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CBA Foundation Shares Food, Cash to Anambra Widows
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
As part of the New Year celebration, the Chinwe Bode-Akinwande (CBA) Foundation, a non-governmental organization in Nigeria, has put smiles on faces of some widows in Nnewi, Anambra State.
The event, which was held on Friday, January 1, 2021, had excited widows numbering over 55 going home with food-items and financial empowerment.
Speaking at the event, the founder of the NGO, Mrs Chinwe Bode-Akinwande, said the basis for diligently driving the foundation is derived from the passion and need to impact the lives of underprivileged widows who have gone through so much pain and discrimination and might have lost hope.
“We give hope to the hopeless. We are driven to support underprivileged widows to have a positive outlook on life despite the problems they experience by losing their loved one, mostly the breadwinner of the family.
“At the moment, we have over 1,200 authentic widows on our profile. The successes have been enormous, many women are now business owners and are able to not just fend for their families but are employers of labour. Over 40 children who had lost hope in education are back to school, through the payment of school fees as well as provision of stationeries. Twenty-six underprivileged widows through our medical intervention recovered from stroke.
“We have reached out to over 5,600 underprivileged widows and over 850 children through our International Widow’s Day outreaches since we started with food items, clothing, skill acquisition training, and financial empowerment to some selected and medical outreaches. We can go on and on but time wouldn’t permit me,” she said.
Mrs Bode-Akinwande added: “We have a long term expansion plan but what matters to us at CBA Foundation is our immediate environment.
“This indeed forms the basis for expanding our environment beyond Lagos, Ogun and Anambra which we currently cover. We are hopeful that more individuals and organisations will support us to spread across the country and beyond.”
At the Nnewi outreach, the widows expressed gratitude to the foundation as some were seen with smiles and relief on their faces.
According to Mrs Nwosu, one of the widows, a bitter kola and palm kernel trader, every market day, she goes to the town’s market society to borrow money to be able to buy and resell; she thereafter returns the money along with a part of the profit.
Mrs Nwosu was given a seed capital for bitter kola and palm kernel business by the CBA Foundation.
Mrs Nnodu is a mother of three. She and her kids hawk fruits on the streets. They share the routes they have to cover daily. To boost her income, she used to borrow money from the women group to sell plastics but was unable to meet up interest and timelines. She became a lucky beneficiary of CBA Foundation seed capital for the plastic business and packaging of the fruits.
Just like Nwosu, periodic checks and reports are to be done by leaders of their respective groups to track their progress, Mrs. Chinwe Bode-Akinwande, the CBA founder said.
For Mrs Okonkwo, the kids’ welfare had remained a huge challenge. The widow who cleans the streets and takes care of her very aged mother, wants to start a poultry business that can fetch her money, take care of the sick aged mother with her is enough for her to cater for her kids. CBA has come to her rescue also by providing seed capital for the poultry business which will be tracked by her group leader just like others who were empowered the same day of outreach.
One of them, Mrs Akoma, goes into thick bushes to fetch firewood, arranges them and takes to different market days to sell and earn a living. Akaoma was also among the beneficiaries of the seed capital to start a business to immediately stop the risk to her life in the thick forest.
The CBA Foundation is primarily dedicated to promoting the protection of Nigerian underprivileged widows and their vulnerable children, restoring immediate and lasting hope, confidence, and courage in their lives.
Established in 2015, the foundation, under its five-point agenda, has reached out to thousands of underprivileged widows and children through skills acquisition training, health intervention, business start-ups and provision of clothing, nutrition and tuition fees for the children.
A breakdown shows 5,600 widows have been empowered through its women empowerment and capacity building initiative; over 3,500underprivileged widows have received health intervention while over 3,600 have received food items.
The foundation has also reinstated 45 children in schools, empowered 120 widows financially to start a business of their own and provided palliatives to 250 widows during the COVID-19 pandemic lock-down.
By Adedapo Adesanya
After years of laying fallow, the Port Harcourt Refinery began producing and distribute petroleum products Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) or petrol, Automotive Gas Oil (AGO) or diesel and Household Kerosene (HHK) or Kerosene.
This development has raised expectations regarding Nigeria’s other three refineries not yet operational. These include the second refinery in Port Harcourt as well as the Warri and Kaduna Refinery.
The reactivation of these facilities, according to energy analysts, will help push out more supply of petroleum products, which may help cut down high prices that Nigerians pay while also making the country self-sufficient.
The newly operational refinery was built in 1965 and Port Harcourt II was added in 1989, increasing capacity by 150,000 barrels per day, making the total capacity of the Port Harcourt complex 210,000 barrels per day.
The Warri Refinery was built in in 1978 and is supposed to have an upgraded capacity up to 125,000 barrels per day and the Kaduna Refinery, which was commissioned in 1980, was designed with a capacity of 110,000 barrels per day.
Speaking during a brief ceremony to mark the commencement of products loading at the refinery on Tuesday in Port Harcourt, the Group CEO, Mr Mele Kyari described the commencement of the loadout activities as a monumental achievement for Nigeria which signifies a new era of energy independence and economic growth for the country.
The GCEO further thanked Nigerians for their patience and for the legitimate expectations on the Company to deliver on the other refineries.
Meanwhile, President Bola Tinubu on Tuesday extended his heartfelt congratulations to the NNPC on the successful revitalization of the Port Harcourt refinery and charged the NNPC Limited to expedite the scheduled reactivation of both the second Port Harcourt refinery and the Warri and Kaduna refineries.
He said these efforts will significantly enhance domestic production capacity alongside the contributions of privately-owned refineries and make our country a major energy hub, with the gas sector also enjoying unprecedented attention by the administration.
The President underscores his administration’s determination to repair the nation’s refineries, aiming to eradicate the disheartening perception of Nigeria as a major crude oil producer that lacks the ability to refine its own resources for domestic consumption.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
Some stakeholders in Oyo State, including the state government, have called for a speedy passage of the National Digital Economy and e-Governance Bill, submitting that it would ensure accountability and transparency in governance.
At a stakeholder engagement meeting on the National Digital Economy and eGovernance Bill in Ibadan on Tuesday, participants agreed that the e-governance bill would smoothen government activities and boost government-citizen engagement.
The Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Mr Olatunbosun Tijani, appealed to Nigerians to give the bill the needed support for passage.
Mr Tinubu, speaking at the event through Banke Ajagunna, noted that the importance of the bill cannot be underestimated as it will enhance the digital economy and build trust between the government and the people.
According to him, the consultative engagement is going on in all the states of the federation to seek the input of stakeholders on the bill, and submitting it is a significant step forward in Nigeria’s digital transformation journey.
This bill, according to him, aims to drive economic growth through digital technology, improve public service delivery, and create a competitive environment for the Nigerian digital economy.
He noted that in a bid to migrate Nigeria into a smart country, the federal government through his ministry proposed the National Digital Economy and e-Governance Bill.
The Minister said the bill offers numerous opportunities for businesses to innovate and expand, with improved digital infrastructure and a supportive regulatory environment. Individuals will also benefit from improved access to digital services and better governance through e-governance initiatives.
He highlighted the advantages of the E-governance bill to include Economic Transformation and Establishment of a regulatory foundation to encourage digital commerce, cross-border trade, and innovation, positioning Nigeria as a major player in Africa’s digital landscape.
“It will facilitate the digital transformation of government services to make them more transparent, accessible, and responsive to citizens,” Mr Tijani stated.
He also said the bill will ensure Digital Access for All, saying, “it will promote infrastructure and digital literacy programs to make digital services accessible across Nigeria, including underserved regions.”
Speaking earlier, the Senior Special Assistant on ICT and E-Governance to the Governor, Mr Bayo Akande hailed the federal government’s National Digital Economy and E-Governance Bill.
Mr Akande, who observed that the nation is overdue for a digital economy, which is the order of the day, added that this bill will drive economic growth through digital technology.
“Despite advances in technology, Nigeria’s digital economy faces critical challenges, Nigeria lags behind countries with robust e-governance frameworks that empower citizens and protect consumer data. Without intervention, Nigeria risks losing economic opportunities in an increasingly digital world,” he stated.
“Though Oyo has already started to introduce digital methods in the governance space of the state, as the state recently deployed Business Process Automation, in a bid to make Oyo state government services go paperless, the bill is a step in the right direction,” the aide to Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State noted.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The national leadership of the Labour Party (LP) has affirmed Mr Lookman Abiodun Jagun as the leader of the party in Ogun State.
Mr Jagun was appointed as the leader of the Caretaker Committee for Ogun State chapter of the opposition party by its highest organ, the National Executive Committee (NEC).
In a statement issued by the National Publicity Secretary of Labour Party, Obiora Ifoh, it was emphasised that any other group parading itself as the leadership organ of the party in Ogun State was not recognised by the national leadership.
There has been a group known as the Interim Executive Committee (IEC) of the Labour Party claiming to be in charge of the party in the state.
But Labour Party stated that this group is not known to it as “the Interim Executive Committee is an aberration and it is unknown to both the constitution of the Labour Party and the national leadership of the party.”
The Labour Party has a structure and a valid constitution that governs its operations and all members are expected to abide by the party’s constitution.
“The party does not permit or encourages members to arrogate powers and functions to themselves, without recourse to the constitution or the national leadership.
“Faithful party men and women in Ogun state are advised to be wary of the antics and activities of the self-styled IEC, as they do not enjoy the support or validation of the National Leadership of the Labour Party.
“We also urge every member and intending members to subject themselves to the ongoing e-membership registration and revalidation exercise to be able to participate in the activities of the party, including the congresses that will commence in February 2025 across the nation,” the statement said.
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