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AfDB approves $1.3 million grant for female financial inclusion research in Africa
The African Development Bank (AfDB) has approved two grants worth $1.3 million for research aimed at increasing women’s access to a range of digital financial services on the continent. In a statement on Monday, AfDB said the grants will be disbursed by Africa digital financial inclusion facility (ADFI), a blended finance vehicle supported by the bank. The grants will be disbursed to two fintech firms, Pula Advisors Kenya and M-KOPA Kenya. AfDB said Pula Advisors will use the $1 million for research of social and economic factors that impact women farmers’ access to microinsurance in Kenya, Nigeria and Zambia while M-KOPA will use the $300,000 funding for research involving 500 women and men in Kenya’s Kisumu, Eldoret and Machakos counties. It said findings from the research will inform th...
AfDB approves $1.3 million grants for women’s access to digital finance
The African Development Bank (AfDB) has approved two grants of $1.3 million for research aimed to increase African women’s access to a range of digital financial services, including loans and micro-insurance. According to a statement from the AfDB on Monday, the grants for $1 million and $300,000 respectively, will be disbursed through the Africa Digital Financial Inclusion Facility (ADFI). ADFI is a pan-African initiative designed to accelerate digital financial inclusion throughout Africa. It is a blended finance facility of AfDB with two financial technology firms; Pula Advisors Kenya Ltd. and M-KOPA Kenya Ltd. Pula Advisors will use the $1 million for research of social, cultural and economic factors that impact women farmers’ access to micro-insurance in Kenya, Nigeria and Zambia. Mor...
Kano set to design metro transport master plan
The Kano state Executive Council has approved the constitution of a committee, to design a Strategic Metropolitan Transport Master Plan, in order to regulate the transport system in the metropolis. This is contained in a statement signed by the State Commissioner for Information, Mr Muhammad Garba, made available to newsmen on Friday. It said the development of a Transport Master Plan for the state would strengthen economic growth and development, in line with the megacity goal of the Ganduje administration. Garba, in the statement, noted that the terms of reference of the committee, included a comprehensive mass transit system, to address the current transportation challenges. “It will also identify facilities and services to manage the dynamics of Kano as an emerging Megacity.” the state...
Court orders Ekiti university to reinstate sacked workers
File Photo The National Industrial Court in Akure has ordered the Ekiti State University (EKSU), Ado Ekiti, Ekiti State, to reinstate 85 non-teaching staff members sacked by the institution in December 2019. The judge, Kiyersohot Damulak, also gave the university a 30-day ultimatum to pay the reinstated workers their salaries, emoluments, and allowances from the date of their unlawful disengagement till date. In the judgement delivered on January 28, a copy of which was seen by newsmen on Wednesday, the court also directed the university to pay the workers the three months salary they were being owed before they unlawfully disengaged. Damulak also ordered the university to pay each of the sacked workers N50,000 as the cost of prosecuting the case. The award totaled N4,250,000 for the 85 wo...
Nigerian government announces additional economic zones for agric, textile
The federal government has approved the expansion of the existing Free Trade Zones (FTZs), as well as the activation of existing ones to respond to the demands of the African Continental Free Trade Area Agreement (AfCFTA) and the COVID-19 pandemic. The Managing Director, Nigerian Export Processing Zones Authority (NEPZA), Prof. Adesoji Adesugba, who disclosed this Wednesday, further identified the new economic zones to include Funtua FTZ Katsina for textile and cotton, Lagos FTZ for medical, as well as Kwara for agriculture. Speaking while receiving the leadership of the Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines, and Agriculture (NACCIMA), led by Hajiya Saratu Iya Aliyu in his office, Adesugba said the move seeks to boost the industrialisation agenda of the present admi...
Edo government warns worship, events centres against violating coronavirus protocols
The Edo State Government has warned owners of event centres, eateries, restaurants, pubs, shopping malls and other places hosting social events in the state against violating the state’s COVID-19 prevention protocols. In a statement signed on Saturday by the Secretary to the State Government, Osarodion Ogie, the government said event centres or business premises that violate regulations on social gatherings would be shut and owners or operators would be prosecuted at designated mobile courts. Ogie noted that the state COVID-19 compliance team had been mandated to ensure strict enforcement of the directives at the weekend, starting from Friday, February 19, 2021, with instructions to ensure full compliance with the protocols. “The Edo State Government hereby warns all event centres, eaterie...
How ICPC is combating corruption in MDAs, stopped diversion of N189 billion personnel cost
File Photo In the past few years, the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other-Related Offences Commission, as part of its statutory mandate, has been conducting systems study and review of ministries and organisations in the federal public service. The overall objective of a system review is reform of the systems and procedures of public agencies with a view to identifying and eliminating, preventing, blocking and obstructing opportunities for corruption. To achieve this, the exercise targets detecting areas of vulnerabilities, actual weaknesses, leakages and corruption risks and to recommend ways of strengthening these systems and removing the discretionary gaps and such opportunities for both individual and institutional malfeasance on public resources. In addition, the review also targe...
How ICPC is combating corruption in MDAs, stopped diversion of N189 billion personnel cost
File Photo In the past few years, the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other-Related Offences Commission, as part of its statutory mandate, has been conducting systems study and review of ministries and organisations in the federal public service. The overall objective of a system review is reform of the systems and procedures of public agencies with a view to identifying and eliminating, preventing, blocking and obstructing opportunities for corruption. To achieve this, the exercise targets detecting areas of vulnerabilities, actual weaknesses, leakages and corruption risks and to recommend ways of strengthening these systems and removing the discretionary gaps and such opportunities for both individual and institutional malfeasance on public resources. In addition, the review also targe...
NUT demands declaration of emergency on security
Nigeria Union of Teachers The Nigeria Union of Teachers, NUT, has frowned at the abduction of students and teachers of Government Science Secondary School, Kagara, in Niger State by bandits. To this end, the union tasked the federal government to adopt different approach in tackling insecurity as according to it, the current strategy being deployed by security agencies was not yielding any meaningful fruit. This was as it demanded a declaration of total state of emergency on security situation in the country by the government. The NUT, reacting to the development in a statement tagged:” Terrorist Attack on Schools and Abduction of Students/Teachers One Incident Too Many”, signed by its General Secretary, Dr Mike Ike Ene, regretted the reported incident. “We call on the Federal Government t...
FEC approves multi-billion naira roads construction contracts
In keeping with its infrastructural development mantra especially in the road sector, the Federal Government has approved a multi-billion naira roads construction projects across the country especially the completion of Benin-Ore-Adebamdele-Shagamu Road at the cost of N92.5 billion. This cheering news was dropped Wednesday by Minister of Works and Housing, Babatunde Raji Fashola, who told State House Correspondents after the weekly Federal Executive Council presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari at Council Chambers of the Presidential Villa Abuja that Council approved all four memoranda on roads projects his ministry presented at the meeting. Fashola said FEC approved all four memoranda he presented with respect to Benin-Ore-Adebamdele- Shagamu Road, particular the section from Adebam...
NLC: Nigeria’s insecurity, poverty getting out of control
The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) on Wednesday held their National Executive Council (NEC) meeting, at the Nigerian Airforce Conference Centre, Abuja, where they lamented the precarious state of insecurity and economic woes in the country. According to President of the NLC Ayuba Wabba, hardly does any day passes by without one negative report of citizens either kidnapped or abducted for payment of ransome. Lamenting the situation, Wabba said our beloved country has never been emmeshed in the grips of insecurity turbulence and crisis as we witness today. He said in the past two years or so, we have witnessed an intense resurgence of terrorism, armed banditry, kidnap-for-ransom, militancy and resource conflicts all over the country. According to him, there is also the challenge of criminals ...
WTO: We need to build capacity for international competitiveness – LCCI
Lagos Chamber of Commerce & Industry The Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) has posited that for Nigeria to take advantage of opportunities offered by the World Trade Organisation (WTO) under the leadership of Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, it was important to build capacity for international competitiveness of our products and services. The Chamber also emphasised the need to address trade facilitation issues, especially around port processes, ports infrastructures, international trade documentation, foreign exchange policies, trade policies and industrial policies. The Director General of the chamber, Muda Yusuf, made the disclosure following the appointment of Okonjo-Iweala as the DG of the WTO, saying her emergence comes at a time when the global trading system is faced with n...
