Month: June 2024

The Interior Designers Association of Nigeria (IDAN) has urged stakeholders across the interior design ecosystem to embrace a blend of multi-generational and futuristic aesthetics and designs to drive inclusion.

The President of the association, Dr Jennifer Chukwujekwe, said that this would also help to safeguard the future of interior design in Nigeria.

Chukwujekwe made the assertion during the association’s celebration of the 2024 World Interiors Day, on Friday in Lagos.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the 2024 World Interiors Day was celebrated on May 25 with the theme: ‘Bridging the gap for a better multi-generational future’.

Chukwujekwe said that the theme indicated designers’ responsibility to create spaces that would not only reflect aesthetical aspirations but also meet the functional needs of people across all ages.

She said that interior designers had the unique privilege and duty to shape environments that would foster connection, inclusivity and well-being.

According to her, d
esigns must transcend the present, anticipate the needs of future generations while honouring the legacy of those who lived in the past.

‘While trends come and go, the essence of good design is timeless, and we should strive to create spaces that blend contemporary style with classic elements, ensuring they remain relevant and appealing across generations.

‘We must embrace inclusive design principles, ensuring that our spaces are accessible and welcoming to people of all ages and abilities.

‘This includes thoughtful considerations for mobility, sensory needs and comfort.

‘Our designs should celebrate cultural heritage and diversity, reflecting the rich tapestry of our society,’ she said.

She added that, by incorporating traditional elements and local craftsmanship, designers would create spaces that would resonate with a sense of identity and continuity.

The IDAN president also emphasised the need for stakeholders across the interior design ecosystem to embrace sustainability practices and integrate tec
hnology in envisioning the future of interior design.

She said that designs should prioritise sustainability and ensure that a positive environmental legacy would be left behind.

Chukwujekwe said that, by using eco-friendly materials, energy- efficient systems, and sustainable practices, designers could create spaces that would support a healthier planet.

‘The integration of technology in our designs must be thoughtful and forward-thinking; from smart home systems to adaptive lighting and climate control, we need to ensure our spaces are equipped to evolve with technological advancements.

‘Let us commit to continuing our professional development, staying abreast of emerging trends and technologies, and always striving for excellence in our craft.

‘Together, we can design a future that bridges generations, creating environments that nurture, inspire and endure,’ she said.

Ogun State Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Development, Mrs Adijat Adeleye, emphasised the need for stakeholders to commit t
o designing with empathy, sensitivity and inclusivity.

Adeleye said that the stakeholders should create spaces that would meet the functional needs of all ages and inspire and connect people across generations.

She said that doing so would facilitate creation of a future where generations would lead, learn and trade together, enriching communities.

‘We are united by shared love for design and our collective commitment to fostering an environment that showcases the richness of diverse generational perspectives, using our creative talents to bridge the gaps that exist between generations.

‘By doing so, we can create more harmonious and inclusive communities where everyone feels valued and understood.

‘The theme of today’s event points to an inherent challenge: the communication gap between different age groups which can lead to misunderstanding, isolation or loss of valuable knowledge and experience.

‘However, design has a pathway to address and overcome these challenges, and in creating spaces that encou
rage dialogue and interaction, we can facilitate greater understanding and cooperation between generations, ensuring that wisdom of the past is not lost,’ she said.

The commissioner added that familiar elements of design could be seamlessly integrated with cutting edge technologies, such as smart lighting, energy-efficient systems, and adaptive furniture to cater for the diverse needs of different generations.

She said that such blend would not only harness or preserve the cultural legacy but would also engage the younger generation by introducing them to the beauty and significance of the heritage.

The Treasurer of IDAN, Mrs Titi Fowora, said that the association was determined to be a steward of the environment by advancing the built environment in trans-generational design practices.

‘The idea is to leave the environment better that one met it; hence, the importance of using materials that are sustainable, eco-friendly, recyclable and reusable.

‘We have to be as green as possible, as forward-thinking
as possible, and design not just for ourselves but design for the future so that people do not feel the need to constantly re-invent the wheel or re-design,’ she said.

Also, Dolapo Amole, Professor of Architecture, Obafemi Awolowo University, said that there was the need to fill the gaps in design created by generational differences to drive harmony, productivity, innovation and a strong community.

‘In design, bridging the gap is understanding the differences, adopting technology, providing variety of spaces, amenities and opportunities and an inclusive process to preserve the future of design,’ she said.

Source: News Agency of Nigeria

The election results management system remains functional and uncompromised as the collation of votes process nears completion at the national Results Operations Centre in Midrand.

This is according to Electoral Commission (IEC) Chairperson Mosotho Moepya, who briefed media on Saturday afternoon.

South Africa took to the polls on Wednesday in the 2024 National and Provincial Elections.

‘The results management process, anywhere in the world in any election, is the most sensitive part of election management,’ IEC Chairperson said, calling on electoral stakeholders to remain confident in the integrity of the results management process.

Moepya said the results management process used in the elections was developed in-house and was not a shelf-based product.

‘It was developed with specific compliance to our electoral legislation, particularly the Electoral Act.

‘We emphasise that it is a system that takes into account the amendments made in the law where the Electoral Commission has engaged service providers
in the electoral process. These service providers were procured openly and the award of their services was publicly published,’ he told the journalists at the ROC.

According to Moepya, the result systems used in this election were specifically developed and tested.

The IEC also employed the services of professional auditors, Deloitte and Touche South Africa, who then reviewed the system.

‘Once Deloitte and Touche had audited the systems and assured us that indeed they do what they’re designed to do, that process was open to contestants in the national Political Liaison Committees (PLC). We have a history of doing so. We did not move away from that rich history,’ he said.

He said the commission was pleased to indicate that the results systems have remained functional and uncompromised throughout the results compilation process.

The Chairperson said the technical fault with the results’ leaderboards on Friday was ‘regrettable’.

‘It had nothing to do with the tampering or otherwise of the results manag
ement systems. It was a technical glitch that was experienced momentarily and it has been resolved.’

He called on all parties and citizens to continue to follow the results systems and bring any faults or errors to the commission’s attention.

‘Because this is a transparent process and open to all…where you find faults or errors we were not too distant to look at those.’

IEC said they were currently processing the results and that the few that remain must also complete the audit process and every measure specified for purposes of transparency.

‘Grant Thornton, the consortium of auditors we procured for this process, are aware that all of you want a credible outcome to this election.

‘They are under no illusion that the job they have to do a solid job and that it’s important to you. It’s important to us and it’s important to the rest of the world.’

Source: South African Government News Agency

The African Development Bank (AFDB) has reiterated its commitment to promote mutual reliance on the continent in procurement diagnostic tools and social environment safeguards.

The AfDB’s Senior Vice-President, Swazi Tshabalala, said this at the Annual Development Effectiveness Report held on the sidelines of the 2024 AfDB Annual Meetings in Nairobi.

Tshabalala said the Bank would continue to adapt its operational model, simplify its business processes, and further collaborate with other Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs) to promote mutual reliance.

‘The report provides supportive development results of AfDB’s global finance projects, which demonstrate its increased efforts in normalising and catalysing other sources of finance from the private sector.

‘These development results represent a collective achievement delivered in collaboration and partnership with other international development banks and development partners, and of course, our client partners.

‘In this year’s report, we have incorporate
d innovative tools and methods like satellite imaging to better capture and analyse the development impact of our investments.

‘For instance, using high-resolution impact mapping, we were able to assess the impact of Bank-financed water and sanitation projects on the living conditions of residents in 28 urban areas in Kenya,’ she said.

She said the report also provided the supportive development results of our global finance projects, which allowed us to demonstrate the Bank’s increased efforts in normalising and catalysing other sources of finance.

The vice-president said that, in spite of the pandemic’s lingering challenges and geopolitical tensions, the bank group had earned its triple-A award.

‘The Bank generated a historically high net income and approved projects to the value of 10 billion dollars, the second-highest funding level.

‘The Bank will also support member countries or regional member countries in establishing appropriate platforms for business coordination at the country level.

‘The Af
DB is recognised for its leadership in financial innovations, implementing many of the recommendations of the G20 Capital Adequacy Framework,’ she said.

Tshabalala said this was coming at a time when the Bank inaugurated a 10-year strategy (2024-2033) that served as an answer to the continent’s current complex hurdles.

She said it also boldly outlined the Bank’s determination to support Africa in overcoming multiple challenges.

Tshabalala said the strategy reflected the ambitions ‘for the Africa we want’ and came at a time when the continental body was prioritising the fully operational African Continental Free Trade Areas (AfCFTA).

‘The new 10-year strategy outlines the vision of a prosperous, inclusive, resilient and integrated Africa.

‘It is supported by twin strategic objectives, accelerating inclusive green growth in Africa and driving prosperous and resilient economies.

‘To pursue these twin objectives, the Bank has defined clear pathways for addressing Africa’s challenges and to help the continen
t stay on track toward sustainable economic growth and prosperity.

‘The five high-five operational priorities will continue to shape the implementation of the strategy as they continue to be aligned with the objectives of Agenda 2063 and the SDGs,’ she said.

She said the implementation of those priorities will be underpinned by the cross-cutting priorities to promote gender equality, invest in young people, and respond to climate change.

She said it would also depend on building resilience to shocks, conflicts and fragility and of course, strengthening economic governance.

‘The strategy outlines AfDB’s response to the complex threats facing Africa, the global and regional challenges and answering the G20 call for MDBs to reform, become better, bigger and more efficient,’ she said.

Source: News Agency of Nigeria

Some residents of Ado, One Man Village and Masaka in Nasarawa State, have commended President Bola Tinubu’s efforts in fixing the nation’s economy.

The residents made the commendations in separate interviews with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Mararaba.

While some residents hailed Tinubu for what he had done in his one year in the office, others urged him to do better in repositioning the country.

One of the residents, Mr Okoronkwo Okechukuwu, Chief Executive Officer of Okeson Industrial Chemicals, said Tinubu’s first year has been a ‘mixed bag’.

According to him, it is too early to judge his leadership, because he is still trying to correct past mistakes, so we should pray for him and his administration.

‘The challenges faced by the President are enormous, and the fluctuation of the dollar is critical to the Nigerian economy, this has also affected business.

‘My business is something we buy with the dollar, and as the dollar increases the prices of goods go high which affects the business badly,’
he said.

Okechukwu said that in spite of these challenges, Tinubu has the potential to do better and therefore sought prayers for the President.

‘I believe he can do better. His leadership will be better than the last leadership, therefore, fellow Nigerians, I urged us to pray for the government and those in authority and for President Tinubu.

‘This is because if he does well, it is for the betterment of us all,’ he said.

Similarly, Mr Graham Eberechukuwu, a resident of Masaka, said that Tinubu’s first year had been a tale of two halves.

Eberechukwu, who expressed concern over the price of fuel that has gone higher than it was before now, acknowledged the progress made by the President in reducing terrorism.

‘As a country, the rate of terrorism has reduced, and this is the area that President Tinubu has impacted well,’ he said.

He advised Nigerians to be self-reliant saying,’ We cannot rely on the government alone. We need to be self-sufficient and find ways to overcome our challenges.’

Also, Mr Tosin
Owolabi, a resident of Ado and a dealer on second-hand clothing, expressed optimism in spite of the challenges.

‘We are still keeping the faith, in spite of the challenges. Tinubu promised to improve the livelihood of Nigerians and we are waiting to see the results,’

Owolabi, who acknowledged the difficulties faced by the citizens, urged them to exercise patience as things would be better soon.

Meanwhile, Miss Patience Abraham, a fashion designer, lamented that the economic hardship was caused by the removal of fuel subsidy.

‘The first month Tinubu assumed office as the President, the first thing he did was to remove fuel subsidy, and that caused a lot of economic breakdown.

‘This however, led to the increase of price of commodities in the market,’ she said.

Abraham said the economic situation had affected her business seriously, adding that it called for an urgent action to fix the country.

‘The fabrics I got for as low as N1,000 are now N2,500, and it is making the business unprofitable, and clients
are complaining.

‘Before, you can make a dress for N5,000, but now you cannot make that same dress for N10,000 because of the high cost of sewing materials,’ she said.

Abraham said the high cost of transportation was also a major challenge, adding that it had contributed to the high cost of things generally.

‘A common man can no longer feed three times a day now in Nigeria. A ‘mudu’ of beans is now N2,300, as against N800. Things have not been easy.

‘As Tinubu marks his first year in office, I hope for a better future.

‘Let us keep praying, work hard and hope that as the years go by the president will try to fix the country,’ she said.

Source: News Agency of Nigeria

The African Development Bank (AfDB) Group President, Dr Akinwumi Adesina, has reaffirmed the bank’s commitment to continue to deliver at scale to countries in the continent.

Adesina said this at the sideline of an event to celebrate the bank’s 60th anniversary.

The event was held on the sidelines of the ongoing 2024 AfDB Annual Meetings in Nairobi.

‘On the walk of the bank, with the journey we have travelled in supporting Africa and the one yet to be embarked on, one thing is sure that we are on the right path.’

‘A journey to accelerating the development of Africa. Amazingly, in the 60 years that we have been travelling this journey, we are not yet tired.

‘Just like Kenyans always run and win in long-distance races, so are we. We are running to win for Africa.

‘In 60 years, we have not diminished; we have grown and are delivering at scale for Africa,’ he said.

The AfDB president said the bank began its journey with nine countries and advanced to 23 countries after its inauguration, but now, it counts a
bout 81 countries.

According to him, the bank’s founding fathers dreamed of promoting and accelerating the economic and social development of African countries.

While commending the founders’ vision, Adesina said, ‘Their dreams have been realised, one strategy at a time, one president at a time.

‘But it takes all of our shareholders, you, to support us in making things happen. You, as shareholders, celebrate with us today,’ he said.

Adesina said that the AfDB was a trusted voice for Africa and responsible for its needs.

He thanked various heads of state and governments for their continued support for the bank, and urged them to do more to transform the continent.

‘I would like to close this time by congratulating His Excellency, President William Ruto for the wonderful announcement you made this morning by contributing to the African Development Fund (ADF).

‘That will make you the largest contributor to that fund as a regional member. Thank you also for your bold call for a 17th fund replenishment at 2
5 billion dollars.

‘It is so important in the AfDB that the Organisation of African Units gives it a clear mandate to mobilise development financing for Africa. And we are doing so with your collective support.

‘In 2019, you, the bank’s shareholders, raised the bank’s capital 93 billion dollars to 208 billion dollars, the highest in the bank’s history since it was established in 1964. Thank you very much,’ he said.

According to the AfDB president, the bank’s staff has been its strength, moving from 10 pioneer members in 1996 to 2,092 staff members.

‘Today, from 17 to 6 countries, we all come with one goal in mind, to activate African development.

‘Our Board of Governors and Board of Directors from 81 member countries have been the guiding light of the bank,’ he said.

He said that from an initial capital base of 2.3 billion dollars, the bank now maintained a triple-A rating and was the only triple-A-rated financial institution in Africa.

Adesina said the bank took pride in its humble beginnings and its
current status as a globally respected institution, innovating and leading among global financial institutions.

‘The African Development Bank is on the hybrid path from the global capital market, first-ever by a multilateral development bank, creating a new global asset class for institutional investment.

‘It is the first and the only multilateral development bank to do synthetic decentralisation, transferring risks from our sovereign and non-sovereign portfolios to the private sector for institutional investment.

‘In 2021, AfDB was ranked the best multilateral financial institution in the world by Global Finance.

‘In 2022, the ADF, our concessional lending institution, was ranked the world’s second-best concessional financial institution by the Centre for Global Development, ahead of all eight concessional financial institutions,’ he said.

The AfDB president said the bank in 2022, was ranked the most transparent financial institution in the world by Corbett.

He said: ‘together, building on the foundati
ons laid by our founders, we have built a global financial institution focusing on the assets, bringing the wealth to Africa and taking Africa to the world.

‘Let us celebrate Africa’s development. Let’s accelerate it relentlessly. Africa deserves the best, and only the best is good enough for Africa. Happy 60th anniversary,’ he said.

Source: News Agency of Nigeria

The Controller General of Nigerian Correctional Service(NCoS), Haliru Nababa, has appointed Ibrahim Usman as the new Controller incharge of FCT Command.

The newly appointed FCT command controller, Usman Ibrahim assumed duty on Friday in Abuja.

Ibrahim took over from John Francis, who was recently redeployed to Kaduna State Zonal Headquarters.

Francis while handing over thanked the officers of the command for their support and urged them to extend the same gesture to Ibrahim, whom he believed would take the command to greater heights.

On his part, Ibrahim expressed confidence for a mutual working relationship towards achieving the mandate of the service in FCT.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Ibrahim was enlisted into the service in 1990 and had served in 14 Custodial Centres.

Until his deployment as Controller of Corrections, FCT Command, Ibrahim was the Controller of Corrections in charge of Operations at the National Headquarters.

Source: News Agency of Nigeria