General
Nigerians Still Distrust Government—Survey
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
A recent survey has shown that the Nigerian government remains the least trusted with citizens having no confidence in the ability of current leaders to address the country’s challenges successfully.
According to the 2020 Edelman Trust Barometer, four mainstream institutions were looked into in the report and they were government, business, media and non-governmental organisations.
However, Nigerians’ trust in Chief Executive Officers of businesses as positive change agents rose while trust in NGOs and the media also increased according to the supplementary data for Nigeria.
It was observed that while trust across the four mainstream institutions in the country increased compared to 2019, business still led with 91 per cent, followed by NGOs with 87 per cent. The media was the third with 84 per cent while the government only had 55 per cent.
These revelations amongst others were contained in the 20th Edelman Trust Barometer Survey Report unveiled virtually by Edelman and its Exclusive Nigerian Affiliate, Chain Reactions Nigeria in Lagos recently.
The presentation done virtually because of disruptions caused by the coronavirus pandemic saw the Chief Executive Officer of Edelman Africa, Jordan Rittenberry, present the global 2020 Edelman Trust Barometer and the Impact of COVID-19 on Trust reports. A Consultant at Chain Reactions, Adekunle Dixon Odukoya, presented the supplementary data for Nigeria.
An all-female panel drawn from government, media, business and civil society also discussed the survey report and its implications for their respective constituencies and Nigeria at large, in line with the theme, Competence and Ethics.
They were the Special Adviser to President Muhammadu Buhari on Social Protection, Mrs Maryam Uwais; Director, Public Affairs, Lafarge Plc, Folashade Ambrose-Medebem, Director of News, TVC, Stella Din Jacob, and the Convener, Enough is Enough, Yemi Adamolekun. Former Assistant Director of Programmes, Lagos Operations of the Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria (FRCN), Funke Treasure-Durodola, moderated.
Revealing how public officials can boost their trust among Nigerians, Mrs Uwais said it was vital they bring transparency into their activities and remain consistent.
The former Coordinator of the Social Invest Programmes (SIP) further cited the example of how she addressed the complaints that trailed the Conditional Cash Transfer and School Feeding Programme transparently by engaging Civil Societies to monitor as what public officials can do to earn public trust.
On the proliferation of fake news and its weaponization contributing to mistrust of the media, Din Jacobs, citing the Ibrahim Magu issue, said government officials hoarding information and vested interests is not helping matters. She advised media practitioners to imbibe balance in their reportage as this is what can buy them trust among the public.
On the issue of accountability and transparency, Adamolekun said Nigerians don’t trust the government because it hoards information and refuses to engage with citizens who want to know about its activities.
On what businesses can do to retain the trust of Nigerians, Ambrose-Medebem aligned with earlier speakers that institutions should prioritise full disclosure. She disclosed that transparency is a core value at Lafarge Africa Plc, which is always the first to publish its Sustainability Report.
Commenting on the 2020 Edelman Trust Barometer report, Managing Director/Chief Strategist, Chain Reactions Nigeria, Israel Jaiye Opayemi, noted that since 2017 when the report was first unveiled in Nigeria, major corporate players have always looked forward to its release because they draw significant insight from it to grow the asset of their reputation.
Mr Opayemi, however, warned institutions and corporate Nigeria not to take trust for granted. “Let’s pay attention to the fact that trust itself is mobile. Today, because you are highly trusted as an institution, does not really mean that six or 12 months down the line, it’s still going to remain the same. We all must focus on the asset of trust because it is highly mobile. It changes from time to time.”
The Edelman Trust Barometer is the annual global trust and credibility survey conducted by Edelman Intelligence, the independent research arm of the Edelman global network testing how well people trust those four critical institutions of the society to do what is right. This year’s survey conducted by Edelman Intelligence between October 19 and November 18, 2019, sampled more than 34,000 respondents across 28 countries.
By Dipo Olowookere
A $15 million debt facility has been obtained by Watt Renewable Corporation from the AfriGreen Debt Impact Fund to finance hybrid solar power plants to be built and operated by the former, especially in Nigeria.
WATT intends to use the projects to serve commercial and industrial clients in Nigeria, particularly in the telecommunication and financial services sectors.
By integrating solar hybrid solutions, the firm aims to significantly reduce diesel consumption and CO2 emissions, enabling its clients to achieve substantial energy cost savings while promoting environmental sustainability.
As a pioneer in renewable energy solutions, WATT continues to drive innovation in Nigeria’s energy sector.
The company’s robust roll-out plan includes deploying hundreds of hybrid solar power sites nationwide to meet the growing energy demands of commercial & industrial clients.
This strategic expansion aligns with WATT’s vision to revolutionize energy access across Africa, enabling sustainable development and reducing reliance on fossil fuels.
The funds from AfriGreen provide the critical capital needed to accelerate WATT’s ambitious projects, strengthening its market position and empowering businesses with reliable and affordable energy solutions.
Business Post gathered that to mitigate the currency risk for WATT in the event of devaluation of the Nigerian Naira, AfriGreen is offering a local currency facility that matches the payment structure of the power purchase agreements.
“We are thrilled to partner with AFRIGREEN on this transformative journey to expand reliable and sustainable energy solutions across Africa.
“With this support, it enables us to accelerate our shared mission of providing hybrid solar power to businesses, reducing carbon emissions, and supporting economic growth while enhancing energy security for our clients,” the Managing Director of WATT, Mr Oluwole Eweje, said.
“We are delighted to support WATT in rolling out hundreds of hybrid sites across the country.
“This represents another key transaction for AFRIGREEN in Nigeria. The combination of high energy prices, good solar irradiation, and strong demand from industrial and commercial energy users makes this market particularly attractive for companies like WATT.
“By leveraging these favourable market conditions alongside WATT’s exceptional operational performance and a well-structured financing solution, we are setting the stage for a strong and lasting business partnership,” the Managing Director of AfriGreen, Mr Alexandre Gilles, stated.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) has denied issuing a directive that gas supply to power generating companies (GenCos) be halted.
In a statement on Wednesday, the authority also denied instructing wholesale gas suppliers to stop further supply of gas to companies due to failure in payment obligations.
The NMDPRA described reports stating that it has directed the stoppage of gas supply to GenCos over N2 trillion debt as “false and completely unfounded”.
“It has absolutely no bearing on the information shared at a recent stakeholders’ engagement held in Lagos between the Authority, the OPTS, IPPG and other stakeholders in the oil and gas industry,” the NMDPRA said.
“The purpose of the engagement was to sensitise stakeholders on the requirements, opportunities and benefits associated with the implementation of the wholesale supply license as provided by sections 142 and 197 of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021.
“It was a follow-up to an earlier stakeholder engagement held at the NMDPRA corporate headquarters in Abuja on November 27, 2024.
“The Authority wishes to reassure all our stakeholders and indeed the general public that at no time was the false statement made at that event and anywhere else, and are advised to completely disregard the publication as every effort is being made to ensure that the supply and distribution of natural gas and petroleum products to end users is seamless and unabated as we head into the festive season and indeed all through the coming year 2025.”
Recall that Nigeria’s national grid experienced another collapse on Wednesday, the 11th time in 2024 as Gencos couldn’t generate enough power, compounding issues facing the Nigerian power sector.
This was the first time in over a month as the last time the nation witnessed a nationwide shutdown in electricity supply was on November 7, 2024.
Before then, the country was experiencing an incessant collapse of the grid, which prompted the federal government to set up a team to address the issue.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
Nigeria is currently experience a cut in power supply after the national grid collapsed for the 11th time in 2024.
This is the first time in over a month as the last time the nation witnessed a nationwide shut down in electricity supply was on November 7, 2024.
Before then, the country was experiencing an incessant collapse of the grid, which prompted the federal government to set up a team to address the issue.
However, just when Nigerians were thinking they will not witnessed another national grid collapse in the year, it issue reared its ugly head again.
On Wednesday afternoon, most of the energy distribution companies suffered power outage, prompting them to inform their customers of the situation.
One of the DisCos, Ikeja Electric Plc, in a message to electricity consumers under its franchise area, said, “Please be informed that we experienced a system outage today, December 11, 2024, at about 13:32 hours affecting supply within our network.
“Restoration of supply is ongoing in collaboration with our critical stakeholders. Kindly bear with us.”
Recall that on Tuesday, in a report, Google listed national grid as one of the top trending searches by Nigerians this year.
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