Economy
Fashola Hinges Success of ERGP on Surveyors
**Wants National Digital Map Developed
By Dipo Olowookere
The success of the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP) would depend significantly on the work of the surveying profession.
This submission was made by the Minister of Power Works and Housing, Mr Babatunde Fashola (SAN), on Tuesday in Abuja while swearing-in President and nine other members of the Surveyors Council of Nigeria (SURCON).
Speaking on the occasion, Mr Fashola advocated the development of a National Digital Map for the whole country saying aside enhancing internal security, the electronic map would benefit weather forecasts, agriculture and internal transport systems.
The Minister noted that there was need for all the state governments in the country to come together to strategize on how to raise funding and digitalize all the mappings of their territories adding that the mappings would then form the basis for the National Digital Map.
The Minister, who recalled that the issue was discussed at the recent National Council on Housing, added, “It will help our internal security enormously, police will benefit from it, Civil Defence will benefit from it, weather forecasts and weather predictions will benefit from it, agriculture will benefit from it and our internal transport, rail transport, land transport will benefit from it”.
He said the success of the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan, recently launched by the President, would depend significantly on the work of the Surveying profession for the revival, development and sustenance of the economy as well as launching it into global competitiveness.
The Minister said the need for states to digitalize all the mappings of their territories had become expedient because of the importance of the exactitude of the science of Surveying not only to national security but also to the safety of life and properties, adding, “But beyond security is the fact that the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan has as one of its pillars the development of our infrastructure, the development of Energy”.
“It will be easier to then read all the maps that we carry on our phones because they are local and domestic coordinates and data,” Mr Fashola said, adding that going digital would also help avoid wrong targeting in surveying as a result of wrong coordinates or wrong interpretation.
Stressing the importance of security in creating a stable economic development, the Minister added, “We have had in some parts some errors made in targeting which sometimes may not be unconnected with wrong coordinates; or if they are not wrong co-ordinates then improper interpretation”.
Still on the importance of surveying to the economic growth of the country, Mr Fashola said in terms of the nation’s infrastructure such as roads and bridges, railways and the Housing projects, nothing would have been done without the input of the Surveying profession citing the example of the National Housing programme now going on in the 33 states of the country.
“In each of the 33 housing sites where construction is going on now, we couldn’t have started work without a survey plan, because it is from the survey plan that we created a layout plan and it is from the layout plan that designs that were created were then imposed and building could start”, he said adding that none of the highways currently being constructed across the country could have started without a right-of-way.
Mr Fashola, who also said the same impact of surveying also applied to transmission lines, transmissions stations and so on, however, expressed the commitment of the Government to supporting the Council to facilitate its function.
“I think that the Surveyor-General himself will be the first testimonial to say that since the Buhari administration the budgetary provision of this department has been quite expanded and will hopefully be sustained,” he disclosed.
On the role of the Council, the Minister declared, “What this Council is supposed to do is really to regulate the practice, the trade and profession of Surveying; decide who and who are eligible to practice it, under what conditions and so on and so forth”.
“So you have an onerous burden of leadership. It is not made easy by the fact that, as the Surveyor General has said, it is an ubiquitous profession; ubiquitous in the sense that it is so highly impacting; and in these days of Digital Mapping, global security challenges, your responsibilities are not made easier at all”, he told the members.
The Minister conveyed to the Council the felicitations of President Muhammadu Buhari, who, according to him, “charges you to discharge your statutory responsibilities without fear or favour and with your very best endeavours in accordance with the oath of allegiance that you have sworn”.
He added, “The statutory requirements for the constitution of this Council are very clear; the Surveyor-General of the Federation, a representative of the Military, the Director of Surveys, the representative of Women in Surveying, representative of the Office of Surveyor-General of the Federation and also representatives of tertiary institutions, a broad cross-cutting representation, and also from the School of Survey”, pointing out that every interest group “has been thoughtfully considered in the membership of the Council”.
Wishing the Council success in the “Challenging task” before it, the Minister declared, “Let me say in closing that in constituting this Council we are appointing leaders to solve problems; we are not appointing leaders to create problems and I think what I have not said there has said itself”, adding, “I hope that at the end of your tenure of service, the President and Commander in Chief will be able to give you a very warm handshake of congratulations”.
In his response on behalf of the members, the newly inaugurated President of SURCON, Surveyor Joseph Olorunjuwon Agbenla, pledged that the Council, under his watch, would discharge its responsibilities to the best of their ability adding that the Council members would not create problems for Government but would rather solve problems.
Earlier in his welcome remarks, the Surveyor General of the Federation, Surveyor Ebisintei Awudu, stressed the importance of the Surveying Profession pointing out that the Federal Government’s diversification drive in restructuring the economy, National security, National Sustainable Development would not achieve the desired result without the input of Surveying Profession.
He pledged the determination of his office, which, according to him, “is the nation’s apex Mapping Office which coordinates the activities of Surveying and Mapping”, to partner constructively with SURCON in the areas of leadership, research, policy and strategy formulations for better services to government and the citizens of the country.
Also present at the occasion with the Minister were the two Ministers of State in the Ministry, Mr Mustapha Baba Shehuri and Surveyor Suleiman Zarma Hassan, Acting Permanent Secretary Works and Housing, Mr Ibrahim Tumsah, Directors and Special Advisers in the Ministry while on the SURCON side, were the representatives of the Military, Tertiary Institutions and Women in Surveying among other representatives and other SURCON members.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The acquisition of the Bullet brand portfolio from Sun Mark has been completed by Champion Breweries Plc, a statement from the company confirms.
This marks a transformative milestone in the organisation’s strategic expansion into a diversified, pan-African beverage platform.
With this development, Champion Breweries now owns the Bullet brand assets, trademarks, formulations, and commercial rights globally through an asset carve-out structure.
The assets are held in a newly incorporated entity in the Netherlands, in which Champion Breweries holds a majority interest, while Vinar N.V., the majority shareholder of Sun Mark, retains a minority stake.
Bullet products are currently distributed in 14 African markets, positioning Champion Breweries to scale beyond Nigeria in the high-growth ready-to-drink (RTD) alcoholic and energy drink segments.
This expansion significantly broadens the brewer’s addressable market and strengthens its revenue base with an established, profitable portfolio that already enjoys strong brand recognition and consumer loyalty across multiple markets.
“The successful completion of our public equity raises, together with the formal close of the Bullet acquisition, marks a defining moment for Champion Breweries.
“The support we received from both existing shareholders and new investors reflects strong confidence in our long-term strategy to build a diversified, high-growth beverage platform with pan-African scale.
“Our focus now is on disciplined execution, integration, and delivering sustained value across markets,” the chairman of Champion Breweries, Mr Imo-Abasi Jacob, stated.
Through this transaction, Champion Breweries is expected to achieve enhanced foreign exchange earnings, expanded distribution leverage across African markets, integrated supply chain efficiencies, portfolio diversification into high‑growth consumer beverage categories, and strengthened presence in the RTD and energy drink segments.
The acquisition accelerates Champion Breweries’ transition from a regional brewing business to a multi-category consumer platform with continental reach.
Bullet Black is Nigeria’s leading ready-to-drink alcoholic beverage, while Bullet Blue has built a strong presence in the energy drink category across several African markets.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Emerging market fintech firm, M-KOPA, has announced plans to deepen its reach in Nigeria to the South South and South East regions, starting with Edo this year, after providing N231 billion in credit to over 1 million customers in the country.
The firm released its first Nigeria-focused Impact Report, which showed that Nigeria is M-KOPA’s fastest-growing market and fastest to reach the milestone.
Since its foray into the Nigerian market in 2019, M-KOPA has been working to dismantle barriers to financial inclusion by providing flexible smartphone financing and digital financial tools that align with how people in the informal economy earn and manage their money.
It operates in six states in the country, including Lagos, Ogun, and Oyo, among others.
The report highlights the company’s contribution to income generation, digital inclusion and economic opportunity for Every Day Earners across the country.
The report showed that M-KOPA has enabled 290,000 first-time smartphone users, while 56 per cent of agents accessed their first income opportunity through the platform.
It showed high income and livelihood gains among its users, with about 77 per cent of customers leveraging smartphones or digital loans obtained through the platform to generate income, indicating that access to financed devices is directly supporting micro-entrepreneurial activity and informal sector productivity.
Furthermore, 75 per cent of users report higher earnings since gaining access to M-KOPA’s services, suggesting measurable improvements in personal revenue streams. On the distribution side, 99 per cent of agents disclose increased earnings, reflecting positive spillover effects across the company’s value chain.
In addition, 81 per cent of long-term customers state that their household expenses have improved, pointing to enhanced financial stability and better consumption smoothing over time.
Speaking on the report, Mr Babajide Duroshola, General Manager, M-KOPA Nigeria, said, “Nigeria represents extraordinary potential, and we’re proud that it has become M-KOPA’s fastest-growing market. Our Impact Report shows that when Every Day Earners gain access to the right digital and financial tools, they use them to create stability and long-term progress for their families. This is about access that unlocks opportunity and sustained prosperity.”
On its expansion plans Nigeria-wide, the M-KOPA helmsman said, “Many of the states we are considering are already similar to the ones we are currently in proximity… So, there is proximity and similarity between these states, and that’s what we are going to do, starting with Edo.”
He noted that as M-KOPA Nigeria continues to expand, the focus remains on ensuring more everyday earners gain access to the digital and financial tools they need to build resilient, prosperous futures in Nigeria’s rapidly digitising economy.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The ban on the export of raw shea nuts from Nigeria has been extended by one year by President Bola Tinubu.
A statement from the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Mr Bayo Onanuga, on Wednesday disclosed that the ban is now till February 25, 2027.
It was emphasised that this decision underscores the administration’s commitment to advancing industrial development, strengthening domestic value addition, and supporting the objectives of the Renewed Hope Agenda.
The ban aims to deepen processing capacity within Nigeria, enhance livelihoods in shea-producing communities, and promote the growth of Nigerian exports anchored on value-added products, the statement noted.
To further these objectives, President Tinubu has authorised the two Ministers of the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, and the Presidential Food Security Coordination Unit (PFSCU), to coordinate the implementation of a unified, evidence-based national framework that aligns industrialisation, trade, and investment priorities across the shea nut value chain.
He also approved the adoption of an export framework established by the Nigerian Commodity Exchange (NCX) and the withdrawal of all waivers allowing the direct export of raw shea nuts.
The President directed that any excess supply of raw shea nuts should be exported exclusively through the NCX framework, in accordance with the approved guidelines.
Additionally, he directed the Federal Ministry of Finance to provide access to a dedicated NESS Support Window to enable the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment to pilot a Livelihood Finance Mechanism to strengthen production and processing capacity.
Shea nuts, the oil-rich fruits from the shea tree common in the Savanna belt of Nigeria, are the raw material for shea butter, renowned for its moisturising, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant properties. The extracted butter is a principal ingredient in cosmetics for skin and hair, as well as in edible cooking oil. The Federal Government encourages processing shea nuts into butter locally, as butter fetches between 10 and 20 times the price of the raw nuts.
The federal government said it remains committed to policies that promote inclusive growth, local manufacturing and position Nigeria as a competitive participant in global agricultural value chains.
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