Author: Chief Editor

by DELE ALAKE Nothing captures and portrays the crisis of credibility and integrity of the vast majority of a sectional intelligentsia than a recent piece by Dr Chidi Amuta titled ‘Peter Obi and the looming tyranny’. To some who thought Chidi was supposedly more cosmopolitan, liberal, less parochial and less paranoid, his vituperation is more revealing than concealing. In the absurd and falsely alarmist apocalyptic piece, Amuta squanders valuable time and needless words lamenting an imminent tyranny of the incoming All Progressives Congress (APC) administration, which is entirely a figment of his fertile imagination. What a not insignificant number of…

Participants at a stakeholders’ engagement organised by the Osun State government and the federal government through the Nigeria Startup Act (NSA) have showered encomium on Governor Ademola Adeleke for taking the bold step of domesticating the Act. Speaking at the stakeholders’ engagement held in Osogbo, the Osun State capital at the weekend, spokesperson of the Forum of Digital Technology Entrepreneurs (FODITE), Segun Solomon,noted that the steps taken by Adeleke, not only put Osun ahead of other States, but also created an awareness to the whole nation about Osun State as a digitally inclined nation. He added that the private sector…

The shareholders of Dangote Sugar refinery during the weekend approved the N18.22billion dividend payout for financial year ended December 31, 2022. The shareholders at the 17th Annual General Meeting (AGM) approved the payment of N18.22billion dividend, being N0.50 kobo for every ordinary share of 50kobo each and the company’s performance in the year under review. The President of the Association for the Advancement of the Rights of Shareholders, Dr. Umar Faruk said the 50 per cent increase in dividend payout is commendable despite challenges in the domestic and foreign markets. The Chairman Emeritus of the Independent Shareholders Association of Nigeria (ISAN),…

The federal government has taken immediate steps to maximise and harness the full economic potential inherent in cashew export. The Executive Director/Chief Executive, Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC), Dr. Ezra Yakusak, said even though Raw Cashew Nut (RCN) emerged as the 5th leading non-oil exportable product valued at $252 million, and accounted for 5.24 per cent of the country’s non-oil export portfolio in 2022, the potential of the sector remained largely under-developed. Speaking at the launch of the Organic Cashew Certification Programme for Exports, organised by the council in collaboration with NICERT, Valency Limited and PRO-Cashew in Abuja, he said…

Rising debt waves across the world remains a major risk for global financial stability and undermines efforts to engender sustainable development, writes Obinna Chima One of the dominant issues discussed at the just concluded Spring Meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank was the elevated global debts. This remains a concern to countries, especially as interest continues to climb with weaker fundamentals to support debt repayment. After soaring in the aftermath of the 2008 global financial crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic, global debt climbed to an unprecedented level as it hit $300 trillion or 349 per cent…

On assumption of duty as the Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr Godwin Emefiele made financial inclusion a major plank of his monetary policy. In the Revised National Financial Inclusion Strategy of 2018, the CBN clearly stated that financial inclusion is achieved when adult Nigerians have easy access to a broad range of formal financial services that meet their needs at affordable costs. Financial inclusion is generally defined as the availability and equality of opportunities to access financial services. It refers to a process by which individuals and businesses can access appropriate, affordable, and timely financial products and…

April 10 marks the 10-year anniversary of losing my husband George. He and I were together for 32 years, beginning as high school sweethearts and ending with his death from cancer at age 53. When he died, I was almost 50 and for the first time in my life, I was alone. He and I had led isolated lives with no kids. He was an engineer’s engineer and happiest at his computer. I was an introvert and a bookworm ― a former lawyer who’d retired at 40 to escape the stress. George was my life… until I lost him. After…

Russia says it slashed oil production by 700,000 barrels a day in March, far more than originally planned, according to Bloomberg. That is a bigger reduction than the 500,000 barrels a day that the country pledged to cut originally. The reduced output comes as the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) pledged production curbs of 1.1 million barrels a day starting in May. However, Bloomberg said the data sows doubt over how much oil Russia actually produced, as it didn’t align with the country’s seaborne exports and domestic refinery supplies. In February, Russia announced plans to cut 500,000 barrels a…

The Ministry of Petroleum Resources and the National Institute of Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS) have pledged to collaborate in pursuit of stronger ties to ensure effective knowledge exchange between the two organisations. Speaking when a group of participants of the Senior Executive Course (SEC) 45, 2023 of NIPSS, Jos, on a study tour visited the Ministry of Petroleum Resources, Permanent Secretary of the ministry, Gabriel Aduda, also posited that with more funding NIPPS can only become stronger. In his address to the participants at the event in Abuja, Aduda said with the many recipients of the Member of the…

The non-buoyancy of many of the Distribution Companies (Discos) and the perceived opacity of the project details may pose serious challenge in the implementation of the bilateral power contracts, which the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) has instructed some Discos to activate with Generation Companies (Gencos), THISDAY has learnt. NERC had in a letter sent to three Discos namely: Eko, Ikeja, and Abuja, instructed them to commence implementation of the bilateral power contracts with Gencos with effect from March 31, 2023. Eko and Abuja Discos have confirmed the NERC’s instruction, saying they were working towards commencing full implementation this year…