The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Muhammadu Buhari

  • Nigeria, Indonesia to strengthen economic ties

    Nigeria, Indonesia to strengthen economic ties

    Vice President Yemi Osinbajo has disclosed that Nigeria and Indonesia have agreed to work together to increase the level of economic cooperation between both countries.

    Prof. Osinbajo spoke on Tuesday morning at a bilateral meeting he held with his Indonesian counterpart, Vice President Jusuf Kalla, on the sidelines of the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative ( EITI ) Beneficial Ownership Transparency Conference in Jakarta, Indonesia.

    According to a statement by the Senior Special Assistant on Media and publicity, Laolu Akande, Osinbajo said that Nigeria is open for business and more investment.

    He said “We are looking forward to more Indonesian investments especially in the manufacturing sector in Nigeria, trying to exploit our local raw materials,”

    He also informed Mr. Kalla that the Buhari administration has implemented reforms that have made the Nigerian business environment “a more favourable environment.”

    In his own remarks, the Indonesian Vice President said his country is also ready for more economic cooperation with African countries, especially Nigeria.

    Vice President Kalla also conveyed his greetings to President Muhammadu Buhari and asked after his health, to which Prof Osinbajo responded that the President was doing very well.

    The Nigerian Vice President then expressed appreciation to the Indonesian government and extended greetings to President Joko Widodo.

    Other issues discussed by the two Vice Presidents included how both countries can collaborate more in the Agriculture and agro-allied sector, and also in palm oil research and production.

  • Dickson calls for bi-partisan approach to restructuring Nigeria

    Dickson calls for bi-partisan approach to restructuring Nigeria

    Gov. Seriake Dickson of Bayelsa has urged the Federal Government to set up a bi-partisan body to develop framework for the restructuring of the country.

    Dickson in statement issued by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr Francis Agbo on Monday in Yenagoa, said restructuring debate should cut across party lines as the issues at stake were relevant and fundamental.

    He said the bi-partisan body should consist of federal officials, political parties, governors, state and national assemblies, organised labour, socio-cultural organizations and other critical stakeholders.

    The governor also advised President Muhammadu Buhari to urgently take steps to unite country as the nation go through a difficult phase in its history.

    Dickson believes that proponents of restructuring “are true patriots”, adding that the National Assembly alone would not be able to amend the Constitution sufficiently to address concerns and fears of Nigerians.

    “The present attitude of the Federal Government and the President on the issue of restructuring is something I disagree with.

    “I believe that this country has to have a meeting and discuss how we can make Nigeria more stable, prosperous and a Nigeria that can last and stand the test of time.

    “Those of us talking about restructuring are the true lovers of this country. There are those who feel they have advantages they want to protect and preserve, so they want the status quo maintained.

    “In that case, you are either talking about individual, regional or ethnic interests, so such people are not talking of the Nigerian interest.

    “Those of us calling for restructuring are protecting and preserving Nigeria’s corporate interest. The buck stops at the table of Mr. President. He has got to rise up to the occasion and unify this country more.

    “The country is too divided and left to drift for too long with this division. The division is getting deeper and deeper by the day and that is not good for the country we love.

    “Nobody should tell anybody in Bayelsa or any Ijaw or Niger Delta man that they love Nigeria more than us.

    “They don’t even understand the sacrifices we are making to keep Nigeria going. So, when we talk about restructuring, we are talking as Nigerian patriots.” Dickson stated.

    NAN

  • Nigeria must borrow responsibly – Shehu Sani

    Nigeria must borrow responsibly – Shehu Sani

    The Chairman, Senate Committee on Local and Foreign Debts, Sen. Shehu Sani, says if Nigeria must borrow, it must borrow responsibly.

    Sani gave the advice in a meeting with the Ministers of Transportation; Finance; Budget and National Planning and Power, Works and Housing on Thursday in Abuja.

    The meeting was in connection with President Muhammadu Buhari’s loan request of 5.5 billion dollars.

    Sani said: “the committee has the mandate to examine the merits and otherwise of the current loan request of 5.5 billion dollars of the president.

    “If we must bequeath to the future generation a pile of debt, it must be justified with commensurate infrastructural proof of the value of the debt.

    “The payment plan of this debt will undoubtedly last the length of our lifetimes and possibly beyond.

    “We must leave behind a legacy that will appease and answer the questions the next generation of Nigerians will ask,” Sani said.

    In his submission, Minister of Transportation, Chibuike Amaechi, said that the central rail line project connecting several communities of northern and southern Nigeria would be completed in June, next year.

    According to him, 17 coaches are expected to arrive in November and out of the number, 10 will be deployed to Abuja-Kaduna rail line while the remaining seven will be deployed to the Itakpe-Warri rail line.

    Amaechi said that part of the money being requested now for approval by the senate was to execute the rail projects covering Kano-Kaduna, and Lagos-Ibadan networks.

    He informed the senators that Buhari’s directive was that all the 36 state capitals of Nigeria must be connected by the ongoing rail projects.

    Also providing insight into the loan request, the Director-General, Debt Management Office, Mrs Patience Oniha, explained that the loans have sustainable benefits that would live beyond the present generation of Nigerians.

    “What we should take away is that we are going into projects whose benefits don’t go away.

    “The roads don’t go away, the schools don’t go away, and the hospitals don’t go away but all that we need to do is to maintain them properly and that is the explanation I want to make on that,” she said.

    NAN

  • Buhari approves payment of pension to retired Biafran police officers

    Buhari approves payment of pension to retired Biafran police officers

    Succour has come the way of police officers who served in the defunct Biafran Police during the 30 months Civil War as President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the payment of pension to those who were granted presidential pardon in 2000.

    The Pension Transitional Arrangement Directorate ( PTAD ) yesterday announced that about 162 of such retired police officers and 57 next of kin of those who died will be paid their pension benefits in the first phase of the payment with effect from tomorrow in Enugu.

    A statement from the PTAD management said after their pardon, a verification exercise was conducted for them by the defunct Police Pension office and recently by PTAD and the Police Service Commission.

    The statement reads: “The general public would recall that Nigeria witnessed an ugly Civil War between July, 1967 and January, 1970 and as a result of that unfortunate period in our history, some members of the Armed Forces, the Nigeria Police and paramilitary officers who took part with the secessionist were dismissed from the service.

    “The dismissal of those officers was commuted to retirement in the year 2000 through a Presidential Amnesty granted on May 29, 2000 by the Administration of the then President, Olusegun Obasanjo.

    “A verification exercise was conducted for the pardoned officers by the defunct Police Pension Office and recently PTAD on one hand and the Police Service Commission on the other.

    “Despite the presidential pardon and verification of these officers, many of them remained unpaid years after the pardon.  However, the present administration under the able leadership of President, Muhammadu Buhari has graciously given approval for the payment of pension entitlements to these officers and their next of kin.”

  • Senate seeks appointment of separate power minister

    Senate seeks appointment of separate power minister

    The poor power generation and distribution in the country took the center stage in the Senate yesterday.

    After over one hour of debate on ways and means to improve the near moribund power sector, the upper chamber resolved to ask President Muhammadu Buhari to appoint a separate power minister with further delay.

    The Senate insisted that the appointment of a separate power minister would ensure concentration in the power sector.

    Senator Francis Alimikhena (Edo North) who moved the motion for the appointment of a separate minister of power, posited that such a measure would assist the country to shore up the power sector.

    The senate resolution followed the adoption of a motion on “The need to establish and delegate Special Purpose Vehicles to execute and operate Major Power Sector Development Projects,” sponsored by Senator Mustapha Bukar (Katsina North)

    Senator Bukar in his lead debate said that the National Assembly enacted the Electric Power Sector Reform (EPSR) Act, 2005 on March 11, 2005, which kick-started the process of privatization of the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry (NESI) towards developing a Competitive Electricity Market with the establishment of the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) to provide for the licensing and regulation of the entire value chain of the Nigerian Electricity Market (NEM)

    He also noted that the privatization exercise became effective on November 1, 2013 when the unbundled Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) was sold and transferred to successful bidders of the 6 Generation Companies (GENCOs) and the 11 Distribution Companies (DISCOs), while the ownership and control of the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) was retained by the Federal Government for strategic reasons.

    He said “Further notes that in its quest to bridge the power gap for sustained economic growth in Nigeria by adding significant new generation capacity to Nigeria’s electricity supply system, the Federal Government conceived the National Integrated Power Project (NIPP) in 2004, which metamorphosed into Niger Delta Power Holding Company Limited (NDPHC) incorporated in 2005.

    Read also: http://staging.thenationonlineng.net/buhari-remains-only-credible-candidate-for-2019-election/

    “Aware that this institution oversees Generation portfolio consisting of 10 gas-fired power plants with cumulative design capacity of 4,774 MW; Total Asset value of $8.5 Bn including generation projects accompanied by supporting transmission, distribution and gas infrastructure projects and due to gas supply shortage and uncompleted transmission projects, only about 1,200 MW was accessible to the national grid at that time.

    “Consequently upon the commencement of the privatization and establishment of the Nigerian Electricity Market, the role of the Federal Ministry of Power, Works & Housing (FMPW&H) was restricted to Policy and oversight of the autonomous agencies operating in the Nigerian Power Sector; these are the:

    Transmission Company of Nigeria; National Power Training Institute of Nigeria; Nigerian Electricity Liability Management Limited (NELMCO); Nigerian Electricity Management Services Agency (NEMSA), Rural Electrification Agency

    “Notes that considering the need for continuous development of the Power Sector infrastructure, the Federal Government remains committed to developing project initiatives in order to increase generating capacity and diffuse the energy mix beyond thermal generation to renewable energy, such as hydro-power, solar power and wind energy.

    Consequently, certain project initiatives were retained for direct supervision by the Federal Ministry of Power. These included, but are not limited to:

     3,050 MW Mambilla Hydropower project; 700 MW Zungeru Hydropower project,  215 MW Kaduna Thermal Power project; 50 MW Katsina Wind Power project

    “Further Notes that annually significant and incremental sums are appropriated towards these projects and the National Assembly has been approving such appropriation in the interest of conceived intention to improved generation capacity to the Nigerian citizens;

    “Worried that there are challenges of managing such projects because the Federal Ministry of Power, as currently constituted, does not have the required professional competence and resources to effectively execute these projects, hence they resort to engaging contractors and consultants for every project development activity;

    “Also worried that the implementation of large scale projects is always fraught with the risk of cost and schedule overrun, with attendant consequences on overall contract sum;

    “Notes that turnkey Engineering, Procurement & Construction (EPC) projects have FIDIC Conditions of Contract being applicable with strict provisions for liquidated damages, such as fixed contract sum and set delivery period. Unfortunately, these conditions of contract cannot be met under the setting of a ministry;

    “Further notes that necessary project management controls needed for effective delivery are not enforceable on the Federal Ministry of Power; these are:

    Cost Control, Schedule Control, Quality Assurance (Q-plan, Q-criteria, etc.), Procurement Control (personnel, inspection and expedition), Design Control (Design compliance and value engineering), Change Order Control (Management of scope variations); Document Control (Review & timely approval of designs).

    “Worried that with the engagement of multitudes of consultants, there is a risk of lack of ownership and knowledge transfer upon completion and commissioning of the projects, which would hamper proper management of the facilities when in operation. This is the current situation being experienced at the 215 MW Kaduna Power plant under construction by the Ministry;

    “Aware that Nigeria has had successful record of implementing several mega infrastructure projects to completion and it is imperative to draw on such models utilized for refineries, fertilizer plants and steel mills (Kaduna and Port Harcourt Refineries, National Fertilizer Company of Nigeria Plc (NAFCON), Delta Steel Company Limited and the 3 Inland Rolling Mills). Each of these Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs) had full management team and foundation staff to manage the execution of the project on site. Upon completion, the Project Managers were appointed as the Managing Directors, while full-stream staff members were recruited prior to commissioning the projects;

    “Further aware that when the Federal Government was keen to build Gas based power plants, it created the Niger Delta Power Holding Company of Nigeria (NDPHC) to build, manage and operate these schemes. Although some of the power generating plants have been sold, NDPHC has continued to own and run these plants while the Government is preparing to sell the remaining plants;

    “Worried that with the privatization of the power sector, the Federal Ministry of Power, Works & Housing is rapidly expanding its project implementation activities rather than   limit its role to General Policy direction pursuant to Section 33 of the EPSR Act 2005.

    This attitude has not given the regulatory body, Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) and other agencies created by the Reform Act the enabling environment to develop their capacity to regulate and create the electricity market required to attract investment in the sector. This assertion is evidenced by the fact that over N100billion has been provided for the construction of power projects by the ministry under the 2017 budget. Recently, the Federal government announced the approval of over $5billion for the construction of the Mambila hydro project under the ministry.”

    Also read: Rich Nigerians should pay more tax- Senate

    The Katsina State lawmaker prayed the Senate to accordingly resolve to urge the Federal Government to immediately incorporate SPVs for the implementation of the following alternative energy projects:a. Hydropower Projects; b. Solar Power Projects; and c. Wind Power Projects;

    Urge the Federal Ministry of Power, Works and Housing to use gas as the source of Energy for the Kaduna Project in accordance with the original project concept and the MOU signed with gas suppliers to complete the project as  adequate provision has been made for the project in the 2017 Budget;

    Urge the Federal Government to employ qualified management team to take charge of the project development in the SPVs and gradually resource the companies in readiness for full operations when the projects  are commissioned;

     Urge the Federal Government to transfer all generation, transmission and rural electrification projects to the respective agencies for proper administration;

    Urge the above-named SPV’s when created to comply with the provisions of the Electric Power Sector Reform (EPSR) Act by applying to NERC for the generation licenses and to the TCN for Grid inter-connection approval.

    All the prayers were adopted.

  • Plateau CAN urges Christians to unite to tackle challenges

    Plateau CAN urges Christians to unite to tackle challenges

    The Christian Association of Nigeria ( CAN ), Plateau chapter, has decried the lack of unity among Christians, and declared that the travails of the faithful would only worsen if the Church remained divided.

    “The Church today is faced with a lot of problems, but the major one is lack of unity. The challenges are massive; we can only tackle them if we are united and speak with one voice,” Dr. Soja Bewarang, its Chairman, said on Tuesday.

    Bewarang spoke at the 2017 Unity Service and Prayer, organised for Christians in the Central Senatorial Zone of the state, and held in Bokkos.

    The service, an annual event held in the three senatorial zones of Plateau, is targeted at bringing all Christians together to encourage them to pray for peace, progress and tranquility.

    The CAN chairman emphasised the need for a united Church, stressing that such unity would please the Lord and make Him open the windows of blessings to the faithful.

    He said that Christians, as the body of Christ, must be united and focused so as to collectively achieve the principal goal of serving their creator.

    “If Christians are not united, it means that they cannot approach one another in love and can never be good witnesses for Christ.

    “We may belong to different denominations and Churches, but we all belong to the Lord and
    must love one another to form a perfect bond of unity so that the enemy will not take advantage of our disunity and cause more havoc.

    “We must put aside our biases, prejudices and differences and dwell more on the things
    that unite us for the common mission. This is a bold step we must take collectively, because it is indeed a step in the right direction.”

    Bewarang said that there was noting as tragic as a Church divided, adding that the tragedy was even more disastrous if the cause of the division was self-inflicted.

    He urged Christians to be alert to the devices of satan whose first step was usually to distract the Church from its profound mission by planting seeds of internal discord.

    Bewarang traced the division in the Church to the “general workings of human corruption that had often distracted and broke the peace of societies”.

    Quoting the scriptures, he pointed out that wars and fighting were products of human lust that spring from ignorance, error, unbelief, prejudice, pride, passion, selfishness and carnality.

    He regretted that divisions had become entrenched in the Church with efforts to unite the folk getting more difficult by the day.

    On Christians’ involvement in partisan politics, Bewarang rejected suggestions that politics was a dirty terrain that good Christians must avoid.

    “Politics simply means the ‘science of government’’; government inevitably has profound consequences for those who are governed. It is unthinkable that the Christian voice should not be heard in the political arena.

    “There are other people, who believe that Christians in responsible positions can do great good and that political power should not be allowed to be a monopoly of those who might abuse it. I agree with such people.

    “A good Christian politician can persuade his fellow citizens to raise their standards. Wilberforce abolished slave trade; Shaftesbury and his friends prevented child labor. Both groups acted as Christian politicians on Christian principles.”

    He said that CAN was motivating Plateau Christians to be agents of change by scrutinizing the activities of the various stakeholders in politics.

    Bewarang, who regretted the endemic corruption permeating all sectors of the nation, lamented that the fear of God was no longer in the hearts of many Nigerians.

    “The situation is bad, but we should be hopeful as Christians; we must trust God that things will take a positive shape. We must continue to condemn violence and encourage peaceful coexistence,” he said.

    The CAN chairman commended President Muhammadu Buhari’s efforts toward fighting corruption and reviving the agriculture and solid minerals sectors, but said that the efforts were being thwarted by persistent attacks on rural communities.

    “Farming and mining are carried out in the fields. The fields have been dangerous with persistent attacks by gunmen. Government must strive to end the attacks to restore hope to the populace,” he said.

    Bewarang also spoke on the Plateau Local Government elections slated for Feb. 17, 2018, and declared that the Church would not tolerate money politics, smear campaigns, denominational and tribal politics.

    “Such vices have robbed us of credible leaders in the past and must be discarded. We shall encourage Plateau residents to choose leaders on merit regardless of party, tribe, religion and denomination,” he said.

    Dignitaries at the service included Plateau Governor, Simon Lalong, his deputy, Prof. Soni Tyoden, former Plateau Governor, Joshua Dariye, members of the national and state assemblies, religious and traditional leaders.

    NAN

  • Fire guts Kachikwu’s residence

    Fire guts Kachikwu’s residence

    The private residence of Ibe Kachikwu, minster of state for petroleum resources,  located in Asokoro, Abuja caught fire on Sunday evening.

    According to online sources, the fire is said to have  started in his bedroom as a result of a suspected electrical fault to the air conditioners.

    “Kachikwu was not at home when it happened, but thankfully the fire service reacted quickly and put out the fire before things could go out of hand,”  our reporter gathered.

    Details are scanty on the extent of damage to the house but we understand that nobody was hurt in the incident.

    The minister has been in the news recently over his letter to President Muhammadu Buhari in which he complained about insubordination and humiliation by Maikanti Baru, the group managing director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation ( NNPC ).

    More details soon…

  • FG committed to ending poverty – FCT Minister

    FG committed to ending poverty – FCT Minister

    The FCT Minister Malam Muhammad Bello says that the Federal Government ( FG ) is committed to putting an end to poverty in the country.

    Bello stated this at a charity football match tagged: ‘Kick – Out Poverty’ organised to mark 2017 International Day for the Eradication of Poverty on Sunday in Abuja.

    According to him, one of the greatest challenges confronting humanity in the 21st Century is chronic and excruciating poverty that is unsparing of race and creed or even nationality.

    “Combating this obstacle to good quality living has been global issue for as long as the existence of humanity.

    “The present administration through its social safety and economic programmes consisting of the N-Power scheme, the school feeding programme as well as the conditional cash transfer scheme are all geared towards ending poverty.

    “The dispensation is moving towards ending the phenomenon circle in which many Nigerians have unfortunately found themselves,’’ he said.

    The minister said the FCT is keying into all the programmes while embarking on several others of its own.

    “We are, however, all aware that the economic downturn has made it quite clear that government alone cannot meet all its obligations in this regard.

    “That is why when non-governmental organisations such as Elizabeth Foundation come with laudable programmes such as this football match today to partner with us in this anti-poverty fight, we welcome them with open arms.

    “The aim of this football match is to create public awareness on the problems posed by grinding poverty and what we all can do as individuals or group to combat it,’’ he added.

    Bello urged both the spectators and players to leave the match venue with a clear determination to do all that is possible to end the poverty vicious circle.

    He appealed to the legislative arm of government, who happened to be part of the participants of the match to enact laws that will provide succour for the needy.

    “And the celebrities should use their fame to draw attention to the dangers poverty poses to the society,’’ he said.

    Speaking earlier, Mrs Angel Adelami, Founder of Elizabeth Foundation said the foundation is vision of like-minded persons who believe that poverty is neither normal nor acceptable.

    “We are concern with the plight of widows suffering cultural malpractices, children orphaned or displaced by conflicts and products of broken homes.

    “The common denominator for all these groups is that they are all poor. We at Elizabeth Foundation believe that poverty is a disease.

    “Like measles, tuberculosis, malaria and ebola, poverty is curable and can be eliminated. Our present areas of focus are provision of clean potable water, sanitation and skills acquisition,’’ she said.

    She said that without the active collaboration and partnership of the stakeholders like government, NGOs, corporate bodies, the Media and victims of poverty, the goals cannot be achieved

    “Therefore, in partnership with government, we specifically note the place of the legislature as an important branch that can change the course of the ugly trend through purposeful legislation.

    “We must also ensure that government interventions aimed at poverty reduction achieved meaningful results and targets,’’ she added.

    Adelami said that the foundation need to raise at least N200 million to enable them undertake several projects and programmes across the country.

    “We sincerely hope and appeal that you will meaningfully contribute both morally and financially to the fund in order to increase our capacity to kick out poverty in Nigeria,’’ she said.

    Also, the Speaker House of Representatives, Mr Yakubu Dogara congratulated the foundation for coming up with such great idea.

    He assured Nigerians that the legislative arm would do all that is beneficial to all Nigerians.

    He called on executive arm of government to do the needful to give the nation the best.

    The novelty match between the Team House of Representatives and the Team Nigeria Media ended two goals to nil in favour of the Team House of Rep.

    NAN

  • Ekweremadu lauds FG on rehabilitation of Enugu-Ebonyi road

    Ekweremadu lauds FG on rehabilitation of Enugu-Ebonyi road

    The Deputy President of the Senate, Mr Ike Ekweremadu, has commended the effort of the Federal Government on the rehabilitation of the 41-kilometre Ozalla-Akpugo-Amagunze-Ihuokpara-Nkomoro federal road.

    The road, earlier awarded in 2010, stopped due to poor funding, but was re-awarded by the present federal administration following the intervention of Gov. Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi and Ekweremadu, and other federal legislators from Enugu State.

    A statement by Ekweremadu’s Special Adviser (Media), Uche Anichukwu on Sunday in Abuja, quoted Ekweremadu as thanking President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration for making funds available for the project.

    He explained that the road had been awarded as a full project under the Federal Ministry of Power, Works, and Housing.

    Ekweremadu commended Gov. Ugwuanyi for his cooperation with the members of the National Assembly toward ensuring the reactivation of the project.

    He added that the governor mandated them to ensure that no federal road in the State was abandoned.

    “I would, therefore, like to express our special gratitude to the Federal Government for making funds available to continue this project and also call on them to step up efforts on roads in the South East”.

    On his part, Ugwuanyi appreciated the synergy among the federal lawmakers from the State, which he said, contributed highly to the commencement of work on the road.

    “What we are witnessing here is the effect of synergy among the National Assembly Members from Enugu State led by Senator Ike Ekweremadu.

    “On behalf of Ndi Enugu, we appreciate the Federal Government for acceding to the request by the State for the road rehabilitation, which will bring about socio-economic transformation to the people”, he said.

    Earlier, Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Works, Hon. Tobi Okechukwu, and Member representing Nkanu East/Nkanu West Federal Constituency, Hon. Chukwuemeka Ujam, said the project would help to boost economic activities in the communities.

    NAN

  • Nigeria, Morocco signs MoU on agric insurance coverage

    Nigeria, Morocco signs MoU on agric insurance coverage

    The Nigeria Incentive Based Risk Sharing System for Agricultural Lending ( NIRSAL ) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with two Moroccan firms to expand agric insurance coverage in the country.

    The two firms are Mutuelle Agricole Marocaine d’Assurance ( MAMDA ) and MAMDA Reassurance (MAMDA-RE).

    The partnership would also cover the expansion of agricultural insurance products in the country.

    Signing the MoU in Abuja on Friday, the Managing Director of NIRSAL, Mr Aliyu Abdulhameed, said the partnership was a product of the bilateral agreement signed between President Muhammadu Buhari and King Mohammed VI of Morocco in December 2016.

    He noted that the MoU would cover `index based insurance products’ which included weather, pricing and yield to protect farmers’ investments in case of flood, fire or pestilence.

    Abdulhameed said the move was to de-risk agriculture, facilitate flow of finance to the sector to diversify the economy, attain self-sufficiency in food production and entrench inclusive economic growth.

    According to him, NIRSAL’s target is to move insurance coverage from about 0.5 million to 3.8 million agricultural primary producers to help reduce credit risks, increase lending and investments across the agriculture value chain.

    Abdulhameed said the partnership would involve advanced technical training on surveying aggregated farmlands, large commercial and plantations farms and loss assessment methods.

    Others are technical training on Geographic Information System (GIS), technology for agriculture and Remote Sensing application in Agricultural Crop Insurance.

    “This signing means a lot to the agriculture sector of the country.

    “As a risk management corporation for agriculture and agribusiness of the Central Bank of Nigeria, it is important for us to have capacity for risk analysis, management and mitigation.

    “For us to be able to deliver on our mandate of enabling the flow of finance and investment into the agriculture value chain, the capacity to do risk analysis, management is a second nature to us.

    “What you have seen today is symbolic, NISRAL leveraging the experience of MAMDA, the number one agriculture insurance company of Morocco, to learn the tools and skills of risk management in agriculture.’’

    Mr Khalid Abdellaoui, the Deputy CEO of MAMDA and MAMDA-RE, commended the Federal Government and NISRAL for the MoU.

    He said the companies were committed to assisting Nigeria to expand and move agriculture insurance forward in the country.

    Also speaking, Mr Moha Ou Ali-Tagma, the Morocco Ambassador to Nigeria, said that agriculture was a very important sector in Morocco, contributing over 20 billion dollars annually to the economy.

    “For our countries, it is important to develop the agriculture sector. This is a very important step in the long way of the strategic partnership between the two countries.

    “It correspondents with the interest of the King Mohammed the VI and President Muhammadu Buhari.

    “Nigeria can count on Morocco and Morocco can count on Nigeria,’’ Ali-Tagma said.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that MAMDA, through its subsidiary MAMDA-Re launched in 2014 enables African partners to have access to global reinsurance capacity for agricultural risk.

    NAN