The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Ghana

  • NDIC Boss elected as new Chairperson of IADI

    The Managing Director and Chief Executive of the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC), Umaru Ibrahim, has been elected the new Chairperson of the Africa Regional Committee (ARC) of the International Association of Deposit Insurers (IADI).

    The NDIC made this known through a statement by its Head of Communications and Corporate Affairs, Mohammed Kudu Ibrahim.

    According to the statement, “Ibrahim was elected during the Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the IADI-ARC which was a prelude to the IADI Technical Assistance Workshop being hosted by the Corporation in Lagos.

    “The election was a unanimous decision of the body following the expiration of tenure of the current Chairperson and former Chief Executive Officer of the Deposit Protection Corporation of Zimbabwe, Mr John Chikura.

    “Also elected as the ARC Vice-Chairman during the AGM was Mohamud A. Mohamud, the Chief Executive Officer of Kenya Deposit Insurance Corporation (KDIC).”

    Read Also: NDIC to host IADI workshop in Lagos

    The election of Ibrahim marks the second time that Nigeria will lead the IADI-ARC. The immediate past MD/CE of the Corporation, Alhaji Ganiyu Ogunleye was earlier elected as Chairperson of the body.

    It further added that, “According to members, the unanimous decision to elect the NDIC Boss was in recognition of his achievements, requisite knowledge and experience in the Deposit Insurance System (DIS) which they belief will impact positively on the other members from Africa. They expressed optimism in his qualities and wealth of experience to effectively provide the desired leadership for the ARC. With the election of Ibrahim, the secretariat of the body effectively relocates to Nigeria until the end of his tenure.

    “The AGM also discussed other important issues relating to the growth of the DIS in the African Region and financial system stability.

    “Updates from African countries that recently established DIS and as well as those currently in the process of setting up the scheme were also presented at the forum.

    “Apart from Nigeria, the host country, other nations in attendance at the AGM include Ghana, Kenya, Zimbabwe, Uganda, Swaziland, Rwanda and the West Africa Monetary Union Deposit Protection Board (WAMUDPB) based in Senegal.”

    It would be recalled that Umaru Ibrahim was elected twice into the Executive Management Committee of the IADI. His second term is yet to expire.

  • Our Girls; Ghana’s anti-corruption; Berger, RCC red card!

    Our Chibok Girls were kidnapped on April 15, 2014. Inexplicably Our Dapchi girl-child, 15, Leah Sharibu is not released. Why?

    The Ghanaian president informed us that he created the Office of Public Prosecutor to independently investigate past and present government corruption. That the post is occupied by an anti-corruption opposition lawyer is exemplary for Africa. Nigeria dropped the Office of Public Prosecutor here. Existing structures, ICPC and EFCC, struggle under the yoke of authority of the very people needing maximum investigation –politicians and the president. The president of Ghana gave guidelines to pursue the anti-corruption drive across an Africa where a text book, a kilometre of road or a classroom block built by African government contractors costs many times more than in the non-government world with African contracts padded up to 45-100% minimizing the developmental mileage of budgets and terminating African developmental dreams. African leaders are directly responsible for Africa’s underdevelopment leading to  ‘The Great Youth Trek’ from underdeveloped Africa through the Sahara to the ‘The Great Youth Mediterranean Crossing’ breaching developed Fortress Europe by many thousands of mainly young desperate African migrants of whom 10,000 drowned off Lampedusa with others raped, robbed, murdered and sold into slavery by human traffickers. The blood of Africa’s youth is on African politicians’ hands.

    The long-term horrible experience on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway exemplifies a ‘perfect storm’ nationwide faced by government projects which have failed, are failing, long delayed uncompleted like ‘shell buildings’ – abandoned or semi-abandoned projects. Though started to fulfil African developmental dreams, nobody gains by abandoning for 15-20 years, the six-storey see-through ‘shell building’ owned by the people through former NEPA on the Bodija road in Ibadan or the Ilubirin massive 10 block estate of see-through ‘shell high-rises’ in Lagos. Political successors have a duty to eliminate funds being lost as if to punish predecessors. Certainly, please quickly investigate mismanaged funds and hold past contractors to account, recover funds but always renegotiate the completion of contracts.

    Nigeria ‘achieved this disgusting failure’ by the deliberate CINS – Corruption, Incompetence, Negligence and Selfishness of its leadership, military and political and civil service and contractor classes in spite of our great God-given soil and oil wealth, yielding the national treasury nearly $1,000b, in oil and other revenues so far. Where is the infrastructure to keep pace with ‘the population guesstimate? Unimaginably, we struggle with 3,000Mw vs UN recommended 1Mw/1m population or 150,000Mw. Perhaps the $10b China facility will provide electricity from China which adds 30-40,000Mw to its national greed annually? But vested petroleum interests want us to remain dependent on generators, fuel and air pollution.

    It is sickening to see the unnecessary exposure to discomfort, disability and death that millions face daily as their only ‘DOD- Dividends of Democracy’ since 1999 on unmaintained or abandoned highways nationwide. Roads labelled ‘Under Construction’ are worse as construction work means nightmare traffic with a suspension of any moral obligation for maintenance to ease the suffering of citizens during re-construction. In fact ‘Under Construction’ roads automatically get worse. Is this punishment under the ‘You have to suffer to develop’ or ‘No pain no gain’ mantra from government? Empowered, the contractor’s unsupervised employees abandon or destroy existing contracted roads, neglecting the citizen’s rights during contract postponements rivalling adjournments in courts. Today the Lagos-Ibadan Road exemplifies an agonizingly slow upgrade to its former ‘Expressway Glory’ postponed to 2017, 2018 and now to December 2019.

    All such roads require contracts with ‘A Maintenance Clause’ demanding pothole filling during construction with easy access diversions pending completion of the roads. Ministry of Works’supervising engineers must take protection of the citizen from ‘Death by Contractor Negligence’ seriously and monitor contractors’ activities. Contractors in Nigeria, expatriate and local, have been allowed to ‘inflict pain’ as part of malicious contract execution. Lagos Airport road and the Apapa Port roads exemplify mass suffering. The problem is with poorly constructed entrance and exits from diversions. RCC and Julius Berger deserve red cards from supervising engineers!  Just smoothening the rough entrance to diversions at the two main Berger diversions and filling potholes on diversions and existing unrepaired roads will help greatly. Who will speak out for the citizens?

    Millions have been forced, by a lack of supervised construction, to face the multi-potholed ‘under construction’ or ‘yet to be constructed’ treacherous parts of the Lagos-Ibadan Road riddled with jagged potholes which must filled. Travellers may die in or trying to avoid potholes till the contract is full executed. Postponements increase deaths. Each pothole costs a few thousand naira to fill. ‘Death by Pothole’ is loss of a human economic resource-a life, a wife, and a multi-million naira waste. Now, as a direct result of National Assembly, NASS anti-people tactics, we are to await December 2019 for final construction, which may be postponed again. NASS stalled the completion of the road. Every go slow, crash, robbery attack, linkable to bad road traffic jams can be placed at the feet of NASS members who should all be denied re-election in 2019.  The people must sweep most NASS members away.

    We lost several NYSC members to accidents and other causes in 1975/6 when I did NYSC. A coffin is an unacceptable cost for NYSC. Some are even murdered. What honour do they get and what support do their families receive for paying the supreme sacrifice with an irreplaceable family loss of dreams and future?

    • Uncover ‘I LOVE NIGERIA’ KNOWLEDGEABLE CANDIDATES for 2019 -SDG 16.

     

  • AfDB approves $15m equity investment in Nigeria, others

    The African Development Bank ( AfDB ) says it has approved 15 million dollars for equity investment in Verod Capital Growth Fund III, a private equity fund for investments in high growth middle market companies.

    The bank said on Friday that the figure was approved by its Board of Directors for companies in in Nigeria, Ghana, Liberia, Sierra Leone and the Gambia.

    The bank said the fund’s investments would be in companies in consumer driven sectors including light industrials, fast moving consumer goods, education, financial services and agro processing.

    It also said the ticket size for each investment would be between 5 million dollars and 20 million dollars.

    Read Also: AfDB: Nigeria, others spend $35b yearly to import food

    Mr Abdu Mukhtar, the African Development Bank’s Director of Industrial and Trade Development, AfDB, said the fund would help accelerate investments in small and medium scale enterprises (SMEs) in the West African region.

    “This is key to job and wealth creation, knowledge transfer and scaling up of local businesses.

    “The Fund will provide an important vehicle to growing SMEs in Africa, which are a key pillar to the continent’s industrialization drive,” Mukhtar added, in a statement posted on the bank’s website.

     

  • ANDE launches Ghana entrepreneurial ecosystem snapshot

    Aspen Network of Development Entrepreneurs, arguably the fastest global network of organizations that propel entrepreneurship in emerging markets has achieved another feat, as it recently Entrepreneurial Ecosystem Snapshot of Ghana.

    The Snapshot aims to present data to capture the current state of the entrepreneurial ecosystem in Ghana.
    According to a press statement made available on Monday, variety of gaps pervade Ghana’s entrepreneurial ecosystem, even though it is one of the largest growing economies in West Africa.

    The statement said, some of these gaps include: a lack of collaboration among actors, lack of access to relevant information, mismatches in investment size supply and demand, poor access to markets, excessive cost of physical infrastructure, and limited access to finance. Despite these challenges, the small and growing business (SGB) sector is actively driving the economy.

    “According to Ghanaian government data, small and medium-sized businesses account for 70 percent of Ghana’s gross domestic product (GDP).
    The Aspen Network of Development Entrepreneurs (ANDE) conducted this entrepreneurial ecosystem snapshot to identify organizations that actively support entrepreneurs in Ghana and the kind of support they provide. These organizations include: investors, capacity development providers, business development support providers, professional service providers, government agencies, and others”, it said.

    The statement said further that; “ANDE first carried out an entrepreneurial ecosystem snapshot that focused on Accra in 2017. This update expands on the work done in Ghana’s capital city to include an overview of the entrepreneurial ecosystem in ten regions in Ghana.”

    “This snapshot shows that organizations that support entrepreneurs in Ghana primarily focus on agriculture. The top impact objective is typically capacity development. The most used financial instrument in the ecosystem is equity and the top nonfinancial support available in Ghana is access to networks and partners.”

  • Woman in police net over attempted trafficking

    The police in Anambra state have arrested a woman over attempt to ferry two ladies; Gold Ebube Nwogazi and Chidera Paul to Ghana for prostitution.

    The suspect, Amaka Adiri of No 24 Vbioke Stree, Benin City, Edo State, was arrested Friday following intelligence report by Police Detectives attached to Oyi division.

    Read Also:NIS rescues victim of human trafficking in Katsina

    In a press statement by the state police public relations officer, SP Haruna Mohammed said, “The suspect allegedly threatened one Gold Ebube Nwogazi, aged 21years of Ugwunabo LGA of Abia State and seized her bag at Awkuzu in Anambra State for refusing to follow her to Ghana for Prostitution.

    “Another victim, one Chidera Paul of Umuoba Village Isiala Ngwa, Abia State was also liberated from the suspect who she equally lured for the same purpose.”

    He said that preliminary investigation revealed that the victims were to pay the sum of N600, 000 each to the suspect in three months’ time while in Ghana to regain their Freedom.

    Mohammed however said that the case was still under investigation, and that it plans to charge the suspect to Court for prosecution.

     

  • …Ghana declares one week of mourning

    Moment after the death of Kofi Annan was broken yesterday, President Akufo-Addo declared a week of mourning to pay homage to the distinguished Ghanaian.

    Describing Annan as a “consummate” diplomat, Akufo-Addo said Ghana was “deeply saddened” by the news of the death.

    “I have directed that, in his honour, Ghana’s national flag will fly at half-mast across the country and in all of Ghana’s diplomatic missions across the world” for one week from Monday, Akufo-Addo said.

    “He brought considerable renown to our country by this position and through his conduct and comportment in the global arena,” Akufo-Addo said. “He was an ardent believer in the capacity of the Ghanaian to chart his or her own course on to the path of progress and prosperity.”

  • Lagos hit-and-run driver nabbed in Ghana

    •Suspect faces trial for knocking down LASTMA official

    A driver with King Solomon Chariots Transportation, Abuchi Okpara, who fled to Ghana after allegedly hitting Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) official, Obafemi Ogunmeru, has been arrested.

    The driver, who absconded after the August 7 accident at Igando in Lagos, was brought back from Ghana, by his boss, Johnson Ogbonnaya and handed over to the police last Friday and charged to court on Monday.

    Okpara knocked down Ogunmeru in Igando area of Alimosho while attempting to evade arrest after violating traffic rule.

    He was driving a Ghana-bound commercial vehicle with registration number KJA 633 XT. He was said to have dropped passengers at undesignated spot at Igando.

    The Nation learnt that drivers action around the axis usually caused traffic obstruction and gridlock on the Igando-Ikotun road.

    Okpara failed to obey Ogunmeru’s directive to move his vehicle to the nearest lay-bye to avoid gridlock.

    Okpara allegedly hit the traffic official with his Toyota Sienna while maneouvering to evade arrest.

    The quick intervention of the nearby policemen did not prevent him from fleeing to Ghana.

    The victim was rushed to lgando General Hospital, before being transferred to the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH).

    An Igando Magistrates’ Court on Monday ordered he be remanded in Kirikiri Prison.

    LASTMA’s General Manager Olawale Musa condemned the incident, saying such attack on LASTMA officials was of concern to government.

    He urged the aggrieved to take advantage of the complaint channels set up by LASTMA instead of taking the law into their hands.

    Musa urged vehicle owners to take a cue from Ogbonnaya by ensuring that law breakers did not go scot free.

    He said: “We like to commend Mr Ogbonnaya for this rare display of patriotism and exemplary behaviour and urge others to take a cue from him because this can only encourage traffic officials to continue discharging their duty effectively.”

     

  • Nigeria, Ghana risk being suspended over federation leadership crisis – FIFA

    World football governing body FIFA on Tuesday said it would go on to suspend Nigeria and Ghana from football activities if they failed to comply with its instructions by Monday.

    FIFA, in a statement by its Media Office, said it had been notified about ongoings in the two federations, and it viewed them as “undue interference in their affairs’’.

    It said Nigeria must ensure the NFF offices in Abuja are occupied by the Amaju Pinnick faction of the federation’s Congress by Monday.

    Read Also:FiFA U-20 Women’s World Cup: Germany defeat Nigeria 1-0

    FIFA however said whatever decision it would take would not affect the Falconets, Nigeria’s under-20 women team, who are currently in France participating in the 2018 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Glass House has been occupied recently at different times by both the Chris Giwa and Pinnick factions of the federation’s Congress

    This occupation has however been with the aid of men of the Nigeria Police and the Department of State Services (DSS) at such times.

    While Giwa’s occupation was said to be “at the instance of the courts’’, that of Pinnick was said to be “on the orders of Presidency’’.

    In the case of Ghana, the country has until Aug. 27 to stop the process of liquidation of the Ghana Football Association.

    Below is the full text of FIFA’s statement, unedited:

    “Two decisions of the Bureau of the FIFA Council in relation to undue influence in the affairs of the Nigeria Football Federation and the Ghana Football Association have been notified on 13 August 2018.

    In line with art. 16 par. 1 of the FIFA Statutes, the Bureau of the FIFA Council decided that if by Monday, 20 August 2018, at 12:00 (CET), the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) offices are not handed back to the legitimate NFF executive committee under President Amaju Melvin Pinnick, who was duly elected on 30 September 2014, the NFF will be suspended with immediate effect for contravening art. 14 par. 1 i) and art. 19, as well as art. 14 par. 1 a) of the FIFA Statutes.

    The suspension would be lifted only once the NFF, under President Amaju Melvin Pinnick and General Secretary Mohammed Sanusi, confirms that it has been given back effective control of the NFF and its offices.

    Furthermore, the Bureau decided that if the suspension of the NFF takes effect, the Nigerian team currently competing in the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup France 2018 will still be allowed to continue to participate in the tournament on an exceptional basis given that the tournament is underway.

    In Ghana, it is noted that formal investigation proceedings are currently being carried out by the chairperson of the investigatory chamber of the Ethics Committee against Mr Nyantakyi, who has been provisionally suspended by a decision taken by the chairperson of the adjudicatory chamber of the Ethics Committee. However, the Bureau of the Council considers that the petition introduced by the Attorney General to the High Court of Justice to start the liquidation process of the GFA constitutes undue influence in the affairs of the GFA in contravention of art. 14 par. 1 i) and art. 19 par. 1 of the FIFA Statutes.

    Under these circumstances, the Bureau decided that if the petition to start the liquidation process of the GFA is not withdrawn by Monday, 27 August 2018 at 12:00 (CET), the GFA will be suspended with immediate effect. The suspension would be lifted only once the above-mentioned petition is withdrawn and FIFA is given written proof thereof.’’

    NAN reports that the NFF has been engulfed in a leadership crisis since 2014 when two elections were held into the Executive Committee of the federation.

  • No quit notice to Nigerian traders in Ghana

    Ghana has explained that Nigerian traders were not affected by the recent quit notice to foreigners to vacate the country’s retail markets.

    The Ghanaian Minister for Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, Ms Shirley Ayorkor-Botchwey, made the explanation on Monday in Abuja when she paid a courtesy visit on her Nigerian counterpart, Mr. Geoffrey Onyeama.

    Foreign nationals engaged in retail business in Ghana were on July 11 issued a quit notice to vacate the country’s markets. Ghanaian law reserves operation of retail business only for citizens.

    The National Association of Nigerian Traders had warned that the quit notice could spark xenophobic attacks.

    However, Botchwey maintained that Nigerians and other ECOWAS citizens were not affected by the quit notice.

    “This has nothing to do with our ECOWAS brothers and sisters. It was more to do with other nationals.

    “Yes there is a problem that Nigerians and other ECOWAS citizens have been cut up in this issue of traders being given quit notice to exit our markets with their retail trade which is, by the law of Ghana, reserved for Ghanaians.

    “Our government is doing what it can; sitting with the Ghana Traders Association to ensure that there is that understanding that it has nothing to do with Nigerian and other ECOWAS traders.

    “Even at the governmental level, we are dealing with and the president himself is handling the matter to ensure that it does not escalate,” she said.

    She said that she was in Nigeria “to give assurance that between Ghana and Nigeria, this will never be an issue and we will not allow it to be an issue.”

    Onyeama in his remarks said the Ghanaian minister’s visit demonstrated the country’s concern that Nigeria should, in no way, interpret the issue as xenophobia against Nigerian traders.

    “The minister’s visit was to assure the government and the people of Nigeria that the government of Ghana is on top of the situation and would resolve the issue,” he said.

    Onyeama said that the Minister explained that what prompted the outcry was not about nationals of ECOWAS, but nationals from outside Africa who had been installing themselves in the Ghanaian retail business.

    “And that that was actually their main focus of attack. But that the Ghanaian Retail Association, is now making a general outcry against all non-Ghanaian retail traders.

    “The government of Ghana is not happy about that because they want to be in strict compliance with all their obligations under the ECOWAS Protocol of Free Movement of Persons, Goods and Services,” Onyeama said of his meeting with the Ghanaian Foreign Minister.

    He said the Ghanaian Government was engaged in really coming out with a law that was consistent with their position as an ECOWAS member state.

    According to him, so, they are at that process, but they are also very mindful of the special relationship they have with Nigeria.

    “And we are particularly keen that in no way should it result in any targeting of Nigerians, any xenophobia against Nigerians.

    “So, the government, in fact, the president himself, is personally engaged in addressing the situation,” he said.

    “For her to travel, to fly here to meet with me for one hour, I think, demonstrated the concern of the Ghanaian Government that Nigeria should in no way interpret this as some kind of xenophobia against Nigerians.

    “This also to assure us that the government is very much on top of this and will hopefully resolve the situation very quickly,” he said.

  • EDMARK holds first-ever cashless exhibition in Lagos

    …to Promote Entrepreneurship in Nigeria with Two Million Dollar

    …unveil Mobile Payment Application

    A Multinational Health Wellness and anti-obesity firm, EDMARK International Group of Company on Thursday held the first ever cashless product exhibition in Nigeria tagged “CASHLESS SHOPPING BAZZAR” aimed at promoting transparency, accountability, customers’ satisfaction, stress reduction and risk associated with physical movement of cash to in and out of her outlets across the federation.

    The bazaar exhibition which took place at the yet-to-be commissioned newly completed Corporate headquarters of the company situated at Aromire Avenue, Ikeja was attended by the company’s distributors popularly known as Crown and Double Crown Managers and several private Business Men and Women including financial institutions who came to display their products and services with only the newly invented mobile application of the firm called ED-POINT accepted as means of payment instead of cash.

    Invented by ED2E, a subsidiary of the EDMARK International, ED-POINT is a mobile application that can be downloaded from goggle or apple play stores by iphone and android phones users. The mobile payment platform which started in Philippine in 2016 has now been moved to five African countries namely Kenya, Tanzania, South Africa, Ghana and Nigeria.

    Speaking with news men on the features of the mobile payment platform and the ongoing cashless bazaar which ends today, The Founder/Chairman of the EDMARK Group of Company, Mr. Sam Low said “EDPOINT is a Mobile application that needs to be loaded as currencies in order to avoid the use of physical cash for payments in all the branches across the federation.

    He said “once the app is loaded, it can be used to purchase our products from our distributors. The App can be reloaded in any of the EDMARK branches across Nigeria. We are of the believe that the new development will make transactions to be fast, user friendly and also for reduce risk associated with movement of cash and promote transparency and accountability and also to make our relationship with our over 450, 000 distributors easy and productive.

    Read Also: How to preserve Lagos, by experts

    Low, a Philippine citizen who claimed that his firm has invested over $5billion in Nigeria in the last 10 years, also announced that his company is currently working out a measure that will promote entrepreneurship in Nigeria with about $2milliom through Information Technology, Health and Real Estate.

    “I started entrepreneurship on the street of Malaysia as a Street hawker, today; I sit over a firm with about $20billion investment in 17 countries of the world. I wasn’t lucky to have people to mentor me but I want to offer the young people of Nigeria what I was not lucky to be offered yet I succeeded. I am committed to abolishing poverty in Nigeria through Information Technology< Health and Real Estate.” Low said in an emotion-laden speech.

    The Chief Operating Officer of EDMARK International who also doubles as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of ED2E, Mr. Marc Camaligan said that the application is outstanding because it has reload features with 5% bonus. He said the company diverted from traditional to technological method of payment because their distributors are becoming isolated from the global best practices.

    Some of the company’s Crown Managers and participants who graced the cashless bazaar and products exhibition in an interview with our correspondent expressed joy and happy over the new innovation.

    To Mr. David T. Obinwizu, a Double Crown Manager at EDMARK International, the new mobile platform will afford him and his colleagues a golden opportunity to showcase their businesses and sell their products with an amazing ease without the use of cash. He said it is an opportunity for distributors to maximize profit and reduce stress of going to banks to make deposit and withdrawal cash.

    Another participant, Christiana Begusa who came to the exhibition center for shopping said the mobile app is designed in such a way that a low-cadre education person can make use of it and that it is data friendly and it can switch on with limited internet connection.

    The cashless bazaar and exhibition had several products for sale ranging from clothes, shoes, all EDMARK products, provisions, inspirational books, hair accessories etc using the EDPOINT mobile application.