Business
CBN moves to curb $580m annual cassava by-product imports
Despite being the world’s largest producer of cassava, Nigeria imports over $580 million worth of cassava by-products annually.
To keep this money from leaving Nigeria, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has offered to extend funds and high yielding cassava stems to farmers.
CBN Governor Godwin Emefiele made this disclosure yesterday at the inauguration of the Rivers Cassava Processing Company in Oyigbo, Rivers State.
Emefiele stated that by deliberately “reducing our dependence on the oil sector, agriculture and the manufacturing sectors have emerged as key catalysts for reducing unemployment and driving growth in Nigeria”.
The decline in foreign exchange earnings, he lamented, has made it imperative that the country can no longer afford to support continued importation of items that can be produced in Nigeria.
Nigeria’s current situation he added “has also made it imperative for the Central Bank to work towards supporting programmes that will enable greater cultivation and processing of key agricultural commodities in Nigeria”.
He then called on governors of the 36 states to make their states more viable by investing more in agriculture, particularly crops in which they have comparative advantage.
Emefiele identified land development as a major constraint to increase agricultural produce and activities in the Southern parts of the country because of the regions topography.
To this end, he said the CBN has released about N7.436 billion to four states in the Southsouth region to open up more land for cultivation.
The money will also be used to construct access roads to agricultural lands, and provide infrastructure among other support services in the region.
Over 3000 farmers, he said will supply cassava to the company which will in turn guarantee the off-take of their farm produce. The company will produce and process over 45,000 tons of high quality flour for households, industries and bakeries.
“This guaranteed off-take would encourage participating farmers to improve their output per hectare in order to earn additional income. It also provide them with a verifiable platform to access finance from the CBN and other financial institutions through the Anchor Borrowers Programme,” Emefiele said.
The CBN governor said “so far Rivers State has accessed over N13billion from our various intervention programmes and their loan status remains in good standing”.
Speaking at the occasion, the state governor, Nyesome Wike lamented that the rural people of state have not made up to one per cent effective utilisation of the N5billion intervention the CBN made available.
“The CBN gave us loan and we thought that if we call our people in the rural areas to see how we can give them money to come out to the farm, to see how we can give them money to go and trade, to see how we can give them money to go and fish and as I speak to you, we couldn’t get one percent of effective utilization of those funds,” he said.
Going forward, the state government he said “will identify and verify those genuinely interested and registered as cassava producers to this company, government will give them seed money to continue farming cassava”.
To the people of the state, he urged them to “apply to us that you want to farm only cassava, government will give you seed money to go into cassava planting but it will not be like the former one when you took our money and ran away”.
Regarding the loans extended to the state by the Deposit Money Banks (DMBs) and the CBN, Wike assured that he would repay all the loans before he leaves office.A
Accordingto him, “any loan we have taken, the payment will be done by March/April next year we will not owe a dime to any bank before we leave”.
Railway
Lagos Rail Mass Transit part of FG free train ride – NRC
Lagos Rail Mass Transit part of FG free train ride – NRC
The Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) has disclosed that the Lagos Rail Mass Transit (LRMT) trains are included in the Federal Government’s free train ride initiative for the Christmas and New Year celebrations.
The LRMT, which currently includes the Phase 1 Blue Line Rail and the Phase 1 of the Red Line Rail, operates under the Lagos Metropolitan Area Transport Authority (LAMATA).
This announcement was made by Ben Iloanusi, the Acting Managing Director of the NRC, during an interview on NTA News TV on Friday, following the launch of the initiative earlier that day.
While Iloanusi stated that Phase 1 of both the Blue Line and Red Line Rail projects are part of the program, LAMATA has yet to confirm this inclusion.
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Iloanusi outlined the other routes benefiting from the scheme, which include the Lagos-Ibadan Train Service, Kaduna-Abuja Train Service, Warri-Itakpe Train Service, Port Harcourt-Aba Train Service, and the Bola Ahmed Tinubu Mass Transit in Lagos. Notably, little was previously known about the Bola Ahmed Tinubu Mass Transit service until this disclosure.
“Let me mention the routes where this free train service is happening. We have the Lagos-Ibadan Train Service, we have the Kaduna-Abuja Train Service, we have the Warri-Itakpe Train Service, we have the Lagos Rail Mass Transit trains, we have the Port Harcourt-Aba Train Service, and we have what we call the Bola Ahmed Tinubu Mass Transit, which is also in Lagos,” he stated.
Iloanusi provided operational updates, stating that passengers nationwide can access free tickets online or, for those unable to do so, at train stations where they will be profiled and validated.
He noted that passengers using NRC-managed services (excluding the Lagos Rail Mass Transit) should reserve tickets via the official website, www.nrc.gov.ng, with a valid ID required. He also advised travelers to plan, arrive on time, and bring valid identification.
Lagos Rail Mass Transit part of FG free train ride – NRC
Business
NNPC denies claim of Port Harcourt refinery shutdown
NNPC denies claim of Port Harcourt refinery shutdown
The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) has denied claims in media reports that the newly refurbished Port Harcourt refinery has shut down.
The national oil company denied the claim in a press release issued by its Chief Corporate Communications Officer, Olufemi Soneye, on Saturday.
Soneye said the claim was false and urged Nigerians to disregard it. He stressed that the Port-Harcourt Refinery is fully operational.
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The statement read, “The attention of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd.) has been drawn to reports in a section of the media alleging that the Old Port Harcourt Refinery which was re-streamed two months ago has been shut down.
“We wish to clarify that such reports are totally false as the refinery is fully operational as verified a few days ago by former Group Managing Directors of NNPC.”
He noted that preparation for the day’s loading operation is currently ongoing, and added that claims of the shutdown are “figments of the imagination of those who want to create artificial scarcity and rip-off Nigerians.”
NNPC denies claim of Port Harcourt refinery shutdown
Business
CBN permits BDCs to buy up to $25,000 FX weekly from NFEM
CBN permits BDCs to buy up to $25,000 FX weekly from NFEM
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has granted Bureau de Change (BDC) operators temporary permission to purchase up to $25,000 weekly in foreign exchange (FX) from the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market (NFEM).
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has granted Bureau de Change (BDC) operators temporary permission to purchase up to $25,000 weekly in foreign exchange (FX) from the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market (NFEM).
This move, detailed in a circular dated December 19, 2024, is designed to meet seasonal retail demand for FX during the holiday period.
The circular was signed by T.G. Allu, on behalf of the Acting Director of the Trade and Exchange Department.
The arrangement will be in effect from December 19, 2024, to January 30, 2025.
Under the directive, BDCs may purchase FX from a single Authorized Dealer of their choice, provided they fully fund their accounts before accessing the market.
Transactions to occur at the prevailing NFEM rate
The transactions will occur at the prevailing NFEM rate, and BDCs are required to adhere to a maximum 1% spread when pricing FX for retail end-users.
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All transactions conducted under this scheme must be reported to the CBN’s Trade and Exchange Department.
The circular read in part:
“In order to meet expected seasonal demand for foreign exchange, the CBN is allowing a temporary access for all existing BDCs to the NFEM for the purchase of FX from Authorised Dealers, subject to a weekly cap of USD 25,000.00 (Twenty-five thousand dollars only).
This window will be open between December 19, 2024 to January 30, 2025.
“BDC operators can purchase FX under this arrangement from only one Authorized Dealer of their choice and will be required to fully fund their account before accessing the market at the prevailing NFEM rate. All transactions with BDCs should be reported to the Trade and Exchange department, and a maximum spread of 1% is allowed on the pricing offered by BDCs to retail end-users.”
The CBN assured the general public that PTA (Personal Travel Allowance) and BTA (Business Travel Allowance) remain available through banks for legitimate travel and business needs.”
These transactions are to be conducted at “market-determined exchange rates” within the NFEM framework.
This initiative reflects the CBN’s strategy to stabilize the FX market and manage seasonal surges in demand.
CBN permits BDCs to buy up to $25,000 FX weekly from NFEM
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