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Subsidy removal is best economic decision to reduce Nigeria’s debt – LCCI

Published

1 year ago

April 18, 2023

The Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) says the Federal Government’s planned petrol subsidy removal remains one of the best economic decisions that will reduce Nigeria’s debts and tackle widespread corruption in the oil sector.

LCCl’s President, Dr Michael Olawale-Cole, said this during the chamber’s second quarter state of the economy conference on Tuesday in Lagos.

The Newsmen reports that Nigeria secured an $800 million relief package from the World Bank to minimise the effect of subsidy removal on the most vulnerable in the society.

Newsmen further reports that recent data by the Debt Management Office (DMO) puts Nigeria’s public debt at N46.25 trillion ($103.11billion) as at end-December 2022, compared to N39.56 trillion ($95.77 billion) in 2021.

Olawale-Cole, however, urged government to begin to roll out several cushioning measures ahead of the subsidy removal in the second half of the year to mitigate any likely disruptions to the economy.

“Removal of fuel subsidies is, amongst others, expected to spur investments in domestic refining and petrochemicals and create a significant value chain for the various stakeholders.

“Though the planned removal of fuel subsidies may cause further northward movement of inflation in the short term, it is arguably one of the best economic decisions to reduce our unsustainable debts and widespread corruption in that sector.

“The government must however, take cognisance of its socio-economic implications, especially with unemployment at the unwholesome rate of about 40 per cent,” he said.

The LCCI’s President frowned at borrowing to fund subsidies or support uneconomic ventures, saying that government’s fixation on debt accumulation was unhealthy.

According to Olawale-Cole, government must prioritise exploring other avenues, including opening equity opportunities, offloading/selling of its real estate holdings and tackling oil theft to create room for fiscal manipulation.

He stressed the need to importantly follow the recently launched and restructured Ministry of Finance Incorporated (MOFI) by President Muhammadu Buhari on Feb. 1, to optimise national assets.

The LCCI’s president advised that copious references should henceforth be made on the growth and returns of the country’s stock of financial assets in corporate equities, real estate and infrastructure spaces.

This, he said, would provide local and global observers a balanced picture of our financial position.

“It would also motivate national asset managers, led by MOFI, to grow our assets and the returns on them as well as motivate our national liability managers, led by the DMO, to minimise our liabilities and the costs we incur on them with equal vigour.

“Indeed, issuance of joint reports by MOFI and DMO would be most ideal going forward.

“One-sided updates on liabilities with no updates on assets when such updates were adequately available could well be blamed for some of the downgrades of nigeria’s debt issuance risk profile and outlook.

“The rating outcomes would have been more favourable, had updates on assets been provided side-by-side with updates about liabilities,” he said.

Addressing inflationary pressure which inched upwards in March to 22.04 per cent, Olawale-Cole noted that hiking monetary policy rate had thus far proven to be ineffective and insufficient in taming inflation.

He stated that in most economies, amid the cost-of-living crisis, the priorities remained achieving sustained disinflation and reasonable real growth.

“Therefore, there is a clear need for the government to strengthen its support to critical sectors like agriculture, export infrastructure manufacturing, power, energy and insecurity.

“Government should also look at ways to improve supply chains as well as cushioning the cost of production by assisting manufacturers with subsidised inputs and foreign exchange allocation.

“While the Central Bank of Nigeria embarks on monetary tightening to tame inflation, it should ensure that targeted concessionary credit to the private sector is sustained for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME),” he said.

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Uzodinma assures Imo residents of uninterrupted power supply

Published

42 mins ago

May 3, 2024

Walewale

Gov. Hope Uzodimma has assured residents of the 27 Local Government Areas of Imo will soon enjoy uninterrupted power supply.

Uzodimma, gave the assurance while signing two executive bills into law, a bill on electricity and another to amend Imo State Polytechnic Law No. 15 of 2012 to pave the way for the merger of campuses of the polytechnic.

The governor said that the Imo state Electricity law, would bring rapid development not only to rural communities but also to the urban centers.

“We are all living witnesses to the ordeal our people are going through in the power sector.

“There is absolutely limited or even no supply, businesses are dying everyday and people are losing everyday with unemployment market swelling everyday.

“I think it has come to a time that every sub-national government must rise and provide what will make life meaningful to her people.

“Electricity is as important as the food we eat everyday. It is the beginning of every development,” he stressed.

The governor, who noted that he took a comprehensive audit of the federal facilities in Imo and infrastructure meant to provide power, expressed concern over the abandoned Amaraku electricity project.

“The transmission and distribution infrastructure at the federal project at Egbema Power Plant initiated in 2006, has not been completed 18 years after.

“I have approached the Federal Government and requested that the project be transferred to Imo state and her development partners.

“I am happy to announce to you that President Bola Tinubu has approved the transfer of the project to Imo Government.

“I am also happy to announce that an agreement has been signed by Imo Government with a world class power company from Egypt with credibility to generate, transmit and distribute electricity in the state,” he stated.

He expressed confidence that power supply will improve in the state in the next 12 months.

Uzodimma further noted that an agreement had been signed with an Egyptian company, Afreximbank, Fidelity bank and Marriott Group to provide 200-room Imo Marriott Hotel in Owerri.

He said the state government only provided land in the Public Private Partnership (PPP) project which would be completed within 24 months.

The governor said the three projects would provide over 5,000 direct jobs for the people of the state.

He said the government has already entered into an agreement with an Egyptian firm, Elsewedy power generation, for the generation, transmission, and distribution of electricity to all parts of the state within the next eight months.

The governor also announced that apart from the fact that electricity is now on the concurrent list , the federal government has given approval and support for the ambitious project.

Speaking to an excited audience after signing the bill into law, Uzodimma said the ultimate goal of the project is to boost the economy of Imo state through industrialization.

According to him, with natural and human resources in the state, an uninterrupted power supply would be a filip to the industrialization policy of the administration.

On the bill for the amendment of the Imo Polytechnic law, the governor said, it was aimed at centralizing its operations as against the multi-campus arrangement.

He said: “It became necessary, given that of late, Imo now operates three state universities and there is no state in Nigeria with up to three universities.

“It has continued to over stretch our resources with the agony and risks of students going from one location to another at a time of insecurity.

“The need for a unified system became necessary to save government the resources, demands and inconveniences occasioned by the robust demands of supervision and monitoring.

“It will also allow for even and proper development of the campus so that students will graduate from an environment that really enable acquisition of knowledge and instill sense of pride in the graduating students,” Uzodimma said.

Earlier, the Speaker of the Imo House of Assembly, Mr Chike Olemgbe, while presenting the bills to the governor, said the executive bills passed legislative scrutiny and process.

Olemgbe said the timely presentation of the bill by the executive arm of the government to the State Assembly clearly shows Imo as a proactive government that yields to the yearnings of the people.

He assured the governor of the assembly’s collaboration to work with the executive arm as partners in progress to provide dividends of democracy and good governance to the people.

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Russian troops enter base housing U.S. military in Niger, U.S. – official

Published

42 mins ago

May 3, 2024

Walewale

Russian military personnel have entered an air base in Niger that is hosting U.S. troops, a senior U.S. defense official told Reuters, a move that follows a decision by Niger’s junta to expel U.S. forces.

The military officers ruling the West African nation have told the U.S. to withdraw its nearly 1,000 military personnel from the country, which until a coup last year had been a key partner for Washington’s fight against insurgents who have killed thousands of people and displaced millions more.

A senior U.S. defense official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Russian forces were not mingling with U.S. troops but were using a separate hangar at Airbase 101, which is next to Diori Hamani International Airport in Niamey, Niger’s capital.

The move by Russia’s military, which Reuters was the first to report, puts U.S. and Russian troops in close proximity at a time when the nation’s military and diplomatic rivalry is increasingly acrimonious over the conflict in Ukraine.

It also raises questions about the fate of U.S. installations in the country following a withdrawal.

“(The situation) is not great but in the short-term manageable,” the official said.

Asked about the Reuters report, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin played down any risk to American troops or the chance that Russian troops might get close to U.S. military hardware.

“The Russians are in a separate compound and don’t have access to U.S. forces or access to our equipment,” Austin told a press conference in Honolulu.

“I’m always focused on the safety and protection of our troops … But right now, I don’t see a significant issue here in terms of our force protection.”

The Nigerien and Russian embassies in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The U.S. and its allies have been forced to move troops out of a number of African countries following coups that brought to power groups eager to distance themselves from Western governments.

In addition to the impending departure from Niger, U.S. troops have also left Chad in recent days, while French forces have been kicked out of Mali and Burkina Faso.

At the same time, Russia is seeking to strengthen relations with African nations, pitching Moscow as a friendly country with no colonial baggage in the continent.

Mali, for example, has in recent years become one of Russia’s closest African allies, with the Wagner Group mercenary force deploying there to fight jihadist insurgents.

Russia has described relations with the United States as “below zero” because of U.S. military and financial aid for Ukraine in its effort to defend against invading Russian forces.

The U.S. official said Nigerien authorities had told President Joe Biden’s administration that about 60 Russian military personnel would be in Niger, but the official could not verify that number.

After the coup, the U.S. military moved some of its forces in Niger from Airbase 101 to Airbase 201 in the city of Agadez. It was not immediately clear what U.S. military equipment remained at Airbase 101.

The United States built Airbase 201 in central Niger at a cost of more than 100 million dollars.

Since 2018 it has been used to target Islamic State and al Qaeda affiliate Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal Muslimeen (JNIM) fighters with armed drones.

Washington is concerned about Islamic militants in the Sahel region, who may be able to expand without the presence of U.S. forces and intelligence capabilities.

Niger’s move to ask for the removal of U.S. troops came after a meeting in Niamey in mid-March, when senior U.S. officials raised concerns including the expected arrival of Russia forces and reports of Iran seeking raw materials in the country, including uranium.

While the U.S. message to Nigerien officials was not an ultimatum, the official said, it was made clear U.S. forces could not be on a base with Russian forces.

“They did not take that well,” the official said.

A two-star U.S. general has been sent to Niger to try and arrange a professional and responsible withdrawal.

While no decisions have been taken on the future of U.S. troops in Niger, the official said the plan was for them to return to U.S. Africa Command’s home bases, located in Germany.

News

Access Bank advocates innovative financing models to bridge healthcare gap

Published

3 hours ago

May 3, 2024

Walewale

The Group Head, Commercial Banking Division, Access Bank Plc, Ralph Opara has said that the private sector is crucial in driving innovative financing models and strategic partnerships to bridge healthcare investment gap in Nigeria.

In a statement on Thursday in Lagos, Opara was quoted to have said this at the 2024 Medic West Africa event, organised by ABCHealth in collaboration with Informa Markets.

The event was a platform for stakeholders across industries to deliberate on the theme; “Healthcare Investments in Africa: Mobilising the Private Sector to Drive Healthcare Investments in Africa.”

It was aimed at charting a path through which corporates could leverage innovative financing models and strategic partnerships in fostering the achievement of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

The discussions also explored strategies for strengthening healthcare infrastructure, leveraging technological advancements, as well as enhancing community health initiatives.

Opara reaffirmed Access Bank’s commitment to fostering positive transformation in healthcare across Africa.

Speaking at the event, he said that, “The government can’t carry the burden of the health sector alone.

“Hence, it is imperative that the private sector explores and implements innovative financing models and strategic partnerships to bridge the healthcare investment gap.”

Opara said collaborative effort between the public and private sectors was crucial and essential to driving innovation, improving healthcare accessibility, and ensuring sustainable development across Africa.

Some notable participants at the event included Mories Atoki, CEO, ABCHealth; Jane Ike-Okoli, Head of Specialised Sectors Business & Commercial Banking, Stanbic IBTC and Odunayo Sanyo, Executive Director, MTN Foundation;

Others were Group Head, Health Finance, Sterling Bank, Ibironke Akinmade, and MD/CEO, Aliko Dangote Foundation, Zouera Youssoufou.

Demonstrating its commitment to partnership, Access Bank has partnered with the Private Sector Health Alliance of Nigeria (PSHAN), to launch the Adopt-A-Health Facility Program (ADHFP).

ADHFP’s primary aim is delivery of at least one global standard Primary Healthcare Centre (PHC) in each of the 774 Local Government Areas (LGAs) in Nigeria.

So far, the initiative has resulted in over 180 PHCs adopted across the country.