By Aduragbemi Omiyale

A foremost telecommunications company in Nigeria, MTN Nigeria, has paid a glowing tribute to its founding chairman, Mr Pascal Gabriel Dozie, who died in the early hours of Tuesday, April 8, 2025, a day to his 86th birthday.

In a statement, the firm said it was “deeply saddened by the passing” of Mr Dozie, who founded the defunct Diamond Bank Plc, which merged with Access Bank in April 2019.

MTN Nigeria, which extended its condolences to the deceased’s family, friends, and others, said he “played a pivotal role in the emergence of mobile telephony” in the country.

For 18 years, from 2001 to 2019, he served as chairman of the organisation, leading with strength and conviction.

It was stated that his presence on the board was unifying, championing good governance, corporate responsibility, and long-term value, deeply committed to the greater good, and remained a stabilising force in challenging times.

MTN Nigeria said Mr Dozie brought insight, experience, and leadership at a time when bold vision was essential, and was instrumental in securing the early support and investment that brought the Y’ello dream to life.

On May 16, 2001, he made the first call on the MTN network, a historic moment in Nigeria’s telecommunications journey.

The chief executive of MTN Nigeria, Mr Karl Toriola, said, “His unwavering belief in Nigeria’s potential and his dedication to its development were truly inspiring. His leadership at MTN Nigeria laid the foundation for our success, and his legacy will continue to guide us in the years to come.”

“Dr Dozie was instrumental in MTN Group’s expansion into Nigeria, providing visionary leadership that has left an indelible mark on our company’s history.

“His commitment to excellence and integrity set a standard that we continue to uphold,” the chief executive of MTN Group, Mr Ralph Mupita, noted in the statement.

The company said the memory of Mr Dozie would “remain a guiding light for MTN, Nigeria’s business community, and everyone who shares his unwavering commitment to progress built on integrity and service.”

Listing some of his landmark contributions, the statement said the deceased was instrumental in the incorporation of the MTN Nigeria Foundation in 2004, ensuring that the firm dedicated a percentage of profit after tax to social investments.

He was also involved in the launch of one of Africa’s largest switching centres in 2010, and played a significant role in critical conversations around the regulatory fine and its resolution in 2015.

Also, he supported the introduction of Africa’s first 3G feature phone in 2018, and backed the listing of MTN Nigeria on the premium board of the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited in 2019.

By Adedapo Adesanya

The Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA) has commended the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) for the recent policy reforms and operational improvement, which have boosted trade facilitation.

NECA President, Mr Ifeanyi Okogwu, gave the commendation on Monday while leading a delegation on a courtesy visit to the Comptroller-General of Customs, Mr Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, at the NCS headquarters in Maitama, Abuja.

According to a statement on the service’s X on Tuesday, the visit was aimed at strengthening collaboration on trade facilitation and private sector development.

“We are here today to commend the Service for your impactful initiatives so far. NECA was established in 1957 to represent the interests of businesses in Nigeria.

“Today, with over 4,000 members, we play a vital role in enhancing the operating environment for businesses, and we recognise the customs as a critical partner in this journey,” he said.

Mr Okogwu emphasised that key trade facilitation tools introduced by the service, including Advance Ruling, the Authorised Economic Operator (AEO) programme, and the Time Release Study were significant in reducing bureaucratic bottlenecks and improving the ease of doing business, especially for small and medium-scale enterprises (SMEs).

“These reforms are not just policies on paper; they are impactful initiatives directly supporting Nigerian businesses, particularly SMEs. We look forward to continued engagement with the NCS to ensure businesses thrive and the economy grows,” he added.

On his part, the CG thanked the NECA team for the visit and for recognising the agency’s efforts, reiterating the NCS’s unwavering commitment to working closely with the private sector to build a more inclusive trade environment.

“I am always glad to partner with private enterprises. At Customs, we’ve come to understand that our actions or inaction have a direct bearing on the kind of business environment we create. This is why we put a lot of premium on trade facilitation and stakeholder engagement,” Mr Adeniyi said.

The Customs boss assured that the Service remains public-centric in its approach and will continue to work with the business community to simplify processes and ensure compliance.

“We see ourselves not just as enforcers, but as facilitators. We are committed to walking with you every step of the way in building a better ecosystem for Nigerian businesses to flourish. Continuous dialogue like this drives meaningful progress,” he said.

By Adedapo Adesanya

A data insights company, Veriv Africa, has called for increased focus on tackling insecurity and boosting private sector involvement in the Nigerian agriculture to help staunch the growing food crisis in the country.

This was informed by its survey, Veriv Africa Nigeria Food Price Baseline Survey 2025, which found that the country is facing a worsening food crisis stemming from systemic challenges such low agricultural productivity, insufficient policies, dearth in policy harmonisation, as well as climate, geopolitical, and economic shocks.

The survey examined the state of Nigeria’s agricultural sector, focusing on six key crops: cocoa, sesame, rice, corn, tomato, and yam. The study, conducted across five case-study states, revealed critical challenges and opportunities within these value chains.

The report found that despite agriculture employing 30.1 per cent of Nigeria’s labour force and contributing 24.64 per cent to GDP, the country faces a food crisis with food inflation reaching 26.08 per cent in January 2025 and 33 million people are projected to experience food insecurity.

It warned that Nigeria’s crop yields are significantly below global averages, indicating substantial inefficiency in the sector.

According to the study shared with Business Post, Nigeria’s maize yields stand at 1.939.1 kilograms per hectare (kg/ha), significantly below the global average of 5,962.3 kg/ha and the African average of 2,154.8 kg/ha.

At the same time, rice yields in Nigeria (1,974 kg/ha) also lag behind the global average of 4.751.8 kg/ha and the African average of 2.313.3 kg/ha, citing data from the United Nation’s Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) data from 2023.

This is also similar across other select crops like cocoa, millet, and tomato.

The survey, which included 543 farmers, found that most farmers operate on small land holdings (1-4 acres) and rely on family labour and found that most farmers (60 per cent) finance their activities through personal savings, indicating a lack of access to formal credit.

The data also showed that key challenges faced by Nigerian farmers include lack of access to finance (54 per cent), insecurity (21 per cent), and post-harvest losses (12 per cent).

Farmers desire greater access to finance (52 per cent), improved security (22 per cent), and access to subsidised inputs (19 per cent) as key interventions.

Most farmers (64 per cent) feel better off than in previous planting seasons due to high crop prices, but over half of the surveyed expect the country to be worse off in the next twelve months.

While 82.5 per cent of farmers plan to continue with their primary crops, those who plan to change highlight high input costs, pests, diseases, and low yields as reasons.

Veriv recommended that addressing security challenges, attracting more private sector participation in food production activities, providing rural infrastructure, and establishing staple crop processing zones (SCPZs) in physical proximity to core crop-producing zones is a good course of action.

The firm also advocated democratising and decentralising agricultural extension services to farmers, adopting modern farming techniques, and promoting access to finance to unlock the sector’s potential and ensure food security.

Speaking on the survey, the co-founder of Veriv Africa, Mr Basil Abia, told Business Post that Nigeria lacks an updated central food production data and this survey provides a tentative outlook before the company releases a wider general agriculture data for the country, which will be released later this year.

“As the months go, we will add more crops and expand coverage regarding the value chains; we shall add another layer by 2027 with a beta test by December 2026. That layer is a for a marketplace and mostly for international businesses that want raw materials from Nigeria.”

He pointed out that the first phase of the project are important for social impact projects before evolving into serving corporate needs that will see companies have adequate data for making their decisions.