AfDB President calls for adequate funding of education in Africa

By Favour Nnabugwu

 

 

The President of African Development Bank (AfDB), Akinwunmi Adesina has called for adequate funding of education sector in Africa in order to reduce youth unemployment in the continent

Adesina on Thursday in Abeokuta warned that, the high unemployment rate in Africa if not checked could worsen the social and political fragility of countries in the continent.

The AfDB President gave the warning in a lecture delivered at a Colloquium on “The Role of Education in 21st Century Nigeria Development: BBHS Adventure” as part of activities marking the 100 years anniversary of Baptist Boys High School (BBHS), Abeokuta, Ogun State.

The event which was attended by the former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Dimeji Bankole and other alumni of the school was organized by the Old Boys Association of the school.

Adesina while delivering his lecture virtually said, for the United Nations (UN) goal for inclusive and quality education for all to be achieved, the global spending on education must rise from $1.2 trillion to $3 trillion per year by 2030.

He said, Nigeria as a nation with rapidly growing population must do more to ensure that the younger generation receive access to the education they deserve.

He said, “As a nation, the demands of a dynamic, fast-changing and integrated labour market globally require that we must significantly invest in building first grade and competitive human capital”.

“We must also improve educational system to be more resilient and able to adapt to the rapidly changing environment.

“We must transform African’s educational systems to prepare students for this new digital world.

“The investment that any nation makes in education reflects hopes and aspirations for accelerated development.

“We cannot underfund education. A nation can only go as far as its quality of its human capital, so if you underfund quality education, get ready for underdevelopment.

“The greatest discouragement to education is lack of jobs. The unemployment rate in Africa is extremely high and it reduce the return on education. Furthermore, it leads to frustration among the youths and spurs social discontent which could worsen social and political fragility of countries.”

Adesina said, AfDB has equipped no fewer than 50 million young Africans with skills, particularly in science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

According to him, the AfDB has invested more than $171 million in education in Nigeria, adding that, the various interventions have produced more than 464 Masters degree holders and 83 PhD holders.

He said, the AfDB would soon establish a Youth Enterprise Investment Bank in Africa to address high unemployment rate in the continent.

In his address, the National President of Old Boys Association of BBHS, Prof. Kayode Oyesiku said there was need for Nigeria to de-emphasis certification and focus more on technical and vocational education.

“This country place too emphasis on paper certificate. The issue of unemployment may not be resolved if we continue to place too much emphasis on paper certificate.

“Without vocational and technical education we are going nowhere. We are only deceiving ourselves, we must emphasis on vocational and technical in our schools starting from secondary up to the tertiary level”, Oyesiku said.

AfDB to launch macro-economic performance, outlook January 19

By Favour Nnabugwu

 

The African Development Bank Group will launch the inaugural edition of Africa’s Macroeconomic Performance and Outlook (MEO) report on 19 January 2023 at its Abidjan Headquarters.

The publication will offer policymakers, global investors, researchers, and other development partners an up-to-date evidence-based assessment of the continent’s recent macroeconomic performance and short-to-medium-term outlook amid dynamic global economic developments.

The new report, to be released in the first and third quarters of each year, will complement the Bank’s flagship African Economic Outlook report which focuses on key emerging issues relevant to Africa’s development.

The following speakers will feature at the launch event: Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, President, African Development Bank Group; Ms. Niale Kaba, Minister of Planning and Development of Côte d’Ivoire;  Kevin Chika Urama, Acting Chief Economist and Vice President, African Development Bank Group
Professor Jeffrey D. Sachs, Economist, Director of the Center for Sustainable Development at Columbia University. Sachs is also United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’ Advocate for the Sustainable Development Goals

18 days to Jan. 31: CBN intensifies public awareness on new Naira Notes

By Favour Nnabugwu

 

 

 

Eighteen day to the end of old Naira notes to January 31, 2023,  the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has intensified its public awareness campaign, when the old notes would cease to be legal tender.

The three redesigned denominations of N1,000, N500 and N200 banknotes were unveiled on November 23, 2022, by President Muhammadu Buhari.

A team of officials from the CBN headquarters and their counterparts from the Abuja Branch took the campaign to Wuse Market, Abuja’s largest market, yesterday, to persuade traders and other members of the public to deposit their old Naira notes in their bank accounts before the deadline.

Mr. William Kareem who represented the Abuja Branch Controller, Mr. Michael Ogbu, justified the Naira redesign which he said became inevitable given the high level of hoarding of bank notes in the country.

He said, “Indeed, the integrity of a local legal tender, the efficiency of its supply, as well as its efficacy in the conduct of monetary policy are some of the hallmarks of a great Central Bank.

In recent times, however, currency management in Nigeria has faced several challenges that have continued to grow in scale and sophistication with unintended consequences for the integrity of both the CBN and the country. Some of these challenges primarily include:

“First, a significant hoarding of banknotes by members of the public, with statistics showing that ₦2.72 trillion out of the ₦3.26 trillion currency in circulation as of June 2022 was outside the vaults of commercial banks across the country, and supposedly held by members of the public.

“This statistic shows that 84.71 percent of currency in circulation are outside the vaults of commercial banks, with only 15.29 percent in the Central Bank and Commercial banks’ vaults.

“Second, is the worsening shortage of clean and fit banknotes with attendant negative perception of the CBN and increased risk to financial stability;

“Third, there is increasing ease by criminals and risk of counterfeiting evidenced by several security reports received at the Central Bank of Nigeria.”

He identified the benefits of the currency redesign to include helping “to control inflation as the exercise will bring the hoarded currency into the banking system, thereby making monetary policy more effective.”

He added, “We believe that this exercise would help in increasing financial inclusion, moving towards a more cashless economy, and ensuring greater formalization of the Nigerian economy.

“The currency redesign would assist in the fight against corruption as the exercise would rein in the higher denomination used for corruption, and the movement of such funds from the banking system could be tracked easily.

In her remarks, Ms. Hauwa Ndayabo of the Currency Operations Department at the Headquarters said that the redesigned ₦200, ₦500 and ₦1000 banknotes had several features including enhanced security and would ensure greater durability.

AfDB awards $140,000 to 25 finalists from 14 African countries on AgriPitch competition

By Favour Nnabugwu

 

Twenty-five youth-led agriculture sector companies from 14 African countries have advanced to the finalist round of the African Development Bank Group’s 2022 AgriPitch Competition to award $140,000 in grants and business skills training.

The Bank, in collaboration with the implementing lead Private Equity Support and partner organizations Eldohub and the Private Finance Advisory Network, announced the 25 finalists for the Competition that will award $140,000 in grants and business skills training.

The 25 finalists include 17 women-owned or led small and medium enterprises. Thirteen are from Francophone countries, while the other 12 are from Anglophone countries.

The AgriPitch Competition targets African youth aged 18 to 35 years working in the agricultural value chain. The 25 finalists will receive training to build business skill capacity with the requisite tools and knowledge to bolster their investor readiness, financial management, and help them pitch bankable business proposals.

These young agripreneurs show great potential and are a testament to the level of innovation that exists across Africa. The Bank’s support, through the AgriPitch Competition, will boost the bankability of these projects and provide a tangible step towards enhancing agribusiness and food security on the continent,” said Edson Mpyisi, the Bank’s Chief Financial Economist and ENABLE Youth Coordinator.

The Competition received over 1,000 applications from African “agripreneurs,” including around 250 entries from women-owned or led small and medium enterprises.

“It’s reassuring to see and evaluate hundreds of great potential investment opportunities from across the region,” said Diana Gichaga, Managing Partner at Private Equity Support.

“It reaffirms the crucial role that the agricultural sector plays in the African economy and the continued efforts to bring these initiatives to the fore through platforms such as the AgriPitch Competition,” she added.

The AgriPitch Competition is a central and recurring activity of the African Development Bank’s ENABLE Youth Program, sponsored by the Youth Entrepreneurship and Innovation Trust Fund of the Bank.

The 2022 edition will award three start-up categories: Early start-ups (0-3 years of operation), Mature start-ups (3 or more years in operation) and Women-empowered businesses (firms with at least 51% share of women ownership or founded by a woman).

The finalists will pitch their business plans to potential investors in the AgriPitch deal room and be eligible for one-on-one mentorship as well as access to post-competition digital expertise.

Click here to watch the video announcement of the 25 finalists for the 2022 AgriPitch Competition, using this access code: .51E*7M.

WEMA Bank Plc appoints Oseni as new CEO as Ademola Adebise retires

By Favour Nnabugwu

 

Wema Bank Plc. has appointed Moruf Oseni as the new Managing Director/CEO,  to be bank as Ademola Adebise retires

He will be proceeding on terminal leave from January 2nd, 2023, after over 13 years of meritorious service on the Board of the Bank.

The bank also announced the appointment of Wole Akinleye, an Executive Director as Deputy Managing Director and Tunde Mabawonku as Executive Director.

Adebise was appointed as the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of Wema Bank Plc in June 2018.

He joined the Bank in June 2009 as an Executive Director and rose to become the Deputy Managing Director in 2015. Under his leadership, he expanded the bank’s footprints to other locations in Nigeria, he improved the performance of the Bank and spearheaded the first Dividend payment in 13 years, since then, he has ensured consistent dividend payment over the last 4 years.

The Bank has grown its Total Assets by 155%, from N470 billion to over N1.2 trillion. Deposits also grew by 214%
from N350 billion to N1.1 trillion.

He initiated the partnership with Bank of Africa to support its customers across the African continent which has increased the Bank’s market share and customer
base. All these led to an additional growth of 2 million customer accounts in Nigeria and a market share of 3% of industry volumes.

The Bank is now the leading collection bank for state and government agencies due to its effective and efficient platform. The Bank’s rating by agencies was upgraded to BBB investment grade.

The Bank significantly changed the digital landscape through the ALAT platform. The innovative platform also came tops in the KPMG Digital Scorecard for leading retail banks in Nigeria and this was based on in-depth insights into the state of user experience on retail banks’ digital channels.
Furthermore, the Bank launched the first SME Business School for capacity building and empowerment of SMEs – this has benefitted over 20,000 small businesses. The Bank also became one of the founding members of the United Nations Environmental plan for financial institutions (UNEPFI) and continues to provide digital solutions for societal impact.

The Chairman of the Board, Mr. Babatunde Kasali on behalf of the Board and Management expressed its profound gratitude to Ademola for his service and wish him the best in his future endeavors.

Further, Wema Bank Plc, to announce the appointment of Mr. Moruf Oseni as the Managing Director/CEO subject to the approval of the Central Bank of Nigeria.
Moruf Oseni joined Wema Bank in June 2012 as an Executive Director. He has over 25 years of experience with more than 16 years at Senior and Executive Management levels. Moruf Oseni was an Executive Director for 6 years and Deputy Managing Director for the last 4 years and has demonstrated capacity to lead the Bank.

He presently has responsibility for the Digital Optimization Directorate which includes – Digital, Retail, Treasury, Operations, and the Technology Divisions. Moruf is also the Executive Compliance Officer of the Bank. He supervised the launch of ALAT – Nigeria’s 1st
digital Bank that has received local and global awards and multiple accolades. Before joining Wema Bank, Moruf was the CEO of MG Ineso Limited, a principal investment and financial advisory firm. Prior to MG Ineso, Moruf was a Vice President at Renaissance Capital, and an Associate at Salomon Brothers/Citigroup Global Markets in London.

Other Board appointments include:
Wole Akinleye: Appointed as the Deputy Managing Director. Wole has over 32 years Banking experience. He presently oversees Corporate Banking and South West Business Directorate for the
Bank. A Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN),

Tunde Mabawonku: Appointed as Executive Director. He has over 23 years of experience and is presently the Chief Finance Officer and the Divisional Head of Finance & Corporate Services.

The appointments take effect from April 1, 2023 and are subject to the approval of the Central Bank of Nigeria and other regulatory authorities

CBN revises individuals cash withdrawal limits to N500,000 weekly

By Favour Nnabugwu
The Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN had revised the cash withdrawal limits for individuals to N500,000 weekly from  N100,000 across all payment channels.
The apex bank also revised the cash  withdrawal limit for corporates to N5 million weekly from  N500,000.
CBN in a letter to all Deposits Money Banks and other financial institutions, Payment Service Banks, Primary Mortgage Banks, Microfinance Banks, and  Mobile Money Operators and agents signed by Director of Banking Supervision, CBN, Haruna Mustapha.
According to the regulator, the directive supersede that of December 6, 2022 and would take effect nationwide from January 9, 2023.
The Circular stated:”Following our circular BSD/DIR/PUB/LAB/015/069 dated December 6, 2022 on the above subject and based on feedback received from stakeholders, the CBN hereby makes the following reviews:
The maximum weekly limit for cash withdrawal across all channels by Individuals and corporate organizations shall be N500,000and N5 000,000 respectively.
” In competing circumstances where cash withdrawal above the limits in (1) above is required for legitimate purposes, such requests shall be subject to a processing fee of 3 percent and 5 percent for individuals and corporate organizations, respectively.
“Further to (2) above, the financial institution shall obtain the following information from the customer, at the minimum, and upload same on the CBN portal created for the purpose:
“Valid means of identification of the payee (National ID, International Passport, or Driver’s License) Bank Verification Number (BVN) of the payee Tax identification Number (TIN) of both the payee and the payer.
” Approval in waiting by the MD/CEO of the financial institution authorizing the withdrawal.
“Third party cheques above N100, 000 shall not be eligible for payment over the counter, while the extant limit of N10 million on clearing cheques still subsist.
” Kindly further note the following:
Monthly returns on cash withdrawal transactions above the specified limits should be rendered to the Banking Supervision, Other Financial Institutions Supervision and Payments System Management Departments as applicable.
“Compliance with extant AML/CFT regulations relating to KYC, on-going customer due diligence, currency and suspicious transaction reporting etc. |g mandatory in all circumstances.
“Customers should be encouraged to use alternative channels (internet banking, mobile banking apps, USSD, cards/POS, eNaira, etc ) to conduct their banking transactions.
“Bank and Mobile Money Agents are important participants in the financial system, enabling access to financial services in underserved and rural communities They will continue to perform these strategic functions, in line with existing regulations governing their activities
“The CBN recognizes the vital role that cash plays in supporting underserved and rural communities and will ensure an inclusive approach as it implements the transition to a more cash-less society
“All banks and OFIs are to note that aiding and abetting the circumvention of this policy will attract severe sanctions.
“The above directives supersede that of December 6, 2022 and take effect nationwide from January 9, 2023.
Banks begin closure of accounts of unregistered associations, societies

By Favour Nnabugwu

 

 

Banks have began closure of unregistered association and societies in the country domiciled in their respective banks pursuant to a directive of the Central Bank of Nigeria to that effect

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) had recently directed that all Community Based Association bank accounts opened without Corporate Affairs Commission, CAC Certificate be closed on or before July 12, 2022.

It further directed any Association, Club, Town Union, Age Grade, Foundation, or Church account affected to register with CAC and get a Corporate Affairs Commissions (CAC) Certificate which will enable them run their bank account freely without hindrance.

In view of this directive, some banks proceeded to notify their customers of the development and urged them to take steps to regularize such affected accounts.

One of such banks, Access Bank PLC in an earlier notice to its customers, had informed that it shall begin the process of closing such accounts from the 12th of July, 2022.

One of such mails read:

“Dear Esteemed Partner, Following CBN’s directive on unregistered Community Savings Accounts, please be advised that all associations or societies are expected to provide their registration documents on or before July 12th, 2022. All accounts regularized by this date will be closed accordingly.”

On other issues relating to such unregistered accounts such as migration of funds, retrieval of money etc.

The bank notifies customers that funds on closed accounts cannot be migrated or transferred and that the registration of the Association is precedent to any further action that would have been taken on the account

The reason of this directive from the Apex financial regulator, the CBN is yet to be verified by TheNigeriaLawyer at the time of filing this report even as we observed a surge in the volume of intending CAC registrations by Associations for the purpose of escaping the CBN’s order.

CBN disburses over N9.7trn intervention funds

By Favour Nnabugwu 
A whopping  sum of N9.714 trillion had so far been disbursed through various intervention funds by Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
According the bank’s Development Finance  Department (DFD) Report made available at its 2022 Retreat,  in Abuja, yesterday,  the Manufacturing/Industry sector had the highest allocation of 32.6 percent.
It was followed by Energy/Infrastructure and Agriculture with 23. 1 percent and 22.8 percent allocations,  respectively.
The Director of DFD, Mr. Philip Yusuf in his address, said that the CBN was at the forefront of food security in the country.
He noted that although some people had raised concerns about rising food inflation, despite the bank’s massive interventions in the agricultural sector, the nation would have faced famine, if the CBN had not intervened.
According to him, “In the global environment today, the challenge is on multiple fronts, geo-political instability like the Russia Ukraine war has pushed food inflation to a record high and it has global consequences for countries and citizens across the world. Price volatility across the world has also proven to have dire consequences especially for developing economies.
“The department has been in the forefront of food security drive in Nigeria through different programmes and initiatives.
“Nigeria is a country with a population of over 200 million people with a population growth of 2.5 per cent annually with GDP of $445 billion and the largest economy in Africa.
“With 6 geo-political zones and different languages, Nigeria offers huge opportunity of growth. As such, the task of ensuring food security and stabilizing growth is hardly a work in the park.
“The CBN has been at the forefront of ensuring Nigeria achieves food security in collaboration with other fiscal authorities also stimulating growth in collaboration with ministry of industry.
“Food security in Nigeria has received massive boost in the last 5 years since the CBN intervened in the sector to curb over-reliance on imported goods.
“We have tranversed the length and breadth of Nigeria, empowering farmers and MSMEs in access to Finance and agric-business and also using target credit facility. It became a comfort for households especially during the covid 19.
“For those looking at food inflation to discredit the work we have done in the development finance department, I just want to tell them that Nigeria is part of a global financial system and can be prone to global shocks.
“With the rising price of food, we would have faced severe famine if not for our interventions and the agric-value chain have witnessed tremendous progress because of our interventions which we believe has set Nigeria is on the part of sustainable food sufficiency.”
Also, the Deputy Governor in charge Corporate Services,  Mr. Edward Adamu promised greater support for the DFD to further its interventions.
He added that all regions of the country would feel the impact of the interventions.
Also speaking,  the Deputy Governor, Financial Systems Stability,  Mrs. Aisha Ahmad, urges beneficiaries of the CBN loans to pay back, to enable other to benefit from the interventions.
 “The loans which has been disbursed by the CBN through the development finance department has impacted greatly on the sustainability of Nigeria’s agric value chain which was evident in the third quarter GDP report released by the NBS which shows a growth of 29.9 per cent growth from 21 per cent recorded in the first quarter of 2021.
“However we urge the beneficiaries of these interventions to pay up the loans so that other people can also benefit.”
CBN Governor tasks banks to boost non-oil exports 

By Favour Nnabugwu

 

 

 

Governor, Central Bank of Nigeria, Mr. Godwin Emefiele has called on banks to come up with actionable plans to boost foreign exchange inflow from non-oil exports.

Emefiele at the 13th annual Bankers Committee retreat held in Lagos with the theme, “Increasing the Productive Base of the Nigerian Economy and Non-Oil Export Revenues,”

Emefiele  stated that the nation needs actionable  plans to boost non-oil revenue given the sharp decline in forex inflow from oil exports  triggered by various factors bedevilling the global economy.

The CBN Governor challenged  the gathering of bank executives on the need to come up with measures to  resolve  structural issues inhibiting Nigeria’s non-oil export receipts as well as   strengthen the immunity and engender the resilience of the  economy against exogenous shocks.

He said,  “We must, in an attempt to walk towards diversifying the nation’s economy, think about how we can be less reliant on crude revenues. We are in the business of servicing our customers and servicing customers also entails that they have import needs and they need foreign exchange to conduct their import activities.

“To do so means you need foreign exchange for solving them. There is a clear shortage of foreign exchange today but yet as bankers, we must meet the needs of our customers. The market is tight and I know we don’t have a choice, we will have to do something to ensure that this problem is solved.

“That is the reason we decided at this retreat to focus on RT200 because essentially, we have to think about how to source foreign exchange for our customer’s needs without necessarily needing to resort to revenues from crude which as we all know has come to zero or almost zero compared to about $3 billion monthly that we were getting in 2014

“This retreat is convened to focus on the development of the local manufacturing industry and non-oil sectors, more broadly, and particularly to enhance the sector’s capacity to generate foreign exchange inflows. The focus is even more germane considering the enormity of the global economic turbulence, as wave after wave of negative shocks continue to ravage many countries.

“The Bankers’ Committee must recognise the critical role of the financial system in accelerating the development of the productive base of the economy. We must play our productive parts to engender the necessary infrastructure and services that are critical to boos non-oil exports.

“The 2022 Bankers’ Committee Retreat provides us with the opportunity to review the progress and impact of implementation of RT200. It is equally an occasion to re-examine our support for other government programmes to promote non-oil export and to identify specific implementable actions by the financial system to enhance foreign exchange revenues.

“At this retreat, we must come up with actionable steps to ensure that the Bankers’ Committee continues to make meaningful contributions to the growth and development of our dear country.”

COP 27: AfDB, EBRD partner African businesses become more resilient

CAPTION:

L-African Development Bank President Akinwumi Adesina and his counterpart at the EBRD, Odile Reinaud-Basso affirm commitment to climate adaptation to help African businesses become more resilient

 

 

By Favour Nnabugwu

 

 

 

African Development Bank President Dr. Akinwumi Adesina and European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) President Odile Reinaud-Basso have agreed that their organizations would step up cooperation to enhance resilience among African businesses.

The two development bank heads held talks earlier this month at this year’s global climate summit (COP27) in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt.

Adesina highlighted that “climate adaptation in Africa was a key condition to preserving economic growth and maintaining social cohesion on the continent.”

Reinaud-Basso confirmed EBRD’s commitment to support the implementation of the Africa Adaptation Acceleration Program (AAAP), an initiative jointly launched in 2021 by the African Development Bank and the Global Center on Adaptation.

The program is mobilizing $25 billion by 2025. These funds will help accelerate climate adaptation action in Africa through initiatives in four priority areas: food security; resilient infrastructure; youth entrepreneurship and job creation; and innovative climate adaptation finance.
Global heating entails rethinking of how infrastructure, cities, and financial systems are designed and operated. This requires effective partnerships between public and private actors and strong engagement with civil society.

By partnering and working closely with government institutions, public utilities, local enterprises and communities, multilateral development banks like the African Development Bank and EBRD can play a catalytic role in developing the approaches to finance that underpin this transformation since financing models use both public and private channels.

Multilateral development banks can also support the development of innovative financing products using blended finance approaches and developing market-based instruments that reward enterprises investing in climate resilience projects.

Both institutions will collaborate to further develop the African Development Bank’s Adaptation Benefits Mechanism. They will explore innovative non-market approaches under Article 6.8 of the Paris Agreement.

The African Development Bank and EBRD will expand their cooperation in all these areas of work in the context of the Africa Accelerated Adaptation Program. They will prioritize support to countries and clients to understand physical climate risks and scale up adaptation investments.

Reinaud-Basso said: “Africa has the potential to become a global leader in climate adaptation solutions and services and we want to expand our cooperation to support Africa fulfill its potential.

Adesina said he and his EBRD counterpart were both fully aligned on the need for multilateral development banks to adjust their business models to respond to the multiple crises they face, including climate change, and the task of building resilient economies.

While preserving their triple-A rating, which must remain the cornerstone of multilateral development banks’ business model, MDBs must find avenues to secure more risk capital to leverage more private sector investments,” Adesina said. He added: “One of these in the short term is the reallocation of a portion of their International Monetary Fund Special Drawing Rights from wealthy countries to MDBs.

These can apply a multiplier factor of 3 to 4 on it. Both the African Development Bank and the EBRD are ready to implement this option, which will offer significant value for money to the countries that will provide SDRs.”