The Nation Newspaper

Tag: European Union (EU)

  • Nigeria’s non-oil export trade under-reported, says Expert

    Mr Shehu Abdulkadir, the Managing Director, Casmine Assayer, an export supervisory firm in Lagos, said Nigeria non-oil export trade was under-reported.

    Abdulkadir told journalists in Lagos that the informal and unreported export trading activities were 50 per cent more than what were reported.

    He said that 90 per cent of Nigerian products rejected abroad were being shipped through other African countries like Ghana and Cameroon where they were being repackaged and shipped abroad.

    He said lack of trust on Nigerian export market led to the rejection of its products abroad, adding that many other nations capitalised on this to repackage the rejected   products and shipped them abroad.

    “The volume of Nigerian export trade across other countries is a lot more than what is being reported.

    “More than 90 percent of agricultural produce, like cassava chips, sesame seeds, and even industrial products like cables, window panes are being exported in mass volumes constantly.

    “The major challenge since Nigerians products were rejected sometimes ago is that some other nations have capitalised on it. “They take items from us, repackage them and label them as their own.

    “This has somehow eroded the trust of the global market, except a few of some international buyers, who are already aware of the quality of our produce,” Abdulkadir said.

    He said that the company had been mandated to effect the pre-shipment inspection for the South-West zone.

    “We are making efforts, in collaboration with the Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC), to educate exporters on the pre-shipment requirements and tricks of the trade to reduce rejection,’’ Abdulkadir said.

    He also encouraged small and medium enterprises to put in more efforts to improve the quality of their packaging, saying that this was a necessary requirement for the success of exportable products.

    NAN reports that Nigeria’s total trade with the European Union (EU), which stood at €39 billion in 2014, accounting for 31 percent of the Nigeria’s total trade, dropped to €29 billion in 2015.

    Many experts said that the volume of non-oil export had reduced in the last few years, while some exporting activities were being done informally.

  • EU goes tough on African migrants

    EU goes tough on African migrants

    Leaders of the European Union (EU) are getting tough on African migrants following the success in halting a mass influx of refugees by closing Greek borders and cutting a controversial deal with Turkey.

    According to Defence Web, A Brussels summit will endorse pilot projects to pressure African governments via aid budgets to slow an exodus of people north across the Sahara and Mediterranean. It also wants swift results from an EU campaign to deport large numbers who reach Italy.

    “By the end of the year, we need to see results,” one senior EU diplomat said on Wednesday.

    Arrivals in Italy so far this year are nearly six percent higher than the same period of 2015. Italy received 154,000 migrants last year and this year’s figure will be similar or slightly higher.

    Italy is sheltering 165,000 asylum seekers, almost three times as many as in 2014. The build-up has accelerated since Italy’s northern neighbours clamped down on border controls.

    Prime Minister Matteo Renzi has told EU allies Rome can cope for now but is worried about the future.

    EU officials want to put in place tougher measures to identify illegal migrants and fly them back to Africa before next year’s migration season when thousands are expected to take to precarious boats from Libya.

    “We need to clean this up and have migration compacts with African countries in place before next spring,” a senior EU official said.

    That will depend on persuading African states – initially a group of five – to take back their own citizens. The EU is already bringing African officials to Italy to identify citizens who may try to conceal their identity to avoid being sent home.

    At the summit, European Union leaders will agree to use money and trade to force African countries to curb emigration, in a shift towards a more hard-nosed joint foreign policy.

    As a result, African leaders may be persuaded to agree with the new policy by the fact that the EU is the continent’s biggest aid donor.

  • CCT shifts hearing in cases involving Saraki, Orubebe, others

    CCT shifts hearing in cases involving Saraki, Orubebe, others

    The Code of Conduct Tribunal has postponed the trial of Senate President, Bukola Saraki earlier scheduled to resumed on Wednesday, till after its annual vacation in September this years.

    Also to be affected are cases involving former Minister for Niger Delta Affairs, Godsday Orubebe, former Deputy Controller General, Rasheed Taiwo and all other cases earlier scheduled for July and August.

    Saraki, Orube and Taiwo are being triaed for alleged false declaration of assets. The tribunal had scheduled judgment for July 19 in the Orubebe case and ruling in Taiwo’s trial for July 28.

    CCT’s spokesman, Ibrahim Al-hassan said, in a statement, that although members of the tribunal were not immediately proceeding on vacation, the postponement of the tribunal’s sittings was informed by an on-going training involving its members and other stakeholders both from within and outside the country.

    He said: “The Chairman, Code of Conduct Tribunal, Hon Danladi Yakubu Umar on Tuesday adjourned all sittings scheduled for this week and those to come within July and August till after the resumption from recess to be embarked by the tribunal’s Judges soon.

    “The decision was taken due to the ongoing Roundtable Discussion involving the CCT and other critical stakeholders within and outside the country, to develop the Code of Ethics and Practice Directions for the Code of Conduct Tribunal to ensure fair and speedy trials, sponsored by European Union (EU) and implemented by United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, (UNODC) .

    “He however, assured litigants currently with cases before the court, would have their new dates shortly after the vacation in September, 2016, which would be communicated to them, appropriately.

    “The tribunal regrets the pains caused by the sudden change.”

  •  “Brexit” will affect Diaspora remittances to Nigeria- Don

     “Brexit” will affect Diaspora remittances to Nigeria- Don

    Britain’s exit from the European Union (EU) will cause a contraction of the Diaspora remittances from Britain, a don, Prof. Isaac Albert, said on Monday.

    Albert, the Director, Institute for Peace and Strategic Studies, University of Ibadan, made the assertion while speaking with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos on the impact of Brexit.

    Brexit is the exit of Britain from the EU on June 23 through a referendum.

    He noted that Britain hosted many Nigerians and a contraction of its economy would discourage Nigerians from travelling there.

    “We have a very large Diaspora population in the U.K; with Brexit, I see the British economy contracting.

    “As the British economy becomes affected negatively by their exit from the EU, fewer Nigerians will be willing to travel to Britain,” Albert said.

    The don expressed optimism that Britain would get over the present challenges sooner than later, but noted that it might exploit countries with close ties to it on its way to recovery.

    On the political dimension to the Brexit, Albert said that Britain opted out from the EU because it felt it did not have much to gain from it.

    He, however, said that it was contradictory for Britain to respect the rights and wishes of its citizens in pulling out from the EU, since it stood in the way of other groups in Nigeria in their quest for self-determination.

    While noting that as a scholar, he had never been an advocate for secession, Albert said that it was a universally accepted principle that if a group of people wanted to be on their own, they should be allowed to do so.

    He urged the leadership of Britain to be more altruistic and sincere in superintending over the wishes of people of other nationalities in their quest for self-determination.

    NAN recalls that the British people had voted to pull out of the EU, a decision that prompted the Prime Minister, David Cameron’s decision to resign.

    Brexit had also affected global stocks negatively as seen by a contraction in most developed and emerging economies, especially in Asia.

    At the parallel market segment of the market, traders were confused as to the price they could place on the British Pound Sterling as uncertainties stared them in the face at the outcome of the referendum.