All Posts in "Day: May 26, 2022"

REA secures GEF, UNDP $2.9m electricity funding for rural women

By Favour Nnabugwu
The Rural Electrification Agency (REA) will provide electricity for close to 50,000 rural women under a five-year off-grid national power project with funding of $2.9million from Global Environment Facility (GEF) and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
The project was financed by GEF with $2.6 million and supported by UNDP with $300,000, totalling $2.9million
This was disclosed by the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, REA, Engr Ahmed Salihijo Ahmed at an event to mark the formal launch of the project in Abuja.
He said that the project which is titled ‘Derisking sustainable off-grid lighting solution in Nigeria’ will benefit  96,380 persons out of which 47,540 are expected to be rural women.
According to the REA Boss, there is a need for effective collaboration among stakeholders in achieving rural electrification projects.
He appreciated the financial support from GEF and UNDP and said that rural electrification is an indispensable component of national development. He called on the private sector for investment collaborations in renewable energy in the country.
He added that the financial support will go a long way in achieving the overall targets of the programme in line with the mandate of the agency and federal government’s commitment in powering communities across Nigeria.
The Executive Director, Rural Electrification Fund, Dr. Sanusi Ohiare also elaborated on the objectives of the programme as well as its immense positive impacts on the socio-economic development of rural dwellers, and tasked the Technical Working Groups to ensure the project succeeds.
He also emphasized the relevance of the private sector in ensuring access to electricity, especially in rural areas.
 Noting that it would be almost impossible for the government to tackle the challenges of rural electrification, Ohiare commended the funding partners for thinking and acting in that direction.
The representative of UNDP, Mohamad Yahya, was optimistic the project will succeed considering the commitment of the partners and the zeal to achieve desired results.
According to the Project manager, Dr. Bala Tyoden, it was designed to develop a private sector-led technology value-chain to make off-grid renewable energy technologies such as solar lanterns and solar home systems, available to rural households who may likely not be electrified until after 2025.
He said “The main aim of the project is to promote private sector investment in sustainable off-grid lighting technologies by establishing a sound policy environment that facilitates the creation of a self-functioning and sustainable market in Nigeria.
According to him, “The project will directly support the implementation of the Rural Electrification Strategy and Implementation Plan (2016) as well as the energy access targets in the SE4All Investment Prospectus.
The project rationale is underpinned by a novel approach to de-risk private sector investments in the market for rural decentralized renewable energy access.
Meanwhile, three components and outcomes have been developed to stimulate the uptake of off-grid decentralized solar technologies such as solar lanterns and Solar Home System (SHS) while UNDP’s de-risking approach would be adopted to as a catalyst for private sector investments in the off-grid rural energy market.
Patoma Admin by — May 26, 2022 in News 0
CIIN releases April 2022 diet examination results

By Favour Nnabugwu

 

 

The Chartered Insurance Institute of Nigeria (CIIN) has released April 2022 Diet Examinations results

The Diet which is the 56th Edition of the Institute’s Examination was held from Monday 4th to Thursday, April 7th, 2022 in all the Institute’s centres nationwide and internationally;

Banjul, The Gambia, Cameroon and Kigali. In a press statement signed by the Assistant Director, Examination, Mr.Samuel Agoh, the Director General of the CIIN, Mrs. Abimbola Tiamiyu, on behalf of the President/Chairman in Council, Sir (Dr.) Muftau Oyegunle, congratulated all successful candidates who wrote the Diet and as well appreciated everyone who made the examination a success.

Mrs. Tiamiyu noted that the Institute has zero tolerance towards any form of malpractice and compromise in its examination process and ensured that the integrity of the process is maintained across all centres; locally and internationally. She added that any incident of examination malpractice or compromise reported during the examination was appropriately dealt with by theInstitute’s Council through its various degrees of approved sanctions.

She disclosed that these sanctions include the Institute withholding results of candidates, candidates facing the investigative panel, outright cancellations of results among others. “Candidates are advised to check their results online on the Institute’sportal and should note that registration for the October 2022 Diet will commence on June 1, 2022.”

Patoma Admin by — May 26, 2022 in Insurance 0
FAAC shares N656.6bn to FG, states & LGs …As revenue falls by N933 bn

By Favour Nnabugwu

 

The Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) has shared a total sum of N636.602 billion to the Federal Government, States and Local Government Councils.

This was contained in a communiqué issued, yesterday,  at the end of a virtual meeting of the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) for May 2022, according the statement by the Director of Press and Public Relations of the Office of the Account General of the Federation,  Mr. Henshaw Ogubike.

The N656.602 billion total distributable revenue comprised distributable statutory revenue of N461.189 billion,  distributable Value Added Tax (VAT) revenue of N166.522 billion,  the sum of N8.891 billion being Excess Bank Charges Recovered and augmentation of N20.000 billion.

The  total deductions for cost of collection for the revenue in the month of April was N29.609 billion, while total deductions for transfers and refunds was N147.651 billion.

The Communique indicated that the balance in the Excess Crude Account (ECA) was $35.377 million.

From the total distributable revenue of N656.602 billion; the Federal Government received N257.611 billion, the State Governments received N201.256 billion, while the Local Government Councils received N149.251 billion.

The sum of N48.485 billion was shared to the relevant oil producing states as 13% derivation revenue.

A gross statutory revenue of N635.037 billion was received for the month of April 2022. This was lower than the N933.304 billion received in the previous month by N298.267 billion.

From the  N461.189 billion distributable statutory revenue, the Federal Government received N217.412 billion, the State Governments received N110.275 billion and the Local Government Councils received N85.017 billion. The sum of N48.485 billion was shared to the relevant States as 13% derivation revenue.

In the month of April 2022, the gross revenue available from the Value Added Tax (VAT) was N178.825 billion.

This was lower than the N219.504 billion available in the month of March 2022 by N40.679 billion.

From the N166.522 billion distributable Value Added Tax (VAT) revenue, the Federal Government received N24.978 billion, the State Governments received N83.261billion and the Local Government Councils received N58.283 billion.

From the N8.891 billion Excess Bank Charges recovered, the Federal Government received N4.684 billion; the State Governments received N2.376 billion and the Local Government Councils received N1.831billion

The N20.00 billion augmentation was shared as follows: the Federal Government received N10.536 billion,  the State Governments received N5.344 billion and the Local Government Councils received N4.120 billion.

According to the Communiqué, in the month of April 2022,  Petroleum Profit Tax (PPT) and Excise Duties increased marginally, while Oil and Gas Royalties,  Import Duty, Companies Income Tax (CIT) and Value Added Tax (VAT) all recorded significant decreases.

Patoma Admin by — May 26, 2022 in News 0
Stella Oduah gives NYSC 48hrs to retract alleged false

Just in : Non-completion of service: Oduah orders NYSC to retract allegation within 48 hours
 Forrmer Minister of Aviation and the Senator representing Anambra North Senatorial District, Stella Oduah has requested the National Youth Service Corps ,NYSC,  to retract the allegation that she did not complete her national service within 48 hours.
In the letter addressed to the Director General, National Youth Service Corps and titled, “48 Hours Notice to Retract Your Statement as Contained in Your Letter Dated 24th May 2022 Ref No. NYSC/DHQ/PPRU/783/VOL 111”, the Senator stated, “Our attention has been called to your scandalous letter referenced above in which you acknowledged that Senator Stella Oduah was mobilized for youth service in 1982 and served in the Lagos orientation camp but then concluded that she “absconded” and was not issued a certificate of discharge.”
The letter,  signed by Ezennia Nonso Chukwudebe, Director, Media/Publicity for Senator, Stella Oduah, described the allegation as reckless and stated, “That reckless statement which we consider grossly irresponsible no doubt suggests that it was procured from you for political considerations in favour of Sen. Oduah’s political detractors. We are shocked that you condescended so low to make such false and unverified conclusions which is damaging to her character and image”.
“For the avoidance of doubt, Sen. Oduah’s NYSC place of primary assignment was the popular Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA). When a similar allegation was made by her political contenders in 2017, NECA issued a letter dated 11th January 2017 Ref No: NECA/SELA/H4 confirming that she carried out her NYSC primary assignment with them.  Find attached a copy of that letter for reference as well as a photograph of our client as a youth corper “
“That issue also attended litigation and she has a court judgment in her favour in the case of Chinedu Emmanuel Emeka v. Princess Stella Oduah ,
EPT/AWK/SEN/13/2019″
“Ordinarily, one needs not be bothered about any other similar allegations in the light of the aforesaid judgment and the fact that NYSC is not a constitutional qualification to hold any public office in Nigeria, but your statement has to a large extent defamed her”
“In your exact words, ‘after the orientation course, she absconded’ It is curious how a person who had participated in all NYSC activities at the Orientation Camp can be said to have “absconded” because she left for her place of primary assignment as it was routine. It is either you chose to ignore your record or your office has failed to keep proper records.”
“You are by this letter given 48 hours to retract your statement failing which legal actions shall be commenced against you.”
“To reinforce the fact the distinguished Senator completed her NYSC, her picture where she was in her NYSC regalia was attached and a letter from NECA confirming that she served with the association.
“In fact, NECA wrote a letter dated January 11, 2017 with Ref: NECA/SELA/H4, signed by the Director General, O. A. Oshinowo and stated, “We hereby confirm that you carried out your NYSC primary assignment with NECA in 1982 during the tenure of Mr. Gabriel Okogwa (now of blessed memory). Our investigation did reveal that you were diligent and steadfast in the place of your duty.”
Patoma Admin by — May 26, 2022 in Aviation 0
CIIN president, Muftau Oyegunle’s speech at Quiz Competition

ADDRESS BY SIR (DR) MUFTAU OYEGUNLE, PRESIDENT/CHAIRMAN IN COUNCIL, CHARTERED INSURANCE INSTITUTE OF NIGERIA AT THE INSTITUTE’S QUIZ COMPETITION FOR SECONDARY SCHOOLS HELD AT MODELS GIRLS SECONDARY SCHOOLS RUMUEME, OBALGA, PORT HARCOURT ON MAY 25, 2022.

PROTOCOLS

On behalf of the Governing Council of the Chartered Insurance Institute of Nigeria (CIIN) and the Institute’s Quiz Committee; I welcome you all to today’s event, which is the 5th edition of the CIIN quiz competition for Secondary School Students in Nigeria. It is indeed a great honour and pleasure to be in your midst today.

This quiz competition is borne out of the CIIN’s desire to enlighten and introduce young minds to the amazing world of insurance. This initiative is also aimed at promoting the significance of insurance in our daily lives, community development, poverty elimination, economic advancement and world peace.

Insurance ensures that we have adequate safety nets against the misfortunes of life by providing compensation for its customers that enable them to survive the adversities of life. Hence, insurance provides us with a means of protecting ourselves and our families from unexpected but possible financial losses while also enhancing the capacity to build wealth.

This competition is designed to create awareness amongst you, the young adults; who we consider the future of our industry, about the importance of insurance as a service and the career opportunities it offers to students like you.

It is my belief that whatever you have learnt during the preparation for the competition shall impact your lives positively. Similarly, the knowledge and information you receive here today would assist you in your career choices.

I sincerely hope that every student here would maximise the opportunities which this competition provides and make insurance his/her course of first choice when going into the university.

Permit me to inform you that this competition is not all about winning but also about having fun while learning more about insurance.

Once again, I welcome you all to this programme. I appreciate the Institute and everyone here present who have assisted in one way or the other in making this programme a reality
I wish all the participants the best of luck. Let us have an interesting quiz competition.
Thank you and God bless.

Sir (Dr.) Muftau O. Oyegunle ACII, FIIN
President/Chairman in Council
Chartered Insurance Institute of Nigeria

Patoma Admin by — May 26, 2022 in Insurance 0
Ecobank shareholders get $40m dividend

By admin

 

 

The Ecobank Transnational Incorporation (ETI), the parent company of the Ecobank Group, has paid out a total dividend of 40 million dollars to shareholders.

The Group Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Executive Director of ETI, Ade Ayeyemi, made the disclosure during a hybrid event of ETI’s 34th Annual General Meeting, held on Wednesday in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the AGM had as its theme: “ One Market. Endless Opportunities”.

The payment is coming after over five years of non-dividend payment.

According to Ayeyemi, improvements recorded in the bank’s ‘Roadmap to Leadership’ strategy adopted in 2016, are instrumental to achieving the dividends payments.

He said that adopting the strategy helped the bank to clarify portfolios across businesses and maximize value of portfolios, which culminated in a cash dividend of 0.16 US cents ($0.0016) per share to shareholders.

Ayeyemi affirmed that the strategy was focused at redefining business segments and building a stronger and more profitable financial institution.

“The group’s profit for the year 2021 was 357 million dollars compared to 88 million dollars in 2020.

“Although the latter was adversely affected by a goodwill impairment charge of 164 million dollars while net revenues increased by 4.6 per cent to 1,757 million dollars.”

He said the bank made meaningful progress across business segments, noting that its gross trade loans increased by 39 per cent to 2.9 billion dollars, driven mainly by commodity financing.

“We transitioned to our ‘Executive Momentum ‘ strategy while continuing to harvest the expected results from our previous strategy.

“We have become more efficient, addressed legacy loan problems, strengthened capital and digitized our operations for the future.”

Ayeyemi assured shareholders that the bank would continue to defend its competitive position, explore growth opportunities, revisit operational strategy in high potential markets and consider constructive exit from low potential markets.

He added that the bank’s first-quarter results for 2022 provided a clear confirmation of Ecobank Group’s continuing strong and sustained performance trajectory.

Ayeyemi said this had reinforced the bank’s reliability and capacity to successfully deliver on its Africa-focused purpose and support for the continent’s economies, regardless of the prevailing challenges.

Also, the Chairman of Ecobank Group, Alain Nkontchou, said the bank had introduced innovative technology that included the virtualisation of its regional processing centres and the automation of a digital MY-HR information system which automates HR processes with enhanced self-service features.

According to him, these programmes are maximising operational efficiency and transforming its businesses for sustainable long term growth.

“The year 2021 was a transformational year for the group, and the board is pleased to be rewarding shareholders with a dividend for the first time since 2016.

“Our results show that we are maximising operational efficiencies and successfully transforming our business for sustainable long-term growth.

“As we continue to deliver on our strategic imperatives, we are firmly positioned as the ideal partner for households and businesses to grow and succeed.

“Also to foster Africa’s economic development, while continuing to grow ourto grow our revenues and value, “he said.

NAN reports that shareholders applauded the group’s impressive strong performance in 2021, which was achieved despite the challenging environment.

Patoma Admin by — May 26, 2022 in Banking & Finance 0