The Nation Newspaper

Tag: resilient

  • Nigeria’s economy resilient against cyber attack, says report

    Nigeria is third among  African economies resilient againts attack on ‘critical infrastructure.’ Similarly, six countries have been considered at a risk of their critical systems.

    Critical infrastructure comprises information that are often considered confidential and a potential risk to a country when accessed by outsiders.

    These cut across information in private and government’s settings. Though every country is vulnerable to this attack; yet for any country to be considered ‘resilient’, simply means such country has the ability to recover from such attack on its critical infrastructure, while it can also block further access to such information by hackers in future.

    This was contained in the Cyber Resilience Preparedness index, an objective assessment of where each country stands in cyber security across five critical priority areas accepted by cyber security models for measuring resilient cyber security. They include: articulation and publication of a national cyber security strategy/ legislations; technical measures and standards; partnerships/cooperation; information sharing mechanism; and capacity building.

    In the study published in the International Journal of Critical Infrastructure Protection, a journal indexed on Elsevier with a 1.443 five-year impact factor, Dr Ada Peter, an associate professor of Media, Peace and National Security, Covenant University, Ota, Ogun State, demonstrated the cyber resilience preparedness of 12 African emerging economies against the compromise of their critical systems, industries, classified documents, as well as industrial espionage.

    In Peter’s research titled: ‘Cyber resilience preparedness of Africa’s top 12 emerging economies’, Egypt topped the chart of six countries followed by Kenya, Nigeria, Tunisia, Morocco and South Africa. The other six countries, Sudan, Ghana, Libya, Zimbabwe, Algeria and Angola, were considered at risk of compromise of their critical systems.

    Peter said the Cyber Resilience Preparedness index used in the study is viable for monitoring and comparing the cyber resilience of top economies in Africa

    “The goal of this study was to address the question: ‘Are top emerging economies in Africa cyber war prepared, preparing, or at risk of compromise of critical systems, industries, classified documents and industrial espionage’”? Peter said of the motive of the study.

    According to him, the research indicates that in the international media, Africa’s economic growth and commercial opportunities are reported as stirring and attractive.

    “This business attraction is usually attributed to the 300 million-strong growing middle class concentrated in urban areas, coupled with a youth bulge across the continent and these developments presumably bolster the case for Afro-optimism, since the numbers create an internal market of global scale.”

    However, in spite of the optimism generated by the continent’s growth and commercial opportunities, the research identified a reason for concern, which is the increasing reliance of Africa’s modern society on networked computer systems.

    “Precisely, most countries in the continent are embracing the economic and social potential of the Internet of Everything (IoE)- the intelligent connection of people, processes, data, and things.

    “Consequently, prioritising cyber resilience especially at public and regional/international policy levels must continue,” she further explained.

    She recommended that the economies at red alert risk can initiate further improvements on cyber security via commitments to capacity building, partnerships with entities such as the World Economic Forum’s Partnering for Cyber Resilience (PCR) initiative, which certifies that cybersecurity is carefully considered by militaries, policy makers, and intergovernmental bodies when crafting solutions to 20-century economic security challenges.

  • Resilient Lagos

    •Nigeria’s iconic city joins the 100 club

    It did not happen as a matter of chance or a function of luck. Rather, the recent certification and admission of Lagos State as a member of the 100 Resilient Cities (100 RC) in the world, an initiative of the Rockefeller Foundation, was the outcome of a deliberate decision and painstaking effort by a forward looking governor, Mr. Akinwumi Ambode, and his inspired aides. Speaking on the occasion of the formal entry of Lagos into the 100RC global group, the Lagos State Commissioner for Finance, Economic Planning and Budget, Mr. Akinyemi Ashade, revealed that Mr Ambode had in August 2016 issued a directive for the commencement of processes for Lagos to become a 100RC affiliate. This was no doubt informed by an appreciation of the immense benefits that could accrue to Lagos from opportunities for profitable networking among a multinational club of urban agglomerations motivated by a common commitment to best practices.

    Giving an insight into the route taken by Lagos towards membership of the group, the President of 100RC, Mr. Michael Berkowitz, said the megacity’s bid was successful out of over 1000 applications and after a competitive selection process that went through three rounds. Pointing out that Lagos was chosen because of its innovative leadership, infrastructural strides as well as status in Africa and the world, Mr. Berkowitz said “We are trying to inspire a movement across the world to change the way cities approach their risks and opportunities and so Lagos is not just the most influential city in West Africa or the continent but around the world and that is very appealing to us”.

    Resilience is perhaps the word that best encapsulates the impressive development strides of Lagos particularly over the last 16 years of this democratic dispensation. The smallest state in the country in terms of geographical size, Lagos with about 23 million inhabitants is the most populous and fastest growing jurisdiction in Nigeria with many new entrants flocking to the city daily. While this offers a great opportunity in terms of a huge market as well as a dynamic and resourceful population, it also poses tremendous challenges such as chronic infrastructure deficit, high vehicular density and problematic traffic management, environment sanitation, insufficient housing, security, unemployment, urban planning and heavy pressure on critical social services like education, health care and water supply.

    Matters have not been helped by the country’s defective fiscal federalism that sees Lagos contributing substantially to the national treasury through the Value Added Tax (VAT), Petroleum Tax Fund (PTF) and revenue derived from her ports, for instance, without commensurate compensation to enable the state effectively meet up with her statutory responsibilities to the citizenry. However, rather than whine helplessly, Lagos has seen the successive administrations of Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu (1999-2007), Mr Babatunde Raji Fashola (SAN) (2007-2015) and now the incumbent, Mr Akinwumi Ambode, contributing their quota to the state’s unfolding narrative of relentless progress against daunting odds.

    It is indisputable that under Mr Ambode there has been the acceleration in the tempo of governance in the last two years, thus justifying the confidence reposed in the governor by the electorate as a man thoroughly acquainted with the machinery of governance and who had lived and worked in practically all parts of the state before becoming governor. There is hardly any sphere of governance – security, traffic management, education, health care delivery, roads rehabilitation/construction, employment generation, housing and construction of drainages to name a few that the administration is not making a decisive impact despite the current economic recession.

    Surely, all citizens of goodwill should be motivated not just to lend a voice to the demand for according Lagos the special status she deserves in the Nigerian federation but to the campaign to get more residents of the state to fulfill their tax obligations to the state.

  • Nigeria’s economy resilient, say analysts

    Nigeria’s economy is still Africa’s number one, notwithstanding the 30 per cent drop in the currency last month knocked almost $150 billion off its Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

    South Africa, which has regained second place after overtaking Egypt, is closing the gap, although its economy also shrank with the   weakening of the rand. The gap between both economies has narrowed to $60 billion from $170 billion at the end of last year.

    The International body said the economy could contract, even as Renaissance Capital Limited’s analyst, Yvonne Mhango urged the government to address the sundry economic issues facing the country.

    Last month, with the CBN’s forex  policy,  the naira depreciated after a 15-month currency peg curbed investment and contributed to a 0.4 percent contraction in the economy in the three months through March.

    According to the IMF, the four-month delay in passing the record N6.1 trillion ($21.6 billion) budget, meant to stimulate growth  by spending on roads, ports and electricity generation, will reduce its efficiency.

    The administration’s vision to diversify the economy which relies on oil for more than 70 percent of revenue, has not translated into big investments, and infrastructure to support local manufacturers doesn’t exist yet, according to Mhango.

    She regretted that not much has been heard enough on how the government planned to improve and make the business environment more conducive. She added in a statement that there has been little color on fiscal policies to drive the growth agenda.

    Nigeria is facing a revenue squeeze as oil earnings fail as a result of militancy. The naira peg at 197-199 per dollar, compared with an unofficial exchange rate of 340 per dollar just before the currency was allowed to float, caused fuel shortages for months as businesses struggled to access foreign currency to place orders.

    “It is not sufficient to focus on going from a de facto peg to a flexible regime,” IMF’s Resident Representative in Nigeria, Gene Leon, said.

    “The authorities need to be announcing at the same time how the change affects fiscal policy, how is it impacting inflation, balance sheets of corporates, balance sheets of the banks, and how the increased fiscal receipts allows the undertaking of development,” he stated in a statement.

  • Buhari: Triumph of a resilient fighter

    Buhari: Triumph of a resilient fighter

    SIR: General Muhammadu Buhari is one man that is highly respected and loved by many within and outside Nigeria for his simplicity, uprightness and zero tolerance for corruption. Born on December 17, 1942 in Daura, Katsina State, Buhari, a professionally trained soldier and former military Head of State between 31 December 31, 1983 and August 27, 1985, has over the

    years proved himself as a man of rectitude, and demonstrated his commitment towards the struggle to build a better Nigeria in the interest of the masses.

    As a dogged, resilient fighter and uncompromising politician with unalloyed forthrightness, he pursued his presidential ambition with great tenacity, despite his failure at every attempt since 2003. The retired

    Army General’s actually sojourn to the Presidency started in 2003, when he vied on the platform of the defunct All Peoples Party, APP.  In that year’s election, Buhari garnered about 12.7 million votes, which represented 32.1per cent to lose to the then President Olusegun Obasanjo of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) who was seeking a second term at that time. Obasanjo scored about 24.5 million votes representing 61.9per cent of total votes cast.

    Four years later in 2007, he contested under the umbrella of All Nigerian Peoples Party (ANPP), but again lost to Umaru Yar’Adua of blessed memory also of the PDP, polling a meager 6.6 million votes, a far worse performance than that of 2003. Yar’Adua had about 24.6 million votes. Not taking his eyes off the Presidency, by 2011, the unrelenting and persevering Buhari contested on the ticket of a new party he founded-the Congress for Progressive Change. Despite being a new party single handedly formed by the retired General with the support of people of like minds, just less than six months to the election, he scored 12.2 million votes to lose to the incumbent President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan of PDP who got 22.5million votes in that contest.

    However, the figures Buhari had in 2011, as the CPC candidate was an impressive improvement compared to his 2007 outing. In fact, he received commendations from a lot of Nigerians who had maintained that the support

    for Buhari from the people since he began his journey to occupy the seat of power at the centre in the current democratic dispensation was purely based on his personality and reputation. He is believed to have distinguished himself in all the various positions he held in the past and thereby succeeded in getting endeared into the hearts of the populace.

    After the conduct of the 2011 general elections, some major political parties in the country – Buhari’s CPC, the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), the ANPP and a faction of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA)

    commenced talks on a merger that would provide them with a formidably strong platform to unknot the dominance of the ruling PDP. On February 6, 2013, the All Progressives Congress (APC) was founded from the merger arrangement and Buhari eventually emerged as the party’s presidential candidate after a well-organized, transparent, free and fair primary election in Lagos last December.

    Today, the former Head of State has made history by becoming the first Nigerian politician to defeat an incumbent President. He polled a total of 15,424,921 votes to defeat Jonathan, who scored a total of 12,853,162 votes to place second in the race involving 14 contestants. His victory has been described by many observers as a welcome development heralding the beginning of a new era in the affairs of the country under a democratic setting. Indeed, most Nigerians cannot wait for this new horizon to unfurl.

     •Michael Jegede,

    Abuja

  • Europe’s investment banks resilient in retreat

    Europe’s investment banks are giving Wall Street a run for its money despite shrinking their trading arms more aggressively than United States rivals.

    Buoyant equity markets and a surge in corporate debt issues have caused a bigger-than-expected jump in investment bank fees in Europe helping Deutsche Bank, UBS, Credit Suisse, Barclays, BNP Paribas and Societe Generale outperform their U.S. peers in the second quarter.

    The six European lenders saw revenues from trading and selling debt grow five per cent on average compared to a nine per cent combined drop at Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan, Morgan Stanley, Bank of America and Citigroup.

    Part of the outperformance was because in the previous year European banks were hit harder by the U.S. Federal Reserve’s warning that it would gradually reduce its purchase of bonds.

    But a surge in debt issuance by European companies this June, when European Central Bank President Mario Draghi cut interest rates to record lows, has also helped.

    Grim warnings from the banks themselves had investors expecting falls in fixed-incomes revenue of up to a quarter in the April-June period but the reality proved less bleak after an upturn in activity at the tail end of the quarter.

    “Expectations were it (Q2 performance) was going to be really, really bad, and in the end it just turned out to be quite bad,” said David Moss, head of European equities at F&C Investments.

    Faced with new regulations in the wake of the financial crisis that made debt trading more expensive, European investment banks have for the most part renounced their ambitions to be global players and cut their fixed-income divisions more aggressively than U.S. counterparts.

    The retrenchment has in part been fuelled by public anger over their role in the financial crisis, prompting European politicians to impose tougher pay restrictions on traders and encouraging banks in the region to focus more on wealth management or retail and commercial banking.

    The scale-back in investment banking means U.S. banks are expected to continue to dominate rankings, particularly if a rise in interest rates prompts a rebound in fixed income, with increased volatility and rising yield providing trading opportunities.