The Nation Newspaper

Tag: expert

  • Expert calls for database on job creation in Lagos

    Ex-President, Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN), Debo Famuyibo has stressed the need for database on job creation as well as data on the jobless in Lagos State.

    Speaking yesterday during a public hearing on a bill to create Employment Trust Fund by the Lagos State government, he said the data base should cover both the formal and informal sector of the state’s economy.

    Famuyibo observed in section eight of the proposed law that there should be accurate database for the Fund, saying that would make it sustainable.

    He spoke at a stakeholders forum on the proposed law tagged: ‘Employment Trust Fund Bill, 2015’ at Lateef Jakande Auditorium, Alausa Ikeja.

    He said that section nine which is meant for the sources of fund should be explicit, saying: “It is important to be clear on percentage from companies, employees and that dedicated percentage should be specified from payees.”

    He explained that some other sources that should be tapped to get fund included unclaimed dividends which according to him, “is an honey pot sitting untouched.”

    Speaking on the occasion, the Executive Secretary of CIBN, Anthony Arabameh said there should be adequate database on employment to achieve the desired result.

  • Experts solicit regular training for security officers

    Experts solicit regular training for security officers

    Security experts in Lagos on Monday urged security agencies to do regular psychological evaluation and training for security officers for enhanced efficiency.

    The experts spoke with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in separate interviews in their reaction to cases of accidental discharge by some security personnel in the country.

    Mr. Olaitan Adams, a security consultant, said that such training should be regular and should dwell on how to handle arms.

    “Aside the training, the agencies should also subject the officials handling guns to periodic psychological evaluation to monitor and stabilise their state of mind,’’ he said.

    Also, Mr. Charles Sullivan, Head, Media Operations at Bells Security, told NAN that most cases of accidental discharge on the part of the security officials could be traced to frustration and poverty.

    “Although security personnel have no excuse for accidentally shooting, it is important that government and employers in security agencies make welfare of their personnel a priority,’’ he said.

    Mr. Azeez Bankole, a security expert, called for proper scrutiny of those shortlisted for employment into security outfits to ascertain that the best qualified candidates were recruited.

    Mr. Aliyu Hamza, retired security personnel, urged government to do more in terms of welfare of security personnel to elicit maximum productivity from them.

    He said that the role of security personnel in protecting life and property in the country could not be over emphasised.

    NAN recalls that the Nigeria Police had recently circulated some phone numbers for Nigerians to report indecent acts of the police.

  • Expert criticises proposed Nasarawa cargo airport

    AN aviation expert has written off the N17.5 billion proposed Nasarawa cargo airport, saying it cannot stimulate the growth of air cargo.

    According to  Captain John Okakpu, Governor, Umaru Al-Makura, may not have been properly guided before deciding to build such an ambitious infrastructure. Statistics, he said, showed that the airport may witness  low patronage.

    Quoting statistics from the International Air Transport Association (IATA), and market analysis released for 2015, Okakpu said nothing suggests that the cargo airport  would be sustainable.

    He said: ”If you consider the statistics on Nigerian market destination by Kilogram to markets like the United Kingdom, you will understand that Lagos accounts for 71 per cent  of the total cargo import and export in Nigeria.

    “This is followed by Port Harcourt accounting for 26 per cent and Abuja with a mere three per cent, while Kano State  accounts for  zero per cent, wondering how Nasarawa State intends to sustain the cargo airport.

    “So, from where do they want to generate the cargo for export? What incentives do you have to attract cargo  airlines away from Lagos, Port Harcourt, or Abuja? Kano State, as shown in the analysis don’t even have a percentage in cargo operations, he stated.

    “To me, the government of Nasarawa ought to have devoted its strength on empowering farmers for agro-allied produce rather building a cargo airport . The state could have gone steps further by ensuring it organises programmers for its farmers and get the appropriate certification to make the farm produce meet international standards.”

    Okakpu, ABX World Nigeria Limited Managing Director said funds for the project could have been directed to assisting farmers  for enhanced agro-allied produce and payment of workers salaries.

    At the inauguration of the airport a fortnight ago, Al- Makura said it was informed by his administration’s desire  to create a formidable platform for transportation of both domestic and international passengers.

    Okakpu also predicted that the fallingYoil prices would lead to a return to agriculture.

    He  counselled airlines to stick to the rules of the game by airlifting only agro-allied produce that meet international certification.

    Okakpu said:” This has become important to avoid embarrassing the country in the commity of agricultural produce nations.

    “We have seen situations where overzealous individuals tend to by-pass established authorities, exporting products that fail to meet international specifications.

    ‘’This must stop if we want to leverage agro-allied export and agriculture in a whole, to overcome the shock that will be associated with dwindling oil revenue.

    The Federal Government must not allow itself to be cajoled to creating room for all comers affairs, because agriculture is the new phase for us owing to predictions that oil will sell for $20 by next year, he said.

  • Let’s fix unemployment from secondary school, says expert

    Let’s fix unemployment from secondary school, says expert

    An International Relations consultant, Prince Micheal Osinaike, has called for collective efforts by secondary schools to solve Nigeria’s unemployment problem.

    Speaking at the 20th anniversary of Excel College, Ejigbo, Lagos State, last Saturday, Osinaike advised that the curriculum should challenge pupils to identify their vision and aim to fulfil it from secondary school.

    “Unemployment is one critical issue that can be addressed by educational institutions. Tertiary education is important, but the formative stages of building a youth starts from secondary school. That is the age a person needs to understand the dividends of labour and basic moral principles.

    “The academic curriculum should not be reactionary, but proactive to cater to the demands of the changing world. What the world needs today is problem solvers, not problem analysers. How do we help children study the course that helps them become what they are passionate about? Let us begin to raise students from here, who will tell us how to produce electricity from waste, rather than lament about consistent power outage,” Osinaike said.

    He cautioned parents to choose  secondary schools with care since their wards spend the longest period of their educational lives there.

    “The children spend longer time in secondary school, so where you take them for those six years is very critical. They determine if they enter university and join cult; the kind of grades they would aim to achieve. So if a child’s character is not formed from secondary school, it is improbable that he will make significant change in life.”

    Osinaike said the problems facing the labour market stemmed from graduates’ lack of skills, irresponsibility, inability to meet deadlines/identify opportunities.

    In tandem with the guest speaker, Principal of the school, Mrs Kehinde Oke, said: “Education should not be pure academics. Government should aim at developing the skills of these children so they can become job creators after secondary school. Here, we believe that everybody is talented so we encourage them by teaching them vocational skills like cloth/bead making, photography and others, right from JSS 1.”

    Meanwhile, the glamourous ceremony featured dance, ballet, music and other renditions by pupils of the school; as well as the launching of the school’s 120-page magazine, The Excelite, and presentation of awards to workers, parents and pupils.

    A parent in the green, red and blue themed hall, Mr Demola Adedayo, said four of his children attended the school – with the fourth currently in S S 3.

    “I like the school, because it is moderate and considerate. The standard is equally encouraging and promising,” he said.

     

  • Health expert needs N10m to live

    Health expert needs N10m to live

    A 36-year-old Safety health expert, Mr Kehinde Adesina has called for public assistance to raise N10 million for a kidney transplant to save his own life.

    His twin sister, Taiwo Iro (Nee Adesina) was at The Nation to seek assistance from the public on his behalf yesterday.

    She said her twin brother, who is married with a child, was diagnosed with kidney failure in February this year and has been receiving treatment.

    Taiwo said his ailment has since deteriorated to level five, where he is surviving entirely on dialysis, which costs more than N30 000 per session and he goes for three sessions every week.

    Doctors’ consultations have advised urgent kidney transplant, as Kehinde cannot keep up with the expenses of dialysis anymore.

    Kehinde, in a social media message asked for well-meaning Nigerians to assist him to raise the needed funds for his transplant in order to help him live a long, healthy and fulfilled life.

    “I hereby appeal to all well-meaning Nigerians to come to my aid and support me with whatever they can so that I can have a successful transplant that will help me live a fulfilling life and continue to add value to Nigeria as a whole,” he said.

    Meanwhile, Kehinde’s family and friends have started a social media campaign tagged #LetKennyLive to raise awareness and support of the public to the course.

    To donate to save Kehinde’s life, kindly contact The Nation headquarters at Mushin or contact Tijani on 08066443324

    First Bank account: Kehinde Adesina; Account number: 3069734130.

  • Focuse on people to achieve development, says expert

    Former president, Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE), Emeritus Prof, Adebayo Sanni, has charged the Federal Government to prioritise education ahead of infrastructure to achieve national development.

    He spoke while giving the opening remarks at a symposium and 5th annual technology/exhibition fair, to open the 10th anniversary of Bells University of Technology, Ota, Ogun State, on Tuesday.

    The symposium had as theme: “Technology: Panacea for National Development.”

    Sanni said Nigeria can only boast of development if its people are developed.

    He said: “We do not understand development in this part of the world. We believe that development is where we have highways that get bad within a short period of time; we lack maintenance, training and understanding. These are major issues that the country’s university system must look into. To us, development is developing space, not the people, which is a wrong belief.

    “To develop the people, you need just education. Development is people-oriented and culture-specific. You need technology for development to take place, and it must be applied properly with good training.”

    He decried many Nigerians’ culture of replacing damaged products, rather than fixing; and encouraged undergraduates to change this culture.

    Earlier, delivering the welcome address, Vice Chancellor of the university, Prof Isaac Adeyemi charged Nigerians to strive to achieve as much as developed countries in the acquisition and innovation of technology.

    He said: “Technology features greatly in the development of man. The question is: as a nation, where do we stand when compared with other countries? Aren’t we lagging behind? Are we making use of our local products to enhance technology? How do we apply modern technology in solving our day-to-day problems and activities in agriculture, education, transportation and other spheres of life? We must know where we are, where we are going and where we ought to be.”

    Speakers at the symposium included: Former Minister of Power, Prof Barth Nnaji, represented by his former Special Adviser, Don Adinuba, who spoke on Energy and National Development; Acting Chairman, The Presidential Task Force on Power, Adeyinka Oke, who spoke on the same topic; Principal Partner, Intecon Partnership, Oyo State, Chief Olumuyiwa Ajibola, who spoke on Infrastructures and National development; Former Vice Chancellor, University of Ibadan, Prof Olufemi Bamiro who spoke on Food Security and Technology acquisition for national development, among others.

     

  • Embrace technology, expert urges entrepreneurs

    An expert in entrepreneurial studies, Dr Henrietta Onwuegbuzie, has said technology can help entrepreneurs to start off a billion naira company with just N5,000.

    Onwuegbuzie made the assertion on Tuesday in Lagos when she spoke on ‘Technology Changing Business — Model Case  Studies’’ at the Society and Technology Conference (SOCTECH 2015).

    The annual conference was an initiative of the Institute for Work and Family Integration (IWFI) in collaboration with the Lagos Business School.

    She added that the penetration of technology into businesses had made it possible for start-ups to build empires without borrowing from the banks.

    Onwuegbuzie, who is director, Impact Investing Policy Initiative at the Lagos Business School (LBS), said entrepreneurs needed to create big business ideas and leverage on technology to attract online traffic in selling the idea.

    Stressing that technological adaptation was key to business growth, she advised entrepreneurs to leverage on it for wider market reach.

    “Technological adaptation is key to business growth; you need to start small and think big,’’ Onwuegbuzie said.

    She added that the penetration of e-commerce had enabled many small and medium entrepreneurs to have online platforms to sell their goods and services.

    She stressed that technology had given rise to the growth of micro entrepreneurs who use the e-commerce platform to grow their businesses.

    Welcoming participants, Chairman of IWFI, Mr. Charles Osezua, said SOCTECH 2015, with the theme: “Digital Age: Corporate Success and the Family”, was chosen for a robust integration of family and work.

    He said technology was impacting more on the way businesses are run and care must be taken to adapt it without neglecting core family values. “There is no doubt the digital technology has transformed our world and the way we do business. It has positively impacted on productivity and efficiency,” Osezua said.

  • Expert praises Buhari for restoring investors’ confidence

    Expert praises Buhari for restoring investors’ confidence

    Oil and Gas Council Managing Director, Drake Lawhead, has commended President Muhammadu Buhari for his commitment to the transformation of the country’s  oil and gas industry, saying foreign investors are developing confidence in the economy.

    He said for decades, foreign firms which were considering doing business in the sector  accepted certain realities that their boards found difficult to accept. He said those problems were well-documented, and that they would apply to all  companies, adding that it is undeniable that Nigeria’s foreign direct investment has been hampered by the perception, corruption and theft.

    Such ingrained perceptions do not disappear overnight, but there is a change in mood about the prospects for cleaning up the business practices of the industry that have all happened on the back of President Muhammadu Buhari’s election.

    Lawhead said: “The people we speak to in London and in Asia have kept an eye on many of the reforms that are sweeping through the Energy sector in Nigeria. Things like the appointment of Dr Kachikwu and the wholesale change at the Director level at the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and cancellation of contracts, etc., send a strong signal to companies here that Nigeria is serious about regaining the trust of the international business community. They are watching to see what happens now.”

    Lawhead added that President Buhari’s self-appointment as Oil Minister – something that is   unusual in Europe or America but which makes sense in Nigeria and for Buhari – has been viewed rather positively in the West; a sign that the President is serious about the importance of getting that sector right and has put himself in charge of it to make sure.

    Institutional change can be slow – there are too many vested interests that exist in bureaucracies for wide scale organisational change ever to be a simple matter. Yet, it does happen, it must happen for Nigeria’s oil and gas sector to thrive as it deserves to, and the early signs are that things are changing – and importantly, it’s a change that has been noticed by the international business community.

  • Braithwaite: Court orders expert to measure 15-storey building

    Justice Doris Okuwobi of a Lagos High Court sitting in Ikeja has granted the request of Dr. Tunji Braithwaite for the President of the Nigerian Institute of Town Planners to measure the 15-storey Standard Chartered Bank Nigeria Limited building situated at no. 142 Ahmadu Bello Way, Victoria Island, Lagos.

    Braithwaite is pursuing a N10 billion claim against the bank for constructing a 15-storey building and a multilevel car park opposite his residence with an allegedly ‘illegal’ permit.

    The presiding judge made the order and two others after listening to the claimant’s counsel led by Braithwaite himself, who informed the court of an application dated October 6, 2015. He added that the case has been on since 2010 and urged the court to grant all the orders therein.

    The orders include one “directing the president of the Nigerian Institute of Town Planners to enter the defendant’s commercial building of 14 floors comprising a five-level car park at no. 142 Ahmadu Bello Way, Victoria Island, Lagos, to undertake physical measurement of the setback and airspace of the said defendant’s building.

    “An order of court directing the President of Nigerian Institute of Town Planners, to prepare a comprehensive report of his findings and measurements, which shall be produced to the court as part of the evidence on record of this trial.”

    And also an order that “the cost and fees to the President of Nigerian Institute of Town Planners for the execution and implementation of the orders herein be cost in the cause.”

    Defendant’s counsel, Mr Adeniyi Adegbonmire (SAN) did not oppose the application but noted that his client could not be expected to foot the bill for the Town Planners’ work.

    He prayed the court to make an order that both parties be at liberty to call whoever makes the measurement to be available for cross examination.

    Adegbonmire added: “Once we agree on the date of the measurement, my client is ready to grant the person entry to the premises.”

    However, Dr. Braithwaite agreed to bear the cost. He added: “The main thing is for the measurement to be taken.”

    Justice Okuwobi granted all three orders and adjourned further hearing till November 24, 2015.

     

  • Heart disease number one killer in Nigeria, says expert

    Heart disease number one killer in Nigeria, says expert

    •Babcock to launch N2b centre

    Heart diseases now kill more than infectious diseases in Nigeria, a professor of cardiology, Kamar Adeleke, has said.

    The don, who spoke yesterday ahead of tomorrow’s launch of the Tri-State Heart and Vascular Centre at the Babcock University, said heart disease has overtaken malaria and tuberculosis.

    “Just about 20 years ago, the number one killer in Africa was infectious diseases. In the past five years, the number one killer has been heart disease, followed by stroke.

    “Life expectancy in Kenya is 69; in the U.S. it is 68; while in Nigeria, it is 51-52. The silent killer is heart disease,” he said.

    Adeleke was optimistic that the opening of the centre in Nigeria would reduce the incidence of heart-related deaths.

    He praised Babcock University for collaborating with the Tri-State Cardiovascular Associates to establish the centre in seven months to improve healthcare for Nigerians.

    So far, the professor of cardiology said the university had sunk N2 billion into the project.

    Babcock University Vice Chancellor Prof. Kayode Makinde said the university would ensure those who need financial assistance were not turned away.

    “The policy we have at Babcock University is that nobody will be turned away because of funds.  The procedures are not cheap.  We are appealing to corporate entities to support people,” he said.

    Underscoring the importance of building local capacity to prevent and treat heart diseases in Nigeria, he said it was disgraceful for Nigerians to fly abroad to seek medical healthcare.

    Tomorrow’s programme will feature the launch of the Tri-State Foundation, which Prof. Adeleke said would raise funds to support surgeries for indigent patients.   Dignitaries expected at the event include the Emir of Kano, Muhammadu Sanusi, who would inaugurate the centre; Chief Medical Director, University Teaching Hospital, Ibadan, Prof. Temitope Alonge, the guest speaker; Chief Bisi Akande, and John Momoh, who are on the board of the foundation, among others.