Monday 30 September 2013

Nigeria: Cashless Policy - CBN to Apply Charges on Withdrawals, Deposits From Oct.2

Mr Tunde Lemo
Abuja — The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) says it will start applying charges on withdrawals and deposits above N500,000 for individuals and N2 million for corporate bodies from Oct. 2.
Mr Tunde Lemo, Deputy Governor, Operations, said this in Abuja on Friday while briefing newsmen at the end of the Special Forum on Financing the Power Sector Reforms for Economic Development.
He said that the action would ensure effective implementation of the cashless policy.
The CBN had given a three-month moratorium for the full implementation of charges to customers who withdraw or deposit money higher that what was stipulated in the Cashless policy document.
"We will start applying the charges from the second of October which is Wednesday because the three months moratorium would have expired.
"We are glad to announced that having worked with stakeholders, we've been able to ramp up facilities in Abuja and five other locations and then we are set to build up the critical mass requirement in the cashless in those areas."

Nigeria Is Not Broke-Jonathan Insists

President Goodluck Jonathan has reaffirmed the vibrancy of Nigeria’s economy while fielding questions from a select panel of journalists during the presidential media chat in Abuja.
Asked about the true state of the nation’s economy, the president said “sometimes people play politics with serious things”.
He added that “To say Nigeria is broke, there must be some parameters. To make that kind of statement is very unfortunate. We must be careful the statements we make. It doesn’t matter whether you like the face of the president or not.”
In terms of foreign direct investment coming into the Africa, the president said “more is coming into Nigeria”.
He said he was given the privilege to ring the closing bell at the New York Stock exchange due to the viable business environment of Nigeria.
He said over 50 per cent of those investing in the capital market would have removed their money from their various investments if Nigeria was bankrupt insisting that “anybody who says Nigeria is bankrupt is just playing politics with what he is not suppose to”.
“The main reason was the closure of the two pipelines in June which forced the sales of oil down and it does not mean that the country is broke, ” adding that the development affected monthly allocation to the state governments.
The President averred that even if the Federal Government fails to pay salaries as and when due does not imply that the country is broke, stressing that so many other factors could have been responsible.
The President said that the perception about Nigeria’s economy in the international community is totally positive as against local perception adding that during his recent visit to the United States where he addressed the United Nation, he was given a very rare opportunity to ring the bell on the floor of the American Stock Exchange. “The President of US, President Barack Obama told me that for you to have been allowed to ring  the bell is indicative of the level of confidence investors have on the Nigerian economy”, the President said.
The journalists are Africa Independent Television’s Senami Ohiomokhare, Channels Television’s Gloria Ume-Ezeoke, Shehu Dada of the Capital Post Newspaper, Nosa Igeabor of Tell Magazine and  Shola OShunkeye of The Sun Newspaper.
Source: Channels

47 killed in Nigeria college attack (Roundup)

At least 47 students were killed in a college in 's northeastern state of Yobe after gunmen, suspected to be members, opened indiscriminate firing in the campus Sunday morning, local sources reported.
The College of Agriculture in Gujba, 50 km south of the state capital Damaturu, came under attack by gunmen who fired indiscriminately at students, an official seeking anonymity told Xinhua.
"So far, we have recovered at least 47 bodies within and outside the school premises. Many of the people affected were men. It is sad that their lives were cut short by this incident," Ali Mohammed, an auxiliary staff of the college told Xinhua over phone.
Mohammed said tears filled the eyes of many sympathisers who thronged the campus Sunday afternoon and found bodies of the victims laid in an open space.
"Some government officials have paid condolence visits to the college. This is a sad incident," he said, giving a hint that a mass burial was being planned for the victims.

Entrepreneurship trainer announces ‘Run-Like-A-Champion’ campaign

One of the leading business plan consultants and entrepreneurship trainers in Nigeria has announced the establishment of a business capacity development to take on the training and development of aspiring entrepreneurs among the working class and students.


After years of entrepreneurship campaign on pages of newspapers and magazines as well as classroom training, the leading entrepreneurship trainer, Ola Emmanuel, declared that the platform will be saddled with the task of thoroughly preparing aspiring and existing entrepreneurs as well as other career men and women and professionals to introduce entrepreneurship spirit into their daily activities in order for them to perform better in their chosen fields.

The capacity building activities which will run under the theme, “Run Like A Champion”, will also launch a capacity building outreach programme among students to prepare them for the peculiarity of Nigerian economy. According to the promoter and founder of the platform, Ola Emmanuel, the regular meeting of entrepreneurs and corporate professionals on one hand, platform will be strong among students in view of the capacity available to run the programmes of the platform.

It will be recalled that Ola Emmanuel was the Nigerian delegate at the special programme on how to tackle youth unemployment challenges organized for eleven African countries at the International Training Centre of the International Labour Organisation (ITC-ILO), Italy in 2009. In his words, “the capacity building work, especially among students will make extensive use of cooperative and collaborative efforts among stakeholders in the public and private sectors to carry out its activities. Already, plan is in progress for the platform to hold a three-day programme in one of the universities in the north central Nigeria. The programme is expected to be a blend of personal development, practical success strategies and entrepreneurship development activities. Also, discussions have reached advanced stage with a state government through its ministry of education to expose students in the state to personal development and entrepreneurship intelligence activities. “We are embarking on the students outreach activities to effectively mould the upcoming generations to become formidable forces in nation-building and make them prove useful in the creation of equitable and wealthy society. The school students will be strategically prepared to embrace and pursue excellence in their present and future endeavours as well as position them to become leaders who are thoroughly furnished to run like champions”.

As a way to contribute to Nigerian economic development, the quality of activities and interactions is expected to make significant impact in a short to medium term by raising and nurturing generation of potentially-accomplishing men and women who are well equipped to become exemplary business and professional models. The life-transforming intelligence the platform will be providing shall be targeted at sharpening the countenance of both the youth and the working class to make them run their daily activities with a new mindset befitting of potentially-great entrepreneurs.

Source: World Stage

Wednesday 25 September 2013

UNAIDS reports progress in domestic funding for AIDS

The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) has reported that despite a flattening in donor funding for HIV, which has remained around the same as 2008 levels, domestic spending on HIV has increased, accounting for 53% of global HIV resources in 2012.
According to the report, continued gains were made in mobilizing financial resources for the AIDS response in 2012, although AIDS expenditures remain short of the global target of US$ 22-24 billion in annual financial resources. 
In 2012, an estimated US$ 18.9 billion were available for HIV programmes in low- and middle-income countries – a 10% increase over 2011. 
The total global resources available for HIV in 2012 was estimated at US$ 18.9 billion, US$ 3-5 billion short of the US$ 22-24 billion estimated to be needed annually by 2015. 
Although international HIV assistance remained flat in real terms in 2012, many low- and middle-income countries have increased financial outlays for HIV; domestic spending accounted for 53% of all HIV-related spending in 2012. 
Although increases in domestic investments have occurred among countries at all income levels, local spending has also risen around the world but sharply so among upper middle-income countries, with many lower middle-income and low-income countries remaining heavily dependent on international assistance.