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Economic woes deepen as labour plans nationwide strike KEHINDE AKINTOLA, Abuja, DIPO OLADEHINDE & EMEKA UCHEAGA, Lagos

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s if things couldn’t get any worse for the Nigerian economy, organized labour has declared a seven day warning strike starting Wednesday midnight which could continue indefinitely if a deal fails to be reached on October 4th when negotiations with Federal government continues.

The strike action is set to grind to a halt an economy that was already struggling to grow.

No doubt, this action will not only affect Nigeria’s economy but it will also create a negative image for foreign investors as the

Osun re-run: Last minute trade-offs as Petrol scarcity may return SDP set to determine US Fed rate hike to increase Nigeria’s risk premium next governor

organized labour has directed all oil workers to shut down terminals, public and private institu-

tions, offices, banks, schools, public and private business premises as from Wednesday

midnight, 26th September, 2018, in compliance with National Continues on page 38

BOLADALE BAMIGBOLA, Osogbo; IniObong Iwok & MICHEAL ANI, Lagos

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Inside 2019: Ambode breaks silence, says ready for APC primaries P. 2 Fidelity Bank optimistic on loan recovery as credit loss provision declines 46% P. 3

…Omisore roots for APC on coalition government hope ... We will win election regardless – PDP

L-R: John Chikura, immediate past chairperson of the Africa Regional Committee (ARC) of the International Association of Deposit Insurers (IADI) and former chief executive, Deposit Protection Corporation of Zimbabwe; Umaru Ibrahim, new chairperson of ARC of IADI/NDIC MD/CEO, and Mohamud A. Muhamud, vice chairperson/chief executive officer, Kenya Deposit Insurance Corporation (KDIC), at the opening ceremony of the 2018 IADI-ARC AGM and Technical Assistance Workshop in Lagos, yesterday.

ll eyes are on Iyiola Omisore, the candidate of the Social Democratic party (SDP) as the messiah that will deliver the Osun state governorship to either the candidate of ruling All Progressive Congress (APC), or the opposition People’s Democratic Party (PDP).

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), had on Sunday declared the election result inconclusive, fixing Thursday 27th September as the re-run date, after a painstaking governorship election, that saw the PDP and the APC in close contest.

Omisore, who contested last Saturday’s governorship election on the platform of SDP, has said his party would support the APC Continues on page 38

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Thursday 27 September 2018

Prospects for resolution of MTN CCI saga sends bank stocks higher ... GTBank back into N1trn market cap club Emeka Gerald

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he Nigerian Stock Exchange Banking index has returned 6.23 percent since September 11 after news that MTN had dragged the Central Bank of Nigeria and Attorney General of the Federation to court boosted investors’ confidence in bank stocks after it took a severe hit when CBN announced sanctions on banks and MTN for allegedly illegally repatriating profits from Nigeria.

The renewed confidence in

banks remained unscathed this week despite news that CBN had revoked the operating licence of Skye Bank last Friday. Nigeria’s largest bank by market capitalization is now back into the N1 trillion market cap club after exiting the exclusive club only about 2 weeks ago. The stock rallied 15.38 percent from its year low of N32.50 on September 11 which catapulted the lender out of the elite N1 trillion market cap club. The stocked returned 1.35 percent yesterday to

Continues on page 38

NDIC says 49 banks, 187 MFBs, 42 PMBs in liquidation ... advocates investment options for deposit insurance agencies HOPE MOSES-ASHIKE & MICHAEL ANI

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he Niger ia Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) said on Wednesday that it has through its failure resolution mechanisms, closed a total of 52 deposit money banks (DMB), out of which 49 are currently in liquidation while the remaining are involved in litigations challenging the revocation of their license by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

In the case of other deposittaking financial institutions, a total of 187 microfinance banks (MFB) and 42 primary mortgage banks are currently in liquidation.

The Nigerian banking sector reform, which began in 2004, reduced the number of banks from 89 to 25 in 2005, and later to 24.

Umaru Ibrahim, managing director/CEO, said the NDIC as one of the main resolution authorities in Nigeria has adopted different resolution mechanisms in resolving the failure of distressed deposit taking financial institutions in the country. The failure resolution mechanisms used by the corporation include deposit pay out, purchase and assumption, open bank assistance, assisted mergers, and bridge bank.

Last week Friday, the NDIC and the CBN revoked the operating license of Skye Bank Plc and set up a bridge bank called Polaris Bank Limited.

“Polaris bank is a full-fledged bank if you have money there you can go and check and you will get your money and you can always enjoy banking service. It is no longer a bridge bank but a full-fledged bank that has been issued banking licence by the CBN and it is largely owned by Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON)”, Ibrahim told journalists on the side line of the International Association of Deposit Insurers (IADI) Africa Regional Committee (ARC) workshop in Lagos.

Meanwhile, the Corporation is seeking investment options

aside government instruments, such as the Nigeria Treasury Bills and the Federal Government Bonds.

The Corporation on Wednesday identified absence of investment options as one of the funding challenges it is facing in carrying out its mandate.

Part of the mandates of the Corporation is to supervise banks so as to protect depositors; foster monetary stability; promote an effective and efficient payment system; and promote competition and innovation in the banking system.

Umaru also identified the Corporation’s other challenges as relating to failure resolution and liquidation mandate, which he said have been traced to some inadequacies in the extant law establishing the corporation (the NDIC act 2006).

According to him, an amendment bill is currently before the national assembly, which if passed would address most of the issues in line with IADI specification.

“It is therefore expected that other investment options beneficial to deposit insurance agencies will be examined,” Umaru said while welcoming participants at the workshop.

Looking at the theme of the workshop, ‘Financial Stability, System-Wide Crisis Preparedness and Effective Bank Resolution’, he noted that global financial stability is constantly being threatened by one form of crisis or the other, which present potent downside risks to achieving financial stability and precursors to redesigning broad based financial systems policies.

“A system wide approach to crisis management, involving collaborative efforts of financial safety nets participants and regional deposit insurance systems is therefore imperative.

Hopefully strategies for systemwide crisis preparedness and resolution options in promoting financial stability in the region would emerge”, NDIC chief executive added.

L-R: Tunde Akande, special assistant to chairman, Lagos State Inland Revenue Service (LIRS); Toluwalase Akpomedaye, regional coordinator, Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS); Taiwo Oyedele, partner, West Africa Tax Leader, Pricewaterhousecooper; Adetola Adegbayi, executive director, general insurance, Leadway Assurance, and Shola Tinubu, president, Nigerian Council of Registered Insurance Brokers (NCRIB), at the Leadway Assurance Tax Seminar organised in partnership with PWC in Lagos.

Nigerian states’ own revenue generation is key credit differentiator – Moody’s ENDURANCE OKAFOR

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igeria’s federal system gives the country’s 36 states some fiscal flexibility and relative independence, creating scope for each one to have a different credit profile, Moody’s Investors Service said in a report released Wednesday.

The report titled “Regional & Local Governments -- Nigeria, Institutional framework moderately robust, own source revenue key credit differentiator”, is an update to the markets and does not constitute a rating action.

“Nigeria’s 36 states enjoy relative decision-making autonomy, receive allocations of centrally gathered revenue and are constitutionally empowered to generate own-source revenue,” said Cynthia Mar, a Moody’s Analyst and coauthor of the report.

“The counterpoint to this freedom is a lack of centralized fiscal supervision and regulation, which weakens the institutional framework.”

The states operate within an established institutional framework which provides a moderately robust mechanism for distributing resources and responsibilities between federal and state entities.

States that use their fiscal flexibility to raise own-source revenue - shielding them from oil price volatility - gain the fullest credit advantage from this institutional framework.

A key differentiator for the states is their ability to raise internally generated revenue (IGR), made up of income tax, property taxes and other levies. Like VAT, IGR is relatively stable and has a record of being resilient even when the oil price drops sharply.

As such, states which are able

to raise significant IGR have more predictable revenue and greater fiscal flexibility.

Those with the highest levels of IGR are Lagos, Ogun and Rivers, according to Moody’s.

Pay-as-you-earn (PAYE) income taxes make up the largest portion of IGR, accounting for about twothirds of the total. As PAYE is levied on salaried employees, states which have more rural economies are at a disadvantage in raising revenue in this way, whereas the reverse is true for those states with larger urban populations working in the formal economy.

States that successfully raise IGR also benefit from an increased borrowing capacity.

As of 2017, Lagos is the most heavily indebted of all the states with the largest external and domestic debt stock (approximately $2.5 billion), but has a debt to revenue ratio similar to peers.

2019: Ambode breaks silence, says ready for APC primaries JOSHUA BASSEY

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a g o s S t a t e g ov e r n o r, Akinwunmi Ambode on Wednesday broke his long silence on the crisis over his second term bid, saying he was ready and prepared to participate the Saturday’s governorship primary election.

A source told BusinessDay that the governor may have been given a soft landing by the leadership of his party, and that the outcome of the Osun governorship in which the opposition People Democratic Party (PDP) almost won, played a role, and that the governor had agreed to some conditions given by the party.

Members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) across the state are expected this Saturday to the party’s flagbearer through direct primaries.

Ambode in statement issued

by Kehinde Bamigbetan, his commissioner for information and strategy, said he is restating his

readiness in line with the choice of the party in Lagos State and the validation given to the direct primary preference by the Governor’s Advisory Council (GAC).

“As our great party approaches Saturday, September 29, 2018, earmarked for the direct primary election to choose the candidate to fly our party’s gubernatorial flag at the next general election, I am happy to restate my commitment to participate in that process having procured and submitted my nomination form and having formally declared my intention to seek a second term to continue on the path of unprecedented growth and development that our state has witnessed since 2015”.

The governor expressed gratitude to Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the national leader of the party and most influential personality in the Lagos politics, party elders and executives; GAC members; all APC members and Lagos residents “whose support, understanding and prayers have

assisted me in no small measure in being used as an instrument through which our state has redefined the concept of greatness”.

The statement added that the governor in seeking re-election is approaching the founding fathers and teeming members of the party with a “grateful heart, open arms and a pledge to open and deeper attention to the concerns of this one, big family”.

The statement added that a return of the party’s ticket to Ambode will guarantee the stability of the state’s growing economy; ensure the continuation of the growth and development it has witnessed over time and ensure that the opposition does not take root in the State.

The statement congratulates the governor’s co-contestants for the courage and commitment to the party and urges party faithful to come out en masse and vote peacefully in all the 20 local governments and 245 wards where the election will take place.

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Gates, Macron highlight strategies to lift Nigeria’s 86m extremely poor people ISAAC ANYAOGU, New York

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ill Gates, American billionaire philanthropist and Emmanuel Macron, France president, have identified massive investments in health, human capital development and agriculture as Nigeria’s way out of an impending future where along with Congo DR it will have 40 percent of the world’s extremely poor.

In a presentation made at the Goolkeepers event, organised by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, set up to track progress on the 17 sustainable development goals, held in New York on September 26, Gates said though about one billion people have been lifted out of poverty, global progress on poverty reduction have slowed because poor nations also have the most children with little social safety nets.

“Poverty in these areas is unique. It’s rooted in violence, political instability, gender inequality, severe climate change, and other deepseated crises. It is also tied to other problems, including high rates of child mortality and malnutrition. As a result, today’s poorest people have significantly fewer opportunities than most of the billion people who escaped poverty during the first two waves,” said Gates.

Extreme poverty is measured by households who live below $1.90 per day and this is largely concentrated in sub- Saharan Africa where over 85 percent will live by 2050. However, the goal keepers believe that with 60 percent of Africa’s population under 25 years, presents an opportunity to leverage the young population to drive growth hence education, health and agricultural investments are the best ap-

proach to achieve this.

“To continue improving the human condition, our most important priority is to help create opportunities in Africa’s fastest-growing countries, this means investing in young people,” said Gates.

In his address, Macron said Africa should not seek to replicate the development path followed by Western countries to develop but could quickly leapfrog stages of developing using innovative technologies in improving energy access, health and agricultural practices.

“Africa has the most advanced mobile payment systems. This is because you did wait to set up telecommunication masts and build new equipment and cables but you keyed into the mobile phone revolution and I believe this is kind of innovation required to develop Africa,”

Fidelity Bank optimistic on loan recovery as credit loss provision declines 46% CYNTHIA IKWUETOGHU & DAVID IBIDAPO

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ecently released half year financial result of Fidelity bank revealed that provisions for credit losses declined by 46 percent from N4.8 billion in H1 2017 to N2.5 billion in H1 2018.

Fidelity Bank’s reduction in credit loss provision for the period improved performance of the bank’s net interest income. This was initially affected by an increase in interest and similar expenses by 10 percent leading to a decline by six percent in net interest income from N32.9 billion to N30.8 billion.

As a result, net interest income after credit losses improved slightly by approximately 1 percent to N28.2 billion from N28.1 billion during period under review. Meanwhile, Fidelity Bank grew its loan book by 10 percent to N795.4 billion from N768.7 billion as at 31st December, 2017.

Furthermore, fee and commission income also rose by 46 percent on credit related fees to N13.7 billion from N9.4 billion in H1 2017, while fee and commission expense declined by 12 percent.

The company’s net gains from financial assets at fair value doubled at 54 percent to N3.1 billion from N2 billion, and its personnel expenses fell from its corresponding figure as a result of an absence of pension contribution.

Profit before tax (PBT) increased fairly by 27 percent to N13 billion, from N10.2 billion in H1 2017.

Profit after tax (PAT) likewise reported a 31 percent growth to N11.8 billion from N9 billion.

However, the bank’s balance sheet, which shows its financial position, revealed a growth in total assets by 14 percent due to investments in debt instruments at fair value, equity instruments at fair value as well as debt instruments

Anambra to have international airport, well represented at centre- Atiku EMMANEL NDUKUBA, Awka

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tiku Abubakar, former vice president and presidential hopeful of People’s Democratic Party (PDP), has assured that Anambra State will get an international airport to ease air travels for the people, if elected.

Addressing the party delegates on Wednesday in Awka, Atiku said the people don’t need to travel to Abuja or Lagos to connect international flights.

He observed that, like in America, every state should have an international airport.

He also told the delegates there are a lot of things he will do in the state, while appealing to them to support his

FG, labour reconciliatory meeting deadlocked as banks, oil workers set for 7-day warning strike KEHINDE AKINTOLA & JOSHUA BASSEY

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he reconciliatory meeting initiated by Federal Government to avert the seven-day warning strike declared by the organised labour on Wednesday was deadlocked.

According to the directive issued by the labour centres, oil workers are to shut down terminals, public and private institutions, offices, banks, schools, public and private business premises as from Wednesday midnight (yesterday), in compliance with National Executive Committee (NEC) resolution, until further directives.

At the meeting, Chris Ngige, minister of labour and employment, who convened the meeting in Abuja, disclosed that the Tripartite

at amortised cost. Shareholder’s fund declined by 4 percent to N184.2 billion, from N192.3 billion in first half 2017 as a result of decrease in non-distributable regulatory reserve by 95 percent.

Return on Equity (ROE), a profitability ratio also known as return on net worth, reveals how much profit a company generates with shareholder’s fund invested stood at 5 percent.

Return on Assets (ROA) which indicates the perdollar profit a company earns on its assets stood at 0.5 percent signifying a low ratio. Hence, since banks are highly leveraged, a low ROA ratio of 1 to 2 percent may represent substantial revenues and profit for a bank.

Earnings per share increased by 32 percent to 41 kobo for the period ended 30th June, 2018. Also, the share price of the bank increased 3.03 percent to close at N1.70 in the market on Wednesday.

Frank Jacobs, outgoing president, Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) (l), with Ahmed Mansur, incoming president, MAN/executive director, government and strategic relations, Dangote Industries Ltd, at the MAN 46th annual general meeting in Lagos

ambition to clinch the party’s ticket to run in the presidential election.

Atiku promised that upon securing a ticket, he will among other things come down to discuss what he can do for them.

He said that he is championing restructuring to give Nigerians the autonomy they need to man their resources; a situation where people will be free to man their resources.

He said he believed that restructuring is fundamental for the economic prosperity of the nation, lamenting that the nation’s economy which GDP was growing at six per cent was crashed into recession, and now at the bottom in Africa.

Committee on the new National Minimum Wage will reconvene and conclude the negotiation, on Thursday, 4th October 2018.

Ngige, who gave the assurance while briefing newsmen at the end of a closed meeting with the leadership of the labour centres— Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Trade Union Congress (TUC) and United Labour Congress (ULC)— reiterated President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration’s towards implementing the new minimum wage.

“One of the ways that we going to show it is by implementing the new national minimum wage and this we need to fix a base for the lowest paid worker in Nigeria.

“We are resuming next week, precisely on Thursday, October 4 and the meeting

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may split over to October 5, as we normally use two days for the meeting.

“So, we are reconvening the meeting on the October 4, and all the process have being put in place,” he assured.

The minister argued that the country does not need to have any strike in the country, explained that the labour leaders have been informed of the new date and are expected to communicate to their members.

Ngige, who denied knowledge of the 14-day ultimatum issued to the Federal Government issued by the organised labour, however, assured that the tripartite committee would wrap-up in October and all other processes as it concern the new national minimum wage for workers in the country.

NFIU: EGMOT Group gives Nigeria clean health bill, lifts suspension KEHINDE AKINTOLA, Abuja

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he EGMONT Group on Wednesday lifted the suspension it imposed on Nigeria.

Nigeria was suspended on July 5, 2017 from the EGMONT Group, a network of national financial intelligence units and the highest inter-governmental association of intelligence agencies in the world, with 154 member countries including Britain and the United States of America.

The resolution was passed at the on-going 25th EGMONT Group of Financial Intelligence Units’ plenary currently holding in Sydney, Australia.

The four-day FIUs Plenary which began on the 24th September, 2018 has an

estimated of 400 delegates including heads of FIUs in attendance.

The EGMONT Group, which is an informal coalition of Financial Intelligence Units from 155 countries around the world, is a network that secures exchange of expertise and financial intelligence with capability to fight money laundering, terrorism financing and serious financial crimes.

Kayode Oladele, chairman, House of Representatives’ Committee on Financial Crimes, who also attended the meeting, told our correspondent via telephone chat, that, “It means we are back as a member of the group of Financial Intelligence Units and can share information with our coun-

terparts across the globe.

“Beyond that, you’ll recall also that the processing of our application for the membership of the Financial Action Task Force FATF) was suspended hence the high-powered delegation from the FATF that was supposed to come to Nigeria could not come.”

Oladele (APC-Ogun) noted that the lifting of the suspension placed on Nigeria from the Egmont Group clears the way for the processing of the country’s application for membership to the FATF. “The Plenary of the FATF is coming up in France, I think between 13th to 19th of October, now the Nigerian membership of the FATF will be tabled before the FATF plenary.

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Total’s $3.3bn Engina FPSO to commence operation in few weeks DIPO OLADEHINDE

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nticipated to increase Nigeria’s oil production by 200, 000 barrels of oil per day (b/d), Total E&P Nigeria Limited has reaffirmed plans to commence operations a few weeks from now.

“First oil from Nigeria’s Egina field is planned for the end of this year,” Ahmadu-Kida Musa, Total’s deputy managing director of upstream companies in Nigeria, said at a presentation in Singapore.

The platform, when operational, will increase Nigeria’s crude oil production by about 10 percent.

The Egina Floating Production Storage Offloading (FPSO), one of the largest in the world, has oil processing capacity of 208,000

b/d, and storage capacity of 2.3m barrels.

The $16billion-worth Egina development is the largest deep offshore investment being undertaken by an international oil company (IOCs) operating in the country in recent times.

Egina a medium sweet crude, with API of 27.3 degrees and sulphur content of 0.165 percent, is designed for 25 years of operations, and reputed as the deepest offshore development carried out so far in Nigeria, in water depths of over 1,500 meters.

Total said on Tuesday it is expecting deep-water oil and gas operations to make a strong contribution to its output and cash flow, thanks to major developments in the West Africa’s Gulf of Guinea region, Brazil and U.S. Gulf area.

Production from Deepwater projects is expected to reach 500,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boepd) by 2020, contributing to its six to 7 percent output growth target per year from 2017 to 2020.

“Deepwater is today for us a growing and very profitable part of the portfolio,” Arnaud Breuillac, Total’s president for Exploration and Production, told investors in New York. Breuillac noted that Total’s deepwater production would increase to more than half a million barrels of oil per day by 2020 with cash flow from operations at over $30 per barrel at an oil price of $60 per barrel.

“Deepwater is approximately 15 percent of the group’s production but it would contribute to more than 35 percent of cash flow

from operations in the coming years,” he said during a presentation.

Eight months ago, Egina made history as the first FPSO unit to berth at an integration quay in Africa, for the installation of six topside modules that were fabricated in Nigeria.

During the seven months that the FPSO spent at LADOL, the team completed eight million manhours without any Lost Time Injury.

The Egina field was discovered by TUPNI in 2003, within the OML130, some 200 kilometres south of Port Harcourt, Nigeria. The field was developed by TUPNI in partnership with NNPC, China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC), South Atlantic Petroleum (SAPETRO), and PETROBRAS.

L-R: Callistus Obetta, group executive, technology and services, FirstBank; Abiona Babarinde, general manager, marketing & corporate communications, Coscharis Group; Seyi Oyefeso, group executive, commercial banking, FirstBank; Bimshade Ebifemi; Adebimpe Odubela, relationship manager, CMBG, FirstBank; Adeola Abioye, head, treasury sales, FirstBank, and Olusegun Alebiosu, chief risk officer, FirstBank, at the FirstBank Voice of the Customer in Lagos recently.

Thursday 27 September 2018

FEC approves $64m, N500m for Escravos power supply, EFCC TONY AILEMEN, Abuja

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he Federal Executive Council (FEC) on Wednesday approved $64 million for power supply for Escravos communities and N500million for facilities at the newly commissioned office of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in Abuja.

These were disclosed by Ibe Kachikwu, minister of state for petroleum resources, and Garba Shehu, senior special assistant to the president on media and publicity, while briefing newsmen at the end of the FEC meeting presided over by Yemi Osinbajo, vice president at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

Kachikwu had stated that the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) was spending about N18 million monthly to provide power to the affected communities, adding that this would solve the power problems of the communities permanently Shehu had, at the introduction of the briefing, disclosed that EFCC which presented three memos, got approval totaling N500m, to provide facilities for its new 10-storey head office building at Jabi, Abuja The anti-graft agency also got approval to purchase 700 computers and 100 lap tops at the total cost of N149m, as well as approvals to purchase a total of 15 utility vehicles.

Groups want presidency to probe alleged procurement fraud in $3.3bn Egina FPSO AMAKA ANAGOR-EWUZIE

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ollowing the allegations of an attempt to abandon local content and national interest in the protracted dispute over the $3.3 billion Egina Floating Production Storage Offloading (FPSO) contract, rights groups has called on the Federal Government to begin investigations into the procurement process that led to securing of the contract by SHI MCI. SHI MCI is a joint venture company set up by Lagos Deep Offshore Logistics (LADOL), local content partner and Samsung Heavy Industry (SHI), technical partner for the execution of the Egina project.

In a statement jointly signed by Moses Siloko Siasia, chairman of the Nigerian Young Professionals Forum (NYPF) and Hamzat

Lawal, chief executive of Connected Development (CODE), and issued in Abuja on Wednesday, the group insisted that federal government needs to thoroughly investigate the contract for Egina FSPO in which SHI is alleged to have bribed senior government officials to enable the company secure the contract, despite evidence that SHI has violated local content laws.

The groups said that if the federal government fails to initiate action with regard to the probe of SHI, it will have no option but to mobilise youths from all over Nigeria to the Presidential Villa for a civil protest.

The statement reads in part; “Our position is that the Egina FPSO contract awarded to SHI is fraudulent, ab initio and in all its ramifications.

CBN to issue framework on open banking soon Nigeria’s Muntaqa Umar-sadiq announced 2018 Eisenhower Fellow HOPE MOSES-ASHIKE

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he Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) will soon come up with an exposure draft of the framework on open banking.

The framework, which may take some time to be completed, is currently being worked upon by an inter-departmental committee at the CBN. Dipo Fatokun, director, banking and payments system department, disclosed this in Lagos at the cyber security roundtable organised

by KPMG, a leading global network of professional firms providing audit, tax, and advisory services.

Open banking regulation has been issued in other countries such as Europe and the United Kingdom. The UK’s open banking regula-

tions came into effect on 13 January, bringing changes to the sector that country.

Fatokun who spoke on ‘Fraud and Security Considerations in an emerging API Ecosystem’, said, “You cannot talk about open banking without open Application Programming Interfaces (APIs),”pointing at perimeter fencing.

“The governor and the deputy governor are very interested in that work. So, when they take it to them and they would review it, after it is approved, we would issue it as an exposure draft. What that means is that we will issue it to the industry and the industry will look at it and make comments on what they feel should be there and not included,” he said. Speaking further, he said, “Then those comments will be taken on-board and then will be finalised. It is after it is finalised

that it will be become deregulation. The take-home for me as a regulator is that there has been a lot of inputs into what the industry expects to be in that framework when it is issued, including the cyber security framework that has been issued”.

Meanwhile, it was agreed at the roundtable that fraud has increased as a result of increased participation by 3rd party service providers.

Tokunbo Martins, director, other financial institutions department (OFIDs), CBN, who spoke on cyber security guidelines, advised that boards need to be educated and aware of the cyber threat and make it real in terms of potential loss.

Martins said reporting requirements should be expanded to include information sharing between participants in the industry at appropriate levels.

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Nigerian, Muntaqa Umar-sadiq, CEO of the Private Sector Health Alliance of Nigeria, has been announced a 2018 Eisenhower Innovation Fellow the only Nigerian selected as part of 23 ascendant global leaders from around the world who will embark on a leadership journey across the United States to engage in transformative exchanges of ideas with leading innovators in their fields; and bring actionoriented solutions back to their countries.

The 23 Eisenhower Innovation Fellows are acknowledged by their outstanding and unique achievements in their various fields and are creative visionaries and disruptors who are working to make the world a better place.

It is a recognition of his pioneering work in devel-

oping the Nigeria Health Innovation Marketplace (NHIM) and fostering public private partnerships to shape health markets alongside business and public sector leaders in Nigeria, including Aliko Dangote, President/CEO, Dangote group; Muhammad Ali Pate; Jim Ovia, chairman, Zenith Bank; Aig Imoukhuede, President, Nigerian Stock Exchange; Herbert Wigwe, CEO, Access bank.

Muntaqa’s Eisenhower fellowship will focus on models to scale up gains from the NHIM and integrate an impact investment fund aimed at accelerating early stage health innovations; and investing in exemplary financially viable health innovation ecosystems that serve the health poor and underserved in Nigeria.

Eisenhower Fellowships

chairman and former U.S. secretary of defense Robert M. Gates, in a statement, said that the Eisenhower Fellows will apply what they learn from their peers and in their engagements with experts in their respective fields to maximise their potential and produce sustained impact long after their fellowships are completed. “We welcome these exceptional global leaders into the dynamic global network of Eisenhower Fellows around the world who are working to enhance international understanding and generate a positive impact in their countries,” Gates said.

“This remarkable group of change agents is committed to solving some of the most pressing global issues of our day,” George de Lama, president of Eisenhower Fellowships, said.

Thursday 27 September 2018

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ASSBIFI wants NAICOM to extend deadline for insurance recapitalisation JOSHUA BASSEY

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he Association of Senior Staff of Banks, Insurance and Financial Institutions (ASSBIFI) has requested for one year extension on the recapitalisation of the insurance companies, saying the time frame given for compliance is too short.

The National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) announced the minimum capital base for composite insurance companies (life and non-life underwriters) that want to get licences to underwrite all risks in the country from N5bn to N15bn, with October 1, 2018 deadline.

NAICOM is also raising the minimum capital requirement of life insurance companies that want to underwrite all forms of life insurance from N2bn to N6bn, while the minimum capital base for nonlife insurance companies is being raised from N3bn to N9bn.

The commission recently explained that insurance companies operating with the old capital requirements would not be forced

to recapitalise but would be restricted to underwrite only certain business.

“There will be no mandatory injection of fresh capital funds by insurers; no cancellation of licence of any operator is anticipated, but subject to solvency control levels,” it stated.

But Oyinkan Olasanoye, president of the ASSBIFI, speaking Wednesday at a news conference in Lagos said, “On the tier- based solvency capital for insurance companies, we wish to emphasise that we are not against restructuring of the insurance companies but time frame needed for compliance.”

The union leader stressed the need to extend the period of implementation and for genuine consultations with appropriate stakeholders.

According to her, the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) position that the insurance companies do need to inject new capital is not realistic, adding that all insurance companies should be given equal opportunity and enough time to determine the tier they wish to operate.

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L-R: Duru Emeka, national secretary, Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria; Omolaja Odunuga, medical director, GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceutical Nigeria Plc; Ahmed Yakasai, president, Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria; Bhushan Akshikar, managing director, GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceutical Nigeria Plc, and Ignatius Anukwu, national chairman, Association of Industrial Pharmacists, at the 2018 World Pharmacists Day commemorated in Lagos.

NCAA records 19,323 flight delays in H1, 2018 IFEOMA OKEKE

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report from the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has said that no fewer than 19,323 flights were delayed within the country’s airspace in the first half of 2018.

Within the same period, another 348 flights were cancelled among local and international airlines operating within and into the country.

Muhtar Usman, the director-general of NCAA stated this yesterday in its presentation at the All Aviation Industry Information Managers’ Conference held at the agen-

cy’s annex office at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos.

At the conference, which included information managers in the government agencies, airlines, ground handling companies and media, among others, Usman explained that out of the 19,323 flights delayed, domestic airlines had 16,880 while the remaining 2,443 were among the 33 foreign airlines operating into the country.

Usman said that within the same period, domestic airline operators cancelled 253 flights while their foreign counterparts had 95 flights cancelled.

In his statistics, Usman

further stated that within the first half of the year, 17,893 delayed and missing baggage were recorded among the international airlines while the domestic operators had 25 delayed and missing luggage.

Usman however said that the authority had warned airlines against unwarranted flight delays and cancellations, stressing that NCAA would not tolerate infringement on air travellers’ rights.

It would be recalled that flight delays and cancellations had been rampant in recent time with NCAA warning airlines against consistent violation of passengers’ rights.

Though, airlines had severally attributed inadequate infrastructure at most of the country’s airports, stressing that until the infrastructure were improved upon, the delays and cancellation might continue.

However, statistics gathered indicated that Middle East, Qatar Air, Royal Air Maroc, Rwandair, Saudi Airline, Sudan Air, South African Airways, Turkish Airlines, British Airways and Virgin Atlantic Airways were guilty of flight delays among the international carriers while Delta Air Lines too cancelled some flights within the period.

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The hidden economics in the Nigeria Air project

UCHE UWALEKE Uche Uwaleke is a Professor of Capital market and the Chair of Banking and Finance Department at the Nasarawa State University Keffi

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n a daily basis, thousands of passengers of Ethiopian Airlines waiting for connecting flights on arrival at the Bole International Airport are conveyed by buses at no extra cost to high-profile hotels inside Addis Ababa for a ‘’lay over’’. Many of these passengers continue their journey the following day but not before picking one or two items from nearby grocery shops and paying for services rendered by taxi drivers. The stream of visitors to Ethiopia ensures high hotel occupancy rates and a sustained tempo in economic activities. National airlines such as that of Ethiopia can be likened to an embassy with wings flying a country’s commerce, culture, cuisine and goodwill around the world.

Against this backdrop, not a few Nigerians held high hopes for the economy when the Minister of State for Aviation, Sen. Hadi Sirika disclosed that the

country would be taking delivery of five new aircrafts on December 19, 2018 in readiness for the launch of a new national carrier on December 24, 2018. This great expectation has now proved to be shortlived in the wake of the recent announcement by the Minister to the effect that the Federal Government had suspended the Nigeria Air project after reportedly sinking huge sum of money into the business case design and unveiling of the logo in London a few months ago.

Although many national carriers in Africa are struggling to stay afloat, the fact is that Ethiopian Airline (or simply Ethiopian) and a few others have remained strong performers in the sub-Saharan region. The Airline, which employs more than 13,000 people, has over the years proved to be the country’s major industry and a veritable institution in Africa. The website of the airline shows that Ethiopian currently serves 100 international and 21 domestic destinations with the newest and youngest fleet in Africa.

According to Reuters, Ethiopian Airlines’ net profit in the 2017/18 financial year rose to USD233 million from USD229 million the previous year. Also, the state-owned carrier, according to the International Air Transport Association, has outpaced regional competitors such as the Kenya Airways and

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… not going ahead with the Nigeria Air project should never be an option for the federal government not least because the country’s status as one of Africa’s biggest investment destinations will be diminished if she is not seen as playing a dominant role in the Single African Air Transport Market

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South African Airways to become Africa’s largest airline by revenue and profit. Indeed, the airline has recorded a number of milestones since when it was established in 1945 as a joint venture with the now-defunct U.S. carrier Trans World Airlines.

So, rather than cite the failed cases or cling to the ugly experiences that trailed the defunct Nigerian Airways and Virgin Nigeria, opponents of the Nigeria Air project are encouraged to see it as a glass half-full by drawing on the Ethiopian Air example.

It is on record that while many African state-owned airlines are poorly managed with staffing often based on nepotism and business decisions influenced by political considerations, Ethiopian Airlines has remained professionally run and managed.

If Ethiopia, a smaller economy could own a viable national carrier, what is stopping Nigeria, the biggest economy in Africa with the largest population?

Come to think of it, if the country had a viable national carrier, she would not be dragging feet in signing the African Continental Free Trade Area agreement, one of the flagship projects of the AU Agenda 2063 which includes a Single African Air Transport Market (SAATM) expected to open-up and connect markets on the continent. Among other benefits, the SAATM promises to enhance air service connectivity and save time, lower fares, create job opportunities, boost intraAfrican trade, promote tourism, as well as grow national GDPs. Therefore, it is vital that Nigeria does not give up her leadership influence in Africa partly by allowing the challenges in the aviation sector overshadow the promise of a bright future.

So, not going ahead with the

Nigeria Air project should never be an option for the federal government not least because the country’s status as one of Africa’s biggest investment destinations will be diminished if she is not seen as playing a dominant role in the Single African Air Transport Market. The government should consider the private airline operators as development partners and engage them in a frank discussion regarding the challenges in the industry with a view to allaying their fears. By so doing, the buy-in and cooperation of the Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON) will be secured.

It goes without saying that by making air travel easier and accessible in Nigeria, more and more people are encouraged to travel by air especially given the poor state of roads and rail infrastructure. The Ethiopian case has clearly demonstrated that the aviation sector promotes trade, tourism and foreign direct investments, creating job opportunities and other positive multiplier effects on a country’s economy. So it is not all about profit maximization.

More importantly, it is about driving economic growth and development through a veritable enabler of other critical sectors of the economy. This is the hidden economics in the Nigeria Air project which must be borne in mind by all stakeholders.

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Towards a human-centric theory of firms

ZAINAB DERE Dere is with the Lagos Business School

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he appropriateness and implication of existing theories of firm have increasingly been under question for possible adverse consequences of their application.

There is a gap between abstraction form reality and the actual behavior; these theories do not take into account a more holistic and balanced view of human and firm behavior. The attempt to make the theories parsimonious and reflect economic efficiency and competitive market forces often have negative implications for stakeholders.

This calls for a human-centric theory.

An individual appears humancentric when his/her behavior, personality and belief system reflects an adequate consideration of the implication of their actions on other people. Therefore, a human-centric theory is deliberate in design and development to equitably address

human needs without prejudice or harm to others.

Prevalent theories of firms have been rooted in market dominance logic which attempts to identify least-cost material allocation systems for firms. These theories assume the market is governed by a special force which guides firms and human decisions – this is the famous invisible hand which dictates the demand and supply of goods in a free market.

However, recent realizations have shown that survival of firms have not been based solely on economic efficiency and economic environment have not been outrightly governed by market forces.

Firms are no longer being rated by their return on investment and efficiency alone. Business performances are now being judged by the way they fulfil their responsibility to the society and the impact of their activities on the environment in the short and long term.

Just like other social inventions of humans, the market is established by humans to enable exchange of goods and services; hence, humans are essential part of what make up a firm. Although humans tend to exhibit good and bad habits, evidence has shown that human beings value fairness, trust, friendship, social ties and moral values, even in economic dealings.

A firm is composed of a collection of individuals who come together to achieve organizational

goals and to actualize their potentials based on the compensations offered by the firm. Usually, these theories have been based on assumptions.

However, prominent theories of firm seem not to fit the reality in the operations of firms. It then becomes necessary to theorize on the possibility of synergizing the assumptions as postulated by earlier theories and adequately account for the reality of the human environment.

One property of social science is that its theories do not just explain social reality, they also create a social reality based on the explanations provided by their theories. This then requires that social science researchers pay adequate attention to assumptions made and recommendations derived from their theories. This explains the principle of double hermeneutics.

It is important, especially in the professional field of management research and education, that management theories and prescriptions are human-centric. For a theory of firm to be human-centric, it must be rooted in the fact that human beings need to be respected following the principle of justice and the golden rule. The human-centric theory of firm is more holistic and balanced in its view of the nature of humans and firms. This theory will encourage loyalty, trust, hard work, and discourages theft, and other undesirable traits.

The heart of a business firm and its functioning revolves around human beings. For a theory of firm to be human-centric, it would have to fol-

low the stakeholder approach and as against the shareholder value maximization approach where managerial decisions are taken with tradingoff costs and benefits in alternative firm decisions. The stakeholder approach encourages that managers make decisions while considering the implications of their decisions on all that are involved in the operations of the business – immediate and remote. This negates the shareholder value maximization approach that focuses on maximizing values created for the shareholder.

The stakeholder approach for a human-centric theory of firm is all-encompassing. Firms will have to investigate and understand the implications of their decisions on others. For example, this can be achieved by: supplying goods & services efficiently and fairly; creating economic value added with justice and distributing it with equity; providing jobs and organizational conditions in accordance with human dignity and rights; being a good social actor within the society by paying taxes, favoring the activity of other companies, institutions or communities that benefit from the activity of the firm, avoiding negative impact on people and environment, and contributing to solve social problems through business capabilities; and striving for the sustainability of the firm.

In the end, the choice is really ours as social scientists and management academics to develop theories

that will improve the effectiveness and efficiency of firms without dehumanizing the members of these firms or we continue with the status quo. We share a responsibility for the effects of our theories. As noted by Herbert Simon in his quote: “Good answers to the policy questions that face all industrialized societies depend on having empirically sound theories of the behavior of large organizations. Such theories cannot be developed from the armchair. They call for fact-gathering that will carry researchers deep into the green areas, the organizations that dominate the terrain of our economic systems” (Simon 1995: 43).

• This article was originally published by Dr Chukwunonye Emenalo in Business schools under fire: Humanistic management education as the way forward, (pp 192211), W. Amann, M. Pirson, H. Spitzeck, C. Dierksmeier & E. Kimakowitz (Eds.), Hampshire, UK: Palgrave Macmillan Ltd and has been adapted by Zainab Dere for the Christopher Kolade Centre for Research in Leadership and Ethics (CKCRLE) at Lagos Business School. CKCRLE’s vision is creating and sharing knowledge that improves the way managers lead and live in Africa and the World.

You can contact CKCRLE at crle@ lbs.edu.ng.

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Of ISGPP, book readers and leaders

TUNJI OLAOPA, PHD Olaopa is Professor of Public Administration, Lead City University and is Executive Vice Chairman, the Ibadan School of Government and Public Policy ISGPP tolaopa2003@gmail.com tolaopa@isgpp.com.ng

We all know that books burn—yet we have the greater knowledge that books cannot be killed by fire.

People die, but books never die.

No man and no force can abolish memory. No man and no force can put thought in a concentration camp forever. No man and no force can take from the world the books that embody man’s eternal fight against tyranny of every kind.

In this war, we know, books are weapons.

- President Franklin Roosevelt (USA) hese quoted words of President Roosevelt were his direct responses to the large scale destruction of books and other intellectual materials by Germany during the Second World War. With Adolf Hitler’s blessings, books were drawn from universities and homes, piled up to be burnt.

It all started in Berlin and the exercise of burning books was held across the country. In their own thinking, and intoxicated with a delusionary nationalism, Germans burnt the books to expurgate un-German materials from Germany’s system and thoughts. At the end, about 100 million books from 957 libraries and 531 institutes, amongst others, were destroyed.

It was therefore a great seminal event when the ISGPP Book Readers Club was formally launched on 8 August, 2018. The launch event witnessed a deep intellectual excursion into the trajectories of learning, documented ideas, the defining thoughts and their nuanced richness as served by the

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POSITIVE GROWTH WITH BABS

BABS OLUGBEMI Babs Olugbemi FCCA, the Chief Responsibility Officer at Mentoras Leadership Limited and Founder, the Positive Growth Africa

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ep Guardiola, the coach of Manchester City football club is one of the football coaches I see as a leader. Leadership is a be-

Chairman, Booksellers Limited, Dr. Kolade Mosuro, who was keynote speaker. As I am convinced that the reading public would benefit from the deep and rich ideas that Dr. Mosuro shared, I had plans to share some of his thoughts much more generously in my subsequent write up.

The Ibadan School of Government and Public Policy (ISGPP) recognises the strategic importance of intellectual materials including books in the generation of new modes of expressions and experiences, to explore, represent or reform the society and human experiences. Beyond these, ISGPP is also interested in interrogating books as policies, thoughts and documented ideas.

Unraveling researched ideas that could enrich development thinking is therefore the motive behind the establishment of the ISGPP Book Readers Club, entrusted with the mandate of not just promoting the culture of reading books. The Club provides a vibrant platform for the interrogation of documented ideas, frameworks and paradigms thus engendering critical interactions and discourse among crucial members of the Nigerian public, on various issues that have serious bearing on the Nigerian condition.

At the event, book aficionados agreed that lifelong education suggests that beyond the structured formal years of education, the process of learning continues in different forms. Globally, lifelong education has been identified as the most important driver of social, economic, political, technological, and environmental development. However, meaningful and realistic national development can only be achieved when sufficient attention is paid to strengthening the implementation of lifelong education. Therefore, it becomes imperative that governments and the private sectors make substantial sacrifices, in terms of resources, time, energy, and expertise towards the promotion of sustainable lifelong education in Nigeria. It is by this process that developing countries like Nigeria can derive the fullest benefit from lifelong education and achieve the desired development objective of improving the quality of life of its citizens.

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Books and, by extension, reading expands the reader’s horizons coupled with in-depth discussions and assimilations of different viewpoints, all contributing to increasing knowledge and appreciation of the world around

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The rate of access to the information resources and the extensive reading rate per capita are the development indices of a society; that is why the current world is called the information or the network society. The main feature of the network society is the elimination of spatial and temporal distances and information accessibility and utilizing them. However, despite the increasing extension of mass media, technology and internet, the matter of studying and book reading is still crucial. The number of published books, journals, libraries, readers, writers, translators and publishers of a country are all indices and fundamental criteria of its development. Thus, extending the culture of studying and book reading, developing libraries, publications and distribution of books and utilizing this unrivaled cultural instruments are the requirements and necessities of each society’s growth and, encouraging people, especially young people, to read and study is a crucial point in this regard.

Throughout history, societies have been formed, reformed and informed by the profound and well projected ideas of revolutionaries, writers, researchers and thought leaders who recognise the primacy of knowledge. The words of famous playwright, William Shakespeare,

continue to resonate and ring true as relevant with humanity even centuries after this simple English man wrote the last of his plays.

Shakespeare wrote enormously about kings and nobles as much as he wrote about commoners.

He wrote about comedies, history and tragedies; King Lear, Richard the First, Richard the Second, Richard the Third, Henry IV, Julius Caesar, Tempest, Merchant of Venice, Macbeth etc. Humans have always marveled about men and women with power, fame, wealth and influence. Going back to the Romans, we have always enjoyed biographies so that the lives of great men and women can be moral lessons for us. We also like to peep. We like to see great people in their nakedness. What makes Shakespeare so enthralling is his unique insight into human foibles and his stories cover the theatre of life. Age after age, he is still persistently contemporary and relevant, and his works continue to resonate S ome of the things that sparked the French Revolution were the awareness created by books that gave a vivid account of aristocratic corruption in the presence of mass squalor. Jean Jacques-Rousseau’s Social Contract was a good part of the instigators, arguing for the collective will of the society as a mark of the collective will of the people, and that laws should draw from that collective will. With this, he challenged the traditional order of the society. We know from history and books that the masses rose in a revolution, stormed the Palace and took over, leading logically to the principle of majority rule.

How bad it was in Paris before the revolution was captured for us by Charles Dickens in A Tale of Two Cities.

Someone said books are orbits by which you could reach the heaven. Man’s education follows through many generations. The first generation educates the next, the next, the one that follows, the one that follows, the one after it ad infinitum, each succeeding generation advancing, evolving in small steps. Through Plato’s Republic, we discovered Socrates.

And with Plato, we learnt that ideas are ageless and incorruptible, and the relentless passion for human development rests

squarely on ideas.

Reading not only has tremendous power when it comes to fueling the development of all aspects of language ability, its importance to the entirety of a human life cannot be overstated.

Books and, by extension, reading expands the reader’s horizons coupled with in-depth discussions and assimilations of different viewpoints, all contributing to increasing knowledge and appreciation of the world around. And history is filled not only with great leaders who were avid readers and writers (remember, Winston Churchill won his Nobel Prize in Literature, not Peace). They believed that deep, broad reading cultivated in them the knowledge, habits, and talents to improve their leadership capacities.

Through the documented ideas of others, leaders are further enriched with principled leadership as a resource for decision making and evaluation, taking into account power, influence, followership, roles and citizenship.

James MacGregor Burns in his seminal work, Leadership stresses the impact of intellectual leaders.

I consider thought leaders to be the most important. Is there a greater power than the power of a big idea? Is there a person with greater influence than one who can convey an idea differently?

Reading has many benefits, but it is underappreciated as an essential component of leadership development. The leadership benefits of reading are wide-ranging.

Evidence suggests reading can improve intelligence and lead to innovation and insight. Leaders who can sample insights in other fields, such as history, sociology, the physical sciences, economics, or psychology, and apply them in governance are more likely to innovate and prosper. Readerleaders also have a stronger and more engaged awareness of social issues and of cultural diversity than non-reading ones. Regular readers reported 57 per cent greater cultural awareness and 21 per cent more general knowledge.

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The strength-based leadership haivour that influences others to do what bring results to the team with commensurate fulfilment to the team members.

Guardiola is a cultured coach.

He had infused the culture of contributions and behavioural responsibility in all the teams he had coached, and above this, is his ability to reduce controversy in his teams. He is thus, a thorough level one to five leader.

It is not enough for leaders to have star team members. What is important is the ability of the leader to play each of the players in his or her position of strength to achieve results for the team.

People are more fulfilled when they do activities that play to their strengths on a daily basis. The level of employees’ engagements and commitments to the institutions will improve if people are placed in the functions that utilize their latent strengths.

Peter was the managing director of a bank at a time in his career.

He always read his bank’s internal audit reports and spotted Joseph, one of his internal auditors to be an excellent writer with good command of the language. Peter did not only identify the strengths of Joseph who is a chartered accountant, he deployed him to

the corporate communications department of the bank to utilize the identified strengths on a daily basis. What Peter did was to give Joseph a ‘rose of fulfilled life’ and increase his level of engagement to the bank.

The outcome of the research

by Marcus Buckingham and the Gallup organisation underscores the importance of strength zone to employees and engagement in the workplace. According to the research involving 36 companies, 7,939 business units and 198,000 employees, respondents with ‘strongly agree’ answers were 50% with lower employees’

turnover, 38% more productive and 44% with higher customer satisfaction scores.

To get the best out of the team, a leader must identify the uniqueness of his or her team members and exploit such for the benefits of the team. Though, in a reality, the responsibility for selfdiscovery lies on individuals. The leaders would have the ultimate blame if the organisation did not maximize the benefits of its pool of talents due to the leaders’ inefficiency.

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Frank Aigbogun EDITOR Anthony Osae-Brown DEPUTY EDITORS John Osadolor, Abuja Bill Okonedo NEWS EDITOR Patrick Atuanya

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, OPERATIONS Fabian Akagha EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, DIGITAL SERVICES Oghenevwoke Ighure ADVERT MANAGER Adeola Ajewole FINANCE MANAGER Emeka Ifeanyi MANAGER, CONFERENCES & EVENTS Obiora Onyeaso SUBSCRIPTIONS MANAGER Patrick Ijegbai CIRCULATION MANAGER John Okpaire GM, BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT (North)

Bashir Ibrahim Hassan GM, BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT (South) Ignatius Chukwu HEAD, HUMAN RESOURCES Adeola Obisesan

Thursday 27 September 2018

Transportation in a megacity

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lanning for future ne e ds of the s o ciety is the hallmark of an effective government. It ensures the orderly growth, progress and development of the society with few discomforts and disruptions. However, there are other societies that have no business with planning and are always reactive to problems. Planning is alien to them and even if, for political or publicity reasons they draw up a plan, the plan ends up just as a plan and never gets implemented.

Sadly that is the case with Lagos, which frequently claims to harbour the dream of becoming a mega city, like New York, Vancouver, Tokyo, Moscow, Los Angeles, Cairo among others.

Of course, one of the major problems of all megacities is that of transportation and traffic management. These cities therefore have transportation master plans to help them organise effective and efficient transportation for millions of the city’s dwellers to prevent unnecessary sufferings and loss of man-hours resulting from traffic congestions.

Lagos, the most populous city in Africa with an estimated population of over 20 million, is renowned for its

severe and business-crippling traffic congestions. It is estimated that the state loses over N250 billion to traffic annually. Hence the decision of the state government to come up with a transportation master plan as far back as 2006 to provide a framework for the effective management of transportation in Lagos state.

The transportation master plan aims to integrate road, water, rail and cable car mode of transportation to end the city’s transportation woes.

The key however, was known to be the rail transportation system. Captured under the Integrated Rail Transport System, the plan was to link the major population and activity centres in Lagos state under seven lines.

These include: Red line from Agbado to Marina (31 kilometres long), Red Line extension (6 kilometres) to local and international wings of the Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Lagos, Blue Line on Badagry Expressway from Okokomaiko to Marina via Iddo (27 kilometres), Green Line from Marina to the proposed Lekki Airport (26 kilometres), Yello Line from Otta (Ogun state)/MM Airport to Iddo (34 kilometres), Purple Line – from Redemption Camp (in Ogun state) to Lagos State University, Ojo (60 kilometres, Orange Line – from Redemption Camp to

Marina (42 kilometres), and the Brown Line – from Mile 12 to Marina (20 kilometres).

However, the huge financial outlay forced the Lagos state government to prioritise the project and begin with the 27-kilometre Badagry line running from Okokomaiko to Marina via Iddo. The contract was awarded to the Chinese Civil Engineering Construction Company (CCECC) in 2008 at the cost of $1.2 billion and was to be due in 2011.

However, since then, the delivery dates have continued to shift right. From 2011 it was shifted to 2012, then 2013, then 2014, all to no avail.

Upon the inception of the Ambode administration, the governor himself promised that the line will be completed in December 2016. But just like before, a month to the completion date, the government or its minders again have said it could not be completed at that date and cited financial and other logistical reasons for the delay.

The government has been at pains to stress that it is yet to secure the buy-in of the private sector and investors in the project. But how would right-thinking investors invest in a country where policy summersault is the norm? If the Lagos state government, despite all the efforts it took it to negotiate the Lekki-Epe Expressway road project could

still turn round and buy back the concession, what assurances can it provide to investors that their investments are secure from government flip flops? Truth is; due to policy flip-flops, discontinuities and reversals, the country has become one of the riskiest place to invest and investors are now preferring other low yields but with stable and predictable policy environment.

To further deepen the pains of already pulverised people who spend a chunk of their time on traffic gridlocks daily, the Lagos state commissioner for transport, last year, announced that the full implementation of the Lagos State Strategic Transport Masterplan (STMP) has been postponed from 2020 to 2030.

He said the postponement was to perfect plans for the project and to allow all mass transit schemes to take off.

The new transport plan of this administration, according to the governor, is to flood the streets with modern buses.

What this means in simple language is that this administration is not ready to implement the transport master plan and the residents of the state will have to continue to endure the terrible traffic gridlocks until a government willing to implement it comes on board. So much for the often trumpeted megacity status of Lagos!

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BUSINESSTRAVEL Turkish Airlines reaches 85.6% load factor in August …records highest monthly load factor Stories by IFEOMA OKEKE

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urkish Airlines has recently announced the results of passenger and cargo traffic in August and achieved the highest monthly load factor (LF) in its history with 85.6percent. On top of the strong base effect of August 2017, growth in the number of passengers, revenue per kilometer and load factor, is an important indicator of the continued growing interest in Turkey and Turkish Airlines.

According to August 2018 traffic results; the passenger growth trend continued in August, thus total number of passengers carried went up by 2.4percent reaching 7.6 million passengers, and Load Factor went up to 86percent. Also, in August 2018, Total Load Factor improved by 1.3 points, with a minimal increase of 0.5 percent in capacity (Available Seat Kilometer), while international Load Factor increased by 1.1 points to 85.3 percent, domestic Load Factor increased by 2.4 points to 87.6 percent.

Excluding international-to-international transfer passengers (transit passengers), number of international passengers went up by 3.4 percent.

In August, cargo and mail volume

continued the double digit growth trend and increased by 21 percent, compared to the same period of 2017.

Main contributors to the growth in cargo and mail volume are North America with 32 percent increase, Europe with 24 percent increase, Far East with 22 percent increase and Middle East with 18 percent increase.

Far East, Domestic Lines and North America showed load factor growth of 3.1 points, 2.3 points, 2.2 points and 2.1 points, respectively.

According to the January-August 2018 traffic results; there was an increase in demand and total number of passengers which was 12 percent and 13 percent respectively. Over the same period of last year, total number

of passengers reached to 51 million.

Also, during January-August, total Load Factor improved by 3.4 points up to 82 percent. While international Load Factor increased by approximately 4 points exceeding 81 percent, domestic Load Factor went up by two points exceeding 85 percent, thus recording the highest load factor in Turkish Airlines history for the period of January-August.

Excluding international-to-international transfer passengers (transit passengers), number of international passengers went up significantly by 16 percent. Cargo/mail carried during the seven months increased by 26 percent and reached 898 thousand tons.

LSG Sky Chefs opens multi-million dollars catering service at Lagos Airport

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SG Sky Chefs in partnership with Things Remembered has opened a state-of-the-art inflight catering services at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos.

The facility is equipped with modern facilities, mostly imported from Europe and is 100 per cent designed to produce up to 10,000 meals a day.

Speaking at the launch, Hadi Sirika, the minister of state for Aviation said that the facility would distinguish the Lagos Airport in particular and Nigerian airports as a whole, thereby making the sector as the airport of choice among airlines and passengers in the sub-region.

Sirika who was represented at the occasion by Paul Obla, the chief executive officer (CEO), Sky Cater-

ing Service said that the quality of in-flight service would provide added incentives to the air travellers emanating from the country.

He said: “What we see today is a fulfillment of the desire of the LSG Group to pursue targeted partnership that we see today coming to fruition.

This standard of in-flight catering will provide an added incentive. What we see today is a fulfillment of the desire of the LSG Group to pursue targeted partnership that will make its portfolio even robust.

“The global in-flight catering services market has reached 15.54billion dollars in 2017 and it is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 5.06 per cent and grow to a market size of 18billion dollars by year 2021. Passengers are more discern-

ing and expect better quality meals when flying.”

He added that the opening of the company would further enhance competition and ensure vibrant in-flight catering service to support MMIA’s position as a regional air hub.

Adeola Omikunle, the Chairman Board of Directors in her welcome address said that the project was in partnership with Lufthansa Airline while other foreign carriers and indigenous airlines had moved their services to the catering service company.

She explained that the company, which commenced in 1985, did not start as a catering service, but dealt in household materials.

According to her, no fewer than 400 employees are already engaged directly by the company while thousands of people would also benefit indirectly from the organisation.

She, however, said that it was a huge task getting a foreign firm to partner with the company, but noted that the company eventually settled for the LSG Sky Chefs, a group under Lufthansa German Airlines.

She said: “Getting a foreign partner for the huge project was the next phase as we needed partnership that is reliable. Apart from that, we still had the huddles of funding and procurement of licenses. I use this opportunity to commend my friends who have been useful to me during the conception stage of this project.”

Air Peace relaunches Asaba route October 8, adds Abuja to service

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igeria’s leading carrier, Air Peace has unveiled plans to restart its daily LagosAsaba-Lagos flight operations on eighth of October.

The airline, which pulled out of the route more than two years ago due to safety concerns with respect to the runway of the Asaba Airport, said it would also add Abuja-Asaba-Abuja flights to the service.

A statement signed by Chris Iwarah, Air Peace corporate communications manager, said the airline decided to return to the Asaba route to end the nightmare of air travellers seeking to connect the Delta State capital, Anambra and other adjoining cities.

Air Peace, the statement assured, was going to offer unparalleled ontime, convenient, safe and affordable flight services on the Lagos-AsabaLagos and Abuja-Asaba-Abuja routes.

“We are pleased to announce our return to the capital of Delta State, Asaba starting October 8, 2018. Air Peace had to suspend flight operations to the Asaba Airport more than two years ago due to safety concerns

with the facility.

“Since we suspended our operations to the airport, members of the flying public have inundated us with calls and appeals to return to end their nightmare on the route. While we could feel their pain, there really was not much we could do about it since our decision to pull out was anchored on safety, an issue we could never compromise.

“We are, however, thankful that the Delta State Government had to intervene to give the airport a facelift. We have been assured that the airport is now safe to operate into and we cannot but move in immediately to end the woes of members of the flying public wishing to travel to Asaba, Anambra and other connecting cities.

“We are not just restoring our daily Lagos-Asaba-Lagos service, we are also adding Abuja-Asaba-Abuja flights to the offering to meet the yearnings of members of the flying public. It promises to be quite an exciting time once more on the Asaba route beginning from October 8”, the statement said.

‘Nigeria needs modern airports than national carrier’

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takeholders in the aviation industry have said that Nigeria needs modern airports mode than it needs national carrier, which government said would take off before end of the year.

Although government has rolled out plans to concession major airports in the country located in Abuja, Lagos, Kano and Port Harcourt, but indications show that national carrier is government’s priority.

Reports also indicate that vested interests, including labour and highly placed politicians oppose the plan to concession the airports.

Amos Akpan, a seasoned industry operator and aviation consultant, said Nigeria urgently needs modernised airports.

“Nigeria needs modern airports now than national carrier. Many have argued that the national carrier will create employment opportunities in the aviation industry, but the multiplier effect on infrastructural development, manpower development, and economic growth the modern airports brings outweigh national carrier today,” he said.

Akpan added that this will bring ease of traffic flow, user friendliness and convenience, noting that airlines and passengers prefer modern airports.

“We will have a lot of transits and stopovers which will boost our economy. There will be 24 hours independent electricity, adequate and

available fuel at competitive prices, good traffic management; there will be shops, hotels, restaurants, selfcheck-in services, fast baggage and cargo delivery, safety of all users, comfort of passengers, friendly but firm immigration and customs personnel; and up-to-date air navigation facilities must be put at our airports.

Akpan said when given out in concession, the private sector wins the concession would inject funds in the facilities, which government may not readily make available and all needed facilities would be put in place.

“All airports must have camera monitor center that covers the entire vicinity on - time, in real - time. There will be certified maintenance facilities that guarantees quick turnaround of aircraft will attract operators.

“We need to take advantage of our geographic location. For instance, Kano should be hub for North Africa.

Lagos should be hub for the whole Africa. Port Harcourt should be hub for central Africa. Markurdi or Yola should be farm produce airfreight center. There should be rail linking airports to cities and fruit depots.

He said that rightly packaged investment portfolios would segment tour/holiday traffic, trader traffic, and daily business/corporate traffic, so that a passenger would arrive the airport and go through security screening after checking into a flight, the passenger my seat to mail while waiting for his flight.

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CityFile

‘Well trained auditors will engender accountability’ JOHN SALAU

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well trained aud i t w o rk f o rc e will engender accountability and transparency in the public sector and aid develop development, Helen Morenike Deile, the Lagos state auditor general has stated.

Deile stated this at a 5-day training for auditors on the International Public Sector Accounting Standard (IPSAS), with the theme “audit excellence” held recently in Lagos.

“Capacity building for our staff shall be continuous in view of our firm belief that a well-trained and motivated audit workforce will serve as the catalyst to engender accountability and transparency. We encourage our auditors to embark on self-improvement certifications,” said Deile, adding that staff welfare will continue to occupy a front burner under her administration.

According to the state auditor general, the advent of IPSAS is best described as a new revolution in public sector accounting with its emphasis on improving operational performance, accountability, fair allocation and appropriation of public resources and transparency in public governance.

Deile noted that the standards serve as guide-

lines for preparers of financial statements in the public sector to achieve robust, broad-based and accountable financial reporting. The standards are issued by the International Public Sector Accounting Standards Board (IPSASB).

Speaking further on efforts made to domesticate the standards in the country over the years, Deile said Nigeria has been making frantic efforts to ensure public entities fully adopt IPSAS, however the initial proposed timeline for adoption of IPSAS in Nigeria was January, 2013 for the cash basis IPSAS and January, 2015 for the accrual basis IPSAS. Unfortunately, some inherent challenges in the nation’s public service delayed the full adoption of the standards. Challenges such as inadequate professional accountants, IT consultants; inadequate information and communication technology facilities changed the dateline for the adoption to January, 2015 for cash basis and January, 2016 for the accrual basis IPSAS. “It is noteworthy to state that LASG is the first to roll out the first cash basis IPSAS Financial statements for 2015 and accrual IPSAS transitional financial statements for 2016, while the accrual IPSAS financial statement for 2017 has also been forwarded to the state assembly,” Deile said.

Police arrest 66 defaulters in Kano

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he police in Kano say they have received over 35 public complaints with 66 defaulters arrested and investigated from October 2017 till date.

The command’s public relations officer, Magaji Majiya, disclosed this in Kano on Monday. He said that the complaints ranged from corrupt practice, incivility, unprofessional conduct, assault, illegal road block and illegal detention to delving into civil matters.

“Twenty-three police officers, 28 ‘Karota’ personnel, 12 Special Constabulary, two VIOs and one FRSC were involved,” Majiya said.

According to him “the Inspector General of Police, Ibrahim Idris, is determined to rid the force of

corrupt practice and other unprofessional conducts by its officers and men”.

Majiya said two units of X-Squad offices were established in Kano, each headed by an Assistant Commissioner of Police under the supervision of Mr Rabiu Yusuf, Kano State Commissioner of Police.

“From its inception in October 2017, the Kano East X-Squad office was headed by ACP Naziru Kankarofi .

“The Squad is charged with receiving public complaints and positive criticism against members of the force.”

He assured members of the public that the command would continue to respect human rights and do away with all forms of corrupt practices in discharging its duty. (NAN)

Dilapidated portion of road on Mile 12-kosofe Road at Ikorodu in Lagos.

NAN

Abuja community decries bad roads, seeks intervention KEHINDE AKINTOLA with agency report

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esidents of Dawaki village, a suburb of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), have sought the intervention of the Federal Government on the poor state of roads in their community.

The residents in separate interviews with the media on Monday lamented that the bad roads were preventing them from pursuing their day-to-day activities.

Audu Isa, a motorist and student, National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN), lamented that he had to take a longer route to get to the next town because of the bad road. Isa said the bad roads have also raised cost of living as motorcycle operators now charge higher fares from commuters.

He appealed to the government to come to the aid of the residents so as reduce the cost of living.

Also, Iyeh Benjamin, a

trader, expressed her view over the cases of accidents she had witnessed due to the bad roads. According to her, lives of people are put in danger on a daily basis because of the bad roads.

“The state of the road is not only affecting transportation sector of the community, it is also affecting the economy sector.

In a similar vein, Promise Chukwudi, a business lady, who deals in cloth and shoes said: “my business is not moving well due to this bad road.

According to her, the road became worst during the rainy seasons as it drove most of our customers away and those who have cars were forced to take other routes.

“We experience a lot of challenges during the rainy season but things are not also better during the dry seasons because the dust from the road is something else. This is because most of the clothes displayed outside are stained and even

when taken inside, there is little or no difference,’’ she said.

Eunice Olagoriowo, a baker, complained of how most of her customers had to run because of the road.

She said: “I can even count the people that patronise me now, they are now very few, and the reason is not far-fetched from the situation of the roads.

“My cakes, which are used for sample, are also almost broken because I have to conserve it between locked doors since I will not want it stained with the dust during dry seasons. Also closing the shop’s doors will give the people the notion that you have closed for the day,’’ she said.

However, Etsu of Dawaki village, Joshua Zakaria, said he had written to the minister of works and that delegates were sent to inspect the road but nothing had been done.

Zakaria pointed out that the several letters he had written to the past adminis-

trations up till date had not yielded any result.

He said that during the past administration, there were promises to fix the roads, adding that he was directed to wait since the government had promised to include it in the budget.

“We sold most of our lands out to people who promised to help since the government has not done anything till now but we get peanuts as pay for what we did.

“Each government that came on board promised to help us repair the roads but all these are empty promises as nothing was done by the past administrations.

The roads have been like this for years now and all we want is positive change and not just promises from the government,’’ he said.

He, however, pleaded that the government should come to their aid as the community wants action from the government instead of just sending delegates.

FG begins construction of 45km Olomi-Ijebu Igbo road AKINREMI FEYISIPO, Ibadan

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n what will boost social and economic life of the people of the area, the Federal Government has commenced the construction of 45 kilometres Olomi-Ijebu- Igbo road.

The construction work is being handled by DC Engineering Ltd. The project which is under the supervision of the ministry of power, works and housing is a dual carriageway with drainage, street lights; with about 32 culverts

and three bridges.

“The major being the popular Olomi Bridge with 45 metres length and about 14 metres width. It starts from Academy Bridge and ends at fly-over Ijebu-Igbo, but will link the two highways,” said Adedeji Ade, the project manager.

Ade said that demolition work and clearing have begun at Ibadan-Olomi to Ayegun from Apade to IjebuIgbo.

“Clearing has being completed, and most of the shops, markets, filling

stations and illegal structures are under high tension, meaning that it is dangerous,” he explained.

He said that the people “are desirous of the project since it has been neglected for the past 25 years,” adding that barring all odds, the project which has completion period of two years would be delivered as expected.

Meanwhile, some residents of the area have reacted to the development.

Kazeem Rafiu, a carpenter and a resident of Olomi,

expressed happiness with government’s decision to construct the road, saying “though it may appear painful now because houses and shops are being demolished, but when completed will boost the social, economic and transport development of the area.

Aresa Akande, a building materials dealer thanked the government for reactivating the construction of the road, adding, however, that the “government should give us alternative markets where we can earn our living.”

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AFDB launches first Africato-Africa investment report

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C Co om mpa pan ny y n ne ew ws s a n a ly s i s a n d i n s i g h t

Stakeholders share insights on attracting PE-backed IPOs Endurance Okafor

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hile the capital market has been an important exit route for private equity houses around the globe, and even in Africa, private equity exit via an Initial Public Offering (IPO) has never seen the break of dawn in Nigeria.

Private Equity and Venture Capital Association (AVCA) and PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC) therefore gathered regulators, market experts, private equity firms and investors to align ways that can make Africa’s largest economy attractive for PE exit through IPO. The deliberation on the way forward for Nigeria’s PEbacked IPOs took place last week during the launch of AVCA/PWC Report, titled: Africa Private Equity-backed IPOs 2010–2017.

The Nigeria Stock Exchange (NSE) and the Security Exchange Commission (SEC) disclosed at the launch of the report that they are working on framework and structures that will make Nigeria’s capital market attractive for private equity firms to consider as a public market option for PE exit.

“The Nigerian market is growing in depth. We are increasing in terms of the amount that we have under management. We have over N20 billion from our GP members. As we try to deepen the capital market through exit, we also tend to deepen our AUM,” Tinuade Awe, the Executive Director of the Nigerian stock exchange (NSE) said during her presentation.

Enita Adeleye, director, head of Research at AVCA said “We have had some instances in other parts of the world where PE firms want to exit through the public market

but the levels of the depth of the capital market were not quite there. The markets that have proven to be deep and are more liquid have had PEs exist through thosemarket.

If PE firms get to know that there is the liquidity in Nigeria market, they will use the capital market.”

Tokunboh Ishmael, cofounder and managing director of Alitheia, a private equity firm said “in Nigeria, because of the depth of the capital markets and the type of history that have been available, we focus more on trade sales, or other kinds of instruments or secondary exits to strategic investors or other PE firms. We heard many PE backed IPOs did not do well post IPO exit so we want to ensure that they can do well.

Going forward she said “there is a possibility for PE backed IPO in Nigeria but that does not take us away from looking at secondary exit through strategic buyers or any other medium.”

Meanwhile, over the period from 2010 to 2017 which the report covered, African private equity-backed IPOs as a percentage of total African IPOs averaged just 16 percent in terms of volume and 23 percent in terms of value.

In comparison, over the same period, private equitybacked IPOs in the United States averaged 39 percent in terms of volume and 44 percent in terms of value, and in the United Kingdom, 36 percent in terms of volume and 45 percent in terms of value. During the period under review, there have been 30 African private equity-backed IPOs raising a total of $3 billion.

“Consistent with overall IPO trends in Africa, the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) led as an exit destination in terms of value of private equitybacked IPOs, with nearly $2 billion raised. The JSE and Bourse de Tunis led as exit

destinations for the period 2010-2017 in terms of volume with 9 private equity-backed IPOs each,” the report said.

Meanwhile an analysis of post-IPO performance from the report shows that private equity-backed IPOs in sub-Saharan Africa showed a price return of 27 percent higher than their offer price, on average, over a one-year time horizon post-IPO, which closely approximates the performance of their non-private equity backed IPO peers of 30 percent.

Nigeria however was not recorded in the report, which means that Africa’s largest economy in the period under review had not recorded a PEbacked IPO. Adeleye from AVCA however told BusinessDay that “if she is to guess, one of the things that would be the reason why Nigeria has not recorded a PEbacked IPO would be that the economic environment has not always been conducive because if a PE firm is trying to exit the public market, it is subject to economic cycles.”

Although she said “strategic buyers tend to be more attractive because they will pay more and PE-PE also makes the list of the means of exit of PE industries.”

Also speaking at the event and about the report which was put together through the collaboration between AVCA and PWC, Alice Tomdio, the associate director-Capital Markets at PWC Nigeria said “the big thing for us here really is educating PE firms and making them aware of the process and demystifying a lot of the myth around the idea that it is expensive, it is too long, the market cannot take the demand. Hopefully this report starts it.”

Andrei Ugarov, partner, Deals & Capital Markets at PWC told BusinessDay that Nigeria is an area that has great interest to private equity.

GIGM reaffirms commitment to passengers safety

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he management of God is Good Motors (GIGM) say’s the transport company is committed to her creed of Safety, Service, and Comfort to everyone who transacts with it.

As a result, our primary obligation at every point remains focused on the utmost safety of our guests, the company said.

“On the 13th of September 2018, a couple of vehicles, including ours, were attacked by armed kidnappers and some people taken as hostages alongside seven passengers onboard our vehicle.”

“Thankfully by God’s grace and the efforts of the Nigerian Police Force, we received concrete information a few hours ago from the Police stating that the abducted passengers have been safely released, today the 24th of September 2018. We identify with the victims and

their families at this time.”

GIGM said it’s priority is to always ensure the safety of her guests and to immediately inform the respective security agencies who have the responsibility to secure lives & properties of Nigerians, while we also consistently communicated with the victims family members and shared new updates as soon as we had them. The police were also communicating directly with family members, the company said.

“The obligation to the security of our guests was prioritized over the call by different media platforms, to make premature statements regarding this unfortunate situation. We had to wait for all passengers to be released before making any public statement so that the security of our esteemed guests would not be jeopar-

dized while investigations and search were ongoing, as is expected with delicate cases such as this.”

“We have in the course of this incident written to the Inspector General of Police, Minister of Transport, the Vice President and Minister of Defense to guarantee security on our roads and are confident that the Federal Government and concerned agencies will be galvanized to do more to secure the lives of Nigerians, while instituting policies that will enable road transport companies in Nigeria. “ “We thank the Nigerian Police Force and other security agencies on the their efforts on this matter.”

“We reiterate our commitment to exceptional service delivery as we continue to power road transportation in Africa through technology

L-R: Emmanuel Amoo, chairman, Faculty of Family Medicine; Adesoji Fasanya, product manager, Fidson Healthcare Plc; Mariam Avionah Nafiu, winner of Fidson’s prize for best graduating fellow, and Sylvester Iriogbe, corporate services manager, Fidson Healthcare Plc, during the presentation of Fidson Prize for best graduating fellow-faculty of family medicine at the 36th Convocation Ceremony of the National Postgraduate Medical College of Nigeria, Lagos, recently.

Chevron staff cooperative taps Construction Kaiser for 70 housing units LOLADE AKINMURELE

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onstruction Kaiser Limited (CKL) has been awarded the contract to build 70 units of Terrace houses on 4 Floors, within the Twin Lake Estate in Lekki, for the Chevron Peninsula TLE MultiPurpose Cooperative Society

(PTMCS).

The ground-breaking ceremony to commence construction works held on September 18th 2018 at the TLE construction site located in Lekki, adjacent to Chevron office.

FMA Architects Ltd will act as architects, while the Civil and Structural Engineers are IAA Associates Ltd.

Mechanical and Electrical Engineering Consultants are Powerfield Consulting, while the Quantity Surveyors are Greenhouse Inc. The commencement of construction is expected to spark a chain of developments around the Twin-Lake area of Lekki.

It is interesting to note

that there are two man-made lakes on the property; one lake close to the Epe road and the other just behind the property. The Twin-Lake Estate was reclaimed a few years ago.

The infrastructural works and the dredging and reclamation works were carried out

by Julius Berger and Innova-

tive Dredging & Contracting respectively.

CKL, a 25 year old building and civil engineering construction company undertakes residential, commercial, and industrial engineering construction projects in different geopolitical zones of the country and currently have staff strength of over 250, about half

of which are direct industry professionals.

Peninsula TLE MultiPurpose Cooperative Society (PTMCS) is a staff cooperative of Chevron Nigeria Limited.

CKL was successful after a series of bidding rounds spanning over 3 years with both foreign and indigenous companies.

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Business Event

Nigerian MSMEs must reposition for local, global competitiveness — Experts ODINAKA ANUDU

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xperts say Nigerian micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) must reposition to take advantage of the local and the export opportunities.

The experts, who spoke at the September Breakfast Meeting organised by the NigerianAmerican Chamber of Commerce (NACC) held in Lagos, stressed the need for MSMEs to meet acceptable and set standards to remain relevant and competitive.

Dikko Umaru Radda, director-general of the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN), said high standards attract new customers and clients, while instilling confidence in products offered by entrepreneurs.

“By proving that they conform to standards, MSMEs can win new customers and retain existing ones by demonstrating the quality of products,”

Radda, who was represented

by Monday Evans, director of Enterpriese, Development and Promotion at SMEDAN, said.

He pointed out that regulators and policy makers could make standards work for MSMEs by building their capacity on standards, strengthening their technical infrastructure and improving governance at home to facilitate border crossing.

Oluyemisi Ogundipe, vice president, South West zone of the African Women’s Entrepreneurship Programme (AWEP), said MSMEs must understand that quality was indispensable.

“Standards make you more efficient and relevant,” Ogundipe said.

Ola Brown, founder and chief executive of Flying Doctors Nigeria, said MSMEs should think of moving to free trade zones to enable them stay more competitive.

Brown stressed the need for entrepreneurs to better engage and manage people.

Solomon Aderoju, chairman, Nigerian Association

of Small and Medium Scale Enterprises (NASME), Lagos State chapter, stressed the need for standards to be seamless as well as cost-and time-effective.

Macaulay Atasie, managing director/chief executive officer of Nextzon Business Services Limited, said it was important for MSMEs to cluster together and explore export opportunities.

“The rest of the world has a major demand for Nigerian standardised products,” he said.

Oluwatoyin Akomolafe, president, Nigerian-American Chamber of Commerce, said MSMEs in the country struggled with a number of problems, prominent of which was non-availability of funds.

“Most SMEs operate in a manner that inhibits them from accessing funds from most financial institutions that see them as high risk. Some of the limiting factors include: poor planning and management, lack of a proper structure, and low capacity building utilisation, among others,” Akomolafe said.

Oyagbola to head IoD Nigeria Ethics Committee

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n line with its desire to ensure that its members are properly guided in their conducts and behaviour, both in personal and business undertakings, the Institute of Directors (IoD) Nigeria, has constituted and inaugurated an Ethics Committee saddled with the responsibility of developing a code of ethics for directors.

The seven-man ethics committee comprises seasoned corporate directors and is headed by Amina Oyagbola. Other members are Tijjani Borodo, Tunji Oyebanji, Femi Awoyemi and N.A. Chibututu, while Dele Al-

imi, DG/CEO of IoD Nigeria and Nechi Ezeako, executive secretary of IoD centre for corporate governance (CCG) will also be part of the committee.

Rufai Mohammed, president and chairman of the governing council of IoD Nigeria, while inaugurating the 7-man committee at the institute’s office in Lagos urged the committee to come up with a set of guidelines that will encourage members to embrace sound business ethics and good corporate governance.

According to the Mohammed, it is imperative that IoD

P

oise Nigeria with EkoBits ICT Trust Foundation will in partnership with Oxfam Novib and Butterfly Works, graduate a set of 42 youths from the slum areas of Lagos, who have completed a 13-month training programme organised by Ekobits ICT Academy.

The graduation ceremony, which will take place tomorrow will have several organisations including Business Plus, Tech Point, Krystal digital, Seamfix, Aspom Travels, Jet Recruitment, and Signal Alliance in attendance to interview the graduates for potential job placement and internship opportunities at their organisations.

Recall that at its last gradu-

ation ceremony, over 20 graduates were offered immediate employment and they are currently making progress in their various careers.

Innih Ikhide, project lead for EkoBits& EdoBits, told newsmen in an interview that the management of Poise Nigeria takes conscious steps to monitor the progress of the last graduates in order to ensure that they make significant impact in their place of work.

Ikhide assured that Poise Nigeria would do the same for the 42 new graduates that will gain employment this Friday.

According to him, EkoBits is not only a youth based organisation, but also part of the network of Bits Schools that offer demand aligned training in creative technology targeted at youths from the less privileged

L-R: Mai Atafo, incubator program coach; Style Infidel, Masters of Style Showcase Judge, Celebrity Stylist; Vivian Akindele, group brand and activation manager; Alex Goma, managing director, PZ Cussons; Kunbi Oyelese, judge, creative director April by Kunbi, and Tolu Bally, judge, fashion entrepreneur, at the Masters of Style Incubator Meet and Greet event in PZ Cussons, Ilupeju, Lagos.

members adhere strictly to the principle of good corporate governance in their endeavours, recognize champions of good governance for adulation and identify erring members and/or employees for sanction.

Mohammed said part of the desires of the institute were to ensure a clear and definite outline of ethical requirements of members and employees of the institute for a proper understanding and adherence to business standard and ensure that the institute is able to monitor the conducts of its members and employees.

EkoBits Foundation partners Oxfam Novib to create jobs for 42 graduates AMAKA ANAGOR-EWUZIE

Oladapo Dosunmu, regional operations director, Airtel Nigeria, (m); Major S.Y Hassan, and Akpodubakaye Arthur, vice-chairman, Warri South-West Local Government Area, at the Launch of Airtel 4G Network in Warri.

community.

“EkoBits Academy is an initiative of the Work in Progress Alliance, a consortium of organisation including Oxfam Novib and Butterfly Works, a social and design innovations studio in the Netherlands which partnered and set up Nairobits in Nairobi, Kenya in 1999.

Currently, Nairobits has been involved in springing up Bits school around the world, and has trained over 130 students through Poise Nigeria Lagos slums from Otodogbame, Itedo, Ajiran, Ikate, Babalola and Aro, who cannot afford to further their education into higher institutions.

Poise Nigeria, partner organisation in Nigeria has and will continue to be instrumental to the reality and success of this project.

L-R: Yebeltal Getachew, General Manager, Stills and VEB, The Coca-Cola Company; Jonathan Ukoko, men Net category winner; Brad Ross, marketing and C & CL director, The Coca-Cola Company, and Abiona Babarinde, general manager, marketing & corporate communications, Coscharis Group at the Coca-Cola 2018 Golf Tournament award dinner held at Ikoyi Club.

L-R: Wole Abu, CEO Pan African Towers Ltd with CP Imohimi Edgal, Lagos State Commissioner of Police, during Abu visit to Lagos State Commissioner of Police in his office, Lagos.

Innovation

Apps

Fin-Tech

Start-up

Gadgets

Ecommerce

IOTs

Broadband Infrastructure

Bank IT Security

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Drone Policy: The African countries reaping off Nigeria’s uncertainty Stories by FRANK ELEANYA

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rom mapping flood zones in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania; combating poaching in Kenya; improving farming practices in Nigeria and Ivory Coast; to delivering blood supplies in Rwanda, drones are increasingly being identified as useful components in many industries in Africa.

Drones or unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) refer to flying devices without a human pilot on board. They are controlled by computers or a remote control by people on the ground or in another vehicle. There are various types of drones like military drones, eco-drones used in connection with environmental duties and civilian drones used for personal use. Over the years, the possibility of using drones in fields such as transportation, journalism, healthcare, crime prevention, logistics, film production, agriculture and many others have arisen.

In Nigeria, the drone market is estimated to worth $20 billion. However, over 99.9 per cent of commercial drones operating in the

country currently do not have licences due largely to the lack of clarity that surrounds the policy environment in Nigeria. In contrast, countries such as Rwanda and South Africa have proper laws on the use of commercial drones within their airspace that are helping them reap the dividends in terms of foreign investment.

Nigeria’s first effort at a drone policy was in July 2017, when the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) prohibited the launch of drones in the Nigerian airspace without a permit from NCAA and the office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA).

The certificate guidelines are contained in the Nigerian Civil Aviation Regulations (Nig. CARs 2015 Part 8.8.1.33) and Implementing Standards (Nig.CARs 2015 Part IS.8.8.1.33).

Interestingly with the exception of Oando Plc which became the first private company in June 2017 to be issued a drone permit – an RPAS/Drones Operator Certificate, no other organisation has qualified till date.

For those who are still going through the process, qualifying for a permit in Nigeria is somewhat a night-

mare.

Applicants are expected to undergo five phases including pre-application, formal application, document evaluation, demonstration, and inspection and certification phases. Applications for grant of a permit are mandatorily made in writing to the director general of the NCAA. The application must also be signed by a person duly authorised by the applicant and submitted on or before a date no less than six months before the expected date of use of the drone service.

In an earlier report, drone operators who spoke to Busi-

nessDay narrated how officials contribute to prolonging application process making near impossible to obtain. Some operators said they have given up trying and resorted to smuggling the drones in connivance with immigration and customs officials.

On the other hand, South Africa, Rwanda and Malawi have become the destination for most drone investment on the African continent.

South Africa was the first country on the continent to pass a commercial drone legislation to train and license pilots.

Rwanda however, is the

Andela’s first set of developers completes fellowship

A

ndela, a company that identifies and grooms software talents in Africa for companies around the world, has unveiled its first set of developers who have completed.

It is a significant milestone for a company that was established four years ago. Being a young people-led company, Andela’ talents are hundred per cent millennials – an age group with a 74 per cent likelihood of leaving a job within three years. Tech talents on the African continent are also very scarce and big companies are constantly on the prowl for high-performing teams to scale their operations.

However, through a strategy of openness and rigorous selection process, Andela has become a reference for human resources practitioners in managing the millennial workforce.

In an interview in 2017, Andela’s former country manager in Nigeria, Seni Sulyman told BusinessDay that the company

typically receives 3,000 applications from which 150 are invited to real life interviews.

“From the interviews we cut down to 60 people who would then be invited to the bootcamp. The bootcamp is named that way because it is reminiscent of a military bootcamp where you go for a week and then you come out well equipped,” Sulyman who is now the vice president, Global Operations for Andela said. “We bring in people that are equipped to train other people, so the bootcamp is more of learning, where you are given things to do and they watch how fast and well you

can learn and endure challenging situations.”

About 0.7 per cent of the total applicants are employed to work as full time engineers with global companies.

For the first set of developers, completing a four year fellowship requires a rigorous technical leadership program, acquiring management experience and technical expertise in software languages such as Ruby on Rails, Javascript, Python, Ruby, and React Native, amongst others. The developers also have to work as full-time team members with global companies like Viacom, Github, InVision, and Wema

Bank’s ALAT, via Andela’s distributed work model.

“Over the past four years, Andela developers have played a pivotal role in building technology communities across Africa and we are excited to see our early cohorts start on the next stage of their journey,” Nadayar Enegesi, cofounder of Andela and director of Launchpad said.

The company created Launchpad to help developers navigate their next steps and prepare them to be fully immersed as key players in the tech ecosystem.

“Our mission has always been to build a network of world class technology leaders on the African continent, and now that we are launching our first set of Andela alumni, this is the crucial moment in the company’s history where we see our mission and values manifest across Africa,” Enegesi said.

Andela has launched centres in Lagos, Nigeria; Nairobi, Kenya; Kampala, Uganda; and soon Kigali, Rwanda.

first country in the world to adopt a performance-based regulation for all drones within its airspace. Performancebased regulation means the government will provide the safety threshold while the companies provide both the technologies and operational mitigations they will use to meet it. This initiative has so far attracted 16 drone investors including Zipline, a San Francisco-based company which launched a new UAV delivery program in Rwanda.

Zipline deliver blood to hospitals and blood transfusion centres across Rwanda – using special delivery drones.

The country also has a

policy for non-commercial drone operations. Licensed operators need to be 21 years old, have insurance, and keep the drone flying in sight no more than 300 metres away or 100 metres above the ground.

Malawi has also taken steps to update its drone policy with the opening of it Drone Test Corridor program. The program has garnered interests from Swedish, Belgian, US and Chinese investors.

Ghana, Kenya and Tanzania are also looking to update their drone regulatory guidelines and have announced UAV initiatives to attract investors.

Nigerian authorities have more to gain from liberalising its drone policy. Across the country, the hundreds of ‘illegal’ drones flying within its airspace are helping farmers, filmmakers, healthcare practitioners as well as creating new businesses for young entrepreneurs.

Recently, the Nigerian Natural History Museum used drones to detect, map and view archaeological sites in Ile-Ife, the cradle of the Yoruba civilisation a sign of what is possible with a people-led drone policy.

Nigeria’s LifeBank joins MIT 2018 Solver class

L

ifeBank, a Nigerian startup focused on developing a smarter way to deliver blood to Lagos hospitals has been announced as one of the 33 firms selected for the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Solve Class of 2018.

Established in 2015, NIT Solve brings together teams from different countries to tackle the most pressing global challenges. According to a statement from MIT, the new Solver class comes from 15 countries and was selected from a pool of 1,150 applicants from 110 countries. Out of the 33 new Solver teams, 61 per cent are women-led; 64 per cent of the selected solutions are for-profit, 24 per cent are non-profit, and 12 per cent are hybrid organisations.

The teams’ selection came after a pitch event to kick off the United Nations General Assembly week in New York City before a panel of judges that include Ngozi OkonjoIweala, Peter Sands and others.

“We are incredibly in-

Team: Frank Eleanya, frank.eleanya@businessdayonline.com; Caleb Ojewale, caleb.ojewale@businessdayonline.com

spired by each new Solver selected at Solve Challenge Finals as they advance solutions to four of the world’s biggest challenge,” Alex Amouyel, Solve’s executive director said in the statement. “Today is just the start of the journey for our Solver teams; this is when the real work begins to broker partnerhips with Solve members and partners on behalf of these innovators. We want to support our Solver teams so they can access mentors and experts to help validate and scale their solutions, as well as additional follow-on funding and in-kind resources.”

L i f e Ba n k ha s m ove d 10,000 units of blood, worked with over 400 hospitals and partnered with health workers to save over 2000 lives since it began operations in 2016. The company’s raised $200,000 January from a round led by EchoVC Partners, a Lagosbased venture capital firm and Fola Laoye, an angel investor with over 20 years of experience in Nigeria’s healthcare industry.

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Helping you to build wealth & make wise decisions NSE All Share Index

Year Open

38,243.19

Market capitalisation

N13.609 trillion

NSE Premium Index

The NSE-Main Board

NSE ASeM Index

2,564.13

1,713.69

1,087.32

Week open (14 – 09–18)

35,426.17

N12.933 trillion

2,527.30

1,544.54

809.92

Week close 21– 08–18)

32,540.17

N11.880 trillion

2,338.51

1,452.15

797.69

Percentage change (WoW) Percentage change (YTD)

0.66 -14.91

0.33 -8.80

NSE Lotus II

NSE Ind. Goods Index

NSE Pension Index

330.69

2,560.39

1,975.59

1,379.74

817.57

295.38

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1,750.30

1,288.23

762.21

289.80

2,272.18

1,549.76

1,219.17

NSE Banking Index

NSE Insurance Index NSE Consumer Goods Index NSE Oil/Gas Index

1,746.68

475.44

139.37

1,582.08 1,461.15

424.84

138.95

401.32

124.11

NSE 30 Index

0.94

-1.51

1.14

-15.26

-26.64

-16.35

2.67 -15.59

-4.90 -10.95

976.10

0.96 -21.91

2.60

-0.26

2.43

-12.37

-11.26

-21.55

1.85 -11.64

Skye Bank: Revisiting NSE ‘medication after death’ HEANYI NWACHUKWU

E

very stock market is driven by information, meaning that the frequency of information released by both the listed companies (issuers) and market regulators determines the level of confidence in the market.

It is no longer news that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) last Friday announced the takeover and setting up of a new Bridge Bank called “Polaris” to manage the assets of defunct Skye Bank; and a N786billion facility to be injected into the bank by AMCON, CBN said last Friday.

The takeover background The CBN announced (after trading hours on Friday September 21) with immediate effect - the revocation of Skye Bank license due to the inability of existing shareholders to recapitalise the bank, following results from the Apex bank’s examination and forensic audit, which showed that the bank was in dire need of recapitalisation.

Thus, the CBN in consultation with the Nigerian Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) formed a bridge bank named “Polaris Bank” to take over the asset and liabilities of the defunct bank and assured the general public of the safety of their funds. The CBN also stated that the bank will resume normal banking activities on Monday September 24, 2018.

The strategy is for the Asset Management Company of Nigeria (AMCON) to capitalise the Bridge

Bank and begin the process of sourcing investors to buy out AMCON. All customers of Skye Bank are now automatic customers of the new bank with their accounts and records duly purchased by Polaris Bank.

Also, the CBN further stated that it plans on retaining the existing board and management members

while offering a new contract to all employees of the defunct Skye Bank under the name of Polaris Bank.

NSE chose to play chat-up Shortly after the apex bank’s decision, the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) on same evening announced the suspension of Skye Bank’s shares from trading on the floor of the

Exchange, which became effective Monday September 24, 2018.

No doubt, the NSE decision was on the back of the regulatory action taken by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to revoke Skye Bank’s license and in an exercise of the powers of the Exchange pursuant to the Rules on Suspension of Trading in Listed Securities, Rulebook

of The Exchange (Issuers’ Rules). Many analysts have seen this development as another goal scored against the Exchange.

Though, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in July 2016 dissolved the bank’s board, due to the inability of the bank to raise required capital and it being a systemically important institution. Skye last released its results for the financial year ended December 2015, which implies over two year now.

While CBN and NDIC moved within their regulatory powers to save depositor, the NSE watched and allowed shareholders to remain on the risk path of an institution that its results were last seen in past 3 years.

It was expected that following the new Board take-over, the backlog of the results would have been released be it quarterly or fully to guide investors who were busy buying the shares of the now non existing bank.

Skye stocks never traded fundamentally following its inability to update the market with its financials since 2015, a development which made many analysts raise red flags on buying the stock. Smart investors had long exited the stock in view of the challenges facing the bank.

“The question is since Skye Bank had no result for over two year, why did the NSE not suspend trading in its shares because prospective investors were in the dark but yet NSE did not do anything.

“In fact Skye was pumping and dumping all over the place. Skye Bank has outperformed the NSE year-toContinues on page 22

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United Capital investment views

Equities snap losing streak; ASI gains 0.7percent

T

he domestic bourse snapped out of its threeconsecutive week-onweek (w/w) bear ish streak, advancing 0.7percent to 32,540.2 points. The main index appreciated in 3 of 5 trading days intermittently amid FGN’s announcement of the suspension of its National carrier project and CBN’s revocation of Skye bank’s license, among others.

Accordingly, market capitalisation accreted N77.6billion to N11.9trillion while YTD return recuperated to -14.9percent.

Activity level strengthened as average volume traded rose 42.6percent w/w to 274.1million u n i t s w h i l e av e r a g e v a l u e traded increased 6.4percent to N3.9billion.

All sector indices tracked the bullish theme in the overall market except the Insurance index which stood as the lone loser w/w after shedding 4.9percent w/w due price depreciation in STDINSURE (-20percent), CORNERST (-16.7percent) and MANSARD (-19.1percent).

The Banking (+2.7percent w/w), Oil & Gas (+2.6percent w/w) and Industrial Goods (+2.4percent w/w) indices saved the main index from the bear’s pangs as bargain hunting in FBNH (+5.5percent), ACCESS (+4.5percent), FO (+22.9percent), SEPLAT (+2.5percent), LAFARGE ( + 1 3 . 5 p e rc e n t ) a n d C C N N (+4.9percent) buoyed the indices.

The Consumer Goods (+1percent) also trended southwards consequent on price appreciation in DANGSUGAR (+5.8percent), FLOURMIL (+5.3p ercent) and NE STL E (+2.2percent).

Investors’ sentiment recovered as market breadth rebounded to 2.2x (previously 0.2x); 49 stocks advanced w/w while 22 declined w/w. Observably, the market is shuffling between sell-offs and intermittent bargain hunting, even with the political risks in the foreground, we expect this trend to continue.

Money Market: Rates price in liquidity dynamics Markets remained sufficiently liquid as OBB and overnight rates averaged 7.2percent (versus an average of 8.4percent in the preceding week). Liquidity was braced by inflows from OMO maturities, Paris club refund to states and coupon payments on the March 2036 bond, all of which more than offset outflows from CBN’s wholesale FX intervention and OMO interventions.

The CBN carried out only one successful OMO auction during the week, wherein N337.6billion was mopped up at an average stop rate of 13percent (182day – 12.5percent, 364-day – 13.5percent) while subscriptions remained underwhelming (bidto-cover: 0.9x). In the coming week, inflows from OMO maturities and FAAC inflows are expected to hit the system and we expect the CBN to maintain its spate on OMO and FX interventions in the market.

Yields: Players trade liquidity sentiments and NTB outcome In the primary market, the apex bank conducted its bi-

monthly NTB auction, wherein i t suc c e ssf u l ly re - f i nan c e d N182.1bn. Demand was robust with an average bid-to-cover ratio of 2.4x compared to 1.6x in the previous auction with the 365-day bill mostly demanded.

The auction was carried out at the following stop rates: 91-day (11percent versus 11percent at the last auction), 182-day (12.2percent versus 12.3percent at the last auction) and 364-day (13.475percent versus 13.5percent at the last auction).

In the secondary market, three themes guided sentiments in the T-bills space during the week; liquidity sentiments, NTB auction expectations and the NTB auction outcome.

Particularly, the buoyant liquidity profile of the week spurred bargain-hunting on the short end of the curve. Added to this, huge amounts of lost bids at the PMA also guided some buy-ins in the secondary market. Overall, average T-bill yield inched lower by 52bps to

and Investors’ & Exporters’ FX windows inched lower marginally by 2bps and 14bps respectively to finish at N306.3/$1 and N363.7/$1. Looking ahead, the outlook of the naira is expected to remain tied to the spate of CBN’s intervention in the spot and forward market, as well as the better price discovery in the I&E FX window. Also, we expect the sustained weekly FX intervention by the CBN to continue to put pressure on FX reserves.

Global Market Review and Outlook Bulls extend reign despite trade rhetoric Global equities forged beyond trade rhetoric’s as bullish sentiments weighed. In the US markets, the department of labor’s report indicated that the number of jobless claims (Americans that applied for unemployment benefits) in mid-September fell to a seasonally adjusted 201,000 - the lowest in 49 years – underscoring the country’s strengthening labor market.

Elsewhere, the Philadelphia’s

RSA fund price of PFAs as at August 3, 2018 S/N 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21

PFAs CrusaderSterling Pensions Premium Pensions ARM Pension Mgrs.

Stanbic-IBTC Pensions Legacy PFA NLPC PFA PAL Pensions First Guarantee Pension Trustfund Pensions SigmaVaughn Pensions AIICO Pension Managers Leadway Pensure PFA APT Pensions Fidelity Pensions AXA Mansard Veritas Glanvlls Pensions OAK Pensions Investment One Pension Mgrs.

IEI Anchor Pension Managers Radix Pension NPF Pensions

close the week at 13.8percent.

The 91-day was down 86basis points (bps) to 12.8percent, 182day (down 67bps to 13.3percent) and the 364-day (down 4bps to 15.2percent). In the bonds space, trading sentiments were also guided by liquidity (following proceeds from bond coupon payments). As such, average bonds yield inched lower by 15bps to end at 15.1percent. Looking into this week, we expect sentiments to be guided by the outcome of the US FOMC meeting, Nigeria MPC meeting and the FGN bond auction. Hence, our expectations remain largely bearish.

Foreign Exchange: Pressure on Naira continues to mount In the Foreign exchange market, the naira sustained the recent weekly narrative as it traded within a tight band across all the FX windows, depreciating marginally w/w even as Brent price traded above $78/barrel throughout the week. Also, in a bid to further support the naira, the CBN sustained its weekly FX intervention in the wholesale FX market, further pressuring the nation’s FX reserves down by 0.7percent w/w to $44.9bn as at Thursday. Thus, the parallel market traded sideways to settle at N360/$1, while the Interbank

CURRENT PRICE 3.9820 3.9805 3.9034 3.7542 3.6384 3.4638 3.4618 3.3070 3.2793 3.1244 3.0571 3.0502 2.7911 2.7460 2.7331 2.6680 2.5785 2.4792 2.3461 2.0434 1.4670

regional fed manufacturing index rebounded to 22.9 points in September from 11.9 points in August. Despite the headwinds of trade earlier in the week, the DJIA (+2.3percent) and S&P 500 (+0.8percent) rose week-on-week (w/w) to record highs, while the tech-laden NASDAQ (-0.3percent) index declined w/w.

The rally in global equity indices also permeated into European equity indices as UK’s Theresa May stated that BREXIT negotiation had reached an ‘impasse’ during the week.

France’s CAC (+2.6percent), U K ’s F T S E ( + 2 . 5 p e r c e n t ) , Germany’s DAX (+2.5percent) and PanEuropean STOXX (+1.7percent) all advanced w/w.

Emerging markets equity indices - as represented by the BRICS classification – all advanced w/w except India’s SENSEX (-3.3percent) index, which walloped as jitters following the Reserve of Bank of India’s order to the CEO of Yes bank to step down in January 2019 dampened the index. Brazil’s IBOV (+5.3percent), Russia’s RTSI (+5percent) and China’s SCHOMP (+4.3percent) all led the pack while South Africa’s JALSH (+1percent) recorded a modest w/w gain.

Investor’s Square •Have you been shabbily treated by your registrar, stockbroke r or other capital market operators?

Let us know and investor will help you investigate and report back.

E-mail: iheanyi.nwachukwu@businessdayonline.com

L–R: Peter Folikwe, MD/CEO, Berger Paints Nigeria plc; Tinuade Awe, ED, regulation, The Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE); Abi Ayida, chairman, Berger Paints Nigeria plc; Modupe Oguntade, head of finance, Berger Paints Nigeria Plc, and Gbenga Suberu, head of sales and marketing, Berger Paints Nigeria plc during a Facts Behind the Figures presentation at the Exchange.

Berger Paints: Committed to increase earnings, profitability IHEANYI NWACHUKWU

O

n Monday September 24, 2018, the management of Berger Paints Nigeria Plc made a “Facts Behind the Figures” presentation on the floor of Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE).

The event had in attendance members of stockbroking community,researchanalystsand investors in the capital market.

Major take-away was that Berger Paints is on the cusp of a major revolution. This manifests in its aggressive management team, new automated factory, efficient supply chain, and a holistic strategic direction –all poised to a better service delivery to stakeholders.

In his presentation, the

company’s Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Peter Folikwe disclosed some of the company’s strategic outlook.

For the management of Berger Paints Nigeria Plc, their focus in the near term would be to: increase earnings and profitability; commission and leverage the company’snewautomatedfactory as its competitive advantage; grow production output; deploy POS machines to all the company’s distributors; empower their route to market; increase market share; optimise Return-on-Investment (ROI).

The management also hopes to embed a culture of ethics, corporate governance, risk management and controls across all units in Berger Paints Nigeria Plc. “The industry foresees

marginal rise in volumes which will be driven by the continued rebound in the national economy and the attendant positive impact on consumers’ purchasing power as well as increased activities in the construction, real estate and maritime industries in the near term,” the CEO told participants at the event.

“We remain focused in our medium and long term investments to outperform competition in our market,” Folikwe said, adding that the management will increase the company’s innovativeness and deepen routes to market to ensure that “our products are available in most of the geo-political zones.”

“Our Outsourced Business Partners are being provided massive sales and marketing Continues on page 23

Skye Bank: Revisiting NSE ‘medication after...

Continued from page 21

date all the while it was being liquidated”,an informed person in the stock market community told INVESTOR on the Nigerian Stock Exchange last Monday.

He continued, “Should NSE not have suspended trading in its shares earlier? See how retail guys who played Skye will feel now. This will further diminish confidence in the market. NSE Should have suspended trading in Skye shares since last year.

Shareholdershavebeeneroded”.

In their September 24 note to investors, research analysts at United Capital Plc in their view said, “Surprisingly, though the bank (Skye) has consistently missed regulatory filings, it has been one of the best-performing stocks on the exchange in 2018, up 54percent year-to-date (YtD) relative to NSE-All Share Index (ASI) at -14.9percent.

“Also, the bank ended the prior week with a market

capitalisation of N10.7billion.

However, with the revocation of Skye’s license and the emergence of Polaris Bank, all interest in the bank technically becomes worthless”, United Capital Plc analysts said.

Vetiva Capital analysts had also noted that “despite the well-known challenges at the bank, which forced the CBN to intervene in July 2016, the stock rose 4percent on Friday to 77kobo, up 54percent ytd”.

Investors count their losses A whopping N10.6billion was taken off the pockets of equity holders in Skye Bank with resultant impact on the market capitalisation of Nigerian stock market. Skye Bank was listed on the Nigerian Bourse and had in excess of N10.687billion in market capitalisation and shares outstanding of 13,880,301,410units.

As at Friday September 21, stock traders exchanged

2,931,537 units of Skye shares at 77kobo per share against 18,870,751 units traded on September 13, 2018 at 67kobo.

Ahead of the license revocation

by CBN, Skye was one of the top gainers on the Lagos Bourse that day.

With the birth of Polaris, these are now mere stories.

Before the regulatory action, the bank stock at 77kobo on the day its license was revoked represented 54percent in yearto-date (YtD) returns.

Despite the absence of results, the stock rallied sharply in the first quarter (Q1) of the year and was one of the bestperforming stocks year to date outperforming the NSE. The exit of Skye from the Bourse has now impacted the NSE Banking Index. Skye Bank was listed on the financial services sector (banking sub sector) of the Nigerian Stock Exchange main board.

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Domestic investors outshine foreigners in 8 months stock transactions IHEANYI NWACHUKWU

O

ut of a total transaction valued at N1.877trillion o n t h e Ni g e r i a n s t o c k market in the eight months to August 2018, foreign investors accounted for only N906.86billion or 48.31percent, while domestic investors accounted for N970.31billion, representing 51.69percent.

The record total transaction in the review period of 2018 surpassed the N1.526billion which w a s re c o rd e d i n s a m e period of 2017. In eight months to August 2017, foreign investors accounted for N699.07billion or 45.80percent ; while domestic investors accounted for N827.20billion or 54.20percent.

From January to August, 2018, foreign inflow into the stock market stood at N437.14billion while outflow was N469.71billion, according to the Nigerian Stock Exchange data on domestic and foreign portfolio participation in equity trading.

In the same per iod, domestic retail investors accounted for N409.29billion while domestic institutional investors accounted for N545.07billion.

Month-on-month (mom), the total transactions at t h e nat i o n ’s b ou rs e reduced by 8.37percent from N146.07 billion recorded in July 2018 to N133.84 billion (about $437.8 million) in August 2018. The cumulative transactions from January to August increased by 22.99percent, from N1.526 trillion recorded in 2017 to N1.877 trillion in 2018.

Foreign investors outperformed domestic investors by 6.06percent in August 2018. Total foreign transactions increas e d by 9 6 . 2 1 p e rc e n t , f ro m N36.17billion in July to N70.97 billion in August 2018.

Foreign outflows also increased by 109.97percent from N16.34 billion to N34.31 billion whilst foreign inflows increased by 84.87percent from N19.83 billion to N36.66 billion over the same period.

There was a significant decrease of 42.79percent in total domestic transactions from N109.9 billion in July 2018 to N62.87 billion in August 2018.

Between January and August 2018, the institutional composition of the domestic market reduced by 61.91percent, from N44.48 billion in July to N16.94 billion in August 2018 whilst

the retail composition also reduced by 54.09percent, from N65.42 billion to N30.03billion within the same period. This indicates a higher participation by retail investors’ over their institutional counterparts in August 2018.

NSE report shows foreign transactions which worth N1.539trillion in 2014 declined to N518billion in 2016, but increased significantly by 133percent to N1.208trillion in 2017 thereby accounting for about 48percent of total transactions in 2017.

O ver an eleven (11) year period, domestic transactions have decreased by 62.46percent from N3.556trillion in 2007 to N1.335tr illion in 2017.

H o w e v e r, t h e r e w a s a significant increase in 2017 by 111percent from N634 billion recorded in 2016.

Berger Paints: Committed to...

Continued from page 22

support to cause a desirable change in trade”, he added.

Though the Facts Behind the Figures presentation did not constitute an invitation to underwrite, subscribe for, or otherwise acquire or dispose of any Berger Paints Nigeria Plc shares or other securities but it made handy vital information that guides investors decision.

Berger Paints Nigeria Plc is the first paints manufacturer to be established in Nigeria and quoted on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE). In 2016, there was a decline in the company’s revenue due to the challenging operating environment. There was an impressive revenue growth in year 2017.

“Berger Paints is gainfully repositioned for growth”, the management noted. The company recorded growth in sales revenue from N2.603billion in 2016 to N3.092 billion in 2017 (19percent increase).

Profit Before Tax (PBT) grew from N272million in 2016 to N340million in 2017 (25percent) increase. The management said growth was due to: implementation of strategy plan which included “increase in number of our sales outlets (from 29 in 2016 to 47 in 2017), improvement of factory efficiency, finance income and some cost saving measures.”

The company’s first-half (H1) 2018 financial highlights show improved revenue growth of 13percent increase due largely to the increase in volume of paints sold and better product mix, increase in demand, good marketing strategy and uptick in the real estate market. Operating profit increased by 29percent due to improved factory efficiency, reduction in operating expenses;

and improved revenue also had a positive effect on Berger Paints operating profit. “ We hav e 5 2 o u t l e t s franchising scheme as against 47 outlets in 2017. We plan to grow the number of outlets from 52 to at least 60 by the end of 2018. Intent is to deploy point-of-sales machines to all our outlets. 10 POS machines already deployed to some our outlets. We are in the process of completing the new ultramodern water- based factory.

This revamp would improve product quality that measures to international imported standards.

Operational efficiency is assured to enhance our footprint as a leading brand in the industry. We are on track to deliver to Berger Paints the first automated paint manufacturing plant in SubSahara Africa. When operational, the new plant would improve our product quality making us compete favorably with imported brands and deliver better profits to our shareholders,” the company CEO stated.

Its share price rose to N7 as at Monday September 24, 2018, up 10kobo or 1.45percent.

The company’s share price had reached a 52-week high of N10.35kobo against 52-week low of N6.50. Its market capitalisation stood at N2.028billion, with shares outstanding of 289,823,447 units.

Addressing the company’s management during presentation of Facts Behind the Figures at the Nigerian Stock Exchange in Lagos, the Exchange’s Chief Executive Officer, Oscar Onyema who was represented by the Executive Director, Regulation, Tinuade Awe explained that The Exchange remains committed to partnering with quoted companies as stakeholders in the market ecosystem.

According to Onyema, The Exchange aggregates all issues affecting quoted companies, including corporate governance and tax reform and play pivotal role to ensure smooth operation of the companies. He commended resilience of Berger Paints Nigeria Plc despite the tough operating climate.

Addressing the Exchange’s Management Staff, Abi Ayida, Berger Paint’s chairman stated that the company would review its business model to improve its processes and take advantage of investment opportunities in Nigeria irrespective of the challenges in the operating climate.

He assured The Exchange of Berger Paints Nigeria Plc willingness to partner with it in some of its activities that fall under Corporate Social Responsibilities (CSR) Also, stockbrokers commended the company’s management for the presentation of facts behind the figures while Ayida rang the closing gong which symbolically closed the market.

Berger Paints Nigeria Plc commenced operation in Nigeria on January 9, 1959. The company has grown to be leader in the Coating and Allied Industry in Nigeria - a legacy inherited from Lewis Berger (German colour chemist) who founded the Berger Paints’ dynasty in London, in 1760.

Berger Paints Nigeria Plc has manufacturing plant in Lagos with over 52 outlets (Colour World centres) and a country wide distribution network of dealers in strategic locations.

Its success has been the ongoing commitment to innovative development and manufacture of paints and allied coatings which are environmentally friendly and formulated to withstand harsh

tropical conditions.

Berger Paints Nigeria Plc is the first paints researcher to introduce textured coating named Texcote to the Nigeria market.

It developed tropicalised and environment friendly paint products to the Nigerian market; introduced full process tamperproof colour paint containers to the Nigeria market. It will shortly be the first to establish a fully automated factory in the sub Saharan Africa which would produce international standard paints.

The company has prospects for backward and forward integration because of its locally sourced raw materials and an in-house production plant.

This is in addition to producing international standard cans and buckets in-house.

In 2017, the Paints Industry’s demand remained weak due to low investment in real estate development, weak economy and high leverage. Paints Industry’s revenue marginally grew by 7percent in 2017 (annualized) from prior year, its contribution to total GDP remained low at 0.03percent. The industry is highly fragmented with over 500 operators in the organised and unorganised market.

Structured market accounts for 60percent-65percent of the market value. Largest industry segment is decorative paints; accounts for about 80percent of revenue annually. Paint consumption per capita in Nigeria remains low at 2.8 liters in comparison to South Africa’s 5.6 liters per capita –attributed to poor industry regulation and poor consumer advocacy. Industry is highly raw material import dependent; over 75percent of the Industry’s input (CaCO₃ and TiO2).

Cordros Research company update

Report says African Private Equity-backed IPOs among largest in Africa

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he African Private Equity and Venture Capital Association (AVCA) and PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) released its publication, Africa Private Equity-backed IPOs, providing a historic analysis of private equity-backed and non-private equitybacked IPOs between 2010 and 2017 on exchanges throughout Africa, as well as IPOs by African companies on international exchanges.

Over the period from 2010 to 2017, African private equity-backed IPOs as a percentage of total African IPOs averaged just 16percent in terms of volume and 23percent in terms of value; in comparison, over the same period, private equitybacked IPOs in the United States averaged 39percent in terms of volume and 44percent in terms of value, and in the United Kingdom, 36percent in terms of volume and 45percent in terms of value.

During the period under review, there have been 30 African private equitybacked IPOs raising a total of $3 billion. Consistent with overall IPO trends in Africa, the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) led as an exit destination in terms of value of private equitybacked IPOs, with nearly $2 billion raised. The JSE and Bourse de Tunis led as exit destinations for the period 2010-2017 in terms of volume with 9 private equity-backed IPOs each.

An analysis of post-IPO performance shows that private equity-backed IPOs in sub-Saharan Africa showed a price return of 27percent higher than their offer price, on average, over a one-year time horizon post-IPO, which closely approximates the performance of their nonprivate equity backed IPO peers of 30%. Performance of North African shares over the same time horizon in the period analysed differed, with post-IPO performance returning only zero ppercent and 8percent growth over offer price for private equity floats and non-private equity floats, respectively.

Enitan ObasanjoAdeleye, Head of Research at AVCA notes: “We are excited to have worked with PwC to highlight private equity-backed IPO activity

on the African continent.

The capital markets play a fundamental role in the efficient allocation of capital and are a critical exit route for private equity globally.

We have long noted that the proportion of private equity exits through IPOs in Africa is lower relative to markets such as the US and UK. This publication now provides data which will be important for ongoing dialogue around measures that need to be taken to narrow this gap.”

Andrew Del Boccio, PwC Capital Markets partner based in Johannesburg notes, “Private equity funds backed a combined 16% of the IPOs in Africa between 2010 and 2017, with average one year returns on subSaharan Africa transactions closely in line with nonprivate equity IPOs; this suggests an opportunity to further explore the capital markets as a plausible exit strategy for private equity investments in the region.”

Over the period, a relatively small number of private equity-backed IPOs contributed significantly to the value of proceeds raised.

Among others, these include the 2010 $681 million IPO of Life HealthCare Group on the JSE, which constituted 23percent of total private equity-backed IPO capital raised between 2010 and 2017, and the 2014 $348 million IPO of Alexander Forbes, also on the JSE, constituting 12percent of total private equity-backed IPO capital raised.

Not captured in our analysis, was the $819 million dual listing of Vivo Energy on the JSE and London Stock Exchange, which took place in May 2018 and raised more capital than any African private equity-backed IPO since 2010. Alice Tomdio, PwC Capital Markets Director based in Lagos comments, “The Vivo Energy IPO is clear evidence that the IPO market is open to companies with attractive equity stories and a proven track record of growth.

While it is evident that the IPO markets in Africa lack the same profile as an exit destination when compared to more established markets, we hope that the Vivo story inspires private equity houses to seriously consider IPOs as an exit route.”

Thursday 27 September 2018

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BUSINESS DAY

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BUSINESS DAY

Thursday 27 September 2018

Harvard Business Review

Global Business Perspectives CONNEC TING

THE

WORLD

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BUSINESS

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Why companies are creating their own coworking spaces GABOR NAGY HAPPINESS estled in the Silicon Sentier district of Paris, the Villa Bonne Nouvelle (“House of Good News”), or VBN, initially appears to be another new coworking space.

But what sets it apart is that only half of its 60 occupants are freelancers. The remainder work for Orange (née French Telecom), which launched VBN in 2014 to teach its programmers and engineers how to work with and learn from people outside of the company.

There are now around 19,000 shared workspaces worldwide.

But they’re not just for freelancers or startups; dozens of companies, ranging from Sprint and AT&T to SAP and IBM, have launched their own coworking experiments.

A case in point is WeWork, the provider of coworking spaces, which has grown its enterprise customer base in the last year by 370%. As of June 2018, corporate occupiers make up roughly one-quarter of WeWork’s members and revenues.

We’ve toured and interviewed principals in more than a dozen corporate coworking spaces in the U.S., South America and Europe. We found that these companies and their employees are searching for the same qualities freelancers and entrepreneurs report from their experiences in shared workspaces — learning skills faster, making more connections and feeling inspired.

In addition to coworking spaces for individuals and those that partner with employers, we’ve identified two types of corporate coworking. One we call open houses, in which companies offer workspace as a public amenity, typically for brand-building. We call the oth-

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er type campsites — internal, invitation-only spaces where teams from one company colocate with peers from another.

Campsites are temporary, affording coworkers stationed there opportunities to learn, ignore organizational charts and collaborate across corporate boundaries.

The purpose of these spaces can vary widely, but they typically fall into one or more of three groups: transformation, innovation and future-proofing. In the case of transformation, the space is designed to be a Trojan horse, sneaking new ways of working into an otherwise staid organization. This is explicitly the goal at Orange’s VBN, which Ava Virgitti, an employee experience lead for Orange, describes as an “HR lab” to test and learn how teams behave in the presence of leaner and meaner startups. Innovation is the goal at other campsites, where diverse stakeholders are assembled with specific tasks and equipped with special facilities and methodologies to achieve them. Future-proofing is more open-ended; these spaces are designed to generate new contacts or ideas.

Users are typically quite diverse in rank, role and affilia-

TIME

What managers should know about postpartum depression JULIA BECK

tion, and are present for only a few months before rotating out or back into the company.

This is a critical feature of campsites in particular — a revolving door means a constant stream of fresh insights and expertise.

Do these spaces work in promoting innovation?

This seems to be the case, although, as with coworking in general, their effectiveness is difficult to measure and only quantifiable indirectly, through user satisfaction surveys and interviews. Orange’s VBN reported a 92% user approval rating of the space, and pointed to the long waitlist for future seasons. According to researchers at the University of Michigan, the most common reasons people seek coworking spaces are interaction with people (84%), random discoveries and opportunities (82%) and knowledge sharing (77%). Corporate coworkers seek the same.

As one might imagine, demonstrating the return on investment of this is difficult. For this reason, strong executive sponsors are crucial for corporate coworking. With the metrics so hazy, the decision as to whether these spaces are worth it is being made on a case-by-case basis. But in light of the trends animating creative work today these spaces hint at a future far beyond WeWork.

Gabor Nagy is research program manager at Haworth.

Greg Lindsay is a senior fellow at NewCities.

HEALTH oing back to work after having a baby is tricky stuff. After all, new parents are simply not the same people they were before.

This personal struggle, combined with a misguided workplace view of what a parent was actually doing on leave (no, they were not just lounging about and cuddling with their baby), adds to a cultural disconnect. In reality, a new parent is actively climbing a steep learning curve: mastering a whole new set of skills, tackling challenges that are not only foreign but also highly personal, and making sense of a new emotional and physical normal. The birth parent has to cope with physical healing, which itself can be complicated and tiring, while also caring for and bonding with a newborn.

This transition is challenging for almost every new parent, but for some it can become postpartum depression, a range of mood disorders that can occur around (not just after) the birth of a child. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, how often PPD symptoms occur, how long they last and how intense they feel can be different for each person. About 1 in 7 women experience PPD, and men often do as well.

Most employees don’t share their struggles with their employer, but a manager’s support can make a huge difference. A preemptive, flexible and gradual return strategy can prove to be very successful, but unfortunately, this kind of arrangement is relatively rare.

I spoke to Anne Smith, the founder of Postpartum Support International, and she stressed that there are three types of support that people with PPD often need: social, therapeutic and medical. Employers can be a key factor in the first two. Here’s how: — IDENTIFY: As a manager, commit to keeping your eyes wide open. Note over- or underproductivity as well as a changed or flat personality or loss of enthusiasm.

— OFFER PEER AND PROFESSIONAL SUPPORT: Create a healthy menu of ways to access support

G

2017 Harvard Business School Publishing Corp. Distributed by The New York Times Syndicate

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without requiring an employee to ask or identify her need. Have ready tools to connect parents with each other. Have outside vendors and other resources listed and easy to access. Consider a required parttime return plan or a mandated telecommute for a period of time.

— PROVIDE GOOD COVERAGE: Care, especially private counseling, can be expensive. Still, providing coverage for private or group work can be extremely helpful.

Make this an easy-to-access benefit.

Take advantage of centers that offer private and group work (such as the Pump Station and Nurtury in Santa Monica, California), as well as pediatric services (Pacify or Let Mommy Sleep) as part of off- and on-ramp benefit options.

— OFFER TOOLS: Proudly offer options that can include flexible time, telecommuting, gradual return, peer mentoring and other support offerings at your management disposal. Share these with all team members, potential employees and so on. Simply make it a part of your culture.

— NORMALIZE AND EDUCATE: Actively work to remove misunderstandings around parental leave and PPD. Underscore the truth that PPD can hit anyone, anywhere.

Host internal or online events with experts on this issue.

— BE KNOWLEDGEABLE AND PREPARED: Make a strong commitment to identifying and supporting instances of PPD in your employees.

It is a highly worthwhile investment for holding onto those you value through authentic support.

Julia Beck is the founder of the It’s Working Project and Forty Weeks.

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BUSINESS DAY

Luxury

Malls

Companies

Deals

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Thursday 27 September 2018

Spending Trends

There’s no hope in sight for Philippine retailers …high inflation, oil prices and weaker peso hit consumers …Metropolitan Bank, Sun Life underweight consumer shares

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he end of the year and election periods are usually boons for Philippine toy sellers, booze makers and retailers.

But this time around, things may be different.

Some of the nation’s biggest money managers are preparing for consumer companies to experience a dire stretch of time and are avoiding their stocks. Fund overseers at Metropolitan Bank & Trust Co. and Sun Life of Canada Philippines Inc. are warning that high inflation is hitting households just as corporate margins remain under pressure.

Both firms are underweight the sector’s shares as they expect rising oil prices and a weakening peso to hamper earnings growth.

“Election and Christmas spending usually have a positive impact on consumer stocks, but this might not be the case now,” said Michael Enriquez, who helps manage about $5.55 billion

as chief investment officer at Sun Life Philippines.

“Consumers hurting from inflation are showing signs of hesitation on spending more, while companies couldn’t pass on higher cost for that could further hurt demand.”

Higher taxes, climbing oil prices and a weakening

currency have hurt growth in spending, and a central-bank survey earlier this month showed Philippine consumers have turned pessimistic.

That’s hit the stock market, with department store SM Investments Corp., the biggest member of the Philippine Stock Exchange Index, and LT Group Inc., the owner

of the nation’s largest tobacco company, becoming some of the biggest decliners in September.

All but three of the 12 consumer-related shares in the benchmark gauge have fallen this year, with five exceeding the measure’s 14 percent slide. GT Capital Holdings Inc., owner of the country’s

rise in profit to NZD 22.9 million profit, despite flat sales growth. The company says shoppers are responding well to its new strategy of shifting away from continual sales and implementing “everyday low price” strategy.

Takeover target Uber is reportedly in early talks to acquire London-based delivery service Deliveroo.

The potential purchase is regarded as a major attempt by the American ridesharing company to dominate the food-delivery business in Europe and comes amid intensifying competition in the eat-at-home market.

Fuelling competition in Asia, Australasia JD.com, China’s second largest e-commerce retailer, is planning to

open 1,000 online to offline supermarkets in the next three to five years, stepping up its competition with Alibaba and Tencent to dominate the mainland grocery business.

Fruit contamination An act of ‘commercial terrorism’ has brought Australia’s multimillion-dollar strawberry industry to its knees following the discovery of needles hidden in the fruit. Supermarkets both in Australia and New Zealand are withdrawing the produce and hundreds of thousands of berries are being dumped by growers.

Walmart worried The world’s largest retailer has responded to Trump’s latest USD 200 billion tariffs on Chinese goods, with a letter expressing concerns of inevi-

largest car manufacturer, and JG Summit Holdings Inc., which controls the biggest maker of snacks and iced tea, are down more than 25 percent.

That’s led to a drop in valuations, and some say it’s time to look into opportunities. Philippine consumer stocks trade at almost 18 times estimated earnings for the next year on average, down from 22 times at the market peak in January, according to data available compiled by Bloomberg.

“I think it’s safe to assume that many consumer names are at bottom or near bottom given that inflation is peaking and will soon ease while spending for the holidays and election campaign will provide a continuous flow of catalysts,” says Miguel Ong, an analyst at AP Securities Inc. “It’s good to start picking while the sector is still out of favor.”

Ong favors retailers such as Puregold Price Club Inc. and Robinsons Retail Hold-

ings Inc. That’s because they can pass on higher costs quicker than restaurant operators and manufacturers such as Jollibee Foods Corp. and Universal Robina Corp., which have to absorb them for a longer time before they can raise prices.

John Padilla, who helps manage about $8.13 billion as head of equities at Metropolitan Bank & Trust, sees it otherwise. While the stock losses have pushed down valuations and Universal Robina looks attractive, there are too many headwinds ahead to buy consumer shares now.

“There is no doubt valuation haves come down -- but where is the upside?” said Padilla, who has been underweight consumer stocks for almost a year. “Until the threat of higher inflation tapers off, one can’t say the worst is already over for spending and margins. I see no rush to buy now.”

table price hikes. Hundreds of other retailers including Target and Kohl’s are also pushing back against the tariffs.

Teaming up Walgreen Boots Alliance has partnered with Alibaba in an attempt to increase sales on the international stage. The American health and beauty chain will use the e-commerce giant’s Tmall platform to offer its most popular brands.

Entertaining rivalry Huawei has tried to upstage Apple on the day of its latest iPhone launch. The smart-phone manufacturer drove a van to the tech giant’s flagship store in London and gave out free juice with the tagline ‘no traces of apple’ and ‘get ju%ce that lasts’, referring to the longer battery life claims of Huawei.

Pizza for life Pizza giant Domino’s Russian promotion went awry when it offered a life-time supply of pizza to anyone who got a tattoo featuring the company logo.

An overwhelming response of 381 qualified applications in four days meant the promo, which was scheduled to last for two months, had to be pulled.

Check out some of the winning tattoos here.

Strategic decisions in Europe Investment firm EP Global, owned by Czech businessman Daniel Křetínský, tightens its grip on German retailer Metro by buying an additional stake, fuelling speculation of a full bid. In southern France, agricultural group In-

Vivo aims to expand into retail and is in talks to buy Bio&Co, a chain of organic food stores.

Promoting Serbia Alibaba plans to launch its Alipay platform in Serbia by the end of this year. The Chinese e-commerce giant is also set to promote the country as a tourist destination through its Fliggy app. The local trade ministry expects an increase in guests from China.

Network expansions The opening of a new store in Pennsylvania brings regional supermarket chain Wegmans’s estate close to the 100-unit milestone. Nebraska-based retailer B&R’, which operates three retail banners, has also extended its footprint with the acquisition of the Heartland Foods store.

Streamlining efforts Under Armour announced 400 job cuts and raised its forecast for adjusted profit. The athletic apparel company, known for its performance clothing, has been struggling as competition heated up, and rivals like Nike and Adidas have increased its market share.

Eastern forays in Asia & Australasia As part of its strategy to accelerate technological innovations in Japan, Amazon has opened its first permanent office in Tokyo dedicated to helping start-ups. The online powerhouse is also in talks with the Indonesian government to enter the country, which is one of Southeast Asia’s largest markets.

Culled from Bloomberg

Global retail update

H

uawei and Domino have engaged in entertaining promotions, with the latter biting off more than it could chew. In Australia, fruit growers are distraught after the wide-spread sabotage of strawberries devastates the industry.

Also, Bookseller Barnes & Noble has launched a prototype experience flagship, doughnut chain Dunkins’ new location impresses with a modern atmosphere, and Dutch grocer Jumbo dedicated a pop-up to a Formula 1 star.

These examples show that innovative store concepts are still scoring.

Competitive offerings While Amazon tries to stay ahead of its tech rivals Apple and Alphabet in the US with the introduction of more voicecontrolled homeware devices, the e-commerce giant reinforces its fashion commitment in Europe, launching its first own brand of women’s sportswear called Aurique.

Focus on France in Europe French retailer Casino, whose stock price has fallen by almost a third this year, said it had been contacted by domestic rival Carrefour in recent days over a possible tieup and that it had rejected the approach. However, Carrefour denied in a separate statement having ever “solicited” Casino.

Future investments German supermarket chain Rewe is upping its e-commerce

game with the opening of a logistics centre designed to serve its fast-growing online sales. Click here for pictures (captions in German). Meanwhile, Carrefour Poland has launched a franchise store concept for petrol stations with a focus on convenience and service.

Ethical issues Dutch retailer Albert Heijn has introduced a blockchain mapping system to educate consumers about the origins of its ownlabel orange juice. Meanwhile, ethical questions are being raised about the astonishingly low wages for Italian workers making luxury clothes.

Metro matters Metro Properties, the real estate arm of Germany’s Metro AG, has sold its real estate property in Poland for EUR 20.3 million to Corum Asset Management.

The Germans have acquired the land in Pozna in 2008 to build a Makro cash & carry store. The plan was stalled because of the economic slowdown.

Thinking ahead Walmart Canada has partnered with Food-X Urban Delivery, which uses food waste reduction technology, to launch a sustainable delivery option in Vancouver. The retailer is also determined to train the employees of its 5,000 stores in virtual reality, sending Oculus Go headsets to each outlet.

Solid numbers New Zealand’s biggest retailer, The Warehouse, has posted a 12%

Thursday 27 September 2018

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Highest and lowest food prices within the last three months BUNMI BAILEY

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ertain prices of food items has p ro g re s s i v e l y increased and decreased in Nigeria within the last three months of June to August 2018.

BusinessDay analysis of the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) food prices report showed that onions, tomatoes, sweet potatoes, catfish (fresh), catfish (dry) and mackerel (frozen) were the

food items that consistently increased within the period of June and August.

Industry players in the food industry have attributed the increase in prices to the weather conditions in the country.

Africanfarmer Mogaji, CEO, X-Ray Farms said, “For onions and tomatoes it is basically due to the weather.

The rainfall was a bit lower some time ago up until recently that it started going higher. So, it’s basically a function of the weather most especially the irregular rain-

fall pattern.”

The ballooning prices of fish feeds have correspondingly led to a surge in the prices of catfish in the market. “it has become rather uneconomical to be going into catfish production due to the high cost of fish feed. So, it is a function of people getting their hands out of it.”

Conversely, broken rice, also known locally as Ofada rice, evaporated tinned carnation milk (170g) and peak milk (170g), white garri, dried mud fish,

groundnut oil (one bottle) and vegetable oil (one bottle) were the items whose prices reduced within the specified periods “The prices of cassava tuber have been low this year and I think it was more of artificial scarcity because people stopped selling. The prices went high a bit some time ago but it has settled down. For ofada rice, I feel that people are not buying because when it comes to pricing, production cost is high. So I think it may be due to consumer preference,” Mogaji said.

BUSINESS DAY

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BMW expects hit from trade dispute and emissions tests

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erman luxury automaker BMW said Tuesday that its profits and sales will fall short of its forecasts this year, saying that fear of international trade conflicts has weighed on pricing and citing the impact of new emissions tests on European markets.

The profit warning — the second from a major German automaker this year — underlines the difficulties facing the industry in maintaining its record of steadily growing sales and profits.

The Munich-based company said that sales revenue in its automotive division would fall slightly compared with last year’s instead of increase, while earnings before tax would be moderately below last year’s 10.66 billion euros ($12.55 billion) instead of roughly in line.

A key earnings metric — the operating profit margin — would fall short. BMW predicts a 7 percent profit margin, below its target range of 8-10 percent. The figure represents how much the company is making per vehicle, an area that has been a strong point for makers of higher-priced cars.

“The continuing international trade conflicts are aggravating the market situation and feeding uncertainty,” the company said in a statement. “These circumstances are distorting demand more than anticipated and leading to pricing pressure in several automotive markets.”

The company also said that new, tougher diesel emissions tests in Europe, called WLTP for Worldwide Harmonized Light Vehicle Test Procedure, have led to market and sales distortions, even though BMW has managed to implement the new standard ahead of time.

Auto registrations soared in Europe in August as companies unloaded noncompliant vehicles before the new standard came into force on Sept.

1 and made them unsellable, often in the form of fleet or rental sales.

The company also cited costs for warranty actions. In August, it announced a recall of 324,000 due to a defect that could cause vehicle fires.

BMW is facing some of the same headwinds that led competitor Daimler to issue a profit warning in June. Analysts at Sanford C. Bernstein said that the price pressure from competitors Audi and Daimler’s Mercedes selling off vehicles ahead of the emissions deadline should be temporary. “The fact that some German companies have screwed up WLTP testing and are now offering discounts on pre-registered cars is not a sign of the consumer rolling over,” they wrote in an email. If the testing issue passes “and 2019 demand remains intact, earnings should stabilize.”

Shares in BMW dropped about 5 percent after the announcement.

Culled from pilotonline. com

Living under poverty line How Nigerians are struggling to survive

If you want to contact the writer of this story call: +234(0) 803 889 1567, +234(0) 8155184838 chinwe.agbeze@businessdayonline.com

Job applicant loses baby after successful surgery …BusinessDay readers donated N110,000

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hinonso Onwumere, a job applicant, has lost her son after a successful neurosurgery at University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital (UNTH), Enugu.

The job applicant was featured in this section Thursday August 16, August 30 & September 13, 2018, where she appealed to kind-hearted Nigerians to assist save her son’s life. ‘‘We have exhausted all our options. Our friends

and family members have assisted us in many ways, but we are yet to raise a third of the amount required for my son’s surgery,’’ Chinonso told BusinessDay in an earlier interview. ‘‘All the money we received including my husband’s income goes for this cause and we are yet to raise it all.’’

Onwumere received a donation of N50,000 from The Rodinia Hotel & Restaurants, Asaba to fund the surgery.

The job applicant also

Analysts: Chinwe Agbeze, Stephen Onyekwelu, David Ibemere, Graphics: Fifen Famous

received the sum of N20,000 each from three anonymous readers, bringing the total donation to N110,000.

The elated Chinonso thanked her generous supporters for their assistance. ‘‘I pray for all those that helped me. They and their entire generation will never pass through this stress,’’ she said when she received the transferred sum.

However, shortly after the surgery, Chinonso lost the baby. The remains of the baby were laid to rest on Saturday 22, 2018.

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Thursday 27 September 2018

BOOK SERIALISATION Too Good to Die: Third Term and the Myth of the Indispensable Man in Africa Author:

By Chidi Odinkalu and Ayisha Osori Publisher: Prestige Continued from Wednesday

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The God who will not be denied ore than one decade after the vote that killed President Obasanjo’s third term agenda, the project now looks so discredited, few are champing at the bit to claim the prize for being the chief architect and originator of the idea.

There are no public records of who introduced it during the NPRC or the National Assembly’s 2005-2006 review of the 1999 Constitution. Many theories abound to explain whose idea it was.

This is not surprising considering that the Nigerian political class has created an industry of denialists and revisionists out of a country without memory, using an army of professional hagiographers, academics and journalists to lay claim to triumphs and successes unfounded in facts or verifiable records.

A few politicians suggest that the idea came from the private sector. Nasir El-Rufai, a senior Minister during Obasanjo’s third term agenda, claims that the identity of the “Lagos businessmen […] that were behind this idea remained unconfirmed but several names were mentioned eventually.” ElRufai, who worked all sides of the third term debacle with what looks like only his personal benefit in view, headed the privatisation process at the beginning of the Obasanjo administration, before rising to become Obasanjo’s trusted Minister of the Federal Capital Territory and knew the business crowd well. The leading names among this group included master brewer, Festus Odimegwu; bankers, Tony Elumelu, Jim Ovia and Cecilia Ibru; billionaires Aliko Dangote and Femi Otedola, and the lively Ndi Okereke-Onyiuke, who led the Nigerian Stock Exchange. This group made a mutual-benefit project out of the Obasanjo administration and profited inestimably from its auction of Nigeria’s sovereign heirlooms under the privatisation process in which El-Rufai was a pioneer manager in the Obasanjo administration. They, along with some members of Obasanjo’s economic team, desired a completion of the privatisation process. Their motive was quite simple: to make even more money from their monopoly of proximity to economic policy-making.

Others suggested that the idea was smuggled into the NPRC and picked up by the National Assembly’s joint committee on constitution reform with, no doubt, generous helpings of inducement from the bottomless pit of resources available to the Presidency and Ministry of Petroleum, both headed by Obasanjo.

A third theory is that after the 2003 general election, members of President Obasanjo’s core team, led by Waziri Mohammed, Chairman of the National Railway Corporation, took matters into their own hands. A former banker with ties to both the military and foreign intelligence service by virtue of his father who was a diplomat, Waziri is described as a cosmopolitan, sophisticated, sociable man of the people and trusted confidant of President Obasanjo. Married into the

famous Dantata clan in Kano, Waziri was thus related by marriage to Aliko Dangote whose mother was also from the same Dantata family.

Waziri may indeed have been considered by some to be the principal organizer of the third term agenda but he and his relationship with Obasanjo were virtually unknown to the public until after his tragic death in the Bellview Airline crash of 22 October 2005. There followed allegations of negotiations between his family and Obasanjo to retrieve billions of Naira in Mohammed’s accounts that he had been holding in trust for Obasanjo and the third term campaign.

In addition to El-Rufai, other members of this core team included Oby Ezekwesili, Head of the Budget Monitoring and Price Intelligence Unit, and Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, the Finance Minister. Of this group, Oby Ezekwesili was the only one who was firmly opposed to third term but she was outnumbered. They engaged the President over what would happen to his reforms if he left office and were on hand to provide the intellectual argument for tenure elongation by pointing out that the reforms embarked on by Obasanjo would take sixteen to twenty years to complete.

Democracy has its limitations when it came to the pace of development because of the need to persuade and carry stakeholders along. There was the need to compromise on democracy to gain development, they seemed to believe and argue. Singapore’s long-serving, founding Prime Minister, Lee Kuan Yew, was their gold standard. Their thinking might have been two-fold: to

impress upon Obasanjo the importance of careful successor planning, which would result in the selection of one or two of them as natural successors and credible guardians of Obasanjo’s reforms or to secure their strategic roles as members of the kitchen cabinet for as long as Obasanjo remained in power.

This would have served as validation of Obasanjo’s thoughts and plans for a third term that he had not yet shared with them. It would have also served as one more reason why he was required to stay in power longer than the constitution provided.

A fourth possibility is that President Obasanjo desired a third term and conceived of it on his own. There are several clues that substantiate this theory. As president between 2003 and 2007, there were Obasanjo’s utterances and remarks to go by. These remarks may be categorised loosely into remarks where he admitted knowledge of the campaign to keep him beyond 2007, remarks where he provided insights into why it might be necessary to have continuity and remarks made behind closed doors where he admitted to desiring a third term. The first two give him the deniability, which is critical to his ego, but offer unflattering clues as to his character. With the latter, he gambled that those he admitted his desires to would be either too invested in the power structures to make that admission public or could be discredited.

In his interactions with the media and whenever he was asked about third term, Obasanjo’s answer was always the same; he would not do anything unconstitutional. On a visit to Transparency Interna-

tional in Germany early 2005, President Obasanjo shared with an audience that he was under “intense pressure” from notably unnamed persons to stay in office beyond 2007. As it turned out, this was a familiar Nigerian charade indulged in by successive military rulers since General Gowon with “the persuaders […] actually trying to persuade the persuaded.”

A careful review of public statements where he addressed the issue of third term despite the advice of his Special Advisor, Femi Fani-Kayode, would show his response to questions about third term left it open for him to hold on to power if and when the constitution was amended. On CNN’s Diplomatic License which aired on 24 September, 2004, Obasanjo’s response to Richard Roth’s question, “Would you want a third term?” was: “No, I wouldn’t want a third term. It is unconstitutional”.

There is also what Obasanjo admitted to certain people about third term. The only persons on record about Obasanjo’s active desire to stay in power beyond 2007 are former United States Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice, former Minister, Nasir El-Rufai and Obasanjo’s own daughter, Iyabo Obasanjo. Obasanjo took care to refute both Dr. Rice and El-Rufai in his post-presidential autobiography.

In respect of the former, he published an unsigned letter he allegedly sent former President Bush where he said Rice was mistaken about her understanding of a discussion between them.

Turning to El-Rufai, Obasanjo merely rubbishes him as “a malicious liar” and a “pathological purveyor of untruths and half-truths.” This begs a deeper question as to when President Obasanjo came to this realisation and, even more, why, assuming he is right in his description of El-Rufai, he nevertheless retained him as a close aide and trusted Minister for his entire tenure as President. Despite the vigour of the attack on El-Rufai’s character, Obasanjo offers no firm rebuttal of his factual claims. For her part, Iyabo Obasanjo recalled a conversation in which she raised the issue with her father, the President. In response, he “sat up and said that the US had no term limits in the past but that it had been introduced in the 1940s after the death of President Roosevelt.”

Additionally, there are others to whom he admitted his ambition. Early in 2006, weary of deflecting questions about third term, Babagana Kingibe, then African Union’s Special Representative to Sudan, visited home to see President Obasanjo. When he arrived for his appointment, General Theophilus Danjuma, Obasanjo’s estranged former comrade-in-arms, was also waiting and went in first. When Kingibe got his turn, he asked President Obasanjo if the stories about third term were true and Obasanjo confided that it was a necessity that he stayed in office beyond his second term to complete the reforms he had started. Kingibe reportedly pointed out that the constitution made no provision for a third term and Obasanjo’s response was that this was why the Constitution had to be amended and he admitted to saying as much to Danjuma.

When Kingibe reached out to Dan-

juma to confirm his understanding of third term and get more information, Danjuma’s reported response, through an emissary, was that he told President Obasanjo in clear terms that his desire to extend his tenure would not work. It had not worked in 1979 and it would not work in 2006.

In 1979, sometime after the presidential elections of 11 August, Kingibe, then Principal Secretary in the Obasanjo-Yar’Adua regime, escorted Yar’Adua to Danjuma’s house one evening. Yar’Adua and Danjuma had a private discussion, which Kingibe was not part of but 27 years later, Danjuma reportedly recalled that Yar’Adua’s visit that night had been to sound him out on Obasanjo’s behalf, on the idea of not handing over to civilians. The justification rested on the controversy and tensions raging around Alhaji Shehu Shagari’s win and the judicial interpretation of two-thirds of 19 states. Obasanjo had gone as far as outlining the proposed administrators for the states and in a classic example of deep state bartering, offered Danjuma the privilege of appointing administrators for Benue and Plateau.

The following day, Danjuma went to see Obasanjo to deliver a letter outlining plans to announce to the country that on 1 October, 1979, the expected and promised handover date, he would be retiring from the army. Obasanjo put the letter in his drawer and the thought of discontinuing the handover to a civilian government subsequently died.

This version of events that Obasanjo wanted a third term and worked towards a constitutional amendment in his favour is further corroborated by other sources. In a 2006 cable, the US Embassy in Abuja details a conversation with Senator Daisy Danjuma — wife to General Danjuma — in which she reported a conversation with President Obasanjo asking her and her husband to support the third term agenda. According to her, “as early as last year her husband had warned Obasanjo to drop the third term shenanigans and begin to identify a suitable successor”.

Danjuma’s opposition reportedly led to retaliatory threats from the presidency that the oil block allocated to him by General Abacha would be confiscated.

Similar threats were often deployed to whip people into support for the third term. One person who was used on a few occasions to crack the whip was ElRufai, a self–confessed third term, “double agent”. After warning Obasanjo about the futility of his attempt to extend his tenure, a former military Head of State received a letter from El-Rufai threatening to revoke the certificate of occupancy to his property in the FCT. Ostensibly the reason for the revocation was the General’s failure to develop the property.

It meant nothing that in an ensuing conversation with El-Rufai, they were both seated in a house on the very same property being threatened. This former Head of State was not the only victim of this ministerial shakedown. Former civilian President, Shehu Shagari, also had the title to his property in Abuja similarly revoked after remonstrating with President Obasanjo over third term.

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LegalBusiness BD Business Law Industry Report Practice Intelligence Partnerships

INSIDE Only four out of 10 Nigerians have their disputes resolved – HiiL Report

CBN’s differentiated cash reserves requirement and corporate bond funding program

…a game changer in private sector lending?

Features of DCCR Regime and CB Funding Program Under the DCCR Regime, DMBs can request for the release of funds held with CBN as part of their Cash Reserve Requirement (which as of today is set at 22.5%) to finance both greenfield and brownfield projects in the Manufacturing and Agricultural sectors. The financing would be structured as an amortizing facility of up to N10billion at an all-in fixed interest rate of 9% over a 7year tenor with a 2year moratorium.

The CB funding program in contradistinction to the DCCR regime would see CBN directly take active investment participation in corporate bond issuance programmes of triple A minus rated companies. The active participation of CBN in the corporate issuance programme would only be limited to those companies that meet its eligibility criteria.

ABAYOMI ADEBANJO

30 Dealing with negative feedback in the workplace

30 Why corporate governance should go beyond rules to become second nature

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CPC In talks with EU economic and trade counsellors

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ecently, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) issued guidelines (Guideline) for accessing its Real Sector Support Facility (RSSF) comprising the Differentiated Cash Reserves Requirement (DCRR) Regime and the Corporate Bond (CB) Funding Program.

This innovative initiative forms part of the macro prudential tools being deployed by CBN under its expansionary monetary policy drive to stimulate affordable long-term credit to critical sectors of the Nigerian economy.

Below, we examine the key drivers for this policy initiative, discuss the features of the DCCR and CB programmes, then identify the eligibility criteria for accessing both programmes, and analyse the potential impact of the policy on macro-economic activities.

Key Drivers Necessitating the Policy Initiative Access to affordable long-term credit has remained an illusion for most corporates despite the concerted efforts of CBN to reduce the costs of borrowing through different initiatives (including deploying intervention funds, reducing CRR from 25% to 22.5%, maintaining the MPR at 14%). Interestingly, despite inflation rates trending downwards, exchange rate stability seemingly achieved through the convergence of black market rates with

official NAFEX rates, and price stability attained; deposit money banks (DMBs) have continued to show considerable reluctance to grow their loan book because of current macro-economic risks and need to reduce their NPL portfolio. This perception of risk has obviously led to interest rates remaining considerably high with Nigerian DMBs having the highest lending rates in subSaharan Africa.

Therefore, it had become im-

perative to stimulate the flow of credit at affordable rates to the private sector but in such a way that would have real impact on the economy and complement the Federal Government’s fiscal policy hence focus for the DCCR on the Manufacturing and Agricultural sectors with emphasis on those projects that had potential for job creation , would yield foreign exchange earnings and have a high local content.

Eligibility Criteria for Accessing DCRR Regime and CB Funding DCRR Regime: In terms of accessing the facilities available Continued from page 32 Abayomi Adebanjo is CoHead, Financial Services Sector and holds a MBA from the prestigious Lagos Business School and certifications from London School of Economics and St Catherine College, Oxford University.

Applicants for rank of SAN found guilty of forgery should be ready to face prosecution - CJN …Announces that the cases have been reported and undergoing investigation by the police THEODORA KIO-LAWSON

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he Supreme Court of Nigeria on Monday September 24th held a special session to mark the beginning of the New Legal Year. This event, is usually a two-part occasion which includes the official swearing-in and conferment of the rank of Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SAN) on lawyers who having gone through extremely rigorous process are found deserving of the rank and thus, admitted into the ‘Inner Bar’.

This year, a total of 30 Senior

NBA President, Paul Usoro SAN (2nd from Right), with his brother ‘Silks’ at the Supreme Court Legal Year Session and Conferement of newly elevated Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SANs).

Adewale Atake, SAN (R) with his older brother, Eyimofe Atake, SAN during his Swearing-In Ceremony as Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) at the Supreme Court.

Advocates of Nigeria (SANs), were conferred with the rank of SAN. Among those admitted, are the

Lagos State Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Mosediq Adeniji Kazeem; Templars’ Part-

ner, Adewale Atake; LEDAP boss, Edmund Chinonye Obiagwu; and Olabode Olanipekun, son of former NBA President, Wole Olanipekun, SAN, whose older son was admitted only a couple of years back.

The representative of the Body of Senior Advocates of Nigeria, Onomigbo Okpoko SAN, who spoke at the occasion, warned lawyers against resorting to distortion of issues and facts or manufacturing of evidence to confuse judges to get undeserved favourable judg-

Continued from page 32

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Only four out of 10 Nigerians have their disputes resolved – HiiL Report

Dealing with negative feedback in the workplace OYEYEMI ADERIBIGBE

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Panel of discussants at the Lagos Innovating Justice Conference.

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he Hague Institute for Innovation of Law (HiiL) Justice Sector Advisor, Dr. Rodrigo Nunez, has said that out of every 10 Nigerians who have legal problems, only about four of these got their legal problems solved.

He further disclosed that of 25 Million Nigerians who encounter a legal challenge, only 73% file an official report; while seven out of 10 Nigerians suffer more from neighbor-related disputes, crime, money, land and employment - related issues more than anything else.

Nunez made these disclosures at the Lagos Innovating Justice Conference, where he presented the HiiL survey titled ‘Justice needs and satisfaction in Nigeria 2018’, which according to him was carried out in collaboration with Nigeria’s Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC). He also stated that the survey entailed going into the homes of 6,130 randomly selected Nigerians across all geopolitical regions.

“Their voices represent the experiences of more than 180 million fellow citizens. We knocked at their doors to ask them whether they had experienced one or more of the 102 specific legal problems on our list,” he said.

Survey further revealed that around 70% of Nigerians sought legal information and advice mostly through people they know in trying to resolve their legal problems while lawyers are accessible only to those who can afford them. While many people get their problems resolved, sometimes fairness is missing.

Nunez also stated that, about 70% of the people acted to resolve their legal problems by approaching the other party directly, even as resolution usually happens outside of courts

and without lawyers.

“He continued, Meanwhile, only four out of 10 legal processes reach complete resolution, showing that majority of Nigerians do not get a fair resolution, particularly in cases related to employment. Also, women and poor people suffer the most in trying to resolve their legal problems,” he stated.

HiiL ecommended the creative use of alternative dispute resolution mechanisms; investments in justice innovation; use of data for evidence-based interventions; design of hybrid justice chains to strengthen the role of the police in resolving non-criminal legal problems and also deliver ‘inclusive justice journeys’.

In his remarks, the Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, SAN who was represented by the Special Adviser to the President on Economic Matters, Dr. Yemi Shipeolu, also observed that access to justice is hampered by poverty, traditional and cultural practices among others.

He disclosed that the Federal Government had set up an Advisory Group on Innovation & Creativity, adding that several APPs among others have been developed to deal with many public sector challenges.

Also speaking at the event, Founding Partner, Africa Law Practice (ALP), Olasupo Shasore, SAN stated that the wealth of nations is tied to their intangible asset, namely the justice sector.

He said, “if you don’t deal with petty crimes in a megapolis like Lagos, you would soon deal with bigger crimes.” According to him, the ecosystem must be considered in devising any innovation for the justice sector.

On her part, Nigeria’s former Education Minister, Dr. Oby Ezekwesili has said that ‘judicial disruption’ is a viable solution to

justice sector challenges across Africa.

According Ezekwesili, judicial reforms are seemingly unending and have assumed a pejorative meaning.

She added, “The biggest problem of our time is inequality and while innovation is at the heart of disruption, stakeholders must begin to engage in judicially-specific innovation, as the best we can do for the under-privileged in our country is to ensure that justice is democratized.”

The event, which took place at Landmark Event Centre, Victoria Island Extension, Lagos was also attended by the Ondo State Governor, Rotimi Akeredolu, SAN and the British Deputy High Commissioner to Nigeria, Laure Beaufils and HiiL Chief Executive, Sam Muller.

As part of the programme of events was the Lagos Innovating Justice challenge, where a series of winners emerged. Cham Semanou of Benin Republic took home the first prize with his innovation titled HeLawyer; the second prize went to Nigeria’s Ireti Bakare-Yusuf for the #NoMore APP which targets domestic and sexual violence.

Sierra Leone’s Sorieba Daffae carted away the third prize with the CrimeSync App. Past HiiL justice innovation winners in attendance include, Babatunde Ibidapo-Obe of Law Padi, Mr. Vincent Okeke of LEGIT Car and Ms. Odun Longe of DIY Law. In his commendation, Muller spoke of HiiL’s commitment to finding solutions to the justice sector problems within and outside Africa adding that the organisation would to ensure that at least a hundred and fifty million people will be able to resolve their most pressing justice problems by 2030, through affordable and accessible means.

f the difficult things that one may have to deal with in the course of work, dealing with reprimands or negative feedback from supervisors or even colleagues in the course of work is one few people know how to handle.

Several employees have resigned from work, made drastic decisions in response to negative feedback and in many cases, expressed regret subsequently because in hindsight, they found their reaction(s) to be premature or unnecessary.

Feedback is a rudimentary factor in human relations and it is important to develop skills in processing feedback good or bad. This is important because, where feedback is not properly handled, it can induce undue action.

As a young lawyer, the ability to properly address feedback is an integral skill that must be coveted and developed. Often, where appraised, young lawyers who are astute in this regard are often ranked higher and offered additional opportunity.

Clearly stated, an unwillingness to absorb negative feedback may stall one’s career. You will agree with me that sometimes, due to miscommunication, misunderstanding and the many other legitimate justifications, negative feedback may be unwarranted or misdirected. Admittedly, supervisors may be totally inappropriate in their approach and/or delivery but in most cases, it only gets worse as one continues to try to justify, defend, manipulate or simply depend on time to get through it.

The rule of thumb should be to receive such feedback graciously and only react or respond after proper processing. Also, negative feedback should also be seen as an opportunity to assess perception of your personal brand and make improvements or adjustments as the case may be. With this positive outlook, it would be easier to control your emotions and respond appropriately.

In the classic, “How to win friends and influence people” Dale Carnegie states that the inability to be agreeable to opinions expressed by other people is “a sure way of making enemies”. Enemies at work can only spell doom. A few tips for effectively handling negative feedback are as follows: Listen: Listening is to give attention to someone in order to hear him or her. I have learnt that listening is often equated with hearing. They are not one and the same. When you respond with interjections, comebacks or outright rudeness, you are not listening.

On the converse, simply keeping quiet does not also mean listening.

Listening in some cases, requires externalisation of your emotions and becoming objective; almost like taking a third party’s view. This implies focusing on the verbal and non-verbal communication of the subject to understand their feeling, objection and viewpoint. Where it is a supervisor, it is important to ensure that your gait is respectful. Often, where we are upset, even our quietness could be laced with disrespect.

De-personalise the feedback: It is not always about you, it is not always negative, it is not always meant to put you down. Many a young lawyer respond immediately with a “I am being victimised and I know my right”, “it is not fair” or worse of, absolute statements and generalisations

which colour objective processing of the feedback. When you personalise feedback, you create a lens view that is coloured and honest feedback which could work for your benefit could fall through. Defensiveness is an act of war and that is why it does not usually resolve issues. Openness and willingness is a better and more suitable approach.

Respond with tact: Where possible and appropriate, accept feedback without a response or request time to respond. Premature responses often complicate matters. Also, it is good to get help from mentors and or team members who are better equipped to handle and address the issue; however, this is to be done with care and discretion. The help of mentors and experienced colleagues is more helpful where you are yet to learn the culture of the organisation as you learn faster.

Where it requires written responses, which could be the case, draft and redraft, it may be useful to ignore your first impulse. Your email or letter must be professional and exclude any personal relations with the supervisor or subject. It is about the work and it must be addressed in that context.

Make it a learning experience: It is not cliché that life requires that we learn to turn lemons to lemonade. Every time negative feedback is received, it is an opportunity to learn how to do work better, get clarity on the expectations of our supervisors and in certain cases, develop better understanding of the character of the supervisor or subject in such a way that helps us make better decisions.

On the whole, negative feedback could be used as raw material for personal development and should never be discarded. More importantly, where it is properly addressed objectively, it could become the pivot for opportunity and advancement in the workplace.

OYEYEMI OYEYEMI ADERIBIGBE is a Senior Associate at Templars.

She is also the current ViceChairman of the Young Lawyers’ Forum of the Nigerian Bar Association -Section on Business Law and the Young Lawyers’ Committee Liaison Officer of the African Regional Forum of the International Bar Association.

Feedback – Oyeyemi.aderibigbe@templars-law.com; yemiimmanuel@yahoo.com.

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LegalBusiness

Why corporate governance should go beyond rules to become second nature

In this edition, we look into the corporate governance practice and operations of financial institutions in Nigeria, as the Group Managing Director/CEO of Zenith Bank Plc., PETER AMANGBO, speaks about his thoughts on corporate governance practice in the banking sector, challenges, his experiences and what obtains in other jurisdictions. Before his current role, Amangbo was a pioneer Non-Executive Director of Zenith Bank United Kingdom (UK). With over 20 years of banking experience, he is well versed in various segments of banking from corporate finance and investment banking to strategic planning and operations. READ EXCERPTS FROM THIS CHAT BELOW…

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ould you please share with us, your very candid thoughts on corporate governance practice in Nigeria?

Ensuring good corporate governance practice is a great challenge in Nigeria, and this is with particular regard to the fact that we operate in a tough business environment, where discipline and control is not necessarily our second nature. It is an environment where systemic flaws and gaps exist, thus people get away with various levels of misconduct.

For this reason, all hands must be on deck, as this is not a job for the Society for Corporate Governance Nigeria (SCGN) alone. Everyone must get involved with an appreciation of the fact that the journey is just starting. We have a lot to do and we must continue to sensitize others. I want to give kudos to the Society for Corporate Governance Nigeria. They are doing a great job but there’s still a lot more to be done.

How do you think organisations in Nigeria are faring with regards to corporate governance?

The Nigerian Banking industry and indeed most corporations in Nigeria, particularly the quoted ones have come a long way in terms of corporate governance practices. Compared to the past, a lot of emphasis is placed on corporate governance now, in terms of the way these practices are managed, the rules and mechanisms that govern the way they run their business and their structure.

There is still a lot of room for improvement in terms of not just looking at the rules alone, but trying to internalize what the rules are about, and what they are intended to be, and actually having it at the heart of the way organisations are managed and governed. Over time, corporate governance should go beyond the rules to become our second nature.

Speaking of financial institutions, how easy is it for the Board to ensure good corporate governance practices?

Just like any board in a responsible corporation, essentially the role of the board is the same but

Council of Nigeria (FRCN) is doing a great job. What they have gone through by going into the different zones to hold these discussions with different stakeholders across the country is very laudable approach. It is a tedious process to go across the sectors to cuddle up with an acceptable code of governance.

Tolulope Aderemi

Peter Amangbo

the demand is more with financial institutions, because banks are highly regulated all over the world and this places a lot of responsibility on the directors to ensure the institutions are run in a very safe manner. Banking is all about managing risks. The board should give direction, and also provide the appropriate challenge in ensuring things are done properly.

How does the Board drive and achieve its corporate governance objectives?

The primary objective is to ensure that the bank runs in a safe manner. Safety is very important while managing risks is also important. As a business, we want to be profitable within the boundaries of the law, conducting business in a very safe manner where we make profit but we do not jeopardize the interest of all the other stakeholders. That balance is always there, and we must strive to strike that balance between making profit and operating in a very safe manner.

How effective has the role of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) been in ensuring best practices in the sector?

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has done extremely well over the years in ensuring Banks

play by the rules.

The CBN has done very well in terms of bringing in the appropriate policies and also in monitoring the banks to ensure they are running in a safe manner. Kudos to the CBN for the great work they have done and continue to do. They are also still improving. Going beyond the board there are key positions today that before you can promote anybody to that level the CBN must approve. Before anyone attains that level, there are benchmarks each candidate must meet before they can be approved. We call it ‘Competency Framework’ here in Nigeria. It is in place to ensure we have the appropriate people, and that they are also empowered to provide adequate challenge, independent of the CEO and other things, in ensuring we run in a very safe manner.

What is your take on the recently released ‘exposure draft of the National Code of Corporate Governance’?

It is long overdue. This is what we have in most of the developed world. Companies definitely must operate within a certain minimum standard, and that is very brilliant. I have looked at the exposure draft code of corporate governance, and I want to say the Financial Reporting

Do you see any conflicts between the existing CBN Code of Corporate Governance and the National Code of Corporate Governance?

No, I do not see any conflict between the Financial Reporting Council’s (FRCN) Code of Corporate Governance and the CBN Code at all. If anything, the code of corporate governance is not industry specific, regardless of the industry you operate, it affects you. When you think about it, talking about governance, it is all about the corporation not the sector that you operate in. The FRC is focused on any organisation, not a particular sector. The CBN however, is focused on the financial sector, which is why I mentioned that Banking is unique by the nature of what it is doing, and if anything, it needs a stricter code. The nature of what the sector is doing is highly sensitive.

Holding Depositors’ funds, imagine if anything happens to any systemic bank, the impact will be on millions of account holders. From that perspective, banks are actually different.

They are basically like public trusts. That is why when you see major challenges in banking sector, governments get involved because of the unique nature of the banks that touches the lives of the citizenry directly.

The CBN rules strengthen the code of corporate governance.

So in a way, they are actually aligned.

What sorts of obstacles inhibit the practice of good corporate governance in Nigeria’s financial sector today?

There are lots of challenges faced by banks and financial institutions on a daily basis.

Remember that Nigeria is a developing country, therefore, we face unique challenges.

Especially when it comes to governance practices, you cannot separate what happens in our society really from what

happens in the bank. The bank to a large extent is a reflection of what you have in the society.

If you have a lawless and corrupt society, why do you think the bank will now be a saint?

It is very unlikely. In the developed world, governance is like second nature because these jurisdictions they have made it a way of life. So we face peculiar challenges in an environment like ours where several systemic failings and gaps exist.

Regardless of these challenges, we must enthrone good practices, and it starts at the top.

We must make sure you follow rules and do not go out of our way to bend them to suit our purpose. Indeed, we must learn to do things appropriately.

How far should the message of good corporate governance practice be taken? Do you think the subject is already overstated?

Many people talking about corporate governance don’t know what they are talking about.

It is not enough to simply define the basics or structural things. The real question is: “Do you have corporate governance in your DNA as an organisation?” Sad to say, but the truth is the answer to this for many organisations is a huge “NO”.

There is still a long way to go. In this country, we haven’t even started addressing the issues squarely.

It is not for us to be hypocritical, we must entrench it in everything we do, and once we do, it shows in our operations. Sometimes we tend to over emphasize certain rules as against what is entrenched in an organisation. This tends to deviate from what should be focused on. In Nigeria, we still have a long way to go.

Should compliance of the code be mandatory?

In Nigeria, the code is mandatory but in the UK, we are expected to explain. Here we are probably not ripe for the ‘explain approach’, it is a function of how developed the society is, and I do not think we are ready for that yet. I say this because at Zenith Bank, we operate in a major financial center in the world - we have a bank in the UK. So what obtains in Nigeria currently, is indeed what should be done at this time, it should be mandatory.

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CPC In talks with EU economic and trade counsellors CBN’s differentiated cash reserves...

Continued from page 29

Director General, Consumer Protection Council (CPC), Babatunde Irukera discussing current and future activities, scope and strategy of the CPC, as well as issues of competition legislation with EU economic and trade coinsellors.

TMT on front burner once again, as DOA leads conversations at annual event in London

The event which is an annual meeting for African telecom, media and tech investment, was attended by leading senior executives, investment bankers, investors, professional Advisors and key stakeholders in Technology, Media and Telecoms (TMT).

under the DCRR regime, only CRR contributing DMBs are eligible to participate under the programme meaning that this is targeted at DMBs to the exclusion of other financial institutions i.e. Microfinance Banks, Development Finance Institutions, Primary Mortgage Institutions etc. The Facilities are specifically meant for greenfield and brownfield projects in the targeted sectors (which may include other sectors approved by CBN) therefore prohibited for use for trading activities or refinancing purposes neither will they be available to corporates that have a non-performing loan facilities with any DMB. CB Funding Programme: Though the CB funding programme is not sector specific, CBN’s participation in the bond issuance programme would be limited to triple A minus corporates that are subject to intensified transparency requirements provided that the bond issuance has a tenor of at least 7years and is targeted at projects that are employment and growth stimulating.

Impact Analysis Undoubtedly, significant thought went into the choice of this initiative as the usual approach would have been to reduce the CRR by some basis points and hope that this incentivises DMBs to lend to private sector efforts in the real sector.

The genius of the DCRR is that it

quantitatively eases liquidity into targeted sectors that have real potential to impact the economy without leading to inflationary pressures. However, that does not make it a silver bullet as issues of transparency, monitoring, proper credit assessment and due diligence will be paramount in measuring the ability of this option to achieve its lofty objectives. Also, while it is laudable that CBN has given itself opportunity to fund other sectors provided they are ‘employment or growth stimulating’, it could lead to arbitrariness considering there is no clarity as to what constitutes ‘employment or growth stimulating’.

About the CB Funding program, while we understand the sensitivity in not crowding out market investors, it seems its investment scope is too narrow especially as it’s limited to corporates that are triple A minus.

The question then is how many corporates fall within this category and surely a smaller percentage of them are undertaking projects that are employment or growth stimulating. It would have been better to focus on investment grade companies within a defined ratings band to capture more corporates and consequently make more impact.

Conclusion CBN deserves accolades for conceiving this innovative scheme but the real work will lie in the implementation framework and transparency mechanism to ensure that the funds are used for the targeted objective.

SAN applicants found guilty...

Continued from page 29

DOA Partner, Adeleke Alex-Adedipe (L) chairing his session.

DOA Partner, Adeleke Alex-Adedipe (Far Left) at the TMT Africa 2018 Conference in London, where he chaired the session on ‘Enterprise Cloud and DataCentres.’

ment for their clients, especially politicians engaging in litigation wars. “We must do well to render advice to their clients no matter how wealthy or otherwise they are, as against taking up cases by rich clients, which cannot be supported with facts in law courts,” he said.

In his opening remarks, the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Hon. Justice W Walter Samuel Nkanu Onnoghen thanked members of the Legal Practitioners’ Privileges Committee (LPPC) tasked with this assignment of scrutinising over 4,000 judgments, trial proceedings and publications, and at the same time conduct disciplinary proceedings on petitions received against Senior Advocates of Nigeria.

He however revealed that some lawyers in their attempt to get the prestigious rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) engaged in the forgery of some court judgments to qualify for nomination for the rank. These forged judgments according to him were part of the requisite conditions submitted to the Legal

Practitioners and Privileges Committee for scrutiny.

In his words, “I have to point out the fact that in the just concluded exercise, some applicants were found to have engaged in dishonourable conduct such as forgery of judgment, resulting in their being reported to the police for investigation and possible prosecution. We have to know that if one is not for any reason qualified to wear silk as a judicial officer, he cannot wear it as a Senior Advocate of Nigeria.”

He further disclosed that although the names of the offending lawyers have not been made public, they had been reported to the police and were currently under investigation and will be prosecuted if found culpable.

Congratulating the newly elevated Senior Advocates, the President of the Nigerian Bar Association, Paul Usoro, SAN said “On behalf of the NBA, I congratulate these new leaders of the Bar who have been found worthy by their superiors and peers, represented by the Legal Practitioners’ Privileges Committee (LPPC), of wearing the coveted ranks of Senior Advocates of Nigeria.”

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GARDEN CITY BUSINESS DIGEST Food processing magnet, Adawari Michael Pepple, takes over MAN in Rivers/Bayelsa ••• Agenda: Mission to Bayelsa on industrialization ••• Make OEMs join MAN ••• Fight for more conducive climate for manufacturing in PH IGNATIUS CHUKWU & FORTUNE OKORIE

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new chairman has emerged to lead the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) in Rivers/Bayelsa chapter with clear agenda to launch a mission to Bayelsa State on the need to embrace industrialization as the way to go in the 21st century. He is Senator Adawari Michael Pepple, an engineer now food processing guru in Rivers State.

Pepple is the founder and CEO of Brentford Engineering & Construction Limited which was incorporated in 1994. Now, he has veered into food processing through Meba Farms and Agro-Allied Industries Zltd.

The company is into canning and starch to meet industrial needs and for export.

Pepple was inaugurated as the new chairman at the 34th Annual General Meeting (AGM) where he took over from the prince and former commissioner for trade and commerce in Rivers State, Charles Beke, CEO of Eastern

Wrought Iron Limited.

Shedding light on what his focus would be, Pepple said: “I would want to consolidate what MAN has achieved in this chapter over the years and improve upon what exists at the moment. We intend to bring the association closer to the people in Rivers and Bayelsa states. My plan is to sensitise the people of both states to realise that it is only through industrialisation that real development can come. There is quite a deficit of industries in Bayelsa. If I can achieve that in one year, I would be happy.’

He explained how he intended to achieve this; “I will tell you one thing. We have a liaison in Bayela and we will make sure that the officer in charge there keeps in steady touch with the relevant ministries there. It will be proved to them there that MAN is not just about PH.” He tried to explain the industrial gaps between Rivers and Bayelsa states, thus: “Oh,

MAN boss, Adawari michael Pepple

Rivers State is quite ahead.

Bayelsa was created from Rivers and industrial activities

must be more here. There are many factories in Rivers State.

We even have our company

that produces starch from cassava, processing flour from cassava. It may surprise many to realize that we are canning and exporting to the US and Canada. MAN is doing a lot.

You may be surprised to hear that in the next three months you can pick your soup from the shops and open and eat. It is in the process, equipment is on ground, etc. Many processing lines have been commissioned.

We will produce canned soups for export too.”

He said MAN works hand in hand with governments to highlight problems that may inhibit manufacturing. On what he wants the Rivers State government to do to boost manufacturing, he demanded just for enabling environment to operate. “Double taxation should be out of, incessant harassment should be out, etc.”

Most manufacturers in Rivers State are not MAM members but the new boss there would be fresh drive for membership. “Most people do not understand what it means to be a member. If you join, you

will enjoy several benefits. Your clearing will be easier, and Son will be ease with you. We will go to them to show them the way.”

On the many original equipment manufacturers recently attracted and warehoused in some oil company facilities in Port Harcourt and other hard equipment manufacturers and gas makers the Garden City not in MAN, the new boss said: “One thing you can do is to take the message to them but you cannot force them to embrace the message. Am sure MAN has contacted them over the years. It depends on how they want to respond. For instance, I am aware that the president of PHCCIMA was contacted but he chose to remain with Chamber of Commerce whereas he is a manufacturer. There is nothing anybody can do about it. With time, people will realise the benefits of being with MAN.’ The boss plans to reconstitute the committees and take off fully to meet targets, even as he did not want to be drawn to promises for first 100 days in office.

Aba-PH Road finally collapses as Eastern roads cast Igbo in a republic of tragedy

Port Harcourt by Boat With IGNATIUS CHUKWU

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he federal highway starting from Port Harcourt to Aba en-route Enugu has finally collapsed. Trucks now sleep on the road for days as almost all parts of the stretch has been washed off and gullies have taken over. The journey that was previously 35 minutes from Eleme Junction in Port Harcourt to Flyover bus stop in Aba now takes over six hours, if not a day. No vehicle passes there with its axle still in place.

Several FG agencies have attempted to rescue the stretch without suc-

cess, probably due to the perceived disregard Nigeria habours for the area. The Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) under Ibim Semenitari was active in rehabilitating over 94 roads in the oil region but the spot at the boundary between Oyigbo in Rivers and Imo River to Abia was not completed. The right side of that bridge has remained closed since two years when the NDDC started remedial work.

Many say it’s her departure that stalled the job. It is not clear if her successor, Nsima Ekere, has any thought for the bridge.

The left side of the all-important bridge now in use has gone very bad too. Motorists sleep there waiting for turns to pass.

The area looks like what it is, a war zone, a rejected area. From the bridge, Sukuk claims to take over.

It is pouring sand in the middle while the real road is in disaster. The contractors seem to enjoy the long line of motorists

in distress without any intervention. FERMA is not in sight, either. The zone is free to breed the hardest refusniks, rebels and terrorists from where Osisikankwu left off.

From the bridge down to Eleme Junction, it is like a journey in the jungle. The two sides of the road are broken into gullies and ditches. Motorists climb in and out, many getting stock. A first time visitor will be sure that he is travelling to the Sambisa Forest, Evil Forest, or Land of No Return.

No, you are travelling to the Garden City, the land of gold. It is from Eleme Junction the traveller would be hit with the aura of civilisation; smooth road, electricity, and cars on wheels instead of cars upturned.

From the Imo River Bridge into Abia, it becomes another adventure into the jungle of gullies and ditches. Every point is the sign of the FG: police checks and cash points. Nobody is angry at the cheque-points

because anybody found there is a brother-insuffering, whether they be the police, soldiers or travellers, they are all victims of a failed state.

Should the cash-taking police and soldiers look the other way for a moment, boys would swoop from the bushes and do their duty; kidnapping; no more robbery.

The sad aspect is that both cities (Aba and PH) are the two greatest nerve centres of the economy of the region. Port Harcourt is the headquarters of the Gulf of Guinea, meaning the oil seat, while Aba is the fabrication city, the Japan of Africa where everything the white man could give to Nigeria is copied and delivered. Aba is also the centre of retail trade as the Enyimba City takes away what Onitsha imports and breaks it down for consumers to buy.

Aba supplies the entire eastern region with retail goods and fabricated tools/ items to augment what is imported. Yet, there is no road to access Aba from

Port Harcourt.

Most motorists trying to access Owerri, Umuahia, Enugu, etc, now trace a community road called Etche Road from Iguruta on the PH Airport Road to Okpala in Imo State. The road is also now splitting into pieces because of heavy traffic. It passes through the most dangerous zone in Igboland where kidnapping and ritual killing are child’s play. The forest is thick.

From PH, motorists are between the devil and the deep blue sea. The Iguruta Road passes through the Okehi forests through Igbodo, Amala, Eziama and to Okpala, then, you breathe out. Policemen are sometimes stationed along it and some local vigilantes in blacks take up two spots, collecting too, but who knows when men in black turn to kidnappers?

The FG grooms rebels in this zone by the kind of road that passes through PH to Aba and Umuahia.

It was there during PDP, it is there in APC. No normal person passes

through the torture of that road without behaving and reasoning like IPOB; rash, angry, and violent towards anything Nigeria, anything FG. The journey from Onitsha to Awka is now another signature of total rejection of a people. The people there do not join the debate over list of Buhari’s federal projects in Igboland because they cannot pass through to their neighbours to talk about lists. It is nothing but a news media debate.

The economy of the region is trapped. From Onitsha, one would have to detour to Nteje town to fight his way back to the express. At Nteje, boys were said to be robbing ceaselessly until revenue dried up. They now turned into guides to motorists at N200 per bus/ lorry and N100 for cars. I paid.

This is the Igboland we have at the moment; a people in the Federal Republic of Anger, a people in no country, a native land in jeopardy, an economy in prison.

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Investing in Rivers State Girl-child investment gains ground in Rivers as Belemaoil sends all-female scholars abroad Beneficiaries of NNPC/Belemaoil JV 2018/2019 Oversea Scholarship Departs for UK and Ghana Ignatius Chukwu & Miracle Iboko

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he appeal by the British high commision in Nigeria for the country to pay more attention to girl-child capital development and education may be have been heeded with the departure of all female scholars to the UK and Ghana on scholarship.

This is said to be in a bid by Nigeria’s first indigenous oil company, Belemaoil, to advance the girl child education and sustain the company’s annual scholarship scheme.

Belemaoil Producing Limited has therefore just sent 10 Rivers State indigenes to the United Kingdom and Ghana for post-graduate and undergraduate studies under the NNPC/ Belemaoil JV 2018/2019 Foreign Scholarship Scheme.

The all-female beneficiaries hail from Khana, Abua/Odual, AhoadaEast, Etche, Oyigbo,Ikwerre, Degema, Asari-Toru, Ogu/Bolo and Ogba/ Egbema/Ndoni local government areas of Rivers State.

Eight of the beneficiaries, Kainde Chinenye Akaya, Precious Ogochukwu Ajim, Pearl Befee Ezekiel, Fame Obiageri Onyechere, Benebo Daviesba Josephine, Christiana Victor, Obunezi Onyinyechi Favour and Rejoice Nathaniel secured admission to the United Kingdom under the post-graduate category while two other beneficiaries Gloria Iyama Apikisierobia and Francisca Ibiso Francis were sent to Ghana under the undergraduate category.

The beneficiaries are to study courses which include International Relations, International Marketing Strategies, Human Resources, Accounting and Finance, Human Resource Management, Business Finance and International Management, both in the UK and Ghana.

The Manager, External Relations, Belemaoil Producing Limited, Samuel Abel-Jumbo, a lawyer, during a farewell and on-boarding session with the beneficiaries in Port-Harcourt, said the scholarship is in fulfillment of the company’s promise and commitment towards

Mufaa Welsh, director, Engineering and Production, Belemaoil Producing and Tolu Adefuwa, representative of NNPC (Centre), Samuel Abel-Jumbo, manager, external relations, Belemaoil Barr. , 1st from Right and Evans Ibama, deputy manager, external relations, 1st from Left in group photograph with Beneficiaries of the NNPC/Belemaoil JV 2018/2019 Foreign Scholarship Scheme before their departure

the advancement of education within its operational base in Rivers State, Niger Delta and beyond.

He urged the girls to excel in their studies and be responsible ambassadors of Nigeria, Rivers State and NNPC/Belemaoil JV. “This is the first batch. Others will join as we make progress and hopefully in 2019 we will also continue.

Our coming here this evening is to ensure that we bid them farewell, we hold an on-boarding session and wish them well. We expect that they go out there as responsible ambassadors of Rivers State, of Nigeria and Belemaoil and, indeed, NNPC too. We expect that they complete their studies within record time and come back with flying colours and be useful and valuable to their country.

“This batch is predominantly girls. We believe that the girl-child should be given the opportunity to excel. These were students among those of them that partook in the screening process that were able to come tops. And we believe that if we are able to impact positively the girl-child we are impacting the society more positively, we are impacting our state and nation more positively.”

Jumbo said the 10 beneficiaries were the first batch of the NNPC/ Belemaoil JV 2018/2019 Scholarship as the scheme would continue in 2019.

“This is the first batch. Others will join as we make progress and hopefully in 2019 we will also continue.

Our coming here this evening is to ensure that we bid them farewell, we hold an onboarding session and wish them well. We expect that they go out there as responsible ambassadors of Rivers State, of Nigeria and Belemaoil and indeed NNPC too. We expect that they complete their studies within record time and come back with flying colours and be useful and valuable to their country.

He went on: “So we are very happy for this opportunity and as you can see they are also happy for the opportunity being given to them by Belemaoil in Joint Venture partnership with NNPC.” Also, the Executive Assistant to the Founder/President of Belemaoil and Head, Petroleum Engineering and Development, Sam Dambani, charged the beneficiaries to take their studies serious in order to have a better future. He said: “This is a good thing. I am very grateful to the

Management of Belemaoil Producing Ltd led by our able Founder/ President, Jackrich Tein Jr. He has been of tremendous blessing to us and I would also want to say to the scholars, an opportunity has been given to you. If you go to the UK University and you come out with a distinction you stand several other opportunities that will come. Either you do your PhD or you end up working with a UK school or you get very good employment in Nigeria.”

Some of the beneficiaries who spoke to newsmen moments before their departure commended the management of Belemaoil for giving them an opportunity of a lifetime to advance their academic pursuits.

They promised to justify the chance and return home to add value to the society.

Precious Ogocckukwu Ajim, from Ogba/Egbema/Ndoni LGA, said: “I have always wanted to have an international degree for my postgraduate study and it’s like a dream come true. I can’t be thankful enough to Belemaoil for this privilege. It’s a very big platform towards changing my life and achieving my goals. I will say it is very important to give back to society just as Belemaoil has

done through their Corporate Social Responsibility by educating the girlchild and promoting the girl-child education. To other organizations, I will advise them to be like Belemaoil because right now in Rivers State and in Nigeria, Belemaoil is like a model to other companies for being able to make promises and keep them.”

Francisca Ibiso Francis who hails from Asari-Toru local government area said; “I am going for my first degree at the University of Ghana to study Business Finance and I’m very excited. I’m being sponsored

by Belemaoil Producing Ltd JV with NNPC. I want to thank them because this has been my dream. I feel like I’m the most blessed person because considering the fact that my dad could not afford sending me to school. I’m grateful and I hope to come back and do something great with what I will acquire. If more companies can do this, I don’t think there will be illiterate persons in this region and I don’t think the lessprivileged like me will be stranded.

If more companies should do this, then the world would be a better place.”

Earlier, the Director, Production and Engineering, Belemaoil Producing Ltd., an engineer, Mufaa Welsh, who addressed the beneficiaries, said their performance will be a test-case for the sustainability of the oversea scholarships for others.

He said: “The courage for us to send the next people will be based on your performance. So, if you don’t perform well, there will be no need for us to send the next set. You are going to meet a lot of people from all over the world. You will meet new friends but remember where you are coming from. You are pace-setters for your families, so you need to make your parents proud. You have to make the country proud, you have to make Belemaoil Producing Ltd and you have to make our senior partners, NNPC proud.”

On her part, representative of the Nigeria NNPC/NAPIMS, Tolu Adefuwa, charged the scholars to be self-confident and be dedicated to their studies in order to come out with good grades.

Group trains security operatives on voluntary principles especially human rights Kelechi Anozie & Peace Elemuo Port Harcourt

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orried by incessant violation of community rights by public security charged with protecting company facilities in Niger Delta communities, Leadership Initiative for Transformation and Empowerment (LITE-Africa), a non-governmental organisation (NGO) based in Warri, Delta state, in collaboration with the Nigerian Working group on the Voluntary Principles Initiative on Security and Human Rights (VPSHR) on Monday, 27th and Tuesday 28th of Aug, 2018,

organised a 2- day training workshop on the VPSHR for Public security personnel in the Niger Delta The workshop which was held at Visa Karena Hotel, Port Harcourt built the capacity of public security personnel comprising officers of the Nigerian Police force, Department of State Services (DSS), and the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) on the VPSHR. It was organised as part of an ongoing project being implemented

by LITE-Africa with funding from the Swiss confederation to promote human rights in Nigeria through Voluntary Principles on Security and Human Right. This workshop is an intervention in response to

numerous reports of violations of citizens and community rights by security forces, explained Mr Iheanyi Iheke, a staff of Lite Africa who facilitated the training. He noted that it is expected that through the project, Human Rights violations by security Personnel would be reduced.

In his opening remarks, Hon. Joel Bisina. Executive Director of LITE-Africa noted that the training is important because of the volatility of the country in general and the Niger Delta in particular. He explained that the VP is a set of soft laws that guide companies on providing security for their operation to ensure human rights are respected while protecting

company facilities. It was launched in 2000 as a multi stakeholder initiative including Governments, Companies and NGOs. He disclosed that many multinational extractive companies, governments and NGOs have signed unto the Principles.

Although Nigeria is yet to adopt the VPs initiatives, most international; oil companies operating in Nigeria are part of the initiative and by so doing, have accepted in principles to respect peoples rights while carrying out their business operations. He stated that it has become worrisome across the globe that in the course of their operations, companies have continued to impact negatively on their host communities, including

flagrant violations of their rights, such as right to life, dignity of human persons, livelihood, safety and clean environment. He lamented that public security operatives often aid and abet extractive companies like Shell, Agip. Elf in flagrant violations of these rights, not minding that their primary responsibility is to protect the citizenry and maintain peace and order.

During the training, the security personnel were introduced to issues of human rights, and were reminded that violations of human rights amount to disrespect to the 1999 constitution of the federal Republic of Nigeria which also makes strong provisions for Human rights.

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FEATURE FMBN’s drive to boost affordable housing, make NHF worker-friendly Given the chequered history of the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria (FMBN), the country’s apex mortgage institution, and the urgent need for sustained growth in the housing sector, the drive by the bank to bridge the housing demand-supply gap by boosting affordable housing delivery and making the National Housing Fund (NHF) accessible and worker-friendly; the introduction of the rent-to-own homeownership scheme, among others, are positive developments that are not only rewriting the bank’s story, but also benefiting Nigerian people and economy, writes CHUKA UROKO, Property Editor

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he Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria (FMBN), the foremost mortgage institution in the country, was established as a child of circumstance aimed to provide the mortgage needs and solve the housing problems of the citizens. Over time, it has had its ups and downs, reflecting the various economic cycles the country has gone through.

However, the bank has demonstrated commitment to promoting safe, decent and affordable housing delivery for Nigerian workers, especially those who are in the low and medium income brackets and face serious challenges raising capital to build or purchase their own homes.

In the past 16 months, the bank, under the leadership of Ahmed Dangiwa as managing director, has retooled and enhanced its existing housing programmes to fix identified gaps that have militated against speed, efficiency, and impact. And, in response to the changing times, it has also created new innovative products that are designed to better tackle the peculiar housing challenges that Nigerian workers face in today’s economy.

This is a good thing for the country’s housing development. More so, given the chequered history of the country’s foremost mortgage institution and the urgent need for sustained growth in the housing sector.

Sustaining these reforms at FMBN will help unleash the potential of the bank to deepen mortgage penetration and drive mass social housing in line with its mandate. It will also, over time, contribute in significant measure to reducing the worrying and embarrassingly high national housing deficit which the World Bank estimates at 17 million units, but housing experts put at 22 million units.

There are, indeed, scores of programmes that demonstrate the new management’s commitment to affordable housing delivery. One notable example is the historic revision of equity contribution for accessing mortgage loans from the National Housing Fund (NHF) - a contributory social savings scheme designed to mobilize long-term funds from Nigerian workers, banks, insurance companies and the federal government to advance concessionary loans to contributors.

This action has not only eliminated equity contribution for the lower band of housing loans but also effected a massive reduction in the amount of money that workers who

Ahmed Dangiwa

contribute to the fund are required to bring up before they can get a housing loan.

Specifically, FMBN’s downward review of the decades-old unrealistic and difficult to achieve equity requirement has now made it possible for low income workers who contribute to the housing fund for a period of six months to get loans of up to N5million to own their homes without having to make any down-payment.

Before now, it was mandatory for them to contribute at least ten percent of the housing loan amount before their application would be

considered. The implication was that a middle-income civil servant, say on grade level eight, who needed a N5 million loan to buy or build his house was expected to put down, at least, N500,000, which is a tall order for a typical Nigerian civil servant.

By eliminating this requirement, FMBN has raised hope for millions of Nigerian workers in this category by removing a major financial obstacle which prevented them from actualizing their dream of living in their own homes.

Also included in the revised housing loan guidelines are the reduction

The review of the loan guidelines has now made the NHF housing loan window a programme that is aligned to the reality of the financial struggles that workers face as they try to match living expenses with stagnant low wages whose value is weakened by rising prices of food items, living cost and others

of equity contributions for housing loans of up to N10 million and N15 million from 20 percent to 10 percent.

The review of the loan guidelines has now made the NHF housing loan window a programme that is aligned to the reality of the financial struggles that workers face as they try to match living expenses with stagnant low wages whose value is weakened by rising prices of food items, living cost and others.

Another equally significant move by the management of FMBN to make housing more affordable is the introduction of the Rent-to-Own scheme.

The housing product provides an easy and convenient payment plan towards homeownership for Nigerian workers. Specifically, the scheme makes it possible for eligible workers who contribute to the NHF to move into FMBN homes as tenants, pay for and own the properties through monthly or yearly rent payments.

The rent to own scheme is a significant effort by the FMBN to boost affordable housing delivery for lowand medium-income earners in two major ways. First, it eliminates both the burden of workers having to suffer and save up large amounts of money required to build their homes or present as equity contribution for housing loans from mortgage banks.

The second reason is that it also provides a friendly payment structure that allows workers the convenience to spread the cost of the homes over long periods of up to thirty years at single digit interest rate of only 9 percent.

It is good to know that the FMBN management plans to start the rentto-own scheme on a pilot basis with about 3,000 houses across the nation.

It is the right step to prove the practical viability of this innovative product before taking it to scale.

Recently, FMBN announced yet another promising housing development collaboration with the leading unions of Nigerian workers. The labour unions include the Nigeria Labor Congress, Trade Union Congress and the Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association.

The FMBN unveiled the programme tagged ‘National Affordable Housing Delivery Programme for Nigerian Workers’ as a product of strategic collaboration between the mortgage institution and the labour unions towards addressing the housing requirement of workers currently estimated at 3,750,000 housing units.

It also stated that the pilot phase of the programme aims to deliver 2,800

housing units in 14 sites across the country. This includes 200 houses in each of the six zones in addition to Lagos and Abuja.

According to the bank, key features of the housing programme are the emphasis on affordability and the focus on low and middleincome classes of workers. Planned house-types, therefore, include fully finished semi-detached bungalows and blocks of flats of one-bedroom, two-bedrooms, and three bedrooms.

The strategic partnership with labour unions in the project design, the research-based and industry-wide expert consultations as well as the emphasis on deploying innovative methods to build houses that are not only affordable but decent and safe make this initiative one of the few signature collaborations that have the necessary ingredients for success.

This can be explained in a couple of ways. First, by making labor leaders part of the housing initiative from the start and seeking their inputs into the design and modeling of the planned houses, the project has a stronger chance of reversing the disturbing trend of building houses that workers cannot afford.

The second implication is that by accepting the inputs of seasoned industry experts who have experience and knowledge of global trends in the provision and technologies that deliver social housing in the design of the model houses to be deployed, the chances of project failure have been greatly reduced. This is largely because the models are based on designs that have already been tested and found to be successful in other climes.

It is note-worthy and commendable that the FMBN management in its efforts to reposition the bank on the path of greater impact is putting, at the core of its housing projects, affordability, accessibility and the interest of the low-income Nigerian worker.

This is clear from the downward review of the equity requirements for accessing the NHF loan programme to the introduction of the Rent-to-Own home ownership scheme right down to the planned National Affordable Housing Delivery Programme.

By hinging its reform on these premises, the current management of is laying foundation for social housing and championing a new era of practical and realistic affordable housing that is specifically tailored towards meeting the housing challenges of the low- and medium-income earner in Nigeria.

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INTERVIEW My mission is to restore Plateau’s lost glory – Gambo Musa Gambo, a retired general in the Nigerian Army in this interview with Zebulon Agomuo, spoke on his intention to restore what he calls the lost glory of tourism culture of Plateau State if elected governor. The politician, who is seeking the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) nomination, also said that the present administration in the state has disappointed the people and as a result has lost favour with them (the people). He also spoke on other issues. Excerpts: May we know what informed your aspiration to join the race for the governorship of Plateau State? y reason for joining the race is not far-fetched; if you remember and if you are conversant with Plateau State, this is a state that people knew that was full of glory. This is a state that was attracting people from within and outside the country; a state that strangers turned into their own home and this is where the indigenes received strangers with open arms and because of their hospitable nature. This is a state with abundant blessings that God has given to this state both in terms of natural resources, human resources and also with rich culture. It has been on people’s mind for a long time and the people have been enjoying such a period, but today Plateau is no longer what it used to be. The state has lost all its past glory and it has turned out to be a place of insecurity and the people of the state are faced with all sorts of challenges.

Today, Plateau is not secured and can never become developed without seeing itself on the platform of security. Where there is no security definitely there will be no peace and there will be no unity, not to talk of development. And for that reason I should come on board, join the race and ask the people of the state to give me the mandate so that I become the chief security officer of Plateau, so that I turn around the security of Plateau State to what it used to be. And by so doing the state will attain unity, peace and sustainable development.

That is my reason for joining the race.

and society. And I went further again to study Defence Administration in Cranfield University in UK that will enable me to manage the security of the state but even to develop the potentials of Plateau State in terms of economic build up.

So I want to believe that I have the capacity and capability to vie for this office and take head long the challenges that are facing the state.

Unlike my follow contenders, as I said, apart from Gen. Useni, they may be good in their own rights, but when it comes to security, I want to believe that they are yet to learn what it takes to address security issues, especially the period we are in. The insurgency on our hand, which is quite different from conventional war, requires an expertise and somebody with special training, knowledge and strategy to address the issue.

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If you are elected the governor of Plateau State, what would be your priority area(s)?

If Plateau State people should give me their mandate to be the governor of the state, the first thing I would address on my list of agenda is security because I have to position the state in a secured form that each and every indigene of the state should be able to move freely, miss freely and should also be able to attract people to come to Plateau, particularly investors, so that they will assist Plateau State

Musa Gambo

in developing.

Plateau has suffered so much from ethnic conflicts; what will you do to end the ethnic crises as many people choose to call it?

The ethnic conflict on the Plateau is not as pronounced as people claim. The Plateau people have always lived in harmony. There has been a peaceful co-existence among the people of Plateau. It is only people that are exaggerating that ethnic conflict that have been a problem on the state.

Let me tell you something, even people that are not indigenes are seen and treated as Plateau people. They enjoy equal rights with indigenes of the state. What is important is that people must be law abiding. For any society to live peacefully and in unity, everybody must be law-abiding and as long as they live by the law, rules and regulations definitely everybody will be treated equally.

The tourism nature of Plateau seems to be dead. What will you do to revive it?

Plateau is blessed with both human and natural resources; again, the state is blessed with a wonderful weather,

wonderful food, wonderful water and above all very hospitable people and now we tend to have lost all these, except the natural resources that is there, the weather and the food have not altered but though tampered because of the instability of the people. So when I come on board, once I am able to establish a secured environment I will now try to address all those tourist potentials that are abound in the state and try as much as I can to revive them. I will invite not only Nigerians but foreign partners to come and join us to explore such potentials that have not been totally explored in the state and by so doing we should be able to revive tourism.

There are over 10 gubernatorial aspirants in your party in the state. How do you hope to overcome all these heavy weights at the primary?

Well, the people are left with the decision and responsibility to choose and identify who they would like to lead them. I think that what is paramount on the minds of the people is that they are not secured.

The people want to be secured and without security they cannot achieve anything

in terms of development and they will not be happy seeing any development coming up when they are not secured.

The mayhem that has been going on in the state is so much that people sleep with their eyes half closed and the only way they can actually get back their lost glory is to secure their environment. I understand the mechanics of how to achieve or bring about security on the state and when you look at other aspirants in the race and apart from my senior brother Lt. General J. T. Useni, a very competent guy, but unfortunately he is already overtaken by events.

How? Age is no longer on his side and health is no longer on his side also. The modern trend which we are experiencing in Plateau today is insurgency and it is also affecting the country generally. I am competent because of my background; well trained and I attended all my military courses both at home and abroad.

I attended National War Staff College, national war college and I have acquired all the knowledge as far as strategy is concerned, including polices that drive a nation

What is your assessment of the current administration in Plateau State?

The present Governor of Plateau, Solomon Bako Lalong, he not actually addressed the yearnings and the aspirations of the people of Plateau State.

Nobody has ever come out to identify any meaningful development that Lalong has done on the Plateau since the inception of the present administration. Apart from the achievements of Jonah Jang, who is now a senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria who contributed immensely and whose physical development can be seen everywhere, there is nothing to show for the current government in the state.

Lalong has not done anything that people will identify.

The governor has not shown in any form that he has passion for the people of the state.

Look at the recent incidents of killings and mayhems on the Plateau, Lalong did not show human sympathy. We are really disappointed, Lalong has failed Plateau State and I am confident to say that.

In fact, let me tell you that APC is not for Plateau people because Plateau is where PDP was nursed and natured.

Remember also hat during the last election PDP has the majority in the state House of Assembly.

Ordinary Plateau citizen hates open grazing of any form in their land. This is a governor voted into power

by the people of the state and now has surrounded himself with cabal and has suddenly forgotten prominent people that helped him to power.

Also, some prominent citizens of the state are leaving APC for the PDP which is their original home in politics in the state. Imagine people from his Local government area want to take over power from him.

Is it not a sign that he has been rejected by all? The worst PDP candidate in the next election is far better than Lalong because he has lost favour with the people of the state.

What should the people of Plateau State expect from you if you are elected the governor come 2019?

The people should look forward to seeing a governor who is coming to address the biting problems that is on ground and that is the insecurity. Once I address it, we would have gone half way to achieving development. Again, my focus will be on youth development and women empowerment on the Plateau.

So for any nation to be free, it must get it right in the area of bringing up the youth properly in terms of education and skills acquisition.

Then government must support the women to believe in themselves so that they can be engaged in productive ventures that can add value to society.

Some people say that since after Solomon Lar, Plateau has never experienced good governance. Do you share in this sentiment?

Thank you so much. Let me use this opportunity to assure the Plateau people and all residents that they will see something different when I get there. I will like people to join hands with me in the re-engineering work in the state when I am elected.

I will run an all-inclusive government. In the case of developing the state, the past governors have done well, except the present government that unfortunately could not actually prove to the people of Plateau State the reason he was voted into power. I will have to go back to the general development of Plateau State and I will ensure that my administration will return the state to its past glory.

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Chinko diplomacy and chopsticks... The scramble for business in...

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such as lion bones and elephant tusks is a real threat to environmental sustainability.

New York Times reported in April 2017 that Chinese fishermen are depleting African fish stocks, estimated to cost the economies of Western Africa some $2 billion a year.

Businesses in some African nations are increasingly becoming fed up with Chinese merchants displacing them. Earlier in the year, the Nigerian immigration working with traders at Trade Fair, Ojo, Lagos, hounded off many undocumented Chinese merchants operating shops in the market in open competition with Nigerian traders. In the Ugandan capital of Kampala, hundreds of shopkeepers protested in April 2017 against what they considered to be unfair Chinese competition.

There is also growing resentment in Namibia, where the Chinese population is now estimated to be around 200,000, about the country’s growing debt to China as well as complaints that Chinese resource extraction does not benefit the native population.

Critics question the wisdom of Chinese infrastructure investment in Africa, a continent facing severe unemployment and labour issues. Most Chinese investments and infrastructure projects in Africa are ringfenced and round-tripped projects. The projects are financed by Chinese loans and constructed by Chinese engineering firms using p re d o m i na nt l y C h i n e s e labour and other inputs including parts. Using data on all known Chinesefunded transport projects in 69 Eurasian countries, the Reconnecting Asia project at CSIS has found a dra-

matic difference between those funded by Chinese banks and those financed by multilateral development banks. When projects were Chinese funded, CSIS found that 89% of contractors were Chinese companies. In contrast, when projects were funded by multilateral organisations, four in ten contractors were local, less than a third were Chinese and the rest came from third countries.

Such tied aid where Chinese lock in jobs for their nationals in exclusion of citizens of host countries raises serious questions on the rhetoric of President Xi’s “community of shared destiny and interest.” In addition to the spiral of dependency on Chinese imported parts that such projects set off, there is the added concern regarding their overall impact on employment situation and technology transfer to the host nations.

In conclusion, weighing the benefits of China’s pervasive presence in Africa against the drawbacks is not a simple calculation as Eric Olander, founder of the China-Africa Project website and co-host of the weekly China in Africa Podcast put it. “The idea is straightforward. The Chinese provide billions of dollars to build badly needed infrastructure such as rails, roads, ports, schools and so on in exchange for oil, timber, minerals and other natural resources.” And while China’s approach to Africa is certainly different from that of the West, and makes traditional donors uncomfortable, “it’s neither ‘good’ nor ‘bad’ for Africa; it’s both at the same time, depending on your vantage point.”

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cal presence of UK-listed companies on the continent, including large interests in oil and mining, Britain is still the second-biggest investor in Africa in stock terms. It also remains a big aid donor. But what many drew from Mrs May’s visit — which, incredibly, included the first by a British prime minister to Kenya for 30 years — was how diplomatically disengaged London has become.“Poor Mrs May really has a lot of catching up to do,” says Mark Malloch Brown, a British diplomat and former deputy UN secretary-general under Kofi Annan.

In the early 2000s, he says, “We started hearing complaints about what China was doing in Africa, grumbling from the British and the Americans. But, my God, they have created a competitive spur to the rest.” There are signs that, belatedly, Europe is waking up to the diplomatic and commercial challenge. Last year, Germany launched what it called a “Marshall Plan with Africa”, pledging public money to companies investing on the continent. “We are going to create more security for ourselves and we will put an end to trafficking,” said German chancellor Angela Merkel, launching a scheme that has been slow to get off the ground.

“They are responding to a domestic constituency agitated about the influx of migrants,” says Mr Prempeh. “They’re thinking: ‘If we can get these countries to be economically viable, either through direct investment or aid, then maybe we can stem the flow’.” He points to a commitment

by Volkswagen to assemble 5,000 cars in Ghana as an example of such efforts. Emmanuel Macron, France’s president, has also sought to articulate a new vision for the continent. Stressing that he was born after African states had won their independence, he has urged a relationship shorn of colonial baggage.

BlaiseDiagne International Airport, near Dakar, Senegal, which opened in 2017

He has also stressed the commercial opportunities for French companies, including small and medium-sized ones, in the English and Portuguese-speaking parts of the continent, as well as in their traditional francophone stamping ground. But, like Ms Merkel, Mr Macron’s motives for greater engagement are tinged with alarm.

In a speech last December in Ouagadougou, capital of Burkina Faso, he warned of dangers that, he said, “could irreversibly sweep away Africa’s stability, and also Europe’s stability”.

Whether driven by fear or a sense of commercial and diplomatic opportunity, the wider variety of actors has presented African leaders with greater choice. “This has allowed for competition in a way we never had it before,” says Vera Songwe, executive secretary of the UN Economic Commission for Africa.

Part of the rising interest is opportunistic. “At the end of the cold war, the west very much withdrew and stopped asserting its interest in Africa,” says Howard French, a professor at the Columbia School of Journalism and an expert on Africa. “It has taken all this time for thevacuumthatthiscreatedtodraw in a panoply of new players. China isthemostobviouslyimportant,but Malaysia, India, Vietnam, Turkey, Brazil, Russia and the Gulf states have all been drawn in,” he says.

“I think something important is going on.”In spite of Africa’s welldocumentedproblems,companies

with a cheaper cost base than European or American rivals can often turn a good profit. “The Turkish decided years ago they wanted to do more business in Africa,” says Edward Effah, chairman of Ghana’s Fidelity Bank. “They opened embassies, opened up export-credit facilities and started more flights,” he says, referring to Turkish Airlines, which now operates routes to more than 40 African cities.

Many businesses also see longerterm commercial prospects in the African demographics that are causing concern over migration in European capitals.

From 2018 to 2035, the UN predicts that the world’s 10 fastestgrowing cities will all be African.

With a median age of just 19, the continent’s population is expected to double to more than 2bn by 2050 and to double again by the end of the century. Even without a big improvement in living standards, the increase in numbers virtually guarantees robust growth for decades. And some African countries are showing signs of gaining economic momentum. Of the world’s top 10 fastest-growing economies this year according to the World Bank, six are in Africa, including Ethiopia, a country of 105m people where China, Turkey and the Gulf states are all active.

Several countries, including Turkey, where President RecepTayyip Erdogan wants to break out of dependence on European markets, have seen the logic of greater engagement. Mr Erdogan

has visited 23 African nations since he became leader in 2003. Just this June, the United Arab Emirates provided Ethiopia with $3bn in aid and investments, helping to avert a foreign currency crisis.

A month later, Saudi Arabia promised President Cyril Ramaphosa of South Africa $10bn of investment, mainly in the power sector. Russia, hugely influential on the continent during the cold war, is reasserting itself, striking military co-operation deals with the DRC, Ethiopia, Central African Republic and Mozambique, and agreeing arms sales to Nigeria and Angola.

“We are well behind everyone, but it’s temporary,” EvgenyKorendyasov, a former ambassador to several African countries, told the Financial Times. All this new attention, whether motivated by fear of immigration or terrorism or by commercial logic, is providing Africa with new opportunities, enabling governments to shop aroundfordealsandplayonesuitor off against another.

But there are pitfalls too. Civil society groups across Africa are seeking to keep their leaders in check, accusing many of cutting corrupt deals that are lucrative for thembutbadforthecountry.Loans from China and other new arrivals often lack transparency, say critics, andtheprojectstheyfinancecannot always make sufficient returns to pay back the underlying debt.

MsSongwe stresses the importance of striking good deals and sharing experience across the continent. She also says the move towards a continental free trade area, signed in principle this year, will strengthen Africa’s hand by creating the economic scale hampered by the Balkanisation of the continent.

“I would like to think that we on the continent know what we want and how we want it,” she says, dismissing the idea of a scramble.

“Scramble sounds like the Wild West, but I don’t believe the continent is in the Wild West phase any more. We have moved towards clarity of purpose and objectives.”

38 BUSINESS DAY NEWS Economic woes deepen as labour plans...

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Executive Committee (NEC) resolution, until further directive.

The directive was given after negotiations with the government to increase the national minimum wage reached an impasse.

To further complicate the scenario, yesterday the Federal Reserve Bank of America raised interest rate for the 3rd time this year to 2.25 percent. The rate hike is set to increase capital outflow from the country and increase the country risk premium as investors will demand higher yields for the Nigerian market to remain attractive enough to retain foreign capital.

Treasury yields are likely to jump this week as the double whammy of the rate hike and strike action will push sovereign debt prices lower.

The economy has already had it tough this year as economic growth has consistently decelerated in the first and second quarter of the year.

Policymakers have been searching for a catalyst that could send the economy back on rapid growth, however, the warning strike by the organized labour will be nothing short of a blow to any such hope in the near future.

The economy-wide implica-

tions of strike is colossal as it always lead to shut-down in businesses, reduction in production, loss in investors’ confidence, price hike due to panic buying and so on as the strike action could lead to petrol scarcity this year.

Also, food prices will be expected to increase during the period of the strike. Inflation report for August showed a growth in inflation from 11.1 percent to 11.23 percent.

Access to cash and cash transactions in the country will also take a hit if banks will remain closed during the period of the strike. Over N100 billion is transacted everyday through the banks and this strike will have severe consequences on economic transactions within the country which is likely to decline considerably.

The stock market should react negatively to this news as further economic uncertainty will bring the bears out in full force even as the NSE market index has declined 13.81 percent year to date.

The timing of the strike could also affect companies Q3 earnings performance and stretch to hurt Q4 earnings if the strike isn’t called off early. Chris Ngige, Minister of Labour and Employment who convened the meeting in Abuja, disclosed that the Tripartite Com-

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mittee on the new National Minimum Wage hopes to reconvene and conclude the negotiation, on Thursday, 4th October 2018.

“We are resuming next week, precisely on Thursday, October 4, and all the process have been put in place,” Ngige, Minister of Labour and Employment assured.

The Minister arguing that the country does not need to have any strike, explained that the labour leaders have been informed of the new date and are expected to communicate to their members.

Ngige who denied knowledge of the 14-day ultimatum issued to the Federal Government issued by the organized labour, however assured that the tripartite committee would wrap-up in October.

In his remarks, Ayuba Wabba, NLC President observed that the seven-day warning strike continues until further directives.

“We had a meeting where the Minister of Labour tried to update us. Since the time we issued this notice, there has been no consultation or meeting. This is the first meeting and he tried to update us on what they are trying to do. So the briefing needs to be communicated to our membership.

“Our demand is that the Tripartite Negotiating Council should be called back to conclude its assignment. We are taking back

the discussion we had with him, especially the update on what they are doing which before now, we are not aware because there was no consultation,” he said.

On his part, Achese Igwe, ULC Deputy President said the meeting was an interactive meeting with members of Tripartite Committee.

Igwe said that the meeting called by the Minister was to brief the organised labour on the update of the Federal Government activities as it concerns the new national minimum wage.

“I want to say that our demand still stands until government complies,” he added.

Speaking earlier at a press briefing held at the NLC headquarters, Wabba explained that the warning strike was aimed at compelling “government to reconvene the meeting of the committee in order to bring it to a logical conclusion.

“In compliance with this mandate, all workers in the public and private sectors at all levels across the country have been directed to join the strike. Industrial unions, state councils, all workers organisation and our civil society allies have been directed to step up mobilisation of their members,” he said.

He also said that public and private institutions, offices, banks, schools, public and private business premises including filling stations are to remain shut till further notice.

Wabba said that all those who mean well for the country and want to see to the success of the action should cooperate with labour, saying that the action would remain

Thursday 27 September 2018

in force until further directives are given.

The NLC president noted that the justification for the new national minimum wage cannot be over argued as the NLC had initially proposed a N56,000 minimum wage but later raised it to N66,500.

“We do believe that the reasons governors find it difficult to pay the national minimum wage are lack of political will, high level of corruption, excessive cost of governance, white elephants projects and among others.

“In any case, we are commending the governors that have indicated their readiness to pay the new national minimum wage and we advise those who are not prepared to pay to go back to their state and tell the workers in their state that they would not pay.

“We, therefore, find it necessary to caution against any attempt by government at any level to blackmail workers or/and their unions because we have been patient, considerate and patriotic.

“Indeed government had to commend workers and their union for waiting patiently for two years before commencing negotiations for a new National Minimum wage.

We advise that our disposition should not be taken for granted,” he said.

In the last three decades, whenever organized labour embarked on nationwide strikes, the whole country is brought to a standstill, with no time limits. Businesses lose money, workers stay at home.

The all-round effect of such strikes hurts the growth of the nation’s fragile economy.

Prospects for resolution of MTN CCI saga...

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L-R: Fidelis Ayebae, MD/CEO; Segun Adebanji, chairman, and Abayomi Adebanjo, company secretary, all of FidPic by Pius Okeosisi son Healthcare plc, at the 19th annual general meeting of the company in Lagos.

Osun re-run: Last minute trade-offs as SDP...

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in Thursday’s rerun poll.

Reacting to the development yesterday, Eddy Olafeso, the Southwest vice chairman of the PDP, in an exclusive interview with BusinessDay scoffed at Omisore’s decision to back the APC. Omisore, had expressed optimism when he spoke with newsmen alongside Yemi Faronbi, in his Ile-Ife country home on Wednesday, that after the election, SDP and APC would form a coalition government, saying the ruling party has accepted manifestoes of SDP, which he said, are people-oriented.

The ex-‘federal lawmaker’s address titled ‘Formation of Coalition Government and Rerun of Governorship Election on Thursday 27th September, 2018 in Osun State’, reads: “Our decision to form a Coalition Government is based on the party that is ready to work with SDP to adopt and implement the core values of our party

which is social justice and good governance.

“Our core values and philosophy as indicated in our SDP manifestoes ‘Restoration Agenda’ have all been presented to the APC and the PDP representatives, who have approached us for support and formation of a coalition government.

“For the Restoration Agenda to be effectively implemented, Social Democratic Party (Osun state) would ensure that her core values are considered and incorporated into the development agenda of the party of choice for a meaningful coalition.

“In this regard, we have forwarded our proposals for coalition government to the PDP representatives headed by the Senate President (Sen. Bukola Saraki) and the APC high powered delegation by Kayode Fayemi, the newly elected governor of Ekiti State.

“The APC had since come back to accept all the conditions proposed to them by us to form a co-

alition government while the PDP party is yet to respond. We have therefore, as a party accepted to support the APC for victory in the rerun election tomorrow and thereafter form a coalition government.”

Omisore’s decision has since attracted PDP reaction, which said that its candidate would win the rerun governorship election in the state nonetheless.

Olafeso, who spoke for the PDP, described Omisore as a self-seeking politician who does not have the interest of the people of the state at heart, stressing that the PDP had it plans ahead of the election.

“We are not bothered about Omisore’s decision to work for the APC; we know him and what he can do. We are not surprised. He is a self-seeking politician; we are sure of victory and we expect INEC to conduct a free and fair election tomorrow (today),” Olafeso said.

In the earlier poll the candidate of the PDP, Ademola Adeleke, polled 254,698 votes while his closest marker, Gboyega Oyetola, of the APC scored 254,345 votes, with the former coming first with

close at N37.50 per share.

Last week, investors new interest in banks got additional support after an official statement released on September 19 by CBN said that the the affected banks and telecommunications provider had submitted fresh documents in response to the sanctions and the regulator is now reviewing the new information.

This is good news for shareholders in banks who have suffered huge losses this year as bank stocks have declined precipitously since midJanuary. NSE banking index has returned -12.57 percent year to date while the market capitalization of the

banking index has shed N1.39 trillion since January 19.

Bank stocks are three of the five biggest movers in the NSE broad market index since September 11. The banks are GTBank (15.38%), Zenith Bank (7.54%) and UBA (12.08%), showing that investors have increased exposure in tier 1 banks which were not affected in the bank sanctions but suffered heavy market losses after the sanctions were announced.

The overall market performance was bearish as the stock market index fell 151 points to close at 32,963 points. The market returned -0.46 percent yesterday and is down -13.81 percent year to date.

a difference of 353 votes, which was a far cry from the 3,498 voided votes that was recorded in some LGA’s of the state.

INEC however announced a rerun in four local government area and in seven polling unit including Orolu LGA (three units, 947 votes), Ife South (two units, 1,314 votes), Ife North (one unit, 353 votes), and Osogbo (one unit, 884 votes).

“Unfortunately as the returning officer, it’s not possible to declare anybody as the clear winner of the election on the first ballot,” Mr Fuwape, vice chancellor of the Federal University of Technology, Akure, said.

“I, Joseph Adeola Fuwape, hereby, declare this election inconclusive,” he said.

While the rerun election in reality can be seen as a two-horse race between PDP and APC, the local governments involved appears to have taken the battle a little away from them. With a voting strength of over 1800 combined, the three affected polling units in Ife North and South could be decisive in the rerun.

In the final results declared for both local governments, the APC won in both with a minimum margin of 650 votes over its closest rival in each of the local governments.

However in both local governments, a summation of the votes of the PDP and Omisore’s SDP dwarfs the APC votes by over 3,500 votes in each local government. In fact, in Ife South, the SDP defeated the PDP to come second behind the APC. It appears also that both the ruling APC and the opposition PDP to a large extent are aware of the huge role that the SDP and its candidate will play.

On Monday 24th September, Nigerian senate president and third man in the political hierarchy, Bukola Saraki travelled down to Osun state to visit Omisore toasting him to throw his support behind Ademola Adeleke, who is the candidate of the PDP, in delivering in the re-run poll today.

Similarly, the APC caucus, led by the party chairman and former governor of Edo state, Adams Oshiomole also sought for the support of the SDP candidate.

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Thursday 27 September 2018

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Stocks to watch: GoPro, AA, Boohoo, Mitie, Croda, IAG, Next

Donald Trump tells UN that Opec is ‘ripping off’ the world

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World Business Newspaper

Daimler chief Dieter Zetsche to step down after 12 years Ola Kallenius will take over in 2019 ahead of planned restructuring PATRICK MCGEE

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aimler chief executive Dieter Zetsche will step down in 2019 as the Mercedes parent responds to upheaval in the automotive market and sets the stage for its own 2020 restructuring.

The Stuttgart-based group said on Wednesday that Mr Zetsche, who has led Daimler since 2006, would be replaced by Ola Kallenius, a board member who oversees research and development.

Daimler said the changes were being implemented as management responds to “challenges presented by the transformation of the automotive industry”.

Carmakers are under pressure to electrify their fleets, invest in autonomous driving and connect cars to the web to make them “iPhones on wheels”. New entrants, from Tesla to software giants, have scared off investors and placed carmaker valuations at recession-era levels.

Mr Zetsche is not being pushed aside, but promoted. The plan is that he observes a two-year “cooling-off period” before assuming the supervisory board chairmanship being vacated by Manfred Bischoff, whose contract expires in 2021.

At German companies, supervisory boards hold management to account.

Daimler shares were down 1.2 per cent in mid-morning trade on Wednesday, but analysts noted the wider auto market was depressed.

Shares in BMW, which on Tuesday slashed profit and margin guidance for 2018, were down 1.8 per cent and Volkswagen was off 0.5 per cent.

The surprising part of the announcement was the timing, as Mr Zetsche’s current contract extends through 2019. Instead, he will depart next May. The early departure indicates Daimler is anxious to have new people in place for the restructuring it announced in July, which is set to come into being in January 2020.

Daimler is splitting up Mercedes-

Benz cars from Daimler Trucks and its financial arm, then placing the three divisions under the Daimler AG umbrella.

“It’s a very smart move, it’s wellplanned, it’s a smooth transition,” said Christian Ludwig, analyst at Bankhaus Lampe. “You look at Volkswagen earlier this year with Diess and Müller — it was the complete opposite.”

In April, VW’s chief executive Matthias Müller was abruptly ousted, with Herbert Diess, head of the VW passenger car brand, taking his role with immediate effect.

It is common in Germany for longstanding chief executives to hand over to a successor but then take on the chairman role. Ferdinand Piëch, who led VW from 1993 to 2002, for instance, retired but soon took on the chairman role for another 12 years. At chemicals groups Linde, a similar scenario played out for Wolfgang Reitzle when he stepped down in 2013.

Mr Zetsche, who was born in Istanbul, has spent four decades with Daimler and been a board member since 1998. He is known to Americans as “Dr Z” for a series of humorous commercials he appeared in when Daimler was merged with Chrysler.

That alliance is considered to have been a disaster, and one of Mr Zetsche’s earlier tasks was to demerge. He then set Mercedes on a path that would see it rebound strongly from the financial crisis and overtake BMW as luxury sales leader.

Since the VW diesel scandal three years ago, however, Mercedes has come under scrutiny for its own role in gaming emissions tests. In June, it was forced to recall 774,000 vehicles equipped with “prohibited [emissions] shut-off devices” — but it avoided any fines. It still faces lawsuits from car owners in the US. Max Warburton, an analyst at Bernstein, said: “Mr Zetsche can be given credit for a number of achievements. Most notably he extracted Daimler from Chrysler just in time in 2007 and then he rebuilt Mercedes’ product line, brand and Chinese business through this decade.”

China state groups gobble up struggling private companies

Growing trend of nationalisation sparks warnings of risk to economic vitality growth in gross domestic product, GABRIEL WILDAU AND YIZHEN JIA 90 per cent of new jobs and more hinese state-owned enter- than half of all fiscal revenue, acprises have nationalised cording to an industry association at least 10 privately owned for private companies. groups this year, prompting warnBut private groups have suffered ings that the trend risks sucking disproportionately under Beijing’s the vitality out of China’s economy. aggressive campaign against debt While most of the country’s and financial risk over the past largest companies are SOEs, the pri- 18 months. While SOEs generally vate sector is the economy’s main engine, contributing 60 per cent of Continues on page A2

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Dieter Zetsche will assume the supervisory board chairmanship of Daimler in 2021 © AFP

World Bank plans battery revolution in developing nations Institution looks to mobilise $5bn to generate increase in battery storage capacity ED CROOKS

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he World Bank plans to back a “transformative” expansion in the market for batteries used on power grids, with the aim of stimulating new products and applications to meet the need for energy storage in developing countries.

The bank said on Wednesday it would lend $1bn from its own resources and draw in a further $4bn from public and private sector investors, to bring about a fourfold increase in developing countries’ battery storage capacity.

Jim Yong Kim, the World Bank’s president, said it intended to “send a very strong signal to the battery industry” that there was a significant business opportunity in energy storage in developing countries.

He added: “I hope we find that person with an idea . . . that could change the world.”

Most large lithium-ion batteries produced today go into electric vehicles, but their falling costs have meant they are increasingly becoming economically viable as ways to provide services to electricity grids

and consumers. Batteries are used for short-term balancing of supply and demand on the grid and to back up variable generation from wind and solar power, among other applications.

But as of 2017, there were almost 400 gigawatt hours of battery capacity fitted into electric vehicles worldwide, and only 11GWh for stationary power uses. Of that, only about 4.5GWh were installed in developing countries, with more than half in the developed world.

The cost of battery storage is typically much higher in developing countries, at about $400 to $700 for a kilowatt hour, compared with about $300 a kWh in developed countries.

The bank aims to support investment in 17.5GWh of new batteries in developing countries by 2025, roughly quadrupling their capacity.

Mr Kim said: “Everyone in the world should have 20 hours a day of electricity, instead of being able to get electricity only when the sun is shining.”

The bank’s $1bn of lending will be targeted at improving grid connections and regulatory systems, as

well as financing the batteries themselves. The storage could be linked to renewable energy developments, connected to electricity networks or “mini-grids”, or in standalone systems.

Lithium-ion technology dominates the market for batteries for electric vehicles and for stationary storage, mostly because the rapid growth of the market and heavy investment in manufacturing capacity have driven economies of scale. The bank suggested that its initiative might help other technologies specifically designed for stationary uses to become economically viable.

It also hopes that by creating a larger market it will encourage businesses to come up with energy storage ideas that meet the particular needs of developing economies, including batteries with longer lives and greater resilience in hot conditions.

Mr Kim said he hoped the incentive would encourage some inventors in a garage somewhere in the world “to have an idea no one’s thought of” for bringing down the cost of battery storage.

Kenyan railway highlights sharper focus on affordability President Xi’s words reflect an awareness in Beijing that its tactics are under scrutiny JOHN AGLIONBY

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he Chinese-funded railway from the Kenyan port city of Mombasa to the Ugandan border — and, it is hoped, eventually to Uganda’s capital, Kampala — encapsulates the evolution of Beijing’s Belt and Road Initiative in Africa.

The $3.2bn first segment, stretching 475km from Mombasa to the capital Nairobi, was opened with fanfare 16 months ago, despite widespread criticism over the opacity of the financing terms.

Within weeks of the first trains running, work had begun on the second, $1.5bn, 120km section from Nairobi to Naivasha in the heart of the Great Rift Valley. This time there was much greater scrutiny of the financing, with a target completion date of June 2019.

The Kenyan government expected to sign a deal for China to finance the third stage, from Naivasha to Kisumu, on the banks

of Lake Victoria, at this month’s triennial China-Africa summit in Beijing. But China balked at agreeing to pay half the estimated $3.8bn cost. Kenyan infrastructure minister James Macharia said a more detailed feasibility study was requested by Beijing “to establish the commercial viability”.

Beijing’s reticence was arguably the first manifestation of what China’s president, Xi Jinping, was talking about when he told a business forum at the summit that China would adopt a more focused approach to investing in and lending to African countries.

“China’s co-operation with Africa is clearly targeted at the major bottlenecks to development,” Mr Xi said.

“Resources for our co-operation are not to be spent on any vanity projects but in places where they count the most.”

Analysts say the changing approach is partly driven by concerns over rising indebtedness of governments in sub-Saharan Africa, and

accusations, denied by Beijing, that China is driving African countries into debt traps to seize assets — as in Sri Lanka.

China lent about $125bn to the continent from 2000 to 2016, data from the China-Africa Research Initiative at Johns Hopkins University’s School of Advanced International Studies shows.

“This phase of the BRI is about maturing the relationship with African countries and that does mean prioritising,” says Edward George, head of research at Ecobank, a panAfrican bank. “It doesn’t mean no more money. It means we want to remain on good terms with you but we can’t lend you more in these circumstances.”

But, as Mr George says, plenty of money is still flowing — or at least being promised. And much of it is being packaged as BRI-related. Mr Xi pledged $60bn in investment, loans and grants for Africa at the summit, the same as at the previous gathering in 2015.

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C002D5556Wednesday 26 September 2018

NATIONAL NEWS Runaway US stock market prompts investors to look overseas

China state groups gobble up struggling private...

Continued from page A5 enjoy easier access to loans from state-owned banks, private companies have been major recipients of credit from non-bank lenders.

The combination of a sharp contraction of shadow banking and a slowing economy has left many private groups starved of capital and seeking white knights to rescue their businesses.

“We are very cautious on offering loans right now,” said Rong Ling, head of the research department at Changshu Rural Commercial Bank, citing the weak economy. “For private enterprises, at present we only recover loans rather than offer loans.”

Twenty-one privately owned groups have sold large stakes to SOEs since the start of 2018, according to stock exchange filings.

Of these, 10 are de facto nationalisations because the SOE will become the formerly private company’s largest shareholder.

The acquisitions and stake sales range across sectors from silver smelting to holiday resort development and the manufacturing of environmental protection products.

“The efficiency of SOEs is usually lower than private enterprises’.If private groups are merged into SOEs, the SOEs will begin to dispatch leaders and party secretaries to the private group. It’s very likely to stifle that private company’s original vitality,” said Li Yang, director of the Institute of Finance and Banking at the Chinese Financial Academy of Social Sciences, a think-tank that advises the government.

“Amid this big wave [of acquisitions], if we do not diligently implement the basic strategy of SOE reform, then when we look again in two years, the consequences will be worrying,” he said.

In recent months, China’s policymakers have sought ways to support private groups, including launching a nationwide survey asking about the difficulties they face.

In addition to financing difficulties, private groups reported pressure from Beijing’s drive to slash excess capacity in sectors including steel, coal and aluminium. Critics say that campaign has heavily affected private groups while sparing SOEs from factory closures and production limits.

“We will deliver and step up policy measures in support of the private sector [and] remove all hidden obstacles to their investment,” Premier Li Keqiang said in a speech at the “Summer Davos” conference in Tianjin last week.

A related form of pressure on private groups is the increased use of company stock as collateral to obtain bank loans. The sharp decline in China’s equity markets this year has triggered automatic sales of that collateral to protect creditor banks.

In some cases, shareholders of private groups have sought buyouts to repay their debts and avoid share sales by banks.

“Whoever has money can buy [the private companies’ shares], but usually that’s SOEs,” said Feng Lun, chairman of property developer Vantone Holdings. “Their financing is easier.”

US exposure being pared back as more enticing opportunities are found in Europe and Asia COLBY SMITH AND ROBIN WIGGLESWORTH

A President Trump at the UN General Assembly © Reuters

Donald Trump tells UN that Opec is ‘ripping off’ the world Warning on high oil prices comes with plea to other nations to squeeze Iran DEMETRI SEVASTOPULO, KATRINA MANSON AND ANJLI RAVAL

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resident Donald Trump on Tuesday took aim at Saudi Arabia and its refusal to lead an increase in oil production, telling the UN that Opec members were “as usual ripping off the rest of the world”.

Speaking at the UN General Assembly in New York, Mr Trump told Opec that the US was “not going to put up with . . . these horrible prices much longer”. His warning came in a speech to the international body in which the US president also urged other countries to help squeeze the regime in Tehran by cutting oil imports from Iran.

“I don’t like it, and nobody should like it,” Mr Trump said about Opec.

“We defend many of these nations for nothing and then they take advantage of us by giving us high oil prices, not good. We want them to stop raising prices, we want them to start lowering prices, and they must contribute substantially to military protection.”

Mr Trump has repeatedly bashed Opec on Twitter, telling producers to raise output to keep oil prices in check. Higher prices at the pump could hurt Republicans in the midterm elections where the loss of the House or Senate could spark major ramifications for Mr Trump, including a possible push for impeachment.

While Mr Trump has pinned the blame on Opec, however, it has been his administration’s antagonistic relationship with Tehran — including the US withdrawal from the 2015 Iran nuclear deal and subsequent reimposition of oil export sanctions — that has helped propel crude prices in recent months.

Brent crude, the international benchmark, rose higher on the comments to a four-year high, up $1.35 a barrel to $82.85. Prices started rising this week after global producers led

by Saudi Arabia and Russia decided against raising output beyond what countries agreed in June, despite calls from Mr Trump.

Mr Trump also slammed Iran in his speech, saying its leaders “sow

chaos, death and destruction,” as he urged other nations to cut imports of Iranian oil to help isolate the regime.

He said the US had “launched a campaign of economic pressure to deny the regime the funds it needs to advance its bloody agenda”.

“We cannot allow the world’s leading sponsor of terrorism to possess the planet’s most dangerous weapons,” Mr Trump told the UN, even though international energy inspectors say that Tehran is living up to the 2015 nuclear deal. “We ask all nations to isolate Iran’s regime as long as its aggression continues.”

In remarks later on Tuesday, Iranian president Hassan Rouhani accused the US of actively working to overthrow his government and refused any direct talks with the Trump administration.

“The US government does not even conceal its plan for overthrowing the same government it invites to talks,” Mr Rouhani told the UN general assembly. “On what basis and criteria can we enter into an agreement with an administration misbehaving such as this?”

Pioneering prosecutor returns for Donald Trump investigation Audrey Strauss’s profile is likely to rise if Rod Rosenstein is sacked by White House JOSHUA CHAFFIN

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alf a year ago Audrey Strauss was a retired corporate lawyer, little known outside the legal circles of New York. Now she is at the forefront of a multi-pronged legal pursuit of President Donald Trump.

That unlikely turn of events is a result of Ms Strauss’s decision in February to accept an offer from Geoffrey Berman, the US attorney for the Southern District of New York, to return as senior counsel to the office where she launched her career 46 years ago.

Her veteran presence has helped to steady what is regarded as the most powerful team of federal prosecutors in the US after a leadership shake-up engineered by the Trump administration, say observers — and just as it tackles one of its biggest cases, involving the president himself.

The Southern District has emerged as a second legal front against Mr Trump alongside Robert Mueller, the special counsel investigating Russian interference in the 2016 election.

The role of Ms Strauss has been thrust into the spotlight amid new questions surrounding Rod Rosenstein, the deputy attorney-general

overseeing Mr Mueller’s Washington-based investigation.

Mr Rosenstein is due to meet Mr Trump on Thursday following revelations he questioned the president’s fitness for office. Democrats are concerned Mr Rosenstein will be sacked, putting Mr Mueller in jeopardy, and leaving Ms Strauss and her colleagues in the Southern District as the main federal investigation into Mr Trump’s behaviour.

Known as the “Sovereign District” for its famed autonomy, the Manhattan-based office — whose chiefs have included notably independent prosecutors such as Robert Morgenthau, Rudolph Giuliani and James Comey — is not bound by a narrow mandate or prone to the same political pressure as Mr Mueller. “[She] adds instant credibility,” said Mary Jo White, who overlapped with Ms Strauss as a young prosecutor before going on to lead the Southern District after Mr Guiliani. “She’s not a table-thumper — she’s just one of the most extraordinary people and lawyers around.”

In a corner of the legal world that tends to be dominated by hyperaggressive men, Ms Strauss is a petite and bookish woman who has managed to turn her low-profile manner to her advantage. Friends routinely

describe her as warm and fun. She is still a member of the same book club she started more than 25 years ago. If she could be anything besides a lawyer, she once said, she would be an artist, and described a week of theatre-going in London as her best-ever holiday.

“If you met her, you would be surprised at what she does for a living,” said Charles Clayman, a defence attorney who has known Ms Strauss for years. “She’s very reserved.”

Politically, Ms Strauss and her husband John “Rusty” Wing, a wellknown New York defence lawyer, are the sort of moderate Republicans who are increasingly rare in the Trump era, according to a person who knows them.

The Southern District made its biggest mark in August when, with an assist from Mr Mueller, it extracted a guilty plea from Michael Cohen, Mr Trump’s former lawyer and fixer, for, among other things, arranging payments to silence two women who had extramarital liaisons with the president.

Some legal observers believe Mr Mueller forwarded evidence about Mr Cohen’s case to the Southern District to ensure that the scrutiny of the president continues, whatever Mr Mueller’s fate.

great rotation could be afoot in global markets. A recordbreaking divergence between US equities and the rest of the world has spurred some investors to tiptoe away from Wall Street in search of bargains in Europe and the developing world.

While the S&P 500 has bounded from one all-time high to the next, and is now up 9 per cent this year, international stocks remain in the doldrums.

Neither eurozone nor Chinese stocks have reclaimed their pre or post-crisis peaks, and the MSCI World index, excluding the US, is down nearly 3 per cent in 2018.

Indeed, the relative performance of the S&P 500 versus the rest of the world is now at its most extreme level since at least 1970.

That has opened up a chasm-like valuation gap between US and most other markets. On book value, the S&P 500 now trades at a historic two-times premium versus the rest of the world, and on a price-to-earnings ratio, the US equity benchmark trades around a record premium to the MSCI World once the US is excluded.

The divergence is now so stark that this month analysts at JPMorgan, Société Générale and Morgan Stanley have all recommended investors start to pare back their US exposure and look abroad for opportunities.

“A really significant change in the environment is ahead of us,” predicted Anders Nielsen, a strategist at Goldman Sachs Asset Management.

While fund managers say they are wary of being too early, or betting against the US stock market, some say they are finding more enticing opportunities outside America.

“We’re looking at a market where we find a lot of interest opportunities, especially in Europe and Asia. In the US it is a little harder,” said Anik Sen, head of global equities at PineBridge Investments, a New York-based asset manager. “We are spending a lot more time looking at overseas markets now.”

It is a picture that has been largely driven by economics. US consumer confidence is at a 17-year high, manufacturing activity rose to the highest level in 14 years in August and the economy grew at an annualised pace of 4 per cent last quarter.

Meanwhile, consumer confidence in the eurozone tumbled to its lowest level in more than a year in September, and economic growth in emerging markets is near a seven-month low, according to Capital Economics.

However, despite the robust US economic growth some analysts worry that the US equity market is running on late-cycle fumes. According to Bank of America Merrill Lynch’s latest survey, investors have built up the largest overweight position in US equities in three years, surpassing all other assets. “It’s a bearish signal no doubt,” said Jared Woodard, an investment strategist at BAML. While 80 per cent of S&P 500 companies reporting earnings per share beat expectations last quarter, according to FactSet’s John Butters, estimates for the next quarter have come down since June. Of the 98 companies that have announced earnings guidance for the third quarter, 76 per cent have issued negative ones, the highest percentage of S&P 500 companies doing so since the first quarter of 2016.

Wednesday 26 September 2018

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FINANCIAL TIMES

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COMPANIES & MARKETS

@ FINANCIAL TIMES LIMITED

Stocks to watch: GoPro, AA, Boohoo, Mitie, Croda, IAG, Next Kier slides as JPMorgan Cazenove revives cash flow concerns BRYCE ELDER

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A was the FTSE 250’s sharpest faller after a half-year update from the roadside repairs specialist showed membership numbers falling faster than expected.

Paid consumer subscribers fell 2 per cent, which was slightly worse than flagged in August, and business-tobusiness members were down 3 per cent for the period.

Management repeated full-year and medium-term targets, which suggested AA’s profit would be more second-half weighted than usual, said Jefferies analysts. Liberum, AA’s joint house broker, made a pre-emptive cut to its 2020 forecasts in view of softer insurance rates and the decline in paid member numbers.

Boohoo rallied after its interim earnings beat forecasts and it raised full-year guidance, helped in part by improved sales and margins at its eponymous brand over the second quarter. “The main takeaway is that Boohoo is heading into Black Friday with significant margin firepower and a strong likelihood of post-Christmas trading upgrades,” said Peel Hunt.

Mitie retreated after debt worries overshadowed the outsourcer’s first-half update. Management left full-year guidance and cost-saving targets unchanged but flagged a tougher approach to invoice discounting, which meant net debt would not fall as expected by the full year.

Sellside Stories Oppenheimer upgraded GoPro, the US listed sports camera maker, to “outperform” with a $9 target price.

GoPro has “largely fallen off everyone’s radar after several difficult years”, but new management has reset the business with a refreshed product range that focuses on ease of use and hits all the right price points for upgrades, Oppenheimer said. Its team argued that GoPro’s biggest problem over the past two years was that it had too much product lingering in sales channels for too long, forcing discounts and confusing customers. But clearances have reduced inventory to a four-year low, giving the company a clean slate to return to growth in 2019, it said.

Oppenheimer told clients: “GoPro has never had competitive issues. Its stock depreciation has largely been self-inflicted or moonshots that didn’t land. It’s arguably been left to the scrap heap. We believe it’s worth a second look based on the set-up and management’s turnaround efforts.”

JPMorgan Cazenove downgraded UK construction group Kier to “neutral” from “overweight” on the back of results last week from the construction outsourcer. “While we still like Kier’s business mix, the group’s poor cash flow track record somewhat reduces our confidence in management’s medium-term guidance,” JPMorgan said.

UK’s offshore trading of renminbi hits fresh record

Average daily volumes rise nearly a third over the year to £69bn in the second quarter KATIE MARTIN

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he UK has consolidated its dominant position in offshore trading of the Chinese renminbi after handling record volumes in the second quarter, the City of London said, boosting the capital’s prospects as a key part of the global financial system after Brexit.

Six years after establishing itself in international offshore renminbi trading, London accounted for almost 39 per cent of the total, the City of London said, citing data from trade processor Swift. By comparison, Hong Kong accounted for just under 27 per cent in the first quarter of this year.

Average daily volumes stood at £69bn in the second quarter, up 13.5 per cent on the previous quarter and nearly a third higher than the same period in 2017, the authority said, citing data from the Bank of England and the People’s Bank of China. “[Currency trading] is so much part of what is London’s great strength,” said Catherine McGuin-

ness, chair of policy and resources at the City of London Corporation.

“We like to think of London as the natural western end of China’s Belt and Road.”

The City also wants to ensure that it can continue to dominate trading in the euro after the UK leaves the EU. Overall, London handled a total average of $2.7tn in currency trading a day, the latest BoE figures from April show.

That was 15 per cent up on October 2017 and was the highest on record.

Trade in the euro against the dollar accounts for $778bn a day.

A dent to those flows and all the related financial services associated with them, which still tower over renminbi business, would be potentially damaging. Still, Ms McGuinness said, “the rest of the world is big”.

The new report also noted that preparations for the ShanghaiLondon Stock Connect project, which will enable companies from the two countries to list instruments on each other’s exchanges, “have entered the last stage before the official launch”.

Kevin Systrom said the pair planned to take some time off before starting an unspecified new venture © AFP

European equities drift ahead of Fed decision Federal Open Market Committee’s two-day meeting wraps up later today KATE BEIOLEY AND EDWARD WHITE

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ll eyes remain on the Federal Open Market Committee’s twoday meeting that wraps up later on Wednesday, with officials expected to raise interest rates for the third time this year.

US equities registered muted progress in early trading, with the S&P 500 index gaining 1 per cent and the Dow gaining 0.2 per cent, despite a 1.1 per cent fall in healthcare stocks among the Dow. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite flickered initially but held flat, confirming analysts’ expectations of market “limbo” awaiting the Fed. Bond yields crept lower ahead of the outcome. The 10-year Treasury yield fell 1.5 basis points to 3.08 per cent. On Tuesday, the yield on US 10year notes fell shy of May’s intraday peak of 3.126 per cent. The yield on twoyear Treasury notes slipped marginally to 2.83 per cent.

The US dollar index crept up 0.3 per cent to $94.38.

“We see the USD strengthening somewhat against G10 peers as the hope for a more optimistic outlook of

Fed chair Jay Powell is dominating the markets,” said Esther Reichelt, forex strategist at Commerzbank AG. “Markets remain in limbo ahead of the Fed decision tonight.”

Michael Ingram, chief market strategist at WH Ireland, added: “The real variable here is how hawkish the new dot plot [of interest rate projections] will be — markets have so far this month rapidly reappraised what the Fed will do in 2019 — let’s see where it goes.”

Equities Some European markets inched upwards, with the Euro Stoxx 50 gaining 0.1 per cent and France’s CAC 40 climbing 0.3 per cent. However, Frankfurt’s Xetra Dax fell 0.3 per cent and the FTSE 100 remained broadly flat.

Forex and fixed income Italian bond yields moved sharply lower following comments from finance minister Giovanni Tria, an economist unaffiliated with either party, on Wednesday about the government’s budget. Mr Tria said it would include measures for a “citizens’ income”, potentially dodging a clash over spending with Italy’s Five Star party, in coalition

with the League.

The yield on 10-year Italian debt moved 5.2 basis points lower to 2.8 per cent, while the yield on the country’s two-year sovereign note fell 9.4bp to 0.723 per cent.

European sovereign bonds elsewhere moved lower, with the yield on German 10-year bonds falling 1.3 per cent but remaining above 0.5 per cent, its highest level since May, while the yield on the UK 10-year benchmark debt fell 3.1 per cent to 1.6 per cent.

The euro started the day stronger against the dollar, moving 0.03 per cent higher to $1.18, but weakened to $1.17. The pound fell to $1.32 but strengthened briefly against the euro and the dollar during Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn’s speech at the Labour party conference.

Commodities The oil price faltered again during morning trading, with Brent crude falling back to $81.45 by lunchtime, having reached $82 earlier in the day. The oil price reached a four-year intraday high of $81.38 on Tuesday following a decision by big producers not to increase production.

Bluechip Technologies partners DSN to sponsor InterCampus machine learning competition

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luechip Technologies Limited, leading indigenous business applications, and data management solutions firm, has partnered with Data Science Nigeria (DSN) to sponsor the first-ever Inter-Campus Machine Learning competition powered to mark its 10th anniversary.

According to Bayo Adekanmbi, founder of DSN and MTN’s chief transformation officer, the competition, which has ninety two (92) universities and polytechnics from all the states in Nigeria, is an attempt to increase local data science and artificial intelligence capacity and enhance the opportunities and employability of Nigerian students through an incentivized exposure to advanced knowledge in data science, which is now world’s number one career.

According to Adekanmbi, the competition is now entering the final stage in which the 75 top-performing students on the Kaggle.com global data science platform will be invited to a five-day residential, all-expenses-paid training bootcamp in Lagos, 10-14 October 2018.

He said the five-day residential bootcamp will include face-to-face

teaching, virtual online classes, and a hands-on hackathon using Kaggle. com and distinguished data scientists from leading institutions like Google AI Lab, Stanford AI Research, GitHub and Bankable Frontiers Associates will facilitate the sessions.

“The final winner will be determined after a very competitive hackathon on Nigeria-centric data to explore, extrapolate and explain emerging possibilities in financial inclusion algorithms,” he said.

Commenting on the milestone, Kazeem Tewogbade, managing director of Bluechip Technologies Limited, stated that “Bluechip Technologies believes that the future of Nigeria is to have the cutting-edge knowledge, and we must proactively raise a world-class generation of machine learning experts who can create breakthrough solutions that will transform our country. And this starts by giving them the right knowledge before they leave their higher institutions.”

Bluechip Technologies was established in 2008, to develop a customercentric approach for delivering data management expertise to guide the

decision-making capacity of financial, telecommunications, manufacturing, and public sector organizations.

Through a suite of innovative proprietary technology products and strategic partnerships with the leading original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and multi-national firms, the company has tripled in size and impact over the past decade.

Bluechip has also been heavily involved in the educational development and local talent - building through its endowment fund and multiple internship programmes.

Recently, the company kicked off its Bluechip Endowment Fund to support the refurbishment of schools’ facilities. The company has also trained many young Nigerians on emerging technology tools as a strategic empowerment platform.

Olumide Soyombo, a co-founder of Bluechip Technologies, also commented that “We have come a long way from our humble beginnings in 2008.

We believe we must give back, and the best way to give back is through investment in the knowledge that will shape the future — Artificial Intelligence and making the world a better place”.

A4

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Thursday 27 September 2018

Thursday 27 September 2018

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Politics & Policy

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BUSINESS DAY

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Thursday 27 September 2018

2019: Osoba cautions APC against division, backs NWC direct primaries RAZAQ AYINLA, Abeokuta

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lusegun Osoba, former g ov e r n o r o f O g u n s t a t e, has cautioned the entire membership of All Progressives Congress (APC) against possible internal crisis and division that could scuttle chances of winning again at both the federal and state levels in 2019, saying the direct primaries as requested by the National Working Committee (NWC) of the party remains surest means to avoid electoral failure.

Speaking at a stakeholders’ meeting held at Osoba’s residence in Abeokuta on Wednesday, the national chieftain of APC declared that the decision of the National Working Committee of the All Progressives Congress that the state chapters of the party should use direct primaries for its elective positions ahead of 2019 general election would surely guarantee re-election of President Muhammadu Buhari and all the elective

Presidential aspirant of Peoples Democratic Party and former Vice President of Nigeria, Atiku Abubakar receiving royal blessing from Agbogidi, His Royal Majesty, Obi of Onitsha, Igwe Nnaemeka Alfred Ugochukwu Achebe at a courtesy visit to his palace in Onitsha, Anambra State on Wednesday.

positions in the country on the platform of APC as such an action would unite party’s members more than ever before.

The stakeholders’ meeting brought together hundreds of party members in the state, including for governorship aspirants, namely,

Adegbenga Kaka, Dapo Abiodun, Jimi Lawal and Abayomi Hunye; senatorial and House of Representatives aspirants; state House of Assembly aspirants, among others.

Osoba, who had earlier held a closed-door meeting with some governorship

Osun rerun: Group says hoodlums sacking residents from their homes BOLADALE BAMIGBOLA, Osogbo

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group of indigenes from Ifon town, headquarters of Orolu Local Government Area of Osun State, called ‘Orolu Concerned Patriots’, on Wednesday said many indigenes of the town, have been chased out of their homes, allegedly by suspected hoodlums working for the All Progressives Congress (APC).

It would be recalled that

rerun election was ordered in Ifon ward 8 and 9, alongside four others in Osogbo Local Government, Ife North and Ife South Local Government Areas of Osun State by INEC after the September 22 governorship poll was declared inconclusive.

Addressing newsmen at NUJ Press Centre, Osogbo, coordinator of the group, Adelaja Akinyooye, said political thugs, who have been allegedly deployed for the poll by one of the parties

L-R: Olusegun Mimiko, former governor, Ondo state; Governor Rotimi Akeredolu of Ondo state and Kayode Ajulo, human rights activist at the 80th birthday event of Olu Falae, national chairman of Social Democratic Party (SDP) and Afenifere leader at the weekend in Akure, Ondo state capital.

have taken over streets in the town with the intent to attack every known member of their opposition.

Akinyooye said: “The residence of Ashifat Okikiola Olarinde, our community leader and frontline PDP pillar was attacked and a lot of people were harassed for no reason by political thugs.

They later took to the street to shoot sporadically and pursue every identified PDP members.

“We would like to seize this opportunity to alert the public that some greedy politicians have s t r a t e g i c a l l y re c r u i t e d some fake soldiers to disrupt governorship rerun poll in Orolu Local Government with a view to suppressing people’s wish.

Therefore, we are calling on Chief of Ar my Staff and Inspector General of Police to rise up to the situation.

“It is unfortunate that some eminent community and political personalities have been marked for elimination for no fair reason and calling on the National Assembly and the Presidency to rise up and save our soul”.

and legislative assembly aspirants, warned against the danger of going into an election with a divided house, adding that division among the aspirants would not augur well for the success of the party at the polls.

He also explained that being chairman of APC Con-

stitution Drafting Committee that was joined by John Oyegun, former chairman of APC, Abubakar Malami, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the federation, Niyi Adebayo, former governor of Ekiti State, Adebayo Shittu, Minister of Communications, among others, the party’s Constitution supports direct primaries and gives power to all card-carrying party members to elect their true candidates that later occupy elective positions.

While citing scenario of the Osun State governorship election which was held last Saturday, he said the division in the state chapter of the party led to poor performance, which warranted a rerun and causing him sleepless night, noting that the party in the state went into the election with a divided house, and that affected its performance.

“Let us learn from Osun State election. People voted for the candidate who never participated in any debate, never spoke at any of the campaign rally, and never had any programmes. But,

2019: Kwara central intensifies strategy to deliver district to APC SIKIRAT SHEHU, Ilorin

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s part of efforts to foster development and ensure victory in the forthcoming general election, the All Progressives Congress (APC), Kwara central on Wednesday commissioned its party senatorial secretariat.

Speaking at the event, Abdullateef Gidado Alaka, the Senatorial Chairman said the decision was borne out of the need to bring things together under one umbrella and for unity among members.

Alaka, who disclosed that the party had so far spent over one million naira on the premises, explained that “in all political activities, Kwara central is the highest in population and as election is around the corner, we need to gather things together for effective processes.

“Thus, we deemed it fit to have a particular place where all members can rub minds, deliberate and arrive at a meaningful conclusion without hindrance.

“That is why we come up with this secretariat where all of us can come together, har-

monise our ideas with a view to strengthening the party, ensure inclusiveness and give the party back to the people.”

“So, it is about bringing people together under the new umbrella of our party, so that different people coming from different areas are unified and as well position the party in a better way during election in 2019; it is about oneness and working together for the progress of our party,” he further said.

According to him, “The work is still in progress but for now, we have injected over a million naira into it and we still have a lot to do on it.”

Bashiru Omolaja Bolarinwa, the state party chairman who commissioned the senatorial secretariat, expressed happiness, describing the development as a “positive change in Kwara”.

According to Bolarinwa, “I am happy we are commissioning the senatorial district office today as a way of sending signals to the people of the state that we actually mean business and that we are serious about our mission to take over the state by the grace of God, in 2919.”

things the electorates consider before they cast their ballot have changed. When we were governors, I and my colleagues had pedigree and substance,” he said.

Osoba said: “We (APC) went into that election (Osun) divided; a divided house will crumble. The deputy speaker (Lasun Yusuf ) was nonchalant and SSG went into another party.

In Ogun State, it is necessary to preach unity. Primary is just the first step, to win election; the party must unite.

I’m begging you today to learn from what happened in Osun State. I was born in Osogbo; it used to be a commercial hub for business activities.

“All factions must close ranks and be united as long as we are all members of APC. We must not make any mistake which other political parties could exploit. You could remember that Rotimi Amaechi became the governor of Rivers State, without going through any election, and there are other members of the National Assembly who got there through court judgments.”

Osun rerun: EU calls for calm ahead poll INIOBONG IWOK

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head of Thursday’s Osun gubernatorial rerun elections, the European Union(EU) has called for calm, urging Nigerians and political leaders across the country to maintain peace irrespective of the outcome of the result.

The EU, in a statement, said that the election could only be held in a climate of peace devoid of intimidation and violence, stressing that whoever emerges winner should be magnanimous in victory.

The statement further commended the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the people of Osun State for the peaceful manner in which last Saturday’s election was conducted. “We commend the people of Osun for voting peacefully, the Independent National Electoral Commission for the improved organisation of the election, and security services for their conduct.

“We urge that all continue to support a peaceful, free, fair, and credible completion of the process as INEC re-runs the election in seven polling units where through no fault of their own voters were not able to cast their votes and have them counted last Saturday.

Thursday 27 September 2018

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BUSINESS DAY

A7

Live @ The Exchanges Top Gainers/Losers as at Wednesday 26 September 2018 GAINERS Company TOTAL

Market Statistics as at Wednesday 26 September 2018

LOSERS Opening

Closing

Change

Company

Opening

Closing

DANGCEM

Change

ASI (Points)

N180

N181.1

1.1

N210

N205

-5

N20.45

N21.4

0.95

BERGER

N7

N6.3

-0.7

GUARANTY

N37

N37.5

0.5

STANBIC

N44

N43.3

-0.7

VOLUME (Numbers)

UBN

N5.1

N5.3

0.2

NASCON

N19.6

N19

-0.6

VALUE (N billion)

UAC-PROP

N1.7

N1.87

0.17

CUSTODIAN

N5.44

N5.04

-0.4

MARKET CAP (N Trn

ZENITHBANK

32,963.27

DEALS (Numbers)

2,866.00 172,196,327.00 2.052 12.034

Stock market halts uptrend as benchmark index declines by 0.46% …Dangote Cement leads basket of 23 laggards Stories by Iheanyi Nwachukwu

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igerian stock market on We d n e s d a y September 26 stopped a record upward movement following price decline seen in 23 stocks led by Dangote Cement Plc. Only seventeen (17) stocks gained causing the year-to-date (YTD) returns to stand at -13.81percent.

The value of Nigeria’s listed stocks which stood at N12.089 trillion the preceding trading day decreased to N12.034trillion, representing N55billion loss.

“The sell-off in the stock market is however expected to continue for the rest of the year due to political uncer-

L-R: Gregory Jobome, former president, Risk Management Association of Nigeria (RIMAN); Bola Adeeko, head, shared services division, Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE); Magnus Nnoka, president, RIMAN, and Kola Ajimoko, 1st vice president, during the closing gong ceremony by RIMAN, at the exchange in Lagos, yesterday.

Pic by Olawale Amoo

Fidson gets shareholders nod over N4.5bn right issuance, N300mn dividend payment Micheal Ani

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he shareholders of Fidson Healthcare Plc on Tuesday September 25, 2018, approved that the board should raise as high as N4.5billion through Rights Issue even as the drug maker appoints Deloitte henceforth to audit its financial statement.

The rights issue will be pre-allotted on the basis of three new ordinary shares for every five ordinary shares (3 for 5) held as at the close of business on July 5, 2018.

A total of 900 million ordinary shares will be issued, thus increasing the company’s total issued shares to 2.4 billion units and its issued share capital to N1.2 billion, the drug maker said.

Segun Adebanji, chairman, Fidson Healthcare Plc said at the 19th Annual General meeting (AGM)

that the proceeds of the rights issue will be used to refinance some expensive debts, strengthen the working capital position of the business and fund some strategic capital expenditure.

The shareholders also approved a dividend payout of 20 kobo per 50 kobo ordinary shares amounting to N300 million subject to the statutory withholding tax deductions, which the firm said, will commence payment on the 26th of

September 2018.

Adebanji noted that the capital injection from the right issue will enable the board and management to reposition the business in order to take advantage of the growth opportunities for the company.

The chairman also announced the appointment of Deloitte, an indigenous auditing firm to take over Ernst & Young following a 10- year audit completion by the latter as stipulated in the audit compliance guideline of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

“We are not only going to be auditing the numbers of Fidson healthcare, we are also going to be advising them on how they can move the company forward and also on how they can get there compliance and financial reporting to the next level,” Michael Osinloye, Partner Audit and Assurance for Deloitte told BusinessDay.

tainty and the normalisation of the U.S.A monetary policy as the market is dominated by foreign investors”, said research analysts at Lagosbased Capital Bancorp Plc in their September 26 note.

The Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) All Share Index (ASI) declined by 0.46percent from 33,114.44 points recorded the preceding trading day to 32,963.27 points at the close of trading session on Custom Street where in 2,866 deals, stock traders exchanged 172,196,327 units valued at N2.052billion.

Dangote Cement Plc led the laggards list after its share price declined from N210 to N205, down

by N5 or 2.38percent.

Stanbic IBTC Plc followed, from N44 to N43.3, down by 70kobo or 1.59percent;

Berger Paints Plc declined from N7 to N6.3, down by 70kobo or 10percent; NASCON Plc was also down, from N19.6 to N19, down by 60kobo or 3.06percent; while Custodian Investment Plc declined from N5.44 to N5.04, down by 40kobo or 7.35percent.

On the rally side, Total Nigeria Plc stock price advanced most from N180 to N181.1, up N1.1 0.61percent; Zenith Bank Plc stock price rose from N20.45 to N21.4, up 95kobo or 4.65percent; GTBank Plc advanced from N37 to N37.5, up 50kobo or 1.35percent; Union Bank Plc increased from N5.1 to N5.3, up 20kobo or 3.92percent; while UAC-Property Development Company Plc stock price advanced from N1.7 to N1.87, up 17kobo or 10percent.

CSCS wins CFI.co award for Outstanding Contribution to Capital Markets

T

he Central Securities Clearing System Plc (CSCS) has won the capital market most coveted award - Outstanding Contribution to the Capital Markets in Nigeria 2018 organised by the Capital Finance International (CFI.co).

CFI.co, headquartered in London, is a print journal and online resource reporting on business, economics and finance.

CSCS, having fulfilled all the CFI.co’s award selection requirements and based on the initial nomination and voting by CFI.co readers, contributors, subscribers, visitors all over the world to their website, CSCS was shortlisted and having gone through the rigorous exercise, the Judging Panel reviewed and declared CSCS as the winner of the prestigious award of Outstanding Contribution to the Capital Markets in Ni-

geria 2018.

According to the CFI Judging Panel, “CSCS continues to respond efficiently and faithfully to the needs of the securities and commodities market and has a proud record of providing sterling services to the capital markets in Nigeria.

CSCS looked to the best international models when planning its business but insists on incorporating in its plan, features that respond to the specific needs of the Nigerian market”.

The Judging Panel further stated that CSCS “takes its corporate governance responsibilities very seriously and constantly seeks out ways to improve. CSCS, a most innovative company, is very keen to harness technological developments in support of the services it offers. This is a very wellfinanced and managed firm that is moving from

strength-to-strength”.

Commenting on the award, Haruna Jalo –Waziri, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of CSCS said he was delighted and pleased with the award as it is a confirmation and a testimony of consistent hard work, investment in technology and being customer focused.

According to Jalo-Waziri, “the award is a call to service; to continue to deliver excellent services to all the markets we serve. This achievement is shaped by the strength of the foundations we have set. It is as a result of consistent hard work, investment in technology and being customer focused.

The foundation of any great organization such as ours is deeply rooted in technology and sterling services. For us at CSCS, customer service is not a department or unit, it is an attitude”.

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BUSINESS DAY

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RESEARCH & INSIGHT A WEEKLY PUBLICATION OF BUSINESSDAY RESEARCH & INTELLIGENCE UNIT(BRIU)

Thursday 27 September 2018

In association with research@businessdayonline.com

08098710024

Smartphone brands that rate low in Nigerian market income between 81 and 100 thousand naira monthly each made up 18.2 per cent of the respondents.

Also, 14.1 per cent earned between 51 and 80 thousand naira, 12.1 percent earned between 101 and 200 thousand naira while 13.1 per cent earn 201 thousand naira and above monthly.

ADEMOLA ASUNLOYE

S

Which are the most used smathphones brands?

The survey showed that 31.7 per cent of the respondents used Samsung, 26 per cent of the respondents used infinix, 19.2 per cent used Tecno while 12.5 percent used iPhone. Also 7.7 percent of these respondents used Nokia, 4.8 per cent went for Itel, 3.9 per cent opted for Gionee, 2.9 percent used Sony, 1.9 per cent of the respondents each used Leagoo and HTC. In addition, 1 per cent of the respondents each used Blackberry, Fero, Letv and Xiaomi. None of the respondents indicated that they used of Injoo and LG.

Source: Statista, Twinpine,BRIU

Source: BRIU Survey

device vendors - contributes significantly to the economic growth and job creation. Africa boasts of a mobile subscription base of 1.04 billion,representing 82% of its total population. The mobile economy currently contributes 7.7% to the African GDP, worth 110 billion USD in economicvalue.

Key findings from smartphones brand preference survey A survey carried out by the BusinessDay Research and Intelligence Unit (BRIU) in September 2018 to investigate customers’ choice and ratings of smartphones brands in Nigeria showed that some smartphones like Injoo, Blackberry and Itel may go into extinction in Nigeria in few years to come. The purpose of the survey was to gain insights into Nigeria’s

dynamic smartphones market as new affordable phones are being shipped into the country.

The survey sought to find out the correlation between the demand for and choice of these new smartphones over those that were hitherto market leaders.

On the respondents’ demographics, 55.8 per cent are male while 44.2 per cent are female. Also, 68.3 per cent of these respondents are aged from 20 to 30 years; 28.8 per cent are within 31 to 40 years; 1 per cent aged from 41 to 50 years while 1.9 per cent of the respondents are 51 years and above.

Analysing the income levels of the respondents, the survey indicated that 24.2 per cent of the respondents earned between 20 and 50 thousand naira monthly.

Dependants and those with the

Why people purchase particular brands of smartphones From the analysis carried out, BRIU discovered that 44.1 per cent of those who responded to the survey purchased some particular brand(s) of phone because of performance, 16.7 per cent each because of the durability and price, 15.7 per cent indicated that they bought their brands because they were used to it and 6.9 percent because of the brand’s popularity.

As the factors influencing the preference of smartphones users were at the core of the survey, the question was asked in another perspective to be sure of the consistency of the responses from the respondents. When asked what factors phone users consider when buying a smartphones, 62.1 percent indicated that battery was pertinent when purchasing a smartphones, 55.3 per cent chose the quality of the smartphones, 54.4 per cent would only buy a phone with very good camera, 48.5 per cent were influenced by the storage capacity; 21.4 per cent would check the memory capacity,

Does brand name influence your decision when buying a smartphones?

According the survey, 78.8 per cent of the respondents based their purchase decisions of phones on the brand name while 21.2 percent indicated that brand name was not a determinant to make a purchase.

Which are the best brands?

From the analysis of the responses elicited from this survey, 49 percent of the respondents rated Samsung as the best, followed by iPhone, 25.54 per cent Tecno and Infinix, 8.8 percent each; Nokia, 3.9 per cent, and 1 per cent of the respondents rated Leagoo, Fero and Huawei. However, 1 percent did not rate any phone as the best.

Lowly rated brands?

The survey showed that 36.8 per cent of the respondents does not like Injoo, 21.8 per cent do not like Blackbeery, 14.9 percent are not favourably disposed to Itel, 10.3 per cent of the respondents do not like Tecno, 5.6 percent of the respondents made no choice, 2.3 per cent each do not like Sony and LG while 1 percent of the respondents do not prefer Alcaltel, Infinix, Samsung and iPhone each. in other words, Injoo, Blackberry and itel require urgen transformations to survive in the nation’s mobile phones market.

Why people their change phones The survey was able to deduce why people changed their phones.

Based on our findings, 37.3 percent change their phones only when the phones are ruined; 27.5 per cent when they are bored of it; 18.6 percent would upgrade into newer versions when available and 16.7 percent would make a change in the case of loss or theft.

12734BDN

ince the telecommunications sector was deregulated, a number of phone brands have made entry into the Nigerian market.

Today, there is hardly a household without a phone. As the sector continues to expand, the Nigerian consumers keep demanding for better quality phones at affordable prices. This explains why Nigeria is the biggest mobile phone market in Africa. With a demographics dominated by youthful population, mobile phone manufacturers and vendors are constantly in need of the real market data which clearly defines the trends and dynamism in the Nigerian mobile phone market.

While there are different kinds of phones, the interest of BusinessDay Research and Intelligence Unit (BRIU) was on the smartphones market in Nigeria, owing to its uniqueness and particularly for the fact that smartphones are the most preferred among the budding middle class.

It is worthy to note that mobile phones, particularly the smartphones that have become our inseparable companions today, are relatively new. Nowadays, business is next to impossible without a smartphone. Starting from aviation industry to service sector, the mobile phones are playing important and vital roles. The use of a mobile phone is no longer limited to audio calls alone as it is being used in making video calls, on-line chatting, recording information, and transmitting it to other phones.

Today, a Bluetooth protocol of mobile phone is being used to develop a generic and real time Internet telemedicine aid system, which uses very high radio frequency to heal patients.

The mobile industry plays an increasingly important role in the socio-economic development of a country. Increasingly mobile connectivity has become the main platform for innovation and the driving force for greater inclusion, while the mobile ecosystem – which includes mobile network operators and

10.7 per cent would consider the size of the phone whether short, long big or slim; 9.7 percent of the respondents would consider the price of the phone and the remaining 8.7 per cent would consider the quality of the screen display.

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NEWS YOU CAN TRUST I THURSDAY 27 SEPTEMBER 2018

Opinion BONGONOMICS

BONGO ADI Bongo Adi, PhD is a faculty member of Lagos Business School

I

t was George Yu, Professor Emeritus of Political Science at University of Illinois, Urbana Champagne, who noted in 1968 that “studying China in Africa is much like pursuing a dragon in the bush. The dragon is imposing but the bush is dense.”

Starting with the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation launched in 2000, not less than a million Chinese have migrated to Africa by the end of the decade. There arose a flurry of Chinese economic activities in Africa, the likes of which the world had never witnessed such that ChinaAfrica trade rose by a factor of 10, to USD 115 billion in less than a decade. Direct investment from China hit the skies to more than USD 9 billion from less than USD 0.5 billion in 2003 (although the United States remains the continent’s biggest investor overall).

According to Matthew

DAVID PILLING, FT

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Turkish company is generating part of Ghana’s power supply. Another one just this month finished a flashy new terminal at the country’s international airport. A Philippine utility is about to take over the running of Electricity Company of Ghana, the largest distributor in West Africa.

Even Ghana’s biggest flyover, named after liberation hero Kwame Nkrumah, was built by Brazilians. Ghana, one of the fastest-growing economies in the world this year, is a tiny microcosm of forces that are radically reshaping Africa’s interaction with the world.

A new group of outside powers — from China to Brazil and from Russia to Turkey — is gaining a commercial and strategic foothold across a vast continent that was, until recently, dominated by former European colonial powers and the US. In what some have called a “new scramble for Africa”,these non-western nations are sniffing out commercial opportunities and seeking to project themselves in a difficult but dynamic part of the world.

While China has been taking the lead over the past decade, a host of other countries has begun to follow its path. Whether it is states from the Gulf and the Middle East jockeying for influence in the Horn of Africa, Chinese companies locking up cobalt assets vital for electric cars in the Democratic Republic of Congo, or India replacing the US as the biggest importer of Nigerian crude, all over Africa new participants are making their presence felt.

Chinko diplomacy and chopsticks imperialism: The weaponisation of finance (2) Benjamin, an editorial consultant to the World Bank and IMF, China is now the largest trading partner for the continent (including North Africa).

In 2004, Chinese trade with Africa hit $222 billion, making it the region’s biggest trading partner for a sixth consecutive year. The Husab uranium mine in Namibia, a Chinese military base in Djibouti, an $8 billion high-speed railway through Nigeria and a $4 billion, 466-mile transnational railway from Djibouti to Addis Ababa in Ethiopia are just a few of the Chinese projects already built or underway across the continent, including the USD 200 million African Union headquarters in Addis Ababa, underwritten and constructed by China.

Chinese mining investments have increased 25-fold in just 10 years, from stakes in a few mines to more than 120 in 2015.

Chinese investment to all of Africa since 2005 includes 293 projects for a total of $66.4 billion, creating 130,750 jobs, according to estimates by Ernst & Young Global. In 2016, Chinese investment totalled $38.4 billion and created three times the number of jobs as the $3.6 billion in investment that came from the

United States, Ernst & Young estimates. In December 2015, Chinese President Xi Jinping pledged another $60 billion to the continent over three years in loans, export credits and grants. And Chinese demand for Africa’s raw materials has

‘

Chinese “see no evil; hear no evil; and say no evil” policy in Africa works to the sole advantage of corrupt dictators and selfish leaders and never to the general interest of African citizens

,

driven much of the growth on the continent over the last 15 years.

As we pointed out earlier, China foray in Africa is completely unscrupulous. While much of the West premise their engagements with Africa on certain conditionalities to incentivise a western vision of good governance and democracy, China’s approach has always been solely focused on unalloyed business interest,

unencumbered by moral and ethical concerns. There is no question that this approach imposes severe moral hazard on governance in the continent as there is no deterrence for leadership bad behaviour and, in fact, it incentivises and rewards executive impunity and high level corruption.

Chinese “see no evil; hear no evil; and say no evil” policy in Africa works to the sole advantage of corrupt dictators and selfish leaders and never to the general interest of African citizens.

Chinese infrastructurefor-resource deals have been characterised as nothing else but a shylock barter. Consider the $23 billion deal China signed with Nigeria to build three refineries with a total production capacity of 750,000 bbl/d in exchange for a sixth of Nigeria’s oil reserve.

At the price per barrel of 107 USD in 2010, this would have yielded about $642 billion for the Chinese in exchange for just $23 billion infrastructure. The price per refinery of about $8 billion is certainly outrageous compared to $0.75 billion per refinery quoted by Vulcan Petroleum Resources, an American firm. What is even more outrageous is the demand for a sixth of Nigeria’s

oil reserve in exchange for a comparatively paltry $23 billion infrastructure investment.

Similar experience was repeated in Ghana where China advanced $3 billion loan on the same form of shylock barter terms. The loan, given for some transport and oil and gas infrastructure projects, was to be exchanged for a fifteen and a half year daily supply of Ghana crude of 13,000 barrels to China which amounted to about 74 million barrels of oil over the fifteen years and add up to about $8.1 billion at the prevailing oil price in 2012. So, Ghana was to repay to China to the tune of 270 percent of the infrastructure loan.

Kenya currently owes China about $10 billion which constitutes about 15% of its GDP in a total debt-to-GDP ratio above 50 percent. Only Angola and Ethiopia are ahead of Kenya in their total exposure to the Chinese. $4 billion of the Chinese loan was used to construct (by Chinese, of course) a 483 KM railway line linking Nairobi to the port of Mombasa. This has been adjudged the most expensive infrastructure project since Kenyan independence with all inputs and labour

imported from China, thus worsening Kenya’s trade imbalance with China.

Like Angola, Ethiopia and Kenya, several other African countries including Nigeria, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Niger, Namibia, Guinea, are piling up Chinese low-interest loans prompting the current concerns of another debt crisis in the continent, similar to the debt over-hang the region accumulated in the 1970s.

Most of the deals with China, like in the Belt and Road Initiative flagged by the Economist, have remained largely secretive, giving rise to insinuations that such deals may not be free from the ubiquitous bureaucratic corruption in the continent.

China’s official business-first policy which does not set nor demand any moral or ethical conditions in its engagement with governments had drawn a lot of criticism from rights activists.

Chinese business men are not so much bothered about environmental and sustainability concerns in their businesses in Africa. Their insatiable appetite for Africa’s raw materials and resources, including wildlife products Continues on page 37

The scramble for business in Africa Led by China, countries from Turkey to India are looking for opportunities in a continent once derided China-Africa Research Initiative at Washington’s Johns Hopkins University. This month, some 40 African leaders travelled to Beijing to hear President Xi Jinping pledge $60bn more over the next three years.

Washington is watching this growing influence with alarm.

Last year, China opened its first overseas military base in the tiny country of Djibouti, adding to the presence of the US and others.

Africans, understandably, object to the idea of a “scramble”, with its connotations of the 19th century, when European powers squabbled for a slice of what Leopold II of Belgium called this “magnifiquegâteauafricain”.

Instead, many regard wider interest in their continent as a golden opportunity to catalyse a different phase of development by breaking away from what they regard as the paternalistic — or downright extractive — relationships they had with traditional powers.

Carlos Lopes, a development economist from Guinea-Bissau, says he has yet to meet an African leader who is not animated by the new possibilities opening up in an era that might be termed “postpost-colonial”. “It gives Africans much more room to manoeuvre,” he says.

“The level of ambition from leaders has gone up very much in response to these incentives to do more with infrastructure and financing and to dare defy western pressure. They are finding it very

exciting.” The changing patterns of engagement — which have led Washington and Europe to reassess their stance towards the continent — are reflected in trade.

China supplanted the US as Africa’s biggest trading partner back in 2009. Last year, ChinaAfrica trade was $170bn, off its 2014 peak but still nearly 20 times higher than at the start of the millennium. By contrast, US trade with sub-Saharan Africa was just $39bn.

Where China has led, others have followed. From a lower base,

several countries have seen their exposure to Africa rise dramatically. Africa-India trade jumped more than 10-fold from $7.2bn in 2001 to $78bn in 2014 — making India Africa’s fourth biggest trading partner, according to the UN Economic Commission for Africa. Between 2006 and 2016, the Brookings Institution calculates, the value of African imports from Russia and Turkey rose 142 per cent and 192 per cent respectively.

China has invested about $125bn in African countries in the decade to 2016, according to the

The Chinese-funded train line from Nairobi, Kenya, to the port city of Mombasa is the country’s biggest infrastructure project since independence

‘

From 2018 to 2035, the UN predicts that the world’s 10 fastestgrowing cities will all be African. With a median age of just 19, the continent’s population is expected to double to more than 2bn by 2050 and to double again by the end of the century

,

Djibouti, now heavily indebted to China, is a prime example of what some US critics have labelled “debt diplomacy”,in which Beijing is said to be parlaying loans into political influence. China has also been accused of using debt to take over entitiesin Zambia, including the national power utility.

This August, several US senators wrote to Steven Mnuchin,

the Treasury secretary, and Mike Pompeo, secretary of state, accusing Beijing of “weaponising capital” in Africa, as well as Asia, by using debt to create an economic world order in China’s image.

The growing sense that the US is losing influence on the continent helps explain President Donald Trump’s decision to back a big expansion of the Overseas Private Investment Corporation, a private sector focused development agency whose lending limit is to be more than doubled to $60bn. Legislation, which has bipartisan support, has already passed by the House but is waiting Senate approval.

Backers of the so-called “Better Utilization of Investments Leading to Development” (BUILD) Act explicitly link it to national security and China’s growing influence in Africa. Kwasi Prempeh, executive director of the Center for Democratic Development in Accra, says Washington is still too focused on threats in Africa and not enough on opportunities.

“The US continues to be a player, but it’s caught in the post-Iraq era,” he says. “Its policy is driven by the ‘securocrats’.” Europe, too, has been slow to see Africa’s potential, say critics, and is only now trying to respond to the advances made by other countries.

Last month, Theresa May, the British prime minister, danced through a three-nation tour of Africa to drum up post-Brexit business and to assert Britain’s relevance. Because of the historiContinues on page 37

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