Economy
Nigeria Will Get Out Of Recession March 2017—Dangote
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
President/Chief Executive Officer of Dangote Group, Mr Aliko Dangote, has predicted that Nigeria will be out of its present economic recession “at about the first quarter of next year.”
The Africa’s richest man believes Nigeria has all it takes to bounce back, pointing out that the private sector in the country was huge.
Mr Dangote made these comments on Monday when he hosted staff, participants and some members of alumni of Lagos Business School (LBS) at his Dangote Refinery in the Lekki Free Trade Zone, Lagos.
The business mogul, who delivered a lecture titled ‘The Role of Business in Driving Sustainable Development in Africa-The Story of Dangote Group’, said the country must pay serious attention to agriculture in order to reduce importation.
Nigeria currently depends of foods from other nations to feed its citizens. This has weakened the Naira in the foreign exchange market. Most Nigerians also have confidence in imported goods, neglecting its locally made goods.
At Monday’s event, Mr Dangote stressed the role of businesses in the acceleration of the Nigerian and African economy.
He submitted that, “I personally believe we will be out of recession at about the first quarter of next year, Nigeria has what it takes, and the private sector is huge in Nigeria. The government should not focus on any business what the government should focus on, is tax collection.”
“Today in Nigeria we have 60 percent more arable land than in China, yet most of what we consume we are importing, we must drastically change and diversify the economy if not we will be in trouble. We are the only African country that is not self-sufficient, we need to focus and move into agriculture,” he said.
During the occasion, which ended with a question and answer session with Mr Dangote, the guests were given a guided tour of the ongoing construction of the $12 billion Dangote refinery grounds which includes a petrochemical project, gas pipeline project and a fertilizer project.
Dr Henrietta Onwuegbuzie, LBS Entrepreneurship Faculty, who facilitated the visit to the refinery, said the purpose of the visit was to inspire participants and allow them see how they can also contribute to the growth of Nigeria.
“I believe the visit has a powerful effect in terms of inspiring the participants, for me it is important we develop impact driven executives, entrepreneurs and business owners; this is one way of getting them really inspired by seeing how they can contribute to accelerating the development of Nigeria” she said.
Participants in attendance were extremely grateful for the opportunity and very pleased with the knowledge they received.
Ify Ukachukwu, Executive Director, Rexons Industries Limited (OMP 22) said “the visit was very gratifying, I am happy I got the opportunity to learn about the importance of the manufacturing industry from Dangote, especially with the current economic situation of Nigeria.”
For Jeffery Olaleye, CEO, Frame Engineering (EMBA 18) the visit allowed him realise that there are various business opportunities which entrepreneurs can tap into.
“It is a bundle of knowledge and investment, this visit enabled me to understand the importance of diversification, it has also opened my eyes to a lot of opportunities which I will like to tap into,” he said.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS) has unveiled a unified Taxpayer Identification (Tax ID) system for all taxable persons across the country as part of efforts to strengthen tax administration and improve transparency.
The agency announced the development in a public notice issued jointly with the Joint Revenue Board (JRB) on Monday.
According to the notice, the initiative is backed by Sections 6, 7, and 8 of the Nigeria Tax Administration Act, 2025, which mandate every taxable person in Nigeria to obtain a Tax ID, in a wider move to expand the country’s tax base.
The NRS said the new framework is designed to create a centralised and harmonised taxpayer database that would enhance interactions between taxpayers and revenue authorities at both federal and sub-national levels.
“The Tax ID will serve as a single, unified identity for all taxpayers, enabling seamless interaction with tax authorities at both federal and sub-national levels. It is designed to consolidate taxpayer records, eliminate duplication, and ensure more efficient management of tax-related information,” the agency stated.
The revenue agency explained that the new system would simplify tax compliance procedures, including taxpayer registration, filing of returns, and payment processes.
According to the NRS, the framework is also expected to improve accountability and reduce leakages in tax collection by creating better visibility and tracking of taxpayer information nationwide.
“The initiative will simplify tax compliance processes, including registration, tax filing, and payment procedures. The system will improve transparency by enabling better visibility and tracking of taxpayer records while reducing leakages and improving accountability in tax collection. The framework will also harmonise taxpayer information across all levels of government,” the notice added.
The agency further disclosed that the new Tax ID system would replace the existing Tax Identification Number (TIN) Validation API currently used by Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), financial institutions, and other organisations for taxpayer verification.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Three bellwether stocks weakened the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange by 1.31 per cent on Monday, May 18.
This brought the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) by 54.71 points to 4,133.70 points from 4,188.41 points, and shrank the market capitalisation by N32.73 billion to N2.473 trillion from N2.506 trillion.
Yesterday, FrieslandCampina Wamco Plc contracted by N12.45 to sell at N146.55 per share compared with last Friday’s closing price of N159.00 per share, Central Securities and Clearing System (CSCS) Plc declined by N2.34 to N70.00 per unit from N72.34 per unit, and NASD Plc lost 50 Kobo to trade at N34.50 per share versus N35.00 per share.
The trio overpowered the N5.56 gained Newrest Asl Plc. This stock ended the trading session at N61.15 per unit, in contrast to the previous session’s N55.59 per unit.
During the trading day, the volume of securities traded by investors slid by 56.1 per cent to 514,142 units from 1.2 million units, and the value of securities dropped 29.8 per cent to close at N17.4 million versus N29.8 million, while the number of deals jumped 12.5 per cent to 27 deals from 24 deals.
Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Plc remained the most traded stock by value on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units sold for N8.4 billion, followed by CSCS Plc with 60.8 million units exchanged for N4.1 billion, and Okitipupa Plc with 27.9 million units traded for N1.9 billion.
GNI Plc also ended the day as the most traded stock by volume on a year-to-date basis 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 transacted for N1.2 billion.
By Adedapo Adesanya
It was a horrible day for the Nigerian Naira in the different segments of the foreign exchange (FX) market on Monday, May 15, as its value further weakened against the United States Dollar.
In the black market window, the Naira lost N5 against the Dollar yesterday to sell for N1,390/$1 compared with the previous value of N1,385/$1, but at the GTBank forex counter, it remained unchanged at N1,383/$1.
In the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX), the Nigerian currency depreciated against the greenback by N2.66 or 0.19 per cent to sell for N1,373.70/$1 compared to last Friday’s rate of N1,371.04/$1.
Equally, it fell against the Pound Sterling in the same market segment by N9.05 to trade at N1,839.66/£1 versus N1,830.61/£1, and lost N5.42 on the Euro to close at N1,600.49/€1 versus N1,595.07/€1.
The performance of the local currency during the session indicates early worries despite all signals pointing to stability, amid improved Dollar sales by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), with steady, higher oil receipts to bolster the nation’s reserves.
Activity at the market showed that turnover rose 57.3 per cent to $76.29 million on Monday from $48.49 million posted on Friday.
Over the weekend, S&P raised Nigeria’s credit ratings for the first time since 2012 and highlighted improved FX market liquidity and $10 billion turnover recorded in April 2026 as one of the major gains of the CBN-led FX reforms.
The agency said the liberalisation of the exchange rate has bolstered access to foreign currency and enabled a market-driven exchange-rate environment while supporting investor and consumer confidence.
Meanwhile, the cryptocurrency market was bullish on Monday as investors monitored developments in the Iran conflict and weighed the impact of surging oil prices on inflation and US interest-rate expectations.
Ethereum (ETH) gained 0.7 per cent to trade at $2,134.10, Cardano (ADA) rose by 0.6 per cent to $0.2515, Solana (SOL) expanded by 0.3 per cent to $85.11, Binance Coin (BNB) jumped 0.2 per cent to $643.29, TRON (TRX) increased by 0.03 per cent to $0.3565, and Bitcoin (BTC) advanced by 0.02 per cent to $76,912.12.
On the flip side, Dogecoin (DOGE) slid by 1.5 per cent to $0.1044, and Ripple (XRP) decreased by 0.5 per cent to $1.38, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) traded flat at $1.00 apiece.
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