Business

Nigerians in Diaspora cry out over alleged paucity of passports

Published

3 years ago

December 27, 2021

The Nigerians in Diaspora Organization, Europe, Italy Chapter has raised the alarm that about 1.5 million out of its three million registered members in Italy are affected by paucity of Nigerian passports.

The Chairman of the chapter, George Omo-Iduhon, made this claim in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria.

Imo-Iduhon spoke on Monday while reflecting on the activities of the group in Europe and Italy.

NIDOE is recognised as the official platform through which Nigerians in the Diaspora can channel their development efforts in Nigeria.

The organisation partners with the Nigerian community, professional organisations as well as public and private businesses in focused areas such as Foreign Direct Investments professional networking, stakeholders advocacy, medical missions, educational support and skill transfer to Nigeria.

Omo-Iduhon disclosed that there are more Nigerians in Italy than in other European country and the registered Nigerians according to database are three million aside undocumented ones.

He said: “One of the major problems faced by Nigerians living in Italy is shortage of Nigerian passports that can help facilitate their movement and work permit.

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“The Nigerian Government should help address this nagging problem because Italy serves as the gateway to other countries in Europe, especially for Nigerians.

“About 1.5 million Nigerians in Italy don’t have passports.

“Even some of those that have been accepted by the Italian government have not been issued Nigerian passports, which makes it difficult for them to work.”

Omo-Iduhon added that the supply of 500 booklets of passport to the Nigerian embassy in Italy was grossly inadequate to serve the number of Nigerians resident in Italy.

He said: “Using the same sharing formula for all the counties in Europe cannot work in Italy where we have more Nigerians.

“We are appealing to the relevant government agencies and our amiable Minister for Internal Affairs, Rauf Aregbesola, to help us address this issue.

“The Chairman of NIDCOM, Mrs. Abike Dabiri-Erewa, has also been of great assistance to us.”

He revealed that the body had a change of regime in July 2021 after an election, adding that the new management was poised to improve the welfare of Nigerians in Italy.

He added: “We just had our elections in July this year.

“The first thing we have set out as a team is the improved welfare of Nigerians in Italy.

“This is a paramount interest to us.

“We are also liaising with the Nigerian embassy in Italy to make them do the right thing at the right time and importantly our mandate in bringing investors from Italy to Nigeria.”

He said that the organization was committed to growing Nigeria’s economy, adding that members must try their best to return home to build Nigeria.

Most Nigerians in Italy, according to him, have legitimate businesses and Italians have been great hosts to them.

The Eagle

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Railway

Lagos Rail Mass Transit part of FG free train ride – NRC

Published

24 hours ago

December 21, 2024

Trends Admin

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

Published

1 day ago

December 21, 2024

Trends Admin

Port Harcourt refinery

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

Published

2 days ago

December 20, 2024

Trends Admin

CBN Governor, Olayemi Cardoso

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).

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.