Economy
FG, IFAD Distribute Farm Inputs to Nasarawa Cassava, Rice Farmers
By Adedapo Adesanya
As part of efforts to boost food security in Nigeria, the federal government in partnership with International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) has commenced distribution of farm inputs to 1,050 cassava and rice farmers in Nasarawa State.
The items distributed included 15,050 kilogrammes of improved rice seeds, 4,650 bundles of cassava cuttings, 788 litres of selective and non-selective herbicides, 78,800 kilogrammes of NPK fertilizer, and 30,100 kilogrammes of urea fertilizer.
Speaking at the distribution exercise in Lafia on Monday, the State Programme Coordinator, Mrs Eunice Adgidzi, said the farmers were drawn from 64 farmers’ organisations from Lafia, Doma, Wamba, Nasarawa and Karu Local Government Areas (LGAs) of the state.
She explained that the distribution of the inputs to the farmers for the 2021 wet season was under the Value Chain Development Programme (VCDP).
The coordinator said that the VCDP programme started in July 2020 with the mandate of improving the production, processing and marketing of rice and cassava in Nasarawa State.
She added that this is the second time they were distributing inputs to farmers in the state since the commencement of the be programme in July 2020.
“In December 2020, we distributed similar inputs to nine farmers organisations in Lafia and Doma LGAs to support dry season farming.
“That supports yielded mind-blowing result following massive yield from the dry season farmers in the benefiting LGAs,” the coordinator added.
She further explained that Afakpo Multipurpose Cooperative Society, one of the groups that benefited from the inputs in 2020, harvested 7.5 metric tons of rice per hectare above the international standard of 4.5 metric tons.
Mrs Adigizi, therefore, enjoined the beneficiaries and other stakeholders to join hands with the government to ensure that Nasarawa State surpasses global standards in the production of rice and cassava.
In his remark, the State Commissioner of Agriculture and Water Resources, Mr Alanana Otaki, commended FG and IFAD for the programme which was aimed at ensuring food sufficiency.
He added that the state had keyed into the FG agricultural programmes and invested a lot in the sector to meet the global standard in agriculture for self-sufficiency in food production.
There were appeals for the extension of the programme to the other LGAs in the state for more farmers to benefit, with the government planning to support the farmers’ organisations with tractors and other farm inputs.
Economy
BNB Price Reflects Changing Dynamics in the Digital Asset Market
Economy
NASD Unlisted Security Index Crosses 4,000-point Benchmark Again
By Adedapo Adesanya
The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange achieved a milestone on Friday, April 24, 2026, after five securities on the platform helped with a 1.85 per cent growth.
Data showed that the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) again crossed the 4,000-point benchmark yesterday.
The index chalked up 73.64 points during the trading day to close at 4,052.59 points compared with the preceding session’s 3,978.95 points, while the market capitalisation added N5.38 billion to finish at N2.424 trillion versus Thursday’s closing value of N2.380 trillion.
The price gainers were led by Okitipupa Plc, which grew by N25.00 to sell at N305.00 per share compared with the previous price of N280.00 per share. Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc gained N6.92 to close at N76.26 per unit versus N69.34 per unit, Afriland Properties Plc appreciated by N1.00 to N17.00 per share from N18.00 per share, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc improved by 55 Kobo to N99.55 per unit from N99.00 per unit, and Food Concepts Plc increased by 5 Kobo to N2.70 per share from N2.65 per share.
However, there was a price loser, MRS Oil, which dipped by N21.75 to N195.75 per unit from N217.50 per unit.
During the final session of the week, the value of securities jumped 75.2 per cent to N41.3 million from N23.6 million units, and the number of deals expanded by 62.9 per cent to 44 deals from 27 deals, while the volume of securities declined marginally by 0.9 per cent to 447,403 units from 451,522 units.
At the close of trades, Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Plc was the most traded stock by volume (year-to-date) with 3.4 billion units worth N8.4 billion, trailed by Resourcery Plc with 1.1 billion units valued at N415.7 million, and Infrastructure Guarantee Credit Plc with 400 million units traded for N1.2 billion.
GNI was also the most active stock by value (year-to-date) with 3.4 billion units sold for N8.4 billion, followed by CSCS Plc with 59.6 million units transacted for N4.0 billion, and Okitipupa Plc with 27.8 million units exchanged for N1.9 billion.
Economy
Naira Slips to N1,358/$1 as FX Reserves, Policy Uncertainty Concerns
By Adedapo Adesanya
It was not a good day for the Nigerian Naira in the currency market on Friday, April 24, as its value depreciated against the major foreign currencies at the close of transactions.
In the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX), it lost N4.53 or 0.33 per cent against the United States Dollar yesterday to trade at N1,358.44/$1, in contrast to the N1,353.91/$1 it was exchanged on Thursday.
Equally, the domestic currency slipped against the Pound Sterling in the official market during the session by N8.14 to close at N1,834.02/£1, compared with the previous rate of N1,825.88/£1 and dropped N8.01 against the Euro to sell at N1,590.73/€1 versus N1,582.72/€1.
Also, the Naira depreciated against the US Dollar at the GTBank FX desk on Friday by N4 to quote at N1,370/$1 compared with the previous session’s N1,366/$1, and at the parallel market, it depleted by N5 to settle at N1,380/$1 versus the preceding day’s N1,375/$1.
Data published by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) indicated that NFEM interbank turnover surged to N43.562 million across 68 deals, up from N28.117 million the previous day.
Despite the CBN’s reassurance that the recent drop in external reserves is not worrisome, the market remains unsettled by persistent concerns over liquidity constraints, policy transparency, and weakening confidence in Nigeria’s FX market as gross reserves continue to decline to $48.4 billion.
The outlook for the Dollar appears supported by broader macro risks, including elevated oil prices tied to the tanker traffic disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz and a continued US-Iran standoff over ceasefire negotiations.
A look at the digital currency market showed that investors are sitting on the edge as the US Dollar rebounded amid geopolitical and inflation risks despite continued inflows into US spot bitcoin Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs).
Solana (SOL) rose by 1.2 per cent to sell $86.45, Cardano (ADA) appreciated by 1.1 per cent to $0.2517, Dogecoin (DOGE) grew by 0.9 per cent to $0.0989, Ripple (XRP) improved by 0.3 per cent to $1.43, Ethereum (ETH) soared by 0.2 per cent to $2,316.83, and Binance Coin (BNB) chalked up 0.1 per cent to sell for $637.44.
However, TRON (TRX) depreciated by 1.3 per cent to $0.3235, and Bitcoin (BTC) lost 0.2 per cent to close at $77,562.27, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) closed flat at $1.00 each.
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