By Adedapo Adesanya

Total inflows into the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM) fell sharply in April 2026 as geopolitical tensions and weaker participation from both domestic and foreign investors impacted liquidity in the FX market.

Data from the FMDQ Securities Exchange showed that total foreign exchange inflows declined by 30.1 per cent month-on-month to $2.86 billion in April, down from $4.09 billion recorded in March.

The decline was driven by reduced inflows from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), exporters, importers, foreign portfolio investors and non-bank corporates, reflecting growing investor caution amid rising tensions in the Middle East and uncertainty surrounding the US-Iran conflict.

Local inflows, which accounted for 42.8 per cent of total market inflows, dropped by 38.7 per cent to $1.22 billion from $2.00 billion in March.

The steepest decline came from the CBN, whose interventions in the market fell by 83 per cent month-on-month. Inflows from exporters and importers declined by 19.3 per cent, non-bank corporates by 18.2 per cent, while inflows from individuals fell by 33.3 per cent.

Foreign inflows, which contributed 57.2 per cent of the total, also weakened by 21.9 per cent to $1.63 billion compared to $2.09 billion in March.

A breakdown of the foreign component showed that foreign portfolio investment (FPI) inflows dropped by 17.8 per cent, foreign direct investment (FDI) plunged by 78.9 per cent, while inflows from other corporates declined by 54.6 per cent.

Despite the drop in inflows, the local currency posted a modest gain against the US Dollar during the week, appreciating by 1.2 per cent to close at N1,360/$1, supported largely by offshore investor inflows that helped offset domestic demand pressures.

However, the local currency ended the week slightly weaker at the official market, depreciating by 0.22 per cent to N,361.40 per Dollar while gaining 44 basis points at the parallel market to close at N1,363.15/$1.

In the forwards market, the Naira strengthened across all tenors, with the one-month contract appreciating by 1.2 per cent to N1,384.53 to the Dollar, the three-month contract by 1.2 per cent to N1,424.08/$1, the six-month contract by 1.3 per cent to N1,478.39/$1, and the one-year contract by 1.5 per cent to N1,586.56/$1.

Nigeria’s gross external reserves continued their downward trend, declining by $40 million to $48.33 billion as of May 7, 2026. This marked the eighth consecutive week of decline, attributed to sustained CBN interventions, debt service obligations, subdued oil receipts and foreign capital outflows.

Meanwhile, crude oil prices rose in the international market as renewed hostilities between the US and Iran in the Strait of Hormuz raised concerns over potential supply disruptions.

Brent Crude gained 1.2 per cent to $101.30 per barrel while the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) rose 0.5 per cent to $95.28 per barrel.

By Adedapo Adesanya

Renaissance Africa Energy Company Limited has unveiled plans to increase crude oil production to 500,000 barrels per day by 2030, while simultaneously expanding healthcare investments across its host communities in Rivers State.

The company, which operates the NNPC/Renaissance/TotalEnergies/AENR Joint Venture, disclosed this during the launch of its four-day Vision First Plus healthcare outreach programme in B-Dere community, Gokana Local Government Area in Rivers State, where thousands of residents received free eye surgeries, cancer screening, dental care, and treatment for chronic ailments.

Vice President, Relations and Sustainable Development, Renaissance Africa Energy Company Limited, Mr Igo Weli, said the company’s growth strategy combines energy production with sustained investment in community wellbeing.

“Renaissance is helping Nigeria reclaim production momentum, boosting national crude output by over 200,000 barrels per day and delivering 1.9 billion cubic feet of gas daily to Bonny NLNG within our first year of operations,” Weli stated.

“Our ambition to reach 500,000 barrels per day by 2030 is anchored not just in volume but in value; value for the economy, value for people, and value for the planet.”

Last year, Renaissance acquired the joint venture onshore assets under Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC), making it Nigeria’s biggest upstream operator by asset portfolio and installed capacity.

Mr Weli, represented by the General Manager, Health Renaissance, Mr Akinwumi Fajola, noted that the healthcare outreach reflects Renaissance’s commitment to sustainable development in host communities, stressing that access to quality healthcare should not be treated as a privilege.

“At Renaissance, our purpose is clear; to stand with our communities, invest in people, and create opportunities for healthy and thriving lives,” he said.

“Vision First Plus reflects our belief that access to quality and affordable healthcare is not a privilege, but a shared responsibility.”

According to Mr Weli, the programme was designed to take healthcare directly to underserved communities rather than waiting for residents to visit hospitals and clinics.

“We have designed Health in Motion to take essential healthcare services beyond the walls of hospitals and clinics, delivering care directly to the communities where and when it is most needed,” he said.

The outreach includes eye surgeries, eye screening and consultation, distribution of reading glasses, dental services, mammography, cryotherapy for cancer screening, cardiovascular checks, laboratory services, treatment of chronic and minor ailments, deworming, and insecticide-treated mosquito nets.

Mr Weli disclosed that the company also trained community-based health volunteers known as “Vision Finders” to identify people suffering from visual impairments and connect them to treatment.

“This is not just a health intervention. It is an act of empowerment; investing in people, building local capacity, and ensuring that the work we started together does not end when we leave,” he added.

Representing the Chief Upstream Investment Officer of NNPC Upstream Investment Management Services (NUIMS), Mrs Nkechi Anaedobe, said the joint venture remained focused on improving living conditions in host communities.

“Even though we do exploration and production, it’s important for us as companies that we work on the sustainability path of our lives in the host community,” she said.

Mrs Anaedobe revealed that the programme is expected to exceed its initial target of 5,000 beneficiaries.

“We had over 5,000 as our target, and we’re on track to not only meet that but surpass it as well,” she added.

By Adedapo Adesanya

African businessman, Mr Aliko Dangote, has said that due to Tanzania’s current reservations, there is a strong case for the planned East African Dangote refinery to be hosted in Kenya instead.

Last month, it was reported that the billionaire, alongside the presidents of Kenya and Uganda, Mr William Ruto, and Mr Yoweri Museveni, planned to build a new oil refinery in Tanzania. The project will include a pipeline that links the Kenyan port city of Mombasa to the northeastern Tanzanian harbour of Tanga, where the facility will be situated.

However, Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu Hassan last week complained angrily to her Kenyan counterpart that she had not been consulted over the earlier plan to build it on her country’s coastline.

Due to the latest development, the industrialist is now eyeing Kenya as the site of the planned 650,000-barrel-a-day oil refinery, as per the Financial Times. The facility is estimated to cost as much as $17 billion, compared to the $20 billion structure based in Lagos.

“I’m leaning more towards Mombasa because it has a much larger, deeper port,” he was quoted as saying.

“Kenyans consume more. It’s a bigger economy,” he said, adding that crude oil for the refinery could be transported by ship and need not be located near a pipeline that will carry oil nearly 1,500 kilometres from Ugandan oilfields to the Tanzanian coast at Tanga.

“The ball is in the hands of President Ruto,” he said. “Whatever President Ruto says is what I’ll do.”

Mr Dangote said he would need a lot of government protection from President Ruto, noting that it would mean land, financing, and most importantly, protection from what he called the dumping of cheap fuel from the likes of Russia or India.

“There is no refinery in the world that can survive without that protection,” he said. “If we have an agreement, we can start this year.”

Mr Dangote, who has faced multiple accusations of monopoly, built his empire in industries such as salt, sugar, flour, cement, and, more recently, petroleum, largely through a business model that benefited from government incentives, preferential foreign exchange access, and policies that limited foreign competition.