Jobs/Appointments
Nigerians Trust Their Employers More—Report
A new report has shown that of the four mainstream institutions of government, business, media and non-governmental organisations, Nigerians trust more in business and believe that their employers should take the lead on change rather than waiting for the government to initiate it.
This revelation amongst others was contained in the 19th Edelman Trust Barometer Survey Report unveiled by Edelman and its Exclusive Nigerian Affiliate and the Preferred West African Partner, Chain Reactions Nigeria, in Lagos on Thursday, May 30, 2019.
Edelman Trust Barometer launched in 2001 is the annual global trust and credibility online survey conducted by Edelman Intelligence, the independent research arm of the Edelman global network, testing how well people trust the institutions of government, business, media and nongovernmental organisations to do what is right.
Presenting the data from the Nigeria Trust Breakout, Managing Director, Edelman Africa, Jordan Rittenberry, said, “Ninety-five per cent of respondents agreed that employers can create positive change in skills training, while 93 percent said that CEOs can influence economic prosperity in Nigeria. 88 percent agreed that their employers can create positive change in job creation while another 83 percent believed in the ability of their employers to initiate positive change in discrimination.”
The survey conducted by Edelman Intelligence between October 19 to November 16, 2018, further revealed that 72 percent of the Nigerian respondents see their employers as a trustworthy source on the global economy while 58 percent perceive business as a reliable source on technology.
Rittenberry added that, “Fifty-eight percent of respondents look to their employer to be a trustworthy source of information about social issues and other important topics on which there is not general agreement. A further 77 percent believe that a company can take specific actions that both increase profits and improve the economic and social conditions in the communities where it operates.”
He revealed further that trust across the four mainstream institutions in the country decreased by 24 percent from 2018 with a drop from 66 percent to 42 percent and that in Africa in general, trust fell four points from 2018 to 2019.
Rittenberry disclosed that in Nigeria and nine other African countries included in the survey, “government is the least trusted institution while trust in media amongst the 10 African countries exceeds the global average of trust in media at 47 percent. Business is the most trusted institution amongst the 10 African countries, while NGOs are trusted in six of the 10 African Markets.”
The 2019 Edelman Trust Barometer with the theme, ‘Trust at Work’, is the second exclusive deck on Nigeria, the first being that of year 2018 survey while this year also made it the third time the report was presented in Nigeria. 2017 was the first time the report was ever presented in Nigeria although Nigeria was not included in the study then. The other African countries surveyed are South Africa, Egypt, Ghana, Kenya, Morocco, Cote’d Ivoire, Ethiopia, Tanzania and Angola.
Speaking further, Rittenberry disclosed that for the media in Nigeria, search engines were the most trusted at 84 per cent followed by earned media (69%), social media (64%) and traditional media at 60%. Online media was the least trusted with 56 per cent.
“Trust in government is really low while trust in media is fairly balanced; business is the most trusted institution in Africa while trust in NGOs varies across the continent”, he said.
Earlier in his welcome address, Managing Director/Chief Strategist, Chain Reactions Nigeria, Mr Israel Jaiye Opayemi, affirmed that the importance of trust could not be over-stated, noting that trust played a key role in the last general elections and called on government to invest in its trust quotient.
“Trust is built by what we say as well as by what we do and so for a government like ours, perhaps this is an auspicious time for those who are responsible for managing the institutions of government in Nigeria to begin to think about investing in that asset of trust.
“My admonition to President Muhammadu Buhari and his Vice, Prof Yemi Osinbajo is to make a deliberate effort to earn the trust of Nigerians in their second tenure of four years.
“For them to earn our trust as Nigerian citizens, one of the things my experience has taught me on this job is, perhaps, we need to rethink the entire communication architecture of government once more. I ask that fundamental question, ‘in what way has the present architecture helped the government to earn the trust of the people?’ And President Muhammadu Buhari, our appeal (this morning) is that as you select the next set of ministers, you must reign them in. What we saw in the last four years was that there were too many people speaking for your government.”
To curb the increasing menace fake news in the media, Mr Opayemi suggested self-censorship for professionals. “Can we begin to do what our colleagues are doing in other countries? That weekly, we do a compilation of all the false stories and the fake news that newspapers have published or that TV and radio stations have broadcast and name and shame them. This is going on with a lot of impunity. Let us generate ideas on how to tame this monster that’s in our society,” he advised.
He also urged businesses and NGOs to invest in trust, noting that, “how well can businesses further invest in this asset of trust the same way they invest in machinery and other things?”
The highpoint of the presentation ceremony was a panel discussion featuring eminent professionals drawn from business, government, media and NGOs, who shared their perspectives on the report.
They included publisher of BrandCrunch, O’Lekan Babatunde; Assistant Director, Programmes, Radio Nigeria, Lagos Operations, Funke Treasure-Durodola; Coordinator, Campaign Against Impunity, Shina Loremikan and Executive Chairman, Centre for Anti-Corruption and Open Leadership, Debo Adeniran.
The others were former sole administrator, Eti-Osa East Local Council Development Area of Lagos State, Prince Babatunde Ayo Ayeni; Head, Brand Communications, SUNU Assurance Plc, Oluwayemisi Mafe and Bukola Oluyadi, Enterprise Transformation/Corporate Planning and Strategy, Polaris Bank Limited. The TV personality, Oscar Oyinsan, moderated the session.
Founder and chairman, Proshare Nigeria Limited, Mr Olufemi Awoyemi, in his brief keynote speech, said trust was paramount in all aspects of life and that trust issue is not only a Nigerian problem, but generally a common problem across human society.
Chairman, Nigerian Institute of Public Relations, Lagos State chapter, Mr Olusegun McMedal and President, Public Relations Consultants Association of Nigeria, (PRCAN), Mr John Ehiguese, also gave goodwill speeches at the event.
Mr McMedal expressed happiness that Nigeria was considered in the global report for the second time and noted that the report is perfect for Africa.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The co-founder of Guaranty Trust Bank (GTBank) Limited, Mr Fola Adeola, has been appointed by President Bola Tinubu as chairman of the newly formed Presidential Petroleum Reform and Value Optimisation task force.
The team has Mofoluwasho Fadayomi as secretary, while the members are Ademola Adeyemi-Bero, Osagie Okunbor, Abubakar Suleiman, Adaeze Aguele, Farouk Gumel, Phillipa Osakwe-Okoye and Seyi Bella.
A statement issued by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Mr Bayo Onanuga, on Friday disclosed that the task force would be responsible for the next phase of structural reforms in Nigeria’s petroleum sector.
The initiative, the statement said, reflects the President’s commitment to transforming Nigeria’s petroleum industry into a more competitive, transparent, and value-maximising sector capable of driving long-term economic growth, macroeconomic resilience, and industrial development.
It will operate as a technical reform body rather than a representative committee, engaging industry operators, regulators, investors, and civil society as consultees while focusing on actionable policy design and implementation strategies.
The task force will report directly to Mr Tinubu and provide monthly progress memoranda. An interim report will be submitted after three months, while the final outputs are expected within six months of inauguration, and he expects the team to deliver three major reform blueprints.
One of the deliverables is the Implementation Toolkit for Immediate Structural Fixes – including draft legislative amendments, executive instruments, and institutional restructuring proposals.
The second deliverable is the Capital & Liquidity Acceleration Blueprint, aimed at unlocking $5–10 billion in sectoral liquidity while safeguarding Nigeria’s sovereign interests.
The third blueprint will focus on the National Energy Transformation Strategy – a ten-year roadmap with measurable targets for production, foreign exchange earnings, GDP contribution, and cost competitiveness.
As constituted, the taskforce is a time-bound, high-level executive working group tasked with producing execution-ready reform blueprints that will consolidate ongoing reforms, unlock capital within the petroleum sector, and strengthen Nigeria’s position as a leading global energy investment destination. It will automatically dissolve upon submission and acceptance of its final report.
President Tinubu has directed all Ministries, Departments, Agencies, regulators, and relevant institutions to provide full technical support to the Taskforce and to submit inventories of ongoing initiatives to ensure alignment with the emerging reform framework.
In furtherance of this directive, he has also directed all existing committees, teams, and working groups established under various reform initiatives within the sector to align their activities, reporting structures, and work programmes with the new taskforce.
The streamlining will ensure coordination, avoid duplication of mandates, and provide institutional clarity, thereby ensuring coherence in the petroleum sector reform architecture.
Mr Tinubu has also directed that all relevant documentation, institutional knowledge, and ongoing workstreams should be made available to the task force to support the development and implementation of its comprehensive reform framework.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The appointment of Mr Wilson Agu to the board of Wema Bank Plc as an independent non-executive director has been approved by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
In a statement signed by the company secretary, Mr Johnson Lebile, it was disclosed that the appointment became effective on Tuesday, March 3, 2026.
The board welcomed Mr Agu into its fold, noting that it “looks forward to the valuable contributions his extensive experience in engineering, technology, and project development will bring to the bank.”
The new board member is a distinguished polymath and serial entrepreneur with over 35 years of professional experience spanning engineering consultancy, information technology, cybersecurity, and business development.
He earned a bachelor’s degree in Civil/Structural Engineering from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka in 1990. His engineering career includes notable leadership roles, particularly as Partner and Resident Engineer at Project Development Consortium (PDC) between 1993 and 2007, where he managed major projects, including the structural design for Orient Bank and the National Maritime Resource Centre.
In 2000, he founded I-Sixty Nigeria Limited, a diversified enterprise that has delivered several landmark projects, including the NIMASA Maritime Museum, the Nigerian Navy Dockyard Museum, and the beautification of eleven renovated airports across Nigeria.
Mr Agu has also contributed significantly to Nigeria’s technology governance ecosystem, especially during his service on the Governing Board of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) from 2013 to 2015, where he chaired the Committee on Standards, Guidelines and Regulations and supported the implementation of the National IT Policy and COBIT 5 framework.
He later collaborated with Precise Financial Systems (2018–2020) on banking automation solutions. He currently leads Eagle Industrial and Energy Limited, focused on industrial parks and free trade zone infrastructure, including the Enugu Tech Market project.
In recognition of his contributions to corporate and public administration, he was awarded a Professional Fellowship Doctorate (PFD) by the Institute of Corporate and Public Administration of Nigeria in 2021. He is also a member of the Institute of Software Practitioners of Nigeria (ISPON).
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
One of the most reputable rating agencies in Africa, GCR Ratings, has appointed Mr Saul Sassoon as its interim group chief executive.
In a statement on Friday, it was disclosed that Mr Sassoon will be in charge of the organisation after the exit of Mr Marc Joffe at the end of this month.
Mr Joffe is stepping down from the role after 25 years with the company, having joined GCR in 2001.
Over the past two decades, he has overseen the firm’s transformation into Africa’s leading credit rating agency, recognised for its deep market expertise and commitment to strengthening financial markets across the continent.
His tenure included landmark achievements such as the sale of GCR to Moody’s Corporation, positioning the company for sustainable long-term growth across Africa.
“Leading GCR Ratings has been a privilege. I am incredibly proud of what we have achieved as a truly pan-African rating agency.
“I step down with profound gratitude, respect, and lasting appreciation for the trust, support, and collaboration of colleagues and stakeholders throughout this journey, and am confident in GCR’s future,” he stated.
The board thanked him for his exceptional leadership and vision, noting his role in building GCR’s reputation as the undisputed leader in African credit ratings.
It also welcomed the interim CEO into his new role, expressing confidence in his ability to guide the organisation through this transition period.
Mr Sassoon, who before his appointment served as Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of the organisation, is expected to drive GCR’s growth, extensive capital markets expertise, and deep relationships with its customers and investors during this transition period.
-
Feature/OPED6 years agoDavos was Different this year
-
Travel/Tourism10 years ago
Lagos Seals Western Lodge Hotel In Ikorodu
-
Showbiz3 years agoEstranged Lover Releases Videos of Empress Njamah Bathing
-
Banking8 years agoSort Codes of GTBank Branches in Nigeria
-
Economy3 years agoSubsidy Removal: CNG at N130 Per Litre Cheaper Than Petrol—IPMAN
-
Banking3 years agoSort Codes of UBA Branches in Nigeria
-
Banking3 years agoFirst Bank Announces Planned Downtime
-
Sports3 years agoHighest Paid Nigerian Footballer – How Much Do Nigerian Footballers Earn