The Nation Newspaper

Tag: ‘Local content

  • Jetty operators push for local content

    Jetty operators push for local content

    Operators of Waziri jetty in Apapa, Lagos, have called on the Federal Government and the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) not to concession the jetty to a foreigner to promote local content.

    The Legal Officer of Hensmor Nigeria Limited and Secretary, Petroleum Product Depot Owners Association (PPDOA), Mrs. Patricia Okereke,  said concession-ing the jetty to a foreign firm would violate indigenous operators’ right.

    She accused NPA of removing their containers and portakabins from the jetty unjustly.

    The NPA management has denied the allegation, saying the containers and portakabins were wrongly kept by the jetty operators in an operational and safety area provided by the authority for common use.

    NPA’s General Manager, Public Affairs Capt. Iheanacho Ebubeogu told The Nation that the authority removed the containers from the jetty because of the untidy environment, which he said, was littered with loose pipes, debris, sludge and hoses.

    ”The Management of Lagos Port Complex, on an inspection of the port, observed  the untidy nature of the environment at the Waziri jetty, which was littered with loose pipes, debris, sludge and hoses. The operators were promptly directed to remove the entire illegally placed containers, which beside constituting obstruction of the quay apron, were also used to store materials some of which are combustible. Subsequent visit to the jetty revealed that nothing was done on the directive.

    “At the expiration of the seven-day notice of 16th November 2015, the Port Management discovered that they did not comply with the notice within the given period and subsequently directed the clearing of the obstructions. This operation was carried out on the 1st of December 2015 in the presence of the Port Police and the Port Security.

    “It is pertinent to state that the Authority’s action is in line with its responsibility to ensure that the common user facility, under which the subject facility belongs, adheres strictly to its Health, Safety and Environment (HSE) Policy,” he said.

    The image maker said NPA would continue to reflect “our commitment in ensuring safety, efficiency and protection of the marine environment”.

     

  • Guinness Nigeria targets 75% local content, assures on future outlook

    Guinness Nigeria targets 75% local content, assures on future outlook

    By 2018, three-quarters of materials and products from Guinness Nigeria Plc would be developed from Nigerian sources as the Nigerian subsidiary of Diageo Plc moves to deepen its Nigerian root and drive growths with Nigeria-based innovations and resources.

    Guinness Nigeria was established in 1962 with Nigeria being the first country to have a Guinness brewery built outside of the British Isles. It remains one of the earliest listed companies on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE).

    At a pre-annual general meeting media briefing in Lagos, managing director, Guinness Nigeria Plc, Mr. Peter Ndegwa, said one of the priorities of the company is to increase its local content from the current 43 per cent to 75 per cent in the next three years. This will have multiplier effect of increased jobs and opportunities for Nigerian small and medium enterprises and suppliers.

    He outlined that Guinness Nigeria was poised to strengthen and accelerate its premium core brand, support innovation as well as build and constantly extend route to consumers at the right price and right quality.

    Ndegwa, who resumed as the chief executive last September, assured that as a global company, Guinness Nigerian will continue to do everything humanly possible to adhere to highest quality standards.

    It would be recalled that National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) had few weeks ago slammed a N1 billion fine on Guinness Nigeria as “administrative charge” for alleged non-compliance with certain guidelines on raw materials revalidation and disposal.

    Chairman, Guinness Nigeria, Chief Babatunde Savage, said the company was doing everything to ensure the issues with NAFDAC are resolved amicably.

    He said while the circumstances that led to the imposition of the fine was regrettable, it was not a deliberate effort on the part of the company to flout extant rules and guidelines for quality control.

    “As a global company we set store for the ideals of quality, which has earned us accolades from around the globe and even locally from our regulators, including NAFDAC. The material was not even found inside our factory. It was from one our hired warehouses. The raw materials had not even gone through our brewery process. This is just a one-off thing that would be resolved amicably,” Savage said.

    He noted that the company has enjoyed a very cordial relationship with the regulator overtime and was desirous of maintaining that in the future ahead.

    “As a law abiding corporate citizen we’re convinced this matter will be resolved and further strengthen our bond with the regulator,” Savage said.

    He said board of directors has approved N3.50 dividend per share, totaling N4.82 billion, which represents 62 per cent of distributable profit for the year, adding that the dividend would be paid as soon as it is ratified by the shareholders at the annual general meeting scheduled for Abuja tomorrow.

    While giving performance highlight of the company, Ndegwa said in the period under review, sales continued to grow despite a challenging trading environment, being three per cent ahead of the same quarter last year.

    He noted that despite the sales growth, gross profit declined by 12 per cent due to the impact of exchange rate devaluation, inflation, an increased share of value brands, together with the phasing of costs.

    “Marketing, distribution, administrative and other expenses at N8 billion were two per cent ahead of the prior year. Reported operating profit at N1.4 billion is 50 per cent below the previous year but is significantly impacted by the phasing of costs which is expected to reverse during the rest of the year,” Ndegwa said.

     

  • ‘How local content is aiding foreign, direct investment’

    ‘How local content is aiding foreign, direct investment’

    The Executive Secretary, Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), Ernest Nwapa, has said the country is creating a new set of indigenous operators who will soon attract Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) worth billions of dollars.

    Speaking at the launch of Future Concerns Safety Office in Lagos, Nwapa said the industry was experiencing a shift from small to bigger ticket transactions, going by the projects executed by indigenous operators.

    He said were operators forging alliances with bigger firms abroad to finance big ticket transactions adding that the partnership between MSA, a United States–based manufacturer and distributor of safety equipment and Future Concerns Safety Limited, would impact on the local content policy.

    He said: “Without doubt, the local content policy of the government is yielding fruits. Gone are the days when Nigerians celebrated the award of fat contracts in the industry as the only dividend of local content.

    “We have gone beyond that. Nigerian entrepreneurs are now taking on bigger roles by attracting Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) and forging alliances with global brands with the purpose of technology transfer and capacity development that could aid the progress of the local content policy.

    “I congratulate Future Concerns on this milestone and urge you to move to the next level which is the sustenance phase. Maintain the standards that swayed the decision of MSA by delivering consistently quality service to your clients.”

    Nwapa said the oil and gas industry is recording appreciable progress due to the improved participation of indigenous operators like Future Concerns, who have taken the bulls by the horns through their substantial investment in the industry.

    Nwapa said local operators have taking advantage of the enabling law to improve their investments, adding that their efforts have validated the position of the Federal Government to improve local participation in oil and gas industry.
    The company’s the Chief Executive officer, Tony Oguike, said a climate that would allow local companies to operate well is emerging, adding that a lot of synergies is taking place in the industry.
    Oguike said local firms that want to play well must have enduring business propositions, arguing that foreign-owned companies are looking for those that can compliment their efforts.
    This company came out with what he describes as ‘’ 3&T business propositions, noting the idea culminated in the partnership forged with MSA to provide a centre that would help in providing safety services in the petroleum and allied sectors.
    Oguike said: “The 3 S&T propositions include sales of MSA equipment; spares locally available; service and maintenance made locally, and training with global certification locally. That is what MSA indentified and nurtured a few years ago, and for the first time gave us the rights to build an independent service and maintenance centre in West Africa.”
    Mr. Colin Oliver, Managing Director, Sub-Saharan Africa, MSA, hailed the enterprising spirit of Oguike and the professionalism and integrity of Future Concerns. He noted that the relationship between the two companies has been further strengthened by the core values of quality service, integrity and responsiveness that Future Concerns has displayed all through the years of the relationship.
    He said: “MSA is no doubt the biggest brand globally in safety equipment manufacturing and maintenance. We have provided solutions to various clients across the world. The African market, particularly Nigeria, is very huge and we are excited to be a major player in the industry. Our partnership with Future Concerns so far has enabled us to provide better tailor-made solutions and services to our clients.”

  • Local content key to growth says society

    Nigeria will remain backward if nothing is done to increase local content in the information communication technology (ICT), comity of developing nations, President, Nigerian Computer Society (NCS), Sir Demola Aladekomo, has said.

    He said countries, such as India and China to grew their economies because they made local content policy.

    “We are not satisfied with the local value addition to the ICT sector. We are certainly not there. We have not started scratching the surface yet. Part of the advocacy we are saying is that they should engage our people, engage Nigerians. If you do not engage Nigerians, how do we get the experience? It is like a young graduate that is looking for employment and you are asking him/her to give you five, six years experience. Somebody must give him that opportunity,” he said.

    According to him, India is where it is today in software and manufacturing because it gave her citizens the opportunity, arguing that software now contributes substantially to India’s gross domestic product. Said he: “The Indians gave it to themselves in manufacturing and software development, everything we need must come from our place, so people were compelled to be developing software. China also said anything we are going to have must come from here (China). They started manufacturing. Where are they today?”

    According to him, as the country moves to institutionalise a cash-less economy, the Federal Government should give indigenous original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) the opportunity to be part of the revolution. “Now we are going to deploy one million PoS (point of sales) terminals. Are we going to import everything? We are going to bring in about 200 million smartcards, are we going to import them? ATM (automated teller machines), switches, computers (are all going to be needed?). Now, we are going to deploy about a million computers in the next one year, do you want to import everything? You must look at the local assembly firms; you must look at the local sector companies. How do you acquire the capacity to do it? Have you gone out of your way to give them the platforms to acquire this capacity? It is not going to be a miracle; it has to be pursued by all,” Demola said.

  • ‘Local content will aid telecoms growth’

    THE Federal Government will implement local content in the information communication telecommunication (ICT) sector to ensure development and drive the growth of indigenous original equipment manufacturers (OEMs).

    To achieve this, the government is working on a framework to push the policy.

    Director-General, National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Prof Sergeant Cleopas-Angaye, who made this known to The Nation in Lagos, said when the government completes the framework, local content development will form a major part of the ICT sector.

    According to him, to come out with a good framework, there is need for research to explore how best to use what is available in the country for economic development, adding that it is only by so doing that the nation could move forward technologically.

    He said: “We have a whole research going on local content. Research on how we can use our facilities to actually improve our economy. If we continuue to import, we cannot achieve anything meaningful. We need to encourage our people to use the materials we have and use it maximally.”

    “We are committed (to promoting local content). We are coming out with a framework for local content. We are coming out with the framework so that whatever we do, we will actually include local content,” he said.

    According to him, since no nation is an island, the ICT firms that have been doing business in the country have also helped to grow the economy. This, he said, is reflected in outsourcing and cloud computing business that is fast gaining grounds in the country.

    “We are collaborating with other people. We have to share. We have to partner; we have to collaborate,” he added.