Day: May 30, 2024

Rep. Emeka Idu (LP-Anambra) has urged President Bola Tinubu to invest in the manufacturing sector of the economy.

Idu, who represents Onitsha North/South Federal Constituency of Anambra State said this in Abuja on Thursday while speaking with newsmen following 25 years of unbroken democracy in the country.

He said the manufacturing sector has the capacity to produce different variety of products that could be exported.

He added that the sector would earn Nigeria foreign exchange, revive the nation’s economy and address security challenges.

He appealed to Tinubu to ensure implementation of economic policies that would transform Nigeria to productive nation to end the economic hardship in the country.

On the 25 years of unbroken democracy, Idu said that Nigeria had remained one indivisible entity and witnessed uninterrupted democracy from 1999 till date in spite of challenges.

The lawmaker expressed concern that after 25 years of democratic rule in Nigeria, the country still faced with security and econom
ic challenges.

This, he said had compelled some individuals and private companies to leave the country to other countries that have conducive environment for businesses.

He said that provision of adequate security for Nigeria on long term basis and investment in the production sector were part of the ways that would revive the nation’s economy.

He added that this would engender confidence and trust for investors to start trooping in.

He expressed commitment to enacting laws and supporting policies that would improve the living standard of the people of Onitsha North/South Federal Constituency, South East and Nigeria in general.

Source: News Agency of Nigeria

As the Bola Tinubu-led administration clocks one year in office, some financial experts, while assessing the performance of the capital market, have commended the government’s efforts so far.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Tinubu was sworn in as Nigeria’s President on May 29, 2023, succeeding President Muhammadu Buhari, having emerged winner of the 2023 presidential election.

In the trading week ended May 26, 2023, hours before Tinubu’s inauguration, the NGX All-Share Index and Market Capitalisation appreciated by 1.51 per cent to close at 52,973.88 points and N28.845 trillion respectively.

Equally, as at the close of trading on Monday, May 27, the NGX All-Share Index and Market Capitalisation stood at 97,863.34 and N55.359 trillion respectively.

Regulated by both the Nigerian Exchange Ltd.(NGX) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the capital market is primarily a financial institution to raise capital to invest in new projects, expand operations, or pay off debt.

A financial
expert, Mr David Adonri, described the Nigerian capital market as extremely profitable, liquid and a safe investment outlet under the administration.

He emphasised that progress in the market had been defined by a surging bull-rally in the secondary market for equities under the present leadership.

Andori, also the Vice Chairman of Highcap Securities, said that debt capital raising through the capital market enjoyed a sustained tempo under the Tinubu-led government.

He noted that almost all capital raising at the market were either through debt or equities by businesses.

‘When this administration took office on May 29, 2023, the All-Share Index (ASI) of NGX, a metric for gauging performance of equities, was 52,973.88.

‘Thereafter, it proceeded on a galloping race which took it to 102,401.88 on Jan. 26, thereby shattering previous records of growth.

‘ Following its overheating, the equities market is gradually experiencing a correction.’

He said the two major economic reforms of floating the Naira and r
emoval of fuel subsidy embarked upon by Tinubu resonated well with the capital market.

Dissecting the situation, Adonri said that the new ceiling served as a boost to investors’ confidence and increased demand for equities, just as the debt market increased in vibrancy on spite of the increase in interest rates by the Monetary Authority to rein in inflation.

The stockbroker highlighted the public macro-economic policies, saying that ‘the capital market has been akin to a candle burning from both ends’.

‘Consequently, for investors, the Nigerian capital market has been an extremely profitable, liquid and safe investment outlet in the past one year,’he added.

To him, if the fundamentals of the economy and the capital market become stronger, investors’ confidence will remain high.

The resolution of the crisis around trapped investors’ funds, according to the expert, is a vital ingredient to bringing back many disillusioned foreign investors to the market.

To further buttress experts’ position, Mr Tajudeen
Olayinka, an Investment banker, said that the Nigerian capital market had really done well in the past one year.

Olayinka stated that, as a matter of fact, the market started showing a positive sign or bullish run, following the announcement of Tinubu as the winner of the 2023 presidential election.

‘Let me also add that the market started showing positive signs in November 2022 when it was obvious that any of the three leading presidential candidates; Peter Obi, Atiku Abubakar and Bola Tinubu could succeed outgoing President Buhari.

This, from an analytical perspective, the reason being that the three leading candidates were known to be private sector activists, as against the outgoing President’s public sector orientation.

‘So, the astronomical rise in the index we have today started with an uptick that predates the 2023 election proper,’ the expert explained

When President Tinubu made those important pronouncements during his inaugural speech, the market quickly embraced him as a pro-market participan
t.

Some stock and market players have been confident to hail the performance indices which they claimed had recorded three times their values before the conduct of the 2023 presidential election.

They attributed this to the calibre of the presidential candidates as tactical market players.

During the period under examination, the market also recorded massive gains, enriching new investors that came to the market for the first time.

According to Olayinka, the government needs to strengthen all the institutions that provide direction to the market, including the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), the Debt Management Office (DMO) and Federal Ministry of Finance.

The stockbroker viewed the recent appointment of a new board of SEC, as a positive reaction to improve institutional performance.

Mr Aruna Kebira, a stockbroker with Global View Capital Ltd., also submitted that the market, being information sensitive, was stagnated from the build-up to the 2023 general elec
tions.

According to him, this is due to several factors because industry players were unsure of who would emerge winner at the 2023 presidential poll, hence the discordant the by investors.

He noted that after the emergence of Tinubu as president, the market was further enveloped with gloom as a result of the impending court cases and the possibility of judgment being passed in favour of the opposition.

According to him, the announcement of the removal of the fuel subsidy and that the inauguration of a president after the election took the stock market by storm.

Kebira explained that the Foreign Direct Investment

(FDIs) Pension Fund Administrators (PFAs) and the High Networth IndividuaIs (HNIs) which were hitherto on the sidelines, launched a full come-back to the market.

‘It was believed that the incumbent has some good things up his sleeves.

‘The fire in the market was further kindled when the erstwhile CBN governor, Godwin was arrested for an alleged misdemeanour during his tenure as Nigeria’s chief
banker.

‘The market began to enjoy its highest patronage when the rates in the money market were not encouraging enough vis-a-vis the sterling performances of the listed companies.

‘Then came along the floating of the Naira that led to the banks declaring super loss and humongous profit.

‘The ASI broke its set all-time high points of 68,000 in 2008 and established another all-time at 106,000 points,’ he said.

According to him, stocks fared well in the capital market during this period, while the rates in the money were moderate.

The stockbroker, however, expressed disappointment that the dollar exchange jumped to N1,950 per dollar.

The resultant effect of this is food inflation, which has contributed to the rise in the general inflation led to the CBN’s hike in the Monetary Policy Rate (MPR) to control inflation.

This development, Kebira said, rebound to a better yield environment at the money market, hence, investors who were constantly in search of better yields, migrated from the capital market to t
he money market.

He said: ‘That frenzy of trying to cover one position at the market normally leads to sell-off pressure that would, in turn, depress stock prices and, by extension, the All-Share Index.

‘The various information and policies of the government are anti-capital markets, and until we begin to see a decline in inflation rate, that would necessitate the CBN to review the MPR downwards, the capital market may be in limbo for a long while.

In addressing the present situation and further boosting and sustaining investors’ interest in the capital market, Kebira advised the Federal Government to provide a secure environment for farmers.

While expressing that the problem currently facing the country is that of demand and supply, the stockbroker, believed that once inflationary trends about food are checkmated with enough to go around, headline inflation will also be stemmed.

‘By that, the CBN can review the MPR downwards, thereby discouraging investment in money market instruments, and consequently,
the capital market can then be an investment destination for high yield-seeking investors,’ he said.

Observers said that the Tinubu-led government, having started well with laudable policies, must aggressively work toward stemming inflation, exchange and interest rates to spur investment in the capital market vis-a-vis the country.

According to them, this is because the positive performance of the stock market as a primary barometer of economic health, both domestically and globally, is interconnected with the broader economic indicators.

Source: News Agency of Nigeria

President Bola Tinubu has said that the country would prevail against the adversaries undermining it peace and security with myriads of security challenges.

Tinubu, represented by the President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, gave the assurance while inaugurating the Headquarters of the Defence Intelligence Agency (DIA), on Thursday in Abuja.

The president said his confidence was anchored on the unwavering commitment of members of the Armed forces of Nigeria and the intelligence agencies, including the DSS, NIA and of course the DIA.

‘You have all led me in no doubt that you have no other higher obligation than to serve and secure this nation of ours,’ he said.

The president said he had made the task of securing every inch of the country a priority, adding that he had no intention on the sacred duty.

He emphasised that the DIA was a key agency in the security architecture of the country that primarily provided intelligence to the armed forces and the Ministry of Defense.

According to him, our country i
s bedevil by a myriad of security challenges across the six geopolitical zones of the entire nation.

‘Since we became an independent nation about 64 years ago, except for the period of the civil war spanning 1967 all the way to 1970, at no time have we been faced by multiple threats than in recent times.

‘We not only face physical threats, but also economic and digital threats.

‘In our bid to combat physical threats, we deploy the armed forces in almost all parts of the country to assist the civil authorities.

‘Some of the other threats, you will have to contend with behind your computers using, if necessary, artificial intelligence, enabling our military to know the position of the enemies or the games they are up to.’

Tinubu said it was not a coincidence that government had made deliberate efforts to ensure the general upliftment of the DIA which was created in 1986.

Tinubu, however, promised to sustain the provisional welfare, training and other administrative and logistics requirements to the agenc
y and the entire armed forces to enhance their productivity while carrying out their mandates.

According to him, a conducive and well equipped intelligence outfit will positively impact on the overall intelligence gathering efforts, processing and timely dissemination to the various arms of the military.

He commended the leadership of the agency, past and present for concealing and completing the edifice.

‘It is my sincere belief that out of this magnificent office structure shall emerge innovations and creativity in the field of intelligence gathering that will keep Nigeria ahead of its foes and make our country and people safer.

‘I want to commend the entire staff of the DIA for their dedication to duty.

‘I urge you to be unrelenting, proactive in creating the necessary conditions that will guarantee the realisation of the renewed hope agenda for a better country that we all desire.

‘The entire nation is behind you and appreciates your sacrifices,’ he added.

The Chief of Defence Intelligence (CDI), M
aj.-Gen. Emmanuel Undiandeye, said the agency had since establishment, diligently carried out its assigned responsibilities of intelligence gathering and provisioning of timely and appropriate actions for the military and strategic national decision making.

Undiandeye identify the place of intelligence as a critical tool of statecraft that provided the necessary foreknowledge to protect the nation from surprise attacks, either through hostile foreign military or internal challenges.

He said that certain factors and conditions such as conducive working environment of the operators of the system, were required to allow effective functioning of the agency.

He noted that the completion and inauguration of the agency’s Headquarters marked a significant milestone in the journey towards enhancing its performance in intelligence provisioning for better national defence and security.

‘This building stands as a testament to the fulfillment of the cardinal requirements of the staff of this agency for optimal perform
ance of their duties.

‘The agency is taking a bold and ambitious step by initiating what we call the Defense Intelligence Agency Technology Center in preparation for the current and future challenges and warfare.

‘This is in order to give our nation a chance of survival in the past approaching complex world of technology.

‘Therefore, we have started incorporating artificial intelligence and data analytics into our processes in a flexible and scalable manner until we graduate into full implementation of all of the processes.

‘This is against the backdrop that in the near future and any emphasis that lags behind in artificial intelligence may be incapable of defending itself or the nation indeed acts equally in the quest to improve our output,’Undiandeye said.

Source: News Agency of Nigeria

Stayalert Human Right Awareness Initiative (SHRAI), a Civil Society Organisation (CSO)has said the nation’s security challenge has improved since President Bola Tinubu assumed office.

The Director of Publicity of SHRAI, Mr Amechi Onyema, said this while addressing a news conference with theme, ‘One Year of Tinubu/Shettima: Assessing the Impact of the Armed Forces of Nigeria’, on Thursday in Abuja.

Onyema said the assessment of the military was part of activities to commemorate the first anniversary of the Tinubu-Shettima presidency.

He said the administration came onboard at a time when terrorists, bandits and other criminal elements were holding the country to ransom.

Onyema said the group carefully studied what had been done in the past one year to bring peace and stability to volatile parts of the country because of its concern about the security challenges the country had faced.

In counter-insurgency operations, he said investigation by the group had revealed that terrorists, insurgents and other cri
minals had been feeling the heat of intensive military operations across the country.

According to him, over 4,600 hostages have been freed, more than 9,300 insurgents neutralised, and over 7,000 terrorists and bandits arrested.

‘We can boldly say that in the past one year, the security situation has improved.

‘The stay at home in the South-East has fizzled out as people in that region are now more relaxed, likewise in the North-East and North-West. We cannot but commend the armed forces,’ he said.

In the fight against crude oil theft, Onyema said the relentless pursuit of oil thieves and economic saboteurs by the troops of Operation Delta Safe had boosted oil production and reduction in oil theft.

He said the successes recorded by the military was as a result of the renewed synergy among the services and with other security agencies in the theatres of operation.

The spokesman for the group also said that leadership of the military led by Christopher Musa, had continued to stress that democracy was the
best and declared loyalty to the constitution of the country.

He added that the group had commended the defense chief for using every opportunity to reaffirm their loyalty to the constitution.

Onyema also commended the leadership of Defense and Police Officers Wives Association (DEPOWA) for the supports through empowerment programmes for troops, their families and those of the fallen heroes.

According to him, it is a morale booster to troops engaged in military operations that their today and tomorrow is covered.

‘While there is room for improvement and more successes, we are using this opportunity to commend the CDS and his troops for a job well done. We therefore give them score of very good.

‘We urge Nigerians to continue to support our troops,’ he added.

Source: News Agency of Nigeria

Stakeholders have urged Heads of State and Government in Africa to scale up the provision of free school meals in spite of the economic challenges.

They spoke on a sideline event at the ongoing African Development Bank’s (AfDB) Annual Meetings in Nairobi.

The theme is ‘Creating Fiscal Space for School Meals: Towards Agenda 2063, SDGs and Human Capital Development’.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Rockefeller Foundation organised the event in collaboration with the Global Partnership for Education (GPE) and the World Food Programme,

It focused on how countries could scale up the provision of free school meals to help meet the sustainable development goals and aspirations of the African Union’s Agenda 2063.

The agenda for 2063 is termed the ‘Africa We Want.’

The AfDB President, Dr Akinwunmi Adesina, said there was a link between hunger and the development of grey matter.

Adesina, represented by his Director of Agriculture and Agro-Industry, Dr Martin Fregene, said freedom from hunger wa
s a human right.

He said that when children had good meals, they would go back to school again and again, and food production created demand for farmers and secured markets for products, assisting economic growth.

According to Adesina, the universal primary education across Africa (SDG 2) initiative, which is strongly supported by the Bank Group, has made significant progress.

He said that for it to be realised, it had to be accompanied by planet-friendly, homegrown school meal programmes.

Adesina acknowledged that many African governments were grappling with the adverse economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, rising food inflation, and losses and damages associated with climate change-induced natural disasters, among other things.

The AfDB president said the Bank had supported healthy meals initiatives with some 100 million dollars so far.

Former Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete, current chair of the Global Partnership for Education (GPE), said ‘No child today should go to school hungry.’

Therefo
re, he called for new and innovative ways to finance school meals to ensure that they are free for schoolchildren.

Given current economic circumstances, Kikwete called for an acceleration in the drive to achieve the SDGs through creative thinking and not falling further behind.

He reiterated that this was because school children were the guardians of Africa’s future and critical in achieving the ‘Africa We Want’.

Kikwete praised the recent debt swap for education deals with partners, highlighting a recently concluded agreement between France and Ivory Coast.

He said the multiplier effect every dollar spent on education, including the free meals initiative, had on overall Gross Domestic Product (GDP) performances.

The stakeholders highlighted that many countries on the continent were contending with constrained fiscal space exacerbated by rising debt service costs, creating a silent debt crisis.

They said high debt service payments squeezed out spending on critical interventions that could accelerate Age
nda 2063 and SDG implementation.

The stakeholders then said that free meals helped children’s cognitive capacities, increased attendance levels, improved health and nutrition and general well-being.

Source: News Agency of Nigeria