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  • IVTEC: Kwara signs MoU with NDE, World Bank

    The Kwara State International Vocational, Technical and Entrepreneurship College (IVTEC) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the National Directorate of Employment (NDE) and the World Bank to train 250 students for a first-level skills.

    The MoU, according to Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed, who signed on behalf of the state, provides for the payment of monthly stipends to the trainees for the period of the training.

    He added that the three months’ training would be followed by a six months’ industrial apprenticeship to further expose the trainees to their chosen jobs.

    Ahmed explained that the college was established to provide the best technical, vocational and entrepreneurship training to youths to make them gainfully employed and contribute their quotas to the society.

    The governor added that IVTEC is a benchmark for global standards in vocational education through partnership with globally recognised certification bodies like City and Guilds of London, among others.

    Director-General of NDE Dr Nasiru Mohammed Ladan said the partnership is a right step in the right direction. According to him, it would open a new vista in the implementation of the skills for job of components of YESSO.

    Ladan, who was represented by Mrs. Olaomi Roseline, congratulated the government for pioneering output-based state-led skills among the eight states of Bauchi, Cross River, Ekiti, Logic, Kwara, Niger, Osun and Oyo.

    He added that 316 youths were trained in the last two years.

  • World Bank’s $600m for Lake Chad Basin projects

    The World Bank has announced an additional $600 million (about N216 billion) for projects in the Lake Chad Basin region devastated by the Boko Haram terrorists.

    The Bank made the announcement at the Berlin Conference on Boko Haram crisis, which held on Monday and Tuesday in Berlin.

    The two-day high-level humanitarian conference was organised by the Governments of Nigeria, Germany and Norway, together with the United Nations.

    The African Development Bank (AfDB) and the Islamic Development Bank also supported the Lake Chad Basin region with grants and concessional loans respectively.

    The UN Emergency Relief Coordinator, Mr Mark Lowcock, thanked the banks and countries for their generous donations and supports in a series of tweets.

    “Thank you WorldBank for your incredible support to Lake Chad Basin and for announcing an additional $600M for projects throughout the region!

    “Many thanks AfDB for your grant of US $35.65M to the #LakeChadBasin as well as the announcement of US $57.3M in concessional loans,” Lowcook said.

    According to him, the Islamic Development Bank is supporting the Lake Chad Basin with $80 million in concessional loans.

    The UN humanitarian chief also thanked Ireland for pledging 7.3 million euros; Sweden, 32 million pounds; the Netherlands, 12.1 million pounds; Italy, 15 million pounds; and Poland, 230,000 pounds.

    “I was so pleased to see the contributions from donors to development activities in the #LakeChadBasin through the UN Peacebuilding Support Office,” Lowcock said.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that the conference raked in about $2.52 billion dollars in pledges and concessional loans, with Germany, the host country, pledging 265 million euros and Norway, 125 million dollars.

    The others were Switzerland, 20 million dollars; France, 131 million Euros; Belgium, 45 million Euros; Finland, 2.3 million Euros; and Denmark, 72.5 million dollars.

    NAN recalls that the United Kingdom pledged 146 million pounds; Canada, 68 million Canadian dollars; European Union, 231.5 million euros; Luxembourg, 40 million euros and Spain, 3.2 million euros.

    The international donor conference on ‘Boko Haram’ crisis raised $2.17 billion in support, and about $467 million in concessional loans for the crisis-ridden Lake Chad Basin region.

    The two day high-level conference was organised in Berlin on Monday and Tuesday, by the Governments of Nigeria, Germany and Norway, together with the United Nations.

    The humanitarian conference, which was one of the 2018 largest pledging conferences for the Lake Chad region, was convened to raise much needed resources for relief, development and peace-building programmes in the region.

    “Participants agreed that a coherent, multi-year approach is needed, that integrates all available instruments to tackle the protracted crisis and the root causes of the conflict.

    “This is needed to pave the way for sustainable and resilient development of the region, and thus contribute to a better future for the affected people,” the organisers said in a press statement after the conference.

    The conference also highlighted the regional dimension of the Lake Chad crisis, as well as the crucial role of local actors, cross-border cooperation and ownership, at all levels.

    Violence by ‘Boko Haram’ insurgents  in the Northeast Nigeria forced thousands to flee their homes, with many seeking refuge in neighbouring countries.

  • World Bank boost reproductive health study in UNIBEN

    The World Bank has established the Centre of Excellence in Reproductive Health Innovation (CERHI) at the University of Benin to help provide reproductive health education and related social service.

    Part of the mission of CERHI is to implement high quality training and applied research for reproductive health professionals needed to build a new cohort of human resource for reducing the regions high burden of fertility, unsafe abortion and maternal mortality.

    Leader of UNIBEN CERHI centre, Prof. Friday Okonofua, who spoke at the unveiling of CERHI centre said part of its vision is to be a leading institution providing innovative and transformational changes on matters relating to population and development.

    Read Also: Jubilation as UNIBEN pardons students’ leaders

    Prof. Okonofua said the centre would provide short courses in productive health policy in West and Central Africa as well as post graduates in reproductive health, public health, health economics and nursing.

    Okonofua stated that the centre has recruited a total of 252 Masters students, 36 PhD students and 569 students in short courses on reproductive health.

    He disclosed that the centre has also received grant from the Ford Foundation and the African Research Excellence Fund for staff training and program expansion.

  • Obaseki, World Bank firm up partnership on agriculture

    The Edo State Governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, has said that the deepening of partnership with the World Bank in agricultural development would usher the state into a new era of prosperity, which will directly impact on the lives of Edo people.

    The governor, who said this during a lunch with a team from the World Bank at the Government House in Benin City, noted that the state government has implemented crucial reforms to engender transparency, probity, and accountability in public finance and policy implementation.

    The visiting World Bank team consists of its Agricultural Economist, Adetunji Oredipe and Lead Financial Management Specialist, Governance Global Practice, Parminder Brar.

    Read Also:http://staging.thenationonlineng.net/world-bank-asks-nigeria-to-raise-non-oil-tax-collection/

    The meeting is coming on the heels of extensive engagements with top hierarchy of the World Bank, which has sent expanded teams to the state in the last couple of months, to assess the progress of development efforts and landmark projects such as the Edo-Azura Power Project, which the Bretton Woods institution is a major partner.

    According to the governor, the state government has ensured the implementation of reforms that have made the state attractive to investors and development partners, who have committed to invest in capacity building, technical education, innovation and technology development as well as in attaining the sustainable development goals in the state.

    He added that the focus on technical education has attracted investment from the World Bank, in the rehabilitation project, which will see the school offer top-of-the-range education in technical areas, and award globally-respected certificates to the students.

    The state government has been pursuing a multipronged agricultural development plan, which led to a recent visit to the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA).

    At the meeting with IITA Director General (DG), Nteranya Sanginga, Governor Obaseki reiterated his administration’s vision was to establish a cassava production zone of at least 50,000 hectares where cassava will be produced and processed with the active participation of smallholder farmers and the private sector.

    He demanded an actionable plan from IITA, that will guide the state in becoming a hub of agricultural development in the region.

    The World Bank team assured the governor of continued support on his developmental projects, noting that the World Bank will support the state’s reforms for the benefit of the people.

     

  • World Bank asks Nigeria to raise non-oil tax collection

    The World Bank has urged Nigeria to lift its internally generated revenue by raising non-oil income from federal and state levels.

    The global lender demanded that income from Value Added Tax (VAT), excises and customs, and states’ internally generated revenues be increased.

    “To do that requires strengthening tax administration and increasing compliance rates, and reforms including rationalizing tax incentives and exemptions and selectively increasing rates such as excise on alcohol and tobacco,” it said.

    The World Bank also plans to increase its funding to Nigeria by $4.5 billion over the next three years to support projects in the power and health industries and in governance, the lender’s vice president for Africa said.

    “This is indicative — in the next 18 months or so, we expect to put in place projects for around $2.5 billion,” Hafez Ghanem said. “We are thinking about financing more investments in power and the area of social protection.” The Washington-based institution currently has 30 projects estimated at $10 billion in Nigeria.

    President Muhammadu Buhari in June signed the country’s N9.1 trillion ($25 billion) budget for 2018, the biggest yet, to boost infrastructure investment in Africa’s top oil producer, and support economic recovery. The International Monetary Fund forecast Nigeria’s economy will expand 2.1 per cent this year after it contracted in 2016, when prices and output of crude declined. Budget documents forecast a deficit of 2 trillion naira, more than half of which will be plugged by borrowing.

    The nation is scheduled to hold general elections in February, in which Buhari plans to seek another term. He’ll have to address revenue collection, power shortages and fuel subsidies, among other things.

  • World Bank to support ERGP’s execution

    The World Bank has expressed its willingness to provide technical support to Nigeria on the implementation of the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP) mid-term review. The support will also cover power sector reform and public private partnerships (PPPs).

    The bank’s Vice President for African Region, Hafez Ghanem, who disclosed this in Abuja during a discussion with the Minister of Budget and National Planning, Udoma Udo Udoma, said the lender accords Nigeria top priority in its considerations.

    The World Bank was also disposed to providing technical support on ERGP delivery, performance tracking and reporting, capacity building for sector officials and economic modeling for policy analysis and forecasting.  Ghanem also pledged that the bank will increase its support for Nigeria’s Social Investment Programme.

    He added that the global lender was committed to supporting Nigeria’s economic recovery and growth. He asserted that given the relative size of the Nigerian economy, it would be difficult for Africa, as a whole, to grow if Nigeria is not growing.

    The World Bank chief reiterated that he was in Nigeria to discuss with relevant officials as regards the areas in which Nigeria would like to receive additional support from the bank as the lender has an interest in the success of all its member countries.

    While acknowledging that the current administration in Nigeria has shown commendable commitment in growing the economy, Ghanem pledged that he would help to arrange for Nigeria to have an opportunity to speak about its economic progress at the annual meetings of the World Bank/International Monetary Fund (WB/IMF) scheduled for later this year in Indonesia.

    While receiving Ghanem, Udoma explained that the ERGP is Nigeria’s medium term plan (2017 – 2020) that articulates government’s vision for the country and also lays the foundation for its long term economic growth.

    He said the current Administration had to set very aggressive targets in order to meet the serious challenges it met, caused principally by the collapse in crude oil prices. Indeed, the collapse of crude oil prices exposed how dependent the economy was on commodity exports.

    The Economic Recovery and Growth Plan, the ‘ERGP’, was therefore developed to reform the economy so as to reduce its reliance on a single commodity and place it on the path of sustained, diversified and inclusive growth. He said that with the introduction of the ERGP the economic decline has been reversed; the economy has emerged from recession and is beginning to grow again.

     

  • FG seeks World Bank’s help to accelerate slow economy

    The federal government has approached the World Bank to leverage on the institution’s global reach and expertise to accelerate the nation’s slow economy.

    Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun made the appeal on Thursday when she received the World Bank’s Vice President for Africa Mr. Hafez Ghanem in her office in Abuja.

    According to Adeosun, “We hope to accelerate the growth and this interaction with the world bank is how do we do that, and how do we leverage on the technical capacity, global reach and wealth of experience to ensure we not only preserve the growth which is quite slow at the moment but to accelerate the growth so that we don’t have boom and burst cycles. We need continues growth.”

    Adeosun commended the World Bank for the projects the institution in involved in in Nigeria “particularly at the subnational government levels with the fiscal transparency and accountability project that the World Bank is helping us with, there are projects in education, health and water that the World Bank is doing which we are excited about.”

    But one area where Nigeria is hoping to make a lot of progress is the power sector reform program, which the finance minister said “is an extremely important program for us as far as GDP growth is concerned because it’s really going to accelerate growth and all the things that we need to do to get the power sector reform programme off the ground, for us it’s our number one priority at the moment.”

    Read Also: World Bank okays $2.1b loan for Nigeria

    Specifically, Nigeria she said will like to draw from the World Bank, assistance to “sort out the challenges in the power sector value chain and leverage on the World Bank, its relationship and its wealth of experience in getting us to move the sector forward.”

    Earlier in his speech, the World bank Vice President, Mr. Hafez Ghanem said  “The world bank’s objective in Africa, is to help Africa grow. If we talk about growth in Africa, we have to think of Nigeria because it is the largest in Africa. So Africa cannot grow unless Nigeria grows, so for us in the World Bank, Nigeria is a very high priority and we want to see how we can support and help the Nigerian economy grow faster and achieve all developmental objectives.”

  • World Bank consultant to present book

    TOP politicians are set to join World Bank consultant Johnson Edosomwan as he launches is book, ‘Nigeria: Progress begins with me,’ in Lagos this month.

    The book launch will spread from Lagos to Abuja, and then to London, Amsterdam, Canada and the United States of America (USA).

    Edosomwan, who just returned from the USA, has been able to warm his way into the heart of the political class, and enjoying a rich comradeship which enables him propose a book to add to the rich literature of present day narrative and expose of the Nigerian political landscape.

    Edosomwan’s book brings up the challenges faced by the nation as a young democratic country, including leadership, economic growth, infrastructure, lack of good governance, poverty, corruption of leaders and electorate, education, healthcare, security, and inefficient structures, among others.

    The writer, in this new book, offers a roadmap for addressing the challenges from his enormous wealthy background of an international development consultant. His proposed roadmap sets the pace for transforming Nigeria into a multidimensional economy, creating jobs for men, women, and youth, and securing communities.

    Edosomwan, who is the founder of National Democratic Congress Party, said he looks forward to a cheerful launch.

    “I believe that Nigeria’s progress begins with me and with each and every one of you using our unified talents, abilities and experience to make Nigeria a great nation.”

  • World Bank: $160b lost to men, women earnings gap

    The World Bank has disclosed that countries are losing $160 trillion in wealth due to gaps in lifetime earnings between men and women.

    The figure, the global lender said in a report relased yesterday, amounts to an average of $23,620 per person in the 141 countries studied by the World Bank Group.

    The study, Unrealised Potential: The high cost of gender inequality in earnings, examines the economic cost of gender inequality in lost human capital. It comes before the meeting of the G7, currently headed by Canada, which committed to ensuring gender equality and women’s empowerment are integrated across all G7 themes, activities and initiatives during its presidency.

    “The world is essentially leaving $160 trillion on the table when we neglect inequality in earnings over the lifetime between men and women,” World Bank CEO Kristalina Georgieva said.

    “This is a stark reminder that world leaders need to act now and act decisively to invest in policies that promote more and better jobs for women and equal pay at work.

     

  • World Bank: $30tr lost to poor girl-child education

    The World Bank has said that limited educational opportunities for girls cost countries between $15 trillion and $30 trillion in lost lifetime productivity and earnings.

    According to Missed Opportunities, a new World Bank report said less than two thirds of girls in low-income countries complete primary school, and only one in three girls completes lower secondary school. “ On average, women who have a secondary education are more likely to work and they earn almost twice as much as those with no education. Other positive effects of secondary school education for girls include a wide range of social and economic benefits for the girls themselves, their children and their communities.

    These include near-elimination of child marriage, lowering fertility rates by a third in countries with high population growth, and reducing child mortality and malnutrition,” the report said.