UBA appoints Ghanaian, Abiola Bawuah as first female CEO for Africa

By Favour Nnabugwu

 

 

 

United Bank for Africa Plc has appointed Ghanaian national, Abiola Bawuah, as its Africa new Chief Executive Officer (CEO).

Bawuah will oversee the bank’s operations across Africa, excluding Nigeria, according to the bank’s statement.

She is the first female CEO of the UBA Africa and her appointment demonstrates the bank’s commitment to diversity.

Before her appointment as the bank’s Africa CEO, Bawuah was UBA’s Regional CEO for West Africa, managing operations in nine subsidiaries including Benin, Burkina Faso, Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Mali, Senegal, and Sierra Leone. She had also served as the CEO of UBA Ghana.

Commenting on Bawuah’s appointment, the UBA Group’s Board Chairman, Tony Elumelu, said, “Abiola has contributed significantly to the growth of UBA Africa for close to a decade. She brings a wealth of experience in commercial banking, and stakeholder engagement. It also gives me great pleasure that with her appointment, the UBA Group Board has now become a majority female board.”

The bank also announced other key executive appointments across the group.

The appointments include: Regional CEO of UBA West Africa, Chris Ofikulu; Deputy Managing Director of UBA Ghana, Uzoechina Molokwu; Managing Director/CEO UBA Liberia, Ayokunle Olajubu; CEO of UBA UK, Theresa Henshaw; Deputy CEO in UBA America, Usman Isiaka; and Group Treasurer, Adeyemi Adeleke, all appointments subject to their various local regulatory approvals

Ukrainian/Russian War: AfDB sets put $1.5bn Emergency Food Production Facility for Africa – Adesina

…34 countries, 20 milion farmers to benefit

 

By Favour Nnabugwu

 

 

The African Development Bank (AfDB) has  set aside $1.5 billion  Emergency Food Production Facility to support food sufficiency in Africa.

The President of the AfDB, Dr. Akinwunmi Adesina, during a courtesy visit to the Ogun State Governor, Dapo Abiodun, on Monday, noted that the facility became imperative as a result of the ongoing war between Ukraine and Russia which had seen prices of wheat and maize skyrocket.

Adesina added that the emergency food production facility would be supporting 34 countries, with 20 million farmers producing roughly 38 million metric tons of food valued at $12b.

He expressed confidence that Africa would not have a food crisis as a result of the war in Ukraine.

Adesina, while also noting that a Feed Africa Summit in Dakar, Senegal, which had about 34 heads of state in attendance, including President Muhammadu Buhari.of Nigeria, was able to mobilize $30b in support of food and agriculture delivery compact of countries in Africa.

“Because of the war in Ukraine by Russia which actually sent prices of wheat and maize skyrocketing, all over the world, we have global inflation because of that and therefore, the impact of that is going to be quite serious for our houses, particularly, low income households.

“The African Development Bank has put in place immediately a $1.5b Emergency Food Production Facility that is currently now supporting 34 countries, with 20 million farmers to produce roughly 38 million metric tons of food valued at $12b.

“So, I am pretty confident we are not going to have a food crisis as a result of the war in Ukraine, but, we cannot stop there, am just coming here having completed the Feed Africa Summit in Dakar, that I co-organized with His Excellency, President of Senegal.

” It was a hugely successful summit, we were able to mobilize $30b in support of food and agriculture delivery compact of countries that will allow African countries to be totally self sufficient in food. In 3 to 5 years, we should be done with feeding ourselves, we should be actually exporting food and several other things,” he said.

While commending Governor Dapo Abiodun for the Agro Cargo Airport project which is set to be commissioned in the first quarter of 2023, the AFDB President noted that having a cargo airport in the state would facilitate the development of agricultural value chain in Ogun.

“The Cargo Airport is an excellent idea, because when you produce agricultural commodities, you would not only be able to store it, you have to be able to process it and you have to be able to transport it.

And I think having a cargo airport would just facilitate the development of agricultural value chain right here in Ogun State, it is a very very excellent idea and I have always supported it from the start,” Adesina submitted

Pension funds stand at N14.99trn – PenCom

By Favour Nnabugwu

 

National Pension Commission, PenCom’s latest ‘Report on pension industry portfolio for the period ended 31 December 2022’ revealed that Pension fund had risen from N13.42 trillion  to N14.99tn by the end of December 2022.

Contributors in the scheme rose slightly by 333,002 from 9,529,127 as of the end of 2021 to 9,862,129 in the corresponding period

According to the figures, N9.64tn or 64.33 per cent of the assets was invested in the Federal Government of Nigeria’s securities, N1.66tn was invested in corporate debt securities, N1.98tn was invested in money market securities and N82.8bn in mutual funds among other investment portfolios.

In the 2022 third quarter report of the pension industry, the Director-General, PenCom, Aisha Dahir-Umar, said despite the overwhelming head-winds in the global economic climate and the country’s challenging macroeconomic environment, the pension fund assets under management increased.

“This laudable performance, in the growth of the AuM, points to the fact that the pension industry will continue to deliver value and benefit to its stakeholders and the nation’s economy,” she said.

During the period under review, the director-general, said PenCom steadily pursued increased diversification of pension fund portfolios by ramping up efforts aimed at ensuring sustained investment of pension fund in alternative asset classes and structured infrastructure projects that meet the stringent requirements as enshrined in the regulation for the investment of pension fund assets.

She said PenCom’s efforts at diversifying investments of pension funds and hedging against inflation had gradually begun to yield results.

According to her, efforts were on going to ensure that the annualised average rates of return of pension funds across Retirement Savings Account and legacy funds were above headline inflation rates.

She said, “Perhaps, the most significant achievement recorded in the third quarter of 2022 was the successful issuance of guidelines on accessing RSA

“Balance towards payment of equity contribution for residential mortgage. The guidelines give effect to Section 89(2) of the Pension Reform Act 2014, which allows eligible RSA holders to apply a percentage of the balances in their Retirement Savings Accounts for payment of equity contribution towards residential mortgage for employees of the public, private and the informal sectors.”

She stated that the achievement in the Nigerian pension industry could not have been possible without the right people, strategy, culture and governance structures that supported the delivery of consistent and sustained value for all its stakeholders

Consolidated Insurance Bill close to President Buhari’s appendage

By Favour Nnabugwu

 

 

The Chairman of the Nigerian Insurers Association, Mr Segun Omosehin, has said the Consolidated Insurance Bill is going through the final legislative process to get a presidential accent.

Omosehin said the Bill is going through process’s of the final that will be present to President Mujammadu Buharii got appendage on the bill to make a law.

Speaking during a press conference in Lagos, the NIA chairman said,  “The process for reviewing the Insurance Act 2003 has been ongoing since the year 2020 when the Consolidated Insurance Bill was proposed.

“Since then, we have been following through with all the processes and I am indeed delighted to inform you the Bill has been passed. It is currently going through the remaining legislative procedures preparatory to the Presidential accent.

“We are hopeful that it will receive speedy attention so that the industry can begin to tap into the opportunities provided by the new law.”

AfDB engages over 40m farmers to produce 120m tonnes of food by 2025

By Favour Nnabugwu

 

 

The African Development Bank (AfDB) says that it has engaged more than 40 million farmers across the continent to produce 120 million tonnes of food by 2025.

The Bank’s Chief Economist, Prof. Kevin Chika Urama, discloes this in a chat with Nigerian journalists.

Prof. Kevin, decries the continent’s annual imports of over 100 million metric tonness of cereals alone at the cost of $75 billion.

He notes that recent external shocks, including Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, further demonstrated that Africa remains over-reliant on imports of food staples and agricultural inputs.

” Rising world food prices have a serious impact on households in Africa, exacerbating poverty.

“In sub-Saharan Africa, households spend up to 40% of their budget on food (compared to 17% in developed economies),” he said

He confidently says that the bank is on the move to change this narrative of overdependence on food imports from outside the continent.

“To improve farmers’ productivity and incomes, reduce post-harvest losses and increase agricultural output, and strengthen agro-food value chains, the Bank is focusing on providing modern technologies, quality seeds and inputs, modernizing agricultural tools, setting up standard processing infrastructures and adding value,” he said.

He says that the aim is to move from traditional subsistence agriculture to a modern and competitive African agro-industrial sector that can feed the entire African continent and even compete on international markets.

His words:” A vital element of the African Development Bank’s efforts to boost food production and agriculture in a climate-smart manner is its Technologies for African Agricultural Transformation (TAAT) platform.

TAAT has delivered heat-tolerant wheat varieties, drought-tolerant maize varieties, high-yield rice varieties and other climate-smart certified seeds to millions of Africa’s smallholder farmers

Ethiopia in particular has notched significant benefits as a result of TAAT.

Following the successful rollout of heat-tolerant wheat varieties in Ethiopia, average wheat yields increased from 2 tonnes per hectare to 4 tonnes.

As a result, Ethiopia did not import wheat in 2022 and expects to export wheat to its neighbors in 2023.

TAAT has mobilized investments of more than $800 million in the agricultural value chains of 21 African countries since its inception in 2018.

It has also mobilized $500 million in co-financing from the World Bank, the International Fund for Agricultural Development, the Islamic Development Bank, the Global Environment Facility, and other organizations.

In July 2022, the Bank Board approved an additional $27.41 million for ‘TAAT II,’ which will increase the productivity and incomes of farming households by giving them access to climate-resilient technologies in 36 low-income African countries by 2025.

TAAT-II will rely on a market-based model in partnership with the private sector to spread technologies and services (seeds, fertilizers, extension) on a larger scale.
To take advantage of the savannah, which covers 400 million hectares in Africa, a specific subprogram, ‘TAAT-S’.

The aim is to take advantage of these vast expanses by growing maize and soya competitively for the poultry industry – demand is high throughout the continent.

After a pilot project launched in Ghana in 2018, TAAT-S has been deployed in Côte d’Ivoire since 2021, followed by Congo-Brazzaville, Kenya, Nigeria, Mozambique, Uganda, Tanzania, Togo and Zambia by 2025. “

2023 Elections: Abuja Online Publishers bond for nation building

By Favour Nnabugwu

 

 

 

Abuja Online Publishers, AOP, have bonded to build the nation as the 2023 general elections will commence next month.

Even as the the body has put on hold further admission of members to allow the forum focus on the all important task of General Elections.

This position was reached by the Steering Committee after the Association reached 50-member milestone barely a week after its inauguration.

The Steering Committee unanimously resolved to temporarily suspend membership admission to allow us concentrate on the onerous task of Nation Building weeks to the General Elections. During this window, we will perfect our incorporation and compile our digital register for reference purposes.

Also, the various adhoc committees are working assiduously to meet their timelines. The Finance Committee had turned in its recommendation, the draft constitution will be out next week as well as our logo which will be ratified in a General Meeting to be announced soon.

Overwhelmed by the wide acceptance of the association by all online Publishers, the Acting Chairman of the Association, Martins Odiete thanked all members for hearing the calls and heeding with their presence.

“On behalf of the Steering Committee, I would like to extend my utmost gratitude to you and your hard work.
Your dedication helped us reach our goals. I deeply appreciate every member of this team for showing relentless effort for this project.

“This progress would not be possible without your contributions. I value your commitment to this vision and look forward to achieving all our milestones together” he said.

Four weeks to the polls, we will devote our far reaching platforms to educate, inform and sensitize Nigerians and the global community about the activities of all stakeholders as we count down to the general elections with a view to reporting: fair, balance and accurate updates.

Abuja Online Publishers is an association of all online media with the aim of advocating the invaluable place of verifiable and trusted online news media in a democratic society, encourage diversity, inclusion and to be a reference point for high editorial standards.

Old Mutual, CoverGo to drive digital insurance across Africa

By Favour Nnabugwu

Old Mutual, a pan-African financial services group, has partnered with CoverGo, a global no-code insurance SaaS platform for P&C, health, and life, to drive digital insurance transformation across Africa.
The strategic partnership was formed through Old Mutual’s investment in CoverGo’s $15m Series A in 2022.
The partnership will see Old Mutual, one of the world’s oldest insurance companies, be able to leverage CoverGo’s platform to streamline its insurance ecosystem by launching insurance products in record time, increasing sales through new channels, and improving user experience across 13 countries in Africa.
CoverGo has been adopted by a growing number of insurance companies across the globe, especially in the health insurance space, to build and launch products within days, develop omni-channel distribution and digitize policy admin and claims.
CoverGo’s clients include AXA, Bupa, MSIG (MS&AD), Dai-ichi Life, and many others.
Managing Director of NEXT176, Old Mutual Limited, Vuyo Mpako  said, ““As a pan-African Insurance provider, we need to be able to conceive, modify and deploy insurance products for discerning customers and strategic partners in the 13 markets in which we operate at speeds we never imagined before. CoverGo’s modular, no-code insurance platform enables us to go digital in a flexible and scalable way.
“We are acutely aware of the evolving financial services landscape and believe that investing in agile innovation is more important than ever before and our customers on the African continent cannot be excluded from global trends and innovations.”
Founder & CEO of CoverGo, Tomas Holub  added, “Insurance companies in emerging markets are looking to accelerate their digital transformation and drive efficiencies across the whole insurance value chain without heavy IT development. As a result, we have seen a fast-growing demand for CoverGo as a truly configurable no-code platform.
“The strategic investment from Old Mutual will help expand CoverGo’s presence in Africa and make insurance more accessible and digital for all the stakeholders in the region.”
19 bag 1st class as Abia varsity graduates 3,757 students

CAPTIONM

iss Agbazuere Best Graduating Student

 

 

19 bag 1st class as Abia varsity graduates 3,757 students

 

 

. By Favour Nnabugwu

 

 

No fewer than 19 graduands bagged first class honours as the Abia State University Uturu, Friday, graduated 3,757 students.

This is as Miss Oluomachi Agbazuere, daughter of Gov. Okezie Ikpeazu’s ex- Chief of Staff, and Information Commissioner, Professor A. C. B Agbazuere, won his father’s Best Graduating Student award prize of N.5 million.

The Isila Ngwa South -born young Law graduate, made a total of 4.75 Cumulative Grade Point Aggregate, CGPA.

She was followed closely by Chukwubueze Praise Madumere, Computer Science, who graduated with 4.71 CGPA.

Chioma Miracle Peters, Linguistics and Communication Studies/Igbo, made 4.69 CGPA.

Chiazokam Emeh, Optometry; and Peace Nlemoha, Animal Science & Fisheries ; made 4.64 CGPA, and 4.59 CGPA, respectively.

Promise Nwosu, and Alex Ojunta, respectively made seven distinctions in Medicine & Surgery.

Further distribution of the graduands shows as follows: Doctor of Philosophy- 77; Masters- 138; and Post Graduate Diploma-77.

Others were Second Class Upper Division – 1,160; Second Class Lower Division-2,004; Third Class honours- 110; and Pass level- 3.

Former Vice Chancellor of the university, Professor Ogwo. E. Ogwo, was at the event, conferred with Professor Emeritus of the university.

Similarly, Gov. Nyesom Wike of Rivers State was conferred with the Doctor of Public Administration (Honoris Causa); while a legal luminary, Mike Ozokohme, was conferred with Doctor of Law ( Honoris Causa).

Three other eminent Nigerians including Chief Reginald Stanley, Mrs Folurunsho Alakija, and Chief Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuade, were respectively conferred with Doctor of Philosophy ( Honoris Causa).

In his address, Vice Chancellor, Professor Onyemachi Ogbolu, commended the graduands for their academic excellence, and charged them to be worthy ambassadors of the university.

The Vice Chancellor announced automatic employment for the Best Graduating Student, Miss Agbazuere.

He identified the restoration of industrial peace and harmony in the university as the hallmark of his administration.

The Vice Chancellor also enumerated some of the key achievements to include: 300-bed new hostel block for College of Medicine; upgrading of the Umuahia campus of the university and energization of 500KVA transformer at the campus plus award of 5.5 kilometer road project in the university by the Federal Road Maintenance Agency ( FERMA).

Others include successful accreditation of 27 programmes in the university even as he expressed optimism that very soon the de-accredited medical college of the university would be re-accredited.

The Vice Chancellor hinted that arrangements were in advance stage for the introduction of new programmes such as Aeronautical Studies as Aviation; Insurance and Risk Management; Hospitality Management and Tourism; Bio- Medical Engineering; Geology; Dentistry and Geo-physics.

In his address, Minister of Education Malam Adamu Adamu, represented by the Executive Secretary, National Universities Commission, NUC, Professor Abubakar Adamu Rasheed, identified lack of funds as the greatest challenge of education in Nigeria.

He commended the Management of ABSU for its giant strides in the education sector.

In his remarks, Gov. Okezie Ikpeazu represented by his Deputy, Sir Ude Oko Chukwu, promised the continued support of the State Government to ABSU, and the entire education sector.

He commended the university administration for its remarkable footprints in the academic world, and charged the graduands to distinguish themselves in their various fields of endeavour.

In her valedictory speech, the Best Graduating Student, Miss Agbazuere thanked God for the grace to emerge the overall Best.

She also thanked the university and her parents as well as lecturers for impacting on her while promising not to let them down.

Nigeria to host over 300 delegates for Waica Educational Conference in May 2023

CAPTION

L  – The Commissioner for Insurance and the Chief Executive Office of the National Insurance Commission, Naicom, Mr Olorundare Sunday Thomas and the Chairman of the Nigeria. insurers Association, NIA,r Olusegun Ayo Omosehin

 

 

By Favour Nnabugwu

 

 

Over 300 delegates are expected  from West Africa countries to be in Nigeria for the 43rd Annual General Meeting (AGM) and Education Conference of the West African Insurance Companies Association (WAICA) coming up in May 2023.

The delegates who are coming from Ghana, Liberia, Sierra Leone, The Gambia and Nigeria will gather for three day from May 7 – 9, 2023 in Lagos

The West African Insurance Companies Association (WAICA) an institution formed to promote cooperation among insurers in West Africa

The Chairman of Nigerian Insurers Association, NIA, Segun Omoshein made this know during a Media parley with Nigeria Association of Insurance and Pension Editors (NAIPE), in Lagos.

He said, ” The Nigerian insurance market will host the next WAICA Educational Conference in May and as usual with conferences of this nature, we expect participants from other West African Countries”.

At this point, Omosehin use the opportunity to seek media unwavering support for the conference,

“We need your maximum support to host a successful conference and look forward to hosting the most successful conference in recent time'”.

Nigeria last hosted the 38th Waica Education conference in 2016 during the tenure of Muhammad Kari as the Commissioner for Insurance with theme “The Practice of Insurance in a Challenged Economy”.

Third Party hike: NIA to launch out to stakeholders for support

By Favour Nnabugwu
 
The Nigerian Insurers Association, NIA has thrown the full weight behind the increase of third party motor insurance as the body is moving to reach critical stakeholders for support and patronage.
Chairman of the NIA, Mr. Olusegun Omosehin said the association appreciate the efforts of the National Insurance Commission, Naicom to better the industry and will do all withing the body power to make sure the sector get stakeholders backing of it.
Omosehin said the gains from the increase is far more endearing than the increase
According to him, “Nigerians will support the new rates and this will not only lead to increase in premium income for underwriters but also increase in claims payment to the clients”
“The  Association is embarking on stakeholder engagement as a first layer interface with the critical stakeholders to ensure their buy in and support”
“We  do not need to restate the issues with enforcement of the old rates, but we are confident that with your usual support and the understanding of the Nigerian public”

It will recalled that Naicom increase the third party insurance premium rates with effect from January 1, 2023. A private car owner would have to purchase a third party motor policy for N15,000, with a claim of N3million as benefit, while staff bus would have to pay N20,000 to enjoy a N2million claim Premium of N5,000 for tricycles and claim of N1million and premium of N3,000 for motorcycles respectively.

According to a circular issued by the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) to all insurance institutions which was made available to Daily Independent weekend, the new premium rate for third party private motor insurance has been raised to N15,000 from N5,000 with N3miilion third party property damage (TPPD) as benefit in an event of damage.

Under the new template, a policyholder for Own Goods, effect from the stipulated date, has to pay a N20,000 as premium with N5mllion benefits where claims occur for a third party damage; insurance premium rate for a staff bus now goes for N20,000 with N3million Third Party Property Damage (TPPD).

Similarly a policyholder with general carriage truck would have to pay a N100,000 premium to enjoy N5million TPPD, while tricycle would have to pay N5,000 premium and enjoy N2million TPPD limit, and a Motor cyclist will have to pay N3,000 as premium and will enjoy benefit up to N1million respectively.

Third Party Property Damage (TPPD) is a limit of claims an insured can enjoy on the policy.

The NIA chairman said the third party also accommodate travellers withing the west Africa countries.
“It is important at this juncture to point out that Ecowas Risk (risk arising from travelers from West African countries) other is covered under the new premium rates

The new rates extends to the Third Party insurance policies for private and commercial vehicles inclusive of Ecowas Brown Card (EBC) while comprehensive motor insurance policy premium rate shall not be less than five percent of the sum insured after all rebates and discounts.