TheNewsGuru

Tag: Nigeria

  • Nigeria gradually getting out of recession – Lai Mohammed

    Nigeria gradually getting out of recession – Lai Mohammed

    The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed has said that Nigeria is gradually moving out of recession.

    Mohammed, represented by the Managing Director of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), Mr Bayo Onanuga, made the assertion at the biennial convention of the Nigerian Guild of Editors in Lagos on Saturday.

    He said that going by a recent statement by the Central Bank Governor, the country would exit recession by the end of June.

    “ There have been other pointers for the good news as well. For two consecutive months, the National Bureau of Statistics has also reported a fall in inflation rate.

    “ The exchange rate is regaining some sanity.

    “ As I said earlier, the worst appears to be over. We are clawing out of the woods of recession in weeks from now,” the minister said.

    Mohammed said that the Buhari administration and collective will of Nigerians had shamed doomsday prediction that our recession could worsen into a depression.

    “ I hope, in our various media, we shall begin to focus more on the positive developments in our economy, the growth in agriculture and mineral development, since the NBS last year, let out the secret that the Nigerian economy recorded a negative growth in the first quarter of 2016, “ he said.

    The minister said that recession was not peculiar to the country.

    He said that the United States of America had experienced 47 recessions, some regressing into depressions.

    “ Between 1980 and 2007 alone, the American economy experienced five recessions. The last one in 2007 was caused by the subprime mortgage crisis and led to the collapse of the US housing bubble,” he said.

    Mohammed urged the media to stop the blame game and educate Nigerians on the efforts being made to end recession.

    “ Informing the people that the government is working hard to end the recession will go a long way to give hope to the people.

    “After all, it is said that ”if you keep hope alive, it will keep you alive” the minister said.

     

     

    NAN

  • Nigeria becoming unsafe daily, CAN tells Buhari

    The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), has said the country is now gradually turning to an open space for perpetrators of evil to carry out their dastardly acts without questioning by relevant security agencies.

    It further noted that Nigerians are going through severe pains as a result of hunger, poverty and insecurity of lives and property in the country.

    The religious body said this in a goodwill message delivered by the CAN National Secretary, Rev. Dr Musa Asake, at the ongoing 104th annual session of the Nigerian Baptist Convention holding in Abuja.

    CAN acknowledged that it believed that this year’s theme for the Baptist Convention, “Moving Forward: Overcoming the Challenges of Life through Jesus Christ”, was “the best suited for this troubled times.”

    In his words: “You will all agree with me that our country Nigeria is today experiencing excruciating pains as we witness religious and ethnic cleansing through the criminal activities of the murderous Fulani herdsmen who are killing story on daily basis.

    “Nigeria has become unsafe because our security agencies are not living up to the billings. In Nigeria today, nowhere is safe, both the rich and the poor are crying because of the evil in the land occasioned by the criminal activities of the terrorists, kidnappers, armed robbery, ritual killings, unemployment and corruption in high places.”

    CAN applauded the leadership qualities of its President, Samson Ayokunle, who is also the President of the Nigerian Baptist Convention (NBC).

    “We in CAN are very grateful to the Nigerian Baptist Convention for giving u your very best who now serves as the National President of the Christian Association of Nigeria. Am talking of no other person than Rev. Dr. Samson Olasupo Ayokunle.

    “In times like this, we need a vocal and courageous leader to speak and stand in the gap for the Nigerian church. Let me boldly tell you that the man you give us as the number one Christian is this country is a leader who speaks his mind on all issues irrespective of whose ox is gored,” Asake said.

  • Lagos, Delta, A’Ibom, highest indebted states in Nigeria – DMO

    Lagos, Delta, A’Ibom, highest indebted states in Nigeria – DMO

    …As Anambra maintains lowest debt figure of N3.5billion

    The Debt Management Office, DMO has identified Lagos, Delta and Akwa Ibom States has the highest indebted states in Nigeria with debt profiles to the tune of N707billion as at December 31, 2016.

    Lagos State had a local debt stock of N311.7 billion as at Dec. 31, 2016.

    The state, referred to as the commercial hub of Nigeria, had the highest local debt stock in the country during the period.

    A document posted on the Website of DMO disclosed that total local debts of the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) was N2.958 trillion as at December 31, 2016.

    Delta followed Lagos with N241.3 billion in local debts, while Akwa Ibom came third with N155.4 billion in local debts.

    The three states were followed by FCT with N152.8 billion debt stock, Osun with N147 billion, Rivers N142.4 billion and Bayelsa N140.1 billion.

    The document also said that the lowest indebted state was Anambra with N3.9 billion, followed by Yobe with N13.5 billion and Jigawa with N19 billion.

    Anambra state had the lowest domestic debt figure of N3.5 billion in 2015 and still maintained the lowest figure in 2016.

    TheNewsGuru.com reports that domestic debt is the amount of money raised by any government denominated in local currency from its own residents.

    The debts consist of two components: bank and non-bank borrowing.

    Domestic loans are issued through government debt instruments such as Nigerian Treasury Bills, Nigerian Treasury Certificates, Federal Government Development Stocks, Treasury Bonds, Ways and Means Advances.

     

     

    NAN

     

  • Nigeria’s digital economy to create 3m jobs, generate $88bn in 10 years – FG

    Nigeria’s digital economy to create 3m jobs, generate $88bn in 10 years – FG

    The Federal Government has said that the financial services within Nigeria’s digital economy would add 88 billion dollars and create over three million new jobs over the next 10 years.

    This was revealed by the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr Okechukwu Enelamah.

    Enelamah said this in Geneva, Switzerland where ministers from developing countries met to put forward a policy agenda to bridge the digital divide as well as provide development solutions in the long term.

    The countries are Nigeria, Mexico, Kenya, Argentina, Colombia, Sri Lanka, Uruguay, Chile, Costa Rica and Pakistan which was under the auspices of Friends of E-Commerce for Development (FED).

    “The job figures are in line with estimates of a study carried out by McKinsey Global Institute.

    “Further studies indicate that potential gains of the digital economy will be manifest in digital accounts, payments, mobile money, health and educational services and other sectors of the economy,’’ he said.

    Enelamah said the ministry was already developing the “Smart Nigeria Digital Economy Project” and that the objective was to solve efficiency problems and create leap-frog opportunities in the economy.

    “The Smart Nigeria Digital Economy Project is Nigeria’s response to an area of intense economic and technological activity by Nigerian youths, where there is a growing pool of talent.

    “It is a sector of the economy where the private sector already has ownership.

    “The role of government would therefore be to ensure a sound pro-competitive regulatory environment and hardware infrastructure to foster rapid growth of this area”.

    Enelamah said there were currently 150 million active mobile users in a country of 170 million, of which over 60 per cent were connected to the internet.

    He added that there were some 17 million Facebook users and new technology start-ups and young people writing apps that could solve problems and spur growth.

     

     

     

    NAN

     

  • We are optimistic Nigeria’s recession will end by third quarter – Emefiele

    We are optimistic Nigeria’s recession will end by third quarter – Emefiele

    Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Godwin Emefiele, has said Nigeria will be out of recession by the third quarter of this year.

    The CBN governor said this after meeting with the leadership of the Senate in Abuja on yesterday.

    Emefiele said efforts by the Federal Government has shown that the country’s economy will experience a boost.

    He added that the CBN would continue its foreign exchange intervention, adding that efforts by the apex bank so far had been yielding positive results.

    “We are very much optimistic that by the end of the second quarter, or latest the third quarter, we should be out of recession that we are in right now,” he said.

    While briefing journalists after the meeting, Emefiele said discussions were held between the apex bank and the legislature on the current state of the economy.

    He said, “Actually, the Senate President invited us to come and brief the Senate leadership in a closed session and to provide some updates on the foreign exchange markets. You would have observed that in the last two months, the central bank has been involved in some form of intensive intervention in the foreign exchange market and this has fortunately resulted in a downward trend in the parallel market price of foreign exchange, from as high as N525 to a dollar to as low as N370.

    “Right now, it hovers between N370 and N380. I think it’s an opportunity for me to say that we are going to continue this intervention because the reserves look very good. As I speak to you, our (external) reserves stand at above $31bn and that provides us enough of firepower or ammunition to be able to defend the currency, and we will do so with all intensity to ensure that foreign exchange is procured by everybody.

    “If you want to import raw materials, you will get foreign exchange; you want to import plant and equipment, you will get foreign exchange; you want to pay school fees or you are a small business that wants to buy foreign exchange for you to import your small items, you will procure foreign exchange.”

    Emefiele spoke on the CBN policy for foreign investors in the country’s forex market.

    He said, “It is the market or window that is opened for them to bring in their foreign exchange and come into the market on what we call a willing-buyer, willing-seller basis, in which case there will be no form of any price intervention by anybody, including the Central Bank of Nigeria.

    “Indeed, with the kind of firepower that we have, we are also going to play in that market to ensure that as the prices move on based on the managed float regime that we run, we should be able to control the price based on the willing-buyer, willing-seller basis.”

  • Nigeria operates housing deficit of over 17 million units – Adeosun

    The Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun has said Nigeria currently operatives an estimated housing deficit of 17 million units with an estimated increase of 900,000 annually.

    Adeosun said this in a meeting representatives from International Finance Institutions at the World Bank Spring Meetings to take forwards discussions on Nigeria’s agenda to deliver affordable housing.

    Speaking at the meeting, the Adeosun said: “Delivering affordable housing is critical to the delivery of our reform agenda and is one of the key pillars for implementation we have been discussing in Washington this week.

    “Nigeria has an estimated housing deficit of 17 million units, and with an estimated increase of 900,000 annually. Some of the reasons for this are clear.

    “Interest rates are high for both developers and home buyers, and the tenure of debt remains too short. As a result, we have to find a way to accelerate the provision of affordable homes. That is why we have established the Family Homes Fund.

    “We have requested N100 billion in the 2017 budget and for the subsequent three years as part of the Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF), this is seed funding from the government, but this is not solely a public sector scheme, it will be a partnership with the private sector and we are looking to mobilise additional resources from domestic and external sources.

    “The Fund will enable us to deliver discounted mortgages for home owners, while also enabling access to attractive funding mechanisms for developers. We are piloting in 6 states and the results of those pilots will guide long term programme implementation.”

    TheNewsGuru.com reports that the Minister is conducting a series of meetings on the implementation of some of the critical projects in the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan including meetings on Housing, Water, Power and Food Security.

    “Many of these projects are already well advanced and we have had a series of productive meetings in Washington with development partners to advance those projects and hopefully accelerate implementation so we can meet the ambitious but achievable goals we have set ourselves.”

     

  • We’ll do our bit to ensure famine, poverty is kicked out of Nigeria – World Bank, IMF

    We’ll do our bit to ensure famine, poverty is kicked out of Nigeria – World Bank, IMF

    The World Bank and International Monetary Fund, IMF on Thursday said it will do everything possible to ensure famine and poverty is kicked out of Nigeria especially the Boko Haram crisis riddled North-East region.

    The President of World Bank, Jim Yong Kim said this in his opening remarks at the ongoing World Bank/International Monetary Fund (IMF) spring meetings in Washington DC.

    He assured that the World Bank was deploying tools and financial support required to respond to the famine plaguing the region and some other countries across the globe.

    TheNewsGuru.com reports that the devastation by Boko Haram has left nearly five million people in the North-East region desperately hungry and risk starving to death, according to figures from the United Nations.

    UN also describes the current wave of famine as the worst in 70 years.

    The World Bank chief lamented that “the world was caught unprepared” by the situation in Nigeria and some other countries.

    In his words: “Too often, we forget about crises as soon as they abate – leading to a cycle of panic and neglect. We’re already working with the affected countries and partners to respond to the famine – and we will use every tool we have, financial and advisory, to prevent famine in the future.

    “This won’t be easy. It will require agreement across the entire international development finance system – multilaterals and bilaterals – to move the global development architecture in this direction,” Kim said.

    He continued: “We are encouraged to see stronger economic prospects after years of disappointing global growth. There are still many downside risks, however, and countries that have the fiscal space need to continue with structural reforms. This is vital to accelerating the sustainable and inclusive economic growth needed to end extreme poverty by 2030.

    “We’re meeting at a time when we face several overlapping crises, both natural and man-made, all of which add urgency to our mission. We have to find new and innovative ways to reach the poor, and make the world more secure and stable. Last week at the London School of Economics, I outlined how we’re working to change our approach.

    “We have to start by asking whether the private sector can finance a project. If the conditions aren’t right, we will work with our partners to de-risk that project or, if needed, de-risk entire countries or sectors. Here’s the good news: There’s never been a better time to find those win-win solutions.

    “There are trillions of dollars sitting on the sidelines, earning little interest, and investors are looking for better returns. That capital should be mobilised to help us meet the exploding aspirations of people all over the world. And with the crises we face, our task is much more urgent than we ever thought.”

    Kim said one of the things that the Bank found was that foreign direct investment often had much higher impact, much stronger impact on improving institutions and government than aid to low income and under-developed countries.

    “This is why we’re trying to bring together the financing we provide to governments and also the financing that comes from the private sector to create better institutions, more investment, more jobs, more economic growth in a much more synergistic way”, he said.

    In her address, Managing Director of the IMF, Christine Lagarde urged Nigeria and other low income countries to step up research and development, innovation, revisit housing policies in their countries in order to drive sustainable growth.

    “Stronger cooperation across counties would help reduce external imbalances, clamp down on excessive tax evasion and avoidance and would help deliver the Sustainable Development Goals so that the low income countries can also reap the benefits of improved productivity,” Lagarde added.

    TheNewsGuru.com reports that the Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun is also attending the World Bank/International Monetary Fund (IMF) spring meetings in Washington DC.

  • Nigeria operates one of the lowest tax GDP ratio – Adeosun

    Nigeria operates one of the lowest tax GDP ratio – Adeosun

    The Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun has said Nigeria operates a tax to GDP (Gross Domestic Product) ratio of just six percent, which amounts to one of the lowest in the world.

    The Minister therefore advised Nigerians to focus on non-oil revenue growth, tax compliance and budget transparency to drive economic development.

    TheNewsGuru.com reports that Adeosun gave the advice on Friday during a Finance Ministers’ meeting convened by the G24 Group at the ongoing IMF/World Bank Spring meetings in Washington DC.

    She discussed strategies to drive non-oil revenue growth and achieve inclusive growth in Nigeria.

    “Revenue mobilisation is critical to the success of Nigeria’s economic reform agenda.

    “We have an unacceptably low level of non-oil revenue and much of that is driven by a failure to collect tax revenues.

    “With a tax to GDP ratio of only six per cent, one of the lowest levels in the world, we have a lot of work to do if we are going to build a sustainable revenue base that will deliver inclusive growth.

    “Our data gathering programme, over the past year, has now given us the tools we need to be more aggressive at pursuing tax evaders both domestically and abroad,” she said.

    Adeosun said that Nigeria’s strategy to improve tax in 2017 was through an asset income declaration scheme to address low tax revenue collection and ensure improved compliance.

    She said that the strategy would lead to a broader tax base and more sustainable revenue for all tiers of government.

    “This is fundamental to delivering on our reform plans,” she said.

    Adeosun also highlighted the need for strong budget implementation and transparency to create trust and accountability in government:

    “While we focus on raising revenue and bringing people into the tax system, we must be equally aggressive in our approach to budget implementation and transparency.

    “Our people must know where their hard earned tax contributions are being spent and the impact that they are having on national development and the daily lives of citizens.

    “This will be a core focus for us,” she said.

    The minister, during her stay in the U.S, will also meet with the ratings agencies Moody’s and Fitch to update them on progress toward economic reform objectives.

    TheNewsGuru.com reports that Adeosun and the CBN Governor, Mr Godwin Emefiele, will also meet with the World Bank Country team to discuss the status of ongoing projects in Nigeria and planned projects for 2018.

  • Strict foreign exchange policy hindering Nigeria’s economic recovery – World Bank

    The World Bank has said that the Central Bank of Nigeria’s restrictions on access to foreign exchange is responsible for the country’s slow economic recovery.

    The World Bank, in the latest Africa Pulse report, a biannual analysis of African economies published on Wednesday in Washington DC, looked at the challenges to retaining growth in an uncertain global environment.

    For Nigeria, the report applauded the strategy of the Central Bank to increase sales of foreign exchange to the interbank market, Bureau de Change as well as other segments.

    However, it advocated for an even spread of the sales of foreign exchange to other sectors such as the manufacturing and service sectors.

    “However, foreign exchange liquidity conditions remain tight and are holding back activity in the non-oil sectors. Manufacturing and service sectors remain particularly weak.

    “Banking sector vulnerabilities remain elevated. Foreign exchange restrictions, policy uncertainties and weak growth have affected the soundness of the banking sector.

    “Non-performing loans have increased while profitability and capital buffers have decreased,” it says.

    On economic growth in sub-Saharan Africa, the report said the region was already rebounding after registering the worst decline in more than two decades in 2016.

    It stated that the regional growth was projected to reach 2.6 per cent in 2017.

    It said that growth was expected to rise only slightly above population growth, a pace that hampered efforts to boost employment and reduce poverty.

    “For Nigeria, growth is projected to rise from 1.2 per cent in 2017 to 2.5 per cent in 2018 and 2019.

    “The modest turnaround will be underpinned by a gradual rebound in oil production and an increase in fiscal spending,” it says.

    According to the report, Nigeria, South Africa, and Angola, the continent’s largest economies, were already seeing a rebound from the sharp slowdown in 2016.

    While , Côte d’Ivoire, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mali, Rwanda, Senegal, and Tanzania are said to continue growing at above 5.4 per cent.

    Overall, the report calls for urgent implementation of reforms to improve private sector growth, develop local capital markets, improve infrastructure, and strengthen domestic resource mobilisation.

    Meanwhile the World Bank Chief Economist for the Africa Region, Dr Albert Zeufack, in a video conference after the launch, said the continent was in dire need of necessary reforms to boost investment and tackle poverty.

    “As countries move towards fiscal adjustment, we need to protect the right conditions for investment so that Sub-Saharan African countries achieve a more robust recovery.

    “We need to implement reforms that increase the productivity of African workers and create a stable macroeconomic environment.

    “Better and more productive jobs are instrumental to tackling poverty on the continent,” he said.

    For Nigeria, Zeufack talked about the urgent need to reform the financial sector, tighten monetary policy to further combat inflation and create the right regulatory framework to bring in investors.

    Furthermore, the World Bank Lead Economist, Mrs Punam Chuhan-Pole, said poverty rates still remained high in the region, therefore regaining the growth momentum was imperative.

    “Growth needs to be more inclusive and will involve tackling the slowdown in investment and the high trade logistics that stand in the way of competitiveness.”

    Also, the World Bank Nigeria Senior Economist, Mrs Yu Man Lee, said there was a growing concern over Nigeria’s debt interest repayment to revenue.

    She harped on the need for the country to improve its revenue, move from short term domestic borrowings to longer term loans like the Eurobonds.

    Also, the acting Head of the Nigerian World Bank office, Mr Bayo Awosemusi, reiterated the bank’s commitment to addressing issues of hunger among the poor and vulnerable in the society.

    He said the Bank would continue to engage with the Nigerian government to help expand their revenue scope and enhance revenue collection and utilisation.

    TheNewsGuru.com reports that Nigeria’s Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun had earlier in the week met with senior representatives from the World Bank and International Monetary Fund, IMF on how they can partner with Nigeria to ease repatriation of stolen funds and also put an end to the reception of such funds from Nigerians of questionable of integrity.

     

     

     

     

  • Timely delivery of Abuja Airport shows Nigeria can tackle, surmount any challenge – FG

    Timely delivery of Abuja Airport shows Nigeria can tackle, surmount any challenge – FG

    The Federal Government has reiterated that the timely rehabilitation and delivery of the Nnamdi Azikwe Airport runway which had hitherto been left in a dilapidated state by previous administration shows that the nation, under a determined and focused leadership can tackle and surmount any challenge that comes its way.

    The minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed said this on Wednesday in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia in a statement signed by his Special Adviser, Mr Segun Adeyemi.

    TheNewsGuru.com reports that the completion of reconstruction of the runway paved the way for the re-opening of the airport, after a six-week closure.

    TheNewsGuru.com recalls that the Minister of State for Aviation, Sen. Hadi Sirika had vowed to resign his appointment as minister in the event that the deadline for the reconstruction was not met by the contractors handling the project.

    The reopening of the airport for air operations came a day before the expiration of the official deadline and the first airline to land at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport was the Ethiopian Airlines which relocated to Kaduna Airport after Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport was shut down.

    The minister said that the delivery of the project even before the scheduled date showed government’s ability to live up to its promise and rise up to any occasion, irrespective of how daunting the challenge may be.

    He described as “a remarkable achievement” the ability of the government to complete the reconstruction of the runway within the stipulated time, despite doomsday predictions.

    “The clock-work precision with which everything concerning the closure of the airport and the temporary relocation to the Kaduna Airport was handled is the clearest indication yet that Nigeria can tackle any challenge,” he said.

    He noted that the rehabilitation of the Abuja-Kaduna road, the provision of effective security along the highway showed that
    Nigerians have what it takes to make the country a proud member of the comity of nations.

    Mohammed also hailed the perfect handling of the massive logistics involved in ensuring that the Kaduna Airport
    was able to handle a large number of flights.

    ”It is to the credit of the security agencies and the Federal Road Safety Corps that passengers travelling along the ever-busy
    Abuja-Kaduna highway were largely kept safe while the closure of the Abuja airport lasted.

    “There was no known security scare while accidents on the road were kept at the barest minimum, despite the increased vehicular traffic.

    “ Who can forget the timely departure and arrival of the Abuja-Kaduna train that ferried thousands of passengers
    back and forth during the Abuja airport closure?

    “Indeed, the closure of the Abuja airport runway and the logistic nightmare it triggered must rank among the most intimidating
    challenges faced by this Administration,” he said.

    The Minister reminded those who might want to trivialise the feat by the present government to realise that what could not be done in the over 30 years the runway was left to deteriorate was achieved in just six weeks, even under an economic recession.

    He also recalled that the Port Harcourt International Airport was closed for almost two years by the Jonathan administration.

    Mohammed thanked Nigerians for enduring the inconveniences that came with the relocation of Abuja flights to Kaduna.

    He also thanked the Ethiopian Airlines that operated its scheduled Abuja flights to Kaduna and the Julius Berger construction company that worked day and night to deliver the project ahead of schedule.

    Mohammed said the success recorded in the timely reconstruction of the runway could only rank next to the determined effort with which the government contained the Boko Haram insurgency.

    The minister noted that the current administration under the stewardship of President Muhammadu Buhari was employing the same uncommon determination to tackle all the challenges facing the country.

    TheNewsGuru.com reports that the airport was temporarily closed down on March 7 to allow for a rehabilitation of its runway which the Minister of Transport, Rotimi Amaechi and Minister of State for Aviation, Sen. Hadi Sirika both described as a disaster waiting to happen.