By olasade Akpan

Mr Buki Ponle, the Managing Director, News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) has pledged to give women in the organisation the necessary support they need to excel.

He made the pledge on Tuesday in Abuja, when some female members of staff paid him a visit in commemoration of the International Womens Day celebration.

Ponle, while extolling the numerous virtues of the womenfolk, said that if given the opportunity, women would give their best to the society.

I will always be there to support you and give you the necessary tools to make your job easier, he said.

According to him, those who put women at the back row are just undoing and punishing themselves and their society.

So we always defer to remember because I know their essence and their importance and I know that without women, men cannot move anywhere.

I am happy to note that if you go to any graduation ceremony in the universities, you will see that women outnumber men and it means that women are coming up.

Maybe that is why some men are afraid to let women have their roles in the society, he said.

Ponle said that women would always have a soft spot for men and for their children, adding that was only applicable to men who treat them nice.

He added that, So for this special day, I congratulate you for your numerous strides and I believe that you will continue to make your mark in any area of calling.

The maiden IWD celebration was held in 1911 and in 1975, the United Nations declared March 8 as International Womens Day.

NAN reports that IWD is a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women.

The 2022 theme is: Gender Equality Today for a Sustainable Tomorrow. (NAN)

Source: NAN News

By Edith Ike-Eboh and Emmanuel Afonne

The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd.) started the week with a move to tackle the challenges of gas flaring in the country.

The NNPC Group Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer (GMD/CEO), Malam Mele Kyari, during a panel session at the just concluded Nigerian International Energy Summit (NIES 2022) in Abuja, said part of the strategies would be to ensure that any proposed project without clear-cut plans to commercialise or use up its associated gas would no longer be approved.

He said gas utilisation was a major priority of both the Federal Government and NNPC as efforts were on to build infrastructure to replace the current fuel oil and diesel in the nations factories with gas which is a cleaner source of energy.

Kyari remarked that the trend was in tandem with the global reality of energy transition.

He, however, stressed that Nigeria as a country needed all the hydrocarbon of today to build the energy of tomorrow.

In his keynote message, the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Chief Timipre Sylva, said that the Ministry of Petroleum Resources was ready to provide the needed framework and support for seamless energy transition in the country.

Also speaking at the event, a former Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr Ibe Kachikwu, said focusing on fast-tracking oil production, in-country refining, developing funding stream and leveraging the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) were some of the solutions to the industrys current challenges.

He advised that gas should be seen as transition fuel with estimated life span of 20 years, adding that industry players should begin to look at alternative sources of energy such as solar and wind to catch up with the world before 2060.

Other panelists including the Managing Directors of Chevron, SPDC, Exxon Mobil, Deputy Managing Director of Total Energies and General Manager of NLNG expressed commitment to the energy transition aspiration of the Federal Government, while indicating their willingness to partner with NNPC for better business opportunities.

Speaking at the CEO Roundtable session with the sub-theme: Strategies for Confronting the Energy Transition Kyari said a key strategy to tackle the energy transition challenge was to beef up investment in the development of physical infrastructure.

This, he said would get electricity to end users across every part of the country.

We know that in this country, anything less than 30,000 to 40,000megawatts of electricity cannot serve this country adequately.

The population is growing, the middle class is growing, in fact, their energy requirement is very different; rural-urban migration is at its peak.

This means that you need more and more infrastructure on ground to close that gap.

So, we need to be much more productive, industrial growth must be accelerated, infrastructure must be put in place in the short term to grow the economy to a level where we can generate enough revenue to close energy poverty gap.

We must answer the electricity question in the country, Kyari said.

Meanwhile, President Muhammadu Buhari has called on investors in the energy industry to avail themselves of the conducive environment provided by the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) to accelerate investment in the Nigerian energy sector.

Speaking at the opening of the just concluded NIES 2022, the president said that with the PIA in place, there should be no excuses for players in the nations petroleum industry not to deepen their investments, especially in the gas sector.

The president, who was represented by the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Chief Timipre Sylva, noted that the world was moving away from fossil fuels.

Buhari said it would be in the interest of the country to speed up its fossil fuel exploitation and make good use of the resources for the betterment of the country rather than abandon the huge oil and gas reserves.

He acknowledged the demands for energy transition and assured that the country was prepared to face the challenges.

Speaking in his capacity as the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Sylva, said the world should support a drive to develop African natural gas production, describing it as green energy to boost electricity generation.

Sylva explained that for countries such as Nigeria, which was rich in natural resources but still energy poor, the transition must not come at the expense of affordable and reliable energy for people, cities, and industry.

On his part, the NNPC CEO, Kyari, said that the company would continue to develop Nigerias gas resources in spite of the exit of International Oil Companies (IOCs) from the country due to the global push for energy transition and net zero carbon target.

On energy transition, Kyari said the NNPC would work with its partners to facilitate the process in Nigeria regardless of the massive drop in investment in fossil fuel projects amidst exit of IOCs from Nigeria.

The NNPC boss stated that Nigeria and most sub-Saharan Africa countries were energy deficient.

He said the world had acknowledged the place of gas as a transition fuel, stressing that it would not be possible for gas to play that role unless there were investments in the gas sector to produce, process and make it available to users.

He informed that funding for fossil fuel projects had dropped by about 50 per cent when compared to what it was about 10 years ago.

Also, the Secretary-General of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), Dr Sanusi Barkindo, and other African Energy Ministers at the summit defended investments in fossil fuels.

They insisted that the global push for energy transition to net zero carbon emission was not in favour of Africa.

They argued that Africa accounted for less than three per cent of global carbon emissions while some 600 million Africans had no access to electricity, stressing that it would be counter-productive to halt investments in fossil fuels in Africa.

Still in the week under review, the NNPC Ltd. signed a multi-billion dollar Gas Sales Agreement (GSA) with its partners.

The partners are Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC), Total Energies, ENI and the Gas Aggregation Company of Nigeria (GACN).

The aim is to deliver 70million standard cubic feet (mscf) of gas to Dangote Fertiliser Limited for fertiliser production and to support the Federal Government aspiration to boost agricultural development in Nigeria.

Speaking at the signing ceremony in Abuja, the CEO/GMD of NNPC, Malam Mele Kyari, said that the milestone of delivering that huge volume of gas to Train 2 of Dangote Fertiliser plant was part of the companys drive to ensure greater gas utilisation in the country.

He emphasised that the initiative would boost gas supply to the domestic market in alignment with the Federal Governments plan to transform Nigeria into a self-sufficient nation in fertiliser production.

In his remarks, the Chairman/CEO of Dangote Group, Mr Aliko Dangote, said that the execution of the gas sales agreement would not only help to meet up with fertiliser supply into the domestic market, but would also attract about .8billion foreign exchange into the country.

He commended the NNPC GMD for his visionary leadership that led to the actualisation of the project, noting that with GSA, Nigeria would soon become the 7th largest producer of fertiliser in the world and second in Africa behind Egypt.

On his part, the Chairman of Shell Companies in Nigeria/Managing Director of Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) Nigeria, Mr Osagie Okunbor, appreciated the NNPC GMD and other partners for the effort, describing it as the fastest GSA executed in recent history.

Also in the week, the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources Chief Timipre Sylva expressed satisfaction with all the measures so far put in place by the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) and the NNPC limited to bring the current fuel supply disruption in the country to an end.

Sylva who stated this when the GMD/CEO of the NNPC Limited, Malam Mele Kyari, and the Authority Chief Executive, Mr Farouk Ahmed, briefed him on the various measures put in place to end the scarcity of PMS commended the CEOs of the two agencies and expressed confidence in their ability to bring the situation under control.

Describing the situation as an accident, the Minister pledged his support to the NNPC and the Authority while appealing to consumers to be patient as all hands were on deck to end the supply disruption.

Meanwhile, the chairperson of the Board of Directors, NNPC Limited Sen. Margery Chuba Okadigbo expressed confidence in the ability of the current NNPC management to drive the company to greater heights.

Speaking on the sidelines at the just concluded NIES 2022, Sen. Okadigbo said the PIA had placed NNPC in a position of global competitiveness, adding that Kyari, The GMD/CEO has demonstrated the requisite capacity to transform the company into a world class energy company.

Visit us on www.nannews.ng for more details. (NAN) (www.nannews.ng)

Source: NAN News

By Salisu Sani-Idris

The Sakaruyi of Karu in Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC) of the FCT, Emmanuel Yepwi, on Sunday, decried the increasing rate of illegal structures in his domain.

The traditional leader stated this when the Senior Special Assistant on Monitoring, Inspection and Enforcement to the FCT Minister, Mr Ikharo Attah, paid him a courtesy call at his palace in Karu, Abuja.

Yepwi appealed to the Federal Capital Territory Ministerial Committee on city sanitation to urgently remove the illegal structures and shanties in his domain.

He said it had been discovered that the illegalities was being perpetrated by some criminal elements, who lived in makeshift shanties and other illegal structures in the community.

Yepwi, who expressed worry over the situation, said the suspected law breakers initially came in as law abiding citizens to the community, but over time revealed their real characters, by disregarding procedures and extant laws.

He noted that he had been mobilising the powers within his constitutional reach to fight the illegalities being perpetrated by these elements, but now needed governments support to defeat them and restore sanity to his domain.

He specifically noted with dismay that some of the people, who disguised themselves as traders at Karu market, had taken took over the roadsides and were causing unbearable traffic snarls and inevitable disaster.

Yepwi urged the Ministerial Committee on city sanitation to quickly intervene by removing all illegal structures in Karu, one of the largest satellite towns in the FCT.

Karu is a major satellite town sitting on major road corridors in the FCT. Karu links to Orozo and up to karshi. It should be the best. Sadly, most people choose to sell on the road and cause traffic problems.

I want to appeal to the FCT Minister, Malam Muhammad Bello to please help us fully clear Karu of some illegal structures and batchers that were not good for our community

Tell the minister we support him fully for whatever he wants to do to remove all these traders from the roads. We have been warning them to leave but they refused to listen.

Responding, Attah said the FCT Minister, Malam Muhammad Bello had expressed similar worry over the illegalities in the Karu satellite town and would work in synergy with all stakeholders to address them.

He also disclosed that the visit to the Sakaruyis Palace was motivated by the myriad of complaints that had continued to trickle in from residents living in the Karu area.

Attah added that more worrisome was a situation where some traders have arrogantly abandoned the empty spaces in the Karu market, and opted to sell by the roadsides, not minding the traffic problems created by their actions.

It is a pathetic scene at the entry point into the Karu model market as traders now occupy the entire road allowing only one car to pass at a time.

Those selling fresh catfish and vegetables now occupy the better part of the road.

Also, the Head, Department of Works, AMAC, Mr Andrew Gaza, hailed the plans of the FCT administration to rid the area of illegalities.

We at AMAC have plans to clear areas in and around the market. Now that the FCT Administration is coming in we support it fully. All these illegality must stop.

If you look inside the market, you will see that AMAC was the first to mark the worrisome illegal structures for demolition. They have completely and badly changed the approved plan for the market. (NAN) (www.nannews.ng)

Source: NAN News

By Victor Okoye

Kada Stars and Bauchi Nets Basketball Clubs were off to a flying start as they began their quest for qualification into the Round of 16 in the Mark D Ball Mens basketball championship in Abuja.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Kada Stars defeated Bayelsa basketball team 64 42, while Bauchi Nets beat TAP basketball club of Ogun State 69 55 respectively in Matchday One Phase 1, Group 3 fixtures on Saturday.

Kada Stars showed their superiority early in the game as they dominated the match right from the blast of the referees whistle to take it 10-7, 22-10, 20-10, 12- 15.

Paul Dibal ran the show for the Kaduna-based clubside as he scored a total of 24 points, including four steals and four turnovers.

Dibal combined well with Umoru Babatunde who also garnered 14 points, including five rebounds and one assist for a massive 22 point lead at the end of a one-sided encounter.

In the other game also played on Saturday, Bauchi Nets came back from two sets down to defeat TAP at the end of a thrilling encounter.

The Ogun-based clubside had taken the first two quarters 17-12, 14-13 for a 31-25 lead at the end of the second quarter.

However, Bauchi Nets rallied in the third quarter to take it 19-10 for a 44 41 scoreline and completed their comeback in the fourth quarter, taking it 25-14 to finish the game with a shocking 14 point lead, for a 69-55 win.

The quartet of Suleiman Hassan, Chidubem Wisdom, Phiip Israel and Armstrong Omoikhudu were instrumental to the teams victory as they scored a combined total of 45 points, including 18 rebounds, four assists and 10 turnovers.

NAN also reports that other results of Matchday One saw Delta Force lose 70-79 to Kano Pillars, while Novena Heartlanders of Imo out-dunked Benue Braves 79-66.

The three-month long championship which resumed on Saturday with the Phase 1, Group three final round of matcheswill end on Friday.

Five teams each are expected to qualify from each of the three (eight-team) groups for the Round of 16, with the best loser joining the qualified teams.

Mo Heat, Gombe Bulls, Hot Coal Ballers, Nile University Spartans and APA Flames have already qualified from Phase 1 Group 1.

Also, Nigeria Customs, FCT Hardrockers, Kwara Falcons, Suleja Bulldogs and Civil Defenders are the already qualified teams from Phase 1 Group 2. (NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

Source: NAN News

Dangote Groups Executive Director and President of Manufacturing Association of Nigeria (MAN), Mansur Ahmed, has assured Nigerians that the upcoming Dangote Petroleum Refinery would help address the volatile fuel crisis in the country.

This is coming against the backdrop of torrents of commendations from President Muhammadu Buhari, Gov. Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna State and Defence Minister Bashir Magashi.

Dangote Group is one of the winners at the Kaduna International Trade Fair that ended on Sunday.

Ahmed also said the refinery, which is due to commence operation later in the year would also impact positively on the Nigerian economy through conserving of foreign exchange and massive job creation.

He described the positive impact as monumental and unprecedented in the history of Nigeria.

Ahmed who was speaking weekend at the Dangote Special Day at the ongoing 43rd Kaduna International Trade Fair said the President of Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, is passionate and desirous of changing the trajectory of the African economy through industrialisation.

The Group Executive Director also officially presented the Dangote Fertiliser to the Kaduna market and public, where he spoke glowingly about how the new product can help address the problems associated with agricultural yield.

He commended the organiser of the Trade Fair, the Kaduna Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (KADCCIMA) for organising yet another successful Trade Fair.

The Dangote Industries Limited is the major sponsor of the Trade Fair with the theme: Re-strategizing Nigerian economy for Global Competitiveness.

Speaking, President of KADCCIMA, Alhaji Suleiman Aliyu, described the partnership with Dangote as very important for deepening commercial activities in the country.

He said the support of the Dangote Group towards the success of the Fair cannot be quantified.

Group General Manager of the company, Bello Dan-Musa, said the company would not rest on its oars in gingering the economy through its numerous philanthropic strides, being represented by its Corporate Social Responsibility schemes and the Aliko Dangote Foundation.

Representatives of the various Business Units of the Dangote Group also spoke on the companys products. They are: Alhaji Abdulsalam Waya(Dangote Sugar), Alhaji Ahmed Tijana(Dangote Cement), Mr. Isaac Oladele(Dangote Fertiliser) and Mr. Ifeanyi Tobi(Dangote Salt).(NAN)

Source: NAN News

By Ikenna Osuoha

The Institute of Human Virology, Nigeria (IHVN) has restated its commitment toward achieving a HIV-free Nigeria by the year 2030.

The Chief Executive Officer of the institute, Dr Patrick Dakum, gave the assurance when he featured on the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) Forum in Abuja on Sunday.

Dakum said the institute was working in partnership with the National Agency for the Control of AIDS (NACA) and the Federal Ministry of Health to achieve the global goal of 95-95-95.

Nigeria is striving to meet UNAIDS goal of 95-95-95 by 2030, which is a global target.

He explained that it means that 95 per cent of persons should be tested; the 95 per cent who tested positive are placed on treatment and 95 per cent of persons achieve viral suppression, making the virus undetectable.

According to him, the undetectable level of HIV depends on the kind of machine used, saying that the country has 1.8 million people living with the virus.

The IHVN boss, who commended the country in general and NACA for containing the spread of the virus, said Nigeria has done pretty well and government has been providing coordinating mechanism through NACA.

If you look at what we have done in placing people on treatment, it is close to half a million.

The chief executive officer noted that the institute, in a bid to ensure a healthy Nigeria, tested about 13 million people.

We have tested about 3.5 million pregnant women too, so it is wide.

He affirmed the determination of the institute to support vulnerable groups, especially women and women. (NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

Source: NAN News

By Ikenna Osuoha

The Institute of Human Virology, Nigeria (IHVN) is fully indigenous and operating as an organisation, its Chief Executive Officer, Dr Patrick Dakum, says.

He told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Sunday that the institute, since inception in 2004, had remained indigenous for the provision of quality healthcare for Nigerians through collaboration with the University of Maryland in the U.S.

We are fully indigenous. We collaborate with the University of Maryland in the U.S. and other partners through memorandum of understanding.

We will continue to get technical support from University of Maryland in the area of programme implementation and HIV surveillance.

Dakum, who said that the institute had qualified virologists and reputable scientists from Nigeria as researchers, including Prof. Emeritus Umaru Shehu as Chairman of the board, noted that Shehu was one of the researchers at the forefront of the eradication of small pox.

He added that IHVNs collaboration with the University of Maryland was quite wide. (NAN) www.nannews.ng

Source: NAN News

By Abujah Racheal

The Institute of Human Virology Nigeria (IHVN) has advised the Federal Government to convert the COVID-19 pandemic isolations centres across the country to Emergency Infectious Disease Centres for future outbreaks.

The Chief Executive Officer of the institute, Dr Patrick Dakum, gave the advice in Abuja at the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) Forum in Abuja on Sunday.

NAN reports that an isolation unit ensures that healthcare staff and the centres are equipped to deal with infectious disease outbreaks.

In the wake of the COVID-19 crisis, the Federal Government, with the intervention of the Coalition Against COVID-19 and other partners, improvised and created the best possible equipped isolation centres across the country.

Dakum, therefore, said such centres could be converted to function as high-level isolation units for any infectious diseases even when COVID-19 was over.

He added: I always give an example of the country doing this at the point where it had Ebola then.

I went to the United States of America and decided to visit an Ebola isolation centre just to learn what they were doing. There was no Ebola then, they only had one or two cases.

Suddenly, there was a demonstration on how to respond to Ebola outbreak in future, with personnel in their full Personal Protective Equipment.

So I think the systems that we have developed for the response, the equipment that we have, I hope you know that the GeneXpert machine that were using for tuberculosis detection could be used for COVID-19 test also.

Some of these equipment just need a change of cartridge so we now have a widespread deployment of that equipment.

He explained that the GeneXpert machines were used in the country for tuberculosis detection but more were procured and developed to be used for both tuberculosis and COVID-19 across the country.

We also got ventilators that are not just for COVID-19 but for respiratory distress.

Dakum also advised that now that the country has a team for creating awareness on the COVID-19 pandemic, the team can also create awareness on other diseases.

The methodologies used for behavioural change can also be used for other diseases. (NAN) (www:nannews.ng

Source: NAN News

By Abujah Racheal

The Institute of Human Virology Nigeria (IHVN) says its new campus in Abuja is meant to provide a platform for collaborative research and partnerships for quality health services for Nigerians.

The institutes Chief Executive Officer, Dr Patrick Dakum, gave the assurance in Abuja when he featured on the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) Forum in Abuja on Sunday.

Dakum said that the newly completed campus, a seven-storey twin tower in Abuja that would house the International Research Centre of Excellence (IRCE), would promote care and treatment, capacity building and research into infectious and non-infectious diseases in Nigeria.

He added that the building was equipped with hematology, chemistry, Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR), microbiology, biorepository and gene sequencing laboratories, training centre and office spaces.

According to him, IHVN will continue to drive equitable access to health for both individuals and communities through innovative and evidence-based strategies.

Dakum recalled that the institute received support from partners and corporate organisations during its fundraising and ground-breaking ceremonies for the structure in March and November, 2016.

He added that the structure represents the possibilities that are attainable in a public-private partnership with the health of Nigerians as the focus.

The IRCE would encourage mentorship and training on global health methodology, epidemiology, scientific and medical ethics, clinical trials, among other areas.

The chief executive officer said that the institute was committed to the fight against HIV, tuberculosis and other diseases across the country.

He said: our efforts have continued to yield results since our establishment in 2004. We have tested more than 15 million individuals for HIV, enrolled over 540,000 clients on treatment for HIV, provided treatment for more than 50,000 individuals with tuberculosis and drug-resistant tuberculosis.

We have also improved infrastructure of more than 300 health facilities, contributed to the establishment of national reference laboratories, as well as supported over 100 laboratories in the country.

In the area of capacity building, we have trained close to 50,000 healthcare providers since inception, as well as carried out quality research. All these have strengthened healthcare practices and the system.

With support of our funders like the U.S. Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, Global Fund to Fight HIV, Tuberculosis and Malaria, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), U.S. National Institute of Health, among others, we have made giant strides.

This tower reflects our commitment to do more, he said. (NAN) (www:nannews.com)

Source: NAN News

By Ijeoma Okigbo

Visiting Sokoto United secured their first win of the ongoing 2021/2022 Nigeria National League (NNL) season by beating Oyah Sports FC of Abuja 3-1 on Saturday.

In their Group A1 fixture played at the Area 10 pitch, an Uche Collins brace and Mouktar Umars solitary strike gave the visitors their first win in four matches.

Sokoto United dominated the Match Day 4 game well enough in the first half and Collins gave them the opening goal in the 20th minute.

The second half saw the home team overcoming their seeming lethargy, applying more pressure on their opponents and this eventually paid off with William Udes 62nd minute equaliser.

Collins responded four minutes later for the Sokoto United team as he reclaimed the lead for his team.

Umar, however, sealed the victory for his team as he scored during a goal scramble two minutes into added time.

After the game, Martial Amodu, an excited captain of Sokoto United, lauded the team for the effort.

I am so happy with this win, especially as our states Commissioner of Sports, Bashir Usman, is here to watch us. It is such an amazing feeling.

I appreciate the efforts of the team. We all put in our best to see that we are successful today.

Our next game is at home against Zamfara United and I am sure that we are going to sustain this tempo and secure maximum points, Amodu said.

On his part, Abdulrazak Mohammed, coach of Oyah FC, who are yet to pick a point in three matches, said the team needed to correct a few lapses.

Today, we didnt play like a team. The players didnt perform to instructions. Although the officiating was fair, there are a lot of things we need to get right.

We will go back to the drawing board and prepare better ahead of our next game against EFCC FC, Mohammed said.(NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

Source: NAN News