Almost 1,000 Days After, Another Chibok Girl Rescued, President Welcomes Recovery Boko Haram is gone forever from Sambisa, DHQ insists Women in Lake Chad forced into prostitution to survive, Says Red Cross Tobi Soniyi in Abuja, Ernest Chiwno inPortHarcourt,Michael Olugbode in Maiduguri and Emmanuel Addeh in Yenagoa President Muhammadu Buhari
yesterday welcomed the recovery of another Chibok schoolgirl, Rakiya Abubakar, by Nigerian troops at the Alagarno area of Damboa Local Government Area in
other captured girls would one day be reunited with their families, friends and community. Her discovery, with her six-month-old baby, brings
Borno State. A statement by his media aide, Mr. Femi Adesina, said the president noted that the recovery raised renewed hopes that the
to 23 Chibok girls that have been recovered from Boko Haram captivity in recent months. One hundred and ninety six girls remain in captivity almost 1,000 days
after more than 200 girls were kidnapped from their school dormitory by members of the deadly sect. Continued on page 8
Total to Resume Operations Today After Shutdown by Oil Workers…
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Friday 6 January, 2017 Vol 21. No 7932. Price: N250
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Finally, Buhari Condoles with Victims of Southern Kaduna Violence
Orders army, police to end crisis Osinbajo: Nigeria can’t be Islamised Tobi Soniyi in Abuja with agency report After coming under heavy criticism for keeping silent on the killings in Southern Kaduna, President Muhammadu Buhari yesterday condoled with residents affected by the violence and directed the military and police to end the crisis in the area. Continued on page 8
RAISING SHORT-TERM DEBT…
L-R: Director, Investment Banking, Chapel Hill Advisory Partner Limited, Ayo Fasina; Group Managing Director/CEO, Access Bank Plc, Herbert Wigwe; Managing Director, FMDQ OTC Securities Exchange, Bola “Koko” Onadele; and Managing Director, Coronation Merchant Bank Limited, Abubakar Jimoh, at the signing ceremony on the quotation of Access Bank’s N35 billion Commercial Paper on the FMDQ OTC Securities Exchange… yesterday
Green Shoots Start to Sprout as External Reserves Hit $26.1bn
Obinna Chima
The accretion of Nigeria’s foreign exchange (forex) reserves, which started about two months ago, continued in the new year, when figures released yesterday by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) showed that reserves
had grown to $26.094 billion, signifying a slow but steady improvement in the country’s current account balance. It was also indicative that the drop in militancy in the Niger Delta and rising oil exports, have led to an improvement in foreign
exchanges earnings, which the CBN has been stashing away, notwithstanding the lingering forex scarcity in the economy. The present value of the reserves, derived mostly from the proceeds of crude oil sale, represents an appreciation by $2.137
billion or nine per cent, compared with $23.957 billion as of November 2, 2016, data gathered by THISDAY showed yesterday. A CBN source, who spoke with THISDAY on the condition of anonymity, said the increase in the level of exports as well as
the drop in imports in the country following renewed import-substitution drive by the central bank and federal government could be responsible for the appreciation of the external reserves. “There are several reasons for the uptick in reserves;
exports may have been relatively stable in view of the relative calm in oil producing regions, particularly the Niger Delta. What it means is that for some time it hasn’t happened. Continued on page 9