BusinessDay 22 Oct 2019

As FG struggles to fund budget, here are 4 things sucking up its revenue

L-R: Darius Dickson Ishaku, governor of Taraba State, with Bashir Ibrahim Hassan, general manager, Northern operations, BusinessDay Newspaper, shortly after an interactive session with the governor in the Taraba State Presidential Lodge, Jalingo, on his administration’s development policies and achievements in the State and also the forthcoming BusinessDay Good Governance Awards. The Governor is one of the nominees for the prestigious awards.

long socially inclined policies in which it spends frivolously on projects are he Federal Government has never sustainable. struggled to earn its budgeted O v e r t i m e, ANALYSIS revenues, over the past 3 years Nigeria has takto effectively carry on with its en up huge public sector spending that fiscal obligations.

But despite admitting that the country is adding to an already ballooning cost is in a precarious state, the reality is yet of governance. The government has also to dawn on the government that its ageContinues on page 38 MICHAEL ANI & DAVID IBIDAPO

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news you can trust I * * TUESDAY 22 OCTOBER 2019 I vol. 19, no 418

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MICHEAL ANI

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t appears that the tussle between Nigerian lenders and telecommunication providers, over who would be at the forefront in piloting the push for financial inclusion, is gradually materialising.

The quest on whether the provision of digital financial services should either be the Telco-led or bank-led, in other to financially include the over 36 per cent of the population who are currently

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Ayoku Liadi (r), executive director, Lagos and West Africa, United Bank for Africa (UBA) plc , receiving Bank CEO of the Year Award on behalf of the UBA plc GMD/CEO, Kennedy Uzoka, from Patrick Atuanya, editor, BusinessDay, at the 7th BusinessDay Banks and Other Financial Institutions Award in Lagos.

Pic by Pius Okeosisi

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USSD saga foreshadows coming banks vs telcos’ battle suspended fees lowest in industry - MTN Bank CEOs deny approving charges

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9M 2019: FBN Holding grows PBT by 17% to N60bn

… NPL at 12.6%, down from 25.9% DIPO OLADEHINDE

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igeria’s tier one lender, FBN Holdings has recorded a 17percent increase in Profit before Tax (PBT) to N60billion in the first nine month of

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news L-R: Hector Okposo, senior coverage executive, RMB Nigeria; Ngover IhyembeNwankwo, coverage head, RMB Nigeria; Haruna Jalo-Waziri, CEO, CSCS, and Funsho Odukoya, chief operations officer, RMB Nigeria, during the presentation of the Merchant Bank of the Year Award to RMB Nigeria at the 2019 BusinessDay Banks & Other Financial Institutions Awards ceremony held in Lagos. RMB Nigeria also received the Debt Arranger of the Year Award.

9M 2019: FBN Holding grows PBT by 17% to N60bn Continued from page 1 2019 from N51.3 billion in the corresponding period last year.

In 9M 2019, Profit after tax increased by 15.3percent to N51.8 billion from N44.9 billion recorded in first nine month of 2018 while Total assets increased by 3 percent to N5.7 trillion from N5.6 trillion recorded in December 2018.

FBN Holding’s Group Managing Director UK Eke said the company’s performance in the third quarter reflects the growth trajectory over the first nine months of the year, with significant strides made in transforming the Group’s asset quality and diversifying revenue streams across the board.

FBN holding’s non-performing loan ratio reduced to 12.6 percent from 25.9 percent recorded all through 2018.

“As we approach the end of the curve in the resolution of our legacy portfolio, we are confident of further reducing NPLs to under 10 percent by the end of the current financial year,” UK Eke said in a statement sent to BusinessDay. UK Eke noted that FBN Hold-

ing’s will continued its drive towards ensuring long-term operational efficiency, resulting in a one-off cost increase pushing its Cost to Income Ratio (CIR) for the first nine months.

“In terms of our revenue generation, we have delivered further increases in our noninterest income, on the back of growth in electronic banking fees as well as improvements in transaction-led income,” Eke noted.

FBN Holding’s post-tax return on average equity which refers to the performance of a company over a financial year grew to 12. 2percent in 9M 2019 from 8.7 percent recorded in the corresponding period last year while Post-tax return on average assets which is a financial ratio that measures the profitability of a company in relation to the average shareholders’ equity grew to 1.2 percent from 1.1 percent recorded same period last year.

Customer deposits increased by 5.3 percent to N3.7 trillion in nine-month 2019 from N3.5 trillion recorded in year to date December 2018 while customer loan and

advances increases by 8.1 percent from N1.7 trillion recorded in year to date December 2018 to N1.8 trillion in 9M 2019.

FBN holding’s commercial bank recorded a 18.6 percent surge in profit before tax of N50 billion compared to N42.3 billion recorded in the same period last year while Profit after tax grew by 14.7 percent within the same period to N44.4 billion.

Total assets also grew by 2.1 percent to N5.42trillion compared to N5.30 trillion recorded in the full year 2018.

“We have continued to improve our asset quality while further enhancing the group risk management and controls. These deliberate steps continue to yield positive results with the NPL ratio further declining to 12.4percent and impairment charges significantly decreasing by 63.0percent y-o-y,” Adesola Adeduntan, the Chief Executive Officer of FirstBank and Subsidiaries said.

Adeduntan noted that the company is in the final phase

of addressing the legacy asset quality challenges and achieving its guidance of a single digit NPL ratio by the end of the year.

“Furthermore, operational efficiency remains a key focus as we address all structural issues. With this in focus, we remain confident in our abilities to improve this metric going forward. In addition, our international subsidiaries have continued to contribute positively to our overall performance as we keep optimising the capacity of the Group to support stronger future earnings,” Adeduntan said.

During the same period, Firstmonie Agent Banking network grew to over 35,500 with increasing agent capabilities and customer acquisition while over N2 trillion transactions are now processed on the Firstmonie agent network, a development which has further deepened the retail franchise, banking penetration and financial inclusion.

Rand Merchant Bank Nigeria wins Merchant Bank of Year Award ENDURANCE OKAFOR

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and Merchant Bank Nigeria has won the Business Day Merchant Bank of the year award for the second time in a row and Debt Arranger of the Year award.

Reflecting on the awards, Michael Larbie, RMB Nigeria CEO & Regional Head West Africa says “we are proud of our growth and overall financial performance. RMBN will continue to focus on its clients and partner with them to develop new products and solutions. We recently commenced our custody business. The addition of custody services to the product offering of the bank will further deliver end to end efficient trading and post trading experience to the bank’s existing and future clients. We intend to continue to introduce a wider range of products to suit all our clients’ needs and through that capture

…for second consecutive time & Debt Arranger of the Year their minds and become a goto partner for advice, structured financing, lending and trade solutions. We expect to consolidate on our client relationships and position ourselves as a trusted, hard thinking and solutionist adviser and financier.”

Rand Merchant Bank Nigeria’s (RMBN) strategic vision is to be the Nigerian Corporate and Investment Bank of choice by creating sustainable value, unique solutions and superior economic returns for clients and stakeholders.

RMBN’s approach to achieving this strategy has been to gradually entrench itself within a select universe of strategic clients with a view to achieving a measured but sustainable growth and build an enduring franchise. This strategy has enabled the bank build strong and growing relationships with key market www.businessday.ng

leading corporates.

Rand Merchant Bank Nigeria has over 15 years of transactional experience in Nigeria ranging from advisory roles on infrastructure projects, mergers and acquisitions, to the funding of various transactions across multiple sectors. The banks has an extensive pool of investment banking talent, including fixed income, currency and commodities experts who understand the Nigerian and broader African landscape.

Over the past six years, RMB Nigeria has created a core client base of solid local companies, multinationals and financial sponsors.

“Using a targeted approach, we have meaningfully supported our clients through different economic cycles and will continue to do so,” Larbie said.

As part of the corporate &

investment banking division of the FirstRand Group, the business strategy leverages a market leading origination franchise to deliver an integrated value proposition to corporate and institutional clients across Africa. RMB has representative offices and subsidiaries in 10 other African countries, the UK, India, and China, and access to a network of retail banks in 25 African countries. With considerable underwriting capacity, due to RMBN’s ability to trade off the balance sheet of the FirstRand Group, RMB Nigeria is able to partner with corporate institutions and the public sector to offer a full range of corporate and investment banking services and assist with trade and investment flows between Europe, the Middle East, Asia, Nigeria and other African Countries.

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Airtel partners Ecobank as it targets mobile money market in Africa FRANK ELEANYA

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irtel Africa, the second-largest mobile network in Nigeria, on Monday said it has secured a partnership with Ecobank Transnational Incorporated (ETI), the parent company of the pan-African banking group, Ecobank.

With the pan-African bank’s operations in 33 countries, Airtel is looking to tap into the network and push its mobile money services to millions of people across the continent. Although the telco is in 14 countries, its Airtel Money service is yet to reach the markets where it currently services.

The link-up with Ecobank will not only address this deficit, but it will also help the telco compete with established giants like Safaricom and MTN which presently share the top two mobile money positions on the continent.

As part of the partnership, Ecobank customers will be able to make bulk disbursements, such as payroll payments, directly into Airtel Money customer wallets.

Ecobank will also be able to sponsor Airtel Money to issue both virtual and physical debit and prepaid cards

to Airtel Money customers.

“This partnership is a further demonstration of Airtel Africa’s commitment to providing affordable, simple and innovative solutions for our consumers across Africa,” said Raghunath Mandava, CEO of Airtel Africa.

“We will continue to offer locally relevant m-Commerce solutions with partners like Ecobank to enhance the daily lives of our customers.”

Airtel is one of the frontline applicants for Payment Service Bank (PSB) license in Nigeria which the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has promised to deliver very soon as part of efforts to drive financial inclusion.

Interestingly, Ecobank also has a large presence in the Nigerian market. The Nigerian leg of the partnership, therefore, is likely to kick off subject to the approval of Airtel’s license application from the CBN. Once approved, Airtel Money customers in Nigeria will be able to make online deposits and withdrawals, effect real-time domestic and international money transfers, make in-store merchants payments, and access loans and savings products amongst others using Ecobank’s digital financial services ecosystem.

•Continues online at www.businessday.ng

Conflicting narratives trial air traveller, NCS officials’ claims IFEOMA OKEKE

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he incessant extortion and bribery activities carried out by officials of Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) across Nigerian airports have raised questions on Nigeria’s perceived efforts in fight against corruption.

International passengers have continued to narrate their ordeal in the hands of customs officials while passing through international airports in Nigerian, reiterating the need to rid the airports of corrupt personnel who have continued to drag the country’s name in the mud.

Passengers that arrive the country are often intimidated and forced to pay exorbitant amount on products for personal use bought in duty-free shops before they are cleared to leave the airports, and refusal to comply may amount to seizure of such items.

A recent case was one experienced by Adaeze Udensi, an executive director with Titan Bank and a former executive director at Heritage Bank, Nigeria, who took to social media to narrate her experience at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja. @Businessdayng

According to Udensi, she arrived from London on October 18, 2019, at about 4.30am with one pair of trainers and one mini-boy bag bought at the duty free shop in Heathrow, and to her shock, customs officials at the Abuja airport headed by one Essien and Tijani Abdulrahman said these do not qualify as personal effects and calculated duty payment of about N175,000 for her to pay.

Udensi said: “Most shocking to me was that I was the only passenger on that flight BA 083 from London that was singled out for this treatment. My question now is: what are Nigerians able to buy when they travel?

Essien says that Nigerians are only entitled to N50,000 worth of goods.

“Everything above N50,000 is considered luxury and dutiable. I pointed out to her that someone who had shoes had just been released by same customs without any charge, and to my shock she said that it’s because he put his feet in it already.

“So, I asked her that does it then mean that all I needed to do for this trainers not to be seized by Nigerian Customs was to simply remove

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NDIC Act gets backing for accelerated action …as corporation recovers over N29.1bn from debtors of banks in liquidation Hope Moses-Ashike

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enate president, Ahmad Lawan, has assured that the bill to amend the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) Act will receive accelerated hearing to ensure efficiency in the banking system.

Lawan said this in Abuja on Monday at a public lecture to mark the 30th anniversary of the corporation, and congratulated the NDIC for its great strides since inception.

“The NDIC and the National Assembly have something in common: over-sight, and NDIC does this on behalf of Nigerians and that is what we do. The Ooni of Ife raised a royal motion and when there is a royal motion, you do not put that kind of motion to questions.

“Everybody here knows that the NDIC Act needs amendment so your motion has received a ‘yes’. We all know that the National As-

sembly has suspended plenary sessions to take budget defence.

“We are doing this to ensure that we pass the budget before the end of December to revert to the January-December budget cycle which is imperative for our economy to grow. I want to assure you that when we resume plenary, the NDIC Act amendment bill will be top priority,’’ he said.

Earlier, the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi, appealed for an upward review of the NDIC’s current maximum deposit insurance coverage of N500,000 per depositor in the event of any bank failure, saying it was not fair to pay a depositor only N500,000 when he had millions of naira in his or her failed bank account.

He appealed for an expedited action to amend and pass the NDIC Act into law.

Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, urged the NDIC to beam its searchlight on those who borrow monies from

banks with the intention of not paying back.

Gbajabiamila was represented by Victor Nwokolo, the House Committee chairman on Banking and Currency.

On the other hand, Godwin Emefiele, governor, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), said the bank would continue to collaborate with the NDIC to sustain and stabilise the financial system of the economy.

Emefiele, represented by Edward Adamu, deputy governor, Corporate Services of the bank, said NDIC and CBN would step up financial literacy, surveillance and credit to the real sector.

Meanwhile, the NDIC has year-to-date recovered over N29.112 billion from debtors of Deposit Money Banks (DMBs) in-liquidation, it says.

Also, the corporation realised N129.10 million and N300 million from Microfinance Banks (MFBs) and Primary Mortgage (PMBS) Banks, respectively.

Nigeria becomes major hub as Africa strengthens position in global coaching economy Modestus Anaesoronye

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frica is positioning to tap from the global coaching economy with estimated revenue of $1.34 billion by 2022, with Nigeria as major hub producing high profile talents and professionals.

At the recently concluded Africa Coaching Week hosted by The Life Coaches Association of Nigeria, stakeholders in pursuit of the growth objective pointed to the increasing demand for Life Coaching on the continent.

The conference with the theme: ‘Life Coaching; a pivot for Holistic Success’ brought together some of Africa’s most brilliant and inspiring minds cut across the coaching industry and corporate Nigeria, who charted a common course for life coaching and how it could be a catalyst for development and change across the conti-

nent.

According to a survey in the USA by the National Post, coaching is the second-fastest growing profession in the world, rivalled only by information technology.

Growth projections for the life coaching industry are an estimated 6.7 percent, taking revenue to $1.34 billion by 2022, so the African Coaching Week could not have come at a better time seeing that coaching is not yet in the front burner here in the continent.

At the conference proper, Lanre Olusola, the doyen of life coaching in Nigeria and founder of the Life Coaches Association of Nigeria (LCAN), went down memory lane in an interview-styled conversation with LCAN vice president and chief host of the Africa Coaching Week, Enahoro Okhae.

Olusola used the occasion to challenge new entrants into

the coaching industry to focus on working their way up rather than instant gratification, and urged them to identify a niche to focus on and explore the wide range of life coaching courses available to continually improve on themselves and help narrow their focus.

“To venture into coaching you need to develop your identity. Give expression to your identity by creating a brand.

Develop value and grow your confidence and equity,” Olusola encouraged.

Fela Durotoye, president, Gemstone Nation Builders Foundation and keynote speaker at the conference, said Nigeria should be one of the most desirable places to live in, saying the country was in the centre of the most habitable spheres in the world, and for Nigeria to fulfil its potential the impact of coaching should be felt in every sector of the country.

UI, Lady Mechanic Academy sign MoU to award diploma certificate IDRIS UMAR MOMOH & CHURCHILL OKORO, Benin s part of efforts to boost female’s human capacity development in auto industry, the Consultancy Services Unit (CSU) of the University of Ibadan has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Lady Mechanic Academy.

Adebanjo Eniolorunfe of the CSU, University of Ibadan, and Sandra Aguebor, founder/CEO of the Lady Mechanic Initiative signed the MoU weekend in Benin City, Edo State.

Eniolorunfe said with the MoU, the Lady Mechanic Academy in affiliation with the University of Ibadan would be awarding diploma certificates in auto mechanics.

According to Eniolorunfe, the University of Ibadan CSU

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will be commencing professional diploma in automobile technology with Lady Academy.

“We are in affiliation with Lady Mechanic Academy. The lady mechanic has achieved lofty heights in Africa. It has achieved so much in terms of producing quality technicians over the years and now we want to enhance the professionalism as well as quality education delivery through the university consultancy services unit,” he said.

Commending the university for the MoU, Aguebor, who had earlier been bestowed with the “Distinguished Personality Award” by West African Students Union Parliament (WASUP) for the remarkable feats in empowering underprivileged women in Benin City, said there were over 2000

female mechanics in Nigeria.

Aguebor, who said majority of those trained had since got employment in foreign companies located in Lagos and Port Harcourt, noted that the MoU would not only boost the human capital development of female mechanics but would galvanise them out of poverty.

She said over 250 female were trained on auto mechanic in Edo State under the Governor Godwin Obaseki-led administration while Coca-Cola company trained others.

She however commended the Edo State governor for making it possible for the lady mechanic to take over government vehicles for maintenance and repair, and also commended the state government for creating an enabling environment for the organisation to thrive in the state.

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Abiy Ahmed: An embodiment of hope STRATEGY & POLICY

MA JOHNSON

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hen the news came on air that the Ethiopian prime minister, Abiy Ahmed Ali was the recipient of the 2019 Nobel Peace Prize, some observers who have been following events in Ethiopia were not surprised. To some observers, it is a reward for hard work and sincerity as all efforts by Abiy, a politician and former army intelligence officer, to restore peace between his people and those of neighbouring countries have been recognised.

Since April 2, 2018, when Abiy Ahmed Ali was elected the fourth Prime Minister of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, he must have demonstrated either some or all the traits of a peacemaker. The traits of a peacemaker include but not limited to moral purity, peaceable, and open to reason. Others include impartial and sincere, full of mercy and good fruits, willing to be patient and the willingness to go the extra mile among others.

After election, Abiy, son of an Oromo father and an Ahmara mother, sprang into action as he launched a wide program of political and economic reforms in his country since he took over office as the Prime Minister.

Importantly, he has worked assiduously to broker peace in Eritrea, South Sudan and has facilitated a transition

agreement in the Republic of Sudan.

Abiy was awarded the 2019 Nobel Peace Prize for his outstanding work in ending the 20-year post-war territorial stalemate between Ethiopia and Eritrea.

On the plus side, Abiy has tried to be a unifier since he took over the mantle of leadership in the most prestigious office of the prime minister last year.

A democrat who has promised his people democracy, reforms and reconciliation in a country that has been oppressed for a long time. It is no surprise that the Ethiopian Prime Minister, Abiy Ahmed was awarded the Nobel Prize, the world’s most prestigious award for those who have “done the most or the best work for fraternity between nations, for the abolition or reduction of standing armies and for the holding and promotion of peace congresses.”

In awarding the Nobel Peace prize to Abiy Ahmed, the committee has also continued to focus on African peacemakers in which five of the last 15 laureates are Africans including Abiy Ahmed. Ahmed therefore joins Congolese gynaecologist Denis Mukwege (2018), the Tunisian National Dialogue Quartet (2015) and the Liberian peace activists and politicians Ellen Johnson Sirleaf and Leymah Gbowee (2011).

Ahmed is certainly eminently qualified to receive the award while most Africans and our partners in the international community see him as an embodiment of hope. He is a hopeful figure in a continent where some heads of states and governments have made it a culture of extending constitutional term limits instead of embarking on bold economic and political reforms.

However, the prize not only acknowledges the Ethiopian Prime Minister’s commitment to peace, but encourages

him to do more, according to the Norwegian Nobel Committee.

In the nomination letter, a member of the Nobel Committee has this to say: “By saving a nation of 108 million people from the precipice of an economic and political explosion, he captured the imagination of his own people and people across the African continent as an embodiment of hope….and his messages of peace, tolerance, and love and understanding are being felt far beyond Ethiopia.”

It is on record that the new Prime Minister had surprised Ethiopians by taking bold steps that were thought impossible. For instance, he is acknowledged to have opened up the political space, released thousands of political prisoners, invited members of political groups previously designated as “terrorists organisations” back home, lifted the state of emergency, removed from office intelligence and army officers seen as complicit in the oppressive practices of the previous regime, sealed a peace deal with Eritrea, appointed a gender-balanced cabinet alongside many other progressive steps.

Together with other initiatives like the Ibrahim Prize for Achievement in African Leadership, high profile awards like this might indeed shape the culture of leadership in Africa to a reasonable extent. So, there is still hope.

Some critics however, believe that the award bestowed on Ahmed is too early. While Ahmed’s political vigour and rhetoric have been impressive, he has only been in office for barely one year. No one knows if his initiatives will stand the test of time, the critics argued.

Although, the war between Ethiopia and Eritrea has ended, much of the announced and expected economic peace dividend has yet to materialise

‘

On the plus side, Abiy has tried to be a unifier since he took over the mantle of leadership in the most prestigious office of the prime minister last year. A democrat who has promised his people democracy, reforms and reconciliation in a country that has been oppressed for a long time

because the land borders remain closed, according to Abiy’s critics. The views of critics notwithstanding, members of the Nobel Peace Prize Committee stated that Abiy was decorated with the prestigious award to enable him do more for his people and the entire Horn of Africa.

Ultimately, Abiy will be judged by his ability to bring sustainable peace to and democracy to Ethiopia. Indeed, this will be his greatest challenge and how he manages Ethiopia’s democratic transition will define his legacy more than anything else. Why? Change is slow and hard to achieve. The task of constructing a new society which is different from the old one is daunting.

This is particularly so in a society that is diverse and divided.

While Ethiopia’s destiny in the near future will be tied to the destiny of neighbouring countries in the Horn of Africa, Abiy’s legacy will be determined largely by his successes and failures at home. If Abiy realised how his legacy can change the course of actions that will bring about political settlement and national reconciliation in Ethiopia, then he needs to ask himself one question: How do I want to be remembered? Thinking about his legacy early will shape the conduct of his affairs in office.

I think Abiy has time to make a change. With the Nobel Peace Prize, he has a new momentum and renewed national and international goodwill.

Abiy should use this opportunity to reach out to friends and foes to move Ethiopia and the Horn of Africa forward. In the final analysis, it pays to be a peacemaker.

Johnson is an author and a retired naval engineer who has passion for African development and good governance

Nigeria’s bourgeoning population and child malnutrition

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frica is the second most populous continent with over one billion people in the world. From records, the greatest number of births in the continent takes place in Nigeria. In fact, a forecast did project that by 2015; one fifth of the continent’s entire births would take place in Nigeria alone, accounting for five percent of all global births which was relatively a reality. Presently, Nigeria’s population is over 180 million.

Most critical is the United Nations statistics which reports that 48 percent of Nigeria’s population is under the age of 15 – comparatively a country of the young. And notwithstanding the fact that the population of children under the age of 5 years currently stands at nearly 31 million, no less than 7 million new-born babies are excitedly added yearly without considering the implications.

Meanwhile, over two-thirds of the population lives below poverty line.

In human medicine, the human body essentially requires seven major types of nutrients: carbohydrates, fats, fibre, minerals, protein, vitamins, and water. Unfortunately, numerous families rarely have good square meals to meet up. On the other hand, is high fraction that suffers malnutrition due to ignorance of dietary.

For instance, there are whole lots of natural, affordable foods and edibles that can boost nutrition but either unknown or ignored. Archetypes are grasshoppers which according to research have 20 grams of protein and just 6g of fat per 100g while crickets are good sources of iron, zinc and

calcium. Amazingly, grasshoppers contain way more protein than beefs with a whopping 72 percent protein content including all essential amino acids, and without saturated fat or cholesterol.

The most pathetic class is large poor families who due to ignorance have more children than necessary. Indisputably, unstructured pregnancies and births have continued to result to large families, regrettably, without commensurate livelihoods, thereby leading to often grabbing whatever is available for survival; with or without nutritional contents.

Instructively, nutrition or aliment, is the supply of materials; food required by organisms and cells to stay alive. Nutrition also focuses on how diseases can be prevented or reduced with a healthy diet and how certain diseases may be caused by dietary factors, such as poor diet, food allergy and intolerances.

Remarkably, the use of the “Ready-toUse-Therapeutic-Food” (RUTF); initiative of UNICEF has turned out to be a fêted relief as evidently shown in checkmating child malnutrition albeit costly. This was attested by health conditions of children that were hitherto malnourished but administered accordingly in the critical areas; Adamawa, Borno and Yobe states in the northeast.

Nonetheless, the crux of the matter is that despite these interventions from UNICEF with support from the Department for International Development (DFID) in providing succours to the critical areas, about 258,950 children; boys and girls may suffer Severewww.businessday.ng

Acute-Malnutrition (SAM) in the three states in 2020 according to Nutrition Sector annual projections. Reportedly, a budget of N5billion is hanging for the procurement of 258,950 cartons for the number.

According to UNICEF-Nigeria, funding has been secured for merely 29,314 cartons of RUTF with a funding gap of N4.4 billion for these unfortunate victims. Sadly, nutrition experts avowed that children suffering from SAM are four to eleven times more likely to die compared to their health counterparts.

Altogether, an estimated 2.5 million boys and girls under the age of 5 suffer from Severe Acute Malnutrition yearly in Nigeria.

Statistically, the Nutrition Survey reported that the prevalence of Global-Acute-Malnutrition (GAM) in children below 5 years is 11 percent in Borno, 13 percent in Yobe and 6 percent Adamawa, which indicates very high levels of malnutrition in Nigeria according to WHO (World Health Organisation) classification.

UNICEF on the other hand affirmed that one in every two child deaths under the age of 5 is attributed to malnutrition. And if not timely identified and treated, malnutrition has serious and permanent consequences in the growth and development of children.

Above all, it causes irreversible brain damage and compromised intellectual capacity in adulthood leading to reduced productivity which accounts for estimated 16 percent loss in the Growth Domestic Product (GDP).

The peak is, according to 2019 World Population Review (WPR), Nigeria’s population will hit 206 million by 2020, and 264 million

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CARL UMEGBORO by 2030 – crossing the 300 million thresholds around 2036. In absolute terms, Nigeria is projected to add from 2031 to 2050 an additional 224 million babies (21 percent of the births in Africa and 8 percent of all births in the world). Thus, Nigeria alone will possibly account for almost one tenth of all births in the world if not adeptly checked.

Understanding this demographic transition and conscientiously putting in place realistic interventionist policies will be helpful in securing a robust, thriving nation of our dreams. For instance, research had shown that in 16 African countries including Nigeria, less than 20 percent of women of reproductive age are acquainted with contraceptive methods, hence producing babies without restraints.

Sensibly, an indisputable practicable panacea is family-planning. By its ardent awareness, more women will practically have access to modern contraceptives, thereby reducing numbers of unintended pregnancy to the minimum. In other words, promoting family-planning is a desideratum in addressing population upsurge. Similarly, sensitisations on diets and having small families to cater for will reduce child malnutrition to the bare minimum.

Umegboro, a public affairs analyst 08023184542 (SMS only)

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Hofstede’s Culture’s Consequences: A review in the Nigerian context (1)

RAFIQ RAJI

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he purpose of Geert Hofstede’s Culture’s Consequences: Comparing Values, Behaviours, Institutions and Organisations Across Nations is an ideal starting point.

“A better understanding of invisible cultural differences is one of the main contributions the social sciences can make to practical policy makers in governments, organisations, and institutions – and to ordinary citizens.”

I extract some of the expositions in the book to highlight certain cultural practices and behaviours in Nigeria, which to the ignorant, are accepted at “wisdoms.”

Unfortunately, those who eventually see the light – many do not – realise the false or flawed logic underpining these “wisdoms” when they are aged, sapped of strength, with little or no initiative left for enterprise. But for these suboptimal norms, we would probably be a nation of ground-breaking innovators and entrepreneurs of global reckoning. Yes, we do have some of those. But where are they?

Most are in saner climes.

Shame vs guilt Nigeria has unity in many spheres than most people realise. We have a commonality in at least one instance: all our ethnic groups have shame cultures. Shame cultures do

not engender innovation. Shame cultures are collectivist while guilt cultures are individualist. Most of today’s advanced economies have individualist cultures while some of the poorest economies are collectivist. The motivation to do what is right in guilt cultures is intrinsic while that for shame cultures is extrinsic. I quote copiously from several parts of the relevant sections of Hofstede’s book to establish the theory.

“US anthropologist Ruth Benedict (1946/1974) stressed the distinction between cultures that rely heavily on shame and those that rely heavily on guilt…True shame cultures rely on external sanctions for good behaviour, not, as true guilt cultures do, on an internalized conviction of sin. Shame requires an audience or at least a man’s fantasy of an audience. Guilt does not. In a nation where honour means living up to one’s own picture of oneself, a man may suffer from guilt though no man knows of his misdeed” “The child in a collectivist society is seldom alone, either during the day or at night. In an individualist society, such a lack of privacy would be highly abnormal. In most collectivist cultures, direct confrontation of another person is considered rude and undesirable. The word “no” is seldom used because saying no is a confrontation.

In individualist cultures, on the other hand, speaking one’s mind is a virtue.

Telling the truth about how one feels is seen as a sincere and honest person.

Confrontation can be salutary; a clash of opinions is believed to lead to a higher truth.”

“A child who repeatedly voices opinions that deviate from what is collectively felt is considered to have a bad character. In the individual-

ist family, in contrast, children are expected and encouraged to develop opinions of their own, and a child who always only reflects the opinions of others is considered to have a weak character. Family life in collectivist societies can be oppressive and stultifying, with no escape for those suffering abuse, especially girls. Members of the collectivist family are partially kept in order by the threat of shame. A child in individualist society who infringes upon a rule learns to feel guilty, ridden by an individually developed conscience that functions as a private inner pilot. Collectivist societies, in contrast, are shame cultures: Not only the culprit him- or herself but also his or her in-group mates are made to feel ashamed when a misdeed is committed.”

“Shame is social in nature, whereas guilt is individual: whether a person feels shame or not depends on whether the infringement has become known by others. This becoming known is the source of the shame, more so than the infringement itself.”

To feel shame requires that your actions and thinking are against the background of an audience; real or imagined. If your sense of purpose is otherwise, based on something genuine, like your own satisfaction, shame is an emotion you cannot feel.

Incidentally, it is also those with such emotional resilience and grit that succeed in our shame-based climes.

So, for instance, what the Yorubas call “ori olowo” (“head of a rich man”) is analogous to what psychologists’ personality profiling variously term “alpha males”, “deciders”, etc. Western firms already use such knowledge to select managers and leaders. In our culture, such rationality eludes us.

‘

Shame cultures do not engender innovation.

Shame cultures are collectivist while guilt cultures are individualist.

Most of today’s advanced economies have individualist cultures while some of the poorest economies are collectivist

Note: the rest of this article continues in the online edition of Business Day @https://businessday.ng “Dr Raji is chief economist at Macroafricaintel.

He was previously an Africa Economist at Standard Chartered Bank, London, UK. (Twitter: @ DrRafiqRaji)”

Food security: Minister Naono’s denialism a serious cause for concern

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ust recently, Nigeria’s Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Sabo Naono, said that there was “no hunger” in the country.

Addressing a press briefing to celebrate the 2019 World Food Day in Abuja, he claimed that “… we are producing enough to feed ourselves. I think there is no hunger in Nigeria; there could be inconveniences. When people talk about hunger in this government, I just laugh.”

This is not the first time, When the Minister assumed office earlier in August 2019, he proclaimed infamously that Nigeria was food secure, adding: ‘What we need is to get our acts together and develop the (agricultural) sector.”

Worrying trajectory This denialism ignores the facts and the reality of millions of Nigerians, many of them children who are malnourished or chronically malnourished as a result of poverty and/or lack of secure access to food, including in the conflict-plagues northeast of Nigeria. As in other parts of the world, hunger in Nigeria affects women and children disproportionately.

According to estimates from the United Nation’s Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO), currently more than twenty million Nigerians are malnourished. Hunger has been increasing in recent years, and the country is not on track to meet the African Union’s goal of zero hunger by 2025. The FAO defines hunger or malnourishment as an inability to acquire enough food to satisfy dietary energy requirements. The reality that the Minister denies is that out of 100 Nigerians about twelve are likely to suffer from hunger.

More than 40 percent of children under the age of five are estimated to be affected by stunting, defined as low height to age ratio.

Stunting poses serious health problems, but crucially also impairs cognitive development and compromises the economic potential of those affected. Nigeria’s stunting rate is significantly higher than the average for developing countries which is 25 percent. This likely reflects the country’s extremely poor record in access to clean water and improved sanitation which directly affects nutrient intake.

Progress then reversal Between 1991 and 2011, Nigeria made remarkable progress in reducing hunger. The share of those malnourished fell from over 20 percent to about 6 percent in 2007, thereafter remaining stable for several years. However, from 2011, progress was reversed. Moreover, due to extremely fast population growth, the absolute number of malnourished Nigerians has been increasing over the past decade.

When it comes to food production, the Minister’s claim about Nigeria producing enough to feed its population and that food is accessible and affordable is also misleading. By definition, food security is reached when all people at all times have access to food to live a healthy and productive life. In other words, food needs to be available, people must be able to afford it and also gain access to it physically. Moreover, food use and stability over time also shape food security.

Nigeria does not have food security. Various experts have stressed this and refuted the Minister’s blunt statement, including Prof.

Bamidele Omitoyin, a former Dean of Renewable Natural Resources, University of Ibadan and Dr Abayomi Olaniyan, Executive Director of the National Horticultural Research Institute.

The 2019 Global Report on Food Crises identi-

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fied Nigeria and more specifically northern Nigeria as one of the places that is likely to remain among the world’s most severe acute food crises this year.

The International Futures system (IFs), an integrated modelling platform housed at the University of Denver, forecasts that by 2030, close to 280 million people could live in Nigeria. Demand for food will grow, but on current trajectory the country will not produce enough food to satisfy it. Despite its vast agricultural potential, agricultural imports surpass agricultural exports by a vast margin. Nigeria’s food instability, in terms of net import dependence, has been steadily increasing.

Net imports currently account for about 14 percent of total agricultural demand (in tons of all production, including crops, meat and fish), up from roughly six percent in 2000 and slightly above the 12 percent average for sub-Saharan Africa. According to IFs, by 2030, net imports could account for as much as a third of total agricultural demand. Food production needs to increase and at the same time, Nigeria needs to reduce dependency on net imports.

Whilst the recent ramping up government’s food imports ban could potentially underpin domestic agricultural production over the medium to longer term, assuming sensible policy sequencing in support, this will do nothing to alleviate the extant food insecurity challenge.

Reaching potential Eliminating hunger and achieving food security in Nigeria is possible. However, it is a complex task that requires carefully calibrated interventions on multiple fronts involving multiple stakeholders. It is the government’s responsibility to identify the best levers in terms

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The reason our supposedly “big boys” in Nigeria, do not hesitate to roll up their sleeves when abroad, is because suddenly there is no audience to impress or be wary of. It is shame that stops a lot of ideally industrious young Nigerians from letting go of their false pride and getting down to work.

The fear of standing out also prevents a lot of young Nigerians from pulling above their weight. The consequence is that the poor remain poor and the wealthy remain wealthy or wealthier.

For instance, the rich send their wards to “international schools” and thereafter abroad for further studies. Add to that some work experience in the “temperate”, they are well-placed to maintain the lofty positions of their parents.

Ever notice how the rich are stern with the children of the poor when they violate a cultural norm and laugh off the same “infractions” by their own kids? Much of what we call culture are mechanisms for discrimination and exclusion. Take another issue: corruption. It is retractable because our cultures tolerate some level of corruption. There are proverbs in our various languages with meanings like “live and let live”, “it is where we work, we will eat from”, etc. Corruption is not considered a shameful act in most Nigerian cultures. Who are the practitioners and beneficiaries of corruption in Nigeria? The rich. It is a vicious cycle.

JULIA BELLO-SCHÜNEMANN of policies, investments, technologies as well as human and institutional capacities to eliminate hunger and make Nigeria food secure.

On the supply side, arable land under cultivation needs to expand, yields need to increase and so do livestock head sizes. In addition, post-harvest losses need to be reduced. On the demand side, people’s access to food must improve. This can only happen via growing incomes, consumer subsidies, price management, school feeding programmes, support to under-five children and mothers, and also pregnant women.

It is difficult to see how this can be achieved given that with N138.48 billion allocation, the Ministry of Agriculture gets only 1.34 percent of the 2020 budget. After all, Nigeria is a signatory to the 2003 Maputo Declaration on Agriculture and Food Security in Africa where African Heads of state committed to allocate at least 10 percent of the national budget to agriculture.

Failing appropriate and mutually reinforcing interventions millions of Nigerians will continue to be hungry in the future. It is inconceivable that the Minister finds such prospects laughable.

Dr Schünemann is senior associate, Good Governance Africa (GGA-Nigeria). She holds a PhD in International Relations from the Universidad Complutense, Madrid and has held senior research positions at the Institute for Security Studies (ISS) in Pretoria and FRIDE in Madrid.

Her expertise includes policy forecasting (using the International Futures model) and conflict analysis.

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Tuesday 22 October 2019

BUSINESS DAY

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Unhappy Nigerians and where to find them

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ll happy Nigerians have some things in common, unhappy Nigerians are unhappy in their own way, to rephrase Leo Tolstoy, the Russian novelist. Based on inflation and unemployment, what economists call the “twin evils”, Nigerians everywhere, irrespective of geopolitical location, are unhappy. Some are just unhappier than others.

Using a combination of price levels and rates of unemployment BusinessDay published a list of the happiest and worst states to live in Nigeria lately.

The misery index – originally developed by Art Okun, an economist, and updated by Steve Hankes, another American professor of economics – measures how happy citizens are with their lives at a particular moment.

Osun, Oyo, Katsina, Lagos and Ogun states were the least miserable in Nigeria. Akwa Ibom, Rivers, Kano, Bayelsa and Borno were the bottom five. The index measures misery in relation to other states.

It is not a right to brag that my

state is better than yours.

A relatively lower cost of living and rate of joblessness is what the top five have in common, except for Lagos with an inflation rate higher than national average of 11.31 percent (as at April 2019).

Bayelsa, however, has one of the lowest rates of inflation but an unemployment rate of 32.56 percent (way above the 23 percent for the country). This makes its citizens among the most miserable in the country.

Its fellow oil-rich state, Rivers, is the second-most miserable despite being the third-largest recipient of money the federal government allocates monthly.

It received N119 billion in 2018 from the Federal Account Allocation Committee (FAAC). The large quantities of oil pumped, and consequently a bigger allocation, has not provided the citizens of Akwa Ibom any relief.

The coastal state has the highest unemployment rate.

Els ewhere, inflation and unemployment are politically sensitive issues. A slight rise in the price of bread has caused riots and almost toppled governments.

In Nigeria, a coping mechanism to “manage it like that”, to hope tomorrow will be better, to equate the rice and cash shared during election campaigns as a share of the “national cake” allows politicians to get away with murder – the millions of children and women that die daily from preventable diseases, the thousands that die on bad roads, the poor, uneducated youth forced into banditry, terrorism, kidnapping, and prostitution.

As newly and re-elected governors will have discovered within their first week in office, their states are in terrible financial conditions. There are debts to be repaid, unpaid salaries to pay plus a new minimum wage, all of which the monthly handout from Abuja cannot cover. The recovery and eventual sharing of some of the Abacha loot won’t do either. The excess crude account has been squandered.

What’s more, the money each state gets from taxes and levies i.e. Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) is meagre. In addition, despite showing signs of a slow but uneven recovery during 2017/18, the economy is

still a long way from the average growth rate of 6.22 percent in 2014. Besides, oil, the major source of government revenue, is one shock away from a calamity.

Consequently, the situation is unlikely to be the same as usual.

Governors should expect their citizens to demand delivery of promises made on the campaign.

To expect otherwise would be to underestimate the visible and direct effects of unemployment and inflation. Job loss and an income unable to keep up with the price of food are clear and present worries.

As usual, most clueless governors will probably play the divide and rule game.

For the five others who will and are able to do something, we suggest they be less on allocations from Abuja, appoint capable advisers with ideas on how federal powers, on say, the sale of some assets can be transferred to them and to execute capital expenditures not on the basis of the votes it can reap in four years but on the jobs they can generate, the lives they can save and the number of children they can educate.

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BUSINESS DAY

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To whom much is given: Accountability in public life (1)

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Introduction or clarity, it is always prudent to start with a definition of terms, particularly as some terms that are presumed to mean the same things to everybody could actually mean different things to different people. There are many definitions of the word “Accountability.” Some definitions, perhaps unhelpfully, simply define accountability as “being accountable.” Others focus on key attributes such as information, explanation and consequences. Writing for the World Bank in 2005, John Ackerman defines accountability as “…a proactive process by which public officials inform about and justify their plans of action, their behaviour and results and are sanctioned accordingly.”

I would prefer to view accountability as a mutually-reinforcing relationship between the donation of power and the responsibilities expected of the exercise of that power.

In public life, this concept directly affects three constituencies: The People, The Politicians, and The Public Servants. I will therefore explore this topic with regards to donation of power and the responsibilities expected of each of the constituencies.

The People According to the 1999 constitution, “…sovereignty belongs to the people of Nigeria from whom government through this constitution derives all its powers and authority.” The term “The People” therefore encompasses all citizens and groups, including politicians and public servants. It gives all citizens of Nigeria the power to choose their government and to give that government a mandate to govern, accompanied by certain expectations and demands. This is the start of the accountability chain.

Politicians develop manifestos that promise the citizens the good life: stable electricity, better healthcare, safer streets, improved national security, more food, economic prosperity, and more jobs. Through elections, they seek the mandate of the people to govern and ask to be judged on their record of delivering on their promises. This raises certain responsibilities for each of the three constituents.

First, there is a responsibility on citizens to vote, ensure it is counted and make sure their votes count. This is a civic privilege and responsibility that many citizens lost their liberty, and even their lives, to secure for the people. The freer the elections, the more accountable the politician is likely to be. Nothing focuses the mind of the politician like the prospect of losing power at the next elections, knowing that they cannot manipulate those elections.

Second, the public service has the solemn responsibility to organise free, fair and credible elections

that ensures the representation of the people’s will. If the comedian, thief or village idiot is the preferred choice of the electorate, the public service must ensure that that choice is actualised.

Third, the politician has the responsibility to seek the mandate of the people to exercise power on its behalf. At all times, it must do so with patriotism and responsibility, seeking the greatest good for the greatest number.

My opinion is in line with Rosa Luxembourg position that, “without general elections, without unrestricted freedom of press and assembly, without a free struggle of opinion, life dies out in every public institution, becomes a mere semblance of life, in which only the bureaucracy remains as the active element.” Hence, the freedom of speech (including the freedom to ask questions and demand answers without fear of retribution) and the freedom to vote and be voted for in free, fair and credible elections, must be guarded jealously.

Accountability in its truest sense stems from these two freedoms.

Citizens have a right to demand information and explanations from the people it has elected and appointed, and those people that have been elected or appointed have a duty to provide information, explanations and answers. Where they fail to do so or do not do so in a satisfactory manner, the ultimate sanction available to the people is to withdraw the mandate they had earlier given through a subsequent exercise of their votes.

Nigeria has in place a Freedom of Information Act, 2011. Unfortu-

‘

I would prefer to view accountability as a mutuallyreinforcing relationship between the donation of power and the responsibilities expected of the exercise of that power

nately, this immensely powerful legislation is grossly underutilised. Apart from a few exceptions, the Act FOI Act says that the only law that you can rely on to deny a request for information under the Act is the Constitution. Although this, in effect, makes the FOI the second most powerful accountability mechanism under Nigerian law, many public servants still hold on to the Official Secrets Acts of 1962.

Section 28 of the Freedom of Information Act, 2011 expressly supersedes the Official Secrets Act when it says: “The fact that any information in the custody of a public institution is kept by that institution under security classification or is classified document within the meaning of the Official Secrets Act does not preclude it from being disclosed pursuant to an application for disclosure thereof under the provisions of this act”, so long as the said information does not fall under one of the exclusions in the FOI Act. I therefore call on the government to urgently issue a circular to this effect, as many public servants are still not sure about how the FOI Act affects the Official Secrets Act that they swore to upon their appointment with regards to their official assignments. Anyone that has worked in the public service knows that public servants relate more directly to rules and circulars than to laws. A circular will help to dispel any doubts in the minds of the public servant.

• (To be continued) Dr Abah is a development practitioner and the immediate past Director-General of the Bureau of Public Service Reforms.

Golden Week sales exceed expectations

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n contrast to gloomy international projections, economic realities suggest that China’s Golden Week may have exceeded expectations.

I spent China’s 70-year national day festivities in Shanghai, China’s global financial hub, and Guangzhou, the global trade hub of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. In both, China’s massive transition toward consumption and innovation is now an increasing reality.

Due to US tariff wars, Chinese mass consumers – like their peers in the United States, Europe and Japan – are cost-conscious, increasingly discriminate and sophisticated in their spending. Indeed, sales of gold jewellery boomed during the holidays, fuelled by gold prices, holiday festivities and the wedding season.

But unlike their counterparts in advanced economies where middle-classes are shrinking, Chinese middle classes continue to grow, expand and consume. That is the great opportunity in China and abroad alike.

The just-ended Golden Week is a case in point.

Golden Week retail sales 8.5% up In effect, China has two “Golden Week” holidays; the Lunar new year around January and February, and the national day week in early October. Both are seen as a barometer for Chinese private consumption, due to giftgiving, family reunions, thriving retail and catering.

Last February, the Lunar new year showed the slowest increase in years, according

to international media. Yet, Chinese retail sales actually rose almost 7 percent from a year earlier.

Prior to the National Day Golden Week, once again, much of international media expected the trade wars to undermine Chinese holiday sales. And again, they were proved wrong. During the holidays, retail sales growth exceeded China’s growth rate by almost a half, with online sales soaring even higher.

During the Golden Week, Chinese retail and catering businesses saw sales of $213 billion, up 8.5 percent on the same period last year (spending on consumer services is not yet included, but will be released later in the month). New highlights featured spending on tourism, culture and sports, and “first-store economy”; that is, new brands launching their first brick-and-mortal stores.

These figures do not include the highlypopular discount sales that follow after the Golden Week.

Golden Week tourism revenues 8.5 percent up as well Prior to the Golden Week, much of international media expected Chinese consumers to cut back on travel, due to trade wars and weaker yuan. In reality. Chinese people may have spent more than ever before at home and abroad.

During the past week, there were 520 million trips on all modes of transportation, with the number of rail passengers up 5.2 percent on the same period last year, according to the Ministry of Transport. At home, many visited

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Beijing, Shanghai, Xi’an, Chengdu, Chongqing and Xiamen. Abroad, the top locations featured Japan, Thailand, Korea, Vietnam, Indonesia, even Australia.

In the first Golden Week in 1999, only 29 million Chinese travelled, and all of them domestically. During the past week, almost 780 million domestic tourists – more than half of the mainland’s population – hit the road for vacations; an increase of 7.8 percent year-on-year. It was the greatest holiday migration in history.

Domestic tourism revenue soared to more than $90 billion; an increase of 8.5 percent on an annual basis, according to the Ministry of Culture and Tourism. Alipay, China’s leading and smooth online payment platform, confirmed that catering, travel and retail fuelled domestic consumption during the holidays.

Currently, every 10th of the 1.4 billion Chinese holds a passport for international travel; that’s a potential of 140 million potential outbound travellers. With increasing prosperity, that figure is expected to double in the next decade.

Rise of Chinese consumption No global brand can afford to ignore Chinese market any longer. In 2019, China’s economic growth is likely to be around 6 percent. Yet, in-store sales are estimated at 9 percent and online shopping at 24 percent year on yearly basis, according to KPMG. Similarly, China’s consumer retail market is no longer a dream of the future. Last year, it grew 8 percent to $5.3 trillion. The Golden week is the country’s second-biggest shop-

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ping bonanza, right after Chinese New Year.

Despite US trade protectionism, Chinese tourists reportedly spent $128 billion overseas in the first half of the year. More than half of that was used in Asia, a fourth in the Americas and much of the rest in Europe. The Golden Week sales suggest that a similar pace will prevail toward year-end.

Last week, the biggest airport in the world was opened in Beijing. It was a prelude to the mid-2020s, when China will surpass the US as the largest aviation market, according to the International Air Transport Association.

In two decades, Chinese airports could serve 1.6 billion passengers annually.

As China’s middle classes continue to increase and per capita incomes to grow, domestic and global retail and tourism will be major beneficiaries. China’s rise supports economic prospects at home and abroad.

As the Golden Week demonstrated, Chinese consumption is now a global force.

Dr Steinbock is the founder of Difference Group and has served at the India, China and America Institute (US), Shanghai Institute for International Studies (China) and the EU Centre (Singapore). For more, see https://www.differencegroup.net/ The commentary was released by China Daily on October 10, 2019

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Tuesday 22 October 2019

BUSINESS DAY

Media business

When Buhari tasks private sector on home-grown solutions …Analysts say policy consistency major key for local brand patronage Stories by Daniel Obi Media Business Editor

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ppearance of President Muhammadu Buhari at the 2019 Nigerian Economic Summit Group, NESG which is the 25th in the series must have been informed by two major factors.

One of them was perhaps to allay the criticism of his alleged poor engagement with the private sector. Buhari is considered to believe in state run-economy against private sector belief. Though he made some commendable moves recently with the constitution of Economic Advisory Committee and the assurance to the Nigerian private sector of continuous collaboration to guarantee inclusive industrial growth, but these actions may not amount to shifting grounds as he heavily subsidises petroleum products.

Second reason of his presence at the summit was to challenge the private sector to come up with home-grown solutions to Nigeria’s economic challenges. With this action, he may be defending the closure of land borders as a move to bolster domestic agriculture, as part of effort to diversify from oil-dependent economy.

Nigeria had in August, 2019 closed its borders to all movement of goods and feelers from the presidency shows government does not have time limit for this action. Expectedly, the closure which does not affect oil exports has drastically affected prices of

some stable foods in Nigeria especially rice.

Some analysts believe that Government supposed to check importation of necessary items with tariffs; others say the border closure to goods will stimulate local production and employment and equally give meaning to CBN finance programmes.

Before the border closure, Benin Republic with only a popu-

lation of 11 m imports about 1.2 metric tons of rice as much as USA imports which has a population of 329 million. Benin Republic and other neighbouring countries’ imports largely end in Nigeria which threatens domestic production and equally create jobs in exporting countries.

Experts say if the border closure or checkmating of importation of certain goods is effectively moni-

Alive and Thrive honours El- Rufai wife, others for promoting breastfeeding practices

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t was a day of recognition recently as Alive and Thrive Nigeria celebrated some personalities for their efforts at promoting exclusive breastfeeding practices during an elaborate ceremony at Hotel Seventeen in Kaduna State. Amongst the personalities honoured is the wife of Kaduna State Governor, Aisha Ummi El-Rufai; Amina Abubakar, a mother of triplets who has exclusively breastfed the children for seven months, her husband, Ibrahim Baba who actively supported her and Health Officer, Health worker, Ramatu Ajiyana Presenting the award in Kaduna, the Project Director, Alive and Thrive, Victor Ogbodo commended Amina Abubakar and her Husband, Ibrahim Baba whose babies are already seven months and weigh

7kg each as a result of exclusive breastfeeding.

Reacting to the award, Amina Abubakar disclosed that, she learnt about exclusive breastfeeding from her cousin and promised to practice it.

“It wasn’t easy but I had to do it.

My husband was very supportive and encouraged me all through the period. By God’s grace and with my husband’s support, today, it is a success story for my family,” she stated.

Abubakar called on health workers to interact more with their clients, educate them and also do a follow-up when necessary to encourage exclusive breastfeeding practices.

The Wife of Kaduna State Governor, Ummi El-Rufai was also honoured in recognition of her commitments in advocating breastfeeding www.businessday.ng

practices and tackling malnutrition in the State.

According to her, she is humbled by the recognition and stressed Kaduna is fortunate to have such wonderful parents who tried hard to breastfeed the triplets. According to a statement, she also thanked those who are engaged in the practice but not known yet for their sacrifice in ensuring the development and wellbeing of children across the State.

“I commend Alive & thrive for bringing our attention to the model family and all the support they have rendered to the State,” she stated.

Health worker, Ramatu Ajiyana who did a follow-up on the model family by visiting them 28 times in the period of six months was also honoured for selflessness and dedication.

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tored by Customs, it will increase local production of rice and assist to check illegal arms importation which threatens Nigeria’s security.

Akonte Ekine, a marketing expert says the ‘border closure’ should be extended other areas such as medical tourism and education abroad by government officials and their children. This, he believes will assist to bolster those sectors. For instance, “Gov-

ernment officials should begin to massively patronise Innoson vehicles, locally made shoes for government security agents to also support those sectors as part of looking inward for solutions to the country’s unique challenges”, he said.

With 198 million, Nigeria has a big population for consumption that will assist to bolster sectors.

China with 1.2 billion people largely relies on its population for consumption, a development that it has used to develop its economy.

Like other stakeholders, the private sector is pushing strongly for patronage of local brands as there are huge economic benefits of turning consumers’ attention to local made goods, in the face of the weakening of Abuja feeding bottle and petrol dollar machine.

“We must encourage more production and consumption of Made in Nigeria goods and services while maintaining a trade balance between imports and exports and recognizing the realities of globalization. This will reinvigorate moribund industries and services that have shown potentials in the past and curtail the growing demand for foreign exchange for consumption rather than capital products and equipment”, NESG said in its 2018 conference which centered on domestic product.

However, as government checks importation to stimulate local production and increase the drive for diversification to agriculture the analysts say what is more important is consistency of policy in this direction.

OAAN to appoint board of trustees this week

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he Outdoor Advertising Association of Nigeria (OAAN) will hold its extraordinary general meeting this week in Lagos to among other things appoint new members of Board of Trustees.

OAAN in a statement signed by its General Secretary, Sola Akinsiku, revealed that other issues to be discussed include update on new executive council stewardship, approval of OAAN standard operating procedure, approval of OAAN cooperative scheme, induction of new member companies amongst others. @Businessdayng

It would be recalled that OAAN had its 34th Annual General Meeting in June, 2019 in Abeokuta, Ogun State with the theme: ‘’ The Future of OOH in Nigeria: Debts, Ethics and Best Global Practices” that brought in the Emmanuel Ajufo’s led administration.

OAAN is the association of outdoor advertising practitioners that is out to develop and maintain standard for Outdoor Advertising in Nigeria. It is also to regulate and control the practice of Outdoor Advertising in conformity with statutory and Industry guidelines.

Tuesday 22 October 2019

BUSINESS DAY

15

Branding

International Breweries plans to increase local content from 40% Stories by Daniel Obi

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ith four plants in Nigeria, International Breweries, part of AnheuserBusch InBev, (AB InBev) with headquarters in Belgium, plans to gradually increase local content in its production, a move that will impact on local farmers with consequent effect on job creation and expansion.

Presently operating at local input of 40%, the company intends to grow from this level yearly and this would be achieved by reformulating some of the company’s brands which include Budweiser, Hero, Trophy and Beta Malt.

“We are trying to master the craft of how to gradually increase the local content in what we are doing without basically allowing it to affect the taste of the product and this takes a lot of research which we are embarking on”, Michael Daramola, Legal and Corporate affairs director of the International Breweries told BusinessDay during the celebration of one year business operation of the Gateway plant in Sagamu.

The three other plants of the company incorporated in 1971 are located in Ilesa, Port Harcourt and Onitsha.

He strongly believes that the gradual increase in local input will empower Nigerian farmers. “If we increase our local input by say two percent we are talking of hundreds of tones and this will come from farmers”.

He also reiterated the company’s determination to continue to serve Nigerians with quality alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages while adhering to the highest standards of operational and environmental sustainability across its four worldclass plants.

For its electricity supply, the Sag-

amu plant runs on its own energy.

“We don’t run on public grid, we run purely on our energy. We have six generators of 2,000 KVA each and that comes to available capacity of 12,000 KVA and we power them with LNG” Daramola regretted that the constraint is that the LNG has to be brought in trucks from Port Harcourt as there are no linked pipes. The LNG comes in liquid form and the company has to convert it to gaseous state before it can be used in the generators.

All the plant generators’ exhaust pipes, he said have captive energy

‘His character attracted me not profession’, says wife of Maltina Teacher award winner Daniel Obi

P

erhaps one individual that was more excited at the conclusion of 2019 Maltina Teacher of the year award last weekend in Lagos was the wife of the overall winner.

When 38-year-old Chizuruoke Collins Ezem, a teacher with the Royal Academy, Wuye, Abuja was declared winner after much suspense by the compere, his wife, Ucheoma Ezem jumped into the stage with much excitement to hug her husband.

The delighted Ucheoma later told BusinessDay that she looked beyond her husband’s profession to marry him. “I married him for his character not his profession.

When I was getting married to him seven years ago, I looked beyond his profession” “My husband is resilient, passionate about teaching and he is a goal-getter who does not accept ‘no’ for an answer. I have known him before we got married and after we got married he remained the same resilient person”, Ucheoma, a nurse and mother of two children said. Collins, a Civic Education and Christian Religious Studies teacher who hails from Ikwuano LG of Abia but teaches in Abuja schools has been in teaching for about 16 years.

Collins Ezem won N1m as the

overall winner and N500,000 as a state (Abuja champion). Nigerian Breweries will also pay N1m to him every year for five years as long as he remains in teaching. In total, he wins N6.5 million. He also won for his school a block of six classrooms as part of the Nigerian Breweries’ Education Trust Fund. He will also be sent abroad for training. Soji Megbowon from Lagos and Fidelis Atondo from Katsina were first and second runner up respectively.

Entries for the 2019 competition attracted an unprecedented 1,310 entries from the 36 states of the federation including Abuja.

Collins Ezem, winner of MaltinaTeacher of year 2019 award with his wife, Ucheoma at the Grand finale of the award in Lagos last weekend www.businessday.ng

Collins became the second teacher in two years from FCT to win the award. Olasunkanmi Opeifa, an English language teacher at the Government Day Secondary School, Karu, Abuja, won that of last year.

Among the dignitaries in attendance at the grand finale of the 2019 MTOY award ceremony were Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo, who was represented at the event by the Minister of State for Education, Chukwuemeka Uwajiuba; wife of the Lagos State’s governor, Ibijoke Sanwo-Olu; the secretary to Lagos State government, Folasade Jaji; the commissioners for education, Lagos and Ekiti states, Folasade Adefisayo and Folusho Daramola respectively, registrar of the Teacher’s Registration Council of Nigeria, Josiah Ajiboye; Corps Marshal, Federal Road Safety Commission, Oyeyemi Boboye, among others.

In his speech, the Vice President encouraged all the winners to be shining examples in their career.

In his speech, CEO of NB Plc, Jordi Borrut Bel said the aim of the Maltina Teacher of the Year initiative introduced in 2015 is to recognize and celebrate exceptional teachers in Nigeria, for their contribution and impact on the future of the nation through their efforts in grooming the future leaders. The initiative also aims to improve the quality of education in Nigeria by reinforcing teachers’ commitment.

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equipment. This captures all the steam that is going out for re-use to power the plant boilers as the heat is not sent into the atmosphere.

According to the Corporate Affairs Director, “The Gateway Brewery is built on sustainability practices in order to minimise negative impact on the environment. These actions help the plant to contribute to a better world by significantly reducing its carbon emissions, other greenhouse gasses and air pollutants.

Asked about what it takes the company to generate its energy, the legal director said the investment is captured in the total investment of $250 million deployed to establish the brewery.

It plans by 2025 to have 100% of its purchase energy to come from renewable source and it has started already in this process.

On community empowerment, Daramola said though the Sagamu plant started a year ago but it has already started impacting its immediate community as it has constructed a bore hole for clean water and health centre respectively for two communities.

“We understand the need to impact our environment and we have four pillar areas of intervention which are education, health, empowerment and infrastructure development”

Marketing research body elects new council

T

he Nigeria Marketing Research Association recently conducted its biannual elections ushering in a new executive council led by Oluwaseun Oyelaja as President. Other members of the executive council include Ugo Geri-Robert (Vice President), Paul Nnanwobu was returned as Secretary General.

Joining the council as Assistant Secretary General is the former President of South African Market Research Association (SAMRA) Alexan Carrilho. Other members include Elizabeth Onoja (Treasurer), Shadrach Egbeniyi (Financial Secretary) and Lauretta Olubayo (Public Relations Officer) The formation of NiMRA as a professional association is borne out of the desire to formulate, enrich and improve professional activities and conduct of people and individuals interested in or involved in compiling or using marketing, social or economic research.

The Nigeria Marketing Research Association, NiMRA, was established to provide a forum within which research practitioners can work together in a spirit of cooperation, support and mutual goodwill to ensure professionalism in the industry.

According to the outgoing president Joy Uyanwune the new executive council should take NiMRA to the next level. In a post-election remark she said the new council should embark on new membership drive especially from the universities to ensure continuity of the association.

Jobberman unveils ‘best match’ product to provide employers with right candidates, faster

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obberman established in Nigeria in 2009 to connect the right candidates with the right opportunities has introduced a new product called ‘Best Match’, which has been designed to make the process of sorting through applications and finding the best candidates more convenient for human resource professionals, business heads and entrepreneurs looking to hire quality talent.

Recruiting talent is an arduous and expensive task for employers as it involves a lot of administrative filtering, combined with the uncertainty around getting the wrong fit for the role. Many growing organizations struggle with identifying people who would take their business to the next level. Job-

berman CEO Hilda Kragha noted in a statement that “With more job seekers coming into the market, the demand for jobs is higher than ever. Therefore, employers receive hundreds of applications for a vacancy and have to sort through heaps of CVs and profiles to find candidates that best match what they require for the role.”

Kragha then explained “The Best Match product uses a mix of HR experts and our automated matching algorithm to sort and rank candidates that best match the criteria an employer is looking for in a role. The mix is extremely critical as it ensures that science and experience are combined effectively to ensure that an employer gets the very best out of the candidates that have applied for the role.”

Premier Cool brand takes Global Hand-washing Day campaign to schools

I

n a bid to drive behavioural change around health practices in rural and urban communities, PZ Cussons brand, Premier Cool, joined forces with PZ Cussons Foundation and United Purpose, in this year’s edition of the Global Hand-washing Day, themed ‘Clean Hands for All’. The activity climaxed with a national event which held in Abuja recently.

The days leading up to the national event saw the brand embark on a school-sensitisation tour, visiting a number of schools in different states across the country, which included Lagos, Cross River, Benue and the FCT Abuja to create awareness about @Businessdayng

the importance of constant handwashing with soap.

In Lagos, the event was attended

by Eyitayo Lambo, Former Minister of Health and Chairman of the PZ Cussons Foundation; Charles Nnochiri, Head of Marketing, PZ Cussons Consumer; Dipo Dawodu, Finance Director, PZ Cussons Consumer SBU, PZ Cussons, and the Premier Cool brand team which included Charity Ilevbare-Adeniji, Group Brand Development & Activation Manager, Personal Care, PZ Cussons; Yosola Nwachukwu, Assistant Brand Development & Activation Manager, Personal Care, PZ Cussons, amongst others.

16

Tuesday 22 October 2019

BUSINESS DAY

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Tuesday 22 October 2019

BUSINESS DAY

COMPANIES & MARKETS

17

COMPANY NEWS ANALYSIS INSIGHT

FIXED INCOME

Fixed income market turns bullish as OMO lost bids trigger buying interest …analysts expect multiple OMO auctions on increased maturity inflows OLUWASEGUN OLAKOYENIKAN

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he secondary segment of the Nigerian fixed income market was bullish last week following the large amount of money market participants anticipated to invest, but went unsuccessful at the Open Market Operation (OMO) auction conducted by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). Investors’ bids were almost three times more than CBN’s offer.

Buying interest was witnessed along the short and long-end of the Nigerian treasury bills (T-Bills) curve on Friday, pushing average discount rate on the instruments down by 12 basis points to 11.75 percent. Also, the average yield on benchmark bonds declined by 3 basis points to 14.26 percent after the day’s

trading as investors largely sought after the long-dated instruments.

More than N701 billion worth of lost bids could not be met at the OMO auction last Thursday as investors subscribed N1.12 trillion

but the apex bank could only sell OMO bills worth N420.6 billion. In spite of the high subscription level, spot rates on the auction were largely unchanged at 11.59 percent for 91-day, 11.79 percent for 184-day

and 13.35 percent for 364day bills.

The auction was conducted in a bid to mop up the excess amount of money which had risen to N680.72 billion following treasury and OMO maturities val-

ued at N133.97 billion and N463.98 billion that hit the market, respectively.

The financial regulator would probably conduct a rollover OMO auction – if history is any guide – to mitigate the effect of the expected N315.99 billion worth of OMO maturity inflows into the market on Thursday, October 24.

“We maintain a cautious outlook in the interim as increased supply could push secondary market rates higher,” analysts at Zedcrest Capital said in their T-Bills forecast. “With combined inflows of c.N565 billion from OMO and FGN Bond maturities, the CBN may look to ramp up its mopup activities with multiple OMO auction” this week.

The Debt Management Office (DMO) is also expected to reopen the 5-year, 10-year and 30-year bond auction on Wednesday,

October 23, according to an offer circular published on its website. The debt agency will offer N50 billion each amounting to N150 billion across the three tenors.

“Marginal rates are expected to close slightly lower compared to the previous level to reflect the recent downward repricing of yields in the secondary market,” analysts at Lagosbased investment house, Chapel Hill Denham, said in a note to clients.

Zedrest analyst maintained that the bullish run witnessed at the bond market last week might slow down into this week as investors assess the prospect of supply from this week’s bond auction. They noted the offer amount of N150 billion at the auction might not be sufficient to meet rollover demand from investors receiving bond maturities of cN234 billion.

Editor: LOLADE AKINMURELE (lolade.akinmurele@businessdayonline.com) Graphics: Samuel Iduh

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Tuesday 22 October 2019

BUSINESS DAY

COMPANIES&MARKETS

Business Event

TECHNOLOGY

NASD sees blockchain technology, cryptocurrencies as future of securities trading MICHAEL ANI

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round the world, the use of blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies is growing and transforming businesses. Proponents say it is the technology that will revolutionize the financial services, pointing to its ability to function without a central authority and also store data in a tamper-proof way.

Given its flexibility, security and distributed nature, it has become the base technology for a vast array of business applications from healthcare, real estates to finance or the law.

But more importantly, it is its prominent usage in reshaping the way securities are being traded. Through the use of blockchain technology, the World Bank floated the first conventional bond where it raised a total of $108 million (AUD160 million).

The finance instrument which the Bank called the ‘Kangaroo’ bond, was issued using its Blockchain Offered New Debt Instrument (bond-i for short after Sydney’s Bondi Beach) which helped reduce debt paperwork.

With the technology, banks could oversee investor bids in real-time, settle investments instantly and make the pricediscovery process more transparent. The World Bank claims that this will help make it easier to raise funds for impoverished peoples.

Europe is also following the World Bank’s lead with several financial instrument issuance through the use of blockchain technology. Similarly, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is planning on completing half of its government transactions using blockchain by 2021.

In spite of the growing buzz

of blockchain technology, awareness of the usage of the technology has been low, driven by financial regulators raising red flags.

In a recent stakeholder forum organised by NASD OTC Securities Exchange — a trading network that facilitates secondary market trading of all securities of publicly listed companies primarily in Nigeria but with a focus on the West African region — in Lagos, the importance of blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies, was the centre of discourse.

The forum was aimed at educating stakeholders from different industries on the usefulness of blockchain technology in deepening the operations of companies in the unlisted securities market in Nigeria.

According to NASD, the future of securities trading lies in blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies, the faster Nigeria starts adapting the better.

“As technology evolves, the capital market community must also move along with the times.

As a forward-thinking and responsible trading platform, NASD is committed to delivering a transparent, secure and convenient service,” Bola Ajomale, Managing Director and CEO, NASD Plc said. “There’s so much we can do. Imagine where small businesses can raise funds and transact abroad using bitcoins.”

At the forum, the leadership of the securities trading platform pointed out several benefits, the usage of blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies to include raising capital with ease; creation of a database for identity information where collectors and regulators hold nodes; and securitization where assets are converted to security token to achieve fungibility.

Enitan Pascal Odogun, ACIS,

said the use of the technology means less time consumed in trading on the securities platform. He said the decentralized system makes it possible for an individual to have total ownership and control of crypto assets, which is used as a crypto wallet that has a public and private key.

He noted that although the use of blockchain technology comes with several limitations in terms of its scalability, consumer protection, transparency, perception, and standardization, there are however proposed solutions to tackle such limitations.

These solutions, he explained, include changes in consensus mechanisms that would help in addressing scalability challenges; embedded supervision to address consumer’s protection and transparency, and awareness that would help in providing accessibility of information to address negative perception.

NASD is a Securities Exchange registered by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to operate a formal OverThe-Counter (OTC) market in Nigeria and has an authorized share capital of N500 million.

With Over 100 participating organisations and more than 200 hundred authorized traders, including 6 settlement banks, NASD Plc is one of the most credible trading platforms in Nigeria for investors and stock market operators.

On the outlook of the market, Ajomale says he expects the market to sustain the momentum of the right issues raised by corporates at the beginning of the year. “What is beginning to happen is that there is a small recovery in confidence and many players in different industries are looking to raise capital. We will also see IPOs coming into the market,” he said.

L-R: Ayo Olojede, group head emerging business , Access Bank Plc, Empiphany Azinge, chairman of the occassion,/ Judge Commonwealth Aribitra Tribunal, Tunde Adekola, senior education specialist, Africa regional department, World Bank; Jacqueline Yemi Odiadi, co-convener, management consultancy conference; Benson Uwheru, partner/business sdvisory, E Y and Rita Nwalupue, deputy director, Centre for Management Development at the management consultancy conference themed ‘The Evolving Economy: The role of Management Consulting practice in Public and Private sector’ in Lagos .

Pic by Pius Okeosisi

L-R: Zainab Shamsuna Ahmed, minister of finance; Kristalina Georgieva, MD, International Monetary Fund, and Godwin Emefiele, governor, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), after a session at the 2019 annual meetings of the IMF and the World Bank in Washington DC, United States of America

CrustMine Consulting deepens awareness on customer satisfaction for increased productivity MODESTUS ANAESORONYE

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rganisations must priorities customer satisfaction to achieve sect objectives and increased productivity.

According to experts, customer’s satisfaction has a away of paying back, that eventually increases client base, expansion the business and raise organisation’s growth.

These were critical in business sustenance and economic growth, says experts from CrustMine Consulting.

CrustMine Consulting is a professional service company that delivers Customer Relationship Management - Training & Consulting, Leadership Development Services, Start-Up Sprouting Packages among others.

The firm during its FREE

Customer Service Conference held in Lagos engaged stakeholders on the vital role Customer Service plays in an organization, creating awareness in line the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDG 4).

The Conference was packed with special sessions from conference faculty, panel discussion, free legal consultation, free tax consultation, public presentation of the book “Happy Customers: The One Thing Your Business Needs to Grow” authored by O’tega Samuel Emorwodia, free medical checkups and free medical doctor’s consultation.

In attendance were Folashade Adefisayo, the honourable Commissioner for Education, Lagos State who was represented by Olufunke Oyetola, Peter Onwuaso, senior manager, Capacity

Building, Nigerian Institute of Management (Chartered), Francis Ogbasu, retail expert, Edward Esene, senior Consultant, Kinetic Associates, Emmanuel Umbu, principal counsel, Principalities Chambers, individuals from various spheres of life, stakeholders and dignitaries in the society.

Emorwodia, executive director, CrustMine Consulting said “71 percent of business leaders believe that customer experience is the next corporate battle ground and customer service is germane to an organization’s capacity to turn in excellent results year after year.

He noted that this coherence will be held annually to strengthen the knowledge capacity of the subject and also help organisation achieve customer satisfaction.

www.businessday.ng

L-R: Tunde Fagimi, head Of IT, Citi Investment Capital; Seun Oluwole, CEO, Citi Investment Capital; Tosin Osibodu, CEO, Chaka, and Feranmi Akeredolu, growth manager, Chaka, at the Chaka Global Trading Platform Launch in Lagos.

L-R: Opeyemi Awojobi, sponsorship manager, Tolaram Group; Kingsley Akinroye, executive director, Nigerian Heart Foundation; Omotayo Azeez-Abiodun, public relations manager, Tolaram Group; Kenneth Iruonagbe, digital marketing manager, Power Oil, and Samuel Ojeifo, health camp coordinator, Power Oil, at the Power Oil walkhearton 4.0 procession in Lagos.

Pic by Olawale Amoo

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Tuesday 22 October 2019

BUSINESS DAY

COMPANIES&MARKETS

19

Business Event

TECHNOLOGY

Facebook falls off world’s top-10 list of most valuable brands OLUWASEGUN OLAKOYENIKAN

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acebook has lost its spot among world’s top-ten most valuable global brands for the first time in four years after enduring a year marred by privacy scandals, a multibillion dollar fine from US regulators, and investigations over how it uses consumers’ personal data.

The social networking giant dropped some five places to settle at number 14 this year in Interbrand 2019 Best Global Brands – which is dominated by tech companies – following a 11.8 percent decline in its brand value to $39.85 billion since last year. However, Apple, Google and Amazon retained the first three places.

Facebook first entered the Interbrand Best Global Brands report in 2012 at number 69, peaked at eighth place in 2017 with a brand value of $48.18 billion, and tagged as a “rapidly appreciating” brand.

The Omnicom Groupowned brand consultancy measures brand valuation on the financial performance of branded products and services; the role the

brand plays in a consumer’s purchase decisions; and the brand’s competitive strength and ability to create loyalty.

While a company’s market value was taken into account, it is not same as its brand value.

Apple topped the top 100 best brands’ list with a brand value of $234.21 billion, followed by Google and Amazon whose brands worth $167.71 billion and $125.26 billion, respectively.

Microsoft ($108.84) was the fourth, Coca Cola ($63.36) fifth and Samsung ($61.09) came sixth on the list.

The seventh spot was occupied by Toyota ($56.24), Mercedes-benz ($50.83) was the eighth, McDonald’s ($45.36) ninth and Disney ($44.35) was at the 10th spot.

Coca-Cola, Microsoft and IBM gapped the top three spots of the ranking in 2000 when the list was first published. The ranking is now in its 20th year.

Although Facebook is not the only big tech company that’s being investigated for anticompetitive behaviour, Google, Amazon and Apple are being scrutinised too.

But it appears the consumer reputation of the social me-

dia platform has been negatively impacting the firm more than others.

“For decades, the entire discipline of brand-building was based on the concept of brand positioning, but in today’s accelerating markets, customer expectations outstrip static brand positions,” said Charles Trevail, global chief executive of Interbrand. “Brands can no longer be considered separate to businesses and will be judged on what they do, not just what they say; and about trust, not just delivery.”

Professional social networking site, LinkedIn, and ride-hailing company Uber were the first-time entrants into the top 100 brands at 98 and 87 respectively, while Johnnie Walker, Sprite and Subaru exited the Interbrand Best Global Brands 2019 ranking.

Mastercard was the leading growth brand have recorded the fastest pace of growth. The company moved eight places to number 62 on the back of a quarter increase in brand value to $9.43 billion, while other top performers include Gucci (23 percent) and Adobe (20 percent).

L-R: Efe Omorogbe CEO, Hypertek Digital; Innocent ‘2baba’ Idibia, musician; Adetoro Fowoshere, founder/CEO, Toro Entertainment Company, and Paul Cole Chiori, president, ACHIEVAS Entertainment co Limited, at the official signing of 2Baba Live, a concert scheduled to take place on December 28, 2019 in Lagos

L-R: Ebinum Ihinosen, associate director, P&G; Bolaji Balogun, chairman, Lafarge, co-chair, private sector SDG advisory group; Comfort Lamptey, country representative UN Women; Thelma Ekiyor, chairperson, Afrigrants; Peter Thomas, representing deputy British high commission, at the affirmative procurement in Nigeria, in Lagos.

Verizon seeks buyer for HuffPost website Telecoms group raises sale with potential acquirers as part of digital media retreat ALEX BARKER, ANNA NICOLAOU AND ERIC PLATT IN NEW YORK

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erizon is sounding out potential buyers for the HuffPost website, in the latest phase of the US telecoms group’s retreat from the digital media business.

In recent weeks Verizon has raised a HuffPost sale with potential acquirers, according to two people familiar with the discussions. No formal sale process has been launched and talks remain at an early stage.

A spokesperson for Verizon said: “We don’t comment on rumours and speculation.”

The attempt to sell the progressive news site is a sign of how Verizon is continuing to slim down the family of dotcom businesses it amassed with the costly acquisition of Yahoo and AOL, assets it wrote down by almost $5bn earlier this

year. Last month Verizon sold Tumblr for a reported “nominal” amount, after buying the social network for $1.1bn in 2013.

Verizon formed its media division from the merger of AOL, which Verizon bought for $4.4bn in 2015, and Yahoo, which it paid $4.5bn in 2017.

At the time Tim Armstrong, the former AOL chief executive who pioneered the digital strategy, said the tie-up would create “the best company for consumer media”.

Since the time of the deal, digital media groups once hailed as the future of the news business have struggled to meet the sky-high expectations for the sector, especially as online advertising revenues have been swallowed up by Google and Facebook.

Some companies such as Rookie have closed while newsrooms at HuffPost, BuzzFeed, Vice and Vox have faced job cuts. Consolidawww.businessday.ng

tion has swept the sector as financially-strapped digital media groups seek scale.

In just the past month Vice Media acquired Refinery29, the women-focused millennial website, while Group Nine bought PopSugar and Vox acquired New York Media, owner of the namesake magazine.

The Huffington Post, a liberal news site founded in 2005 by a group of publishers including Arianna Huffington, was bought by AOL for $315m in 2011. It operates across more than a dozen countries through licensing agreements.

In January Verizon announced that it would reduce the staff numbers at its digital media division by around 7 per cent, cutting about 800 jobs, including some at HuffPost. The news website also closed its German arm, HuffPost Deutschland, in March.

L-R: Femi Omotayo, MD, AOS Orwell; Mayowa Afe, president, Oil and Gas Trainers Association of Nigeria (OGTAN), and Mele Kyari, GMD, NNPC, at a courtesy visit in Abuja

L-R: Emeka Mba, public affairs and policy analyst, Coca-Cola West Africa; Eric Okoli, chairman, CocaCola/SON Roundtable; Ngozi Ekwueme, director, quality certification, Standard Organization of Nigeria; Olugbenga Ogunmoyela, guest speaker, and Fred Chiazor, director of scientific and regulatory affairs, Coca-Cola Nigeria, at the 43rd annual conference by Nigeria Institute of Food Science and Technology recently in Awka, Anambra.

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20

Tuesday 22 October 2019

BUSINESS DAY

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Tuesday 22 October 2019

BUSINESS DAY

Investments

ENERGY INTELLIGENCE

Market Insight Companies Commodity Tracker Policy

OIL

GAS

21

PETROCHEMICALS

POWER

NEWS

POLICY

Eroton E&P positions rigs to start drilling in OML 18 Nigeria oil sector faces existential threats, explorationists warn

…plans 36 new, work over wells in three years STEPHEN ONYEKWELU

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roton, one of Nigeria’s junior indigenous independent Exploration and Production (E&P) company will commence drilling of the OSMU-1 well expected to start in October.

OMSU-1 is expected to take about 60 days to drill to a total depth of 11,900 feet and complete, with the well to target the E4500 and E3000 formations. The well expected to be connected to the OML 18 production system according to reports by upstream online, an energy sector blog.

“Drilling the first new well of Eroton’s operatorship marks the start of a new chapter in the development of OML 18,” Oisin Fanning, chief executive of San Leon said.

“Increasing oil production at the wellhead is an important step in increasing cash flow from the asset and I look forward to providing shareholders with an update on the performance of this new well in due course, in addition to providing further information on further development activities.”

OML 18 is located in Rivers State and hosts the Akaso, Asaritoru, Awoba, Bille, Buguma Creek, Krakama, Orubiri, Cawthorne Channel and Alakiri fields.

It was reported earlier this year Eroton is planning to drill 36 new and workover wells over the next three years to boost production from the swamp licence.

Eroton E&P bought OML18, during the divestment of Shell Petroleum & Development Company (SPDC) from some of its onshore assets’ portfolio. The E&P junior took over

ISAAC ANYAOGU

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the asset from the former operator in 2015 when it was producing about 10,000 barrels of crude a day based on the previous operator’s production output. Since then the oil asset’s has grown from a production capacity of 10,000 to 70,000 barrels a day and 73,000 barrels at peak production. The gas component has also grown to about 100 million standard cubic feet (mscf) per day which is delivered to its primary customer called Notore Chemical Industries.

Notore is a fertilizer company based in Onne, Rivers State.

However, security is a great challenge for all indigenous operators.

Anybody within the swamp or land

region is susceptible to security challenges. There vandalisation of flow lines and the export line because it is easily accessible.

At some point, indigenous operators experienced losses in excess of 30 percent, but now they range between 20 and 30 percent of our daily production. In value terms, “we were losing about 20,000 barrels of crude a day. Some operators produce as much as 20,000 barrels per day and that is a viable business for them. If you are losing 20,000 barrels of crude per day, it severely impacts your cash flow and the return on your investment,” Ebiaho Emafo, managing director and chief executive officer

of Eroton E&P Company Limited to BusinessDay in an earlier interview.

Emafo said if the Federal Government is able to fix the security along the export lines, they will be able to realise full production potential that will bring significant returns to the business and nation.

Statistics show that most of the oil leakages and spills are as a result of vandalism and or illegal bunkering.

This could naturally invoke a sense of discontent amongst the host communities who are unfortunately saddled with the negative effects of the pollution caused by vandals which could create a difficult environment for us as business to operate in.

INSIGHT

Adopting blockchain technology could dent Nigeria’s energy crises – experts DAVID IBEMERE

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n the backdrop of the just concluded DevconV conference, a group of seasoned experts in energy and blockchain tech sector say Nigeria can solve its energy crises using the power of blockchain.

The session which took place in Osaka, Japan the expert to collectively explore a workable modality to tackle the country’s current energy crisis, firmly placed the issue of energy shortage into the cannon of geopolitical security, economic development and foreign policy amidst the fast-paced innovation in the tech world.

For Benjamin Onuoha, Eseoghene Mentie, Guillaume Ballet and Maurice Von Glasenapp who were part of the panellist where in

the consensus that Nigeria’s energy issues solution can be found if the country explore solutions using the power of the blockchain.

According to Eseoghene Mentie energy shortage impacts every aspect of people’s lives in Nigeria everyday and educated the captivated audience on what “Up NEPA” means in Nigeria as well as the enormity of the problem citing personal experiences, sources from the World Bank, United Nations and other publicly available sources.

Guillaume Ballet lent credence to the fact that although there have been large scale advocacy and international development efforts to help solve this problem, the energy sector has not changed much and thus outlined the ETHLagos conference set to hold from February 9th to 15th, 2020, to dissect all issues raised on energy shortage at DevconV. www.businessday.ng

Benjamin Onuoha went on to give further real world scenarios on the ground in Nigeria adding that the suggested solutions could be further developed to create new markets, businesses, employment and help unlock Nigeria’s economic potential in a sustainable way.

“We will assist with our local, continental and global partnerships to create new business models which can emerge into sustainable businesses to create much needed jobs and infrastructure that can foster economic development”, he said.

In closing Maurice Von Glasenapp made an outreach to the Ethereum community as well as sponsors, energy engineers, entrepreneurs and hackers to join in this effort to help resolve the Nigerian energy crisis and add value to the sector using the power

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of the blockchain.

In line with the United Nation’s bid to ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and clean energy under the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), ETH Lagos, announced this initiative which is a hackathon in the advocacy for renewed ideas. The hackathon announcement identified the three key areas to consider in salvaging Nigeria from a perilous economic future, which includes Blockchain, Energy and Social Impact.

While ETHLagos looks forward to welcoming coders, energy engineers, entrepreneurs, startups, corporations and the entire tech community to work on this challenge, it reiterated its vision to keep supporting winning projects through incubation, acceleration, and mentorship after the hackathon to help them evolve sustainable solutions. @Businessdayng

eclining exploration activities leading to inability to replace reserves, sabotage of oil and gas installations, illegal refining and poor fiscal and regulatory terms are some of the risks facing Nigeria’s petroleum sector.

The Nigerian Association of Petroleum Explorationists is warning this situation including inefficient contract, procurement awarding process and oil theft coupled with declining oil prices posses a big risk to the sector, warns Ajibola Oyebamiji, president of NAPE at a press conference.

The procurement and contracting cycles in Nigeria are around 36 months on average—the longest and most inefficient globally, dampening business climate because contractors can’t properly plan costs, NAPE’s president said.

“Insecurity, oil theft and illegal refining are bigger threats to the oil and gas industry in Nigeria than the declining price of oil,” the head of the oil exploration association noted.

Earlier this month, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) raised the alarm that oil pipeline vandalism in Nigeria is soaring, with the number of incidents of breached pipelines surging by 115 percent in July compared to June.

Pipeline vandalism, as well as pipeline sabotages by militants in Nigeria’s oil-rich Niger Delta area, has plagued Nigeria’s oil production and exports for years. Over the past year and a half, militant activity has subsided, allowing Nigeria to boost its crude oil production, and also making Africa’s largest oil producer a full-fledged participant in the production cuts of the OPEC+ coalition.

But since it became part of the pact in January 2019, Nigeria has been one of the largest overproducers and non-compliant OPEC members in the deal. Nigeria pledged in September to fall within its respective cap while the cartel and its allies are trying to rebalance the oil market.

Nigeria may face an easier task to finally fall in line with its share of the OPEC+ production cuts after OPEC has recently raised the African producer’s oil output ceiling.

22

Tuesday 22 October 2019

BUSINESS DAY

ENERGY INTELLIGENCE

Supplying 50% of power to companies will solve DisCos liquidity challenges - PwC DIPO OLADEHINDE

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possible solution to the problem of liquidity crunch facing eleven power Distribution Companies (DisCos) in Nigeria is to start supplying 50percent of distributable electricity to Nigerian companies, a new report by consulting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) has said.

PwC, an international auditing company suggests that by providing companies who are willing to pay N80 per kilowatts about 50percent of distributable electric-

ity, Nigeria’s Discos can ultimately solve their liquidity challenges.

“To revitalize liquidity in DISCOs, we consider 50percent of energy received by DISCOs is transmitted to industries at a costreflective rate of N80/Kwh… At N80/Kwh charged to industries, an estimated N400 billion will be injected into the power sector annually,” PwC said in a recent published report titled Solving the liquidity crunch in the power sector.

PwC Nigeria noted that liquidity crunch is the most worrisome challenge facing the power sec-

tor as the tariff framework or the electricity pricing structure in Nigeria is non-cost reflective because “industry participants often complain that electricity charges to customers do not reflect the cost of generation, transmission, and distribution.

PwC Nigeria admitted that inadequate gas supply, limited transmission lines, among others are biggest problem facing Nigeria’s electricity sector.

PwC’s report explained that operational inefficiencies, poor water management at hydropower plants and inadequate and obso-

lete distribution infrastructure are other issues facing the sector.

The report noted that, gas-fired power plants account for more than 77 per cent of total electricity generated compared to 71 percent in Q4 2018 while hydro sources accounted for 23 per cent compare to 29 percent in Q2 2018 as insufficient gas supply and variability in rainfall and water level at hydro plants, among other challenges, continue impact power generation in Nigeria.

The report also noted that only 60per cent of Nigeria’s population has access to electric-

ity, meaning that the remaining 40per cent is completely cut off.

Interestingly, even the 60per cent do not get quality service because electricity supply is epileptic power, Gencos want Discos’ job as it seeks to sell electricity directly to customers.

“As one can expect, there are many problems facing the Nigerian power sector. A lot of these problems bother on inadequate production. Also, the means via which generated electricity is transmitted also presents another major challenge, the report explained.

Siemens Port Harcourt workshop deepens local technical competence in energy sector IFEOMA OKEKE

I Future Energy Nigeria opens partnership opportunities for Nigerian, Indian energy companies – Singh ISAAC ANYAOGU

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ajeev Singh, the DirectorGeneral and CEO of the Indian Chamber of Commerce (ICC) has said the future Energy Nigeria holding in Lagos on November 12 and 13, is providing a platform for Indian and Nigerian companies to collaborate and develop energy projects in the country.

“Nigeria as a country holds tremendous promise for Indian Companies in terms of exports. Our exporters have forged good alliances and they are exporting to Nigeria in decent quantum through participation in this program for the last two years,” said Singh.

The ICC is the featured country partner at the upcoming Future Energy Nigeria 2019, hosting a pavilion of almost 50 suppliers of specialised technology and services for the sector having seen that there is a tremendous potential for Indian products in the Nigerian market.

Founded in 1925, the ICC is the only National Chamber of Commerce operating from Delhi, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Mumbai and is one of the most pro-active and forward-

looking Chambers in the country today. Its membership spans some of the most prominent and major industrial groups in India “We organize over 200 summits and interactive sessions. Our efforts have primarily been at linking the business communities between India and South Asia, South East Asia, Africa and The Middle East,” he said.

Singh said the ICC has been working proactively on key issues impacting the Energy sector through its various initiatives in the form of recommendation to the Ministry, publication of reports, creating various platforms (Summits) between government and industry body addressing important and relevant concerns.

The India Energy Summit is one of the prime initiatives of ICC in the Energy Sector. Singh said the IES which started nine years ago has today succeeded in achieving the recognition of being one of India’s largest energy gatherings He also said the Green Energy Summit has proved to be another major initiative of the ICC which exclusively focuses upon the Indian RE (Renewable Energy) Sector.

The Future Energy for three years www.businessday.ng

has enjoyed the support of ICC. “The primary objective of ICC is to connect over 1800 C-level industry professionals across the full spectrum of the sector to address today’s challenges and implement tomorrow’s solutions. The exhibitors are happy to join this exhibition as it is giving them opportunities to promote their products/services in West Africa as well,” Singh said.

Future Energy Nigeria, in its 16th edition is organised by Spintelligent, a multi-award-winning Cape Town-based exhibition and conference producer across the continent in the infrastructure, energy and mining sectors.

Ade Yesufu, Business Development Director, Future Energy Nigeria said this year’s edition will focus on bridging Nigeria’s energy access gap, the role of off-grid generation projects as well as discuss the NERC initiative to franchise the Electricity Distribution Companies (DisCos) in Nigeria.

“The goal is to increase competitiveness in the market and improve the quality of electricity supply through investment in metering, billing, collection and network rehabilitation and expansion,” Yusufu said.

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n a bid to contribute towards Nigeria’s long-term developmental goals and localisation agenda in the oil & gas sector, Siemens Limited Nigeria has deepened commitment to address the need for local technical support in sector by providing innovative equipment, deploying technology and offering aftermarket service.

In a statement sent in by the Seun Sulieman, Vice President Services and Digital, Siemens LTD Nigeria, he explained that in 2016, following the acquisition of Dresser-Rand in Nigeria in May 2015, Siemens Limited Nigeria had the vision to build a workshop that will ensure a comprehensive portfolio of equipment and capability for customers in the power generation, oil and gas, utilities industry, which will address the needs of the local market with world-class products, solutions and services.

This development is coming at a time when the Federal Government of Nigeria as part of the Vision 2020, identified the deficiency in qualified local manpower and low indigenous participation as part of the challenges faced by the oil & gas sector.

This need for localisation in Nigeria’s oil and gas sector led stakeholders in government and the private sector to develop creative strategies targeted at promoting local human capital development in Nigeria.

The Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) was one of such strategies implemented by the Federal Government to promote the development and utilization of in-country capacities through the effective implementation of the Nigerian Content Act. The Private Sector on its part also plays a key role in providing critical infrastructure, either directly or in collaboration with the Government under Public Private Partnership @Businessdayng

(PPP) arrangements.

Siemens Limited Nigeria set up the Port Harcourt Service workshop in the heart of Nigeria’s oil rich Niger-Delta region riding on Dresser-Rand’s over 25 years strong expertise in non-OEM service and full-scale operation and maintenance capabilities.

The choice of Port Harcourt as a location for this over three million Euros investment by Siemens Limited Nigeria was determined by the need to remain close to majority of its customers in the Oil and Gas sector, while remaining assessible to other customer in the non-oil and gas sector in Nigeria.

According to Sulieman, with Siemens commitment to ensure compliance with the Nigerian Content Act, in terms of location, material and manpower, Siemens is creating real value in Nigeria by eliminating capital flight through local production and human capital development.

“The workshop also creates an avenue for local talent to trained in house. The Port Harcourt workshop is also home to best of local experts with global expertise in the business; 24 field service engineers operating in the facility are Nigerians who are knowledgeable and skilled in different areas of specializations. There are also have five highly qualified and experienced technicians, who provide support to the field service representatives both in the workshop and on site.

“In terms of technical capacity, the workshop contains state of the art machinery for rotating equipment (gas turbines, compressors and pumps) repairs and overhauls; reciprocating equipment; inspection, disassembly, reassembly, and balancing of all kinds of rotors; valve repairs, testing, and certification; shot blasting and general machining and fabrication. The workshop also houses different equipment that can provide any kind of machining for customers beyond the oil and gas sector,” he said.

Tuesday 22 October 2019

BUSINESS DAY

23

OFFGRID BUSINESS Investment

Mini grid operator GVE, partners Abuja DisCo to provide independent power to Wuse market ISAAC ANYAOGU

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igeria’s largest mini grid operator, Green Village Electricity (GVE) Projects Limited has signed a tripartite agreement with Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) Plc. and Wuse Market Traders Association for the development of a 1MW Megawatt interconnected mini-grid system in Wuse Market, Abuja.

The plant is part of GVE’s Distributed Renewable Energy commercialization initiative aimed at the delivery of reliable power supply to underserved economic clusters like markets, industries, plazas, estates, MSMEs etc across Nigeria.

The company says it has identified over 300 more sites has been identified and will be developed.

The project to be cited in Wuse market, the busiest economic cluster located in Abuja, the capital city of Nigeria will be the first private sector led interconnected mini-grid solution to be deployed in Nigeria.

The project will provide 24/7 electricity supply to over 5,000 traders who operate in the market and will also lead to the displacement of over 3,000 petrol/diesel generators thereby mitigating significant amount of GHGs. The project will transform Wuse market into Nigeria’s first

100% green and generator free economic cluster in the largest black nation of the world. The project will also lead to the extension of trading hours in the market thereby significantly increasing the productivity, income and profitability of traders in the market while ensuring sizable cost reductions when compared with current alternative power sources

available to the traders.

This initiative aligns with expectations of the Federal Government of Nigeria’s (FGN) Energizing Economies Initiative (EEI) delivered through the Rural Electrification Agency (REA), according to a press release from GVE. This initiative is also supported by AEDC’s recent grant of US$1.06m by USTDA to support

studies to identifying and developing similar projects.

Green Village Electricity (GVE) Projects Limited is the leading distributed renewable energy solutions provision company in SubSaharan Africa. GVE’s business footprint covers the design, sales, installation and maintenance of renewable energy solutions for residential, commercial, industrial

and rural off-grid or under-servedcommunities through commercially sustainable business models in line with our clients’ needs.

Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) Plc. is one of the 11 power distribution companies that was successfully privatized and handed over to new investors on 1 November 2013. AEDC has a franchise for the distribution and sale of electricity across an area of 133,000 km2 in the Federal Capital Territory, Niger State, Kogi State and Nassarawa State.

Wuse Market Traders Association (WUMATA) is an Incorporated Trustee duly registered under the laws of the Federal Republic of Nigeria acting as the legally authorized representative of Wuse Market Cluster.

The Nigerian Rural Electrification Agency (REA), set up by the Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN) with the primary objective of increasing electricity access to rural and underserved communities has developed the off- gird electrification strategy. Part of this strategy is to fast track some of its development initiatives towards achieving the overall objective of the FGN Economic and Recovery Growth Plan (ERGP) and the Power Sector Recovery Programme (PSRP). REA is providing enabling environment and facilitation of the project to boost socio-economic growth.

Argentina is opening its door for renewable investment; Nigeria can do same DIPO OLADEHINDE

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modern approach by Argentina’s renewable energy market in just three years, may well open the door to billions in renewable investment, a development which Nigeria can also learn from.

Just like Nigeria, Argentina has some of Latin America’s most abundant renewable energy resource such as steady winds in southern Patagonia, year-round sunshine in the remote northwest, and hydropower and biomass fed by rivers and expansive farmland.

Yet, despite its potential, the country has fallen behind many of its smaller neighbours in turning these resources into a reliable power source; Argentina’s government is moving swiftly to change that which is why it’s moving to attract about $35 billion in investments in energy in the coming years, about half of that for renewable power.

To make this happen, Argentina launched an innovative program called RenovAr and further reached out to World bank’s International Finance Corporation (IFC) and other development institutions for support in creating a

new market for private investment in renewable energy including organizing a renewable-energy auction, and setting up the process to attract international bidders.

The RenovAr program has already secured $730 million in partial projects\ guarantees from the World Bank over two funding rounds a development which protects investors against contract defaults, spurred several other international financial institutions to invest in the market, and made Argentina’s renewable energy market “the most interesting in the world at the moment,” according to IFC Director Lizabeth Bronder.

According to IFC, when fully operational, these projects will push renewables to 18percent of Argentina’s total power supply, a breakthrough considering they were at just 1.8 percent before 2016 – and could avoid more than 220 million tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions over the next 20 years.

From 2016 through 2019 thanks to RenovAr, Argentina’s government awarded contracts for 6.5 gigawatts (GW) of new renewable energy capacity, helping make wind and solar the country’s cheapest unsubsidized sources of energy

with roughly 5 GW of this capacity already in operation or under construction, attracting nearly $7.5 billion in new investment and creating more than 11,000 new jobs.

“For every 1,000 megawatts in renewable energy, the country saves $300 million annually in liquid fuel,”Sebastian Kind, Argentina’s undersecretary for renewable energy told IFC officials in a media parley. “It reduces carbon emissions by 2 million tons.” That’s roughly equivalent to taking 1 million cars off the road.”

The Argentina renewable en-

ANALYSTS: Isaac Anyaogu (Team Lead), Stephen Onyekwelu, Dipo Oladehinde

ergy program is already yielding fruits as Argentina rose to ninth globally and first in Latin America during 2019’s Ernst & Young’s Renewable Energy Country Attractiveness Index.

In Nigeria, Energy still remains one of the main constraints factors in for economic growth as the lack of reliable access and irregular power supply is still a persistent problem affecting businesses across the country and further discouraging foreign investors.

Nigeria depends on non-renewable energy despite its vast

potential in renewable sources such as solar, wind, biomass and hydro. The total potential of these renewables is estimated at over 68,000MW, which is more than five times the current power output.

This power deficit has also weighed negatively on business operations in the country. Users must seek alternative energy means, primarily through buying gas and diesel-powered generators. These alternatives are relatively expensive, and most businesses that use them incur high production costs.

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email: isaac.anyaogu@businessday.ng, stephen.onyekwelu@businessdayonline.com, oladehinde.oladipo@businessdayonline.com

24

Tuesday 22 October 2019

BUSINESS DAY

Julian Richer: Treating people well pays dividend

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ulian Richer had barely begun as an entrepreneur when he had to surrender ownership of his fledgling company, the British high-end audio equipment retailer Richer Sounds.

It was 1978 and Mr Richer, aged just 19 and having made “a couple of grand” selling reconditioned record decks, had his eye on the lease to a small shop on a shabby walkway close to London Bridge station.

“It had 35,000 wealthy commuters [passing by the shop] going into work in the morning,” Mr Richer recalls.

“I just saw the potential.” The landlord was willing to sell the lease premium-free, but wanted a 74 per cent stake in Richer Sounds, partly, Mr Richer laments, because he lacked faith that a teenager could make a go of it.

“I remember him looking at me up and down, like he was thinking who the hell are you.”

Mr Richer reluctantly agreed to the deal.

Mr Richer, who turned 60 in March, recalls the story at a breakfast meeting in his “global headquarters”, a snug alcove in his favourite Mayfair restaurant, Richoux.

He opened that first Richer Sounds shop 41 years ago, and the success of the business — which now has 53 branches.

The original store is listed as a Guinness World Record for having made the greatest sales in relation to its area of store space than any other retailer, a record dating back to 1994.

His success enabled him to quickly buy out the landlord’s stake but Mr Richer still grimaces at the memory of the lease deal. In May he again surrendered a controlling share in Richer Sounds, selling a 60 per cent stake for £9.2m.

This time, however, he was calling the shots. The plan, revealed in an interview with the FT six years ago, was not about personal enrichment, but to turn Richer Sounds into an employee owned trust (EOT).

“This is my life’s work,” Mr Richer says, adding that he and his wife have no children to pass the business on to. “My dad dropped down dead at the same age as I am today. My greatest fear is that the same happens to me and this gets taken over by venture capitalists, who will mess it up.”

The stake sale will not affect the drive to generate profits, he adds, noting that this year’s sales revenue of almost £200m was a record. Material gain is a key part of the Richer Sounds story.

At 23, Mr Richer bought the first of several Rolls-Royce cars, although he admits that this was in part due to an inferiority complex acquired as a boy at boarding school. “I had a chip on my shoulder about the limos the fathers of other kids would arrive in at school,” he says.

“I made my dad park his old Renault around the back.” His materialism has softened, he notes, since he rediscovered his Christian faith and was baptised as an Anglican in 2006. www.businessday.ng

Mr Richer’s entrepreneurial epiphany happened in 1982, when he read In Search of Excellence, the business bestseller

by Tom Peters and Robert Waterman.

The top performing companies in the book had two distinct qualities, Mr Richer notes: They treated both their staff and their customers well.

It was a revelation for a man who seems drawn to simple truths. “Most people you meet are decent and, if you treat them well, they’ll treat you well back,” he says.

“This is not complicated.”

What this means in terms of

‘

I remember him looking at me up and down, like he was thinking who the hell are you.” Mr Richer reluctantly agreed to the deal

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leadership at Richer Sounds is a focus on engaging with staff and customers. “Every night, if a shop has good figures, I email them saying, guys, great figures today, well done, you’re the jewels,” he says.

“All bosses, me included, don’t say thank you and well done enough, but it means a hell of a lot to people.”

The company rewards staff monthly at the best performing store by handing out “loads of money” to recognise employee loyalty and people going the extra mile in sales.

Annual staff turnover is less than half the average among UK retailers he claims — helping the bottom line. Shrinkage, a retailing expression for inventory loss because of shoplifting or employee theft, is another key metric for Mr Richer.

“In British retail that’s between 1 and 2 per cent, but we lose less than 0.1 per cent,” he says. “We’re saving millions of pounds a year by our staff not stealing from us.”

The creation of the EOT means Mr Richer is now an employee too. He receives a salary of £60,000, “what one of my store managers could earn”, but with an unlimited unpaid holiday entitlement.

“I have still got 40 per cent of the shares, so when there’s a dividend I’m still going to get loads more money,” he says.

There is more to the company’s success than just caring for staff.

The business owns all but five of its shop leaseholds, cutting overheads to about 12 per @Businessdayng

cent of sales, a level Mr Richer claims matches the biggest online retailers.

The products they offer, top of the range televisions and the kind of equipment only audiophiles buy, is hard to sell effectively online, Mr Richer adds.

“Do you know what a sound bar is?” he asks. He notes that each of his stores stocks at least 10 different lines of these specialist television speakers, which customers can listen to in store in a private room before they buy.

“You’re not going to buy that from Amazon because you can’t hear the difference,” he adds.

Richer Sound’s survival will depend on seeing off the threat of online competition as well as getting the new ownership structure right.

Although stepping back from Richer Sounds will be a “gradual wind down”, Mr Richer is already reinventing himself as a campaigner for better corporate leadership.

He set out a manifesto for the way he thinks bosses should behave in a book last year, called The Ethical Capitalist.

“I am sick of reading about dreadful entrepreneurs, treating their employees badly and not paying their taxes,” he says.

“I don’t believe it works in the long term and it gives us all a bad name.”

Entering his seventh decade has not dimmed Mr Richer’s terrier-like drive to succeed. He might no longer own the majority of his company but he clearly still relishes being the boss.

Tuesday 22 October 2019

BUSINESS DAY

25

There is an upside to falling numbers of MBA applicants

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ilicon Valley’s connections to the global tech industry made Stanford’s Graduate School of Business attractive to Kimberley Manning.

Yet the software engineer, whose family had moved to Australia from Zimbabwe, halted her application.

“I perceive the US to be increasingly hostile to immigrants and people from other cultures,” Ms Manning says.

The US is the birthplace of the MBA and home to 51 of the top 100 business schools in the FT’s global ranking list. But the market is five years into a fall off in demand, which has been spreading in recent years to even the most well-regarded institutions, including Stanford, Harvard Business School and Wharton.

This year, applications are down at all but one of 10 of the highest ranked schools in the FT’s analysis. Chicago Booth School of Business was the exception, with applications up 3.4 per cent this year.

But its numbers are still down from their level two years ago, as the school suffered an 8.2 per cent drop in 2018.

The tightening of visa rules for overseas students and hostility to immigration under Donald Trump’s administration are seen as the biggest problem for MBA admissions teams.

Ms Manning, who has worked in Brisbane-based fintech startups since she graduated from the University of Queensland five years ago, will be heading for France, not the US, this January to start her MBA at the Fontainebleau campus of Insead.

“I actually don’t feel individually targeted and would be eligible for a privileged work visa,” she says.

“But I don’t want to move to a country with such openly hostile policies.” She is not alone in making such a decision.

Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business, as the FT reported last month, has suffered a 6 per cent fall in applications for its MBA. It cites immigration worries and the current US trade battle with China.

A buoyant jobs market has also raised the opportunity cost for would-be applicants of leaving employment and going to business school full time; a situation not helped by aboveinflation rises in tuition fees.

However, there is also a growing perception that MBAs are no longer the most cost effective way to get on in a career and that other avenues now exist to gain what used to be exclusive benefits of a business education.

Gorick Ng is a research associate at Harvard Business School, where he completed his MBA last year, and is also a vocational counsellor for Harvard undergraduate students.

One of the biggest challenges he sees to the MBA are the “unclear benefits” of the qualification to those who are considering taking one: these possible MBA students are precisely the kind of people who could build a network and find a job through other routes.

“I am not saying that a business school is worthless,” Mr Ng says. “I am grateful for the education, mentors and life-long friends I made at HBS,” he says.

“But, by and large, most business school aspirants I’ve encountered have lukewarm motivations at best and question whether they made the right decision long after they graduate.”

The most common reasons www.businessday.ng

Harvard students give for taking an MBA include fear of missing out on what friends have done, the desire to leave a job they hate, the chance to find a husband or wife — and simply because they can, having taken the Graduate Management Admission Test exam and scored highly, according to Mr Ng. But he cautions that these reasons are not sufficient when measured against the cost of studying for an MBA, which can run to $250,000 at schools like HBS, and the two years of fulltime study required to complete the degree.

He says: “Like a spork, an ugly hybrid that is not pointy enough to be a fork or round enough to be spoon, business school is so many things to so many people that it ends up being not much of anything to anyone.”

The decline in MBA applications in the US is a concern but far from being a crisis for the highest ranked schools. This year, for example, Stanford received 7,342 applications, down from 7,797 in 2018, for only 417 places.

Lawrence Linker, a Singapore-based admissions consul-

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tant at MBA Link, which offers advice to potential students, sees the declining number of applications as an opportunity because they increase the odds of acceptance into top schools.

“For those with the right test scores and the funds available there has never been a better time to apply to business school,” he says.

There have been other changes in the business school applicants — an increasing number of women. According to Elissa Sangster, chief executive of the Forté Foundation, which campaigns to raise the proportion of women in business education, there is a “slow but steady” rise in female enrolment on MBA courses globally.

A third of 52 member schools had 40 per cent or more women enrolled for last year’s intake, up from just three schools in 2014, Ms Sangster notes.

“We have seen a more intense focus on enhancing gender diversity in the last five years,” she says.

While Ms Manning may have decided against applying, this year, Stanford Graduate School @Businessdayng

of Business has its most gender balanced MBA intake, with women making up 47 per cent of the cohort, up 6 percentage points on 2018.

This is the result of several years of expanding efforts to encourage female applicants, such as outreach events to groups of women outside the US and scholarship support for women, according to Kirsten Moss, assistant dean of MBA admissions and financial aid.

“Diversity, equity and inclusion is a key priority for the GSB,” she says. Financial aid proved important for Ms Manning who has been helped with her MBA costs at Insead with a €20,000 Forté Fellowship grant.

“The MBA makes sense to me because I want to get an international experience, hopefully to do something in the future to help my home country, Zimbabwe,” she says.

The biggest barrier to her peers applying to business school is not money but indifference to the MBA as a method of getting on in their careers, she says. “In the tech industry, few people have an MBA.”

26

Tuesday 22 October 2019

BUSINESS DAY

EDUCATION

Weekly insight on current and future trends in education

Primary/Secondary

Higher

Human Capital

Lack of international accreditation stifle global ranking, research grants of Nigerian varsities KELECHI EWUZIE

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distinguished professor, Flour Mills Food research center, department of Food Technology, University of Ibadan, Ogugua Charles Aworh has identified the Lack of International accreditation of the academic programmes of Nigerian universities as responsible for their global ranking and their competitiveness in seeking research grants and other support from international agencies and grant-awarding foundations and donor organisations.

Aworh made this known while delivering the George Coumantaros Memorial lecture titled ‘Strengthening Industry-Academic partnership for Quality teaching, research and development in the Nigerian University system organised by Flour Mills of Nigeria Plc in collaboration with the University of Ibadan.

He said it is also imperative for the universities to pay attention to international accreditation of their aca-

L-R: Salihu Bakari, director, Educational Support Services, TETFund, Olalekan Saliu, Non-Executive director, Flour Mills of Nigeria Plc, Charles Aworh, The George Coumantaros Distinguished Professor, University of Ibadan; Olanike Adeyemo. deputy Vice-Chancellor, Research Innovation and Strategic Partnership, University of Ibadan, Hafiz Abubakar, Fellow Nigerian Institute of Food Science and Technology (FNIST), Constance N. Goddy-Nnadi, director Skills Development and Entrepreneurship, NUC at the Maiden George Coumantaros Memorial Lecture held at the University of Ibadan, Oyo State.

demic programmes and not just consider the mandatory accreditation by the National Universities Commission (NUC) as all that they require.

According to Aworh, “If Nigerian universities want to be global players that command the respect of the international academic community, then they must subject their academic programmes to scrutiny by international accreditation bodies and make

the necessary budgetary provisions for accreditation visits by such bodies”.

He observes that International accreditation is an important quality assurance requirement, adding that Universities seek international accreditation of their academic programmes to enhance their global competitiveness and ranking.

The George Coumantaros distinguished professor

Greensprings School promotes healthy living with Community Connect initiative KELECHI EWUZIE

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etermined to promote the culture of healthy l i v i ng a m o ng community around it, Greensprings School, the first thinking school in Nigeria has kick-off an initiative called “Community Connect.

The initiative provides an opportunity for the members of the school’s community to engage with one another in a more relaxed environment, through exercise, dance, sports, board games, hands-on vocational skills and other fun activities.

The initiative became apparent with the increase in cases of mental health, high-stress levels and flickering blood pressure among Lagosians.

Feyisara Ojugo, Head of School at Greensprings Lekki campus says the Community Connect will be a

monthly programme in Lekki campus and the focus will be on something unique for every month, adding that the plan is to extend this initiative to other campuses of Greensprings School in the near future.

Ojugo speaking at the maiden edition of Community Connect which focused was on dance-aerobics, expressed her satisfaction about the dance-aerobic session. “I am convinced that both the parents and children thoroughly enjoyed the session, because they actively participated throughout the session, without getting tired”, she said.

The session was attended by parents of Greensprings School students, invited guests, families and friends of the school, as well as students. The session kicked off at 7:30 am and lasted for about one hour, with a variety of dance routines and vigorous body movements.

Participants were highly www.businessday.ng

engaged throughout the dance-aerobic session as they were guided by experienced instructors, who carefully blended choreography with trendy music, making it extremely enjoyable for everyone. The session was wrapped up with light refreshments and wellness check by the medical team from Total Health Trust.

According to Ojugo, “We believe that subsequent editions will be more exciting as we’ll be adding some more activities to the danceaerobics, such as; getting daddies to play football and basketball with their sons; discussing the needs of a girl child with mummies, learning how to ride a bicycle, Man O’ War obstacle games and tennis clinics etc.

“The Greensprings Community Connect initiative is open to parents within the school’s community.

External parents are also welcome to join the community connect initiative”, Ojugo said.

observes that at the root of the poor state of Nigerian universities with respect to infrastructure, teaching and research facilities is underfunding.

“The irony of it all is that in the midst of declining resources, rather than consolidating, new universities are being established and new programmes created in existing universities” he said.

“The low ranking of the

University of Ibadan and other Nigerian universities, especially the First-generation universities, should be of serious national concern.

This is clearly not what the founding fathers and our heroes past laboured for and it is an urgent challenge that the University of Ibadan must face squarely”.

Aworh opines that strong Industry-academia partnerships are the way to go as the partnership is not only not mutually beneficial but synergistic.

“Strong industry-university partnerships provide huge benefits for universities such as Financial support for the teaching, research and community service missions of universities; Broadening and enriching the experience of staff and students; Increasing employment opportunities for students; Assisting in identifying significant, relevant problems that can be addressed through research”.

Aworh said.

John G. Coumantaros, Chairman, Flour Mills of Nigeria Plc in his address at the event said the motive of the George Coumantaros Dis-

tinguished Professorship was aside from strengthening the linkages between academia and industry, Flour Mills Food Research Centre would conduct studies into traditional food processing technologies while developing new food products from affordable, locally cultivated crops.

Coumantaros who was represented by Olalekan Saliu, Non Executive Director, FMN said Nigeria needs newer and fresher ideas on sustainable food production methods especially as our population continues to increase.

Perhaps, the answers truly lie with a stronger and more purposeful partnership with Academia.

He further stated that the partnership between Flour Mills of Nigeria Plc and Corteva Agriscience in 2018 is to introduce new and exciting seed production techniques that will help develop the Maize hybrid seed market in Nigeria.

“This initiative is expected to drastically turnaround the current national average maize yield of about 1.5 metric tons per hectare by over 100% in the next five years”, Coumantaros said.

Government College Ibadan old boys commit N500m to development of school ...As Oyo govt plans to recruit more teachers REMI FEYISIPO, Ibadan

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he Government College Ibadan Old Boys Association have committed over N500 million to the development of the school.

Wale Babalakin, Chairman of GCIOBA said that the Old Boys Association of GCI would also partner with the state government to return boarding system to the school.

Babalakin while speaking at the grand finale of events marking 90th anniversary of the school said the idea of a GCI as a day school without boarding system was an antithesis.

On his part, the Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde has promised to make the Government College Ibadan (GCI) the poster school in Nigeria, adding that his government is intent on restoring the lost glory of education in Oyo State.

While promising to reclaim the lost glory of the education sector in Oyo State by collaborating with different stakeholders to uplift the sector, Makinde said the State would soon advertise for the recruitment of teachers.

He stated that his adminis-

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tration would continue to place great importance on the future of the children of Oyo State.

Makinde commended the Government College Ibadan Old Boys Association (GCIOBA) for their contributions towards reclaiming the glory of the historic school, especially the renovation of the old hostels of the school, among others, promising to partner with them to make GCI the poster school of Nigeria.

The Governor also expressed his readiness to collaborate with stakeholders in the education sector to deliver qualitative education, noting that everyone has to come to the table on the policies put in place by the State Government, because the government and the Governor could not do it alone.

The Governor maintained that it had been a challenge for Government to drive its free qualitative education policy because there were corrupt elements trying to frustrate Government.

He insisted, however, that he would not relent in delivering free qualitative education to all students in the State.

The Governor explained that he had sent out fact-finding @Businessdayng

emissaries to some schools in the State, which discovered that the free textbooks provided by the State were not being distributed to students in some schools, noting that he had already given a directive that the books must reach every student.

“Actually, this brings it down to where we are in the area of education in Oyo State. During my electioneering campaign, I promised the good people of Oyo State free and qualitative education but I knew that the government cannot do it alone.

I am happy with the latest developments in GCI and want to promise that the government of Oyo State will partner with you.

A statement by Taiwo Adisa, Chief Press Secretary to Governor Makinde, said “We will soon advertise vacancy to recruit teachers. If the PTA teachers are good enough and have the prerequisite qualifications, they will be employed. But the bottom-line is that the future of our children is at stake here. If we are saying that government is providing certain things and we cannot have value for those things, then it is a big problem and that is what we are faced with right now.

Tuesday 22 October 2019

BUSINESS DAY

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EDUCATION I will collaborate to ensure Nigerian teachers get better – Ezem KELECHI EWUZIE

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ollins Ezem, winner of the 2019 Maltina Teacher of the Year Award says the next step for him after winning the award is that he will teach and collaborate better with other teachers nationally and internationally, adding that he will participate in workshop, facilitate workshop to ensure that Nigerian teachers get better.

Ezem a Christian Religion and civic education teacher at Royal Family academy, Wuye Abuja observes that there are new trends in teaching that will actually need to share professionally so that the teaching and learning in classrooms will be better.

Speaking after emerging worthy winner of the coveted award received a total cash prize of N6.5 million and capacity training abroad 38 years old Ezem express his gratitude for winning the award, adding that he is very happy that teachers are now getting recognised and appreciated for the good job they do.

L-R: Jordi Borrut Bel, managing director/Chief Executive, Nigerian Breweries Plc; Ibijoke Sanwo-Olu, Wife of the Governor of Lagos State; Ezem Collins, Winner of the 2019 Maltina Teacher of the Year; Chukwuemeka Nwajiuba, Minister of State for Education and Sade Morgan, corporate affairs director, Nigerian Breweries Plc, during the prize presentation to the winner at the Grand Finale of the 2019 Maltina Teacher of the Year held in Lagos.

According to Ezem, “This award will be a great inspiration for teacher as I will try my best to encourage and train more teachers to build very strong philosophy of teaching and learning; to make teaching attractive and finally give fulfillment and money in the future”.

Jordi Borrut Bel, managing director, Nigerian Breweries Plc while speaking at the event explains that in 2015, the company’s intervention

Government urged to adopt inclusive education for the blinds Desmond Okon

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isually impaired persons are faced a lot of challenges including the lack of an inclusive education across levels, which impact negatively on their development and overall existence.

The lack of an inclusive education poses a threat their constitutional right to education; hence Nigeria’s Government has been urged to give more prominence to issues of the blinds, by adopting and providing inclusive education for the blind citizens.

In preparation for the International World Sight Day and International White Cane and Safety Day 2019, the Nigeria Association of the Blind, (NAB), Lagos State Chapter, made the call at a press briefing with Journalists on how education has been a factor to the success of the blinds and how the blinds can easily access education at their respective place of residence.

According to the State chairman of NAB, Tunde Muhammad, the government has a key role to play and can convince respective schools in the state and the entire nation to integrate inclusive education to primary schools and provide the blinds with materials and equipment

that will be required for effective learning among their colleagues.

He called on the present administration in Lagos State to help reduce challenges of the blinds and advocate for acceptance in the society and into corporate bodies.

“All citizens are affected by certain shortcomings in the country including the blinds, being visually impaired is a challenge or a disability an individual has to deal with, yet is not the end of life. The previous regime in Lagos showered us love, we need the government to adopt developed countries approach by providing materials for our students in their respective schools, help us with inclusive education so that we can achieve our aims, as a result, people will have access to education in their vicinity. A lot of us are in need of job; we have many professionals among us who are reliable and diligent in their works but are denied due to their disability” he said.

Abolarinwa Sala mi, A lawyer called on governments to adopt inclusive education so that education can be accessible for visually impaired persons, all schools need do is to provide resource tutors who can understand our plights as well as provide materials for use.” www.businessday.ng

in education was expanded to include teachers when the Maltina Teacher of the Year initiative was launched.

The initiative, Bel says was hinged on the realisation that teachers hardly get the recognition they deserve despite the pivotal role they play in determining the quality of education and the future of the country.

According to Bel, “The initiative has provided a platform for exceptional teachers

to be identified, showcased and rewarded. It is also aimed at restoring the pride of teachers and the dignity of the teaching profession”.

In his own remarks, the vice president Federal Republic of Nigeria, Yemi Osinbajo says it is important to note that this Journey towards excellence in the teaching profession and the recognition of teacher is a continues one.

Osinbajo who was represented by Chukwuemeka

UTME: CPAN seeks review of MOU with JAMB Iniobong Iwok

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he Computer Based Test Centres Proprietor’s Association (CPAN) has called for a review of its partnership with the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB) in the conduct of the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), saying that members of the union were been short-changed by JAMB in the current arrangement.

Maxwell Akwuruoha, National President of CPAN, stated while speaking at the union’s 4th national conference which was held at the Nigeria Army officer’s mess hall, Yaba.

The annual Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination in Nigeria has been conducted through Computer Based Test since 2013. However, due to JAMB inability to provide facilities, the board engaged private investors to establish Computer Based Test centres across the country for the registration and conduct of the examination.

Akwuruoha lamented that despite the crucial role of the union members towards the conduct and success of the examination since 2013, there was no formal agreement between the union and JAMB. The national chairman, seek a review of the N600 examina-

tion fees per candidate paid

by JAMB to the CBT centres proprietors, stressing that the amount was no more feasible in the current economy reality.

According to him, “Its takes N25million and collectively N15 billion investments to set up a CBT centre, but right now we don’t have any document showing our relationship with JAMB. I mean MoU that defines the role our centres are supposed to play; such document would protect the proprietors and define the roles of the two.

“The rational and feasibility of paying proprietors six hundred naira per candidate who sits for exams in a centre, even when this rental of six hundred has been the standard since 2013, not considering the effects of forex and energy over the years.

“It is amazing that the beautiful edifice Of CBT project in Nigerian is only sustained by a letter of invitation written to JAMB to visit a prospective centre for inspection and an email of approval accompanied with an access code for the online registration of candidates,” Akwuruoha said.

Sp e a k i ng f u r t h e r, h e blamed the lack of formal document of understanding between JAMB and the CBT centres proprietors for the lapses noticed in the conduct of the 2019 examination.

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Uwajiuba, Minister of State for Education says the revitalising of education sector is a strategic ministerial plan aimed at revamping the sector.

“This plan involve addressing the out of school issues, strengthen basic and secondary education, training and retraining of teachers, adult literacy challenges in education as well,” he said.

The vice president lauded Nigerian Breweries Plc for being at the forefront of improving the education sector by continually investing in educational infrastructure, encouraging teachers and students and the entire value chain.

The journey to receiving this N6.5 million award, blocks of classroom for his school started earlier in the year when Ezem was nominated. After the screening of all nominated candidates and portfolio presentation of the successful candidates, Ezem was declared winner by the panel of judges.

On the same night, Soji Megbowon from Lagos State emerged the first runner-up, while Fidelis Otono, a Katsina State clinched the second runner-up position.

Apart from the N500,000 reward as State Champion, the first and second runnersup got an additional One Million Naira (N1, 000, 000) and Seven Hundred and Fifty Thousand Naira (N750, 000) respectively.

In attendance at the fifth edition of the programme held at Eko Hotels and Suite , Victoria Island, Lagos, were thought leaders in the Nigerian education sector, Representatives of the Federal and Lagos State government and industry operators.

Since its debut, the Maltina Teacher of the Year has produced four grand prize winners. At the inaugural edition in 2015, a teacher with the Federal Government Girls College, Onitsha, Anambra State, Rose Nkemdilim Obi blazed the trail, while Imoh Essien, a teacher from Special Education Centre for Exceptional Children, Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, won in 2016.

In 2017, Felix Udochukwu Ariguzo, a teacher with Mastercare International School, Asaba, Delta State, emerged winner, while Samuel Olasunkanmi Opeifa from Government Secondary School, Abuja emerged champion in 2018.

Education experts laud FG’s creation of economic advisory council KELECHI EWUZIE

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eading professionals in the nation’s education sector has lauded the President Muhammadu Buhari led government on the setting up of the Economic Advisory Council stating that we cannot divorce the best technically sound initiatives from the ambience of the overall economic operating environment.

Michael Faborede, former Vice-Chancellor, Obafemi Awolowo University while speaking recently as the keynote speaker at the launch of The Akin Ogunbiyi Foundation, said “Without wellcoordinated inter-sectoral economic planning, that provides targeted financing for government priority programmes, backed with necessary political will by both the executive and legislative arms of government all the lofty plans will not yield the desired outcomes”.

Faborede observes that we cannot divorce even the best technically sound initiatives from the ambience of the overall economic operating environment, favourable and strong political will, bolstered by informed and transformational cross-sectoral coordination of the economy.

Faborede further noted that, @Businessdayng

“Leaders within the Nigerian educational system must provide leadership for the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and partner with the private sector and Non-Governmental Organizations like The Akin Ogunbiyi Foundation in ensuring that Nigeria moves from a developing nation to a developed nation like China, Korea and others.

Corroborating the keynote speaker, one of the panelists and Founder of Centre for Values in Leadership, Professor Pat Utomi also noted that the most important part of educating youngsters is at the primary and secondary level. He said, “There are many technological companies disrupting the ecosystem whose founder never attended a University. If children are effectively trained at the primary and secondary level, the nation will experience experiential growth and development.”

Other panelists present at the maiden edition of the Lecture Series themed, ‘Education as an input variable for National Development’ include, Akintayo Dayo Idowu, Osun State University; Adetutu Sangonuga, Partner, Human Capital Partners; Ayopeju Njideaka, CEO Nurture House Consulting (NHC) and Seye Oyeleye, DirectorGeneral, Dawn Commission.

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Tuesday 22 October 2019

BUSINESS DAY

AVIATION GUIDE

in association with

American Express GBT introduces travel management technology to improve customer experience …holds 4th edition of Executive Client Forum Stories by IFEOMA OKEKE

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he American Express Global Business Travel (GBT) has introduced a new travel management technology which gives its clients access to wider range of products to improve efficiency and customer experience.

The technology which is a full in-to-in travel management solution covers every aspect of the travel transaction and it allows for access to content that can be found to improve travel experience.

Speaking during the 4th Edition of its Executive Client Forum themed ‘Technology and the future in business travel,’ Claude Vankeirsbilck, COO, Tourvest Travel Services said American Express Global Business Travel has technically launched the technology in the market place and will be delivering it to customers in the next couple of weeks.

“Today we are giving our customers an insight of what we are going to be offering to our client base in Nigeria. The technology is one that accesses content that is available and it brings it all to one screen.

“So, a traveller for example can make his own booking and have access to everything that he is allowed to see by his company. A travel policy will dictate what he is allowed to see and it makes sure that the company is in full control of his travel expenses and allows for travellers to book their own travels if the company wants the travellers to book themselves,” Vankeirsbilck explained.

He said the technology is developed and requires support from travel counsellors.

“Our travel counsellors also use their technology. A company might not want to enable its own travellers to make the booking but the technology enables our travel counsellors to be far more efficient in delivering a far higher

quality service to our customers. To the country, it enhances the experience that we offer to our customers,” he added.

John Adebanjo, chairman of American Express Global Business Travel, Nigeria told BusinessDay that its new technology will make travel seamless for its clients and this is the primary focus.

“Once we get this done, it is human beings that will programme and operate the technology. It is very important for our clients to be able to save money and do what they need to do cost effectively. We are also strengthening the travel associations. If they are there, they will operate the technology. This is what we are celebrating this year,” Adebanjo said.

He stressed that in the last couple of

months, the business of American Express Global Business Travel has grown exponentially and it was the right time to honour and appreciate all its clients and that is exactly what the company is doing through its yearly Executive Client Forum.

He recalled that during the 2015/2016 saga when Nigeria had issues with foreign exchange, that affected many companies, especially the travel industry, he said American Express Global Business Travel was able to sustain its operations.

“Clients and the corporates need to save money and we have positioned ourselves to do that for them because of our global reach. American Express has a global reach and the services we are offering are unique.

L-R: President Muhammad Buhari, and Kingsley Ezenwa, Dana Air’s Media and Communications Manager at the 25th Nigeria Economic Summit in Abuja recently

So, we stated capturing the market and the growth was experienced from that time,” Adebanjo said.

Olufunke Adebolu, commissioner for Tourism, Arts and Culture, Lagos State who was also present at the occasion said business tourism and travel is the new oil well for the sector.

According to commissioner, in 2017, one billion people travelled across the world and 1.2trillion dollars was spent in the process as business travel grew across the whole world by three percent, adding that eight percent international travellers across the world are in the business space, showing where the traction is.

“We know the importance of tourism and entertainments in Nigeria. Eighty percent of people who travel in Nigeria arrive in Lagos State and a lot of these are business people.

“This makes me want to know what these business people do, where they visit when they arrive, how I can make their stay enjoyable. This way, I can encourage repeated visits. As government, we want to provide the kind of things the business travellers want.

“Babajide Olusola Sanwo-Olu, the governor of Lagos State is passionate about this sector. Lagos has the most beautiful beaches and clubs. We want to encourage business travellers to arrive and enjoy their experience.

We are working to remove barriers to entry such as long visa processes. We are working with the federal government to see what we can do in this space,” Adebolu said.

Bankole Bernard, President of the National Association of Nigeria Travel Agencies (NANTA), commended the American Express Global Business Travel for ensuring its entire staff get the NANTA I.D card which was introduced to regulate the industry and embrace professionalism.

Ethiopian Airlines, immigration services reawakens tourism with online visa

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ith the introduction of e-visa service back in June 2017, Ethiopia has opened its doors for foreign visitors wider than ever before. Ever since, the e-visa service has redefined visitors’ travel experience, easing entry into the country with digitized service accessible from any part of the world.

Using the e-visa service, more 200,000 people from 217 countries visited Ethiopia

so far. Backed by a dedicated round-theclock customer support via email, the e-Visa service enables travellers secure e-Visa in less than 6 hours with a short turnaround time at the airport.

“The milestone in the number of travelers who visited Ethiopia through the e-visa service comes as a good news to all of us in the tourism and travel industry,” Tewolde GebreMariam, Group CEO Ethiopian Airlines said.

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“The 200,000 milestone is indicative of the fact that the number of visitors who use the digitized service is on the rise. This will bring more benefits to Ethiopia in terms of facilitating travel and promoting tourism, trade and investment to the country.”

With the boom in the global Meetings, Incentives, Conferences & Exhibitions (MICE) industry, the e-visa service gives Ethiopia an edge to reap the benefits the industry offers.

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The air connectivity Ethiopia enjoys as the hub of Ethiopian Airlines Group coupled with the mushrooming of hotels and lodgings in the country will further elevate Ethiopia as a preferred MICE hub.

In the past few years, Ethiopia has taken significant strides towards making travel simple and seamless. Besides the e-visa service, travellers flying Ethiopian also enjoy seamless and end-to-end service using the innovative mobile application of the airline.

@Businessdayng

Tuesday 22 October 2019

BUSINESS DAY

BDTECH

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In association with

E-mail: jumoke.akiyode@businessdayonline.com

Nigerian e-commerce companies tighten competition ahead of Black Friday sales …As Konga offers merchant loans, Jumia launches mall JUMOKE AKIYODE-LAWANSON

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nline retail companies are gearing up for tight competition in the industry as Black Friday sales approaches. Ecommerce companies have started announcing plans for huge deals, partnerships and giveaways.

Recently, Konga, Nigerian e-commerce company, announced that it has made available soft loans and credit facilities for merchants on the Konga Marketplace in preparation for its 2019 edition of its Yakata sales during the period of the popular Black Friday shopping in November.

Konga Yakata – as Konga’s Black Friday sales are known occupies a special place in the consciousness of millions of Nigerian shoppers who look forward to the price slashes and discount deals, as a good time to do most of their Christmas shopping.

By extending soft loans to the merchants on its platform, Konga is hopeful of equipping the merchants with the capacity to grow their business and make more products available to shoppers ahead of the 2019 edition of Konga Yakata.

“Konga Yakata is around the corner and our intention is to make it the

best ever in the history of the company for our customers,” said Nnamdi Ekeh, Co-CEO of Konga. “For all of us at Konga, nothing comes in the way of ensuring our customers are satisfied.

This is why we have taken the uncommon step of providing credit facilities to merchants on the Konga platform in preparation for Konga Yakata 2019.”

“We understand that our customers will be looking forward to the widest assortment of genuine products across multiple categories on Konga.

This is why we are committing significant funds into expanding the carrying capacity of our merchants for the sales fiesta.

“No other sales event comes close

to Konga Yakata. Therefore, it is only fitting that management has decided to go all out and make it a memorable one for our teeming customers,” Ekeh said.

Indeed, access to loans and credit facilities one of the encumbrances that has constantly hobbled businesses in Nigeria in their attempts to scale.

This remains a huge challenge for most small business owners who have limited access to credit facilities and loans with favourable interest rates.

This point is not lost on the management of Konga – Nigeria’s only omni-channel retail platform – which under its new owners, seems to have achieved a considerable amount of expansion, as the company plans for profitability in the near future.

“We have partnered with SimpleFi to make these loans available at very low and convenient interest rates of 2.08 percent only. Merchants on the Konga platform can also take advantage of flexible repayment plans,” Ekeh said.

Also, Jumia recently partnered with 90 top brands including, Intel, Samsung, Binatone, Coca-Cola, Nexus and others to launch its Jumia mall and offer customers more value for money.

Speaking during the launch of Jumia Mall in Lagos recently, Juliet Anammah, CEO Jumia Nigeria described Jumia Mall is a space dedicated to various brands on Jumia website. This website helps consumers; to find products that are 100 percent authentic, to enjoy a 15-day return policy on the platform, and enjoy warranty on every product.

Samsung unveils new generation Galaxy A series smartphones JUMOKE AKIYODE-LAWANSON

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amsung has just unveiled new members of the Galaxy A Series smartphones; the Galaxy A10s, A20s and A30s, yesterday at it’s head office, ikoyi Lagos.

According to David Suh, managing director, Samsung Electronics, West Africa, these new devices offer upgrades to essential features, made even more powerful with more value for the new smartphones generation.

David Suh said, “As a global technology leader, we are committed to providing meaningful innovations to our consumers. Galaxy A10s, A20s and A30s have been developed for young Africans who are looking for a great display, superior camera, long-lasting battery and fingerprint

scanner. Its a complete package of great looks and top performance.”

He further said that the Galaxy A10s impressive device offers unprecedented value. “The new Galaxy A10s comes with a stunning 6.2-inch, HD+ Infinity-V Display. It provides an immersive visual experience to users binge-watching your favourite content. Additionally, addressing the need of todays generation, the Galaxy A10s is equipped with a powerful 4,000mAh battery that allows uninterrupted streaming, gaming and live broadcasting.”

The Galaxy A10s comes with a dual rear camera setup to address the millennials need to capture moments on the go. “The dual camera of the Galaxy A10s comprises a 13MP primary rear camera with F1.8 aperture and a 2MP depth

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camera. This allows users to capture beautiful shots where the focus is on the subject and noise from the background is blurred.

While introducing the Galaxy A20, Suh said that due to increase in the number of people using their smartphones to share live interactions, those capturing spontaneous photos, streaming live videos and connecting over shared experiences, Galaxy A20s is Built to drive this evolution, and is packed with a compelling user experience for everyday lives.

Adetunji Taiwo, head, Information Technology and Mobile (IM) at Samsung Electronics West Africa, while introducing the Galaxy A30s said that the A30s has upgraded essential features, made even more powerful.

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“The new Galaxy A30s features striking new designs, including a unique geometric pattern and futuristic holographic effect on the back. Available in three new colours, Prism Crush Black, Prism Crush White, and Prism Crush Violet, the sleek Galaxy A30s showcases a stylish look and feel. Paired with a long-lasting 4,000mAh battery with fast charging capability and an AIbased Game Booster, the Galaxy A30s offers the best gaming experiences on-the-go with no worry about power,” he said.

Features an on-screen fingerprint scanner for an easier and more intuitive way of keeping users’ content safe without compromising design. With the Galaxy A30s, you will be seamlessly connected to the Galaxy ecosystem and able to enjoy

@Businessdayng

a full range of services, including Samsung Health, Knox and more.”

Adetunji propounded.

Smartphones are a vital part of peoples lives, connecting them, allowing them to share their experiences and engage with the world.

As the way people use smartphones continues to evolve, Samsung says it strives to constantly innovate, bringing people the best possible mobile experience.

“The new Galaxy A10s, A20s, and A30s are a bold step in delivering next-level performance to essential everyday features,” the company said.

Samsung Galaxy A10s and A30s are now available whilst the Galaxy A20s will be in Samsung partner stores nationwide from Monday, 28th October, 2019.

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Tuesday 22 October 2019

BUSINESS DAY

BDTECH

E-mail: jumoke.akiyode@businessdayonline.com

Making NIN mandatory for SIM registration will deepen trust in industry – VerifyMe CEO JUMOKE AKIYODE-LAWANSON

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erifyMe Nigeria, an identity management and work history reporting platform, has commended the recent directive by the National Communication Commission (NCC) that registration for new Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) cards will now require the presentation of the National Identity Number (NIN).

The NCC had made the directive at the just concluded conference of the Guild of Corporate Online Publishers (GOCOP), where it explained that this was part of efforts “towards engendering the security of lives and property for the economic development of the country.”

Reacting to this new directive, Esigie Aguele, CEO of VerifyMe Nigeria, noted that integrating NIN into the SIM registration process was a welcome development as it would enhance growth in both the ID verification and telecommuni-

L-R: Adetunji Taiwo; head, information technology and mobile (IM), Solomon Osibeluwo; key channel manager and master trainer, Gbenga Awomodu; marketing lead, information technology and mobile (IM), and Stephen Okwara; software quality test engineer, all of Samsung Electronics West Africa during the launch of Samsung Galaxy A10s, A20s and A30s into the Nigerian market, at the Samsung head office in Lagos recently.

cations industries by deepening trust among stakeholders across the value chain.

‘The NCC directive demonstrates that identity management is the foundation of

sustainable security that will promote growth in all industries by increase customer throughput and reducing costs to acquire customers during on-boarding. VerifyMe in antic-

Tek Experts Nigeria, Microsoft partner to build IT talent through LEAP apprenticeship program JUMOKE AKIYODE-LAWANSON

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ek Experts, a global provider of business and IT support services, has partnered with Microsoft to develop IT talent in Nigeria through the Microsoft LEAP Engineering Acceleration Program (LEAP).

The 16-week program which is in its first cohort, is an immersive 16-week modern apprenticeship that provides a comprehensive learning experience, including both in classroom technological skills training and on the job apprenticeship for real time engineering projects and deliverables.

The partnership, and the ensuing program comes as a strategic response to tackling the dearth of IT talent in Nigeria.

By building and developing IT talent through numerous trainings, real-world experiences and online classrooms environments, Microsoft and Tek Experts will be able to provide necessary skills these new entrants into the IT industry.

Speaking on the partnership, Ashim Egunjobi, acting country manager, Tek Experts Nigeria said; “Nigeria is a country with full and raw potential when it comes to IT talent. Our business requires that we first find

this talent and develop them to the fullest potential so they can in turn deliver efficiently on the job. We also believe that continuous empowerment through skills development is key to ensuring a fully equipped workplace of the future and that is why we are embarking on this partnership with Microsoft”.

“Once employees enter the workplace, learning never stops. Continuous training platforms must be made available to all employees to ensure that they are constantly learning and growing. We look forward engaging other people as part of this program and we are confident that this current cohort will gain new skills that will ensure they provide value to their organisations in future,” Egunjobi said.

Also speaking on the partnership, Akin Banuso, country manager at Microsoft, Nigeria said; “as a technology company, we are aware of the responsibility we have to ensure people have a path to gain relevant skills – no matter where they are in their careers. For this reason, we continue to – in partnership with our business partners like Tek Experts – empower those already in the workforce with the capabilities needed to ensure financial www.businessday.ng

stability, economic prosperity and opportunities for personal growth.”

The Microsoft LEAP Engineering Acceleration Program (LEAP) is led by the Global Innovation Team at Microsoft (Redmond, USA) and sponsored by Kevin Scott, Chief Technology Officer at Microsoft. The program is designed to provide immersive experiences for the trainees through project management and development courses. LEAP combines traditional classroom learning with hands-on engineering projects.

The first cohort of apprentices, composed of 10 female software engineers from Nigeria, recently began the program in September 2019. Selected as finalists from a hackathon hosted in June, each individual is receiving four weeks classroom training on software support engineering and 12 weeks hands-on projects training involving real life scenarios at Tek Experts’ premises in Lagos.

During this 16-week timeframe, all will also be mentored by the Tek Experts and Microsoft engineering team in Lagos, Nigeria and Redmond, USA. Post training, participants will be provided an opportunity to take up employment at Tek Experts Nigeria.

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ipation of NCC’s actions has an available platform for all Telco’s to fit into their customer acquisition process,” Aguele said.

With a population of over 190 million, the number of active telephone lines in the country is currently at 175 million representing a tele-density of 91.65 percent. Internet users stand at 122.6 million while broadband penetration is 35 percent. Overall, total investment in the Nigerian telecoms sector is over $70 billion with 11.39 per cent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) coming from the sector alone.

Aguele said that against the background of such significant investment and the pervasive impact of the sector on both the national economy and everyday life of citizens, it is only reasonable to put in place regulatory interventions that will ensure that Nigeria has credible subscriber data.

“As partners to the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC), the govern-

ment body responsible for the issuance of national identity numbers, VerifyMe Nigeria has been at the forefront of redefining the ID Verification space in Nigeria leveraging technology. Supporting this is our guarantee that our data is trusted and secure, with inbuilt technology surveillance systems to prevent fraud during data collection. Our goal is to solve the trust issue so businesses can process and deliver more real-time services to their customers while making the verification process painless and efficient,” he said.

Founded in 2013, VerifyMe recently launched its selfManaged Verification Platform (MVP) which is the first integrated platform offering wholistic identity multi-factor verifications in Nigeria. The MVP delivers real time ID authentication with secure last mile verification checks that meet CBN tier 3 and international Anti-Money Laundering (AML) directive standards.

Tecno mobile rewards promo winners with trip to Europe JUMOKE AKIYODE-LAWANSON

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ECNO Mobile, in partnership with African Artists’ Foundation and National Geographic Magazine have unveiled the lucky winners of the #UnlockCAMission Camp competition, who will be going on an all expense paid trip to Europe.

Barineka Maagbo emerged the highest scorer of all selected winners who won themselves a trip to Europe with a cumulative of 210.5 points, closely behind him was Arowolo Fatai who came second with a cumulative of 205.5 at the end of five tasks throughout the camping period.

Speaking at the event, Attai Oguche, the deputy marketing manager, Tecno Nigeria, said; At TECNO, we are excited to have started such initiative in Nigeria, in line with our Camera-centric flagship line, the Camon Series. Having just launched the Camon 12 Series, there is no better way to put the camera quality to test than to send mobile photography lovers whom we refer to as “Unlockers” on a mission to unlock the limitless camera possibilities of this device.

Also, at the event, Azu Nwagbogu, director African Artists’ Foundation could not contain his excitement over the partnership, saying that “it has been a fun journey for us at the African Artists’ Foundation, having been part of this activity from the selection of the Unlockers to the unveiling of the winner today, @Businessdayng

especially because these the things we are passionate about at AAF. We cannot overemphasize the fact that TECNO has through this medium, increased conversations around the participation of budding talents in the widely growing world of mobile photography. The brand did not just create an amazing device, but also gave a platform for talents to express their skills.

This is a commendable project and We hope to do this again soon.”

24 participants called “the Unlockers” were selected from a long list of entries submitted for the CAMission competition, and over the course of five days with five challenging tasks. They actively contested for the grand prize from the fourth to the eighth of October 2019 – using the camera of the Camon 12 Pro to capture wide-angle, low-light, Macro and Micro pictures.

Renowned international photo-journalist,Michael Christopher Brown was presented at the Camp to guide the Unlockers and avail them of mentorship tips.

“I was particularly interested in this camping process because I would get to meet young talents and I was not disappointed by the outputs of the Unlockers.

I cannot thank Tecno enough for giving these voices a chance to express themselves. In my days in the country, I have concluded that I would be back for more.

Nigeria is a beautiful place to be,” he said.

Tuesday 22 October 2019

BUSINESS DAY

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property&lifestyle Prime office rent drops as SMEs, tech start-ups drive growing demand for co-working spaces CHUKA UROKO

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or prime or Grade A office space suppliers, the first half of this year was not time to smile to the banks as rents on their property, instead of going up as expected, saw gradual decline.

But those who invested in co-working spaces had reasons to invest more. Even now, the opportunity is compelling.

Slowing economy means gradual decline in economic activities, leading to shrinking consumer purchasing power and a drop in organizations’ income, all leading to low demand for business premises and rising vacancies in existing spaces.

Increased supply amid falling demand leads to a drop in price or rent. Within this period, three office towers—Cornerstone, Greystone and Kingsway brought 12,000 square metres, 11,190 square metres and 13,317 square metres respectively of leasable space to the market. That increased supply further.

Over all, an additional 400,000 square metres of Grade-A office space is expected in 2019 amid rising vacancy rates in the market.

Heritage Place, The Wings Complex and Alliance Place have recorded about 55 percent vacancy rate.

Because of this, the use of anchor or off-taker tenants, accessibility, security and green features are, increasingly, being recognised as key drivers to the success of, and demand for prime office buildings.

But while prime office market totters, demand for co-working spaces is growing, showing that the economy is really undergoing a fundamental or paradigm shift in terms of productive potential and what the market wants.

This becomes clearer with the millennial demographic, tech start-ups, women-led enterprises and SMEs identified as leading drivers of demand for co-working spaces.

Space suppliers’ immediate response to this development is the conversion of Grade B offices. Service providers are moving more into the ‘space as a service’ model by upgrading, fitting out and managing Grade B spaces to meet client specifications.

Northcourt Real Estate notes in its recent half-year report says strong occupancy levels in mainland areas like Yaba has only mirrored demand on the Island where spaces in Victoria Island and Lekki are leading the charge, pointing out that the recently launched Delta State Innovation Hub has also increased the demand for co-working in South-

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Eastern Nigeria.

“To better manage their costs, co-working spaces are opting for management agreements where they introduce their brand to an existing development, splitting site management expenses 75 percent to 25 percent,” said Ayo Ibaru, Director, Real Estate at Northcourt.

Ibaru said that private developers were looking to develop a low- cost coworking 100-man centre in the Alimosho area of Lagos state with a 1,000 daily charge, adding that 1—2-man private offices remained the most profitable.

Within this period,

Leadspace partnered with First City Monument Bank (FCMB) to open Hub One, a coworking space in Yaba, Lagos. Good news for users of co-working spaces is that Grade A offices are considering partnerships with co-working space providers in which case quality spaces are expected.

Ibaru highlighted some of the features that characterized the market in the period plus the challenges of offering incentives while coughing up funds for maintaining largely vacant multi-storey buildings. This, he said, led to the listing of same for sale.

“The demand for office space is weak in most other states of the country due to the struggling economy,” he said, pointing out that commercial real estate market was going green and transparent.

Part of the good things that are happening in this space is that developers, investors and professionals are more willing than ever before to share transaction details and operate more transparently. Most prime office developments that have been delivered in recent years or expected to come on stream are going green.

How ZAMA is using technology to simplify home buying process, empower agents …partnership with Landwey seeks to offer tech-driven real estate solutions ENDURANCE OKAFOR

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n a very significant way, the disruptive impact of technology is gaining traction in real estate where it is not only simplifying transaction and acquisition processes, but also empowering professional agents.

At the forefront of efforts at its deployment to make L-R: Genevieve Craig, Head, Media and Brand Communications, Landwey Investment; Olawale Ayilara, CEO, Landwey, and Abdulhakeem Sadiq, CEO/ Founder, Zama, at a press briefing on Zama mobile App in Lagos recently

the real estate sector in Nigeria more investable and increase liquidity to drive greater home ownership is a relatively young company called Zama.

Zama is a real estate company driven by technology to empower consumers with data, inspiration and knowledge around the place they live and work. It is out to connect real estate products consumers with profession-

Global investors interest in Nigeria, Ghana rising as real estate markets evolve

als that can help them.

The company is a market inventor and pioneer of property technology (Proptech) which is a collective term used to define startups offering technologically innovative products or new business models for the real estate market. Because of Proptech, the market is already experiencing a wave of innovation, investment and entrepreneurial activity.

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“Proptech is slowly gaining momentum in developed markets, and we feel a developing market like Nigeria can learn and recalibrate itself for seasoned investors,” Abdulhakeem Sadiq, Proptech pioneer, founder and CEO of Zama, said in Lagos at a partnership agreement with Landwey Investment Limited.

Sadiq believes that the increasing role and use of Proptech is a boon for the regional real estate sector, adding that having spent years in research and development to refine the residential and commercial focused platform, their multi-phase tech solution has the potential to enhance and shape the Nigerian industry drastically.

“We are excited to partner with Landwey; it is clear that industry professionals in Nigeria are looking for new affordable and efficient solutions to attract and retain clients. With Zama, we’re putting the power in the

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hands of professional agents using technology to offer real estate solutions.

Landwey has proven track record in transacting in the local market and are growing to launch fantastic development projects in the coming months. Our partnership is driven by a mutual desire to simplify the home buying process and empower brokers with tools that can help them work smarter,” he said.

Through this strategic partnership with Zama, all Landwey agents and brokers will benefit from a data driven platform that empowers them with data and inspiration to advise clients and market their portfolios in a more professional manner. The platform can further help guarantee listing exclusivity and a more efficient system of interconnecting agents with geo-tagged properties and investors.

Olawale Ayilara, Landwey’s CEO, also explained @Businessdayng

s Ni g e r i a n a n d Ghanaian real estate markets progress and evolve amidst tough trading conditions, investment interests in these markets from global investors including DFI’s, private equity firms, and institutional investors have started rising, experts have said.

These rising interests are also driven by continued diversification of the economies of these countries, making their property sectors, once again, attractive to regional and international real estate investors.

These market realities underpin the choice of the theme, ‘Uncovering the Next Real Estate Investment Cycle’ for this year’s edition of West Africa Property Investment (WAPI) Summit taking place on November 26 and 27, 2019.

Kfir Rusin, the managing director of API Events, organisers of the annual summit which is already in its 5th edition, says the theme was developed with buy-in from local and international stakeholders, who believe that West African real estate is now increasingly attractive to investors.

“With more than 400 delegates attending and 70 speakers confirmed, including several globally respected thought leaders, this year’s WAPI Summit will again advance the real estate agenda across the West African real estate value chain,” Rusin said.

This year’s global investment keynote speaker is REIT WAY Global’s chief investment officer, Garreth Elston. With more than $75 million under management, Elston comments that while REITWAY Global’s investment strategy is focused on global listed property stocks, he is beginning to prioritize emerging asset classes.

“We invest across the full spectrum of global listed property companies; currently this is in excess of 20 sectors and sub-sectors. We currently have a particular focus at the current moment into logistics and warehousing, as well as technology sectors such as Data Centres and Communication Towers,” he says.

With investment in warehousing and data centres by WAPI Summit stakeholders such as Agility Africa and Rendeavour, the region’s real estate ecosystem is increasingly diversified and sophisticated, yet requires transparency, regulatory and policy certainty to attract and retain investment, comments Rusin.

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Tuesday 22 October 2019

BUSINESS DAY

property&lifestyle 5 real estate quotes to never ignore and hidden wisdom they possess

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eal estate goes beyond houses and corporate highrises. It is a foundational and much-required asset class for wealth creation, multiplication, transfer, and preservation. It is, no doubt, an indispensable tool designed for the support and sustenance of human life.

Humans, over the centuries, have applied intelligence to raw physical real estate to transform it. This value addition, in turn, attracts monetary value and has also created a lot of eureka moments, some of which have been documented for knowledge transfer and to inspire. These documented discoveries reinforce further the role and importance of real estate as a constant in the wealth creation equation and they have led to more work, discoveries and opportunities.

One way this has been done is through quotes.

Business legends living and long gone who have learnt and used the tenets of real estate have condensed their findings and lessons into quotes so as to convey to other people, in simple terms, their theories – as long as you see the goldmine they possess. These quotes can help you do more when you seek to understand them by asking the right questions and not limiting their use to marketing.

Some of the best quotes are thus analyzed below.

These quotes have been

identified with the goal of helping you extract more meaning. They will also help you to possibly chart a course towards your own discoveries, ultimately leading to sustainable and exponentially increasing wealth creation through real estate.

Ninety per cent of all millionaires become so through owning real estate. More money has been made in real estate than in all industrial investments combined.

The wise young man or wage earner of today invests his money in real estate—Andrew Carnegie The development and transformation of mankind have been made possible by the continuous interaction and interdependence between the two kinds of real estate that exist. The first kind of real estate is the physical real estate (universe) while the second is the human being. There is no gainsaying the fact that many millionaires and billionaires have emerged through real estate and this quote by Scottish businessman and philanthropist, Andrew Carnegie, puts it into context. It explains that not only have many of the wealthiest men in history’s books emerged from real estate, many still will.

There is still much money to be made on a continuous basis as long as the earth exists and this will always be true because real estate (land) plays a foundational role in economic prosperity.

However, for the investor of today to make the most out of the opportunity presented, he or she must devote time to seeking answers on consistently delivering value such that money can be made regardless of changing trends and cycles. There are tools that allow you to maximize the use of real estate to create wealth sustainably. Your job is to find these tools.

I used to own two homes in Atlanta. But it was a lot of trouble. There are leaky roofs; you have to call people. It takes up too much time to own property everywhere. Now I stay at the St. Regis. I used to like cars a lot, too. I had 25 of them: Porsches, Ferraris— Aliko Dangote In this quote, Aliko Dangote, billionaire and richest man in Africa, explains that he once owned two homes in another country and it was a lot of trouble for him.

It goes to show the importance of having a personal definition for real estate and knowing what it will cost you to achieve the goals you set.

People own real estate in several locations for several reasons. When the reasons are more emotional than logical, it will mean more expenses and headache than income. In such a case, redress is required.

What are the factors that make real estate investments in multiple locations problematic? How do you circumvent these factors?

These are the questions to be asked. Experience shows that the challenges around multiple locations real estate range from improper coordination of assets, maintenance, management and ultimately, liquidation.

It is also important to check if the idea of multiple home investments in different locations meets your wealth creation and lifestyle goals and not just an emotional deficit issue.

The major fortunes in America have been made in land—John D. Rockefeller There is a popular story of a man who sold his field only to find out after selling that his field contained an expensive mineral resource which was in high demand.

Land holds a large percentage of all the natural resources in raw form. Solid, gaseous, liquid and semisolid minerals are found within the earth’s crust.

What the late American business magnate means here is that there is more to land than what’s on the surface and you can only get the best use of your investment in real estate when you invest with clarity of purpose, plan, intentionality and diligence. If the buyer of the field in that story had bought the property without a plan and abandoned it, he may never have known that the property had high-value treasures of the earth in it.

The earth crust holds so much for wealth creation.

An investor and a nation at

Talking Real Estate

With Oluwakemi Adeyemo large should seek to know what fortunes are available in real estate and how these fortunes can be made in succession for collective prosperity.

If you don’t own a home, buy one. If you own a home, buy another one. If you own two homes, buy a third.

And, lend your relatives the money to buy a home—John Paulson John Paulson is an investor and multi-billionaire, and this quote by him nudges you to answer the pressing question: Why own more than one home? By all means, invest as much as you can in real estate, but be sure you are able to give a logical and profitable reason why you should own more than one home in specific locations and you must know how best to manage them.

If you would lend your relative money to buy a home, you must also figure out how the money will be paid back without family feuds. It is important to build a structure that makes it profitable to lend family members and other people money to buy homes. This is why there is such a thing as reah l estate financing.

We have the best flat land; you can grow anything in the cheapest possible way; turning Nigeria around is not really that difficult. Nigeria is really the best place to invest; it is one of the

places to make money; all over the world it (Nigeria) is the best-kept secret actually in terms of investment— Aliko Dangote All countries of the world have resources and peculiarities. An investment in the real estate of a certain country requires that you see something spectacular, tangible and measurable.

It is also important to know what is within your control.

As an ambitious investor, you should ask questions around an existing billionaire’s perspective, modify the answers based on current realities and create a desired financial or business growth outcome for yourself.

More insights have been distilled from these quotes and many others which have been converted into actionable steps to grow real estate investments, optimize profit in changing times and through real estate cycles.

To request for these distilled insights, send an email to info@futureperfectproperties.com.

Oluwakemi Adeyemo is a real estate wealth creation enthusiast, advisor, ambassador and author with extensive experience in real estate wealth creation and optimization. She is known for her diligent, meticulous, analytical and deep insight into the transformative power of real estate as a wealth creation tool.

Email: info@futureperfectproperties.com

Stakeholders urge govt to adopt PPP for holistic housing delivery CHUKA UROKO

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Making urban garden from apartment balcony Temitayo Ayetoto

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or many, the easiest use of a residential balcony is lodging cloth-drying stands and electricity generating sets due to the ease of dashing out of the sitting room to restore power. Disused household items from appliances to furniture or wearable also find haven there.

Freda Anegbe, managing partner, Panto Interiors, said the balcony is structurally built for outdoor relaxation and exposure to natural light and natural air, speaking with

BusinessDay on better use of balconies.

Residents can incorporate light plans into the function that their balconies serve even when there is need to keep certain items there. With the introduction of plants and a sitting area for hangout, people can help create an inviting minigarden.

However, if you are opportune to site the items clogging your balcony in other areas of your home, an irresistible open space is achievable and here are some tips from leading designers. www.businessday.ng

Sprucing up the floor The dirt and decay festering your balcony could be enough reason for not wanting to play around it, especially when the floor is bare. Bare floors are less attractive to the sight. Hence, you might think of plastering it bright colours of tiles. Bright colours often help you see the need to keep the environment tidy, eventually encouraging you to spend more time at your balcony. Apart from the colour, you could consider choosing tiles with textures that feel very comfortable on the skin.

•Continues online at www.businessday.ng

s concerns continue to mount over the widening housing demand-supply gap in Nigeria, governments at various levels in the country have been charged to adopt urban renewal and public private partnership (PPP) as policies that could aid holistic housing delivery.

Akinade Tijani, keynote speaker at the 2019 Mandatory Continuous Professional Development (MCPD) programme of the Lagos State branch of the Nigerian Institution of Estate Surveyors and Valuers (NIESV), gave this charge.

Tijani explained that because of paucity of funds and scarcity of other resources, government should adopt PPP scheme within the sector, saying that government needed other forms of funding and financing to continue to provide services to the people.

He stated that if taken

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as land development for the purpose of social, economic and environmental enhancement, urban renewal should attract private investment because land development has always been a profitable venture.

In a paper titled, ‘Unlocking the Investment Potentials in Urban Regeneration: The Public Private Partnership Experience’, Tijani said government must accept that it has to make the appropriate investments to attract private funds to urban renewal.

According to him, “urban renewal cannot be 100 per cent funded and financed by the private sector. Lagos State can consider an Urban Renewal Fund to take itself out of being classified as a city of 70 per cent slum.”

Adedotun Bamigbola, the chairman of NIESV Lagos branch, said there was a need for collaboration in the built environment to better drive a genuine cause for urban renewal in @Businessdayng

the country and reduce the challenges faced by private developers and investors in supporting government in housing delivery and infrastructure improvement.

“You have to look at how it will be beneficial on both sides – government wants to generate revenue; at the same time the private sector can only take opportunity where they will also benefit. So, even if the opportunities present themselves, there must be economic gains to the investors before they put their money into it,” said Bamigbola.

According to him, there is a need for government to give tax holiday to players in the real estate sector for growth. He opined that spreading the tax burden and reducing demands on real estate investors from take-up will help private investors partner with government in various developmental projects.

Tuesday 22 October 2019

BUSINESS DAY

Live @ The Exchanges Market Statistics as at Monday 21 October 2019

Top Gainers/Losers as at Monday 21 October 2019 LOSERS

GAINERS Company

Opening

Closing

Change

N2

N2.19

0.19

MAYBAKER ETI

Company

ASI (Points)

Opening

Closing

Change

N145

N144

-1

N17.45

N17.2

-0.25

N2.3

N2.08

-0.22

VOLUME (Numbers) VALUE (N billion)

DANGCEM ZENITHBANK

N7

N7.1

0.1

TRANSEXPR

N0.77

N0.84

0.07

NEM

LAWUNION

N0.47

N0.51

0.04

ACCESS

N7.35

N7.3

-0.05

CORNERST

N0.32

N0.35

0.03

UBA

N5.75

N5.7

-0.05

DEALS (Numbers)

MARKET CAP (N Trn)

26,390.08 2,514.00 245,852,620.00 1.361

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oreign Por tfolio Investors (FPI) traded N688.9billion worth of Nigerian equities in 9 months to September 30, as against N991.19billion they recorded same period in 2018.

The record mark by foreign investors was achieved after deals valued at N94.45billion were done in September, which represents 66.77percent of the month’s total trade value.

The total value of stocks traded on the Nigerian Bourse in the review period stood at N1.464trillion representing a decline from N2.007trillion recorded in the corresponding 9 months period of 2018.

The 9 months deals value by foreign investors represents 49.45percent of the total value of equities traded on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE).

In the review 9 months period to September 30, their local counterparts (domestic

investors) downplayed to a record N775.51billion in equities traded or 50.55percent against N1.016trillion in the corresponding period of 2018.

In September alone, they accounted for just 33.23percent or N47billion worth of stocks.

Analysis of domestic

transactions show that the value executed by institutional investors and retail investors were at par.

A comparison of domestic transactions in September and prior month (August 2019) revealed that retail transactions decreased by 2.34percent

from N23.92 billion in August 2019 to N23.36 billion in September 2019. However, the institutional composition of the domestic market declined more significantly by 30.81percent from N34.17 billion in August 2019 to N23.64 billion in September 2019.

L-R: Mercy Ekele of EGM, Gbite Oduneye, co-founder, EGM, receiving the Digital Trading Platform of the Year Award from UK Eke, GMD, FBN Holdings Plc, while Demola Adeniyi and Temitayo Sanui (a director) all of EGM look on during the 7th BusinessDay Banks’ and Other Financial Institutions awards held in Lagos at the weekend.

Stanbic IBTC rewards long serving staff

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tanbic IBTC Holdings Plc held the 2019 edition of the c o m p a n y ’s L o n g Service Awards. The annual event was an avenue for the organisation to recognise and reward staff who have put in significant years of service to Stanbic IBTC. Delivering his welcome remarks, Demola Sogunle, Chief Executive, Stanbic IBTC Bank Plc, described the event as being in line with the bank’s tradition of honouring employees who have distinguished themselves through hard work, dedication and commitment to Stanbic IBTC Holdings Plc. He said: “Ladies and gentlemen, you will agree with me that recognition is not just about instituting an award system. It is also about how the awards are executed. With the array of distinguished achievers at this occasion, I believe that today will be etched in the history of every awardee and their family members present as a memorable day indeed in

recognition of their long term commitment and excellent contribution to the growth and development of Stanbic IBTC. This year is fundamental for Stanbic IBTC as it marks a significant 30 year milestone since the Group commenced its journey and we are celebrating 170 of our loyal and dedicated staff who have contributed to this significant milestone.”

He further commended the awardees for keeping faith with the organisation despite the highly competitive and challenging business environment. He added: “Your loyalty, dedication and continued efforts have contributed to helping us overcome challenges, convert opportunities and unite to deliver profitable outcomes.

Now is the time to return that loyalty. As our most valued asset, we cannot thank you enough for your continued support. As I look forward to working together with you for many years to come, I urge you to continue in your strides to keep moving the group www.businessday.ng

forward. As you all know, we never stop moving forward.

Continue making significant contributions to make us reach our ambitious goals and even surpass them. Keep being loyal, dedicated and committed to excellence. Our future is looking bright, our opportunities are significant and it is up to us how good we want the future to be.”

In her address, Funke Amobi, Countr y Head, Human Capital, Stanbic IBTC, described the Long Service Awards as a key employee engagement event for the organisation. She further encouraged the awardees to continue espousing the Stanbic IBTC Group’s values of integrity, dedication, commitment and hard work.

She said: “I urge you to continue to be role models, beacons of performance and continuously uphold the values of this institution. I urge you to continue contributing to our success and sustainability both within and outside the country.

We look forward to celebrating

you again and again with your milestone achievements. We deeply appreciate all your years of service and we look forward to celebrating your bigger achievements across the Stanbic IBTC group and indeed Standard Bank Group.

Thank you very much for your commitment and dedication.

Thank you for sustaining this business as well as for your continued loyalty and commitment to Stanbic IBTC.” The Stanbic IBTC Long Service Awards recognised employees who had put in various years of service ranging from 10 years to 30 years.

Bamidele Abiodun Oresegun, Head, IT Governance, Risk and Compliance and Eugene Kossi Sekpo, Support Clerk, Clerk Legal Operations were recipients of the 30 Year Long Service Awards, having both joined the organisation in 1989.

Eight employees, including Chidike Okechukwu Okezie, Company Secretary, Stanbic IBTC were award recipients in the 20 year Long Service category.

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Global market indicators FTSE 100 Index 7,163.64GBP +13.07+0.18%

Nikkei 225 22,548.90JPY +56.22+0.25%

S&P 500 Index 3,004.84USD +18.64+0.62%

Deutsche Boerse AG German Stock Index DAX 12,747.96EUR +114.36+0.91%

Generic 1st ‘DM’ Future 26,777.00USD +23.00+0.09%

Shanghai Stock Exchange Composite Index 2,939.62CNY +1.48+0.05%

12.846

Foreign investors trade N688.9bn worth of Nigerian equities in 9 months Stories by Iheanyi Nwachukwu

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NSE releases 2018 sustainability report

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he Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) has releas e d its 2018 Sustainability Report titled, “Growth, Innovation and Value Creation”.

The report, which is the fifth edition, showcases the Exchange’s sustainability progress along the four pillars of Marketplace, Workplace, Environment and Community.

The report is a detailed and transparent compilation of the progress on the NSE’s sustainability commitments and targets which were developed when the NSE commenced its sustainability journey with the launch of its Corporate Sustainability and Responsibility (CSR) strategy in 2013.

It also provides an update o n t h e N S E ’s a c t i v i t i e s which contribute towards the attainment of the global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) leveraging partnerships with stakeholders across its ecosystem.

Highlights from the report: Collaborated with the Ministry of Finance, Nigeria to launch N10.69 billion Federal Government Green Bond; retained ISO 27001 c e r t i f i c a t i o n ; l e v e ra g e d Artificial Intelligence( X-Bot) to increase access to market information; zero incidents of corruption; upscaled waste management and recycling to support circular economy through partnership with Recyclepoints; sustained the provision of quality education to 300 internally displaced children at the Maisandari Alamderi School donated by the Exchange; impacted 42,480 students on financial literacy; and raised N28.5million towards the fight against cancer.

Received two awards: 2018 Award for CSR in Education from the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry; and 2018 Award for Best Use of Technology for Efficiency from Nigeria Technology Innovation and Telecom Awards.

International Breweries approves Rights Issue of N9 per share Iheanyi Nwachukwu

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nternational Breweries Plc has notified the investing public and the Nigerian Stock Exchange that the shareholders of the Company at the General Meeting held on October 15, 2019 approved the Rights Issue as proposed by the Board of Directors and authorised the Board to take all steps required to give effect to the resolutions as approved.

The Board of Directors discussed the forthcoming Rights Issue and the proposed terms thereof and approved a Rights Issue price of N9 per share, brewer said in a notice at the Nigerian Stock Exchange, adding that details on the Rights Issue will be provided in due course.

The price approved for the Rights Issue for existing shareholders of the company comes at a reasonable discount when compared with N12.6 it traded on October 17.

The stock price had reached a 52-week high of N33.55 and a 52-week low of N9.75. International Breweries Plc shares outstanding are 8,595,861,936 units.

International Breweries Plc is a part of the world’s largest @Businessdayng

brewer, Anheuser-Busch InBev, (AB InBev) with over 400 beer brands. Established in 1971 and listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange in 1995.

A rights issue is one way for a cash-strapped company to raise capital often to pay down debt.

The unaudited interim financial statements of International Breweries Plc for the first half (H1) period ended June 30, 2019 show its revenue grew to N68.63billion from N53.10billion in H1’ 2018.

Loss Before Tax (LBT) increased to N10.52billion in H1’19 as against pre-tax loss of N5.242billion. The company closed the half year in review with a Loss After Tax (LAT) of N6.84billion, higher than N2.846billion recorded as after tax loss in H1’18. Basis loss per share increased to 80kobo from 33kobo in H1’2018.

The Company AB InBev consolidated its business stakes in Pabod Breweries Limited, Intafact Beverages Limited into its majority ownership of International Breweries Plc in a merger that was concluded in December, 2017. Its major national brands are Trophy lager, Hero lager, Betamalt, Grandmalt and the premium brand Budweiser.

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Tuesday 22 October 2019

BUSINESS DAY

news

Sales growth imminent for manufacturers as festive season nears Gbemi Faminu

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ollowing Nigeria’s snailpaced economic recovery after the country exited recession in the second quarter of 2017, the manufacturing industry is yet to fully rebound to levels prior to 2016. Many companies under Nigeria’s manufacturing sector have managed to keep afloat but the sector has not been able to efficiently utilise its production capability and consequently caused a drop in its output.

Despite the large market the country offers, coupled with its teeming population and possible export opportunities, manufacturing companies have continued to record a continuous decline in product demand, which has dampened the sector’s productivity.

A sectoral report released recently by CSL Research states that the demand for locally manufactured products has declined due to economic conditions limiting consumer purchasing power, and is also a part of the reasons for the drop in the production level of the manufacturers.

In addition to this, the report supports manufacturer claims of debt incurred from unsold stocks. Consequentially, this has led to the storing of raw materials by manufacturers who are forced to cut down on production due to challenges bedevilling the sector as well as the decline in patronage.

Adesola Sotande-Peters, vice president of finance at Unilever Nigeria, says the Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMGC) subsector is battling with low consumer purchase as the sector is highly dependent on foreign exchange to source for raw materials, which increases its cost of production. Furthermore, consumer’s sensitiv-

ity to product prices, especially increased prices, has caused a decline in their purchasing power.

As a result, despite the increasing cost of production, manufacturing companies are unable to increase prices of goods as this will further discourage consumers.

The Purchasing Manager’s Index (PMI) for the month of August released by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) revealed that despite recording consecutive expansion, demand for product declined, which is affecting the sales and revenue of these firms.

The PMI is usually computed based on 5 major metrics, which are production level, level of new orders, suppliers delivery time, employment level and raw materials inventory.

For the month of August, the PMI report noted that “supplier delivery time and raw materials inventories grew at a faster rate while production level, new orders, and employment level grew at a slower rate in August 2019.”

Similarly, the PMI for the month of September showed that despite recording consecutive expansion, the production level of manufacturers further declined than the previous month, which affected the sales and revenue of these firms.

Speaking with Adelaja Olayemi, a research analyst at Yest & Spoc, says, “We expect to see the same trend as consumer purchasing power is still currently low and economic growth is snail-paced.”

He proffers that “however, since we are approaching the festive period, we expect an increase in production output which should be fuelled by increased demand during this period as observed in prior corresponding periods.”

P&ID: EFCC arraigns 2 British nationals Felix Omohomhion, Abuja

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wo British nationals, James Richard Nolan and Adam Quinn, were on Monday arraigned before a Federal High Court, Abuja, for their involvement in the Process and Industrial Development (P&ID) Limited controversial project.

Though one of them is at large, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), alleged that the two Britons, played a key role in the controversial award of $9.6 billion to (P&ID) Limited by a United Kingdom commercial court.

The defendants were arraigned before Justice Okon Abang on a 16-count charge, bordering on money laundering. The anti-graft said the defendants were the directors of Goidel Resources Limited, a Designated Non-Financial Institution (DNFI) and ICIL Limited, used to launder money.

Some of the counts read: “That you James Richard Nolan and Adam Quinn (at large), sometime in December 2013 in Abuja, within the jurisdiction of this honourable court, being Directors of Goidel Resources Limited, a Designated Non-

Financial Institution(“DNFI”) aided the said Company in failing to comply in the requirement of submitting to the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investments a declaration of the activities as specified under Section 5 (1)(a) of the Money Laundering Prohibition Act, 2011 as amended and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 18(a) of the Money Laundering Prohibition Act, 2011 as amended and punishable under Section 16 (2b) of the same Act. “That you Goidel Resources Limited, sometime in February 2014, at Abuja within the jurisdiction of this Federal High Court being a Designated NonFinancial Institution (“DNFI”) failed to report in writing to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission a single lodgement of the sum of $125,000 ( One Hundred and Twenty Five Thousand, Dollar only), in your account number 0154696732 domiciled in Guaranty Trust Bank Plc as specified under Section 10(1b) of the Money Laundering Prohibition Act, 2011 as amended and you thereby committed an offence punishable under Section 16(2b) of the same Act.” www.businessday.ng

L-R: Dapo Kolawole, commissioner of finance, Ekiti State; Bola Ajomale, managing director, NASD plc; Kayode Fayemi, governor, Ekiti State; Seyi Kolawole, research analyst, NASD plc, and Akintunde Oyebode, special adviser investment, trade and innovation, Ekiti State, during a courtesy visit to the governor on market expansion discussions between NASD plc and the Ekiti State government.

Ekiti, Ondo to fund reconstruction of Ado Ekiti-Akure federal highway Chido Nwakanma

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overnors of Ekiti and Ondo states have indicated to the minister of works, Babatunde Raji Fashola, their willingness to go ahead and reconstruct the collapsed AkureAdo Ekiti federal highway despite the Federal Government’s reluctance to assume responsibility for refunds.

Ekiti State Governor Kayode Fayemi and his Ondo State counterpart Rotimi Akerodolu, confirmed their willingness to proceed with the project in correspondences to the minister and ongoing negotiations on repairs of the 50 kilometres road.

Fayemi told BusinessDay that Ekiti had secured approval-in-principle from the African Development Bank for a low-interest long-term loan to reconstruct and dualise the

... as FG dithers on refund or granting right road. ADB would, however, not release the funds unless it gets a sovereign guarantee.

“There is really no challenge in fixing it. As a matter of fact, we have secured support from the African Development Bank (ADB) to fix the Ado-Akure road. However, we have had difficulty in getting the approval of the owner, so to speak. The road belongs to the federal government. So, when we got the nod of the African Development Bank that they will support us to fix the road and dualise it, I approached Mr President.

He, of course, naturally asked the Minister for advice. The minister responded that they were not opposed if we were not going to ask for a refund.

“We found it awkward because it is their road. I cannot use Ekiti funds without justification. My people would

really like this road to be fixed.

However, they would also want me to be accountable for their funds. The African Development Bank cannot move on the funds unless we get clearance from the Federal Government.”

Funding for the Ado EkitiAkure federal road may have run into the blockage concerning the stance of the federal government to not refund state governments for fixing federal infrastructure following a presidential declaration.

Works and Housing Minister Babatunde Raji Fashola told the House of Representatives of the decision of Mr President during a sitting of the Ad Hoc Committee on Abandoned Federal Government Projects (Works) from 1999 till date on 24 September. The President issued the directive because of the vast amounts the states

claimed for fixing federal roads in their states.

According to Fashola, “The states submitted a bill of almost a trillion naira when President Buhari was elected. He asked us to work out what was their entitlement and all of that.

“Ultimately, the BPP (the Bureau of Public Procurement) certified about N44bn – I don’t remember the exact amount now – except for two states; I think Cross River and…there’s another state. They didn’t have the documents at the time, which we have sent back to the President. But the decision to pay those inherited debts, including the ones I contracted as Governor of Lagos, was with the caveat that I should tell the governors to leave his (Buhari’s) roads alone. Those were the directives; I was not the one that took the decision.

Malami restates FG’s commitment to Civil society groups throw weight behind 2019 Alaghodaro give legal backing to Auto policy HARRISON EDEH, Abuja

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rising from concerns over policy inconsistency and its negative impact on Nigeria’s automotive sector,‎ the minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, on Monday assured on the Federal Government’s commitment to give legal backing to the National Automotive Policy.

Although the policy which came in the form of a bill from the 8th National Assembly was turned down for assent by the President Muhammadu Buhari, Malami offered support on re-igniting the bill as it offered solutions to concerns over policy inconsistency in Nigeria’s automotive sector.

The Attorney General gave the assurance in Abuja at the unveiling of a competition on automotive design initiative by

the National Automotive Design and Development Council.

“The Federal government would support your effort in ensuring we design and manufacture the cars for public transportation and agricultural equipment. Legal and policy framework will be provided to enable you drive your vision,” Malami said.

The Attorney General stated further that, “The Council has come up with this initiative, which is in line with the Act setting them up for establishment. This is a commendable effort in ensuring Nigeria localises transport development, agric equipment development through designs and innovation.

The initiative, according to Attorney General, would assist the federal government in saving a lot of foreign exchange since the first step in manufacturing a vehicle is through‎ design.

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arely a month to the 2019 Alaghodaro Summit, civil society groups in Edo State have expressed support for the 2019 e dition of the annual event, pledging to w o r k t o w a rd s h av i n g a memorable celebration of the third-year anniversary of the Governor Godwin Obaseki-led administration.

A top official of a civil society group, who spoke with journalists, said the group is supporting the event because of the favourable disposition of the state government to the plight of the people and the enthronement of probity, accountability and transparen c y in g overn ment through the administration’s open governance policy.

Chairman of the Concerned Citizens of Edo, Og@Businessdayng

beiwi Aghedo, said members of the civil society are excited about the third edition of the Alaghodaro summit, noting that the first two editions lived up to their billings.

According to Aghedo, “We are excited that the state is hosting the third edition of the Alaghodaro Summit, which has become a ritual in the state. It is exciting because members of the civil society have never had it so good with a n y o t h e r g ov e r n m e n t .

Our work is made easier because we have a transparent government that has ensured probity and accountability.

“I have spoken with a number of my colleagues in the civil society movement.

We are quite satisfied with the progress being made by the state government in a number of areas.”

Tuesday 22 October 2019

BUSINESS DAY

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news

Airtel extends internet coverage to Ogun community with provision of ICT centre RAZAQ AYINLA

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s the Season 4 of Airtel Touching Lives Scheme winds up across Nigeria, Airtel Nigeria has empowered the people of Imodi-Ijebu, a remote community in Odogbolu Local Government Area of Ogun State, with an ICT centre, thereby connecting the remote area to the world through 4G/LTE internet facility.

The provision of 4G/LTE internet facility at Imodi-Ijebu by Airtel, according to Segun Ogunsanya, managing director, Airtel Nigeria, marked a milestone in the firm’s 4G internet coverage and touching lives scheme as the beneficiaries of the scheme have reached two million people, promising to increase the beneficiaries and coverage in the Season 5 of the programme, which has just been launched.

Speaking at the inauguration of ICT centre, Ogunsanya noted that the firm saw the missing gap as well as deficiency in the way Nigerians gain access to internet; online transaction and shopping, surging for information on jobs, health and hygiene, vocational training, among others, prompted Airtel reaching out to the downtrodden, the less privileged, especially in the remote areas across the country.

Ogunsanya, who was represented by the director of corporate communications, Emeka Oparah, stated that more goodies would still reach more Nigerians in the Airtel Touching Lives pro-

gramme as Seasons 5 had just started.

He explained that there were plans underway to rehabilitate major dilapidated facilities across the country as part of the telecommunication corporate social responsibility, explaining that the ICT centre had 12 KVA diesel generator, 25 desktop computers, 13 UPS and other equipment needed to put the ICT centre in proper shape.

He said, “We believe an ICT centre is critical to the success of a community and the development of both young and old because it offers a passport to the world. Without ICT, a community will remain isolated, detached, removed, forlorn and hard to reach.

“So, with this newly built ICT centre, complete with very modern computers and riding on Airtel’s robust 4G/LTE network, Imodi is now fully connected to the world and global map. With this facility, more entrepreneurs will spring up, the youth will become more productive and the entireecosystemwillblossomand become more prosperous.

“We are excited that young persons in imodi who are in school will definitely benefit from this initiative. They will be able to do their homework, conduct robust research on any topic and also follow up with important global trend and activities. Airtel will continue to look for opportunities to empower communities and connect people to their dreams.”

Corruption seen as obstacle impeding property investment opportunities in Africa MIKE OCHONMA

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edbank Corporate Investment Banking Africa property finance divisional executive, Gerhard Zeelie, identifies the level of corruption as one of the several factors foreign investors consider in deciding which African countries to develop.

He notes that Africa can be a challenging environment to conduct business, as security, ease of access, legal complexities, language and culture barriers, social and political unrest, besides other factors, can hinder the realisation of otherwise highly attractive investment opportunities.

While property investment is certainly not exempt from these challenges, with the significant and growing number of opportunities in many African countries, the rewards to be gained from such investment potentially “massively outweigh” the complexities involved in making them, Zeelie states.

Notwithstanding, several complexities need to be carefully considered and fully understood before moving forward with one’s investment plans to make successful property investments in Africa, he says.

According to Zeelie, investors should opt for a mediocre opportunity in a corruption-free region, rather than a great opportunity in a heavily corrupt region.

Standard considerations should be taken into account and

should pre-empt any property investment – including growth prospects, risk evaluation, supply and demand, as well as full due diligence.

“African governments need to take stock of the impact that corruption has on direct foreign investment. Countries that implement effective anticorruption measures are more likely to show sustainable economic growth, as a result of foreign investment creating jobs, adding infrastructure and creating wealth.”’ the NCIBA official says.

Corruption is a factor to consider, Zeelie emphasises, as is ease of access and, thirdly, the legal regime for investment.

Ease of access refers to the practicality of the investment opportunity. Zeelie says there are a number of practicalities involved in investing in Africa that some global investors may never have had to consider before.

“It’s important to assess how accessible the investment destination is from an air-and roadtravel perspective. Then there is also the issue of ease of entry into the country, and to what extent your movements and actions will be hamstrung by bureaucracy once you’re there,” he explains.

A number of significant legal complexities in many African countries prompt numerous investors and financiers to use Mauritius or the UK as the legal jurisdiction for their transactions across Africa, as “those jurisdictions can be neutral for both parties in terms of litigation.” www.businessday.ng

L-R: Innocent Okwuosa, council member, Chartered Institute of Accountant of Nigeria (ICAN); Nnamdi Okwuadigbo, president, ICAN; Idris Ahmed, accountant general of the Federation, and Ismaila Zakari, past president, ICAN, at the Federal Accounts Allocation Committee meeting in Abuja.

Pelvic inflammatory disease on the rise in Nigeria - expert ANTHONIA OBOKOH

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xperts in the health sector have warned that pelvic inflammatory disease an inflammation of the femalegenitaltract,accompanied by fever and lower abdominal pain - is on the rise in Nigeria due to untreated sexually transmitted diseases (STDs).

Chlamydia and gonorrhoea are major causes of pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) and infertility in women. It has been estimatedthatmorethan1million women experience an episode of acute PIDs each year and the rate ishigherinteenagersandfirsttime mothers.

“PID affects millions of women each year, and is witnessing an uptick in Nigeria as well as many other countries,” Paul Ogoegbulem, an Abuja-based medical practitioner says.

Ogoegbulem notes that PID is an infection of one or more

pelvic organs that includes the uterus, cervix, and fallopian tubes witnessing a surge because many people leave STDs untreated for a long time.

“It is significantly higher among women having sex with multiple partners and not using condoms, a practice that places thematgreaterriskforcontracting STDs,” he states.

Similarly, Abayomi Ajayi, specialist in obstetrics and gynaecology and CEO of Nordica Fertility Centre,Lagos,saysmanydifferent issues can cause pelvic factor infertility.

“These include scar tissue from infections, injuries or surgeries, or problems like endometriosis, ovarian cysts, or fibroids in the uterus can all affect how a woman’s reproductive system functions,”Ajayi states.

AccordingtotheWorldHealth Organisation (WHO), every day there are more than 1 million new cases of curable sexually transmitted infections (STIs) among

people aged 15-49 years. This amountstomorethan376million new cases annually of four infections - chlamydia, gonorrhoea, trichomoniasis, and syphilis.

“We’re seeing a concerning lack of progress in stopping the spread of sexually transmitted infectionsworldwide,”notesPeter Salama, executive director for Universal Health Coverage and theLife-CourseatWHO.“Thisisa wake-upcallforaconcertedeffort to ensure everyone, everywhere can access the services they need to prevent and treat these debilitating diseases.”

However,arecentlypublished researchbytheCentreforDisease Control (CDC), also found that women who begun having sex beforetheywere12yearsoldwere eight times more likely to develop the disease.

“Pelvic inflammatory disease tends to be a complication of having a prior sexually transmitted infection, and given that there are such high numbers of Chlamydia

and gonorrhoea infections in the US, it means a lot of women are at risk,” Kristen Kreisel, an epidemiologist with the Division of STD Prevention at the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention.

“Pelvic inflammatory disease can be treated, as well as the STD that caused it, but the structural damage that occurs because of PIDisoftenirreversible,that’swhy it’s important to stay on top of it,” Kreisel says.

PID poses long-term hazards such as infertility, chronic pelvic pain and ectopic pregnancy. Ectopic pregnancies occur when an embryo implants in the fallopian tube instead of the uterus.

Doctors say douching significantly increases the risk of developing PID and other pelvic infections and is not recommended.

“Douching removes the natural, protective mucous from the cervix, giving bacteria a more receptive place to grow. Always use caution if it must be done and be aware of the risks,”Kreisel advises.

EXPLAINER: USSD transactions: Are telcos wrong for charging users?

FRANK ELEANYA

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text message sent to MTN network subscribers on Saturday informing them of plans to charge N4 for every 20 seconds for the use of Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD) services, had users outraged and authorities running to press to issue ‘stop work’ statements.

Minister of Communications, Isa Ali Pantami, who claimed he was not aware of the development,saidhehaddirectedthesector regulator, the Nigerian CommunicationsCommission(NCC), to ensure that MTN “suspends” such plans until the minister “is fully and properly briefed.”

Like Pantami, the governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Godwin Emefiele, told reporters far away in Washington D.C, that the MTN plan would not be allowed to happen.

According to Emefiele, the apex bank had in a meeting with some telecommunication companies and big banks “agreed”

that the use of USSD was a “sunk” cost. That means that they should regard it as a forgone cost.

“But the telecom companies disagreed with us,” Emefiele said.

“They said it was an additional investment in infrastructure and for that reason, they needed to impose it.” The CBN governor said the big banks and telcos were later asked to come up with an option since imposing charges on users was not an option for the bank regulator.

MTN’s message to its subscribers on Saturday could, therefore, be the conclusion it arrived with the banks. Interestingly, the office of the minister of ICT was left out of the entire discussion, now forcing the current minister toclaimignoranceofthesituation.

It should be said, however, that charges on USSD transactions is not a new development and if the minister of ICT has ever made a transaction using any bank USSD code he would have long realised this.

How USSD works USSD is to SMS what IM (In-

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stant Messaging) is to email. It is a protocolusedbyGSMcellphones tocommunicatewiththeirservice providers’ computers.

USSD can be used for wireless application protocol (WAP) browsing, prepaid callback service, mobile money services, location-based content services, menu-based information services, or even as part of configuring the phone on the network.

For the banking sector in Nigeria, Niyi Toluwalope, managing director and CEO of eTranzact, in an interview with BusinessDay, saidthecompanykickedoffUSSD transactions, partnering with Guaranty Trust Bank (GTBank) to launch its now-famous *737#.

Users do not necessarily need an internet connection to carry out transactions; hence it is ideal for persons in regions where broadband is either non-existent or very poor. It is also driven by adaptability. It is easy to understand. Anyone who can dial a phone number is capable of doing USSD transaction. Finally, the literacy level is of little consequence. @Businessdayng

The success of the SANEF initiative of the CBN and some Nigerian banks and other mobile money efforts towards increasing financial inclusion depends mainly on the use of USSD technology. Nearly every Nigerian bank has a USSD code including Access Bank (*901#); Ecobank (*326#); Fidelity Bank (*770#); First Bank (*894#); FCMB (*329#); Heritage Bank (*322#); Keystone Bank (*533#); Skye Bank (*833#); Stanbic IBTC (*909#); Sterling Bank (*822#); Union Bank (*826#); UBA (*919#); Unity Bank (*7799#); Wema Bank (*945#); Zenith Bank (*966#); and Jaiz Bank (*389#).

Origin of USSD charges Since it became mainstream, USSD Transactions has always attracted charges and that remains one of the sore spots in the drive to include millions of Nigerian who are financially excluded. From the beginning, USSD users have had to pay banks separately for certain levels of transactions they carry out using USSD and telcos for every level of the transaction.

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Tuesday 22 October 2019

BUSINESS DAY

FEATURE Failure of 10,000 PHCs to take off leaves Nigerians desperate for quality healthcare GODSGIFT ONYEDINEFU, Abuja

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austina Onyenwe, a 24-year-old nursing mother experienced some health challenges during her pregnancy, and to make things worse, there were financial constraints that limited how much of quality healthcare she could afford to seek. The difficulty in accessing basic, affordable maternal care made her pregnancy a stressful one.

There was a Primary Healthcare Centre (PHC) close to Onyenwe’s residence in Bwari Local Government Area of Abuja, but she couldn’t convince herself to visit the health centre, because the state of the facility heightened fears for her safety and that of her unborn child.

“I had some complications during my pregnancy, I couldn’t go to the PHC because I don’t trust them, the state of the facilities discouraged me and I couldn’t endure the long wait at the general hospital. So I was forced to raise money to go to a private health facility,” she tells BusinessDay. Onyenwe’s case is one of several arising daily on account of non-functional PHCs which President Buhari had promised to fix in a fan-fare event at Kuchingoro, a suburb of Nigeria’s Federal Capital Territory. As millions of Nigerians are left with no choice but to seek alternatives, they are confronted with the economic burden of paying to get care in mostly private facilities. For those unable to pay, they face consequences in health complications and even death.

The importance of PHCs to efficient health care delivery cannot be over emphasized, especially for Nigeria, which is struggling with a weak economy and a dilapidated health care system, where access to good services is mostly for the rich. While some experts have described PHCs as the bedrock of health care, others call it the pillar without which it would be impossible for Nigerians to have access to the quality and affordable health care services they require.

Auwal Musa, executive director, Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC), said 70 to 80 percent of ailments and diseases are expected to be managed through adequately financed and functional PHCs, describing them as the first contact at levels of care.

Today, Nigeria is clamouring for Universal Health Coverage, which experts say can only be achieved if Primary Healthcare Centres are functional. This is because PHCs are the first level of care and port of call for people at the grass root level.

The Federal Government in an effort to address some of the challenges in healthcare delivery, pledged to revitalize 10,000 PHCs across the country. President Muhammadu Buhari kicked off the scheme in January, 2017 at an event tagged “Revitalization of PHC for Universal Health Coverage” (UHC).

The President said at the time that the aim is to ensure quality basic health care services are delivered to the majority of Nigerians irrespective of their location in the country.

Under this revitalisation agenda, the federal government is expected to revive one PHC centre per ward to widen access.

However, as revealed from BusinessDay interactions with experts in the health sector, the FG’s publicly celebrated plan to revitalize 10,000 Primary Healthcare Centres across the country has achieved meagre success, nearly three years later, because the project lacks a sustainability plan, defined budget, and the required human resource among other challenges.

President Muhammadu Buhari, who kicked off the scheme in January 2017, said the aim was to ensure quality basic health

care services are delivered to the majority of Nigerians irrespective of their location in the country.

However, there are concerns that hope of recording remarkable improvement in Nigeria’s deplorable healthcare system using the Primary Health Care project may now be dashed, despite that fanfare launch and heightened optimism.

Olayinka Oladimeji an official at the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA) admitted that many PHC centres are still in such terrible conditions while most lack basic facilities across the country, even with the kick-off of that project. A significant chunk of the population cannot achieve care at the primary level.

Oladimeji explained that the project has recorded minimal success because the key ingredients needed to make it work were lacking. According to him, the project lacks a sustainability plan, defined budget, and the issue of getting the required human resource remains a challenge.

According to him, N3.3 trillion was initially budgeted for the project but was not approved by Kemi Adeosun the then finance minister, due to failure by the federal government to produce a sustainability plan. He added that the NPHCDA also lacks the capacity to fund and sustain the project if implementation kicks off.

However, Buhari rolled out the Basic Health Care Provision Fund (BHCPF) appropriated by the National Assembly in the 2018 budget early this year. The fund which is the one per cent of the federal government Consolidated Revenue and contributions from donor grants, is expected to improve the delivery of essential basic health services and help revive PHCs. Oladimeji explained that under the National Health Act, 50 percent of the BHCPF is allocated to the NHIS gateway, 45 percent through the NPHCDA gateway, and 5 percent is set aside to deal with emergencies under the Emergency Medical Treatment (EMT) gateway. So far, N6.5 billion have been disbursed to 15 states and the FCT as first phase of the fund.

But the BHCPF is not enough to cater for 10,000 facilities, he said. According to him, when the money is disbursed some PHCs will end up getting about N300,000

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in a quarter which is grossly inadequate.

“What can that do? This is despite the fact that we are using decentralised facility funding where we send money directly to the facilities so they can decide what they want to use it for,” he said.

Oladimeji lamented that 4,000 PHCs, which the Federal Government claims have been revitalised only had some renovations done, adding that the basic requirement that must be present to make a PHC functional are absent.

He pointed out that for the project to succeed, it must go beyond building or renovating PHCs as a former health minister had conceived.

“Revitalisation means bringing life back to the centres and making them functional”, he stressed.

As he explained, a functional PHC must have the basic infrastructures, a minimum of five rooms, the minimum required number of staff, the required level of logistics and supply support for the centre in terms of drugs and consumables.

He decried that, of all the basic requirement, the most difficult is the human resource because states often find it difficult to recruit health personnel.

The National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) was also established to achieve this goal, but most PHCs are in terrible conditions and cannot be accredited by the scheme to render services.

Overall, health authorities and experts have stated that the myriad of problems and challenges confronting the nation’s health care system today can be linked to the inadequacies of primary health care centres across the country. They argued that this has resulted to worsening health indices.

The floundering of PHCs is a major reason why the country’s Secondary and Tertiary health care facilities are overburdened with basic ailments that should have been managed through PHC facilities.

General hospitals are characterized with crowded waiting rooms and long queues while people trickle to PHCs. Mohammed Khalilu, a senior adviser to the Niger state government on PHC system strengthening, even said Nigerians prefer secondary and tertiary health facilities because they lack confidence in the PHC facilities.

This burden also exacerbates the existing

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high patient-to-doctor ratio. Ekpe Philips, chairman of the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), Federal Capital Territory said Nigeria will continue to experience frustrations with health care delivery because the doctors are over tasked and dissatisfaction among patients will continue.

The high burden further amplifies delays in accessing minimum level of care including maternal and child health with resultant maternal and child mortality across the country. Nigeria is currently grappling with an alarming burden of maternal and child mortality in the country. Available statistics from the Federal ministry of health shows that the country records over 40,000 maternal deaths annually.

Faisal Shuaib, executive director of the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA) has decried the alarming statistics and called for prompt action.

“Every day in Nigeria, approximately 145 women die from preventable causes related to pregnancy and childbirth. This is equivalent to having 1 Boeing 737-300 series airplane, fully loaded with 145 women crashing every single day in Nigeria, and killing everyone on board”, he said.

Again, the ED said approximately 2,300 children under 5 years die mainly from preventable causes.

Mojisola Odeku, director, Nigerian Urban Reproductive Health Initiative, Johns Hopkins Centre for Communications Program, Nigeria, further noted that a major problem threatening the success of the project is getting quality personnel, a situation she described as a human resource crisis.

She decried that even if funds are eventually released, and all required facilities and structures put in place, a lot of health personnel will not be willing to go into remote areas to work in PHCs. She said the issue of Human resource is critical to survival of the project.

Obinna Ebirim, national coordinator, New Incentives - ABAE Initiative, on his part said the communities must be involved to ensure success of the PHC project.

“The communities must be carried along to own the project else the government will only succeed in erecting beautiful structures which the community will not use.”

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Tuesday 22 October 2019

BUSINESS DAY

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Tuesday 22 October 2019

BUSINESS DAY

news As FG struggles to fund budget, here are 4 things...

Continued from page 1

embarked on various social interventions programs in a bid to cater for the large number of people at the bottom of the pyramid.

Notwithstanding, poverty is still on the increase. Statistics from the World Poverty Clock shows that more than half of Nigeria’s population is poor, with six people becoming poor in Nigeria every minute.

Nigeria’s challenge of a revenue shortfall became obvious in 2016 when oil revenue which accounts for more than half of totally collected revenue declined significantly owing to collapse in global oil prices and a plummet in domestic oil production volume attributed to activities of militants in the oil-rich Niger Delta. This singular act further widened the gap between government projected revenue and actual revenue.

Not even key sectors of its economy, such as education and health, needed for human development, gain much traction from the lean government finances.

Analysts, who spoke to BusinessDay, identified four activities that are eating deep into government’s already lean revenue and if discontinued, would free up more cash for government to spend on critical infrastructure that would stimulate inclusive, robust and sustainable growth.

Fuel Subsidy Africa’s largest oil producer over time has held on to the policy of capping the prices at which it sells refined fuel in the domestic market. This is irrespective of whether the Brent crude—the benchmark of oil prices at the international market—increases or not.

State-owned Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), has consistently borne the burden of the difference between the prices at which crude oil is traded in the international market to that in which the refined petroleum product is sold in the domestic market, as under-recovery cost. This makes the corporation remits a small amount of money into the federation account.

Figures from the Budget Office of the Federation and NNPC show that fuel subsidies, otherwise known as under-recovery cost, swallowed about N648 billion ($1.8b), so far this year as the country kept prices pegged at N145 ($0.40) a liter. That’s four times the amount it spent building new schools, health centres and equipping new science labs during the period.

In 2018, fuel subsidies gulped approximately N730.9

billion, about 19 per cent of the totally generated government revenue (oil and nonoil) in the period.

In the 2020 budget, the government is planning to spend N420 billion on fuel subsidies, according to statements made by Zainab Ahmed, Minister of Finance.

That’s a whole lot for an economy that is cashstrapped and has over the years resorted to huge domestic and foreign borrowings. As at half-year 2019, Nigeria’s total debt stood at N25.7 trillion according to data from Debt Management Office (DMO).

With domestic fuel prices pegged at N145, Nigeria has effectively put itself out as one of the countries with the cheapest fuels in the world according to data from GlobalPetrolPrices.com. This cheap fuel has led to largescale smuggling of the product to neighbouring countries like Benin and Niger where it is twice more expensive. This act necessitated the government’s order for an outright closure of the land borders.

“For me, I think Nigeria needs a market driven approach that encompasses removal of subsidies to attract private sector investment, and structural reforms to stimulate productivity, enhance job creation and lay the foundation for a more inclusive, broad based and sustainable growth,” Gbolahan Ologunro, an Equity research analyst at Lagos-based CSL Stockbrokers said.

“I think fiscal adjustments are inevitable, however the use of contractionary fiscal policies in the form of higher tax rates will further exert pressure on already fragile consumer spending. The impact would mean that short to medium term growth trends would remain underwhelming.”

FX Subsidy Nigeria operates a multiple foreign exchange window where the US dollar can be sourced at a rate of N305/$ and another where it can be gotten at a weaker rate of N360/$.

This has caused distortions in the way in which receipt from oil—which accounts for 70 per cent of governmet revenue and about 84 per cent of its foreign earnings—are shared.

“The Federal Government is taking in too much upon itself all in the name of reducing burden on final consumers, even though such actions are exerting pressure on its finances,” said Philip Anegbe, Head of Research at Cardinal Stone.

•Continues online at www.businessday.ng www.businessday.ng

Umaru Kwairanga, president and chairman of council, Certified Pension Institute of Nigeria (CPIN) in a collaborative meeting with executives of Pension Operators of Nigeria (PENOP) Umbrella Body of MD/CEOs of Pension Funds Administrators (PFA & PFC) in Nigeria.

USSD saga foreshadows coming bank vs Telco battle Continued from page 1

unbanked, became obvious yesterday, when both MTN and the banks, provided conflicting claims over controversies on USSD charges in statements issued to BusinessDay. Over the weekend, MTN, Nigeria’s biggest network provider sent a message to its over 60.3 million network users notifying them that effectively, it plans to charge N4 per 20 seconds for USSD services.

According to the network provider, the plans to charge the extra cost on the service got the nod of the Banker’s Committee hence, MTN noted that customers of the network could contact their various banks for further information.

Meanwhile, Bank CEOs, in a statement, said there was no approval from the banking committee whatsoever that gave the telecommunication provider the go-ahead to enact any additional charge.

“The banks did not ask MTN to start charging customers as contained in the text message. The decision on whether and what amount, to charge a customer for accessing USSD is entirely that of the Telco company, in the same way a customer is billed for calls, SMS and data,” the Body of Banks CEOs said in a statement seen by BusinessDay, yesterday.

“Furthermore, MTN is the only Telco that is yet to imple-

ment end-users billing which is the standard practice for customers -initiated transactions. This is despite the fact that the banks, working with the central bank of Nigeria have engaged MTN over a period of more than one year to try and bring down the cost of USSD to aid financial inclusion,” they added.

MTN Nigeria, alongside other telecommunication providers, have been in the forefront in the push that will allow Telco provide mobile money services, a move that has been deployed and has proven in several other countries, including Ghana and Kenya, where it operates MTN recently was granted a “super-agent” license which allows it to set up an agent network through which it can provide financial services.

It’s the first step in MTN’s plans to finally roll out mobile money services in Africa’s largest economy as the company says it has also applied for a payment service bank license, which will allow it “offers a broader and deeper range of financial services.”

The license comes after reforms by Nigeria’s central bank last October permitting telecoms operators to get mobile money and banking licenses in a bid to boost financial inclusion and facilitate the long-held ambition for a cashless society.

The four major Telco’s (MTN, Glo, Airtel and 9-mobile) combined have some

Conflicting narratives trial air traveller, NCS officials’...

Continued from page 2

it from the box and wear it and it seizes to be a luxury good and duty exempt?” She said “yes.”

“I told her that does this not then show her that this law enables her the opportunity to apply common sense when she sees Nigerians with just one trainers and one mini-boy bag? She refused to answer. I asked her to allow me put my feet in my trainers and if it’s

not my size, apply duty and she refused.”

Udensi, who described Essien and Tijani Adulrahman as officials filled with hatred in such an airport that they refused to do the right thing, complained that she was one of the first 10 passengers to disembark from the aircraft and get to Customs, but was the very last person to leave the airport after her one pair of trainers and one mini boy bag had been seized.

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173.6 million customers, compared to the 21 Deposit Money Bank’s with about 30 million bank accounts with unique bank verification numbers (BVNs).

The Telco’s also have the resources to deploy in the coming fight.

MTN Nigeria Full Year 2018 results showed it had 21.6 million smartphone users on its network, Ebitda margins of 44 percent and revenues eclipsing the N1 trillion mark.

“I think the reactions from the financial institutions are meant to frustrate the push by the telecommunication provider, who has been seen as a threat in the rolling out of mobile money services,” said a source, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

The plans by MTN, to implement an additional charge on USSD, gained widespread criticism from all fronts, including the Ministry of Communication and the Central Bank of Nigeria who ordered an outright reversal of the plan.

The Minister of Communications, Isa Ali Panatmi via his official twitter handle @ DrIsaPantam, said he has directed the Nigerian Communication Commission to ask MTN to halt the planned charge.

Godwin Emefiele, Governor of the Central Bank, on the hand, while responding to questions at the side-line of the World Bank/IMF meetings in Washington DC, op“We must rise up and condemn this outrageous dimension by the Nigerian Customs.

We must rise up against this tyranny as a people. Today it is Adaeze. Tomorrow, it could be you,” she said.

BusinessDay’s checks show that on the website of customs, customs are supposed to charge 5 percent VAT and 10 to 20 percent of import duty on commercial products bought not personal items.

However, the NCS in a statement yesterday said, “Upon routine search of this @Businessdayng

posed to the charges and asked banks to take off their businesses from telecommunication operators charging bank customers using USSD to make transactions.

However, in a mail response sent to BusinessDay, MTN said it had stayed action on implementing the proposed charges.

“MTN has not implemented charges for USSD following the FG’s directive,” the Telecom provider told BusinessDay. The Telecommunication provider noted that the proposed charge of N4 for every 20-second session is currently the lowest in the industry as other network operators currently charge above that rate. It said other network providers implemented these charges a long time ago without notifying their subscribers.

MTN also noted that the banks still deduct an average of N50 for USSD transactions even though the infrastructure for such transactions are provided and maintained by the network operators.

The 2018 EFINA Access to Financial Services survey findings, showed that 36.8 percent of the adult population in the country, are financially excluded.

The country’s mobile operators; MTN, Airtel, Globacom and 9mobile recently announced their commitment to deepen financial inclusion to at least 90 million customers in about 2 years, once issued payment service banking (PSB) or mobile money licenses. passenger’s luggage, operatives discovered a Loius Vuitton bag and shoe. Obviously, knowing the luxury brand (Loius Vuitton), she was asked to produce the receipt which will be the bases for duty calculation or not.

She could not produce the receipt of what she claimed she bought at the duty-free shop at the point of departure, saying the receipt was with her husband who did not travel with her.

•Continues online at www.businessday.ng

Tuesday 22 October 2019

BUSINESS DAY

BOOKSERIALISATION

39

Never Quite The Insider (Excerpts) by Keith Richards

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nother decree that was damaging, to the brewing industry at least, was General Babangida’s decree banning the import of malted barley. Up to that point most states had their own brewery producing good local brews such as Champion, Trophy, Life and Rock. Over thirty breweries provided strong local employment and revenue. The upshot of that decree was that only Guinness and Heineken were able or prepared to invest in the R&D needed to develop drinkable beer out of local grains such as sorghum. This delivered the two companies the golden opportunity to build dominance so that by the mid ‘90’s their joint share was approaching 90% and they were two of the most capitalised companies on the Nigerian Stock Exchange. There were only four or five other breweries still operating. Another more bizarre indirect consequence of the decree was the later advice given to a new MD not to drink the coffee!

When Babaginda’s decree came out the breweries had a short window to stock up on malt before the ban took effect.

By this time, as a knock on from the indigenisation decree and rather lackadaisical management by the two foreign partners, Guinness had a Nigerian chief executive. Chief Abel Ubeku had risen up the ranks via the personnel function, as HR was called back then, and was a colourful, opinionated man who was later to make an unsuccessful bid for the presidency funded, as was alleged, by the proceeds of his time at the helm of Guinness.

The finance director was a man called Ben Arenyeka, who it later transpired, had rather dangerous felonious contacts through his wife’s criminal connections. The senior expat, a Guinness man, was the DMD Archie Fairley.

The major controversy of that period has not been authoritatively documented though some facts were brought out in the local press at the time. Officially, Guinness had always refused to confirm the many rumours and stories but certainly what transpired passed into Lagos folklore and was an ever constant in the back of the mind of subsequent DMD’s and MD’s.

As a result of the shortage of

foreign exchange the company had been resorting to the use of middlemen who could find hard currency to import necessary materials. One of these was hops for which a long term contract had been agreed with a local importer who had paid Ben Arenyeka £150,000 for the privilege, plus as David Hampshire noted, ‘as Ben was a good Christian, another 10% for his church’.1 Ultimately the local purchase order turned out to be unnecessary and the contract was cancelled.

The furious supplier came in to complain to Archie with a copy of the relevant cheques as evidence.

He explained exactly how much Ben, and his church, had been paid for the contract. Fairlie knew this put him potentially in serious danger and rang David.

This was on a Thursday and, in the dangerous assumption that no one was aware that he possessed this information, it was agreed David would fly out on the Monday.

However, he subsequently called David again to tell him that as he had been coming into the office the gates had opened to allow a car to exit and he had been able to enter without stopping. This had obviously saved his life as several shots were fired but missed the car as it had driven straight in. Rumours were already circulating within GN, which actually led to at least one ritual killing of an officer from the procurement department, presumably to silence him. The following day Ben’s wife, Esther, visited Archie at home. Apparently a social call, they had coffee.

Evidently, at some point Archie left the room to get something.

That night he fell seriously ill with a mysterious sickness. After a series of late night phone calls between David and the GBW company doctor, Douglas Foster, a medical evacuation was arranged and with the help of the British High Commission (whose Land Rovers were scrambled to escort the ambulance on to the runway) Archie Fairlie was flown home and treated. However, this was only after a serious scare when he started bleeding internally in the middle of the night and were it not for decisive action by GN’s contracted doctor, Bayo Adebayo, he would never have made the plane. Apparently, during that night an Irish expat by the name www.businessday.ng

of Tim Sheehan was holding vigil at Archie’s bedside. Suddenly his drip backed up red and Tim realised his friend was haemorrhaging. He sent his driver, one Matthew, to drive to the doctor’s house in nearby Maryland and point the car at his gate and keep flashing and sounding the horn until the doctor came with him.

This was achieved and Adebayo administered what he said was a one off shot of some form of coagulant to stem the flow. If it wasn’t enough he would not be able to try another dose. Equally, too much could cause blood clotting. In either case Fairlie would not make the air-ambulance. It worked and Archie Fairlie survived to eventually take his Guinness pension and retire to Sussex.

In the subsequent internal investigations other scams were discovered including a major one concerning the final malt imports before the ban took effect. Esther was reputedly involved in several, with or without her husband’s connivance and was eventually jailed for many crimes. She was running a gang involved in various rackets and was believed to have been responsible for several

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murders, including her husband’s secretary at Guinness with whom he was having an affair. Ben’s driver was also killed, although this was believed to have been arranged by Ben because he knew too much about the malt fraud. Guinness in London and Lagos were anxious to downplay the drama and the story was that Archie had food poisoning. Even though they did their best to dampen speculation and manage the public relations impact the local press had their own views.

The most common theory was that the poison had been a berry used by local practitioners called a ‘Calabar bean’ administered through Fairlie’s coffee. There was actually an attempt by Ben’s supporters to put suspicion on the DMD’s secretary to protect Esther. Whatever the truth from then on no senior expatriate ever allowed his coffee to be made by his secretary and always brought in his or her own in a flask. In any event, no secretaries wanted to make tea or coffee again, in case something happened and they became a suspect or were even coerced into delivering an unwholesome potion! Once my @Businessdayng

appointment was announced some twelve years after this incident, the story was still known enough that, ‘I hope you aren’t going to drink the coffee’ was a frequent comment. That and other incidents had left Guinness Nigeria with a tainted reputation.

The foreign shareholders evidently needed to take some action and after the controversy had settled down somewhat Abel Ubeku left, there having been no clear evidence linking the MD to the fraud. First, Fred Okonola and then Maxwell Oteri took over as MD and a procession of Guinness Ireland managers as DMD. Aranyeka was ‘retired’ and the finance director’s position was thereafter always filled by a Guinness expat. As DMD, Clive Brownlees and then Brian Farrell had the task of improving the relationship between the local and expatriate management at a time of extreme economic and political turbulence in the Nigerian operating context. It took no little courage on their part taking over in such unpleasant circumstances as David told them exactly what had happened prior to their appointments. The early part of the 90’s was grim, as the quality of all beer in Nigeria had suffered badly from the move to sorghum and local maize as the key raw materials. In addition, a Northern, Muslim dominated military administration, a weakened naira and a struggling and corrupt economy made life difficult. The total beer market collapsed from the 12 or 13 million hectolitres in the 1980’s to not much more than four million by the mid 90’s. Guinness Stout’s market share had done well as the more robust flavour disguised some of the rancid flavours of local ingredients but Harp suffered badly and volumes plummeted from a million hectolitre brand to around 60,000 a year. Breweries all over the country ceased operating until by the mid 90’s, of the 30 or so at the peak, only three or four were producing more than a few hectolitres for their immediate local market. However, during the period, thanks to Heineken’s technical excellence, NBL built Star and Gulder into strong, almost dominant, market leaders.

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Tuesday 22 October 2019

news

‘Networking, collaboration key to realising women’s $12trn economy by 2025’ Temitayo Ayetoto

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eyond mending gender gaps to help women maximise potential at work and in business, networking and collaboration among women entrepreneurs is crucial for the female economy to add projected $12 trillion to global growth by 2025, Natalie Kolbe, Actis Global head of Private Equity, says.

Kolbe, who cited a McKinsey Global Institute report on the economic value of advancing women’s equality while speaking at a businesswomen forum organised by Sigma Pensions in Lagos, states that the female economy is among the fastest-growing emerging markets across the globe and key to pushing the African continent out of extreme levels of poverty.

“We need to grow jobs on this continent to pull our countries out of poverty, and we also understand that the engine for growth is the private sector, small and medium enterprises (SMEs), entrepreneurs and taking it one step further is the ‘women entrepreneurs’. It’s estimated the female economy can add about $12 trillion to the global gross domestic (GDP) by 2025 - that’s huge and that’s power. Can we change the world by ourselves? We have got to work together. As women, we are great. Think about the number,” Kolbe says.

The Sigma Pension women forum is an initiative driven by the firm’s goal to deepen gender diversity at workplaces.

After noticing that businesses started by women were not

growing as fast as they should, the insurance firm teamed up with Lionesses of Africa, an international network of 900,000 women entrepreneurs for interaction between leading female businesses and aspiring ones, Dave Uduanu, managing director of Sigma Pensions, says at the event.

“We found that women have less access to funding. Women don’t have networks that help them grow their businesses and women pair to pair does not exist. So, the programme is for women to meet women, successful women entrepreneurs talking to aspiring women entrepreneurs and successful women entrepreneurs as well,” he states, noting Sigma’s Pensions has neared 50 percent in the diversity of its workforce.

Melanie Hawken, founder of Lioness Africa, says the platform will roll out big initiatives on access to funding in the next few months. Over time, it has featured about 300 Nigerian entrepreneurs to showcase their businesses and brands, help them launch their new product and services and connect them with new markets. Its aim is to open women entrepreneurs to growth opportunities and connect them with markets, resources, training, development, mentoring and funding.

“We have over 110 Nigerian women entrepreneurs in our network. We were looking for the right partner that could really understand and support what we are trying to do at the vision level and Sigma Pensions did exactly that,” Hawken explains.

FG, renewable energy investors sign grant agreement to transform power sector KELECHI EWUZIE

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etermined to transform the power sector positively, the Federal Government of Nigeria, through its implementing agency, Rural Electrification Agency (REA), has signed grant agreements with seven renewable energy investors under the World Bank funded Nigeria Electrification Project (NEP).

The grant agreements are the Output Based Fund (OBF) for the sale of solar home systems to homes and businesses across Nigeria and the Performance Based Grant (PBG) for the deployment of mini grids to unserved and underserved communities in Nigeria.

Following a thorough procurement process, the first six companies to be signed to the OBF are: A4&T Integrated Services Limited, ASOLAR Systems Nigeria Limited, Txtlight Power Solutions Limited (Lumos Nigeria), Greenlight Planet, Smarter Grid International and Solar Energy by D. light Limited.

With these grants, the companies will play a major role in enabling the NEP Solar Home Systems (SHS) component to achieve its goal of electrifying 1 million Nigerian households in 5 years using renewable energy solutions.

Damilola Ogunbiyi, managing director, REA in her remarks at the grant agreement signing for PBG and OBF in Abuja, last week, expressed optimism over the determination of the Federal Government to transform the power sector in accordance with its Next Level agenda.

Ogunbiyi acknowledged the support of the World Bank and the African Development Bank to improve electricity access through the provision of grant funding and technical assistance.

According to Ogunbiyi, “REA, in collaboration with the Federal Government of Nigeria, has secured funds from the World Bank ($350m) and African Development Bank ($200m). These funds will go a long way in helping us connect communities, schools and homes to constant electricity.”

PowerGen Renewable Energy is the first company to sign for the Performance Based Grant under the NEP Mini Grids component. Under this partnership with REA, PowerGen will deploy mini grids to Rokota community, Lolade Abiola, head, Niger State Mini Grids Component, leads the project to provide clean, safe, reliable and affordable electricity to 300,000 homes and 30,000 local businesses with mini grids. www.businessday.ng

L-R: Lolade Abiola, component head, mini grids, Rural Electrification Agency (REA); Ifunanya Nwandu-Dozie, component head, solar home systems, REA; Stella Abimbola Shopeju, deputy managing director, Lumos Nigeria (Nigeria Electrification Project grant recipients); Damilola Ogunbiyi, managing director/chief executive, REA; Heather Onoh, founder, Smarter Grid International, and Adejoke Odumosu, head, project management unit, REA, during the Nigerian Electrification Project Grant Agreement-Signing, in Abuja.

Informal e-waste collection poses threat to industry, lives - Hinckley ENDURANCE OKAFOR

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he informal means of collecting electronic waste is a threat to Nigeria’s billion naira e-waste industry as well as the well-being of the country’s citizens, Hinckley Group, Nigeria-based IT services and ewaste recycling company, says.

According to Andrian Clews, managing director Hinckley Group, the formal and responsible recycling companies in Nigeria are not enjoying the monetary value of the industry because some informal recyclers who also use the services of informal collectors are extracting the valuable products and sending it outside the country.

“The informal recyclers export these valuable items and leave behind only the negative value. The hazard components like the plastics, the screens - the things that harm the environment,” Clew told BusinessDay. Electronic waste or e-waste describes discarded electrical or electronic devices. Used

… problem at an epidemic level

electronics that are destined for refurbishment, reuse, resale, salvage recycling through material recovery, or disposal are also considered e-waste.

The most commonly recycled parts of electronics are PCBs (printed circuit boards), which have all the precious metals. The collectors normally take out the copper wires that are of high value and they can strip the metal down to copper and sell it to other users.

There are parts of a computer or a mobile phone that are lucrative but then there are parts that are not, like plastics, etc. So only the shells of a monitor are found in a dump or the keys for example of a keyboard.

E-waste is also not restricted to computers, cell phones, etc.

But it is also about things like refrigerators or washing machines, toasters, and vacuum cleaners. This is all categorised under e-waste.

A lot of refrigerators, for example, that are discarded

in developed countries are shipped to emerging countries.

Because of the way they are handled, stored and shipped, it damages the compressor, it damages the mechanism in a way that they are really either inefficient and energy-guzzling or they just don’t cool enough so they then end up in the trash.

The same thing applies to a lot of other electronic appliances.

According to Hinckly Group, 99 percent of Nigeria’s e-waste is handled through informal collection network, sometimes described as scavengers.

“If you walk around the informal recycling hubs in Lagos, you will see people using their bare hands to tear apart electronics, trying to extract valuable materials and this is very dangerous. The problem is actually at an epidemic level and the informal recycles also make things worse by dumping the items that are deadly to the environment,” Clews said.

According to the Lagos

State Environmental Protection Agency (LASEPA), the regulatory body committed to improving the environment, there are over 10,000 informal recyclers in the state.

“At Ojota alone we recorded over 3,000 of them during e-waste awareness and we are engaging them to collet ewaste and recycle in an environment-friendly manner,” Olabisi Oyekule, assistant director at LAEPA, told BusinessDay. In August 2019, the agency sealed some illegal e-waste factories, including that of two Chinese, said to have emitted toxic substances in Ikeja. The factories, located at 19, Sule Abuka, Street, Opebi, Lagos and 15, Adekunle Fajuyi Street, GRA, Ikeja were said to be owned and managed by Chinese.

“I will not be able to pay the same amount as the Chinese guy who takes only the valuable items in a phone for example because I have a cost which he is not incurring,” Clews said.

Shaky US-China trade agreement, falling global demand drag oil prices down STEPHEN ONYEKWELU, with agency report

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espite bullish signals from Europe, where fears of an economically damaging no-deal Brexit has receded, oil prices fell on Monday as sliding global demand raises more concerns.

Signs of ample global oil supplies, combined with concerns about economic growth in China, the world’s largest oil importer, pressured prices.

Global benchmark Brent crude was down 56 cents at $58.86 a barrel. US West Texas Intermediate crude oil declined 38 cents to $53.40 a barrel, on Monday.

US and Chinese trade negotiators are working on nailing down a Phase 1 trade deal text for their presidents to sign next month, hoping to resolve a trade war that has rumbled on

over the last year, slowing global economic growth, a CNBC report said.

But adding to tensions, China is now seeking $2.4 billion in retaliatory sanctions against the US for non-compliance with a World Trade Organisation’s ruling in a tariffs case dating back to the Obama era.

“A rebound in upside potential looks unlikely at this stage given that bullish catalysts are in short supply,” said Stephen Brennock of oil broker PVM. “Only a meaningful U.S.China trade agreement or deeper OPEC cuts will change the negative status quo, neither of which seems to be forthcoming.”

The Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), Russia and other oil producers, an alliance known as OPEC+ agreed in December to cut supply by 1.2 million bar-

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rels per day (bpd) from the start of this year.

Russia, the world’s secondlargest oil producer, said on Sunday it did not meet its supply reduction commitment in September because of an increase in natural gas condensate output as the country prepared for winter.

Additionally, talks between OPEC members Kuwait and Saudi Arabia to resume oil production from joint fields in the Neutral Zone between the two countries, with a capacity of 500,000 barrels per day, could mean more supply returning to the market.

While market participants believe OPEC+ could decide to extend output cuts in an upcoming December meeting, economic headwinds are curbing bullish sentiment and fuelling oil demand concerns.

China’s economic growth slowed to 6 per cent year-on@Businessdayng

year in the third quarter, its weakest in 27-1/2 years and short of expectations due to soft factory production and continuing trade tensions.

However, 9.4 percent yearon-year increase in China’s refinery throughput for September signalled that petroleum demand remained robust.

“This level of crude intake would imply that every province had simultaneously processed close-to-record volumes of crude based on their historical regional reporting,” JBC analysts said in a note.

European shares opened slightly higher on Monday and UK government bond yields rose as investors remained hopeful that Britain would be able to avoid a disorderly exit from the European Union. Analysts have said any British-EU agreement that avoids a no-deal Brexit should boost economic growth and oil demand.

Tuesday 22 October 2019

FT

BUSINESS DAY

41

FINANCIAL TIMES

World Business Newspaper

CHRIS FLOOD AND PETER SMITH

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ne of Capital Group’s most senior investment managers resigned last month after an investigation by the BBC Panorama team alleged it uncovered evidence that he secretly bought shares for his own benefit in companies that were also owned by funds he ran.

Portfolio managers are not supposed to invest personally in stocks that are held by funds that they run to prevent any conflict of interest with their duty to investors.

Mark Denning resigned from Capital Group just five days after Panorama wrote to the $1.9tn Los Angeles-based asset manager about the findings of its investigation, which will be televised tonight.

The BBC has reported that evidence discovered by the Panorama investigation suggests that Mr Denning, who worked for Capital for 36 years, allegedly broke the rules by acquiring shares in companies that were also owned by investment funds that he co-managed.

The shares were allegedly bought on Mr Denning’s instructions through Morebath Fund — Global Opportunities, which is registered in Liechtenstein.

Morebath is a village in north Devon where Mr Denning owns a large property.

Mr Denning has denied any wrongdoing.

Documents obtained by the BBC reportedly showed that the Morebath fund invested in Mesoblast, an Australian medical research company; Eros International, an Indian

Capital Group fund manager quits after BBC expose Mark Denning resigns after ‘Panorama’ investigation into secret share purchases

Mark Denning worked for Capital for 36 years © Capital Group

film company; and Hummingbird Resources, a gold miner operating in Mali and Liberia. The chief executive of Hummingbird, which is listed on Aim in London, is Dan Betts who is Mr Denning’s son-in-law.

Capital Group also bought stakes in all three companies with the

investments in Mesoblast and Eros made via Capital funds that Mr Denning helped to manage. Panorama will say that Capital invested £6m in Hummingbird and this created a potential conflict of interest given the family connection between Mr Denning and Mr Betts.

The stakes in the three companies bought by the Morebath fund were ultimately held through an offshore entity called the Kinrara Trust, which was reportedly set up and controlled

by Mr Denning.

Mishcon de Reya, the lawyers representing Mr Denning, denied

that he owned the shares in the three companies because they said he was not a beneficiary of the Kinrara Trust.

“Our client did not declare his interest in the Kinrara Trust to his former employers because he had been irrevocably excluded as a beneficiary. He believed that he had complied with all of his relevant duties,” said Mishcon de Reya.

The lawyers also say his error was to rely on the advice of a former professional adviser and that the Morebath fund had an independent asset manager and fund administrator.

However, the Panorama team alleges it has seen evidence that Mr Denning was behind the share purchases in the three companies as well as documents showing that the Morebath fund was included in a summary of his personal assets.

Mr Denning was co-manager of four Capital investment funds with combined assets of $314bn, including the $158bn American Funds EuroPacific Growth fund, the $95bn American Funds Capital World Growth and Income fund, the $40bn American Funds New World fund and the $21bn American Funds New Economy fund.

A spokesperson for Capital Group confirmed that Mr Denning had left the company.

Coty plans sale of professional US companies battle for control of 5G spectrum beauty division Broadcasters and tech giants embroiled in disputes over access to telecoms frequencies Shares rise as maker of Wella and Clairol aims to cut debt and focus on turnround ARASH MASSOUDI AND LEILA ABBOUD IN LONDON

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osmetics maker Coty is exploring the sale of its professional hair and nail products business, including Wella and Clairol, as it seeks to cut debt and simplify its structure after a series of setbacks at the company.

Shares in the US-listed group rose nearly 15 per cent on news that Coty, which is majority owned by investment company JAB Holdings, had hired Credit Suisse to run a sale process for the units. The division caters to professional salons and is expected to generate $2.7bn in revenue this year.

Other brands in the portfolio that Coty is putting up for sale include Good Hair Day (ghd) and OPI nail care products. It is also seeking to sell its Brazilian operation and aims to complete the sales by mid-2020.

Coty hoped to fetch at least $8bn$9bn from the transactions, one person added, and thought that rival companies in the sector and private equity bidders would be interested in all or parts of the businesses.

The mooted sale is the latest effort by Coty’s backer JAB to fix the

KIRAN STACEY IN WASHINGTON

business, which has been among the weakest in a portfolio that also includes Keurig Dr Pepper and Pret A Manger.

Coty botched the integration of its 2015 acquisition of Procter & Gamble’s beauty brands for $12.5bn and was forced to write down a quarter of the value of the deal. It also suffered supply chain problems last year, prompting its share price to slide and JAB to replace management.

Coty chief executive Pierre Laubies said the asset sales would “reposition Coty as a more focused and agile company, deleverage our balance sheet, and improve our ability to invest in areas with the greatest growth potential”.

If the professional business is sold Coty will be left with its consumer beauty division, which has been struggling with declining sales as mass-market brands such as CoverGirl lose favour with young buyers, and its luxury business that makes fragrances under licence.

The disposal would unload some of the P&G brands as well as undo a series of acquisitions going back to 2010. The professional division brought in about a fifth of Coty’s annual sales of $8.65bn in the year to the end of June. www.businessday.ng

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onald Trump’s push to roll out 5G internet as quickly as possible has sparked a series of disputes over who should get access to parts of the telecoms spectrum, involving groups as large and varied as Facebook, Google, AT&T and National Public Radio.

The Federal Communications Commission has pushed forward with a string of spectrum sales in the past few months as it rushes to fulfil the US president’s pledge to “win the race” to establish superfast internet across the country.

But experts warn that the tangled mesh of different corporate and government claims over what is known as the “Goldilocks” mid-part of the spectrum threatens to delay the rollout, and leave the US trailing China.

Mobile carriers need exclusive access to particular frequencies so they can transmit data without fear of interference. Lower frequencies travel further, while higher ones carry more data — those in the middle are particularly highly sought-after.

In the past, spectrum auctions have delivered bumper proceeds for governments around the world.

But as countries race to be the first

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to roll out 5G nationwide, officials are offering lower prices than ever before, and in China’s case, even giving it out for free.

Paul Triolo, a technology policy analyst at Eurasia Group, said: “The US needs to sort out its use of midband frequencies . . . If China is able to deploy at scale midband spectrum and this enables Chinese companies to get faster to deploying applications like autonomous vehicles, that is an advantage for other markets.”

The Trump administration is especially concerned with gaining an advantage in 5G because of the associated technologies that will depend on it, from self-driving cars, to smart devices and remote surgery.

But the country is already at a commercial disadvantage because much of the spectrum being used for 5G in other parts of the world is reserved exclusively in the US for government and military use. The Pentagon’s technology advisory board warned this year this was likely to lead to China’s technology becoming dominant instead.

In response, Ajit Pai, the man chosen by Mr Trump to lead the FCC, has been rushing to allocate as much of what is available to 5G and 5Grelated services, but has quickly run into opposition from existing users. @Businessdayng

One of the most fractious of these disputes is over what should happen to the band around the 6GHz frequency — a debate that has pitted technology companies including Apple, Microsoft, Facebook and Google against others such as Ericsson.

A group of 11 global technology companies is supporting an FCC proposal to let them use the band without a licence for home WiFi, but others, including Ericsson, are worried about possible interference with their existing communications satellites.

A similar public fight has also broken out over the so-called C-Band, which several broadcasters use to upload and download content by satellite, but which the FCC wants to use for 5G. Meanwhile, this year the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association complained that opening up the 24GHz frequency could lead to interference with its weather satellites.

FCC officials say they intend to push ahead with that auction, and that they have agreed data limits that will ensure NOAA and Nasa satellites will remain unaffected. Officials also say they want to resolve the C-Band dispute this autumn, but will not say when they might be able to do the same with the 6GHz issue.

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Tuesday 22 October 2019

BUSINESS DAY

FT

NATIONAL NEWS

Creditors and politicians spar over Venezuela’s oil industry jewel Citgo Opposition leader Guaidó seeks ways to hold on to refiner as $913m bond payment looms COLBY SMITH IN NEW YORK AND GIDEON LONG IN BOGOTÁ

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hen Juan Guaidó and his Venezuelan opposition gained control of one of the jewels of the country’s oil industry — Texasbased refiner Citgo — it seemed to offer them financial muscle for an effective challenge to the regime of President Nicolás Maduro.

But now Citgo seems more of a problem to Mr Guaidó and his movement, which will lose the asset if, as seems certain, it fails to make a $913m bond payment within days.

The financial battle over Citgo may not only deal a serious blow to Mr Guaidó’s claims to the Venezuelan presidency. It is also a source of conflict within the US, where President Donald Trump threw his administration’s support behind Mr Guaidó this year. Washington hopes Mr Guaidó could oust Mr Maduro after years of cronyism and misrule that has plunged Venezuela into chaos.

It was the Trump administration that in effect wrenched Citgo out of the control of Mr Maduro’s government and handed it to Mr Guaidó and his team. While the Guaidó team wants Washington to follow up by helping to ringfence Citgo from seizure by creditors, other lobbyists say the Trump administration should avoid an intervention that would set an unwelcome precedent for bondholders.

“The signals we have from the administration are not good,” admitted one Venezuelan close to the talks with the US government.

One of Mr Guaidó’s most vocal supporters, former national security adviser John Bolton, left the Trump administration last month.

Meanwhile there are fears over the future of Citgo, which owns refineries in Louisiana, Illinois and Texas and employs more than 5,000 full-time and contracted workers in the US. In a letter to Mr Trump this month, a group of US lawmakers warned that Citgo was likely to be “broken into pieces, the assets sold separately and the employment futures of thousands of Americans placed in immediate uncertainty”.

At the heart of the battle over Citgo is its use as collateral in financial transactions by its owner PDVSA, Venezuela’s state oil company.

PDVSA used a 50.1 per cent stake in Citgo as collateral for $3.4bn of bonds it issued in 2016 as part of a debt swap to allow more time to pay off previous obligations. Separately it put up the remaining shares as collateral on a loan from Rosneft, the Russian oil company.

PDVSA serviced the bond, which falls due next year, even after defaulting on other commitments.

But when the US government in effect put Citgo under Mr Guaidó’s control, ensuring that its proceeds go to him and not the government in Caracas, it also transferred the burden of servicing the PDVSA

debt to Mr Guaidó, who has named alternative boards for both PDVSA and Citgo.

It is a debt service payment of $913m, due on October 28, that Mr Guaidó’s ad hoc PDVSA board is now, in theory, due to make.

Without the means to pay, the Guaidó team is searching for ways to hold on to Citgo while trying to reach a settlement with the 2020 bondholders.

It is considering asking a US court to annul the 2020 bonds, arguing that the Maduro government did not ask permission from the opposition-controlled Congress to use Citgo as collateral.

But for Russ Dallen at Caracas Capital Markets, that argument is weak, not least because the Guaidó team regarded the bonds as legitimate enough to pay interest of $71m on them in May. The Guaidó team hoped Mr Maduro would be out of power before this month’s much larger capital payment came due. That has not happened and the Guaidó team now says it made the May payment “under protest”.

As for the Guaidó team’s hope that Mr Trump’s government could intervene — via a so-called asset protection order — US lobbyists including Americans for Tax Reform and the Taxpayers Protection Alliance have warned of a dangerous precedent. “Investors will have no reason to believe that future investment would be protected from theft,” they wrote in a letter to Steven Mnuchin, US Treasury secretary.

Another set of Venezuela’s creditors, advised by law firm Cleary Gottlieb and Guggenheim Securities, had proposed a plan to help the Guaidó team finance the upcoming bond payment in exchange for help in persuading the US Treasury to lift its ban on secondary trading in Venezuelan debt.

That plan, however, “is off the table for now”, said Mike Conelius, a portfolio manager at T Rowe Price and member of the Cleary Gottliebadvised creditor group, who also holds the 2020 debt. “There is no time for that to happen,” he said, noting that he cannot “put another billion dollars at risk” if he is unable to trade the bonds.

Without a fix, the bondholders are standing firm. “The legal terms on these bonds are crystal clear,” said Jan Dehn, head of research at Ashmore, one of the largest holders of the 2020 bonds. “[If ] the payment is not made on time or within the grace period and in full, under the terms of US law, we are entitled to the collateral . . . we should get access to the Citgo shares.”

Other creditors of Venezuela are also waiting in the wings, including Canadian mining company Crystallex, US oil major ConocoPhillips and US glassmaker Owens-Illinois.

Believing Caracas will not pay up soon, they see Citgo as the only sizeable PDVSA asset abroad that they can realistically get their hands on. www.businessday.ng

A bus burns in downtown Santiago on Friday following a mass fare-dodging protest © AFP via Getty Images

Inequality in ‘stable’ Chile ignites the fires of unrest

Riots over price rises show that benefits of economic growth have not been widely shared BENEDICT MANDER IN BUENOS AIRES

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carcely a week before Chile suffered its worst civil unrest since Augusto Pinochet’s dictatorship unravelled in the 1980s, President Sebastián Piñera — in an otherwise optimistic interview about his country’s prospects — delivered a warning.

“We need to make a great effort to include all Chileans,” the billionaire former businessman admitted, even as he pointed out that the country was “leading the growth [league tables] in Latin America”.

But Mr Piñera did not expect such a rapid, violent demonstration of the risks of inequality. Santiago has been convulsed by riots, looting and arson, triggered by a 3 per cent rise in metro fares that the government has been forced to suspend. The protests exposed deep-seated anger among Chileans that an unequal system has excluded them from the country’s remarkable economic performance in recent decades.

“You politicians, did this really have to happen so that you stop robbing money from the people?” asked a woman gesticulating to a television camera as she helped clean one of Santiago’s metro stations vandalised by protesters.

“Something deep is happening in Chile,” said Marta Lagos, a pollster and political analyst in Santiago. A huge portion of Chile’s population felt left behind, she said.

“This is not just a bunch of violent kids, it’s much more than that. This is just the tip of the iceberg. That produces a very volatile situation that everyone was ignoring.”

The government has failed to understand the impact that high levels of inequality and precarious employment have had on society, according to Ms Lagos.

“Piñera thinks [the protests] are a security issue, a problem of violence and looting. He doesn’t realise that there is a profound social malaise which will persist . . . It cannot be fixed with a curfew,” she said, referring to

emergency measures taken to control the protests over the weekend.

There have been three deaths so far from the unrest. One person was gunned down by security forces and two more died in a fire as they were looting a supermarket on the edge of Santiago.

Now, Mr Piñera’s centre-right government, whose lack of a majority in Congress has prevented it from implementing many of its pro-market reforms, is in danger of encountering even greater obstacles from an emboldened opposition.

“The Piñera government is now a lame-duck government. It is not going to be able to push its reforms through Congress,” said Patricio Navia, a political scientist at New York University.

While an all-important pension reform may eventually be approved, he added, that is only because Mr Piñera’s bill will be watered down to such an extent that it will probably closely resemble a proposal by the previous centre-left government.

Russian cyberattack unit ‘masqueraded’ as Iranian hackers, UK says Turla group hijacked the tools of an Iran unit to lead attacks against 35 countries HELEN WARRELL IN LONDON AND HENRY FOY IN MOSCOW

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Russian cyber espionage unit has hacked Iranian hackers to lead attacks in more than 35 countries, a joint UK and US investigation has revealed.

The so-called Turla group, which has been linked with Russian intelligence, allegedly hijacked the tools of Oilrig, a group widely linked to the Iranian government, according to a two-year probe by the UK’s National Cyber Security Centre in collaboration with the US’ National Security Agency. The NCSC is part of GCHQ, the digital intelligence agency.

The Iranian group is most likely unaware that its hacking methods have been hacked and deployed

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by another cyber espionage team, security officials involved in the investigation said. Victims include military establishments, government departments, scientific organisations and universities across the world, mainly in the Middle East.

Paul Chichester, NCSC director of operations, said Turla’s activity represented “a real change in the modus operandi of cyber actors” which he said “added to the sense of confusion” over which state-backed cyber groups had been responsible for successful attacks.

“The reason we are [publicising] this is because of the different tradecraft we are seeing Turla use,” he told reporters. “We want others to be able to understand this activity.”

Mr Chichester described how Turla began “piggybacking” on Oilrig’s attacks by monitoring an Iranian @Businessdayng

hack closely enough to use the same backdoor route into an organisation or to gain access to the resulting intelligence. Turla is also known as Waterbug or Venomous Bear.

But the Russian group then progressed to initiating their own attacks using Oilrig’s command-andcontrol infrastructure and software.

Organisations in approximately 20 countries were successfully hacked in this way. “[Turla] could benefit from the operations of Oilrig. They could collect some of their operational output . . . It allowed them to gain more rapid access to victims than they would otherwise have done,” Mr Chichester said. “It made life much easier. This is an opportunistic operation which has given [Turla] a wealth of information and access they wouldn’t otherwise have had.”

Tuesday 22 October 2019

BUSINESS DAY

43

FINANCIAL TIMES

COMPANIES & MARKETS

@ FINANCIAL TIMES LIMITED

Opioid companies head off bellwether trial with $260m settlement Teva and distributors’ deal came as first federal trial on US addiction crisis was due to open HANNAH KUCHLER IN NEW YORK

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rugmaker Teva Pharmaceuticals and three distributors of opioid painkillers reached a settlement with two US counties over their alleged role in the opioid addiction crisis on Monday, just moments before the start of what would have been a bellwether trial — but they have so far failed to reach a broader agreement with the thousands of other US local authorities pursuing the companies.

Distributors Cardinal Health, McKesson, and AmerisourceBergen, as well as Teva, agreed a settlement worth $260m with two Ohio counties, according to people familiar with the matter. After last-minute talks, the deal headed off the first federal trial related to the opioid epidemic that was due to open in Cleveland on Monday.

“The proposed settlement will make significant progress to abate the epidemic by providing resources for and applying funds directly to necessary opioid-recovery programs,” said lawyers for the counties of Summit and Cuyahoga.

“Throughout this process, Summit and Cuyahoga Counties have tirelessly investigated, litigated, and prepared for the bellwether trial that would have begun today if not for this agreement. In doing so, the communities revealed facts about the roles of the opioid industry that created and fuelled the opioid epidemic.”

Shares in the three distributors fell close to 4 per cent shortly after markets opened in New York, while shares in Teva rose 1.5 per cent to $7.65. The companies did not respond to requests for comment.

Mass litigation with over 2,700 plaintiffs — cities and counties from across the US — will continue, bringing claims, including public nuisance, conspiracy and

racketeering, against the defendants involved in the production and distribution of opioids. The defendants deny responsibility for the crisis.

Opioid makers are also facing litigation from US states, as governments try to cover large healthcare and law enforcement balls resulting from the crisis. The Center for Disease Control has said 2m Americans are suffering from opioid use disorder.

Four state attorneys-general involved in those talks — from North Carolina, Tennessee, Pennsylvania and Texas — said the Ohio counties’ deal was an “important step” towards a framework for a global settlement, which would distribute funds to combat the crisis and ensure companies change their business practices to prevent a similar public health crisis from happening again.

Monday’s court-steps deal comes after many of the original defendants settled in the weeks before the trial. Pharmaceutical companies Endo International settled both cases for $10m, Johnson & Johnson for $20m and Mallinckrodt for $30m.

But pharmacy chain Walgreens, part of Walgreens Boots Alliance, has not settled. The judge will now set a new schedule for its trial.

“Walgreens never manufactured prescription opioid medications. Walgreens never marketed or promoted opioid medications.

Walgreens never prescribed any opioid medications. Walgreens was not a wholesaler of opioid medications,” a spokesperson for the chain said. “The only place Walgreens ever sold medications of any kind, including opioid medications, was at the pharmacy window when presented with a valid prescription written by a licensed physician for a legitimate medical need.”

Wirecard appoints KPMG for independent review of accounting

The US says Huawei telecommunications equipment can be used for spying by the Chinese government © Reuters

Dean & DeLuca’s Thai owner Pace defaults on $86m of debt Shares in property developer fall 12% as it seeks a plan to rescue finances JOHN REED IN BANGKOK

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he Thai company that owns the distressed US grocery and café chain Dean & DeLuca said on Monday that it had defaulted on Bt2.6bn ($86m) worth of debt, sending its shares down sharply in Bangkok.

Shares in Pace Development Corp fell by more than 12 per cent after the company said in a stock exchange filing that it had received the notice of default from Siam Commercial Bank, one of Thailand’s largest lenders. SCB’s shares fell by about 3 per cent, while the benchmark SET Index was down less than 1 per cent.

Pace, a property developer whose finances have been damaged by problems at the US gourmet grocer, said it would accelerate talks with SCB to prepare “an efficient and stable financial restructuring and debt management plan” that would enable it to continue operating and maintain

its business value. Its stock price has fallen by 80 per cent this year.

Sorapoj Techakraisri, Pace’s chief executive, told the Financial Times in August that the company planned to issue $60bn of longterm debt to try to revive Dean & DeLuca’s fortunes and allow Pace to resume work on two high-rise condominium developments in Bangkok and Hua Hin, on which it had frozen work as problems at the US brand mounted.

“If the financial restructuring plan and debt management can be implemented successfully, the company will be able to continue developing the underconstruction projects,” Pace said on Monday.

The Thai company bought Dean & DeLuca in 2014 for $140m, vowing to expand a brand known for introducing American consumers to upscale olive oils, pastries, and other delicacies into a café format in Thailand and other countries.

However, the chain has faced a

surge of online competition in the US food retailing market. Simultaneously, Pace faced its own problems in Bangkok because of problems on the market for bills of exchange, a shortterm debt instrument, Mr Sorapoj told the FT in August.

The Dean & DeLuca chain stopped paying some US suppliers in recent months, sparking a string of lawsuits from unpaid purveyors of cakes and other goods. The chain shuttered its flagship Manhattan store in Soho last month in what was described as a temporary closing.

The problems at the brand mark a rare public setback for Thailand’s acquisitive Sino-Thai family conglomerates, which are major investors in hotel, retail, and other businesses overseas but typically fly below the public relations radar.

Pace did not respond to a request for further comment on Monday.

Follow John Reed on Twitter: @JohnReedwrites

German payments company has categorically denied it fraudulently inflated sales and profits OLAF STORBECK IN FRANKFURT

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erman payments comp a n y Wi re c a rd h a s commissioned big four accountant KPMG to review questions over its accounting practices that were raised by whistleblowers and reported by the Financial Times.

The FT last week published documents that appeared to indicate a concerted effort to fraudulently inflate sales and profits. The company has categorically denied impropriety and said the conclusions drawn by the FT about the files were incorrect.

Shares in the company fell 20 per cent last week, despite the company announcing a €200m share buyback. The shares were up 2.7 per cent in early trading on Monday.

Wirecard last week faced growing calls for an external assessment of work by its auditor EY. The com-

pany’s chairman Wulf Matthias dismissed such a move on Friday, telling the Financial Times that “prima facie, EY was evaluating the matters sufficiently”.

In a Wirecard statement published on Monday, the company said its management and supervisory boards had decided conduct “an additional independent audit to clarify fully and independently all accusations raised”.

Wirecard said that KPMG would report to the Supervisory Board, would have “unrestricted access to all information on all levels of the group”. The review will begin “immediately”, and its findings will be published.

“We have complete confidence in the audit procedures performed to date and their results. We assume this renewed independent review will lead to a final end to all further speculation,” Mr Matthias said. www.businessday.ng

VW rethinks Turkish facility following Syria offensive Bulgaria, Romania and Serbia back in the running for carmaker’s new production site JOE MILLER AND ALEXANDER VLADKOV IN FRANKFURT

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olkswagen is facing a race against the clock to secure a new production site for its bestselling Passat sedan and the Skoda Superb, after suspending plans to open a new plant in Turkey.

The carmaker’s plans were plunged into turmoil following the country’s incursion into Syria, an act that drew widespread international condemnation and threw the competition for a new VW facilty open again with Bulgaria, Romania and Serbia back in the running.

Bulgarian officials have seized the opportunity to restate their country’s case. Former president

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Rosen Plevneliev, who has led talks with the VW, said the country had “offered the best possible conditions in compliance with the EU rules”, as it doubled its promised state aid to €260m. He also criticised Turkey for offering subsidies that disadvantaged European states.

VW’s current factory in the German city of Emden — which has produced millions of Passats since the 1970s — will be converted into an electric-car assembly line by 2022, the date by which a proposed new facility near Izmir was supposed to have been operational.

VW had not made any official announcement on its plans but Turkey had trumped Bulgaria, which had also been in the running for the investment worth more than €1bn, according to people close to the @Businessdayng

company. The carmaker established a legal entity in the country several weeks ago, paving the way for future expansion.

The proposed Turkish plant, which was to have the capacity to produce 300,000 cars annually, formed a vital part of VW’s plans to capitalise on rapid population growth in eastern Europe and the Near East. Currently, there are only 150 cars per 1,000 people in Turkey, while Germany — a country with a similar population — has four times the amount.

However soon after a ceasefire was agreed, Volkswagen said in a statement that it had postponed any decision on the plant, which would employ roughly 4,000 people, and that it was “monitoring the current situation with great concern”.

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Tuesday 22 October 2019

BUSINESS DAY

FT

ANALYSIS

Boeing is dragging down the US economy The decision on whether to let the 737 Max fly again may yet be an economic turning point MEGAN GREENE

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S Federal Reserve chairman Jay Powell says the cross-currents dragging on the US economy include trade and weak foreign demand. But there’s a less obvious item he might add to the list: Boeing. The woes of the aircraft manufacturer do not just drive news headlines, they drive American economic data as well.

The grounding of the 737 Max jet after two tragic crashes has quietly lowered US growth, reduced productivity and trimmed earnings at a number of American companies.

Boeing is no ordinary company.

It is the largest manufacturing exporter in the US and a very large private employer. Its products cost hundreds of millions of dollars and require thousands of suppliers. It is no surprise that benching Boeing’s fastest-selling aircraft is having ripple effects throughout the economy.

Private economists put the drag on growth from Boeing at around 0.25 percentage points in the second quarter. According to the White House Council of Economic Advisers, the damage was even greater: Boeing’s troubles cut gross domestic product from March through June by 0.4 percentage points.

More importantly, Boeing has hit the parts of the economy economists were already worried about: investment, exports and inventories. Unable to deliver the planes it is building, the company has been forced to cut production of 737s from 52 per month to 42.

When an airline or leasing company buys an aircraft, it counts as business investment and boosts GDP growth. But the transaction is not booked until the plane is delivered. That is a problem when deliveries of the most popular Boeing model are halted. Shipments of non-defence durable capital goods are considered a proxy for

investment. Since March, those have fallen by an average of 1 per cent compared with a year earlier.

But strip out aircraft and they have grown by 2.5 per cent. The Max problems undoubtedly contributed to the contraction in US investment in the second quarter. Of course, not all aircraft are sold domestically. US exports of planes (and their parts and engines) were a staggering $130bn in 2018, about the same size as all US exports to China that year.

Grounding the Max contributed to the 7.5 per cent drop in exports in the second quarter.

The Boeing effect matters because in economics, narratives can be just as important as statistics — and Boeing has largely been left out of the story. Most investors agree with Mr Powell that uncertainty around trade and tepid overseas demand are to blame for weak investment and exports and buoyant inventories. This narrative is no doubt true but also incomplete.

The company said last week it is “working towards” regulatory approval to return the 737 Max to service in the fourth quarter. If that happens, it aims to ramp up production next year. US investment and exports would get a boost as planes were finally delivered, and inventories would dwindle. This might improve the economic narrative.

But there are signs the Federal Aviation Administration could delay giving the 737 Max the allclear. Southwest Airlines, American Airlines, United Airlines and Air Canada have all cancelled Max flights until January.

Boeing has indicated a further delay may force it to cut production of the Max again or halt it altogether.

In that case, US investment and exports would be hit even harder without any offsetting boost from inventories. Concerns about a manufacturing and economic recession would escalate.

Ukraine: why Volodymyr Zelensky is pursuing a disruptive agenda The president has a star role in the Trump impeachment scandal but escaping the oligarchs’ clutches is a bigger challenge

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Thomson Reuters begins search for new chief executive The company’s board has hired search firm Spencer Stuart to draw up a shortlist ANDREW EDGECLIFFE-JOHNSON, ANNA NICOLAOU AND ALEX BARKER IN NEW YORK

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homson Reuters has begun the search for a chief executive to succeed Jim Smith, who has led the $34bn professional information group since 2012.

Four people with knowledge of the succession process said the Canadian company’s board had appointed Spencer Stuart, the search firm, to draw up a shortlist of internal and external candidates. The search was at an early stage, one said, with the handover unlikely to happen this year.

Two of those people said that Neil Masterson, the co-chief operating officer responsible for commercial and technology operations, was an internal contender. Mr Masterson is one of the few executives at the company who had worked for both Thomson Corporation and Reuters

before the Canadian company’s $17bn takeover of the UK financial data group which formed Thomson Reuters in 2008.

Mr Smith, 60, oversaw the sale of the finance and risk business formed from combining Reuters with the Toronto group’s Thomson Financial division. In a two-stage deal, it first sold a majority stake in the financial data business to a Blackstonebacked consortium for $17bn and then, this summer, it agreed the sale of the renamed Refinitiv to the London Stock Exchange for $27bn.

The second of those transactions, which is due to close in the second half of 2020, will leave Thomson Reuters a substantial shareholder in the LSE, but it has said that it plans to sell down its stake within five years.

That will leave the US-focused Westlaw legal information business as its largest operation, alongside tools for tax, accounting and compliance professionals.

www.businessday.ng

BEN HALL, ROMAN OLEARCHYK AND MAX SEDDON IN KIEV

ou are absolutely right. Not only 100 per cent but actually 1,000 per cent.”

The fawning tone of Volodymyr Zelensky’s July telephone conversation with Donald Trump provided an embarrassing snapshot of a neophyte leader desperate to curry favour with a US president.

But as the scandal around Mr Trump’s alleged coercion of an ally to rake up dirt on one of his political opponents consumes Washington, Ukraine’s new president looks a good deal more resilient as he tries to stay above the fray and deliver on his sweeping mandate to overhaul his country.

Mr Z elensky has larg ely shunned the media since winning Ukraine’s presidency in a landslide in April, communicating instead via Facebook. When he finally sat down with reporters in a trendy Kiev food market on October 10, he answered questions for an astonishing 14 hours. By the time the session ended after midnight he was so exhausted he was stammering. His aides had to hustle him out of his chair.

The former television comedian has made a political career out of his performances before a live audience and this was no exception.

Even better, he had outlasted Vladimir Putin, the Russian president known for his lengthy exchanges with the media.

Mr Zelensky batted away questions about Mr Trump. With a grasp of policy detail patently lacking only months before, he laid out his vast ambitions to remake Ukraine into a dynamic market economy free of the corruption that has left it one of the poorest countries in Europe. But he failed to dispel doubts about his own independence from oligarchs and his willingness to fight back against corporate cap-

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ture of the state.

“It is like a movie with two storylines,” says Svyatoslav Vakarchuk, a Ukrainian singer who now leads Holos, a reformist party. “We don’t know how it ends.”

Transformative moderniser or a politician beholden to bigger interests? It is a question Ukrainians and their western backers were grappling with well before Mr Zelensky was sucked into allegations that Mr Trump tried to force him to open a corruption probe into the son of 2020 Democratic presidential hopeful Joe Biden — claims that are now at the centre of impeachment proceedings in Washington.

Mr Zelensky was elected vowing to sweep aside corruption and politically-motivated manipulation of the judicial system and here was Mr Trump, allegedly, pushing him to pursue an investigation for political ends.

The phone call exposed a rift between Kiev and the White House just when Mr Zelensky needed strong US backing to help persuade Moscow to end the war in eastern Ukraine, which has cost more than 13,000 lives. Mr Zelensky has sought to restart peace talks with the Kremlin, making concessions that his domestic opponents fear are leading to a Ukrainian capitulation.

“The message Trump sent to Zelensky was quite clear: meet Putin and solve your problem,” says Alyona Getmanchuk, director of the New Europe Center, a Kiev think-tank. “Ukraine is becoming more and more isolated in dealing with Putin.”

Ukraine may appear to be at the mercy of bigger powers, but it still has the ability to shape its own destiny and build a free society, says Mr Vakarchuk, who supports the new president’s objectives but worries about his lack of respect for Ukrainian institutions.

The new government has set extraordinary ambitions. As well as peace in the Donbas region and the end of corruption, it is aiming for cumulative growth in gross domes@Businessdayng

tic product of 40 per cent over five years and 5m new jobs in sectors ranging from manufacturing and agriculture to IT in a bid to attract some workers home and persuade others not to leave in the first place.

In recent weeks, Ukraine’s parliament has passed scores of bills intended to upgrade the economy and modernise the state, sometimes with barely any debate or scrutiny. There are new rules on port and infrastructure concessions, resource extraction, consumer protection, securities regulation, the unbundling of the state-owned natural gas company and the digitisation of customs clearance and other services.

“We have a lot of energy,” Oleksiy Honcharuk, the prime minister, told the Financial Times. “And we have almost no time. We need to adopt [laws and reforms] in the next couple of months. Then we will have more or less a year for implementation. And then we need growth.”

Tymofiy Mylovanov, economy and trade minister, admits the pace of change is “insane”. There will be mistakes, he says, but haste is necessary.

Only a few weeks ago the UStrained academic was giving maths classes at the Kyiv School of Economics. Now he is in charge of the three biggest economic reform dossiers: privatisation of several hundred state companies, legalisation of land sales to make the most of Ukraine’s vast agricultural resources, and an overhaul of the labour market.

These reforms, called for by investors and international institutions, have long been stymied by a political system dominated

by Ukraine’s powerful oligarchs and other interests. Now they are being pushed through in a matter of minutes.

“A lot of this is about overshooting,” says Mr Mylovanov. “We have to be able to break the chains. Once you are in the new equilibrium you can think again about the balance.”

Tuesday 22 October 2019

BUSINESS DAY

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Tuesday 22 October 2019

BUSINESS DAY

www.businessday.ng

https://www.facebook.com/businessdayng

@Businessdayng

Tuesday 22 October 2019

BUSINESS DAY

47

POLITICS & POLICY Labour Party faults FG over border closure Oyo APC, PDP bicker …Urges NASS to amend Electoral Act for INEC to streamline parties INIOBONG IWOK

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he Labour Party (LP) has said that despite the Federal Government good intentions, the current border closure between Nigeria and the Benin Republic may not achieve the desired objectives if not properly monitored, while lamenting that Nigerians were being subjected to untold hardship by the decision.

The party however, urged the Federal Government to be proactive and resolve issues that led to the border closure for the sake of the citizenry.

Nigeria recently closed its land borders with Benin Republic, as a result of trade dispute.

The Federal Government said the decision is to stem smuggling and encourage local manufacturers.

The border closure between the two countries has led to an increase in prices of food stuffs and other commodities in Nigeria in recent weeks.

Hammed Ali, head of Nigeria’s Customs Service

Hammed Ali

(NCS), said recently that no item can be imported or exported through the nation’s land borders.

However, speaking in an interview with BusinessDay, Monday, Mike Omotosho, national chairman of the LP, said Nigeria may be sending a wrong signal to foreigners and investors if the nation’s border remains shut for long.

He added that the interest of the citizenry should be the top of any decision and policy of government.

According to him, “It does not make sense when you have a policy which is

perceived to be hard on the people and it stays for long.

“The Federal Government may have good intention but it may be abused; its objective may not be achieved. Prices of food are up and Nigerians are suffering; you have to think of that. There is the free movement of people in the region that is what people have always capitalised on.

“Such decision may not be good in a time when we are opening up the economy, other countries are opening up; if not well

managed, and citizens may not understand government intensions.”

Speaking further on moves by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to de-register non-performing political parties in the country, the national chairman, noted that INEC had no powers to de-list political parties, stressing that such action would require an amendment of the Electoral Act by the National Assembly.

He added that the number of political parties in the country was too much; stressing that most of them lacked ideology.

“The registration of political party is a constitutional issue; if the parties meet INEC criteria they must be registered. But a party should be formed based on ideology; but when you have so many parties, what ideology would they say they have?

“The National Assembly must amend the electoral Act and give INEC the power to streamline number of political parties in the country. The current numbers are certainly too much,” he said.

Edward Onoja sworn in as Kogi’s new deputy governor VICTORIA NNAKAIKE, Lokoja

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dward Onoja, a former chief of staff to Governor Yahaya Bello has been sworn in on Monday the new Deputy Governor of Kogi State.

This follows his clearance by the House of Assembly after screening at the assembly complex in Lokoja.

The swearing-in was performed on him by the Chief Judge (CJ) of Kogi State, Justice Nasir Ajanah, assisted by the Grand Khadi of the state, Abdulkareem Aruwa and Governor Bello The screening proceedings was presided over by the Speaker, Matthew Kolawole, who said shortly after the swearing in that Onoja’s loyalty to Bello has brought him to a higher level.

Matthew Kolawole equally charged the new deputy governor to con-

Edward Onoja

tinue toeing the path of loyalty and hard work which earned him the elevation.

Speaking shortly after the swearing in of Edward Onoja, Governor

Bello described him as a loyal and trusted friend who had always demonstrated excellent ability even as his chief of staff, adding that he believed that the elevation will no

doubt spur him do more in the task of moving the state to the next level.

“This is not a time for celebration, neither are we mourning, but Edward and I regarded this as a call for the uplifting the state,” he said.

Recall that the State Assembly, last Friday, impeached Simon Achuba as the deputy to Governor Bello, shortly after receiving the report of the panel set up to investigate allegations of gross misconduct against the former deputy.

But Achuba on Sunday declared his impeachment as unconstitutional, saying that he will challenge it in court.

Onoja, who recently resigned as the Chief of Staff to the governor, is the running mate to Bello, in the November 16 state governorship election, said God has used the opportunity to elevate him.

over N8bn road project

REMI FEYISIPO, Ibadan

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yo State chapter of All Progressives Congress (APC) has described the plan by Governor Seyi Makinde to spend N8billion on a reconstruction of the Lagos/Iwo Road Interchange axis in Ibadan, the state capital as “a misplaced priority as well as an attempt to squander government resources”.

But in swift reaction, People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in Oyo State said that the APC, by criticising the plans to reconstruct the interchange was showing utter disregard for the state’s economy which has been bleeding as a result of loss of several man-hours due to traffic congestion at the interchange.

The broom party raised the alarm over the plans by the administration of Makinde had, on Friday, announced the state government’s plan to immediately embark on the project which would be completed in about a year as a measure to decongest the area and also give the physical outlook of Ibadan a facelift.

The governor stated this at Adogba Central Mosque where he had joined the congregation for the weekly Jumat service to clear the air on what his government would do in compensation for the facilities expected to be consumed by the reconstruction project.

Oyo APC however, in a statement issue in Ibadan by its Assistant Publicity Secretary, Ayobami Adejumo, said that the present administration was now popular for building castle in the air in demonstration of its gross incompetence and avowed desire for mismanaging public funds.

“The good people of the Pacesetter State were taken aback by the action of Gov. Makinde last Friday when he chose a Mosque as the place to announce the plan to do a multi-billion project. Without any record of presentation at the State Executive Council meeting or consideration and approval by the appropriate organs of government as required by law, the governor reeled out a contract sum for another white elephant project.

“The question on the lips of many people now borders on how the cost of N8billion was arrived at even when no picture of the proposed picture has been shown to

the world. What is the scope of the reconstruction project and where are the engineering designs where culminated in the contract sum?

Was there any due diligence before the cost was arrived at and when did the consultants carried out their survey of the proposed site? Where is the Bill of Quantity (BoQ) and when did the relevant office advertise for Tender to be made?

“Another pertinent question is, why the desperation, on the part of Makinde, to commit a bogus amount of money to any construction work in an area that would be covered by two different projects already awarded by the federal government? There are strong indications that the ongoing Lagos-Ibadan Expressway rehabilitation project would take of the expansion of the Lagos/ Iwo Road Interchange while again the recently awarded rehabilitation of Ibadan-Ife Expressway project would cover the remaining portion of the axis.”

According to Adejumo, “As it has become the usual practice of Makinde administration to put the cart before the horse, the people of the state cannot just watch while a government without any blueprint or action plan would continue to experiment after five months in office. So far, the only achievement of the current administration is the rebranded exercise books distributed recently with pomp and ceremony.

“It would have been better to follow up on the exercise books distribution with provision of pieces of furniture and release of running grants for the use in public primary and secondary schools across the state. Rather the state government embarked on loan bazaar as it awarded some supply contracts without anything to show for the billions of naira being spent on daily basis.

“As if this was not enough, Makinde again took to the mass media recently to announce his plan to construct a new Gbagi Market on the popular Exhibition Ground in Sanngo, Ibadan at a time experts blamed the vehicular traffic challenges bedeviling the state capital on the existing market places in the heart of the city. If not sheer display of incompetence and the unbridled quest to mismanage public funds, there is no reason for this kind of desperation for contract awards by the present administration.”

leaderSHIP

BUSINESS DAY Tuesday 22 October 2019 www.businessday.ng

Ceo in focus:

Why Kennedy Uzoka of UBA is BusinessDay’s Bank CEO of the Year

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SEGUN ADAMS

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According to Jobberman, a leading recruitment platform in Nigeria, UBA was not only the best financial institution to work in Nigeria, but it also ranked second overall best firm to work in 2018

Kennedy Uzoka

from its 2018 high owing to a general wave of pessimism plaguing the stock market and weighing on banking stocks.

UBA, leading pan–African franchise, is currently serving about 18 million customers, through its 1,000 branches and customer touchpoints, 2,550 ATMs, 16,216 PoS, robust online and mobile banking platforms and social media.

”

u s i n e ss Day ’s Ba n k Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Year is suave, charismatic and visionary; a crème de la crème banker under whose watch United Bank for Africa (UBA) has created new milestones. He is none other than Kennedy Uzoka.

Uzoka, the recipient of the seventh BusinessDay Banks’ & Other Financial Institutions Award (BAFI) Bank CEO of the Year, was recognized for the quantum leap seen at UBA since he became Group Managing Director/CEO of the big lender.

A Professional Member, Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria, and an honorary member of Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria since 2012, Uzoka’s banking career spans over two decades covering core banking, corporate marketing, strategic business advisory services and resources management.

In August of 2016, Uzoka was appointed as UBA’s GMD/CEO from his previous capacity as Executive Director where he had served for six years.

The same year Uzoka took over as Group CEO, UBA was able to see a turnaround, especially in its financial position with credit in part to the previous leadership.

In 2016, UBA reversed a 0.4 percent decline from the previous year to grow total asset by 27.3 percent to N3.5 trillion. The bank also grew customer deposit by 19.4 percent to N2.49 trillion after a 4 percent crunch in the year before.

Net loans expanded by 45.2 percent to N1.51 trillion naira, an improvement from a -3.3 percent decline in 2015.

UBA also grew its shareholders’ fund by 34.7 percent to N4.48 billion in the period.

The strong growth trajectory has been maintained since that time, seen in the subsequent performance of the UBA group under Uzoka.

From 2016 till June 2019 total asset has surged 43 percent to N5.01 trillion while it has grown shareholders fund by 16.87 percent to N542.46 billion in the same period.

In the first half of 2019, UBA grew profit by the most among Nigeria’s tier–one banks except Access Bank which is reaping fruits of its merger with Diamond Bank.

UBA grew by 29.55 percent compared to an average of 6.21 percent by two of the other big banks (excluding Access Bank and another tier-one lender that pared profit).

The share price of UBA has grown from under N6 per share before his appointment as GMD/CEO to over N12 per share although the bank’s share price has declined

On March 1, 2019, UBA launched its full banking operations in the United Kingdom, an expansion move that further consolidates its unique positioning as the first and only Sub-Saharan African financial institution with banking operations in both the United Kingdom and the United States

In the domestic banking industry, UBA boasts of a tenth of the sector’s market share and through its retail banking is contributing to formalizing Nigeria’s unbanked.

UBA enjoys excellent rating from international credit rating organisations including Agusto & Co and Fitch Credit Rating.

Under Uzoka’s watch, UBA, Africa’s global bank, expanded across the continent and beyond, meeting client’s global banking needs through its presence in London, New York and Paris.

In 2019 alone, UBA launched operations in Mali and upgrade its operation in the United Kingdom.

On March 1, 2019, UBA launched its full banking operations in the United Kingdom, an expansion move that further consolidates its unique positioning as the first and only Sub-Saharan African financial institution with banking operations in both the United Kingdom and the United States.

The formal launch which followed the authorization of the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) for UBA UK Limited to carry out full-scale wholesale banking across the United Kingdom reinforced its strong franchise as Africa’s Global Bank, facilitating trade and capital flows between Africa and the world.

On the digital front, Uzoka has

also helped UBA remain unrivalled in the use of cutting edge technology to serve bank customers and clients.

The visionary leadership of the bank spearheaded by Uzoka has earned UBA digital bank of the Year consistently since the launch of Leo, an artificial intelligence chatbot, in January last year.

In 2008, UBA won Euromoney’s Best Digital Bank of the Year, as well as The West Africa Financial Technology Innovation Awards, 2019 for Best Digital Transformation initiative, application or Programme Award in 2019.

UBA also won Best Digital Bank in Nigeria and Best Automated Chatbot initiative, application or programme in The West Africa Excellence in Retail Financial Services Awards 2019, West Africa (The Asian Banker).

The chatbot, Leo, has seen UBA become the leader in artificial intelligence and the technology which is available on different platforms including Whatsapp, Facebook was recently launched on iOS, the mobile operating system of Apple Inc. On the back of the launch of Leo on Apple Business Chat, U BA c u sto m e rs ca n u s e t h e services of Leo, to open an account, buy airtime, check account balance, make account transfers and pay bills.

With Business Chat, customers can always reach a live person and are always in control of whether they share any contact information with a business, the bank said at the launch earlier in September.

Since its introduction in 2018, Leo has effectively been replicated in 18 African countries and the list keeps growing.

Asides consistent delivery of value to UBA shareholders and excellent customer service, the lender under Uzoka has bested other lenders to emerge the best place to work in the last two years.

According to Jobberman, a leading recruitment platform in Nigeria, UBA was not only the best financial institution to work in Nigeria, but it also ranked second overall best firm to work in 2018.

To ensure that it sources, attracts, recruits, develops and retains the best talent, from around the world UBA ensures it provides a non-threatening environment that encourages and rewards rolemodel performance.

The bank also helps its work-force maintain a healthy work-life balance, provides competitive compensation and benefits that rank amongst the top-tier competitors in each of the countries UBA operate in.

In addition to ensuring adequate avenues for career growth and exploration – whether functional or across country lines, UBA develops a culturally diverse pool of talented professionals, with the skills and mindset to deliver excellent results, in different markets and cultures, across the African continent and beyond.

In 2008, the big bank also set up the UBA Academy to ensure that its workforce is continually equipped to remain one of the best in the world.

Uzoka who has led UBA beyond Africa to globe holds a BSc. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Benin and an MBA from the University of Lagos.

In 2018 he, alongside 109 bankers and financial sector executives, was conferred with an Honorary Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN).

While he was Group Deputy Managing Director and CEO, UBA Africa he was managing the Group’s country subsidiaries across 18 countries in Africa, as well as supervising three key strategic support areas in Digital Banking, Information Technology, and Personal Banking.

As Deputy Managing Director, he was the Executive in charge of the Group’s businesses in New York and London.

Kennedy is in his current role as Group Managing Director/CEO is responsible for leading the development and execution of UBA Group’s long-term strategy.

He is an alumnus of Harvard Business School (AMP) in Boston USA, the International Institute of Management Development (IMS) in Lausanne, Switzerland and the London Business School, United Kingdom.

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