The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Netherlands

  • Netherlands trains 20 senior immigration officers 

    The Federal Government has taken a step further to enhance security measures and efficiency in the Nigeria Immigration Services (NIS).

    Twenty senior officers of the NIS have received specialised training in security, reception and treatment of visitors within and outside the country.

    The officers, who were trained by officials from the Netherlands, cut across the ranks of chief superintendent of immigration (CSI) to assistant comptroller of immigration (ACI).

    The select group of officers, who are expected to replicate the training at zonal and command levels, will proceed to Netherlands for further training.

    Speaking with journalists at the NIS headquarters in Abuja, the Public Relations Officer (PRO), Sunday James, an ACI, said among others, the programme was geared towards attitudinal change. According to James, the Comptroller-General (CG) of Immigration, Mr. Muhammed Babandede, enjoined the officers to ensure that the Service does not remain the same at the end of the programme.

    He said: “The concept is commitment to the service, a training programme aimed at changing the attitude of individuals that participate in that programme in the way they usher, receive and treat visitors.”

    In the same vain, in view of the need to ensure effective and efficient service delivery to the public as regards accessibility, acquisition and procurement of our facilities such as Visa on Arrival (VoA), Temporary Work Permit (TWP) and other categories of Visa, the e-passport and other travel documents, the Service has dedicated official channels to address any issues bordering on service delivery in order to enhance revenue generation for the Federal Government locally and in our Foreign missions.

    A statement issued yesterday by the NIS spokesman, Sunday James said: “Any member of our publics who have complaints or issues to raise such complains as:

    Operations at the airports- especially issues about overstay/delay in clearance.

    Paid for our facilities (Visas, e-Passport, and Residence Permit) but the amount was not reflected in the receipt correctly.

    Unnecessary delay in acquiring e-Passports after long period of application.

  • FRSC calls for infrastructure adjustment in Abuja

    FRSC calls for infrastructure adjustment in Abuja

    The Federal Road Safety Corps ( FRSC ) says some infrastructural adjustments are needed in Abuja to support the proposed introduction of bicycle transport in the nation’s capital city.

    The Corps’ Public Education Officer, Mr Bisi Kazeem, stated this in an interview with newsmen in Abuja on Sunday.

    Kazeem said the plan also required amendment of the National Road Safety Regulations to include provisions for the safety of cyclists.

    He spoke against the backdrop of the recent announcement of the proposed bicycle policy by the National Council on Transportation ( NCT ) after its 15th meeting in Sokoto.

    “As a pilot scheme, if Abuja is taken, there is need for restructuring of some intersections before we can kick start it successfully.

    “FRSC studied all the road networks in Abuja, and we have identified the gaps and recommended measures to address the.

    “During the study, which we carried out with officials of the FCTA (Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA), we found out that all roads and streets have provisions for bicycle lanes in the design, but at the point of construction the lanes were either ignored, merged with pedestrian walkways, making the walkways too wide, or were turned into green areas.

    “I think it is only on Yakubu Gowon Way in Asokoro that the lane is being implemented. So, a key concern is the need for re-engineering of intersections and traffic lights to provide for cyclists.’’

    The Minister of Transport, Mr Rotimi Amaechi, who made the announcement after the NCT meeting, had said Abuja was chosen as pilot because it already had cycling facilities.

    Amaechi stated that introduction of bicycle transport would reduce road traffic congestion and environmental pollution as well as improve the health of riders among other benefits.

    Speaking in the same vain, Kazeem said that the FRSC would work with other stakeholder for its successful implementation of the policy.

    “In fact, FRSC commenced the promotion of urban cycling since 2011; it is not new to us. Since then we have built collaborations and established and funded the National Stakeholders Committee for four years running comprising all government agencies relating to transport, private sector and unions for four years running.

    “The committee developed the first draft National Cycling Policy, which could not be approved by the previous administration owing to bureaucracy.

    “We commenced the national bicycle week and hosted three editions. We have understudied different countries’ cycling systems for domestication, and we have studied all the road networks in Abuja which is the pilot.

    “So, it is a welcome development and the policy announcement actually came as a result of a presentation that the FRSC made at that council of transport summit.

    “For us, the announcement by the ministry confirmed our several years of advocacy and drive to make cycling a mode of transport.

    “We are ready and we are going to work with other stakeholders to see to the success of this policy.’’

    Kazeem stated that cycling was already part of the FRSC public education programmes.

    NAN recalls that eight officers of the Corps recently underwent training in the Netherlands, the world leader in cycling, in traffic safety for non-motorised transport with cycling as focus.

    Some experts also came from Netherlands to train about 24 other FRSC officers, and officials of the Federal Ministries of Power, Works and Housing; Transport, and the FCT Administration.

    The FRSC spokesman said the Corps was working to duplicate the training across its formations nationwide.

  • Netherlands trains 22 Nigerians on dairy milk production

    Netherlands trains 22 Nigerians on dairy milk production

    Foreign investors from Netherlands have trained 22 Nigerians on dairy production and preservation of milk as part of efforts to diversify from oil to agric sector of the economy.

    The President    Netherlands Alumni Association of Nigeria Practical Training  Centre (PTC+) Chapter, Mrs. Atinuke Akinyemi,  disclosed this during a two-day  international summit held at the Conference Centre, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife yesterday.

    The event had: Dairy Farming: A new dawn in the Nigeria Agricultural Sector and the way forward” as its theme.

    It showcased many opportunities in the dairy value chain sector in the country.

    Akinyemi said Netherlands had trained them in dairy milk production which was capable of increasing national gross domestic product (GDP) and provide more jobs for the youths.

    She said: “We aim to bring the dairy farmers together, educate them and also to know their challenges. We are coming together to support farmers and to help them to start off in all the dairy farming chain and farming international. We import over 90 per cent of the milk we consume in Nigeria and we are looking for a means to reduce the rate of forex.

    “We are looking for a way to help farmers to produce milk. We go to farms and monitor their activities. The 22 of us who were trained by the Netherlands government scattered across the country now. Our mission is to support all this farmers with expertise on daily milk production.”

    Earlier, the chairman of the occasion, Dr. Saheed Oseni said 10 jobs can be created for production of 1000 litres of milk, adding that the project was aimed at supporting Federal Government effort to diversify he economy.

    “Out of 1000 litres of milk, you have 10 jobs that are directly or indirectly connected with 1000 litres. Either the service providers or veterinary services or those who do extra or suplementary feeding,” Oseni said.

    Representative of the Netherlands government, Mr. Witze Heida, urged Nigerians to invest their time and energy in dairy farm business.

    He said aside the monetary benefits, it makes them eat good foods and healthy.

  • The Netherlands Education fair begins Saturday

    As the maiden Education in The Netherlands fair begins Saturday, 12 institutions will be fully on ground to offer interested applicants opportunities available in that European country.

    The Netherlands Embassy has announced that the fair which commences at the Federal Palace Hotel, in Ikoyi, Lagos, would have on ground its Consular Affairs Desk to provide information on the country’s visa procedures.

    “The Consular Affairs Desk will be there to provide information on our visa procedures which is a plus for us because it’s one of the easiest visa procedures when compared with other countries. It might interest prospective students to know that they won’t have to go through rigorous process of interview and documentation just because they are going to study abroad,” said Deputy Head of Mission, Embassy of The Netherlands Michel L.H Deleen.

    In a briefing at the Netherlands the embassy, its Officer/Consular Affairs the Kingdom of the Netherlands Temitayo Akinbiyi, described the country as “small but with big opportunities.”

    She said the fair which ends Sunday, is not only about post graduate programmes, adding that capacity building programmes would also be available for mid-career professionals.

    The fair, Akinbiyi explained, would offer an opportunity for prospective students to similarly benefit from about 34 scholarships programmes which the country has been making available to Nigerians since 1952.

    Being one of the Schengen countries, (Shengen is an area comprising 26 European states that have officially abolished passport and all other types of border control at their mutual borders), a student studying in The Netherlands, has an advantage of fluid movement to 25 member countries. She said visa processing for students is a lot easier, compared to the ones being handled by France and Belgium on the country’s behalf for other categories of immigrants.

    Beyond being an English-speaking country, with favourable tuition and fascinating ambience, students with Netherlands’ student visa, equally enjoy discounts in supermarkets, cinema, museums, bars restaurants as long as you have an ID card, she concluded.

     

  • Babies cry more in UK, Canada, Italy, less in Germany: Study

    Babies cry more in UK, Canada, Italy, less in Germany: Study

    Babies cry more in Britain, Canada, Italy and Netherlands than in other countries, while newborns in Denmark, Germany and Japan cry and fuss the least, researchers said on Monday.

    In research looking at how much babies around the world cry in their first three months, psychologists from Britain have created the first universal charts for normal amounts of crying during that period.

    Dieter Wolker, who led the study at Warwick University, said: “babies are already very different in how much they cry in the first weeks of life.

    “We may learn more from looking at cultures where there is less crying, (including) whether this may be due to parenting or other factors relating to pregnancy experiences or genetics.”

    The highest levels of colic, defined as crying more than three hours a day for at least three days a week, were found in babies in Britain, Canada and Italy, while the lowest colic rates were found in Denmark and Germany.

    On average, the study found, babies cry for around two hours a day in the first two weeks.

    They then cry a little more in the following few weeks until they peak at around two hours 15 minutes a day at six weeks.

    This then reduces to an average of one hour 10 minutes by the time they are 12 weeks old.

    But there are wide variations, with some babies crying as little as 30 minutes a day, and others more than five hours.

    The research, published in the Journal of Pediatrics, was a meta-analysis of studies covering some 8,700 babies in countries including Germany, Denmark, Japan, Canada, Italy, the Netherlands and Britain.

    Wolker said the new crying chart would help health workers reassure parents whether their baby is crying within a normal range in the first three months, or may need extra support

  • Nigeria records increase of 6.5 per cent external trade in 2016 – NBS

    Nigeria records increase of 6.5 per cent external trade in 2016 – NBS

    The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said the value of the total trade at the end of 2016 was N17. 35 billion.

    The NBS said that the figure was 6.5 per cent higher than the value recorded in 2015.

    The bureau announced this in a report on“Merchandise Trade Intensity Index/Re-exports for fourth quarter’’, released in Abuja.

    The report, however, stated that Nigeria’s external trade in the fourth quarter of 2016 was valued at N5.28 billion.

    “The export component stood at N2.98 billion while the import component stood at N2.31 billion leading to a trade surplus of N671 billion.

    “Trade by sector showed that crude oil exports had the largest share of the total trade, accounting for N2.43 billion or 45.9 per cent trade in fourth quarter.

    “The second major contributor to total trade by sector was manufactured goods with N1.17 billion or 22.1 per cent of total trade,’’ it stated.

    The report stated that manufactured goods were followed by the non-crude oil products, which was also a major contributor to total trade in the quarter under review.

    “The non-crude oil products stood at N1.15 billion or 21.8 per cent while Agricultural goods accounted for N212.7 billion or 4 per cent.

    “Raw material goods accounted for N309 billion or 5.9 per cent and Solid mineral goods stood at N13.1billion or 0.3 per cent of total trade in the quarter.’’

    The report stated that Nigeria’s export intensity in the months of October, November and December 2016 was the highest for South Africa with export intensities of 8.9, 7.3 and 4.1, respectively.

    It stated that export intensity in the fourth quarter was also intense with India with export intensities of 5.8, 5.8 and 1.7 for the last three months of 2016.

    “ Spain and Netherlands also had high export intensities with export intensities of 4.8, 2.9 and 2.0 for Spain and 2.2, 1.5 and 2.2 for the Netherlands.

    “Although United States was one of Nigeria’s major trading partners, its export intensity was low with 0.6, 0.6 and 0.2 for the last three months of 2016.’’

    Meanwhile, the report stated that Nigeria imported mainly from China with total imports of N404.1billion or 17.5 per cent of total imports.

    It stated that China was followed by Belgium with N356.46 billion or 15 per cent while import trade with Netherlands which was the third highest was valued at N230 billion or 10 per cent.

    “ The remaining trading partners contributed relatively lower proportion of the total import trade.

    “United States accounted for N205.6 billion or 8.9 per cent while India accounted for N113.9 billion or 4.9 per cent,’’ the report stated. (NAN)

  •  NLNG gets new CEO as Omotowa bows out

     NLNG gets new CEO as Omotowa bows out

    The Board of Directors of the Nigeria LNG Limited on Thursday approved the appointment of Mr. Tony Attah as the new Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the company.

    Mr. Babs Omotowa, who has held the position for nearly five years, will be returning to Shell International in Hague, ‎Netherlands, according to a statement signed by the company’s General Manager, External Relations, Kudo Eresia-Eke.

    The NLNG said Omotowa, who was appointed CEO by the board in December 2011, would be sorely missed for his uncommon vision, professionalism, compassion and commitment.

    It said Attah, a former managing director of Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company, would be taking over from him after returning from an assignment at Shell’s Group Integrated Gas business as senior projects advisor, working on projects in the Netherlands and Singapore.

    Attah comes to the NLNG with a 28-year experience in the Nigerian oil and gas industry, the statement said.

    At NLNG, he will be responsible for sustaining NLNG’s top quartile performance in supplying liquefied natural gas to the global energy market and advancing the company’s expansion programmes, according to the statement.

    NLNG is owned by four shareholders, namely, the Federal Government, represented by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (49 per cent), Shell Gas BV, (25.6 per cent), Total LNG Nigeria Limited (15 per cent), and Eni International (N.A,) N. V. S. a. r. l (10.4 per cent).

  • Italy, Netherlands offer to split contested UN Security Council seat

    Italy and the Netherlands propose to split a two-year term on the UN Security Council Dutch Foreign Minister Bert Koenders says

    The proposal was after the two countries tied with the same number of votes in a contested race to attain a UN non-permanent seat

    Koenders said that Italy would serve a one-year term in 2017 and the Netherlands would sit on the council in 2018.

    Italian Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni says the proposal is symbolic because it’s a “message of unity between two European countries.”

    The Western European regional group will discuss the proposal on Wednesday.

    The decision comes after neither of the countries could attain the two-thirds majority vote needed with both receiving 95 votes in the fifth round of voting.

  • 2016 Ekwueme Research Fellowship at United Nations University, Netherlands

    United Nations University is inviting applications for Ekwueme fellowship, starting March 2016. Fellows must be of Nigerian nationality and must be working on Governance research. The fellowship recipient receives a fellowship including coverage of the tuition fees for enrolment in the years 2, 3 and 4 (6.000 euro each, in total 18.000 euro). The application deadline is 15 October 2015.

    Scholarship can be taken at: Netherlands

    Eligibility -Fellow is younger than 40 when applying

    • The fellowship recipient will complete the application form – and fulfil all programme application requirements, before 15 October 2015.
    • The fellowship recipient applies for the fellowship, starting the GPAC2 programme on 1 March 2016.

    Scholarship Description: Starting March 2016 (application deadline 15 October 2015), the GPAC2 programme offers the option to apply for the Ekwueme fellowship. The fellowship is called after Nigeria’s first vice president and the founder of the political party PDP. He risked his life to stand up to the military dictatorship in Nigeria thus ending the country’s military rule and commencing our present democratic government which started in 1999.

    Duration of award(s): The fellowship will be offered every other year, with first fellow selected in the application round.

    What does it cover?

    • The fellowship recipient will pay him/herself the tuition for year one (8.000 euro), as well as tuition for all years that he/she will remain enrolled after year four.
    • The fellowship recipient will pay his/her own travel expenses , visa/permit expenses, accommodation expenses in Maastricht, fieldwork expenses, books and other expenses.

    How to Apply: Please use the online application form, to apply for the programme. When filling the form you will be asked to provide the documents listed below. Please note that all documents need to be provided digitally; official documents need to be scanned:

    • certified copies of bachelor’s and master’s diplomas and grades
    • proof of proficiency in English – the minimum level accepted is 600 PBT, 100 ICT or 240 CBT (TOEFL) or 7.0 (IELTS). Native speakers and students who have received their bachelor’s or master’s education in English are exempted
    • motivation letter (400- 500 words)
    • two signed reference letters on original letter head (by current or former professors or employers)
    • letter from current employer, including a statement of support of the GPAC² fellow and an indication of ways to support the fellow (for GPAC² applicants only)
    • one-page PhD research proposal
    • curriculum vitae
    • copy of passport
    • passport size picture

    Read more: Ekwueme Research Fellowship for Nigerians, 2016 Scholarship Positions 2015 2016

    Home Apri 2019

     

  • Dutch cyclists to South Africa arrive Nigeria

    Dutch cyclists to South Africa arrive Nigeria

    The United Nations Information Centre (UNIC) Lagos, in collaboration with the Netherlands Embassy Office in Lagos on Wednesday received two Dutch Cyclists of the Building Bridges project who had embarked on a bicycle journey to Cape Town in South Africa.

    The Cyclists, Jilt van Schayik, and Teun Meulepas, who are stopping over in Lagos, took off from Amsterdam in the Netherlands in February to connect and encourage young people across two continents of Africa and Europe, habouring 21 countries; a journey of about 17,000km.

    Schayik and Meulepas arrived Lagos –Nigeria on Tuesday night in the company of the Togolese grassroots initiative for Building Bridges, and were received by their Nigerian counterparts.

    Recounting the experience, Meulepas, one of the cross-continent bikers said: “So far so good, we had a great trip, we met a lot of inspiring people, we saw a lot of crazy things and we had a lot of fun on the road as well.

    “But what is important in this is the story of a lot of young people. We saw a lot of young people who are worried about their chances of getting a job. Young people are worried about the systems of education in their countries; young people are worried about corruption.”

    Meulepas and colleague promised to relate the stories of a lot of young people, who they met in the course of their journey, to the United Nations office in New York when they return.

    During his welcome address, Director of UNIC in Lagos, Mr. Ronald Kayanja, lamented the poor involvement of young people in policy making recounting that in 2000 eight goals were spelt out by the UN.

    According to him, “They were supposed to be achieved by 2015, and now we are in 2015 but the results are mixed. Some countries have achieved them, some countries have not and now we are discussing a new set of goals by2030. And we call those the Sustainable Development Goals. They are 17 goals that are being discussed.

    “In September this year in New York, member states of the United Nations will meet to agree on these goals that we shall use as our target for the coming 15 years.

    “But what we have realised is that, in all these things, young people are either not interested or are not well informed about what is going on. So their participation is minimal.”

    He however noted that the essence of accompanying the cyclists as they ride on the streets of Lagos is to create the aware among young people that something is happening.

    On his part, Drs. Taco Westerhuis, Press Secretary to Embassy of the Netherlands in Lagos commended the bikers for the courage to undertake the journey, urging Nigerian youths to connect with the idea of developmental policies from their immediate neighbourhoods.

    Drs. Westerhuis, who observed that there are more opportunities in Lagos than there are in the Netherlands, said: “The only thing to do is getting the opportunities to the right people.”

    He however commended the Nigerian group of cyclists for the team spirit observing that: “We all know biking in Lagos is not easy, I therefore commend those of you who dare to ride your bikes in Lagos.”

    Building Bridges project is about involving young people in policy making and breaching the gap between young people and policy makers.