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Tag: Zainab Ahmed

  • IFJ holds training for women journalists on safety, gender issues

    Journalists in the country have been advised to prioritise their safety in the course of their duties.

    The advise was given during a 2-day workshop on Gender Equity And Safety for female journalists, organised by the International Federation of Journalists (IFG) in collaboration with the Nigeria Association of Women Journalists (NAWOJ) on Wednesday in Kaduna.

    The facilitator, Mrs. Veronica Ogbole, said the training was important because  safety and security are vital for very Journalism work’particularly because of the hot spots they cover.

    ”We believe Journalists need to get training on security issues, how to stay alive first, because it is when you are alive that you can file any report, dead or wounded Journalist cannot certainly file any report.

    “We desire to have equality regardless of gender in the profession because we believe every citizen, Journalist can contribute to the issues of development.

    “We hope these series of trainings will continue so that we can train as many Journalist as possible.

    READ ALSO: SERAP sues Fed Govt, states at ECOWAS Court over attacks on journalists, bloggers

    “We have started training in other states, but by the time we are able to get funding from other international organisations or Nigerians that are concerned we will expand the training to Journalist all over the country” she said.

    On her part, Rafat Salami, another facilitator who presented a lecture on combating sexual harassment in workplace called on women journalists to always stand their ground in protecting their dignity while discharging their duties.

    Speaking at the event, Adamu Yusuf,  Kaduna  State Chairman of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), said the workshop was apt because of the importance of safety to the profession.

    He said that journalists should be given equal opportunity and access to required information regardless of their gender.

    NAN reports that the training was supported by the Minister of Finance, Mrs. Zainab Ahmed and would also hold in Nasarawa state

  • Zainab Ahmed appointed Board Chair of AU Peace fund

    The Africa Union (AU) yesterday in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia appointed Nigeria’s Minister of Finance, Mrs Zainab Ahmed as chairperson of Board of Trustees of the AU Peace Fund.

    A statement issued by the Ministry said, the minister expressed appreciation and commitment towards achieving the agenda of the Special Fund.

    According to the statement, “the board has five African members each representing a region and two Non African Members (United Nations and European Union) as International partners. The Minister of Finance is  representing the Western African Sub-region in the Board.”

    The Protocol Relating to the African Union Peace and Security Council (PSC) provides for the establishment of a Special Fund to be known as the Peace Fund with the objective of providing the necessary financial resources for peace support missions and other operational activities relating to peace and security in Africa.

    Read also: Buhari mourns Etsu Patigi, District Head of Kafur

    The Peace Fund is an independent international fund for the prevention and management of conflicts, and the promotion of peace in Africa.

    The Board of Trustees was established by the Assembly of the Union in July 2016 to ensure strategic coherence, enhanced governance, and financial and administrative oversight of the Peace Fund.

    The Peace Fund will finance three key priorities: mediation and preventive diplomacy activities, institutional capacity requirements, and peace support operations.

  • FEC okays 64 million euros facility for water supply in Kano

    The Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting on Wednesday approved 64 million Euros facility for water supply in Kano State.

    The Minister of Finance, Zainab Ahmed briefed State House correspondents at the end of FEC meeting chaired by President Muhammadu Buhari.

    Read Also: Buhari presides over FEC

    According to her, the facility from the French Development Agency will provide portable water for 1.5 million people in the state.

     

    Details Later

     

  • FG urges national savings to boost capital market liquidity

    The Minister of Finance, Mrs. Zainab Ahmed has said that the Federal Government is willing to set up a National Savings Committee that will make recommendations to the government on the best ways to mobilise savings that would lead to economic growth.

    Mrs. Ahmed stated this when she held a meeting with members of the Capital Market Master Plan Implementation Council, CAMMIC, in Abuja, Tuesday.

    She said there is need for Nigerians to imbibe the culture of savings so as to be able to participate actively in the capital market as a means of growing the economy.

    “We need to grow domestic investments that will be here to stay, not just people that are shopping around for where to make profit alone. It is true that the current financial system is still tilted largely toward the banks.

    “There is a need to look at all the players and help solve the problems. We are open to setting up the working group so we can have a review, extract recommendations and get to work. Those that can be done immediately we will try to do them and the long term ones we can then plan to do them as we move along,” she said.

    Ahmed said the government is concerned about the volatility of the capital market and is ready to work with CAMMIC to ensure that the market is stable.

    According to her, “We know we need foreign investors in our market, but most importantly we need to grow our domestic investors that are here to stay. The foreign investors come in and when anything happens, they quickly take their money and go away but our domestic investors will always be here with us.

    “We are open to setting up the working group so we can have a review, extract recommendations and get to work. Those that can be done immediately we will try to do them and the long term ones we can then plan to do them as we move along.

    Read Also: Buhari hails $21b savings on food import

    “We have worked assiduously to diversify away from our over dependence on oil and gas and the first sector the president is interested in is in the Agricultural sector. We know that we have not yet addressed the whole value chain and this can be driven if we have a very active commodities exchange market because our goods will be of high standards as required by industries in Nigeria and outside the country.”

    Speaking earlier, the Chairman of CAMMIC, Mr. Olutola Mobolurin expressed the need for Government to pay more attention to the capital market being the Centre of the economy as regulation of the market is paramount because the industry relies on confidence of investors

    Mobolurin therefore canvassed for the setting up of a National Savings Committee to drive the process of fund mobilization among Nigerians and work on a robust savings initiative that can drive the growth of the economy.

    He listed some of the achievements of the council to include dematerialization, recapitalization, e-dividend mandate, financial literacy, National Savings Strategy, Streamlined Bond Issuance Progress, Access to alternative investments and Tax incentive programmes.

    Other achievements are enhancing commodities trading ecosystem, enhancing market liquidity and facilitate the establishment of a credit enhancement facility.

    For the year 2019, Mobolurin disclosed that CAMMIC will embark on a review of the Master Plan, conduct an impact assessment of programmes and initiatives like e-dividend, dematerialization, Direct Cash Settlement among others, expansion of commodities through registered exchanges as well as the introduction of derivatives and related instruments.

    In her remarks, Acting Director General of the Securities and Exchange Commission, SEC, Ms. Mary Uduk said the Commission and the market are working to make the capital market attractive to pension funds to boost liquidity.

     

  • Finance minister congratulates Buhari over re-election

    The Minister of Finance, Mrs Zainab Ahmed has congratulated President Muhammadu Buhari over his re-election, describing it as an ‘impressive success’.

    She said this in a congratulatory message addressed to Buhari.

    The congratulatory message contained in a statement issued by Mr Paul Abechi, her Special Adviser on Media and Communications on Friday in Abuja, said Buhari’s victory shows his acceptability across the length and breadth of the country.

    She added that the victory was a testimony that the solid foundation laid in the last three and half years was appreciated by majority of Nigerians.

    Read Also: Re-election: AU congratulates Buhari

    “I am pleased to congratulate you and the entire campaign team on this impressive success.

    “Your victory with acceptability across the length and breadth of our country fills me with immense joy.

    “By this vote, Nigerians trust and believe in your ability to lead the country to sustainable growth and development.”

    Ahmed also said that the victory would inspire him to do more to lead Nigeria on the path of sustainable prosperity.

  • FG kicks off road for tax refund projects

    The Federal Government has flagged-off its roads for tax-refund initiative with Dangote Construction handling a 16-kilometre Ofeme Community road network in Ohuhu in Umuahia North local Government, Abia State.

    The community road project which is expected to be delivered under the FG’s Road Infrastructure Development and Refurbishment Investment Tax Credit Scheme enables private sector like Dangote, Unilever, NLBG and others to invest in road construction, making it possible to upgrade access roads to industrial and manufacturing clusters and reduce cost of transportation which results into reduction in the cost of food and other services, thereby curbing inflation.

    Speaking during the flag-off ceremony in Ofeme Abia state, the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr. Okechukwu Enelemah, called on the people to give the contractor the needed cooperation to enable it complete the road project in record time of one year stated in the contractual agreement.

    Also speaking, the Federal Controller of Works, Abia State, Engr. Nwankwo Chuwudike, who represented the Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Raji Fashola, said “the road would not only enhance the standard of living of the Ofeme community, it would also lead to reduction in the cost of transportation and ultimately help in poverty reduction.”

    He called on the people of Ofeme to own the project while also “appealing to all road users, and the youths of this community to be supportive, patient and mindful of road diversions during construction, while we hold the contractors to their bond of timely and quality delivery of this service.”

    Federal Government recently resolved to continue with massive infrastructural development across the country under Executive Order #007 signed by President Muhammadu Buhari in January. Six private sector players will execute 19 road projects under the Executive Order 7. They are Dangote Industries Limited; Lafarge Africa Plc; Unilever Nigeria Plc; Flour Mills of Nigeria Plc; Nigeria LNG Limited; and China Road and Bridge Corporation Nigeria Limited.

    These Investors will be investing in 19 Eligible Road Pilot scheme projects, totalling 794.4km which have been prioritised in 11 States across each of the 6 Geo-Political Zones.

    The Minister of Finance Mrs Zainab Ahmed who chairs the Scheme’s management committee said that “Executive Order #007 of 2019 on the Road Infrastructure Development and Refurbishment Investment Tax Credit Scheme will incentivise private sector investment in Nigerian roads across key economic corridors and industrial clusters, relieving the Government of the burden of funding the initial outlays for these investments.”

  • Ex-Nigeria Airways workers recount 14-year ordeal of non-payment of benefits

    Some pensioners and ex-workers of the defunct Nigeria Airways have given accounts of the trauma, untold hardship they went through for more than 14 years they were retrenched without payment of their pensions and benefits.

    The pensioners and ex-workers who exclusively spoke with the News Agency of Nigeria in Lagos said they went through hardship before the present administration of President Muhammadu Buhari came to the rescue.

    The former workers and pensioners had organised a rally on Friday in Lagos to show appreciation to the President for approving the payment of their pension arrears and other benefits after 14 years of waiting.

    The over 5000 Nigeria airways workers, who said they had been “abandoned, humiliated and frustrated by previous administrations’’, undertook a solidarity procession in Ikeja to drum support for the re-election bid of Buhari.

    More than 15 years after the liquidation of Nigeria Airways by former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s government, the present administration approved N45.3 billion for the settlement of the retirement benefits of the defunct airline workers.

    The supervisory Minister of Finance, Hajia Zainab Ahmed, in September 2018 directed the release of N22.68 billion to the workers and most of them had been paid.

    “Following the long delay in payment of the retirement benefits after the liquidation of Nigeria Airways Ltd., many of the ex-workers went through hardship

    “This unfortunate situation cannot be allowed to continue under a responsible administration,’’ the minister had said.

    Alhaji Mustapha Ogunribisan, one of the retrenched workers recalled how they were forcefully ejected out of their office by the Police in 2006.

    “After the liquidation in 2006, we were intimidated. The then Inspector-General of Police, Tafa Balogun ordered his boys to come and chase us out of the office in the course of which we were tear gassed.

    “Some of us died then while many were wounded since then we had been struggling to get our entitlements paid.’’

    Ogunribisan, who said he was employed in October 1976, and deployed to the Motor Transport Division of Engineering Department of the Nigeria Airways, recalled what led to the liquidation of the company.

    “They claimed that the management mismanaged money and the company was no longer viable.

    “A panel was set up by President Obasanjo which at the end of the day found out that the allegations were false. A 12-volume report of the panel was submitted to the then President.

    “Obasanjo, however, said there was no going back on his decision to liquidate Nigeria Airways.

    He continued: “the present Governor of Kaduna State, Nasir el Rufai, who was then the chairman of the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) intervened in the matter.

    “The governor said the former President should allow him to run Nigeria Airways for one year without collecting any money from government but Obasanjo insisted that he had made up his mind to liquidate the company’’.

    Ogunribisan said they had been on the trenches fighting to get their entitlements paid during which no fewer than 800 of them died.

    He said they, however, got a temporary reprieve when the late former President Umaru Yar’Adua came in and they took their matter before him.

    “Within seven days, Yar’Adua ordered that we should be paid our salary arrears which was implemented then.

    “The late President later set up a panel to look into our gratuity and other benefits but unfortunately he fell sick and in the process he died,’’ he said.

    Ogunribusan said, though, Goodluck Jonathan, the then Vice President, who succeeded Yar’Adu was privy to the efforts and plans of his predecessor over their matter, he, nevertheless, abandoned them to suffer.

    “We wrote series of letters to former President Jonathan reminding him of what his predecessor did but he said it was a forgotten issue.

    “As at that time, many of us had died. We were holding series of meetings, consulting prominent Nigerian citizens including Emirs over our issue, but Jonathan never yielded,’’ he said.

    Buhari raised the hope of the ex-workers when he approved the N45bn after an audit by the Presidential Initiative on Continuous Audit (PICA), a department in the Ministry of Finance.

    Ogunribisan said by fulfilling his promise and paying the first tranche of their entitlements, Buhari had restored their long gone hope and brought smile to their faces.

    “The sickness I was suffering from had been taken care of and I am healthy now. I was even able to travel to the U.S. for medical check-up over my failing health,’’ he said

    Ogunribisan said in appreciation of what the President had done for them, he was mobilising members of his immediate and extended family to vote for his re-election come Feb. 16.

    For Comrade Kolawole Ayinla, 68 years old, he said the 14 years of non-payment of his entitlements was “hell on earth’’.

    “I was employed by Nigeria Airways on Oct. 12, 1976 and I worked in the Engineering Dept.

    “The then government of Obasanjo treated us mercilessly. He has no respect for Nigerian citizens, the way we were humiliated was not pleasing.

    “For many years I was admitted in Lagos State University Teaching Hospital and there was no money to pay for drugs and the hospital bills.

    “I have to move with my family to a ghetto in a suburb of Lagos for us to survive.

    “It was a worse of experience before President Muhammadu Buhari came to the rescue. The payment of the money had changed my situation.’’

    Andrew Ahilemen who broke into tears while narrating his ordeal said he joined Nigeria Airways in 1980 and his employment was abruptly terminated with the company’s liquidation.

    “My experience after this had been so bad, I could not take care of myself and feed my family. I could not pay my children’s school fees.

    “We served this country with our sweat and we were thrown out and treated like refugees.

    “We were humiliated out of the office, but I am grateful to President Buhari for what he has done and I am very happy now.

    “I am happy because with the part of my entitlement that has been paid now, I can take care of myself, feed my family and send my children back to school,’’ he said.

    More pathetic is the case of Mr Jacob Loremikan who left the service of the Nigeria Airways in 1977 but suffered Parkinson’s disease when his pension was stopped after the liquidation.

    The Octogenarian, who could barely talk said he went through hardship until Buhari came to restore his hope and bring back his long gone smiles

    Meanwhile, the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed has restated the Buhari administration’s commitment to the well being and welfare of Nigerians.

    Mohammed who spoke at the rally by the ex-workers said that Buhari’s commitment to the well being of the masses led him to end the 14-year wait and suffering of the 5,996 former staff of the defunct national career.

    He also assured that come Feb. 16, Buhari’s commitment to the well being and welfare of Nigerians would earn him re-election

    “It is not just the former staff of Nigeria Airways who have benefitted from the people-oriented policy of this administration.

    “Former Biafran Policemen, former workers of the Delta Steel Company, Aladja, and former NITEL workers have also seen their years of suffering and neglect come to an end, thanks to Buhari.

    “For the more than 800 deceased ex-staff of Nigeria Airways, their next of kin will also receive the entitlements due to them,’’ he said.

    Mohammed congratulated the ex-workers that were still alive and thanked God for keeping them to reap the rewards of their labour.

    He also thanked them for the event which he said was a show of appreciation to the President for what he had done.

  • FG partners UK, others on economic development

    The Federal Government has reiterated its readiness to partner with any group or stakeholders towards the transformation and economic development of the country.

    Minister of Finance, Mrs Zainab Ahmed stated this at the closing session of the UK-Nigeria Climate Finance Accelerator workshop (CFA) held at the Zonal office of the Securities and Exchange Commission, SEC, in Lagos, weekend.

    Ahmed, represented by Mr. Israel Igwe, Director, Economic Research and Policy, Ministry of Finance, said there was need for a coordinated green climate finance platform like the CFA in the economy.

    According to her, the CFA programme is an innovative concept that would aid government’s developing approach of the “Ease of Doing Business”.

    In his presentation, Mr Chris Dodwell, Director, Climate Change and Clean Growth Ricardo Energy, called on stakeholders in the financial sector to collaborate towards financing developmental projects.

    Dodwell said that CFA was an innovative international initiative supported by the UK Government and other international donors including Nigeria, Colombia and Mexico.

    According to him, its aim is to accelerate the transformation of countries’ Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) into bankable projects to attract investment from the private sector.

    He added that CFA was a powerful example of creating a productive dialogue between financiers and policymakers, focused on scalable opportunities.

    “The CFA progresses financing proposals for identified projects while ensuring Technical Assistance is provided to policymakers across ministries so that planing for delivery of the NDC is better aligned with available capital from local and international markets.

    “For its actualisation and success, there is need for dialogue and collaboration among policymakers, governments, project developers and financial experts,” Dodwell said.

    Contributing, Mr. Kyari Bukar, former Chairman, Nigeria Economy Summit Group (NESG), said the CFA programme was the kind of investment initiative the country currently needed to boost its investment portfolios for enhanced economic growth.

    Bukar said the initiative would help to diversify investment portfolio of the banking sector and also transform the capital market.

    “There is a driven finance community that is growing in the Nigerian economy, which needs to be identified and developed.

    “With the much-valued support of the Nigeria Economic Summit Group, since October 2018, we have been engaging with private sector companies interested in undertaking ambitious low carbon development projects.

    “This is with a view to creating a mature pipeline of bankable projects contributing to Nigeria’s NDC and strengthening the climate finance capacities of public and private sector institutions,” he said.

  • FG shells out N2.2tr to states govts as palliatives

    The federal government has revealed that it has so far disbursed a total of N 2.231 trillion to 35 state governments from 2016 to date as palliatives measures to support States to pay salaries and continue with the functions of governance.

    Minister of Finance Mrs Zainab Ahmed made this revelation at a workshop organized by the Account General of the Federation (AGF) on process of revenue generation, accounting and reporting to Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) in Abuja on Tuesday.

    Zainab Ahmed who was represented by Dr Mohammed K. Dikwa gave the breakdown of this huge financial intervention to states to save them from collapse.

    According to Ahmed, “President Muhammadu Buhari approved in the early 2016 that states with outstanding salary payment should access N10 billion each for bailout and the nominal value of their ECA balance. Today ‘our record shows that thirty five states (35) benefited from this gesture.”

    Under the restructuring of commercial loans intervention to benefit the states, the finance ministry who did not state the value of this intervention disclosed that “the president directed the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to liaise with commercial banks with the view of restructuring states’ overdrafts and other short-term loans granted to enable states meet their short term needs. That was done and had greatly enhanced states’ liquidity.”

    Zainab Ahmed further revealed that “in the year 2016, the Federal Government introduced the budget support program for states under which a special purpose funding (SPF) was incorporated. This was aimed at raising capital to finance the funding requirements of the states by investing in Bonds or Notes issued by them as a budget financing facility. A total of thirty five (35) states participated in the program, while the actual releases commenced in June 2016. The sum of N1.39 billion was disbursed by the CBN to each of the 35 participating state government for the first three months. Subsequently, the sum of N1.111 billion was released to each state monthly for the remaining nine (9) months which ended in May 2017.”

    With regards to the repayment of Paris Club over deductions, the finance minister said “the administration of President Buhari that took the bull by the horn and agreed to source for fund to pay the liabilities. This has been accomplished in three tranches of N492.505 billion, N243.795 billion, and N649.434billion respectively.”

    Defending these interventions, Zainab Ahmed said that “the injection of the colossal amount of money no doubt supported our exciting recession; put the country to path of growth and enabled states met their obligations.”

    Speaking to the purpose of the workshop, the finance minister noted that revenue reporting template had been an issue for quite sometimes and she called on the revenue generating agencies to double their efforts toward surpassing their previous record and meeting their targets.

    She urged “All revenue generating agencies to ensure accountability and transparency in the collection and remittances to the federation account.”

    She however advised the AGF and the various agencies, to “as much as possible lower the time-lag between collection and remittance into federation account. The reporting template should be explicit enough and user friendly too.”

    In his address, the Accountant General of the Federation (AGF) of the Federtaion Mr. Idris Ahmed said President Buhari has approved a new performance management framework for Government Owned Enterprises (GOEs) with the objective of boosting revenue generation and remittances inyo government treasury.

    As a first step some directors of revenue will be deployed to at least 10 revenue generating agencies with clearly spelt out revenue targets and job descriptions.

    Representing the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) at the workshop, Mr. Adewale Johnson while delivering his goodwill message disclosed that the agency recovered $200 million from legacy debt issues and generated N1.3trillion in 2018.

  • Osinbajo chairs NEC meeting

    Vice President Yemi Osinbajo on Thursday presided over the National Economic Council (NEC) meeting at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

    The meeting which will deliberate on the minimum wage request, among other issues, started around 11.26am when Osinbajo arrived the Council chamber.

    After rendition of the National anthem, opening prayer was offered by Plateau State Governor, Simon Lalong.

    Read Also: We’ve credible plans to get Nigerians out of poverty, Says Osinbajo

    Among state governors in attendance included Lagos, Zamfara, Adamawa, Kebbi, Jigawa, Niger, Ekiti, Bauchi,

    Among the deputy governors in the hall included Nasarawa and Ogun.

    Also in attendance were the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) Boss Mustapha, Minister of Labour, Chris Ngige, Minister of Finance, Zainab Ahmed.

    Others at the meeting included Minister of Budget and National Planning, Udoma Udo Udoma, FCT Minister, Mohammed Bello, Minister of Education Adamu Adamu, CBN Governor, Godwin Emefuele.