African Development Bank

AfDB to withdraw staff from Ethiopia over diplomatic incident

December 20, 2023December 20, 2023 - by Editor - Leave a Comment

ABUJA- The African Development Bank (AfDB) has decided to withdraw all its international staff from Ethiopia with immediate effect. The Bank’s Presidents, Dr Akinwumi Adesina in a statement issued by AfDB on Wednesday, said the office would however, remain open under an Officer-in-Charge. “These measures will not affect national recruited staff from Ethiopia who will continue their work and remain in the full employment of the Bank. “The Bank will assure them and their families of its duty of care, “he said. According to Adesina, these decision followed the recent breach of diplomatic protocol, and assault by Ethiopian security forces on two of the Bank’s international members of staff. “Specifically, on Oct. 31, two Addis Ababa based staff were unlawfully arrested, physically assaulted and detained for hours without charge or any official explanation. “This was a gross violation of their personal diplomatic immunities, rights, and privileges under the AfDB Group’s Host Country Agreement with the Government of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia. “On learning of the incident, I immediately contacted the highest levels of authority in the Ethiopian government, …

News

Nigeria losing best brains to Japa syndrome— AfDB President

December 8, 2023December 8, 2023 - by Editor - Leave a Comment

ABUJA- The President of the African Development Bank (AfDB), Dr Akinwumi Adesina, has called on African leaders to create quality jobs for their teeming unemployed youths, to stem the trend of brain drain bedevilling the continent. Adesina said in Abuja on Friday at the Second Veritas University Digital Innovations Exhibition and 12th Convocation Lecture, that Nigeria was losing its best brains to Japa syndrome. The former Minister of Agriculture, who spoke on the convocation lecture theme: ” Africa, It’s Your Time”, tasked Nigeria to turn its huge youth demography into an asset and not a liability. The former Minister of Agriculture who was conferred with an honorary doctorate degree by the institution, announced that Nigeria had been listed among 10 other African countries to benefit from the Bank’s $20 billion Desert-to-Power initiative. He noted that the power project was conceived to develop 10 GW of solar power, being the largest solar zone in the world when completed. He listed other countries to benefit from the initiative as Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad, the Gambia, Guinea, Mauritania, Mali, Niger, Eritrea, and Senegal. …

Features

Dollar borrowers worry over naira fall

November 15, 2021November 15, 2021 - by Precise Post - Leave a Comment

Top businesses, especially in the manufacturing and oil and gas sectors, are finding it difficult repaying dollar loans they took from banks when naira was stable, The Nation has learnt. The naira has come under intense pressure in recent months, hitting N570 to a dollar at the parallel market before its gradual recovery with oil prices rising above $83 per barrel. The borrowers are contending with a naira-dollar exchange rate mismatch between the time the dollar loans were taken and presently. One of the key players in the oil and gas sector, Kola Adesina, said his company, Sahara Power Group, took dollar loans at a period when the naira was stronger, but faced a major crisis in a repayment following naira’s fall against the dollar. He said that banks are also reviewing loan pricing for risks and dealing with currency mismatch problems faced by many of their customers that borrowed in foreign currency. Adesina spoke at the FBNQuest webinar held at the weekend with the theme ‘Mobilising Onshore and Offshore Capital for Strategic Infrastructure Projects in Nigeria.” He added: “Access …

News

Communities reject Fed Govt’s $120m agro-industrial project

October 7, 2021October 7, 2021 - by Precise Post - Leave a Comment

Communities in Oguta South region of Imo State, comprising Agwa, Ejemekwuru, Akabor, Umuofor and Izombe have rejected the establishment of a proposed ultra-modern agricultural project, estimated at 120 million US dollars, in their areas by the Federal Government. The oil producing communities, through their spokespersons, denounced the project as a Trojan horse and a veiled plot to appropriate their rich agric-ancestral land, which they said was their only means of livelihood. They said the project should be taken to another community. Chanting solidarity songs and carrying fresh palm fronds and placards with inscriptions such as: “Our land is for crop farming and residential purpose”, “Agwa people say no to RUGA livestock farming”, Ohaom people say no to their offer, we don’t need it”, No land for agricultural development”, “Akabor people say no to RUGA livestock farming or cattle rearing and “No vacant land for agro and allied farm project”, the aggrieved indigenes, including women, rejected pleadings by the Deputy Governor, Prof. Placid Njoku, who later addressed them at the Community Primary School field, Ejemekwuru. Njoku, who represented Governor Hope Uzodimma, …

News

Sanwo-Olu, AfDB’s Adesina, Anyim, NNPC’s Kyari, win Zik Prize for leadership

September 23, 2021September 23, 2021 - by Precise Post - Leave a Comment

President of the African Development Bank Group, Akinwunmi Adesina; Lagos Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu; former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Anyim Pius Anyim and Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Mele Kyari have won the Year 2020 Zik Prize in Leadership. Other winners of the annual award are Governor of Nasarawa State, Abdullahi Sule; Minister of State for Health, Senator Olorunimbe Mamora; Director General and CEO of the Nigerian Maritime and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Dr Bashir Jamoh, Group Managing Director of FBN Holdings Plc, Mr U.K. Eke; Pioneer MD/CEO, of the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA), Mr Uche Orji; Former 1st lady of Akwa Ibom State, Mrs Ekaette Akpabio. The winners of the event were announced in Lagos by Prof Pat Utomi, on behalf of the Chairman and members of the Board of Public Policy Research and Analysis Centre (PPRAC). Details shortly… Source

News

Lagos Assembly clarifies approval of $53.9m LCC loan conversion

August 12, 2021August 12, 2021 - by Precise Post - Leave a Comment

The Lagos House of Assembly says it only approved Gov. Babajide Sanwo-Olu’s request to convert the $53.9 million Lagos Concession Company (LCC) private loan to a public sector loan.The Chairman House Committee on Finance, Mr Rotimi Olowo (Shomolu Constituency 1), made the clarification in Lagos on Thursday.The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the House committee had during plenary on Aug. 5 presented a report approving full takeover of ownership of Lekki Concession Company (LCC) by the state government. But the Commissioner for Information, Mr Gbenga Omotosho, debunked the report, saying that the request by the governor was not to takeover LCC since it had already been done in 2014.The commissioner added that the request was to convert the loan to a public sector facility.Olowo told newsmen that the clarification became necessary as the loan conversion was to attract lower interest rates from the present 4.2 per cent to 1.2 per cent from the African Development Bank (AfDB).He explained that the government took over the company in 2014 to develop infrastructure in the Epe axis, considering the future establishment …

News

Buhari seeks National Assembly approval for $6.183b

May 19, 2021May 19, 2021 - by Precise Post - Leave a Comment

The cash (about N2, 343 trillion) if secured, will enable the Federal Government to finance the deficit of N5.602 trillion in this year’s Appropriation Act. The President’s requests were contained in separate memos to Senate President Ahmad Lawan and House of Representatives Speaker Femi Gbajabiamila. Senator Lawan read the letter addressed to him on the floor of the Red Chamber at plenary yesterday. He also asked the Senate to give concurrent approval for donor fund projects under the 2018-2020 Federal Government External Borrowing (Rolling) Plan of $36,837,281,256.00 plus Euro 910,000,000.00 and grant component of $10,000,000.00. Buhari explained that the requests were in line with the provisions of Section 21(1) and 27(1) of the Debt Management Office (DMO) Establishment Act 2003. Tagged: “Request for the resolution of the National Assembly for the implementation of the new external borrowing of N2.343 trillion (about $6.183 billion) in the 2021 Approved Act,” Buhari explained modalities for the loan. The President said he forwarded the memo to request for a resolution of the National Assembly to raise the N2,343,387,942,848.00 (about $6,183,081,643.40 at the budget exchange …

Politics

2023 Presidency: Obasanjo backs Akinwunmi Adesina over Tinubu

May 2, 2021May 2, 2021 - by Editor - Leave a Comment

…as efforts to reconcile Tambuwal, Kwankwaso fail…..Pushes for hybrid party to replace APC, PDP By Soni Daniel Abuja – Formerr President Olusegun Obasanjo is in support of a move to draft the current President of the African Development Bank, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, into the 2023 presidential race, a competent source close to the former President confirmed last night. The move comes as the former Head of State reportedly failed to convince Governor Aminu Tambuwal of Sokoto State and former Rabiu Kwankwanso of Kano State to work together in order to advance political interest of the Peoples Democratic Party in the presidential election. Sunday Vanguard gathered that the two influential northern politicians are exploring the possibility of running for the Presidency under the PDP come 2023 but that the former leader had tried and failed to reconcile them ahead of the next political dispensation. A source close to the former president, said that it was the reconciliation of the two men that actually took the former leader to the Caliphate last week while he was in the state to commission some …

News

Senate approves FG’s $2.6bn loan request to finance priority projects

April 21, 2021April 21, 2021 - by Editor - Leave a Comment

By Ogechi Okorie Abuja (Precise Post) – The Senate on Wednesday, approved the sum of $2.6 billion (USD) out of the $5.5 billion external borrowing request sent to the National Assembly by President Muhammadu Buhari in May last year.The approval came after the Upper Chamber considered a report by the Committee on Local and Foreign Debts during plenary. The approved sum, according to the Chairman of the Local and Foreign Debt Committee, Clifford Ordia, would see €995 million euros going to finance priority projects of the federal government, while $1.5 billion (USD) would be disbursed to the thirty-six state governments to finance critical projects. Out of the total sum approved, $1.5 billion is to be sourced from the World Bank; €671 million euros from the Export-Import Bank of Brazil; and another €324 million euros from the Deutsche Bank of Germany. The tenor/moratorium of the loan to be sought from the World Bank is 25 years at an interest rate of 2.45 percent per annum; while that from the Export-Import Bank of Brazil is for 15 years at an interest rate of 2.935 percent; …

News

Terrorists, kidnappers demanding ransom in cryptocurrency — Moghalu

April 7, 2021April 7, 2021 - by Precise Post - Leave a Comment

A former Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and former presidential candidate, Prof. Kingsley Moghalu, has said that cryptocurrency has become attractive to kidnappers and terrorists who demand to be paid a ransom in the virtual currency because it is not easily traceable and is also uncontrolled by governments and central banks. He said at the Cybertech Global 2021 conference on cybersecurity in Dubai that sub-Saharan Africa has emerged as the world’s leader in mobile financial services. Besides Moghalu, other speakers included former Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), General David Petraeus; Director-General of Israel’s National Cyber Directorate, Yigal Unna and the former Supreme Commander of NATO Forces in Europe, General Wesley Clark. He added that the booming fintech sector could accelerate the continent’s post-COVID-19 economic recovery.Moghalu said the extraordinary growth of the sector presented new security challenges, which should be addressed to ensure that public confidence in emerging technology remained high. According to him, the rise of cryptocurrency, in particular, has heightened awareness of fintech security risks, “with kidnappers and terrorists increasingly demanding that ransoms …

News

Ex-FIRS Boss Fowler, Buratai Make List Of Politically Exposed Nigerians Who Own Juicy Properties In Dubai

February 27, 2021February 27, 2021 - by Editor - Leave a Comment

Erstwhile Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), William Fowler is listed among prominent and politically exposed Nigerians owning properties in Dubai, United Arab Emirate (UAE). Fowler’s name popped-up alongside that of Tukur Buratai, the immediate past Chief of Army Staff (COAS); Mbu Joseph Mbu, a retired Assistant Inspector-General of Police (AIG), and Ahmed Ibrahim Dasuki, the late Sultan of Sokoto who died in 2016. A document exclusively made available to The ICIR by the Center for Advanced Defense Studies, (C4ADS), a United State-based non-governmental organisation (NGO) shows that not less than 800 Nigerians were identified as owners of Dubai properties worth N146 billion. The ICIR had earlier reported that Tafa Balogun, a former inspector general of police (IGP), who was disgraced out of office over corruption is one of the Dubai property owners. The list includes jailed Olisah Metu, former National Publicity Secretary of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), and his spouse, Kanayo Olisa Metu. Other influential Nigerians who own property in the city identified as “one of the enablers of global corruption, crime, and illicit financial flows” …

Business

Ensure Strict Compliance With Tax Payment – Buhari Orders FIRS

January 22, 2021January 22, 2021 - by Editor - Leave a Comment

By Francis Etuko Abuja (Precise Post) – Nigeria’s President, Muhammadu Buhari, yesterday, directed the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) and other revenue-generating agencies to plug leakages and ensure strict compliance with tax payment by foreign companies operating in Nigeria. He also ordered the FIRS to facilitate deployment of more digital platforms and seamless connections. Addressing the first National Tax Dialogue virtually at the State House, Abuja, President Buhari mandated all government agencies to automate their operations and synergise to boost revenue generation. His words: “It is not enough that our citizens and local businesses pay their fair share of taxes. Equally, foreign businesses must also not be allowed to continue to exploit our markets and economy without paying appropriate taxes. “Accordingly, the FIRS has my mandate to speedily put all measures in place to fully implement programmes to stamp out base erosion and profit shifting in all their ramifications and generally automate its tax processes. “In line with this, I have directed all government agencies and business enterprises to grant FIRS access to their systems for seamless connection. FIRS must …

Politics

Times Like This Need Audacious Leadership -ADB President

December 5, 2020December 5, 2020 - by Editor - Leave a Comment

By Chris Udochukwu Abuja (Precise Post) – The President of African Development Bank, (ADB) Dr Akinwunmi Adesina has said that times like this need audacious leadership. “Leadership that is able to navigate complexities and restore hope and confidence, to grow back, safer, healthier and with greater resilience”, he added. Akinwunmi disclosed this when he took to his twitter handle without direct reference to whether he was referring to Nigeria, African countries or United States. However, Precise Post recalls that his tweets were coming at the same time with the tweet by the former Minister of Aviation, Femi Fani-Kayode wherein he stated that “Goodluck Ebele Jonathan is a blessing to Nigeria. He has been before and he will be again. Mark it down today.” Recall that there have been calls from different quarters for the former president Goodluck Jonathan to get ready to take over from President Buhari in 2023. Unconfirmed report has it that APC governors who visited Jonathan during his 63 birthday celebration were alleged to have advised him to cross over to the All Progressives Congress and pick …

News

Okonjo-Iweala Named Forbes Africa Person of The Year 2020, She Reacts

December 2, 2020December 2, 2020 - by Precise Post - Leave a Comment

Nigerian economist, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala has emerged as Forbes Africa Person of The Year 2020. Okonjo-Iweala is Nigeria’s first female minister of finance and the prime candidate for the office of the director-general of the World Trade Organisation. In 2019, Akinwumi Adesina, president of the African Development Bank (AfDB), won the award for his outstanding work at the bank and a sterling career in agriculture and finance. Paul Kagame of Rwanda won the same award in 2018. Other eminent Nigerians to have bagged the award are Muhammad Sanusi II (2011), former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria; Aliko Dangote (2014), president of the Dangote Group. Sanusi won the first edition of the award in 2011, Adesina has won the award twice — 2013 and 2019, while Okonjo-Iweala is also the first Nigerian woman to clinch the award. Reacting to the news, Okonjo-Iweala, expressed her delight at the recognition and dedicated the award to Africans facing the health and socio-economic challenges of COVID-19 during a very difficult year. “It is a great honour to serve Africa in different capacities. I look …

News

African Development Bank: Akinwumi Adesina Begins Five-Year Second Term Today

September 1, 2020September 1, 2020 - by Precise Post - Leave a Comment

Abuja (Precise Post) – The re-elected president of the African Development Bank, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina will be sworn-in today to begin a second term of five-years. The virtual ceremony will start at 9am GMT. A statement by the bank said the swearing in ceremony will be attended by Heads of States, Governors and external stakeholders. It will be conducted in compliance with the COVID-19 pandemic-related social distance guidelines, and broadcast online. A globally renowned development economist, World Food Prize Laureate and Sunhak Peace Prize Laureate, Dr. Adesina has distinguished himself in driving a bold agenda to reform the Bank and accelerate Africa’s development. He was first elected as President of the Bank on May 28, 2015. He was re-elected unopposed last week, winning unanimous votes of all the governors of the bank. Expected to be present at the bank for the event that will be streamed live is the new chairman board of governors of the bank, Kenneth Ofori-Atta, Ghana’s minister of finance. Also expected is the former chairman of the board, Ivorian Niale Kaba. The secretary-general of the AfDB …

News

See Why AfDB Boss, Adesina Said Agriculture Most Important Business In World

January 31, 2020January 31, 2020 - by Editor - Leave a Comment

Abuja – African Development Bank (AfDB) President, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, said “Agriculture is the most important profession and business in the world,” The Bank head has pledged to continue the work of transforming Nigeria’s agriculture sector. According to him, “The size of food and agriculture in Africa will rise to $1 trillion by 2030. The population of Africa, now at 1.2 billion, will double to 2.5 billion by 2050. They all must eat. And only through food and agribusiness can this be achieved,” he added. Adesina said the African Development Bank was spearheading efforts to feed Africa and was investing $25 billion over a ten-year period to transform the continent’s agriculture sector. What Africa does with food will determine the future of food, given that 65 per cent of the arable land left to feed the world is here, Adesina said. Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, reminded students of the important role they have to play in the continent’s economic development, as he was conferred with an honorary doctorate. According to a statement, the Doctorate of Science was awarded by the Federal …