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Tag: unveils

  • Samsung unveils Galaxy S9, S9+

    Samsung Electronics  at the weekend, unveiled the Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9+, the smartphones which it said reimagine the way people communicate, share and experience the world. Made for an age in which consumers increasingly communicate and express themselves more with images, videos and emojis, the Galaxy S9 and S9+ drive innovation with Samsung’s advanced camera. Redesigned with a new Dual Aperture lens that powers an innovative low light camera, super slow-mo video capabilities and personalised AR Emoji, the Galaxy S9 and S9+ ensure users do not miss a moment and make their everyday epic.

    The Galaxy S9 and S9+ deliver an enhanced entertainment experience with powerful stereo speakers tuned by AKG, immersive audio with Dolby Atmos and a refined edge-to-edge Infinity Display – a key staple in Samsung’s design heritage. In addition, the Galaxy S9 and S9+ will come with the new SmartThings app, which unites Samsung’s existing IoT services into one single, smart experience.

    Speaking on the occasion, the Managing Director, Samsung Electronics West Africa, Jingak Chung, said: “The way we use our smartphones has changed as communication and self-expression has evolved. With the Galaxy S9 and S9+, we have reimagined the smartphone camera. Not only do the Galaxy S9 and S9+ enable consumers to shoot great photos and videos anywhere, it’s a smartphone that’s designed to help them connect to others and express themselves in a way that’s unique and personal to them.”

    On the camera he said today’s cameras are for more than taking pictures – they’re for connecting and communicating. Consumers want a smartphone camera with state-of-the-art technology, so they can express themselves with high-quality images and tools to tell their own, unique story. The Galaxy S9 and S9+ cameras are built with these consumers in mind, with a super speed dual pixel sensor with dedicated processing power and memory to take amazing shotswith high photo quality.

  • Caverton Helicopters unveils new fleet

    Caverton Helicopters Limited has unveiled a fleet of 11 brand new helicopters to be used for the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC)/Chevron Nigeria Limited Joint Venture based in Escravos.

    The acquisiction of the helicopters came on the heels of  a rigorous tendering process, where Caverton was selected as the preferred air transport provider.

    The choppers were unveiled at its Executive Flight Facility at Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, last week.

    The new fleet of helicopters include the state-of-the-art Bell 407 GXP and the industry workhorse Bell 412 EP. The Bell 407GXP incorporates new avionics, an upgraded engine, and new executive interior design options.  Fitted with Rolls-Royce M250-C47E/4 dual channel turbine engine, this aircraft delivers exceptional hot and high performance, with efficient fuel economy.

    The Bell 412 EP is a highly reliable aircraft that has been known to perform extremely well even in inimical climatic conditions. With a spacious cabin, the aircraft can be configured in a variety of ways to accommodate up to 14 passengers.

    Both helicopter types are equipped with a variety of safety features, which include rupture resistance fuel cells, wire strike protection system, vibration and engine exceedance monitoring systems, flight data monitoring.

    Speaking at the event, Chairman, Caverton Offshore  Support Group, Remi Makanjuola, said the unveiling by  Caverton fleet of helicopters is a feat and a day Nigeria should be proud of.

    He said :”This is a day that the aviation industry should be proud of that a Nigerian went to America to acquire 11 helicopters. This is a ground breaking event. Over the past few years, we went through many phases of development as a company in less than favourable circumstances. Nevertheless, we have been able to operate existing contracts successfully, as well as secure a few new contracts.

    ” The largest and most significant of these new contracts, the NNPC-Chevron Joint Venture Helicopter Services Contract, is of course, the reason we are here today to unveil the helicopters that would be used for that activity. We are recording some successes in our desire to be a financially strong and sustainable group that puts all stakeholders at the heart of everything.

    “Our safety record is something we are proud and thankful for, and credit must go to our professionalism at all levels. Given Chevron’s global reputation for safety and quality, it is safe to say that Caverton’s diligent attention to safety, quality and continuous improvement contributed in no small measure to the contract award.

    “The addition of these helicopters to our fleet will make Caverton Helicopters one of the largest operators of BELL products in sub-Saharan Africa.”

    As a fully indigenous player in the hitherto foreign interest dominated sector, Caverton , he  said, has confirmed the mantra that Nigerians can excel and do Nigeria proud in all facets of the economy given the opportunity.

    Said he : ” Caverton is fast tracking the national content policy by ensuring that more Nigerians are trained and given the pride of place in recruitment into high technical management positions.

    “To diversify our business activities, we are building a Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) facility in Lagos, which we plan to make operational in 2019.

    “Once completed, all the helicopters in our fleet as well as aircraft from third party operators will be maintained in the country, thus saving time and foreign exchange.

    ‘’The showcasing of our newly acquired fleet of Bell Helicopters attests to proactive drive to successfully grow our business in the long term.”

    The company’s achievement, Makanjuola said, would not have been possible without the unwavering support of the Federal Government and the major oil companies like Shell in particular who had confidence in us.

    “We have keyed into the fiscal discipline and local capacity-building that the Federal government has emphasised over the past few years, and we are now well-positioned to contribute our quota to the national economy’’,he added.

    The Caverton Helicopter, he noted, would begin operation on April 1, 2018.

    This is just as the company looks forward to a zero-accident  services since the helicopters will be flying everyday. Ovuede said the rules and regulations of aviation would be strictly adhered to by ensuring that all the helicopters are well maintained.

    Commending the group for promoting indigenous content thereby helping the nation’s economy, Minister of State for Aviation ,Hadi Sirika, said this new addition will assist in  expanding the Nigerian aviation sector.

    Speaking on the journey so far, Managing Director, Caverton Helicopters, Capt. Josian Choms, said despite the challenges of doing aviation business in Nigeria, the company has continued to be ahead. The strength, he said, lies in the passion at which Caverton discharges its service to its client, which is made possible by productive and efficient leadership and employees.

    While safety remains the company’s watchword, Choms reiterates the company’s rule of zero- accident as it continues its excellent service in the Nigerian air space.

  • Simba unveils motorcycles for farmers

    Farmers in northern Nigeria have got a relief as the Wandel International Nigeria Limited, a subsidiary of Simba Group of automobile companies in India yesterday launched TVS XL-100 and TVS NEO-XR motorcycles in Kano targeting local farmers in the Nigerian market.

    The motorcycles were designed with special features to suit the needs of rural farmers who constitute over 80 per cent of Nigeria’s agricultural sector.

    Speaking to reporters during the launch, the Head of 2-wheelers section of the automobile firm, Mr. Ritesh Kumar Nair said though the products could be used for private purposes, its primary objective was to facilitate the movement of farmers and their products, particularly, in the rural areas.

  • CSCS unveils new growth plan

    The Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc-the clearing and depository agent at the Nigerian capital market, yesterday unveiled its three-year strategic plan aimed at improving the company’s efficiency, reliability and profitability over the years.

    At a ceremony for the launch of the three-year plan, Managing Director, Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc, Mr. Haruna Jalo-Waziri, said the new growth plan, which covers 2018 to 2020, would help to keep the company in focus as it provides a clear direction of where it is headed.

    He said the transformative strategy was predicated upon five strategic pillars which included focused on technology, customer satisfaction, processes optimization, partnership through strategic alliances, and revenue growth.

    “Based on our culture of continuous improvement, the technology pillar will focus on necessary technological improvements to ensure that the company delivers on its corporate goals and is proactive in embracing new and disruptive technologies, optimizing the use of innovative technology, instituting Straight Through Processes (STP) across all touch points and establishing e-learning platform,” Jalo-Waziri said.

    He added that the company will leverage innovative technology in skilling and re-skilling human resources for optimum service delivery.

    According to him, with the customer satisfaction pillar, CSCS will become truly customer-centric and boost commercial excellence by achieving a minimum of 80 per cent customer satisfaction with 20 per cent minimum of new and existing customer activities on all touch points, ensuring seamless relationship with all stakeholders and preventing dissatisfaction of customers, as well as setting up customer call centre to attend to the needs of CSCS’ teeming customers.

    He outlined that the company will optimize enterprise process performance by achieving 80 per cent process automation, A+ Thomas Murray rating, and maintaining its ISO 270001 Standard Information Security.

    He pointed out that under its strategic pillar of alliances across businesses and regions, CSCS will expand the capital market ecosystem by partnering with policy makers, building relationships with regulators, actualise CSCS’ Self-Regulatory Organization (SRO) responsibility, and create feedback mechanism to all stakeholders that will enable quick resolution of any query that may occur in the course of doing business.

    On the fifth pillar of revenue growth, Jalo-Waziri said CSCS is not only into clearing and settlement but has developed other products that will bring about more efficiency and a robust capital market.

    He said CSCS has developed electronic storage system that makes market participants to be more efficient. Other products developed by the company are the Electronic General Meeting (eGEM), Insurance Repository and Pension Contribution Management System amongst others.

    “We will also perform holistic enterprise architecture in order to ensure we connect our operations and bring about speed in our service delivery,” Jalo-Waziri said.

    He noted that based on its previous two-year strategic plan from 2016 to 2017, CSCS recorded some milestones such as the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Strate (South Africa) and Central Depository and Settlement Corporation Limited (CDSC Kenya), achievement of Thomas Murray “A” rating (from “A-”), full dematerialization of share certificates, the co-sponsoring of Centre Counter party (CCP) platform with other stakeholders and recently, the deployment of the state of the art new central securities depository clearing and settlement platform.

    He urged all stakeholders to support the company noting that without action and support from both internal and external stakeholders, the transformative plan may achieve little or no result.

  • Emirates unveils winter programme

    Emirates Airlines said it is extending its popular My Emirates Pass programme to Nigerian passengers visiting Dubai this winter season.

    According to the airline, Nigerians traveling to Dubai between January and March, will get exclusive offers and discounts across the city simply  by turning the Emirates boarding pass into an exclusive membership card.

    In a statement the carrier said passengers flying to or through Dubai between January and March 2018 could take advantage of a range of offers at some of Dubai’s best known hotspots by simply showing their Emirates boarding pass and a valid form of identification.

    Commenting on the Programme, Emirates Regional Manager, West Africa, Afzal Parambil,  said the airline  has expanded the programme with more partners  to ensure that passengers  can enjoy special discounts at over 250 world class restaurants and hotel dining outlets in Dubai.

    He said:”Dubai is one of the world’s most vibrant cities with a diverse range of experiences to suit everyone and keep travellers returning time and time again. This year, we’ve doubled the number of partners in the My Emirates Pass programme to give our customers more options and even better value on their visit. Whether it’s your first time in Dubai or a return trip, there is always something new to explore.”

     

  • FirstBank unveils N15b loan plan for schools

    FirstBank of Nigeria Limited has set aside N15 billion loan budget for schools. The lender has also developed an array of products and solutions targeted at enabling schools to acquire attractive educational facilities to support their business while empowering parents and guardians to send their wards back to school.

    The bank’s educational products and solutions include the FirstEdu Loan; Operational Vehicle Loan; Term Loans for constructing new sites and renovation of existing sites; Personal Loan against Salary (PLAS) and Salary Overdraft (SODA), which enhances Parents/Guardians’ capacity to pay their wards’ school fees.

    The FirstEdu loan is targeted at private Nursery, Secondary and A-Levels schools. The product offers opportunity for private schools to access flexible funding to meet urgent cash flow needs, replace old furniture and equipment, as well as refurbish dilapidated buildings and classroom blocks.

    The Operational Vehicle Loan is targeted at registered businesses. It allows the entrepreneur to acquire brand new vehicles for the day to day operation of the business. Institutions can take advantage of this facility to purchase school buses in the case of school proprietors and upscale their staff welfare schemes through provision of staff buses.

    Personal Loan against Salary (PLAS) offers customers in paid employment access to cash to meet immediate financial needs such as payment of school fees, medical treatment, holiday expenses, among others.

    “The PLAS has a flexible repayment plan spread up to 48 months for our customers’ convenience. There is no equity contribution or collateral requirement,”the bank said.

    It continued: “The Salary Overdraft Account (SODA) is also available to customers, who want short tenured overdraft to meet immediate financial needs. SODA can be dispensed as a one-off overdraft for 30 days or a revolving overdraft for 180 days with up to 50 per cent of net monthly salary. Only a salary account qualifies you to access PLAS and SODA if you work with any of FirstBank’s approved list of employers.”

  • Lagos unveils Asa statue, festival in Ikorodu

    Lagos unveils Asa statue, festival in Ikorodu

    Governor Akinwunmi Ambode of Lagos State yesterday unveiled the Asa traditional festival to further promote the tourism and culture of the people of Ikorodu division in the eastern axis of the state. Also unveiled same day is a statue of Asa, a masquerade that walks on long stilt sticks, erected at the Ogolonto end of Ikorodu road.

    The elaborate event was graced by many traditional rulers led by the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi, who was ably represented by his staff of office brought to the ceremony by a team of royal father from Osun State. The Lagos State acting Commissioner for Tourism, Arts and Culture, Hon. Mrs. Adebimpe Akinsola, who represented the governor, said the state government has decided to recognize the festival as an annual event.

    The ceremony also featured the launch of “Asa Arokolo”, a book on the practice and culture of Asa, published by Ikorodu Division Rebirth Foundation. Dignitaries and other guests at the event lauded the initiative and urged the foundation to urgently beam its searchlight on other endangered cultural and tourism potentials in the area.

    “Asa is a popular cultural heritage in Ikorodu which had been long forgotten. As an indigene of Ikorodu, I have known Asa since my childhood days as one of the cultural practices of our people all over Ikorodu. But suddenly it started to fade away. Ikorodu is blessed with so many cultural endowments and the government of Lagos State is grateful to those who helped to revive this culture,” Akinshola said while presenting a certificate of recognition to IREP.

    Hon. Sanai Agunbiade, Majority Leader, Lagos State House of Assembly and convener of the foundation, who initiated rebirth of the festival, thanked the Lagos State government for encouraging the effort. “We have revived this culture in the six divisions of Ikorodu. Just like Eyo festival is celebrated on Lagos Island, we want to be celebrating this too in our community annually,” he said.

  • Afreximbank unveils Guarantee Programme for Africa financing

    The African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) yesterday launched a new guarantee programme meant to unlock capital and leverage much-needed financing into Africa.

    The Afreximbank Guarantee Programme (AFGAP), launched during the Advanced Structured Trade Finance Seminar and Workshops held in Sal, Cape Verde, and organised by the bank, will help to de-risk African transactions to make them more attractive to investors and financiers.

    The programme, which offers a variety of credit enhancement solution to clients in Africa, is part of Exim-plus, a broad strategy developed by Afreximbank to position itself as a comprehensive trade facilitation and financing solution centre in Africa.

    Under Exim-plus, Afreximbank is offering a broad array of instruments that are often associated with export credit agencies and other specialised trade and development finance institutions, thereby differentiating itself from normal commercial banks and development financial institutions.

    Speaking during the launch ceremony, Afreximbank’s Executive Vice President in charge of Business Development and Corporate Banking, Amr Kamel, said that AFGAP was a demonstration of Afreximbank’s unwavering commitment to delivering on its mandate of promoting intra- and extra-African trade, in particular, the mandate of using risk bearing instruments to promote trade in Africa, by introducing new risk mitigation solutions to address the trade finance needs of the continent.

    AFGAP would bring “additionality” to Africa, by mobilizing financing that would otherwise not have been possible, to support the economic development of the continent, he said.

    Kamel called for support for the programme from partners and other relevant stakeholders, saying that although Afreximbank had taken a giant step in launching the programme, it could not achieve the desired results alone. “We are, therefore, calling on partners interested in Africa’s development and all relevant parties to work with Afreximbank to support the promotion of trade and trade-related investments in Africa.”

    Head of Afreximbank’s Guarantees and Specialised Finance Unit, Kofi Asumadu Ado, said that Afreximbank’s approach to trade finance issues in Africa was to identify the challenges and then to design specific solutions to address them. The AFGAP was a concrete solution designed to address a challenge that had been identified by the Bank, he explained.

  • Buhari unveils shape of things to come

    Buhari unveils shape of things to come

    President Muhmmadu Buhari, in a remark at the APC secretariat in Abuja yesterday, unveiled the shape of things to come.

    Let me on a personal note thank you all for your prayers and good wishes, which the Almighty Allah answered in the restoration of my health.

    I wish to thank you all Party leaders for helping to keep the government running smoothly during my prolonged absence.

    I would like to start by commending our Party Leadership chaired by His Excellency, Chief John Oyegun. The Chairman and I worked harmoniously during 1984-85 in a previous government. Happily, circumstances have brought us again to positions of leadership in the country.

    I want to thank Chief Oyegun and his staff for steering the party in the last two and a half years. Sometimes it is easier to manage failure than to manage success – and a big success such as that we have achieved.

    I must also commend the leadership of the National Assembly led by Senate President His Excellency, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki and Rt. Hon. Speaker Mr. Yakubu Dogara. I must place on record the cooperation and understanding of the National Assembly including some non-APC members who rose above petty party interests and acted in the national interest.

    My deep thanks also go to our State Governors who faced stiff challenges, especially their determination to maintain unity and tolerance among our communities. This is in the face of unnecessary politically motivated strife and violence. Credit should go to APC Governors for extending their hand of fellowship to their colleagues from other parties.

    In my remarks to the Caucus meeting yesterday, I enumerated the progress that our government has made in the implementation of the programs of government and the Party Manifesto.

    We can be proud of our achievements in the last two years, Boko Haram, Niger Delta, Regular Fuel, Improved Power, TSA, Agriculture and Fertilizer, above all, the knowledge that corruption will not be tolerated in this Government. We all know there is CHANGE.

    Nigeria’s prestige has gone up, Nigeria is now credit –worthy, a clear testimony of which was the over-subscription of the Euro-Bond by four times.

    Nevertheless, we are not resting on our achievements. I am quite aware of the challenges before us.

    Last year I said we would re-constitute the Boards of Parastatals. I must regret the fact that we have not done so, for many reasons.

    Some of us in this meeting may know I had given instructions since October 2015 for this exercise to start. But there have been inordinate delays through several Committees in an attempt to get the balance right and to make sure all parts of the country are equitably represented.

    On the other hand I am keenly aware that our supporters are very eager for these appointments to be announced. By the Grace of God these appointments will be announced soon. Especially now that the economy is improving, we will have the resources to cater for the appointees.

    By the same token the compressed Federal Executive Council will be expanded to bring in more supporters at Federal Level, with fresh ideas to be injected into the government.

    Let me thank you all again for the commitment and dedicated service to our Party and to remind you that much more will be required of you in the coming months. I hope we can continue to depend on you.

    If we keep united and rise above petty or personal quarrels we will surely achieve the desired CHANGE in the country.