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Governor, Stakeholders to Address Challenges in the Health Sector

By
BWN
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Kwara State governor, Abdulfatah Ahmed has called for collaborative efforts by stakeholders to address the challenge of healthcare infrastructure deficit in the country. He made this assertion when the Deputy Ambassador of Netherlands, Mitchel Decleen led a team of PharmAccess and Hygenia on a visit to him at the Government House, Ilorin.

The governor said collaborative efforts were needed to ameliorate the situation, stressing that the Community Health Insurance Scheme of the state government, in partnership with the government of Netherlands, PharmAccess and Hygeia was a positive development in that regard, adding that the scheme would soon cover all the 16 local government areas of the state.

Ahmed stated that a funding formula that is self generating would be initiated to ensure that the scheme is sustained after the exit of the present partners.

However, he expressed the hope that the partnership that has made the State Community Health Insurance Scheme a success would be sustained for sustainable healthcare in the state.

The Deputy Ambassador of Netherlands and Leader of the team, Mitchel Deleen in his remarks said in line with the roadmap of the funding strategies of the CHIS, the team was in the state to examine the funding strategies

WHO Lauds Nigeria for Curbing Polio Transmission

By
BWN
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World Health Organization (WHO) recognized Nigeria for her excellent performance in interrupting the transmission of the wild polio virus in the country. The country has gone a year and half without polio and is expected to be certified polio-free next year if it continued with the trend.

The award, which was conferred on the country at the African Ministers Conference on Immunization in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, was received by a high level Nigerian delegation headed by the Minister of Health, Prof. Isaac Adewole.

The National Immunization Plus Days (NIPDs) yesterday appealed to resident to make their wards that are not more than five years available for immunisation.

Special Adviser to the Governor on Primary Healthcare, Dr. Femi Onanuga, urged parents and care givers to ensure that their children and wards are taken to the primary health care clinics to receive vaccine and all other scheduled immunizations to protect them against the preventable killer diseases.

 The Expert Review Committee on Polio Eradication in Nigeria has recommended two rounds of NIPDs in February and March 2016, targeted at all children under the age of five years.

WHO Regional Director for Africa, Dr. Matshidiso Moeti, described Nigeria as sterling example of how polio eradication infrastructure could be deployed to strengthen public health, citing the Ebola containment efforts as one of such.

 

Nigeria, Qatar, Sign Bilateral Agreement On Air Services

By
BWN
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Nigeria and the State of Qatar yesterday in Doha signed Bilateral Air Services Agreement (BASA) to pave the way for direct flights between major cities of both countries. Both countries also signed an agreement to avoid double taxation and tax evasion on the sidelines of President Muhammadu Buhari’s state visit to Qatar.

The Minister of State for Aviation, Senator Hadi Sirika, signed the air services agreement on behalf of the country while Qatar’s Minister of Transportation and Communications, Jassim Bin Saif Alsulaiti, signed on behalf the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim Bin Hammad Al-Thani. Finance minister, Mrs Kemi Adeosun, also signed the agreement, along with her Qatari counterpart, Ali Shareef Al Emadi, for the avoidance of double taxation and the prevention of fiscal evasion with respect to tax income.

The agreement which was signed in the presence of both leaders is expected to operate on the principle of reciprocity by the designated airlines on behalf of the countries.

It is also expected that the agreement on bilateral air service will promote trade, commerce and tourism between the two countries just as Nigeria has also commenced discussions on partnerships towards establishing a national airline for Nigeria. The agreement on the avoidance of double taxation which had been negotiated since February 2015 will no doubt bring in more investments and businesses between Qatar and Nigeria.

Buhari Urges OPEC Members To Unite And Help Stabilize Oil Prices

By
BWN
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President Muhammadu Buhari in Doha, Qatar, has stressed the need for member states of OPEC and non members to unite and find a common ground to stabilise crude oil prices.

The president labelled the current market situation in the industry, which had seen oil prices plummet by 70 per cent since mid 2014, as “totally unacceptable’’.

“As members of OPEC and Gas Exporting Countries Forum (GECF), our relations in the areas of oil and gas, which our two nations heavily rely on, need to be enhanced and coordinated for the benefit of our people.

“We must cooperate both within and outside our respective organisations to find a common ground to stabilise the market, which will be beneficial to our nations,’’ he emphasised.

President Buhari noted with delight the existing cordial bilateral relations between Nigeria and Qatar. He, however, invited prospective Qatari investors to take advantage of the abundant opportunities in Nigeria and invest in the key areas of energy, agriculture, real estate development, banking and finance.

President Buhari said in the course of his visit, the delegations from Nigeria and Qatar would formalise at least two bilateral agreements to boost economic cooperation between both countries.

He also weighed-in on the situation in the Middle East, commending the role Qatar was playing in resolving the present Syrian crisis, the Palestinian course and efforts in reconstructing Gaza.

 

The Days Of $50 A Barrel of Oil Are Coming – Kachikwu

By
BWN
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Kachikwu

Minister of Petroleum Resources, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu, has stated that the days of $50 a barrel of oil are coming, regardless of the recent disagreements among members of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). He also said he will continue to push for production freeze consensus.

“The minister for energy in Qatar and the president of OPEC is leading that pact and there is a lot of conversation going on and there’s a lot of consensus building on the issue of the freeze. Saudi Arabia and Russia are aligned on the issue of a freeze, so I think the chances are very high.”

“I am certainly hoping for prices in the range of $45 to $50. I’m hoping a consensus can be built and that parties can begin to work together across the board, not just OPEC members, but also non-OPEC members,which is what the gulf states and most of us have pushed for. With that, you’ll begin to see upward movement in those prices,” Kachikwu stated.

Saudi Arabia’s oil minister, Ali al-Naimi, has voiced strong resistance about a production cut, but has given his country’s support to a freeze. The country is now one of those pushing for a production freeze among both OPEC and non-OPEC members.

“Freeze is the beginning of a process, and that means if we can get all the major producers to agree not to add additional balance, then this high inventory we have now will probably decline in due time. It’s going to take time,” Naimi said at the annual IHS CERAWeek energy conference in Houston, recently.

“It is not like cutting production; that is not going to happen because not many countries are going to deliver even if they say they will cut production – they will not deliver. So there is no sense in wasting our time seeking production cuts,” he added.

MANUFACTURING JOBS | Contract Sales Representatives at Nigerian Bottling Company Limited – Rivers, Imo, Akwa Ibom

By
BWN
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The Nigerian Bottling Company Limited is one of the biggest companies in the non-alcoholic beverage industry in the country and is the sole franchise bottler of The Coca-Cola Company in Nigeria.

Our company serves approximately 160 million people by producing and distributing a unique portfolio of quality brands, bringing passion to marketplace implementation, and demonstrating leadership in corporate social responsibility.

We are recruiting to fill the position of:

Job Title: Contract Sales Representative

Job Reference: CSR/02/2016
Locations: Owerri, Port-Harcourt, Uyo
Functional areas: Commercial
Department: Commercial

Job Details
The Contract Sales Representative reports to the Sales Manager and will be given specific performance targets and upon satisfactory evaluation of his/her performance against specific targets and performance standards within the stipulated period of their contract, he/she may be offered a permanent contract of employment with the Nigerian Bottling Company Ltd.

Key Accountabilities

  • Develop and maintain the relationships with current customers and potential customers.
  • Identify and explore new sales opportunities. Follow-up on collection of payments.
  • Arrange schedules on product delivery.
  • Deploy special sales activities to increase sales.
  • Help the company implement its marketing plans as required.
  • Supervise the execution of sales plans and strategies for the territory.
  • Service the strategic distributor/dealers accounts.
  • Develop and grow existing accounts and retail outlets.
  • Ensure activation to Coca-Cola standards in the primary and secondary outlets in a way that will positively impact product availability and outlet activation, thereby increasing company sales and market share.

Requirements
Desired Candidate Profile:

  • B.Sc/HND in Management Science/Arts/Humanities (minimum of 2nd class lower division/lower credit) obtained from a recognized university/polytechnic with NYSC certificate.
  • A minimum of 3 years experience.
  • Must not be above 35 years Excellent planning and organizing skills Excellent customer relation skills Excellent communication skills Computer skills, including MS Office, PowerPoint, etc Knowledge of FMCG commercial operations will be an added advantage.
  • Interested candidates should be resident in Owerri, Port-Harcourt, Uyo and its environs.

Application Closing Date
29th February, 2016.

How to Apply
interested and qualified candidates should APPLY

MANUFACTURING JOBS | Nestle Nigeria Plc Entry Level Job Recruitment 2016

By
BWN
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Nestle Plc, with a presence in more than 130 countries and factories in more than 80 research centres
brings many global benefits. We believe in long term career development and appreciate how challenges and motivation will help you reach your potential. Nestle Nigeria Plc upholds the principle of Non- Discrimination and Equal Employment Opportunities in its recruitment processes.

Application are hereby required from suitably qualified candidates to fill the vacant position below at Flowergate Factory, Sagamu:

Job Title: Production Technician

Location: Sagamu, Ogun

Job Description

  • To operate and carry out autonomous maintenance on the production line under his responsibility to meet up with Safety, Quality and Output requirements.

Responsibilities

  • Carry outline operations in accordance to operating instructions and parameters.
  • Achieve required quantity of products and of right quality as per specifications.
  • Carry out autonomous maintenance, CIL of assets under his/her control.
  • Update necessary records of operations as at when due.
  • Comply with safety, health, environment and food safety and quality procedures
  • Other tasks as assigned by superior officers.

Requirements

  • OND/City & Guilds/NABTEB (Technical) in Electrical / Mechanical Engineering.
  • Minimum of five (5) credits including English language and Mathematics in SSCE/NECO or its equivalent.
  • Must have at least 1 year experience in a reputable manufacturing organisation.
  • Computer literacy.
  • Good communication skills (oral and written).
  • Good interpersonal skills.

Application Closing Date
3rd March, 2016.

How to Apply
Qualified and interested candidates should send their details in the “MS Excel format” below only to: flowergate.recruitment@ng.nestle.com (also attach your CV)

Excel Format
Title | Surname | Other Names | Age (as at 1st Feb. 2016 | Basic Qualification (e.g SSCE/NECO) | No. of Credits |Other Qualification(s) e.g OND | Years of Experience | Phone No l

Note: Only short-listed candidates will be contacted.

BANKING & FINANCE JOBS | African Development Bank (AfDB) Internship Program 2016

By
BWN
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African Development Bank (AfDB) established to strengthen dialogue between the Bank and the Government, is recruiting to fill the position below:

Job Title: 2016 Internship Program (Session II)

Reference: ADB/16/031
Location: Cote d’Ivoire

Objectives

  • Participants in the Program are selected on a competitive basis, based on business needs of the Bank.
  • The broad objectives of the program are to:
  • Provide students with an opportunity to acquire professional and practical experience at the African Development Bank.
  • Provide the Bank with a pool of potential candidates for future recruitment purposes.
  • However applicants should not expect the internship to lead to immediate employment with the AfDB.

Duties and Responsibilities

  • The fields of study from which interns are selected must be within the job families of the Bank, particularly Economics, Agriculture, Private Sector Development, Human Capital Development (Education and Health), Environment, Finance, Infrastructure Development, Human Resources Management, Information Technology, Communications, Law, Internal Audit, Budget, Governance or any other field of study that the Bank may deem relevant to its operations.
  • Special consideration shall be given to students who are working on projects that have a direct bearing on the mission of the Bank.
  • Internships shall be performed either at the Bank’s headquarters in Abidjan (Côte d’Ivoire) or in any one of the Bank’s field offices or Regional Centres.
  • The program is annually run for two sessions as follows:
    • Winter – Session I: January through March. (closed)
    • Summer – Session II: June through August.
  • Internships shall be granted to each candidate for a period not less than three (3) months and not more than six (6) months. The internship will be authorized only once for any candidate.
  • Interns shall be responsible for their air travel (where applicable) to and from the Bank’s location as well as their upkeep.
  • Interns shall be responsible for their medical insurance coverage and for obtaining entry and residence visas in the host country of the Bank.
  • Eligible Interns will be provided with a monthly stipend, depending on the budget availability.

Selection Criteria
Including desirable Skills, Knowledge and Experience:

To be eligible for internship, applicants must meet the following criteria:

  • Students, aged between eighteen (18) to thirty (30) years, and currently enrolled in a Bachelor’s/Master’s level degree program or its equivalent in a recognized public or private institution of higher learning.
  • The candidate can apply for an internship within one (1) year of having obtained such a degree.
  • Provide a letter from their school confirming their enrollment or a copy of the above mentioned Degree.
  • Citizens of one of the Bank’s member countries.
  • Applicants must be fluent in at least one of the Banks’s two working languages (English or French).

The specific disciplines and professional areas that are aligned to the Ten-Year Strategy (TYS) and the gender strategy of the Bank are the following:

  • Economy: Development Research; Statistics;
  • Operations I: Procurement & Fiduciary Services, Fragile States;
  • Operations II: Agriculture & Agro-Industry; Human Development; Governance; Water & Sanitation, Natural Resource Management;
  • Operations III: Energy, Environment & Climate Change; Transport & ICT; Private Sector; Regional Integration and Trade;
  • Strategy & Operational Policies;
  • Results & Quality Assurance;
  • Finance; Budget; Treasury; Resource Mobilization; Risk Management; Audit
  • General/Business Administration;
  • Human Resources Management;
  • IT Services; IT Engineers; Security; IT Security;
  • Protocol Services ; Language Services ;
  • Communication & External Relations ;
  • Gender;
  • Corporate Lawyers;
  • Translation / Interpretation.

Application Closing Date
15th March, 2016.

How to Apply
Interested and qualified candidates should APPLY

RETAIL JOBS | Jumia Nigeria Fresh Graduate Recruitment 2016

By
BWN
-

Jumia is the largest e-commerce mall in Africa with over 100,000 unique visitors a day, buying everything from Fashion to Phones. Founded in 2012 in Nigeria, Jumia’s mission is to revolutionize the concept of shopping by providing customers with the best online shopping experience.

Jumia is part of Africa Internet Group, a leading global incubator of start-ups specialized in e-commerce. Africa Internet Group is Africa’s leading internet firm, with already over 3,000 employees in over 20 African countries and huge successes such as Jumia.com, Kaymu.com, Hellofood.com, Lamudi.com, Carmudi.com and Jovago.com. It is led by top talented leaders offering a great mix of local and international talents and is backed by MTN, Millicom, AXA and Rocket Internet.

Africa is one of the fastest growing economies in the world, offering excellent opportunities in a vibrant and booming environment. Its economic growth has enabled innovative businesses to flourish and this is where Africa Internet Group steps in.

We are recruiting to fill the position below:

Job Title: Marketing Project Manager

Location: Nigeria
Job type: Full time
Department: Marketing

Job Descriptions

  • As Project Manager, you will work with the Marketing and Communications team.
  • The role offers excellent opportunities to develop and utilize skills in stakeholder management, project management new business and strategy development, customer relationships management and communications.

Key Responsibilities

  • Manage multiple marketing projects simultaneously to ensure timely, accurate and on budget completion.
  • Maintain a fast-paced work style, multi-tasking and sustaining a high-level of communication. Must be enthusiastic about marketing, interactive, and events and stay current on trends, challenges and opportunities in the e-commerce space in Nigeria.
  • Oversee execution of marketing projects that may include activities across different marketing channels offline, online, onsite, ads campaigns, events and various other marketing projects.
  • Proactively facilitate discussions and meetings, including recurring status meetings as well as campaign kick-off meetings and issue resolution meetings
  • Keep stakeholders informed of changes, problems, and progress on assigned projects (via status reports, issue tracking tools and change/scope management mechanisms.)
  • Strategic thinker who can make effective decisions in order to solve problems.
  • Helps to support and cultivate relationships with external vendors, internal clients: vendor managers, fashion style team, design team and outside suppliers.
  • Strong listener that can communicate well with all levels of the organization while displaying a dynamic, thoughtful and customer service focused personality.
  • Process-driven work style that maintains project workflow, seeks information, approvals, and resources needed to maintain time, budget and content requirements.
  • Ability to self-manage and interact successfully with individuals and teams across functions with the flexibility to adapt to changing objectives as needed.
  • Analyze campaign data and create action plans for new assignments.
  • Review, edit and proofread all assigned projects for accuracy and detail.

Behaviors and Competencies

  • Energy Level: Excels in a fast-paced environment with strict deadlines.
  • Assertiveness: Very comfortable making decisions without procrastination.
  • Sociability: Interacts well with others and places value on teamwork and collaboration.
  • Manageability: Follows established guidelines, accepts feedback and direction.
  • Attitude: Keeps a positive attitude about change, conflict, and challenging relationships.
  • Decisiveness: Does not waver or back down once a decision is made.
  • Independence: Comfortable working with limited supervision.

Requirements & Qualification
To be successful in this role you will have:

  • A background in Business Development, Customer Operations, Project Management, Marketing or Public Relations
  • Excellent relationship building, account management and interpersonal skills
  • Experience developing relevant new initiatives, products and/or projects
  • Strong organizational, research, reporting and analytical skills

Application Closing Date
Not Specified.

How to Apply
Interested and qualified candidates should APPLY

Three Nigerian Airlines Obtain IATA Safety Certification

By
BWN
-

 

Three Nigerian airlines have successfully secured International Air Transport Association, IATA, Operational Safety Audit Certification, known as IOSA.

They are Arik Air, Aero Contractors and FirstNation Airways.

IOSA is international safety standard which is given to an airline by IATA after it has been audited and met the recommended safety standard of the world aviation body and according to statistics, there is less number of air accidents involving airlines with IOSA certification compared to others without the certification.

This agreement is known as Abuja Declaration because the Ministers of Transport of various countries met at the Nigeria’s Federal Capital to endorse this agreement, but since then not many airlines operating in the region have met this given criterion.

IATA has however initiated a programme to assist airlines from the continent to meet the safety standard that will enable them comply with the safety requirements for IOSA certification.

Some other Nigerian airlines at the verge of attaining IOSA certification include Allied Air and Cargo services, Overland Airways and Dana Air, while Air Peace, which is a new airline has done its last workshop but is about to be audited.

This disclosure was made when IATA team led by the newly appointed Regional Director for Africa, Tanja Grobotek, paid familiarization visit to the Director General of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) Capt. Muhtar Usman, at the authority’s headquarters in Lagos at the weekend.

Grobotek, during the meeting, vehemently condemned Consumer Protection Council’s (CPC) incursion into aviation regulatory responsibilities of the NCAA with reference to the recent issue of passengers’ complaint with Turkish Airlines.

She promised that IATA would take up the matter with the Minister of State for Aviation for proper delineation of the agency’s roles to avoid a breach of aviation protocols in Nigeria saying, ‘’a situation whereby our member airlines that are by international conventions answerable to NCAA are now being questioned by another body in Nigeria is confusing and need to be addressed.’’

 

Power Supply Dips to 2,665MegaWatts Due to Explosions, Gas Constraint

By
BWN
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The nation’s power generation has dropped to 2,665MW due to explosions at transmission lines in the Lagos area and Jebba.

Following this development, the Transmission Company of Nigeria, TCN, has directed the 11 distribution companies (Discos) nationwide “not to pick loads to avoid a system collapse.”

Data obtained from a source at TCN on the “Daily Load Analysis and Day Ahead Consumption” for yesterday showed that between 1 am and 6 am on Saturday, generation fell to 2,500MW.

However, between 6 am and 11.59 pm, the hourly dispatch to the Discos rose to 2,721.20MW, thus averaging 2,665.90MW for the whole day.

The chief executive of one of the Discos, who did not want to be named, told THISDAY yesterday that with the abysmally low level of generation, TCN directed the Discos not to pick loads to forestall a system collapse.

“When generation is very low like this, TCN tries to stabilise it and the only way to stabilise it is to balance the load. Right now, we can’t pick any load, otherwise there will be a system collapse,” he said.

TCN had at the beginning of this month announced for the first time that the country generated about 5,074.7MW of electricity.

The attainment of the new record peak generation as well as the highest maximum daily energy of 109,372 megawatts hour (MWH) was recorded on February 2, 2016.

 

“NFF to Hire Foreign Coach for Super Eagles” – Pinnick

By
BWN
-

 

The Nigeria Football Federation, NFF, has resolved to looking international for a substantive coach of the Super Eagles, who resigned on Friday morning.

Although Samson Siasia was appointed as interim coach, President of the NFF, Amaju Melvin Pinnick, who fielded questions at the colloquium organised as part of the 18th Annual Africa Business Conference of the Harvard Business School, Boston, Massachusetts, United States, said at the weekend that the federation had reached the “last bus stop” in keeping faith with local coaches.

 

According to hotsports.tv, the federation has decided to search for a quality European coach to take charge of the senior national team.

Another ex-international whom Keshi took over from in 2011, Samson Siasia, is the current caretaker manager for Nigeria’s make or mar AFCON 2017 clash with Egypt next month.

“After this Sunday Oliseh debacle, we have definitely turned the corner. We are now going to start shopping for a well grounded and qualified foreign coach to tinker the team. Enough is enough,” declared Pinnick at the Harvard colloquium.
The NFF supremo insisted that there was a world of difference between a good coach and a good manager.

“What we have learnt is that there is a world of difference between being a good coach and being a good manager,” he said with ample emphasis as he fielded questions from a captivated audience who had been enthralled by Pinnick’s contribution as the lead panelist at the colloquium.

Pinnick however did not reveal the identity of who was in the radar of the NFF at the Harvard confab.

The NFF president, who was in company with the Permanent Secretary in the Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports, Mr. Chinyeaka Christian Ohaa, served as a distinguished panelist for the paper, Football in Africa. Foremost sports marketer/promoter and Chairman of Hotsports Media Group, Mr. Taye Ige, was also at the conference.

 

Strong Bullish Momentum Lifts NSE Index by 0.77%

By
BWN
-

Trading activities on the floor of the Nigerian Stock Exchange, NSE, ended the week on a positive note as the All Share Index leaped by 0.77% to close at 24,228.79 points. Week-on-week, the Index depreciated by 0.83%. Year-to-date (YTD), it depreciated by 15.41%.

Similarly, the Market Capitalization rose by 0.77% to close at N8.34trn, compared with the appreciation of 0.67% recorded yesterday to close at N8.27trn.

The appreciation recorded in the share prices of FBN Holdings, Zenith Bank, Dangote Cement, Nigerian Breweries, and UBA were mainly responsible for the gain recorded in the Index.

The total value of stocks traded on the floors of The NSE today was N1.73bn, up by 11.79% from N1.54bn traded yesterday. The total volume of stocks traded was 280.39mn in 2,771 deals.

The three most actively traded stocks were: Access Bank (47.79mn), FCMB (40.70mn) and WAPIC Insurance (38.76mn). The most actively traded sectors were: Financial Services (260.67mn), Oil and Gas (5.25mn) and Consumer Goods (5.20mn).

Stock Market Investors’ Networth Hits N111billion In February

By
BWN
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Despite the fluctuations in the Nigerian stock market, investors’ net worth jumped to N111 billion in February in contrast to the N1.6 trillion lost in the month of January.

Specifically, the market capitalization, which represents the total value of shares traded on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), as at February 26, 2016, closed at N8.336 trillion as against the N8.225 trillion at which it opened for the month.

Reviewing the NSE classified sectors for the month showed that the Oil & Gas index topped the gainers’ chart with a significant growth of 19.08 per cent increase, while the Industrial Goods, NSE Premium, NSE-30, NSE-ASEM indices added 4.28 per cent, 2.18 per cent, 1.15 per cent, and 0.24 per cent respectively.

On the other hand, the Banking Index went down by 4.17 per cent, Insurance decline by 3.88 per cent, Consumer Goods depreciated by 2.26 per cent, and Pension Index shed 2.45 per cent.

Market analysts at the beginning of the month predicted growth which will be driven by investors’ reaction to corporate earnings releases but the number of companies that turn in their result were low and performances were below investors expectation on account of the challenging business environment.

For the month under review, the absence of fundamental fiscal and monetary policy directions, coupled with volatility in macroeconomic indices, weakened investors’ sentiment towards equities market and reduced the gains expected for the month.

However, analysts said that the recent news on the increase in international crude oil prices amid sustained decrease in crude oil production in the United States as well as ongoing efforts by OPEC producers and Russia to place a cap on their respective crude oil exports is good news for the Nigerian economy.

They also noted that market performance in March will be driven by investors’ reaction to corporate earnings releases.

 

“Organized Private Sector Lost N1.46trillion in 6 Months to Forex Scarcity” – KADCCIMA

By
BWN
-

The Kaduna Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture, KADCCIMA, on Sunday, February 28, said investors in various sectors of the economy were weighing the negative impact of the scarcity of foreign exchange on their businesses.

The Chamber noted that within six months, members of the Organized Private Sector lost about N1.46 trillion.

This is coming a day after the Federal Government restated its commitment to stabilize the country’s currency against the dollar.

Disclosing information on the N1.46 trillion loss at the ongoing Kaduna International Trade Fair, the President of KADCCIMA, Abdul-Alimi Bello, said the loss was occasioned by stalled business activities due to inadequate supply of foreign exchange as a result of Federal Government’s policy on foreign exchange restriction.

He said: “We are concerned about the inclusion of essential raw materials, which are not available locally and do not have local substitutes, in the list of items not valid for forex because of the dire consequences of factory closures and attendant unemployment that would result.”

“Our view is that such items can be included only after allowing investors ample time to backward integrate and generate these items locally. To avoid the risk of industrial closures, we plead that policy should be revisited,” he said.

 

Commercial Banks To Return Excess Charges On N50 Stamp Duty

By
BWN
-

Investigations have revealed that Nigerian Banks may have to make refunds for some of the charges as the guideline, and modalities for the N50 stamp duty is yet to be finalized and is still under deliberations by a coalition of government agencies, including NIPOST.

A Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, official revealed that banks would be made to refund the excess charges once the modalities of the charges has ben finalized and released.

Banks had begun charging the N50 stamp duty on inward coming transactions of current bank accounts that is above N1,000 since January when the CBN gave the directive.

Findings by Leadership revealed that some banks had charged the stamp duty on some accounts that were not current while some others had deducted the duty charge when there was no transaction on the accounts charged.

Meanwhile, the external reserves of the country, which in recent times have consistently been depleting, began a slow increasing trend last week. The reserves which had dipped to $27.789 billion on February 18, jumped gradually last week to stand at $27.807 billion as at February 25, 2015, according to the latest data on the website of the Central Bank of Nigeria.

This followed increase in international crude oil price amid sustained decrease in crude oil production in the United States as well as ongoing efforts by the OPEC producers and Russia to place a cap on their respective crude oil exports.

Also the value of the naira which had been very volatile last week closed at N315 to the dollar at the parallel market. The naira which had risen to N250 to the dollar quickly dropped in value to N350 at the close of business on Thursday due to speculators’ demand before appreciating on Friday.

“Oil Price Will Soon Rise to $50 Per Barrel” – Kachikwu

By
BWN
-
Minister of Petroleum Resources,  Ibe Kachikwu, has stated that the days of $50 per barrel of oil is ahead despite the recent disagreements among members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, OPEC.

Kachikwu also said he was unrelentless in his push for the production freeze consensus.

He told media outfit, CNBC, that he was hopeful that OPEC members would be able to come to an agreement to freeze oil production as a way to combat the low oil price.

“The minister for energy in Qatar and the president of OPEC is leading that pact and there is a lot of conversation going on and there’s a lot of consensus building on the issue of the freeze,” Kachikwu said in an interview with CNBC’s Fast Money.

“Saudi Arabia and Russia are aligned on the issue of a freeze, so I think the chances are very high.”

Kachikwu, who expressed his belief that movements towards a freeze represent a big step in the right direction, told CNBC he remained confident of his plan to work with OPEC members, adding that “the Saudi’s are quite frankly in the forefront of pushing the freeze issue.”

He explained that a potential output freeze among OPEC members has made him bullish when it comes to oil prices in 2016, adding that he expects crude prices to take a major jump by the end of the year.

“I am certainly hoping for prices in the range of $45 to $50. I’m hoping a consensus can be built and that parties can begin to work together across the board, not just OPEC members, but also non-OPEC members,which is what the gulf states and most of us have pushed for. With that, you’ll begin to see movement upwards in those prices,” Kachikwu stated.

 

Nigeria, Qatar Sign Deal On Air Service, Taxation

By
BWN
-

Nigeria and the State of Qatar in Doha, on Sunday, February 28, signed Bilateral Air Services Agreement (BASA) to pave the way for direct flights between major cities of both countries.

This is contained in a statement issued by the special adviser, media, to President Buhari, Femi Adesina.

Both countries also signed an agreement to avoid double taxation and tax evasion on the sidelines of President Muhammadu Buhari’s state visit to Qatar.

The Minister of State for Aviation, Senator Hadi Sirika, representing President Muhammadu Buhari, signed the air services agreement on behalf of the country while Qatar’s Minister of Transportation and Communications, Jassim Bin Saif Alsulaiti, signed on behalf the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim Bin Hammad Al-Thani.

The agreement which was signed in the presence of both leaders is expected to operate on the principle of reciprocity by the designated airlines on behalf of the countries.

 

Stock Market Investors Lose N67billion as Sell-offs Continue

By
BWN
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Investors on the Nigerian Stock Market lost N67 billion as trading activities in the equity segment lingered in the Red Zone last week.

The bourse slid by 0.83 per cent week on week amid rising volume. The market breath closed in favor of the bears as more equities closed in red in all but the second and last trading sessions of the week.

Transaction level by volume and value both improved by 272 per cent and 22 per cent respectively in contrast to last week’s closing levels.

In the week under review, a total of 4.47 billion shares valued at N11.74 billion were exchanged in 13,755 number of deals compared to 1.20 billion shares valued at N9.64 billion exchanged in 13,337 deals recorded in the previous trading week.

Many analysts believed that the recent equities performance is reflective of the varied impact of the weak domestic macro backdrop on domestic asset classes.

During the week investors traded cautiously as macro risk events remain on the horizon.

Analysts at United Capital Plc expect equities to continue to oscillate between gains and losses in line with recent patterns. They said, the pull from attractive dividends should drive some pockets of demand ahead of the earnings season.

Day by day trading shows that equities commence the week in red as market capitalization decreased by N4 billion to N8.399 trillion.

 

FG Delists 23,846 Ghost Workers From Payroll

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BWN
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The Federal Ministry of Finance on Sunday, February 29, stated that no fewer than 23,846 ghost workers names have been removed from the Federal Government payroll.

As a result of this, the wage bill has reduced by N2.293 billion monthly,

A Federal Ministry of Finance statement said: “this figure represents a percentage of the number of non-existent workers who had hitherto been receiving salary from various ministries, departments and agencies”.

The BVN audit has also reduced the list of military pensioners by 19,203. “The Military Pension Board has revised the amount payable for its due pension contributions on a monthly basis by N575million, following its annual verification exercise for military retirees.

“This reduced the number of pensioners by 19,203 as a result of deaths since the last verification exercise in 2012,” the statement by Festus Akanbi, the spokesman for Finance Minister Mrs Kemi Adeosun, said.

The statement added that further investigation of other suspected cases will continue in conjunction with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

The removal of non- existent workers from federal payroll and the attendant savings on salaries was made possible “because of the ongoing BVN-based staff audit and enrolment to the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS)”, the statement added

The Federal Government is also making efforts to recover “salary balances in bank accounts as well as any pension contributions in respect of the deleted workers. This involves active collaboration with the concerned banks and the National Pension Commission (Pencom).”

The Federal Government, the ministry said, is determined to continue the verification programme on a regular periodic basis in its efforts to reduce personnel cost.

Since personnel costs represent over 40 per cent of total government expenditure, the Federal Government has vowed to continue to strengthen its payroll controls.

“It plans to undertake periodic checks and to utilise Computer Assisted Audit Techniques under its new Continuous Audit Programme. This will ensure that all payments are accurate and valid. Requirements for new entrants joining the Federal Civil Service have also been enhanced to prevent the introduction of fictitious employees in future” the statement said.

 

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