Trading activities on the floor of the Nigerian Stock Exchange, NSE, bounced back into the Green Zone on Thursday, March 31.
The All-Share Index closed higher at 25,306.22 indicating an increase of 160.94 points or 0.64 per cent compared with 25,145.28 recorded on Wednesday, March 30.
Total led the gainers’ table, appreciating by N7.32 to close at N153.82 per share. Mobil Oil followed with N5.99 to close at N161.99, while Dangote Cement inched N3.75 to close at N167.80 per share.
Julius Berger improved by N3.30 to close at N44.80 and 7UP gained N2 to close at N155 per share.
On the other hand, Seplat for the second consecutive days, led the losers’ chart, dropping by N10 to close at N300 per share. Lafarge Africa lost N2 to close at N77, while Okomu Oil dipped N1.57 to close at N29.85 per share.
Guinness lost N1.25 to close at N104.50 and Unilever dropped 25k to close at N29 per share.
An analysis of the activity chart showed that FCMB Group emerged the most traded stock, accounting for 44.39 million shares valued at N38.09 million.
Fidelity Bank sold 34.85 million shares worth N46.24 million and Sterling Bank traded 32.43 million shares valued at N52.50 million.
GT Bank trailed with an exchange of 30.75 million shares worth N442.24 million, while FBN Group recorded 19.77 million shares valued at N61.01 million.
In all, investors staked N1.94 billion on 264.04 million shares traded in 3,298 deals against 504.21 million shares worth N2.14 billion transacted in 3,374 deals on Wednesday. (NAN)
The number of online job applications dropped steeply in the 4th quarter of 2015, the National Bureau of Statistics, NBS, revealed.
The NBS revealed this figure in an online recruitment report published on its website on Thursday, March 31.
The report revealed that online job application declined from 318,233 in October to 170,453 in December.
“Although the number of vacancies rose slightly between October and November, from 4,620 to 4,696, the number also fell sharply in December to 2,563, a decline of 44.52 per cent relative to October,’’ it said.
The report said that trade/services attracted largest number of applications.
It said that power/energy and travel/tourism were the industries to receive the most applications per each vacancy, receiving 461 and 366 respectively.
The report said the figure made them the most competitive industries to apply for on the Jobberman website, an online recruitment service company in Nigeria.
“Active applicants were predominantly male (67.77 per cent) and well educated, with 77.61 per cent being educated to degree level or higher.
“However, this figure was only 22.34 per cent for those under the age of 20.
“Lagos remained the state to account for the largest share of applications and vacancies,’’ it said.
A UK based natural resources accountability group, Natural Resource Governance Institute, NRGI, has disclosed that Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, retained 66 per cent of sales proceeds in the second half of 2015.
The report which was released on Thursday, March 31, noted that what the Corporation retained for the period under review was 12 per cent higher than what it retained between 2013 and 2014.
The report entitled “NNPC still holds blank check”, also showed that the NNPC has continued to withhold billions of dollars in oil sale revenues from the treasury. It noted that the corporation still holds on to oil revenues without effective rules or oversight.
It explained that despite the present administrations resolve to curb graft in Nigeria’s oil industry, the corporation in the second half of 2015 made up to $6.3 billion from sales of export crude, domestic crude and oil from its subsidiary the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company (NPDC), out of which only $2.1 billion was entered in the Federation Account.
“The NNPC retained 66 per cent of sales proceeds from these three types of transactions. This is 12 per cent higher than what it retained between 2013 and 2014,” the report informed, adding that the NNPC has not fully explained the revenue retention, especially revenues retained from NPDC sales and domestic crude.
NNPC’s spending on this scale, according to the report, raises questions about its adherence to fiscal responsibility, especially at a time that public finances are stretched and the government looking for monies to fund its budget.
The report further proposed that the government should establish a clear, legally enforceable rule governing which revenues NNPC can keep and how they can be spent now that it is undergoing reforms, failure of which it noted, oil sector corruption and waste could return to their prior devastating levels.
Market capitalization of the Nigerian Stock Exchange, NSE, soared by N55 billion on Thursday, March 31, reversing the two days downward trend.
The market capitalization which opened at N8.649 trillion rose by 0.64 per cent or N55 billion to close at N8.704 trillion due to price gains by some blue chips.
An analysis of the activity chart showed that FCMB Group emerged the most traded stock, accounting for 44.39 million shares valued at N38.09 million.
Fidelity Bank sold 34.85 million shares worth N46.24 million and Sterling Bank traded 32.43 million shares valued at N52.50 million. GT Bank trailed with an exchange of 30.75 million shares worth N442.24 million, while FBN Group recorded 19.77 million shares valued at N61.01 million.
In all, investors staked N1.94 billion on 264.04 million shares traded in 3,298 deals against 504.21 million shares worth N2.14 billion transacted in 3,374 deals on Wednesday. (NAN)
The Global Credit Rating agency, GCR, has recently wrapped up its first rating review of Wema Bank Plc.
The Bank has received a Long Term National rating of “BBB-“ with a stable outlook and a Short term rating of A3. This rating is similar to the previous ratings issued by Agusto & Co and Fitch Ratings.
This is on the back of sustained financial performance after a successful turnaround of the Bank.
This investment grade rating will be the basis to continue raising debt from the public, building on the success of its Commercial Paper, issued in the second half of 2015.
Fidelity Bank Plc, on Thursday, March 31, released annual report and financial statements for the year ended 31 December, 2015 with gross earnings of N146.891 billion.
The lender’s gross earnings leaped by N10.797 billion or 7.93 per cent over N136.094 billion it made during the same period of 2014.
Its net interest income jumped by N12.038 billion represented 24.65 per cent from N48.826 billion it made in 2014 to end 2015 financial year wth N60.864 billion.
The bank profit before tax dropped from N15.515 billion of 2014 to N14.024 billion at the end of 2015, its before taxation profit down by N1.491 billion translated to 9.61 per cent in 2015.
However, the profit after tax of Fidelity Bank marginally rose by N108 million or 0.78 per cent when compared with N13.796 billion it retained as a profit to end 2015 with N13.904 billion.
The bank retained lower portion of 9.47 per cent of its gross earnings as profit for the year ended 2015 when compared with 10.14 it retained as after tax during the same period of 2014.
The earnings per share of Fidelity Bank remain the same with 48 kobo it made during the 2014 financial year.
Its total assets stood at N1.232 trillion at the end of 2015 from N1.187 trillion it made in 2014, this represents N44.697 billion increase at the end of current financial year.
The bank’s liabilities increased from N1.014 trillion to N1.048 trillion at the end of 2015.
Newest entrant into the Nigerian telecommunications market,Ntel, has unveiled plans for the first phase rollout of its commercial services to the public.
Ntel Chief Executive Officer, Kamar Abass, while announcing the rollout plan in Lagos on Thursday, March 31 said ntel would begin the first phase rollout with the commercial sales of its 0804 mobile line on April 8 in Lagos and Abuja.
Abass said although the company acquired some base transceiver stations (BTS) from the old NITEL, it also entered partnership agreement with IHS and Helios Towers, builders of BTS and other telecoms infrastructure, to roll out 600 base stations for the commercial rollout in Lagos and Abuja, with plans to extend the rollout plan to Port Harcourt with additional 200 BTS, also known as base stations.
According to Abass, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), the telecommunications industry regulator, has approved all licence authorisations necessary for ntel to launch its Voice over LTE (VoLTE) network using next generation telecommunications infrastructure for its first phase rollout in April.
He said ntel had deployed 200 kilometres of metro fibre optic transmission cables in Lagos, Abuja and Port Harcourt, for seamless network connectivity during the rollout.
He also added that ntel had deployed LTE Advanced, the latest 4G technology with multi-antennae sites.
The World Bank has set aside $800 million to support the rebuilding of the infrastructure destroyed in the North East by Boko Haram insurgency.
The UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator, Fatma Samoura, made this known on Thursday, March 30, in Maiduguri during a visit to Gov Kashim Shettima.
Samoura, who is also a UN Development Programme (UNDP) Resident Representative, said the UN was scaling up its presence in Borno and other North Eastern states ravaged by the insurgency.
She said: “Yesterday, we had a long discussion with the World Bank team that came from Washington to attend the workshop.”
“The workshop is for validating the year findings of the recovery and peace-building assessment.
“They have promised to leverage 800 million dollars for the North East to response to recovery, rehabilitation, de-mining, waste management and debris processing for the North East of Nigeria,” she said.
In its bid to reduce fuel importation into the country, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, has opened bid for the co-location of new refineries within the complexes of its three existing refineries in Kaduna, Warri and Port Harcourt.
NNPC said in a statement by its spokesperson, Garuba Deen Mohammed, on Thursday, March 31, that the open bid exercise was a demonstration of the determination of the federal government and NNPC to increase the nation’s refining capacity from 445,000 barrels per day (bpd) to 650,000bpd.
It quoted its chief operating officer (COO) of refineries, Anibo Kragha as making this disclosure when the technical bids of the companies were opened in Abuja.
According to the statement, a technical evaluation committee has been set up to study the bids and announce winners as soon as possible.
It said the exercise was witnessed by representatives of the Nigerian Extractives Industry Transparency Initiative (NEITI) and the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP).
According to the statement, Kragha said the corporation was committed to boosting the nation’s refining capacity which in turn would end the perennial fuel shortages in the country.
f Saudi Arabia and Russia, the world’s two biggest oil producers, agreed to an output freeze at January levels, the price of oil recovered some of its losses from $30 a barrel to about $40 a barrel.
However, Iran has said it will not freeze oil output, as it is keen on raising production following the lifting of international sanctions after it agreed to stop its nuclear programme.
But as OPEC and non-OPEC producers prepare to meet, the United States has fast become a big importer of oil again, Bloomberg has reported.
In the three months since the U.S. lifted its 40-year ban on crude oil exports, U.S. crude shipments to foreign buyers have stalled.
At the same time, imports into the U.S. jumped to a three-year high in what looks to be a reversal of a yearslong decline in the amount of foreign crude brought into the American market.
According to the report, refineries are choosing to buy imports instead of West Texas Intermediate (WTI), an oil variant produced in the US. One of the major beneficiaries is Nigeria, which is regaining lost market share. Imports from Nigeria surged to 559,000 barrels a day in mid-March, compared with an average of 52,000 in all of 2015.
The bid submission yesterday was witnessed by representatives of the Nigerian Extractive Industry Transparency Initiative (NEITI) and the Bureau for Public Procurement (BPP).
The names of the companies were however not disclosed.
NNPC Chief Operating Officer (Refineries) Anibo Kragha described the open bidding as a demonstration of the determination of the Federal Government to increase the nation’s refining capacity from 445,000 barrels per day to 650,000.
“The aim is to leverage on the existing facilities to fast track the take-off of the refineries as soon as possible,” he said.
According to him, a technical evaluation committee has been set up to study the bids and announce winners as soon as possible.
The corporation’s General Manager, Supply Chain Management, Sophia Mbakwe, enjoined all the companies to accept the outcome with a promise that it will be transparent.
She added that all the rules of public procurement as spelt out in the Bureau for Public Procurement Act would be strictly adhered to.
Noé Diakubama is one of this century’s intrepid explorers. An emigrant of the Democratic Republic of Congo, now living in Paris, he created the first ever map of his village, Mbandaka, using online map making tools and simply adding what he knew. Since 2009, Noé and his wife have made over 100,000 edits to the map, literally putting the Mbandaka community on the map and transforming its landscape. And he isn’t alone: there is a vast and growing community of online mappers creating more useful maps that are accessible to all, and changing peoples’ lives in the process.
Three centuries ago, when most of the world was unmapped, adventurers like Christopher Columbus, Ferdinand Magellan and James Cook explored the far reaches of the globe – from New Zealand to Newfoundland – drawing detailed charts of their voyages. The period known as the ‘Age of Exploration’ was the golden age of mapmaking and helped usher in the Industrial Revolution.
Today, cartography is undergoing a second golden age, thanks to the Web and people like Noé. This 21st century revolution promises, like its predecessor, to generate giant economic and social benefits. It will empower individuals to find what they want, anytime; and will allow businesses to reach consumers, anywhere. Online mapping will not only fill many of the remaining gaps in our understanding of our globe, but also provide new perspectives and details we never thought imaginable.
The Web is transforming the way maps are made. Instead of depending on intrepid adventurers and professional geographers, regular people — dubbed citizen cartographers — are today’s mapmakers. They use online tools to build the digital map of the Earth, constantly improving it with layers of useful information. These people come from all walks of life, from every corner of the globe, and are embracing the opportunity to make their mark and accurately represent the places they know and care about. They are students, parents, educators, retired seniors, and yes, even some engineers — all coming together towards the common goal of mapping our world. They’ll even attend ‘mapping parties’ where people gather around computers, in school yards or church halls, en masse to make improvements to the maps using tools like Google Map Maker.
In addition to mapping the nooks and crannies of a neighborhood or coastline, as Cook did centuries ago, these citizen cartographers are also building maps that reflect our ‘human’ geography and things that interest us. Rather than two dimensional drawings of lands and borders, we are now able to mark our favourite cafes, add a local walking trail or plot a route for a jog around the park.
This volunteer mapmaking is also helping people understand the evolution of their communities. Maps drawn on paper can’t reflect a changing and dynamic landscape. Rivers and mountains might not change, but new buildings are built, roads are rerouted, restaurants open and close. Online maps can be updated as the world around us changes: anyone can add features like new paths, houses or businesses as soon as they’re constructed. And what’s more, these maps reach far beyond locals, enabling visitors to feel like natives in a place they’ve never been before.
Digital mapping technology is transforming lives – in Africa especially. Road coverage on Google Maps in Africa grew from 20 per cent to 75 per cent between 2008 and 2012; while the number of towns and villages mapped in good detail have increased by more than 1,000 per cent over the same period.
Maps are crucial not only for getting around, but also for business. Research shows maps help save the agricultural industry between $8bn to $22bn per year globally just by helping farmers build more efficient irrigation. Accurate maps decrease emergency services’ response times, saving thousands of lives a year. Modern geo tools like maps and satellite navigation help save up to 3.5 billion litres of gasoline and over a billion hours of travel time every year.
It’s safe to say that the growing momentum around mapping will ensure that almost every inch of the world will be accurately and comprehensively represented by road data, pictures and business listings in the coming years. As maps come online, it becomes possible for each of us to produce maps specialised for our unique tastes. There needn’t be just one map of the world, but many millions of maps that change depending on who is using them; from the rural farmer to the travelling salesman. A map being viewed by a keen cyclist, for example, might display a town very differently than that viewed by a car driver or a pedestrian — depending on the types of map information most salient to him.
When Christopher Columbus and his fellow explorers set out, they sailed off to the distant horizon, unsure if they would ever return home. While today’s intrepid Internet mapmakers may not face the same risks, they too are embarking on an unknown journey which is sure to lead to exciting – and beneficial – destinations.
National Union of Air Transport Employees (NUATE) has handed a seven day notice to the management of Caverton Helicopters to effect corrections of the unilateral and loop-sided pay-cut decision it took on the workers’ salaries or face a shutdown of operations in Lagos, Warri and Port Harcourt.
The union claimed to have had several talks with the company over issues of alleged irrational slash of salaries, injustice to workers and disregard for the nation’s labour laws.
In a letter to the Managing Director of the company dated March 30, and signed by an acting General Secretary, Mr. Olayinka Abioye, the union said, this letter would served as the final notice, ”there shall be no more negotiation before the industrial action,” he added.
The letter titled ‘Final Notice of Industrial Action against Caverton Helicopters,’ read – “Notice is hereby given to the general public and the esteemed clients of Caverton Helicopters that due to persistent anti-labour practices, by management of (the said) Caverton helicopters, the unions have resolved to shut down its operations in Lagos, Warri and Port Harcourt within the next seven days if salaries of our members are not reinstated.
“There shall be no more discussions on the fundamental issues as the unions have exhibited high sense of responsibility and maturity in getting the matter resolved but to no avail. This message serves as a final notice of industrial action. All Caverton Helicopters workers to note and be fully prepared.”
It was gathered that things have coiled downward since September, 2015 when management unilaterally cut staff salaries without recourse to meet the workers or the unions.
A NUATE source said, “When this happened the unions met with the management and they sold the unions a dummy stating that the cut in salaries was as a result of the prevailing oil crisis but when the union looked further it found that the cut in salaries was not holistic, and was done putting sentimental interest in the fore.
According to another union member, some staff, that has god-father among the management, had their salary increased while the majority had theirs’ cut-down substantially as management blamed the economic down-turn for the decision.
“In fact, when the management heard that due to their actions, there might be an upheaval, they quickly rushed in and started doing selective gratification by paying the sons of the soils, or what you can call the workers from the host communities, leaving out those that did not come from there.” he added.
China’s crude oil import from Nigeria dropped by 7.5 percent from 11.41 million barrels in 2014 to 10.56 million barrels last year, information gathered from Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation ( NNPC ) has shown.
According to figures made public by NNPC, China, the world’s largest energy consumer bought crude from Nigeria for just five months in 2015 compared with a nine months purchase in 2014.
A breakdown of the 2015 import showed that the largest volume of 3.9 million barrels was in October and it dropped 2.85 million barrels in February.
China’s crude purchase fell to 949,721 barrels in March, dropped to 948,024 barrels in July only to increase its order to 1.9 million barrels in December.
The highest export of Nigerian crude to China in 2014 was 1.96 million barrels in January as revealed by the NNPC.
Last year, the Asian country imported a record amount of crude oil, an opportunity created by the drastic fall in price which was below a 10 year annual moving average.
China’s global import of crude last year increased by 8.8 per cent to 334 million metric tons, or about 6.7 million barrels per day, according to data sourced from the Beijing-based, General Administration of Customs in January.
The country had earlier this month said it would seek to buy more crude oil from Nigeria in spite of the recent changes in prices or the re-admittance of Iran to start producing.
The Economic and Commercial Counselor of the Chinese Embassy in Nigeria, Mr. Zao LingXiang, said,“In my opinion, it really doesn’t matter whether Iran comes back or not; Chinese companies want to import more crude oil from Nigeria”.
Nigeria’s Forte Oil has revealed plans to seek approval of its shareholders at the April 26 annual general meeting to raise up to 100 billion naira ($503 million) for the expansion its operations within the country.
In a statement issued on Thursday, the company revealed that it might choose to raise the funds through a rights issue, bond or share offering, or global depository receipts.
“The capital raising is part of our preparations to take advantage of opportunities in the economy,” Akinleye Olagbende, Forte Oil’s chief compliance officer.
Olagbende said the company could explore opportunities in the upstream sector of the oil industry and tap into other viable businesses to bolster its bottom line.
Forte Oil Plc Group Chief Executive Officer, Akin Akinfemiwa was recently elected Chairman of the Major Oil Marketers Association of Nigeria (MOMAN).
MOMAN, is the umbrella body of the major oil marketing companies in the country which comprises of Mobil Oil, Conoil, Forte Oil, Oando, and Total Oil.
Mr Akinfemiwa he took over from Wale Tinubu, CEO of OandO.
The company in January announced a rise of its profit before tax from 7.02 billion naira for the 2015 financial year end compared to 6.01 billion naira it recorded the previous year.
China and Nigeria have recorded a total bilateral trade of about N20.1 trillion or 101 billion dollars in the 11 years, starting from 2004 to 2015.
Economic and Commercial Counselor of the Chinese Embassy in Nigeria, Zhao Linxiang, said this at the 2016 China-Nigeria Trade and Economic Forum in Abuja on Thursday.
Linxiang said that both countries had experienced steady increase in their bilateral relations.
“According to the statistics of the General Administration of Customs of China, total bilateral trade volume between China and Nigeria, from the year 2004 to 2015, recorded at 101 billion dollars.
“The major commodities imported by Nigeria from China are electrical machinery equipment, machinery and mechanical appliances and vehicles.
“The major commodities exported by Nigeria to China are mineral resources, wood and agricultural products such as cotton, palm oil seeds cashew nuts and so on.
The counselor said that the bilateral trade volume between both countries stood at 14.94 billion dollars in 2015, as total trade with Africa and 42 per cent of its trade with ECOWAS.
Linxiang commended the cooperative efforts made by both countries in the area of infrastructure construction.
“A large number of projects have been completed or are being implemented in Nigeria with Chinese funds, advanced technologies and services.
“Those projects create more than 20,000 jobs for local people,” he said.
He further reiterated that Nigeria was “one of the most important destinations of Chinese investment in Africa”.
He also said that the 10 major China-Africa cooperation plans agreed on at the 2015 Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) Summit would be of benefit to Nigeria’s economic diversification plan.
The counselor called on the need for both countries to explore new areas of cooperation and expand relations in existing areas.
“It is believed that President Buhari’s visit to China will breathe new life into the bilateral economic cooperation.
“It is also believed that during his stay in China, the two leaders will further discuss on how to fully implement the fruits of the 2015 FOCAC Summit.
“This includes the 10 major cooperation plans and relevant financing arrangements and how to carry them out into projects which are conducive to the Nigerian economic development.
Also speaking, the President, Miners’ Association of Nigeria, Sani Shehu said there was a need for Nigeria to gain from the “Chinese model of growth, investment and manufacturing expertise”.
Mr. Shehu noted that the trade imbalance between both countries remained in favour of China and urged that Chinese entrepreneurs be encouraged to set up production facilities in Nigeria.
He explained that setting up production facilities would ensure value addition, creation of jobs and enhanced development in the country.
“Nigerian Government should learn from the Chinese in terms of building human and physical infrastructure as well as granting manufacturers and miners access to cheap credit.
“We need to liaise with foreign investors; Nigeria is eager to diversify its trade relations by reducing its dependence on western industrial countries.
“China is therefore one of the few countries that can assist Nigeria to bridge her huge financing gap especially for infrastructural development,” he said.
The United States and Nigeria would constitute a special working groups to further discuss issues of strengthening security cooperation, economy, and tackling of corruption in the country.
These were the issues raised during the much talked about day-long meeting launched by both the US Secretary of State, John Kerry and the Nigerian Foreign Affairs Minister, Geoffrey Onyeama which held at the State Department on Wednesday.
In a joint statement, the countries said the groups would come up with a paper within a month finalizing goals.
During the meeting, both acknowledged the security challenges posed by Boko Haram militants in the northeast and neighboring countries, as well as tough economic times caused by drop in oil prices.
Kerry said the United States was committed to helping Nigeria tackle the Boko Haram insurgency, but cautioned that security forces had to avoid human rights abuses even as they stepped up the fight against the jihadi group, which has pledged allegiance to Islamic State.
“Under President Buhari, Nigeria has been taking the fight to Boko Haram and it has reduced Boko Haram’s capacity to launch full-scale attacks,” Kerry said, “however, the group still remains a threat, a serious threat, to the entire region.”
He said in recent months U.S. military trainers were helping Nigeria’s security forces improve information sharing tactics, and train and equip two infantry battalions.
“Now, I want to be clear, this aid is predicated on the understanding that, even when countering a group as ruthless as Boko Haram, security forces have a duty to set the standard with respect to human rights,” he cautioned, adding: “One abuse does not excuse another.”
U.S. cooperation with Buhari’s predecessor, Goodluck Jonathan, had virtually ground to a halt because of his refusal to investigate corruption and human rights abuses by the Nigerian military.
On the economy, Kerry said the United States was “encouraged” by Buhari’s commitment to diversify Nigeria’s economy to make it less dependent on oil.
But Nigeria needed to create an environment that was welcoming to investment, Kerry added.
The joint statement made no mention of Nigeria’s foreign exchange rate, which the United States complains was too rigid and discourages investors. Senior U.S. diplomats had said the issue would be raised at the Wednesday’s talks.
Africa’s top oil exporter is in the middle of an economic crisis as a slump in global oil prices has eroded public finances, hit the currency and dried up commercial banks’ dollar supplies needed for basic imports.
Fidelity Bank Plc has gone into a partnership with the Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC) and the Lagos Business School (LBS) to establish the Export Leadership Institute as part of its efforts to promote activities in the non-oil sector and also empower exporters in the country.
The Managing Director/ Chief Executive Officer, Fidelity Bank, Mr. Nnamdi Okonkwo, said the initiative would also help support the federal government’s drive towards diversifying the economy.
He stated that the goal of the Export Management Programme is to deliver impactful and world-class export management education to equip Nigerian MSMEs with the knowledge and business know-how required to compete effectively in international markets.
“Nigeria’s economy is facing severe headwinds on account of the falling crude oil prices and the direct consequence of increasing value erosion of the naira. This is further heightened by the current international trade paradigm which is mostly import driven.
“Foreign exchange earnings in Nigeria are largely from oil exports which account for over 90 per cent of total export receipts. The current currency debacle hinges on supply side dynamics as we have lost over 70 per cent of our dollar revenues in the last 18 months due to the falling crude oil prices. Hence, it is quite obvious that the key to growing the value of the naira is the diversification of Nigeria’s dollar revenue base via non-oil exports.
As further proof of our strong commitment to the growth of the Nigerian economy, we are collaborating with the NEPC and LBS to establish the Export Leadership Institute, the platform under which the Export Management Programme, a flagship export capacity development programme, will run,” he added.
He hinted that the bank would also support MSMEs that goes through the programme with appropriate financing solutions to enable them meet their export financing needs.
Sunderland AFC Signs Football Partnership with Acacia Mining
England’s Premier League football club, Sunderland AFC expanded its relationship across Africa with a new football partnership agreement it signed to help a Tanzanian company, Acacia Mining Plc with its community social responsibility (CSR).
The football partnership signed by the Black Cats would deliver its globally recognised community sports initiative to community sites across the north-west region of Tanzanian in support of Acacia CRS.
The partnership would see the English club work with local football clubs in the Kahama and Tarime districts North West Tanzania. Sunderland AFC would operate in these areas eight to 10 weeks a year, working to deliver Acacia Maendeleo Fund dedicated CSR programmes.
Sunderland’s head of international football development, Graham Robinson, who would be delivering the partnership in Tanzania, was already familiar with the communities in which the club would be operating in and is excited to get started.
Graham said: “Community football is the starting point for many players and through our partnerships in Africa, we have a long-held commitment and reputation for investing in community and education programmes. The partnership with Acacia Mining through the Acacia Maendeleo Fund will allow us to fully deliver the programme over a sustained period of time, leading to a more successful initiative.”
Alongside Sunderland AFC’s partnership with Acacia Mining, the club has a long-standing partnership with Symbion Power, the highlight of which was the state of the art Jakaya M. Kikwete Youth Park in Dar es Salaam, where the club is providing technical and practical support to the park.
Sunderland AFC’s commercial director, Gary Hutchinson, said: “We are thrilled to further build upon our strong links with Tanzania thanks to this unique and exciting partnership with Acacia Mining.
“We have already implemented a number of significant community-based work across Africa, with particular emphasis on Tanzania and the club is making great progress in developing its international reputation. Building these positive relationships, from both a business and community perspective, are helping us to spread the message of Sunderland AFC, whilst making a tangible difference to local communities.”
Acacia Mining’s Vice President Corporate Affairs, Deo Mwanyika said, “This partnership is one of many community development programmes Acacia is conducting at our three mines. We understand the importance of early education and talent building let it be in the class room or on a football pitch; we see this program providing that opportunity for our young to learn from professionals at the same time develop their passion and talent in football.
“We all know how important sport and particularly football can be for helping to develop key life skills and we will, with Sunderland, develop a group of young coaches who will help ensure that grassroots football flourishes and continues to impact young girls and boys in the Lake Zone for years to come.
“Sunderland will also work with Stand United to help build solid links to grassroots football in the region. As in all our work we will strive to ensure girls and young women are included and take the opportunity to have open and frank conversations about the importance of girls completing their secondary education.”
Do you recall how you felt the last time your plane was hit by turbulence? It is difficult not to get distressed and frightened by the sudden, erratic shaking of the aircraft.
While it is a huge concern for anyone who is nervous about flying in Nigeria, there are ways it can be managed to ensure it does not become a nerve-wrecking experience. Jovago.com, Africa’s No.1 online hotel booking service offers top 5 ways to handle turbulence on local flights.
Breathe deeply as often as you can
Deep breaths can be very helpful while enduring an episode of turbulence. Rather than fret and worry, close your eyes, inhale and exhale deeply as frequently as you can. Also, you can carry a paper bag which you can use as an anti-hyperventilating device as well.It is very good as reducing anxiety.
Remain buckled to your seat
The most important thing to do when there is turbulence is to stay buckled to your seat. Refrain from walking around or moving from one corner to the other. No matter how afraid you are, sit still and ensure you only raise your hand if you need to signal an air hostess for anything. Sitting still rather than walking around helps you stay calm and reduced chances of injury or accidents in the case of severe turbulence.
Try the rubberband technique
This is not a common technique and might not work for everyone. The rubber band technique is such that you wear a rubberband around your wrist and snap the rubber band against your skin anytime you feel yourself becoming agitated such that the pain is a reality bite that takes your mind off any particular situation that makes your anxious or gives you a fright. Adopting this method helps with turbulence. It distracts you from it and cuts out chances of you being traumatized by the movements.
Listen to slow, calming music
The fear for turbulence has a way of kicking up fear inside of you, making it hard for you to be calm or focused on any flight. You find your mind consumed on the possibility of turbulence, how it could lead to crash and how it would mean the end of your life or worse, a maimed body. You mind wanders and perfectly normal flight noises seem like sounds that do not exist. Listening to peaceful and calming music help you manage yourself on the flight and even when an actual turbulence is going on. It occupies your mind and takes off a lot of stress that comes with turbulence.
Avoid caffeine products
Caffeine products, especially coffee may seem like the perfect drink for a long flight, but it can cause as an overly hyper state of mind will only exacerbate your anxiety when you have to deal with turbulence. Avoid taking any caffeine product before or while you are on the flight, instead, go for other liquids that will keep you hydrated. A glass of one can be very good for calming the nerves.
You may know how to ask hotel staff for things, how much to tip, how to book, when to push your cause and when definitely not to, but while these are key things that are supposed to mark you out as a good guest, there is a chance that when you look around at all faces in the hotel, you find that everyone around has an unhappy expression aimed in your direction. This may be due to an unconsciously misspoken word or wrong body language but the good thing is that you can turn the tide in your favour.
To help get your act together, Jovago.com, Africa’s No.1 online hotel booking site share 4 signs that show you are a difficult lodger.
The hotel staff avoids you
If the front desk officer always puts you on hold or the hotel staff is never enthusiastic about completing your requests, it is sure-fire sign that you are a difficult staff. No matter how ill-trained the hotel staff is, one thing they never fail to do is meet the demands of the lodger, so if they avoid that you, the lodger or completely flaunt your requests without much apologies, it is usually because the you are quite difficult to please, you are unreasonable and they are tired of being hounded by him.
You are always complaining about compensation
Nobody loves a complainer, especially not the hotel staff. If you complain and raise your voice at about almost everyone and everything- from room service to state of amenities, and you rant about compensations due to you, you certainly are on your way to the hotel’s black book. Rather than scream out loud and seek atte`ntion, just ask whom you should speak with to have any problem solved.
While everyone loves freebies, the desire and demand for them at the moment can be a huge problem. Continually demanding for free bits from the hotel is a sure way of getting yourself being marked out as difficult.
You break rules and never tip
Every traveller understands the importance of tipping as though life depends on it. However, the most difficult of lodgers are the types who never tip! No matter the number of errands run by the local junior stuff in the hotel they never gift them or appreciate them .They do not understand why they need to tip these workers when they have paid a fee for their services. As a result, they fail to get favors from these staff. Also, they refuse to follow the basic rules laid down by the hotel. For instance, they smoke in rooms with signs that indicate that smoking is prohibited.
You get a formal notice to leave
This is the most tangible sign. Most lodgers believe that the moment they pay for a hotel, they cannot be asked/forced to leave or be evicted. They start to misbehave and do things that are not just detrimental to him but the hotel as well. Unfortunately for these breed of people, they eventually get served a formal (although pleasantly worded) letter asking them to leave the hotel, refunds for their lodge made to them accordingly.
