By Adedapo Adesanya

The federal government has announced plans to establish a youth bank to offer loans, grants and other financial products to support young entrepreneurs fostering innovation and job creation.

According to the Minister of Youth Development, Mr Ayodele Olawande, this is among the efforts that are in the Nigerian Youth Employment Action Plan to address the problem of unemployment in the country.

“The establishment of a youth bank has numerous benefits for young people and communities.

“By supporting youth-led businesses, youth banks can contribute to employment generation and economic growth.”

He said the bank would provide opportunities for education, training and employment.

Mr Olawande said that the ministry also unveiled the Youth Activities Dashboard where activities and initiatives would displayed.

“We are saying that everybody should go on this dashboard to get information. We have discovered that there are more than 7,000 activities of youths in Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) and others that do not reside in Ministry of Youth,” he said.

The minister said the student loan scheme was a tool to fight poverty, adding that the loan scheme aligned with his administration’s commitment to inclusiveness.

He assured of sufficient funding to sustain the programme.

Mr Olawande said that education was the greatest weapon against poverty in any society as it was essential for vision, development and successfully combating insecurity, including terrorism and banditry.

He advocated for an enabling environment for young people to thrive and achieve their goals in life.

According to him, the country has more than 60 per cent young people; hence, much can be achieved with the enabling environment.

Mr Olawande said that the ministry was making critical decisions and suggestions to President Bola Tinubu for implementation.

By Adedapo Adesanya

The federal government’s payment of electricity subsidies neared N200 billion, as it increased to N199.64 billion in December 2024.

This is according to data sourced from the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) in its newly released report, December 2024 Multi-Year Tariff Order,

The regulator computed that electricity subsidies rose by 2.76 per cent to N199.64 billion this month from N194.26 billion in November.

NERC explained that the rise in the exchange rate, which it pegged at N1,687.45 to the Dollar, the increase in inflation to 33.9 per cent, and changes in available generation capacity necessitated the minor review.

The report showed that the federal government retained electricity tariffs across all customer categories bar those who were migrated to the expensive Band A, which are expected to receive a minimum of 18 hours of electricity daily.

While Band-A customers now pay a revised N209/kWh, tariffs for customers in Bands B to E were allowed to remain frozen at the rate payable from December 2022.

With the policy, the federal government is expected to pay N29.10 billion (up from N27.86 in November) as subsidies for consumers under Abuja DisCo, while consumers under Ikeja Electric would enjoy electricity subsidies of N26.68 billion from the government.

On wholesale gas-to-power prices, NERC stated: “The review maintains the benchmark gas-to-power price of $2.42/MMBTU based on the established benchmark price of gas-to-power by the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, NMDPRA.”

The Commission maintained that the “approved tariffs shall remain in force subject to monthly adjustment of pass-through indices including inflation rate, NGN/Dollar exchange rate and gas-to-power prices.”

Business Post reported recently that the NMDPRA denied that it didn’t halt the distribution of gas to generating companies over a massive debt.

Meanwhile, the country has faced over 10 national grid failures this year alone throwing Nigerians into darkness with the most recent occuring earlier this month.

By Adedapo Adesanya

The Minister of Finance and Co-ordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr Wale Edun, has called for necessary steps to manage ballooning debt and its servicing on the continent.

This is as he expressed gratitude for the continuous support from the African Development Bank (AfDB) at the launch of the Debt Management Forum for Africa (DeMFA) and its inaugural policy dialogue on Monday in Abuja.

According to the African Economic Outlook Report (AEO) 2024, in 2024, African countries are expected to spend around $74  billion on debt service, up from $17 billion in 2010, of which $40 billion is owed to private creditors, representing 54 per cent of total debt service.

The Nigerian finance minister emphasised that the partnership had transformed into a mutually beneficial collaboration over the years, leading to critical grants, loans, and capacity-building initiatives targeted at improving the economic landscape of African nations.

Mr Edun highlighted the significance of the DeMFA, which aims to address public debt challenges on the continent specifically.

He commended the AfDB for establishing the initiative, noting that while the World Bank had provided support in debt management for decades, the launch of a forum dedicated solely to Africa was a welcome development for the 54 countries in the continent.

The minister identified two issues facing African nations: the escalating levels of debt and debt service, which had constrained fiscal space for governments and the limited access to affordable funding in both domestic and international markets.

He said there was an urgency to mobilise large capital pools to tackle social and economic challenges, including unemployment, infrastructure deficits, climate change and meeting the social development goals.

Mr Edun stressed that DeMFA must be structured to build on the foundations laid by previous initiatives, offering a comprehensive approach tailored specifically to the needs and realities of Africa.

The finance minister urged DeMFA to focus on ensuring the long-term sustainability of public debt across Africa.
“As a forum, it must actively contribute to the continuous and sustainable management of public debt, helping nations avoid recurring debt crises and fostering development.

“By working together, we can overcome these challenges and accelerate Africa’s growth trajectory,” he added.

Mr Edun commended the AfDB for its leadership in the initiative and expressed optimism about its potential to transform debt management practices across the continent.

“On behalf of all stakeholders, I wish the AfDB success in this endeavour and look forward to seeing its impact on Africa’s development,” he said.