Nigeria eyeing 1,00 MW of electricity from coal by 2020 - FAYEMI

MARCH 21, 2016

VISIT - From left, Governor of Ekiti State, Mr. Ayodele Fayose, with the Group Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of First City Monument Bank (FCMB), Mr. Ladi Balogun, during a visit by the Management of the Bank to the Governor at Ado-Ekiti, Ekiti State.

Nigeria eyeing 1,000 MW of electricity from coal by 2020 — FAYEMI Great prospects in non-oil economy Solid minerals earned N400bn in 2015

By YINKA KOLAWOLE

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igeria is expected to generate 1000 mega watts of electricity from coal by year 2020 to supplement other sources of energy currently in use in the country.

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Dr. Kayode Fayemi, Minister of Solid Minerals Development, disclosed this at an Economic Summit organised by the New Telegraph newspapers with the theme, “Nigeria: Beyond the Oil Economy”, in Lagos last week.

Also, the diversification of the nation’s economy has been yielding positive results, with the country

earning about N400 billion from solid minerals in 2015, according to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

Fayemi noted that a significant opportunity exists for power generation from coal exploration in the country. He said the Ministry of Solid Minerals Development is collaborating Ministry of Power,

Works and Housing to ensure that huge coal deposit in the country is explored to meet some of its energy needs.

“Coal production started in Nigeria in 1902 and it was the main energy source for our country until 1960, and coal is in about 19 states of the federation stretching for about 800 kilometres. Coal exploration offers a significant opportunity for power generation and one of the efforts that we are making now in partnership with the Ministry of Power, Works and Housing is ensuring that coal forms a significant part of the energy needs. I know there are people who are worried about climate change and the implication of coal on that.

But even coal can achieve clean coal environmental standard and we believe that about 1000 mega watts of electricity can be generated from coal by the year 2020. And these are plants that are going to be sited near the areas where the reserves are, across the country.”

Mining reforms Speaking on “Digging Deeper for New Wealth: Opportunities from Solid Mineral Resources”, Fayemi remarked that some reforms arising from Nigerian Mining and Minerals Act 2007 have created a platform for a robust private-sector-led mining industry in the country. “The mining sector has been with us since 1902. From the early operations of the geological surveys emerged entities such as the Nigerian Mining Corporation, Nigeria Coal Corporation and the National Steel Company. And during this period, mining was a major contributor to Nigeria’s revenue base and was a leading employer of skilled and unskilled labour. But we then lost it, we forgot all about mining, and the Indigenisation Decree, particularly in 1972, contributed to the demise of mining in the country. Because that’s when most of the expertise that we had in mining, which was essentially foreign, mostly British, left the scene, and we lost our tracks as far as mining was concerned. But following some reforms which started in 1999, which essentially crystallised around the Nigerian Mining and Minerals Act 2007, Nigeria is once again on the path to providing a transparent and workable regulatory and policy environment for more robust private-sector led mining.”

Banks don’t understand mining The minister however noted that one of the major challenges confronting the mining sector is finance, asserting that the banking industry does not understand Continues on page 18

18 — Vanguard, MONDAY, MARCH 21, 2016

Cover

How to generate a businesss idea

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AWARD - From left: Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Airtel Nigeria, Mr. Segun Ogunsanya; Chairman, Board of Trustees (BOT), Stephen Oluwole Awokoya Foundation for Science Education (SOAFSE), Senator Olabiyi Durojaiye, with Founder and former Chairman, Diamond Bank Plc., Mr. Pascal Dozie at the 21st Annual Lecture, Award of Honours & Postgraduate Scholarships of the Foundation, held at MUSON Centre, Onikan, Lagos.

Nigeria eyeing 1000MW of electricity from coal by 2020 —FAYEMI Continued from page 17 mining. “Less than one percent of the loan that is on offer in the banking sector goes to mining.

In fact, our banking industry does not understand mining at all. Apart from the Bank of Industry (BoI) that has now started some work in this regard, only 2 banks in this country have mining desks – Stanbic IBTC and First City Monument Bank (FCMB). On becoming minister, I had to go the Bankers Committee to talk to all bank MDs, courtesy of the CBN governor, to encourage them to set up mining desks in their banks and also get involved in similar interventions schemes which exist in agricultural sector but does exist in mining yet, it will come. We are determined to have funding structures that can support genuine mining, and over the course of the next 6 months a lot more will be heard of what we are doing in this sector. But banks are also showing interests because they see that it is a priority area for the government,” he stated.

Great prospects for non-oil economy Meanwhile, the CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele, also declared at the event that the N400 billion earned from solid minerals in 2015 underscores the great prospects of the nation’s non-oil economy.

In his keynote address on “Returning Nigeria to the Boom Days: Prospect of a Non-Oil Economy”, Emefiele who was represented by CBN’s Deputy Governor, Economic Policy, Dr. Sarah Alade, noted that although the challenge of diversification of the Nigerian C M Y K

economy is daunting, it is by no means insurmountable.

“The prospects are great with the potentials in the agricultural, solid minerals and the creative industry sectors.

The country is endowed with abundant arable land capable of supporting all- year-round production of a wide variety of both cash and food crops, livestock and forestry. By its geographical location along the coast of the Atlantic Ocean, and myriads of water-ways, it has huge potentials for fish production to meet domestic need and surplus for exports in a global fish market valued at $144 billion in 2014. In the solid minerals sub-sector, there are at least 44 known mineral assets notably gold, iron ore, barite, bitumen lead, zinc, tin and coal which have been identified for commercial exploration. Solid minerals contributed an estimated N400 billion to the economy in 2015.

“Nigeria’s creative industry driven by Nollywood, produces about 50 movies per week, second only to India’s Bollywood and ahead of Hollywood, and currently provides employment for over one million people (excluding pirates). This makes it Nigeria’s largest employer after agriculture. In 2013, the

Less than one percent of the loan that is on offer in the banking sector goes to mining

creative industry contributed 1.4 per cent to GDP and was rated the third most valuable film industry in the world, generating revenue of N1.72 trillion. The Nigerian film industry has a global audience of several millions in over 178 countries. In recognition of the industry as a leading non-oil sector in Nigeria, the World Bank in 2010 provided a grant of $20 million to boost growth and employment under its Growth and Employment in States (GEMS) project. From the foregoing, it is evident that we are not short in potentials to transform the economy through the non-oil sector. The task of returning the non-oil economy to its glory days is possible but would require the creative energies of all stakeholders; government at all levels, the private sector, press and indeed, the citizenry. It is noteworthy that, government, particularly at the centre recognises the need to and has committed to diversifying the economy away from oil.

“The banking sector is the “lifewire” of economic activity in any economy. The sector mobilises resources from the surplus and lends to the deficit segment and thereby, efficiently channeling savings into investment. This helps to mobilise and pool savings from a large number of investors to achieve growth. An efficient banking system also eases the exchange of goods and services by providing efficient payment and settlement services. Thus, it influences savings rates, investment decisions, technological innovation, and consequently, enhance longrun growth. The banking system is the major instrument of government’s monetary strategy from which Continues on page 19

s stated in the quote above, ideas rule the world. It was someone’s idea that manifested as the electric bulb, the computer, the automobile etc., all came from an idea. So you need ideas; but right ideas “because you decide what ideas are right or wrong? For example, someone decides to sow and sell head pants, everyone laughs and say this is wrong idea. Guess what, he goes ahead, and suddenly, head pants hit the fashion scene and he makes his millions. So, it’s not getting the right idea but getting your idea right. It is one thing to get an idea and another to get it right.

In order to generate ideas, you must open yourself up to the process of getting ideas. There are two methods of generating a business idea: Creative methods and Systematic methods.

CREATIVE METHODS: Creative methods often involve doing what feels right to you subconsciously, we each have likes and dislikes. We are attracted to certain things that don’t attract other people. For example, you may like to clean and anytime you go into people’s homes, you spot the dirt and want to clean. Perhaps there is a business in it for you. Also each of us has things we do well and other things we don’t struggle to do at all. You can start your creative method by listing those things you do well; those things that bring out your smile. Take note of what friends tell you they have seen you do well. These may include: speaking, writing, organising, building, teaching, supporting people, gardening, selling, connecting people, and disciplining others. After creating a list of things you do well, decide which ones you prefer above others, and pursue it. This brings us to the second creative methods: trying it out.

Once you have an idea of what you would like to do, try it. So you believe you write well, try selling a piece of your poetry or prose. If it works, you might have the beginning of a lucrative business. Don’t stop at trying only one of your ideas; try them all because people often establish many businesses in a lifetime.

Also you might find that it is better to combine two or three ideas than just one.

The following questions would help you generate business ideas: What talent do you have?

What is your educational qualification?

What are your hobbies?

What are your character traits?

How well do you relate with people?

What do you like to read about?

What do you dream of doing with your life?

SYSTEMATIC METHODS If you choose not to use the creative method to generate business ideas, you can use any systematic method. Any of these methods would help you to identify the kind of business you can start: Find a need and fill it: While brainstorming ideas on starting a business, one can look around and find something people need but difficult to get and plan to meet the need. If you make a habit of finding and meeting needs, there will be no limit to your business.

Improve existing goods and services: In many developing countries, most government owned organisation have collapsed due to lack of maintenance, but these services can be rendered to the masses through creative individuals ready to make money. Take the case of water supply, where government water board no longer functions to supply water; you can start a business of drilling boreholes for the communities.

What about other sectors? What business could you build out of power shortage; lack of adequate sanitation etc. let your mind wander.

Identify future trends in an economic sector: If you can identify a future trend in an economic sector, you can create wealth. For example, if you can figure out what goods and services would need to be delivered to banks, telecommunications, oil companies and private companies, you can be a preferred supplier.

Surf the internet: The internet is another way of generating business ideas to embark on. The internet is a place to learn so much ; you can get lots of business ideas on websites like our: www.successinyourbusiness.com, www.enterweb.org, msn money etc.

Vanguard, MONDAY, MARCH 21, 2016 — 19

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IGERIANS’ taste for foreign goods has been the bane of the economy.

Many prefer goods and services from abroad to locally produced ones even when the foreign ones are of lower quality. This has had a serious effect on the nation’s reserves and compounded the unemployment situation in the country. The continued depletion of the external reserves of the nation and the ever growing army of unemployed youths is partly a result of this trend that has bedeviled the Nigerian economy.

Available data show that the trend of high importation of goods and services out- stripping export has continued despite efforts by government at diversifying the economy. Latest data from the National Bureau of Statistics for the 2015 calendar year shows that the N288.6 billion. Nigeria’s im- cent. The country also importcountry’s total trade was record- ports by Economic region re- ed goods valued at N2.5016 ed at N16.4268 trillion, amount- vealed that the country con- trillion or 37.3 per cent from ing to N7.2516 trillion or 30.6 sumed goods largely from Asia Europe, and N871.3 billion or per cent less than the total trade with an import value of 13.0 per cent from The Amerivalue recorded for 2014. This N2.8335 trillion or 42.3 per cas. Imports from within the continent of Africa totalled development arose largely due N420.4 billion or 6.3 per cent, to sharp decline in the value of while imports from the region exports; from N16.3040 triillion of ECOWAS amounted to in 2014 to N9.7288 trillion in It is bad busiN213.8 billion.

2015, a decline of 40.3 per cent.

On an annual basis total exA decrease of N676.4 billion or ness to export ports from Nigeria stood at 9.2 per cent in the total imports crude and imN9.7288 trillion at the end of in 2015 helped to mitigate the 2015, representing a drop of declining trade balance, which port fuel and N6.5752 trillion or 40.3 per cent stood at N3.0308 triillion, petro-chemiover levels recorded in 2014.

N5.8989 trillion less than the Notwithstanding a steep devalue in 2014. The crude oil cals, export iron cline in crude oil exports by component of total trade de- ore and import N4.9459 trillion or 41.6 per cent creased by N4.9459 trillion or in 2015, the structure of Niger41.6 per cent as against the level steel, export ia’s exports is still dominated recorded in 2014 alumina and by crude oil exports. The conIn 2015, imports classified by tribution of crude oil to the valimport aluminiBroad Economic Category reue of total domestic export vealed that “Industrial supplies um products, trade amounted to N6.9453 trilranked first with N1.8241 trilexport raw colion or 71.4% in 2015. Exports lion or 27.2 per cent. This was

by Section, revealed that the followed by “Capital goods coa and import largest product exported by and parts” with the value of processed cocoa Nigeria in 2015 was “Mineral N1.5167 trillion or 22.6 per cent, products” which accounted for and “Fuels and Lubricants” with products, export N8,574.3 billion or 88.1%. the value of N1.2107 trillion or cotton and imExports by continent, showed 18.1 per cent. The value of Prethat Nigeria mainly exported mium Motor Spirit stood at port garments

goods to Europe and Asia, which accounted for N3,866.6 billion or 39.7% and N2,945.8 billion or 30.3% respectively, of the total export value for 2015.

Furthermore, Nigeria exported goods valued at N1.4004 trillion or 14.4 per cent to the continent of Africa while export to the ECOWAS region.

Sadly, instead of Nigeria’s non-oil export rising, it has fallen. Instead of import bills dropping, they are rising, a scenario that portends danger for the economy. For too long, Nigerians have failed to recognise that the nation is in the wrong business by exporting crude oil and importing fuel and petro-chemicals, exporting iron ore and importing steel, exporting alumina and importing aluminium products, exporting raw cocoa and importing processed cocoa products, exporting cotton and importing garments.

This is bad business. Foreigners and economists have always bemoaned the much touted economic growth because it has not reflected on the life of the average Nigerian.

Former Minister of Agricul-

ture and Rural Development, Dr. Akinwunmi Adesina, had said that Nigeria expends N1 billion daily on rice importation, translating to N360 billion annually. Besides, N217 billion is equally spent annually to import sugar while fish importation gulps N97 billion every year.

As Edo State Governor, Adams Oshiomhole said, no country desirous of making economic progress relies on importation. Nigeria has no business importing rice.

Nigeria is simply in a mess because of the kind of leadership imposed on the country.

When serious nations are discussing how to move forward, Nigeria’s supposed leaders are counting how much they have in their personal bank account or buried in their compound.

At international conferences, while others are negotiating deals that will bring succour to their people, Nigerian leaders are looking for opportunity to steal from the nation's treasury.

This is the root of Nigeria’s leadership problems.

Nigerian leaders are simply lazy and rent seekers. This is the basic problem; bulk of the nation’s import is for consumption instead of capital goods that will aid further production.

There is something fundamentally wrong with Nigerian leaders and Nigerians. If anything, this is the time for a rethink.

Emefiele reiterated CBN’s commitment to its developmental mandate with intervention programmes across various sectors but with strong focus on the real sector. “The key objectives of the interventions include: providing enabling policy environment for increased lending to priority sectors;

improving access to affordable and long term funds to fast-track real sector development; derisking lending to encourage financial institutions to finance priority sectors; incentivising borrowers to encourage timely repayment; enhancing job creation and promoting the diversification of the economic base.”

What is wrong with Nigerians?

Cover Story Great prospects for non-oil economy Continued from page 18 all the other organs in the economy take their financing tone.

In recognition of the above,

the CBN as the apex regulator in the financial system has remained focused on creating and sustaining a stable macroeconomic environment

and building a vibrant, safe and sound banking system that is capable of supporting the diversification drive of the economy,” he stated.

Cement: Community backs Dangote's expansion plans

By JIMOH BABATUNDE

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ouths in Okpella Community, Edo state staged peaceful protest to the Okuophellagbe of Okpella kingdom, Dr. Yesufu Dirisu, the paramount ruler of the Community over perceived delay in the take off of the proposed Dangote’s three million tonnes per annum production capacity cement plant in their Community.

Speaking during the solidarity march when some officials of Dangote Group visited the village, the Youth President, Christopher Kadiri, said they were in the palace to find out when the

proposed cements plant announced by the Dangote group will come on stream.

The youths were seen with different placards like “All we are saying, let Dangote Cement come to Okpella”, “Okpella youths earnestly ask for Dangote Cement” and “Okpella Chief and Elders, Please beg Dangote come here.

We are waiting for Him Kadiri said “history has been made today particularly on the side of the youths, because there were uncertainties about Dangote investing in our community, but today, the youth are simply saying we are 100 percent behind Dangote .

“We want development in our community. I am telling you

today that the whole of Okpella both old and young are in full support of his investment.

While commending the traditional ruler for his role in fast tracking the infrastructural development of the community, he expressed optimism that the proposed Dangote Cement Plant in the village would bring development to the area.

It would be recalled that Dangote Cement Plc, Group Executive Director, Devakumar Edwin had announced some production capacity expansion drives with the commencement of construction of new cement plants in two communities in the country.

HEALTH DAY - From left, Vice President Marketing, Unilever Nig Plc, Robbert De Vreede; Honourable Commissioner for Health, Dr Jide Idris, representing Lagos State Governor, Akinwunmi Ambode; State Coordinator, World Health Organisation, Dr Sunday Abidoye; Category Manager, Oral Care, Unilever Nigeria Plc, Bunmi Adeniba during the World Oral Health Day Celebration in Lagos.

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20 — Vanguard, MONDAY, MARCH 21, 2016

Business & Economy

BY EDIRI EJOH & ILOAZE BLESSED-ODIDI

World retail market targets N301trn by 2025 — Report

By PRINCEWILL EKWUJURU

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he world’s retail sector, including Nigeria has been projected to hit N301trillion ($1trillion) by 2025 according to Mckinsey report.

The report is the world’s retail sector report and trends. It said that presently the sector is worth over N150.5 trillion ($500billion), but will grow to N1trillion, which is N301trillion by 2025, if converted at the current exchange rate.

Speaking, Co-ordinator of the Retail Convergence conference, Francis Osifo, in Lagos at a press briefing, said the conference tagged: ‘Data Driven Insight; Optimizing Your Retail Operations Based on Business Data’, will include exhibition that will hold April 16, 2016, which aim is to enable retailers take advantage of new resources, technology and network of opportunities to optimize their operations and stay competitive.

Osifo who failed to give insight into what Nigeria’s contribution is to the retail sector revenue projection by 2025, noted that over 30 percent of the revenue generated during the projected period will be lost due to improper managerial skill on the part of owners, pilfering, lacklustre customer insight and other challenges facing the sector.

According to him, “the conference aims to bridge the gap to let Nigerians into new world retailers trends, thus helping in putting finishing touches in order to up their ante in the sector. This conference will enable participants explore avenues to their retail businesses even in present economic condition” He went on to say that retail conference is the convergence of retailers of all sizes as well as retail service providers to discuss industry trends, challenges, opportunities and the role technology plays in the future of retail in Nigeria and Africa. Continuing, he stated, “as a firm we are committed to creating a platform that enables retailers leverage technology in their business to become more efficient, removing leakages and ensuring management control by the owners and management of the retail businesses.

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anufacturers in N i g e r i a have been charged to as a matter of urgency imbibe standards that are generally acceptable for locally made and exporting products, else risk acceptance by the International markets.

This was the views of some experts at the just concluded Manufacturing Partnerships for African Development, mPAD and MAN expo, in Lagos.

Speaking on the need for standards in production, Assistant Chief, Standard Engineer, Standard Organisation of Nigeria, SON, Mr. Dosumu Tajudeen, said there is need for manufacturers to retract their minds from going shortcut in production and distribution of their finished product.

According to him, “There are required standards set up

by SON to everything being produced both locally and that which should be accepted from the International communities. The problem has always been some individuals who try to boycott the process for selfish reasons.

“Some of these challenges range from corruption, lack of adequate knowledge, our way of life and other social vices.

Most times, we have being engrossed with the mindset that any goes, and that alone has hindered locally manufactured products from scaling the odds at the International markets.”

He argued that there is need for manufacturers to carry out research and development on

MEETING - From left, Director, Managed Services, Inlaks Computers, Mr. Oladimeji Koyejo; Director, Sales and Strategy, Financial Business, Mr. Precious Osegi; Managing Director/CEO, Mr. Femi Adeoti; Sales Manager Africa, Nautilus Hyosung, Mr. Ryan Kim; and Director, Sales & Strategy, Infrastructure Business, Mr. Tope Dare, at the Institute of Directors’ monthly meeting in Lagos.

Imbibe global standards for local, export products, SON urges manufacturers the successes of other prominent manufacturers, internationally and locally, and work on them before going into production or begin to export such products.

“Before a product is certified for local consumption or for export, it is required that such product should pass through what we call Mandatory Conformity Assessment Programm, MANCAP (Local product), and Standard Organization of Nigeria Conformity Assessment Programm, SONCAP,

(Importing and Exporting standards).”

He however, urged local manufacturers, importers and exporters to adhere with requirements set in place by the Federal Government via its agencies established, adding that such laid down rule is meant to bring about credibility and values for acceptance in the global markets.

Also speaking, Head, Procurement, Cadbury Nigeria Plc, called for Federal Government will power to strengthened regulatory

environment that will drive the implementation of global standards in our markets.

He argued that there should be certifies standards for product imported rather than flooding the markets with diverse adulterated products that it seldom needs. “The challenge here is that, it is not everybody that produces what you need, that deserves to import to the country. There should be a standard, benchmark for products acceptance.”

Economy on verge of recession — EKPO

BY PRINCEWILL EKWUJURU & JONAH NWOKPOKU

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irector General of West African Institute for Financial and Economic Management, Professor Akpan Ekpo, has said that the prevailing economic situation in the country resulting from persistent decline in commodity prices has sent the Nigerian economy hovering on the brink of recession.

He stated this while speaking on a topic: ‘Steering Nigeria out of economic turbulence: Policy choices for Buhari’s administration’ at an inaugural lecture organised by Centre for Financial Journalism, in Lagos.

He said: “The government

must be strategic if it wants to fast track Nigeria’s development. It is clear that the Nigerian economy is in distress. The economy is on a tip of a recession. While no economic blue print has been made available but based on the party ’s manifesto, pronouncements by government as well as the draft 2016 budget, President Buhari has several policy choices both in the short and medium terms.”

He said those policy choices must focus on critical areas such as massive investment in hard infrastructure, employment generation, investment in housing construction, changing the structure of the economy and provision of social services.

Other key areas, according to the Economics professor, include: rebuilding the public school system, building strong institutions, growing the real

sector and pursuing aggressive monetary and fiscal policies.

According to Ekpo, “Investment in power particularly would enhance growth and generate employment. It would result in the establishment of new micro and small scale industries as well as sustaining existing ones. The release of the funds for infrastructure in the 2016 budget would enhance liquidity in the system.

Construction of both urban and rural roads; repairs of existing roads, construction of rural roads would generate jobs.

“Unemployment has reached a crisis situation hence government must formulate policies and strategies to address the problem. The 2016 budget estimates provide for the recruitment of 500, 000

teachers. The visible hand of government must recruit persons into all the security agencies such as the Police, Army, Navy, Air Force, Immigration, Customs, etc.

The multiplier effect of government employment would grow the economy and then check the pending recession. The new workers would earn wages, pay taxes to the government and demand goods and services.

“The rebased GDP indicates the sluggish growth of the housing sub-sector. A revamped housing sector for all levels of income through the mortgage process would involve both skilled and unskilled labour.”

Speaking further, he said the country ’s economic structure needs changing.

According to him, “Though this is long term, the effort must begin immediately.

Vanguard, MONDAY, MARCH 21, 2016 — 21

Business & Economy

LITERACY DAY - From left, Union Bank, Executive Director- Public Sector ,Ibrahim Kwagana, Assistant Zonal Director Admin-Kano Municipal Zone, Moheabdulalik Kura, Principal (Mariam Aloma Mukhtar Girls Secondary Kano) Aisha Isa Muhammadu, Director Planning,Research and Statistics ,(Min. of Education,Science and Technology) Danlami Garba who Represented he. Dep.gov.& Hon Commissioner For Education Kano State, Executive Director, Commercial Banking Union Bank Plc, Kunle Sonola and Chief Education Officer-admin,Kano Municipal –Ibrahim Ahmed U/Gini, at the Financial Literacy Day at Mariam Aloma Mukhtar Girls Secondary School, Kano.

Ajima Farms tackles energy problems with innovative waste management

BY JIMOH BABATUNDE

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pilot project that will tackle the energy challenges facing off-grid rural communities commenced in Rije, Kuje Area Council of Abuja recently as Ajima Farms and General Enterprises Nigeria Limited in Partnership with ECOWATT Projects launched Waste-2-Watts off-grid energy initiative.

The project, with funding support from The United States African D e v e l o p m e n t Foundation (USADF) under the 2015 Power Africa Off-grid Energy Challenge, will provide off-grid electricity, clean water, and biogas cooking fuel produced from locally sourced agricultural wastes from farm outlets in Kuje area.

Disclosing this in Abuja, one of the Project Managers, Miss Fatima Oyiza Ademoh, said the initiative will leverage the existing agricultural waste generation potential in Kuje Area which happens to be the hub of farming activities in Abuja.

She noted that providing cheap and clean electricity to the community will improve so many aspects of their lives but more importantly it will boost their agricultural productivity because farming is their major source of livelihood.

“The electricity will be C M Y K

used to process and preserve some of their farm produce, improve their productivity and spur several business ventures that require electricity to thrive.” She noted.

According to Ademoh “Ajima Farms will provide biogas cooking stoves to help reduce the use of fossil fuels and fuel wood which the

villagers currently source by cutting down economic trees like Shea butter trees.

“The project will actively engage the youths in the community during the construction phase of the biogas plant and also train them with the necessary skills to manage and operate the biogas plant.”

Dangote borrows Brazilian model to boost local rice production

By FRANKLIN ALLI

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lhaji Aliko D a n g o t e , President/CEO, Dangote Group has hired a Brazilian agricultural expert to replicate in Nigeria the model that Brazil used to transform the country from a net importer of rice in the year 2000 to a net exporter in the year of 2009.

In a statement, the company said that Mr. Lulu Carlos, the Brazilian, has already started work in the country as Special Adviser to Alhaji Aliko Dangote on Rice and Coordinator of Dangote Rice Farm Ltd’s out growers’ scheme.

Vanguard learned that the pilot test is being conducted by the company in HagoFadama, Kafin Hausa and Auyo community in Jigawa state.

It was further learned

that the company has provided small hold farmers in these communities with quality inputs (certified seeds, fertilizers, agrochemicals and petrol), improved agricultural practices and technology to increase yield and produce quality rice paddy which would also be bought back from them

by Dangote Rice Limited.

Said Carlos: “We are happy to start the first phase of the out growers bloc of 200 hectares, shared among 8 communities. I’ve seen the same project born in my country, Brazil, whereby from 2.5metric tons in the beginning to today where we reached 9 tons of paddy rice per hectare in productivity.

“This has transformed my country (Brazil) from a net importer of Rice in the year 2000 to a net exporter in the year of 2009.

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22 — Vanguard, MONDAY, MARCH 21, 2016

Banking & Finance

Sterling Bank rated top ten globally

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terling Bank Plc has been rated 10th by Lafferty Group among 100 other quality banks from around the world.

The bank also rated first In Nigerian in terms of quality.

The Lafferty Group, which made this known in a statement, said its approach to rating is to use publicly available information to judge against key quantitative and qualitative criteria such as strategy, culture, customer care, brand promise and financial performance.

Lafferty Group is a major provider of knowledge services to the banking industry worldwide from benchmarking research and Councils to professional education. According to Michael Lafferty, Chairman, Lafferty Group “banks that score well on Lafferty Bank Quality Ratings tend to trade at a premium price to their tangible book value”.

In an update to investors and analysts on the Ratings, Yemi Adeola, Managing Director/Chief Executive, stated: “Our Bank has remained resilient in a turbulent operating environment; and Lafferty Bank Quality Ratings has provided an objective view on the fundamentals of our business, by rating us 10th in the world, top 3 in Africa (after Capitec and Barclays Africa) and the top bank in Nigeria.

Dragnet and Blogme supports NYSC to train 5,000 Corp members

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n a bid to eased unemployment problem and to empower the youth in the country, Dragnet Solutions and Blogme is supporting the National Youth Service Corp (NYSC) in ensuring that the Corp members are afforded a highly efficient, innovative and benefitting service through conducting free aptitude tests which begins this week at the secretariat in Lagos.

In NYSC furtherance commitment, it also including the National Youth Service Corps Lagos State (SAED) to commenced the screening of the over 5,000 Corp members during the next couple of weeks leading up to their passing-out parade.

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Rising inflation, declining growth: Will MPC do nothing?

BY BABAJIDE KOMOLAFE

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he Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) meets today to consider recent development in the economy especially the twin challenges of rising inflation and decline in economic growth rate.

However, the expectation is that the committee will likely adopt and a wait- and- see’ posture rather than adjust its monetary policy or introduce new measures.

At the end of its last meeting in 2015, the MPC ended its four years of monetary tightening and decided to relax money supply with the aim of stimulating economic growth. Consequently, it decided to: Reduce the Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) from 25.0 per cent to 20.0 per cent; Reduce the Monetary Policy Rate (MPR) from 13.0 per cent to 11.0 per cent; Change the symmetric corridor of 200 basis points around the MPR to an asymmetric corridor of +200 basis points and -700 basis points, around the MPR. This decision, according to the CBN Governor, Mr. Godwin Emefiele, was prompted by, “Weakening fundamentals of the economy, particularly the low output growth, rising unemployment and the uncertainty of the global economic environment”.

But at its first meeting of this year, in January, the Committee adopted a waitand-see attitude, stressing the need to allow time for policy changes made in 2015 to impact the economy.

Declining Growth & rising inflation Discussions at this week’s MPC meeting would focus on the fourth quarter 2015 Gross Domestic Product (GDP) data and February Inflation data recently by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

According to the NBS, GDP growth rate dropped to 2.11 percent from 2.84 percent recorded in the third quarter.

Thus the economy grew at an average rate of 2.77 percent in 2015, down from an average of 6.22 percent in 2014.

The February inflation report however showed that inflation rate rose to a three year high of 11.38 percent, courtesy impact of sharp depreciation of the naira on prices of goods and services.

Besides exceeding the single

Emefiele, CBN Governor inflation rate threshold of the CBN, the February inflation figure surpassed the 10 percent predicted by Financial Derivatives Company (FDC).

While the GDP data for Fourth quarter of 2015 reinforces the need for policy measures to stimulate growth, as decided by the MPC at its November 2015 meeting, the February inflation data, according to Cowry Asset Management Limited, “Put question on the current monetary policy thrust of the CBN which appears to have given up the objective of price stability for an “induced” FX stability, trade protectionism and stimulating domestic manufacturing growth.”

According to, a bank treasurer and official of Financial Market Dealers Association of Nigeria (FMDA), “Ordinarily the MPC would have continued with its decision to relax

Like we noted, a much more potent policy mix would be to adjust the exchange rate and restructure the market to allow for more flexibility

monetary policy by further reducing the MPR, or the Standing Deposit Facility (SDL) rate, but with the February inflation date, it is not likely they would do so”.

Comments from MPC members From the personal statements of MPC members at the January meeting, it is obvious that, they were resolute about the need to stimulate the economy. The personal statements also reveal that they were obvious that this policy direction would have some negative side effects including possible rise in inflation rate.

“According to Deputy Governor, Corporate Services, CBN, Mr. Bayo Adelabu, “From the monetary side, the teething issues could always be addressed by fine-tuning some measures without altering the strategic goal of policy, which is the need to support the real sector and promote inclusive growth.”

Another MPC member, who is not on the board of the CBN, Mr. Uche Chibuke, stated, “Some of these costs are already obvious and are bound to increase in the future. Statistics available to MPC, for instance, clearly show that inflation is already inching upwards and approaching double digit territory. The implementation of the 2016 budget will only cause the inflation problem to get worse. Based on the above dynamics; the biggest challenge for monetary policy in my view is how real sector development can be encouraged in the face of rising inflation.”

With these comments, MPC members may not be in the mood to consider a resumption of monetary tightening to rein inflation.

The enormity the enormity of the increase in inflation rate also makes it less exciting to consolidate on the pro growth measures and it is worrisome especially to investors as it reduces real interest rate or returns on financial assets, thus stimulating desire for upward review of the MPR to ensure investors earn positive returns on their investment.

Policy Options Based on the above, Analysts at Afrinvest, stated while there are three options for the MPC, there is high probability the Committee will decide to do thing by retaining it policy stance.

They stated, “We expect the MPC to decide between; Holding all rates constant and continue to harp on structural reforms and policy coordination with the fiscal arm; Adjusting the MPR upwards by 100bps – 200bps to compensate investors for lowered real return and attract foreign private capital; Increase the Standing Deposit Facility (SDF) rate by 200bps, while leaving other rates constant, to force an upward movement in the yield curve and mop up liquidity in the financial system.

‘Whilst acknowledging the need to compensate investors for the depressed real return, we have placed an 80 percent probability on option 1 and 10 percent apiece on Options 2 and 3 due to 1).

Vanguard, MONDAY, MARCH 21, 2016 — 23

Corporate Finance

VISIT - From left, Vitafoam Nigeria Plc’s Group Managing Director, Mr Sunday Adeniyi; Chairman, Dr Dele Makanjuola; Executive Governor, Ogun State, Senator Ibikunle Amosun; and Group Managing Director, Omatek Ventures Plc, Engineer Florence Seriki, during Vitafoam’s courtesy visit to Senator Amosun on industrial project in Ogun State.

Nigeria received $21bn diaspora remittances in 2015 — CHOMEL •As GTBank joins MoneyGram

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he Vice President, Africa and China, MoneyGram , Mr. Herve Chomel in this interview with Vanguard’s Assistant Business Editor, Peter Egwuatu, spoke on issues bothering the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN’s cashless policy and how the Foreign Exchange, Forex is impacting on its business as money transfer; the partnership with GTBank Plc, a quoted entity on the Nigerian Stock Exchange, NSE over the launch of MoneyGram’s cash to account service , the benefit of money transfer to the economy , among other issues.

Excerpt: How has CBN’s forex policy impacted on your business and how are you coping in terms of meeting customers’ need?

Actually the forex policy of the CBN is affecting us as a money transfer agent because there is 60 per cent difference between the parallel market and the official exchange rate, nevertheless, we are managing to meet customers’ need as much as we can. We don’t have choice but to comply with the CBN’ S policy of paying beneficiary in naira value of the money sent to them. Before the forex restriction policy, we paid customers in dollar if they want. However, whenever the policy is reversed ,we will go back to paying beneficiaries in foreign currency as they demand.

How important is Nigeria market to your business?

Africa in general is a critical part of MoneyGram ‘s

business . Nigeria alone accounts for around two thirds of total remittance inflow in Sub-Saharan Africa, and received an estimated $21 billion in 2015, according to World Bank’s report. Therefore, Nigeria is a big business for in the Sub=Saharan part of Afria and we are satisfied doing business with our partners here in Nigeria. Nigeria is becoming a strong send market following the CBN’s directive in 2014, which allows customers in Nigeria to outgoing transfers to other part of the world.

You recently launched Cash to Deposit Account and signed a partnership with GTBank Plc, a quoted company on the NSE. What informed the decision to pioneer this kind of product and will other banks in the country benefit from this innovation?

The reason why we launch

We don’t have choice but to comply with the CBN’s policy of paying beneficiary in naira value of the money sent to them

•Mr. Herve Chomel Account Deposit Money Transfer, otherwise known as cash to account is to make our customers collect their money without hassles. It is very easy to receive the money sent from your loves ones abroad through one’s account. The receiver does not need to go to a bank and queue and waste time. Once the money is sent, it hits the beneficiary account and the person can make use of the money through Automated Teller Machine (ATM), Point of Sales Terminal (POS) etc. We are excited to partner with GTBank , a leader in the Nigerian banking industry, to bring our services to customers who need them most. We are now offering our money transfer services at GTBank’s network of 16 locations. Also, this service is not limited to GTBank alone, but to other banks, which uses Nigeria Interbank Settlement System. This means that the service is available to all individual accounts with access to the Interbank Settlement System.

How has your money transfer service supported the CBN’s cashless policy?

In fact, we are really committed to bringing financial inclusion to Nigeria, and to Africa, which is why we are continuously investing in

innovative new channels to facilitate fast and easy money transfers across multiple platforms. In the moblle realm, we are offering mobile money transfer services directly to customers through our agreement with e- Transact.

There is no point carrying cash from one place to the other when one can easily pay one’s bills through our mobile services. When money is transferred to your account, you can pay the electric, water bill and so on through the mobile platform. There is no need carrying cash from one place to the other. So, all these are part of our effort in supporting the cashless economy.

What is the benefit of money transfer to the Nigerian economy?

Remittances are important to Nigeria’s economy as Nigeria living abroad sent more than $21 billion back into the country in 2015.MoneyGram’s account deposit service makes it easy and convenient for both sender and the receiver to transfer and receive funds. We are connected to about 1.5 billion accounts in five of the world’s largest remittance receive markets from Nigeria, China, India, Mexico and the Philippines. We are the second largest money transfer service provider in the world.

What has been the organisation’s contribution in the area of Corporate Social Responsibility, CSR ?

Well, apart from the service we provide we also make sure we give back to the community or society where we operate.

We remain dedicated to Nigerian community. Through our MoneyGram Foundation , we have helped children around the world gain better access to educational facilities and learning . We have provided many grants across Africa. Many of those grants have been provided to Save the Children for educational books in Nigeria.

What is MoneyGram all about and are you still willing to invest in the country despite the challenges facing the country?

Yes, we are committed to investing in Nigeria.

MoneyGram is innovative leading global money transfer company that provides an essential services enabling customers to send money anywhere in the world, quickly, reliably and affordably. We help people send money to their families to cover expenses ranging from the everyday to the emergency and everything in between. We have more than 3 million customers in more than 50 countries in Africa each year and that shows why we are committed to investing in Nigeria and Africa in general.

Guinness Nigeria repositions for long term, sustained growth

BY NKIRUKA NNOROM

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uinness Nigeria Plc has announced that it has begun the process of reviewing its organisational structure and design in order to enable it build a more effective and efficient business for sustained, long term growth.

Peter Ndegwa, MD/CEO, Guinness Nigeria, said that the company needed to reposition in order to achieve its objectives and response to an increasingly volatile operational environment. “It is our performance ambition to be the best performing, most trusted and respected Consumer Products Company in Nigeria.

With a challenging market economy and slowing GDP growth, increasing inflation, oil price crisis, amongst others, we feel that this is a good opportunity for us to look at our structures, processes and culture and see how we may build a simpler, more agile and performanceoriented organization in order to achieve that ambition and respond with speed to enable us to win in the market.”

Ndegwa continued: “While work is ongoing to determine the full extent of these changes, we know that headcount will be impacted but our focus is to take a broader look at our organizational design to enable us build a more effective and efficient organization. These changes are required because we are determined to create the right conditions for our people, our brands and our business to succeed.”

Ndegwa concluded: “Africa is the fastest growing region for Diageo in the world and Nigeria is an important market for Diageo in Africa. We are committed to the Nigerian market; we have been here for 66 years and expect to be here for many more years. We feel that these changes will help transform our business and put us in the best shape to grow our business today and for the future.

“We are very excited about our consumers and some of the great innovation that we have launched recently and others coming in the pipeline as well.

A great example is the Guinness Africa Special that we launched late last year – the first major innovation on the Guinness brand in 10 years.

24 — Vanguard, MONDAY, MARCH 21, 2016

Homes &Housing Finance

Steps to acquiring a property

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hoose your property: When looking to buy a home, you must decide on the kind of property and location you want. If necessary visit a mortgage adviser to check the likely level of mortgage you need and can afford. Shop around for options before you decide to buy.

Agreeing the sale: Before agreeing on a price or signing anything, make sure you know what’s included in the asking price. Your acceptance offer is still ‘subject to contract’– which means the sale is agreed but isn’t binding until you exchange contracts. Up to that point either side can back out without penalty.

Financing: Unless you are financing the purchase without a mortgage your next step is to find one – or make sure you have the money ready.

Arrange a survey: Engage a surveyor to conduct a survey of the property Get a solicitor: You will need a solicitor or conveyancer.

Once they’re happy with the legal aspects of the property, and you have the finance in place, you can sign and exchange contracts. Discuss with your legal adviser any requirement to pay a deposit as this can be up to 10 percent of the purchase price.

Exchange of contracts: When you exchange contracts, the seller is legally bound to sell the property to you.

Completion: You complete on the date agreed in the contract, where the rest of the money is transferred to the seller. Collect keys from the seller’s agent and then you can move into your new home. *Source: 3invest

•A private estate under construction.

Lagos set to partner NMRC on mortgage financing Stories by YINKA KOLAWOLE

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agos State government has declared its readiness to partner with the Nigerian Mortgage Refinance Company (NMRC) to boost homeownership in the state.

Commissioner for Housing, Mr. Gbolahan Lawal, stated this during a meeting of the Ministry and its agencies with the management of NMRC led by its Managing Director/ Chief Executive, Prof. Charles Inyangete. He said the state government is prepared to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) as soon as parties agree on the terms and modalities of the facilities which are geared towards enhancing access to mortgage finance in the state.

The commissioner said Lagos State has positioned itself

Fidelity Bank customer wins duplex in savings promo

By NKIRUKA NNOROM

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customer of Fidelity Bank Plc, Mr. Odianosen Adodo, of Uromi branch, Edo State, has emerged the winner of a duplex worth over N35 million in the 5th draw of the bank’s on-going ‘Save 4 Shelter ’ promotional campaign.

The property located at 7A, 5th Avenue, Rumuibekwe Housing Estate Extension, Port-Harcourt, Rivers State, is the second out of three such houses to be given out by the bank throughout the duration of the promo. The first duplex located at a prime area in Abuja was given out last year, leaving the one in Lagos as the last to C M Y K

be won. Six customers also won N5 million cash prize in the monthly rent support, including 12 other consolation prizes.

With these, the bank has so far given out a total of N29 million in rent support and over 60 consolation prizes to its loyal customers since the promo commenced five months ago.

Executive Director, Shared Services and Products, Fidelity Bank, Mrs Chijioke Ugochukwu, who spoke on behalf of the Managing Director/CEO, Mr. Nnamdi Okonkwo, explained that the promo is focused on one of the basic needs of man (shelter), while noting that it’s the bank’s way of promoting financial inclusion in the country.

positively in terms of provision of mortgage law and the establishment of necessary institutions to facilitate a value-chain approach in financing housing. He stressed that the state is working towards reducing poverty, noting that home ownership goes beyond shelter as it is a major investment.

Lawal further disclosed that state government has commissioned empirically based studies across the state to ascertain the various needs so as to guide government in its quest to reducing housing deficits across the state.

“Government is working towards reducing poverty, because home ownership goes beyond shelter as it is a major investment, as such, we are making effort to tackle housing challenges. We commissioned

There are a huge number of houses that are yet to be accessed by the public

Resort Savings partner developers on 500 housing units

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esort Savings and Loans Plc said it is collaborating with estate developer to build 500 housing units before the end of the second quarter of 2016.

The mortgage bank’s Head of Business Development, Mr. Yemi Popoola, said in a statement that the alliance would enable the bank provide mortgage finance to off takers interested in the housing estate which are for the middle class.

He declared that the bank has invested over N3.0 billion in real estate and created mortgage in excess of N5 billion over the past 36 months which has helped in reducing the housing deficit in Nigeria.

Speaking on the recent collaboration, Popoola said the estates would be tastefully

furnished in prime locations within Abuja and Lagos, adding that a unit goes for between N9 million and N20 million. He encouraged all existing and prospective customers of the bank to take advantage of the new development in the bank.

“We are in an era that requires great tact for those who want to survive. One of the ways to live in this era is to take advantage of facilities like this. With the products in our bank, it is easy for anybody who wants to own property to do so, our terms are flexible,’ he stated.

Popoola noted that the bank already has huge investment in real estate developments in Ofada, Ogun State, Karu Area Council, Abuja, Lekki, Lagos State and a host of other places in Nigeria.

empirically based studies that were carried out across the state to ascertain the various needs that can guide government in its quest to reducing housing deficits,” he said.

Lawal reiterated the state’s commitment to continuous provision of mass housing for the residents. According to him, the provision of mass housing is part of government’s efforts to tackle the current housing deficit being faced in the state as a result of population increase and influx of people into the state. He however noted that government could not shoulder the responsibility alone, hence the call on developers to partner with the ministry.

“As part of the outcome of our interaction with the representatives of the real estate sector, held recently, the involvement of the Public Private Partnership (PPP) has received boost as many of the actors had shown interest in our various projects, especially, in options such as rent-to-own initiative. That is why we are exploring a collaboration with the mortgage financing company that could enable the people have more access to homes as there are a huge number of houses that are yet to be accessed by the public,” he stated.

The commissioner asserted that the current housing crisis calls for drastic measures requiring a Public Private Partnership (PPP), to take housing beyond delivery to possession. He disclosed that government is considering the introduction of other housing ownership initiative options such as a rent-to-own apart scheme that could enable the people have more access to homes considering that there are a huge number of houses that are yet to be accessed by the public.

Vanguard, MONDAY, MARCH 21, 2016 — 25

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26 — Vanguard, MONDAY, MARCH 21, 2016

Aviation

Why Medview enjoy huge patronage — Bankole

By LAWANI MIKAIRU

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he Managing Director of Medview Airline, Alhaji Muneer Bankole has revealed that the secret of the airline’s continued patronage and increase in passenger traffic is due to the airlines passengers’ friendly services and on time departure and arrival.

Bankole made the revelation while announcing the commencement of their LagosKaduna . He added that the airline has witnessed tremendous patronage and goodwill on both the local and international routes.

On the Lagos –Gatwick route ,which some stakeholders have thought would be a major challenge for the airline, Bankole said the challenges of operating Lagos-Gatwick were there but that the airline has done very well. He further explained that the airline was making good its promise especially on in-flight catering, as Nigerian dishes have been introduced onboard According to him, “See our London flight, we said we would serve local food and we are serving amala(local yam flour), fish pepper soup we are doing what we say and keeping our passengers happy. We keep to our promise. We treat them like Nigerians, with respect and dignity.”

AFRAA charts course for improving aviation business in Africa

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frican Airlines Association (AFRAA) has planned a conference in Kigali, Rwanda, where stakeholder in aviation would converge to deliberate on ways to foster dialogue, build sustainable networks in supply chain management and create a competitive environment for aviation business in Africa.

The secretary general of the associate, Dr. Elijah Chingosho said the event which is organised in conjunction with RwandAir would take place in May 2016.

Convened under the patronage of the ministry of transport and infrastructure of Rwanda, Chingosho said the convention had been endorsed by Rwanda Civil Aviation Authority and Rwanda Development Board.

He said the event is expected to bring together about 400 participants consisting mainly of airlines, civil aviation authorities, airports.

Nigeria ready for ICAO audit, says NCAA boss, Usman

By LAWANI MIKAIRU & DANIEL ETEGHE

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irector General of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority of Nigeria, NCAA, Captain Muhtar Usman has said that Nigeria was fully prepared for the International Civil Aviation Organisation, ICAO, Universal Safety Oversight Audit Programme ,USOAP.

Captain Usman while speaking at NCAA Annex, Murtala Muhammed International Airport, (MMIA), Lagos pointed out that the audit was aimed at promoting global aviation safety through regular audits of safety oversight systems in all ICAO member states.

He said that the ICAO USOAP was launched in 1999 because of the widespread

concern about adequate safety oversight around the

We are here to assess the level of safety in Nigerian aviation industry

INAUGURAL - From left: Eng Mohammed Sanni, Regional Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority, Kaduna; Alhaji Ishaq Na'Allah, Executive Director, Business Development, Medview Airline; Eng Lookman Animashaun, Executive Director, Technical; Nzomisaki Pmasato, Northern Zone Coordinator, SAHCOL and Alhaji Bello saliu, Managing Director, Batake Resources Handling Company Ltd on arrival at Kadunal International Airport during the inaugural flight of the Airline to Kaduna.

Easter: Passenger traffic increases at Lagos airport

By LAWANI MIKAIRU & DANIEL ETEGHE

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he Murtala Muhammed Airport, Lagos is beginning to witness an upsurge of passengers traffic at the airport due to the forthcoming Easter celebration beginning from Friday to Sunday.

Vanguard went round the various terminals at the airport and observed that passengers were seen on long queues at the Murtala Muhammed Airport Domestic Terminal 2 (MMA2) and the General Aviation Terminal (GAT) popularly known as (MMA1) trying to buy their tickets in order to travel to their various destination.

Investigation into the fares, Vanguard learnt was still at its normal price as Medview Airline from Lagos to Kano was pegged at N23,000 while most of the domestic airlines fares on Lagos to Abuja goes between N23,000 to N27,000

respectively which is subject to changes.

When contacted, General Manager, Corporate Affairs, Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN),Mr. Yakubu Dati said that a significant upsurge in passenger, cargo and aircraft traffic is expected in Nigerian airports.

Mr. Dati also stressed that the increased would last up to the last quarter of this year, when most of the terminal and other related projects at these airports would have been completed and commissioned.

According to him, with improvements in terminal and airside facilities at these airports, a number of local airlines in the country have already started expanding their route network, some extending to the West Coast of Africa.

The FAAN GM said that some foreign airlines with Lagos as their only destination have also begun to show interest in operating into Mallam Aminu Kano and Port

Harcourt International Airports. Qatar Air is one of such airlines, following the recent signing of Bilateral Air Services Agreement (BASA) between Nigeria and Qatar.

“Significant increase in passenger, aircraft and cargo traffic at Nigerian airports, especially those managed by the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, became noticeable towards the end of last year.

In September, the figure for passenger movements in all the airports was 316, 680. The figure grew steadily to 318, 503 in October, 328,652 in November and 336,652 in December, 2015”.

“During the same period in 2015, cargo movements grew steadily from 13, 504, 252 in September, 15, 435, 842 in October, 16, 102, 686 and 16, 267, 208 in December. Other factors likely to influence the growth of passenger and cargo traffic this year include the completion of cargo terminals at designated airports across the country” Mr. Dati added.

world adding that the growth and development of aviation in Nigeria was undergoing a periodic examination by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO).

The NCAA boss further stressed that the audit consists of three phases which are the pre-audit phase, on-site phase and post audit phase stressing that an analysis of the countr y ’s oversight establishment has been done including a review of implementation of Annexes’ provisions and the differences from the Standards and Recommended Practices (SARPs) that were identified in SAAQ an d Compliance Checklists.

Captain Usman pointed out that the country was currently in the on-site phase of the audit as the state is visited by ICAO team to validate the information provided by focusing on the overall capacity for safety oversight.

Meanwhile, Head of the four-man team of ICAO, Mr. Jean Claude-Waffo said that this year ’s audit was a monitoring phase of what have been checked-on in previous audit ten years ago.

Claude-Waffo affirmed that the first audit was conducted in 2006 and the focus was on checking the level of safety in the Nigerian aviation industry while this present audit was based on effective monitoring phase.

According to him, after the audit, there would be an effective implementation rating stressing that the essence of the audit was to regulate and force compliance of members countries to the international regulations.

He said “We want to thank NCAA for their support given to us during the preparation phase. As you know, the previous audit took place in 2006. The first audit focused on checks while this one is based on continuous monitoring on the checks that had been done and an effective implementation rating will then be done” Mr. Claude-Waffo added that this year ’s audit would reflect on the changes in civil aviation in Nigeria in the last ten years, to access the state capacity and to overseas the aviation system.

“We are here to access the level of safety in Nigerian aviation industry, to find out whether their have been changes in our last audit, we will do this through the collection of evidences of data” he added

Vanguard, MONDAY, MARCH 21, 2016 — 27

Economy

What we want to achieve with innovation this year-Olugbodi Tell us a bit about yourself and your role in verdant zeal

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y name is Tunji Olugbodi and I am the Executive Vice-Chairman and Group CEO, Verdant Zeal Group, an emerging multinational and multidisciplinary marketing and communications firm with a number of subsidiaries in Nigeria and operations in Ghana and The Gambia.

Verdant Zeal opened for business on the first of March2007 with a vision to be the benchmark partner for clients, brands and businesses in the emerging market. We started rather humbly with a group of y o ung but v e r y d ar i n g professionals whose sole ambition was to change the world with their ideas and as the story has been consistent in the last 9 years.

What inspired you to inaugurate the innovation series?

When Verdant Zeal clocked 5 in 2012, we had the option of inviting our clients, partners and friends for a big party in celebrating the milestone. But as grand as that idea sounded, it didn’t measure up to the kind of legacy we had always wanted to build for ourselves. So we decided to inaugurate the Innovention Lecture Series, a thought leadership platform designed to leverage the positive energy of the public and private sector within a stimulating intellectual environment.

The days of folding our arms and saying ‘it is well’ had to be put on the back burner as this passive attitude was not going to take us anywhere. We decided that we needed a game changer to aid the reorientation of minds to help reengineer the nation towards development.

We chose not to ignore the complex and longstanding challenges; lack of vision, good leadership, corruption and a host of others impeding development but face them with a strategy best known to us: collaboration. Again, from the onset, we decided that Africa would be our playing field and our thinking and strategies had to align with this vision so it was not out of place to inaugurate a continent wide discussion forum.

Over the years, the Verdant Zeal Innovention Series has continued to find smarter answers to the tough questions that arise out of the quest to move Africa forward.

It seems like a herculean

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task to grow in the midst of all these challenges, and in a country like Nigeria, it becomes much more daunting with the socio economic and political environment. However, like tea bags, people never really know how strong they are until placed their backs are against the wall. During the past three decades, Africa suffered lack of idealistic, visionary and altruistic leaders dedicated to their own people. People, have therefore, lost most, if not all, faith in their respective governments and have decided to become responsible for themselves.

Africans are tired of being hungry in the midst of plenty.

The theme for this year’s innovation series is “the next big thing”. What should participants be looking forward to?

That’s an interesting question because when the theme was couched in September 2015, Nigeria wasn’t quite in the dire straits that we are in now. Yes, the signs were there, but not as glaring. That said, our intent this year is to allow participants see the billions of untapped potentials that can be harnessed for greater economic performance. As it is now, the price of crude oil has dropped and Nigeria, like many African countries is faced with answering the tough question every mono economy has to answer - what more?

What next? As democracies are established across the continent and free trade opportunities continue to grow across borders, Africa needs a concerted agenda to ensure that it creates multiple streams of income if it must remain relevant globally.

It is the aim of the 2016 Innovention Series to start the conversation on identifying and leveraging these untapped opportunities for collective progress.

One of the pivotal points will be on how to get unprecedented returns on investments. Yes, it may be high risk, high return but if it works in Wall Street, why should Africa be exempt from having the same benefits?

Yes, the political structures are emerging and the human capital ranks low on core technical skills but Africa is one of the few places in the world where multiple digit returns can be guaranteed in the shortest time possible.

Perhaps some of the inhibitions to real growth across the continent is trans border trade. Our challenge will be to think of smart ways of overcoming these language

development?

It’s interesting that you asked that question. About 4 years ago, I had granted a similar interview where I had said that we were in the digital economy and that only businesses that were quick to embrace this reality would survive. At the time, it seemed like Greek, but the signals are much clearer now.

Africa may be termed as the ‘last frontier ’ and perhaps the last to embrace technology but its definitely leap frogging in terms of usage and adaptability.

Unfortunately, the teeming population has enveloped the giant strides that many tech start-ups are making but it’s only a matter of time before Africa shows the world how it’s done.

With the democratization of Internet connectivity premised on super fast fiber optic technology, it is amazing, the volume of internetenabled devices being produced and how that has shifted consumer behavior patterns from ‘traditional’ channels to online alternatives. It affects everything from commerce to culture and everything else in between. So you see that it is only a matter of time before business in Africa will be at the speed of light.

As marketing and c o m m u n i c a t i o n s professional, what role does advertising and promotions play in developing African brands especially now that local content is being encouraged?

• Tunji Olugbodi and territorial barriers so that goods and services can move seamlessly across borders. We will also be exploring Africa’s emerging creative community and how our organic uniqueness can possibly create a cultural renaissance with equal economic benefits.

It is also the intent of the Innovention Series to get rid of the stereotype of the single story that Africa is one country. Africa is 54 independent nations, each resplendent with its natural, human and economic resources with the capacity to attract a heterogeneous crowd with each visit. Just as Italy

differs from Spain despite the spatial proximity, each African territory must be clearly differentiated and marketed as thus.

The Keynote Speaker and other discussants have been carefully handpicked from different genres of the economy such as African studies, media and arts, and advertising to broaden our scope and help catalyze the progress of the private sector.

As one of the advocates of the digital economy, what impact do you think technology and social media will have in leapfrogging Africa’s collective

We started rather humbly with a group of young but very daring professionals whose sole ambition was to change the world with their ideas and as the story has been consistent in the last 9 years

Marketing & communications continues to play a very pivotal role in positioning products and brands for visibility, higher purchase preference, loyalty and overall brand awareness.

As more opportunities are created within this market, startups will emerge, new brands will be born and the unending race for brand supremacy will continue.

Smart brands need to understand the importance of building their brand images.

Many businesses still perceive advertising as an unnecessary evil. But this faulty premise has denied many brands the golden opportunity to reach their peak in the awareness game. If giants such as Coca Cola still place premium on advertising their over one hundred year old brand, that should be instructive to others.

Digital marketing has come to stay but many of the tactics such as celebrity endorsements, emotions, humour and storytelling will still remain relevant.

In the words of Albert Einstein, the specific problems we face today cannot be solved at the same level of thinking we were at when we created them. So, we must keep thinking. We must keep discovering. We must keep dreaming because the next big thing is close than we think.

28 — Vanguard, MONDAY, MARCH 21, 2016

People in Business

By Ebele Orakpo

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any diseases and natural disasters like poor farm yields due to desertification, and erosion, hitherto attributed to the gods and witchcraft, were later found to be caused by microorganisms and global warming caused by activities of man. This was possible through research. In this report, Financial Vanguard sought the opinion of stakeholders on how research and innovation could be used for economic development especially with the current dip in price of crude oil, Nigeria’s major export product, in the global market. Nigeria, a mono product economy, which depends almost solely on crude oil for foreign earnings, urgently needs to look inwards.

Best time for research: All the contributors agreed that there is no better time to use research and innovation to take Nigeria out of the doldrums.

“There is no better time for research than now when Nigerians are trying to look inwards to find alternatives by use of locally developed technologies. Research has the potential of growing the economy. This is the right time for it,” said Prof. Idris Bugaje, Director-General, National Research Institute for Chemical Technology , Zaria.

Prof. Joseph Ahaneku, VC of Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, in his address at the 6th edition of Nigerian Universities Research and Development (R&D) Fair held in UNIZIK, said: “For the national economy, R&D could yield new technologies and products, generate solutions to existing challenges and boost global competitiveness of its goods and services.”

“If we are trying to solve problems, we have to understand the nature of the problems and we do that through collaboration by researchers and industry,” said Dr. Ferdinand Che, Associate Dean, School of Business & Entrepreneurship, American University of Nigeria. He noted that research is a fundamental part of national development.

For Prof. Samuel Wara, Director, Research, Innovation & Discovery, Covenant University, research must be vision-driven.

“If we are going to grow the economy based on research, then we will be looking at solution, industry and sector-based research because that is the only way researches can be impactful.”

Solution-based research: In order to get the needed impact on society, research must be tailored towards solving societal problems health, agriculture, infrastructure, etc.

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Research, innovation panacea for economic growth

•Covenant University's Dual engine car

•Bayero University, Kano's Medium power generator from stationary bicycle

•Nnamdi Azikiwe University's mini bus Said Wara: “Breakthroughs and products emanating from the researches would need to be pushed out for public consumption.”

For Bugaje, research is not enough. “You have to move your research into innovation, which is what will help move the economy forward.

Innovation means new processes, new products or better ways of carrying out existing processes. So we need to get our act right. We have the potential and the manpower; what is required is the policy direction.”

“The obvious areas of diversification are Agriculture, health, power etc.

Fundamentally, this is about recognising the opportunities and doing something about them.

For example, government can make the environment coducive for entrepreneurship to flourish.

People must be able to create something and to make profit from that while making positive impact on society,” said Che. Policy direction: “If Nigerian universities are doing researches that are common knowledge elsewhere, they will not contribute to economic development. So we must take our researches to the next level. Get those that are really viable properly patented internationally. The statistics of Nigeria’s patent registrations in the US is very low. In 2014, Nigeria registered only 70 patents, South Africa, Kenya, Algeria are all ahead of Nigeria. SA had over 1,000 patent registrations and Nigeria had about 100 so we have a long way to,” said Bugaje.

Problem: Although R&D is pivotal to economic development, successive governments in Nigeria have consistently underfunded the sector. Said Bugaje: “Research is not recognised in the national economy generally and you can see that from the way it is being funded by government. For instance, in the 2016 budget, the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology got 0.67 per cent of the budget. This government is new, I hope by the time they

The researches must be impactful, solution-driven and industrybased get their economic direction properly, they will pay more attention to R&D.” Giving an example of how research is contributing to economic development, Dr. Braimoh Bello, senior medical scientist/research technical leader at Johannesburg-based Centre for Statistical Analysis and Research (CESAR) said: "There are different aspects of research - food, water, health, social and environmental issues and government has to be involved in all.

"South Africa is a researchintensive country. I was contracted by their Dept of Environmental Affairs to provide training on statistics.

I asked them what they do,

one of them said they are responsible for removing alien plants. I asked what alien plants are and she said the amount of water available to the country depends on the amount of water in the aquifers and the amount of water in the aquifers can be depleted by the alien plants that are not contributing anything to the vegetative quality of the country. They map out areas with alien plants and measure the volume and quality of water in that area before and after. So they are able to say this is the amount of water we need for the whole country, this is the amount of water we have, this is the amount of water we can add if we can remove our alien plants."

Way forward: “After identifying the kind of research - impactful, solutiondriven, industry-based - how are you going to drive them? On individual or collaborative basis? A university should be known for something so you look at those universities or individuals that have something in common with respect to the drive you want for the economy.

For instance, you may want to drive issues of security, power/ energy, transportation, environment, manufacturing in different areas like textiles, so you begin to form research clusters

that will work in those areas.

“Next, what facilities should be in place to undertake these researches? We will look at literary or library, ICT, specialised laboratory and human resources. We may create partnerships and collaborations to be able to undertake these researches,” said Wara.

Endowed chairs: "We may create some endowed chairs or centres of excellence in universities. How much of technology are the Technology Incubation Centres incubating?

How much exploitation of raw materials is Raw Materials Research and Development Council doing? One centre of excellence may be that of Energy Resources, another may be dealing with global warming and environment.

“Hunger and poverty are issues. Over 791million people live in chronic undernourishment in developing countries and about 2.2 billion people live on less than $2 a day. So researches to produce food and make them available to people at affordable cost will be undertaken to deal with them.

Entrepreneurship will help deal with poverty so we need to promote small and medium scale industries. Security and conflict resolutions are issues, what must we do to build peace across the country?”

There are also Health, Housing, Transportation and Education issues – what are we doing about them? "asked Wara.

"We have to find ways to help micro enterprises to employ more people, create more opportunities that will lead to jobs and by people having more jobs, they will be creating more economic activities which will lead to the development we are talking about. Research will help us to understand our problems and our weaknesses so in presenting those pictures, people can recognise where the opportunities lie," said Che.

P&G launches 2016 CEO Academy program

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rocter & Gamble (P&G)Nigeria, has announced the kick-off of its CEO Academy program. It is a capability-building program targeted at the brightest and highest performing university undergraduates who desire to sharpen their skills in readiness for the job market.

The program comprises a mix of trainings and case study sessions. Participants are given the opportunity to learn from senior P&G leaders, and amass skills they need to compete in the job market. The students can build mentoring relationships on which they can leverage in their employment path. Judges from P&G will select a winning team from the case study challenge based on certain criteria such

as: team work and collaboration, problemsolving skills, ability to understand and analyze information.

“P&G endeavours to select the best and the brightest talent in Nigeria,” said Chisom Obiora, P&G’s Talent Practice Manager for Sub-Saharan Africa. The competition shall be taking place in select schools across Nigeria, including Obafemi Awolowo University which held on March 9, 2016; UNILAG, March 15, 2016; and FUT Owerri, March 18, 2016. “It is important to attract, develop and retain the best talent from top universities in Nigeria,” said Interested students should visit http://www.facebook.com/ PGCareersNigeria for more information.

Vanguard, MONDAY, MARCH 21, 2016 — 29

e-Commerce

S&T Media secures $1m seed round from EchoVC Partners Stories by JONAH NWOKPOKU

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igeria’s leading place based digital advertising company; S&T Media has raised a $1 million seed round from EchoVC Partners, an early stage technology venture capital firm.

S&T Media pioneers several innovative digital advertising platforms including AdPump – a digital advertising network targeting consumers at petrol pumps - and AdEdge – an instore digital advertising screen – which secured its first retail deal with retail giant, Spar recently.

The seed round which could go up to $1, 000, 000 according to the investment details which have not yet been fully disclosed, will be dedicated to growing S&T Media including increased investments in AdPump’s expansion, product development, and further hardware and staff acquisition.

Launched in 2014 as AdBox, S&T Media has since installed 160 AdPump screens across Lagos in 17 strategically located filling stations and successfully entering into distribution deal with a number of Nigeria’s petroleum products marketing companies, including Oando Plc, Forte Oil and Total Plc which boasts more than 1,000 filling stations capacity across the country.

The company has also recently signed up key advertising partners including Etisalat, Jumia, Smile Communications, House on the Rock, Guaranty Trust Bank and Mall for Africa.

Speaking on the deal, CoFounder of S&T Media, Tolu Roberts said: “Since inception we wanted to create platforms that can give brands the reach they crave in a more efficient and targeted manner. Securing

AWARDS - From left: Alex Holmes, Chief Executive Officer, Moneygram; Rob Giles, Head Transaction and E-banking, Diamond Bank Plc and Grant Lines, Executive Vice president, Moneygram at the Awards and Recognition of Moneygram agents ceremony held in Lagos. institutional funding with the right investor has allowed us to accelerate that vision, as we rapidly develop and install platforms that connect brands with captivated consumers.

With EchoVC on board, we have found more than just an investor but also a partner who understands effective growth of tech start-ups. We are confident that we can penetrate the advertising market with our innovative platforms whilst leveraging on EchoVC strategic

partnerships.”

Also speaking, Managing Partner, EchoVC Partners, Eghosa Omoigui said: “We

With EchoVC on board, we have found more than just an investor

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enMoney microfinance bank has launched a digital campaign to deepen awareness and boost access to its financial services solutions.

The Lagos based simple money solutions provider recently launched her MakeItHappen campaign featured across all RenMoney

orporateneeds.com has launched an online based shipping logistics and procurement solution to provide low cost, reliable and fast logistics for SMEs as well as large corporations.

Speaking on what motivated the new solution, founder of Corporateneeds.com, Nduka Udeh said: “Clearing of goods at the port are riddled with issues from the multiplicity of fake clearing agents, thereby increasing the overall cost of business for most companies. A delay in delivery either by air and ocean is a common business challenge and finding cost effective warehousing is even more challenging. Couple these with the cost of procuring dollars to meet basic import needs and we see why lots of businesses are folding up.

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were impressed with AdPump’s ingenuity in developing new routes to market for advertisers in Africa, namely via digital. The velocity at which they ’ve attracted content suppliers, key advertising partnerships as well as a distribution network with such notable brands, is a combination of their excellent product, as well as the market’s willingness to use targeted marketing methods to reach their end user.”

RenMoney launches digital campaign to drive access to financial services social media platforms including Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Instagram.

In a statement, RenMoney said, MakeItHappen is a sequel to the recently concluded #ALittleMoneyAndADream digital campaign where individuals were called upon to share their dreams and

Corporateneeds.com launches shipping logistics solution

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Infinix Mobility unveils Easter Promo to rewards customers

“Corporateneeds.com is a logistics and procurement solution designed exclusively for companies, providing stress free solution to their shipping, clearing, warehousing and procurement needs, by providing an easy to use platform that eliminates unnecessary middlemen and contractors. By using our solution, companies will save over 25 per cent on their procurement and logistics needs.”

He added: “Corporateneeds.com aims to link global supplies and companies, allowing companies to bypass time wasting and LPO issuance process in the procurement of goods.

By providing a solution customized to each company, companies have better control over their logistics and procurement cost and signing up is easy as companies can sign up in few minutes by going directly to the website.

aspirations on RenMoney social media pages. As a follow up to this, the MakeItHappen campaign is a call to individuals to partner with RenMoney in bringing dreams, aspirations, goals, plans and promises they hold dear to reality.

Speaking on the initiative, CEO of RenMoney MFB Nigeria, Graham Lee said: “Our understanding of this market has shown that the gap between aspirations and reality most times, is the needed cash to fund our dreams. RenMoney is interested in bridging this gap between needs, wants and desires of Nigerians and finance they require to make it happen.

This is our key relevance and we are determined to continually raise the bar to make it happen.”

The statement said the MakeItHappen campaign will make use of the #MakeItHappen to communicate exciting and rewarding events and offers available on all RenMoney’s products; Cash Loans, Fixed Deposit and Target Savings.

obile device maker, Infinix Mobility has unveiled an Easter reward promo for fans and loyal customers of Infinix devices.

The promo allows Infinix customers to buy a smartphone and instantly unlock rewards, which include free accessories and discount off smartphone purchases.

Infinix presents the 3-level Easter reward promotion with a customized Coupon for customers who are interested in participating in the reward program.

The reward coupon gives customers access to the discounts and freebies that come with the promo. Also, customers who unlock all 3 levels of reward will partake in the Easter raffle draw to win Big home appliances.

Customers can visit these participating stores in Nigeria to pick up their Easter reward coupon upon the purchase of their smartphone – Pointek store in Abuja, Finet stores in Lagos & PH, Okay Phones store in Lagos, Solat & Play stores in Ibadan.

Konga launches Easter store

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s Easter approaches, Nigeria’s online mall, Konga.com has launched an exclusively dedicated Easter store in preparation for Easter shoppers nationwide.

In a statement, Konga said, the Konga Easter stores features all the items individuals and families could need to celebrate the season.

Konga said: “To further ensure shoppers get great deals, Konga is giving up to 25 per cent discount on select items in the Easter store.

The Konga Easter store is indeed an opportunity for shoppers to buy everything they need for the season without going through the usual hassles that come with shopping during festive seasons.

This is why they have ensured to make items such as fashion, accessories, electronics, clothes and toys for the kids, home appliances, food item and much more, available for shoppers.

“The edge Konga.com has over other shopping sources is its genuine concern for the shopper ’s experience even after an item has been purchased.”

30 — Vanguard, MONDAY, MARCH 21, 2016 NOTE: This article was written on March 8, 2016, two weeks after it was announced that President Buhari had agreed to organize an Economic Summit. Even then, it was clear to some economists that this government was not really interested in the summit. The summit failed to take off on Thursday, March 10, 2016 as scheduled and no new take-off date had been established. Obviously, there is no commitment; only an attempt to silence critics of government.

“Alas, my lord, there’s many a sycophant And flatterer that fill your courts with cant And give more pleasure with their zeal forsooth Than he who speaks in soberness and truth.”

Geoffrey Chaucer, 13421400.(VANGUARD BOOK OF QUOTATIONS. When late Harold Wilson, the late British Labor Party Prime Minister pronounced in the 1970s that “A week in politics is a long time” (VBQ p 271) he left politicians in the modern age a time metric to determine the tide of events as they affect their popularity with the electorate. As you are reading this article, President Buhari and the All Progressives Congress, APC, on whose platform he rode to power, would have consumed nine months, or 18.75 per cent, of the time given them

by Nigerians to bring about the changes they shouted from the roof tops and everywhere during the elections. If according to Wilson’s arithmetic, a week is a long time, then Buhari and the APC have spent the equivalent of political eternity in office. That is startling enough.

What should be shocking to Nigerians is the fact they are just now getting ready to sit at another talkfest to discuss the economy. This is simply scandalous for reasons too numerous to discuss in

Economic Conference:

An afterthought too late to rescue budget 2016 (1) one article. But a few will demonstrate the anguish any economist – irrespective of whether conservative, liberal or socialist — must feel when confronted with the stark naked fact that Nigerians had elected a government and political party which had no economic programme for governance while campaigning for office and which compounded that colossal error by not hastily assembling an Economic Management Team, EMT, the week after former President Jonathan conceded. But, the most inexplicable was the fact that in the five months Buhari took to select a mere fifty-odd assistants and Ministers, it never occurred to anybody in Aso Rock that one of the cardinal functions of a President and government, if not the most important, is to manage the economy. That, invariably, means selecting those people who would be his advisers and who would develop the Economic Blue Print for economic policies.

Here we are, with close to 20 per cent of the first term gone and we are being told they are just about to sit down to discuss the “way forward” – at a time when we should be

undertaking the first review of the plans and policies which they have been implementing since June 1, 2015.

Whoever says “history does not repeat itself ” has never heard of a country called Nigeria – where the sordid history of failures recurs almost with every change of government. When Professor Wole Soyinka, not an economist, was reported to have canvassed for an economic summit, and the government latched on to it to organize one, the first thing that should have occurred to anyone familiar with our record for economic summits is to ask the question, “Another one?”

“A pessimist is a former optimist who finally got all the facts.” Dele Sobowale, 1991.

(VBQ p 186). It is quite possible that those calling for the economic summit, now about to get underway, and Professor Soyinka, don’t have a deep knowledge of the history of economic summits in Nigeria – otherwise they would not have set great store on it. On this one, blessed are they that expect nothing – for they shall never be disappointed. Below is a brief history – just from 1992.

In 1992, when military President Babangida, appointed Chief Ernest Shonekan, GCFR, as the Head of Government, the first thing, the old technocrat did was to organize the First Economic Summit and to create the Nigerian Economic Summit Group, NESG – which still functions today. NESG had not only held annual economic summits, except for two or three years since then, they have contributed several cabinet members to various governments.

Buhari’s administration is actually one of the few that had been (un)fortunate to have one of their members on board. If ever there was a group that specialized in organizing annual gabfests, ending in communiqués that are widely praised by government and totally ignored, it is the NESG. Like most intellectual masochists, it was my sad lot to attend the first two summits on behalf of the Nigerian Institute of Management, NIM. Five more followed; spent representing VANGUARD, until it dawned on some of those in attendance that, apart from being mainly a “billionaires’ forum”, it was

a bloody waste of time. For almost seven years, nothing new was added to the basic outlines of the first communiqué. And, for almost seven years none of the recommendations of the NESG was implemented.

Incidentally, one proposal that caught the fancy of a government – Abacha’s government – was the most useless. It was the VISION 2020 idea which was introduced to Nigeria by a guest lecturer from Malaysia, who was in charge of Malaysia’s VISION 2020 programme. The fellow left a lasting impression because he was the contributor of the words, “It does not matter if the cat is black or white as long as it catches rats.” (VBQ p 26). The man made clear that VISION 2020 was not possible in a society where square pegs end up in round holes and where corruption is institutionalized as in Nigeria.

Yet, the first government to pretend to adopt the idea was the most corrupt up to that time – Abacha’s regime. Abacha not only grabbed it with both hands, he reduced the number of years which a more advanced Malaysia had allotted to itself to achieve the feat by launching VISION 2010. There is a lesson for Buhari in this story – before he falls into the trap of the praise-singers — his “assistants, Ministers and advisers”.

Microfinance Unemployment: NEPC to create 1.5m jobs STORIES BY PROVIDENCE OBUH

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igerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC) has announced plans to create about 1.5 million jobs in the next five years via Nigerian Diaspora Export (NDEX) Programme.

Director-General, NEPC, Mr. Segun Awolowo, made this known at a stakeholders’ workshop organized by the council in Lagos, explaining that the NDEX programme had been part of the council’s efforts to rebrand the image of Nigeria, outside its shores, thereby generating more revenue for the nation.

Awolowo who was represented by the South West Regional Head of the council, Mr. Olusegun Faleke, stated, “There is no doubt that the essence of our gathering today underscores the crucial role that Nigerians living in the diaspora are expected to play in this programme, given that about 15 million C M Y K

Nigerians live abroad, generating over $21 billion so far as recorded by World Bank in 2013.

“Now this is just a paper work, it is likely the populations of Nigerians living abroad are more than that.

“The NDEX Programme is the one that seeks to leverage on the presence of Nigerians in Diaspora, using their advantage of creating a strong ‘External Demand Pull’ for indigenous foods, fashion and other products.

“We have emphasis on key areas, and they are the Nigerian Heritage City (NHC), The Nigerian Cuisine beyond Borders (NCBB) and the Diaspora Export of NonOil Products (DENOP) “The NHC seeks to create a formalized hub where Nigerian products and services would be displayed just like we have back home in Nigeria.

“This would be established in countries where there is a large concentration of Nigerians like the United

States and London, and this would be akin to the China towns that we have today.

“The NCBB, which entails the cuisine, would also rebrand the Nigerian foods from the packaging and cooking to meet up with international standards and

world cuisine brands we know today “All these sub-programmes under this NDEX would create not less than 1.5 million jobs for Nigerians both within and outside the country, because it will definitely increase non-oil exports,” he said.

Faleke said that the programme would obviously bring about a high value

addition to non-oil products and services in the country at a time when the nation needs to revive its manufacturing, agricultural and industrial sectors.

He added that the programme would be boosted by the utilization of the African Growth Opportunity Act (AGOA) and the Export Development Fund (EDF)

Use of electronic payment adds $296bn to GDP – Report

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recent study has shown that increased use of electronic payment products, including credit, debit and prepaid cards, added $296 billion to GDP, while raising household consumption of goods and services by an average of 0.18 percent per year.

The study “The Impact of Electronic Payments on Economic Growth”is a 2016 study conducted

by Moody’s Analytics that analyzed the impact of electronic payments on economic growth across 70 countries between 2011 and 2015.

In addition, Moody’s economists estimate that the equivalents to 2.6 million new jobs were created on average per year over the five years period as a result of increased use of electronic payments. The 70 countries in the study make up almost 95 percent of global GDP. Chief Economist of Moody’s Analytic, Mr. Mark Zandi, said, “Electronic payments are a major contributor to consumption, increased

production, economic growth and employment creation. Those countries which saw large increases in card usage also saw larger contributions to overall growth in their economies.”

The study indicated that the electronification of payments benefited governments and contributed to a more stable and open business environment.

Additionally, the report found that electronic payments helped to minimize what is commonly referred to as the grey economy — economic activity that is often cash-based and goes unreported. As a result, electronic payments provided a higher potential tax revenue base for governments, while also bringing the added benefits of lower cash handling costs, guaranteed payment to merchants and greater financial inclusion for consumers.

Vanguard, MONDAY, MARCH 21, 2016 — 31

Advertising & Media

Will Nigeria ever withdraw sweetened beverages from stores?

STORIES BY PRINCEWILL EKWUJURU

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lobally, medical professionals have complained of obesity and diabetes in children, all linked to Sugar-sweetened beverages which leads to over 180,000 obesity-related deaths worldwide each year.

“This means that about one in every 100 deaths from obesity-related diseases are caused by drinking sugary beverages,” as propounded by a Harvard School of Public Health research.

This accordingly may have informed the recent ban, when Tesco, an European supermarket brand in August 2015 decided to cut sugary drinks from its shelves - with the major culprit being Ribena and Rubicon.

Tesco, enacted these changes as most schools resumed in September 2015, the same time schools resumed in Nigeria.

Invariably, Nigerian consumers had hoped that steps could be taken by Nigerian supermarkets owners and other stores to replicate this enactment, as the children and adult alike in Nigeria experience same obesity and diabetic problem.

Other beverages with high sugar content include; Pepsi, Lacasera regular, yoghurts, the low-fat and non–fat versions, the link to Coke with high sugar content seems to have died down over the years since options have been provided in Diet coke and Zero coke.

Meanwhile, Nigerian consumers have called on government and other health authorities and shop owners to either remove or replace sugary drinks by no-added-sugar alternatives.

However, to take the decision on ban may be somewhat unpopular if Nigerian super stores to take this step it will be a decision that is targeted at kids’ which is part of a campaign against childhood obesity.

Like Tesco’s Soft Drinks Buying Manager, David Beardmore said, “the ban is part of the store’s 10-point plan against obesity and, we have decided that from September (that was in 2015) we will only sell no-added-sugar drinks in the kids’ juice category.”

A good step by Tesco one may say, but can this decision be taken in Nigeria by super store managers or can Glaxosmithkline owners of the brand look for alternative for Nigerian children.?

However, outraged fans in Europe, of the popular blackcurrant cordial had gone to Twitter to voice their outrage at this Tesco decision. Some of the customers had this to say: The decision by Tesco did not

BRIEFING - From Left: Samuel Akinrimisi - Business Development Manager, Hilda Dimgba, Brand Associate, both of EKO Supreme; Manny UY – General Manager, Sales, Euro Mega Atlantic Limited (Distribution Network Partners of EKO Supreme); and Bimbo Alabi, Marketing Manager, EKO Supreme, at a press briefing announcing the company’s new innovation to its products, Sokline and Good Mama in Lagos. go without protect from consumers in Europe who were of the view that “it is insane for Tesco to pull Ribena from the shelves-sugar is not the problem, a lack of exercise is.”

Meanwhile, to determine the effect of sugar-sweetened beverage on Nigerians, particularly on children, Financial Vanguard sampled the opinion of medical experts and consumers alike were it was revealed that a 500 millitre Ribena contains 52.6grams sugar. According to Musikat Alabi of Muslab Medical centre, Oshodi, “the World Health Organisation, WHO, recommends consuming no more than 10 percent of our daily kilojoules in sugar. Using this rule, and based on an 8,000 kilojoule-per-day diet, sugar consumption should be no more than 800 kilojoules per day, or approximately 50 grams of sugar.

For Dr. Valentine Ateosu of Mosaf Medical Centre, OlodiApapa, coroborated the above statement, but said, “sugar is an embedded part of human active, total cut will not be good and high consumption is not good also.” In Nigeria, consumers have called for abrupt withdrawal of Ribena

Scientists found that more people died from diabetes, heart disease and cancer in parts of the world where consumption of sugary drinks are high

from supermarkets.

The sugar in Ribena is the problem, not fat, said Shola Ogundana, a medical practitioner who said danger locks around for persons who take sugary beverages like Ribena and others.

However, efforts made to speak with Glaxosmithkline on the issue was abortive, as this reporter was not allowed to speak with any of the top management, occasioned by the company’s strict security rule.

For Omobola Ojo, banning of the brand will be a relief for her, I have been looking for a way to stop my children from having it in their lunch box.

The sugar in Ribena is the problem, not fat, said Shola Ogundana, a medical practitioner who said danger locks around for persons who take sugary beverages like Ribena and others.

Robert Akunna, a Marketing

professional with Orlick Communications said; “this goes beyond campaign against Obesity on billboards, print and broadcast mediums.

Scientists found that more people died from diabetes, heart disease and cancer in parts of the world where consumption of sugary drinks are high.”

Of the nine world regions in 2010, Latin America and the Caribbean had the most diabetes deaths linked to sugary drinks with 38,000. East and Central Eurasia had the most cardiovascular deaths at 11,000.

In the United States, sugary drinks were linked to the deaths of 25,000 people from diabetes and other obesityrelated diseases. As in many other countries, the death rates were highest in young adults under age 45, with one in 10 obesity-related deaths associated with sugary beverages, According to “Almost three-quarters of the deaths caused by sugary drinks are in low and middle income countries,” says study author Dr. Dariush Mozaffarian, codirector of the cardiovascular epidemiology program at the Harvard School of Public Health. “So this is not just a problem in wealthy nations.”

Food advice : Like Dr. Robert Dim, a Nutrition expert said, “eat the fruit, don’t drink the juice. Fruit juice in cartons has had all the fibre squeezed out of it, making its sugars more dangerous.”

Continuing he stated that beef from grass-fed cattle is fine, but not from corn-fed cattle. He noted that sweetened beverages deliver sugar but with no nutritional added value. Water and milk are the best drinks, especially for children.

For Olajide Odunade, a nutritionist advised consumers to watch out for added sugar in foods where they would not expect it.

Chi introduces Hollandia mixology pack

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hi Limited, manufacturers of fruit juices and yoghurt drinks has introduced new 315ml ‘Grab ‘n’ Go mixology

pack.

Commenting on the new pack, the Managing Director, Chi Limited, Mr. Deepanjan Roy in a statement said, “We are committed to ensuring that our loyal consumers continue to get value and satisfaction from our products. Our customers are being offered great value with the new Hollandia Mixology Grab ‘n’ Go packs which provide them a tasty and nourishing option to mix with other beverages”.

“Mixing drinks just got better with the new Hollandia Mixology Grab ‘n’ Go Pack. Consumers can now enjoy the smoothest blend and the greatest taste just the way they like it with a handy 315ml pack of their favorite yoghurt to mix with a variety of beverages.”

The company says consumers can now enjoy Hollandia yoghurt mixed with a drink of choice.

The mixology Grab ‘n’ Go Pack is already in the market for consumers who love to mix drinks, a statement said.

The Hollandia Mixology Grab ‘n’ Go Packs are also great for on the go fun as they are light and handy, with a specially designed prismatic shape and an attractive screw cap that you feel proud to be seen with, the statement said.

OMD bags most creative media agency award

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or the 10th time, OMD has been awarded Global Agency Network of the Year for the 10t by the Gunn Report for Media The Gunn Report for Media is the industry standard for evaluating media creativity, innovation and effectiveness. The report summarizes media agencies’ overall performance from January to December 2015 based on the results of global, regional and national media award contests spanning most markets in the world. Most importantly, it recognizes the vital role media agencies play in today’s highly competitive and fragmented communications landscape.

“The recognition of creativity through awards is important to our agency culture at OMD. It is not only a critical measure of our performance, but also a reflection of how much harder we are pushing ourselves and our media partners to better our work year over year.

Morning Fresh launches pan-Nigeria consumer promo

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Z Cussons, makers of Morning Fresh, a dishwashing liquid has launched a new consumer promotion targeted at creating more affinity between the brand and Nigerian consumers. The promotion tagged “Morning Fresh Kitchen Makeover” was unveiled to the delight of consumers and distributors in Lagos recently.

Speaking at the unveiling, the PZ Cussons’ Managing Director for Family Care, Mr. Alex Goma said the decision to launch out a new promo for Morning Fresh is borne out of the desire to continue to cement existing relationship with consumers despite the difficult challenge of the time.. He admitted that even though there are economic challenges, the company remains committed to innovation in order to satisfy the need of its dynamic consumers.

Despite the fact that the operating business environment in Nigeria is quite unfriendly, the managing director believe that the only way out of such situation is to continuously maintain and build good relationship with the consumers.

32 — Vanguard, MONDAY, MARCH 21, 2016

(0805 220 1997)

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T is regrettable, that the absence of a more salutary impact from partial implementation of earlier budgets, has seriously eroded public expectation to make Nigerians, non-challant about this annual constitutional requirement. Unfortunately, the unfolding drama surrounding the 2016 version of this critical annual event, may not also inspire public confidence that this year’s plan will positively touch our lives.

Nonetheless, cynics may suggest that it is probably a deliberately programmed recipe for failure, if one consistently embraces any annual fiscal plan which invariably forfeits a quarter of the year before implementation commences.

Indeed in his recent interactions with Nigerians resident in the UK, Mr President had explained that several MDAs deliberately warehoused most of their capital vote until the fourth quarter, before they frantically adopted various strategies to evacuate the bountiful residual funds into personal accounts, with fraudulent invoices and waybills.

According to Buhari, the adoption of the Treasury Single Account (TSA) may have protected over N2 trillion from being corruptly siphoned into private pockets, by 31st of December 2015. Consequently, Mr. President suggested that the projected significant revenue shortfall of over N2 trillion may not require loans, as earlier proposed in the 2016 Appropriation bill.

Buhari must be worried that the full implementation of the projected N6 trillion-plus budget, with over N2 trillion embedded deficit, would imply that the Federal Government would be compelled to allocate, well over the present inappropriate amount of 35kobo out of every Naira income, for servicing both the existing and new debts. Evidently, no country’s economy can be safe

things in our budget, that also changed the State House Clinic allocation”?

Furthermore, the Senate Committee on Education have also reported that they had uncovered about N10bn that was hidden in the Ministry’s projected allocation for 2016; the Committee also wondered why parastatals attached to the ministry, continuously received rising allocation for personnel cost, while similar allocations for all federal schools and universities rose much more slowly?

Indeed, there is nothing to suggest that the respective MDAs, have so far reconciled their allegedly controversial budget projections with the respective National Assembly Committees; thus, it is not yet really clear which budget NASS will now consider for Approval before the Easter break as they promised. The critical question, however, is whether NASS would also condone the obnoxious debt burden that a N2trn plus deficit with crippling service charges will bring upon our nation.

Besides, while addressing some Nigerians resident in Saudi Arabia, in February, President Buhari had condemned the distortion of the budget proposals by entrenched interests; the President insisted, according to his spokesman, that the “unauthorised alterations” had completely changed the document from the one he presented to the National Assembly.

Thus, with the related controversy and the various revelations of inflated projections of fund allocations, and muti billion Naira spurious subheads smuggled into the 2016 budget, Buhari may have just kept his steel gates wide open for treasury looters to enjoy a bonanza year, if the N6 trillion plus 2016 budget is ultimately passed in deference to speed rather than a recognition of the predatory rats in the content of the 2016 Budget.

Is N6trn “ghost budget” still defensible? or indeed prosper with such precarious application of precious generated revenue.

Indeed, the existence of such an oppressive debt service burden probably should have advised a more responsible and sensitive fiscal plan, consciously designed to produce a balanced budget, so as to suspend further debt accumulation, which might endanger our sovereignty. It is unlikely that Buhari would gleefully endorse the present, highest ever projected deficit of over N2 trillion if the implications of such an oppressive debt service burden was thoroughly explained to him.

In fact, an unquestioned approval for such an oppressive financial burden is probably at cross purposes with Buhari’s renowned frugality and national pride. Consequently, some Nigerians were alarmed when Vice President Osinbajo initially flew the kite of a proposed N8 trillion budget; clearly, with crude oil trading below the $38/ barrel budget benchmark, it would require over N4 trillion ($20bn) loan to fund such a budget, not minding that this would compel the odious allocation of over 50kobo of every Naira earned to servicing our national debts annually.

Fortunately, Nigerians were spared this dismal prospect with a reduced fiscal plan of N6.1 trillion, even though such spending will inevitably still extend current debt service beyond the dis-enabling and distortional 40 kobo from each Naira generated revenue. Our debt burden would clearly become perilous, if persistent low crude prices should also instigate further deficit financing in 2017. So the question, obviously is, why

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Buhari would so readily accommodate this heavy, debt laden fiscal projection in such an austere season?

One expects that the budget figures President Buhari laid before NASS were determined between Jun-Dec 2015, presumably, after thorough and exhaustive consultations with stakeholders and the respective legislative committees responsible for MDA oversight.

Sadly, these extensive consultations and the attendant delay for budget enactment, may not have been justified by the series of absurdities that gradually unraveled after a budget which was presented to the National Assembly, in the full glare of the World press, on December 22nd, was declared to be missing, less than four weeks later, in January 2016.

A Presidential aide was subsequently fingered by the Senate for swapping the original budget document with a dirty copy! Although, the Presidency never denied the allegations of budget fiddling,

The critical question, however, is whether NASS would also condone the obnoxious debt burden that a N2trn plus deficit with crippling service charges will bring upon our nation

Buhari, nonetheless, on the 19th of January, sent a corrected version to replace the discredited budget copies with NASS. Sadly, a casual evaluation of the corrected version by the Legislative Committee, still threw up several inconsistencies. Indeed, it soon became clear that some Ministers and MDA Management still fumbled when defending their respective Expenditure projections, especially when these were compared with historical allocations to the same Agencies in the previous three years.

Alarmingly, the Health Minister, Prof Isaac Adewole, for example, disowned some contentious provisions in the budget proposal of his ministry, when he claimed that “ this was not what we submitted”; and therefore added that “we will submit another one. We don’t want anything foreign to creep into that budget” Adewole’s reaction definitely raises questions as to which version of the budget he sought to defend, and why the National Assembly’s copy was different, even after the NASS had received a so-called, corrected version from the Presidency.

Furthermore, the Health Minister confirmed that his ministry had nothing to do with a projected N3bn State House Clinic, which is a clearly lopsided projection, when compared with the paltry N2bn allocation to the development of new hospitals and clinics throughout the country.

Consequently, Professor Adewole concluded, with regard to the State House Clinic projection, that “ I hope it’s not the same rats that changed

Standard Chartered empowers youths with financial literacy

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or the third year running, Standard Chartered Bank Nigeria has partnered with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to drive its Financial Literacy with a financial literacy workshop in Uyo, Akwa-Ibom State.

Speaking at the workshop, Mrs. Ebiti Sam-Yudo, Head, Client Relationships, Port Harcourt, who represented the Managing Director/CEO, Standard Chartered Bank Nigeria, Mrs. Bola Adesola, said giving students the fundamental information about financial literacy empowers them with the right tools towards becoming financially sound and independent individuals in the C M Y K

future. She added:‘This is an excellent initiative of the CBN as it equips children across the country with information around how to be financially responsible through training materials that touch on various topics including savings, budgeting, earning and investing money.

“Standard Chartered Bank Nigeria is proud to support the CBN in this initiative. This is one of the many ways we reiterate that we are indeed here for good - we look forward to continuously making a difference in the country.”

The Principal of Rayfield Secondary School, Uyo, Mr.Unyimi Umoren, thanked

the bank for facilitating the workshop at the school. He added that it was encouraging to see corporate institutions that are still interested in the development of our youths through education and added that the sessions were indeed informative.

Initiated and driven by the Bankers’ Sub-committee on Financial Literacy and Public Enlightenment in collaboration with the CBN, the Financial Literacy programme was created to serve as a platform for financial institutions to educate adolescents in secondary schools on the basics of banking, value of money, investment options, savings, insurance.

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