General
463 Kwara Civil Servants Get N303.8m Loan for Home Renovation
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The sum of N303.8 million has been disbursed to 463 civil servants in Kwara State as mortgage loans to renovate or improve existing properties that are personally owned by them or through family ownership.
The credit facility was given to the beneficiaries on Monday by the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria (FMBN) under the FMBN home renovation loan scheme.
The Managing Director of the agency, Mr Ahmed Dangiwa, explained that the loan window affords Nigerians who are contributors to the National Housing Fund (NNF) an opportunity to access mortgage loans.
Mr Dangiwa, who was represented by the Deputy General Manager of FMBN, Mr Ibrahim Nafada, said before now, the agency had approved a sum of N401.2 million for 708 members of staff of the Kwara State Universal Basic Education which will be credited to individual beneficiaries’ accounts after execution of all other conditions precedent to disbursement.
“Permit me to applaud the commitment and cooperation of the Governor [of Kwara State] Mr AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq and the Head of Service (HoS), Mrs Susan Modupe, in executing these documents promptly which has enabled the Kwara State civil servants to benefit from FMBN home renovation loan to the tune of N1,025,283,000 disbursed to 1,575 beneficiaries. Today, we are disbursing the sum of N303,750,000 to 463 beneficiaries,” he said.
At the presentation of cheques to the 463 beneficiaries, the Governor, while speaking, said, “This home renovation loan scheme is basically an initiative of the FMBN that many of you have enrolled in.
“You have played your own role by enrolling in the scheme, trusting the system to work for you, playing your own role as patriotic citizens and as workers.
“For you to benefit from this loan, however, your state government must stand as your guarantor. And we gladly did because we trust that you have also worked to earn our trust,” Mr AbdulRazaq said at the event attended by civil servants from across ministries, departments, and agencies in the state.
Represented by the Deputy Governor, Mr Kayode Alabi, the Governor promised to mobilise available resources and grab every opportunity to improve the wellbeing of the civil servants as well as the ordinary citizens.
“Without workers, nothing meaningful gets done. For this reason, we will always mobilise available resources and grab every opportunity to improve the well-being of the civil servants as well as the ordinary citizens. This event is another testimony of the resolve of this administration to grab every opportunity to make our workers happy,” he added.
“We are ensuring that workers across all cadres enjoy their promotion and the pay rise that comes with it. We have also approved training and retraining for workers while offering support to those of you pursuing further degrees at home or abroad.
“We have also ensured a decent work environment with relevant tools through completion of the secretariat, purchase of new vehicles, and modern computers and accessories. We continue to support workers with health issues. We have also ensured that workers are paid as and when due as a matter of right.
“We are also considering other supportive measures to ease the effects of inflation on what you earn. For example, we are building a public school system that offers our children a standard that will be the envy of other states and the pride of our people.
“The recent recruitment of qualified and competent teachers is a bold beginning. We are following it up with school remodelling and reconstruction across the state,” the Governor stated.
Mr AbdulRazaq appealed to civil servants to continue to trust the government and work with the administration to build a sustainable future for all of the Kwara people.
For her part, the HoS said the present administration was doing everything possible to tap all available opportunities and resources from both governmental and non-governmental organisations for the benefit of the people.
“The scheme was designed especially for contributors to the National Housing Fund to benefit from their contributions on lower interest rates.
“Through the committed efforts of government, the FMBN not only approved the loan for all interested civil servants, who indicated their interests but also made cheques for them.
“I want to advise the beneficiaries of the first phase and those to benefit in subsequent batches to make use of the loan for the purpose for which it is meant for. A comfortable home for a civil servant is no doubt a sine-qua-non for comfortable living which ultimately would lead to the high productivity of such civil servant,” she said.
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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