General
AfDB Develops Mechanism for Revenue Generation in Extractive Industry
By Adedapo Adesanya
The African Development Bank (AfDB) has developed a three-year project in response to demands by member countries for technical assistance to monitor revenues generated from their extractive industries.
The AfDB made this known during a virtual inception workshop for the Financial Modelling Project in the Extractive Sector (FIMES) organised by the African Natural Resources Centre (ENRC) of the bank in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire.
According to the project report, FIMES will be implemented in eight transitional countries – Guinea, Liberia, Mali, Madagascar, Niger, Sierra Leone, South Sudan and Zimbabwe from 2020 to 2022.
The project, which is the first of its kind for the bank, is aimed at enhancing the abilities of the focal countries to improve domestic resource mobilisation from the extractive sectors.
Presenting the background information on the FIMES project, Mrs Vanessa Ushie, Division Manager, Policy Analysis, (ENRC, AfDB) said the project was aimed at the overall economic resilience of the continent.
Mrs Ushie also said that the scheme would build the capacity of government institutions to elaborate and use financial modelling of extractive projects to inform strategy setting and negotiate contracts and concessions.
She said: “20 government officials in each beneficiary member country will participate in the training, learning and knowledge activities as national beneficiaries, that is, 180 officials in the eight countries.
“Set criteria for selection of beneficiaries in the national cohort to include relevance to primary job function on extractive revenue management, knowledge of extractive sector fiscal issues’ potential multiplier effects (trainer-of-trainers approach) and IT proficiency.
“The project commits to at least 40 per cent of beneficiaries in the eight countries to be women.
“National Focal Point (NFP) main coordinating actor in each beneficiary country must be nominated by the national government to play this role.’’
She said the NFPs coordinate the national government’s engagement on the project, interface with the AfDB and other stakeholders and manage the selection of project beneficiaries.
Mrs Ushie added that the project components would focus on capacity building, peer learning and knowledge exchange, and FIMES’ Virtual Knowledge Hub.
In his contribution, Mr Yero Baldeh, Director, Transitional States Coordination Office, AfDB said the project was “competitively selected from the 2019 proposals’’.
He said the selection was done with a view to building capacity for the financing model and in turn, strengthen domestic resource mobilisation, institutional capacity and resilience in the selected transition member countries.
“The goal is to improve efficiency, sustainability and employer management practices in the artisanal and small scale mining sector in the selected transition countries.
“Through this project, the bank is strengthening the human capacity of government regulatory agencies among others to facilitate the formalisation of artisanal and small scale mining to generate employment and improve economic scales of several stakeholders, especially those along the artisanal and small scale mining value chain.’’ He added.
He reaffirmed the bank’s commitment to collaborate with member countries and its centre to proactively set up joint efforts to increase inclusiveness and accelerate development and support for policy reforms in the extractive sector.
In another contribution, Mrs Marie-Laure Akin-Olugbade, Director-General, West Africa Region, AfDB said the project would help the capacity of member governments to use financial modelling for optimising revenues from the extractives sector.
“This is a priority of the bank and is part of the strategy of the bank in putting together policies to strengthen resource mobilisation, industrialisation and the development of infrastructure,’’ she said.
Mr Akin-Olugbade noted that the Covid-19 pandemic had affected economies of member countries severely, and added that governments needed to strengthen economic resilience in order to recover.
Also, Mrs Josephine Ngure, Acting Director-General, Southern Africa Region, AfDB, said it was important for countries to have a robust and evidence-based framework to process the impact of policy decisions on extractives projects.
Mrs Ngure, who was represented by Mr Pietro Toigo, Country Manager, AfDB Office in Mozambique, added that countries should estimate the amount to which they secure fair shares of resources over the course of the project.
“This is particularly important because robust modelling gives you a sense of the impact over the whole lifespan of a project and helps policymakers not to concentrate on short term gains that may impair the ability of the state to generate revenue in the future,’’ he said.
She called for coordination and leadership across the departments in ministries that were charged with the various aspects of extractive projects.
However, Mrs Nnenna Nwabufo, Acting Director-General, East Africa Region, AfDB, lamented that most African countries exported extractive resources as raw materials with little value-added.
She noted that exportation of raw mineral resources was not beneficial to the sustainable economic development of the continent.
“We look forward to FIMES leading to increased transparency and accountability in the management of financial gains for the benefits of the countries rather than personal agenda of individuals or political interest groups,’’ she said.
She added that there was also the need to create an enabling environment that fostered linkages between projects in the extractives industry and the broader economy thereby contributing to inclusive and sustainable development.
The Director then called on the bank and it’s development partners to support member countries to build strong democratic institutions.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) has elected Mrs Oyinkansola Badejo-Okusanya, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), as its next president after she polled the most votes when voting officially ended on Sunday morning.
Mrs Badejo-Okusanya, the only female among the three presidential candidates, polled 12,317 votes to emerge the winner of the election, which was held through electronic voting for 24 hours, from 7:35 am on Saturday to 7:34 am on Sunday.
She defeated her two challengers, polling 47.18 per cent of the 26,106 ballots cast in the presidential election, based on the final tally. Her closest challenger, Mr Lateef Akangbe (SAN), garnered 7,934 votes, representing 30.39 per cent of the total votes cast, while the third candidate, Mr Olumuyiwa Akinboro (SAN), polled 5,855 votes, representing 22.43 per cent, to emerge third in the contest.
The Electoral Committee of the NBA (ECNBA) Chairman disclosed that a total of 26,106 votes were recorded for the highly disputed presidential election.
With her victory, Mrs Badejo-Okusanya will become the 33rd President of the legal association, successfully re-enacting a 34-year-old history as the second female to lead the NBA since its formation in 1933.
Meanwhile, Mr Afam Okeke was elected General Secretary of the legal body, having polled a total of 8,478 votes to defeat his opponents.
All the elected officials will be in office for two years, spanning 2026 to 2028.
The NBA president-elect was absent when the results of the election were announced at the NBA headquarters in Abuja. A member of her campaign team, Mr Aminu Gadanya (SAN), revealed that she had a flight delay and declared her resolve to extend a “handshake of friendship” to all the aggrieved candidates.
In his remarks after the results were announced, the outgoing President of the NBA, Mr Afam Osigwe (SAN), noted that the election faced several challenges, including a cyberattack that almost derailed the electoral process.
“Many went to great lengths to truncate the electoral process. They maligned the process with their utterances, but we held firm. Every effort to derail the process failed,” Mr Osigwe stated.
He urged the winners to be magnanimous in victory, warning that they should celebrate moderately.
“This is a trying time for the Bar. Many people may still go to great lengths to rubbish the association. However, this is a time for healing. At the end of the day, let the Bar be the winner,” he added.
He said the ECNBA would carry out an in-depth analysis, especially of the challenges encountered, so as to come up with recommendations that will engender greater confidence in the association’s electoral process.
“The cyberattack shows that we must do more, not only for data protection, but to protect our electoral integrity. We must insulate our electoral process from such activities.
“Someday the story will be told of how the ICT system had to be rebuilt and moved to a safer server to ensure that the election was held.
“The Bar must always protect its independence and eternally determine the course of its electoral process,” the outgoing NBA President added.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
Over 50 skilled technicians drawn from various states across the South-West region of Nigeria converged on Ibadan, Oyo State, on Friday for a comprehensive technical and sensitisation training programme for set-top box installers and associated reception equipment technicians.
This training was organised by the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) in partnership with the Nigerian Communications Satellite Limited (NIGCOMSAT) to guarantee a smooth, efficient, and error-free rollout of Nigeria’s digital broadcasting migration.
Nigeria’s journey toward digital terrestrial television has spanned nearly two decades. The country formally adopted the digital switchover policy in 2008 in line with the International Telecommunication Union’s (ITU) 2006 global mandate, which set a June 2015 deadline for member states.
Successive missed targets in 2017 and beyond stemmed from funding constraints, policy inconsistencies, infrastructure gaps, and logistical challenges. While pilot projects were implemented in Plateau, Lagos, Kano, Enugu, Kwara, Osun, Kaduna, and the Federal Capital Territory, nationwide coverage remained a distant goal.
After substantial public investment exceeding N60 billion with limited results, the federal government unveiled a bold, renewed strategy in 2025 titled The Big Picture on June 17, 2026, with a firm analogue switch-off date set for December 31, 2028.
The new framework introduces a hybrid broadcasting model that intelligently combines Digital Terrestrial Television (DTT), Direct-to-Home (DTH) satellite delivery via NIGCOMSAT-1R, and Internet Protocol (IP)-based distribution.
By prioritising satellite technology, Nigeria leverages its sovereign satellite assets to significantly reduce dependence on expensive terrestrial transmission infrastructure. This approach is projected to accelerate digital television rollout by over 65 per cent while delivering near-instantaneous national coverage.
The Head of the Digital Switchover (DSO) unit and Deputy Director of Public Affairs at the NBC, Mrs Clementine Usman-Wamba, noted that the Ibadan session is the first of many planned across Nigeria’s geopolitical zones.
The Ibadan training directly addresses the technical demands of this hybrid ecosystem. Installers will be equipped with skills in satellite dish alignment for DTH, terrestrial antenna optimisation for DTT signals, and the configuration of hybrid reception devices.
Given the significant departure from analogue systems and earlier pilots, this sensitisation is essential to minimise installation errors, reduce service disruptions, and ensure that even households in rural and underserved communities can enjoy seamless access to superior digital broadcasts.
The FreeTV platform, built on open-standard DVB-S2 technology, will offer up to 100 free-to-air high-definition channels to an estimated 40 million television households across the country.
For terrestrial reception, Nigeria has adopted the advanced DVB-T2 standard with MPEG-4 AVC compression, which supports up to 20 channels per frequency—far more efficient than previous systems.
Consumers can access the service using affordable DVB-S2-compatible set-top boxes (priced between N15,000 and N25,000) or smart TVs with built-in DVB-T2 digital tuners.
Beyond technical excellence, the DSO represents a major national economic transformation project. The reallocation of broadcast spectrum (the “digital dividend”) will unlock new opportunities in telecommunications and broadband services. The advertising market is projected to expand by up to N605.2 billion, while local manufacturing and assembly of reception equipment is expected to generate over 20,000 jobs.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) has introduced the Blue Economy Accelerator Programme, a strategic initiative to identify, nurture, and accelerate innovative startups that will contribute to the sustainable growth of Nigeria’s marine and blue economy.
The Blue Economy Accelerator Programme is aimed at attracting young, vibrant minds with innovative ideas capable of transforming Nigeria’s maritime ecosystem.
The Director-General of NIMASA, Mr Dayo Mobereola, said that through the initiative, participants will receive structured business development support, industry mentorship, and technical guidance to convert promising concepts into viable ventures that address critical challenges and opportunities within the blue economy.
“The programme reflects NIMASA’s commitment to supporting the implementation of the vision of the Federal Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy in unlocking the immense potential of the blue economy by empowering young innovators, entrepreneurs, and technology-driven enterprises. We at NIMASA want to provide a platform for investors to identify young talents and invest in them,” he said.
The NIMASA DG commended the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Mr Adegboyega Oyetola, for codifying the Marine and Blue Economy Policy as a clear roadmap for the sector’s development and also urged young Nigerians to embrace the programme, which has the potential to transform raw talents into big investments in the maritime sector.
Applications are open to startups and innovators developing solutions across several strategic sectors, including marine waste management and the blue circular economy; aquaculture And sustainable fisheries; maritime technology and logistics innovation; ocean energy including wave, tidal, and offshore renewable energy; marine tourism and coastal recreation; marine biotechnology such as, ocean data and analytics; green Shipping, including vessel decarbonization; smart port solutions; autonomous marine vehicles; biofouling prevention technologies; and coastal resilience through nature-based coastal defence solutions.
The first phase of the programme is expected to attract a minimum of 150 high-quality applications from within and outside the country, provided they are Nigerian citizens.
