African Union

The African Union (AU) is yet to agree on a consensus candidate for the World Trade Organisation (WTO) Director-General position.

In a statement made available to the News Agency of Nigeria( NAN) on Tuesday in Bern, the AU said: as at present there is no African- Union endorsed candidate for this post.

It said that the AU Commission under the guidance of its ministerial committee had made concerted efforts towards the endorsement of a single candidate for the WTO Director-General post.

However, due to circumstances beyond its control, the committee couldnt meet on three scheduled dates thats way its yet to decide on a consensus candidate.

The statement, therefore has contradicted claims by the Egypt candidateMr Abdel-Hamid Mamdouh who at a news conference in Geneva said he had been endorsed by the Union.

In the same vein, the Nigerian Permanent Mission to the UN in Geneva has also reacted to Mamdouhs claims.

In a letter to the WTO, the Mission said that the process of deciding and endorsing a single candidate for the Director General post was still ongoing.

This has put to rest claims that the a particular candidate has been endorsed by the AU , therefore rendering other African candidates illegitimate

Nigerias former Finance Minister Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, alongside Mrs Amina Mohamed of Kenya and Egypts Abdel-Hamid Mamdouh are the three candidate vying for the WTO top job from Africa.

Other candidates are from the UK, Saudi Arabia, Moldova and Mexico.

The candidates had made individual presentations to the WTO Council which held from July 15th to 17th at the kickoff of the selection process.

The second phase of the selection process, in which candidates would make themselves known to members will end on Sept. 7, Similarly, the third phase which is the consultation process would commence same day.

At the forthcoming consultation, Chairman of the General Council alongside Chairs of the Dispute Settlement Body and the Trade Policy Review Body would consult with all the WTO members to determine which candidate is best placed to attract a consensus support

Source: NAN News

President Muhammadu Buhari

President Muhammadu Buhari will consult with key leaders of ECOWAS countries in order to find a solution to the crisis rocking Republic of Mali.

Mr Femi Adesina, the presidents Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, in a statement, said Buhari made the pledge on Tuesday in Abuja while receiving reports from ECOWAS Special Envoy to Mali, former President Goodluck Jonathan.

The former President was at State House, Abuja, in company of President of ECOWAS Commission, Mr Jean-Claude Kassi Brou.

We will ask the President of Niger, who is the Chairman of ECOWAS to brief us as a group, and we will then know the way forward, Buhari said.

He thanked Jonathan for his comprehensive brief on the situation in Mali, which you had been abreast with since when you were the sitting Nigerian President.

The former President had updated the president on his activities as Special Envoy to restore amity to Mali, rocked by protests against President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita.

Keita has so far spent two out of the five years second term in office.

A resistance group, M5, is insisting that the Constitutional Court must be dissolved, and the President resign, before peace can return to the country.

Crisis had erupted after the court nullified results of 31 parliamentary seats in the polls held recently, awarding victory to some other contenders, which the resistance group said was at the instigation of President Keita.

Riots on July 10 had led to the killing of some protesters by security agents, causing the crisis to spiral out of control, hence the intervention by ECOWAS.

Jonathan, however, said: ECOWAS cant preside over the removal of an elected President. Not even the African Union (AU), or the United Nations (UN) can do it.

Leaders must be elected and leave under constitutional processes, otherwise we would have Banana republics all over the place.

The former president thanked Buhari for providing a Presidential jet for the mission, thus making our trips convenient and comfortable,.

He equally expressed appreciation for the Itakpe-Warri railway complex named after him last weekend.

It was a big present for me. Thank you very much, he said.

Source: NAN News

According to officials at Bihar disaster management department, 16 people lost their lives in the recent lightning strikes in 10 districts of the state.

Over the past two weeks, more than 150 people were killed in similar strikes in the state, with 350,387 people having been affected by the floods.

Disaster management officials said the victims were either working on their fields or had taken shelter under trees at the time of lightning.

The floods have inundated Sitamarhi, Sheohar, Supaul, Kishanganj, Darbhanga, Muzaffarpur, Gopalganj and East Champaran.

Authorities have set up relief camps in Supaul and Gopalganj for the people and reports said people in other affected districts have taken shelter with their friends and relatives.

Chief Minister, Nitish Kumar, on Monday, directed disaster management department to remain fully prepared in view of heavy rains in the catchment areas of neighbouring Nepal and Gandak River.

The minister instructed disaster management department officials and the district magistrates concerned to ensure the evacuation of people living in low lying areas of Gandak river discharge to higher and safer places.

Officials said water in Ganga, Baghmati, Kamlabalan and Mahananda rivers was flowing above the danger level at several places.

Floods have also ravaged northeastern state of Assam where 24 districts are inundated. (Xinhua/NAN)

Source: NAN News

Poultry farm

The University of Ilorin (UNILORIN), has said that the university, with support from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), is embarking on a poultry project worth N600 million.

Prof. Sulyman Abdulkareem, the Vice Chancellor of the University, made this disclosure on Tuesday while inaugurating the Mycroplasma Diagnostic and Research Laboratory of the Department of Veterinary Microbiology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine of the university.

The Vice-Chancellor, who was represented by the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research, Technology and Innovation), Prof. Mikhail Buhari, noted that the CBN came up with the idea following the ban on importation of poultry products into the country.

Abdulkareem said that the CBN invited selected universities to Abuja for presentation and the University of Ilorin was among the selected universities and the first to submit its report which the CBN said would be used as benchmark for others.

He said that the CBN representative recently visited the University of Ilorin at Ganmo Amoyo, and noted that the location was an ideal place to bring together all aspects of universitys agro-business.

Abdulkareem said there would be strong collaboration with the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine when the place was fully developed, as there was no way one could talk of agro-business without talking about veterinary medicine.

In his response, Dr Isaac Olorunshola of the Department of Veterinary Microbiology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, lauded the Vice-Chancellor for his active participation in making the project a success.

Olorunshola noted that the laboratory was put in place in collaboration with the University of Edinburgh, Scotland.

He said that the purpose of the laboratory was for research, training of students and for collaborative work within and outside the faculty.

Olorunshola said it was especially for colleagues in Medicine to investigate Atypical Pneumonia (non conventional Pneumonia) in children under the age of five years.

He added that mycroplasma organism cut across human and animal growth which needed to be studied.

Olorunshola explained that mycroplasma organism caused Atypical Pneumonia in children and could cause neonatal death and also infertility in women and men of reproductive stage.

He said that the organism could cause chronic respiratory diseases that could lead to mortality of 50 to 60 per cent in an animal like chicken.

Source: NAN News

FIDELITY

By Chinyere Joel-Nwokeoma

Fidelity Bank Plc has notified the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) and the general public of the appointment of Mrs Nneka Onyeali-Ikpe, as the incoming Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, effective Jan. 1, 2021.

The bank made the announcement on Monday in a notice on the NSE website, signed by Ezinwa Unuigboje, its Company Secretary.

The notice said the appointment followed the impending retirement of its Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Mr Nnamdi Okonkwo, from the Board of Directors of the bank, with effect from Dec. 31, 2020, upon completion of his contract tenure.

In compliance with the succession policy of the bank, the board has approved the appointment of Onyeali-Ikpe, the current Executive Director, Lagos and South West Directorate as the MD/CEO designate of the bank, to assume office with effect from Jan. 1, 2021.

The approval of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has been obtained for the appointment, said the statement.

It said the board had also approved the appointment of Mr Kevin Ugwuoke, the current Chief Risk Officer of the Bank, as Executive Director, Chief Risk Officer, subject to the approval of the CBN.

The statement said that Okonkwo was appointed to the Board of the bank in April 2012 as an Executive Director and was subsequently appointed the MD/CEO on Jan.1, 2014.

It said that Okonkwo implemented a digital-led strategy which led to significant growth across key performance metrics and increased market share, with the bank currently ranked sixth amongst Nigerian banks on most performance indices.

According to the statement, the bank under his leadership successfully accessed the local and international markets through the issuance of N30 billion Corporate Bonds in 2015 and million Eurobonds in 2017.

The board seizes this opportunity to express sincere appreciation to Okonkwo for his significant contributions to the growth and development of the Bank during his tenure of the board, the statement added.

It said Onyeali-Ikpe was appointed to the Board of Fidelity Bank in 2015 as an Executive Director and currently oversees the Lagos and Southwest Directorate.

It stated that she led the transformation of the directorate to profitability and sustained its impressive year-on-year growth across key performance metrics.

The bank said that Onyeali-Ikpe had been an integral part of the current management team responsible for the remarkable increase in the banks performance in the last five years.

It stated that the area under her direct responsibility, in the period, contributed over 28 per cent of the banks profit before tax, deposits and loans.

Onyeali-Ikpe has over 30 years of experience across various banks including Standard Chartered Bank Plc, Zenith Bank Plc and Citizens International Bank Limited, where she held several management positions in Legal, Treasury, Investment Banking, Retail/Commercial Banking and Corporate Banking

She has been involved in the structuring of complex transactions in various sectors including oil

Police IG Mohammed Adamu

The Inspector General of Police (I-G), Mr Mohammed Adamu has said that a total of 41,863 police personnel had been promoted in the last 19 months.

Adamu disclosed this on Monday during the decoration of10 newly promoted Senior Officers in Abuja.

Since the inception of my administration as the I-G in January, 2019, a total of 41,863officers and men of the Force across different ranks had been promoted to their next ranks, he said.

He said that the promotion exercises were strategic management approach directed at motivating the workforce in addressing current and emerging internal security threats.

Adamu said that the process had been guided by the principles of seniority, merit as well as reflective of records of discipline and invaluable experience.

The I-G said the decoration followed the recent promotion of 6,601 personnel of the force by the Police Service Commission.

He said one DIG, four AIG, three Commissioners, three Deputy Commissioners, eight Chief Superintendents, 607 Superintendents, 206 Deputy Superintendents and 5,769 ASP were promoted.

Adamu, who congratulated the newly decorated officers, urged them to deploy their intellect and demonstrate sound professional judgement in all their decisions at all times.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the decoration ceremony was attended by Mr Boss Mustapha, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF).

The SGF congratulated the newly promoted officers and urged them to see the promotion as a call for improved services to the nation.

Mustapha pledged the Federal Governments commitment to the ongoing reforms of the Nigeria Police Force by the I-G.

Source: NAN News

CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele

By Mustapha Sumaila

The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), has retained Monetary Policy Rate (MPR) at 12.5 per cent and held all other policy parameters constant.

The CBN Governor, Mr Godwin Emefiele disclosed this while reading the communique after the MPC meeting in Abuja on Monday.

Emefiele explained that the committee retained the asymmetric corridor of 200/-500 basis points around the MPR.

He said the MPC also retained the Cash Reserves Ratio (CRR) at 27.5 per cent as well as Liquidity Ratio at 30 per cent.

As a result, the Committee noted that the earlier downward adjustment of the MPR by 100 basis points to 12.5 per cent to signal the loosening monetary policy stance is yielding positive impact as credit growth increased significantly in the economy.

The Committee also noted the positive impact of the various fiscal and monetary interventions on households, SMEs and manufacturing sectors.

The MPC also noted that increasing MPR at this stage will thus be counter-intuitive and will result in upward pressure on market rates and cost of production, he said.

He disclosed that the committee decided by a vote of eight members to hold and two members voted to reduce MPR while all members voted to retain all other policy parameters.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that in May, MPC reviewed downwards Monetary Policy Rates from 13.5 per cent to 12.5 per cent. (NAN)

Source: NAN News

Dr Folasade YemiEsan, Head of the Civil Service of the Federation (HOCSF)

The Federal Government says it has not approved extension of service for any officer in the public service due for retirement in 2020.

In a statement on Monday in Abuja, Mrs Olawunmi Ogunmosunle, Director, Information, in the Office of the Head of Civil Service of the Federation (HOCSF), quoted the Head of Service, Dr Folasade Yemi-Esan as saying no such circular emanated from her office.

Yemi-Esan said that her office had never issued any circular on the subject matter.

According to her, this information became necessary in view of a fake circular purported to have emanated from the office of the HOCSF.

Members of the public are to note that the content of the circular is fake, incorrect and did not originate from the Office of the HOCSF.

The letter head used for the circular roll-over service for those due to retire within the COVID-19 era in 2020, and dated July 13, 2020 is not the letter- head of the HOCSF.

The outline of the entire circular, from the distribution list to arrangement of the sections, including the grammar is completely out of sync with the way and manner circulars are issued in the office, Yemi-Esan said.

She said the director overseeing the office of the Permanent Secretary, Career Management, Office of the HOCSF had never issued or signed any such letter to that effect.

YemiEsan, therefore, implored public servants and the public to always visit the Office website: www.ohcsf.gov.ng regularly to cross check circulars and other information emanating from the office for authenticity.

The information on the website include circulars issued by the office, reports on events and upcoming events, among others

Members of the public, especially those in the health agencies are therefore called upon to note and disregard the content of the circular in order not to fall victims of its perpetrators, it said.
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Source: NAN News

CBN

The CBN Governor, Mr Godwin Emefiele disclosed this during the inauguration of the Body of Experts (BoE) for Healthcare Sector Research and Development Intervention Scheme in Abuja on Monday.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that CBN had introduced a N100 billion credit support intervention for companies in the Health and Pharmaceutical sector in the country.

Emefiele explained that some of the firms that had been able to obtain funding included hospitals, research centres and pharmaceutical industries.

He said that the primary challenges in Nigerias healthcare sector were inadequate funding, poor medical infrastructure and supplies, and inequitable distribution of health workers.

According to him, these problems contributed to the rise in medical tourism.

He said the programme was CBNs proactive measures to cushion the impact of COVID -19 on the economy and to support the growth of the healthcare sector.

The CBN governor noted that the intervention fund would help improve healthcare delivery capacity, while supporting improved production of health related products and services.

Emefiele said to address the health challenges, the apex bank had also initiated the Healthcare Sector Research and Development Intervention Scheme (HSRDIS) to develop vaccines and drugs for infectious diseases.

NAN reports that Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye, the Director-General of National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) was appointed to head the body of experts which comprised academics and health experts.

Source: NAN News

Mr Babatunde Fashola Minister of Works

Zainab Ahmed.

She said one of the key pillars of the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan was the development of critical infrastructure projects with a view to removing the impediments to growth and development in the economy.

As a result, Mr President has priotised capital expenditure on the development of roads, rails, power and agriculture projects.

The Debt Management Office (DMO) has raised the sum of N162.557 billion from investors in June 2020. This is strictly dedicated to the financing of road projects in the Revised 2020 Appropriation Act.

It also means that with the release of N162.557 billion to the Federal Ministry of Works and Housing, the amount appropriated for Road Projects in 2020 Budget has been fully released.

She said with the deployment of sukuk funds coupled with other capital releases and various interventions by government, the economy would soon be on the path to economic development.

Mr Babatunde Fashola, in his presentation, said the people who put money in the sukuk were fund managers and the owners of the funds, adding that it was a matter of trust which they had for the administration that made them release their hard earned money.

I assure you that we value that trust from the evidence of what has happened in sukuk one, and sukuk two, your trust is not misplaced and it will not be misplaced in the 44 road projects that will benefit from this sukuk.

For the benefit of the members of the public, the 44 roads that will benefit from this sukuk has every geo-political zone taken care of.

For the North-Central eight roads, North-East eight roads, North-West seven roads, South-East five roads, South-South 10 roads, and South-West six roads, Fashola said.

According to Mrs Patience Oniha, Director-General, Debt Management Office (DMO), this is the third sukuk issued by the office on behalf of the Federal Government in June 2020.

The first sovereign sukuk for N100bn was issued in September 2017 and was followed by another in December 2018, also for N100bn.

With the issuance of the third sukuk the federal government has raised a total of N362, 577,000,000bn all of which are for the rehabilitation and reconstruction of road projects across the six geo-polical zones of Nigeria.

Therefore, the DMO plans to continue to use sukuk and Green Bonds to support the development of infrastructure and other capital products depending on how much is allocated to projects in the annual budgets.

Mr Adamu Aliero, Chairman, Senate Committee on Works, said road construction was synonimous to economic development, adding that it also enhances security and generate a lot of economic activities in the country.

Aliero said the National Assembly was willing to collaborate with ministry and stakeholders in the building of infrastructure.

On his part, the Deputy-Chairman, House Committee on Appropriation, Mr Chris Emeka Azubogu, while commending the government for using the sukuk fund to accomplish the construction and rehabilitation of roads, urged for a better means of funding.

Speaking on behalf of contractors, Mr Nabeel Esawi, Managing Director, RCC, commended the government for releasing the funds and assured that all roads under the contracts would be completed in good time.

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Source: NAN News