JANUARY 7, , , , , 20132013201320132013

Continued on page 18

BY JIMOH BABATUNDE &NAOMI UZOR

The Lagos Chamber of Commerceand Industry (LCCI) have

lambasted the federal governmentover the proposed N60 billionphones-for-farmers policy saying it isa misplaced priority.

On Tuesday, Permanent Secretary,Federal Ministry of Agriculture andRural Development, Mrs. IbukunOdusote disclosed the federalgovernment intends to spend N60billion to purchase mobile phones for10 million rural farmers across thecountry. She said that the fund hadhas already been provided and thedistribution will commence in the firstquarter.

Reacting to this development in aninterview with Vanguard, the

LCCI lambasts FG's N60bnphones-for-farmers policy

Chairman, Agric sector of the LCCIand Managing Director of Bama FarmFood, Prince Wale Oyekoya, said theFederal Government’s intentionwould not make any meanful impacton the lives of the farmers.

“Imagine our Federal Governmentwants to give rural farmers N60b cellphone, is this what our poor farmersneed now with the high interest rateof 28 per cent. This is part ofcorruption we are talking about; it isa way of laundering our money by thefederal government. Farmers needworking capital and not cell phone,who will be recharging the phones forthem? Is it still the federal governmentthat will do that?” he said.

According to him, the Nigerianfarmers need a single digit interestrate on agric loans, input research anddevelopment, tractors, working capital

and other amenities to excel inagriculture, adding that, Nigeria isone nation that is endowed withgoodness of nature , wonderfulweather, excellent soil texture andgreat business environment.

He urged the federal governmentto provide basic infrastructure thatwould make agricultural businessventure progress and less stressful,adding that the government shouldinvest more in farmers with a singledigit interest rate on agric loansinstead of giving out cell phones.

On Thursday, Minster ofAgriculture, Dr. AdeshinaAkinwunmi though denied that theFG was spending N60 billion topurchase the mobile phones, hehowever strongly defended thepolicy.Adesina said the PermanentSecretary of the ministry, Mrs.

Ibukun Odusote, was totallymisquoted on the issue as there “isno N60 Billion for phones anywhere.

The Minister said agriculture todayis more knowledge-intensive andthey are willing to modernize thesector, and get younger (graduate)entrepreneurs into the sector, “and wewill arm them with modern informationsystems.

“Whether small, medium or largefarmers they all need information andcommunication systems. Connectingto supermarkets and internationalmarkets require that farmers know andmeet stringent consumer-drivengrades and standards.”

He added “In today’s supply chains,the flow of information from buyersto farmers must be instant, to meetrapidly changing demands. Unlessfarmers have information at theirfinger tips, they will lose out onmarket opportunities.

L-R: Permanent Secretary, Lagos State Ministry of Special Duties, Dr. Aderemi Desalu, Corporate Affairs Manager,FrieslandCampina WAMCO Nigeria PLC, Mrs. Ore Famurewa, Lagos State Commissioner for Special Duties, Dr.Wale Ahmed and Mrs. Dosunmu, Finance Director, Lagos State Ministry of Special Duties, during the presentation ofPeak milk as relief material to internally displaced persons in Lagos State.

CURRENCY BUYING CENTRAL SELLING

CBN Exchange rate as at 4/01/2013

112.40 +1.29

92.99 +1.17

148.8 5.0

2,250.00 +14.00

19.7 0.19

DOLLAR 154.77 155.27 155.77POUNDS 247.988 248.7891 249.5903EURO 201.3712 202.0218 202.6723FRANC 166.491 167.0288 167.5667YEN 1.7528 1.7584 1.7641CFA 0.2891 0.2991 0.3091WAUA 235.8285 236.5903 237.3522RENMINBI 24.839 24.9197 25.0004RIYA 41.2687 41.402 41.5353KRONA 26.9921 27.0793 27.1665SDR 237.3553 238.1221 238.8889

Cover Story

18 — Vanguard, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

Continued on page 19

Continued from page 17

,

,

,

,

“Our goal is to empowerevery farmer. No farmer willbe left behind. We will reachthem in their local languagesand use mobile phones totrigger an informationrevolution which will drivean agricultural revolution.”

On why the need for cellphones, Dr. Akinwumiexplained that Nigeria has110 million cell phones, thelargest in Africa, butregretted that there is a hugedivide as the bulk of thephones are in urban areas.

“The rural areas are heavilyexcluded. For agriculture,which employs 70% of thepopulation that means thefarmers are excluded andmarginalized.

“In today’s world, the mostpowerful tool is a mobilephone. As Minister ofAgriculture, I want the entirerural space of Nigeria, andfarmers, to be included, notexcluded, from theadvantages of mobile phonerevolution.

The Phone-For-Farmersscheme is part of theAgricultural TransformationAgenda (ATA) of the federalgovernment introduced bythe Ministry of Agriculture.The goal of ATA is to add 20million metric tones (MT) tothe domestic food supply, or5 million MT per year, by2015, and to create a total of3.5 million jobs by 2015.

According to the Ministerthe goal of ATA is totransform agriculture to growfood, create wealth andgenerate jobs. The focus is

LCCI lambasts FG's N60bnphones-for-farmers policy

on expanding domestic foodproduction, reducing importdependency and expandingvalue addition to locallyproduced agriculturalproducts.

Adesina set out to eliminatedecades of corruption in thefertilizer and seed sectorsthrough radical policyreforms, reduce the role ofgovernment and expandincentives for the privatesector to drive thetransformation andmodernization of Nigeria’sagriculture. One of suchreforms brought about theGrowth EnhancementSupport Scheme (GESS).

The scheme which kicked offlast year is a specialagricultural scheme of theFederal Government aimed at

delivering subsidized farminputs to farmers andfacilitates a shift fromsubsistence to commercialfarming.

GESS is hinged on the useof technology to enhanceeffective distribution ofvarious farm inputs,especially fertilizers, tofarmers. This is in line withgovernment vision of makingagriculture the cornerstone ofNigeria’s economy.

With the program,Government sought towithdraw from direct fertilizerpurchase and distribution,and introduce an alternativesystem of distribution built onthe voucher system. Underthe scheme, registeredfarmers receive e-walletvouchers with which they canredeem fertilizer and seedsfrom agro dealers. The GESSis a 3-year scheme and thefirst cycle was implementedlast year.

The scheme has been

designed to encourage aprivate sector led marketdevelopment process,ultimately geared towardsimproving Nigeria’scompetitiveness and foodsecurity. Through thisscheme, government willsubsidize the costs of seedsand fertilizers for farmers by50%, while providing softloans to the seed andfertilizer companies and agro-dealers to sell their inputsdirectly to farmers and buildtheir supply chains to get torural areas.

The Minister of Agriculture

Farmers needworkingcapital andnot cellphone, whichwill berechargingthe phones forthem? Is itstill thefederalgovernmentthat will dothat?

Albert Einstein oncedefined insanity as doing thesame thing over and overand expecting differentresults, while the Frenchclassical author, Francois dela Rochefoucauld said ‘ theonly thing constant in life ischange’.

This paper stresses theimportance ofentrepreneurship educationtowards enhancingsustainable development inNigeria. The problemsfacing the country rangingfrom high rate of poverty,youth and graduateu n e m p l o y m e n t ;overdependence on foreigngoods and technology; Loweconomic growth anddevelopment; among others.This paper therefore arguesthat entrepreneurshipeducation will equip thestudents with the skills withwhich to be self-reliant. Theobjectives and strategies forr e - d e s i g n i n gentrepreneurship educationare also discussed. Thepaper also recommendedthat educational programmesat all levels of educationshould be made relevant toprovide the youth theneeded entrepreneurialskills. It is alsorecommended that thegovernment should giveadequate attention toe n t r e p r e n e u r i a ldevelopment in the countrythrough the provision ofgood economic environment.

So it is on this premise Iwould like us to see theNigerian educational systemin light of current realities inthe 21st century. A carefullook of the current state ofaffairs in Nigeria reveals thatwe are in a 21st centuryeconomy with a 19th centuryeducation system. A systemwhereby much emphasis isstill placed on theconventional classroomenvironment with muchreverence for certificate forgraduates who in most casesare trained to be job seekersas evidenced in present highunemployment rate in theland. However, we mustaccept the fact that timeshave changed and we mustadjust by transiting from theold styled era of Adam Smith

Entrepreneurial EducationRevolution: An Imperative forSustainable Development inNigeria

inspired concept of the‘industrialized specialist’which has outlived itsusefulness to a moredynamic, resourceful andI.C.T based model whereskills and creativity takesprecedence. Withoutdeviating from the topic ofmy speech which isEntrepreneurial EducationRevolution in Nigeria, Iwould like to briefly definesome of the concept in thetopic.

WHO IS ANENREPRENEUR?

An entrepreneur is aperson who is driven toestablish a business to takeadvantage of the financialopportunities and personalfulfilment offered, bypursuing their own dreamsand shaping their owndestiny in local, national and

global economies. Ipersonally define anentrepreneur as anyonewho can convert what heloves doing to amoneymaking venture.

Entrepreneurship on theother hand is said to be theprocess of planning,operating and assuming therisk of a business. It has alsobeen seen as a process ofcreating a unique value. Forthe purpose of this speech,I would be limitingeducation to the activity ofteaching about a particularsubject.

Revolution on the otherhand has been defined byThe Macmillan Englishdictionary as a sudden ormajor change, especially inideas or methods.

Entrepreneurshipon the otherhand is said tobe the processof planning,operating andassuming therisk of abusiness.

From left: Mr. Jide Adeyemi, Retail and Customer Maketing Nokia, Mr. Olugbenga Alag-bile, winner of One Million Naira and Mr. Ladi Oyetayo, Head of Sales Operations, Duringthe Presentation of Prizes to the Winner of Nokia Asha Christmas Millionaire promo in Lagos.Photo: Joe Akintola, Photo, Editor.

Vanguard, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013 — 19

Cover Cont.Continued from page 18

and Rural Development,Akinwumi Adesina whointroduced the program,described it as the best wayfarmers can access the directsubsidy of agro-inputs.

He particularly explainedthat the introduction ofallocating fertilizer andseedlings directly to benefitingfarmers through electronicvouchers to their mobilephones has helped eliminatethe activities of middle menwho for decades have beenpreventing farmers in thecountry from enjoying suchsubsidy from government.

But reports from farmers atthe end of the planting seasonlast year show lots ofcomplains from farmers across the country as to their inability to access the subsidy or in some cases getting thesubsidized inputs afterharvesting.

During a tour of five statesof Taraba, Gombe, Bauchi,Nasarawa and Benue byreporters sometimes last year,farmers expres theirdisappointment over thescheme.

In Taraba State, the picturewas not rosy. The farmers

complained that they didn’treceive their two bags offertilizer and two bags ofimproved seedlings in time.One of them was Hamman-Tukur Baba-Anda, a 72-year-old farmer. He said though hegot his two bags of fertilizer,they came late. He lamentedthat if he had gotten them intime, he would have gottenabout a hundred bags of maizeinstead of the 28 bags he got.

“We should have gotten itfrom January, February toApril, but this time it camearound June/July. May be itis from you,” Baba-Anda said.

Not all the farmers in thestate got fertilizer. Out of the75,000 farmers that gotregistered for the program,only 22, 000 were able toredeem their allocation,according to the state director,Federal Ministry ofAgriculture and RuralDevelopment, Dr SamuelAdaji.

The story was slightlydifferent in Gombe Statewhere the federal coordinatorof the GES scheme in thestate, Mallam MuhammadUmar Deba, said out of the

148,032 farmers registered forthe GES program, 144,000farmers redeemed theirfertilizers.

“I couldn’t get even a singlebag of fertilizer or seed,” saidMalam Usman Bangu, an oldfarmer, in flawless English.But those who got theirallocation in the state called forcreation of more redemptioncenters as they said the onesin the state were too small tocater for them.

For Mr. Akin Balogun, thescheme had made thepurchase of fertilizers moredifficult and urged thegovernment to review itsimplementation.

Mr. Shedrack Madlion, theExecutive Director of theAdmiral Environmental CareLimited, an NGO, stressedthe need to put in place checksand balances to ensuresuccess of the initiative.

Madlion observed that the e-

LCCI lambasts FG's N60bn phones-for-farmers policy

”

Thank you for thehatchet job you did onbehalf of Dangote and

the other cement cartels.Personally, I do not believeDangote is an ideal businessman to look up to. He is amonopolist and believes healone can meet the needs ofall Nigerians in terms of theproduct he produces.

Dangote cannot survivewithout government supportand he is always seeking waysof running his competitors outof business in collusion withpeople in government. I amhundred percent sure hecannot try this in developedeconomies. He started byimporting cement. He gotwaivers from the governmentyet complains when others getthe same thing. Let him leaveIbeto cement alone because Iknow that is who you arereferring to.

The truth is that Dangote isjust flooding the market but thepeople know which product isgood. And for your informationI don’t work for Ibeto neitherdo I know who he is but I havebeen watching closely the

Reactions to “DangoDangoDangoDangoDangottttte, thee, thee, thee, thee, theface of genuine localface of genuine localface of genuine localface of genuine localface of genuine localinininininvvvvvestestestestestor"or"or"or"or"

happenings in the cementindustry in Nigeria and I havebeen praying that someonebreaks Dangote’s hold on thecement business. Go on theinternet and see for yourselfwhat people are saying aboutDangote’s monopolisticstendencies. Soon the bubblewill burst. I rest my case.(Adeyinka Oladejo)

The writer undermined hislobbying effort by claiming

,

,that the local industry iscapable of exporting cements.If this is indeed true whycan’t they embark onexportation instead of arguingfor protectionism? If youcannot compete fairly in yourlocal market how do youintend to compete in a foreignmarket where you may not beable to use political patronagefor market allocation. (BenAde)

One wonders howDangote feels withhis trucking empire

running on dilapidatedNigerian roads. Why doesn’the use some of his vast wealthto repair some of the roadsdamaged by his truckingbusiness? Let him put pressureon his political friends torepair the roads. It will begood for his tucking business.(Taro Jojoye)

This your questionshould be directed toNASS, the truth is that

these folks don’t have theinterest of the nation at heart,all they are interested in iswhat will enter their pockets.A situation where a countryborrows to finance recurrentexpenditure (consumption) isnot substainable, at least ona long term basis. The noiseabout the non fullimplementation of 2012budget is never because of thebetterment of me and you,it isbecause less money is madeavailable for sharing amongthemselves .

One wonders what is thefuture of a country that doesnot think about tomorrow.Often you hear this clamourfor diversification of theeconomy, but all the noise ison pages of newspapers andtelevisions. The day thewesterners will come up withreliable and more convenientsubstitute, as they are alreadyworking on, that day willmark the end of oil beinglucrative, one wonders whatwill become our fate.

(Jackson Kingsely)

wallet scheme had onlysucceeded in arousing thefarmers’ interest, but itsimplementation had fallenshort of expectation.

It was in an attempt toreview its implementation andmove agriculture away fromdevelopment program tobusiness that the ministrycame up with a modern wayof reaching the farmers usingnew tools like mobile phones.

Dangote cannotsurvive withoutgovernmentsupport and he isalways seekingways of runninghis competitorsout of business incollusion withpeople ingovernment

•Dangote

Reaction to“Nigeria, a nationof sharing, what anation!”

Skye Bank redeems customers's prizes

Customers of Skye Bank Plcwho have earned Points

under the SkyeDreams cus-tomer loyalty programme havewon fantastic prizes for them-selves. These include LCD TVsets, Black Berry phones andLaptop among others.Under Skye Bank Plc’s Skye-Dreams programme, custom-ers are enrolled automatical-ly at the end of each quarterupon meeting set criteria. Toqualify for enrolment, a cus-tomer should maintain a min-imum balance of N50, 000.00on Skye Save, Skye Wise,

Skye Rainbow or a standardCurrent account, or N150,000.00 on a Skye Select ac-c o u n t .Membership enrollment isdone at the end of every quar-ter and it is totally free. Onceenrolled, members are senttheir log in details via e-mailand sms. Welcome base Pointsare uploaded immediately af-ter enrollment.To earn Points under Skye-Dreams, members must: Have monthly average incre-mental balance of a minimumN10,000.00 ; Use Point of

Sale (POS) terminal; And use of Internet banking for trans-f e r sPoints earned are uploadedinto the member ’s Skye-Dreams account real time.However Points earned frommonthly average incrementalbalance are uploaded at theend of month.Mr Adeyemi Aremu, who wonan LCD TV set, thanked thebank for the gesture and ex-pressed his commitment tocontinue to operate his accountwith the bank.

20 — Vanguard, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

BRIEFS

Business & Economy

SON, LCCI, stakeholderscondemn Customs proposed billBY GODWIN ORITSE

S T A N D A R DOrganisation ofNigeria (SON),

the Lagos Chamber ofCommerce and Industry(LCCI) and otherstakeholders in the Nigerianmaritime industry havecondemned the proposedCustoms and ExciseManagement Act saying that“it is draconian”

Exposing the dangers in thebill at a stakeholders forumhosted by the MaritimeIndustry Advocacy Initiative(MAIN) , a logistics expert,Mr. Lucky Amiwero, said thatthe bill is against internationalconvention with regards toappealing or protesting acase of misdemeanor ofCustoms officers.

He said that Section 276 ofthe bill is at variance withindependent disputemechanism on appealprocedure as contain in theWorld Customs Organisation(WCO) kyoto convention.

He explained that theinternational trend is tomodernize Customs systemsso as to minimize theirdisruptive effect on legitimatetrade, as much as possiblethrough optimizing availabletechnology that would neithercompromise the traditionalobjectives of Customs controlnor the flow of legitimate

trade through simple,transparent, consistent andpredicable application.

Amiwero noted that in theproposed bill, the Board ofCustoms will have no otherway than to look into thewelfare of men and officers ofthe service as againstchurning out policies for theagency to execute.

LCCI’s representative,Mrs. Julie Ogboru, statedthat the bill if passed into law

in its present state is capableof derailing the economy aseverybody including thePresident will becomeanswerable to the Customs.

She noted that the bill if notchanged or amended will notonly affect the presentgeneration of freightforwarders but the next one.

For Fred Akhokhia, DeputyPresident of the Association ofNigerian Licensed CustomsAgents (ANLCA) said that the

promoters of the proposed billhave a hidden agenda whenthey putting the bill togetheradding that it will not be inthe best interest of the nationif the bill is allowed to go inits present state.

Speaking on behalf of theNational GovernmentApproved Freight Forwarders(NAGAFF) Dr. BonifaceAniebonam said that a part ofthe law that stipulate a twentyyear jail term for offenders isworrisome.

Civil servants demand prudent fiscalmanagement

By CHINEDU IBEABUCHI

C ivil servants in theFederal Ministry of

Power said that thechallenges of poor budgetmanagement can beminimized by putting inplace proper and timelybudget planning and aneffective budgetimplementation system.

Issuing a communiqué atthe end of a trainingprogramme on PublicFinancial Management andExpenditure Controlorganised for the staff of theministry in Lagos, they alsosuggested that ensuringstrict adherence to PublicProcurement Act Provisionswill be a good strategy forsustaining sound

procurement activities inPublic Sector.

In addition, theysuggested that there shouldbe proper and adequatedocumentation of receipts ofgovernment revenue andthat there should be aneffective control system tosafeguard governmentrevenue.

Further, they suggestedthat erring Public officersshould be disciplined, thereshould be regular trainingand retraining of PublicOfficers, anti-corruptioninstitutions should bestrengthened, and thereshould be conduciveworking environment forPublic Officers, amongothers.

The participants said if thesuggestions in the

communiqué were followed,they would result indynamism, sanity andimprovement in publicfinancial management andexpenditure control.

Earlier in her welcomeaddress, the ManagingConsultant of LighthouseConsulting Limited, Mrs.Rebecca Chijioke said thatsound arrangements fororganisational finance werekey to organisationalcompetence, sustainability,effectiveness andacceptability by thestakeholders.

In a statement by DaveEmelike, Public RelationsOfficer of the firm, she toldthe participants that thepurpose of the workshop wasto enable them tacklefinancial problems by making

constructive, cost-effectiveand strategic financialdecisions that would impactpositively on theirorganization in particularand the public in general.

For purposes of achievingthe above objectivesaccording to her, the courseprogramme was arranged inmodular form of six asfollows: sources andUtilization of Funds,Financial Control in thePublic Sector, Financialauthorities and theirresponsibilities in the publicsector, Budgeting andBudgetary control, Dueprocess and its implicationon Public FinancialManagement and DesigningEffective Internal ControlSystem in Public Sector.

PHCCIMAelects newleaders inRivers

PORT HARCOURTChamber of Commerce,

Industry, Mines andAgriculture, PHCCIMA, haselected Emeka Unachukwuas its new President.

He is to lead the bodyalongside Dr. Renny Cookeyas First Deputy President, Dr.Emi Membere Otaji, 2ndDeputy President, and Mr.Allison Tene Ogidigen,Financial Secretary.

Also newly elected to leadPHCCIMA in the next threeyears are Mrs Stella Agadaas Treasurer, Pst. OluwatobinAlabi, MD/CEO of ThePromise Confectioneries,Ms. Jovita Iroemeh, ChiefOris Onyiri, President of EgiPeople’s Assembly, Dr. FelixO. Felix, Dr. Walter Otunyoand Mr. Chima Wami.

Speaking, Unachukwupromised robust growth forbusinesses of members of thechambers, while highlightingthe focus of hisadministration following hiselection as the 55th AnnualGeneral Meeting ofPHCCIMA.

According to him “We wantto see a situation where amember who joinedPHCCIMA with one millionnaira but can t now boast of ahundred million in his kitty”,stressing that if that isachieved businesses willgrow, employment created,the economy of the statewould improve, governmentwould get more taxes and thecountry at large would alsobenefit.”

DN Meyerrewards staff

DN Meyer Plc, hasrewarded some of its

employees for long serviceand loyalty.

The ceremony which tookplace at the company’s head-quarters in Lagos, attractednotable personalities andfriends of the company.

No fewer than eight em-ployees were honoured for ameritorious and selfless ser-vice to the company for be-tween 10 to 20 years. They include: Mr. BankoleBabajide Niyi, ScreenPrinter; Mr. Abuah Robinson,machine operator; Mrs.Ajayi Oluwaseun Adeyemi,Research and developmentChemist and Mr. NgaluwaJoseph Osita, machineoperator for serving thecompany in the last 10 yearswithout blemish.

L-R, Mr Ogunmoroti, Customer Business Manager Kaduna, Cadbury Nigeria Plc.; LuckyWinner of 1million Naira, Aminat Ahmed; Mrs Anike Faseyitan, a Distributor and Mr AkomenOmijeh, Corporate Affairs Manager, Cadbury Nigeria Plc. during the Cadbury Yummy LifePromo Prize Presentation in Kaduna.

Vanguard, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013 — 21

BRIEF

Banking & Finance

The macroeconomicstability achieved inthe year 2012 was

largely attributable to themonetary policies of theCentral Bank of Nigeria(CBN) and the collaborationof the Financial ServicesRegulatory CoordinatingCommittee (FSRCC) towardimplementing variousreforms initiatives to boostingthe financial industry.

Analysts believe that thethree key economic indicators:exchange rate, interest rateand inflation and moneysupply were managed andregulated for meaningfulimpact on the overalleconomy.

Specifically, the bankingindustry witnessedunprecedented activitiesduring the year under review.The activities were anchoredon the reform agendaintroduced in the sector in2004 by the apex bank andwas later streamlined into fourpillars by the incumbentgovernor, Lamido Sanusi.

The four pillars centred onenhancing quality of banks;establishing financialstability; enabling healthyfinancial sector evolution andensuring that the financialsector contributes to the realeconomy.

The banking sector wasexpected to effectively play itsactual role in intermediationand for the banks to be amongglobal players in theinternational financialmarkets. The policy thrust atinception, was to grow thebanks and position them toplay pivotal roles in drivingdevelopment across thesectors of the economy. Thereform is also targeted atmaking the system moreeffective and strengtheningits growth potentials.

The CBN’s cashlessinitiatives

The first major policy in theyear under review was theCashless Lagos, the pilotproject of the Cashless policyenunciated by the Bankers’Committee and CBN. Thepolicy was aimed at movingaway from cash-basedeconomy to electronicpayment system. Its otherobjectives include addressingcurrency managementchallenges in the country, aswell as enhancing thenational payments system.This is against the backdropof the direct cost of cashmanagement to the bankingindustry which was estimatedat N192 billion by the end of2012.

The policy stipulates that towithdraw more than N500,000(for individual accountholders) and more than

"CBN’s policies enhancedmicroeconomic stability in 2012"BY PETER EGWUATU

N3,000,000 (for corporateaccount holders), there willbe a transaction cost. Toensure the success of thepolicy, the apex bank andbanks embarked onpromoting the various e-payment channels such asthe Automated TellerMachines (ATMs); Point ofSales (PoS) terminals, mobilebanking technology andinternet banking, amongothers.

Analysts believe significantachievements are beingrecorded in this regard asmany Nigerians have nowembraced the e-paymentchannels to transact business.

Financial inclusioninitiates

Worth mentioning isthe financialinclusion strategy

of the CBN. The unbankedand the under-banked arenow being attracted to thebanking landscape. Thelicensing of seven mobilemoney operators inSeptember is furtherassisting in this regard. TheBankers’ Committee did pickBorno State to pilot financialinclusion. The idea is to

ensure that as manyNigerians as possible haveaccess to financialresources..

Currency RestructuringThe CBN during the year

under review initiated moveto restructure the currency inits programme tagged Project“CURE” which would haveseen the introduction ofhigher denomination of N5,000. It was met with stiffopposition from all strata ofthe society as many claimedit would result to inflation.Also, many people talkedabout the cost implication,stressing that the money itwould cost the nation torestructure the currency wastoo large and could be usedfor other meaningful thingsthat will transform the life ofthe citizens.

It took President GoodluckJonathan‘s intervention toput the project on hold anddouse the attendant tension.

According to Lamido,under the new structure, theexisting denomination ofN50, N100, and N200, N500and N1000 will beredesigned with newsecurity features, the lowernotes of N5, N10 and N20

will be converted to coins.The new notes would havecarried the images of threewomen, Margaret Ekpo,Funmilayo Kuti and HajiyaGambo Sawaba.

AMCON PerformanceAMCON during the course

of the year reported a lossafter tax of N2.37trillion threeyears after it was set up toabsorb the bad loans of banks.It affirmed that the threebanks it acquired whichinclude Mainstreet ,Keystone and Enterprisebanks would be sold in thesecond quarter of 2014.

Also early in the year, JaizBank the first fully licensednon-interest bank in thecountry started business.

The other industryregulator, Nigerian DepositInsurance Corporation(NDIC) in collaboration withthe apex bank embarked onseries of joint examination ofthe banks with a view toensuring that banks keep tocorporate governance andethics.

Analysts /StakeholdersOpinion

The analysts from FBNCapital have statedthat there are

compelling reasons to expectNigeria to take some largesteps forward.According to them, inflationand interest rates are set tofall; the banks havesubstantial lending capacity;the CBN has a provenformula to hold the nairaexchange rate provided thatthe oil price obliges; andmobile money could take off. We would add that we aremid-term in the electoralcycle, and that by 2014 thereform programme will bevulnerable to the distractionof the polls the followingyear. That distraction will bethe greater for the uncertaintysurrounding the president’sown electoral intentions.

The National Coordinator,Independent ShareholdersAssociation of Nigeria(ISAN), Sir, Sunny Nwosu,the CBN does not exist.

According to him, thepolicies of the apex bank aresuffocating the industry ’sstakeholders, stressing thatNigerians should expectworse coming year.

In his submission, ChiefExecutive Officer,Biodun Adedipe

Consult, of Dr. BiodunAdedipe, affirmed there is anatural tendency for peopleto resist change, particularlywhere they have perceivedmisgivings about either theprocess or the driver of thechange, which theyconsidered a threat to theirvested interests. Adedipesaid the industry was movingin the right direction.

Inflation and interest rates areset to fall; the banks havesubstantial lending capacity; theCBN has a proven formula to holdthe naira exchange rate providedthat the oil price obliges; andmobile money could take off

,,

Lamido Sanusi

IMF’seconomist:Budget cutsmay hurtgrowth lessnow

Belt-tightening inadvanced economies

may not be as harmful togrowth now as it was duringthe height of the financialcrisis, but governmentsshould still be careful aboutdrastic cuts, an InternationalMonetary Fund researchpaper said on Thursday.

The IMF came under heavycriticism in October when itconceded that the austerityprograms it recommendedduring the global economiccrisis were more costly thanexpected, causing economicdamage that was as much astriple the amount forecast.

In a follow-up paper by theIMF’s chief economist,Olivier Blanchard, and hiscolleague, Daniel Leigh,stood by their initialconclusions but said theharshest impact of thoseprograms may be fading aseconomies start to recover.

The paper in October fueledcritics of steep budget cuts indebt-burdened Europeaneconomies, and prompted theIMF to soften its ownrecommendations forausterity in the euro zonecrisis.

It said that now it believedforcing Greece and otherdebt-burdened countries toreduce their deficits tooquickly would becounterproductive.

“For example, in Portugal,we have relaxed fiscal deficittargets,” said Blanchard, theIMF chief economist.

But Germany said at thetime that back-tracking ondebt-reduction goals wouldonly hurt market confidence.

Some economists alsoquestioned the methodologythe IMF had used in its initialresearch, saying the findingsmay have been exaggerated,or only applied to certaincountries or times.

In the follow-up paper onThursday, Blanchard andLeight said their researchheld-up for most advancedeconomies during the heightof the financial crisis in 2009-10. While their views do notrepresent those of the Fund,the chief economist has aheavy hand in shaping theIMF’s economic thinking.

22 — Vanguard, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

Coporate Finance

The capital market seemsto have transited from

the apprehensive mood whichprevailed among operators atthe beginning of 2012, toconsensus optimism of a betterperformance in 2013. This isreflected in the views of fourmajor stakeholders who spoketo Financial Vanguard on theperformance of the market in2012 and expectations for theNew Year, BABAJIDEKOMOLAFE writes

In January 2012, operatorswere weighed down by thedismal performance of thestock market in 2011, withfurther decline of 17.7 per centin market capitalisation and16.77 per cent decline in theAll Share Index. They wereapprehensive about 2012, whatmanner of year was it going tobe. The question on the mindof all operators was: Will themarket recover in 2012?

The market howeverperformed better and strongerthan anybody in the marketcould have wished for. Themarket capitalisation rose by37.4 per cent to N8.974 trillionwhile the All Share Index (ASI)also rose by 35.4 per cent to28,079.

This was a big relief formarket participants, and this isreflected in their summation forthe year. “The Stock marketstabilised in 2012 and hasstarted to grow again”, saidVictor Ogiemwonyin,Managing Director/ChiefExecutive, PartnershipInvestment Company.

For Bismarck Rewane,Managing Director/ChiefExecutive of FinancialDerivatives Company, thestock market made“Astounding return in 2012.”

“Year 2012 was part of thejourney to recovery”, saidEmeka Madubike, PresidentAssociation of Stockbrokingand Issuing Houses (ASHON)of Nigeria.

Shareholders do not seem tobe generous in their praise ofthe performance of the marketin 2012. According to SirSunny Nwosu, NationalCoordinator, IndependentShareholders of Nigeria(ISAN) “The stock market istrying to find its footing afteryears of experiment”.

To him the impressiveperformance of the market in2012 was forced. “It is a forcedgrowth because the authoritieshave been a little bit jitterybecause they havebeen talking about developingthe market and developing themarket and nothing wasmoving.”

Operators in the markethowever insist that the growthwas not forced. “Marketschange daily as it reads theeconomic treads and whatadjustments to make”, saidOgiemwonyin, adding that,

Capital Market in 2013:

Transition fromApprehension toOptimism

“What we mean by growth iswhen the volumes and valuetraded are high. How do youinduce growth? By puttingmoney in the market andbuying stocks?”

Madubike also pointed tothe performance of the

of the companies in the NSE30 Index performed relativelywell despite the pressures inthe economy ”, he said,adding that even companiesthat were having problemslike the banks had gotten overthe problems and they now

of the market was induced.

No dominating FactorThough there were several

efforts and initiatives to propup the market, it may beindeed difficult to affirm thatthe performance of the marketwas induced by these factors.Investigations show that theuntil the third quarter whencompanies started postingtheir half year results, whichfor most were positive,especially the banks, whichaccounted for about 31 percent of the marketcapitalization, theperformance of the stockmarket was neither here northere. For example betweenJanuary and June, the ASIonly grew by 869 points or 4.1per cent. But between July1stand December 31sttheIndex rose by 6480 points or30 percent. Similarly, themarket capitalization

companies on the Exchangeto dismiss the allegation thatthe performance of themarket was induced. “ Most

have better management andtechnical support. When thesefactors are considered, youcan’t say that the performance

between January and Junerose by N362 billion or 5.5 percent, but grew by n2 trillionor 23.1 per cent between Julyand December.

According to Rewane, it theimpressive performance of themarket in the second half ofthe year, was spurred by theinflux of half year resultsposted by listed companies.

Yet, even if the marketperformance during the yearwas induced, it was difficultto attribute the performance toany of the policy measuresintroduced by the regulators.According to Madubike, therewas no single factor that reallyinfluenced the market. “Therewere lots of initiatives but notone of them could have turnaround the market, as whatwas needed was a multi-pronged arrangement. Theonly thing was that there werelots of collaboration betweenregulators and operators, andthis really helped the market,and enhanced the quality ofpolicies introduced to movethe market forward.

On his part Ogiemwonyinobserved that the impact ofthe various reform measuresintroduced during in 2012especially the N22.4 billionforbearance package for 84stockbrokers, would most bereflected on future growth ofthe market. In other, words itstill too early to assess theirimpact on the performance ofthe market.

No Market Making MagicSome shareholders however

believe that the performanceof the market was induced bythe introduction of MarketMaking and the activities ofTen Market Makers. But bothNwosu and Rewane opinedthat the contribution of thisphenomenon to the 35 percent growth of the market wasnot significant.

“The introduction of marketmarkers is yet to changeanything”, Rewane said,adding that “ withoutadequate liquidity injection,the market makers will makeno difference.”

Nwosu also stated, “Well,the market makers actuallyinfluence the market in thesense that they were made tobe mopping up stocks. Thatactually helped to reduce theglut in the market. But ofcourse, it did not do the magicexpected of the marketbecause they too are goingthrough a lot of stress nowbecause by the time you mopup the market to sustain theprice growth and nobody isbuying the shares, then youwill fall into a bigger troubleof managing debt and thevolume of shares in yourhands. And this is manifested

,

,The Global economy will have someimpact. Whether going up or comingdown. But we will experience a morestable growth in the banking sector thatappears to be completely out of the woods.The Banking sector will likely lead theother consumer facing companies tostable growth in the New Year.

•NSE trading floor

Continues on page 23

Vanguard, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013 — 23

Corporate Finance

in the movement of the shares – todayit moves 8 per cent and tomorrow itdrops 9 per cent and so on. And beforeyou know it, the prices of the stocks soinfluenced by the market makers wouldhave gone back to what they werebefore. The fact again is that the marketmakers are accumulating a lot offinancial stress.”

To make the Market Makers work,Rewane recommended theestablishment of a special Fund, withgovernment contributing 60 per cent andMarket Makers contributing 40 per cent.Proceeds from the Fund, he said, shouldbe used to continuously trade in themarket and this will boost confidenceand stabilize the market.

Shared Optimism

namely: Corporate profits,Inflation, Exchange Rate,Economic activities asmeasured by the GrossDomestic Product (GDP),Stock Valuations, Mergersand Acquisition, Fiscal Policy,United

States Dollar and GlobalEconomy. Ogiemwonyin onhis part said, “The factors thatwill influence things includethe rising confidence and theliquidity that will follow,especially with the yearstarting with an approvedbudget. The gradual return ofinvestors will see the marketrise in the first quarter andslowly correct any spike thatmay be too far from theaverage. The Global economywill have some impact.Whether going up or comingdown. But we will experiencea more stable growth in thebanking sector that appears tobe completely out of thewoods. The Banking sectorwill likely lead the otherconsumer facing companies tostable growth in the New Year.

Cloud of ConcernBehind the optimism

however is a cloud ofconcerns about developments

that may impact themarket negatively in2013. Chief among thisis the dominance ofInternational investors,who now accounts for 70per cent of activities inthe stock market. Thismakes the marketvulnerable todevelopment in theglobal market,especially in the light ofthe Euro debt crisis andthe Fiscal cliff in theUnited States. But stock

market operators hopethat there would beincreased participation bylocal investors in 2013,such that the impact ofmajor pull-out of foreigninvestors would beminimal. According toMadubike, the regulatorsand operators are awareof this vulnerability andthe idea is to focus onwhat can be controlledhence the efforts to boostincreased participation oflocal investors. He said

Transition from Apprehension to Optimismthis was the rationale for theinvestor education, andinvestor protection schemesbeing introduced, and also themoves to decentralize thecomplaint managementsystem of the market.Expressing confidence in theeffectiveness of these efforts,Ogiemwonyin affirmed, “Ibelieve that even if there wasa dip in the market as a resultof foreign portfolio investorsadjusting their holdings, therewill be no panic exit andreturning local investors willtake up the slack. This is whyI think that we will do betterthan average in the New Year.”

Nwosu however said the wayregulators and operators treatlocal investors does not showthat they recognise theirimportance to the growth ofthe market. He said “There isan adage which we willcontinue to respect. They saycharity begins at home. If yourespect a foreign investor atthe detriment of your localinvestor, the day they (localinvestors) strike, the foreigninvestors will regret evercoming into this country. So,you need to give respect toyour own retail investors. Theyare the people to protect yourstock exchange. The foreigninvestors are here to makemoney and get away”.

Despite the various views onthe performance of the stockmarket in 2012, there is aconsensus of optimism aboutthe market in 2013. Mostoperators and shareholdersbelieve that the impressiveperformance of the 2012 wouldbe sustained this year.

“Outlook for 2013 is verypositive by most analysts. Ialso concur to that; I think themomentum that ended 2012will carry into the New Year. Iexpect the market to do betterthan average in the New Year,Ogiemwonyin said.

“We believe that 2013 is thebeginning of recovery. Therecovery will not be broadbased; only companies withgood fundamentals will gainfrom their recovery”, Rewaneaffirmed.

Nwosu was generous inoutlook for the year. He said,“For me, the capital market isthe best option of investmentany day, any time because weare leaving leap year, andaccording to historians. Theysay the leap year is often areap year. But we are enteringinto a normal circle year. Andtheir prediction is that the year2013 will be better than 2012.I also believe that as we move,we will continue to have abetter economic environment.And if that happens, there willbe more money for people toinvest in the capital market,”

Madubike said that the stockmarket in 2013 should benefitsignificantly from the variouson-going initiatives thefederal government totransform the economy,especially the power sectorreforms. He and Nwosupointed out that the earlypassage of this year’s budgetis a pointer to improved andeconomic activities during theyear, which they believe willtranslate to increased activityon the Exchange and hencebetter performance.

Factors to watchOn major factors that will

influence the market in 2013,Rewane listed nine factors

•Bismarck Rewane

Sir Sunny Nwosu

•Arunma Oteh, SEC DG

2012: Reforms, Recovery amidstlegislative/regulatory imbroglio

The capital marketwitnessed sustained

rally in 2012 followingmeasures put in place by theregulators to facilitate therebound. Besides the battlebetween the Securities andExchange Commission’sDirector General, ArunmaOteh, and the NationalAssembly that continued intothe new, all efforts weregeared towards ensuring thatthe Nigerian Stock Exchnage,NSE, returned to path ofprofitability through variousinitiatives adopted by the NSEmanagement to increaserobustness of the market.

Following the public hearinginto the near collapse of themarket organised by theSenate Committee on CapitalMarket, which threw up thedisharmony in theCommission, the board of SECand other top functionarieswere dismissed. A new boardwas, however, constituted lastmonth. The SEC DG was

By NKIRUKANNOROM

asked to step aside to allowfor unfettered investigationinto the allegedmisappropriation of Project 50funds. Her recall by thefederal government despiterecommendation of the jointNational Assembly that sheshould be sacked laterculminated to refusal of NASSto pass the budget of thecommission.

Some NSE’ initiativesChiefly among the changes

that swept through the stockexchange within the year wasthe reconstitution of theCouncil members, while theeight men co-opted by theSEC DG were ousted. After atwo-year legal battle over themoral implication of hisposition as the president ofcouncil of NSE, Alhaji AlikoDangote returned as thePresident.

A Market Segmentationexercise was completed torebrand the stock market andboards, and align industrysectors under which

companies are listed, whichbrought the sectors down to12 from 33.

To address market depth,The NSE introduced a seriesof new products - the SIMCapital Alliance Value Fund,the ABSA NewGold ETF andthe NSE-Lotus Islamic Index.They provide investors theopportunity to gain exposureto gold, a concentratedportfolio of value stocks, andto Shari’ah-compliantcompanies. Within the year,the NSE announced theappointment of ten marketmakers to conduct marketmaking activities. This waslaunched concurrently withSecurities Lending and ShortSelling.

The NSE revised its listingrules and effectively broughtdown the listing fees,realigned free float for quotedcompanies and otherminimum requirements fornew listings in a bid to attractmore companies. It alsodeployed systematic sector-board- product-specific

Continues from page 22

24 — Vanguard, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

Ph

arm

aceu

tica

lsE

koco

rp P

lc5.

055.

051,

000

5.31

5.31

88.5

0E

van

s M

edic

al P

lc1.

200.

8710

01.

450.

700.

190.

00F

idso

n H

ealt

hca

re P

lc1.

051.

0929

7,08

03.

200.

830.

443.

07G

laxo

Sm

ith

klin

e C

onsu

mer

Nig

45.1

045

.10

44,2

9923

.11

2.58

2.62

May

& B

aker

Nig

eria

Plc

1.55

1.70

165,

150

5.61

3.61

0.20

9.05

Nei

met

h I

nte

rnat

ion

al P

har

m0.

920.

9591

,000

1.96

0.95

0.09

14.1

3N

iger

ia-G

erm

an C

hem

ical

s P

lc8.

178.

1729

,000

12.9

10.

950.

000.

00P

har

ma-

Dek

o P

lc2.

732.

4750

,100

200

4.28

0.00

0.00

ICT

Com

pute

r Bas

ed S

yste

ms1

08C

ourt

evil

le I

nve

stm

ent P

lc0.

500.

505,

002,

000

0.52

0.50

0.10

10.0

0

Com

pute

rs a

nd

Per

iph

eral

sO

mat

ek V

entu

res

Plc

0.50

0.50

1,10

00.

500.

500.

0012

.50

IT S

ervi

ces

NC

R (N

ig) P

lc14

.40

15.0

87,

200

9.31

3.25

0.00

1.43

Trip

ple

Gee

an

d C

omp

any

Plc

2.41

2.41

200

3.59

3.25

0.01

0.00

ICT

Tele

com

mun

icat

ions

Sta

rcom

ms

Plc

0.50

0.50

2,30

7,69

21.

470.

500.

000.

00

IND

US

TR

IAL

GO

OD

SB

uil

din

g M

ater

ials

Ash

aka

Cem

ent P

lc17

.99

18.3

946

2,28

330

.00

12.0

02.

147.

86B

erge

r P

ain

ts P

lc8.

568.

563,

000

12.5

78.

101.

094.

97C

AP

Plc

28.0

028

.00

15,1

3743

.98

15.1

62.

288.

88C

emen

t Co.

of N

orth

ern

Nig

. Plc

5.30

5.61

483,

166

15.4

94.

161.

472.

31D

ango

te C

emen

t Plc

122.

0012

5.00

91,7

8013

2.51

95.0

07.

5613

.17

Fir

st A

lum

iniu

m N

iger

ia P

lc0.

500.

5010

,374

0.75

0.50

0.00

0.00

DN

Mey

er P

lc3.

111.

5521

1,26

43.

511.

020.

000.

00L

afar

ge W

AP

CO

Plc

58.0

555

.00

1,26

3,21

348

.05

36.5

84.

1042

.86

Por

tlan

d P

ain

ts &

Pro

duct

s N

ig P

lc3.

714.

1046

0,42

05.

285.

110.

4414

.19

Pai

nts

& C

oati

ngs

Man

ufa

ctu

rers

1.89

1.89

8,00

03.

360.

510.

232.

89P

rem

ier

Pai

nts

Plc

10.9

310

.93

1,00

013

.40

10.9

30.

000.

00

Pac

kagi

ng/

Con

tain

ers

Avo

n C

row

nca

ps &

Con

tain

er1.

991.

9939

06.

915.

940.

539

.60

Nig

eria

n B

ags

Man

ufa

ctu

rin

g C

ompa

ny

2.31

2.40

1,68

7,96

63.

601.

470.

259.

16

Tool

s an

d M

ach

iner

yN

iger

ian

Rop

es P

lc7.

857.

8540

8.69

8.26

0.00

0.00

NAT

UR

AL

RE

SOU

RC

ES

Che

mic

als

BO

C G

ases

Plc

5.96

6.25

52,5

009.

206.

800.

787.

37

Met

als

Alu

min

ium

Ext

rusi

on I

nd

Plc

10.5

510

.55

100

12.3

910

.70

0.13

85.7

7

Non

-Met

alic

Min

eral

Min

ing

Mu

ltiv

erse

Plc

0.50

0.50

100

0.50

0.50

0.01

0.00

Pap

er/F

ore

st P

rod

uct

sT

ho

mas

Wya

tt N

ig.

Plc

1.3

81

.38

1,0

00

1.3

81

.38

0.0

00

.00

Pro

cess

ing

Sys

etm

sC

ham

s N

iger

ia P

lc0.

500.

5016

,787

,800

0.50

0.50

0.00

0.00

Ele

ctro

nic

an

d E

lect

rica

l Pro

duct

sC

uti

x P

lc1.

521.

4615

,000

2.50

1.62

0.11

13.1

5N

iger

ian

Wir

e &

Cab

le P

lc0.

500.

5815

,000

2.58

2.58

0.00

0.00

Mor

tgag

e C

arri

ers,

Bro

kers

an

d S

eA

bbey

Bu

ildi

ng

Soc

iety

Plc

1.44

1.44

2,00

01.

511.

330.

0328

.80

Un

ion

Hom

es S

avin

gs a

nd

Loa

ns

0.50

0.50

1,00

00.

990.

500.

000.

00

IND

US

TR

IAL

GO

OD

SP

acka

gin

g/C

onta

iner

sA

bpla

st P

rodu

cts

Plc

3.98

3.98

6,88

83.

983.

980.

000.

00B

eta

Gla

ss C

o. P

lc10

.50

10.5

067

,559

15.5

812

.71

3.90

3.26

Gre

if N

iger

ia P

lc13

.28

12.9

811

,087

15.0

313

.97

0.90

0.00

Nam

pak

Nig

eria

Plc

4.30

4.30

29,1

984.

303.

601.

223.

52P

oly

Pro

duct

s (N

ig) P

lc1.

051.

0520

01.

861.

050.

306.

18S

tudi

o P

ress

(N

ig)

Plc

2.92

2.78

84,3

112.

922.

920.

0741

.71

W.A

. G

lass

In

d. P

lc0.

660.

662,

749,

340

0.63

0.63

0.00

0.00

OIL

AN

D G

AS

En

ergy

Equ

ipm

ent a

nd

Ser

vice

sJa

pau

l Oil

& M

arit

ime

Ser

vice

0.56

0.60

2,86

3,87

60.

97

0

.87

0.19

6.06

Inte

rgra

ted

Oil

an

d G

as S

ervi

ces

Oan

do P

lc12

.45

12.4

12,

170,

125

78.9

727

.99

1.73

4.17

Pet

role

um

an

d P

etro

leu

m P

rodu

cts

Afr

ican

Pet

role

um

Plc

20.5

020

.50

82,1

9137

.10

0.50

4.93

7.40

Bec

o P

etro

leu

m P

lc0.

500.

502,

000

0.70

0.50

0.00

0.00

Con

oil

20.5

020

.50

30,5

2732

.60

5.71

4.25

Ete

rna

Oil

an

d G

as P

lc1.

812.

8811

1,31

75.

593.

890.

616.

99F

orte

Oil

Nig

Plc

7.75

8.11

56,6

61M

obil

Oil

Nig

eria

Plc

109.

2510

9.25

18,6

4116

3.50

141.

006.

1111

.11

MR

S O

il N

iger

ia P

lc26

.32

23.7

617

,996

2,10

063

.86

2.98

19.2

3To

tal N

iger

ia P

lc12

0.57

120.

5774

,076

240.

0019

5.50

14.6

317

.07

Hos

pita

lity

Tan

tali

sers

Plc

0.50

0.50

5053

9,00

00.

01

SE

RV

ICE

SA

fro

med

ia P

lc0

.50

0.5

01

5,5

94

,37

90

.72

0.5

10

.00

12

.75

Aut

omob

ile/

Aut

o P

art R

etai

lers

Inca

r N

ig.

Plc

1.97

1.97

240

4.33

1.97

0.0

00.

00R

T B

risc

oe P

lc1.

341.

5523

2,64

33.

651.

300.

218.

19

Cou

rier

/Fre

igh

t/Del

iver

yR

ed S

tar

Exp

ress

Plc

3.00

3.00

12,3

003.

672.

650.

604.

91E

mpl

oym

ent S

olut

ions

C &

I L

EA

SIN

G P

LC

0.50

0.50

10,0

001.

640.

900.

0411

.25

Hot

els/

Lodg

ing

Cap

ital

Hot

el6.

506.

2710

040

03.

000.

3434

.09

Ikej

a H

otel

Plc

0.80

0.91

568,

500

2.07

1.33

0.92

2.12

Med

ia/E

nter

tain

men

tD

aar

Com

mu

nic

atio

ns

Plc

0.50

0.50

5,00

00.

500.

480.

000.

00

Pri

nti

ng

& P

ubl

ish

ing.

Aca

dem

y P

ress

Plc

1.62

1.62

4,80

03.

683.

170.

2512

.19

Lea

rn A

fric

a P

lc1.

921.

923,

317

0.30

Lon

gman

Nig

eria

Plc

4.20

4.20

4,32

28.

004.

600.

000.

00U

niv

ersi

ty P

ress

4.19

4.50

10,0

006.

823.

600.

5427

.69

Roa

d Tr

ansp

orta

tion

Ass

ocia

ted

Bu

s C

ompa

ny

Plc

0.50

0.50

100,

000

0.80

0.50

0.00

0.00

Spe

cial

ity

Inte

rlin

ked

Tech

nol

ogie

s P

lc4.

904.

9020

5.15

4.90

0.00

0.00

Tran

spor

t-R

elat

ed S

ervi

ces

Air

lin

e S

ervi

ces

and

Log

isti

cs P

lc3.

703.

4023

5,50

02.

781.

570.

604.

22N

iger

ian

Avi

atio

n H

andl

ing

Com

pan

y5.

305.

3926

1,85

011

.75

6.50

12.5

38.

75

Op

enin

gC

losi

ng

Qu

anti

tyYe

arYe

arP.

EP

rice

NP

rice

NTr

aded

Hig

hL

owE

.P.S

Rat

io

Oil

an

d G

as a

nd

Pro

duct

sP

etro

leu

m P

rod

uct

sC

apit

al O

il P

lc0.

500.

5010

00.

500.

500.

09

1st f

Tie

r S

ecu

riti

esA

GR

ICU

LTU

RE

Cro

p P

rodu

ctio

nF

TN

Coc

oa P

roce

ssor

s P

lc0.

500.

5070

,000

0.50

0.50

0.10

50.0

0O

kom

u O

il P

alm

Plc

38.0

044

.62

60,4

4024

.58

14.5

37.

332.

77P

resc

o P

lc16

.60

20.7

22,

927,

600

8.30

6.40

2.75

4.37

Live

stoc

k/A

nim

al S

peci

alit

ies

Liv

esto

ck F

eeds

Plc

1.44

1.46

149,

900

0.66

0.48

0.11

15.0

0

CO

NG

LOM

ER

ATE

SD

iver

sifi

ed I

ndu

stri

esA

.G. L

even

ts N

iger

ia P

lc1.

291.

4116

6,98

22.

541.

450.

165.

18S

CO

A N

iger

ia P

lc5.

525.

4226

48.

285.

520.

3515

.77

Tran

snat

ion

al C

orpo

rati

on0.

921.

0830

,702

,332

1.82

0.50

0.24

3.64

Ch

ella

ram

s P

lc5.

815.

8110

07.

606.

430.

2620

.74

UA

CN

Plc

42.0

042

.00

101,

732

42.5

028

.70

6.89

4.14

CO

NS

TR

UC

TIO

N/R

EA

L E

STA

TE

Non

-Bu

ildi

ng/

Hea

vy C

onst

ruct

ion

Juli

us

Ber

ger

Nig

Plc

33.0

033

.48

69,3

1862

.26

32.9

6

4.11

10.1

1R

oads

Nig

eria

Plc

10.0

710

.07

2,73

38.

283.

014.

732.

26

Rea

l Est

ate

Dev

elop

men

tU

AC

N P

rope

rty

Dev

elop

men

t11

.00

11.8

014

,693

20.1

511

.59

1.69

7.33

Rea

l Est

ate

Inve

stm

ent T

rust

sS

kye

Sh

elte

r F

un

ds10

0.00

100.

002,

000,

000

100.

0097

.00

11.7

58.

51C

ON

SU

ME

R G

OO

DS

Aut

omob

ile/

Aut

o Pa

rts

DN

Tyr

es &

Ru

bber

Plc

0.50

0.50

100

0.50

0.50

0.00

0.00

Bev

erag

es-B

rew

ers/

Dis

till

ers

Ch

amp

ion

Bre

wer

ies

Plc

3.80

3.80

50,0

004

.63

2.2

30

.00

0.0

0G

uin

nes

s N

iger

ia P

lc26

1.00

273.

0013

9,37

725

5.00

186.

009.

9519

.98

Inte

rnat

ion

al B

rew

erie

s P

lc15

.90

16.5

042

2,85

07.

105.

230.

4116

.29

Nig

eria

n B

rew

Plc

144.

3014

9.06

317,

905

100.

0072

.50

5.08

22.2

2P

rem

ier

Bre

wer

ies

Plc

0.89

0.89

1,00

01.

010.

930.

000.

00

Bev

erag

es-N

on-A

lcoh

olic

7-U

P B

ottl

ing

Com

pan

y P

lc42

.00

42.0

07,

530

51.4

9,3

9.00

2.69

13.9

2

Foo

d P

rodu

cts

Dan

gote

Flo

ur

Mil

ls P

lc8.

008.

2322

8,28

119

.90

4.31

0.00

16.9

1D

ango

te S

uga

r R

efin

ery

Plc

6.00

6.60

2,77

7,96

016

.20

4.02

0.91

14.3

8F

lou

r M

ills

Nig

eria

Plc

65.0

065

.00

66,1

9195

.00

57.0

04.

0916

.89

Hon

eyw

ell F

lou

r M

ill P

lc2.

052.

151,

511,

400

6.60

2.31

0.39

16.9

2N

atio

nal

Sal

t Co.

Nig

Plc

7.14

8.00

387,

250

6.70

3.80

1.01

5.75

UT

C N

iger

ia P

lc0.

730.

8332

2,14

40.

880.

501.

138.

83

Foo

d P

rodu

cts-

- Div

ersi

fied

Cad

bury

Nig

eria

Plc

29.0

029

.00

209,

976

29.2

010

.17

1.35

37.5

7N

estl

e N

iger

ia P

lc70

0.06

701.

0042

,239

470.

0036

7.83

25.4

327

.96

Hou

seh

old

Du

rabl

esB

eta

Gla

ss C

o P

lc10

.03

10.0

322

515

.58

12.7

13.

903.

26N

iger

ian

En

amel

war

e P

lc34

.39

34.3

932

042

.66

36.1

91.

6122

.48

Vit

afoa

m N

ig. P

lc3.

793.

851,

092,

852

6.75

4.78

0.54

7.34

Von

o P

rodu

cts

Plc

2.88

2.88

100

3.67

2.66

0.00

0.00

Per

son

al/H

ouse

hol

d P

rodu

cts

PZ

Cu

sson

s N

iger

ia P

lc28

.00

27.5

611

4,25

243

.50

27.0

00.

7020

.93

Un

ilev

er N

iger

ia P

lc46

.50

47.1

517

4,04

331

.25

22.5

61.

4420

.46

FIN

AN

CIA

L S

ER

VIC

ES

Ban

kin

gA

cces

s B

ank

Plc

9.05

9.45

7,10

7,82

811

.10

4.26

1.42

5.83

Afr

iban

k N

iger

ia P

lc0.

640.

6464

6,60

83.

390.

640.

000.

00B

ank

PH

B P

lc0.

570.

5513

,287

,533

2.30

0.53

0.00

0.00

Dia

mon

d B

ank

Nig

eria

Plc

4.80

5.42

20,5

42,2

509.

272.

050.

900.

00E

coba

nk T

RA

NS

NA

TIO

NA

L IN

CO

RPO

RA

TIO

N10

.62

11.1

41,

466,

261

4.30

1.65

2.81

25.9

1F

idel

ity

Ban

k P

lc2.

292.

7231

,838

,912

3.20

1.20

0.43

6.68

Fin

Ban

k P

lc0.

500.

501,

000

9.50

0.00

0.00

0.00

Fir

st B

ank

of N

ig. P

lc15

.05

15.0

816

,944

,327

16.1

27.

952.

036.

96F

irst

Cit

y M

onu

men

t Ban

k P

lc3.

374.

7025

,058

,296

8.30

3.60

0.00

6.20

Gu

aran

ty T

rust

Ban

k P

lc23

.35

25.1

516

,454

,091

20.5

011

.64

2.10

8.

74N

PF

Mic

ro-F

inan

ce B

ank

Plc

1.07

1.07

56,0

001.

780.

000.

000.

00In

terc

onti

nen

tal B

ank

Plc

0.70

0.70

73,2

001.

780.

870.

185.

44O

cean

ic B

ank

Inte

rnat

ion

al P

lc1.

151.

1591

,000

13.5

00.

000.

000.

00S

kye

Ban

k P

lc4.

125.

152,

808,

080

10.1

73.

900.

715.

07S

prin

g B

ank

Plc

0.88

0.8

81,

006,

032

2.18

0.73

0.47

5.44

Sta

nbi

c IB

TC

Ban

k P

lc7.

307.

3017

3,30

011

.38

6.30

0.47

14.8

1S

terl

ing

Ban

k P

lc1.

551.

9814

,940

,819

2.91

0.95

0.54

4.68

UB

A P

lc4.

524.

4116

,299

,769

11.7

02.

170.

6719

.23

Un

ion

Ban

k N

ig. P

lc7.

367.

502,

353,

076

5.38

1.96

0.00

0.28

Un

ity

Ban

k P

lc0.

500.

501,

246,

653

1.92

0.50

0.00

4.82

Wem

a B

ank

Plc

0.50

0.52

4,28

4,85

11.

750.

521.

340.

43Z

enit

h B

ank

Plc

18.6

319

.79

41,9

12,8

5316

.70

11.4

52.

097.

83

Insu

ran

ce C

arri

ers,

Bro

kers

an

d S

ecto

rA

IIC

O I

nsu

ran

ce P

lc0.

590.

728,

025,

584

1.06

0.50

0.05

5.56

Con

tin

enta

l Rei

nsu

ran

ce P

lc0.

750.

7736

8,00

01.

200.

855.

8510

.20

Afr

ican

All

ian

ce I

nsu

ran

ce0.

500.

5012

,500

,000

0.50

0.50

0.00

0.00

Cor

ner

ston

e In

sura

nce

Com

pan

y0.

500.

5020

0,00

00.

500.

5025

.00

0.00

Con

soli

date

d H

allm

ark

Insu

ran

ce0.

500.

5020

00.

500.

500.

008.

33C

ust

odia

n a

nd

All

ied

Insu

ran

ce P

lc1.

271.

441,

915,

311

3.51

2.00

0.22

4.88

Equ

ity

Ass

ura

nce

Plc

0.50

0.50

100,

000

0.50

0.50

0.00

0.00

Gol

dlin

k In

sura

nce

Plc

0.50

0.54

62,5

000.

690.

500.

000.

00G

reat

(N

ig)

Insu

ran

ce P

lc0.

500.

502,

000,

000

0.50

0.50

0.00

0.00

Gu

aran

ty T

rust

Ass

ura

nce

Plc

1.55

1.60

1,69

8,47

50.

950.

950.

0817

.25

Gu

inea

In

sura

nce

Plc

0.50

0.50

270,

000

0.50

0.50

0.00

0.00

Inte

rcon

tin

enta

l Wap

ic I

nsu

ran

ce P

lc0.

610.

611,

172,

778

0.50

0.50

0.00

0.00

Inte

rnat

ion

al E

ner

gy I

nsu

ran

ce P

lc0.

500.

503,

181.

666

0.50

0.50

0.00

0.00

Inve

stm

ent a

nd

All

ied

Ass

ura

nce

0.50

0.50

1,67

0,89

00.

500.

500.

0225

.00

LAS

AC

O A

ssu

ran

ce P

lc0.

500.

5027

,809

0.50

0.50

0.00

8.33

Law

Un

ion

& R

ock

Insu

ran

ce P

lc0.

500.

5010

00.

500.

500.

015.

00L

inka

ge A

ssu

ran

ce P

lc0.

500.

502,

030,

000

0.50

0.50

0.03

0.00

Mu

tual

Ben

efit

s A

ssu

ran

ce P

lc0.

500.

5012

0,10

00.

500.

500.

101.

39N

EM

In

sura

nce

Co.

(Nig

) Ltd

0.56

0.61

13,3

17,8

000.

500.

500.

371.

39N

iger

In

sura

nce

Co.

Plc

0.50

0.50

31,1

000.

900.

500.

1450

.00

OA

SIS

In

sura

nce

Plc

.0.

500.

5018

8,07

00.

500.

500.

0250

.00

Pre

stig

e A

ssu

ran

ce C

o. P

lc0.

510.

521,

529,

355

2.50

1.90

0.06

6.43

Reg

ency

All

ian

ce I

nsu

ran

ce0.

500.

5010

00.

500.

500.

0416

.67

Sov

erei

gn T

rust

In

sura

nce

0.50

0.50

30,1

000.

500.

500.

107.

14S

taco

In

sura

nce

Plc

0.50

0.50

1,10

00.

500.

500.

000.

00S

tan

dard

All

ian

ce I

nsu

ran

ce0.

500.

5010

00.

500.

500.

000.

00U

NIC

In

sura

nce

Plc

0.50

0.50

2,00

00.

500.

500.

000.

00U

niv

ersa

l In

sura

nce

Plc

0.50

0.50

29,0

000.

500.

500.

000.

00

Mor

tgag

e C

arri

er, B

roke

r an

d S

ecto

rA

so S

avin

gs a

nd

Loa

ns

Plc

0.50

0.50

54,0

000.

500.

500.

020.

00R

esor

t Sav

ings

& L

oan

s P

lc0.

500.

5010

000.

500.

500.

000.

00

Oth

er F

inan

cial

In

stit

uti

ons

Cru

sade

r (N

iger

ia) P

lc

0.50

0.50

22,0

000.

610.

500.

000.

00D

eap

Cap

ital

Man

agem

ent &

Tru

st P

lc2.

022.

022,

000

2.02

2.02

0.00

0.00

Roy

al E

xch

ange

Ass

ura

nce

0.50

0.50

206,

406

0.66

0.50

0.13

16.6

7

HE

ALT

HC

AR

EM

edic

al S

upp

lies

Mor

ison

In

dust

ries

Plc

5.19

4.70

3,01

110

.54

9.52

0.00

0.00

Hea

lth

care

Pro

vide

rsU

nio

n D

iagn

osti

cs &

Cli

nic

als

Ser

vice

s0.

500.

505,

000

0.50

0.50

0.00

0.00

Op

enin

gC

losi

ng

Pri

ceP

rice

Qu

anti

tyYe

arYe

arP.

E.

Com

pan

y(N

) (N

)Tr

aded

Hig

hLo

wE

.P.S

. R

atio

Cap

ital

Mar

ket

Sto

ck M

arke

t R

epor

t a

s at

Fri

day,

Jan

uar

y 4,

201

2

CMYK

Vanguard, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013 — 25

Maritime Review

By GODFREYBIVBERE

Operators in themaritime industry havee x p r e s s e ddisappointment withthe level ofdevelopment in theindustry in 2012 andtherefore called on thefederal government topay more attention tothe industry in the newyear.

They were of theopinion that aneffectively managedand operated industryhas the capacity to

Operators’ projection for maritimeindustry in 2013further boost thenation’s economy, aswell as create the muchneeded jobs for thearmy of unemployedyouths in the country.

National President ofNational Association ofGovernment ApprovedFreight Forwarders(NAGAFF), EugeneNweke, told Vanguard

that government seemsnot to be interested inexploitation of thepotentials of the sector.

Nweke who notedthat Nigeria as acountry can not affordto continue the way ithas been going over theyears, called ongovernment tocommence the process

of revamping theindustry.

According to him, thefirst step “is forgovernment tobeginning to make theright pronouncement,policies that will drivethe development of thesector because of theimportant role ofmaritime to the nation’s

economy.”He noted that

government must workat ensuring that thenation’s ports are morefunctional and areoperated in line with theinternational bestpractices. He alsostressed the need forgovernment to ensurethat local content aspectof all operations in themaritime sector asapplied as it isobtainable in the oil andgas industry.

The NationalPresident of NAGAFFpointed out that there isneed for government toensure that Nigeriansare helped andencouraged to acquiredvessels. Nweke alsosaid there is need forgovernment to work atseeing the steel mills inthe country beginproduction again as ameans of encouragingthe ship buildingcapacity of the nation.

He noted thatproduction of steel andbuilding of ships willbenefit the economy aswell as help reduce theunemployment level inthe country. Hedisclosed that for shipbuilding, the shipyardscan start with smallvessels and developwith time, instead ofremaining dumpingground for technologiesaround the world.

Similarly, formerPresident of theAssociation Associationof Master Mariners ofNigeria (AMMN),Capt. Niyi Adeyemo,said last year there wasnothing substantial inthe industry. Adeyemonoted that most of thethings that occurredwere flukes, forcehopes, things thatoperators expectedgovernment to do whichwere not done.

He pointed out thatthe issue of shipacquisition hasremained a big concernto operators and thatgovernment continuesto pay lip service to it.He complained aboutg o v e r n m e n t ’ sunending promiseabout the CabotageVessel Finance Fund(CVFF) for whichpromises for itsdistribution have beenmade severally andsuch promises have notbeen kept.

Adeyemo also

complained aboutcontinued domination ofthe carriage of thenation’s crude byforeign operators andpromises that have beenmade in the past. Hepointed out that severalmeetings have beenheld between theNigerian NationalPetroleum Corporation(NNPC) and the body ofindigenous operatorsunder the aegis ofIndigenous Shipowners Association ofNigeria (ISAN), whereassurances for slot weregiven to them and basedon which they madehuge investment.

The former AMMNPresident said based ofNNPC’s slot assurance,they had gottentechnical partners andacquired huge vesselsin readiness for theirparticipation but NNPCdid not go beyond thepromise it.

He howevercommended themanagement of theNigerian MaritimeAdministration andSafety Agency(NIMASA) for itscapacity developmentefforts, which heattributed to theappointment of someprofessionals as part ofthe team.

He expressed thehope that governmentwill be alive to itsresponsibilities for thesector in the new year.Asked whatresponsibilities he isreferring to, Adeyemonoted that the Ministerof Transport, SenatorIdris Abubakar, whoseems to be focusing onthe waterways andrailway systems, mustas a matter of prioritystart paying the samelevel of attention, if notmore, to the maritimeindustry.

He called ongovernment to ensurethat indigenousoperators get their ownvessels through thedisbursement of theCVFF. He also notedthat there is need forgovernment to ensurethat indigenousoperators are includedin the lifting of thenation’s crude.

He also charged hiscolleagues to put theirhouse in order to ensurethat they met theexpected level for themto be taking seriously.

26 — Vanguard, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

CMYK

Vanguard, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013 — 27

CMYK

28 —Vanguard, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

Interview

,

,,

,

CMYK

Recently, the Ministry of Trade and Investment organiseda two-day workshop for journalists covering the sectorwhere the Minister, Olusegun Aganga, spoke on the

ministry’s achievements in the last one year and some of itsplans for 2013 and beyond. He specifically said that he intendsto develop the automotive industry to reflect the success storyrecorded by South Africa in that area. BABAJIDE KOMOLAFE,FRANKLIN ALLI & NKIRUKA NNOROM were there and capturedthe interview for Vanguard

We will work with SA to dautomotive policy for Nige

Tell us why you’ve decidedto sustain this bi-annualseminar for journalists?

Given our mandates as aministry, it is pertinent thatthere is need to support andpartner with the media inorder to achieve our targets.This is in view of the fact thatwhen you consider thenumber of media that areavailable and the continueddemand for more by thepeople. A recent survey by theNigeria CommunicationsCommission, NCC, indicatedthat Nigeria now has overnine million active mobilesubscribers. As a result, people now have the latestinformation at their fingertips.These people could be local orforeign investors and theycould be Nigerians or Foreignnationals. As you are aware,the world is a global villageand there is no country that isexempted from the flow ofinformation. Because of themandate of the ministry, weare identifying with the mediabecause of the crucial roles ofthe flow of informationdissemination, ideas, agendasetting and discussions, giventhe transformation agenda thathas been set by the federalgovernment. Although bothlocal and internationalinvestors rely heavily on datato make an informed tradingand investment decision, indoing this, they look atcountries where there is freemedia. It is on this note thatwe deemed it necessary togrow and to strengthen thisrelationship between theministry and the media. It isthe right thing to do for thedevelopment of this sector andfor our country.

With 16 parastatalsunder your ministry,

how will you describe thepeople working with you?

This is a ministry thatdoesn’t do contract. We don’thave money; what we have ispeople; people with intellect,people that are exposedbecause most of their jobs arefor policy making andinteracting with the privatesector. They are creative andinnovative people; they don’twait for government financingbefore they do what they aresupposed to do. So, our assetis our people. Our assets areour leaders - the directorgenerals of each of theseparastatals, Chief executiveofficers and executive

secretaries. Those assets haveto be guided properly so thatthey can make a difference inthe country. When you lookat the ministry closely, we arethe interface between thegovernment and the privatesector. It’s important that theprivate sector is fully aware ofwhat the government is doingand what the governmentwants the private sector to doand the only way they can befully aware is if the press isfully used

What are the mainmandates of the ministry?

As regards the mandate ofthe ministry, today, it is topromote economic growth,create jobs, and how do wedo that? We do this byformulating andimplementing policies. Thatis why I said earlier what weneed is people; what we needis brains and training, so thatpeople can formulate the right

policies and programmes toattract investments into theeconomy, to boostindustrialisation, to boosttrade and developenterprises. So, what we needin the ministry is quality andcapable hands that can deliverour mandates. In summary,our mandates are in four broadareas: to create an enablingenvironment to stimulatedomestic and internationalinvestment into all sectors ofthe economy; to encouragedomestic, regional andinternational trade. It’s aboutindustrialisation, fostering themicro, small and mediumenterprises, and making surethat businesses grow and areadding values to our economicgrowth and developmentwhile creating jobs. I havealways been a believer that foran organisation or even anyindividual to succeed, it isimportant that it is based onsolid values. Companies thatdo well have strong cultureand values, and what shouldthe values of the ministrybe? They all agree thatintegrity and team work areimportant. I can’t over-emphasize the importance ofteam work because there is areason why this ministry issupervising 16 parastatals.The idea is that if they worktogether as a team, they willdo a better job, instead ofworking as separatedepartments. The idea is toencourage team work and tohelp one another do better asagainst what they suppose todo. Service delivery,transparency and disciplineare important. If you look at

the mandates of the oldMinistry of Commerce and thenew Ministry of Trade andInvestment, there is adifference. TheManufacturers Association ofNigeria had argued over thenew name since last year, andthe argument was that thename of the ministry shouldactually be changed to theMinistry of Industry, Tradeand Investment. Industry isparts of the mandates of theministry. We recognise theneed for industry because ifthe country is to grow, it needsto industrialise. It is verysimilar to other countries. InJapan for example, it is calledthe Ministry of Economy,Trade and Industry. I justcame back from Finland andSweden. In Sweden it is

called the Ministry of Economy andit combines trade and industry. InGermany, it is called the Ministry ofEconomy and Technology, and whatthey do is technology and SMEsdevelopment and trade. In UK, it iscalled BIS, Business Innovation andSkills, and what they do isenterprises development. In Russia,it is called the Ministry of Industryand Trade, while in Korea, it is calledthe Ministry of Knowledge Economy.If you ask the common man on thestreet about the economy, he willeither tell you the economy is doingwell or not. Economy is about jobcreation, SMEs development, it’sabout trade investments andindustries. Really, when you do that,you are opening up all activitiesaround the economy. Agriculture, forinstance, produces raw materials forindustries; as well as mines produce

What we need isbrains andtraining, so thatpeople canformulate theright policies andprogrammes toattractinvestments intothe economy, toboostindustrialisation,to boost tradeand developenterprises

The Ministry of Trade and Investmenthas made significant achievementswithin the last one year. In terms ofinvestment inflow, in spite of insecurity,we attracted about $8.9 billion newinvestments into the country

Olusegun Aganga

Olusegun Aganga...I have always been a believer that for an orgit is important that it is based on solid values

Vanguard, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013 — 29

Interview

,,

CMYK

develop sustainableeria — Aganga

iron-ore which you can sell locally andinternationally to iron and steelindustry- that is manufacturing. Thesame is petroleum which producescrude oil which is sold to petrochemicalindustries. I don’t know if anyone canexplain to me today why over the last50 years, we have been a net exporterof raw materials but we have not beenable to add value for 50 years. Why dowe sell crude oil that adds valuesomewhere else? They pay their staff,import it and sell it to you and you paytax. Clearly, it’s obvious there is mistakesomewhere. It is because the rightpolicies were not in place. It’s becausethe economy focuses more on contract.That is why there is a paradigm shift inthis ministry as per what it is supposedto do.

So what are the achievements of the

ministry since you took over office?The Ministry of Trade and Investment

has made significant achievementswithin the last one year. In terms ofinvestment inflow, in spite of insecurity,we attracted about $8.9 billion newinvestments into the country. Thatmade Nigeria one of the number oneinvestment destinations in Africa. Theincrease in net inflow was about 46percent which is higher than the WestAfrica. We have done far better than therest of West Africa and the rest of the

world, and as oftoday, we are toldthat 50 percent ofthe investmentcoming into Africais coming intoNigeria. Whenyou look at it, 30percent of theinvestment comesinto the real sectorof the economy. Infact, since 1999 to2011, we have beenhaving a high rateof investments intothe country. From2005 to 2008 it washigh but it camedown, but since2009, it hadcontinued to behigher because theinvestment climatehas continued to bebetter. Also, wewere able to attain24 hours start- to-finish businessregistration serviceby the CorporateA f f a i r sCommission, CAC.I actually went toLagos to open theoffice they have inIkeja and Yaba. Theidea is that people

in Lagos don’t have to travelto Abuja anymore to have theirbusinesses registered.

You talked aboutintroducing weights and

measures law in other sectorsof the economy. Can you shedmore light on this?

It is something that has been

in the economy for many years,but it was never noticed. It iscalled legal metrology. Whenyou buy something or get aservice, whatever you get isaccurate measure.When you goto the market and you buy rice,if they are selling a module toyou, the measurement must beaccurate and not false scale. Ifit is oil, one litre must be onelitre; and if PHCN comes toyou and say you used Xamount, it must be accurate. Ifthe oil and gas for example istaking oil out of the country,there has to be meter at thepoint to make sure they registerthe quantity or volume goingout and coming in. There hasbeen a lot of leakages becausethe metering is not working orthey are not installed. ForGSM, how are you sure thatyou are paying for the quantity

of calls you are making. It’sfor this reason thatgovernment deemed itnecessary to introduce thelaw across all sectors of theeconomy, and we have startedwith oil /gas, telecom andpower sector. Through thismeasure, we will save nothingless than $3 billion and alsogenerate N17.4 billion perannum.

What is the currentstatus o f

the textile sector?The industrial capacity

utilisation which is what weuse to measure whether ourindustries are doing well hasincreased from 29.1 percent in2010 to 52 percent in 2011.

Only investors who arecommitted to backwardintegration in the sugar sectorwill be given licenses to importcertain quotas into the country inorder to augment local production

That is a big leap and thattells you that the policies areworking and jobs are beingcreated. That tells you thatwe are increasing our roles interms of industrialcontribution. I went to Kanoand Kaduna sometime ago tolook at all these industriesparticularly the textilecompanies and we have someof them in Lagos, too. Thefigure I gave is not mynumber; the number wasgiven to me by theManufacturers Association ofNigeria. The increment inthe capacity utilisation wasbecause of the injection ofFederal Government’s N100billion Cotton, Textile and

Garment Revival Fund. It wascreated and made available tothe sector through the Bank ofIndustry at reasonable interestrate. It has started attractingother investors into the sector. Capacity utilisation in theautomobile sector has gone up,too. This is being driven byInnoson VehiclesManufacturing.

What are some new policiesthat will shape the industrialsector in the New Year?

Well, to start with, the FederalGovernment is going to ban theimportation of raw sugar witheffect from January. The ban isin line with theimplementation of the NationalSugar Master Plan. Currently,there are two major investorsin sugar industry which areDangote Sugar Refinery andBua Sugar Refinery. Theobjectives of the National

Sugar Master Plan includeraising local sugar productionto attain self sufficiency,stemming the tide of high levelimportation, creation of hugenumber of job opportunities, aswell as contributing to theproduction of ethanol andgeneration of electricity.Currently, 98 percent of brownsugar which are refined intowhite sugar is imported into thecountry from Brazil. All theseare going to change this yearas only investors who arecommitted to backwardintegration in the sugar sectorwill be given licenses to importcertain quotas into the countryin order to augment localproduction.

The idea is that we want toreplicate the success story ofbackward integration policy inthe cement industry in thesugar industry. We won’t allowthe importation of brown sugaragain in 2013. The NationalSugar Development Councilhas been mandated to drafthigh graduated tariff structureon sugar importation,mandatory backwardintegration programme forrefineries, and provision ofinvestors-specific incentives todiscourage importation of rawbrown sugar and attractinvestors into the sector. Otherstrategies to be introduced bythe Council will includeregulation of the entire regimeof sugar importation throughquota allocation benchmark onlocal production, robustmonitoring and evaluationframework to ensurecompliance with milestonesand time-lines andenlargement of the sugarcanevalue chain players. The banis expected to attract anestimated $3.1 billion foreigndirect investment into thecountry, deepen banking sectorvia increased loan syndication,savings of foreign exchangeon sugar imports and earningson sugar exports to bedeployed to other criticalsector. With backwardintegration in sugar, 1.8million tonnes of sugar and161.2 million litres of ethanolannually would be locallyproduced per annum. It is alsoexpected to create 37,378permanent jobs and 79,803seasonal jobs, save $65.8million in foreign exchange onfuel imports annually, and$350 to $500 million in foreignexchange on sugar importsannually.

In addition to this, we arealso coming out with asustainable policy for the localautomotive industry. Out of theten automobile producingcountries in the world, only twodoes not have automobileplants - Bangladesh andNigeria. We attempted it inthe 70s but things went wrongbecause we didn’t look at itholistically and from the pointof ecosystem. We are going tocome up with a sustainablepolicy for the automobilesector. The policy will come upin the 2014 budget. In Africa,only South Africa has the mostsuccessful automobile sector.We are going to work with thepeople who designed theSouth African policy so that wecan have a sustainableautomobile policy for thiscountry. I don’t intend tofinish everything before theend of this administration, butwe will set the direction for theincoming governments. We arealso going to focus on cement,petrochemical industries andAluminum industries.

Olusegun Aganga

ganisation or even any individual to succeed,

30 — Vanguard, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

CMYK

Micro Finance

BRIEFS

A defaulter oroverleveraged borrower

might find it difficult to getcredit from microfinanceinstitutions (MFIs).

With almost all NBFC-MFIssharing nearly 100 per cent ofthe borrowers’ credit historywith credit bureaus, borrowerswill find it difficult to approachthem for loans.

Following the crisis in theMFI industry in AndhraPradesh, the Reserve Bank ofIndia had, in September lastyear, asked all NBFC-MFIs toupload the data of their clientswith any of the four creditbureaus including Cibil,Experian, Equifax and HighMark.

According to Alok Prasad,Chief Executive Officer,Microfinance InstitutionsNetwork (MFIN), close to 75million client records havebeen uploaded with the twocredit bureaus — Equifax andHigh Mark Credit InformationServices Ltd.

“The first step is where theMFIs provide a data of theirclients to credit bureaus; thenext step is where they cantake reports on specific clientsto get their borrowing andrepayment record. Both thesesteps are being followed byMFIs,” Prasad told BusinessLine.

Stories byPROVIDENCE OBUH

Following the December31, 2012 deadline given

for the recapitalisaion of allMicrofinance Banks (MFBs)operating in the country,operators have expressedhopef of a vibrant sub-sectorin 2013.

Meanwhile the sub-sectorhas affirmed that subsequentto its recapitalization, it ischarting means of disbursingits outstanding funds thathave awaited thecategorization exercise.

The recapitalization is arevised policy framework ofthe Central Bank of Nigeria(CBN) directing MFBs toincrease their capital base to

MFBs expect a vibrantsub-sector in 2013,…say next to recapitalization is disbursement of funds

position them to Unit, State orNational category.

The Unit category will havea minimum paid-up capital ofN20 million, paid-up capitalbase of N100 million for Statecategory and a paid-upcapital of N2 billion capitalbase for the Nationalcategory.

To this end, the Chairman,National Association ofMicrofinance Banks (NAMB)South West zone Mr. OlufemiBabajide said that therecapitalisation wouldenhance efficiency in terms offund disbursement to farmersand low income earners,especially the active poor inthe society.

“The sub-sector is expectedto start disbursing the

numerous funds approved foron lending by the CBN,”Babajide explained, saying,“The categorization wouldhelp know who is who in thesub-sector and also determinethe MFBs that qualify in thedisbursement of the funds.”

It would be recalled that theCBN launched the N220,billion Micro Small andMedium EnterprisesDevelopment Fund(MSMEDF) and also set upN600 billion in a specialpurpose vehicle under theNigeria Incentive-BasedRisk-Sharing System forAgricultural Lending(NIRSAL) initiative to beassessed by farmers.

“Our challenge has alwaysbeen liquidity but with the

funds coming from the CBN,we expect a very vibrant sub-sector in 2013, and we expecta 10 per cent growth in 2013because of all the opportunitythat will come our way.

I see us jumping, leaping,and I think we should be ableto increase our reach from thepresent volume to somethingsignificant,” he said.

Accordingly, an official ofthe CBN who spoke toFinancial Vanguard onanonymity said that therecapitalization concept hasbeen misunderstood by thepublic, explaining that 20million recapitalisation hasalways been there for allMFBs.

The source also said thatMFBs who can not meet withN100 million under statecategorization remain in theUnit category.

“The Unit MFBs cancontinue, if they do not haveN100 million. Even if theyhave N80 million, they shouldgo ahead to close down theirbranches or else they will bepenalized.”

Dangote Sugar RefineryPlc has started

expanding its productionplants ahead of the FederalGovernment’s backwardintegration policy for thesector under the NationalSugar Master Plan.

It would be recalled that theFederal Government recentlydeclared its intention to banthe importation of raw sugarwith effect from January 1,2013.

Dangote is one of thetopmost investors in the localsugar industry with itsrefinery at the Tincan Portsand sugar cane plantation inNume, Admawa State.

Engineer Abdullahi Sule,Managing Director, DangoteSugar told VANGUARD thatthe expansion was in tandemwith the Federal Government‘s National Sugar MasterPlan whose aims are raisinglocal sugar production toattain self sufficiency,stemming the tide of highlevel importation, creatinghuge number of jobopportunities, as well ascontributing to the productionof ethanol and generation ofelectricity. Currently, 98percent of brown sugar whichare refined into white sugaris imported into the countryfrom Brazil.

He said that as part of itscompany’s alignment withbackward integration, itsrefinery in the country is

Dangote expands Sugar RefineryDangote expands Sugar RefineryDangote expands Sugar RefineryDangote expands Sugar RefineryDangote expands Sugar Refineryto boost local capacityto boost local capacityto boost local capacityto boost local capacityto boost local capacity

being expanded to make itthe largest in the world.

He also announced that hiscompany would formally takeover Savannah SugarC o m p a n y , A d a m a w astate by this year sequel toendorsement of the gesture bythe shareholders at the lastAnnual General Meeting ofthe company.

He said that his companycurrently controls 70 percentof market share in the

country, just as it met97percent yields in theoutgoing year which he saidreflected in the N16 billionprofits after tax.

He explained that the fireincidence which engulfedpart of the company in themiddle of the ear did not stopit from meeting andexceeding its projectionbecause the personnel of thesugar company have been ableto redouble their efforts andblocked leakages.

Special Colloquium on Nigeria’s Image Holds in LagosSpecial Colloquium on Nigeria’s Image Holds in LagosSpecial Colloquium on Nigeria’s Image Holds in LagosSpecial Colloquium on Nigeria’s Image Holds in LagosSpecial Colloquium on Nigeria’s Image Holds in LagosA colloquium on

N i g e r i a ’ sImage is to hold in

Lagos in commemoration ofthe 50th birthdayanniversary of Mr. YomiBadejo-Okusanya, theManaging Director of CMCConnect Limited(Perception Managers).

Also, Minister of ForeignAffairs , AmbassadorOlugbenga Ashiru has beenconfirmed as Special Guestof Honour at event.

The colloquium themed:“Managing Nigeria’sImage: WhoseResponsibi l i ty?” isscheduled to hold onTuesday January 8, 2013 inLagos.

A keynote address will bedelivered by theHonourable Minister ofInformation, Mr. LabaranMaku while former Foreign

Affairs Minister , MajorGeneral Ike Nwachukwu(rtd), CFR, will Chair theevent.

In a statement madeavailable to Vanguard byActing Head of Media,CMC Connect , Mr. SolaSolotan, the colloquium ispart of activities lined up tocelebrate Mr. BadejoOkusanya who, in his words“has contributed in no smallmeasure to the growth ofPublic Relations in Nigeriaand the whole of Africa”.

Solotan noted that thecolloquium wil l be aconvergent point forintegrated marketingc o m m u n i c a t i o n sprofessionals andinsti tut ions in Nigeriawhose core focus areaincludes communicationsand image management. Itwil l explore issues and

factors that shape Nigeria’simage and proffer solutionsto such communicationschallenges.

Several captains ofindustry are part of animpressive faculty ofdiscussants who have beenconsti tuted to x-ray theissues being discussed.

This includes formerMinister of Information,Professor Dora Akunyili, thePresident of theNewspapers ProprietorsAssociat ion of Nigeria(NPAN) and Publisher ofThisday Newspapers, Mr.Nduka Obaigbena, theChairman of AdvertisingPracti t ioners Council ofNigeria, APCON andManaging Director of PrimaGarnet, Mr. LoluAkinwunmi and theManaging Director ofGuinness, Mr. Seni Adetu.

BoZ pegsBoZ pegsBoZ pegsBoZ pegsBoZ pegsmicrofinancemicrofinancemicrofinancemicrofinancemicrofinanceService Providers’Service Providers’Service Providers’Service Providers’Service Providers’lending rate atlending rate atlending rate atlending rate atlending rate at42%42%42%42%42%

The Bank of Zambia haswith immediate effect

introduced a cap on theeffective annual lendinginterest rates that licensednon-bank financial institutionscan charge their customers.

This follows similar recentmeasures taken oncommercial banks by thecentral bank.

Bank of Zambia Head ofPublic Relations Mr. KanguyaMayondi in a statementreleased to media said thatthis measure has beennecessitated on account of theexorbitant interest rates thatsome non-bank financialinstitutions have continued tocharge their customers.Mayondi explained that thecapping of interest rates isaimed at making borrowingfrom non-bank financialinstitutions more affordableand equitable especially to thevulnerable micro-borrowersserved by this sector.

Microfinancedefaulters mayfind it tough toget fresh loans

Olufemi Babajide

Vanguard, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013 — 31

CMYK

32 — Vanguard, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

CMYK

Vanguard, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013 — 33

Insurance

BRIEFOsijo, Daniel,Mutual Benefitsget Inspenonlineawards

The Management ofI n s p e n o n l i n e ,

Nigerian’s first Insurance andPension online mediachannel, has named thePresident, Nigerian Councilof Registered InsuranceBrokers, NCRIB, Mrs. LaideOsijo, the Insurance Man ofthe Year 2012.

According to a statement byInspenonline, Osijo emergedtop, out of many insuranceoperators considered for theaward. Within the short periodshe has been on the saddle ofleadership of the largestinsurance brokers fraternity inAfrica, she has distinguishedherself and has used herwealth of experience toreposition insurance practice.

The Commissioner forInsurance Fola Daniel wasawarded the GoodLeadership Award, for hissteps in repositioning theindustry and providingadequate security for policyholders.

Mutual Benefits was namedthe Insurance Company of theyear. The company waspicked due to its stride inretail insurance through welldeveloped micro-insurancechannel.

For Osijo, coming into theinsurance industry about fourdecades ago was providential.She had desired to become alawyer, an ambition that wasfueled by her innate passionto render succor to thehelpless. But as fate wouldhave it, she ended up beingan insurance practitioner,through which her name hasbeen etched indelibly on thesands of time.

It is most auspicious that hersojourn in the profession hasbeen holistic, having hadworking stints in all theconstituents of the industry,namely underwriting,reinsurance and now,broking.

Her journey to becoming thefirst female president of theNCRIB was anchored onsheer determination, tenacityof purpose and a ‘can do’spirit. Osijo said, “I made upmy mind on my first visit tothe NCRIB Secretariat to giveanything it would take to bethe first female presidentwhile I waited to be attendedto, my eyes strayed to thephoto platform where picturesof all past presidents of theCouncil were hung.Amazingly, there was nopicture of a single femalepresident produced by theCouncil.”

Following thecommencement of the

‘no premium no cover’directive from the 1st ofJanuary this year, insurancebrokers said they are readyto challenge any underwriterthat by-passes them to collectbusinesses originallyrejected.

Accordingly, the brokerssaid they will speedily reportsuch underwriter to theNational InsuranceCommission, NAICOM.

President, Nigerian

No premium no cover: Brokers to confrontunderwriters on rejected businessesStories by ROSEMARYONUOHA

Council of RegisteredInsurance Brokers, NCRIB,Mrs. Laide Osijo whodisclosed this in Lagos, saidthat brokers have beenenjoined to reportunderwriters who by-passthem to take a business theyrejected, stressing that theoperators have all agreed toabide by the policy, whichwould bring sanity to theindustry.

She said that NAICOM willsoon be meeting withrepresentatives ofunderwriters and brokers tohelp resolve the growing mis-trust between underwritersand brokers on the

implementation of the policy.It was learnt that brokers are

worried that underwritersmay by-pass them to providecover for businesses rejecteddue to non payment ofpremium.

As such, Osijo said theoperators have agreed withNAICOM to call thestakeholders who arerepresentatives of the brokersand underwriters to sit andchart the way forward for theimplementation of the policy.

She noted that the operatorshave to agree on themodalities for theimplementation of the policy,adding that during the

meeting all challenges thatmay clog the policy will beironed.

She said, “These issues arefundamental to the operationsof brokers, for 80 per cent ofinsurance business in thecountry is done throughbrokers. If we follow the lawand underwriters refuse tofollow, the whole thing wouldbe a mess. We would try toensure we get the modalitiesas to how to go about thepolicy.”

She lauded the decision byNAICOM to bring sanity intothe industry through thepolicy, adding that the ideaof underwriters accusingbrokers of non remittance ofpremium will now be a thingof the past with theintroduction of the policy.

“According to theCommissioner for Insurance,Fola Daniel, when they weredoing verification of accountsof brokers and underwriters,they observed that most of theoutstanding premium thatbrokers were accused of wasnot actually true. Some of theunderwriters raised theirbooks to cover theirexpenses.”

“NAICOM observed themis-representations andsanctioned the errantunderwriters. Some brokerswho erred by keepingpremium beyond thestipulated date were alsosanctioned. I am not sayingthat brokers are perfect, butmost of the accusations byunderwriters are not reallytrue. NAICOM observed thatmost of the withheldpremiums are receivables,”she said.

.

L-R, Alhaji Aliyu Sa’ad, Chairman, Agnes Umukoro, Company Secretary; Mr. Thomas Imokhai,MD/CEO and Brigadier General Dominic Oneya (rtd) during the Annual General Meeting ofStandard Alliance Insurance Plc in Lagos. Photo by Lamidi Bamidele

The 2012 InsuranceQueen, Miss Onyeka

Adigwe has urged insuranceoperators to join theenlightenment campaignsagainst drug abuse and notleave it to government alone.According to Onyeka suchenlightenment should not beleft to the government alonehence the need for insurancecompanies to join hands incombating one of the majormenaces of our society whichis drug abuse. Adigwe gavethe charge at the grand finaleof her pet project themed“Youth Empowerment:Functional Education and theDangers of Drug Abuse, heldat CMS Grammar School,Bariga, Lagos. In carryingout her pet project, Adigwevisited secondary schoolswith her team whichcomprises of officials of

Miss Insurance urges operators to join fight against drug abuseNational Drug LawEnforcement Agency(NDLEA), educationists andinsurance practitioners. Theyhave held series ofinteractive sessions with thestudents on various issuescontributing to failure in theiracademics, dangers of drugabuse as well as benefits ofinsurance as a profession anda way of life. This, theybelieved would help to buildtheir immunity againstnegative influences.

Adigwe disclosed that herpet project was instigated byher passion to see studentsfocus more on their educationand disallow distraction frompeer pressure and socialvices depriving them of theopportunity to build a futurebeneficial to them and thecountry. According to her,she targeted the secondary

school students because theyare more prone to negativeinfluences that canjeopardise their future as wellas that of the nation; and alsoto bring about veritablechange among the upcomingleaders of tomorrow. Also, inthe course of her project,Miss Insurance engaged thestudents in an inter-schoolessay competition titled,“Benefits of Insurance to aNigerian Child”. This she didin order to entrench thegospel of insurance in themand to serve as a platform of‘catching them young.’

With this, the students wereable to carry out research oninsurance and itssignificance to individuals,families and nations. On theYouth Empowerment Day,students and school-representatives were

awarded prizes and plaquesfor their participation in theessay competition. Thewinner of the essay-writingcompetition took a HP laptopwhile his school took a HPdesktop computer. Thesecond position took a minilaptop and her school, three-in-one scanner and a whiteboard. The third position wona digital camera and a cashof N20,000.00 while hisschool took a waterdispenser.

The speakers at the eventwere Mrs. ModupeolaDallas-Olusanya, ManagingDirector of Gombot InsuranceBrokers Limited; NDLEAofficials led by Mrs. BolanleAdekunle; Mr. Joseph Obafrom the Chartered InsuranceInstitute of Nigeria; and Mr.Tunde Badmus fromRegency Alliance Plc.

34 — Vanguard, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

BRIEF

Housing Finance

Housing deficit: FG set toinject N200bn lifeline — Lemo

By YINKA KOLAWOLE

The FederalGovernment is set toinject N200 billion

into the housing sector withinthe next four years asintervention fund to ensurethat more Nigerians haveaccess to decent andaffordable housing.

Deputy Governor,Operations, Central Bank of

Nigeria (CBN), Mr. TundeLemo, said this is necessaryagainst the backdrop of thehuge housing deficit in thecountry estimated to be 16 to17 million housing unitsnationwide. He said thedisbursement of the fund willbe done through the FederalMortgage Bank of Nigeria(FMBN).

Presenting a paper titled,“Towards the development ofan efficient mortgage market

in Nigeria: Challenges andopportunities”, at an eventrecently in Abeokuta, OgunState capital, Lemo said thatthe N200 billion will go someway in tackling the housingproblem in the country whichis estimated to cost about N6trillion.

“One of the opportunities inthe housing industry,especially under this presentadministration is the fact thatover the next four years, the

government intends to injectN200 billion (more than$1billion) into the nation’shousing sector through theFMBN. This is meant toprovide decentaccommodation for Nigeriansout of the N6tn required tomeet the housing deficit in thecountry.

“This intervention in thehousing sector will increasethe housing stock andsubstantially reduce thepresent deficit in decenthomes, which is presentlyestimated at 16 to 17 millionhousing units nationwide. Thebeauty of this is that,hopefully, as the economyimproves, the living standardsof the workers will increase,”he stated.

The CBN top official notedthat apart from the need tovigorously pursue aprogramme of boosting thehousing stock in the country,concrete efforts must also bemade to develop an efficientmortgage market that wouldbe easily accessible to allNigerians, especially the lowincome earners. He added thatevery necessary step must betaken by all tiers ofgovernment to redress thecurrent state of “nearhomelessness” by majority ofNigerians.

Lemo lamented that despiteidentifying housing as majorpriority by most successiveNigerian governments since1960, this has not led to thedevelopment of a vibrantmortgage market in thecountry. “Periodically, with ahuge estimated population ofabout 160 million people atthe end of December 2011,most of whom are young, anda rising demand for housingfinance, the Nigerianhousing/mortgage sectorremains grossly undeveloped.

Development of mass housing

FMBN approves N165.2m NHF loans for Resort Savings

By EBUN SESSOU

Federal Mortgage Bankof Nigeria (FMBN) has

approved the disbursement ofN165.2 million from theNational Housing Fund(NHF) as mortgage loans forcustomers of Resort Savingsand Loans Plc.

Managing Director of thebank, Mr. Abimbola Olayinka,noted in a statement that thedisbursement is the second inless than five months, afterN411million was earlierapproved for disbursement inAugust to the bank. He saidthe bank is poised to deliverquality service to itscustomers. According to him,“Resort Savings and Loans isstill very committed to timelydelivery of houses through itswide range of products whichincludes the NationalHousing Fund (NHF)s c h e m e ” .He said those to benefit from

the development include “lowand medium income earningindividuals, private sectoremployees, public servants,self employed, businessmen,t r a d e s m e nowning their personal homesin any urban centre of thefederation with the propertyserving as the sole collateral.”Olayinka further stated thatthe loan repayment is just like

the monthly rent because ofits singule digit interest rateof 6 percent per annum witha long tenure of about 30years depending on thepresent age of the subscriber.He said the bank is ready toassist individuals andcorporate organisations in theremittance of employees’ 2.5percent of their basic incomefrom organisations who wants

to become contributors to theNHF scheme. He said that thebank has been able to createan atmosphere that makeshome ownership moreaccessible and timely to allNigerians from the age of 18years and above, adding thatthe bank has established anetwork of branches instrategic locations across thecountry.

Akinruntan tasks Ondo on reclaimed Ilaje shoreline

An appeal has beenmade to the Ondo State

government to build houseson the reclaimed shoreline ofAdagbakuja lagoon in the oil-rich Ilaje LGA of the state.

Olugbo of Ugboland, ObaFredrick Akinruntan, whomade the appeal, said thegovernment can build not lessthan 300 housing units on thereclaimed New Town projectsite, on which the state

government spent N7 billionto reclaim from the lagoonabout five years ago.

According to the monarch,the site covers a two-kilometresquare area adjacent to Ode-Ugbo, which is the ancestralhome and spiritualheadquarters of the Ugbo-Ilaje and Ugbo-Nla. He saidthe multi-billion naira projectwas aimed at creating a newsettlement for the Ilaje people,

who are mainly fishermen andlive in makeshift settlementsnear the lagoon. He said hisimmediate focus was to attractforeign and local investors todevelop the shoreline withinhis domain.

“The state governmentshould help us to completethe Adagbakuja project bydelivering not less than 300houses for our people.

Mortgagefunds to risesignificantly—BoE

The supply of mortgagefunds will be increased

“significantly ” by theFunding for Lending Scheme(FLS), says the Bank ofEngland.

A survey of lenders by thebank reports that lendingpicked up in the last threemonths of 2012, and willcontinue to do so in thecoming months.

Separately, the Nationwidebuilding society said thathouse prices fell by 1 percentin 2012. And it predicted littlechange in either prices orsales this year. The buildingsociety said that the averageUK property was valued at£162,262 at the end of 2012,following a 0.1 percent dropin December.

The BoE’s CreditConditions Survey found thatthe Funding for LendingScheme, launched at the startof August 2012, was nowhelping to increase the flowof money to borrowers. Theaim of the scheme is tochannel as much as £60billion of cheap money tolenders, on condition that theythen lend it to households,and to companies outside thefinancial sector.

An initial report on thescheme, published by thebank in early December, foundthat lending to householdsand businesses increased onlyslightly in the third quarter ofthe year, as the new schemegot under way. Since then, itseffect has grown stronger.

In its survey, the bank said:“In the three months to mid-December, lenders reported asignificant increase in theamount of credit madeavailable to the securedhousehold and corporatesectors, and a slight increasein the availability ofunsecured credit tohouseholds. The Funding forLending Scheme was widelycited as contributing towardsthe increase in secured andcorporate credit availability.Lenders expected a furtherincrease in the availability ofcredit to all sectors over thecoming quarter,” the Bankadded.

The British Bankers’Association said: “Thisencouraging survey providesfurther evidence the Fundingfor Lending Scheme is havinga positive impact and theparticipating banks aresuccessfully passing on thebenefits through cheaperfinance.”

Vanguard, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013 — 35

,

,

BRIEFS

Housing Finance

Houses are the largest“items” manypeople will ever

spend on in their lifetime; thesheer size of the funds spenton them and the proportion ofthe financial system connectedto housing construction andreal estate make housing adominant part of the economy.Getting the policies tostimulate the demand andsupply of housing right is oneof the most portent ways todevelop an economy. Thesector provides employmentfor a host of professionals andperhaps even moreimportantly lower-skilledartisans; architects, mortgageproviders, painters,carpenters, transporters,tillers, interior decorators etc.

Affordable Housing: Aconceptual trap

The “basic needs” nature ofhousing and the enormouscosts involved in procuringthem has necessitated publicinterventions in theirprovision. In the absence of amortgage system, personalsavings, achieved throughsignificant deprivation and/orengagement in corruption areoften required to build oracquire a house. In Nigeria,the principal means ofacquiring a property is to buyland and build over anaverage of 10 years. This isgrossly inefficient as fundsinvested in the land andbuildings are usually totallyunproductive until the houseis completed.

Broadly, we can contrast“provider ” and “enabler ”models of intervention. In theformer model, a Governmentdirectly builds houses orsupplies inputs for theprocurement of housing whilein the former, the Governmentconcentrates on creatingincentives to boost the demandand supply of houses byprivate actors in a contextlargely governed by free-market, profit-orientedrelationships.

Singapore: A state-provided housing market

The strategy employed bySingapore is of morerelevance to Nigeria becauseof the similar levels ofdevelopment in the post-colonial period. Today, about85 percent of Singaporeanslive in houses developed by astate-owned housingcorporation. This feat wasachieved with three maininstitutions:

The Housing DevelopmentBoard (HDB). A state agencyfounded in 1960, the HDBhad the mandate to develophouses for Singaporeans. Itfirst concentrated ondeveloping low-cost houses,mostly high-rise multi-apartment buildings whichwere built after slums weredemolished. A BritishHousing Committee Reporthad commented in 1947 thatSingapore had “one of theworld’s worst slums - ‘a

Affordable housing: For all orthose who can afford it?

By AGELE ALUFOHAI

disgrace to a civilizedcommunity”. The high-risebuildings were rented out toSingaporeans who used tolive in the slums. The flatswere very modest buildingswith toilets only on theground floors. It wasn’t untilthe 1980s that the HDBembarked on modernizingthem, fitting amenities such aslifts.

Exclusion of the majorityThe Federal Housing

Authority/State HousingCorporations lacked a well-defined focus of the class ofNigerians they were trying toassist. It was never clear iftheir mandate was to improvethe accommodation of thepoorest Nigerians, assist themasses acquire houses orgenerally increase the stock ofhouses. Whatever theythought their mandate was, ithad no impact on the poorestNigerians or on how amajority of Nigerians built oracquired houses. Toemphasize, governmentprogrammes didn’t feature inthe calculations of the vastmajority of citizens as theymade plans about securingaccommodation. The FederalHousing Authority/StateHousing Corporations built“low-cost” houses which werenot only too expensive for theoverwhelming majority ofNigerians considering thelevels of income required topurchase them. They also usethe State’s power to acquirelands under the Land Use Act

to plan and “allocate” land atprices that are grossly undertheir market value; theselands in the so-called“government-scheme” estatesoften ended up been acquiredby the rich and powerful,including top bureaucrats.Low-cost houses are oftensimilarly acquired and rentedout to low-income people.

Social IniquityHad considerations of social

equity featured in the mindsand discussions of Nigeria’spolicymakers, housing policyis likely to have had well-defined goals. This is why theSingapore model started out

with slum eradication andproviding low-cost houses forrent.

Government through itsplanning and regulatorypowers and also throughinvestment in infrastructure,directly and indirectly vastlymultiplies the value of lands.When lands in housingschemes or new towns orneighborhoods, like Lekki inLagos or Maitama in Abuja,are “allocated” rather thansold to developers throughcompetitive auctions,monumental value is beingsurrendered. Furthermore,taxes on property built onsuch land never reflect theenormous value that has beenlost and that is if taxes arelevied or paid at all. Fundswhich could be used todevelop houses for the poorwho often are evicted from thelands are hence lost. It is sadthat we are building on thesepoor policies rather thaneradicating them. Forinstance, under a bizarre PPPscheme, hectares of lands areallocated in Abuja todevelopers for nominal sumsfar below the market value,the construction of houses tobe financed by the “EstateDevelopment Window” of theFederal Mortgage Bank ofNigeria to build low-costhouses.

Lack of incentives forinvestors

Nigeria created a NationalHousing Fund (NHF) intowhich workers were to pay 2.5percent of the salaries in 1991.Insurance firms were requiredto invest 10 percent of theirnon-life and 20 percent oftheir life funds in the NHFand banks 10 percent of thefunds they loan out.Potentially, the NHF couldhave effectively mobilizedsignificant funds forproviding long-termmortgages. But there is toowide a difference between therate at which NHF-basedmortgages were made i.e. 6percent and real interestrates, hence banks andinsurance have not compliedwith the requirement to investin the NHF.

N72 trillion marketHousing is very big

business. The demand for iteverywhere is so huge.Satisfying Nigeria’s estimateddeficit of 18 million housingunits will cost N72 trillion ifthe cost of each unit is set atN4 million. Historicalexperience and reality dictatethat we approach Nigeria’shousing challenges primarilyas a N72 trillion economicopportunity rather than a casefor charity.

In the absenceof a mortgagesystem,personalsavings,achievedthroughsignificantdeprivation and/or engagementin corruptionare oftenrequired tobuild or acquirea house

Ama Pepple, Minister of Housing

US mortgagerate nears recordlow

Average US rates on fixedmortgages moved closer

to their record lows this week,offering more incentive forconsumers to buy homes andhelping sustain a housingrecovery.

Mortgage buyer FreddieMac says the average rate onthe 30-year loan rate slippedto 3.34 percent from 3.35percent last week. That’s nearthe 3.31 percent rate reachedin November, the lowest onrecords dating to 1971. Theaverage for the 15-year fixedmortgage ticked down to 2.64percent from 2.65 percent.The record low is 2.63percent.

Lower mortgage rates are akey reason why the housingmarket began to come backlast year and manyeconomists predict therecovery will strengthen in2013.

London houseprices rise by7%

House prices in Londonrose by 7 percent in the

year to the end of October, faroutstripping increaseselsewhere. The figures fromthe Land Registry, whichrecords property prices inEngland and Wales, show theaverage London home nowcosts £365,000.

Prices have risen in someother regions too, with theaverage national increase at1.1 percent and averageprices at £161,600. But priceshave fallen in the North West,North East, East Midlandsand Yorkshire.

Separate figures, from thefinancial information serviceMoneyfacts, show thatmortgage lenders continue tobe very fussy about to whomthey will lend money.Although the number ofmortgage deals on offer to thepublic has jumped by 8percent in the past month, to2,790, the vast majority ofthem – 67 percent - stillrequire a deposit of at least20 percent to be put down bythe borrower.

About 12 percent of thecurrent deals require a 10percent down payment, andonly 3 percent are availableto people with a deposit of 5percent or less. In many ofthose deals, the lenderrequires an extra guaranteefrom the borrower’s parents,and the interest rates payableby the borrower areconsiderably higher than forsomeone taking a mortgagewith a larger down paymentof, say, 20 percent or 25percent.

*Alufohai is the Presidentof Nigerian Institute ofQuantity Surveyors (NIQS)

36 — Vanguard, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

BRIEF

Appointmentsvicahiyoung@yahoo.com 08033348923

Alo, Nweke join BergerPaints Board

BERGER PaintsNigeria Plc, hasannounced the

appointment of Dr. AloOlademiji Israel andMr.Nelson Chidozie Nweke,into its Board of Directors.

The duo of Israel, amanagement expert andNweke, a seasoned financialguru, joined the board asnon- executive directorsaimed at enhancing thecomposition Nigeria’sleading paints and alliedproducts manufacturingcompany’s board.

Dr, Israel, a Fellow of theChartered Institute ofPersonnel Management ofNigeria, CIPM, is presentlythe Managing Director andChief Executive Officer ofExcel Professional ServicesLimited.

Excel Professional ServicesLimited is a leadership andmanagement consulting firmthat provides advisorysupport to leadingorganizations and businessesin matters of strategy,leadership and governance.

Prior to this, he had servedas the Director-General of theFinancial InstitutionsTraining Centre, FITC,Lagos, (an umbrella trainingcentre for all banks in

Nigeria); Executive Director,Coopers & LybrandAssociates, nowPriceWaterHouseCoopersand DepartmentalExamination Officer, ObafemiAwolowo University, Ile-Ife,Osun State.

Israel holds a doctoratedegree in Industrial Sociologyfrom the University of Ife.

On the other hand, Nweke,an Honorary Fellow of theChartered Institute ofBankers of Nigeria, CIBN, isthe Managing Director ofNeilville Nigeria Limited, aLagos-based property andreal estate development

company.He is also a non-executive

director on the board ofPremium Pension Limited andIntercontinental Homes(Savings and Loans).

Nweke, who also doubles asan associate of the CharteredInstitute of Stockbrokers, CIS,retired from IntercontinentalBank Plc as a Regional ChiefExecutive (South-South) in2008.

He had served the bank invarious capacities such asassistant general manager,deputy general manager andexecutive directorrespectively.

Nweke holds a B.Sc inPolitical Science from theUniversity of Ibadan and anM.Sc in Industrial Relationsfrom the same university.

Olademiji Alo

Nweke Nelson

4 Nigerian journalists named honourary ambassadorsin Netherlands

FOUR Nigerianjournalists have beenappointed Honorary

Ambassadors of RadioNetherlands Training Centre, RNTC, Holland.

They are Ayodele Ilori,Ademola Aremu, AvesehAsough and Tamani Yusuf.Ilori is an employee of RadioLagos/Eko Fm and the Lagosstate chapter of the NigeriaUnion of Journalists, NUJ,Financial Secretary.

While Aremu is of theBroadcasting Corporation ofOyo State, BCOS, in Ibadan,

Asough is a radio journalismTrainer and Producer in Abujaand Yusuf is the ManagingDirector/Chief ExecutiveOfficer, MD/CEO of KadunaState Media Corporation.

The four journalists who hadattended various courses atthe Radio NetherlandsTraining Centre in Hollandhave been saddled with theresponsibility of helping otherapplicants who willing toimprove their knowledge inthe courses offered by RNTC.They are to provideinformation on the courses,

Aremu Ilori Yusuf

Asough

how to register, the procure-ment of Netherlands visa andstaying in the Netherlands forthe duration of their pro-gramme.

Radio Netherlands offersnot less than fifteen coursesyearly spaning from 3 monthsto 1 month, 2 weeks and 1week.

LASTMA GM becomes NIMechEfellow

NIGERIAN Institute ofM e c h a n i c a l

Engineers, NIMechE, hashonoured the GeneralManager Lagos State TrafficManagement Authority,LASTMA, Babatunde Edu,with a fellowship award.

The Institute explained thatthe award was in recognitionof his transformationalleadership role in the LagosState Transportation system.

The event which took placein Lagos, was attended by theNational Chairman of the in-stitute, Engr Ayo Fanimokuamong others.

According to Fanimoku, theevent was one of the avenuesdesigned by the institute tobuild culture of excellence ofmembers, adding that itwas also an avenue to

appreciate achievements re-corded in their various fieldsby their members.

Speaking, Edu expressedgratitude to the institute forthe recognition and noted thatfor radical change (s) to occurleadership at all levels ofgovernment must show love,kindness, sacrifice, fairnessand self denial of unnecessaryluxuries and should exhibitleadership by example bybeing discipline, selfless,committed and abiding by thenorms and values of thesociety.

On the road traffic law, theGeneral Manager noted thatits objective was to ensuresanity and safety on the roadsand pledged not to relent onhis oars in ensuring free flowLagos roads.

Edu

AERO winsbest WestAfricanairline

AERO, a leading airlinein West Africa, has won

the Best West African Airlineof the Year 2012 Award.

The Airline received theaward at the West AfricanTourism and HospitalityAwards, WATHA, which tookplace in Lagos.

Speaking, AdedayoAdesugba, the President of theAwards group, said: “TheWest African Tourism andHospitality award was formedto recognize organizationsand individuals in the Tour-ism & Hospitality Industry,and as a platform for acknowl-edging and rewarding cre-ativity among all the partici-pants and operators withinthe West African region. Thisevent is the largest gatheringof Hospitality practitionerswithin the region. It has over5000 voters and evaluatorsinvolved in the processes withat least 500 operators at theGala nights award ceremony.We recognize the role Aerohas been playing in ensuringthat the travelling needs in theECOWAS region areconstantly met.”

Commenting on the award,the Managing Director ofAero, Mr. Obaro SolomonIbru, said: “We are delightedto have won the West AfricanAirline of the year award. Wewill, however, not relent in ourefforts but we will continuallylook at new and exciting waysof meeting and evenexceeding the flyingexpectations of Nigerians.”

Aero has grown to be one ofthe most reputable regionalcarriers in West Africaoperating over 50 flights witha fleet of modern 737s andBombardier Dash 8.Obaro Ibru

Vanguard, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013 — 37

38 — Vanguard, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

Business Economy

marketing strategies, andintroduced value-addedservices to address specificconcerns hindering marketgrowth.

To protect minorityshareholders, The Exchangekicked off a financial literacyprogram to educate investorson portfolio construction andthe benefits of diversification.It also launched investors’protection fund to helpcushion the effect of lossessuffered by investors tounscrupulous stockbrokers.The NSE took time to flashcompanies that failed in theirpost listing requirements toprotect investors fromputting their money in thosecompanies.

The NSE recently madehistory as the first capitalmarket operator in Africa to

2012: Reforms, Recovery amidst legislative/regulatory imbroglio

introduce a Market QualityReport -The “NSE X-QuaIReport” which isdesigned to disclose theextent to which equitiestraded on The Exchangeprovide executions at pricesbetter than the prevailingprice quotes before aninvestor places an orderamong several initiatives.

Following the appointmentof Stanbic IBTC Capital as thesole government stockbrokerfor Federal GovernmentBonds, the Debt managementOffice, DMO, announced thecommencement of bondstrading on the secondarymarket.

The issue of margin loanwas also settled withextension of N22.6 billionforbearance package to 84stockbrokers believed to were

heavily involved in themargin trading. Besides,waiver of stamp duties andexemption of VAT o ntransactions on the exchangewas also granted by thefederal government at the tailend of the year, while thosecommissions payable to theNSE, SEC and CentralSecurities Clearing Systemwere removed and includedin the list of VAT-exemptgoods and services.

Market performanceThough the year started out

on bearish note with NSE All-Share Index (ASI)depreciating by 32.63 pointsor 0.15 per cent and marketcapitalisation dropping toN6.533 trillion, but at theclose of trading last week NSEAll-Share Index appreciated

by 1.69 per cent to close at27,866.51, while MarketCapitalization of the listedequities appreciated by 1.73per cent to close at N8.907trillion. According to analystsat Proshare, Nigerianequities ended the year 2012with an impressive year-to-date, YTD, performance of35.45 percent gain, preciselyhitting a 34-months high at28,078.81 basis points.

The Nigerian marketgarnered above 7,000 basispoints amid weak and mixeddaily average turnoverrecorded in the year; on theback of strong and positivemarket sentiments on the partof investors. “This washowever achieved with a 70percent foreign participationas at December 2012; a far cryfrom the 53 percent recorded

in 2008 – and a source ofconcern about the dearth ofdomestic investor stake in themarket recovery push.

New listingsTo A total of 12 companies

were delisted from the dailyofficial list for non-complianceto post-listing rules. Some ofthe the companies includeAluminium ManufacturingCompany of Nigeria Plc,Capital Oil Plc, W.A. GlassIndustry Plc, Union Dicon SaltPlc, Hallmark Paper ProductsPlc, Nigeria Wire IndustryPlc, and Rokana Industry Plc.Others are Lenards NigeriaPlc and Udeofson GarmentFactory (Nig) Plc Abplast andConfidence Insurance. PatinaComputer System voluntarilydelisted.

Continues from page 23

Furthermore, we arealready aware of theprovisions of the 2013

budget. The totals are notmuch different from theaggregates for the last threeto four years; which yielded6.5-7.5% GDP growth. TheFederal government itself hadprojected growth of 5-6% forthe next year – figure whichthe World Bank and theInternational Monetary Fund,IMF regard as ambitious.However, even if we accept theFederal government’sprojections, we are faced withanother year during whichanother shortfall looms. Bythe end of next year, we willhave six years left to achieve$424 billion; and that is theminimum requirement.Unfortunately, reaching $424billion will still not propel usto top 20. Indonesia and thoseother nations from 39 to 20would not stop growing.

A lot more can be derivedfrom these graphs but timebeing a constraint permit meto stop here.

POWER GENERATIONAND SUPPLY

,

,

Vision 2020 (PART 3)

Every economy runs onpower – that means powergenerated and supplied.Nigeria is no exception. Inorder not to discourage mylisteners too much, I wouldlimit the comparison to twocountries – Nigeria and SouthAfrica.

COUNTRYRANK POWER SUPPLY

South Africa 3045,000MW

Nigeria 414,000MW*? The Nigerian powersupply situation needs to beexplained. Whereas over 90%

of power generated andsupplied in South Africa is bypublic institutions and verycheap, the reverse is the casein Nigeria. In fact nobodyknows how much power isgenerated in Nigeria becauseclose to 90% is privatelygenerated and veryexpensive.

The graph belowdemonstrates ourpredicament. Before 1999,public power generation inNigeria was just under4000MW. Today, we are stillstruggling to get it up to5,000MW.

Meanwhile, there has beena very interestingdevelopment. South Africahas embarked on anexpansion programmedesigned to increase by 25%its power generation andsupply. That addition alonewill add more power than wegenerate in this country. Infact, at the moment, thelargest power plant in SouthAfrica generates 4,400MW –which exceeds what all ourpower plants deliver. There isno nation ranked above 30which generates less than50,000MW. To close the powergap, we would need to add8,000MW per annum for thenext seven years.

Again, let me leave it toeach of my listeners to decideif, given our track record, thatis realistic.

WHERE IS THECONCRETE PLAN?

Since the end of the SecondWorld War, only a few nations

had grown their GDP bydouble digits for ten years ormore. Among the few were thedefunct Union of SovietSocialist Republics, USSR,Japan and China in recentyears. The approach adoptedby each nation was uniquebut there were somesimilarities in strategy. Thefirst was rapid development ofhuman capital, efficiency inthe use of materials and zerotolerance for corruption. Ofthe three, Japan had the leastraw materials endowment, yetfrom nothing, it rose tobecome the second largesteconomy until recently whenit fell behind China.

The secret to Japan’ssuccess could be summarisedas follows. The Japanese

economy could not afford towaste anything. It deliveredthe right number of engineersand other skilled workers, atthe right time for the needs ofsociety as planned. Within tenyears after the defeat duringthe war, Japan had higherliteracy than the United Statesof America and most countriesin Europe.

Stalinist USSR carriedplanning to the limit,sometimes to inhuman limits.Those of us who werefortunate to study SovietEconomic Planningprocedures would rememberthat the Input-Output Tablewas a Soviet economicplanning tool. Everything wasincluded in the five year andten year plans. How manynew kilometers of roads andrail lines, housing units,trucks and automobiles, aswell as, classrooms were to beadded; how many additionalhectares of land to be broughtinto cultivation to producefood and the direction thedevelopment of human capitalwill take to meet social,economic and political needs.Everything was quantifiedand somebody was heldresponsible for achieving settargets; failure meant at leasta trip to Siberia or, at worst,death by firing squad. Theeconomy grew from the ruinsof World War II to become thesecond largest and one of themost technologicallyadvanced in less than twenty-five years – of sweat, tearsand blood.

That sort of tight planningmade it possible for the USSR,a technologically inferiornation to send the firstastronaut to space before the

United States and to sparkwhat later became the SpaceRace and the exploration ofother planets.

But, eventually, even theUSSR discovered that therewere limits to growth, even ina nation under the iron gripof a dictator. After almost twodecades of double digitgrowth, the nation slid intosingle digit and the break-upof the USSR has left Russia,the dominant country in theformer union, growing atabout 5-6% per annum. Japan,today, is struggling to grow at2% per annum. The reasonsare not hard to discover.Indeed, one principle ofeconomics provides some ofthe clue. It is called thePrinciple of DiminishingReturns. Baldly stated, itwarns economic policymakersthat as we add resources toproduce results we eventuallyreach a point when additionalinputs don’t yieldproportional returns. Amongthe most important variablesin the economic plans aremarkets. For instance, anation whose rapid growthdepends on exports mightsoon find those marketssaturated and unable to absorbmore products. When thatoccurs, the rate of growthslows down considerably.Sometimes, the nations whichonce imported the nation’sproducts might startmanufacturing their own, orits increasing wealth mightmake its products moreexpensive and lesscompetitive, Japan is inexactly that situation now.Years of rapid growth broughtunprecedented prosperity butit also brought imitation andcompetition.

The largest powerplant in SouthAfrica generates4,400MW – whichexceeds what allour power plantsdeliver. There is nonation rankedabove 30 whichgenerates less than50,000MW. Toclose the powergap, we wouldneed to add8,000MW perannum for the nextseven years.

CMYK

CMYK

Vanguard, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013 — 39

Advertising, Media & Marketing

M u l t i - T r e xI n t e g r a t e dFoods recently

launched its new cocoabeverage, Moor, into themarket. In this interview,Chief Executive Officer of theCompany, Mr. DimejiOwofemi, said the companyhas come to complement oth-er big players in the indus-try. He also gave an over-view of the cocoa industry,among other issues, reportsPrincewill Ekwujuru.

Before now, Multi Trexwas seen as a Nigeriancompany prepared tochallenge the monopoly ofthe big players in theindustry. But why has this notbeen achievable?We didn’t come to challenge;we came to complement theindustry, especially wherethere are gaps. It’s like a littlechild who says when hegrows up, he is going to beeating the head of a particularbird, and the head of that birdwould not let him grow oldenough to do that. So I thinkthere should be enoughspace for us. I don’t knowwhat their own attitude wouldbe, but I expect them towelcome tiny littlecompetition. It would putthem on their toes. Theintention is not to push asideCadbury or Nestle, it’s a tallambition. But we are notgoing to remain small for everas well. It would get to thatpoint when they would haveto recognise us as one ofthose little companies,contributing its quotas. Weare friends; they talk to usand we talk to them. They areone of our biggest customersboth locally andinternationally and I’m surethey are happy with what weare doing.

What exactly do you intendto achieve with theintroduction of this newproduct, Moor?

Moor is not an unknownkind of product, especially tochildren. It has got morecocoa in it than any othercocoa- based beveragesdrink. You get about 20percent of cocoa powder in it.So, we are coming from aposition of strength ofproducing the cocoa powderwhich is the main ingredient.For us, the drive is to use ourproduct ourselves, though westill remain very friendly withthe big ones. We enjoy theirbusiness and patronage andwe’ll continue to service themand we know for sure that ourtake of the industry is nothingnear their budget, and the skyis big enough for all to fly. Butwe want to play big as well,play big in our own right.

What informed thecompany’s decision to gointo consumer goods?

The country’s population ofover 170 million remains oneof the attractions since it is

We are complementing, not incompetition with Cadbury,Nestle – Multi-Trex CEO,

,

expected to explode more inthe nearest future. Interest-ingly, they have to feed. Andbelieve it or not, this catego-ry of food is becoming thevogue. Nobody would thinkabout five years back that thefast food joint would be aplace that you and I wouldwant to patronise as a quick-ie. The big shopping mallsare also gradually comingback. There used to be UTC,Kingsway, Leventis, in thepast, they are all coming back.Unless we want to come outwith colonisation, peoplehave to come out with com-peting brands.The launch of the new productis the second in a spate ofthree months and we havemany more coming in. In thelast eight years, except forschool children and those inthe big schools, if you talk ofchocolate the first reaction,even for those who know it,are that it’s going to get mefat. But for those who don’tknow it, they think it’s thecocoa butter body cream. Sothere is a need for a lot ofawareness that cocoa is reallygood for your health. In theNetherland, people live anaverage of 80 to 85 years andthey trace it to a bar ofchocolate a week. Moor is abeverage and the appealtargets are children andyoung adults. It’s got cocoapowder in it and it’s got milkand sugar, fortified withminerals and vitamins and it’sa wholly Nigerian product.

As the National Vice Presi-dent of Cocoa Association ofNigeria and Chairman Co-coa Processors Association ofNigeria, what exactly do youthink is wrong with the busi-ness of cocoa processing inNigeria, considering the vasttombstones of industries thathad once played in thatmarket in the past?

As the National VicePresident of CocoaAssociation of Nigeria andChairman Cocoa ProcessorsAssociation of Nigeria, I’mreferred to as the bridgebetween the two. Sometimesthere is conflict of interestsbetween the cocoa traders,who feel that cocoa processors

are working against them,while also the processors feelthat the traders of the beansare unpatriotic. To yourquestion, nothing is wrongwith that industry. The onlychallenge it is currentlyfacing is what is wronggenerally with the country.The business environmenthere is very harsh. No factoryin Nigeria is doing 60-70percent capacity. So if you arelooking at the industry fromthat perspective, I think to alarge extent, it is not a goodmeasure to do that.

Aside sourcing Cocoa fromNigeria, have you at anytimeimported Cocoa?

We attempted it once, but wedidn’t import it ourselves. Itwas a customer , a Togoleseby nationality, whoapproached us; he saw us onthe web and said he wantedto sell Cocoa to us and he saidhe wanted to sell 10,000 tonsto us. I laughed because Iactually taught it was a fraud(419), I was thinking howsomebody from anywhere elsecomes and defraud me inNigeria. I taught Nigeria hada trophy for that, but no onecan tell, people still makeeffort to sell sand in SaudiArabia. So I asked him tocome as long as he doesn’twant easy money, nobody cantake money from me easily aswell, so the guy came to Ni-geria and said he was goingto deliver cocoa.

BRIEFSEtisalat, Hua-wei fetes cus-tomers

In line with itscommitment to offer best

customer service delivery tocustomers across thecountry, fastest growing andmost Innovativet e l e c o m m u n i c a t i o n scompany, Etisalat Nigeria,recently hosted its customersin its ongoing Etisalat-Huawei OriginalEquipment Manufacturer(OEM) Week, targeted atreaching current andprospective subscribers whohave purchased or hadenquiries about Etisalatproducts originallymanufactured by Huawei.

The initiative organised byEtisalat’s Geek Force isdesigned for all EtisalatExperience Centres to creategreater emphasis onselected original equipmentmanufacturers (OEM)products and offerings whilealso encouraging customersto purchase original devicesat authorized dealer outletslike the Etisalat experiencecenters nationwide.

Speaking at the event heldat the Etisalat ExperienceCentre, Saka Tinubu,Victoria Island, Lagos,Director, Products &Services, Etisalat Nigeria,Mr. Lucas Dada, said thatthe company will not relentin satisfying thecommunication needs of itscustomers across thecountry. “As a brand that isalways attuned to the needsof its customers, Etisalat hasshown over the years that ittakes customer satisfactionserious. The Etisalat OEMweek is one of the innovativeways we at Etisalat seek toenhance our subscribers’experience using ourproducts and services,” hesaid.

Konga.comCEO listsbenefits ofonline shopping

The CEO of Konga.com,an online store in

Nigeria, Mr. SimdulShagaya has describedonline retail business as thebest means for Nigerians toshop.

Speaking in Lagos,Shagaya said theconvenience that shoppingonline at www.konga.comoffers Nigerians cannot beover emphasized,considering the lack of retailchoices available toNigerians.

He said online stores areadvantageous because ofthe comfort this shoppingmedium providesNigerians, who hardly havethe time to go to shoppingmalls which are either farfrom their residence or aretoo fragmented for theirliking.

Moor is notan unknownkind ofproduct,especially tochildren. Ithas got morecocoa in itthan any othercocoa- basedbeveragesdrink

Mr. Dimeji Owofemi

40 — Vanguard, MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 2013

Omoh Gabriel - Group Business EditorBabajide Komolafe - Acting Finance EditorClara Nwachukwu - Energy EditorPeter Egwuatu - Head, Capital MarketYinka Kolawole - Snr Bus. CorrespondentFavour Nnabugwu - Insurance CorrespondentGodwin Oritse - Maritime CorrespondentGodfrey Bivbere - Maritime CorrespondentMichael Eboh - Capital Market ReporterYemi Adeoye - Capital Market ReporterOscarline Onwuemenyi - Energy ReporterFranklin Alli - Industry/Agric. ReporterAmaka Abayomi - Money market ReporterEbele Orakpo - Energy ReporterIfeyinwa Obi - Maritime Reporter

CONTRIBUTORSPrincewill Ekwujuru - Media/MarketingNaomi Uzor - IndustryProvidence Obuh - Micro FinanceLAYOUT - Graphics Department

Email:lesleba@lesleba.com, lesleba@gmail.comBlog page:www.lesleba.com/blog2Website: www.lesleba.com

Tel:0817 002 3569

Business & Economy

,

,

Nigeria has releasedtwo improved cassava

varieties in an effort tomaintain its lead as theworld’s largest producer ofthe root crop, improveincomes of farmers andmake them smile.

The varieties weredeveloped through acollaborative effort betweenthe International Institute ofTropical Agriculture (IITA)and the Nigerian Root CropsResearch Institute (NRCRI),Umudike. The two varietiesare originally recognized asIITA developed genotypes:IITA-TMS-I982132 andIITA-TMS-I011206. But withthe official release, they areto be known as UMUCASS42 and UMUCASS 43respectively.

“Both varieties performedwell in different cassavaproduction regions ofNigeria with high yield,high dry matter and gooddisease resistance. Theroots of these varieties are

Nigeria releases improved cassava varietiesyellow and contain moderatelevels of pro-Vitamin A,” saysDr Peter Kulakow, IITACassava Breeder.

Potential maximum yield ofthe two varieties is between49 and 53 tons per hectare,according to pre-varietalrelease trials that wereconducted between 2008 and2010. Local varieties produceless than 10 tons per hectare.The varieties are alsoresistant to major pests anddiseases that affect cassava inthe country including cassavamosaic disease, cassavabacterial blight, cassavaanthracnose, cassavamealybug and cassava greenmite.

Dr Chiedozie Egesi, NRCRI Cassava Breeder,who presented the varietiesbefore the Nigeria VarietalRelease committee—the bodyin charge of officiallyreleasing varieties—said the

varieties have the followingdistinct qualities: Good forhigh quality cassava flour—asought after trait byresearchers for the cassavatransformation agenda inNigeria.

The other qualities are highdry matter which is positivelyrelated to starch and crucialfor cassava value chaindevelopment; high leafretention which is positivelyrelated to drought toleranceand is crucial for cassavaproduction in the drierregions and in mitigating theimpact of climate change, andmoderate levels ofbetacarotene for enhancingnutrition.

Over the years, cassava hastransformed from being a“poor man’s” crop to now acash crop and an industrialcrop, as cassava is beingprocessed to products such asstarch, flour, glucose and

ethanol. This transition hasplaced demand on cassava.

Researchers say developingnew improved varieties is one

way that will boost the steadysupply of cassava roots to thisever increasing demand.

It was a welcomedeparture from tradition

when the national assemblyreceived the 2013 budgetproposals in early October2012! Thankfully, the earlysubmission allowed thelegislature to effectivelysharpen its oversightfunctions on a host ofgovernment ministries andagencies, and in the process,uncover huge shortfallsbetween approved budgetsums and actualimplementation in 2012. Indeed, some criticsmaintain that the legislativeoversight inspection andfact-finding tours could nothave been thoroughconsidering the hundreds ofgovernment agencies thatneeded to be examinedwithin the very limited timeavailable. Critics havehitherto blamed poor budgetimplementations on latepassage of budgets. However, the evidence oflarge unspent funds in thecoffers of governmentagencies nationwide at theend of each year may notcorroborate this observation.

Incidentally, Dr. Okonjo-Iweala, the CoordinatingMinister of the economy hadpromised at the beginningof her tenure to ensure thatbudgets were promptly laidbefore the nationalassembly, to allow theLegislature and theExecutive adequate time toconsult and agree on Mr.

HOW REDUCED BUDGET DEFICIT WILL CHALLENGE THE ECONOMY

President’s budgetproposals. In reality, ifannual budgets are based ona rolling three to five yearmedium term framework, itshould be possible to presentthe budget in August/September each year. Nonetheless, we shouldcommend Dr. Okonjo-Iwealafor the earlier than usualbudget presentation! Indeed, if the budgetreceives President Jonathan’sassent in the next week or solate presentation would notbe a valid reason for failureto fully implement the 2013budget. However, it seemsNigerians may have placedtoo much faith on the impactof comprehensive budgetimplementation. After all,total capital budget of about1.7 trillion naira is equal tojust about $9 billion, anamount that is grosslyinadequate when comparedwith the speculatedrequirement of over $100billion just for provision ofadequate power nationwide!

Indeed Dr. Okonjo-Iwealahad also promised tosignificantly reduce recurrentexpenditure ratio below 70%in steps of between 1% and2% annually! However,analysts contend that suchsnail speed adjustment is notin of consonance with thereality of our severeinfrastructural deprivations.

Fortunately, the adoptionof a crude oil pricebenchmark of $79 per barrel,

instead of the Executive’sinsistence on $75 per barrelwould mean a daily accretionof about $10 million (i.e. $3.6billion annually) to budgetedrevenue. Thus the earlier

projected 2013 budget deficitof almost a trillion nairawould fall by over 550 billionnaira with the higherbenchmark. The additional$4 per barrel wouldconsequently reduce the need

for additional governmentborrowing to finance theproposed trillion Naira deficit,which evolved from the earlierdeliberate understatement ofcrude oil price benchmark. Indeed, with prevailinginterest rates of between 15%and 17% for governmentborrowings, we would alsoavert liability for additionaldebt service charges of overN75 billion if crude oilbenchmark had remained at$75 per barrel. These hugesavings are undoubtedlypositive outcomes, as our debtburden will fallcommensurately by over 550billion naira in 2013!

The additional $4 per barrelhas an ugly flip side; theresultant increase in totaldollar revenue of over $3.6billion would paradoxicallycreate severe challenges inthe economy, as thesubstitution of nairaallocations for the increaseddollar revenue will exacerbatethe specter of surplus cash(excess liquidity) when overN550 billion is lodged intothe bank accounts ofbeneficiaries of the federationpool in 2013. This huge cashinflow into the vaults ofcommercial banks will sustainadditional liquidity andincrease credit capacity of thebanks by over N5 trillion. Insuch event, the CBN would‘altruistically’ step in todeepen the ‘racket’ ofmopping up excess liquiditywith greater vigor!

Consequently, CBN would beinduced to borrow hundredsof billions of naira it does notneed, while paying interest ofbetween 10% and 15% for thejoy of just warehousing idlepublic funds andsequestering the funds froma credit starved real sector! The profits of commercialbanks and other investors ingovernment securities willultimately become bloated byan additional sum of over 100billion naira with suchgovernment borrowings. Thus, the increased dollarrevenue engendered byhigher crude benchmark willultimately also inexplicablydeepen our debt burden!

We may deduce from theabove that our economyappears severely challengedby the prospect of increasingdollar revenue! The CBN’sresponse to excess liquidityalso crowds out the real sectorfrom available credit in themarket, and the resultanthigh cost of borrowing willfurther precipitate inflation,industrial contraction andincreasing rate ofunemployment.

However, the hydra headeddilemma of increasing dollarrevenue and increasing debtand the paradox of increasingwealth and deepeningpoverty will only besatisfactorily resolved whenCBN ceases to substituteNaira allocations fordistributable dollar derivedrevenue.

Indeed, if thebudget receivesPresidentJonathan’sassent in the nextweek or so latepresentationwould not be avalid reason forfailure to fullyimplement the2013 budget. However, itseems Nigeriansmay have placedtoo much faith onthe impact ofcomprehensivebudgetimplementation.