News

Russia/Ukraine war: FG plans new trade policy with former USSR nations

Published

2 years ago

March 18, 2022

Minister of Industry, Trade and Investments, Niyi Adebayo

The Federal Government has said following the war between Russia and Ukraine, it is working on a new trade policy with countries in the former Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) with whom it shares important mutual trade relations.

Minister of Industry, Trade and Investments, Niyi Adebayo, disclosed this, yesterday, at the weekly inter-ministerial press briefing organised by the Presidential Communications Team at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

He said the trade department of his ministry had been mandated to analyse the crisis in the region as its concerns trade relations with Nigeria and come up with a report.

“Once that report is ready, I will present it to the president, after presenting to the president, I will come here to brief you about it,” he said.

A recent report relying on data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) warned of the impact of the war on Nigeria as it showed that since 2019, Nigeria has received a total of $84.3million in capital imports from Russia.

The country also imported N144billion ($346.2million) worth of durum wheat in 2020 and N123.9billion ($297.8million) worth of durum wheat between January – September 2021 from Russia.

It also imports different types of seafood such as mackerel, herrings and blue whiting from Russia.

READ ALSO:

According to the NBS data, Nigeria similarly imported milk worth N721.5m ($1.7m) from Ukraine in 2021.

Adebayo, who made presentations on the Presidential Sugar Backward Integration Program (BIP) said Nigeria targets self-sufficiency in sugar production in the next 10 years, even as it plans to begin the export of the commodity.

He said about five per cent of sugar consumed in Nigeria was produced locally.

“We believe with the programmes that we have in place that within the next 10 years, we will be 100 per cent self-sufficient in sugar, and not only that, we’ll be able to export sugar produced in Nigeria,” he said.

Adebayo, also spoke on ports decongestion in Nigeria, saying new ports would soon come on board to ease the pressure on Apapa and Tincan ports in Lagos.

“On the development of ports, I pointed out earlier that yes, apart from Apapa and Tincan; we have a new port of Lekki coming up. I know that there are plans for a new port to come up in Badagry.Calabar port is a problem; apparently there is a court case on that one at the moment with regards to a subcontract for the dredging of that as well. As we all know, Port Harcourt and Onne are operating, and the government is looking at improving the road network to that port so that it can ease the congestion of Lagos,” he said.

On clearing challenges importers grapple with at the seaports and how such challenges are stifling ease of doing business in Nigeria, the minister said plans are underway to keep the ports open for 24 hours, seven days a week.

SUN

Related Topics:FG policy Russia/Ukraine War USSR

Up Next

Graduates who shun NYSC mobilization to face immediate prosecution – DG

Don't Miss

UK says student, work visas still available — only priority applications suspended

News

Canadian mayor praises Lagos under Tinubu at event honouring Peter Obi

Published

2 hours ago

May 6, 2024

Trends Admin

Canadian mayor praises Lagos under Tinubu at event honouring Peter Obi

The Mayor of Brampton, Patrick Brown, has expressed his admiration for Lagos State during an event organised to honour Peter Obi, the Labour Party flag-bearer in the 2023 presidential election.

Brampton is a city in the Canadian province of Ontario, with a high population of Nigerian immigrants.

While speaking at a recent town hall meeting hosted by the Coalition of Nigerian Canadian Interest Groups based in Canada to honour Obi, Brown recounted how he fell in love with Lagos when he visited in 2007.

The period of his visit coincided with the time President Bola Tinubu was in office as the governor of the South-West State.

Brown was seen in a video shared on Saturday, May 4, 2024, by Wale Adedayo, a user tweeting as @Mario9jaa, addressed the cheering audience.

READ ALSO:

Brown was blown away during his visit to Lagos

“I went to Nigeria in 2007. I went to Lagos and I fell in love with the country. Two years ago, I went back and once again, I toured the country. Anytime you visit Nigeria, you’re saying to yourself, ‘When can I go back?” the impressed mayor said.

He also mentioned that he was “blown away” by the strides of the nation’s movie industry, popularly referred to as Nollywood.

“There’s a lot of love for Nigeria in my city,” he added.

Similarly, a member of the Provincial Parliament in Brampton North, Graham McGregor, also disclosed in a tweet on Sunday that “In Brampton, we’ve got one of the fastest growing Nigerian-Canadian communities. I’ve spoken with a few people here that are from Brampton and we’ve got a lot of exciting things going on.”

McGregor stressed the importance of creating an “open, inclusive, welcoming economy for everybody. And to the connections we’re building here with the Nigerian-Canadian community, we want to make sure Nigerians are part of it.”

Canadian mayor praises Lagos under Tinubu at event honouring Peter Obi

News

Fubara: I have moved on with governance despite political pressure

Published

3 hours ago

May 6, 2024

Trends Admin

Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara

Fubara: I have moved on with governance despite political pressure

Governor Siminalayi Fubara of Rivers State has asserted that despite the political turmoil in the state, his administration remains steadfast in providing focused leadership and governance.

During a recent meeting with members of the House of Representatives Committee on Public Petitions, led by Chairman Hon. Mike Etaba, at the government house in Port Harcourt, Fubara emphasized that, as far as his administration and the people of Rivers State are concerned, there are no significant political issues to address.

Reflecting on the challenges posed by the political crisis, Fubara drew inspiration from a movie he watched, “Devil’s Advocate,” where he cited a quote by Al Pacino.

He said, “As far as we are concerned, there are no political issues. I saw a movie many years ago, entitled, ‘Devil’s Advocate.’ I believe some of you must have seen that movie too.

READ ALSO:

“One of the starring characters, Al Pacino, said that pressure makes some people retreat or fail, and to others, it makes them focus on succeeding. We have chosen to be focused under this pressure.

“That is why we are moving ahead, making a positive impact on the lives of our people. Governance is about the people, not about self.

“Governance is about touching the core needs of those we are leading, and by the special grace of God, we are doing it.”

“Yesterday, by the special grace of God, we observed the credit line of over 3,066 persons empowered. You can imagine what that will do for the economy of the masses and the state. That is touching the lives of our people. It does not support them for selfish reasons. It does not give a contract because I want somebody to fight somebody in my community. No. This is empowering the economy of the masses and the state.

“Our focus is that, no matter what anybody is doing anywhere, we will not lose focus. We want to leave here better than we met it. And we want to also leave here without fear of anything.”

Fubara: I have moved on with governance despite political pressure

News

FG begins disbursement of N50bn grant to small business owners

Published

3 hours ago

May 6, 2024

Trends Admin

Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Doris Uzoka-Anite

FG begins disbursement of N50bn grant to small business owners

The Federal Government, FG, says it has started disbursement of N50,000 grants to nano business entrepreneurs.

Dr Doris Uzoka-Anite, Minister for Industry, Trade, and Investment, verified this over the weekend, stating that no fewer than 200,000 small business owners have received the payment.

According to her, 800,000 others will receive their incentives before the program ends on May 31.

This will raise the total number of beneficiaries to 1,000,000 Nigerians, split across 774 local government areas.

She explained that about 3.6 million applications were received out of which the beneficiaries were selected randomly from among those who met the conditions.

The minister said N50 billion is available in the 2024 budget for disbursement.

The programme is one of the palliative measures announced by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in a broadcast on July 31, last year to cushion the pains of petrol subsidy removal.

The President, in the broadcast, said: “Our administration recognises the importance of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises and the informal sector as drivers of growth. We are going to energise this very important sector.”

READ ALSO:

In the broadcast, the President also announced that 75 manufacturing firms will be given N1 billion single-digit interest loans each to reflate their businesses.

Dr. Uzoka-Anite, in response to enquiries by our reporter, said: “The application portal was closed at midnight on April 17. The portal had to be closed due to an overwhelming number of applications totalling over 3.6 million.

“The Bank of Industry is ensuring transparency and accountability in the N50 billion disbursement using NIN, BVN and bank account details for verification to prevent duplication.

“They will also perform physical enumeration to re-verify information, including taking photographs of beneficiaries.

“The time frame for disbursement is the end of May 2024. The requirement for determining the beneficiaries is not based on particular criteria. The goal is to reach 1,290 beneficiaries per local government area across the country totalling one million people.”

On why many of the beneficiaries have not been reached, she explained: “We acknowledge that some of the beneficiaries are getting alert while others are not.

“The disbursement is subject to verification of NIN, which became mandatory after the initial application phase which required only BVN.

“The selection is random and without human intervention from those who have passed their NIN and BVN verification.