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FG lauds Moniepoint for boosting informal economy growth

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FG lauds Moniepoint for boosting informal economy growth

The Federal Government has hailed the contributions of platforms like Moniepoint to the growth of the informal sector in Nigeria.

This was stated by the Vice President, Senator Kashim Shettima, at the launch of the 2024 Nigeria Informal Economy Report powered by Moniepoint in collaboration with the Small and Medium Enterprise Development Agency of Nigeria and the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment.

He restated the government’s commitment to deepening economic and financial inclusion in line with President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.

According to Shettima, financial inclusion is a core component of the agenda and the government is making a lot of efforts to ensure that the vulnerable in society have safety nets, as exemplified by the ASO Accord, which was signed this year.

The Vice President, represented by the Technical Adviser to the President on Economic & Financial Inclusion, Dr Nurudeen Zauro, acknowledged and appreciated the role of players in the informal space, especially Moniepoint.

“We can all remember that during the COVID-19 lockdown and the recent currency changes, there were a lot of challenges and we saw agencies like this come together and save the country at that point. This is because of the flexible initiatives they brought into the space, especially last-mile delivery, by providing a platform that allowed people to successfully transact. SMEDAN’s innovative streak has also been very commendable,” he said.

Nigeria’s Informal Economy Report offers fresh insights for individuals and organisations interested in understanding the dynamics of Nigeria’s informal economy and shaping a more inclusive and sustainable economic landscape.

Some of the key insights from the report include the youthful demographic as a critical driving force of Nigeria’s informal economy, with over 57.7 per cent of business owners under 34 years old.

According to the report, there is untapped earning potential that is prevalent in the informal segment, with the average monthly income below N250,000 while only 1.3 per cent of businesses in Nigeria’s informal economy earn above N2.5m monthly

It added that retail and general trade were the leading industries within the informal economy, making up 24 per cent of all informal businesses.

In his opening remarks, the Managing Director of Moniepoint Microfinance Bank, Babatunde Olofin, praised operators of informal businesses for the high degree of flexibility and innovation they exhibit in adapting quickly to changing market conditions.

He said that the informal economy contributes substantially to Nigeria’s GDP and can be mobilised to unleash Nigeria’s full economic potential and provide much-needed support to the most vulnerable households.

The Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr Doris Uzoka-Anite, who launched the report, reiterated the Federal Government’s commitment to supporting small business operators in the informal sector of the economy.

She pointed out that the informal sector, which often appears to be forgotten, would henceforth begin to enjoy the government’s interventions and incentives.

She said, “We are grateful to Moniepoint for conducting this report. It gives us the basis and foundation now to provide targeted intervention as part of the government’s approach to supporting the informal economy. This segment plays a significant role in the Nigerian economy, and we can now bring them up to enjoy incentives that the government is providing to the broader economy as well.”

According to the Director General/CEO of SMEDAN, Charles Odii, in a keynote presentation, small businesses are the engine of the Nigerian economy and most of Nigeria’s approximately 40 million small businesses reside in the informal sector.

He noted that those businesses, which were born out of necessity and entrepreneurial zeal, exemplify the famous Nigerian ‘hustling’.

He affirmed that the agency was working to formalise those businesses and bring them into the formal sector to increase access to important resources, such as finance.

AfreximBank to train businesses in AfCFTA

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AfreximBank to train businesses in AfCFTA

The African Export-Import Bank announced its plan to launch a capacity development programme aimed at empowering African businesses to take advantage of the opportunities presented by the African Continental Free Trade Area.

In a statement on Wednesday, the continental bank said the capacity-building programme would be led by its academy in collaboration with the AfCFTA Secretariat.

The AfCFTA is a free trade agreement established among 54 of the 55 African Union nations, creating the largest free trade area in the world by the number of participating countries.

Afreximbank said the training scheduled to be held in September in Cairo, Egypt, would be delivered in collaboration with the American University in Cairo.

It would focus on the business implications of AfCFTA and the numerous opportunities which the Agreement presents for African companies, the bank stated.

Commenting on the programme, the Group Chief Economist & Managing Director of Research at Afreximbank, Dr Yemi Kale, said, “Afreximbank is a key supporter of the implementation of the AfCFTA whose focus is on transforming Africa from a fractured, commodity-dependent group of economies to a vibrant, integrated single market of about two billion people with a combined GDP of about$3.4tn.

“In this regard, we believe that well-informed and prepared businesses are key to driving intra- and extra-African trade and investment. Through this training program, which is one of the numerous capacity-building initiatives the Bank has put in place to promote intra- and extra-African trade and investments, we aim to empower African businesses to fully exploit the vast opportunities created by the AfCFTA, thereby enhancing their competitiveness and contributing to sustainable economic growth in Africa.”

Also, the Head of Capacity Building and Technical Assistance at the AfCFTA Secretariat, Tsotetsi Makong, emphasised the importance of capacity building for the successful implementation of the AfCFTA.

Makong said, “Investing in capacity building for the corporates and SMEs will ensure that home-sourced investments are mobilised and deficits with third country markets reduced, proving the AfCFTA to be the single most important instrument that de-risks the African continent in its entirety when it comes to investments.”

Honeywell, Seplat drag equity market to N188bn loss

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Honeywell, Seplat drag equity market to N188bn loss

Investors lost N188 bn on the Nigerian Exchange Limited on Thursday due to declines in the share prices of Ikeja Hotel, Honeywell Flour, and Seplat Energy.

Ikeja Hotel shed 9.29 per cent to close at N6.35 PZ, Honeywell flour lost 8.41per cent to N3.16 and Seplat Energy declined by 8.30 per cent to the day’s trading at N 3.480

The bourse extended its bearish run to a four-day streak as the All-Share Index and market capitalisation dipped by 0.33 per cent to close at 99,468.90 points and N56.27tn, respectively.

Fidelity Bank emerged as the most traded security in volume with 46.78 million units in 389 deals, followed by Linkage Assurance with 32.12 million units in 127 deals.

On Wednesday, equity investors lost N2.18bn with the All-Share Index and the market capitalisation dipping marginally by 0.004 per cent to close at 99,802.08 and N56.46tn, respectively.

The market recorded 21 gainers in contrast to 18 losers, while 75 closed flat.

Performance across our coverage sectors was positive, as four indices gained while the other two lost.

Leading the gainers, the banking and insurance indices inched higher by 0.1 per cent, and 0.4 per cent, respectively, on the back of price appreciation in the United Bank for Africa, FBN Holdings, Linkage Assurance and AlICO Insurance.

On the flip side, the oil & gas and consumer goods indices shed 4 per cent and 0.3 per cent, respectively, due to profit-booking on SEPLAT, Oando, Dangote Sugar, and Honeywell Flour.

Analysts predict an extended bearish performance due to dampened investor sentiment.

Commission decries obsolete school curriculum, unqualified teachers

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Commission decries obsolete school curriculum, unqualified teachers

The National Senior Secondary School Education Commission has decried the deplorable state of senior secondary schools in the country and called for collaboration to overcome some of the challenges bedevilling the secondary level of education in the country.

The government listed some of the challenges confronting the sector, including infrastructural deficit, unqualified teachers, obsolete curriculum, deplorable libraries and laboratories.

The Executive Secretary of the National Senior Secondary School Education Commission, Dr Ajayi Iyela, stated this during a meeting with the Civil Society Organisation Community Advancement and Humanitarian Empowerment Initiative members.

A statement released by NSSEC’s Head of Public Relations, Fatima Bappare, noted that the meeting focused on the capacity development of teachers in e-Learning and sciences, to equip the students technically and enhance their self-reliance for global impact.

“Dr Iyela, who recounted the deplorable state of our senior secondary schools, highlighted the infrastructural deficit, unqualified teachers, obsolete curriculum, deplorable libraries and laboratories, amongst others, as the numerous challenges confronting the sector.

“He stated in specific terms that the Nigerian government alone cannot fund education and, as such, NSSEC, which is saddled with the responsibility of repositioning the senior secondary education sector, has been fostering collaboration with the development partners and other relevant agencies to ensure it achieves its mandate of empowering the students to be self-reliance upon graduation.

“He then applauded the CSCHEI for partnering with NSSEC in the area of capacity development of teachers in e-Learning, technology, innovation and sciences,” the statement read.

Speaking earlier, the Director General of CSCHEI, Kunle Yusuff, said the organization was established to support the government in promoting humanitarian, community development and social values.

Yusuf said, “As an organisation that upholds transparency in its operations, it believes in ‘no teacher, no development,’ hence the effort to collaborate with NSSEC in retraining teachers in e-Learning, technical and science subjects in line with the Goal 4 SDGs Agenda 2030.”

He said the capacity building of the teachers would be held at the grassroots, to ensure inclusiveness of all schools.

The DG said where the science and technical teachers are not enough for each school, the organisation had put measures in place to bring back retired but not tired science teachers to the classroom as resource persons.

The development, he said, would ensure that the SDGs Agenda was achieved as students would be technically equipped to enhance their self-reliance for global impact upon graduation.

89 years after christening, Olakulehin mounts Olubadan throne today

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89 years after christening, Olakulehin mounts Olubadan throne today

Today, Oba Owolabi Olakulehin officially ascends to the throne as the Olubadan of Ibadan land. In this piece, LAOLU AFOLABI highlights the monarch’s humble beginnings, his journey to the throne, the unique nature of the Ibadan non-ruling house chieftaincy, and the symbolic coronation ceremony that coincides with the new monarch’s christening date On July 5,

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Policemen accused of phone theft arrested in Anambra

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Policemen accused of phone theft arrested in Anambra

The Anambra State Police Command said it has identified the officers allegedly fingered in a viral video of telephone theft in a community in Otuocha Local Government Area of the state.

In a video that circulated on social media on Wednesday, a resident of the area narrated how police officers from the Otuocha Police Division invaded their houses and forcefully took away mobile phone sets that people were charging.

The voice, who identified himself as a resident of the community, said the heavily armed police officers invaded the locations in a commando-like style, unplugged the telephones from the sockets, one by one, and carted them away for no reason.

According to the voice in the three-minute video, the police officers invaded their community late on Tuesday and carted an undisclosed number of telephones.

He, therefore begged the police authorities in the state to look into the situation and returned the telephones to the owners.

In the video, the residents blocked a major road in the community and used it to protest the action.

The development generated reactions from different quarters with residents calling for a probe of the police officers’ action.

But while reacting to the development in a statement on Thursday, the Anambra State Police spokesman, SP Tochukwu Ikenga, said the command had identified the officers involved in the act.

Ikenga called on the victims whose telephones were forcefully taken to come forward to help facilitate the necessary action involved in the investigation.

He said, “The Anambra State Police Command has intercepted a video of a protest against police action and wishes to state that the police team and the officers mentioned in the video have been identified.

“The command also invites the victims to come forward to help facilitate the necessary action involved in the investigation.

“To this end, the Commissioner of Police, CP Nnaghe Obono Itam, calls for calm and urges citizens to utilise the channels of the complaint against police officers rather than being unruly as seen in the video blocking the express road, thereby infringing on the fundamental rights of others which is the very course citizens want to protect.

“We seek for a police that is civil and professional in discharging their duties. Aggrieved residents should make use of police complaint channels to express any grievances.

“These channels include the CP Monitoring Unit of Command, the Police X-Squad under the State Criminal Investigation Department Police Complaints Bureau or the newly resuscitated Complaint Response Unit under the Police Public Relations Department Awka.

“You can call the Command Control Room at 07039194332 or the Police Public Relations Officer at 08039334002 in the event of any distress. Also download the ‘NPF Rescue Me App’, usable on Android and Apple iOS phones, to make reports. Further details shall be communicated, please.”

50 killed, 223 rescued in 1,085 emergencies – Fire service

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50 killed, 223 rescued in 1,085 emergencies – Fire service

The Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service, in its Midyear Activity Report, revealed that 50 persons were suspected dead and 223 rescued in emergency incidents responded to by the agency in the last six months.

The Fire Service Director, Margaret Adeseye, highlighted the key statistics and trends from January to June, 2024.

“The service responded to a total of 1,085 incidents, including 884 fire calls and 191 rescue operations. Notably, fire calls peaked in January and February with 186 each, then declined to 97 in June. Rescue calls were highest in May at 40,” the director said in the Thursday report.

The service also addressed 10 collapsed building incidents, with a significant spike of five in May. Additionally, there were 331 false calls, which it said underscored the need for public education on proper emergency call usage.

“A total of 223 victims were rescued alive, with March and April seeing the highest numbers at 50 and 49, respectively. Tragically, 50 victims were recovered suspected dead, with May accounting for 23 of these cases,” Adeseye added.

These figures, according to the agency, emphasised the importance of continuous improvement in emergency response and building safety measures.

In June, fire gutted Christ Embassy church headquarters in Lagos and a building collapsed after a downpour in the Mushin area of Lagos in early July where seven persons were rescued.

The General Manager of the Lagos State Building Control Agency, Gbolahan Oki, blamed the collapse of the two-storey building on the use of substandard materials.

Oki said the owner of the building would be prosecuted for violating an earlier stop-work order issued by the government and for breaking the seal put on the building.

LASG orders removal of shanties on canal setbacks

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LASG orders removal of shanties on canal setbacks

The Lagos State Task Force has served removal notices to squatters and illegal occupants dwelling in shanties built on canal setbacks in various parts of the state.

The spokesperson for the agency, Gbadeyan Abdulraheem, in a Thursday statement, said the move was to curb the incessant flooding experienced during downpours in the metropolis.

“The notices, which were served to settlers today (Thursday) by the chairman of the agency, CSP Adetayo Akerele, were carried out at strategic locations where it had been observed that squatters built shanties and makeshift buildings too close to the drainage system which contravenes the laid down physical planning laws of at least 15 feet from the canal setback,” the statement said.

Akerele described the activities of the squatters as a ticking time bomb due to unpredictable climate change experienced across various parts of the world.

Akerele further said that shanties across various canals at Soluyi Gbaada, Gbagada Bus Stop (Beside Atunrashe Estate), Charlie Boy Bus Stop and Bajulaiye canal were all visited to notify the occupants of the intention of the state to clear the areas.

According to him, reports have also been received by residents and artisans around Gbagada “of the illegal activities of miscreants who also make use of the shanties as their hideout from which they set out to perpetrate crimes, such as bag snatching and car vandalism, around the area.”

He assured the residents that clearing out of the canal setbacks would serve a second purpose of reducing crime in the area.

“Shanties have no place in a mega city such as Lagos due to their lack of environmental decorum, habitation of criminals and dephasing of areas where they have been erected,” he added.

The state government has consistently warned against building on drainage setbacks and equally cleared such structures violating physical planning laws.

Following persistent downpour that led to flooding in many parts the state in early July, the Commissioner for Environment and Water Resources, Tokunbo Wahab, noted that the flood was only able to recede following efforts made by the government in clearing drainages and structures built on drainage setbacks, among others.

Obaseki inaugurates transition panel four months to handover

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Obaseki inaugurates transition panel four months to handover

The Edo State Governor, Godwin Obaseki, on Thursday, inaugurated a 20-member transition committee to pilot the smooth transition of power and knowledge to the next administration, four months to the end of his administration.

The committee is chaired by a former Commissioner for Finance in the state, Joseph Eboigbe.

Obaseki inaugurated the committee at the EXCO Chambers, in Government House, Benin City, with some members of the committee joining virtually.

The governor said, “Today is the 11th of July, 2024 and it will mark exactly four months to the day I will hand over government to the next elected governor of Edo State. As it’s global best practice, I am putting together a transition team that would have the responsibility to document the achievement of this administration in the last eight years.

“The team will look and retrieve all documents and all other materials relating to policy decisions that have been taken by this administration in every area of government and governance over the last seven years and put the same in a structured order in a data room. I believe that most of these materials have almost been digitised.

“A proper digital and regular data room would be created where all documents related to every activity, contract, EXCO decision, presentation, and policy paper in every area will be retrieved, documented, and chronicled as it will serve as institutional memory for the next and subsequent administrations.”

He explained further that the transition committee would put together reports on each area and aspect of government his administration had intervened, adding that recommendations would be made for the next administration.

“This document and resources should serve to smoothly transfer power and knowledge from this administration to the next. We would have both the physical and digital repository of all the information and decisions taken during the life of this administration as these documents will be relevant both for internal and external consumption and research and possibly policy development.

“This report will also give a detailed account of the strategic vision and outlook of the administrative structure, policy impact, and completed programmes and initiatives as well as uncompleted programmes and initiatives to enable the incoming administration to know where to take off from.

“This report should be completed before the 30th of October 2024, as this document will form parts of what will be handed over during the transition period on November 11th, 2024,” Obaseki said.

In his response, the Chairman of the Committee, Eboigbe promised that the committee would diligently discharge their duties, pledging to deliver the report within the timeline given by the governor.

Joshua on verge of breaking Fury record

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Joshua on verge of breaking Fury record

Anthony Joshua is on track to break Tyson Fury’s British attendance record with his upcoming world title fight against Daniel Dubois.

Joshua will challenge Dubois for the IBF belt on September 21 at Wembley Stadium, with promoters expecting over 100,000 fans to attend.

Fury set the British attendance record in April 2023 when 94,000 spectators packed into Wembley to see him knock out Dillian Whyte. Promoter Frank Warren, speaking on talkSPORT, expressed confidence that the upcoming bout will surpass that figure.

“Oh, it’s massive. I mean, we will be applying to increase the capacity like we did last time when Tyson Fury fought against Dillian Whyte. And I think we’ve got it, I think we will probably break that record. So, it’s really looking good,” he said.

Joshua, 34, is no stranger to huge sell-out stadium shows, having drawn over 90,000 fans at Wembley in 2017 when he defeated Wladimir Klitschko. He has also attracted 75,000 at Cardiff’s Principality Stadium and another 62,000 at Tottenham’s football ground.

However, his last two bouts took place in Saudi Arabia, where he secured knockout wins over Otto Wallin and ex-UFC champion Francis Ngannou.

Warren acknowledged the challenge Joshua posed but remained optimistic about Dubois’ chances.

“A lot of people are making Joshua a favourite, and they’re saying AJ is a big puncher and so forth and I hope he comes out and comes to fight because if he lets those big punches go I know that will leave him exposed. If Daniel clips him, it will knock him out. I think Daniel is the bigger puncher,” Warren said.

“I genuinely think that Daniel can win this, he’s a young man, he’s fought better opposition in his last three fights than AJ has. And by the way, AJ has looked good in his last few fights but not against as good opposition as what Daniel has been in with.”

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