BusinessDay 30 Aug 2019

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news you can trust I **FRIDAY 30 AUGUST 2019 I vol. 19, no 383

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NGUS NOV 27 2019 363.97

Buhari’s border closure adds to Nigeria’s economic woes

trade at 17% of GDP, traders count losses more damaging fuel smuggling continues unabated

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h i n e d u O k a f o r, a trader at the Lagos international Trade Fair Complex, has had to deal with bad roads, a sluggish economy, gridlock and inefficiency at the Apapa ports that

was an apprentice some 30 years ago when Buhari, then a military ruler, ordered the borders closed to check smuggling.

Without any formal notice, on Wednesday, August 21, President Buhari ordered the closure of the Seme border between Nigeria and Benin Republic to check smug-

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Pic by Olawale Amoo

have squeezed his business in the past three years.

Now, the recent border closure ordered by President Muhammadu Buhari is threatening to put him out of business altogether as sales slow to a trickle.

“It is looking like 1984 all over again,” lamented Okafor, who

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L-R: Paul Usoro, president, Nigerian Bar Association (NBA); Stanley Imo, 1st vice president, and Foluke Dada, 2nd vice president, at the 2019 annual general meeting of the association in Lagos, yesterday.

ISAAC ANYAOGU & CALEB OJEWALE

fgn bonds

Treasury bills

gling of rice and wheat.

The border closure is constraining trade which contributed about a fifth of Nigeria’s GDP at 17.16 percent in 2018 and breeding untold hardship to small businesses who depend on cross-

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More anguish for Nigerians as empty containers lay siege to roads in port cities …Lagos, Port Harcourt, Onne worst hit …shipping lines delay in retrieval of empties AMAKA ANAGOR-EWUZIE

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igerians living and doing business in cities with viable seaports are currently experiencing persistent traffic conges-

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Inside Buhari woos investors, lists power, railway, health, agriculture as priorities P. 2 Download e-copy of Women’s Hub from www.businessday.ng

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news With new MoMo agent network, MTN targets over 36m unbanked Nigerians

L-R: Ebere Nwaolikpe, assistant marketing manager, ECOWAS region, Western Union (l), with Olumide Olorunsola, senior country manager, ECOWAS region, during a courtesy visit

by BusinessDay management team to Western Union in Lagos, yesterday.

JUMOKE AKIYODE-LAWANSON & STELLA ENENCHE, Abuja

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Pic by Olawale Amoo

Buhari woos investors, lists power, railway, health, agriculture as priorities … Seeks Japan’s support to combat piracy in Gulf of Guinea ... As Nigeria signs €50m development MoU with EU TONY AILEMEN, Abuja

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resident Muhammadu Buhari on Thursday said Nigeria’s investment opportunities would continue to offer some of the highest returns globally as a result the country’s strategic initiatives.

Buhari, while presenting Nigeria’s Statement at Plenary Session Three on “PublicPrivate Business Dialogue” at the Seventh Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD7) in Yokohama, Japan, said he was looking forward to prospective investors making inroads in priority sectors in Nigeria, including power and renewable energy, petrochemical and gas, maritime (shipping and ports), automobiles, mining, agribusiness, healthcare and pharmaceuticals, ICT and railway.

He assured participants

at the event, comprising major global business moguls, of good returns as a result of ongoing reforms initiated by his administration, which include the Presidential Committee on Enabling Business Environment set up to promote ease of doing business and make Nigeria more attractive.

Buhari said his administration was “committed to removing all impediments to private sector participation in these sectors by creating policies that will ensure consistency, predictability and a level playing field for all”.

He identified power, transportation, infrastructure, maritime/shipping, agro-processing, mining, manufacturing, petro-chemicals, food processing, textiles, among others as “key drivers to the diversification” of the Nigerian economy as well as “priority areas” that

will drive his administration’s economic agenda.

He said he looked forward to personally “welcoming prospective investors to Nigeria”.

On the sidelines of the conference, Buhari also met with other world leaders.

During a meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe for bilateral talks, he pleaded for Japan’s assistance in tackling illegal fishing and piracy on the Gulf of Guinea.

Abe, while commending President Buhari for “taking Nigeria to the Next Level”, made a donation of $300,000 to the Nigeria Defence College and another ¥12 million in support of the public health sector in Nigeria.

Abe assured of his country’s support for Nigeria’s presidency of the 74th Session of the United Nations General Assembly currently occupied by Nigeria’s Tijjani

Muhammad-Bande, who was elected to succeed María Fernanda Espinosa, whose term ends in September 2019. He in turn pleaded with Nigeria to support Japan’s bid for headship of some global organisations.

President Buhari, who also met with the European Union (EU) top officials, witnessed the signing of a €50 million Memorandum of Understanding to support humanitarian and development efforts in the warravaged North-East region of Nigeria.

The cooperation agreement which was signed by Nigeria’s Foreign Affairs Minister Geoffrey Onyeama and Neven Mimica of the EU is expected to bring the EU support which commenced in 2014 to €562m by 2020.

•Continues online at www.businessday.ng

CBN’s N400bn mop-up via OMO auction records low sales … May issue another OMO at higher rate today HOPE MOSES-ASHIKE

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he Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) was in the market on Thursday to mop up N400 billion via Open Market Operation (OMO) but investors withheld their funds as the regulator absconded from their demand for a higher rate.

Consequently, after the OMO auction exercise, the CBN was able to sell N48.05 billion out of the total amount offered (N400bn) at the stop rate of between 11.59 percent and 13.00 percent for the various tenor days of the instrument.

Open Market Operation simply means the buying

and selling of government security instruments, which enables a central bank to control the supply of money in the banking system.

“Investors demanded for higher rates as observed in the range of bids especially for the long-term bill. However, the CBN did not succumb to investors’ demand, hence the low sales level,” Ayodeji Ebo, managing director, Afrinvest Securities Limited, said in response to BusinessDay. He said the CBN may issue another OMO on Friday (today) at a slightly higher rate due to the low sales on Thursday.

“In the absence of OMO, demand will shift to the www.businessday.ng

secondary market leading to lower rates,” Ebo said.

A summary of the OMO auction shows that N100 billion each was offered for the 91 days tenor and the 189 days at the stop rate of 11.59 and 11.79 percent, respectively. The maturity date for the 91 days instrument was fixed at November 28, 2019. Investors demanded a bid range of between 11.59 percent and 12.50 percent, leading to N12.50 billion under-subscription, but a total sale of only N1 billion was recorded.

The total subscription for the 189 days OMO instrument stood at N7.31 billion, which was far too below the initial amount

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offered. The offer which matures on March 5, 2020 recorded total sales of N1.38 billion at a stop rate of 11.79 percent, although the investors earlier demanded between 11.79 and 13.10 percent rates.

For the 364 days tenor, the CBN offered a total of N200 billion but the sum of N45.67 billion was sold after the investors subscribed (N290.83bn) above the initial offered amount at a bid range of between 12.99 percent and 14.50 percent. The offer, which matures August 27, 2020, was sold at a stop rate of 13 percent.

•Continues online at www.businessday.ng

TN Nigeria on Thursday in Abuja launched its super-agent network service, MoMo Agent, expected to cater for over 36 million unbanked people in the country, and particularly drive the financial inclusion project of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

This follows the successful award of a Super Agent Licence by the CBN a few months ago.

The new network launched under MTN’s subsidiary, Y’ello Digital Financial Services (YDFS) is seen as a boost for the CBN’s financial inclusion strategy, which targets to bring 80 percent of the country’s adult population into the financial net by year 2020, and also ensure that 95 percent of eligible Nigerians have access to financial services by 2024.

YDFS plans to rollout about 500,000 Agents spread across all states and the Federal Capital Territory who will immediately begin to provide safe and accessible money trans-

fer services to under-banked and unbanked people across Nigeria.

Speaking at the formal launch of the ‘MoMo Agent,’ the YDFS director, Usoro Usoro, noted that about 36 million Nigerians were banked, while the remaining were unbanked.

The World Bank Group considers financial inclusion a key enabler to reduce extreme poverty and boost shared prosperity, and has put forward an ambitious global goal to reach Universal Financial Access (UFA) by 2020.

But data by Enhancing Financial Innovation and Access (EFInA) indicate that about 36.8 percent of eligible Nigerian adults did not have access to Financial Services as at 2018. This is down from 41.6 percent recorded in 2016.

“The question is why do they remain unbanked despite all the years and efforts of trying to drive inclusion? That is because of two primary things: the problem of identity and the problem of access to financial infrastructure, whether bank branches or ATMs,” he noted.

•Continues online at www.businessday.ng

Thriving street trading points to need for neighbourhood markets ...as traders snub new malls on high cost, low visibility ...experts say Nigeria unripe for ultramodern markets BUNMI BAILEY & ISRAEL ODUBOLA

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ola Ige, a trader who deals in food items, has a shop at Tejuosho Mall at Yaba, Lagos but prefers to sell by the roadside where she is sure of greater visibility which most times translates to more sales.

“I have a shop here but I prefer to go outside because I get buyers easily and make more sales unlike my shop,” Ige said. “Also, people feel that it is cheaper to buy outside than inside. Very soon when my rent is due I will just leave here and go the streets that are where the money is.”

Ige is just one out of many traders in Lagos who are opting for the roadside to get better visibility for their products. Despite the provision of ultramodern markets and malls by the government to evacuate small traders, street markets are growing in leaps and bounds, and they can be found at almost every bus-stop across the length and breadth of Lagos.

The traders are snubbing major malls across the state, from Yaba to Oyingbo, AbuleEgba, Ogba and so on, citing high rental cost and difficulty

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in getting customers, BusinessDay’s findings show.

Most of the ultramodern malls were established through public-private partnership, with cost of construction rolling into billions.

The new Tejuosho shopping complex, which was refurbished in 2017 after a fire accident, gulped N10 billion, some real estate agents told BusinessDay. Over N6 billion went into the newly-built Ogba multipurpose shopping complex which was completed in the second quarter of 2019, but traders around that axis are not showing interest towards the complex.

“Prices are not making it easier for people to get the shops. Usually, the smallest and cheapest shops are within the range of N500,000N600,000 and the malls are not convenient for consumers. They just want to buy quickly, get out and move on, a real estate expert, who pleaded anonymity, said.

A report by Broll Nigeria Limited, a Lagos-based real estate advisory firm, said existing tenants are fleeing from malls once their tenure expires.

•Continues online at www.businessday.ng

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Elumelu challenges global leaders to partner in empowering African entrepreneurs

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n an impassioned keynote speech, delivered before global leaders, at the 7th Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD) in Yokohama, Japan, African investor and philanthropist Tony Elumelu, challenged the Government of Japan to invest 5% of its $50 billion commitmenttoAfrica,inempowering African entrepreneurs.

“At TICAD 2016 in Kenya, Japan pledged $30 billion for Africa. This year you have generously increased this to $50 billion.

If we invested just 5% in Africa’s new generation of entrepreneurs, followingmyFoundation’srobust, proven model of getting capital directly to those best placed to catalyse growth and create real impact, we could touch 500,000 lives, across the 54 African countries, broadening markets, facilitating job creation, improving income per capita, and laying the key foundation for political and economic stability,” Elumelu said.

Elumelu’s statement captured his vision of a relationship between Japan and Africa, which prioritises economic and shared prosperity. He outlined the three key pillars of a bold and transformative structure: investment in infrastructure, partnership with the African private sector, and investment in Africa’s youth.

He urged Japan to learn from

the example of the Tony Elumelu Foundation, which champions empowering African entrepreneurs, as the most sustainable means of accelerating the development of Africa.

The Tony Elumelu Foundation, in just five years has assisted over 7,500 African entrepreneurs across African continent, with seed capital, capacity building, mentorship and networking opportunities through its $100 million Entrepreneurship Programme.

Elumelu’s advice carried the weight of his track record of business success, founding Africa’s global bank, United Bank for Africa (UBA), which has grown its presence to 20 African countries, as well as in the United Kingdom, France, and the USA; and Heirs Holdings, Africa’s private investment company which actively invests in key sectors of Africa’s economy and controls millions of dollars in its investment portfolio.

Together,they employover30,000 people and transform the communities they operate in.

“Africa is one of the world’s viable destinations for investment.

Ourhuge population,ofnearly1.3 billion people, creates one of the mostattractivemarketsanywhere in the world. The world is paying close attention to Africa, but is Japan at the centre of this conversation or is it on the sidelines?” he

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queried.

Elumelu’s philosophy has become increasingly popular on the African continent, where he is acknowledged as the pioneer of a private-sector-led approach to accelerating development.

He repeated the message at the Generation Unlimited breakfast meeting with Paul Kagame, PresidentofRwandaandUNICEF executive director, Henrietta Fore, with its focus on job creation in Africa, where he emphasised the role the African youth plays in this narrative.

President of South Africa and co-chair, TICAD, Cyril Ramaphosa,corroboratedElumelu’sstance.

He said: “If you want really good returns, as Elumelu said, come to Africa. Africa presents riskadjustedreturnsandisamarketin whichinvestmentsareflowingata hundred billion dollars - that is the new profile of Africa that is being presented to the world.”

Achim Steiner, UNDP administrator, praised Elumelu’s private-sector led approach to development in Africa. He said: “I wanttorefertomydearfriendand colleague Tony Elumelu because he alluded to the vital role that business can also play in investing in the future of the youth. These are the kinds of partnership that will drive business and development agenda to very different heights in the future”.

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news Guinness Nigeria releases FY results, earns N131bn … records PAT of N5.5bn

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uinness Nigeria, a beverage alcohol company in Nigeria,andpartofDiageo plc, a global leader in beverage alcohol, has posted a N5.5 billion Profit After Tax (PAT) in its full year (FY) results released to the Nigeria Stock Exchange (NSE) for the year ended June 30, 2019. The companyearnedrevenueofN131 billion and operating profit for the year stood at N9 billion.

Commenting on the result, Baker Magunda, managing director, Guinness Nigeria, stated that the company would continue to work on all operating indices while expecting that the micro and macroeconomic parameters improve.

Magunda said, “Revenue for the year declined 8 percent compared to same period last year on the backdrop of an extremely challenging macroeconomic and competitive environment. The cost of the increase in excise duty at a time of stagnant consumer disposable income had to be absorbed by industry players.

“Despite the tough competitive landscape, we continue to see good growth performance from Guinness, Spirits and the malt drinks.”

Acombinationoffactors,inflation plus prior year royalties and accruals not approved by NOTAP, led to a 17 percent decline in gross profit for the organisation.

“Marketing spend reduction by 16 percent and distribution costs initiatives partly mitigated

the gross profit decline, thus leading to a fall in operating profit

by N4.4 billion. Profit before tax decreased by N2.8 billion as a 46 percent reduction in net finance costs further helped to cushion the decline in operating profit,” Magunda explained.

However, despite the challenges, Guinness Nigeria continues to fulfil its commitment to stakeholders, particularly as the company drives its renewable energy and water recovery project for sustainable environment.

Recently, Diageo plc, the parentcompanyofGuinnessNigeria, announcedaninvestmentof£180 million in renewable energy and water recovery solutions across six cities in Africa, including its two plants in Nigeria. When completed, the investment will be the largest green investment in a decade in Africa. It demonstrates the strength of the company’s commitment to minimising environmental impact, as a responsible local manufacturer and employer in Africa.

Commenting on the results, Babatunde Savage, chairman, Board of Guinness Nigeria, said, “As a Board, we are confident that our strategy is sound, and that we are making the right investments in the company to ensure our long-term competitiveness. The Board will continue to support the management in its efforts to build a business that aims to consistently deliver growth for stakeholders.”

MainOne submarine cable lands in Senegal, Cote d’Ivoire

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aking good on the strategic partnership with Orange Telecoms and its West African affiliates (Sonatel and Orange Cote d’Ivoire) signed in September 2018, MainOne has confirmed the scheduled landing of the MainOne submarine cable systems in Senegal and Cote d’Ivoire in September and October 2019, respectively.

With the Cable Landing Stations (CLS) in both countries fully built and ready for installation of equipment, in both Dakar and Abidjan, the company is poised to undertake the physical connection of the branching units on its 7000-kilometre-long omnibus fibre pair to the shore and terminal equipment.

The MainOne submarine cable is being installed by the Orange Marine specialised vessel, Pierre de Fermat vessel, which has arrived in Dakar, having picked up the fibre and ancillary equipment, including repeaters from Brest, France earlier in the month. It will proceed to Abidjan to conclude the laying and final splice in the month of October, with ready for service and commercial launch of the system scheduled for November 2019.

Consistent with its strong

preference for deploying top of the range technology to deliver best-in-class services in the West Africa region, MainOne, as part of the landing project, shall deploy on the cable WSS ROADM Spectrum Sharing technology, the first of its kind to be deployed for commercial purpose in the world.

This new technology will optimise the utilisation of the MainOne subsea cable, by enabling multiple operators share optical spectrum on the omnibus fibre optic pair to obtain closer to 10 Terabits per second of capacity. This will be most beneficial for countries directly connected to the MainOne subsea network, and the region in general, by delivering higher volume of connectivity to achieve lower connectivity pricing that will spur the development of new digital services and promote sustainable socio-economic growth across the region.

Funke Opeke, CEO of MainOne, speaking on the development, revalidated the company’s mission to deliver world-class communication and connectivity services, as the bedrock for the partnership with Orange that broadens the connectivity range in the region. www.businessday.ng

L-R: Misbahu Yola, MD/CEO, FCMB Pensions; Ronke Adedeji, president, PenOp/CEO, Leadway Pensure; Mohammad Ahmad, chairman of the occasion, and Wilson Ideva, MD/CEO, High-Gate Consulting Limited, at the 4th national conference of the National Association of Insurance and Pension Correspondents (NAIPCO) themed, financial inclusion: The pension micro agenda for insurance and pension sectors in Lagos.

Pic by Pius Okeosisi

Enugu airport closure: Ethiopian Airlines to commence operations from Port Harcourt September 3 … seeks partnership with local carriers to set up MRO IFEOMA OKEKE

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thiopian Airlines has disclosed plans to commence operations from Port Harcourt International Airport September 3, 2019, following the closure of Akanu Ibiam International Airport Enugu.

Recall that on August 24th the Federal Government shut down Enugu airport for major repairs on the airfield.

Speaking with journalist on Thursday, Mesfin Tasew, chief operating officer, Ethiopian Airlines, said the Airlines was dedicated to serve the South

East region, hence the plans to shift the Enugu flight to Port Harcourt airport, which would commence September 3, 2019.

The airline would continue operating into Port Harcourt until Enugu airport becomes ready, Tasew said.

“We have planned to shift the Enugu flight to Port Harcourt, and we will start operations on 3rd of September. We will continue operating to this airport until Enugu airport becomes ready. When Enugu is ready, we will go back to Enugu,” he said.

Speaking on the patronage for Ethiopia Airlines’ Mainte-

nance Repair Overhaul, (MRO) facility by Nigerian airlines, Tasew said the airline had a huge maintenance capacity and some Nigerian airlines use its facility for aircraft repairs and maintenance.

“First of all, I will like to say that Ethiopian Airlines today has the largest MRO facility in Africa. We repair all Boeing models of aircraft except 747.

We also repair the Airbus A350 aircraft, which is the newest Airbus aircraft, and the Bombardier Q400 aircraft in Addis Ababa.

“We have six hangars and a very big engine shop. We

have several component repair shops. We have been doing this for several decades now. Primary, it was developed to support operations of Ethiopian Airlines but we are also supporting other African Airlines from different parts of Africa. Today, we support several airlines including Asky in Togo and Arik Air in Nigeria,” he said.

An Arik Q400 aircraft is currently in Addis Ababa for C-check and prior to that, the Ethiopian Airline repaired and maintained several aircraft from Nigeria, including the former Air Nigeria, Chachangi and Belview aircraft, he said.

Edo calls for adoption of modern seed yam production technology IDRIS UMAR MOMOH, Benin

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do State government has called for the adoption of new technologies in seed yam multiplication and production to meet the growing demands for yam both locally and internationally in the country.

FelixAkhabue,commissioner for wealth creation, cooperatives and employment, Edo State, made the call at a day training and advocacy forum on improvement of seed yam organised by Yam Improvement for Income and Food Security in West Africa (YIIFSWA) in Benin City.

The training with the theme, “Advocacy on Sustainable High Quality Seed Yam Production for Wealth Creation and Empower-

ment,” is an initiative of the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA).

Akhabue, represented by Joe Edionwe, permanent secretary in the ministry, noted that the realisation of the new technologies would facilitate wealth creation and empowerment in the yam value chain.

While noting that Nigeria is greatly endowed in yam production that can be explored to empower teeming youths population and women, he called on IITA to facilitate the development and production of seed yam in a sustainable manner to guarantee security and social harmony in the West Africa sub region.

He, however, assured of the

state government willingness to collaborate with critical stakeholders to ensure that yam farmers and the people of the state benefit from the project.

Earlier, Iyere-Usiahon Perpetual, focal person, advocacy and resource mobilisation, YIIFSWA, said the programme was geared towards empowering farmers on the new techniques of seed yam multiplication.

Perpetual said the programme was being implemented in Nigeria and Ghana in Africa, as the highest producers of yam in the world.

She, however, said while Ghana was the largest exporter of yam, Nigeria only remained highest producer but not exporter.

She said for Nigeria to become more relevant in yam production, Nigerians must invest in Aeroponics technology for yam production.

Perpetual, who is also the Desk Officer on Yam in the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Abuja, said the new technology has the potential for high quality seed yam production.

Aeroponics technology is geared towards cleaning of seed yam, she said, as the plants have beenestablishedinOgun,Umuahia, Ebonyi, Kaduna and Abuja.

In his remark, Malachy Akoroda, YIIFSWA advocacy consultant, called for the establishment of Aeroponics plant in the state.

of the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations(NIPR).

Represented by Gbenga Omotosho, the state commissioner for information and strategy, the governor equally stressed the need for the citizens of Lagos to accept that effective waste management starts from individual household where waste must be properly bagged and sortedtofacilitaterecycling.

Toachievethis,hesaidtheNIPR and its members must partner the

government in the advocacy for a cleanerLagos,astheyhavetheexpertise to convey government message toresidents.

“You will recollect that at the inception of our administration, I signed an executive order with clear instructions to the management of Lagos State Waste Management Authority (LAWMA) to implement strategiesthatwillensureproperand efficient evacuation and disposal of waste across the state. Also, we reac-

tivated the dormant land fill deposit sitesaswellaswastetransferloading stationslocationsatstrategicareasin thestate,”hesaid.

He further noted that environmental management was critical to the sustainability of the society, adding that his government was consolidating on the efforts of previousadministrations,especiallyinthe areaofpublic-privateparticipationin wastemanagementandrecyclingto complementgovernmentefforts.

Lagos tasks manufacturers on environmental sustainability

JOSHUA BASSEY

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agos State governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, on Thursday, tasked manufacturers on the production of recyclable and biodegradable materials as packaging products.

Sanwo-Oluspokeatthe6thpublicrelationsstakeholders’conference themed “Conversations to promote environmentalsustainabilityinNigeria,” organised by the Lagos chapter

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The Black Holocaust remembered THE NEW WEALTH OF NATIONS

OBADIAH MAILAFIA

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recisely a week ago, on Friday 23rd August, the global community marked the International Day for the Remembrance of Slave Trade and its Abolition. Slavery was officially abolished in Britain as far back as 1883 and in the US in 1865.

But its legacy lives on. Of the 15 million that were transported to the New World, an estimated 10 percent perished on the high seas. Some revolted and threw themselves overboard to escape their benighted fate. Millions more perished within our continent, as white slave drivers fomented internecine wars, in connivance with local chiefs, to enable them capture slaves.

The story of the white man’s assault on the black race did not end with abolition of slavery, however.

The so-called Age of “legitimate commerce”, and, eventually, colonialism, had its own challenges. The conquest of our continent was achieved by force of arms and gunboat diplomacy. Probably as many Africans died during the slave trade as did during the age of imperialism.

A particularly heartbreaking example was King Leopold’s 19th cen-

tury Congo Free State; an entity that was neither free nor was it a state in any genuine sense of the word. An estimated 6 million Bakongo perished on account of forced labour and indentured slavery. Genocide and racial extermination was used by the imperial powers to enforce their hegemony over the colonised peoples. The Hottentots, a beautiful race of Africans on the Cape, were exterminated by the Dutch Boers while the Germans launched a savage campaign of genocide against the heroic Herero people of South West Africa (now Namibia).

Schoolchildren in Europe are, sadly, taught little or nothing about these atrocities. With the removal of history from our curriculum, generations of schoolchildren in Nigeria have grown up without knowing whence they came from and where they are going.

While I sympathise with the Jewish victims of the Shoah, I make bold to say that the Black Holocaust is the worst crime in history of human infamy. For over 400 years, the Europeans were battering us in the coast while the Arabs were hunting us down from across the Sahara. Slavery still goes on in places like Mauritania and Sudan.

There is also the “New Slavery”.

Every year thousands of young Africans are conned into forced labour, prostitution and other forms of enslavement in Europe.

Many die either from hunger or thirst while others fall prey to wild animals. Some are sold as slaves in Libya, Tunisia, Morocco and Algeria.

The “lucky” ones pay extortionate

fares to get on rickety boats headed for Europe. Many of these boats capsize. Those who manage to make it into Europe are taken to refugee centres. Many sink without a trace, never to be heard of again!

Some are used for harvesting vital organs which are then sold in Asia, Arabia and the West. There are young Africans who are literarily working under slave conditions in the citrus farms of Italy, Spain and Greece. There are prostitution rings involving young African women all over the world.

In many of our home countries in Africa, slavery persists in various forms. Boko Haram deploys enslavement, forced conversions and sex slavery as weapons of war. The herdsmen militias that are killing, maiming and raping defenceless communities throughout our country use enslavement as a weapon of savagery; often pursuing scorched earth policies.

Once they wipe off the indigenes and take over their ancestral lands, they rename the villages and make them their own permanent homesteads.

They have done that in Zamfara, Birnin Gwari, Southern Kaduna, Nasarawa, Plateau, Benue and Taraba.

I humbly submit that no group of people have endured such unspeakable crimes as the Africans since time immemorial. These traumatic experiences have inevitably imposed a heavy toll on our collective. This explains why Africans feel no confidence in themselves. Without such confidence we cannot build new inner-directed and inner-propelled prosperous industrial-technological democracies on our glorious con-

‘

Schoolchildren in Europe are, sadly, taught little or nothing about these atrocities. With the removal of history from our curriculum, generations of schoolchildren in Nigeria have grown up without knowing whence they came from and where they are going

tinent.

This dilemma is further complicated by what late Kenyan political scientist Ali Mazrui termed “Global Apartheid”. Global Apartheid comes in many forms. In academia it is fuelled by pseudo-scientific race theories that spread the evil lies of intellectual-cognitive deficiencies in the DNA of African people. They also strenuously deny that ancient Pharaonic Egypt was an African civilisation. Some are so stupid enough as to propagate the theory that the pyramids were built by aliens!

Global Apartheid works through multinational companies that exploit our untold mineral wealth while we remain poor. It works through shadowy economic hit men and trans-Atlantic secret clubs such as the Mont Pelerin Society, the Trilateral Commission, the Club of Rome and the Bilderberg Group that patently exclude Africans from their inner sanctums. Through mass media manipulation, Hollywood propaganda and subliminal brainwashing black people have been consigned to the scrapheap of history.

Official slavery may be dead, but its spirit is very much alive and kicking. It is up to our generation of leaders to read the signs of the times and to rise to the occasion. The fate of a billion black people on earth depends on us.

Dr. Mailafia is a former Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, a development economist and public finance expert with a DPhil from Oxford obmailafia@gmail.com; 08036590990 (text messages only)

Increasing the potential for safer roads in Nigeria

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he Federal Road Safety (FRSC) recently commenced its “OperationSafe-to-Load” initiative and declared that all articulated vehicles without minimum safety standards be barred from operating in the nation’s ports and tank farms from September . Many stakeholders have been working hand-in-hand with this leading regulatory agency to align their road transportation strategies with this programme.

The initiative was conceived earlier this year to address government’s concerns over haulage operations in the country as many deaths have occurred as a result of ill-maintained trucks hauling petroleum products across the country.

The FRSC released a report to corroborate this disturbing situation in 2018 when it revealed that Nigerians lost over N7.157 billion to road traffic accidents involving 116 petroleum tankers in the first half of 2018.

Corp Marshal of the FRSC, Boboye Oyeyemi, who disclosed this at a stakeholder forum in Abuja, stated that the figure quoted above does not include the number of persons killed, the cost of treatment of those injured; damage to the country’s road infrastructure; environmental impact and other collateral damages.

An in-depth study of the cause of these accidents has been linked to non-compliance of these truck operators with the

minimum safety standards in the country.

There are also other factors such as disregard of traffic rules, state of our roads, environment and competence of drivers amongst others.

In order to keep up with safety requirements and regulations and in line with its commitment to the highest safety standards, OVH Energy launched Operation Safe-to-Load initiative program which stipulates procedures guiding the loading and discharge of petroleum products from its terminals, storage facilities and retail stations. A detailed step-by-step approach is strictly adhered to from the process of truck injection into the system to truck usage.

These procedures which conform to the Major Marketers’checklist as approved by the FRSC include: a comprehensive truck safe-to-operate and daily safe-to-load inspection carried out on trucks before they are injected into the OVH Energy fleet database.

The safe-to-load is an automated process conducted on a daily basis prior to admittance of trucks into any of our loading facilities and 3rd party terminals.

The exercise carried out annually to ensure truck key safety items too rigor to be captured in the safe-to-load process are comprehensively inspected with reports of findings also thoroughly implemented; drivers’ training/recertification, an an-

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nual exercise compulsory for all drivers facilitated by the FRSC; drivers’ medical assessment programme design to ascertain their fitness or otherwise; fleet renewal scheme, a systematic replacement plan for aging trucks in OVH Energy’s fleet; transporters’ assessment, a rationalization strategy to establish the competencies and capabilities of partner fleet management companies as a going concern.

Speaking during the recently concluded a forum for transporters in Abuja, Ayotunde Adewoye, Group Head Customer Service, OVH Energy, the licensee of the Oando retail brand, stated that the company’s investment in this venture is to enforce oversight, establish and implement guidelines that will improve efficiency for its transporters.

Adewoye notes that the sole objective is to build a sustainable operational excellence model for its fleet management processes that will deliver on OVH Energy’s commitment to safety on the long run. “We are very pleased to collaborate with the FRSC on this initiative as we believe this partnership will not only protect the lives of all road users be drivers or pedestrians but also increase awareness for the urgent need to create safer road conditions for all users in our country amongst all critical stakeholders”, he remarked.

Also speaking at the same event, Oyet Gogomary, Group Head, External Rela-

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MIKE OCHONMA

tions and Communications for OVH Energy commented that this whole drive is to reinforce commitment to and bring to life one of the Company’s corporate core values of Safety. As the leading marketer of choice, OVH Energy Marketing is committed to providing and delivering its trusted petroleum products through its retail stations safely. He stated that the company has built into its petroleum marketing value chain a safety mechanism which conforms to the highest safety standards in line with best practices.

It will be recalled that OVH Energy recently celebrated 100 berths at its Lagos midstream jetty with zero downtime, zero lost time injury, zero spills and zero total recordable case frequency (TRCF) in its less than 2 years of operations.

The practical, sustainable steps taken to ensure safety on our roads will have a farreaching impact if all relevant stakeholders buy into this and create strategies to support its adoption and implementation.

Ochonma is Transport Editor at BusinessDay

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Policing – in Hong Kong and in Nigeria

Watching the ongoing street demonstrations in Hong Kong brings a lot of issues to mind. Hong Kong is fighting for its soul, literally. The battle is not to determine whether China gets Hong Kong. Hong Kong belongs to China. Whether China “takes” Hong Kong now or several years down the line, as envisaged by the “one nation, two systems” accord signed with the erstwhile colonial authority Britain, China already has Hong Kong, and it does not matter who likes it or not.

The Hong Kong protests are a negotiation. The people – especially the young, who have grown up with ‘Western’ freedoms in one of the most technologically advanced places in the world, do not want to contemplate the possibility that they could get sucked into the mainstream culture of their fellow nationals on the Chinese mainland, where the internet is routinely censored, and where clear limits are imposed on the freedoms they have grown up taking for granted in Hong Kong.

They were particularly alarmed by a piece of legislation that was put forward by the Chinese-backed local government, which would have made it possible for people who committed offences in Hong Kong to be extradited to the Chinese mainland for trial.

The focus of this conversation is not the politics of Hong Kong but the street demonstrations that have been going on for several weeks there, and how the Police of Hong Kong are dealing with the disruptions to public law and order. It is also a conversation about how the police is primed to define and carry out its duties in a modern society.

The young people of Hong Kong, who are throwing missiles and Molotov cocktails at policemen in the narrow streets of Kowloon, are normally very respectful of police in their society. Being a policeman is a respectable occupation.

By contrast, police and policing in Nigeria suffer from widespread distrust and negative perception from the public they serve.

It is necessary to ask – are there any lessons to be learnt from Hong Kong?

Hong Kong – a tiny island territory with a population of 7,555,000 people – has a Police Force just under 37,000 staff, out of whom 32,000 are active duty officers. In Nigeria the comparative figures are 371,800 police staff, but with a very large fraction not available for routine police duties because they are serving effectively as bodyguards to public officials and private sector “VIPs”.

The drama of civil disturbance on the streets of Hong Kong, which even for a time brought one of the busiest airports in the world to a grinding stop, has been a gripping spectacle for media watchers all over the world. It has been remarkable not just for the tenacity of the protesters but also by the patience, professionalism and forbearance of the police ranged against them.

The police, despite their vast ar-

mamentarium, have limited themselves to using non-lethal tactics and equipment to contain protesters who, in some cases resorted to violence, breaking shop windows, and ransacking offices. Molotov cocktails, sticks and stones have been thrown into the ranks of the policemen and women sheltering behind plastic shields. The police have responded with baton charges and the occasional burst of teargas.

Many arrests have been made. A few policemen and protesters have sustained injuries, but no life has been lost directly due to the clashes, though there have been five suicides related to the issue of the protests. Recently, there was the first report of a gun being fired by a policeman when he was chased down an alley by stick-wielding protesters and felt his life threatened.

It is interesting to think what would have happened if those massive, vociferous protests had taken place on the streets of Lagos or Abuja, and it had fallen to the Nigeria Police to be the ones to deal with them.

Watching Hong Kong police in action would bring to the minds of those old enough to remember an earlier, gentler incarnation of the Nigerian Police. Long ago, there were “anti-riot” Policemen in Nigeria. They wore – wait for it, khaki shirts and shorts, and carried shields and batons as the tools of their trade. They were deployed to contain worker’s strikes, students’ protests and other incidents of public disorder.

In the eyes of the public then, there was a calibration and proportionality in police response to situations, and recognition that the life of the Nigerian was precious. Lethal force was only to be undertaken with the authorisation of superiors, after gentler means of

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Nigeria the comparative figures are 371,800 police staff, but with a very large fraction not available for routine police duties because they are serving effectively as bodyguards to public officials and private sector “VIPs”

crowd control had failed.

Over the course of decades of military rule, and probably as a result of the general coarsening of the sensibilities of Nigerian society as a whole, lethal force has become the front-line response in any public disorder. A generation of Nigerians has grown up never having seen their policemen carrying shields and gently trying to pacify a protesting mob. Everybody in uniform, it seems, is licenced to kill.

No citizen has died – yet, six weeks on, in Hong Kong.

If Nigeria had been Hong Kong, and a mob hand invaded the airport and rampaged through shops and offices, heads would have rolled and blood would have flown, assuredly.

Policing is a tough, sometime thankless career everywhere. In Hong Kong, the salary of the policeman is substantially higher than the median income in the private sector. The policeman is respected in society. In Nigeria, the pay is still poor, despite the latest efforts of government. But more worryingly, the motivating ingredients of self-respect and social esteem are all too often missing.

In that space, the automatic response to provocation in an already demoralised ‘law officer’ with a gun in place of a shield and baton is apt to be lethal. There is little respect for life.

It is not where the Nigeria Police started from. It certainly does not represent the direction it should be happily heading to.

Femi Olugbile is a Writer and Psychiatrist. Comments to synthesiz@gmail.com’

Altars, secret chambers and the deeper sides of business

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ow did Fleming accidentally invent Penicillin, how did the Kellogg’s brother accidentally invent corn flakes? How did Isaac Newton discover the concept of gravity; apples have always fallen? How did the name of my firm Hexavia come about? How did the famous Carnegie daringly get the first steel bridge right which eventually crossed the Mississippi River that paved the way for today’s bridge construction model.

How do the likes of Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos seem to break new grounds around private space tourism, or with linking our brains to the computer with virtual reality, Artificial Intelligence and other seemingly mission impossible ideas?

Some religions call it discernment. The secular system calls it intuition. Everyone thinks. But when the few deep minds do, you realize why the world doesn’t have so many of them.

I have read about and hung around too many successful people, and I see a trend worth sharing. Real highflyers, inventors, disruptors and successful entrepreneurs can look aggressive and noisy, but they have a secret chamber, and in it, a voice comes, cutting in at times without their permission, it sometimes says, “go”, or “stop”, or “peace be still”. Externally, it manifests as what we call gut feelings. It’s eureka mindset. It’s that point when logic is defied.

Possibilities are just drawn to them. It’s from the same place that faith is drawn from too. They just obey. Sometimes we are just at the right place just at the right time. Like copied mathematics assignment, you can’t explain. But we are right. We know we are. We don’t know how we know, but we just know. You can call it grace, but it’s a part of how great people got there.

Beyond business knowledge, most people are not deep enough. They don’t even know themselves and how the universe works deep enough to exploit it. In all that we do and know, there is a level of depth that makes success easy to achieve, and only a few get there or stay there.

Be mindful, it’s from the mind that ideas come from. Ideas are never fully formed. It’s their nature. They are just dropped into our mind.

That’s why it’s important to be in sync with it.

Today’s world is noisy; non-stop talking and too unfocused thinking. For an entrepreneur an idle mind isn’t always a devil’s workshop; a foolish and unguided one is. To become deep enough to invoke from our spirit great ideas, we must all learn to stay still at intervals. Meditation is the most popular method of achieving this. I believe everyone should master how to voyage through it. The secret formula is stillness and meditation. Meditation is the art of staying still.

Let me try to break it down. Your mind houses a series of infinite thoughts all over the place, each like a drunken monkey. Imagine keeping all of them still. The goal is to eventually focus on one thing. Restlessness has its pro and cons but more cons in thinking. Don’t be a busy bee.

The phrase “be still” is perhaps one of the most powerful instructions in the Bible. The greatest insights and ideas come when you’re doing nothing. Most people forget this.

Sometimes all it takes is to take a deep breath, just relax and attempt dwelling fully and only in the present. Eckhart Tolle, Buddhist and writer, in his meditative book of spiritual enlightenment calls it The Power of Now. Today’s world comes with so many challenges, its worse when you run a business or manage systems. Our unease,

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anxiety, tension, stress, worries — all forms of fear — are caused by too much emphasis on the future and not enough presence in the present.

And on the other hand, guilt, regret, resentment, grievances, sadness, bitterness, and all forms of non-forgiveness are caused by too much past, and not enough present. It doesn’t matter what happens in the past or what will happen in the future, what should matter to you is that you can change a lot of things now. This is the power of now.

Most times as businessmen, we mumble up our circle of concern with our circle of influence.

In the book, Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, Stephen Covey gives a good illustration of this in terms of the circle of concern and circle of influence. What we tend to worry about but have “no real control” over belongs to our circle of concern. Worry overwhelms us when we channel our time and energy.

In the words of Joyce Meyer, when your body and spirit is resting, your emotions are okay, your mind is okay, and your will is at peace and in sync with all three triads of your manifestation.

The mind works better while we are at rest. Be still. Enjoy the lonely boulevards of your mind at times.

Just mind the present, dwell in it, enjoy it, it’s a gift and that’s why it is called “present”. The way to master it is by starting each day with it. You can start by allocating 20 minutes daily to meditating.

Meditation creates depth, by letting the outer noise off without drowning that inner voice.

I’d love to suggest a book, it’s a New York Times bestseller titled Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking by Susan Cain. The book reveals a lifestyle secret shared by

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most public figures and even extroverts. After all the openness and interactions with the limelight, we always find a cave to recharge our expended energy. Now that’s an altar.

Research has shown that there’s zero correlation between being the best talker and having the best ideas. It’s really from retrospect and solitude that the best ones emerge. To every successful witty, high-octane public speaker you see, there is practice where he draws back alone and recharges in solitude after his talks. To every record-breaking salesman, come a point of reflection where he quietly taps into the power of questions and feedback he got. Don’t be fooled.

As far as everyone has a sprit, mind and body, they must be nourished.

Everyone must an altar where they find solitude, great ideas and creative energy. Solitude creates creativity, a powerful tool for entrepreneurs. The world is full of noise, which is the cause of conflicts and battles. However, some of the greatest battles will be fought and won in the chambers of your soul, mind and heart. Keep them in sync.

Uwaoma is a start-up, corporate restructuring and strategy consultant. He writes via contacteizu@gmail.com

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EDITORIAL PUBLISHER/CEO

Frank Aigbogun EDITOR Patrick Atuanya DEPUTY EDITOR John Osadolor, Abuja NEWS EDITOR Chuks Oluigbo EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, OPERATIONS Fabian Akagha EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, STRATEGY, INNOVATION & PARTNERSHIPS Oghenevwoke Ighure GENERAL MANAGER, ADVERT Adeola Ajewole ADVERT MANAGER Ijeoma Ude FINANCE MANAGER Emeka Ifeanyi MANAGER, CONFERENCES & EVENTS Obiora Onyeaso BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT MANAGER (South East, South South) Patrick Ijegbai COPY SALES MANAGER Florence Kadiri DIGITAL SALES MANAGER Linda Ochugbua

The positive example of Governor Seyi Makinde

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head of the first 100 days of the governments that assumed office on May 29, 2019, Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo state stands out for courage.

In complying with the provisions of the constitution and the code of conduct for public officers Makinde, alone in the federation and at all levels, surpassed the requirements by not just declaring his assets and liabilities to the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) but also making them public. He thus set a marker for all other office holders in the area of full disclosure.

The law requires that all public office holders must declare their assets within three months of assuming the office.

We urge all the others to do so and to make them public.

Governor Makinde submitted his asset declaration to the CCB on May 28, ahead of his inauguration the next day. He made the declaration public

on July 14. His networth coupled with the assets of his companies comes to a little over N56billion – his four firms have a corporate valuation of N48billion. The governor also listed the assets of his wife, Omini Makinde.

The 1999 Constitution provides the framework for the code of conduct for public officers in Nigeria. It contains a long list of civil officers covered by the law.

They include elected officials at high levels such as the President, Vice President, Governors and their deputies, members of the National Assembly as well as high-ranking civil servants, Justices and more.

Makinde is in substantial compliance with the code. That Code further prohibits public officers from owning bank accounts outside of Nigeria. Full compliance would dictate that now that he is a pubic officer Makinde would close his bank accounts in the US, Europe and South Africa or put them in a blind trust.

By declaring the names and

assets of his companies, Makinde has also ensured that he would guard against the conflict of interest that is often prevalent in public offices in Nigeria. His ascension as the governor precludes his firms from bidding for or doing any public works in Oyo State.

Makinde’s open declaration comes against the backdrop of a suit by the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) seeking a court declaration compelling the open statement of assets by public officers. Such open notification is fundamental and aligns with the principles of openness and accountability in a democracy. The light of full disclosure empowers citizens to verify and keep a tab on elected officials.

For too long, public officers in Nigeria have taken the legal route of simple compliance with the provision that requires that they declare their assets and submit to the CCB. The CCB, which ought to be an institutional pillar of democracy through openness,

promptly files the declarations and wraps them as “private and confidential”. It is a considerable gap in our laws that allows the CCB to connive with public officers to keep their assets declaration away from the public.

We are not surprised but somewhat disappointed that no other governor or other public officer has mustered the courage to follow the Seyi Makinde example. In our democratic journey in the Fourth Republic, open assets declaration by public officers is the appropriate route to earn the trust of citizens and their respect. They would more readily comply with and listen to the several sermons of public officials on loyalty, the duty to the state such as tax payment and others.

BusinessDay commends Governor Seyi Makinde. We recommend the path of the open declaration of their assets to other governors, the President of the Senate and Speaker of the House of Representatives as well as other public officers at all levels.

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James Bond — a counter-cultural hero for our time

JANAN GANESH

W

hen the young JG Ballard moved to postwar Britain, what he found was “Bucharest with a hangover”. An “exhausted ferret-like people” occupied a “wasteland” of “rubble” and “ration books”. Apart from the ferret thing, his account tallies with others. Material progress would come but full restoration of the national spirit would wait until — I think we can pinpoint it — the opening credits of Dr No. Instead of porridge-grey: violent colour. Instead of boredom: the sexualised dancing of male and female silhouettes. Even the foreign-ness of the drumming was subversive in 1962.

Had the James Bond films traded on their technical merits, they might not have made it past the story board. The plots were and remain on-location set pieces welded artlessly together. What propelled the franchise was its offer of glamour in a world that was direly short on the stuff. Here was intercontinental travel when it was too pricey for most.

Here was sexual licence when mores were only fitfully loosening.

As these things became normal, Bond lost his reason for being. What stands out about the Roger Moore years is the desperate groping for exotica (locations included outer space). The nadir of the franchise, just either side of the millennium, reflected the onset of globalisation, when there was nothing more banal than an itinerant yuppie with advanced communications technology.

Dazzling locations: Instagram is full of them. People who live over and above state sovereignty: an entire class, flitting between a dozen or so great cities (and Geneva), meet that description in real life. A man with no children but lots of transient lovers: this has not been remotely taboo for a couple of generations now. Bond is no longer radical. After the giant turkey that was 2015’s Spectre, I thought

that the franchise should obey the recurring verb in its titles, and “die”.

I no longer do. Much is said about No Time to Die — whose title was announced this week — being the first Bond film since #MeToo. But it is also the first since the start of counter-globalisation. As such, it affords Bond another shot at relevance.

The implicit message of every Bond film is that the outside world is inherently exciting, and certainly better than home. The MI6 scenes are always reluctant gobbets of plot exposition between the real business elsewhere. For someone who murders for his nation, Bond rarely speaks in explicitly patriotic terms.

You almost never see him enjoying hearth and home. He is strenuously pan-racial in his romantic life. His personal code blends hedonism and nihilism but none of the hoarier -isms. By dint of Scottish ancestry, there are nuances even to his British identity.

You get the sense that he joined the spy game for the same reason some join the navy or the FT: to see the world on someone else’s nickel.

He commits foreigner-condescension of the Basil Fawlty kind, true, but he also has it done to him. “For a European,” says the Japanese agent in You Only Live Twice, when Bond,

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A film “about” Brexit or Donald Trump would confirm the dreary politicisation of everything, everywhere, all of the time

CEOs, don’t encourage role superiority in your organisation

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n many organisations today, there has been an unnecessary misconception about who plays the least or most important role in organisations. This misconception does not have anything to do with hierarchies that exist in organisations, where we have different categories of levels.

This misconception is predicated on the fact that a senior person in an organisation is assumed to have an important role to play while a junior officer has the least role. That should not be the case. Every executive has a role to play; the senior managers have their roles to play and same with the middle managers and others in the organisation.

Remember, in all these categories of levels or positions no one has been authorized to perform less.

Come to think of a situation where an organisation has no customer service officers. Imagine a bank where there are no account opening officers to open accounts for customers and also ensure that the right documents are provided. Obviously, that bank would is unprepared for business – despite the impact of technology.

The truth is, the junior or middle level officers who contribute their quotas to ensure organisational success are not less (in terms of the value they bring to the table) than the senior officers who hold strategic sessions probably in a five-star hotel. For organisations to achieve higher results, every individual role in the entire organisation must be seen as unique and highly needed.

Years back, during a programme I did for one of the leading hotels in Lagos, I had an experienced how lower officers in organisation view their roles and responsibilities.

They tend to downplay their organisation’s

expectation and think that they are nowhere in the scheme of things – meanwhile they are needed. The danger of seeing your role as unimportant is that you never give your best. You will continually assume that others should give their.

The training I gave was titled, “Running the hotel as your own business”. I listed all the departments in the hotel and made each participant to name the least important department in the hotel. The maintenance officer humbly raised his hand and named his own. I was shocked and taken aback.

It seemed like someone voting against himself.

He might have said that he is not in marketing, customer service or the bar section where everyone sees him, where things are happening. At the end of day, I was able to make him realise that the strategic and highly invaluable role of his job to the others and the hotel. Who brings the guest to the hotel is not more important than the maintenance officer who works round the rooms fixing problems. No one has a more respected job – they all have equal and different responsibilities.

The equality in our individual responsibilities should be viewed from the standpoint of our employers expecting more results from us – no employee has been told to perform less. Then, different responsibilities mean that we have different (but unique) roles to play in the team. The CEO has to ensure every unit, department, the entire workforce hold their roles in high esteem. The CEO or the executives should not attach more importance to some units or departments or individuals.

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“everyone has something to contribute”, especially when given a little nudge. In most of my strategic thinking executive workshops, I normally mention how a backoffice bank staff (a non-marketing staff) was able to win a major account that even his CEO was unable to win. Why did you think that happened? The man in question got to a point where he started seeing his role as very crucial to the bank – despite being a back-office staff.

It is high time we stopped looking down on people and their roles. Regardless of the position, everyone has what it takes to pull his or her company out of the woods. But your people can never go the extra mile if their contributions are seen as inconsequential, or if they start sensing that no matter what they do, the CEO will only value a particular group of people.

Employees need to remember they are employed to add value. They have to justify their pay. They should be able to provide the right answer when asked, “Who pays your salary”? The old belief that employers pay your salaries should be debunked. Assuming salaries will be paid regardless of their performance is recipe for failure – failed organisations, institutions, agencies cannot pay salaries.

Business leaders, do you know that when you favour some departments more than the others, you are simply stifling the innovative and creativity of those that fell less appreciated? Your role as a leader is to make everyone feel special and to get them to bring something to the table.

We need to give our best to our organisations before we are justified to expect the best in return. Simply expecting the best

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quite rightly, orders sake at body temperature, “you are exceptionally cultivated”.

Britain’s biggest ever film export, then, has been a prolonged advert for everywhere apart from Britain.

This kind of internationalism was the blandest thing in the world from at least the 1980s all the way up to and including Spectre. It now feels faintly countercultural. Bond stands against the zeitgeist for the first time in my life. There is a rolling debate about whether the next iteration of the spy should be a woman or a visible minority or (which Skyfall momentarily toys with) gay. But the most radical thing about him turns out to be that which has always been there: his rootlessness.

Through no particular doing of Eon Productions, its character suddenly has a real-world trend to define himself against, and all the outlaw glamour that implies. A film “about” Brexit or Donald Trump would confirm the dreary politicisation of everything, everywhere, all of the time. There is no art in anything so didactic. No Time to Die can make the point well enough just by eliciting the audience reaction of the earliest Bond films: a curiosity about Abroad that feels newly deviant.

FRESH INSIGHT FOR CHALLENGING TIMES

‘UJU ONWUZULIKE’

from anything when we have not carried out our roles or responsibilities is synonymous with expecting to pass an exam when you have not even opened your books.

An organisation is like a football team.

No team member has a less important role.

Everyone has a unique and complementary role to play. In summary, each role is needed to grow the business and no role is inferior or superior to another. Whenever I am organise an induction training on running the business as your own business for new hires, I always tell them work like a CEO would. In order words, everyone should take ownership and work as a CEO, that way better results are delivered.

Uju Onwuzulike is Nigeria’s leading authority on Systems Thinking and Strategic Management. He was a Steve Haines trained strategy and systems thinking expert and a former global partner of Haines Centre for Strategic Management, California, USA. He is the founder and Chief Results Officer of MCL – a strategy and outstanding performance specialist firm. He can be reached on 09091142093 or uju.onwuzulike@mclgroup.net.

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Friday 30 August 2019

BUSINESS DAY

cityfile 10 winners emerge in Better Life Billionaire promo

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Some of the cars seized from suspected cybercrimes offenders shown to newsmen at the EFCC premises in Ibadan on Wednesday. NAN

en winners have emerged in the Better Life Billionaire promo, a first of its kind gaming programme.

The winners were picked in the first weekly computerised draw held in Lagos, last week, just as the second draw is to be held today.

The first draw was witnessed by the representatives of the Lagos State Lotteries Board and the National Lottery Regulatory Commission.

The winners include Onumonu Chioma Vivian, Theresa Ada, Ezenma Samuel Dawudu, Salisu Isa and Daniel Ayorinde, all from Lagos.

Others were Abiola Adeoye (Kwara), Nwokolo Izuka Jefferey (Delta), Gabriel Ismaila (Kaduna), Ifuruem Imooka Aka (Cross River) and Usman Bature (Kebbi.

Some of the winners when called on phone expressed excitement over their sudden change of status enabled by the Better Life Billionaire promo.

To play the game, MTN users are required to text BLB to 5453 while others except Glo, are required to dial *5453# to play with either N200 to stand a chance of being one of the winner of N5m for 10 participants every week or play with N500 to win the mega prize of N200m at the end of the draw.

Speaking at the draw, the director general of the Better Life Billionnaire promo, Celestine Achi, said the promo is designed to empower Nigerians financially and alleviate poverty among individuals as well as provide infrastructure for communities.

Lagos goes after fraudulent real estate developers JOSHUA BASSEY

…as victims lament trapped N65m

Prime Atlantic trains drivers, conductors on First Aid, CPR DIPO OLADEHINDE

agos State government says it is going after fraudulent real estate developers who scam home seekers of their hard earned money in the pretext to secure accommodation for them.

The government has also specifically assured victims who were allegedly swindled of N65 million in the Alapere area of the state of government’s support towards recovering the money.

The real estate developer was said to have collected various sums of money from over 250 prospective tenants, amounting to about N65 million, with the promise to secure them houses, but failed, a practice seemingly gaining traction in Nigeria’s

major commercial city.

Moruf Akinpelu-Fatai, the Lagos State commissioner for housing, who addressed the victims in Alapere, Ketu, said government would be exploring legal options to bring the swindler and others engaged in similar practice to book in order to protect residents of the state.

According to him, “government is determined to make Lagos a no-go area for unscrupulous individuals who prey on Lagosians under the guise of real estate business.’’

Akinderu-Fatai assured the victims that the swindler that the fraudulent developer would be prosecuted.

He said that the state government had instituted

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legal actions against the said developer on behalf of the victims.

Akinderu-Fatai advised Lagos residents to report suspected dubious estate agents and developers to the office of Lagos State Real Estate Transaction Department (LASRETRAD) at the secretariat, Alausa, Ikeja.

“I want to assure you that the state government is very responsive. It will leave no stone unturned in ensuring that the culprits are brought to book,” the commissioner said. Akinderu-Fatai advised victims to remain calm and be law abiding as the matter was already in court.

However, Wasiu Akewusola, the permanent secretary in the ministry, called on accommodation seekers

to always transact business with the estate agents and developers registered with LASRETRAD. Akewusola said LASRETRAD was a directorate under the state ministry of housing, and responsible for registering, regulating and monitoring real estate operators across the state.

He appealed to the victims to maintain peace and order while the state government takes necessary action on their matter.

Aliyu Toyin, who spoke on behalf of the victims, expressed fears that the swindlers might not be brought to book. Toyin urged the state government to assist them in seeking the immediate refund of the rents the victims had paid.

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igeria based Oil ser vicing firm Prime Atlantic, a subsidiary of Prime Atlantic Limited is training commercial bus drivers and conductors in basic First Aid and Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR).

CPR is a life-saving technique that is useful in emergencies, including a heart attack or near drowning during which someone’s breathing or heart has stopped.

While many countries of the world have incorporated the teaching of CPR into their schools curricula, there has been little or no effort made towards this in Nigeria, which is why Falck

Prime Atlantic is fill the knowledge gap Most Nigerians lack the necessary skills required to respond to medical emergencies and this has resulted in many preventable deaths.

Micheal Adebayo, representative of the executive committee of Marina Motor Park on Lagos Island, bed the descrisaid the initiative as a development, as it would help commercial bus drivers have basic knowledge of what to do in emergency situations.

“It’s an advantage for us because it will allow our drivers and conductors understand the importance of First Aid and CPR,” said Adebayo, who thanked Prime Atlantic for its decision to train the drivers.

Police arrest tenant over murder of landlady in Ekiti

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he police are interrogating a 39-year man who allegedly raped and killed her landlady, Bukola Olanrewaju, in Ado Ekiti.

The 38-year tailor and mother of three was allegedly killed last week by the suspect said to be a commercial motorcyclist.

The police said they have also arrested two serial rapists, Babalola Olaniyo and Olupinla Dotun, who allegedly raped a girl at Olorunda area of Ado Ekiti, the state capital.

Commissioner of Police

(CP) in charge of Ekiti command, Asuquo Amba, who paraded the three suspects, said that the killer was arrested in a church in Akure where he fled after allegedly committing the crime.

“He had immediately called his family and told them why he did not come to their place. He said he had killed somebody in Ado Ekiti.

“We had done our homework and gathered that his sister sells chemicals and police detectives had to trick her that they wanted to buy www.businessday.ng

something from her.

It was his sister who later led us to where he was,” the CP said. All the suspects will be prosecuted to serve as deterrent to others,” said Amba.

The suspected killer told journalists that he committed the offence out of provocation. He said the deceased provoked him over disagreement on house rent with her husband, Raphael Olanrewaju, who was also present at the briefing.

He denied the accusation that he raped the landlady to death, explaining that he

only hit her on the head with a big stick before making efforts to tie her hands to make her weak during a fight.

“I called her that day that I wanted to leave the house after paying N23,000 for one year house rent which will expire in May 2020 and the husband needed to refund part of money to enable secure another apartment.

“But the woman said that would never happen.

We started the argument and she started calling me names. She abused me by calling me unprintable

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names which angered me.

“She later held my cloth and I slapped her and pushed her away from me.

The woman now came with a stick and I overpowered her and collected the stick which I used to hit her on the head and she fell. Upon realising she had died, I became worried and I had to run to a church in Akure for refuge,” he said.

However, the deceased’s husband said the disagreem e nt h e ha d w i t h t h e suspect had long been resolved when his family paid @Businessdayng

N23,000 owed as house rent, comprising the new and backlog of rent.

“He actually had misunderstanding with my wife but it was settled. I never knew he had the intention to kill her. He killed my wife around 11am when everybody, including me and my three children had left home.

“It was my little girl who discovered that he was the one who did it. When the police came to search his room, we saw a lot of incriminating items that suggested that he was an armed robber.

Friday 30 August 2019

BUSINESS DAY

MONEYINSIGHT

15

Your credit score in a digital age can be asset or liability …Here is how it is calculated Stories by STEPHEN ONYEKWELU

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hanks to digital technology and the introduction of bank verification number (BVN), credit score bureaus are springing up in Nigeria to help lenders quickly assess how likely it is for a given individual to repay a loan. An individual’s credit score is either an asset or a liability. Here is how it is calculated.

One of the companies leading this charge is CRC Credit Bureau.

The CRC Score is a digital method of determining the creditworthiness of customers before granting them credit facilities. Financial institutions are taking this seriously.

So should every person.

The CRC Score is a numerical representation of how risky it is, for lenders and creditors to do business with individuals. It is a three (3) digit number that ranges from 300-850, with 300 being the lowest and 850, the highest.

Many Nigerians ignore or do not understand how credit scores are calculated. A credit score is derived from the information on

your credit report, which details your credit history over a period.

The elements from your credit report that shape your credit scores

are called credit score factors.

The CRC Score is powered by the Fair Isaac Corporation (FICO), an American company with over

Young entrepreneurs need to read business classics, learn from masters

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oung entrepreneurs and start-ups find themselves caught up in so many activities meant to help their businesses survive and thrive but reading is usually not one of them.

Experts say it is important to read the classics in your field of endeavour, in order to understand how the masters in that field think and act. The classics contain the fundamentals.

Fundamentals are insights created by people who had to figure out everything, these are fundamentals on which everything else read about today is built on.

Technology may change, ideas evolve but fundamentals, the basics always remain the same.

Some young entrepreneurs like to proclaim their negligence toward reading, or claim they can learn the same lessons from videos, podcasts, and even life experience.

However, while all of those work too, reading has a unique quality you cannot get elsewhere.

It forces your brain to work differently. Besides, some of the brightest minds in history did not record YouTube videos, they wrote

books. To say you do not read is essentially to refuse learning some of the greatest lessons of all time.

“I always tell entrepreneurs, if you want to learn and master a topic, read the classics, find and read the classics. Here’s the question I get all the time: “But why Ronald?

Why waste time with a book that’s old and dated?” Ikenna Ronald Nzimora, business coach said on his Twitter handle @ronaldnzimora. “There’s a reason why when you want to learn a language, you start from learning the alphabets.”

Once the alphabets are in place, the words are strung together and woven into sentences. Sentences give birth to paragraphs and onward the march continues.

For a start, here are three business classics to read: 1. The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen R. Covey This is one of those books you should read and then reread every year. Make it a habit because it is deemed one of the best business leadership books of all time for a reason. Stephen R. Covey gives actionable but extremely self-aware guidance to aspiring leaders who want to lead by example. The 7 www.businessday.ng

Habits of Highly Effective People is meant for individuals who are looking to improve themselves from the inside out.

2. How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie Tried and true, How to Win Friends and Influence People is one of the most popular business books of all time for a reason. With plenty of undertones of self-development, Dale Carnegie shows readers why handling business the right way is so imperative.

3. Zero to One by Peter Thiel Entrepreneurs everywhere say they want to do something different, that they want to change the world. Well, serial entrepreneur Peter Thiel has decided to tackle that topic head-on and point out exactly what it takes to make something entirely unique and new. As he says, “The next Bill Gates will not build an operating system. The next Larry Page or Sergey Brin won’t make a search engine. Tomorrow’s champions will not win by competing ruthlessly in today’s marketplace. They will escape competition altogether because their business will be unique.”

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50 years’ experience in data and analytics. FICO scores are the most widely used credit scores worldwide. CRC Credit Bureau in partnership with FICO developed a unique credit rating system for the Nigerian market that helps lenders make quick and informed credit decisions and for individuals the knowledge of what their credit status is.

For the CRC Score, the following ranges are considered standard: exceptional, 800 and above; very good, 740-799; good, 670-739; fair, 580-669 and poor, 579 to lower.

Taking the above ranges into consideration, how then is the CRC score calculated? The following factors are used to calculate a CRC Score using the FICO methodology built uniquely for the Nigerian market: Payment history (35%): How regularly individuals pay their bills or debt obligations to lenders. The amount owed (30%): Outstanding debt calculated in all the individual’s accounts (loan accounts, current accounts with debit balance).

The pursuit of new credit (10%): how often an individual applies for

new credit-related facilities over the last two years. Length of credit history (15%): A longer Credit history with up to date repayments in relation to other parameters increases Credit Score, and credit mix (10%): The mix of Credit types like credit cards, personal loans mortgages etcetera increase your credit score.

Regular requests for your CRC Score should be made if you intend to apply for a loan or credit facilities in the future. Checking your CRC score at least once a month is advisable.

The CRC Score powered by FICO is easily accessible to everyone and can be bought via the CRC Credit Bureau website for four hundred Naira only (N400.00).

Knowing your CRC Score, makes you better prepared before applying for a loan and is the first step in taking control of your financial reputation.

To request for your CRC score visit the CRC website page https:// www.crccreditbureau.com/product/crc-score-individual to register and pay for Credit Score and have it delivered to your email address in a matter of minutes

Millennials are turning to robots for financial advice

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illennials, the first generation to grow up with the internet and born after 1980 are disruptive and rely on technology to shop, listen to music, communicate with friends and hail a cab, now they take personal investing advice from robots.

From social media to Amazon, Spotify, Uber, and Kolobox, millennials have transited, in the words of Bill Gates from electricity-based to an internet-based lifestyle. Gates had in his book “Business at the Speed of Thought” argued that it humanity long to build a civilisation around electricity. Now, with the internet and World Wide Web, the world has entered into a new mode – webbased civilization.

Financial Technology (fintech) companies are taking advantage of these traits to disrupt the personal investing industry.

“Just as manufacturing companies have replaced assembly line workers with robots, these companies have replaced financial advisors with robo-advisors, which use big data and algorithms to determine the best places to put clients’ money—and appeal to a whole new generation of investors” Michael Blanding, a columnist at the Harvard Business School Working Knowledge wrote in an article titled “Why Millennials Flock to Fintech for Personal Investing”.

Blanding said traditional financial advisors cater to baby boomers with substantial savings, requiring minimum amounts for investment upwards of $100,000 to access their services. By contrast, industryleading Wealthfront and similar firms such as Betterment, Vanguard Personal Advisor and Acorns have tapped into an underserved market by allowing clients to invest as little @Businessdayng

as $5,000. Wealthfront doesn’t even charge a fee for assets of less than $10,000—and even after that charges a 0.25 percent fee, as opposed to fees of 2 to 3 percent by traditional firms.

In Nigeria, Kolobox has also presented products to cater to this underserved market. The microinvestment platform aggregates fund from customers pulls it together and because of the joint might, it is able to negotiate for higher returns on investment. Everyone in the pool gets the same rate of return on their investment, irrespective of the amount invested.

“We put our funds in Treasury bills, usually products that are backed by the Federal Government.

Kolobox, among our competitors, is the only one that is regulated by the Securities and Exchange Commission. Your funds are guaranteed and insured. We do not give our funds to microlenders where the risk of loss of funds is high” he added.

The platform has a number of products, where you can lock in your funds. It also has others where your funds are not locked. Locked options give higher returns naturally. Kolobox has partnered with Radix Capital, which has been around for the last 15 years and done almost all the Lagos State bonds. They are one of the key investment banks in Lagos. They are SEC-regulated and before any product is brought to the market it has to be approved by the Commission.

One new feature on the platform is group investing. This allows an individual to invite family, friends, and colleagues, making investing more fun. This can help people set short medium and long term goals, a family may want to save towards their mother’s 80th year birthday or for a marriage. Saving together then serves as motivation. Kolobox was launched in July 2018.

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Friday 30 August 2019

BUSINESS DAY

FINTECH News

Products Review

In association with

Technology Review

Personality Review

Company Review

Where are Africa’s Angel Investors?

Stories by FRANK ELEANYA

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frica’s investment scene has certainly seen its fair share of frenzied activities most of which were led by venture capitalists (VC) firms. In 2018, VCs ploughed $725.6 million across 458 deals - representing a 300 percent growth in the total funding amount and over 126 percent increase in the number of deals as compared to 2017 - into startups on the African continent according to data from WeeTracker’s Venture Investments Report 2018.

Grants and private equity made up for other sources of big funding in the same year and probably in the years before that. Only little is heard about angel investment despite there existing 30 Angel Investors (AIs) networks on the continent, including Lagos Angel Network (LAN) in Nigeria, Cairo Angels in Egypt, Jozi Angels in South Africa, Tanzania Angel Investors Network and the Viktoria Business Angels Network in Kenya among others.

It is worth noting that Angel investment contributes about five times less capital to startups than VCs. By contrast, in the US angel investment in startups grew by 36 percent from 2008 to 2012 reaching nearly $23 billion while venture capital investments dropped by 8 percent, according to Dow Jones VentureSource.

Salum Awadh, founder, Tanzania Angel Investors Networth told BusinessDay that AIs in Africa have in-

Tomi Davies, ABAN President

vested about $1 billion in startups so far. The African Business Angels Network (ABAN) - the umbrella body and mentor providing support for all networks across the continent - is attempting to come up with more accurate data on the investment landscape.

Angel investing (AIs) is a type of business funding where high networth individuals invest in early stage, seed start-ups. They also fund Series A rounds. There are also super angels who invest checks up to $500,000 in Series A and up.

In many ways, AIs differ from VCs. One of them is that AIs use their own money to invest while VCs use other people’s money. Secondly, AIs invest mainly in early stage startups while VCs

www.businessday.ng

invest at growth stage. Importantly, AIs are not as risk averse as VCs hence they invest small amounts, unlike the latter which can go for the big bucks.

“AI is actually picking up and AIs are getting their hands dirty, even though it’s still at its infant stage.

But activities are happening across the continent, we have just recently seen the launch of new networks in Benin, Senegal, and Mali.

We also know some networks such Lagos Angles have done deals worth more than $1m to date,” Awadh said.

But the Angel investment landscape is plagued by many problems contributing to many early stage startups not being able to access needed funding before they shut down. For starters,

there is a low level of awareness and knowledge on the part of investors who are not signed up to the networks and therefore unable to share their wealth and knowledge in supporting startups.

Angel investors typically give a lower amount of time to startups which may be problematic for early stage startup founders that may be seeking a longer term arrangement. It also gives little room for sufficient mentorship since AIs are often very successful business people and poor understanding of how the angel investing business really works.

To be sure, angel investors fill the gap between friends and family, and more formal venture capital funds. While some invest for profit, others just want to make an impact

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with their money by investing in causes and industries they are really passionate about ranging from education, health to farming and environment protection.

Data from Halo Report shows that angel investors particularly like startups operating in the following industries: Internet (23.5%), mobile and telecom (10.4%), energy and utilities (4.3%), electronics (4.3%), consumer products and services (2.3%), and other industries (16.5%).

“We also have challenges in getting the right investable companies as many start-up hubs are also taking shape in breeding proper startups ready for investment,” Awadh told BusinessDay. He explained that startups need to understand how angel investing works and

@Businessdayng

what stage of their cycle they should contact angel investors.

“Don’t go when you are too early and don’t go when you are too late,” he said.

Angel investors typically look for a great team with a good market that could potentially return ten times their initial investment in a period of five years maximum.

The whole business of investing is risky and angels who are not as sophisticated in terms of processes like VCs, would want to see the real fundamentals for a startup’s growth potential, to clearly show the problem they solve and why their solution stands out.

Angel investment landscape lacks specific regulations. In the absence, existing AI networks comply with prevailing national laws on investment, contracts, and taxes among others. Tunisia however stands out from the rest with its Unique Startup Act that is expected to transform the startup ecosystem, which other countries can borrow a leaf from.

African countries can also take a cue from India, which recently boosted prospects for more angel investments in startups. Recently the India government announced that angel tax will no longer apply to startups registered with the government’s department for promotion of industry and internal trade (DPIIT). The law was introduced in 2012 to curb money laundering through small companies.

Now startups can look forward to engaging more AIs for funding.

Friday 30 August 2019

BUSINESS DAY

COMPANIES & MARKETS

17

COMPANY NEWS ANALYSIS INSIGHT

CONSUMER GOODS

FMCG stocks shed 70% in 5 years DAVID IBIDAPO

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nvestors who staked at least a million naira in the stocks of Nigeria’s consumer goods firms five years ago, have seen the value of their holdings decline by almost 70 percent.

Stocks of Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCGs) have suffered about 70 percent erosion in market value, with some of the companies flirting with their 5-year lows.

An analysis of the share price movement of six FMCGs (UAC, Cadbury, Flour Mill, Honeywell, Unilever, and PZ Cussons) since 2014 show an erosion of N670.8 billion in market value.

UAC stood as the worst hit losing N152.35 billion in the last five years, represent a 90.76 percent market value loss. Coming closely is Cadbury with -84.46 percent decline in value, losing N95.03 billion during the same period.

Others include PZ cussons (-83.14%, N114.13bn), Flourmill (-77.84%, N199.66bn), Honeywell (-73.62%, N24.5bn) and Unilever (-33.30%, N87.11bn).

Disappointed investors who had bet that the ever-increasing Nigeria population should improve FMCG’s sales while they built capacity to annex

Source: BusinessDay, NSE presented opportunities, sold off as consumer goods recorded shrinking margins on revenue decline, however with the exemption of Nestle.

With quoted companies coming to terms with reality, UAC announced its agreement to Imperial logistics move to increase stakes in MDS logistics limited, a leading logistic firm in Nigeria on Tuesday amid customers switch to value brands of unquoted companies like Dufil whose route-to-market (logistics) gives it a cost advantage which saw Kellogs invest in it eight years ago.

Kellogg a US based cereal maker acquired half of

Multi Pro, a subsidiary of Tolarams, for $450m with an option to buy shares in Tolaram, relying on Tolarams extensive marketing, supply chain and distribution network.

Ac c o rd i ng t o UAC ’s report, imperial logistics propose to increase its holdings in MDS logistics limited to 57 percent from 49 percent by acquiring additional 8 percent shareholding from UAC which is subject to relevant regulatory approvals.

According to a research

by Coronation, revealed unquoted companies producing fast moving consumer goods in the food category get a bigger share

of the consumer’s food baskets than the big quoted companies. Some of which were Boulos, Daraju, Limex, Olam, Sankin, and Tolaram.

With route-to-market of quoted firms becoming critical, the main issue remains how logistics gives an edge in a market like Nigeria where infrastructure is an obstacle to doing business.

“Despite challenges in infrastructure, I think it is a positive for UACN to improve their service deliveries,” Gbolahan Ologunro, analyst at CSL stockbroker told BusinessDay, “Imperial logistics have a strong competence and proven

track record in area of logistics.”

Analysts therefore anticipate a blurry outlook for listed FMCG’s on the back of recurring revenue decline, “if these FMCGs hadn’t raised prices in 2017 to preserve margin, we would have seen the effect of low disposable income on their topline,” Ologunro said.

Over the last five years, consumers expenditure has been weak due to stagnant disposable income, worsened with significant devaluation in the currency making consumers poorer in the face of high living cost and stagnant income levels.

Affecting significantly FMCGs’ margins coupled with consumers weak spending is the high cost of production incurred as business environment s t i l l re ma i n u n f avou rable. “if we begin to see changes in business environment especially in power and government making tariffs more cost re f l e c t i ve, t h i s s h ou l d help FMCGs improve margins “However, for consumer spending we are likely to see any significant growth in the medium term, hence affecting further sales volume going forward,” Ologunro concluded.

DEALS

Stanbic IBTC’s H1 profit drops 15.9%, declares N10.47bn interim payout …targets small traders in Nigeria, Angola, 12 others OLUFIKAYO OWOEYE

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tanbic IBTC’S half-year profit for the period ended 30th June dropped 15.9percent to N36.24bn from N43.08bn in the same period in 2018.

The bank’s gross earnings increased 2.8percent to N117m from N114m in halfyear 2018, however, profit before tax dropped 12percent from N50bn in 2018 to

N44.6bn in 2019 with income tax surging from N7.6bn in 2018 to N8.4bn in 2019.

Stanbic’s interest income increased marginally to N60.78bn from N59.92bn, however, its interest expense eroded the gains as it increased by to N21.47bn from 19.75bn in half-year 2018 leaving the net interest income at N39.3bn from N40.16bn.

Interest on loans and advances to customers in-

creased to N31.3bn from N30.6bn Non-Interest income increased marginally from N53.82bn to N54.85bn. Fees and commission revenue increased marginally to 37.7bn from 37.14bn, this includes its card-based commission which increased from 1.62bn to N1.81bn, account transaction fee also saw an improvement from 1.81bn to 1.97bn, revenue from electronic banking ballooned

from 880m to 1.5bn The bank declared an interim dividend of N1.00 per ordinary share of 50 kobo each, amounting to N10.47bn subject to deduction of appropriate withholding tax and regulatory approval. This will be paid to shareholders whose names appear in the Register of Members as at the close of business on Wednesday 04 September 2019.

In a legal tussle that

spanned 10years, the Supreme Court dismissed the bank’s application for a review of its judgment in Appeal No: SC. 535/2013 Stanbic IBTC Bank plc versus Longterm Global Capital and Patrick Akinkuotu. The bank discharged its liability under the judgment by paying the judgment sum of N2.5 billion to the judgment creditors.

The bank recently announced the elevation of Adekunle Adedeji, to the

position of executive director Stanbic IBTC Holdings PLC, Adedeji, with over 20 years’ experience, is also Stanbic IBTC Group’s Chief Financial Officer. Also elevated is Bunmi Dayo-Olagunju as executive director, operations for the bank.

Stanbic IBTC shares on Wednesday traded at N35.00 on the floor of the Nigerian Stock Exchange with one year return down 25.43percent.

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

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Friday 30 August 2019

BUSINESS DAY

COMPANIES&MARKETS

Business Event

DEALS

Arise B.V. becomes significant shareholder in ETI after IFC exit SEGUN ADAMS

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cobank Transnational Incorporated, (ETI), the Lomé based parent company of the Ecobank Group, has announced that the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and its Fund have sold their stake in the Pan African Bank to leading Dutch investment firm Arise B. V. In a note published on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) Wednesday, ETI confirmed that Arise has become a shareholder of reference in the bank with a stake of around 14.1 percent, ownership hitherto held by the IFC and the fund managed by IFC Asset Management.

J.P Morgan acted as Sole Placement Agent and Sole Financial Advisor to the IFC, which is a member of the World Bank.

“We welcome Arise as shareholders of ETI,” said Ade Ayeyemi, CEO of ETI. With Arise coming on board, Ayeyemi believes there would be a strong synergy in the bank’s core objectives to drive financial inclusion and the potential

for the development of Africa.

Following the completion of the transaction, IFC, the Washington-based international financial organisation said the move to sell its stake in the Pan-African lender is part of IFC’s ordinary asset portfolio rotation.

The Washington-based international financial organisation also reiterated its commitment to the development of the Sub Saharan African Region and stated that it “is continuing to invest in other projects in these countries.”

The IFC and the funds managed by the IFC Asset Management Company, through their investments, had been supporting Ecobank’s growth strategy across Africa in building a preeminent banking franchise for more than a decade.

Commenting on the transaction, Deepak Malik, CEO of Arise, which has become a significant albeit non-controlling shareholder, said the Dutch firm aims to collaborate with local Financial Services Providers (FSPs) in Sub-Saharan Africa to boost economic growth through strengthen-

ing the local banking sector.

“This transaction with ETI will see Arise collaborate with Ecobank to advance financial inclusion.” He said.

Information from Ecobank website in June shows that Nedbank has 21.2 percent stake, Qatar National Bank holds 20.1 stake, IFC with a 14.1 percent. The shares have now been transferred to Arise.

Other shareholders include the Public Investment Corporation (PIC), a South African state-owned entity responsible for investing the South African Government Employees Pension Fund (GEPF) with 13.5 percent and Ghana-owned Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) owning 3.9 percent in the bank.

Arise BV is a leading equity investor in financial institutions in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) with a combined asset value in excess of USD 700 million. Arise is owned by Netherlands Development Finance Company (FMO), Norfund, and Rabobank.

Its mandate is to capitalize and stimulate growth across all financial services sub-sectors and within SSA.

L-R: Edwin Igbiti, treasurer, Chartered Insurance Institute of Nigeria; Isioma Chukwuma, past president Chartered Insurance Institute of Nigeria; Muftau Oyegunle, deputy president, Chartered Insurance Institute of Nigeria; Aituaz Kola Oladejo, guest speaker; Richard Borokini, director-general, Chartered Insurance Institute of Nigeria, and Yetunde Ilori, director-general, Nigerian Insurers Association, at the August edition of the Breakfast Seminar Series hosted by the Chartered Insurance Institute of Nigeria in Lagos.

BANKING

Unity Bank leads Banking industry in Asset Quality IFEANYI JOHN

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anking sector asset quality has steadily improved to catch up with CBN’s benchmark since recession hit the country. However, in these trying times, Unity bank has ensured that their books which was routinely cleaned in 2017 by selling bad loans stays clean.

Risk management and specialization in Development Finance has seen the N200 billion bank record less than a percentage of total loans disbursed as non-performing loans. The benchmark by the apex bank requires that not more than 5 percent of total loans be classified as non performing.

Even as operating conditions have eased in the country, the industry asset quality has failed to meet regulatory

benchmark in the first two quarters of the year as banks continue to deal with impaired and other problem loans.

After Unity Bank sold off loans in excess of N350 billion, the NPL ratio slate was wiped clean and the retail lender, focused on spurring Agribusiness in the country, has maintained this low NPL into the second quarter of 2019. The tier 2 lender recorded an NPL ratio of 0.63% as at the end of the first quarter 2019.

Analysts are of the view that with continuous efforts to reposition the bank and seize growing opportunities in Agribusiness as a means to diversify earnings base in the retail market, brighter prospects for the bank in the years ahead seem very reassuring.

Other banking sector players have seen the NPL ratio slide

in recent times but still above the industry benchmark of 5 percent. Guaranty Trust Bank reported a half year non-performing loan ratio of 6.8 percent sliding from 7.3% in the first quarter of the year. Zenith Bank is close to the 5 percent target as the half year result saw the banks NPL ratio at 5.3 percent, 45 basis points ahead of FY 2019 guidance of 4.85 percent.

Fidelity Bank and Wema Bank reported an NPL ratio that is in the realms of regulatory requirement at the end of the first quarter of the year, the tier 2 lenders reported an NPL ratio of 4.9 percent after the close of the first accounting period of the year. Access Bank (10.0 %), UBA (5.3%), Stanbic IBTC (4.4%)

Continue online @www. businessday.ng

L-R: Rachid Benmessaoud (l), World Bank Group Country director for Nigeria; Aliyu Abdulrahman Dikko, chairman, Bank of Industry (BOI); Toyin Adeniji, executive director BOI; Laoye Jaiyeola, CEO, Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG), and Ayoade Olatunbosun-Alakija, MD, Emergency Coordination Center, at the BOI roundtable on Investing in Communities affected by Conflict and Crisis, in Abuja.

L-R: Bola Onigbogi, deputy president, The Nigerian Council of Registered Insurance Brokers; Shola Tinubu, president, The Nigerian Council Of Registered Insurance Brokers, Eddie Efekoha, MD, Consolidated Hallmark Insurance Plc, and Babatunde Daramola, executive director, finance system and investment, Consolidated Hallmark Insurance Plc, at the Nigerian Council Of Registered Insurance Brokers Members’ Evening, Sponsored by Consolidated Hallmark Insurance Plc, in Lagos.

TRANSPORT

Bolt becomes the most expansive taxi hailing service in Nigeria

…launches in Port Harcourt, totaling eight cities covered JUMOKE AKIYODE-LAWANSON

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olt (formerly Taxify), a leading on-demand transportation platform in Africa, today launched operations in Port Harcourt. The expansion brings Bolt’s cities in Nigeria to a total of eight: the service is already well established in Lagos, Abuja, Ibadan, Owerri, Benin City, Calabar and Uyo. According to Uche Okafor,

Bolt’s regional manager for West Africa; “After successful launches in seven Nigerian cities, expanding to the cosmopolitan city of Port Harcourt is a natural next step for Bolt as it further reinforces our vision to make urban travel easier, quicker and more reliable. We are also looking forward to introducing flexible employment opportunities to thousands of drivers and vehicle owners in the city.”

“Bolt places a high priority on safety, both for the drivers that use the platform to connect with customers, and for the customers that use the platform to hail rides. In keeping with this, we have ensured that our drivers undergo background checks by the State Intelligence Bureau arm of the Nigerian Police.”

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L-R: Temitope Ashiwaju, Group Public Relations and Events Manager, DUFIL Prima Foods Plc; Beneficiaries of Leadership Empowerment and Resource Network (LEARN), Iroka Emmanuella and Oyebanji Faiz; and the Chief Operating Officer LEARN, Aderonke Oguntoyinbo at the cheque presentation to support the LEARN initiative in Lagos.

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Friday 30 August 2019

BUSINESS DAY

AGRIBUSINESSINSIGHT Market Insights

Analysis

Commentaries

Experts/Industry Views

Commodities watch

Policy Reviews

19

Send in Commentaries to caleb.ojewale@businessdayonline.com

Inability of farmers to differentiate seeds from grains keeps farm productivity low Stories by CALEB OJEWALE Twiiter: @calebtinolu

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t is hard to different between a seed (that should be planted) and a grain (which should not be planted). For some farmers, these ‘fake seeds’ are purchased out of ignorance, while others deliberately save seeds from previous harvests, even though these are actually grains.

The difference between these two lies in the fact that the one, which is seed, has gone through a refining process where it has been optimised for planting and quality production.

The grain on the other hand, is just what the farmer (or informal seed seller) has kept for replanting from a previous harvest, without going through any special process. The outcome of whichever choice is made between seed or grain becomes evident in the productivity at harvest.

“Farm yield in Nigeria is dependent on numerous factors chief of which is

the genetic ability of the seed as well as agronomic factors,” noted Philip Ojo, director general of the National Agricultural Seed Council (NASC), in a previous interview with BusinessDay. He further noted, “What comes to mind is how much of ‘seed’ farmers

are using in Nigeria. The bulk of our crop production is still dependent on the use of farm saved seeds partly due to the lack of awareness on the need to use quality seeds.”

Rutger Groot, chairman, EastWest Seed Knowledge Transfer, and

a member of the Supervisory Board EWS BV, had also reiterated that a lot of farmers in Nigeria keep seeds which they reuse from part of their last harvest saved as seed for the following year. But unknown to them, with every generation quality goes down.

“If you just spend a little money on a bag of seeds, the quality will always be uniform and high level.

This is something farmers have to learn,” said Groot.

Poverty and the ignorance that comes with it could however, also be playing a role in this choice by farmers. According to Hamza Ahmed Mahuta, an agriculture consultant “many farmers in Nigeria are truly peasant. If you look at their lives you will realise what they produce is hardly enough to last them two to three months.” He explained that the remaining periods after harvest, most farmers have virtually nothing, not even to keep as seeds but to feed their families. Unfortunately, about 80 percent of primary production

in Nigeria is in the hands of these peasants. It therefore becomes difficult for some to invest in getting good seeds when the next planting season commences, even though the quality seeds will enable them to boost productivity.

“It may be difficult to differentiate between a seed and a grain, and it is a lot harder to tell where there have been adulterations or counterfeits are being sold to farmers,” noted Kabir Ademoh, local coordinator, Seed for Change. “What needs to be done is reaching out to farmers, educating and introducing them to quality seeds through competent companies”.

Garbage in, garbage out, this aptly describes the outcome when either ‘fake’ seeds or adulterated fertilisers are used on any farm. Urgent actions are required in educating farmers on the importance of using quality seeds, as failure to do this will have a significant effect on food production in the country, one that is not likely to be a positive one.

How farmers can adopt the lean farming model Oyo State, Farmcrowdy launch Agribusiness partnership HANNAH EDIA

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n the face of rising costs, how can farmers keep their expenses low without negatively affecting output? The answer to this question is to adopt a lean farming model that takes into cognizance every aspect of the farmer’s crop or production process, farm cycle, and available resources.

What is the Lean Farming Model?

The Lean Farming model is simply based on cutting out waste and excesses as much as possible while increasing efficiency and profit for the farmer. A farmer can only adopt a lean farming model if they understand that any activities that do not directly provide value for customers need to be cut out.

The major focus of the lean farming model is to cut out waste and increase quality. Highlighted below are ways you can cut out waste in your farm operations: Excess Production: refers to when supply exceeds demand. Producing more than what is necessary, especially for products with a short shelf life will most likely lead to wastage of the product, which invariably wastes the effort, time and money that has gone into production Inventory: buying equipment you don’t need simply because they are on sale will lead to clutter and having several tools that serve the same purpose. This will in turn lead to workers under using the tools.

Storage and Transport: can you move your products faster? If that is the case, you can cut out storage by arranging that final product processing to coincide with pickup dates.

Changing suppliers: Constantly changing suppliers will probably

cost you money especially if it is on a contract basis. Before you make the switch to a new supplier, make sure you ask for recommendations and do a test run to be sure you are getting the best returns from your spend.

Producing before marketing: this is one of the common mistakes farmers make. Because food items sell does not mean people will line up after harvest or production, to buy from you.

You still need to actively seek out customers, and not just customers that will buy once but [repeat] customers that will buy over and over again. By getting your off-takers first, you can avoid waste because items will move quickly.

Poor seeds: Go for high-quality seeds that will sprout a good harvest.

Poor seeds lead to poor harvest, which is a waste of your farm cycle.

Traditional farming methods: Traditional farming methods like bush burning waste a lot of resources (trees and soil nutrients). By using modern farming methods, farmers can reduce waste and put their resources to better use.

The 5 “S” that guides the Lean Process include: the lean processs lean farmer in nigeria Sort You know you won’t be making use of those old tools with broken handles, so there is no point storing them. Some farmers have tools they’ve stopped using for years and it’s just gathering dust.

The first step of the lean process is aimed at de-cluttering your warehouse. Items that are not in use take space and may even hinder your productivity.

Set in Order www.businessday.ng

The next step after de-cluttering is organization. Every minute you spend sifting through tools (especially small hand tools) is a complete waste since it does not speed up your operation process.

Shine I know a clean farming space is not what readily comes to mind when you think of a farm but it is important that you keep your farm clean. There are several units in a farm including the packaging, production and processing unit and it is important that these workplaces are clean, airy and free of dust.

Get rid of dirty plastic, overflowing bins, empty spray cans, used pest bottles and either place them on shelves or dispose of them.

Standardize To maintain the lean farming model, you need to standardize tasks. You can use visuals to indicate what tasks need to be done when and by whom.

Sustain Now that you have standardized your processes, there is a need for you to keep the systems in place and continually work on improving them. Inevitably, some things may disrupt the processes you set in place, for example, a customer may request that their product arrives at a loading station by 12 pm which may mean that workers adjust to meet demand.

With lean farming, farming can be more sustainable and farmers can adequately meet customer’s demand, on time.

• Hannah Edia is the Lead SEO/ Content Development at Farmcrowdy.

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n agribusiness partnership between Farmcrowdy, a digital agriculture platform, and the Oyo State government has been launched this week, with an investment plan that aims to productively engage an estimated 50,000 farmers.

“We promised to explore publicprivate partnership models to achieve our aim for agriculture,” said Oluwaseyi Makinde, the Oyo state governor, during the launch in Ibadan. “I believe the partnership will be mutually beneficial to Farmcrowdy and the people of our State.”

Speaking at the event, Onyeka Akumah, founder of Farmcrowdy said the company is investing in agribusiness in Oyo State within the next three years and connecting no less than 50,000 small scale farmers in the state with solutions to various

bottlenecks mitigating against the growth of their farm businesses.

“This would surely have a positive impact on their lives and in the end, everyone would be happy with the outcome of the project,” he said.

For Kenneth Obiajulu, managing director of Farmcrowdy, the launch is an opportunity to deliver value in the agric value chain in Oyo state, using the company’s model which has enabled it to engage over 25,000 farmers to cultivate 16,000 acres of farmland across 14 states in Nigeria.

The Oyo state governor, who in a statement, is described as committed to redefining good governance with a focus on people-centered policies expressed his excitement about the partnership with Farmcrowdy.

He explained that the partnership was one of the ways to uphold his promise to expand the economy of Oyo State using agribusiness.

Sterling bank targets $1trn food market with agric summit

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frica’s food market is estimated to be worth $1 trillion by 2030 and Sterling Bank is aiming to drive discourse for local investments on the continent to tap into these opportunities.

The bank is aiming to achieve this through its agriculture summit, which has been scheduled for September 5 and 6 in Abuja with the theme “Agriculture – Your Piece of The $1tr Economy.”

Yemi Odubiyi, executive director, Corporate and Investment Banking, said the bank and its partners hope to reposition Nigeria through agriculture to achieve food security on the continent.

“Food security is a major threat in Nigeria. We will not be able to sta@Businessdayng

bilise this country until we solve the issue of food security, which we are at the forefront,” he said. “We are trying to address issues of food security and job creation in the country.”

On her part, Bukola Awosanya, group head, Agric Finance and Solid Minerals of the bank, said agriculture has been one of the bank’s focal areas, adding that the summit would cover the entire African continent, compared to last year, which was limited to Nigeria.

She explained the bank has been promoting agriculture actively, noting that it was the first commercial bank involved in the Anchor Borrowers Programme (ABP) having taken agriculture to be an important sector in the country.

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Friday 30 August 2019

BUSINESS DAY

Friday 30 August 2019

BUSINESS DAY

Feature

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Nigeria’s shea butter production: Hard work for smooth skin Nigeria’s shea butter industry is taking a new shape, empowering millions of women and their households owing to its extensive uses in cosmetics, confectionary and pharmaceutical, writes Josephine Okojie

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t the centre of Kolonji village in Agaie Local Government Area of Niger State is a shea butter production cluster filled to the brim with women processing raw shea nuts into fine butter.

The cluster comprises 50 women organised into cooperatives, who use traditional methods to extract nuts from shea fruits found in karité trees that grow in the wild. The nuts are then washed and sun-dried to sort for quality.

The outer skins are removed through a parboiling process before grinding starts. Afterwards, the ground nuts are roasted outside, over an open flame before going through a simple milling processing machine that squeezes the oil from the shea residues. This produces dark-brownish paste kneaded by hand for up to two hours to get excellent quality shea butter.

Then, the oil is left to cool, and the result is the creamy white, solid shea butter, which is ready to be weighed and packaged to sell at local markets or exported.

Among these women in the cluster carrying out this daily task is Aisha Abubakar, a 35-year-old mother of five whose husband is plagued by stroke.

Challenged by harsh economic situation in the country and the medical condition of her husband, Aisha who had no education could barely feed her family.

Inspired by the women at the shea butter cluster in Kolonji village who were making money from shea nuts processing, she was prompted to venture into the business to fend for her family.

Now, she produces and sells shea butter to exporters who supply to

markets in Europe, the United States of America and Asia.

“Last year, we at the cluster supplied about 500 metric tons of shea butter to our buyers and we were able to support our individual families with the money made from sales,” Aisha says.

In 2018, the average price of a metric ton of shea butter produced at the cluster was sold for as low as N350,000 owing to quality issues.

But premium grades, sought by traders, sold for an average of N750,000 the same year.

This implies that the women at the cluster made about N175million from shea butter with each of them earning an average income of about N3.5million in 2018.

“With the money I made, my children were able to go back to school and my husband is now able to see a doctor for his medical condition,” she adds.

Aisha’s case gives an insight into how shea butter production is empowering millions of women and their households as well as improving their livelihood and impacting communities.

Despite that the whole process of making shea butter is highly labour intensive, physically demanding and fairly time-consuming, the women entrepreneurs show high level of courage— and get rewards for their hard work.

“I have been producing shea butter for over 15 years now and I used the proceeds in supporting my husband for my children’s education,” Falilat Kazeem, a shea producer at a cluster in Saki West Local Government of Oyo state, says.

“Now, we have a son who just graduated and waiting for the National Youth Service Corps,” she notes.

For centuries shea butter has been called ‘women’s gold’ not only for its rich golden colour but also because it primarily provides em-

Women at a shea butter cluster in Kolonji village parboiling the fresh nuts to remove the outer skins www.businessday.ng

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ployment and income to millions of women across the African continent.

Now, not only are the rural women taking advantage of the business opportunity in its production, urban female entrepreneurs are also in the party, using the butter as raw material for the production of various skincare products.

“We use organic shea butter as a key ingredient in the manufacturing of our skincare products owing to its rich nourishing, protecting and moisturising properties,” says Tomilola Awanebi, founder of Sheabuttersheen Nigeria Enterprises, a start-up that produces range of organic skincare products.

Awanebi, who started her business in her residential apartment four years ago, now has two major factories in Lokoja (Kogi State) and Akure (Ondo State) with over 20 employees.

Her products have reached over 18 states in Nigeria with two major export countries of focus.

She says shea butter is suitable for all skin types, including sensitive and eczema-prone ones, as it absorbs easily into the skin.

The United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNI@Businessdayng

DO) in 2015 estimated that about three million African women are directly or indirectly involved in the shea butter value chain.

Experts suggest that the number of women involved in the value chains may

have risen by 10 to 15 percent since 2015.

Wunmi Asholake, director of sustainability, Global Shea Alliance, says it is a female dominated industry, because without them the industry might sink.

From poverty to wealth

Women returning to the cluster at Kolonji village with shea nuts gotten from the wild.

Nigeria is the poverty capital of the world, with 98 million living in multidimensional or extreme poverty, according to the World Poverty Index.

Extreme poverty occurs when a person lives below $1.90 (N684) daily. Unemployment is 23.1 percent while misery index is nearly 45 percent.

These numbers alone can disillusion anyone, but not the women who have chosen shea processing as their profession.

The business is lifting many of them out of poverty, shifting them gradually to the middle-class.

“Many of us could not feed ourselves before, but we can now do so,” says Hauwa Mohammed also from the same cluster in Kolonji.

“Some of us can now have good homes, send our children to school and even have TVs at home,” she adds.

Many uses, wonder tree From chocolate, ice cream and margarine, to face cream, lipstick, medicines and soap, shea butter is increasingly in demand as a luxury ingredient for edible and personal care products globally.

It is a product found in most homes across the world, either in its raw butter form or in cosmetics products as women heavily rely on it because of its emollient properties that help solve skin problems such as wrinkles and dryness.

Experts say that about 85 percent traded shea goes to the confectionery industry, mostly as cocoa butter equivalent (CBE) and other confectionary products, while 15 percent goes to cosmetics and pharmaceuticals.

Shea butter also offers UV-protection and has strong anti-inflammatory properties. It comes from the nuts of Karité trees that grow in the Sahel region and can be found in the dry savannah belt of Nigeria.

The tree starts to bear fruit when it is 15 years and reaches full production at 20 years. It can then continue to produce nuts for the next 200 years.

The tree produces average of 1520 kg of fruit a year, yielding 6-8 kg of fruit a year, according to a research by the Global Shea Alliance.

Strong export potential Nigeria literarily sits on a shea butter goldmine as the crop, which is grown in the wild in 20 of Nigeria’s 36 states, with Niger, Kwara and Oyo states having the largest production areas, according to Nigeria Institute for Oil Palm Research (NIFOR).

“The opportunity to create wealth in the shea industry is enormous in Nigeria and Africa at large,” says Jubril Bokani, national president National Shea Producers Association of Nigeria (NASPAN).

“The conversion of 100,000 metric tonnes of shea nuts into about 48,000 metric tonnes of shea butter for export can generate about $72 www.businessday.ng

million and economically sustain about 600,000 rural women,” Bokani explains.

“This shows that there exists a clear opportunity for Nigeria to create to wealth and employment to be driven by value addition and export of shea butter and cake,” he further says.

According to the Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC), global demand for shea butter is estimated at $10 billion and projected to surpass $30billion by 2020.

Currently, Nigeria is world’s largest producer of shea butter, producing 361,017 MT, according to the Food and Agricultural Organisation (FOA)’s 2017 figures.

Ghana is the largest exporter in Africa, although most of the country’s exports are from Nigeria, experts say.

According to experts, Nigeria can double its shea butter production to 650,000MT for export with the domestication of the crop.

In 2016, the Nigeria Institute for Oil Palm Research (NIFOR) said it had been able to reduce the long gestation period of the Karite tree from 20 to between five and seven years. But Nigeria is yet to develop a technology that will enable the domestication of the crop to further boost production.

“Nigeria can now boast of having shea trees that are flowering and fruiting after five years. What we need now is to focus on domesticating the crop,” Loius Inabule, researcher at NIFOR, tells BusinessDay. Nigeria’s shea butter market is largely untapped and can yield about $2billion annually, according to a Global Shea Alliance (GSA) briefing at the 6th International Shea Industry Conference in Abuja.

Untapped goldmine Despite the huge opportunities in shea butter production, Nigeria is yet to fully harness the potential in the production of the crop.

Women who process shea nuts into butter still make use of traditional methods which are time- and energy-consuming in extracting the butter, thus leading to quality issues.

As a result, they do not get fair price for their labour as the product does not attract good pricing owing to issues around poor quality.

“The shea butter of women at the cluster is of lower grade that attracts a lesser price. It sells for almost half the price of the premium Grade A,” says Jummai Abubakar, chief executive officer, Jummy Shea Cosmetics.

Experts say with innovation and use of modern technology by women shea producers, more volumes and consistently higher quality butter will be produced, resulting in better reward for their hard labour as well as grow the industry.

“We need to support these women by educating and training them

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Women kneading the dark brownish paste from the shea nuts.

The dark brownish paste placed in an open flame.

Grounded shea nuts

on the use of modern machines and proper handling techniques. We also need to improve rural infrastructure, especially road infrastructures,” says Abubakar.

Some of the clusters in the rural communities now have kneading machines that make the job of the women easier.

Apart from using traditional methods that are cumbersome, infrastructural deficit across the country is also a challenge to the women’s income, as it has continued to erode their profits and impact their capacity to expand production negatively.

Roads such as Kayama- Okuta, Bida-Kolonji and Saki – Shikanda leading to the forest where the shea trees are found are in bad conditions and totally become impassable during the raining seasons.

These women who go by foot must cope with the poor and rocky soil daily to pick the shea fruits from the wild.

“We trek for more than 30 minutes to pick the shea fruits from the forest,” Halima Hassan, a member of the Nanbaba Co-operative in Niger State, says.

“At time, some of us are bitten by snakes and the roads leading to the forest are totally impassable when it rains,” she adds.

To ensure that the country maximise benefit from shea butter production and lift millions of households out of poverty, experts say government at all levels must invest in key infrastructures such as roads to aid businesses otherwise.

They add that the country will continue to lose foreign exchange if the status quo does not change.

“The problem with agriculture is infrastructure and without heavy investments in it we would not adequately harness the potential in the sector,” says Abiodun Olonrundero, operation manager, Aquashoots Limited.

@Businessdayng

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Friday 30 August 2019

BUSINESS DAY

INSIGHT Slow, but steady…

Be prepared to pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, and support or oppose whomever you must, in order to accomplish our grand ambition of building one of the great cities of the 21st Century, a beacon of social, commercial and political excellence for the rest of our dear nation, Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos State, advised the newly inaugurated state executive cabinet members. Osa Victor Obayagbona writes that knowing where the shoe pinches is the beginning of solution, no matter how slow it comes.

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rom time immemorial, human relationships, instincts and activities create three compelling interests, each of which wants to prevail in the affairs of humans: the compelling interest of the individual, of the group, and of society.

In an era of evolving and expanding group alliances, the compelling group interest and its claims to sovereignty do not necessarily coincide with either individual interests or compelling societal interests. Groups have always conducted their activities to achieve their own limited selfinterest, even when it conflicts with both individual and general societal interests. And compelling group interest, as represented by leaders, continually attempts to appropriate choice and decisions from both individuals who join, and from collective society as a whole through privilege and subsidy.

Let’s break it down. The month of August saw a slow but gradual transformation in traffic control and less gridlock across the multiple road networks that make up the Lagos landscape. Although this comes at a time of new works commissioner, but the ‘die is cast’ by the state governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, who many have not given a thought will do something so significant in such a short pe-

riod, even without commissioners.

Gridlock and the lack of free flow of traffic is a major inheritance bequeathed to the Babajide Sanwo-Olu-led government from successive governors in the state.

But, what is the state doing differently now to ease traffic situation? Simple! Fix the potholes and smoothen undulating road surfaces that often trap and slow down commuters, and deploying more traffic managers to notable traffic hotspots across the state.

Some Lagosians say it is not yet Uhuru, as the relief we are experiencing is because school children are on holiday. But the fact needs to be told that so far, what I see across the state is a move of an administrator that has a template about what he hopes to see about this sector in the nearest possible time.

Let’s think back what daily commuting in Lagos was like in THE recent past. Commuters in Lagos spend an average of 30 hours on traffic weekly, according to finding of a research by JCDecaux Grace Lake, Nigerian subsidiary for JCDecaux, one of the top advertising firmS in the world.

The research took about 18 months to conduct, and confirmed that the traffic challenge in Lagos impaired productivity in the city, also confirming that traffic was the second MOST annoying

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Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu

issue to Lagosians.

In some companies, the work hours are from 8am to 4pm, giving a total of eight hours per day or 40 hours per week for the five days, Monday to Friday. The finding of this research thus meant that an average commuter who worked in such a firm spent equivalent of 75 percent of a week’s total working

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hours commuting.

Traffic on Lagos roads worsened in the past few years owing to several factors: Narrow roads, increased number of vehicles on the roads, indiscipline of road users, and congestion at Apapa.

The deteriorating traffic situation gave both the state government and commuters serious concern.

In serious cases, commuters spent over three hours for a journey of just 10 kilometres within the city. In the past, traffic in the city was limited to some places. Those places were regarded as no-go areas, and if one for any unavoidable reason had to pass through them, then he must be prepared.

Then, the snarls spread virtually round the state, and nobody was immune from its venom.

The cost of the traffic, which became perennial, was not only on precious time but also on health and economic development.

But today, the difference is becoming clearer, though it is slow but gradually steadying by the day, as the state has employed several strategies to improve traffic, a major one being fixing and smoothening the once dilapidated and not motor-able roads across the state. @Businessdayng

It is hoped that the inauguration of the state executive council will add flavour to the ongoing bite of fixing the state infrastructure within the shortest possible time.

The governor, speaking at the swearing in ceremony, tasked the commissioners and special advisers on diligence to duties, saying, “we must accelerate the trajectory of growth and development of Lagos as we can’t afford to disappoint Lagosians.”

The cabinet members must be ready and willing to pay the price towards actualising the new administration’s vision of a greater Lagos, reminding them that the challenges - whether security, waste management, transportation, or environmental sustainability, though not peculiar to Lagos, could be tackled.

“They must surely be addressed before they undermine our achievements and hinder our progress,” he said.

According to Henry David Thoreau, Civil Disobedience, 1849, “That government is best which governs least.” Realising that Lagos is made up various congregations in groups, which has always been a necessary part of human interaction and socialisation. Today, groups and group identification are much more than an extended tribe, which in the past provided all the necessary support and protection for the individual.

However, since the Lagos governor has chosen to govern least by surrounding the state governance with men and women of varied backgrounds and fields, the groups that make up the state should therefore do everything possible to enact the vision driving the Centre of Excellence.

We know different groups serve different functions for people in an increasingly mixed interactive global society. And, in an increasing number of circumstances, group affiliation is a matter of individual choice not a group mandate, with the state remaining the notable exception.

Nevertheless, individual identification with discrete groups is still necessary for humans to function and prosper, even in a high-technology age that accompanies the transition to this common vision of seeing our beloved Lagos work again.

Friday 30 August 2019

BUSINESS DAY

23

Hotels

Top BusinessDay Partner Hotels Four Points by Sheraton Hotel (Oniru Chiefatancy Estate,Lekki) Tel: +234 1 448 9444

Transcorp Hilton Abuja 1 Aguiyi Ironsi Street Maitama, Abuja Tel: +234-708-060-3000

The Wheatbaker #4 Onitolo(Lawrence Road), Ikoyi, Lagos.

Tel: 01 277 3560

Hawthorn Suites by Wyndham Abuja 1 Uke St, Garki, Abuja.

Tel: +234 9 4603900, +234 805 7522500

Beyond the smiles at Flourish Resort OBINNA EMELIKE

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t is not for nothing that The Gambia is known as the smiling coast of West Africa. Though it is one of the smallest nations in Africa, the country is also one of the safest and friendliest places for visitors in Africa.

Upon arrival, it is easy to understand why The Gambia garnered such an admirable reputation, the smiles, which depict friendliness, are almost on every face.

Beyond the smiles, the quality of the hospitality offerings including; worldclass resorts, beaches and cultural products are also reasons to visit.

While the country parades an array of resorts and hotels Flourish Wellness Resort is one place to experience on your visit to the ‘smiling coast of West Africa’.

The luxury boutique resort offers premium hospitality offerings amid worldclass facilities and services delivered by professionals.

Arafang Saine, marketing manager of the resort, says Flourish is a class act designed to give first class treatment to patrons with discerning taste, particularly the high-end client desirous of private and exclusive treat. According to him, the resort, which has Nigerian ex-international football player, Kanu Nwankwo, as its ambassador, cherishes its patrons and is devoted to attending to their needs at

all times, hence the resort is highly rated when it comes to personalised services.

“No matter how sophisticated your taste is, how welltravelled or exposed you are, Flourish Wellness Resort is designed to meet them and encourage you for a repeat visit,” said Saine.

Rooms Located in a beautiful, naturally alluring landscape and nestled against the ocean in the Kotu area of Banjul, the resort offers 40 exclusively furnished deluxe suites, all offering good view while enjoying rich décor and amenities such as free high speed WIFI, cable TV, fridge, tea and coffee making facilities and telephone, bathroom/shower and Jacuzzi, kitchenette and entertainment centre.

The exclusive suites offer expansive and aesthetically inviting living rooms with large and beautifully furnished bedrooms with inbuilt wardrobes while you have the luxury of enjoying a free walk to a private veranda or balcony to relax, explore nature or bathe under the canopy of stars.

Wining/dining Given its luxury nature, it delights patrons with fascinating restaurants with rich aesthetics and appealing sceneries on display at its two terraced restaurants where rich continental and African menus are served. There are two bars offering cocktails, beverages and wines from Flourish’s cellar, and a juice bar where guests can pick from 50 locally brewed fruits. www.businessday.ng

As a resort, which places high premium on wellness, eating healthy food is a major concern as it offers dedicated healthy diets.

Fitness/sports It offers a number of fitness and sports facilities, ranging from tennis to beach volleyball, and for golf enthusiasts, there is a lush green Fajara 18-hole golf course, which is located 15 minutes away from the hotel.

Wellness Its wellness facilities and offerings are regarded as top range with the Ayurveda spa services leading the pack.

If you are seeking to maintain a healthy regime, with a trendy look, lose weight and cleanse your system or have a detox and eliminate stress as well as stay young, then you should visit to experience their prized services as the resort is designed to be the ultimate getaway for wellness retreat for adults, promote relaxation and inspire rejuvenation and overall well-being while encouraging a change of life style.

Ayurveda spa offers include whole body wellness retreat, which improves wellbeing and healthy life style; stay young and healthy (Antiaging) retreat, designed for those aged 55 and above - as it is to keep them looking young and trendy; cleanse detox de-stress retreat, ideal for those seeking an escape from hectic and stressful lives and to experience the benefit of a holistic treatment programme; and then there is the healthy weight

loss retreat, which is geared towards sustainable weight loss.

Promotional packages The resort also offers a variety of promotional packages, which include residence stay at Flourish, offering a residence stay of between 14 and 28 nights among others; Stay four nights pay three nights with incentives such as daily breakfast and Flourish exclusive gift set; Stay three nights pay two nights with the offering of daily breakfast and mini bar with beers and snacks; Family escape vacation with two nights’ accommodation, daily breakfast, Flourish special gift set and complementary in-room mini-bar; luxury honeymoon for three nights or more with daily breakfast for two and welcome drinks with cold towels and Spa romance offering three nights or more, daily breakfast for two, complementary mini-bar and pool, tennis and gymnasium.

Shopping The resort comes with a well-stocked shopping mart where appealing and uniquely crafted African arts and crafts are on display among other treasured items.

Outdoor activities You can also explore a number of outdoors activities on the bill of the resort including; biking, hiking, bird watching, River Gambia excursion and safari. A princely treat also awaits you on Flourish’s chauffeur-driven Range Rover and airport limousine pick-up.

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Lagos Continental Hotel Plot 52, Kofo Abayomi St, Lagos Tel: 01 236 6666

Radisson Blu Hotel Ikeja #38/40 Isaac John St, Ikeja GRA100271, Ikeja Tel: +234-908-780 5555

206 Exclusive Hotel Plot 206 Oladipo Diya Road Opposite Olympia Estate

By Games Village Second Gate Durumi2 Abuja

Novotel Port Harcourt Address: 3 Stadium Road Rumuomasi, Port Harcourt Rivers State, Tel: 0809 713 5734

Radisson Lagos Ikeja #42-44 Isaac John Street, GRA Ikeja, Lagos

Southern Sun IkoyI Hotel Address: 47 Alfred Rewane Road, Ikoyi, Lagos Tel: +234 1 280 5200 / +234 1 280 0630 Email: ssikoyi.reservations@ tsogosun.com

Radisson Blu Anchorage Hotel 1A,Ozumba Mbadiwe,Victoria Island.

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Friday 30 August 2019

BUSINESS DAY

ENTERTAINMENT

AFRIMA final list throws up new stars

...Nasty C, Davido, Burna Boy, Tamer Hosny lead 6th AFRIMA Continental Nominees’ List OBINNA EMELIKE

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s part of the preparations for the grand finale of this year’s edition of the All Africa Music Awards, (AFRIMA) slated to hold in November, AFRIMA has released the final nominees’ list.

Artistes leading nominations in the final list released on August 25, 2019, which is also the continental category for the 6th edition include; Nasty C, South Africa’s prolific rapper and producer; Davido, African music definitive artiste; Burna Boy, Nigeria’s contemporary music talent, and Tamer Hosny, Northern Africa’s brilliant showman.

Nasty C led with nine nominations in the Best Male Artiste in Southern Africa, Artiste of the Year in Africa, Song of the Year in Africa, Producer of the Year in Africa, Best African Rapper/Lyricist, Best African Collaboration, Best Artiste, Duo or Group in African Hip-Hop, Songwriter of the Year in Africa and Best Artiste, and Duo or Group in African R’n’B & Soul categories.

Following closely is Davido with six nominations which include; Best Male Artiste in Western Africa, Artiste of the Year in Africa, Song of the Year in Africa, African Fans’ Favourite, Best Artiste, Duo or Group in African R’n’B & Soul, and Best African Collaboration for ‘Blow My Mind with Chris Brown’.

Burna Boy will be competing in five different categories which are Best Male Artiste in Western Africa, Artiste of the Year in Africa, Song of the Year in Africa, Album of the Year in Africa and Best African Collaboration with ‘Killin Dem’ featuring Zlatan’.

Egyptian artiste, Tamer Hosny had four nominations in the Best Male Artiste in Northern Africa, Artiste of the Year in Africa, Song of

the Year in Africa, and Songwriter of the Year in Africa categories.

Other artistes with multiple nominations include; Diamond Platnumz who had four nominations (Best Male Artiste in Eastern Africa, Artiste of the Year in Africa, Best Artiste, Duo or Group in African Pop and Best African Dance or Choreography category), and South Africa’s seasoned producer and DJ, Prince Kaybee with five spots (Artiste of the Year in Africa, Song of the Year in Africa, Producer of the Year in Africa, Best Artiste, Duo or Group in African Electro, and Best African Collaboration with ‘Banomoya’ featuring Busiswa & TNS. The late DJ Arafat, known for his infectious music rhythms and energetic dance, was posthumously nominated in the Best Male Artiste in Central Africa and Best African Dance or Choreography categories.

The list comprising the 26 continental award categories is coming

few days after the 6th AFRIMA regional categories comprising the Best Female and Best Male artistes within each of the five African regions were unveiled by the International Jury of AFRIMA during the World Media Conference held in Lagos on August 14, 2019, and broadcast live around the world on Africa Independent Television (AIT), RayPower Radio and Kennis FM. The continental categories are made up of the different genres of African music from hip-hop, jazz, R’n’B, pop and reggae, ragga and dancehall to other coveted categories such as ‘Song of the Year’, ‘Album of the Year’, ‘Producer of the Year’ and ‘Best African Collaboration’ among others.

Over 200 songs have been nominated from a variety of artistes in the continental and regional categories cutting across a host of African talents living on the continent and in the diaspora.

WARIF partners US Consulate Lagos on documentary film festival ANTHONIA OBOKOH

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ecently, the US Consulate Lagos held its annual documentary film festival, which featured films touching on topics relevant to both countries.

However, the Women at Risk International Foundation partnered with the US Consulate at this year’s event and led an engaging panel after the movie “I am Jane Doe”.

Directed by Mary Mazzio, the film explores the length some mothers took to wage war on a sex trafficking website - backpage.com which led to a court battle and an eventual change in policy. It highlighted the dangers of sex trafficking and the effects that it had on not just the survivor but her family and the community at large.

The panel, led by the founder of WARIF, Kemi DaSilva Ibru fea-

tured the director, Mary Mazzio via Skype, a mother – Chioma Afe (group head, retail marketing, Access Bank), Comfort Sanni (senior intelligence officer, NAPTIP), Tobore Ovuorie (award winning investigative journalist) and Mary Joseph (sex trafficking survivor).

It was an emotional but insightful session as the survivors discussed first hand, their experiences with the sex trafficking trade that leads to rape, physical violence, drug abuse and even murder.

Speaking at the event, DaSilva said: “It is important that we provide enabling platforms such as this event to have these conversations, as this provides the first step in identifying with the problem of human/sex trafficking so we can create an environment where the survivor is protected, sex traffickers and third parties www.businessday.ng

are prosecuted and policies are adopted or changed to address this issue”.

They also expressed the psychological effects these traumatic experiences had left them with.

Sanni from NAPTIP highlighted the grave statistics of the number of young girls trafficked annually, with the average age of 15 years and the challenges the agency faces with successfully dealing with this very lucrative trade.

Mazzio was also able to correlate these similar statistics and experiences met by young girls in the United States.

The session ended with an audience more aware of the prevalence of human trafficking, questions on creating more awareness to this issue were answered and all left with the promise of making a conscious effort to speak more and do more about these issues of gender-based violence.

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Meanwhile, public voting for the nominees to stand a chance to win the 23.9 Carat Gold-Plated AFRIMA trophy commences on September 1 on the AFRIMA voting platform www.afrima.org. Fans and followers of African music can access the online voting pages through the links on AFRIMA social media platforms or directly on the landing page on www.afrima.org.

Voting closes at midnight CAT on November 22.

Speaking on the final nominees’ list, Delani Makhalima, a member of the International Jury of AFRIMA representing Southern Africa, said: “As with each year, the musicians never cease to amaze us with their incredible talent. As jurors, we are impressed with the quality of work being produced. We are confident that the nominees’ list presented this year is a true reflection of world-class African talent and each year it gets harder and harder to judge and grade the standard, as

all regions on the African continent continue to surprise us by what we see and hear.

“It is encouraging to also see how the music lovers and fans are growing in record numbers to support the music. We are enthusiastic to see this wave of appreciation transcend across the border and overseas.

We would like to encourage more musicians, songwriters, and producers to keep submitting and spreading the word of AFRIMA so that we can celebrate together the progress and pinnacles of where African music is reaching”.

The 2019 AFRIMA Call for Entry for works produced within the entry submission window of August 1, 2018 – August 2, 2019, which opened worldwide on May 15 exceeded the 2018 submissions by 148 entries. Of the 8,157 entries submitted this year, Western Africa led the pack with 38 percent of the total entries followed by Southern Africa with 24 percent. Eastern Africa, Central Africa, and Northern Africa have 20 percent, 14 percent, and 4 percent respectively. The 13-man International Jury sat in Lagos from August 7-14, 2019, for screening, assessing, grading and selecting nominees into the 36 different regional and continental award categories.

The main awards event scheduled for November 20-23, 2019 will span four days packed with activities including; Welcome Soiree, Africa Music Business Summit, AFRIMA Music Village, a guided tour of the host city, exclusive nominees party and the main awards ceremony.

The main awards events will be broadcast live on over 84 stations across Africa and the Diaspora including live streaming on the AFRIMA website, the AFRIMA App, the AFRIMA social media handles and other online partner platforms.

Waje to host sensual musical concert IFEOMA OKEKE

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aje, a top Nigerian female artiste, is set to host her first ever music concert. The concert, which is tagged ‘Red Velvet’ will hold on September 1, 2019 at the Shell Hall Muson Centre, Onikan, Lagos.

According to the organisers, the concert will showcase the songbird’s latest critically acclaimed R&B album ‘Red Velvet’. With the concert, Waje delves into familiar territory to explore the passionate themes from the album with a distinctively new burlesque

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story-telling style. Attendees can expect a full-blown bedroom musical from sensual, soulful lovelorn ballads to fierce energetic affirmations.

Johnny Drille leads the pack of stars billed for the concert including MI, Adekunle Gold, Chike and Good girl LA amongst others. The event would be hosted by Chigul.

“I have wanted to do this for a long time, to sing my truth to the world, my way. My goal has been to have a very intimate, passionate experience with you! The stars have aligned and its finally time! Please join me” , she announced on Instagram.

Friday 30 August 2019

BUSINESS DAY

27

ENTERTAINMENT Doing Business Internationally Part 2 BUSINESS ETIQUETTE

JANET ADETU Continued from part 1

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Meeting Manners ou have agreed to have a meeting, the date, venue and time have been set. Please ensure that you understand the protocol behind meetings in that country. To play it safe arrive at your meeting place a little earlier than scheduled. Have your own agenda as to what you want to discuss; if possible communicate your agenda to your business colleague. Be vigilante, attentive and alert when, discussing.

Do more listening and less talking; to get the most out of your meeting. Stay relevant and talk to the point, address areas of concern and agree on moving forward. Meeting manners sets the tone of the kind of business partner you will be, remember you are not at home you are abroad. What is the meeting style of the country you are in? Please find out.

Dining Dilemma Your meeting may start formal and end with a social setting involving dining, this is a delicate part of doing business intentionally. How you dine, behave or conduct yourself at the table, speaks to how much decorum, manners and etiquette you have as a professional. From the moment you meet at a restaurant, to placing your order, the use of napkins, navigating the cutlery, chewing of food, drinking and toasting to the discussion you have at the table says a lot.

International dining etiquette must

be highly considered when dining on the international scene. Watch your table manners, your dining protocol, your conversation skills, and your overall conduct while dining. Enjoy your meal even if it means being adventurous with the food. It is not about the food but the companionship you cultivate while dealing with your possible business partners.

Body Basics Your non-verbal actions will always speak louder than words, what you communicate without saying a word is considered more impactful than your voice itself. It is important to be mindful during international business transactions so that what you communicate is exactly what is understood.

Some aspects of body language have varying meanings around the world which maybe taken as an offence if care is not taken. In some parts of Asia standing with your feet pointed directly at the other person is unacceptable and considered rude. In Africa receiving something from someone else with your left hand is also offensive. A courtesy or bow in some cultures is honored far more than a handshake if the person is much older than you or represents a big status symbol in society. To be safe ensure your body language is positive, when you stand ensure you are fully upright. Slouching, bending or leaning shows a lack of assertiveness as well as lack of confidence. Your facial expressions can also give you away easily, your eyes, brows, mouth and jaw must communicate in a positive way or you may lose credibility when you need it the most. In using your hands to gesture avoid closed gestures like closed palms, folded arms or looking away from others while talking. This action speaks to aggressiveness, arrogance, confrontational or conflict brewing. It is a good idea to recognize at this point finger actions too. Do not forget signs using your fingers are powerful and send strong messages, however they can also have negative connotations.

Do a little research on body language

usages in the business terrain you are visiting along with other fact findings.

To appear honest, open and friendly doing business internationally, show your palms more, be attentive, wear a constant smile, relax, be cordial and walk the walk of confidence.

Lazy Listening Business done on the international scene will always be challenged with a few communication barriers, so the skill of listening is very essential. There is no room for mediocrity or lazy listening, your full attention is paramount. You need to listen with intent, be present in the moment, know why you are there and push out all forms of distraction that may impair your business results.

A business deal entails maximum attention and picking up all fine detail including the ones in between the lines that are easily overlooked. These are the ones that have the potential to create unnecessary conflict and litigations in future. As you listen ask multiple questions where you are not sure or where you require further clarification. Your listening should always aim to gather facts, identify problems, aid decision making, conclude findings and ultimately position you and your business for greater heights. Once you are confident of what you have heard repeat it loud and clear.

Is it boring, defensive, enthusiastic, depressed, angry or happy? People react to the sound of your voice first before they assimilate the words said. If your voice is not harmonious listeners will tend to switch off, as a spontaneous reaction. Do you have any vocal indicators that can sabotage your communication?

Your voice clearly tells us about you, it indicates your character, personality, credibility, and overall confidence. What is essential when your voice is heard especially when you are in the international business scene is your tone of voice, the pace with which you pick your words, the volume in terms of how high or how low you speak, the pitch as regards the squeakiness or huskiness of your voice, the inflection in your words or the monotonous nature in the flow of your sentences and finally your accent and fluency. If you have identified an accent in your voice, try to speak slowly being mindful of your chosen words to effect clear communication.

It is always a good idea to attend a speech clinic to aid the fluency of your diction if you will be doing regular international business transactions.

‘

Do more listening and less talking; to get the most out of your meeting

Impressive Impression • Impress by being on time • Impress by looking the part • Impress by graceful grooming • Impress by acting and behaving positively • Impress by greeting in the foreign language • Impress by promising small and delivering big • Impress by being customer centric • Impress by remaining professional • Impress with a great attitude • Impress by doing the right thing

Valued Vocals Have you ever considered how your voice sounds, your vocal image on phone or in person? Are you connecting with your business colleagues or are you miscommunicating. Your voice says a lot about you and the impression that you leave in the minds of those who see you. You will already know if your voice is soft and gentle, you will already know how some people perceive you when you speak in an introversive manner, most times others may just tell you. On the other hand, you also need to be careful if you come across too forward, a little loud and lousy and at times a distraction. What does your voice sound like?

Best of luck on your business travels.

Janet.adetu@gmail.com Please share your experience with me by sending an email to or janet.adetu@jsketiquetteconsortium.com. / jtadetu@gmail.com Follow and like @janetadetu @jsketiquetteconsortium I look forward to hearing from you.

Reddot Television Network targets October for release of ‘Aluko’s Residence’ ...to run weekly on Ogelle platform OBINNA EMELIKE

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rom a humble press launch in Lagos, Nigeria’s commercial capital, in April 2019, Ogelle, Africa’s first user generated content platform with 100 percent focus on African content, has recorded impressive acceptance not just from users in Nigeria but all over Africa and globally.

To further deepen its footprint across Africa, Reddot Television Network, the parent company of Ogelle, is currently on locations across Nigeria’s commercial capital producing its flagship movie, ‘Aluko’s Residence’, set for release mid-October.

“We have over 4,000 videos on Ogelle, we have over 1,000 films from all over Africa on the platform, but none of them as at today was made by Reddot Television Network, the parent company of Ogelle.

Some of them we bought, some we leased, some are on revenue-sharing arrangement,” Osita Oparaugo, CEO, Reddot Television Network and producer of the movie, told journalists in Lagos at the weekend.

“This is the first time we are making our own film. We took our time to make sure the film we will make as our flagship film will be one that will travel globally and bring smiles on the faces of Africans and lovers of African content everywhere,” he said.

Aluko’s Residence, an approximately 30-minute-weekly comedy series designed for the entertainment of the general web audience, will run every Friday on Ogelle.com beginning mid-October, Oparaugo said.

It is the story of a newly married young couple with rather faulty marital foundation. Ola Aluko falls on hard times but is convinced by a pastor that getting married is the solution out of his stagnant career. His fiancée Ovie, a successful wedding planner, bails him out as she sponsors their wedding with the promise that he will repay as soon as fortune smiles on him.

The couple agree to keep this a secret and both families are not aware of this arrangement. The upheavals arising from this arrangement, the interference of family members who feel entitled, and the antics of the security man at the gate, Bill Gates (played by Monkals Kalu), are what make the drama tick.

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“The drama is the dynamics of the family. People will enjoy watching how everyday life is handled in the household,” said Jimi Odukoya, who plays the character of Ola Aluko.

“It also addresses different issues in the society, strategically focusing on things people are dealing with, and addressing certain social issues wrapped up in a comedic story,” he said.

On what makes the film unique and truly African, Oparaugo said it will be dubbed (lip-synched) in seven African languages, including Swahili and French.

“If you speak Swahili and that is your language as an African, you will watch ‘Aluko’s Residence’ in

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your language. It is going to come out in those languages such that when you go on Ogelle, you will select your preferred language and watch it in that language. It is lip-synched in those languages, so you will hear the voice of the same actor talking in your native language,” he said.

“We want to create an African drama and we are happy with the project. We are happy with the people we have got on board, fantastic individuals, from the writers to the directors, assistant producer, the actors themselves, the make-up artistes, etc – very fantastic people who are committed to getting the best out of this movie,” he further said.

Uru Eke, who plays Ovie Aluko, Ola’s wife, speaking on the lessons to be drawn from the movie, said as much as men don’t want to be at home and watch the woman run the household, they can learn from Ovie how she has been able to hold the home together.

“I think we should be supportive if our spouse is not working, encourage them, see ways that we can get them out there in the job market, constantly find ways to lift up their spirits because nobody wants to be out of job, no man wants to be sitting at home while the woman is going out there working and fending for the home,” she advised women.

“And try as much as possible just to keep peace in the home because one of the things she (Ovie) has to deal with is the constant bickering between her husband’s brother and her sister. Try to be the mediator and promoter of peace in the home as much as possible as well as going out to fend for the home,” she said.

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28 BUSINESS DAY

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Friday 30 August 2019

LEADINGWOMAN Ibironke, showcasing local content with new cinema hall DESMOND OKON

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Affiong Osuchukwu, the strategy, tech expert promoting wellness through food KEMI AJUMOBI

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ffiong Osuchukwu is the Founder & CEO of Oh So Nutrition, a lifestyle company focused on promoting wellness through food. Prior to her venture into plant-based food and beverage entrepreneurship, she spent over 20 years of her career in North America, Europe and Sub-Saharan Africa as a successful B2C and B2B brand, product and device marketing, strategy and tech expert. Some of her most notable positions include Chief Marketing Officer at Google in Nigeria, Regional head of YouTube marketing and Google Apps marketing, and strategy consultant at Deloitte serving Fortune 50 clients.

She was born in England and like many children of Nigerian parents at the time; she was fostered by an English family. Her parents did this while they focused on finishing university and holding down jobs. It was a thing back then. Affiong actually met and heard many stories that were similar to hers. She grew up in a small village in East Anglia and for 90% of her childhood; she was the only black person in the village. “Well, when I started my career in the US, nine times out of 10, I was the only black person, and oftentimes, the only woman in the room. It didn’t bother me, because I had lived with that most of my life. So I never shied away from speaking my mind or being vocal or doing what I had to do.” She said. She didn’t feel uncomfortable in many instances where most black people do today because she had been groomed for years on handling being the only one. “Race is very much still an issue around the world. Whether I’m travelling, in meetings or conferences or working with clients day to day, I am me, 100% Affiong, not the black person nor the woman. Racism can make you conscious of your skin colour most times. The Nigerian blood in my veins also added to my

boldness” Affiong reveals.

Her foray into plant-based living began six years ago due to health reasons, as well as, her desire for her family to live a healthier, wellbalanced, cleaner life. In 2014, Affiong was on the verge of a second major surgery and was wondering why. The one thing that came to her mind at the time was that it must be food. She had changed many other aspects of her lifestyle, but her diet had not changed at all. She was still eating and drinking the exact same way between one surgery and the next. “A series of tests revealed that there were a number of foods that I was also allergic or had very high sensitivities to as well. I had to completely change my eating habits overnight, going from being a conventional eater of practically everything to completely vegan, eating only plant-based foods.”

There are several questions on being Vegan. Questions like “Where do you get your protein?” Are you deficient in calories?” And, “you must only eat salads…how boring!” These are myths Affiong debunks saying “I hear these all the time. These are all far from the truth. Human beings are not actually designed to digest animal products. All the nutrients, protein and calories we need to function daily can be obtained from plant-based foods. As for eating salads all the time, also not true. I can make cheese out of cashews and ice cream out of fresh coconut.”

Having worked previously at Google, her experience there can surely not be forgotten. I say so because she tells me “When I joined Google in Nigeria, we were in start-up mode and I was the third full-time hire in the Lagos office. It has been one of my most exciting corporate roles to date - working for a global tech brand helping to ensure that people in Africa are connected to and empowered to participate and contribute to the global online ecosystem. Being at the forefront of that endeavour and actually meeting people who were posiwww.businessday.ng

tively affected by the programs I led was extremely fulfilling.” Affion says.

Having spent 20 years in developed countries and Sub-Saharan Africa, Affiong says there are so many things to learn from developed countries. She says, as Nigerians and Africans as a whole, we have to promote our own successes and achievements otherwise; the story of our country will always be one of doom and gloom.

Aside advising Nigerians to project positivity, she says “we need to have an export, not an import mindset. Put crude oil aside. Nigeria is blessed. We have access to significant resources that the world needs, yet much of it is untapped or exported in raw form.

We have to learn to add value to our resources and selling that value. This will help grow our economy, increase job opportunities, wealth creation and distribution.” Says Affiong.

According to her, each one of us is a work in progress and life is about constant evolution. “We are not trees; therefore we are not rooted to the ground and can move. People may look at me or read my profile and think ‘wow she’s accomplished’.

I laugh because I’ve failed woefully many times; I once lost everything I had ever owned. I was put on probation at university because my grades fell due to personal circumstances.

I found myself alone in a foreign country at 20 with no idea of how I was going to pay my school fees or remain there legally. You can knock me down 7 times, I will stand up 8. Always stand up, brush yourself off and keep stepping every day in the direction of your dreams. To realise your dreams, you must have grit, laser like focus, full sensory visualisation (imagine it into reality) and profound belief. And for now, I am still very much a work in progress.” Affiong admits.

n order to promote local content, Shileola Ibironke, CEO, Micro Media Marketing Limited, a big player in the distribution of local content for television, will be launching a cinema hall at its new subsidiary known as Heritage Mall. To be launched today, 30 August. The cinema hall is located in Abule Egba, and is equipped with two viewing screens with a capacity of nearly 200.

Speaking on the location at a media parley held in Lagos, Ibironke, told journalists at the event that the project was out of a desire to bring the cinema experience to the middle-income neighbourhoods.

“We chose the location because of the income level of the people in that environment, and the affordability of that. Are they lovers of entertainment? Do they seek these things in other places? Do they go to nerve centres to seek for this service? Yes they do, and we have a cluster of them,” she said.

Explaining how she discovered the hunger of the community for entertainment, she said a children’s day party was held at the same location and the turnout was overwhelming. “We were swamped by the crowd of fathers, mothers, and children who had nowhere to go. We wouldn’t be going to such a location if it wasn’t a high yielding income environment. The truth of the matter is that, that area is underserved and we are filling the gap,” she said further.

For a facility that is well equipped and built to bring services comparable to others anywhere in the world, the location

Read the concluding story of Affiong’s inspiring story on our website www.businessday.ng as she graces our Women’s Hub cover for this week. You are just a click away!

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could cast doubts as to the success of such venture given that most cinemas are situated in the crème de la crème places. But Ibironke is convinced that Heritage Mall would deliver its purpose, serving the underserved. “For us, not being in the central or key cities is a plus because we try to look at, where exactly is the underserved environment? Where do you want to play in the market? What chunk of that market share do you want to take?” She asked with great conviction.

Earlier, she had explained that going into cinema was a progress from just showing content on all media platforms, and because bringing value to consumers in all media is core of her organisation However, Ibironke, who has about 20 years of experience in the industry, emphasized the need for more cinemas in Nigeria, while saying that Heritage Mall was just the beginning of other chains that would come up.

According to her, for local content to be well promoted and generate more revenue, the number of cinemas, currently peg at 55 including hers, are not enough. “The future is opening more locations, expanding, offering the same opportunity for blockbuster content distribution to different localities in Nigeria.

That’s what will be beneficial to us” she said.

She further adds “The truth of the matter is that, the distribution of content, especially movies, is determined by the number of exhibiting halls that are available because that is where you can generate more revenues from. So the more halls that we have, the more the avenues that we have to generate more revenue”.

Friday 30 August 2019

Harvard Business Review

BUSINESS DAY

29

MANAGEMENTDIGEST

The big idea: Leading with trust SANDRA J. SUCHER AND SHALENE GUPTA

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ow do leaders earn trust — or lose it? Much the way that organizations do. People evaluate a leader’s trustworthiness on the same four dimensions they evaluate a company’s: competence, motives, means and impact. However, there’s one additional requirement for leaders: They must be seen to have obtained their positions through a rightful process. Otherwise, they won’t have legitimacy. Stakeholders who believe leaders haven’t come to power properly will be less likely to follow their direction and may even refuse to act on their requests.

Leaders can be stronger on some dimensions than others, but legitimacy and competence are more or less the trust equivalent of table stakes. It’s very hard to be trusted at all as a leader without those two. The next three dimensions make up the moral or ethical domain of trust, the areas where we judge leaders on the choices they make, whether it’s whose interests they serve (motives), how they go about achieving their goals (means) or whether they own all the effects they have on others’ lives (impact).

The more of these three dimensions a leader has established trust in, the more power he or she has. Which of the three matters most is usually situational. The key for leaders is to understand which dimensions are needed in their particular circumstances.

LEGITIMACY: If you’re not a company founder, the generally accepted path to the top in a corporation is to be elected by the board of directors. While employees and customers may not agree with the board’s choice, they don’t contest the selection because they respect the process.

Most company leaders do get their jobs in this manner. By itself,

however, it may not be enough.

Katharine Graham, the former publisher of The Washington Post, inherited a majority stake of the organization after the death of her husband, who had been appointed to run it by her father, the owner. To keep the Post in her family and carry on their vision for it, she decided to step in and was elected president of the company in 1963. Yet Graham began her tenure with shaky legitimacy. She had to win over workers who had been devoted to her charismatic husband, many of whom viewed her as an “ignorant intruder.” She also had to contend with a steep learning curve and her own deep feelings of inadequacy.

COMPETENCE: Constituents want leaders who are good at their jobs. If leaders don’t demonstrate skill, they won’t remain in their positions for long. Frequently, competence becomes a main route for leaders to gain legitimacy over time. This was exactly what happened with Graham, who led the Post to national prominence during the contentious years of the Pentagon Papers and the Watergate investigation that ended with the resignation of President Richard

Nixon. The Post’s journalistic successes resulted in a nearly 20fold increase in the company’s revenues, from $84 million when Graham took the helm in 1963, to $1.4 billion in 1991, when she stepped down.

MOTIVES: Leaders have to serve the interests of multiple stakeholders. Stakeholders understand that this often involves trade-offs. But if they believe a leader neglects their interests, consistently prioritizes one group (such as investors) over the others or is completely self-motivated, they will stop trusting that leader.

When starting Salesforce, in 1999, Marc Benioff made his motivations clear, outlining an agenda that looked beyond shareholders’ needs and included more than making profits. He vowed to donate 1% of the company’s revenue, 1% of its employees’ time and 1% of its product value to nonprofit organizations every year. In 2015, when Indiana passed a bill that would allow companies to deny service to LGBT customers, Benioff took a hard stand against it and Indiana quickly revised the law. By being transparent about his motives and showing concern for others,

Benioff has earned the trust of his employees, customers, shareholders and board.

MEANS: Leaders are responsible for deciding what means they’ll use to accomplish their goals and for setting the rules that shape their companies’ actions. If those rules are seen as fair, their constituents will trust leaders and give them more power.

In 2009, Jennifer Hyman cofounded Rent the Runway to remedy an inequitable situation women faced: If a man needed to attend a special event, he could rent a tuxedo, but a woman had to shell out a small fortune for a dress she would probably wear only once. So the company allowed women to pay just for one use of the dress.

Hyman’s human resources philosophy puts a sharp focus on fairness. In 2018, for example, she gave her hourly workers the same leave and sabbatical packages that her salaried employees had.

Though her main goal was fairness, she also hoped this move would improve productivity, lower training costs and increase retention not just among the hourly workers but among corporate employees who wanted to belong

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

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to an organization with good values.

The company enjoys 100% retention among working moms now, and Hyman’s approach appears to be paying off on other fronts as well. In March 2019, Rent the Runway’s valuation surpassed the $1 billion mark, giving the company “unicorn” status.

IMPACT: Like organizations, leaders are judged for the impact they create, regardless of whether the impact is intended.

Perhaps the most famous example of a leader who took ownership of unintended effects was Johnson & Johnson’s former CEO James Burke. In 1982, the company experienced a crisis when seven people died after swallowing cyanide-laced Tylenol capsules from bottles that had been tampered with. It would have been easy for Johnson & Johnson to sidestep responsibility, especially since the tampering did not occur inside J&J-owned facilities.

Instead, Burke immediately took control. He pulled Tylenol from the shelves, stopped advertising it, tested 8 million pills by the end of the first week of the recall, offered customers coupons to make up for the bottles they might have to throw away and had the company design a new tamper-evident triple seal.

There is no one way for leaders to gain, regain or keep the trust of their stakeholders, as these examples illustrate. But CEOs and others would be wise to take each of these dimensions seriously to ensure their companies are competitive and continue to bring in a profit. Because to do and keep their jobs, they must have the trust of the people who own their company, work for it and buy or use its products.

• Sandra J. Sucher is a professor of management practice at Harvard Business School, where Shalene Gupta is a research associate.

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Friday 30 August 2019

BUSINESS DAY

HEALTH BUSINESS&LIFE How Nigerian female entrepreneurs are bridging healthcare gaps through innovation

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ANTHONIA OBOKOH

igerian female entrepreneurs are increasingly bridging the gap in the country’s healthcare system through investment and innovation.

In Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation, access to good health care is a luxury many cannot afford.

No wonder the country’s average life expectancy rate is one of the lowest in the world at 52.2 years.

Since 2001 when Nigeria alongside Heads of State of member countries of the African Union (AU), “Abuja Declaration” declared to commit at least 15 percent of their annual budgets to improving their health sector, Africa’s largest economy has not attained the pledged funding benchmark as the federal government has never voted more than six percent of its annual budget to the health sector.

The highest percentage since the declaration was in 2012 when 5.95 percent of the budget was allotted to health.

However, some women in the country are making great contributions to the Nigeria’s health sector, thereby demonstrating equal strength as their male counter parts in the industry.

One of such entrepreneurs is

Awele Vivien Elumelu, chairperson of Avon Healthcare Limited and CEO of Avon Medical Services Limited.

As her contribution to the sector, Elumelu is providing healthcare insurance to thousands of Nigerians across the country.

She is helping to bridge the gap in Nigeria’s health sector by addressing some of the many issues bedevilling the sector. She is using her resource to provide health ser-

vices; by enabling access to health care delivery through insurance.

Today, Elumelu is also an African Ambassador for Gavi, the vaccine alliance driven by a public– private global health partnership committed to increasing access to immunisation in poor countries.

Elumelu stepped in pretty early; in the pre-seed of healthcare delivery, capital investment as well as her invaluable digital health expertise.

She looks to invest in simply to help provide affordable, quality healthcare to Nigerians and has also been committed to strengthening the relationship between health insurance agencies and healthcare providers.

“We need to be able to work together to deliver healthcare at the level that we would all like it to be,” Elumelu said.

Similarly, Ola Orekunrin Brown, chief executive officer (CEO), Flying

Doctors Nigeria is bridging the gap in the healthcare sector through her one of a kind initiative.

Flying Doctors Nigeria was founded by the medical doctor, helicopter pilot and the healthcare entrepreneur, after her younger sister died on a trip in Nigeria.

Today, the West Africa’s first air ambulance service has over 20 aircraft, which have airlifted more than 500 air travellers.

In her remark, Brown mentioned that her health company looks for scalability and less capital intensive opportunities and is excited about providing urgent medical assistance in trauma and emergencies situations.

“As healthcare advances, more can be done to treat patients that have what were previously disabling or life threatening conditions like burns, severe injuries or strokes. But, in order to provide complex healthcare safely, profeswww.businessday.ng

sional teams need to see sufficient volumes of patients with a particular condition,” Brown said.

She is building indigenous companies to take care of these needs in a hugely untapped market as well as solutions to access and affordability for underserved communities “The potential benefits from specialisation are greater for some life threatening conditions like heart attacks and major injuries, but the safest treatments cannot be provided at small general hospitals because there are not enough patients for teams to maintain their skills. More lives can be saved if advanced services are centralised in more specialist hospitals,” she further said.

She added that the importance of focusing on from hospital determinants of health that lie upstream cannot be overstated as Health systems in Nigeria should focus on optimising resource allocation, reducing the disparity in healthy access and quality of health within the majority, rather than extending life for the minority.

The push into Private-Public Partnerships (PPP) to improve the health and well-being of citizens is helping to shape Nigeria’s health sector.

Njide Ndili, Country Director (Nigeria) at PharmAccess Foundation is creating impacts with

digitalisation and collaborations.

PharmAccess is an international non-profit organisation with a digital agenda dedicated to connecting more people in sub-Saharan Africa to better healthcare, Ndili is Nigeria’s director.

Ndili, with a demonstrated history of working in the healthcare industry, skilled in health systems design and financing, Information

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technology, healthcare management, Business Process Improvement, Public and Private sector advocacy and communication is deepening and strengthening healthcare service delivery in Nigeria.

“In the context of the global push for UHC by 2030, the implementation of a digital platform for health insurance scheme’s operations is pivotal. Such a platform connects key stakeholders-the payers, patients and providers-and enables communication, data and money transfers,” Ndili said.

She is of the opinion that, to help build capacity in a structured system all stakeholders must, unite to make health care business a prerequisite.

Equally, Clare Omatseye, managing director/CEO at JNC International (JNCI), President Healthcare Federation of Nigeria-HFN is also advocating for States and PrivatePublic Partnerships to address challenges such as inadequate infrastructure, poor primary health facilities, malnutrition, poor health

emergency response, brain drain in the health sector, to mention but a few.

She is an active advocate of affordable healthcare in Nigeria.

Through her advocacy, she is improving collaboration among stakeholders in the healthcare.

“Public private partnership is built on sustainability; it means collaboration with one another, committing to strategies that will increase visibility and deepen financing business of health penetration and not people dictating policy,” Omatseye said.

Omatseye is currently the vice president of the West Africa Healthcare Federation, founded in 2004, @Businessdayng

with the vision to make a difference in the medical infrastructure industry in Nigeria, through the delivery of innovative medical diagnostic and interventional technology solutions and after sales service.

“We need to get our policies right, both public and private sectors together develop. There are different policies but we also found out that the biggest problem is implementation”, she said.

However, it’s been widely researched that diverse teams perform better. Pamela Jackson-Ajayi, founder and managing director, Synlab Nigeria is also tapping into

the healthcare innovation through technology expansion in medical devices and laboratory.

Ajayi’s interest defines the road map for providing quality pathology services in Nigeria.

Through her dynamic leadership, Synlab Nigeria has created a national and regional footprint as a leading provider of pathology services in numerous states across Nigeria.

“Nigeria needs more doctors to challenge us by using us and requesting for more of our specialised services to help manage their patients. Many still don’t know that all these tests are available here and that they can access their patients’ results anywhere they are in the country or even the world,” Ajayi said.

She also suggested that that the government has a significant role to play in the process. “If it is not possible to provide this level of care in government institutions, then the government needs to enable the private sector to assist in delivering these services.”

‘The establishment of PPPs is a good start but a lot more needs to be done to reverse the brain drain and provide an enabling environment where healthcare institutions can flourish.”

Friday 30 August 2019

BUSINESS DAY

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HEALTH BUSINESS&LIFE Expert says utilisation of health partnership most viable solution to healthcare challenges ... Kwara releases N232m to address maternal and child health SIKIRAT SHEHU, Ilorin

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ahya Oloriegbe, a medical doctor and the chairman senate committee on health, says that utilisation of opportunities abound in health partnership is the most viable solution to the challenges bedevillinghealthsectorinKwaraState.

Oloriegbe, stated this while delivering his speech at the Kwara State Health Symposium with the theme ‘Partnership for Health Innovation: Towards Creating a sustainable Health Care System in Kwara State’ held recently at G-Pinnacle Hotels, Ilorin.

The legislator explained that all it takes to achieve a sustainable health care system in a State is sincerity of purpose, political will, honesty and transparency by the people in government.

He says once these could be provided, plenty opportunities can be harnessed and accessed from willing donors, health volunteers and agen-

cies across the world.

On the steps taking by the present government in achieving a qualitative health care delivery, the lawmaker revealed that “extensive and promising works are ongoing, and at the end of the day, there will be a review of what is on ground and we shall come up with a resolution that will benefit all Nigerians and our people in Kwara State.”

He promises to use his position as the head of health committee at the senate to benefit Kwarans and improve the health status of Kwara State.

Oloriegbe, however noted that, “Kwara, though poor, but the state of financial ground shouldn’t prevent it from having a robust health system and plans in place.

“Sincerely, health sector of Kwara is not the only area begging for attention.

Other areas are also needing painstaking attentions to put Kwara back on the sustainable health programme.”

River blindness transmission interrupted in plateau, Nasarawa, Kaduna, says FG GODSGIFT ONYEDINEFU, Abuja

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he Nigerian government on Wednesday announced that Onchocerciasis (river blindness) disease has been interrupted in three endemic states of Plateau, Nasarawa and Kaduna, while transmission of the disease is suspected to have been interrupted in Zamfara, Kebbi, Oyo and Bauchi States.

The permanent secretary, Federal Ministry of Health, Abdulaziz Mashi Abdullahi, said the implication is that about 4.2 million persons are no longer in need of Mass Administration of Medicines for Onchocerciasis in the endemic Local Government Areas of the three states where the disease has been interrupted.

In a statement by the ministry spokesperson, Ogundoro Modupe, Abdullahi said with the achievements in the states,

Nigeria has joined other countries like Columbia, Ecuador, Uganda, Guatemala and Mexico in the Americas and Awi Zone in Ethiopia in the interruption of transmission of river blindness.

The permanent secretary explained that the impact assessment exercise carried out in several States using epidemiological and entomological parameters, following the recommendations of the National Onchocerciasis Elimination Committee (NOEC) indicates the interruption of the disease in the States, while entomological studies is ongoing to confirm the interruption in Zamfara, Kebbi, Oyo and Bauchi States.

He informed that nearly all States have maintained a minimum of 65 percent therapeutic coverage for the last 7 years, while overall treatment have risen from about 200,000 persons in 1991 to over 70 million by 2018, including people living in conflicts areas.

Explainer: Why is birth registration important in Nigeria?

ANTHONIA OBOKOH

T

he profiles of at least 17 million Nigeria children have no identity, a child without a birth certificate is unable to verify their age and this has negative effect on many areas of the child’s life in terms of access to healthcare, basic education, and right to a name, which has implications for nationality.

In addition, an unregistered child is more at risk of being exploited for child labour, arrested and treated as an adult in the justice system, and being forcibly recruited into the armed forces, child marriage, or of being trafficked.

Nigeria has the largest population of unregistered children in subSahara Africa. Data on the availability, distribution and trends in birth registration has shown the country has the highest numbers of unregistered children under five, which has prevented effective planning.

The burden of children under the age five unregistered each year remains heavy in many African countries.

However, with about 70 percent of children in Nigeria not having their births registered, the National Population Commission (NPC) Lagos state, has also recorded over 1.4 million children with no birth registration, according to Rapidsms.org a global birth registration platform.

Sharon Oladiji, child protection specialist at the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), said between now and 2030, 136 million babies will be born in Nigeria at 9 million births per year and from 2031 until midcentury there will be 224 million more.

“Assuming the current trends persist, a Nigerian will be born for 11 global births in 2050. A special attention is required for the under-five children in Nigeria. Investing in girls and women, especially in reproductive health, education and preventing child marriage is important for Africa’s demographic transition,” she said.

What is birth registration?

Birth registration is the first step towards recognising a child’s inalienable right as a human being; this means that the birth is officially recorded by a branch of a government or state.

A birth certificate sets out the child’s legal name, their date of birth and their place of birth.

The certificate can stop a child from becoming ‘stateless’ a situation in which a person has no recognised nationality and unregistered children are often members of particular indigenous, religious or ethnic groups.

What does law say about birth registration?

In Nigeria, there are provisions in the current legislation for birth registration. The Federal Government’s decree No. 69 of 1992 on vital registration states that registration shall be carried out free of charge, within a period of 60 days from the date of birth.

In Nigeria, children birth is registered in the National Population Commission. However, in Nigeria, there are provisions in the current legislation for birth registration. The 2003 Child Rights Act in its Section 5 states that: ‘Every child has the right to a name and the birth of every child shall be registered’.

What are the challenges of birth registration?

Some parents are struggling to have their child’s birth registered. In Nigeria, this causes huge problems, creating barriers to accessing services, basic child and human rights, education and health service.

However, corruption at different government regulatory agencies and lack of public awareness on the importance of birth registration; coupled with ingrained social and cultural belief promotes the nonregistration of births and deaths of children. Education actors do not appreciate or see the birth certificate as a prerequisite for monitoring enrolment and dropout rates, resulting

in millions of children living without birth certificates in Nigeria today.

Doyin Odubanjo, chairman, Association of Public Health Physicians of Nigeria, Lagos Chapter, said for Nigeria to progress in birth registration, there should be connection with the local government, health systems and services to ensure every new born child is counted and information are documented.

“Engaging the religious bodies to encourage members on the need to register their child at birth is also a strategy that can help, I urge that citizens should embrace registration for easy identification and policy making,” said Odubanjo.

Oladiji added that prioritisation of interventions are needed to accelerate progress, especially amongst the poor in rural areas and among socially disadvantaged groups.

What are the possible consequences of a weak birth registration system?

According to Pernille Ironside, deputy representative, UNICEF Nigeria, to achieve Birth Registration for all children in Nigeria, they have been addressing bottlenecks that impede Registration. We have been doing this with the fantastic support of EU in Nigeria.

“The consequences of a weak birth registration system are incapacity to generate relevant public health data and national estimates and population planning; poorly functioning civil registration directly affects the exercise of basic human rights,” Oladiji, the UNICEF Child Protection Specialist She added that to achieve free and universal birth registration, formulating and enacting laws, policies and standards-dealing with two parallel and competing, birth registration systems, improving service delivery identifying barriers, encouraging innovation, forging community based-approaches.

Continued online @www. businessday.ng

THE TRAVEL CLINIC

Executive Travel Health: Tips for pregnant travellers

Dr Ade Alakija Medical director, Q-life Family Clinic & Member: Nigerian Society of Travel Medicine (NSTM)

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omen experience physiologic changes in pregnancy that requires special consideration when travelling. With careful preparation, however, most pregnant women can travel safely.

The pre-travel evaluation of a pregnant traveller should begin with a careful medical and obstetric history, with attention paid to

HBL TEAM

gestational age and evaluation for high-risk conditions.

A visit with an obstetrician should be a part of the pretravel assessment, to ensure routine prenatal care as well as identify any potential problems. The traveler should carry a copy of her prenatal records and physician’s contact information.A review of the pregnant woman’s travel itinerary, including destinations, accommodations, and activities, should guide pretravel health advice.

Pregnant woman must be knowledgeable on avoidance of travelassociated risks, the management of minor pregnancy discomforts, and recognition of more serious complications which include: Bleeding, severe pelvic or abdominal pain, contractions or premature labor, premature rupture of the membranes, symptoms of preeclampsia (unusual swelling, severe headaches, nausea and vomiting, vision changes), severe vomiting, diarrhea, dehydration, and symptoms of deep vein thrombosis (unusual swelling of leg

with pain in calf or thigh) or pulmonary embolism (unusual shortness of breath) which require urgent medical attention.

Pregnant travellers should pack a health kit that includes items such as prescription medications, hemorrhoid cream, antiemetic drugs, antacids, prenatal vitamins, medication for vaginitis or yeast infection, and support hose, in addition to the items recommended for all travelers.

Pregnant travellers should consider packing a blood pressure monitor if travel may limit access to a health center with blood pressure monitoring available. It is very important that the pregnant woman is checked for immunity to infectious diseases, for example, hepatitis A and B, rubella, varicella, measles, pertussis; update immunizations as needed.

Before travel, it is advised she checks airline and cruise policies for pregnant women. She should also carry copies of medical records, letter confirming due date and fitness to travel and travel insurance.

The pregnant traveler is also advised to prepare for obstetric care at destination, arrange for obstetric care at destination, as needed, review signs and symptoms requiring immediate care which include: Pelvic or abdominal pain, bleeding, rupture of membranes, contractions or preterm labor, symptoms of preeclampsia (unusual swelling, severe headaches, nausea and vomiting, vision changes),vomiting, diarrhea, dehydration, symptoms of potential deep vein thrombosis or pulmonary embolism (unusual swelling of leg with pain in calf or thigh, unusual shortness of breath). Although travel is rarely contraindicated during a normal pregnancy, complicated pregnancies require extra consideration and may warrant a recommendation that travel be delayed.

Pregnant travelers should be advised that the risk of obstetric complications is highest in the first and third trimesters.Obstetric emergencies are often sudden and life-threatening.

Travel to areas where obstetric care

ANTHONIA OBOKOH / Reporters. Email: obokoh.anthonia@businessdayonline.com

may be less than the standard at home is inadvisable.

For women traveling in the third trimester of pregnancy, it is recommended to identify international medical facilities capable of managing complications of pregnancy, delivery, a cesarean section, and neonatal problems.

Many health insurance policies do not cover complications of pregnancy or the newborn overseas.

Supplemental travel health insurance should be strongly considered to cover pregnancy-related problems and care of the neonate, as needed.

Evacuation insurance that includes coverage of pregnancy-related complications is also highly encouraged.

Pregnant women should be advised to wear seat belts, when available, on all forms of transport, including airplanes, cars, and buses.

A diagonal shoulder strap with a lap belt provides the best protection.

Continue next week

I Samuel Iduh, Graphics

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Friday 30 August 2019

BUSINESS DAY

Corporate Social Impact

Onuwa Lucky Joseph (08023314782) Editor.

How The SERAs is becoming the Gold-Standard Recognition for CSR and Sustainability in Africa – Part 2 Stories by ONUWA LUCKY JOSEPH

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e here serve you the concluding part of the interview with Ken Egbas, CEO of TruContact, organisers of the SERA Awards, the 13th edition of which is scheduled to hold in Lagos on the 9th of November, 2019.

Enjoy the read.

Nigeria met only one of the nine Millennium Development Goals (MGD’s). Are we currently on track to meet the SDGs by 2030?

Honestly, it was sad to see that Nigeria, with all her resources and human capacity, could only meet one of the nine goals. I believe there were a lot of factors that contributed to this. However, the onus for the actualization of these goals falls squarely under the ambit of the federal government of each member nation of the UN. With regards to the millennium goals, political will and ethical leadership were absent. When such is the case, galvanizing the private and public sectors to act in ways and manners that would drive the objectives becomes impossible.

The other sore point for the MDGs was the paucity of documentation and a concise method through which measurement could be effected. Anything you do not document cannot be measured, and if you cannot measure it, you definitely cannot improve upon it.

However, in the case of the SGDs, there has been an improvement. Today, we have a special assistant to President Buhari on the SDGs in the person of Princess Adejoke Adefulire, who was former deputy governor of Lagos state. You find her everywhere there is an SDG related activity.

She has done excellently in trying to energize the private and public sector partnership that forms the bedrock of the ability to achieve the set target. This for me is a step in the right direction.

But again, the chances of success would only heighten when the political leadership owns the goals and objectives, and shows the sincerity and political will to make things happen. We have seen President Paul Kagame do such for Rwanda. President Muhammadu Buhari would find himself in good company if he follows suit.

What does your listing in 2018 amongst The Global 100 influential Leaders in the world – one of only two Africans that made the list – connote for the industry in Nigeria?

To be honest, I never saw that coming. I recall my team wanting to put together a small event to celebrate it, but I had to make

Ken Egbas

them understand that in as much as it was a noteworthy achievement, I did not see a reason to be outlandish about it as there was still so much to be done, and on a personal note, I was of the view that strategically, we had only reached the 30 percent milestone of what we set out to achieve.

Having said that, being listed alongside the likes of Laura Chapman Rubbo of Walt Disney, Lisa Jackson – vice president at Apple, Kate Brandt of Google, Tim Mohin – CEO of Global Reporting Initiative, and Rose Stuckey Kirk of Verizon and all the others does count for a career high for me.

As such, I am grateful to Assent Global for the honor.

But most importantly, even though it’s my name on the list, I represent all the irrepressible, supremely talented, and dedicated

team of people I am blessed to work with on a daily basis. This honour belongs to them all.

On what it connotes for the industry, permit me to say it in pidgin language as our brothers and sisters from Warri would say, “Naija no dey carry last” (laughs).

For me, it’s also an acknowledgement of the industry advancement going on in Nigeria. If you look around, there is a rich ecosystem in place. Recently, a colleague in the industry also got listed on the board of a global reporting body.

Another colleague who works in one of Nigeria’s top banks has become so active that through her, her bank is leading the conversations around sustainable banking principles on the floor of the UN and getting banking institutions around the world to toe their path.

A lot has happened in the Nige-

rian sustainability industry that is positive. I am happiest about these developments because at the start, I was like a lone voice crying in the wilderness, but now we are a chorale of voices singing sweet tunes. I have enjoyed the privilege of being invited to several international fora to share the best practices from Nigeria and Africa, and our colleagues are always pleasantly surprised by the progress we are making in Africa.

What is the future of CSR and Sustainability in Nigeria and Africa?

The future is indeed very bright.

We are playing the catch-up game quite well. The growing knowledgeable manpower is also helping the industry a great deal.

Conversations are moving up from lower and middle level management staff right into the C-Suites.

So, everything is going according to plan thus far irrespective of the occasional bumps. However, organizations must note the new trends that are currently shaping the conversations globally and would be indicators of future success in CSR and sustainability for organizations. I am taking about issues such as social inclusion, expansion of the diversity conversation, focused and forwardthinking brand activism, shift from disaster recovery to climate resilience, more CSR in the Csuites, higher standards for suppliers, prioritizing privacy and data protection, and gender equality.

These issues will determine and enhance market positioning in the now and future.

Having successfully positioned The SERAS CSR Awards Africa as a glamorous business awards on the continent, what do you see it growing into in the future?

Again, I will be entirely honest with you; I was as surprised

as all those who attended last year’s awards when I walked into the venue and beheld the stage and all the other razzmatazz that went with it (laughs). I happen to be blessed with a wonderful and gifted team. I was out of the country and only arrived a day to the awards ceremony. It went to prove to me that as an organization, we had come of age and I do not necessarily need to be around for the right things to happen. The 2018 edition was the most glamorous yet. So, it makes me wonder what could happen the day we find a sponsor to bankroll the event.

It was the same thing that happened when the awards statuettes were redesigned by R.S. Owens, the same company that makes the OSCARS and Golden Globe statuettes. My team felt it was time to upgrade on what we had at the time. I did not object to their suggestion until I was presented with the cost of each unit of the present statuette, I recall walking out of the meeting, I couldn’t understand how they expected us to be able to purchase a single unit at nearly two thousand dollars apiece, when you multiply the figure by 25, it give you an ideas of the cost of the trophies alone, which by the way makes it the costliest we have seen around. Eventually, we were able to pull it off. These days, I am happy when I visit some of these organizations and see the statuettes perched on the mantelpiece of the CEO’s office.

Today, The SERAS CSR Awards is not only Africa’s biggest and most credible of its kind, it is actually the premier CSR and sustainability awards on the continent.

It began in Nigeria. In the future, we intend to push the boundaries a little more. Possibly from the next few editions we have plans to host it at other African cities such as Johannesburg, Nairobi, Cairo, and Kigali before possibly returning to Lagos. It would help the rest of Africa feel our vibes and catch the CSR and sustainability fever. On our plans for the 2019 awards which hold on November 9th, I would say to you, attend the awards. Each preceding year has always been an upgrade of the previous. Our goal is to position The SERAS for CSR and Sustainability the same way that The OSCARS is positioned in the movie industry, as the top most rated honour in the industry.

How do organizations enter or participate in The SERAS? It is by logging onto the project website www.theseras.com and all the registration details would be found therein. Entries are currently open and will close shortly. After which we embark on the field and verification visits to locations indicated in entries Conttinues on page ??

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Friday 30 August 2019

BUSINESS DAY

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Corporate Social Impact

Reliance Industries emerges Most Philanthropic Company in India Stories by ONUWA LUCKY JOSEPH

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n India, Unlike in Nigeria, corporates are mandated by law to set aside and use at least 2 per cent of their net profits for CSR projects in fields such as health and education. Quite a number of the organisations didn’t like this when it was legislated and became law. But as if that was not enough, government recently came up with a policy that stipulate a jail time of 3 years in addition to fines for CEOs whose companies fall short of the CSR rules. Jail time for lack of charity?

Industry leaders didn’t find it funny.

In a pragmatic twist to the tale, however, just before the law was scheduled to come into effect, the Indian government issued a statement on August 13th, according to the Indian Economic Times, to the effect that “it will not operationalise the changes to the Companies Act pertaining to CSR spending.” According to the report, “the decision took cognisance of recommendations made by a high-level committee that suggested violations of CSR spending norms be treated as civil offences, liable to pecuniary punishment in the form of fines.”

The removal of jail time for CSR violation will come as relief for India Inc,

Mukesh Ambani of Reliance Industries

which is grappling with an economic slowdown in the domestic market.

But why did the government initially decided to take the stricter route? Because according to KPMG “the amount spent on CSR activities by the 100 biggest companies was less than the prescribed expenditure.” Companies were cutting cor-

ners, not aware that government’s vigilant eyes were on them all the while.

With regards to CSR spend by various industries, the Power sector was adjudged the highest spender, followed by Banking, IT and Metals. The Education and Healthcare sectors enjoyed the most corporate patronage netting more than 50% of the combined CSR spend: Rs 3,893 ($543,715,845.00.) Other areas that received significant attention were Rural Development and Environmental Causes.

However, despite the overall increase in the amount spent on

CSR activities, there was a marked decline in the number of projects executed. In 2016-17, 1,897 CSR projects were undertaken, as compared to 1,517 projects in the subsequent year. This anomaly can be attributed to corporate entities spending more on focused projects instead of diffused outlay on multiple such endeavours.

Reports from the Ministry of Corporate Affairs shows that Reliance Industries spent Rs 640 crore ($89,385,600.00) towards CSR activities, the highest among Indian companies. NTPC and ONGC, two public sector companies came second and third on the list, with Rs 482 crore ($67,318,530.00) and Rs 409 crore ($57,122,985.00) respectively spend on CSR projects. Other notable names in the Top 10 are Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) and Tata Steel as well as Infosys.

One take-away? The example of India shows that public sector companies should not be exempt from CSR contributions. Unlike here, where government is forever bailing out the public sector, they do in fact, owe it to their host and other communities to contribute to their overall social/infrastructural development.

We need to see more of this in Nigeria, going forward.

Nestlé partners IITA on ‘Nestle Needs Youth’

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estlé Nigeria announced a partnership with the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) and Youth Agripreneurs to celebrate the 2019 International Youth Day at the IITA Conference Centre in Ibadan, Nigeria, through one of its flagship program, Nestlé Needs Youth.

Nestlé Needs Youth is one of the ways Nestlé endeavours to mitigate the scourge of youth unemployment in the society. “We ensure that we train, equip and give support for young Nigerians so they can be self-employed and get employment with us or other companies,” Sola Akinyosoye, Country Human Resources Manager for Nestlé Nigeria, said.

The 2019 International Youth Day celebrate drew more than 90 National Youth Service Corps members, aspiring Agripreneurs as well as budding farmers at the IITA Centre in

Ibadan, where they received training on opportunities existing within the food and agriculture value chain.

Speaking at the event, the Chief Executive Officer, Business Incubation Platform, IITA, Dr. Fredrick Schreurs, said that youth engagement would pave way for sustainable growth in the agriculture sector. “We take technology coming from IITA

and disseminate them to the markets; in line with this, we create jobs for youth Agripreneurs,” he added.

IITA is a non-profit institution that generates agricultural innovations to meet Africa’s most pressing challenges of hunger, malnutri-

tion, poverty, and natural resource degradation. Working with various partners across sub-Saharan Africa, they improve livelihoods, enhance food and nutrition security, increase employment, and preserve natural resource integrity.

How The SERAs is becoming the Gold-Standard...

Conttinued from page ??

received. This is what stands us out and has kept us going credibility wise – we investigate every single claim made. We spend at least eight weeks on the road verifying projects, interviewing heads of the organizations, beneficiaries and other key stakeholders. The visual and audio recording are then handed over to the judges committee that includes Deborah Leipziger- who is president of the jury, and her co-jurists such as Jonathon Hanks (CEO, Incite, South Africa), Scott Walker (CEO Nylon Consulting, UK), Tunde Arogunmati (former president of the Nigeria British Chamber of commerce, Nigeria), Maria Sillanpaa (The Netherlands), Nyasha Gwatidzo (Zimbabwe), Jahman Anikulapo (Nigeria), Olusegun McMedal (Chairman, Nigerian Institute of Public Relation, Lagos, Nigeria) Adesuwa Onyenokwe (Nigeria). They usually have two sittings.

The first sitting is to go through the entries and nominate finalists for each category and the final sitting which happens just before the awards D-day is to vote and decide on deserving winners.

What is your final word?

If you would permit me, I would like to restate the quote of William Clay Ford, Jr., who used to be chairman of the board and CEO of Ford Motor Company, and he puts it this way: “There is a difference between a good company and a great company.

A good company offers excellent products and services. A great company also offers excellent products and services, but also strives to make the world a better place.”

You will agree with me that we have so many good companies in Nigeria and Africa who inundate the market places with excellent products and services. What the market seeks now and in the future are great companies. We do have so many that already possess the capacity and capability to be great companies. We are hereby calling them hither. If you are an organization out there investing in CSR, sustainability, sustainable development, or innovation, you should be a part of The SERAS. There is no future for business until we make the future our business.

Thank you.

Former Tottenham midfielder Abidemi Andero donates to Nigeria female soccer teams

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bidemi Andero was in town recently to reconnect with her roots. While here, the former Tottenham Hotspurs midfielder who also featured for Crystal Place and Fulham took out time to donate food items to teams playing in the Nigeria Women’s Premier League (NWPL).

The donations were made through the Save Women Football Foundation (Swoff).

The former midfielder recalled her time in Nigeria where she played for the now defunct Flying Babes and Awori United. They were good days, she recalled. She knows how tough it can be in the women’s league which

does not get the kind of support necessary to enable the young ladies make a thriving career of their sport locally.

Andero is of the belief that “the situation of women football in Nigeria will not get better until those of us who have played the game before take it as a duty to contribute to its growth….There is nobody from anywhere that will come and save women’s football for us. We are the ones to save it and that’s why I have decided to partner with Swoff to contribute to the welfare of players of NWPL clubs.”

She used the opportunity to “encourage fellow ex-footballers both in diaspora and within Nigeria to see www.businessday.ng

the need to ensure that the league continues to improve and welfare of the players are taken care of.”

While presenting some of the items to players of Confluence Queens in Lokoja, Moses Bako who is the chairman of Swoff, appreciated the efforts of Abidemi “for believing in Swoff and partnering with us to touch the lives of our Nigeria women’s footballers”. He disclosed that selected teams across the country with issues of welfare over unpaid salaries and bonuses will benefit from the donation (For feedback, contact us at csrmomentum@gmail.com/ 08023314782)

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Abidemi Andero donation. Inset: Abidemi Andero @Businessdayng

34

Friday 30 August 2019

BUSINESS DAY

Live @ The Exchanges Market Statistics as at Thursday 29 August 2019

Top Gainers/Losers as at Thursday 29 August 2019 LOSERS

GAINERS Opening

Closing

Change

Company

Opening

Closing

Change

NESTLE

N1240

N1245

5

DANGCEM

N165.5

N162.5

-3

FO

N15.4

N16.45

1.05

N140.95

N138.85

-2.1

TOTAL

N96.5

N97.1

0.6

UNILEVER

N29

N28

-1

AFRIPRUD

N3.5

N3.8

0.3

FLOURMILL

N14.3

N13.5

-0.8

FBNH

N4.8

N4.95

0.15

N5

N4.55

-0.45

Company

MTNN

UACN

ASI (Points) DEALS (Numbers)

VOLUME (Numbers) VALUE (N billion) MARKET CAP (N Trn)

27,425.57

FTSE 100 Index 7,184.32GBP +69.61+0.98%

Nikkei 225 20,460.93JPY -18.49-0.09%

3,129.00

S&P 500 Index 2,925.88USD +37.94+1.31%

Deutsche Boerse AG German Stock Index DAX 11,838.88EUR +137.86+1.18%

Generic 1st ‘DM’ Future 26,386.00USD +349.00+1.34%

Shanghai Stock Exchange Composite Index 2,890.92CNY -2.84-0.10%

116,069,148.00 1.651 13.342

Stock market down by 0.66% as investors resort to profit taking Stories by Iheanyi Nwachukwu

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igeria’s stock market declined by 0.66 percent at the close of trading on Thursday August 29 as investors continued their profit taking actions following recent rally.

The market routed further south despite analysts’ expectation of some position taking decisions in favour of banking stocks ahead of their interim dividends qualification.

Dangote Cement Plc led other stocks in the underperformers’ league.

The stock price of Dangote Cement declined from N165.5 to N162.5, losing N3 or 1.81percent.

MTNN moved down from N140.95 to N138.85, losing N2.1 or 1.49percent.

Unilever decreased from N29 to N28, after shedding N1 or 3.45percent. Flour Mills dropped from N14.3 to N13.5, down by 80kobo or 5.59percent. UACN dipped from N5 to N4.55, losing 45kobo or 9percent.

On the gainers table,

Nestle Nigeria Plc led the chart after its share price moved up from N1240 to N1245, adding N5 or 0.40percent.

Forte Oil Plc also rallied from N15.4 to N16.45, adding N1.05 or 6.82percent, followed by Total Nigeria Plc which increased from N96.5 to N97.1, adding 60kobo or 0.62percent. FBN Holdings Plc also advanced

from N4.8 to N4.95, adding 15kobo or 3.13percent.

The Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) All Share Index (ASI) closed lower at 27,425.57 points from 27, 607.02 points recorded the preceding trading day.

The stock market is down by 1.35percent week-to-date (WtD), while month-to-date (MtD) it has lost 1.06percent of its value.

Global market indicators

The year-to-date (YtD) return is still in the negative territory of -12.74percent.

The value of listed equities decreased to N13.342trillion. In 3,129 deals, equity dealers exchanged 116,069,148 units valued at N1.651billion.

Zenith Bank Plc, Lafarge Africa Plc, Access Bank Plc, Neimeth, and GTBank Plc were actively traded stocks.

NSE opens 2019 annual essay competition call for entries

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he Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) has announced the commencement of the 2019 edition of the NSE Essay Competition with call for entries since Monday, August 26, 2019 from students in Senior Secondary Schools in Nigeria.

This year, each student will write on the topic, “How can the capital market create a better future for all”.

To enter for the competition, participants are required to submit their typewritten entries, which should not be more than 1,000 words via email to essay@nse.com.ng.

An online submission form is also available on www.nse. com.ng and The Nigerian Stock Exchange’s Facebook page. Students can also submit to any NSE office across the country. The entry submission is expected to close on 18 October 2019.

The NSE Essay Competition is one of The Exchange’s financial literacy and inclusion initiatives aimed at bridging the gap in classroom learning with practical knowledge required for long-term personal financial planning.

The competition’s overall goal is to develop a culture of wealth creation amongst our youth towards “Building a Financially Savvy Generation”.

Speaking on the an-

nouncement, Olumide Orojimi, Head of Corporate Communications, NSE, said that “the success of the NSE Essay Competition over the years continues to be encouraging and thus inspiring the Exchange to strengthen the initiative.

This year, we are positioning this flagship financial literacy programme as a platform to educate the younger generation about innovative financial instruments such as green bonds which contribute to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and other related global commitments”.

“This year’s topic aims to tasks students on their understanding of the role of the capital market in achieving the sustainable development goals (SDGs). I therefore encourage parents and teachers to nudge their eligible children to participate in the NSE Essay Competition”, he added.

The top three winners of this competition will receive a combination of equity investments, scholarships towards their university education and laptop computers at the ceremony which is scheduled to hold on November 15, 2019.

of investments will continue to trickle in, to ensure relative financial security even at old age.

“We also have other initiatives arising from our ten year Capital Market Master Plan which protects investors and also bring confidence to the Capital Market, such as the e-Dividend mandate.

“When people invest in the Capital Market, they expect returns, they expect to make money. One of it is to be able to protect your dividend and get your dividend as at when due.”

The SEC boss further added: “Others are the multiple subscription. In the past, people subscribe for shares and bond in many different names; some as many as six different names.

“Because of that they are not able to get the benefit of investing in the Capital Market. For instance, a bank account has only one name with only one BVN. So if you have different names that are not your real name, and your share certificate does not carry those names, and the bank the does not recognise those names, you are not able to get the dividends of investing in the market.

“Therefore, we have given the market a window of opportunity for people that engage in multiple subscriptions to come and regularise those holdings that they have and consolidate them to be able to get the benefits of investing in the Capital Market.”

SEC engages armed forces, others on investments

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n a bid to step up its financial literacy and investor education initiatives, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has organised a one day enlightenment outreach for officers of the Armed Forces, Police, and other Para-military and other agencies on the investment initiatives in the Capital Market, and how to protect their sundry investments. The event tagged “A Day With Investors” was held at the SEC head office in Abuja, on Thursday August 29.

The Acting Director General of the Securities and Exchange Commission, SEC, Mary Uduk in her address said that the purpose of the engage-

ment is to enlighten them about the Capital Market and some of the initiatives being undertaken by the Commission, particularly, those that affect them as investors.

According to her, “Investor education in the capital market is one of our key strategies to foster investor engagement on financial planning and decisionmaking. It also creates awareness about Ponzi schemes and other sharp practices, which we want them to ovoid.

“While some of us will invest for today, most I believe will take the benefits deep into their retirement years when the energy to work is lost but the benefits of investments will conwww.businessday.ng

tinue to trickle in, to ensure relative financial security even at old age.

The Acting DG disclosed that the SEC as regulators of the capital market shall continue to introduce new ideas and policies towards developing and regulating a capital market that is dy-

Mary Uduk, acting Director General of the Securities and Exchange Commission, SEC

namic, fair, transparent and efficient, to contribute to the nation’s economic development.

According to Uduk, the Commission is making efforts at addressing financial literacy and empowerment gaps within the society, adding that this is expressed in the various financial inclusion and literacy initiatives it is currently undertaking in collaboration with other stakeholders.

“I wish to commend your interest to learn how to build wealth in a secured and protected environment. While some of us will invest for today, most I believe will take the benefits deep into their retirement years when the energy to work is lost but the benefits

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@Businessdayng

Friday 30 August 2019

BUSINESS DAY

35

news

Edo, Alford Conferences to host World Digital Exhibition

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Ebenezer Onyeagwu (m), group managing director/chief executive, Zenith Bank plc, flanked from left by Dennis Olisa, executive director, Zenith Bank plc; Dapo D. Adekoje, president/chairman of Council, Chartered Institute of Stockbrokers (CIS); Adedeji D. Ajadi, registrar/CEO, CIS, and Temitope Fasoranti, executive director, Zenith Bank plc, at a courtesy visit by the Institute to Zenith Bank headquarters in Lagos.

Employers drive pension enrolees as 267,112 new workers join scheme in four months Endurance Okafor

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igeria’s contributory Pension Scheme has broadened its base as 267,112 new workers signed up between January and May 2019, thanks to the influence of their employers.

According to the latest figures by the National Pension Commission (PenCOM) analysed by BusinessDay, the number of workers on the pension scheme stood at 8.63 million as at first quarter of 2019, 158,837 higher when compared with the 8.47 million reported in the fourth quarter of 2018.

But as at the end of May 2019, the scheme membership is at a record high of 8.87 million. According to Agusto & Co, a Lagos-based research

… but 11.6m gap remains and credit rating agency, the employers in the formal sector have been the major driver of the scheme.

“The survey findings reveal that the influence of employers remains the biggest driver of enrolees’ decision in selecting a Pension Fund Administrator,” the agency said in its recent report.

At the current level, PenCom is about 58 percent behind its 20 million workers targeted to be enrolled in the scheme by the end of 2019.

If the industry regulator is to achieve its goal, it would have to ensure it include 11.6 million new workers to the pension scheme in less than five months.

Checks by BusinessDay reveal that only about 12.2

percent of the working population in Africa’s most populous nation have keyed into the contributory pension scheme.

“We also observed an increasing level of enrolee dissatisfaction, with over 50 percent of respondents indicating the possibility of switching PFAs when the transfer window is open.”

In its quest to achieve its set objectives, PenCom revealed that Nigeria’s Pension Fund Administrators (PFAs) are free to market micro pensions for the self-employed and employees of small firms.

“Relative to the findings of our 2017 survey, the influence of employers appears to be weakening - as its 27 percent score in 2019 lags the

Ogun grants 200 FADAMA graduates land, loans under Anchor Borrowers Scheme Iniobong Iwok

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gun State Governor Dapo Abiodun has disclosed that the 200 beneficiaries of the Ogun State Fadama 3 Graduate Unemployed Youths Scheme (Fadama Guys) would be given automatic slots to be the first set of farmers that would derive grants from the Ogun State Anchor Borrowers Programme launched last Monday in the state.

Abiodun, who made this known at the official flag off ceremony for Fadama Graduate Unemployed Youths Scheme (Fadama Guys), held at the Governor’s Office, Oke-Mosan, Abeokuta, said that the Fadama Guys was a particularly unique programme as it targets two main vulnerable groups - women and youths - of the population.

He observed that agriculture is becoming an antidote to the twin problem of poverty and insecurity in the country, adding that a gainfully employed citizenry

would contribute in no small measure to the socio-economic development of the state and the country.

The governor plans to put 40,000 youths on the Anchor Borrowers scheme with support from the World Bank and the Central Bank of Nigeria.

“I have mandated my consultant on agriculture to mainstream these set of FADAMA graduates into our anchor borrowers programme and by the grace of God, you will be the first beneficiaries of our anchor borrowers programme,” he said.

Under the Anchor Borrowers programme, beneficiaries would be allocated an hectare of land with certificates of occupancy, provided clearing facilities, offered seedlings, fertiliser and extension services as well as off-takers who would buy off the produce for their industrial needs.

Abiodun noted: “The ‘Fadama Guys’ is particularly unique because it is targeted at two main vulnerable groups of our populawww.businessday.ng

tion, the youths and the women, and we are also elated that our Public Private Partnership approach towards the successful implementation of ‘Building Our Future Together’ agenda is already yielding positive results.”

The governor added that the Fadama Graduate Unemployed youths Scheme (Fadama Guys) at the Micro Economic level would provide employment opportunities in agriculture for youths and women, adding that the Macro Economic level would help the country boost its food and self sufficiency agenda.

“At the Micro Economic level, this Fadama Guys provides job employment opportunities in agriculture for our youths and women, thereby providing income and food for themselves and family, on the Macro Economic level, this is another boost to Nigeria’s Food and Self Sufficiency Agenda, this will go a long way to reduce foreign exchange spent on importation of food items that could be produced locally,” he said.

36 percent recorded in 2017,” Agusto & Co said.

As at the first half of 2019, the assets under management (AUM) of Nigeria’s regulated pension industry jumped 165 percent to an alltime high of N9.33 trillion in June 2019, from N3.52 trillion in the second quarter of 2013, driven by a surge in compliance and contribution level.

“The compliance level has increased and also the number of people contributing to pension funds has also increased,” Dayo Obisan, president, Fund Managers Association of Nigeria (FMAN), said.

Obisan noted that the increase in contributors’ income might have also driven the asset managed by the PFAs to its current levels.

do State government has concluded plans to collaborate with Alford Conferences Limited to host the World Digital Exhibition (WorldEx), a conference that links sub-Saharan Africa to the world’s digital community, in the state.

Speaking during a press conference held in Benin City on Thursday, the state capital, Managing Director, Alford Conferences Limited, Frederick Apeji, said the state governor, Godwin Obaseki, is progressive-minded and has made financial commitment to hosting the exhibition.

WorldEx, positioned as a credible innovation platform for sub-Saharan Africa to engage with the rest of the world, is a business to business (B2B) and a business to customer (B2C) trade fair, which focuses on the information and communication technology (ICT) and allied sectors.

The inaugural edition of WorldEx, which Edo State is billed to host, is slated for November 12-16 and will attract exhibitors, event sponsors, conference

speakers and delegates, as well as media professionals from Nigeria, other African countries and the rest of the world.

Apeji described the state as a progressive state under a progressive governor, commending the state government for undertaking to be the permanent host of the exhibition.

Noting that the inaugural edition seeks to target 12,000 participants, including visitors and delegates, he said all is being finalised to ensure a successful hosting of the event.

A representative of the governor and managing director, Edo State ICT Agency, Lambert Ugorji, assured Alford Conferences of the state government’s commitment to the success of the project, adding that it is a way of providing employment for the state’s teeming youths.

“We are delighted that Mr Governor has not only supported this by providing an enabling environment but has also committed financially to remain the permanent host. We are not here for the now only, but for the long haul.”

32 tons capacity Imota Rice Mill will be ready in 7 months - Commissioner

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agos State commissioner for agriculture, Gbolahan Lawal, says the state government-owned 32 tons capacity Integrated Rice Mill at Imota, a suburb in Lagos, will be completed within the next seven months.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports Lawal made the disclosure in Imota, Lagos State on Thursday, while on a facility tour of the Rice Mill to assess the progress of work.

Lawal said the Imota Rice Mill upon completion would not only ensure that people ate nutritious ricebutwouldalsocreatejobsand wealth for the people as well as enhance the supply value chain.

The commissioner, who was

accompanied on the inspection by the Special Adviser to the Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu on Agriculture, Ms Abisola Olusanya and the Permanent Secretary, Dr Olayiwole Onasanya, expressed their pleasure on the level of job executed at the sight.

He said that to ensure adequate supply of paddy rice, the state government was partnering with Rice Farmers Association (RIFAN) in the South-West and Northern parts of the coutry for the supply of rice paddy.

“Discussions are also underway for other states to make available to the state about 72,000 hectares of land in their states for rice cultivation.

FG reiterates commitment to re-positioning transportation sector Innocent Odoh, Abuja

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he Federal Government has reiterated its commitment to repositioning the transport sector through the provision of enabling environment for the sector to operate and thrive.

The Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Boss Mustapha, stated this at the 9th Quadrennial National Delegates Conference of the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), in Abuja, a statement issued on Thursday

by Deputy Director of the Ministry of Labour and Employment, Charles Akpan, said.

The SGF, represented by the Minister of State for Labour and Employment, Omotayo Alasoadura, noted that the present administration had invested so much in road construction and rehabilitation, aimed at repositioning “the transport sector for inclusive socio-economic development, peace and security

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of the country.

“I want to also assure you that this administration will continue to commit a reasonable chunk of our income in the provision of safe and smooth world class road network,” he said.

He reassured the Union that Government would continue to strengthen the unity of trade unions through constant consultations and collaboration, as well as to provide policy direction and guidelines for the smooth operation of the Union.

Mustapha enjoined the NURTW to partner the Federal Road Safety Corps in ensuring that drivers obey road signs and regulations for the safety of all road users.

The SGF acknowledged the enormous contribution of the NURTW to national development, “especially in providing employment to the youths, sanitizing commercial drivers on safety and organizing orderly vehicular activities in motor parks across the country, as well @Businessdayng

as fighting poverty by providing loans to small and medium transport business operators”.

Mustapha commended the Union for following a healthy path in changing its leadership at national, zonal, state and local government levels, and for toeing the line of globallyrecognised democratic and civil norms in its activities.

He congratulated the outgoing leadership of the Union, led by Usman Najeem Yasin, and prayed that the incoming leadership would build on the successes of the outgoing.

In his remarks, the Minister of Labour and Employment, Senator Chris Ngige, expressed satisfaction with the level of peace and industrial harmony prevalent in the Road Transport sector, suggesting that the Union’s leadership had fully embraced the tenets of decent work, which include sustainable employment, rights at work, dialogue and workplace protection.

36 BUSINESS DAY

Friday 30 August 2019

news FG, states, LGs shared N3.9trn, half year 2019 Cynthia Egboboh, Abuja

T L-R: Adesola Adeduntan, CEO, First Bank of Nigeria Limited; Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, governor, Enugu State, and Abdullahi Ibrahim, executive director, public sector group, FirstBank, during a courtesy visit by the FirstBank delegation led by the bank’s CEO to the Enugu State governor.

Insurance, pension stakeholders seek ways to attract informal market contributors … believe awareness, affordable products are critical for accessibility Modestus Anaesoronye

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takeholders in insurance and pension sectors including operators, regulators and informal sectors players Thursday gathered at the 4th National Insurance and Pension Correspondents (NAIPCO) Conference to discuss ways to make the informal sector embrace financial inclusion through micro products.

This move, the stakeholders said, is necessary to achieve the Federal Government’s financial inclusion target of bringing in over 36.6 million Nigerian adults, representing 36.8 percent of the working population through micro segment of insurance and pension sectors.

The figure includes self-employed Nigerians that are yet to officially embrace any form of financial services product.

Speaking at the conference in Lagos, the stakeholders in both sectors said majority of Nigerians in the informal sector were yet to be aware of the numerous benefits in embracing financial services products.

To ensure every Nigerian have access to financial services, they said the Federal Government came up with micro insurance and micro pension products to penetrate the grassroots and also get to those not currently registered in the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS) nor covered by any form.

Lagos, ICAN to strengthen partnership in capacity building JOSHUA BASSEY

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overnment of Lagos State and Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN) have resolved to continue to partner in capacity in the overall interest of the state and nation.

This was declared during an official visit of members of the governing council of ICAN to the government of Lagos State at Alausa, recently.

The ICAN leadership was received on behalf of the state governor, Babajide SanwoOlu, by his deputy, Obafemi Hamzat, who stated the commitment of government to training and equipping ICAN members in the Lagos State public with required skills to enable them give their best in service delivery to the people.

The deputy governor, who was responding to some of the requests put forward by ICAN, said equipping workers in the employ of the state was critical

to delivering on the six pillars of the new administration, which include Traffic Management and Transportation; Health and Environment ; Education and Technology; Making Lagos a 21st Century Economy; Entertainment and Tourism and Security and Governance.

“Training of our staff is something we take very seriously; we believe that capacity building is the key. You cannot charge somebody with a responsibility without giving them the tools. And just like people would say, only a stupid businessman would quarrel with his tools. So, our workers are extremely important to us. Lagos is reputed to have the most vibrant civil service in this country because we emphasise training,” he said.

He assured that the state would be ready and willing to support the state institute even if the institute did not make any request from the state government. www.businessday.ng

Aisha Dahir-Umar, acting director-general, National Pension Commission, said the Commission planned to extend pension coverage to 30 million contributors by 2024, thereby ensuring that 40 percent adult Nigerians were covered under the CPS. Dahir-Umar, who was represented Babatunde Philips of PenCom, said President Mohammadu Buhari, in March 2019, launched the micro pension scheme to provide the informal sector with a veritable means of securing old age income She said implementation of the Micro Pension Plan (MPP) would yield positive results for Nigerians and the pension

industry, adding that it would assist greatly in reduction of old age poverty in the country.

According to her, “The commission has put in place requisite infrastructure to facilitate seamless implementation of MPP. The Enhanced Contribution Registration System (ECRS) has been deployed to facilitate seamless operations of the MPP. This system has so far aided the smooth registration of micro pension contributors.”

She also applauded the media for consistent support, saying it had assisted the commission in recording modest achievements in educating and enlightening the public on the workings of the CPS and the commission’s activities.

NERC says distribution firms get punished for over-billing, other infringements HARRISON EDEH, Abuja

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igerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) says some electricity distribution companies (Discos) in Nigeria have been involved in unwholesome practices and were punished for over-billing customers.

Deputy general manager, consumer affairs of the NERC, Shittu Shuaibu, said in a statement that the problem resulted from the inability of the Discos to meet up with the metering demands.

He said this while speaking on anti-corruption programme, Public Conscience on radio, produced by the Progressive Impact Organisation for Community Development (PRIMORG).

Recall, the power sector regulator has in recent times been criticised for not doing enough to halt the scam in the metering system.

The gap in the distribution of meters has widened to 57 percent, up from the 50 percent that was the case as at the time

Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) transformed into Discos, Shuaibu said.

He blamed this on population increase and advised customers to always lodge written complaints with his commission any time they consider they had genuine reason to.

He told electricity consumers that if they do not report their complaints, such complaints would stay with them, as NERC has had to compel Discos to refund overbilling to customers and with a written apology.

He further blamed the issues in the metering process on what he termed the huge funds needed to procure meters, which could lead to manipulation, saying government had subsidised the process at a stage.

He said the credited advance payment for metering implementation project had been introduced; a process by which consumers pay for and procure meters and recoup their expenses in the form of electricity units.

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he three tiers of government in Nigeria received some N3.9 trillion from the Federations Account within the first half of 2019, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) report indicates.

A quarterly review of the NBS report shows that the total disbursement through the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) stood at N1.92 trillion and N1.98 trillion in Q1 and Q2 2019, respectively.

The report seen by BusinessDay indicates that N649.19 billion was disbursed to the three tiers of government in January, N660.37 billion in February while the sum of N619.86 billion was distributed to the three tiers in March.

Similarly, N617.57 billion was disbursed in April, N679.69 in May and N679.7 billion was disbursed in June, respectively.

The breakdown shows that of the N3.9 trillion disbursed in the period, the Federal Government received a total of N1.59 trillion, states received N1.05 trillion while the local governments received N791.37 billion.

In addition, the report reveals that the amount disbursed comprised N3.05 trillion from the Statutory Account, N597.12 billion from Valued Added Tax and N15.98 billion as exchange gain difference.

Re venue g enerating agencies such as Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) and Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) received a total of N30.31 billion, N42.11 billion and N28.21 billion as cost of revenue collections for the period.

The total sum of N281.41 billion was shared among the oil producing states as 13 percent derivation fund in the period, the NBS said.

Further breakdown of revenue allocation distribution to the Federal Government revealed that the total sum of N1.27 trillion was disbursed to the Federal Government’s consolidated revenue account.

In addition, N28.68 billion was disbursed as share of derivation and ecology and N14.36 billion as stabilisation fund. Also, N48 billion was shared for the development of natural resources and N34.26billion to the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja, respectively, during the period.

CIPM appoints Oladapo acting registrar/CEO, as Ponnle moves to public service

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hartered Institute of Personnel Management of Nigeria (CIPM) has announced the appointment of Olayiwola Oladapo as the acting registrar/CEO of the institute following the recent appointment of Ajibola Ponnle as the commissioner for Ministry of Establishments, Training and Pensions by the Lagos State governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu. Before her appointment as commissioner in Lagos, Ponnle has served in her capacity as the registrar/CEO of the CIPM for a two-year period, where she engaged a number of initiatives that have further expanded the institute’s frontiers and promoted the CIPM brand.

Oladapo, the CIPM newly appointed registrar/CEO, is coming to the institute with high recommendation, having over 20 years of professional experience spanning both public and private sectors of the Nige@Businessdayng

rian economy.

He is a Strategy, Human and Organisational Development, Policy Management Professional, Transformational thought leader and international speaker who holds a Master’s degree in Research and Public Policy (MRPP) from University of Lagos (Unilag).

Oladapo has led several organisational transformation and human capital development projects for some of the Fortune 500 companies operating units in Nigeria that includes Exxon Mobil, Shell, British American Tobacco, and Peugeot. As a development professional, he was the lead consultant in many organizations, strengthening public sector systems reform and change management projects having worked on programmes sponsored and funded by the UK Department for International Development (DFID) and the EU for the Nigerian Government.

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BUSINESS DAY

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Growing cases of clerics’ murder, abduction …Who did Catholic priests offend?

Stringent visa conditions, growing hostility and Nigerians’ quest for emigration School resumption: Why are commercial banks running after parents?

Eroded values Vs emergence of accidental billionaires in Nigeria Abandoned by families, society: The hard fate of babies with cerebral palsy

When smugglers’ activities become intolerable, Seme Border is shut, but…

‘We aim to salvage the homeless, abandoned kids and empower them to be responsible citizens’

Why Nigeria still struggles for Africa’s growing tourism receipt

Read these and many more on Sunday

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BUSINESS DAY

news More woes for Nigerians as empty ...

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tion, delayed movement and loss of man-hour without any hope in sight as empty containers have laid siege to the roads.

This arises from the fact th at there are more containerised cargoes coming through the nation’s seaports than empty containers shipped out of the country.

“Empty container management is one of the biggest problems in Nigerian ports today. This is escalating because terminal owners are now tactically refusing to receive empty containers on behalf of shipping companies. That is why containers are littered on the roads,” said Tony Anakebe, managing director of Gold-Link Investment Ltd, in an interview with BusinessDay. Importers in Nigeria take delivery of over 800,000 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) of containerised cargoes annually, but most of the empty containers end up being dumped in the country, leading to needless congestion along the port roads.

A total of 808,516 TEUS of containerised goods were received at the ports in 2018 while 365,754 TEUs were shipped out, according to the Container Traffic Statistics at Nigerian Ports released by the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA).

In 2017, about 667,826 TEUs of containerised goods were brought into the ports while 207,539TEUs of empties were exported.

The figures for 2016 showed 654,166 TEUs were imported while 309,546 TEUs of empties were exported.

In 2015, 771,130 TEUs were imported while 417,627 TEUs empties were shipped out, while in 2014, a total of 935,309 TEUs of laden containers were imported while 522,942 TEUs of empties were shipped out.

BusinessDay findings show that despite the continued drop in annual volume of importation into Nigeria, the number of empty containers occupying stacking spaces on port terminals, private bonded terminals, off-dock facilities and holding-bays has continued to increase.

Aside these designated warehouses, unquantifiable number of empty containers litter the roads and streets located in cities like Lagos, Port Harcourt and Onne that have functional seaports.

A recent visit to Onne Port shows that it now takes an average of three to five hours to get to Onne from Port Harcourt or to return to Port Harcourt from Onne due to indiscriminate parking of several bulk cargo and empty container-carrying trucks on the East-West Road linking the two cities.

In Lagos, virtually all the

roads, streets, bridges and even under the bridges, especially those that have connection with Apapa metropolis which houses Apapa and Tin-Can Island seaports, have been turned into parks for container-carrying trucks.

The most affected roads include Apapa-Oshodi Expressway (Cele to Mile 2 axis), Awodi Ora and Wilmer roads in Ajegunle, Kirikiri, LagosBadagry Expressway, Orile Iganmu, Second Rainbow down to Apple Junction, Ago Palace Way, Ikorodu road, Ijora, Eko Bridge, among others.

Consequently, residents in areas like Festac, IyanaOba, Satellite Town, Ajegunle, Apapa, Surulere and many other suburban areas in Lagos are losing long manhour to and fro their offices, market places, among others.

Anekebe said terminal operators are rejecting empty containers due to lack of space, especially for containers that do not belong to their parent shipping companies, and prioritising empties belonging to their shipping companies.

“Some shipping companies find it convenient abandoning their empties in Nigerian ports. For instance, containers belonging to shipping liners like Hapg-Lloyd are being rejected by most terminal operators due to the space they occupy in terminals because it takes time for their ships to return to Nigeria and retrieve their empties,” he said.

He further said that truckers who evacuate laden containers belonging to HapgLloyd charge as much as N800,000 per 40-foot container to warehouses in Lagos, when truckers charge between N300,000 to N400,000 for picking same size of container belonging to other shipping companies.

Adekunle Oyinloye, group managing director of SIFAX Group, owners of Ports and Cargo Handling Services Ltd (PCHSL), confirmed that empties are scattered everywhere and that shipment is not complete until the empty containers are returned to the countries of origin.

He blamed the bad state of access roads to Nigerian ports, which makes it difficult to gate out enough laden containers in order to receive empties that are littered on the roads.

“In terminals, we sell space and the space is limited. Therefore, if the laden containers that have been gated in have not been able to go out, the empties that are hanging around would be a bit difficult to come in. However, all our clients (shipping companies) are always willing to retrieve their containers,” he said.

•Continues online at www.businessday.ng www.businessday.ng

L-R: Mohammed Gana Yisa, Nigeria ambassador to Japan; Babajide Sanwo-Olu, Lagos State governor; Geoffrey Onyeama, minister of foreign affairs; Shinzo Abe, Japanese prime minister; President Muhammadu Buhari; AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, Kwara State governor; Babagana Monguno, national security adviser to the President, and Babagana Zulum, Borno State governor, after a bilateral meeting between Nigeria and Japan in Yokohama, Japan.

Buhari’s border closure adds to Nigeria’s....

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border trade to survive.

“This closure is killing my business,” said Onyenanu Ndidiamaka, who runs Debbies Cosmetics in Lagos.

“Since this action, sales have gone down by 60 percent because I am unable to replace my stock.”

Muda Yusuf, director general of Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), said the action does not address the lapses in state institutions that should check smuggling, leaving innocent citizens to suffer.

“Border closure does not offer a sustainable solution.

It only penalises small players in the informal sector. It also disrupts the supply chains and exports transactions of many big firms that do business across the subregion,” Yusuf said.

Data from both Thailand and India, which previously accounted for up to 90 percent of Nigeria’s rice imports, have shown legal imports to the country have declined but at the same time, exports of rice to Benin Republic have increased. This, according to industry players, points to diversion of consignments originally meant for Nigeria, only for them to find their way back to the country through smuggling.

Data by the Thailand Rice Exporters Association show that 644,131 metric tonnes (MT) of rice was exported to Nigeria in 2015, while 58,260MT was exported in 2016, and in 2017, rice exports to Nigeria stood at 23,192MT. The figure was 6,537 MT in 2018, and as at June 2019 Thailand rice exports to Nigeria stood 2,796 MT. The exports from India have followed the same trend, decreasing consistently over the years.

However, Nigeria’s neighbour, Benin Republic, is now the highest importer of rice from Thailand. An addition of rice exports from Thailand and India based on data

sourced from the associations of rice exporters from both countries shows that 2.05 million MT of rice was exported to Benin in 2016, and in 2017, the country recorded imports of 2.51 million MT from India and Thailand alone. This represented about 20 percent increase, but in 2018 exports from both Thailand and India were 2.39 million MT. The Agriculture Promotion Policy of the Federal Government for 2016-2020 showed that rice production in Nigeria stood at 2.3 million MT, with a 4-million-MT deficit from the country’s 6.3-million-MT demand.

Nigeria does not produce enough of most of the commodities the government is restricting access for forex for their imports. According to the 2019 Food Business Africa report, Nigeria spent $1.1 billion to import 5.5 million tonnes of wheat (which translates to 99 percent of wheat consumed) in 2018 as domestic production stagnated at 60,000 tonnes. National dairy output per annum is put at 700,000 MT while the national demand is put at 1.3 million MT annually, leaving a gap of 600,000 MT. The deficit has been attributed to insufficient supply chain integration which remains a nagging issue in achieving self-sustenance.

The deficit was previously filled through a combination of massive legal imports through the ports and unabated smuggling through the many porous land borders.

Rotimi Williams, CEO, Kereskuk rice farm, which is said to cover 45,000 hectares in Nasarawa State, in a previous chat with BusinessDay, took exceptions with the sincerity and practicality of achieving sufficiency in rice production, considering current realities.

“Do we even know what our consumption is? If we keep pretending like smug-

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gling is not part of our consumption, then we will never really address this issue,” said Williams.

Officers of the Nigerian Customs Service are also allegedly aiding activities of smugglers by collecting bribes, and turning a blind eye to massive smuggling despite the anticorruption rhetoric of the Buhari administration.

While the Federal Government is closing borders in the south to check rice smuggling, Nigeria continues to subsidise petrol for the West Africa subcontinent as smuggling of refined petrol continues unabated at its northern borders.

Henry Ikem-Obih, NNPC’s chief operating officer, downstream, at the Nigeria Oil and Gas conference held in Abuja in July, said while the pump price of PMS in Nigeria was N145 per litre, the cost in many other West African markets was between N350 to N430 per litre providing a lucrative smuggling venture across the borders.

NNPC has blamed smuggling of the commodity for the sharp rise in the volume of fuel imported for local consumption from 35 million litres per day in 2015 to over 55 million litres per day currently. Subsidy spend has since shot up to over N1.4 trillion annually to fund an obsession with cheap petrol.

The Seme Border Customs said in January that it generated N4.4 billion in the first six months of 2019 which translates roughly to N24.4 million revenue being lost each day by the closure.

“The closure of the border without any formal notice to businesses and companies who use the corridors further imperils Nigeria’s ease of doing business ranking,” said Vincent Nwani, an investment and business consultant based in Lagos.

Nwani said that Nigerian borders cannot be closed by a mere order without any protocol and despite a subsisting @Businessdayng

West Africa Trade Protocol Agreement that allows for mutually opened borders. It poses both economic and reputational risks for the country.

Buhari’s policies to force home-grown production of food without the right conditions continue to fuel poverty and strain economic growth, analysts say.

Under Buhari’s watch, Nigeria has slipped into a recession, seen double-digit inflation, spending more servicing loans than on health and education, has become the poverty capital of the world and embraced a foreign exchange policy that rations dollars for milk imports, threatening a generation of children with stunted growth.

N i g e r i a’s e c o n o m i c growth slowed in the first quarter of 2019, after the oil sector, the country’s biggest foreign-exchange earner, contracted.

Gross domestic product in Africa’s largest oil producer expanded by 2.01 percent in the three months through March from a year earlier, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said in May. That compares with 2.4 percent expansion in the fourth quarter (Q4) of 2018.

“Q3 GDP data is going to take the hit from this border closure,” an economist who did not want his name in print told BusinessDay. “But that data won’t come out until early 2020.”

Yusuf of LCCI counsels that the Federal Government should strengthen the capacity of state institutions at the borders and use more technology in tackling the problem.

“Scanners at the nation’s borders and seaports have not functioned for over a year. We should deploy drone technology and strengthen intelligence. Above all, we need to deal with the people issues. The system should hold relevant institutions and their leadership accountable for lapses in the discharge of their duties,” he said.

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Sports 12th African Games: Team Nigeria medalists get N46m reward Stories by Anthony Nlebem

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he federal government through the ministry of ministry of youth and sports has given cash rewards of N46 million to the first batch of Team Nigeria medalists at the ongoing All African Games in Rabat, Morocco.

The 58 athletes and 4 officials got cash awards ranging from 3,000 dollars for gold, 2,000 dollars for silver and 1,500 dollars for bronze medalists.

Gold medalists in team events got 6,000 dollars and bronze got 4,500 dollars, while the Badminton mixed team players shared 18,000 dollars.

Adesola Olusade, the Permanent Secretary of the sports ministry, at brief ceremony on Tuesday at the Games Village, commended the athletes for good performance at the Games.

“As a ministry, we shall continue to fulfill the commitment of government to each and every one of you in

Raymond Ekevwo won the100m gold at the ongoing Africa Games in Rabat, Morocco.

line with the approval of President,’’ he said.

The permanent secretary said that

government has given top priority to the welfare of athletes, adding that no athlete participating in the Games

was owed any benefit and allowance.

“My attention was drawn to a report in an online medium in which an athlete appealed to the Minister of Sports and Youth Development to pay their entitlements.

“Those of you who have participated in international competitions since my coming on board in 2018 will attest to it that the ministry under my watch is not owing any athlete.

“Rather we have gone further to support athletes on their medical needs, supported athletes with scholarships grants but having difficulty in meeting up with the front end costs,’’ Olusade said He said the ministry through the Nigeria Olympic Committee (NOC) and other federations, has secured scholarships for over 20 athletes.

“I therefore, want to appeal to our athletes not to engage in peddling inappropriate information on the achievements of government towards us,’’ the permanent secretary said.

He said that the Games in Morocco would serve as a qualifying event for some sports in the Tokyo

2019 Remita Corporate Champions Cup reaches exciting final

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s part of the build-up to the 2019 Remita Cup final scheduled to take place on Sunday at Yaba College of Technology Sports Pavilion, organisers of the Remita Corporate Champions Cup (RC3) alongside sponsors and indigenous fintech and human capital management giant, SystemSpecs conducted a trophy tour of the corporate office of 2019 RC3 finalist, Nestlé Nigeria on Tuesday to raise awareness and drum up support for the teams.

The well-attended tour featured big names such as Ex-Super Eagles International and RC3 Tournament Ambassador, Peter Rufai; Chief Operating Officer of MediaVision Limited, Jimmy Shogbesan; Finance and Control Director of Nestlé Nigeria, Jagdish Singla; Brand & Marketing Lead, SystemSpecs, Wale Adetona and Content Lead of SystemSpecs, Oyindamola Olofinlua, among others.

Sola Akinyosoye, Country Hu-

man Resource Manager of Nestle Nigeria thanked the organisers and sponsors for hosting such a tournament geared at promoting work-life balance. According to Akinyosoye: “We thank you for the opportunity and we do not take it for granted. We know what it means for us in terms of the bonding, interacting, networking and all that it has afforded, not just team members but as a company. We will continue to encourage you in the hope that you keep up the good work.’’

Akinyosoye reassured attendees of the team’s resolve to win the title, adding that their status as former champions meant that they are no strangers to lifting the trophy. “We won this same cup in 2015, since then we’ve decided to allow other people win the cup so that nobody would accuse us of unfair competition. But this year we decided it’s high time we went there again to bring back the cup,

and that’s exactly what’s going to happen,” he said.

Shogbesan disclosed his thoughts on the tour and the quality of football on display thus far in the tournament. He remarked: “Congratulations to team Nestlé on defeating Union Bank and Friesland Campina, who incidentally are the defending champions of this tournament, without conceding a goal en route the final. The feat is testament to the dedication and commitment of both the company and the team.’’

Sponsors of the tournament and owners of the innovative Remita application, SystemSpecs, echoed their pledge to advance work-life balance in the Nigerian corporate sphere through the renowned Remita Corporate Champions Cup tournament. Speaking on behalf of company, Adetona maintained: ‘’For us at SystemSpecs, our objectives have remained the same over the years which include enabling

L-R: Jimi Shogbesan, chief operating officer, MediaVision Limited; Peter Rufai, tournament ambassador, Remita Corporate Champions Cup (RC3); Rizwan Yousuf, nutrition operation manager, Nestle Nigeria; Adewale Adetona, brand and marketing lead, SystemSpecs, owners of Remita; Jagdish Singla, finance and control director, Nestle Nigeria; Sola Akinyesoye, country human resource manager and Femi Akintola, category manager, beverages during the tour of the RC3 trophy to the corporate office of Nestle Nigeria, Ilupeju, Lagos on Tuesday www.businessday.ng

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work-life balance and encouraging employee engagement. In light of the foregoing, we implore Nestlé Nigeria to communicate and encourage staff to support their team at the finals.”

Tournament Ambassador and Ex-Super Eagles International, Peter Rufai commended Nestlé for their sponsorship of sporting activities over the years. According to Rufai: ‘’I want to use this platform to draw awareness for Nestlé’s sponsorship of sporting activities in Nigeria over the years. The company is one I can vouch for on its impact on sports and youths, and for that reason I say well done.”

In his closing remarks, Category Manager, Beverages Femi Akintola said: “I want to start by thanking and congratulating the organisers of Remita Corporate Champions Cup on the good job they have been doing. Thanks to the leadership and staff of Nestlé. Congratulations to Team Nestlé as well. At Nestlé, we don’t just talk about sports; we are truly committed to recreation and wellness. We are also the biggest sponsor of youth sports in Nigeria.”

The 2019 edition of the annual corporate football tournament, RC3 kicked off two weeks ago at the Yaba College of Technology Sports Pavilion, featuring eight leading corporate brands across various industries in Nigeria: Union Bank, First City Monument Bank, IHS Towers, MTN Nigeria, Nestle, Unilever, NEM Insurance, and Friesland Campina. With gates opening at 11:00 am, the final match between Nestlé Nigeria and Unilever is scheduled for Sunday, 1st September 2019 at the Yabatech Sports Pavilion. @Businessdayng

2020 Olympic Games.

Olusade said that some athletes had qualified for the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games in Athletics, Badminton, Canoe/Kayak, Cycling, Handball, Judo, Swimming, Table Tennis, Taekwondo, Tennis, Beach Volleyball and Weightlifting.

Olusade congratulated the gold medallists in the sports that had qualified for the 2020 Olympics.

Earlier, the President of NOC, Habu Gumel, praised the athletes for their good behaviour in camp.

Gumel reminded them of the need to win clean medals and to shun drugs.

The Nigerian Ambassador to Morocco, Baba Garba, also commended the athletes for comporting themselves well and for good behaviour in Morocco.

The first batch of cash rewards was for athletes who won laurels in Taekwondo, Table Tennis, Badminton, Gymnastics, Karate, Athletics, Basketball and Weightlifting.

The next rewards will be announced as the athletes conclude their events.

Injured Tiger Woods targets October return

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ormer world number one, Tiger Woods, is expected to make a full recovery and hopes to be back competing in October after a successful arthroscopic procedure to repair minor cartilage damage on his left knee.

“I’m walking now and hope to resume practice in the next few weeks,” Woods said after the procedure on his left knee.

“I look forward to travelling and playing in Japan in October.”

Apart from winning the Masters, his 15th major title, the 43-year-old has had a relatively subdued season with injuries hampering his preparation and performances.

Vern Cooley, the doctor who performed the knee surgery, said in a statement here: “I expect Tiger to make a full recovery.

“We did what was needed and also examined the entire knee. There were no additional problems.”

Woods withdrew from the Northern Trust Open earlier this month due to pain and stiffness in his surgically repaired back.

While Woods has dealt with a string of ailments this season his left knee until now had not been one of them although it has been an issue throughout his career.

He first had surgery on the knee in 1994 to remove scar tissue and again in 2002 to remove a cyst.

There was more surgery in 2008 to repair a ruptured ACL after he famously won the U.S. Open that year in a playoff over Rocco Mediate as he hobbled around Torrey Pines.

That was Woods’ last major win until this year when he triumphed at the Masters.

Woods said he expected to be fit to play in the Zozo Championship in Japan on Oct. 24-27 followed by the Hero World Challenge he hosts from Dec. 4-7.

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Friday 30 August 2019

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BUSINESS DAY

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FINANCIAL TIMES

World Business Newspaper

BENEDICT MANDER IN BUENOS AIRES, COLBY SMITH IN NEW YORK AND MICHAEL STOTT IN LONDON

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resident Mauricio Macri called for calm and dialogue with the opposition as Argentina sought to avoid a ninth sovereign default by asking its creditors, including the IMF, for more time to pay off $101bn of debts.

The peso plummeted and bond yields spiked on Thursday in response to the proposed debt restructure. The market moves deepen a crisis triggered this month when the reformist Mr Macri suffered an unexpectedly heavy defeat in a nationwide primary election that all but wiped out his chances of re-election in October.

“There are 59 days to go until the elections. To get there in the best way is my responsibility as president, but it never depends on just one government,” said Mr Macri in a televised address on Thursday morning, implicitly rejecting speculation that elections could be brought forward.

The peso fell 2.89 per cent before paring back some of its losses, while the yield on the country’s dollar bonds also spiked, indicating a fall in price. The century bond dropped to just 40.55 cents on the dollar, while the government’s shorter-dated bond maturing in 2021 fell to below 50 cents on the dollar. It is now yielding nearly 60 per cent.

Argentina’s financial markets had already plunged in the wake of the primary elections on concerns that a government led by opposi-

Argentina seeks to restructure $101bn of debt

Government wants more time to pay back borrowing as election turmoil plays havoc with economy

Mauricio Macri, Argentina’s president, had hoped to project an image of confident economic management and avoid drastic measures before the election © AFP

tion Peronist candidate Alberto Fernández would mean a return to big budget deficits and jeopardise the country’s $57bn IMF bailout.

Mr Macri had hoped to project an image of confident economic management and avoid drastic measures before the election.

However, a recent auction of shortterm government debt failed to attract enough backing from investors, forcing Buenos Aires to take action.

Argentina plans to delay $7bn of payments on short-term local debt due this year and will seek a

“voluntary reprofiling” of $50bn of longer-term debt — much of it held by foreign investors — as well as postponing the repayment of $44bn of loans already disbursed by the IMF. “The government is aiming to clear the outlook for the financial

programme in the short, medium and long-term horizon,” said Hernán Lacunza, the finance minister, late on Wednesday. “This is due to short-term liquidity stresses and not due to problems with the solvency of the debt.”

Mr Lacunza, who recently took over after his predecessor resigned in the wake of the primary poll defeat, said the rescheduling of Argentina’s debts should give the government vital repayment relief from 2020 to 2023.

But a close economic adviser to Alberto Fernández expressed concern that the measures could fail to restore the economic stability that the government is seeking, potentially sparking panic among Argentines unable to exchange investments for cash.

“This is a bombshell. It is a very complicated situation with many risks,” said the adviser. “The problem is if people react badly and you end up with a run on the banks.”

Although Argentina is only seeking a voluntary extension of repayment dates, rather than “haircutting” interest payments or the size of its debt, the move will probably be judged to amount to another sovereign default by some measures.

Italy’s Giuseppe Conte given Pimco calls on the Fed to cut rates shot at forming new coalition ‘aggressively’ on growth worries

President hands outgoing PM chance to put together Five Star-Democratic party government HANNAH ROBERTS AND DAVIDE GHIGLIONE IN ROME

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taly’s president Sergio Mattarella on Thursday offered outgoing prime minister Giuseppe Conte a fresh mandate to try to form a new coalition of the anti-establishment Five Star Movement and centre-left Democratic party (PD).

A deal between two parties that were once fierce rivals would stave off fresh elections and shut Matteo Salvini’s far-right League party out of government.

Mr Conte “conditionally” accepted, saying he would lead a government that would be “concentrated on the needs of citizens and make us proud to be Italian”.

The two parties have compiled a list of shared priorities, seen by the Financial Times, which they have asked Mr Conte to use as the basis for a programme of legislation.

Mr Conte led an unwieldy coalition between Five Star and the League that was formed after a general election last year.

It survived until Mr Salvini this month withdrew support for the government and called for fresh

elections, sparking Mr Conte’s resignation.

But Mr Salvini’s attempt to call a vote, a calculated move as his party was ahead in the polls, seems to have backfired. Five Star and PD entered negotiations, and after days of tense talks said on Wednesday that they would try to form a coalition under Mr Conte, who was a political unknown until last year but now has high approval ratings, leading Five Star to insist he remain as prime minister.

Mr Conte said he had some doubts about returning to government with “a different majority” but said he “had always worked in the interests of the people”.

“I didn’t always succeed but I tried to serve the interests of my country, not political parties or myself,” Mr Conte said.

He said Italy needed to “emerge quickly from the uncertainty created by the political crisis”.

Italy needs to find at least €23bn in savings to avoid a rise in VAT and possible EU censure. On Thursday Mr Conte pledged to prevent any rise in VAT, “while promoting growth and social development”. www.businessday.ng

World’s largest bond manager warns US economy may be in worse shape than thought PHILIP GEORGIADIS

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he world’s largest and most influential bond manager has called on the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates more aggressively than it is expected to, warning that recent data points are underestimating the extent of the American economy’s slowdown.

Pimco, which manages $1.8tn in assets, believes the Fed will need to take decisive action to stave off a recession, as the economic outlook darkens and the trade conflict with China shows few signs of a resolution.

“We aren’t so sure that the US economy is ‘in a good place’ and view recession risks as sufficiently worrisome to warrant further Fed easing,” Pimco’s US economist Tiffany Wilding wrote in a recent blog post.

Traders are currently pricing a more than 99 per cent chance that the Fed will cut its benchmark rate by 25 basis points at its policy meeting in September, with the odds of an aggressive 50bp cut essentially nil.

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Ms Wilding said a 25bp cut may not be enough, arguing that labour market momentum is slowing, there are few signs of a resolution to the trade war and the risk of lower rates contributing to financial market excess is low.

“We think a more aggressive approach will be needed to mitigate the risk of recession in the US. We believe so, in part, because recent economic data may understate the extent to which the economy is slowing,” she said.

The unemployment rate in the US remains at a multi-decade low of 3.7 per cent, but is no longer falling as consistently as previously.

“We can’t emphasise enough that labour market momentum has decelerated more markedly than most forecasters were previously expecting,” Ms Wilding wrote.

Still, the economy is growing at a healthy clip. Data released on Thursday showed gross domestic product expanded at an annualised rate of 2 per cent in the second quarter, down slightly from a previous estimate of 2.1 per cent.

The central bank is under an @Businessdayng

unusual level of scrutiny ahead of its September policy meeting, as it tries to navigate a path between ambiguous domestic economic data and the still uncertain effects of the trade conflict with China.

Meanwhile President Trump has been firing a near-daily barrage of tweets urging the central bank to ease monetary policy aggressively.

“The Economy is doing GREAT, with tremendous upside potential! If the Fed would do what they should, we are a Rocket upward!” the president tweeted on Thursday.

In a closely watched speech in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, last week, Fed chairman Jay Powell gave few new hints on the outlook for interest rates.

Pimco expects further easing later this year after September’s expected quarter point cut.

“We expect next month’s 25 basis point rate cut will be followed by more rate cuts by the end of the year. Ultimately we think FOMC participants will provide the support, but recently have become more worried that the support won’t come soon enough.”

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NATIONAL NEWS

Best Buy signals ‘uncertainty’ over tariffs and consumer behaviour Electronics retailer’s sales outlook misses Wall Street estimates MAMTA BADKAR IN NEW YORK

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lectronics retailer Best Buy on Thursday delivered a sales outlook that missed analysts’ expectations, citing “uncertainty” related to consumer behaviour and the impact of recent tariffs.

Best Buy narrowed its forecast for comparable sales growth in the fiscal year to February 1, 2020 and now predicts an increase of 0.7 per cent to 1.7 per cent. That compared to its previous guidance of between 0.5 to 2.5 per cent and was below analysts’ median forecast of 2.1 per cent, according to Refinitiv.

The Minneapolis-based company projects revenues of between $43.1bn to $43.6bn, compared with its previous expectations of between $42.9bn and $43.9bn.

The updated outlook reflects the impact from the recent tariff increases announced by Washington amid its trade war with Beijing. Earlier this month, Donald Trump said he will raise existing tariffs on $250bn worth of Chinese imports from 25 per cent to 30 per cent on October 1, and raise tariffs on $300bn of Chinese goods, due to start on September 1, from 10 per cent to 15 per cent.

Shares in the company fell more than 9 per cent in morning trading in New York, but they were up 30 per cent year-to-date as of Wednesday’s close.

Best Buy boosted its outlook for adjusted earnings and now expects to report between $5.60 to $5.75 a share, up from $5.45 to $5.65 a share previously.

The changes to the outlook

also reflect “general uncertainty related to overall customer buying behaviour in the back half of the year” and its stronger than expected first-half earnings, the company said.

The results signal a difficult start for Corie Barry who succeeded Hubert Joly as chief executive in June and raises pressure ahead of the key holiday shopping season. Mr Joly stepped down after a nearly seven-year run during which he helped the company return to growth amid stiff competition from Amazon.

The softer outlook accompanied disappointing second quarter like-for-like sales of 1.6 per cent, that missed analyst expectations for a 2.1 per cent increase, according to a Refinitv survey of Wall Street analysts.

However, that did follow on a strong 6.2 per cent increase in the year ago quarter.

In the second quarter, overall revenues climbed 1.7 per cent to $9.54bn, just shy of analysts’ estimates.

Domestic revenues climbed 2.1 per cent from a year ago and were partially boosted by the acquisition of GreatCall and offset by store closures. Meanwhile, overseas revenues slid 3.4 per cent from a year ago, reflecting weakness in Canada and the impact of foreign exchange rates.

Net income fell to $238m or 89 cents a share in the three months ended August 3, down from to $244m or 86 cents a share in the year ago quarter. However, adjusted earnings of $1.08 a share, topped analyst expectations for 99 cents a share.

Hong Kong protest organisers attacked by thugs Alleged assaults with baseball bat and metal poles come as police ban march on Saturday ALICE WOODHOUSE, GEORGE HAMMOND, JOE LEAHY AND NICOLLE LIU IN HONG KONG

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wo of Hong Kong’s leading protest organisers were attacked by thugs armed with a baseball bat and metal poles in separate incidents on Thursday, sharply increasing tensions in the Asian financial hub’s worst political crisis in decades.

Jimmy Sham, the leader of the group behind the largest mass protests in Hong Kong, and Max Chung Kin-ping, the organiser of a protest in July against attacks on demonstrators by alleged gangsters, were each set upon as they went about their business in different parts of the city.

“We Hong Kongers have now lost the freedom of living without terror,” Mr Chung said after the attack, revealing to the media thick red welts on his back and side from the beating.

The assaults come two days before Mr Sham’s group, the Civil

Human Rights Front, which has arranged three anti-government marches that each drew crowds of more than 1m in recent weeks, was planning to lead a new mass rally on Saturday.

Police on Thursday denied permission for the planned march, which was meant to mark five years since Beijing announced a restrictive framework for future elections of the territory’s leader.

Police also tried to stop the group’s previous march two weeks ago, granting permission only for a rally in a park, but the estimated 1.7m protesters who attended eventually took to the streets in an illegal but peaceful demonstration.

The assaults on the activists represent a significant escalation of political violence in the city.

The Civil Human Rights Front said Mr Sham was attacked in a restaurant by two masked men carrying a baseball bat and a knife. A friend who protected him was sent to hospital. Police have said they are investigating an alleged assault. www.businessday.ng

Bennett Goodman: GSO’s business has become increasingly important to Blackstone © Reuters

Bennett Goodman set to leave Blackstone powerhouse GSO

Last of a trio of founders departs from powerful credit fund ROBERT SMITH IN LONDON AND MARK VANDEVELDE IN NEW YORK

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e n n e t t G o o d ma n is set to retire from GSO Capital, the last of the three founders of Blackstone’s powerhouse credit unit to leave the firm.

The 62-year-old executive founded GSO with Tripp Smith and Doug Ostrover in 2005. The trio — whose surnames form the firm’s three initials — then sold GSO to Blackstone three years later for about $1bn.

Since then GSO has crested the wave of money pouring into so-called “private credit” — whereby funds instead of banks make higher-risk corporate loans — amassing close to $140bn of assets under management. The business has become increasingly important to Black-

stone, which now manages more money in debt investments than in its traditional buyout funds.

Mr Goodman negotiated a new pay package with Blackstone last year, which provided faster vesting of a $200m share award dating from 2015. Crucially, the package offered Mr Goodman new sweeteners for five years after he retires from Blackstone.

The deal was seen by GSO insiders as a bid to head off the possibility of Mr Goodman joining one of the rival credit firms headed by his fellow founders.

Mr Ostrover left in 2015 and has since formed Owl Rock alongside former dealmakers from investment bank Goldman Sachs and rival private equity firm KKR. Mr Smith, who left last year and is raising his own credit fund, has already poached at least one other senior GSO exec-

utive. The credit fund manager’s chief operating officer George Fan, who had been with GSO since its inception in 2005, left his role at the start of the year, and agreed to join Mr Smith’s new firm.

Whereas earlier defectors have sought to raise outside capital for their new ventures, Blackstone suggested that Mr Goodman would follow a different path. He “plans to establish a new Goodman family office”, the firm said in a statement on Thursday, adding that he would remain on hand at Blackstone to advise on direct lending and smooth relations with investors.

The departure of Mr Goodman, who cut his teeth at junk bond king Michael Milken’s Drexel Burnham Lambert in the 1980s, is the final step of a changing of the guard at GSO that began when the firm named Dwight Scott president in 2017.

Novarick Homes launches Real Estate Project to drive call for smart community development

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ovarick Homes, a real estate development company that is championing the drive for the development of greener and smarter communities across Lagos has recently added a new development, Wazobia Court to its pool of budget friendly real estate projects.

Having successfully sold out two phases of it’s maiden project, Earl’s Court, positioned to be first renewable powered community in the Ibeju Lekki Community, the company is going one step further in it’s drive for technology adoption in the Nigerian Real Estate Industry in launching Wazobia Court, a smart community development that will feature state of the art Technology like Smart Energy Metering, Adaptive street lighting, Estate Wide Wifi Connectivity, CCTV surveillance system, Access controlled entry, Automated gate en-

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trance and number plate recognition system and many more.

Wazobia Court is located at Bolorunpelu community in Ibeju Lekki, the estate is less than 5 minutes’ drive from Lekki international airport, Pan African University and Eleganza Industries and 20 minutes’ drive from Novare Shopping mall in Sangotedo, Ajah. The Estate comes with a verifiable certificate of occupancy title.

Speaking on the development, Mr Noah Ibrahim, Chief Executive Officer, Novarick Homes & Properties Limited, said that the company is positioning its project to attract single and upwardly mobile, first time home buyers, couples, second home seekers, smart property investors and retirees looking for quality developments and attractive returns on their investments through rental yield and capital growth. @Businessdayng

In his statement, he communicated Wazobia Court as being open to all people of all tribes in Nigeria as Wazobia Court will serve as a monument to unite Nigerians irrespective of their cultural or tribal differences.

The estate will also be designed to illustrate a perfect blend of Science and Art as it will feature Art by renowned Nigerian artistes across the Country.

Plots are currently available at Wazobia Courts for as low as 2 million Naira for 300sqm plot size and 4 million naira for 600 sqm plot size.

The company has created flexible payment plans for investors, allowing them to spread payment for up to 12 months.

The investment is a buy & build plan which gives every investor the full access to get an instant allocation and verified documents to commence activity on their project.

Friday 30 August 2019

BUSINESS DAY

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FINANCIAL TIMES

COMPANIES & MARKETS

@ FINANCIAL TIMES LIMITED

Brazil avoids recession as 0.4% growth beats expectations Analysts hail ‘positive surprise’ of expansion from previous quarter BRYAN HARRIS AND ANDRES SCHIPANI IN SÃO PAULO

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razil avoided falling into recession on Thursday with the release of new economic data showing Latin America’s largest economy grew 0.4 per cent quarter on quarter in the three months to June, a better than expected performance.

The figures showed that Brazil’s economy expanded after shrinking 0.2 per cent in the first quarter, and its performance was better than analysts had expected. The economy grew 1 per cent compared with the same period last year. Although the services sector grew at a sluggish 0.3 per cent quarter on quarter, the industry sector returned to positive growth territory at 0.7 per cent.

“This is an extremely positive surprise,” said André Perfeito, chief economist at broker Necton.

Capital Economics, a research company, said the “surprisingly strong” quarterly rise in Brazilian gross domestic product confirmed that the “extremely weak activity recorded earlier this year was a blip rather than the start of a renewed downturn”.The consultancy forecast that the economy would expand 0.8 per cent this year and by 2 per cent in 2020.

The data are unlikely to be of immediate solace to President Jair Bolsonaro, who was elected almost a year ago on promises to shake up and revitalise the economy but has been slow to implement his reform agenda. Since his inauguration in January, the far-right leader has been embroiled in almost constant controversy on issues ranging from gun control to deforestation in the Amazon.

“The last five years were extraordinarily challenging. The

economy has been crawling out of a very deep and long recession at a painfully slowly pace,” said Alberto Ramos of Goldman Sachs. “Hence, the economy is still operating with a high degree of slack.”

Earlier this year, many in Brazil expected a government-led liberalisation programme to boost the economy after years of torpor but, since then, the prevailing sentiment has soured. Mr Perfeito said he thought Thursday’s result would lead to forecasts being revised upwards.

Yet with the exception of a much-vaunted pension reform — which is likely to be approved in Congress in the coming months — investors are still waiting for a speedy overhaul of the country’s Byzantine tax system and more privatisations. Foreign investors have pulled almost $5bn from the main B3 stock exchange this year, the biggest outflow since 2008.

“Pension reform is positive, but is it enough? No,” said Ms Latif. Fernanda Consorte, chief economist at Ourinvest Bank in São Paulo, echoed this analysis. “When we look at the economy, we thought that the elections and the pension reform would solve the problem.

But reform will not bring results in the short term.”

Unemployment in Brazil is still above 12 per cent, while the number of citizens living below the poverty line has increased to almost 55m, up from 52m just three years ago. As permanent contracts have dried up, many have taken jobs in the gig economy.

“I used to work 44 hours a week.

Now I work 12 or 14 hours a day to receive the same amount,” said Gustavo de Abreu, a 32-year-old driver who worked in the chemical industry until he was fired in 2017.

How Columbia’s new dean aims to redefine business education Costis Maglaras believes business schools are at an ‘inflection point’ and need to change JONATHAN MOULES

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ostis Maglaras, the new dean of Columbia Business School, has long been an insider at one of the world’s elite MBA providers.

Before taking up the post this summer he had spent 21 years teaching business at Columbia’s Ivy League campus on Manhattan’s Upper West Side.

More surprising, though, is the fact that his qualifications, up to PhD level, are in electrical engineering, not economics, maths or management. And he does not have an MBA. Mr Maglaras, 49, says this difference is an opportunity, not a problem. He believes that business education is at an “inflection point”, where data science is becoming as important as management science.

That makes him, as someone with both science training and

decades of experience of teaching in a business school, well placed to enable Columbia to offer innovative new opportunities. It has started to offer joint engineering and business degrees and greater amounts of data analytics teaching on the MBA courses.

“Being dean was never part of my master plan,” Mr Maglaras says, giving his first interview since taking up the leadership role in July. He changed his mind when he heard that the search committee for the new dean were interested in finding someone who could introduce more data analytics into the degree programmes Columbia offers.

Mr Maglaras, whom Columbia’s president Lee Bollinger describes as a “generous colleague, beloved by his students”, had been doing work around this area, such as the design and analysis of trading platforms and algorithms and research into the economics of cloud computing services. www.businessday.ng

Xolo Maridueña from Youtube’s ‘Cobra Kai’ series © Getty

YouTube drops paywall for new shows as streaming war heats up Google-owned video platform prefers ad-funded model while Apple and Disney chase Netflix ANNA NICOLAOU IN NEW YORK

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ouTube will make its original programming, including the cult hit show Cobra Kai, free to watch on its website, stepping back from a war for streaming subscribers that is about to get much tougher with the launch of services from Apple and Disney.

The Google-owned video platform is switching tactics and doubling down on an ad-supported model, rather than chasing Netflix and other rivals. Ads brought in $15bn in revenue for YouTube last year, according to analyst estimates.

All future original shows will have windows of being free to watch with ads, YouTube said on Thursday.

Cobra Kai, a series based on The Karate Kid films, has become YouTube’s most successful original

series and a cult favourite, drawing thousands of fans at the Comic Con convention this summer. The full first season was moved in front of YouTube’s paywall on Thursday and season two, which debuts in September, will roll out a new episode weekly — also for free.

Cobra Kai was one of the projects spearheaded by Susanne Daniels, the television veteran YouTube hired in 2015 to overhaul its strategy. Ms Daniels, who had overseen popular shows such as Buffy the Vampire Slayer as president of The WB channel, began ordering big budget scripted series for YouTube.

The goal was to build the subscription service YouTube Premium, which costs $12 a month.

The company also constructed 10,000 square foot sound stages in Los Angeles, with an Art Deco-style conveying a nostalgia for classic Hollywood: studios lined with How-

ard Hughes posters.

However, making original television has proved to be both expensive and difficult, as competition for content has heated up. Disney, Apple and WarnerMedia flagged their intention to take on Netflix and poured billions of dollars into new shows to help drum up excitement for their streaming services.

As early as the spring of 2018, top brass at YouTube began to question whether a subscription-based model was the best move for a video site that had attracted billions of users with cat videos, baking and make-up tutorials, and influencers such as PewDiePie. When Cobra Kai was last year featured on the cover of Adweek, the trade magazine, it was a “wake up moment”, according to people close to the decision. “We have this show that does not have ads, and it’s on the cover of Adweek?”

Prices tumble for debt backing KKR’s $9.9bn Envision buyout Healthcare provider stumbles as support grows for medical billing reform JOE RENNISON IN NEW YORK

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he debt backing KKR’s $9.9bn buyout last year of Envision Healthcare has tumbled in value, reflecting investor fears that greater government scrutiny of US medical billing practices could reduce the company’s revenues.

Fitch, the rating agency, highlighted the concerns this week, placing the company’s $5.4bn loan on its list of “struggling” deals, in another sign of the cracks emerging in the $1.4tn leveraged loan market.

There are now $94.1bn of loans on the Fitch list, up from $74.5bn in July. Envision is the biggest of the 114 loans on the list, which is based on a loan’s rating, its market price and “adverse market information”.

Last year’s deal for Envision — a

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supplier of medical staff to US hospitals and clinics — was one of the biggest buyouts since the financial crisis, and was criticised by some debt market analysts for a lack of investor protections. “[Envision] was a very aggressive deal,” said one loan investor.

“The deal got done at the top of the market when everyone had money they needed to put to work.”

Envision’s $5.4bn loan maturing in 2025 has fallen from 86.2 cents on the dollar at the start of August to 77.3 cents on the dollar on Wednesday, compared with a decline from 97.1 cents on the dollar to 96.3 cents on the dollar for the broader market. A $1.2bn bond sold by the company dropped from almost 71 cents on the dollar to just over 54.9 cents on the dollar over the same period.

The debt came under pressure @Businessdayng

after bipartisan support emerged in Congress for bills that would prevent patients from being hit with unexpectedly large charges though a practice known as “surprise billing”.

In such cases, patients seek treatment at an “in-network” facility covered by their insurance but wind up being treated by a “out-ofnetwork” doctor, such as those employed by Envision. These doctors typically try to recoup costs from the patient’s insurer but often end up passing them on to the patient.

“If revenues fall for the providers then we could run into a cash flow problem with all of this debt,” said Ron Launsbach, a senior portfolio manager at asset manager Columbia Threadneedle. “Clearly there is uncertainty and that hurts the loan price because there aren’t many people wanting to buy the debt.”

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Friday 30 August 2019

BUSINESS DAY

ANALYSIS

FT

Trade war drives economic divergence across the eurozone Exporting nations hurt by weakening global demand but consumer spending buoys France VALENTINA ROMEI IN LONDON

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he eurozone is developing a two-speed economy as the growing impact of global trade tension weighs on some countries while others benefit from their stronger domestic demand base.

Economic measures published on Thursday showed encouraging signs for France, but pointed to continued gloom for export-led economies such as Germany and Italy.

Both countries are severely affected by the rising US-China trade tensions and weakening global demand.

France’s statistics office revealed rising consumer spending in July and a stronger than previously estimated economic expansion in the second quarter.

France’s GDP growth was revised up to 0.3 per cent compared with the previous quarter, up from an initial estimate of 0.2 per cent.

This sustained the rate of expansion in the first three months of the year of the year, with domestic demand making the largest contribution.

Across the eurozone economic sentiment rose marginally to 103.1 in August, from 102.7 in July, according to data from the European Commission. This was thanks to a sharp improvement in Spanish sentiment and marginal increases across the other major economies except Italy.

German industrial sentiment improved in August — rising to -11.2 in August from -13 in July — but it remained well below last year’s average and below that of any other major eurozone economy.

German inflation eased in August to the lowest rate in almost three years, according to preliminary estimates by the Federal Statistics Office. Meanwhile the Federal

Labour Office reported an additional 4,000 unemployed people in August compared with the previous month, in a worrying sign that the country’s industrial woes are spreading to the labour market, which has hitherto been resilient.

“The negative impact of the industrial meltdown of the last 12 months has started to spread to other parts of the German economy,” said Carsten Brzeski, chief economist at ING Germany.

Italy’s economic data were also disappointing: on an annual basis industrial orders fell 4.8 per cent in June, the worst reading in nearly three years, with an even sharper fall in foreign orders.

Italy’s output has barely expanded in the last year, the worst performance in the EU, and Italy’s August economic sentiment reading is “consistent with the economy stagnating at best in the third quarter”, said Melanie Debono, European economist at Capital Economics.

Overall, signs of economic stabilisation across the single currency area are not strong enough or sufficiently geographically broadbased to prevent the ECB from taking further action to stimulate the economy, according to economists.

The better than expected August sentiment reading “does not alter our view that the ECB will cut rates in two weeks’ time before announcing a fresh round of quantitative easing, probably in October”, said Ms Debono.

Germany’s disappointing consumer price growth in particular could make the case for more monetary stimulus, economists said.

“Low August inflation in Germany bolsters the case for a new round of monetary easing at the ECB’s September meeting,” said Mr Brzeski.

US stocks jump as China comments spur trade war optimism Global stocks stable with trade in focus PETER WELLS IN NEW YORK, PHILIP GEORGIADIS IN LONDON AND ALICE WOODHOUSE IN HONG KONG

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all Street jumped more than 1 per cent in early trade after comments from Chinese officials spurred hopes among investors for a resolution to Washington’s trade war with Beijing.

The S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average were each up 1.1 per cent shortly after opening bell on Thursday, while the Nasdaq Composite gained 1.4 per cent, giving US stocks a shot at their first weekly gain since July.

Gao Feng, China’s commerce ministry spokesman, on Thursday told reporters he hoped the US would cancel its additional tariffs to avoid an escalation in the trade war.

In a slight softening in tone to discussions, he added that “the most

important thing at the moment is to create necessary conditions for both sides to continue negotiations”, reported Reuters, adding that China was lodging “solemn representation” with the US. The comments, which arrived late during the Asian trading session, helped Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rally to be up 0.3 per cent, although China’s Shanghai Composite eased 0.1 per cent.

European stocks riffed off those reports, which also said Beijing and Washington were discussing face-toface trade talks that were scheduled for next month. The region-wide Stoxx 600 was up 1.1 per cent, while Germany’s Dax gained 1.2 per cent and France’s Cac 40 added 1.5 per cent.

London’s FTSE 100 was up 1 per cent, but the focus was on the pound, which slipped as markets digested Boris Johnson’s decision to shut down parliament to protect his Brexit plan. www.businessday.ng

Consumers want fair trade, but not its price Tea industry buyers are near monopolies who outgun the smallholders or day labourers DAVID PILLING

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he Satemwa Tea and Coffee estate in the highlands of Malawi in southern Africa looks like the sort of Utopian working environment pioneered by the social reformer Robert Owen more than two centuries ago. A Welsh textile manufacturer, Owen sought to improve the working conditions of the men and women whose lives were being upended by the industrial revolution.

At his textile mill outside Glasgow, which Owen purchased in 1799, he put his employment philosophy into practice. He paid his workers a decent wage, not the common tokens usable only in the company store. He offered employees and their immediate family dignified housing, free healthcare, child education and even an onsite nursery, thought to be the first in the world.

In 2019, Satemwa is aiming for something similar. A beautiful estate where neatly clipped tea bushes range over the majestic hills of southern Malawi, Satemwa offers an eight-hour day — something pioneered by Owen — an antenatal clinic, a school for 900 children and 12 weeks of maternity leave.

Part of what Satemwa has achieved stems from its association with Fairtrade, an international organisation that seeks to improve the terms of trade for the world’s poorest. Fairtrade, which celebrates its 25th anniversary this year, certified Satemwa as a good employer in 2007. As a result, Satemwa is eligible to sell its tea at Fairtrade prices, which, for tea, carries a roughly 25 per cent premium. The extra money is spent on projects, determined by a workers’ committee — school bursaries, HIV counselling and village boreholes.

There is a hitch. No one wants to pay Satemwa the Fairtrade premium. Last year, of the 2.25m

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kilogrammes of tea it produced, it sold precisely zero at Fairtrade prices. Though its tea was picked and processed to Fairtrade standards, it sold the entirety through regular auctions at non-Fairtrade prices. Many of the programmes to be paid for by the premium have had to be cancelled or scaled back.

These days, school bursaries cover only half the fees.

On the face of it, these should be the best of times for Fairtrade, and for fairer trade generally. Surveys show that millennials are more concerned than older generations about what goes on in the darker recesses of the global supply chain.

They want to ensure the clothes they wear and the food they eat is not produced by children or by slaves.

Emmanuel Faber, chief executive of Danone, a French food company, says big multinationals like his are in danger of losing market share to smaller companies that are able to spin a story about the farmers who produce the chocolate, beef or coffee they sell.

Consumer awareness has affected the investment industry too.

Businesses are under increasing pressure to act more responsibly, especially when it comes to environmental, social and governance issues. Trillions of dollars in pension and investment funds are earmarked for businesses thought to be acting responsibly, with smaller amounts reserved for “impact investors” in which companies project themselves as doing good while making money.

Despite these global trends, there is little evidence that consumer preferences for fairer trading practices are having a sustained impact, particularly on the lives of the very poorest. The people who produce cobalt in the Democratic Republic of Congo, without which mobile phones would not work and electric cars would not move, live in the direst conditions. A Financial Times investigation found that coffee growers received on average 1p @Businessdayng

from a £2.50 cup of coffee. Another study found 47 per cent of tea workers have no access to drinking water and many are underpaid, with wages docked for spurious reasons.

Why should such practices prevail two centuries after Owen’s work? Long after the end of colonialism, the exploitative relationship between the global north and the global south continues.

One reason is that few consumers will pay much higher prices for their coffee, sugar, cobalt or wedding rings. The buyers who act on their behalf — in the tea industry the likes of Tata and Unilever — are near monopolies whose power vastly outguns that of the smallholders or day labourers they deal with.

A second problem, paradoxically, stems from the success of consumer labels that purport to tackle the issue. There has been a dizzying proliferation of sustainability and fair-trade labels. The Guardian counted more than 460, offering everything from dolphinfree tuna to bird-friendly coffee.

Many big companies have abandoned external certifications, devising in-house labels — often without outside auditing — promising conscience-free shopping.

Satemwa used to supply Sainsbury’s, but the grocer decided in 2017 to abandon Fairtrade tea in favour of its own Fairly Traded label.

At Satemwa, 2,600 workers in the high season receive wages negotiated through Malawi-wide collective bargaining agreements.

For a tea-picker, that means 1,500 kwacha a day, or about $1.70 at current exchange rates, below the international poverty line. Fadson Mandala, the human resources manager, concedes this can hardly be counted as a living wage.

In the absence of justice for those picking your tea or harvesting your hazelnuts, I have a modest proposal. Unless it can be proved otherwise, all goods should carry a mandatory label: Unfairly Traded. david.pilling@ft.com

Friday 30 August 2019

BUSINESS DAY

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POLITICS & POLICY We would go partisan if restructuring is not implemented - Gani Adams …As eminent Nigerians reaffirm call for state police INIOBONG IWOK

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he Aare Ona Kakanfo of Yorubaland, Iba Gani Adams has said that the Odua People’s Congress (OPC) will become partisan if restructuring is not implemented in the next few months.

He gave the hint Thursday at the 25th Anniversary of the Odua People’s Congress (OPC) held in Lagos.

Adams explained that this action will be taken due to the ‘disastrous nature’ of the country’s present structure.

“If in the next few months there is no tangible evidence that the country will be restructured, then OPC will become partisan.

“The next few months will determine whether we will remain politically neutral or partisan. Do not forget that what gave birth to the OPC was the struggle for the revalidation of the June 12, 1993 presidential mandate of the late Bashorun Abiola. From there, we went on to demand for a total restructuring of the country,” he said.

According to him, “Till date, that has not been

achieved. And, unfortunately, we have not seen any tangible evidence or sign that we are moving in that direction, with all of us knowing that the way the country is presently structured can only bring nothing but disaster.”

He said that the most recent minimum irreducible for those who have followed this agitation on restructuring is for the government to implement the recommendations of the National Conference

convoked by the Administration of former President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan.

Me a n w h i l e, Ad a m s noted that the partisanship details would not be divulged, assuring that the commendable lettered six million members of the Congress could occupy the position of influence at the legislative level of both states and federal.

According to him, “We are still keeping the partisanship details to our chest, but with a membership of

over six million, even if it is members of the legislature at the States and Federal levels that we are able to produce, we will be in a position to influence what happens in the government at all levels. Time for ‘siddon look’ is over.”

“OPC has grown from the previous outlook of largely illiterate members who are regarded as back benchers. About 30 percent of members of the National Coordinating Council (NCC) are gradu-

L-R: Ede Dafinone, chairman, national executive council, Nigerian Conservation Foundation; Gbenga Omotoso, representative of Lagos State governor and commissioner for Information and Strategy; Olusegun Mcmedal, chairman, Lagos Chapter, Nigerian Institute of Public Relations, and Omobolanle Ogunmola, permanent secretary, Ministry Information and Strategy, during the sixth Lagos Public Relations Stakeholders’ Conference with the theme: ‘Conversations to Promote Environmental Sustainability in Nigeria.’

ates. Over 96 percent of OPU members are graduates. So, the future looks great. And we will explore it to the fullest,” Adams said.

Delivering his lecture titled, ‘ 25 years after: transformation of OPC’, Tunde Babawale, a lecturer at the University of Lagos, expressed sadness over the persistence of ethnic marginalisation after 25 years of the formation of the group, advocating the encouragement of the group along the lines of cultural nationalism and diplomacy.

“Quite unfortunately, 25 years after, the fears of ethnic marginalisation still persist in Nigeria. Organisations like OPC can only be encouraged to continue along the path of cultural nationalism and diplomacy when the country is able to genuinely institute democratic governance, promote social justice and economic equity, entrench innovative and productive politics, respect individuals and group rights and restructure Nigeria to make it a federation in word and indeed,” he said.

Babawale, however, emphasized the hypocrisy and pointlessness of unexpected resistance from

organisations like OPC when violence is visited on the people.

He noted that OPC emerged in response to the authoritarianism of military rule that culminated in the criminal annulment of the June 12, 1993 election, largely believed to have been won by the late Moshood Abiola.

The lecturer added that the threat of internal colonialism, domination and subjugation of the Yoruba nation within the context of Nigeria further gave impetus to the formation of the organisation.

In a goodwill message on behalf of the royal fathers at the celebration, the Olowa of Igbara-oke, Oba Francis Agbede advocated for the continuance of the struggle for the ratification of community policing by the National Assembly.

“Community p olicing will remain a word of mouth until the National Assembly blesses it. I believe with the struggle of those who have the struggle in mind, it will be achieved. People still need to stand up and fight for it to come to reality. Without community policing, the grassroots will be alienated,” Olowa said.

Akpabio dissociates self from bribery allegation against tribunal judges ANIEFIOK UDONQUAK, Uyo

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he Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Godswill Akpabio has dissociated himself from a publication which made allegations against the chairman and members of the National Assembly Elections Petition Tribunal in Akwa Ibom State.

Anietie Ekong, his media aide, said in statement made available to the media that Akpabio could not have been privy to the allegations made against the Judicial Officers because as a Senior Member

of the Bar and a party in the matter pending before Their Lordships, he understood the need to allow the Judges to decide the cases according to the facts.

According to the statement, “Moreover, Akpabio as the Honourable Minister of Niger Delta Affairs cannot be said to be desperate to win a Senate seat but he is only contesting the outcome of the alleged INEC manipulated results in order to ensure Justice and sustenance of democratic practice in Nigeria.

“Akpabio is shocked by the spurious allegation made by the Attorney General of Akwa www.businessday.ng

Ibom State, Uwemedimo Nwoko, in a rejoinder to the said article, alleging that he “succumbed to blackmail and handsomely paid Leo Ekpenyong to recapitulate.”

According to him, “The fact is that Ekpenyong withdrew the petitions against Akpabio voluntarily, when his clients made a volte face and could not substantiate their claims as contained in Ekpenyong’s affidavit which he swore to before a court of law as evidence of voluntary withdrawal of those false petitions. “ M o r e o v e r, E k p e nyong’s client as men-

tioned in the stated affidavit is linked to the current Government of Akwa Ibom State and its officials,” he said.

“As an Elder Statesman, a serving Minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, a former Governor of Akwa Ibom State, a former Minority Leader of the Nigerian Senate and a former boss to Nwoko, decorum demands that he accords Senator Akpabio some respect. The Attorney General should substantiate his wild allegation or offer an unreserved apology to Senator Akpabio.

“Akpabio is a democrat who believes in the rule of

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law, and this informed his decision to approach the Tribunal after the charade by the Mike Igini-led Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Akwa Ibom State,” he further said.

According to Ekong, “Having attended many sessions of the tribunal and indeed testified as a Competent Witness, Senator Akpabio is confident that justice will be done.

He has an abiding faith in the judicial system to dispense justice without fear or favour, affection or ill will. He does not believe that any member of the panel has a propensity to @Businessdayng

tarnish his hard-earned reputation by engaging in ‘judgment for sale’ as alleged.

“The Attorney General should also have reprimanded his PDP stalwart, Chris Ekpenyong, whose aides have severally alleged on social media of attempts to influence the panel judges in favour of APC with the sum of N5 billion.”

“At the moment, the Honourable Minister is preoccupied with settling down in his new national assignment and would not want to be dragged into a matter he knows nothing about,” the statement said.

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Friday 30 August 2019

BUSINESS DAY

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Friday 30 August 2019

BUSINESS DAY

47

Live @ The STOCK Exchanges Prices for Securities Traded as of Thursday 29 August 2019 Company

Market cap(nm)

Price (N)

Change

Trades

Volume

Company

Market cap(nm)

Price (N)

Change

Trades

Volume

PRICES FOR MAIN BOARD SECURITIES (Equities) BANKING ACCESS BANK PLC. 229,266.71 6.45 0.78 142 15,011,507 UNITED BANK FOR AFRICA PLC 205,196.53 6.00 1.69 149 3,132,031 ZENITH BANK PLC 576,125.66 18.35 -0.81 368 19,091,549 659 37,235,087 OTHER FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS FBN HOLDINGS PLC 177,681.70 4.95 3.13 192 4,649,995 192 4,649,995 851 41,885,082 TELECOMMUNICATIONS SERVICES MTN NIGERIA COMMUNICATIONS PLC 2,826,224.14 138.85 -1.49 110 469,459 110 469,459 110 469,459 BUILDING MATERIALS DANGOTE CEMENT PLC 2,769,082.45 162.50 -1.81 60 2,175,960 LAFARGE AFRICA PLC. 228,730.70 14.20 0.35 68 17,657,136 128 19,833,096 128 19,833,096 EXPLORATION AND PRODUCTION SEPLAT PETROLEUM DEVELOPMENT COMPANY PLC 234,024.40 397.70 - 31 32,680 31 32,680 31 32,680 1,120 62,220,317 REAL ESTATE INVESTMENT TRUSTS (REITS) SKYE SHELTER FUND PLC 1,710.00 85.50 - 0 0 UNION HOMES REAL ESTATE INVESTMENT TRUST (REIT) 10,175.81 40.70 - 0 0 UPDC REAL ESTATE INVESTMENT TRUST 14,408.66 5.40 - 0 0 0 0 0 0 OTHER FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS NIGERIA ENERYGY SECTOR FUND 411.91 552.20 - 0 0 VALUEALLIANCE VALUE FUND 3,312.39 103.20 - 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 CROP PRODUCTION FTN COCOA PROCESSORS PLC 440.00 0.20 - 0 0 OKOMU OIL PALM PLC. 38,299.49 40.15 - 20 196,886 PRESCO PLC 44,800.00 44.80 - 9 20,000 29 216,886 FISHING/HUNTING/TRAPPING ELLAH LAKES PLC. 8,520.00 4.26 - 2 1,000 2 1,000 LIVESTOCK/ANIMAL SPECIALTIES LIVESTOCK FEEDS PLC. 1,260.00 0.42 5.00 8 322,287 8 322,287 39 540,173 DIVERSIFIED INDUSTRIES A.G. LEVENTIS NIGERIA PLC. 688.30 0.26 - 2 30,228 JOHN HOLT PLC. 214.03 0.55 - 2 17,027 S C O A NIG. PLC. 1,903.99 2.93 - 0 0 TRANSNATIONAL CORPORATION OF NIGERIA PLC 41,867.43 1.03 -0.96 39 1,323,437 U A C N PLC. 13,109.90 4.55 -9.00 81 1,693,084 124 3,063,776 124 3,063,776 BUILDING CONSTRUCTION ARBICO PLC. 711.32 4.79 - 0 0 0 0 INFRASTRUCTURE/HEAVY CONSTRUCTION JULIUS BERGER NIG. PLC. 24,486.00 18.55 - 21 87,000 ROADS NIG PLC. 165.00 6.60 - 0 0 21 87,000 REAL ESTATE DEVELOPMENT UACN PROPERTY DEVELOPMENT COMPANY PLC 2,286.59 0.88 -5.38 38 1,764,650 38 1,764,650 59 1,851,650 AUTOMOBILES/AUTO PARTS DN TYRE & RUBBER PLC 954.53 0.20 - 0 0 0 0 BEVERAGES--BREWERS/DISTILLERS CHAMPION BREW. PLC. 11,979.13 1.53 - 3 8,000 GOLDEN GUINEA BREW. PLC. 242.22 0.89 - 0 0 GUINNESS NIG PLC 90,681.85 41.40 - 40 162,290 INTERNATIONAL BREWERIES PLC. 83,809.65 9.75 - 2 2,700 NIGERIAN BREW. PLC. 405,442.93 50.70 - 42 185,283 87 358,273 FOOD PRODUCTS DANGOTE FLOUR MILLS PLC 104,000.00 20.80 - 96 1,782,974 DANGOTE SUGAR REFINERY PLC 115,200.00 9.60 1.05 60 2,543,859 FLOUR MILLS NIG. PLC. 55,355.12 13.50 -5.59 63 2,880,830 HONEYWELL FLOUR MILL PLC 7,930.20 1.00 - 9 95,686 MULTI-TREX INTEGRATED FOODS PLC 1,340.10 0.36 - 0 0 N NIG. FLOUR MILLS PLC. 766.26 4.30 - 0 0 NASCON ALLIED INDUSTRIES PLC 33,117.98 12.50 - 12 9,280 UNION DICON SALT PLC. 3,321.07 12.15 - 0 0 240 7,312,629 FOOD PRODUCTS--DIVERSIFIED CADBURY NIGERIA PLC. 17,467.28 9.30 - 37 342,828 NESTLE NIGERIA PLC. 986,857.03 1,245.00 0.40 44 56,747 81 399,575 HOUSEHOLD DURABLES NIGERIAN ENAMELWARE PLC. 1,680.31 22.10 - 0 0 VITAFOAM NIG PLC. 5,366.12 4.29 - 9 133,030 9 133,030 PERSONAL/HOUSEHOLD PRODUCTS P Z CUSSONS NIGERIA PLC. 23,425.81 5.90 - 39 217,439 UNILEVER NIGERIA PLC. 160,860.15 28.00 -3.45 21 113,812 60 331,251 477 8,534,758 BANKING ECOBANK TRANSNATIONAL INCORPORATED 133,034.25 7.25 0.69 65 1,123,144 FIDELITY BANK PLC 48,098.16 1.66 3.11 40 1,364,000 GUARANTY TRUST BANK PLC. 796,113.40 27.05 0.19 173 5,765,579 JAIZ BANK PLC 11,785.70 0.40 - 15 295,843 STERLING BANK PLC. 65,930.06 2.29 - 26 1,050,936 199,477.16 6.85 - 19 93,974 UNION BANK NIG.PLC. UNITY BANK PLC 7,598.07 0.65 - 5 35,877 WEMA BANK PLC. 21,987.45 0.57 -1.72 21 460,563 364 10,189,916 INSURANCE CARRIERS, BROKERS AND SERVICES AFRICAN ALLIANCE INSURANCE PLC 4,117.00 0.20 - 0 0 AIICO INSURANCE PLC. 4,712.54 0.68 - 14 227,987 AXAMANSARD INSURANCE PLC 19,530.00 1.86 - 3 97,417 CONSOLIDATED HALLMARK INSURANCE PLC 2,439.00 0.30 - 3 3,650 CONTINENTAL REINSURANCE PLC 16,285.21 1.57 9.79 27 2,895,297 CORNERSTONE INSURANCE PLC 3,093.20 0.21 -4.55 9 199,957 GOLDLINK INSURANCE PLC 909.99 0.20 - 0 0 GUINEA INSURANCE PLC. 1,228.00 0.20 - 0 0 INTERNATIONAL ENERGY INSURANCE PLC 487.95 0.38 - 0 0 LASACO ASSURANCE PLC. 2,123.80 0.29 - 8 189,100 LAW UNION AND ROCK INS. PLC. 1,675.57 0.39 - 8 229,335 LINKAGE ASSURANCE PLC 3,840.00 0.48 - 5 14,800 MUTUAL BENEFITS ASSURANCE PLC. 2,346.27 0.21 5.00 12 1,446,870 NEM INSURANCE PLC 10,032.96 1.90 -1.55 16 369,000 NIGER INSURANCE PLC 1,547.90 0.20 - 0 0 PRESTIGE ASSURANCE PLC 2,583.62 0.48 - 1 45,397 REGENCY ASSURANCE PLC 1,333.75 0.20 - 3 10,110 SOVEREIGN TRUST INSURANCE PLC 1,668.16 0.20 - 3 83,540 STACO INSURANCE PLC 4,483.72 0.48 - 0 0 STANDARD ALLIANCE INSURANCE PLC. 2,582.21 0.20 - 0 0 SUNU ASSURANCES NIGERIA PLC. 2,800.00 0.20 - 1 30,000 UNIC DIVERSIFIED HOLDINGS PLC. 516.46 0.20 - 0 0 UNIVERSAL INSURANCE PLC 3,200.00 0.20 - 0 0 VERITAS KAPITAL ASSURANCE PLC 2,773.33 0.20 - 2 100,200 WAPIC INSURANCE PLC 5,219.27 0.39 - 17 113,420 132 6,056,080

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MICRO-FINANCE BANKS NPF MICROFINANCE BANK PLC 2,583.90 1.13 - 4 110,450 4 110,450 MORTGAGE CARRIERS, BROKERS AND SERVICES ABBEY MORTGAGE BANK PLC 4,158.00 0.99 - 1 500 7,370.87 0.50 - 0 0 ASO SAVINGS AND LOANS PLC INFINITY TRUST MORTGAGE BANK PLC 5,796.93 1.39 - 1 100 2,265.95 0.20 - 0 0 RESORT SAVINGS & LOANS PLC UNION HOMES SAVINGS AND LOANS PLC. 2,949.22 3.02 - 0 0 2 600 OTHER FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS AFRICA PRUDENTIAL PLC 7,600.00 3.80 8.57 42 757,047 35,879.37 6.10 - 15 317,603 CUSTODIAN INVESTMENT PLC DEAP CAPITAL MANAGEMENT & TRUST PLC 660.00 0.44 - 0 0 FCMB GROUP PLC. 32,872.50 1.66 3.11 25 1,306,459 1,131.98 0.22 - 0 0 ROYAL EXCHANGE PLC. STANBIC IBTC HOLDINGS PLC 358,419.35 35.00 - 30 111,622 UNITED CAPITAL PLC 12,000.00 2.00 2.50 70 3,934,224 182 6,426,955 684 22,784,001 HEALTHCARE PROVIDERS EKOCORP PLC. 1,680.29 3.37 - 1 1,000 817.22 0.23 - 1 16,280 UNION DIAGNOSTIC & CLINICAL SERVICES PLC 2 17,280 MEDICAL SUPPLIES MORISON INDUSTRIES PLC. 494.58 0.50 - 0 0 0 0 PHARMACEUTICALS EVANS MEDICAL PLC. 366.17 0.50 - 0 0 FIDSON HEALTHCARE PLC 9,388.62 4.50 - 6 4,960 9,507.22 7.95 -4.22 11 159,296 GLAXO SMITHKLINE CONSUMER NIG. PLC. MAY & BAKER NIGERIA PLC. 3,622.99 2.10 - 6 50,730 949.58 0.50 6.38 16 6,984,372 NEIMETH INTERNATIONAL PHARMACEUTICALS PLC NIGERIA-GERMAN CHEMICALS PLC. 556.71 3.62 - 0 0 PHARMA-DEKO PLC. 325.23 1.50 - 0 0 39 7,199,358 41 7,216,638 COMPUTER BASED SYSTEMS COURTEVILLE BUSINESS SOLUTIONS PLC 710.40 0.20 -4.76 15 1,882,328 15 1,882,328 COMPUTERS AND PERIPHERALS OMATEK VENTURES PLC 1,470.89 0.50 - 0 0 0 0 IT SERVICES CWG PLC 6,413.06 2.54 - 2 200 534.60 4.95 - 0 0 NCR (NIGERIA) PLC. TRIPPLE GEE AND COMPANY PLC. 336.57 0.68 - 8 6,940 10 7,140 PROCESSING SYSTEMS CHAMS PLC 1,314.90 0.28 -3.57 12 2,840,657 9,996.00 2.38 - 1 1,000 E-TRANZACT INTERNATIONAL PLC 13 2,841,657 TELECOMMUNICATIONS SERVICES AIRTEL AFRICA PLC 1,215,762.01 323.50 - 5 10,007 5 10,007 43 4,741,132 BUILDING MATERIALS BERGER PAINTS PLC 2,173.68 7.50 - 8 7,807 CAP PLC 17,325.00 24.75 - 3 2,071 CEMENT CO. OF NORTH.NIG. PLC 197,152.51 15.00 - 20 125,666 313.43 0.59 - 2 3,000 MEYER PLC. PORTLAND PAINTS & PRODUCTS NIGERIA PLC 1,959.74 2.47 - 0 0 PREMIER PAINTS PLC. 1,156.20 9.40 - 0 0 33 138,544 ELECTRONIC AND ELECTRICAL PRODUCTS AUSTIN LAZ & COMPANY PLC 2,256.91 2.09 - 0 0 CUTIX PLC. 2,730.05 1.55 - 15 226,055 15 226,055 PACKAGING/CONTAINERS BETA GLASS PLC. 29,873.33 59.75 - 2 200 GREIF NIGERIA PLC 388.02 9.10 - 0 0 2 200 AGRO-ALLIED & CHEMICALS NOTORE CHEMICAL IND PLC 100,754.14 62.50 - 1 55 1 55 51 364,854 CHEMICALS B.O.C. GASES PLC. 2,547.42 6.12 - 2 2,200 2 2,200 METALS ALUMINIUM EXTRUSION IND. PLC. 1,781.64 8.10 - 1 30 1 30 MINING SERVICES MULTIVERSE MINING AND EXPLORATION PLC 852.39 0.20 - 0 0 0 0 PAPER/FOREST PRODUCTS THOMAS WYATT NIG. PLC. 92.40 0.42 - 0 0 0 0 3 2,230 ENERGY EQUIPMENT AND SERVICES JAPAUL OIL & MARITIME SERVICES PLC 1,252.54 0.20 - 14 584,040 14 584,040 INTEGRATED OIL AND GAS SERVICES OANDO PLC 47,239.37 3.80 -2.56 55 758,109 55 758,109 PETROLEUM AND PETROLEUM PRODUCTS DISTRIBUTORS 11 PLC 56,974.05 158.00 - 18 21,340 CONOIL PLC 11,658.40 16.80 - 25 59,667 ETERNA PLC. 3,651.61 2.80 - 14 104,142 FORTE OIL PLC. 21,425.81 16.45 6.82 230 1,941,373 MRS OIL NIGERIA PLC. 5,729.98 18.80 - 4 117 TOTAL NIGERIA PLC. 32,967.57 97.10 0.62 45 120,843 336 2,247,482 405 3,589,631 ADVERTISING AFROMEDIA PLC 1,820.01 0.41 - 0 0 0 0 AIRLINES MEDVIEW AIRLINE PLC 17,551.17 1.80 - 0 0 0 0 AUTOMOBILE/AUTO PART RETAILERS R T BRISCOE PLC. 341.14 0.29 - 0 0 0 0 COURIER/FREIGHT/DELIVERY RED STAR EXPRESS PLC 2,499.47 4.24 - 6 7,540 TRANS-NATIONWIDE EXPRESS PLC. 328.19 0.70 - 1 2,500 7 10,040 HOSPITALITY TANTALIZERS PLC 642.33 0.20 - 0 0 0 0 HOTELS/LODGING CAPITAL HOTEL PLC 4,723.78 3.05 - 0 0 IKEJA HOTEL PLC 2,972.68 1.43 - 1 19,200 TOURIST COMPANY OF NIGERIA PLC. 7,862.53 3.50 - 0 0 TRANSCORP HOTELS PLC 41,042.18 5.40 - 1 100 2 19,300 MEDIA/ENTERTAINMENT DAAR COMMUNICATIONS PLC 4,800.00 0.40 - 1 200 1 200 PRINTING/PUBLISHING ACADEMY PRESS PLC. 211.68 0.35 - 2 4,400 LEARN AFRICA PLC 1,072.32 1.39 - 10 26,481 STUDIO PRESS (NIG) PLC. 1,183.82 1.99 - 0 0 UNIVERSITY PRESS PLC. 625.54 1.45 - 14 197,626 26 228,507 ROAD TRANSPORTATION ASSOCIATED BUS COMPANY PLC 530.46 0.32 3.23 4 310,630 4 310,630

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Women in Business

Folawe Omikunle

F

Friday 30 August 2019 www.businessday.ng

By Kemi Ajumobi

Ayisha Osori

Chief Executive Officer, Teach For Nigeria olawe Omikunle graduated from Babcock University in 2008 with a Bachelor’s Degree in International Law and Diplomacy. Upon completion of her Master’s degree at the Diplomatic Academy of London, University of Westminster in 2010, she returned to Nigeria and took up an appointment as a School Administrator at Kradle Academy, a Montessori Pre-school in Lagos, Nigeria.

Folawe began to think of education inequity as a systemic problem while working as an Administrator, through an experience where an orphaned child was enrolled at her school.

Folawe’s experience at this school developed her insatiable interest in education and social development, which spurred her journey to enrol at Modern Montessori International, London for a Diploma in Montessori Education.

She was deeply influenced by Maria Montessori’s teachings and belief that all children have their unique potential, and believes that the only way Nigeria will reach her greatest potential is by educating and investing in her human capital.

In her journey to contribute to the education sector in Nigeria beyond the school setting, Folawe joined the Association of Private Educators in Nigeria (APEN) in 2013 as Coordinator, to seek a platform that would enable her to improve the quality of education for marginalized children. After two months at APEN, she was promoted to Executive Secretary, a position in which she planned and led several teacher training workshops and professional development programs for educators, and cultivated relationships with key government and education stakeholders. During her tenure at the APEN, Folawe continued to develop her Leadership skills through her participation in Leading Change Through Education Systems at Harvard Graduate School of Education.

In 2015, Folawe joined Teach For Nigeria as the Program Manager in its early stages. She quickly transitioned to become the CEO in 2016, leading the start-up, planning, and development of the organisation; cultivating relationships with key stakeholders; fundraising; and driving the organisational development.

Meaningful, sustainable change requires

BUSINESS DAY

Nigerian Lawyer, Author, International development consultant

leaders who are rooted in their local culture, challenges, and opportunities and who believe in the potential of children and their communities. Teach For All is developing collective leadership to improve education and expand opportunity for all children, so they can shape a better future for themselves and the world around them.

The Teach For All network is developing collective leadership in classrooms and communities around the world. They are a network of 50 independent, locally led and governed partner organisations and a global organisation that works to accelerate the network’s progress.

On community impact, many alumni of Teach For All partners go on to become veteran educators, while others continue to challenge inequity outside of the classroom. Informed by their experience as teachers, network alumni become school and district leaders, policymakers, advocates, and entrepreneurs who work together with many others to reshape the systems that leave so many children behind.

Folawe Omikunle never fails to advocate for a new Nigeria where every child has equal opportunities. In her words, “I strongly believe that to attain our dream of a new Nigeria, we require a coalition of leaders from all sides of the field working collectively towards breaking this vicious cycle of education inequity that has had many of our children entrapped for decades and has eaten deep into our education system” For her, “To solve educational inequality in the country, we need inspired and motivated young leaders from different academic disciplines to canvass and act for excellence in the education standards of Nigeria.”

It is her belief that the Nigerian education sector needs to attract the best and outstanding people into the classrooms. She says the government needs to address and change the recruitment process to attract only outstanding people into the system.

In 2017, Folawe was named among the 100 most influential young Nigerians, an honour that recognizes her experience and commitment to social development. She has dedicated her professional life to tackling the challenges in the education sector in Nigeria.

A

yisha Osori is a Nigerian lawyer, author, international development consultant, journalist and politician known for her work on good governance, gender equality, women’s economic and political participation and ending violence against women in Nigeria. Her book Love Does Not Win Elections gives insight into the Unique Nigerian Politics. She is the former CEO of the Nigerian Women’s Trust Fund. Olufunke Baruwa succeeded her.

Ayisha Osori studied Law at the University of Lagos and Harvard Law School. She holds a Masters in Public Administration from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government. She was called to the Nigerian and New York State Bars in 1998 and 2000 respectively.

In 2013, she as an Eisenhower Fellow, was invited to America and spent seven weeks meeting important organisations and the chair of the Eisenhower Fellowship, Colin Powel.

Ayisha has worked on several projects in the Public and Private Sector including corporate and regulatory practice, business management and administration, communications, civil society management, project management and issues-based advocacy. In addition to holding senior management roles in the private sectors and managing the Nigerian Women Trust Fund - a non-profit organization focused on increasing the quality and quantity of women in decision-making, for three years, Ayisha has consulted for the World Bank, United Nations Development Programme, Department for International Development, UNICEF and the National Democratic Institute.

In 2015, she was chosen to be one of 21 women who met for a conference at Harvard University Kennedy School of Government funded by Hunt Alternatives. The group included Fauzia Nasreen from Pakistan, Judy Thongori from Kenya and Olufunke Baruwa, Esther Ibanga and Hafsat Abiola also from Nigeria.

A keen commentator on public issues ranging from governance to values and human rights and public policy, Ayisha maintained a weekly column for the most part of seven years in ThisDay and Leadership Newspapers and is a regular media commen-

tator on radio and television. She sits on the board of various organisations in the public and private sector.

In 2018, the Open Society Foundations announced the appointment of Osori as the Executive Director of the Open Society Initiative for West Africa (OSIWA) overseeing the operations of OSIWA in 10 African countries; Benin, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, and Senegal.

In 2014, Ayisha contested the primaries for a seat in the National Assembly on the platform of Nigeria’s ruling party – the People’s Democratic Party but lost. Love Does Not Win Elections is a book about her experiences in the electoral process and Nigerian Politics as a whole. In the book, she expressed her dissatisfaction with the quality of representation – both from the men and women in office and after years advising on and working to get more women into leadership positions, she is curious about what it would take to contest and win. The book also provides insight into the role that money plays in Nigerian elections.

In 2018, Ayisha Osori co-authored a book titled Too Good to Die : Third Term And The Myth Of The Indispensable Man In Africa, with the former chairman of the National Human Rights president Chidi Odinkalu. The book put to scrutiny claims by ex-Nigerian president Olusegun Obasanjo, that he did not seek a third term in office.

On politics she says “Our political parties are generational. Nothing is going to die out. It has become a system, a process, and a culture. I met fathers who are preparing their sons to take their positions bearing the same mentality.

Whether we have old people or young people it would be the same if we do not develop a different strategy to make things work” For Aisha, “A government that knows our recurrent expenditure and debt service consumes over 100% of FGN revenues and still creates new ministries, has no business peddling ‘live within your means‘. It’s a relic of military do-as-I-say-not-as-I-do mentality. Lead by example and run a leaner government”

Published by BusinessDAY Media Ltd., The Brook, 6 Point Road, GRA, Apapa, Lagos. Advert Hotline: 08034743892. Subscriptions 01-2950687, 07045792677. Newsroom: 08169609331 Editor: Patrick Atuanya. All correspondence to BusinessDAY Media Ltd., Box 1002, Festac Lagos. ISSN 1595 - 8590.