Travel Entry: Bahamas To Sign Visa Waiver Agreement With Nigeria

Nigeria and the Commonwealth of the Bahamas are committed to signing a visa waiver agreement for Diplomatic and Official Passports holders of both countries. The Prime Minister of the Bahamas, Philip Davis made the commitment when Ambassador Benaoyagha Okoyen, the High Commissioner of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to the Commonwealth of The Bahamas paid him courtesy visit. A statement from the Nigerian Embassay in Havana stated that Okoyen paid Davis a courtesy visit, in the presence of the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Bahamas, Mr Fred Mitchel, at Nassau on Monday. Okoyen is the Nigeria’s Ambassador to Cuba with concurrent accreditation to the Bahamas, Republic of Nicaragua and Honduras. According to the statement, the purpose of the proposed agreement between Nigeria and the Bahamas is to facilitate the entry of citizens of the Government of both countries who are holders of valid diplomatic and official passports, into their respective countries. “The Agreement once concluded would further protect the interest of both countries and strengthen their friendly relations.” Okoyen, attended the various sessions of the Bahamas 2023 Diplomatic Week that celebrated “50 years of Foreign Relations and beyond in an independent Bahamas” between 22-27 October, 2023. He also participated in a hybrid High Level Panel Discussion on “Diplomacy and the next Generation” along with other representatives of the Bahamas, China, Indonesia, USA, and participating students from various schools in the country. While in Nassau, Okoyen also paid a courtesy visit on the Governor-General of the Bahamas, Ms. Cynthia Pratt, who bid the high commissioner farewell as he took formal leave of the host authority in the Bahamas.

$750m NG-CARES Programme Doing Well- World Bank

The World Bank has aid that the Nigeria COVID-19 Action Recovery and Economic Stimulus (NG-CARES) programme is doing well in addressing poverty in the country. Prof. Foluso Okunmadewa, World Bank Task Team Leader for NG-CARES, stated this in an interview with newsmen on the sidelines of Mid-Term Review Mission meeting held on Wednesday in Abuja. Okunmadewa said that the bank had so far disbursed over 300 million dollars, assuring that all the remaining resources would be released within the next eight months. “We are quite happy about what has happened to the programme. It is still very active in all the 36 states of the Federation and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). “And they are all very eager to get even into the next phase of the programme because caring for the poor and vulnerable in Nigeria is still the thing that government is concern about “Each state of the federation have been encourage to put together a set of interventions into one programme that totally cares for the poor and vulnerable.” The don recalled that the programme became preeminent immediately after the COVID-19 crisis, where both the livelihood and the lives of people were threatened. “And so government was responsive enough at the federal and state levels to put this programme together and the world bank gladly agreed to support it. “Now two and half years after it was being put in place we have felt is good to take a look at how fair is the programme going. “And particularly how well is the world bank assistance, whether it is relevant or not and whether it is achieving the desire results. “Of course, I will like to say that it is doing well now but after a very difficult start. It had a challenging start, had a slow start but now it has pick up and it is even almost exceeding the expectations “To the extent that there is clearly a desire to continue the programme at the government level and also the world bank to also support the next face of it.” Earlier, the National Coordinators of NG-CARES, Dr Abdulkarim Obaje, said that the programme had so far impacted into the lives of over three million Nigerians. Obaje said the 36 states and the FCT have contributed between N88 billion to N90 billion since the inception of the programme. He explained that the instrument of operation and strategy put into the designed of the programme emphasised on community participation. He also said that the emphasised of the programme had moved from COVID-19 to deploying the resources of the community to address their peculiar needs. “The programme is doing very well now and there is increase phase of disbursement and the programme is also becoming more popular among the poor and vulnerable the nation. “And then top government functionaries at the federal are also beginning to ask questions to become interested in what the NG-CARES is doing. “This is a positive development, it is a programme that relatively young as a programme but it has inherited other programme that have been existing for quite sometime.” Also, Mr Sonny Ekedayen, the Commissioner of Ministry of Economic Planning, Delta state, said NG-CARES is one programme whose relevance we are just discovering that is even more today than it was when it started. “I am very proud to say that my state delta is very active in the programme and one of those forerunners who signed on to this programme newly when it came in. “And we have domesticated it in our state for which we have not only gotten commendation from the world bank but also from the National Coordinating body. “Even our citizens too are now looking at it as a veritable means of state intervention.”

Canada Pledges $18m For Poverty, Humanitarian Responses In Nigeria

The Canadian Government will support humanitarian and poverty alleviation in Nigeria with 18 million dollars. The Canadian High Commissioner to Nigeria, Mr Jamie Christoff, made this known when he visited the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Dr Betta Edu in her office in Abuja. Christoff said Canada has already committed to spend a total of one hundred and fifty-two million dollars to support various programmes in Nigeria. According to him, part of the money is the eighteen million dollars earmarked for Humanitarian response. “The main portion of the funds will be spent in programmes focusing on the vulnerable women and young girls across the country. The Canadian envoy lauded the establishment of the Humanitarian and Poverty Alleviation Trust Fund. “I am here with my team to register our support to the mandate of the President in his efforts to alleviate poverty and reduce humanitarian crises in Nigeria through your ministry” he said. In her response, Edu, commended the Canadian High Commissioner visiting her, as well as supporting the ministry’s efforts in humanitarian response. Edu expressed delight that the Canadian government has confidence in President Bola Tinubu Administration to drive Nigeria’s poverty alleviation and humanitarian response. She assured the ambassador of the federal government’s desire to deepens mutual working relationship with the Canadian government. According to her, the Tinubu Administration is determined to tackle Nigeria’s multi-dimensional poverty and humanitarian crises in line with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). She assured the Canadian Envoy that the Humanitarian and Poverty Alleviation Trust Fund will be used to address humanitarian emergencies. She said, there will be transparency in the application of the fund. Edu therefore urged all stakeholders to re-evaluate their contributions to Nigeria and work towards providing durable solutions to ‘our country’ need. She advocated for a change in approach of partners to enable the people who need help the most truly get it with less duplication and wastage.

Nigeria’s Equity Market Rakes In N564bn

Domestic equity market on Monday opened in bullish note, gaining N564 billion as gain recorded in the shares of Dangote Cement, Nigerian Breweries, Stanbic IBTC, Geregu Power, Flour Mills Nigeria Plc, FBNHoldings impacted positively on the trading activities. Investors’ rekindled interest in stocks led to the appreciation of NGX All Share by 975.13 basis points to 68111.71 points from 67136.58 points traded the previous day. Also, Market capitalisation of listed equities increased by N564 billion or 1.52 per cent to N37.420 trillion from N36.885 trillion it closed on Friday. An analysis of the investment showed that Northern Nigeria Flour Mills led gainers table in percentage terms, gaining 10 per cent to close at N18.15 per unit, Chellaram followed with a gain of 9.77 per cent to close at N3.82 per share, UACN added 9.84 per cent to N14.35 per share, Nahco gained 9.42 per cent to N26.05 per unit, TIP increased by 9.43 per cent to close at N1.16 per unit. On the contrary, Meryer paint recorded the highest loss, declining by 9.87 per cent to close at N2.74 per unit, Abbey Building trailed with a loss of 9.71 per cent to close at N1.86 per share, Regal insurance dropped by 8.33 per cent to N0.33 per share, RTBriscoe dipped by 6.00 per cent to N0.47 per share, Jaiz Bank down by 5.95 per cent to close at N1.58 per unit. Volume of trades during the day increased by 216.247 million, representing 100.98 per cent as investors traded 430.393 million shares valued at N8.257 billion in 7656 deals against 214.146 million shares valued at N5.178 billion in 5325 deals. Transactions in the shares of Universal insurance led market activities with 94.753 million shares valued at N23.105 million, United Bank for Africa followed with account of 51.263 million shares valued at N1.002 billion, Transnational Corporation of Nigeria traded 32.476 million shares cost N200.849 million, Zenith Bank exchanged 24.421 million shares cost N818.460 million while Chams traded 19.243 million shares cost N37.506 million.

Analysing Tinubu’s $1trn GDP Growth In 3 Years

Encumbered by the biting economic reality that have taken a heavy toll on the welfare of Nigerians, and particularly, the untamed freefalling of the Naira immediately after reunification of the exchange rate by the government, President Bola Tinubu is targeting a $1trn gross domestic product (GDP) within the next three years. He is targeting this objective with his ongoing economic reforms aimed at repositioning the economy. The President at the inauguration of his cabinet had unveiled an-8 point economic agenda with priorities on food security, economic growth, job creation, access to capital – importantly, consumer credit; improved security, provision of enabling playing field for people and companies who operate in the economy, rule of law, and fight against corruption. He also promised an all-embracing inclusiveness, focusing particularly on youths and women. He also promised a new Central Bank of Nigeria that will be thoroughly professional, a catalyst for growth, and a stickler to its constitutional mandate, maintaining price and financial system stability away from the muddled interlope of fiscal responsibilities. Mr. Olayemi Cardoso, the CBN Governor, affirmed this during his submission at the National Assembly. He told the legislators that efforts were ongoing to refocus the economy and the Central Bank of Nigeria for an overall economic rebirth. He said the federal government has fashioned fiscal reforms and growth targets that would make the feat attainable within the next three years, an ambitious plan that hopes to catapult the economy from its current Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of $450. He said a study of emerging markets’ macro-economic indices which particularly noted Nigeria’s economic trajectory, given faithful implementation of the ongoing economic reforms attest to it. With its youthful population and natural resources, aptly captured by the Minister of Communication and Digital Economy, Bosun Tijani in his 31- page document said, “in a world where digital transformation and innovation is fast becoming a catalyst for economic progress, we are at a critical moment as a nation in our journey towards a more inclusive, and prosperous future. The intersection of a strong digital economy and our innovative and youthful population presents us with a unique opportunity to chart a course towards prosperity, inclusion, and global relevance”. Other growth facilitating ministries and agencies like the Ministries of Industry, Trade and Investment, Science, Innovation and Technology, Labour and Employment, Gas Resources, Foreign Affairs, Marine and Blue Economy, Power, Justice, and Tourism should also come out with employment and wealth enhancing/generating policies to make this objective a reality. While agencies like Nigeria Investment Promotion Council, Nigeria Export Promotion Council, Corporate Affairs Commission, Bank of Agriculture, and Bank of Industries to mention few should live up to their fiscal responsibility mandates to facilitate this task. It is doable. In achieving the objective, may be, was the creation and renaming of some ministries and agencies, including appointments of new helmsmen to pilot the affairs of some revenue generating agencies such as FIRS, CAC, and the Taiwo Oyedele Tax Reform Committee. The actions were pointers to achieving this objective. Cardoso had explained that the projection is achievable if the study of the economies of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa (BRICS) and Mexico, Indonesia, Nigeria, and Turkey (MINT) countries with similar populations and developmental characteristics is anything to go by. He continued, “Given this scenario, a refocused CBN, (sticking to its mandate) will better serve Nigeria through monetary policy interventions and advisory roles that will sustain the implementation of the administration’s fiscal proposals”. However, to achieve these laudable objectives the CBN Governor said the lines between monetary policy and fiscal intervention must be clearly delineated. He noted that, “much had been said of past CBN’s foray into development financing, such that the lines between monetary policy and fiscal intervention were blurred”. Therefore, in refocusing the CBN to its core mandate, there is a need to pull it back to mere advisory role that supports economic growth. The Bank, he promised, will now act as a catalyst in the propagation of specialized institutions and financial products that support emerging sectors of the economy. “ It should facilitate new regulatory frameworks to unlock dormant capital in land and property holdings,’’ he said. He listed other roles the CBN under his watch would be – accelerating access to consumer credit and expansion of financial inclusion for the masses, de-risking instrumentation to increase private sector investment in housing, textiles and clothing, food supply chain, healthcare, and educational supplies. Cardoso said he would exercise the convening power of the CBN to bring key multilateral and international stakeholders together to participate in government and private sector initiatives. The Governor however admitted that despite this envisioned task, the CBN does not possess the magic wand to be waved at Nigeria’s current economic realities as the problems facing the Bank are enormous and complex, but the Bank under his watch will do all that is necessary to turn around the fortunes of the Bank and the Nigeria economy in general. *Chisom Adindu writes from Umuahia, Abia State

Military Hardware: Nigeria’s Defence Minister Visits Turkey, Seeks Bilateral Cooperation

In his drive to equip the Nigeria Armed Forces with high tech hardware and other Military equipment, the Honourable Minister of Defence, Mohammed Badaru Abubakar CON mni, has paid a bilateral visit to Turkey to further discuss and explore how best Nigeria can partner with Turkey on the production of Military hardware and equipment. Badaru, accompanied by the Chief of Air Staff, Air Mashal Hassan Abubakar visited the Turkish Aerospace Industries in the capital city, Ankara to see things for himself. He inspected various sections of the firm in charge of the manufacturing of modern military aircraft and other defence equipment. Furthermore, in the course of taking him round the facility, the CEO of the company, Engineer Temel Kotel informed the Minister that the industry was established in 1973 with the primary goal of manufacturing military aircraft, satellites, and unmanned aerial vehicles. At the conclusion of the tour, the Hon Minister commended the company for its over five decades of successful ventures in the manufacturing of military facilities. According to him, Nigeria would explore the possibility of partnering with Turkey in intelligence and information sharing for the mutual benefit of both countries in Defence cooperation.

Nigeria’s eCommerce Revenue To Hit $6.710m By December

Revenue in Nigeria’s eCommerce market is projected to reach $6,710.00 million by December 2023, a new report by Statista has said. In its eCommerce in Nigeria report, the data company stated that revenue is expected to show an annual growth rate (CAGR 2023-2027) of 10.79 per cent, resulting in a projected market volume of $10,110.00 million by 2027. With a projected market volume of $1.319 billion in 2023, the report noted that most revenue will be generated in China. “In the eCommerce market, the number of users is expected to amount to 143.9m users by 2027. “User penetration will be 45.3% in 2023 and is expected to hit 58.6% by 2027. “The average revenue per user (ARPU) is expected to amount to $66.23, the report said. 

AfDB, IDB, IFA Inject $1bn To Fund Nigeria’s SAPZs

The Africa Development Bank (AfDB), Islamic Development Bank (IDB) and the International Fund for Agricultural Development have voted $1billion to deliver special agro-industrial processing zones in 24 States of Nigeria. This is in addition to an initial $520 million voted by the development partners for the development of eight special agro-industrial processing zones in the country. Mr Stanley Nkwocha, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Communications, Office of the Vice-President, in a statement said the President of AfDB, Dr Akinwumi Adesina, disclosed this in the United States. Adesina spoke at the Norman Borlaug International Dialogue, World Food Prize 2023, in Des Moines, Iowa. Vice-President Kashim Shettima, who is attending the event in pursuance of the food security and diversification policy of the Tinubu administration, had on Wednesday delivered his keynote address at the ongoing Dialogue. In a speech titled, “From Dakar to Des Moines”, Adesina said that the decision to pump such huge funds into Nigeria’s agribusiness was part of the resolve to develop Special Agro-Industrial Processing Zones (SAPZs) in 13 countries. He said, “We are investing heavily in the development of SAPZs to support the development of agricultural value chains. “Food processing and value addition, enabling infrastructure and logistics to promote local, regional, and international trade in food. “The African Development Bank Group is investing $853 million in the development of the Special Agro-Industrial Processing Zones. “The bank has mobilized additional co-financing of 661 million dollars, for a total commitment of $1.5 billion.” Adesina said that the bank was deploying effective partnerships at scale, adding that currently it is implementing 25 Special Agro-industrial Processing Zones in 13 countries. “The AfDB and the International Fund for Agricultural Development provided $520 million for the development of eight special agro-industrial processing zones in Nigeria. “The second phase of the program aims to mobilize an additional $1 billion to deliver special agro-industrial processing zones in 24 States of Nigeria.” Adesina regretted that while much progress had been made in African agriculture, 283 million people still go to bed hungry, about a third of the 828 million people that suffer hunger globally. He described the Norman Borlaug International Dialogue World Food Prize 2023, as a journey and narrative combining the power of science, technology, policies and politics to ensure that Africa fully unlocks its agricultural potential, and feeds itself with pride. Adesina thanked Vice-President Kashim Shettima, and the President of Ethiopia, Sahle-Work Zewde, for participating in the global event. He said that their presence was an indication that Africa had the political will and was fully ready to tackle food insecurity as well as make hunger history on the continent. Earlier, Shettima, who spoke on the Tinubu administration’s initiatives for food security, said the quality of present leadership in Nigeria and the rest of Africa would drive transformation in agriculture and other sectors. He said, “A nation falls or rises fundamentally due to the quality of its leadership. “Right now, Africa is blessed with quite a handful of quality leaders that have the drive, passion and skills set to redefine the meaning and concept of modern leadership. “President Tinubu, my boss, is a good example, Macky Sall of Senegal and of course, Abdel Fattah El-Sisi of Egypt are doing wonderfully well. “Just to mention a few of the African leaders that are distinguishing themselves in leadership.” Shettima assured the gathering of investors and stakeholders in the agricultural sector that Tinubu was a quintessential 21st century modern African leader who is determined to redefine the meaning and concept of modern leadership. He added, “Be rest assured that there will be a change in the fortunes of the Nigerian nation and by extension, the African continent in the next couple of years because Nigeria is an anchor nation.” On wheat production, Shettima said the target of Nigeria towards wheat production was to achieve 50 per cent self sufficiency in the next three cycles. He said, “It is inconceivable that we are the second largest wheat importer in the world. Luckily, we have already procured the heat tolerant variety of wheat seeds. “And we are going to drive that process by supporting the farmers with the heat tolerant variety, agricultural extension services, fertilizer and also hope to increase the irrigation areas to 1 million hectares in the next cropping cycle. “We need to produce about 2.4 million tonnes of wheat grains in Nigeria. We are going to reach out to our farmers through small irrigation schemes and through digitalisation. “All the actors in the value chain will be sufficiently taken care of through innovative finance, partial credit guarantees and crop insurance.” On rice production, Shettima said the major challenge for Nigeria was the insufficiency of paddy rice. He said that Nigeria had adequate milling capacity, adding, “but, we need to produce three to four million tonnes of paddy rice to meet our requirement of about 2.5 million tonnes per annum. “We have 75 million hectares of arable land and most of it suited for rice cultivation. “We will provide our farmers with certified seeds, fertilizer, extension services, the digitlisation of services, inputs, finance and market information. ”Our target is to achieve self sufficiency in rice latest by 2027.” The vice-president, who spoke on SAPZs, reiterated the Tinubu administration’s commitment to providing an enabling environment for investors in the zones. He said government would create an SAPZ development authority that would operate like a one-stop shop where regulatory and associated issues would be addressed.

Nigeria’s Currency Circulation Jumps To N66.4trn -CBN

The Central Bank of Nigeria CBN) has reported that Nigeria’s total money supply (M2) increased to N66.4 trillion in September 2023. The data from the apex bank on money supply in the economy in the month other review comprising demand deposits, quasi-money, and currency outside banks, reflected increases in the components. Specifically, quasi-money, which pertains to financial tools that can be easily converted to cash, rose from N40.8 trillion in the preceding month to N41 trillion; demand deposits, primarily made up of funds in banks accessible without prior notice, moved from N21.7 trillion to N23 trillion while currency outside banks’ vaults marginally increased from N2.29 trillion to N2.3 trillion. Over the past few years, Nigeria’s money supply has been increasing based on the micro and macroeconomic whirlwinds of the economy, particularly the surging inflation rate, FX pressure on the Naira, and declining interest rates. The money supply, also known as M2, represents the total amount of money available in the economy at a particular moment, including physical currency such as coins and banknotes as well as deposits maintained by individuals, enterprises, and institutions in banks and other financial entities. However, the nation’s Net Foreign Assets dipped in September from N7.1 trillion to just N591 billion while Net Domestic Assets rose to N66.5 trillion from N58.3 trillion. A further analysis of the M2 trend during the month under review showed that the net domestic credit rose from N87.2 trillion to N92.7 trillion, thereby raising the net domestic credit to GDP by around 42.7 per cent. The breakdown of the net domestic credit indicated that credit to the government marginally increased to N34.1 trillion from N32.5 trillion while credit to the organized private sector surged from N54.7 trillion in the preceding month to N58.6 trillion, representing 63% of net domestic credit.

AfDB’s Total Portfolio In Nigeria Hits $4.4bn – Burrow

The African Development Bank (AfDB) says its total portfolio in Nigeria stands at $4.4 billion. The portfolio is for development projects. In his opening remarks at the Joint Country Portfolio Performance Review (CPPR), the Director General for Nigeria Country Department, AfDB, Lamine Barrow, who stated this at the weekend in Abuja, added that there have been significant improvement in the portfolio performance. He said: “Currently, the Bank’s portfolio in Nigeria is one of the largest among the Regional Member Countries (RMCs), with a total commitment value of US$ 4.4 billion. These are 48 operations fairly evenly distributed between public and private sector operations. “Since the 2022 CPPR Workshop, some of the portfolio performance metrics have improved. In particular, operations flagged for implementation challenges decreased from 36% in January 2023 to 32% in September 2023. This is a result of collective efforts from the Federal Ministry of Finance, the Executing Agencies and the Bank to reduce start-up and implementation delays. Indeed, the time taken to meet loan effectiveness and first disbursement conditions tend to be excessive. Let me acknowledge the unprecedented recent development with the FEC approval of the Ekiti Knowledge Zone project! “We are pleased that the share of start-up delays has been reduced from 32% of flagged operations in June 2023 to 28% in October 2023, and is expected to reach 8% by end 2023 with timely and targeted actions for some projects.” Burrow commended the Federal Government for the bold reforms initiated to address macro-economic imbalances and structural issues in the economy. “These reforms, particularly removal of the fuel subsidies and unification of the exchange rates management system, will help reignite higher economic growth trajectory, despite the short-term pains to the population. “This renewed drive for results and impact is clearly noticeable in the Bank’s interface with the Federal Ministry of Finance, and specifically the International Economic Relations Department,” he said.   Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, Burrow said the Bank’s annual disbursements increased from UA 93 million in 2021 to UA 143 million in 2022 and projected to reach UA165 million by end December 2023. According to him, fiduciary compliance has also improved with progress observed in the submission rate of audited financial statements by the executing/implementing agencies for financial Years 2021 and 2022. “However, there is scope for further improvements in these and other areas. A more regular scheduling of our Quarterly Meetings will also help ensure that emerging issues in the portfolio management are addressed timely,” the AfDB chief said. To further drive improvement in the implementation of its project, he said the Bank “decided to introduce Project Awards to recognize excellence and strong performance, showcase best practices, and incentivize Executing Agencies and Project Implementation Units to improve performance and delivery of development results. I am pleased to announce that the first Project Awards will be given out today.  We hope that these recognitions will provide Project Teams added motivation to enhance project implementation performance and results.” For his part, Director International Economic Relations Department, Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Stanley George, said the aim of the workshop is to ensure Nigeria gets value for money.    He said, “If we take a facility we need to know how it is convertible to impact on people. The benefit is to the people that are our concern. We don’t want any delay. We want seamless implementation of these projects so that people on whose behalf this service was called would have immediate impact.” The Director said the review would help proffer solutions to the delays that are encountered in the implementation of some projects. “I want to use this opportunity to highlight some of the issues that may have inhibited the smooth performance of some of the portfolios. One of which is the long period of delay, low disbursement rate, and communication with various MDAs. I believe that some of these issues will be taken up at the very technical level, so that all stakeholders will know their critical roles,” he added.