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Tag: BoI

  • BoI approves N50b for cotton, textile garment sectors

    BoI approves N50b for cotton, textile garment sectors

    The Bank of Industry (BoI) has approved loans of over N50billion comprising debt takeover, term loan and working capital to 40 beneficiaries across the entire value chain in line with the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN’s) guidelines on the fund.

    A total of N13.37 billion released by CBN has been disbursed to the various beneficiaries as at September 30.

    Its Managing Director, Waheed Olagunju who spoke at a one-day cotton, textile and garment stakeholders forum organised by the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment and the bank in Abuja, stated that aside from funding, the bank and the ministry are working together to resolve issues such as power, smuggling, counterfeiting and patronage of locally made goods.

    He said: “As part of its efforts to promote the development of the textile and garment sector, the CBN recently put in place a N50billion special intervention facility to facilitate takeover of the existing debt as well as provide additional long term loan and working capital facility to existing companies in the Cotton Textile Garment (CTG) sectors.

    “I hope there will be more focus on preferring solutions to the challenges facing the CTG sector in fostering mutually beneficial relationships, networking and knowledge sharing amongst stakeholders on the current and future trends in the cotton value chain in Nigeria but around the world.”

  • BoI, UNDP seal $2m solar energy deal

    BoI, UNDP seal $2m solar energy deal

    The Bank of Industry (BoI) yesterday signed a $2million deal with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) for the implementation of solar electrification projects in some select off-grid rural communities in the country.

    The $2million deal is part of the UNDP/BoI Access to Renewable Energy Project aimed at implementing the second phase of the solar power electrification projects in some select communities.

    Presently six communities among the six geo-political zones where the bank has subsisting relationship for the development of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), are already benefitting from the pilot phase.

    The pilot project involved provision of long-term financing for the installation of micro-grid and stand-alone solar solutions in the benefitting states.

    BoI’s Acting Managing Director, WaheedOlagunju, said the signing of the Cost Sharing Agreement (CSA) with the UN agency, would facilitate the replication and scaling up of the solar energy projects in more communities across the country.

    He said: “The blend of BoI’s contribution in the sum of $1.4 million as debt financing for the projects, with UNDP’s grant contribution of $600,000 will provide the much needed stimulus to scale up the projects in view of the attendant reduction in the cost of deployment and enhancement of its overall viability.

    “BoI’s contribution and UNDP’s grant will be deployed to provide solar energy solution in states where both BoI and UNDP have existing collaboration.”

  • Reps to investigate BoI, BoA, FMBN, NERFUND, others

    •To probe banks, others over casualisation of jobs

    The House of Representatives is to investigate the activities of federally-owned development financial institutions (DFIs) over their failure to fulful their statutory mandates.

    An ad-hoc committee that will undertake the investigation is expected to also proffer solutions on ways of streamlining the institutions’ activities with a view of repositioning them for effective service delivery.

    The resolution of the House followed the adoption of a motion by Chukwuemeka Ujam (PDP, Enugu), who regretted that the primary aim of establishing DFIs like the Bank of Industry (BoI),  Bank of Agriculture (BoA), Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency (SMEDAN), National Economic Reconstruction Fund (NERFUND), and the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria (FMBN) among others has been defeated.

    According to him, none of the DFIs has been able to meet its mandate of providing long-term financing to the industrial and productive sector of the economy.

    He also said that the DFIs, set up to finance the establishment of large, medium and small scale industries,  as well as facilitate the expansion, diversification and modernisation of the existing concerns have failed to carry out their set objectives.

    He said: “It is of concern that despite the huge budgetary provisions being made for these DFIs over the years, their impact in stimulating economic renaissance is yet to be felt as these agencies have seemingly been unable to fulfill their statutory mandares, the resultant effect being the stultification of the nation’s economic growth.

    “I am however convinced that the current economic challenges being experienced in the country can be reversed within the shortest possible time if these DFIs are made to live up to their statutory obligations.”

    The ad-hoc committee has six weeks to report back to the House after the motion was unanimously passed.

    Similarly, the  House has mandated its Committee on Labour, Employment and Productivity to investigate the incidence of casualisation and outsourcing of jobs in both private and public sectors of the economy.

    This followed the adoption of a motion by Wale Raji (APC, Lagos), who noted that casualisation and outsourcing of jobs negates the provision of Section 7(1) of the Labour Act that no worker should be engaged on probation or temporary employment for more than three months.

    Raji said: “It is however disturbing that some employers, especially in the banking and sectors, in an attempt to cover up their illegal acts, outsourced jobs to firms to recruit workers for them.

    “We should be concern about the negative effects of casualisation on workers which lead to deprivation of employment benefits and lack of legal status  thus making them dispensable at the convenience of the employers.”

    The Committee was given six weeks to report back to the House for further legislative action.

    In a similar development, the House also has also mandated Committees on Commerce as well as Industry to liase with the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, and Trade and Investment to formulate a blueprint that would encourage manufacturers of cell phones, electronics and electrical appliances tonsite theoe factories in Nigeria.

    Following the adoption of a motion by Henry Archibong (PDP, Akwa Ibom), the lawmakers pointed out that the  technological, financial and economic gains Nigeria stands to benefit from the localization of the plants and factories of those manufacturers through job creation and reduction of capital flight are immense.

    The mover of the motion said the import duties paid for the importation of the finished items are not commensurate with the skills and manpower training that will be acquired by millions of Nigerians across the country if such plants and factories are sited in Nigeria.

    The joint Committee was given six weeks to complete its assignment.

     

  • BoI, NIRSAL sign agro-lending pact

    The Bank of Industry (BoI) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Nigeria Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agricultural Lending (NIRSAL) on risk-free agro-lending.

    The partnership will enable both institutions achieve more sustainable lending that would boost the agric sector,  BoI Managing Director, Waheed Olagunju, said.

    He said apart from expanding lending windows to players in the sector, the MoU was designed to enhance development in the  agricultural sector.

    He also spoke on the need to harness potentials in the agric sector in the interest of the economy.

    While canvassing for backward integration of huge budgets on food importation, Olagunju said internal food security can be achieved and sustained with promotion of massive local farming.

    “Under the MoU, the arrangement is such that the Bank of Industry lending will guarantee up to 75 per cent of the loans, we will also be doing some primary production that would support primary producers who also go into processing and value addition.

    “We will encourage more of that and  also support those who want to package their products as well. We are talking about moving the produce from the farm to the table which means, primary production, value addition and processing, packaging, distribution and marketing and retailing.

    “As we all know, the multiplier effect per unit of investment is the highest in the agricultural space compared with other sectors and that is the only way we can achieve inclusive growth”.

    “In the first half of this decade, Nigeria economy was ranked among the 10 fastest growing in the world. At an average of 7.7 per annum, but it was growth without jobs because it was non inclusive. That was growth driven by oil which is less labour intensive.

    “Most of the exploration activities take place on the high sea and a lot of foreign expertise is involved but in agriculture this is our own backyard. This is what we own. All the local governments have raw materials, agricultural and solid minerals to which value can be added”.

  • BoI pledges expansion of economic activities

    The Bank of Industry (BoI) has pledged to continue to work towards expanding economic activities of the country in order to reduce poverty among Nigerians.

    Its Divisional Head, Small and Medidium Enterprises (South), Mr. Abdul-Ganiyu Mohammed, who spoke during a quarterly Customers’ Networking Forum for the Southwest Region in Osogbo, Osun State capital, said the aim of the forum was to create a proactive path and direction for small business owners and entrepreneurs.

    He said BoI by its mandate has been positioned to firmly entrench viable economic activities in Nigeria so that the the macro and micro economies could be strenghtened.

    He said: “The Quarterly Customers’ Networking Forum remains a conscious drive on the part of our bank to grow and develop the real sector of the economy. The pattern and quality of interaction among participants would proffer reliable solutions to the array of challenges that are confronting investors and encouraged participants to take advantage of the forum to improve on their business strategies.”

    In his paper titled: Macroeconomic and Sectoral Review: Implications for Business,  a resource person for the programme, Mr. Promise George, said there was need for thorough review of Nigerian monetary and fiscal policy.

    He further explained that an unfavourable exchange rate would definitely provoke galloping inflation and by extension bring about high rate of unemployment, which drastically diminishes the Gross Domestic Product (GDP.)

    In another paper, Mr Joy Akinlolu, who spoke on: Thriving in the Face of the Present Micro-Economic Challenges, advised entrepreneurs to find out what their competitors are lacking and quickly make provision for it.

    He said the knowledge about the business strength of competitors could make it possible for an investor to increase the number of his customers as well as profit margin without stress.

  • BoI pledges to expand nation’s economic activities

    The Bank of Industry (BoI) has pledged to continue to work towards expanding economic activities of the country in order to reduce poverty among Nigerians.

    According to the Divisional Head, Small and Medium Enterprises (South), Mr. Abdul-Ganiyu Mohammed, during a quarterly Customers’ Networking Forum for the South West Region in Osogbo, Osun State capital, the aim of the forum was to create a proactive path and direction for small business owners and entrepreneurs.

    He disclosed that BoI by its mandate has been positioned to firmly entrench viable economic activities in Nigeria so that the  macro and micro economies could be strengthened .

    He said: “The quarterly Customers’ Networking Forum remains a conscious drive on the part of our bank to grow and develop the real sector of the economy. The pattern and quality of interaction among participants would proffer reliable solutions to the array of challenges that are confronting investors and encouraged participants to take advantage of the forum to improve on their business strategies.”

  • Gombe, BoI partner on solar power generation

    The Gombe State government yesterday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Bank of Industry (BOI) on the provision of solar energy to some communities in the state.

    The benefiting communities include Beta in Yamaltu-Deba local government area and Lulawa Village I and II in Dukku council.

    The deal, which will be jointly funded to the tune of 50 per cent by both parties costs N44,135,684 million.

    Governor Ibrahim Hassan Dankwambo said he has approved the release of its counterpart fund, N22, 067,842.00 million, to facilitate the project’s take off.

    He appreciated the BOI for partnering the state in activities aimed at improving the socio-economic life of its citizenry.

    Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the BOI Mr. Waheed Olagunju noted that the bank piloted the project in six communities nationwide.

  • Fitch affirms BoI’s sovereign rating

    Fitch Ratings has affirmed the national rating of the Bank of Industry (BoI) as well as seven other banks.

    According to Fitch, the rating actions followed its downgrade of Nigeria’s Long-Term Local Currency Issuer Default Rating (IDR) to ‘B+’ from ‘BB-’, as a result of which it is now equalised with the Long-Term Foreign Currency IDR.

    A statement from Fitch explained that the new rating was driven by change in Fitch’s sovereign rating criteria. “Following the sovereign criteria change and rating action, Fitch has recalibrated the national rating scale for Nigeria. As a result the national ratings for these banks are affirmed as there is no change in their relative creditworthiness.

    “The national ratings of BOI are driven by potential sovereign support reflecting its 99.9 per cent state ownership, its policy role and the bank’s strategic importance to Nigeria’s economic and industrial development”, the statement read.

    BoI however, maintained that it remains very virile and better repositioned to push the frontier of the nation’s industrial sector through aggressive business financing.

  • Heritage Bank, BoI boost youth entrepreneurship

    Heritage Bank, BoI boost youth entrepreneurship

    Heritage Bank Plc and the Bank of Industry (BoI) are collaborating to promote entrepreneurship and engender economic recovery.

    Speaking at the opening of Live Well Bia Foods Outlet in Surulere, Lagos, the Managing Director of Heritage Bank Plc, Ifie  Sekibo said both institution’s support for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) supported programmes would take the country through the looming recession.

    Represented by the consultant for the bank on SMEs, Mrs. Raliat Oyetunde, who is also the Chief Executive of Prinsult Consulting, the Heritage Bank MD explained: “It is in time of recession that new millionaires emerge. This is an opportunity for the young ones between the ages of 18 and 35 should key into the various financing channels provided by Heritage Bank and BoI.”

    According to him, the documentation and financing of this project was concluded with due diligence within six weeks which is a big feat.

    He said: “We need more young entrepreneurs like the Managing Director, Bia Live Well Outlet, Fadesola Adedayo, to take Nigeria to the next level because the outlet will be opened in 47 other locations across the country before the year ends.”

    He said that passion, mentorship and finance were critical to budding entrepreneurs. In his own contribution, the Acting Managing Director, BoI, Waheed Olagunju, affirmed that the support of BoI and Heritage Bank to further empower young entrepreneurs will lead to the recovery of the Nigerian economy.

  • Infrastructure key to GDP growth, says BoI

    Infrastructure key to GDP growth, says BoI

    The Bank of Industry (BoI) has said an improvement in infrastructure across the country is capable of leading to double digit growth in the country’s gross domestic product (GDP).

    Its acting Managing Director, Mr. Waheed Olagunju, said if the country could record a GDP per capita income of $233.5  with less than 4,000 megawatts (Mw) of electricity, when power supply is improved to about 20,000 Mw, the GDP would hit double digit GDP.

    “It is possible and doable for our GDP to grow at double digits, because in the first half of this decade, Nigeria was among the 10 fastest growing economies in the world with a GDP growing at between five and seven per cent per annum, when the economy was driven by less than 4,000Mw of electricity,” he said.

    Speaking in Lagos during members’ evening with the Institute of Directors (IoD) Nigeria, he said in the 70s, indices clearly showed that Nigeria was ahead of China, saying GDP per capita then stood at $233.5 while China’s was $111.82. He said China is currently ranked second in the world.

    “We were ranked 88th in the world while China was 114th and by 2014, over a period of 40 years, China had overtaken Nigeria. Nigeria is blessed with so many natural resources, but have continued to depend on only one product over the years,” he said.

    He added that the country has everything required to become a great, stating that in the last 56 years, the nation has underperformed while other countries with less resources have done much better because they placed priority on industrialising their economies.

    According to him, Nigeria  has found itself where it was some years ago in 1986 when the Structural Adjustment Programme (SAP) was launched. According to him, Nigeria has been talking about diversification adding that the shocks experienced back in the years is what the nation is currently experiencing.

    “It shows that as a country we have learnt nothing over 30 years and this is why we are suffering from, but I believe we are now poised to make a change,” he said.

    He said if Nigeria can increase its electricity supply to about 20,000Mw per annum, the nation’s GDP will grow at double digits.

    He said the country is still faced with infrastructural challenges and cannot industrialise without an adequate power supply and infrastructural facilities. Olagunju pointed out that businesses spend up to 40 per cent of their operating expenses on alternative power supply to run their businesses.

    He said the mission of the Development Finance Institution (DFI) is to transform the nation’s industrial sector by providing suitable financial services to finance Nigeria’s industrialisation, saying the country should leverage areas where it has comparative advantages to drive its industrialisation efforts.

    He added that Nigeria has no business importing food to feed itself, pointing out that if Nigeria adds value to its natural resources, it should be able to feed Africa and even beyond.

    “We currently import food and one of the parameters for measuring the growth of a country is the extent to which the country is self reliant, but where we are externally dependent to feed ourselves, this means we are very vulnerable,” he said.

    Also speaking at the event, the president and Chairman,  Governing Council, Mr. Samuel Akeju, said the DFI represents the real acting agents of industrialising Nigeria, saying that BoI has continued to reflect the change needed to revolutionise the industrial sector of the economy.

    He said industrialisation is vital to achieve economic growth, adding that the institute identifies with the present administration’s renewed efforts to develop the non-oil sector of the economy through its different initiatives.