Paris Club: Kwara Governor Okays Release of N1b to Councils

By Adedapo Adesanya  Nigeria’s economy, measured through its gross domestic product (GDP), witnessed a 2.54 per cent growth in the third quarter (Q3) of the year 2023. In a report published on Friday by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), the 2.54 per cent year-on-year growth in real terms in the third quarter of 2023 is higher than the 2.25 per cent recorded in the third quarter of 2022 and higher than the second quarter 2023 growth of 2.51 per cent. The bureau further said that the performance of the GDP in the third quarter of 2023 was driven mainly by

By Adedapo Adesanya  Oil prices fell on Friday as the release of some hostages in Gaza reduced the geopolitical risk premium and indicated that the Israel-Hamas tensions may not have much effect on the oil market. Brent crude futures depreciated by 84 cents or 1 per cent at $80.58 a barrel, while the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude dropped $1.56 or 2 per cent to close at $75.54. There was no settlement for WTI on Thursday owing to the US Thanksgiving holiday. Prices notched their first week of gains in over a month ahead of next week’s meeting of

By Adedapo Adesanya The Naira appreciated against the US Dollar in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM) on Friday, November 27 as expectations of renewed confidence that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) would offer stability to the market. Before the market closed, there were indications that the CBN Governor, Mr Olayemi Cardoso, would share his plans for the Nigerian economy at a dinner for bankers in Lagos and this boosted a fresh hope, considering he had not offered a direction prior then. In the official market, the domestic currency gained N161.44 or 16.9 per cent against the Dollar

By Adedapo Adesanya The Naira depreciated in the opening session of the week in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM) on Monday, November 27 against the Dollar by N19.71 or 2.5 per cent as the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr Olayemi Cardoso, said the lender was committed to clearing a backlog of foreign exchange (forex). “We have initiated the payment of unsettled forward foreign exchange obligations, and these payments will continue until all obligations are cleared,” he told bankers last Friday during a dinner speech in Lagos. However, his assurance could not ease the pressure

By Adedapo Adesanya The Naira appreciated against the United States Dollar in the various segments of the foreign exchange (forex) on Thursday despite the current cash crunch not easing. In the parallel market window of the market, the Nigerian Naira gained N3 against the greenback to settle at N765/$1, in contrast to the previous day’s rate of N768/$1. Also, in the Peer-2-Peer (P2P) arm, the local currency appreciated against the American currency by N1 during the session to close at N770/$1 versus Wednesday’s value of N771/$1. In the Investors and Exporters (I&E) segment, the domestic currency garnered 27 Kobo or

By Dipo Olowookere One of the world’s leading telecommunications operators, Orange, has announced the launch of its brand in Burkina Faso. Less than one year after the closing of the Group’s acquisition of Airtel, together with Orange Côte d’Ivoire, this announcement clearly demonstrates Orange’s ambitions for the West African market. Orange will pursue its development in mobile financial services and 3.75G mobile Internet, where it was the first operator to launch and is today the uncontested leader in Burkina Faso. Its Orange Money solution for international transfers will be further expanded in the West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA).

By Dipo Olowookere Minister of Information and Culture, Mr Lai Mohammed, has disclosed that the importation of rice into Nigeria has significantly dropped in the last two years. Mr Mohammed attributed this to the various initiatives embarked upon by the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari. One of such, according to the Minister, is the introduction of the Anchor Borrowers’ Programme (ABP) by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) aimed to boost local production of the staple food in the country. While addressing newsmen on Wednesday in Abuja, Mr Mohammed said Federal Government was very close to achieving self-sufficiency in rice.

By Adeniyi Ogunfowoke Technology is changing almost everything around us including our reading habits. In the past when there were no apps, book lovers had to visit bookstores to buy books authored by their favourite writers. This is no longer the case because there are now very useful apps enhancing or influencing individual reading experiences. These Apps can be used and downloaded by everyone at any time of the day on android, blackberry, or Android phones. Jumia Travel, Africa’s No 1 hotel booking sums up 6 useful apps for book lovers. Goodreads Goodreads has metamorphosed into a sort of social

By Lerisha Naidu, Angelo Tzarevski and Sphesihle Nxumalo There has been a general upward trend in competition policy enforcement across the continent over the past few years. African jurisdictions have strengthened their competition and antitrust regimes by way of amendments to existing legislation, the introduction of new laws and regulations, and renewed fervour and political will to enforce existing laws. Most notably, there has been a growing convergence of competition law and social policy on the continent. The central tenet of competition policy is that inclusive economies yield better outcomes for both producers and consumers. Recent trends indicate that governments

By Modupe Gbadeyanka The recent ROCCO SMS Firewall Performance Report has announced Comviva as Tier 1 SMS Firewall Vendor. The report reflects how SMS Firewall providers are perceived by Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) across performance criteria, which are fundamental to the delivery of SMS Firewall service. About 131 MNOs across 92 countries partook in the unique consumer-led research and the global leader in mobility solutions received an overall rating of 4.02 out of 5 from the exercise. From the 18 vendors looked into, Comviva was listed amongst the top five based on various performance criteria, like reliability, customer service, technical

By Aduragbemi Omiyale A partnership aimed to make available to air passengers real-time flight schedules and inventory has been entered into between Wakanow and Dana Airlines, also known as Dana Air. “Wakanow is expected to bring in another differentiator to the Nigerian travel industry as we begin this collaboration with Dana Airlines,” the chief executive of Wakanow, Mr Adebayo Adedeji, stated. “With this partnership, we are poised to change the face of domestic travel for Nigerian travellers and other tourists from across the world. We would bring our topnotch expertise to bear so that this collaboration will be a case

By Dipo Olowookere **Says Sale Won’t Affect FBN Insurance Brokers Limited The Group Managing Director of FBN Holdings Plc, Mr Kalu Eke, has disclosed that the sale of the insurance business of the group, FBN Insurance Limited, was to deliver greater value to shareholders of the financial powerhouse in Nigeria. FBN Holdings, in a deal which became effective on June 1, 2020, transferred ownership of the company to Sanlam Emerging Markets (Proprietary) Limited. Before the transaction, the Nigerian firm controlled 65 percent equity in the insurer, while Sanlam had the other 35 percent share. But Sanlam has acquired the 65