The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Trade and Investment

  • ‘Oil marketers cheat Nigerians by N198,500 per truck of product sold’

    Director, Weights and Measures Department, Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, Mr Mohammed  Sidi, says that oil dealers have been cheating Nigerians of N198,500 per truck sold.

    Sidi said this in Abuja on Wednesday during a surveillance activity of the department to some fuel stations.

    He said that the action was to ensure that all commercial transactions involving the use of weights and measures were accurate, fair and legal.

    “Every weighing equipment in all sectors of the economy, whether oil and gas or non- oil and gas must be up to the required standard, ” Sidi said.

    At Forte Oil Station, Maitama, opposite Transcorp Hilton, Abuja, the team found that customers lost 0.5 litres of fuel in every 20 litres they bought.

    The team sealed three of the dispensing pumps and collected their certificate of clarification.

    “This is because the officials of Weights and Measures discovered that for every 20 litres of fuel dispensed to customers of the filling station, not less than 0.5 litres was found to be a shortage to customers.

    “We have 33 litres in a truck and when for every 20 litres, it is short with 0.5  litres which means that in a truck they will be making a profit of N198,500 per truck,” Sidi said.

    The team also visited Forte Oil station at Ibrahim Babangida Boulevard, opposite National Universities Commission and found that customers were cheated by the same quantity of fuel.

    The team sealed three dispensing pumps for oil and one for diesel.

    At Dan Oil on Airport Road, the team found that customers lost 0.6 litres for every 20 litres bought and sealed three petrol pumps and one diesel pump.

    At the filling station, the attendants quickly adjusted some pumps immediately they sighted the officials.

    The managers at all the stations refused to comment.

    The team also visited Mabushi District cement depot and certified bags of cement found in the place as having the right quantity.

    The bags of cement checked were Bua, Dangote and Sokoto cement products.

    The Chairman of the depot Mr Maxwell Nnamani said that the depot always maintained standards and urged other dealers to do same.

    Nnamani said that although the issue of re-bagging had been a problem in the industry, it was being addressed.

    The team also visited the 7UP Company at Idu Industrial Area to measure different products.

    At ShopRite mall at the Jabi Lake, the team expressed satisfaction after measuring different products.

    “We are happy because there is a lot of improvement from the non-oil sectors compared to what we witnessed before,’ Sidi said.

    He appealed to members of the public report any suspected discrepancies by products’ dealers to the department to enable it to do its job better. (NAN)

  • FEC okays N192.9 billion for roads, bridges 

    The Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting on Wednesday approved N192.9 billion for roads and bridges in the country.

    This was disclosed by the Minister of State for Power, Works and Housing, Mustapha Shehuri, at the end of FEC meeting chaired by President Muhammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

    Shehuri was with the Minister of State for Aviation, Hadi Sirika, Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Okechukwu Enelamah and the Senior Special Assistant on Media and publicity, Garba Shehu.

    He said that FEC approved N5.9 billion for the construction of 16.7 kilometers Suleja-Chaaza-Banguru road and spur to Rafinsayin in Niger State.

    “It also provided for 15 meters of bridge construction,” he added.

    He went on “Another memo approved is the dualization of Ilorin-Jebba-Mokwa-Bokani road in Kwara and Niger states to CGC at the cost of N130 billion. The contract’s life span is 36 months.

    “The Council also approved construction of Ibi Bridge across River Benue connecting Taraba and Plateau states at the cost of N57 billion.” he stated

    Enelamah said that FEC also approved memo for effective implementation of project ‘Made in Nigeria’ for export.

    He said that it was aimed at developing world class export oriented special economic zones in the six geopolitical zones of Nigeria.

    “The plan is to begin the development of those economic zones across the six geopolitical zones as follows: Lagos, Katsina, Abia, Calabar, Kano.

    “In addition, the Council also approved pre-development work in develop of Green Field Special Economic Zone in Akwa  Ibom, Benue, Ebonyi, Edo, Gombe, Kwara, and Sokoto states with further roll out to other states in phase two.” he said

    He said that FEC approved payments to consultations totalling N2.655 billion for various projects that will be undertaken by different consultations that will lead to implementation of these zones.

    He added “This is for one set of consultants. The aggregate amount which includes another set is N3.172 billion for all the special economic zones

    “The total budget for developing these zones will be in excess N250 billion and it will include partners.This is going to be done through something called The Nigerian Special Economic Zones Company Limited, which is a public private partnership.

    “The Federal Government is going to own 20 percent of that company and AFRIEXIM bank is going to be a shareholder and other investors like the Nigerian Sovereign Investment Authority and other international investors. It is going to be developed in such a way that it will be world class. We are going to see rapid implementation now that council approval has been obtained,” he said.

    He said that his Ministry also got approvals for two specific things including strict compliance with the provisions of Executive Order 001 and that all Ministries Departments and Agencies (MDAs) to respond to complains within 72 hours timeline on government portal.

    On the Brookings report that Nigeria has already overtaken India as the country with the largest number of extreme poor in early 2018, Enelamah said “I think first, we need to understand when we get these reports that there are reports that are lagging in indicators which means, people are reporting on history. There are reports that are leading indicators which means that they are forward looking and of course, there reports that capture generally what you do which is current. They are actually dealing with what is current. So, when you get reports from Brooking institutes or all sorts of people, you need to look at the context.

    “Somebody may have written a report when we were in recession. Remember that if you are in a recession, what it means is that even though, your population is growing, people don’t stop procreating, your growth fact, which means that in theory depending on how they run those numbers, you will be going the other way.

    “There is absolutely no question that there an urgency to create employment in Nigeria. And it has to be a collective responsibility. What I can tell you, with certainty based on ones background in business and economics, is that if we complete the things on infrastructure and you implement these reports we are doing, that is what I mean by a leading indicator, poverty will go down.

    “There is no magic to it. But you have to do it first, you have put in the infrastructure, you have to implement the economic programme which is what will create the opportunities, they don’t drop from the sky. So, I think we should roll up our sleeves as a people and do the work because, if we don’t do it, our people continue to bear children obviously, they would get poorer.

    “So, I don’t think we should kill ourselves that poverty is something just happen. I think comes out of the urgent need we have as a country which is why we are focusing as a government to make sure that we create the enabling environment, the infrastructure that and the things that are required to create opportunities for our people and I believe that will happen in the process of time,” he said.

    Sirika said that Council approved N993 million to build simulator house for the point 373 simulator already procured in Zaria.

    According to him, the Council also noted the seasonal rain prediction report by NIMET towards giving accurate rainfall across the country.

    Garba Shehu disclosed that the Minister of Education got one approval for JAMB.

    He said “JAMB had run computer-based tests for people who seek admissions into universities in order to stop leakages and all that. They have started to set up their infrastructures for conducting those examinations.

    “Today, they requested for government to buy one of the Computer Based Test (CBT) organizations at N133 million including infrastructure and equipment.

    “The effort is that JAMB wants to take total control of all these examinations in order to avoid leakages,” he stated.

    He also disclosed that the Council approved N353 million for the procurement of 32 meter turntable ladder to fight fire up-to 12 floors in the FCT

     

  • How paucity of funds stifled revitalisation of textile industry

    The Minister of State, Industry, Trade and Investment, Hajia Aisha Abubakar has decried the low production capacity of all the cotton producing companies in the country despite the different reforms initiated.

    The minister, who disclosed this during a media chat in Abuja, stated that the current administration at inception was determined to revitalise the textile industries as part of its campaign promises by visiting the different textile factories in Lagos, Zaria, Kaduna and Kano.

    However, she lamented that the ministry discovered abysmal level of growth with regards to production capacity. “The significance of the textile industry and its impact on the collapse on the nation’s economy is best illustrated by the fact that, at its height, the sector had created over 800,000 jobs, representing 25% of the total number of jobs in the manufacturing sector, second only to the government in the employment of labor. Also, there were 175 textile mills in the country during its golden era, (i.e. 1985 – 1991) out of which today, all but 27 of them have since gone under. In an attempt to understand the sector and the many challenges it faced, we traversed, held exhibitions, and had several but endless meetings.  We even met and held extensive talks or rubbing of minds with a broad spectrum of members and leadership of the textile labour union.”

    She stressed that other impediments hindering greater speed in the actualisation of the President Muhammadu Buhari’s blue print of action in the textile sector include the troubling phenomena of counterfeiting and smuggled textile materials especially from China.

  • FG to begin 60 days action plan on ease of doing business

    FG to begin 60 days action plan on ease of doing business

    The Federal Government will begin another 60 days action plan in the 2nd of October towards ease of doing business in the country.

    The Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Okechukwu Enelamah disclosed this to State House correspondents at the end of AN expanded Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC) meeting at the Presidential Villa, Abuja. The meeting was chaired by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo.  

    Enelamah said “We have had a very success enabling business environment council meeting. It was an expanded meeting where the Chief Justice of Nigeria was there, representative of senate president, Lagos and Kano government and all the key ministers and heads of agencies there.

    “The meeting was a stock taking meeting. We have taken stock what we have achieved already, the journey so far with a plan on the way forward the idea being that we want to have a second round of the national action plan which is is even more ambitious than the first one. We really want to make it easy for people to do business in Nigeria.” he said

    The Secretary of PEBEC, Dr. Jumoke Oduwole said that the National Competitiveness Council of Nigeria is collaborating with the council on the subnational project.

    According to her, the council is working with all the states and the FCT in order to make sure that the states are involved.

    She said “We are taking ease of doing business state wise. And we are collaborating widely with the private sector, all state governments, the National Assembly.

    “Again of course. We are going to have an omnibus bill that will wrap up all the irritant but most importantly, we are launching a new 60 day action plan starting from 2nd of October running to the 30th of November and we are going to have the press pack that will contain all the reforms that all the MDAs are going to be working on.

    “It’s going to be a very exciting time and we are looking forward to tangible deliverables for the Nigerian people.

    “We are targeting SMEs. We want the business climate to be simpler; you don’t need to know anybody to do business effectively in Nigeria. Larger companies ally of the time have different kinds of problems, we want systemic change for small and medium size enterprises. We had the acting DG of NAfDEC, DG of SON, we had heads of police, immigration, customs, ports authority, the airport, the judiciary.

    “We had the Chief Justice of the federation attend the PEBEC meeting for the first time. These are all the ingredients plus a strong representation from the private sector that makes sure that the collaborative exercise works very powerfully to deliver impactful reforms for the Nigerian people.” she added

    Senator Bala Ibin Na’allah, who represented the Senate President, Bukola Saraki, said that the National Assembly will not fail to support moves to ease doing business In Nigeria.

    He said ‘In interim report of PEBEC, the National Assembly got green for compliance with all the commitment we have made as our contribution on to the ease of doing business.

    ‘We the only arm of government that got full green for full implementation of whatever commitment we gave as a National Assembly facilitating the project for enabling business environment in Nigeria.” he added

    Chika Emodi, MD/CEO of National Competitiveness Council of Nigeria described the meeting as very productive.

    “A lot do work has been done and is beginning to show. There is no doubt that we have a commitment on the part of government and we are very optimistic about how this will translate to a better business environment for the country.”

  • Lagos true model for growing businesses in Nigeria – FG

    Lagos true model for growing businesses in Nigeria – FG

    The Federal Government on Thursday described Lagos State as a true model of the vision of improving on the ease of doing business and turning Nigeria into one of the easiest and most attractive places for investors in the world.

    Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr Okechukwu Enelamah, who stated this in Lagos after a meeting with Governor Akinwunmi Ambode, said the State, as the commercial capital of the country, stands in a vantage position to drive the goal of government to improve World Bank ranking of Nigeria on the ease of doing business.

    Speaking with Government House correspondents after the meeting, Enelemah said both the Federal Government and the State Government were willing to collaborate on strategic areas to achieve the overall goal of growing the economy.

    He said: “We basically have been talking about creating enabling environment for investments and ease of doing business and the area where we have strong convergence between Lagos State and the Federal Government.

    “Governor Ambode and I have been discussing how to collaborate very strongly to make Lagos State a true role model in line with our vision of making Nigeria one of the easiest and most attractive places to do business and you will agree with me that there is no better place to start than Lagos State, particularly when you have a Governor who is committed to it and as he puts it to us, it is like preaching to the converted.

    “So, what we have done today is to agree on modalities on working together to achieve the targets that we have set for ourselves both in ease of doing business ranking of the World Bank, in terms of some of the areas where we know that we should improve upon like tourism for instance, by making sure that people who want to visit Nigeria come in seamlessly; in terms of making it easy for people in Lagos State who are, as the Governor puts it, paying the taxes by making life easier and better for them.”

    Giving details, the Minister said his office would be collaborating with the Office of Transformation under the Governor’s office, as well as the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council, to achieve the overall objectives.

    He also assured that the Federal Government would not hesitate to impose import restrictions where necessary to avoid Nigeria from being a dumping ground, while concerted efforts would be put in place to check negative trade practices, especially for the benefit of the Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs).

    Also speaking, Governor Ambode recalled that in the last few months, the State Government had been engaging the business community on ease of doing business, saying that the meeting with officials of the Federal Government was in sync with the vision of his administration to achieve the very best in driving investment.

    “What has been happening in the last two years is that on our part, we have tried as much as possible to provide an enabling environment for businesses to thrive in Lagos but again the indices that indicate that we are improving on ease of doing business is not really looking too good and we believe strongly that if 70 per cent of businesses or these indicators are actually coming from Lagos State, there is a need for us to quickly create a convergence between the efforts of the Federal Government and the State Government to make sure that we improve the business environment and that is what we have been discussing in the last few weeks as well as today.

    “Moving forward, we have also engaged the office of the Vice President to see that there is a convergence in all our efforts to make sure that if possible, people should come to Lagos and start their business the same day.

    “We want a situation whereby construction permit is given to people within the shortest possible time; we want to ensure that people who pay their taxes actually have the benefit of what they are paying for and in doing that, if we get in right in Lagos, it is very clear that Nigeria has gotten it right and that is why we are meeting,” Governor Ambode said.

    The Governor expressed optimism that the current efforts would bring about major improvements on the business environment, adding that such would go a long way in growing the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of Nigeria.

     

  • FG okays advisory council on industrialisation

    FG okays advisory council on industrialisation

    …Approves draft bill for C‎DC

     

    The Federal Executive Council (FEC) on Wednesday approved the establishment of the Nigeria Industrial Policy and Competitiveness Advisory Council towards boosting industrialization in the country.

    This was disclosed by the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Okechukwu Enelamah, while briefing State House correspondents at the end of the FEC meeting chaired by President Muhammadu Buhari.

    He was accompanied by the Minister of Information, Lai Mohammed and the Minister of Health Isaac Adewole.

    According to him, the new council will engage the private sector to develop a viable policy for the nation’s industrial sector.

    He said that the industrial council‎ will be chaired by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, and will have two vice presidents from both the government and the private sector, while membership will be drawn from private sector and relevant ministries.

    The Health Minister disclosed that the Council approved Draft Bill for National Centre for Disease Control.

    Adewole said that Council approved draft bill to give legal backing for the establishment of the National Centre for Disease Control.

    He said that a legal backing will now be given to the agency to have its own board, recruit it’s personnel and a CEO appointed.

    He said there is a budget line for National Center for Disease Control already, adding that the federal government is not going to incur any additional expenses.

    Apart from being operational since 2012, he said that it has been instrumental in combating the deadly Ebola virus and Lassa fever.

    The agenda, he said, is to strengthen the public health intervention to ensure proactiveness against future epidemic.

    He said, “To move the agenda of public health intervention forward, what is known internationally is that they will always be another epidemic‎ or another disease outbreak but what we do not know is when and where it will happen. What we need to do is to get ourselves prepared for the next epidemic.

    “The National Council of Health in its meeting in Lagos in 2007‎, took a decision to establish a Nigerian center for disease control. The center became operational in 2012 and actually constituted a major force in combating Ebola ‎and has been very operational in handling lessa fever in different parts of the country. So what we have done today is to provide legal framework for this agency so that it can validly perform the role that is expected of such role that is expected of such frontline agency. It is patterned after the United States Center for Disease Control and Prevention which was established in 1946. The whole concept is not new what is new is that we decided to move ahead with it in Nigeria.

    “There is also a European ‎Centre for Disease Control established in 2004 and in 2013 following a resolution in Abuja, African Union also decided to establish a center for disease control.

    “Our center for disease control is a frontline agency that has been recognised internationally, it has been designated as the regional center for disease control in West Africa, it has also been designated as the regional center for the African center for disease and prevention.

    “So with this approval we can then move on working with National Assembly to put in place the necessary legislative action so that it can formally become an Act of Parliament.” he said

    Stressing that the agency has not been operating illegally, he said: “It can be liken to a baby you have been carrying on your back ‎and after sometimes you say this baby is big enough to walk and you say walk I will hold you by the hand. So, under the new dispensation we will give a legal framework to the establishment of the board for the agency, defined recruitment, how the director or the CEO of the agency will be appointed.

    “These are things that have now been formalized. It has a budget line and so it’s actually not going incur any additional expenses. There is a budget line for National Center for Disease Control already,” he said.

     

  • Amosun urges FG to accord Lagos, Ogun special status treatment

    Amosun urges FG to accord Lagos, Ogun special status treatment

    The Governor of Ogun State, Ibikunle Amosun on Wednesday said Lagos and Ogun States should be accorded special treatment by the Federal Government because of their strategic economic significance to the nation.Amosun who threw his weight behind

    Amosun who threw his weight behind the call from Lagos State that the Centre of Excellence required special status in terms of funds allocation to it, said Ogun was next to Lagos in terms of non-oil revenue of the federal government.

    The Governor made this known at the on-going 8th National Council on Industry, Trade and Investment in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital.

    According to him,  more companies have their operational base in Ogun state as the it has officially become an industrial capital of the country.

    He noted that about 423 companies with a minimum of over 2 billion investment capital are currently operating from Ogun State.

    He said: “to this end, our Administration has continued to maintain and expand on existing infrastructures while new ones are being constructed. The results of these infrastructural developments are seen in the increase in investment inflow into Ogun State.

    “We have continued to reap the benefits of our prudent financial management and re-engineered our Internal Revenue Generation drive. We have increased our IGR from the modest sum of N700 million monthly which we inherited at the beginning of our Administration in 2011, to over N6Billion per month in 2014, though, currently reduced to an average of N4.8 billion monthly due to the current economic recession in the country.

    “As of now, our State is second only to Lagos State in the ratio of the monthly Internally Generated Revenue to the monthly FAAC allocation. This has allowed us to sustain payment of workers’ salaries, while also continuing with other development projects in all other sectors of our economy.

    “According to the 2014 Ease of Doing Business Subnational rankings, our State recorded the most improvement of all the 36 states in Nigeria. This was compared to the States very poor ranking of 34th at the inception of our administration in 2011.

    “We also introduced the concept of a “One Stop Shop” to assist Investors in their interactions with the government, particularly during their early stage. I am happy to report that about 423 major companies/industries are presently operating in the State, while over 100 new significant companies have opened shop since the advent of our Administration.

    “Even in our current harsh economic climate, another 14 are currently in the process of commissioning their industries/ factories. Indeed, we hope that Mr President, President Muhammadu Buhari will help to commission some of these industries before the end of the year. Ogun State is now officially the Industrial hub of the Nation.”

  • Minister to Senate: I know nothing about MTN funds transfer

    Minister to Senate: I know nothing about MTN funds transfer

    Industry, Trade and Investment Minister Okechukwu Enelamah has dismissed as untrue allegation made in the Senate that he was involved in the transfer of funds from Nigeria by telecom giant MTN.

    He said he has never been in a position to transact any such business for the company.

    Reacting to the allegation, the Director of Press in the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, Mr. Greyne Anosike said while the minister welcomes whatever investigation the Senate deems proper on the activities of companies operating in the country, it should not that:

    “Dr. Enelamah served as the CEO of Capital Alliance Nigeria Limited (CANL) between 1998 and 2015.  CANL is a wholly owned subsidiary of African Capital Alliance (“ACA”), an Africa focused private equity firm with investments in carefully selected companies within and outside Nigeria, including MTN Nigeria.

    “A fund managed by ACA, alongside other minority shareholders, invested in MTN Nigeria through Celtelecom. Dr. Enelamah was never the “owner” of Celtelecom as alleged by the Senator; neither was he ever a Celtelecom shareholder. Instead he was a director of the company, representing the ACA managed fund.

    “Investors do not have responsibility for remittance of proceeds from the company they are invested in. Therefore, at no time was Dr. Enelamah in a position to transfer funds out of Nigeria on behalf of MTN Nigeria, and at no time did Dr. Enelamah transfer any funds out of Nigeria on behalf of MTN Nigeria. As it relates to Celtelecom’s investment in MTN Nigeria, it is important to note that the entire process for applying for and using CCIs was done by MTN Nigeria.

    “Dr Enelamah resigned all his board positions, including from ACA and Celtelecom, consequent to his appointment as a Minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”

    Anosike branded the Senate allegation as without merit and baseless.

    The Senate resolved on Tuesday to probe the allegation made by Senator Dino Melaye that MTN moved $13.9billion out of the country between 2006 and now in violation of banking rules and regulations.

    He claimed that the telecom provider used the minister in repatriating the amount to floated and incorporated offshore Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs) in the Cayman Island, Mauritius and British Virgin Island.

    Some of the SPVs he mentioned and their promoters/shareholders  were  Cel Telephone Investment Limited, Port Louis, Mauritius; Dr. Pascal Dozie and Dr. Okechuckwu Elenemah; $20,749,532; Celtel funded shares SPV (which was renamed NISPV Limited in 2008), Port Louis, Mauritius; Dr. Pascal Dozie, Ahmed Dasuki, Gbenga Oyebode, Babatunde Folawiyo and Dr. Okechukwu Elenemah, $2,019,232.

    The Senate mandated its Committee on Banking, Insurance and Other Financial Institutions to investigate the matter and report back to it within two weeks.

  • EU intensifies push for Nigeria to endorse EPA deal

    EU intensifies push for Nigeria to endorse EPA deal

    The European Union (EU) has continued its push to get Nigeria endorse the controversial Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA), insisting that with globalization, Nigeria cannot live in isolation as it will hurt her economy.

    The propriety or otherwise of Nigeria signing into the EPA has since pitched manufacturers and other members of the Organised Private Sector (OPS) against the EU, with most of them insisting that signing the agreement as it  is presently will hurt the manufacturing sector and the economy generally.

    But the EU appears unimpressed by such argument and has, therefore, continued its push to get Nigeria ratify the EPA deal. At a dialogue session on Nigeria International Trade Relations organised by the Lagos Chamber of Commerce & Industry (LCCI), last week, Head of Trade & Economics of the EU in Nigeria and West Africa, Fillippo Amato, said Nigeria has nothing to fear as far as EPA is concerned.

    He said the EU has shown goodwill with the release of 12 million euro to support the enhancement of the National Quality Infrastructure, to improve quality, safety, integrity and marketability of Nigerian goods and services.

    He wondered how smaller African countries such as Ghana, Rwanda, Gambia, Cameroun, Mauritania and the Southern African countries have signed on as a result of improved quality of production as against Nigeria with her large population.

    On how Nigeria can tap into the European market, Amato said it is only through the improvement of her production processes.

    Nigeria is already loosing so much by the rejection of beans and other export products to the EU because of the presence of a pesticide known as dichlorvos, which is harmful to health. Amato regretted that more than 70 percent of beans exported to the EU from Nigeria contained pesticide.

    The EU boss, however, stated that that EU is working with the relevant government agencies to address the problem.

    Some of the agencies include the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO), Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON), National Agency for Food, Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA), and Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC) among others.

    While noting that there is no short cut to standardization, he said Nigeria must do all within her means to improve on her products both for export and internal consumption. He said the EU has 100 per cent immediate market opening for products from West Africa and 75 per cent gradual market opening over a 20 year period for products from the EU.

    LCCI President Mrs. Nike Akande while denouncing multiple charges on manufacturers by the regulatory agencies urged government on the need for diversification. She stated that no country is fully self-sufficient, urging the government to come out with consistent and sustainable policies on trade relations.

    “Our huge population is a plus for investors. Return on Investment (RoI) is one of the highest globally, but as a country we need to strengthen our competitiveness by creating an enabling environment on the supply side,” Akande said.

     

  • Go, become Bill Gates, Dangotes of your generation, -El-Rufai

    Go, become Bill Gates, Dangotes of your generation, -El-Rufai

    Kaduna State Governor, Malam Nasir El-Rufai has tasked 779 entrepreneurship trainees to become the next world richest men, like Bill Gates and Aliko Dangote with the business knowledge and skills they have acquired. 

    Speaking at the graduation ceremony of the first intake of the Kaduna Start-up Entrepreneurship Programme (KADSTEP) and induction of the second batch of trainees, El-Rufai said, his administration has targeted to train 5,000 entrepreneurs in the next three years.

    It would be recalled that, Kaduna State Government conceived KADSTEP to empower aspiring entrepreneurs to be able to access the various intervention funds that are available to support micro and small businesses.

    The Governor told both graduating and induction trainees that, the present government sees the youths as the future, and treats them with seriousness they deserve.

    His words: “Those of you graduating today therefore constitute a vanguard that has been empowered to make a difference. You have not been given handouts, but your government has provided you the knowledge capacity to thrive in challenging times. We trust that you will make the most of it. Some of you may falter before becoming the next Bill Gates and Aliko Dangotes of this world. But you have been given the tools to try”

    “To the incoming intakes, I welcome you to KADSTEP. Make the most of the opportunity to immerse yourself in business knowledge, sharpen your skills and be ready to fly as soon as you graduate. The first set had 279 trainees. The second set that we are inducting today has 500 trainees. We are taking an incremental approach to reaching our target of training 5000 entrepreneurs. This is an investment in the future, and we are proud to do our duty to make this investment”

    El-Rufai said, “Permit me to begin by saying emphatic congratulations to the first intake of the Kaduna State Entrepreneurship Programme (KADSTEP) who are graduating today. These 279 young persons took the opportunity presented to them to acquire sound business grounding that can propel their evident passion to set up their own enterprises, add  value and create jobs. They can be proud of themselves as the first graduates of a programme designed to help them think of their proposed businesses in a way that a potential investor can consider bankable”

    He added that, “In applying for KADSTEP, our graduates demonstrated that they were not wedded to any sense of entitlement, but were ready to grab opportunities that could build their capacity to conceive strong and realistic business ideas. These first intake have amply demonstrated that the youths of our country are ready to face challenges, and that they can embrace initiatives designed to help them succeed”

    Having undergone three months of business training, we look forward to hearing success stories from a lot of you” The governor said.

    Our government noticed that the N1b intervention fund we had with the BOI was not been disbursed because the bank did not consider most of the applications it received as viable. On our part, we did not want any potential entrepreneur to treat or consider these funds as unaccountable patronage, or as free funds to feed an unsustainable entitlement mentality. We decided that it was best to create a platform for the willing youth to acquire the necessary business skills. And we were lucky to find willing partners in the Kaduna Business School KBS and the Bank of Industry,BOI”

    “I wish each of today’s KADSTEP graduates success,  not only in securing funding, but in building successful and sustainable businesses. And I welcome the next batch of 500 trainees into the programme. Your government sees you as the future, and treats youth with the seriousness they deserve. Some other people cynically treat young people as easy fodder, to be fed paltry patronage and deluded into the belief that their future is dependent on the benevolence of thieving patrons”

    The Governor maintained that, “This government believes that the future of this country is hardworking, discerning youth who have trained their minds and hearts, and whose trust in honest endeavour is anchored on values that link effort to reward.” He stressed.

    On her part, Minister of State for Industry, Trade and Investment, Aisha Abubakar, who spoke at the graduation and induction of the trainees said with the new policy direction of the change administration of President Mohammadu Buhari: “we have no option than embracing economic diversification for a sustainable prosperous future that was hitherto impeded by our undue fixation to the oil sector”.