The Nation Newspaper

Category: Industry

  • Institute seeks more allocation to agric

    The International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) has advocated more budgetary allocation to the agricultural sector.

    Its Communication Specialist and Head of Policy Communication Unit, Elizabeth Douglas, made the call in Kaduna on Monday at the opening of a two-day Policy Communication Training Course for reporters.

    Douglas recalled that Nigeria was one of the signatories to Maputo Declaration that 10 per cent of total yearly budget be allocated to agriculture.

    She expressed regret that 10 years later, the country was still lagging behind.

    She, however, identified last year as the best year with highest allocation of 1.8 per cent, lamenting that in previous years the allocation ranged between 0.3 and 0.8 per cent.

  • ‘Sustain ban on 41 items to promote local production’

    An economist, Rasheed Yusuf, has urged the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to sustain its ban on the import of 41 items from accessing foreign exchange (forex) at the official window to promote their local production and generate more jobs.

    Yusuf, who is also Chief Executive Officer, Trust Yield Securities, gave the advice during a briefing  in Lagos.

    He said the apex bank should extend its intervention into more agricultural produce, such as wheat, to attain food sufficiency in future.

    “The continuous intervention will enable the agric sector contribute more to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and create job opportunities for the youths,” Yusuf said.

    The CBN, on June 23, 2015,  banned forex for the import of 41 items to conserve reserves and encourage local production of the items.

    The items include rice, cement, meat, vegetables and processed vegetable products, poultry chicken, eggs, turkey and tinned fish in sauce (Geisha)/sardines.

    Others include clothes, plastic and rubber products, polypropylene granules, cellophane wrappers, textiles, soap and cosmetics, tomatoes/tomato pastes, and toothpick.

    Yusuf advised the CBN to ensure that the issue of high-lending rate was addressed to spur growth.

    He said many investors could not expand their businesses because of the high-lending rate by commercial banks.

    He added that the Investors and Exporters (IE) foreign exchange window should be maintained because the decision had reduced the pressure on the currency.

  • FAO unveils five-year strategic plan for Nigeria

    The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) has given a breakdown of its five-year strategic Programming Framework for Nigeria, spanning between 2018 and 2022.

    Its Country Representative in Nigeria Suffyan Koroma said in a press statement in Abuja that the framework was to assist Federal Government develop its agriculture sector.

    He listed some of the priority areas to include strengthening national food and nutrition security through enhanced nutrition sensitive and climate-smart food systems; supporting appropriate and  effective agricultural policy and regulatory frameworks.

    Others are supporting Nigeria’s economic diversification agenda and the promotion of decent employment for youth and women in the agriculture value chains.

    It included improving the efficient and sustainable management of natural resources and ecosystems and enhancing disaster risk reduction, resilience building and emergency management towards strengthening the humanitarian-development nexus.

    Koroma said the framework would ensure efficient management of the country’s natural resources.

    He spelt out a set of medium-term support objectives and results as approved by the FAO’s Regional Office for Africa (RAF).

    According to him, the areas of action were defined in consultation with government ministries, agencies and departments (MDAs), as well as related stakeholders from academia, Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) and private sector.

    Koroma said FAO also considered the humanitarian needs of Nigeria, as contained in various development strategies the government had put in place.

    He said they included the Agriculture Promotion Plan (APP) and President Muhammadu Buhari’s Plan for humanitarian relief and socio-economic stabilisation of the Northeast.

    The FAO chief said during the  period, FAO would bring together innovative, international best practices and global standards with national and international expertise.

    He said the document was built on the achievements of the previous programming cycle from 2013 to 2017, taking into account the emerging challenges of climate change, armed conflict and rising food prices.

     

     

  • Fed Govt reassures operators in tourism, transport sectors

    The Federal Government has reassured operators in the tourism and transport sectors of an enabling environment to further boost the sector.

    The Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Boss Mustapha, who spoke at the Tourism Transportation Summit and Expo in Abuja, themed “Tourism and transportation interdependence for inclusive growth and sustainable development’, said the theme of the event was apt and that the synergy between the two sectors was desired more now than ever.

    Represented by the Minister of Women Affairs and Social Development, Hajiya Aisha Abubakar, Mustapha said: “From available records globally, there are so much that countries can benefit from the sectors, particularly as a source of foreign exchange, employment, income generation and infrastructure development.

    “This explains why Nigeria should key into tourism and transportation in its economic and social agenda. To achieve success, both government and private sector must partner in the sectors.

    “In this expo, I urge participants to dialogue and showcase products and services in the industries with the view to reposition the sector for optimal performance,” he said.

    The SGF, however, said at the seminar organised by the Institute of Tourism Professional (ITP), in collaboration with stakeholders in the tourism and transport industry. said government will continue to give policy direction and guidelines and provide an enabling environment for industries to thrive.

    “Also, tourism institutions should effectively deliver the advantages in the industry by creating awareness and understanding of the benefits to the country and enhancing institutional capacity, tourism products, development, facilitation, promotion and marketing with a view to making Nigeria a preferred destination among Nigerians,” he added.

    He also said upgrade of infrastructure in the rail, aviation, water and others were efforts of the government to reposition the transport and tourism sector for inclusive economic development.

    Mustapha stressed that Nigeria desired peace, reconstructive development and security for tourism to thrive.

    According to him, the administration resolved to secure its citizens and visitors in their legitimate activities.

    He stressed that the government would not be distracted by those  involved in falsehood and negative commitments.

    “However, in the face of mounting challenges, with absolute cooperation and if citizens play their civil duties and responsibilities, we will overcome these challenges and move the country forward.

    “The government, on its part, is doing its best to adequately equip and motivate our security outfits to enable them confront insecurity challenges.

    “So, by God’s grace, the country will achieve peace, security and credibility,’’ Mustapha said.

    In his goodwill message, the Minister of Transportation, Mr. Rotimi Amaechi, said transportation and tourism were inseparable in the development of the two sectors.

    Amaechi, represented by the ministry’s Director of Road Transport and Mass Transit Administration, Mrs. Anthonia Ekpa, said the ministry was committed to linking transport with other sectors, including tourism, to boost the economy.

  • ‘Technologies ’ll enhance Nigeria’s relevance, competitiveness’

    For Nigeria to be relevant and take advantage of opportunities offered by the emerging fourth industrial revolution, there is the urgent for the country to step up the use of new technologies to ease people’s lives and promote knowledge, development, welfare and trade.

    Nigerian-American Chamber of Commerce (NACC) President Oluwatoyin Akomolafe said this at a business luncheon sponsored by MainOne and Itex Solutions in Lagos, during the week.

    Speaking on the theme: “The Fourth Industrial Revolution and the Place of Nigeria: What’s next?”, Akomolafe said since the fourth industrial revolution builds on digital revolution, there is need for the country to create her own technology to address her peculiar needs instead of depending on foreign technologies.

    “We need to re-strategise and begin to engage the youths with an overhaul of our educational system to accommodate such. Nigeria must narrow the gap between the technological potential and the policy agenda required to realise this,” he said.

    The NACC president said in doing this, emphasis must be placed on exploring innovative approaches that are tried and tested to harness the benefits technological advancement provides.

    He explained that the fourth industrial revolution, also known as Globalisation 4.0, is the current and developing environment where disruptive technologies and trends such as blockchain, artificial intelligence and augmented realty, among others, would dictate the pace of development among nations.

    Akomolafe affirmed the chamber’s commitment to promoting the development of trade, commerce, investment and industrial technological relationships between the public and private sectors of Nigeria and the United States.

    The Country General Manager, IBM Nigeria, Mr. Ernest Oladipo Faulkner, noted that the fourth industrial revolution, (4IR)-Industry 4.0), would improve quality of life, new products and services, smarter and more efficient workplaces as well as natural disasters’ preparedness.

    According to him, emerging technologies would shape every industry’s response to the most pressing challenges, including artificial intelligence, cloud, mobile, blockchain, as well as the Internet of things

    He said business leaders and the government needed to understand the impact the emerging industrial revolution so as to decide on how best to serve the interests of all of their stakeholders while steering a rapidly changing technological and political landscape to ensuring the nation’s security.

    Faulkner, therefore, stressed the urgent need for all hands to be on deck so as not to be left behind in the 4IR.

    While urging the private sector, including the original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and educational institutions to wake up to the challenges of the fourth industrial revolution, he urged the government to wake up to its responsibilities of providing the right infrastructure including electricity and internet penetration among others.

     

  • Ex-Ethiopian PM to investors: emulate Dangote’s drive

    Former Ethiopian Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn has described Dangote Group’s investment in Africa’s oil refining sector as exceptional and enormous. He urged other private sector investors to take a cue from the group’s investment drive.

    Desalegn, who spoke during the tour of Dangote Jetty, Fertiliser and Refinery Plant, during the week, said Dangote Group President, Aliko Dangote, has enormous influence in the sector and his involvement in the general economic wellbeing of the whole of Africa is unquantifiable.

    He, therefore, encouraged other investors to consider the strategic nature of investments made by the conglomerate and emulate them in order to enhance the value of the continent’s economy. “I think this is a lesson for other African investors to take risk and bring about big change. A mega project of this magnitude actually needs dedication and commitment, as well as sacrifice,” he said.

    Desalegn insisted that Africa needs massive investment such as Dangote Refinery for economic development. According to him, investors in the continent must recognise that investment in essential sector would remain critical to sustainable economic growth. “I think this project is not only for Nigeria, but for the entire African countries,” he said.

    The Group Executive Director, Strategy, Portfolio Development & Capital Projects, Devakumar Edwin, said the project would provide 135,000 retail outlets, 26,716 filling stations and 129 depots in Nigeria, while the 2,600 trucks for transport will create additional jobs.

    He said another invaluable area of interest the project will enhance is in the area of skill development and capacity building for Nigerian. Already, Edwin said training of second batch of Nigerian engineers has started in Delhi, India.

    Edwin said: “We are sending all engineers abroad in batches. They will engage in classroom training for one month and on the job training of one year. They will be working with real time experts in the industry every day.”

    He said the company’s target was for a significant portion of Nigeria’s crude oil production to be refined domestically, rather than imported, thereby creating jobs within Nigeria, and bringing a halt to the current importation of refined petroleum products.

    Edwin said the refinery will provide over 100,000 indirect employments through retail outlets. He said the refinery was designed to meet Euro V grade, which is the highest standard in the world, hence products can be exported to any part of the world.

    “It will be well diversified and able to process Nigerian crude, African crude and crude from other parts of the world. In terms of evacuation routes, two crude oil single point mooring (SPM) buoys and three multi-product SPMs will be located within the Atlantic Ocean to transfer crude oil to a calling tanker,” he said.

    Edwin added that the company was also constructing the largest fertiliser plant in West Africa with the capacity to produce three million tonnes of urea per year.

     

  • Lagos monarch lauds Terra Cubes

    The traditional ruler of Lagos, Oba Rilwan Akiolu, has given his royal blessings and commendations to Terra Seasoning Cube, a brand from the stable of TGI Distri Limited, which was unveiled to the media a few days ago in Lagos.

    Oba Akiolu also said reports from his household revealed that Terra Cubes are of first-rate quality and possess all it takes to dominate the market soon.

    “I am sure that you will catch the whole market in a short period of time. Since you brought some of the products to me, many people in my household have tried it and informed me that the cubes are of excellent quality.

    “I am very happy for TGI Group, because anything they produce is always of top quality and keeps Nigerian consumers in mind,” the Oba said.

    The monarch gave his blessings when a delegation from TGI Group visited him at his palace as part of the activities to launch the seasoning brand into the market.

    The delegation was led to the palace of the respected monarch by Mr. Rahul Savara, the Group Managing Director of TGI Group, the parent company of TGI Distri Limited, West African Cubes (WACUB) Limited, WACOT Limited, Cormart (Nigeria) Ltd, Chi Farms Ltd, among others.

    Other members of the delegation were Managing Director, TGI Distri & WACUB, Mr. Sunil Sawhney; Executive Director – Commercial, Dr. Onyekachi Onubogu; Marketing Manager, Mr. Govind Agarwal; Sales Manager, Mr. Anayo Nweje, all of TGI Distri Limited.

    While introducing the delegation to the Oba, Mr. Sawhney said: “We are here to seek your blessings for our new product, Terra Seasoning Cubes, a product designed with the Nigerian consumer in mind and undoubtedly one of the best in the market”.

    He further informed the monarch that Terra Seasoning Cubes are made up of very wholesome ingredients locally sourced and especially designed to meet the palate requirements of Nigerians in terms of aroma and flavour.

    Dr. Onubogu said: “We want to launch our new product across Nigeria and we thought it right to seek your blessings before we go in with all the fanfare.”

    “Terra Seasoning Cubes are being rolled out nationwide in two variants of Beef and Chicken flavours. Initially, we are introducing two SKUs of 50-cubes pack and 25-cubes pack.

    As an introductory offer, we are giving five free cubes with the 50-cube pack and two free cubes in the 25-cube pack.”

    Terra Seasoning Cube is produced by West African Cubes (WACUB) Limited, a subsidiary of TGI Group at its ultra-modern plant in Sagamu, Ogun State.

    TGI Distri Limited is the sales, distribution and marketing arm of TGI Group Companies’ Consumer Products and is the marketer of Terra Seasoning Cubes, Big Bull Parboiled Rice, Renew Starch, Shine All Dishwashing Liquid, Shine All Scouring Powder and many other notable Brands.

    TGI Distri also serves as the Innovation and New Product Development Centre for the TGI Group.

  • DFID to Nigeria: invest more in human capital

    The United Kingdom (UK) Department for International Development (DFID), has advised the country to invest in human capital, if it must attain greatness.

    DFID Nigeria Head, Mrs. Debbie Palmer said this at the induction ceremony for new and returning governors organised by the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) in Abuja.

    Palmer said Nigeria’s population had always been a huge asset and path to its greatness, but for her to attain its greatness and to take its place in the comity of nations by 2050, “she will need to turn things around”.

    “We will need to invest in people, who will drive the economy of the country in the future. We need to nourish, educate and give the young population jobs, including the children that will be born in next few days, weeks and months.”

    Palmer said these determine a country’s future hence, there is a lot to do and it required urgent works.

    She also said Nigeria’s economic growth could be achieved by harnessing the potential of her population and that required hard infrastructure like roads and power.

    “It also requires a great deal of soft infrastructure, what we may call human capital,’’ she added.

    Palmer recalled that in the current human capital index, Nigeria was on number 152 out of 157 countries, and also had the highest number of out of school children in the world.

    “In order for the country to move to greatness, we need to nourish educated young people, who can take up work to create jobs for themselves, the families, societies and the nation.

    “Presently, Nigeria spends less on health proportionally than South Sudan, less than any country in the world,’’ she noted.

     

    Palmer said that the UK Government was determined to work with Nigeria to reduce poverty and promote prosperity.

    “Nigeria is our second investment globally. We gave nearly half a billion pounds to this country last year. And we will continue to work with you in partnership,’’ she said.

    She advised the governors-elect to deliver on their campaign promises now that elections were over.

  • Verraki launches business solutions firm in Nigeria

    Verraki Partners, a new business and technology solutions firm, which promises to partner enterprises and governments to accelerate the development and transformation of Nigeria and Africa, has been unveiled

    The new entity is focused on implementing technology and business solutions designed inherently for Africa and specifically fit for purpose, while also resetting business ventures to unlock new sources of growth across the continent.

    Led by foremost corporate professionals and former Accenture leadership in Nigeria, Verraki will apply its global expertise and local insights to partner enterprises and governments to accelerate the development and transformation of Africa by providing business solutions uniquely tailored for Africa.

    Unveiling its new corporate identity during an interactive session in Lagos, during the week, the Managing Partner, Niyi Yusuf, explained that Verraki would be working with enterprises and governments to ignite opportunities, unleash their potential, pivot and turnaround their performance to create a better future.

    Yusuf, who until now was the Country Managing Director for Accenture in Nigeria, said: “Professional services firms in Africa are currently at an inflexion point. Digital technologies, revolutionary ideas and new business models are creating disruptions and new factors such as agility, flexibility, risk tolerance, cost-leadership, value for money and entrepreneurship are key requirements for success.

    “Verraki’s birth at an auspicious time like this is driven by our understanding of clients’ needs and our desire to harvest the opportunities the disruption brings and participate fully, via a rebalance and reconfiguration to address the specific needs of the market.”

     

  • Fresh momentum for ease of doing business

    The Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC) is leaving nothing to chance in its resolve to reform the business environment, attract investment and diversify the economy. The Council has turned attention to the maritime industry, where it hopes to eliminate the delays and restrictions to doing business in Nigeria by clearing the gridlock at Apapa, Lagos. If the intervention succeeds, it will brighten Nigeria’s chances of being among the top 100 on the World Bank Ease of Doing Business Index by next year and top 50 by 2025, Assistant Editor CHIKODI OKEREOCHA reports.

    The Secretary, Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC), Dr. Jumoke Oduwole, is on the verge of making history. Oduwole, who is also Senior Special Assistant to the President on Industry, Trade and Investment, Office of the Vice President, has shifted the focus of the Council’s business environment reform to the maritime sector where she stands the chance of writing her name in gold if she succeeds in solving the intractable gridlock in Apapa, Lagos.

    For long, port users, local and foreign investors and residents of Apapa area of Lagos, Nigeria’s commercial nerve centre, have been in the throes of a seemingly intractable traffic gridlock. The embarrassing gridlock caused by trucks entering and leaving the ports complex in Apapa, has been hurting port operations and other businesses, and blighting the business environment reform efforts of both the Federal and Lagos State Governments.

    It is easy to see why this is so. The Nigerian economy relies heavily on trade, with over 70 per cent of the country’s external trade routed through the Apapa habour. But the deplorable state of access roads to the habour, which is home to the two biggest seaports in the country, has grown into a national nightmare, with a paralysing effect on socio-economic life within Apapa, including the evacuation of cargoes from the Lagos and Tin Can Island ports.

    For Nigeria, which has never hidden her intension to become a maritime power house for the West and Central African regions, this was unacceptable. However, while the situation has put the Federal and Lagos State Governments under intense pressure, as stakeholders, including port users, investors and residents clamour for a lasting solution, it seems to have defied measures so far put in place to tackle the nightmare.

    It was against this backdrop that PEBEC’s decision to direct its on-going business environment reform efforts to the maritime sector, particularly the traffic gridlock appears to have rekindled hopes of a possible solution. For a start, the Council under Oduwole’s charge, met with public and private sector players in the maritime industry last week.

    The meeting was with a view to solving the perennial Apapa gridlock, which, arguably, is the darkest spot in the administration’s economic reform agenda. According to Oduwole, the Council recently hosted multiple stakeholders’ engagement events in Lagos and Kano states to ease doing business in Nigeria.

    “A technical session on Apapa gridlock and call-up system reforms were also organised in Lagos. The session served as a platform for discussions to deliver a gridlock-free Apapa, and enhance the ease of entry and exit into the ports in line with the Trading Across Borders focus area of the Council.

    “Following the last intervention by His Excellency the Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo (SAN) in November 2017, processes were agreed to address the persisting issue, but implementation remains a challenge.

    “Recording an impressive turnout with strong private and public sector representation, this session signalled a recommitment to ensuring the delivery of a workable resolution, as stakeholders across board engaged and agreed all agencies in the joint task force must be called to order and made to work together,” Oduwole said.

    Minister for Industry, Trade and Investment and PEBEC Vice Chairman, Dr. Okechukwu Enelamah, who spoke at the Lagos event, applauded the private sector for its cooperation and support towards driving the Ease of Doing Business reforms in the country. “The vision of this administration is to ensure a more conducive environment where small and big businesses are able to function effectively and with ease,” he said.

    Though not new to business environment reforms, having been the arrowhead of public sector-led reforms to attract investments and diversify the economy, Oduwole was largely instrumental to the recent inauguration of the Ease of Doing Business (EoDB) Mobile App, known as REPORTGOV.NG App, an official public service feedback and complaints platform to support business climate reforms.

    This revolutionary, web-based portal allows the PEBEC office resolve issues and complaints encountered by private sector operators with government ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) within 72 hours of lodging such issues and complaints. This was to ensure a more business-friendly environment.

    The app was launched at the Regulatory Conversations (RC3.0) event with the theme: “Improving Transparency and Ease of Doing Business in Nigeria”. It was hosted by The Convention on Business Integrity/The Integrity Organisation in collaboration with ActionAid, Nigerian Economic Summit Group, Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry and BusinessDay Newspapers.

    Oduwole, who described the app as revolutionary, pointed out that Nigeria has never walked down this road before. “Collaboration has been the cornerstone of this initiative,” she said, adding that PEBEC engaged extensively with various stakeholders before coming out with the web-based portal.

    According to her, the initiative was aimed at ensuring that public and civil servants adhere to Service Level Agreements (SLAs) with regards to making the business environment conducive. She also said the PEBEC spent a lot of time building capacity to ensure that feedbacks and complaints from the private sector were resolved within the 72 hours approved by the president.

    Enelamah said the launch of the app was in line with the Federal Government’s commitment to being a business enabler and facilitator. “It’s about energising businesses and making the business environment conducive,” he said, adding that the app is already available on Google Play Store for download.

    The Minister also said it will soon be available on the iOS store to enable users give feedback or complaints that will drive continuous improvement in service delivery and public protection efforts.

    The Nation learnt that the app’s unveiling  and now the the maritime sector intervention  to resolve the lingering traffic gridlock in Apapa, were all aimed at consolidating on the reforms and gains so far made by the PEBEC.

    It will be recalled that further to its inauguration, the PEBEC’s Enabling Business Environment Secretariat (EBES) was set up in 2016 with the mandate to implement the PEBEC’s reform agenda, and in the process, move Nigeria several steps higher in the World Bank Ease of Doing Business Index.

    It was on the strength of the reforms by the PEBEC and the various Executive Orders that helped Nigeria to make some gains in its business environment reforms. For instance, the PEBEC, largely supported by Executive Order 001 (EO1) signed in 2017 to promote transparency and efficiency in the business environment, undertook to drive EO1’s six directives, which aimed to address specific limitations identified in the civil and public service systems.

    Some of them include starting a business, obtaining construction permits, obtaining credit, cost of export of goods, and obtaining visas/or work permits in Nigeria. But, Dr. Oduwole said a high level of success across several areas has so far been recorded, and MDAs have made significant improvements.

    “Many have taken up the challenge to deliver more transparent and efficient services to their customers in alignment with the EO1, with a number of notable milestones achieved,” she said, pointing out, for instance, that there has been an increase in the number of MDAs that have functional websites containing details about their services or statutory functions.

    The Nation also learnt that there has been greater awareness across all civil servant cadres in the MDAs on the need to be customer-centric in their service delivery. To date, over 60 per cent of MDAs are said to have implemented the Order, even as there is now better collaboration among MDAs as mandated by the EO1 “One Government” directive.