e r w o m a n cape and walk right through ; to those women I remain eternally grateful. There have been many glass ceilings broken, some making the headlines and others done by silent SHE-ROES, but unfortunately, new ceilings that continue to affect the advancement of women keep coming up/created and they need to be

broken. So as a woman and for every other woman, whenever you see any glass ceiling or a barrier wherever you are, no matter how little, please don’t walk away or ignore it, please do your best to break that ceiling, so that the other women behind you strut in just as you and I did.

Lessons learnt as female boss at the helm of affairs As a young graduate, when I was looking for a job, I was focused on the sectors and organisations I wanted to work for and looked for employment within those sectors. I also wrote a 5 year plan as a graduate of what I wanted to achieve within this period, I included the salary I wanted to earn, the level I would be at, what role or responsibility, what savings and even what type of company I would work for. You’d be surprised what planning can help you to achieve or avoid. My advice to others is, be humble period! Humility will open doors that pride will shut. Never be ashamed to admit that you don’t know it and always ask for help. There’s no leader that knows it all. Read and improve your knowledge about your industry and also take selfhelp courses. Learn to receive feedback in good faith....even I still need to remind myself of this daily. Money is good but don’t chase money at the expense of knowledge. Knowledge will take and keep you in places where money will no longer be a problem or regarded as a solution.

Passion for cooking I have always had a passion for food. My love for cooking came from my mother, a retired banker and an amazing cook, who could cook up a storm effortlessly while ensuring a spotless kitchen afterwards. However, I ran a successful cake business as a student in the University of Lagos and my friends were shocked when I opted to work in finance instead of running my own cake business. But I love finance with the same passion and I have no regrets today. My love for cooking has always been and will always be there...I share this love regularly by hosting my friends and family regularly to eat with me. I design my meals around various themes, which I plan very carefully, and I’m always keen to try out new recipes. I may not be a professional chef, because I love the excitement of cooking new dishes and entertaining people in an intimate setting, so I do not have any immediate plans for now but I’m always open to new opportunities. Cooking is never a chore, for me it’s like breathing.

Final words There’s so much I still want to do, be and experience….I look forward to looking back at my life and saying, I LIVED MY BEST LIFE!

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BUSINESS DAY

Friday 20 April 2018

The ‘game’ changed for participants at Inspiring Change Conference 2018

WOMEN’S HUB

Against All Odds

My Vitiligo Journey OGO MADUEWESI t was Feb 2005, when I woke up with the right side of my lip turned white. I gradually developed some white patches on my forehead, arm, and neck all to my right side; I had developed Vitiligo, and was officially diagnosed with the condition.

More importantly, I had 2 choices. Either I could continue feeling sorry for myself, or I could choose to make a difference. I chose the latter.

Whilst Vitiligo may have been popularised by Michael Jackson, few people actually do understand this skin condition. There is need for better understanding of this condition which affects a large number of people globally; especially in Nigeria and Africa - understanding is the key to embracing this group of individuals.

MJ was called names for turning white out of a condition over which he had no control; like most of us with the condition, he was misunderstood and victimised. Although the argument still rages on today, as to whether he really did have

ity never stopped being human, and that in itself is a mark of his strength; and why we dedicated Advocacy for World Vitiligo Day – June 25th in memory of MJ. Now then, what about…you?

What do you know about your condition – Vitiligo?

Where and from whom do you get information about your Vitiligo? The man on the street, your religious leader or from some researched materials? What is your Vitiligo to you?

How healthy is your lifestyle?

It’s true that treatment of vitiligo has proven challenging for physicians and no definite cure is currently available. I also know full well that the emotional impact of living with vitiligo can be devastating and a huge challenge especially in our society where it is labelled with such negativity like it’s a ‘Curse’, ‘Nemesis’, ‘Anger of the gods’, ‘Spiritual attack’, ‘eating some forbidden food’; it’s not an exaggeration to say that it can feel hopeless, but do we now dwell on this and live in misery the rest of our days?.

Vitiligo or not, I personally believe he did experience Vitiligo, and underwent a treatment option called Depigmentation (you can read more about it here). This is a treatment option usually being suggested by Dermatologist for those with over 60% of the white patches in the exposed areas..

Why Michael Jackson, of all people? Because his case is an example of how complicated vitiligo can be. Many of us with the condition blame him for not tapping on his popularity to spread word or garner help for the cause, yet his battles with the disease was so public and a constant reminder of how ‘visible’ vitiligo can be.

Finally, MJ’s case is a reminder of how many of us are living with the condition and the extremes we’ll go to hide our vitiligo. Was it easy for him, even with all the fame? Most definitely not. Think of how many a times you have seen him with an umbrella over his head, and you will have an idea why.

MJ in all his fame and popular-

I believe that what we are doing at VITSAF is providing the right tools for you living with Vitiligo to provide help for yourselves, at the very least.

Living in denial has never helped anyone, and it will never help anyone. I think it’s better for us to face reality, accept the fact that Vitiligo is here, then choose a positive approach, can be a combination of spiritual, healthy living, clinical, all natural therapy, nutritional supplements, and positive living other than lamenting, withdrawn and seeking for pity.

Life was never meant to be hidden. It was meant to be shared, to be displayed in all its glory.

It is 20% what happens to you, 80% how you respond to it.

Vitiligo is a longterm skin condition characterized by patches of the skin losing their pigment. The patches of skin affected become white and usually have sharp margins.

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KEMI AJUMOBI

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he Inspiring Change Initiative is a philanthropic initiative aimed at transforming lives, educating girls and inspiring women for an equal and purposeful future.

In its 5th edition, the Inspiring Change Conference 2018 Tagged “Game Changer” was indeed a success story. Women trouped into the wisdom arena on Saturday April 7, 2018 to be inspired by the various speakers who had obviously prepared for the day. Their words of inspiration didn’t go without affecting lives positively and participants were glad they attended.

According to one of the participants, Adenike Owolabi Oladimeji, “I was at Inspiring Change conference and it was awesome. I am God’s joker released as a game changer to break the norms.”

Another participant, Tife Oluwaseun said “I was at the Inspiring Change conference organised by Sunmbo Adeoye and it was amazing. I haven’t even recovered from it. The panellist’s session was lit but most importantly, I love Nike Adeyemi’s

session. Few notes from her was that the game is never easy, deal with yourself from the inside, deal with fear and do it afraid” Conveyed by Sunmbo Adeoye, the Founder of Esob Heroes & Inspiring Change Initiative, the event had in attendance, notable guest speakers like the Founder of Real Woman Foundation, Pastor Nike Adeyemi, with a fired up girl talk session panellists, comprising of The Senior Alaga Of Nigeria, Oluremi Samuel Akintola and the brain behind Naija Brand Chick/ Nelliesng, Nelly Agbogu.

It was a total life transforming experience as the Game changed for so many attendees.

Adesunmbo Adeoye, the convener whose vision is to empower women and transform the lives of those striving to take the lead in the market place, gave out cash grants and work tools to empower women in Business and encourage growth.

Some of those who benefited from the free empowerment this year, went home with N50,000 each and tools like Standing hair Dryer, Electric Pop corn Machine and Power Generating set.

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Entrepreneur

WOMEN’S HUB

‘We are passionate about building the right competencies and replicating global standards’

Executive Musings

ITORO UGORJI caters primarily to children aged 0 to 5 years. She is the CEO of The Baby Lounge, a provider of unique and innovative childcare solutions that are designed to support and address the pain points of working mothers. She speaks with KEMI AJUMOBI on her passion for childcare, trainings, crèche advisory and more. Excerpts.

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hen and why did you decide to start the crèche?

When we had our first baby, after about 7 years in “God’s Waiting Room”, I chose to return to paid employment, we had to put in place childcare arrangements for him because that would give me peace of mind to focus on my day job. We did not imagine it would be that difficult settling for one. At first, I thought we were being too finicky and understandably so, after all this was our “miracle baby” we were talking about here. But alas, on closer look, we realised we were just looking for the basics - a squeaky clean, bright, well-lit stimulating learning and play environment run by equally bright, kind and competent childcare professionals who genuinely cared for the children that were entrusted to their care. The Baby Lounge is what I love to describe as a “vision restructure, reinvention & expansion”. The crèche was borne out of a desire to provide a childcare service (solution) that would give working mothers peace of mind so they can fulfil their dreams of building a career or a business enterprise, whichever they choose.

Share on your passion for child care My first foray into the Childcare space was about 15 years ago. I started out with one room in our apartment at the time. Over the period, I went back to paid employment. In the course of the period, I got a number of certifications and trainings in Early Years Care & Education. It was not enough to be passionate about this “trade”, I found it absolutely necessary to acquire competencies too. Over the years, the vision has evolved. Our range of practical and innovative childcare solutions is designed to support and address the pain points of working mothers in the area of childcare: Crèche in V.I., Office crèches (set-up & management) In-home childminding, Event Pop-up crèche, Weekend Care, After-school care, Childcare trainings and Crèche Advisory. We are open all year-round, 7am to 7pm (except on public holidays). No term breaks (because mums do not go on term breaks).

Why your choice of location, VI? Any plans to expand?

The choice of the V.I. (business district) location is strategic. A number of mums prefer to have their children in crèches close to their work place. This is the niche we are looking to serve. The proximity of the crèche to the offices is one of the competitive advantages. Whilst we have mid-term plans of new set-ups in other business districts like Ikeja, our focus is more on collaborating with employers to set-up (on-site) office crèches.

Share on event Pop-up crèche This is a mobile play and care setup for all kinds of events (parties, seminars, conferences, fairs, souks, luncheons, weddings etc.). A safe, stimulating, engaging learning and play space where the children’s

MELINDA GATES American Philanthropist

If you are successful, it is because somewhere, sometime, someone gave you a life or an idea that started you in the right direction. Remember also that you are indebted to life until you help some less fortunate person, just as you were helped.

But we also believe in taking risks, because that’s how you move things along.

We have to be careful in how we use this light shined on us

Having children made us look differently at all these things that we take for granted, like taking your child to get a vaccine against measles or polio.

activities are supervised by professional Carers. So mums can attend their events and be at peace while the children are constructively engaged and well catered to. We work with event hosts, event centres and individuals to child-proof and transform any allocated spaces.

Childcare trainings and crèche advisory We are very passionate about building the right competencies and replicating global standards within the childcare profession and sanitising this space in our own clime. It is totally unfair and a disservice to the children we serve, that anyone can “walk off the street” and be employed as a child caregiver, without prior professional training. The childcare professional is just as important as the medical profession. Our childcare trainings are Certification courses in various areas of childcare, designed for childcare professionals and any individual who works with young children. We have the online

courses and the in-class (hands-on) training. The online training programme is collaboration with the Childcare Lounge in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

What is your view on corporate crèches at the workplace?

I think workplace crèches are a fast and smart way to boost work productivity levels, employee retention and ultimately, company bottom lines. The Corporate crèches in the workplace initiative are low-hanging fruits any forward-looking company should reach out for. In-office crèches are quick-wins for HR functions.

Are there medical professionals in your team? How important is it to have them on board?

We always have a nurse as part of our full-time team. Every member of the team undergoes recurrent First-Aid trainings. We also have a Paediatrician on-call, in event that the child’s primary health provider is not easily accessible in event of a medical emergency.

Childcare service is an ultra-service that borders on health, care and service. It is one rife with a myriad of quality issues and risks one constantly prays does not crystallise. This is the singular reason it is imperative that any childcare setting has a medical resource (nurse, doctor-on-call and First-Aid box) Projections I want to grow more on structure, innovation and best practice. These are paramount to me.

Challenges The quality and brand of childcare service we set out to provide is often compared with “nanny care” and as a result “priced” as such. The childcare solutions we offer is much more than nanny care. We give you a whole lot more value and we get an education and specialised trainings in order to be able to deliver on our brand promise. It has been a challenge to get the market to understand this.

I think those who have experienced the true worth of the service, are

You can have the best vaccines for a woman or her child, but if you can’t get her to come and get them then they won’t work.

In the developing world, it’s about time that women are on the agenda. For instance, 80 percent of small-subsistence farmers in sub-Saharan Africa are women, and yet all the programs in the past were predominantly focused on men.

I care much more about saving the lives of mothers and babies than I do about a fancy museum somewhere.

BUSINESS DAY

Friday 20 April 2018

WOMEN’S HUB

Workplace Palaver

Tina needs to focus at work, the thought of Tobi is a distraction... will it work?

KEMI AJUMOBI

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ina is a 28 year old graduate of Food and Nutrition, and had been looking for where to work but it had been difficult. In between, she would make cakes, chin-chin and supplied 3 companies. Sometimes, she would ask the owners of the restaurants in the companies if they need her service and most of them always said they did not. In between job hunting, she also has a fiance who always made her feel she wasn’t trying enough. He was one of the reasons she even searched for other companies to supply her cakes and chin-chin because she felt he was complaining a lot because she would sometimes ask him for financial assistance but, after a while, she stopped completely and began meeting her needs and never asked him again. For not asking again, he told her she was becoming proud because her business had taken a new turn but she would do her best to calm the situation so that there would be no trouble.

While going to supply her cakes and chin-chin to a new client, she walked pass a newly built restaurant with the caption “Waiters and Waitresses needed” so she thought to give it a try.

She felt she could multitask by still selling her chin-chin and then earning another source of income from being a waitress.

She decided she would branch in after making her deliveries; she had promised to be there at a certain time and did not want to break trust. So she went there, dropped the cakes and chin-chin and hurriedly went back to the restaurant.

Immediately she entered, she

From Her Point Of View

loved the way it looked. She said a brief prayer in her mind and walked over to the gentle man (in his mid 50s) she saw and asked what she needed to do because she was interested in working there.

“Today must be your lucky day. We closed the application yesterday but my wife and I felt we should give a grace for today.” He told Tina. “Sweetheart” he called out to his wife and continued, “There is someone I think we should meet together” he turned to Tina and said “come, my wife and I will interview you in the office.” Tina was excited; she went with him to the office and saw a beautiful woman with a demeanour that made her feel she was in the right place.

“Have your seat there” the woman said with a smile on her face. Tina couldn’t believe she came in to ask if the vacancy was available and she is right here sitting before the owners about to be interviewed.

They took their turns asking her questions and she answered brilliantly. It was more like love at first sight when they met Tina. They had concluded they would take her but needed her to go through the process. The woman was so nice to her that she offered to help her with her cake business “Our oven here is quite big. If you come early you can bake your cakes here.” Tina said “Whao! Thank you so much ma, but for now, I will like to do it from home. Thank you so much Ma” she said in gratitude.

“You start work tomorrow with the others. Welcome to the family” the woman said and as they got up, Tina jumped off almost immediately to receive their handshakes.

She was so happy. She couldn’t wait to tell her fiancé.

On her way back home, she called Tobi and gave him the goodnews; he wasn’t quite excited about it. She felt perhaps because she was at work and concluded she would tell him later in the evening.

Later that evening, they met and she shared the news with him and his response surely wasn’t what Tina expected to hear. “It’s not like I am not happy for you, I am just wondering what waitresses go through. So men will be ‘hitting’ on you, how many of them can you fight off? Just asking” Tobi said. Tina was quite shocked at his response “Tobi, I am shocked that this is where your mind went to? This should be something you should be happy with me about.

You have dated me for two and a half years, have I at any given time given you reasons to doubt me or my commitment to you Tobi?” she said amidst tears “I am sorry it came out that way, truth is that you have never given me a reason to doubt you but you know where you are going is a new terrain and you never can tell these days” he responded and she said “No! Tobi, this time, you will not have your way. I will not allow you kill this joy that’s welling up in me.” She took her purse and left. Tobi tried to stop her but she was done.

She got back home and cried herself out. The next day, she got up delivered her cakes and chinchin and then went to work. She changed to her waitress outfit and everyone was doing well serving all the customers. In between, the

thought of Tobi’s actions almost made her cry but she would shake it off. As long as she was concerned, her relationship needed a break and she severed all avenues for Tobi to reach her.

One day, while about to serve a customer who came in for breakfast, she looked and saw a young couple enjoying each other’s company and again, the thought of Tobi came to mind and without properly looking at the person she was going to serve, she slipped and the tea poured on the laps of the gentle man she was to serve.

She became so jittery and began to apologise. The man was even more concerned about the state of her mind than the tea that poured on him “Ma’am, are you sure you are okay?” he enquired and she responded “Yes sir, I am fine...I am so sorry, I am really really sorry sir” she continued to plead. “It’s okay Ma’am, it really is” he said and by this time, he had cleaned off the stain. He was given another cup of tea and he had it with club sandwich. He requested for the POS, he paid and left a tip for Tina.

He then gave her his card, “I am a counsellor, if at any time you need to talk to someone, please feel free to reach me and if you feel uncomfortable, I can arrange you meet my wife but please reach out, Take care.” He said and left.

After a week, Tina decided to give the man a call and met him at his office. “So good to see you.

So would you prefer to talk to my wife or...” “it’s okay sir, I can talk to you” she interjected.

Be Intentional!

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hey say “life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react to it.” If that is the case then why do we wait around and let people decide our life’s path for us? A few years ago, I made the decision to be intentional with setting the pace of my life and directing my narrative. This is my life, my story, my world; I am the only actress – a monologue – so why don’t I do what I want to do and dance to the drums of the music in my head.

I graduated college with a degree in Marketing and I always wanted to work in marketing or communications and I was able to do that while I built my career in the United States. However, when I moved to Nigeria, I quickly realized “Corporate Nigeria” was very different from “Corporate America” needless to say; I lost a bit of hope. Alas! I

She narrated the happenings with him and he said “I knew something didn’t feel right. Your work is important to you and you need to focus if not, it will affect you. Is it okay for me to talk to Tobi?” He asked. Tina was fine with the idea. Apparently, the gentleman later found out Tobi’s boss was his very good friend. So he agreed with his friend (Tobi’s boss) and then went to the office.

Tobi’s boss called him in and informed him someone would like to meet him. Tobi didn’t know him so he was a bit worried and his boss said “not to worry, I don’t think it’s that serious. He didn’t tell me and I honestly don’t want to know. Both of you can use the smaller conference room.”

Tobi followed the gentle man and they sat down. He introduced himself and spoke to him about Tina. At first, he wondered what his business was and thought he had an interest in Tina but he found out he was married and didn’t appear to be someone interested in Tina in the way he thought. It was more like a counselling session.

Interestingly, Tobi agreed to start counselling with him and after a while, Tina started the counselling session too but separately. Later on, they both began to attend the counselling together. Things are looking brighter; Tobi is understanding his flaws and working on it. Their relationship is getting better but they are not in a hurry to get married. Certainly for Tina and Tobi, there is light at the end of the tunnel. We remain hopeful!

OMOWUNMI MARTINS Head of Marketing and Branding at a multinational

took the opportunity I was given with a multinational with hopes that having a leg in, will allow me manoeuvre my way around the system, which was exactly what I did.

In life, you have to be smart with the opportunities you are

presented with while working towards your end goal. I took a role in the finance department – this was a crossbreed role between marketing and finance.

A few months later, a role was announced in the Marketing unit and I moved. You always have to

have your endgame in mind.

When I started as a Brand Manager, I was excited and that made it possible for me to do well in the role. As you know, in life, we get curve balls thrown at us and mine came in form of my new boss offering me a role within

the sales department. I had two options, either I take the role or I leave the company. This was a tough decision but I decided to leave and pursue other opportunities. I knew at that point I didn’t want anyone deciding my career path for me and I had to be intentional with my career. I took what I learnt at that company and used it to find a new opportunity. A few years and a few stops later, I have made strides with my career and needless to say, I am still in my chosen field of marketing.

I said all this to say it is very important to be intentional. No one has the key to your life except you. Write your career goals down and live by them. Some bumps might come along the way, but that’s life. No one has it 100%. Your end goal should always be in mind even at your starting point.

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NEWS YOU CAN TRUST I FRIDAY 20 APRIL 2018

Opinion THE NEW WEALTH OF NATIONS

OBADIAH MAILAFIA Dr. Mailafia is a former Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, a development economist and public finance expert with a DPhil from Oxford obmailafia@gmail.com; 08036590990 (text messages only)

T

hursday April 19 marks the 70th anniversary of the birth of Israel as a sovereign state. The event is being celebrated with fanfare and drums throughout Eretz Israel.

The number 70 in Jewish mysticism represents completeness and new beginnings. The world was created in 7 days. Seven times 10 also represents fulfilment of potential. It is written in the Torah that 70 Jewish souls went with Jacob into Egypt to form a nation within a nation; 70 elders were chosen by Moses; there were 70 elders of the Sanhedrin; and the Babylonian exile lasted 70 years. The figure 70 in Hebrew is known as “ayin”. It represents not only the “eye” that sees all things; it stands for “source, well, spring, fountain and origin”.

The Unilateral Declaration of Independence on 15 May 1948 by Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion has been one of the great miracles of history. There is no other parallel to it, whereby a people colonised, enslaved, persecuted and dispersed throughout the world for 2,000 years have risen, Phoenix-like, from the ashes. And what is even more remarkable, they have retained their ancient language and religion. Contemporary Israel is a testimony to the resilience of the human spirit – its infinite capacity for endurance, faith and hope across 3,000 years of Jewish civilisation.

Abraham is the father of faith for the three world religions – Judaism, Christianity and Islam. The Bible records that Abraham, a very wealthy patriarch, paid tithes - a tenth of all his possessions - to the legendary Melchizedek King of Salem; a royal priest-king who had no father and no mother and who had no date of birth – an archetype of the Christ. During their centuries of serfdom in Egypt, YHWH sent his servant Moses to liberate his people.

During their 40 years of wandering in the desert Moses went up to Mount Sinai and came down with the Ten Commandments that have formed the bedrock of Jewish ethics since time immemorial.

In November last year, I attended the World Science Forum hosted at the Dead Sea Resort in the Jordan Valley. From my hotel room at night, I beheld the glimmering lights of Jericho across the border. On the other side was Mount Nebo, where Moses, according to legend, first beheld the Promised Land and is supposedly buried.

He was not to go into the Promised Land because his hands were filled with blood.

The kings of Israel dwelt in their eternal capital Jerusalem. Solomon was reputed to be the wealthiest and wisest king who ever lived. Africa features in Jewish history not only through their sojourn in Egypt but also through the union between King Solo-

Israel at 70 mon and the legendary Queen of Sheba, from whom succeeding kings of Ethiopia claimed descent. They were also blessed with great seers; from Jeremiah to Isaiah, Ezekiel, Nahum, Joel, Hosea, Obadiah and Habakkuk. They were often at war with their neighbours Assyria, Philistia and Babylon.

Some of the darkest years in their history coincided with the sacking of Jerusalem by King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon who carted away all the gold and silver from the Temple while taking captive some of the young princes of Israel - Daniel, Shedrack, Meshack and Abednego. They preserved themselves in holiness, and by wisdom and intellect excelled as rulers and advisers to the kings of Babylon. But their hearts were forever on Jerusalem: “By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down and wept, when we remembered Zion.”

No history of a people has been as chequered as the history of the Jewish people. At the time of Jesus Christ circa AD 1 to AD 33, Judea was a minor province of the Roman Empire. Alexander and the Greeks had left their imprints centuries earlier. The Zealots emerged as a nationalist movement prepared to repel the foreign occupiers by force of arms.

They longed for a Messiah who will come on horseback to liberate them from their Roman conquerors. In AD 70, things came to a head when the Emperor Vespasian and his son Titus laid siege on Jerusalem, leading to the dispersal of the Jews to all corners of the world.

Wherever they went they kept their identity and culture. “Next year in Jerusalem”, was always the parting word.

Some became fully integrated with their host cultures, rising to positions of prominence. The medieval philosopher Moses Maimonides, the Rambam - known to the Arabs as Musa bin Maymun - was a vizier and private doctor to the kings of Egypt. He is revered as one of the ornaments of Jewish spiritual and intellectual life. Throughout their millennia of exile in Europe the Jews endured violence and anti-Semitism. As a teenager, I devoured the novels of Nobel laureate Isaac Bashevis Singer about life in the ghettos of Warsaw, St. Petersburg and Vilnius. My tears would literally drench the pages, making them unreadable.

The Hasidic movement began as a mystical tradition in the midst of persecution and suffering. In the early eighteenth century, Israel ben Eliezer, the Baal Shem Tov, was a peasant Ukrainian orphan who began a series of spiritual teachings that were to transform the very nature of Judaism.

I myself have drunk deep from the springs of Jewish mysticism and philosophy through the works of Martin Buber, Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz, Emmauel Levinas and Gershom Scholem. I have also learned political wisdom from the feet of the great Professor Yehezkel Dror, Israel Prize 2005. The Jewish concept of vivek olam – to perfect this world – has been dear to my heart, as is their eternal optimism and Tikvatenu (our hope).

According to the late Kenyan political scientist Ali al-Amin Mazrui, the difference between Jews and Africans is that the former overcame racism through Talmudic learning and deep-rooted spirituality; Africans, by contrast, took refuge in nihilistic self-hate, violent crime, alcoholism and drugs. It is no surprise that 70 percent of all Nobel laureates in science are people of Jewish extraction. Jews make up a mere 3 percent of the

American population but control 25 percent of its wealth.

Contemporary Israel is the culmination of the Zionist Movement which began in late nineteenth century as a response to the worsening crisis of anti-Semitism in Europe.

Theodor Herzl, a journalist and writer of Austro-Hungarian origins, organised the first World Congress on Zionism in the Swiss city of Basel in August 1897. Scion of a wealthy Jewish family who had initially set his sights on the German ideals of “bildung” (high intellectual culture), dedicated his life to founding a permanent homeland for his people in Palestine: “We shall live at last as free men on our own soil, and die peacefully in our own homes. The world will be freed by our liberty, enriched by our wealth, magnified by our greatness.”

Hope came by way of the Balfour Declaration 1917 which made explicit reference to the creation of a homeland for the Jewish people in Palestine. World War I led to the collapse of the Ottoman Empire. Palestine became a British Mandate Territory. The rise of Hitler and fascism in Europe – and the Shoah - upped the stakes by a high order of magnitude. Waves upon waves of Jewish refugees returning from war-torn Europe created inevitable tensions with the local Arab population. Jewish guerrilla movements such as the Irgun, Palmach, Lehi and Haganah were bent on chasing out the British. A weakening imperial Britain was in no position to resist.

Immediately following the Unilateral Declaration of Independence, more than a million Palestinian refugees fled their homes, most of them never to return. War immediately broke out, with coordinated

The world today is divided between those who love Israel and want her to survive and flourish and those who loath and wish her annihilated. When asked about Israel, the late British musician Bryn Jones replied: “I would not tolerate anything to do with Israel…the whole people are disgusting”. military invasion by Egypt, Syria and Jordan, together with expeditionary forces from Iraq.

They were defeated by the battle-hardened Israel Defense Forces (IDF). Other major wars were to follow: the 1967 Six-Day War; the Yom Kippur War 1973; and the Lebanese War 1982. Israel not only survived; it gained territory. Outnumbered by formidable enemies throughout its neighbourhood, Israel has become a garrison warrior state; a country in a state of permanent mobilisation.

Israel is a prosperous democracy with 8.8 million people, of which 6 million are Jews and the rest Arabs. It has a GDP of US$362 billion and a per capita income of US$40,762;

an oasis of freedom in a sea of chaos. It is reputed worldwide as “the start-up nation”, at the cutting-edge of high technology, robotics, agronomy, pharmaceutics and bioengineering. Israel has more than 63 companies registered in NASDAQ, ahead of any other country with exception of the United States.

The Israel Institute of Technology, Technion, ranks among the world’s elite science and technology research universities; founded in 1912 with the help of Albert Einstein himself.

Silicon Wadi is an industrial cluster around Tel Aviv that leads in high-tech research and innovation. In March 2017 Intel bought Mobileye, a leader in computer vision for driverless cars, paying a whopping US$15.3 billion for it. Companies such as IBM, Google, Facebook, HP and Oracle have established their presence in Silicon Wadi. The government has strived to build an enabling eco-system together with the right mix of incentives to usher in a flourishing innovation society.

Amid the celebrations, there will be some on the other side of the fence who mourn.

Among the Arabs, 1948 was the nakba (great humiliation). The world today is divided between those who love Israel and want her to survive and flourish and those who loath and wish her annihilated. When asked about Israel, the late British musician Bryn Jones replied: “I would not tolerate anything to do with Israel…the whole people are disgusting”.

Israel is far from being a perfect democracy. While it may not be an “Apartheid state”, Arab-Israelis complain of routine discrimination, not to talk of the Ethiopian Falashas.

Israeli settlers have a penchant for retaliating with overkill at the slightest provocation.

There is also the humanitarian crisis in the occupied territories. This is not to overlook the work of men such as David Shulman, winner of the prestigious Israel Prize for 2016, and his team of grassroots volunteers. They have been working through an organisation known as Ta’ayush, to bring succour to local Palestinian communities -- digging wells, harvesting orchards and looking after children.

Some progressive elements in Israeli society, including President Reuven Rivlin, look favourably upon the idea of a one-state solution as the ultimate answer. However, a recent poll sponsored by the EU found that both Israeli Jews (82%) and Palestinian Arabs (72%) are overwhelmingly opposed to the idea “by which Palestinians and Jews will be citizens of the same state and enjoy equal rights”. Israeli Jews worry about losing the “Jewish character” of their country while Palestinian Arabs would rather live in a state of their own. A two-state solution is also not without its nightmares. There is no corridor linking the West Bank with the Gaza Strip. And not all Palestinians are willing to hammer out a modus vivendi with the Jewish State. Hamas, for example, is a radical Iranian satellite sworn to mortal combat with the Jewish state.

Our role in Africa is to be a moderating influence; working with others across the world to find a just and lasting peace. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited East Africa in July 2016; the first Israeli leader to do so in decades. In June 2017 he was in Monrovia to address the summit of ECOWAS leaders. Nigeria’s absence on that occasion spoke volumes. Netanyahu reaffirmed his commitment to seeking common ground with African countries for mutual prosperity.

We need to cooperate in fighting terrorism.

Israeli technology can help boost African agriculture and infrastructures while our natural resources can help drive Israeli industry and investments. The scenario is that of a win-win, positive-sum game.

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