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Tekedia Institute Will Lead FCMB’s BEST Masterclass GROWTH Session

By
Ndubuisi Ekekwe
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0

It is an amazing bank which has discovered how to empower startups and SMEs across different sectors. It has one of the top SME Advisory units in our nation, with professionals who help entrepreneurs and founders navigate operational, tactical and strategic challenges in their missions. It is a simple playbook, we give you loans, and we help train and prepare you to thrive, because we want you to grow. FCMB’s ‘’Business Enterprises and Sustainability Training (BEST)” is industry-leading and has served many entrepreneurs across Nigeria.

‘’The BEST initiative is one of the innovative ways we empower, promote and support the growth of our SME customers because without effective training and exposure, it could be quite difficult for their businesses to succeed. We believe this training will go a long way to impact positively on the SME operators who have participated in this programme. It will propel them to further develop themselves in order to compete favourably within and outside the Nigerian market. We, therefore, urge the beneficiaries to take advantage of the unique opportunities provided by this exercise, because it is a veritable platform for them to take the lead in driving the diversification and growth of the Nigerian economy’’,

On June 18, along with partners from McKinsey, KPMG and other global brands, Tekedia Institute, which runs Tekedia Mini-MBA, will lead a session on business growth for makers, founders, managers, entrepreneurs, doers, and innovators in the FCMB SME Business. I will lead that for our Institute which continues to serve markets by sharing practical insights on the mechanics of market systems.

 I hope to deepen with BEST SMEs on June 18 as we plot the path to growth, post Covid-19, tapping into structures and systems FCMB has provided to ensure everyone thrives. (Register via the link provided by the bank).

Be BEST – bank with FCMB.

FG Inaugurates Committee for the Revitalization of Ajaokuta Steel Plant

By
Samuel Nwite
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1

On Monday the Federal Government of Nigeria inaugurated a committee for the resuscitation of Ajaokuta steel that has been in the pipeline for decades. This is coming after the Russian government showed interest in the project once again. The Russian government has been working with the African Import and Export Bank to raise over $1.4 billion for the revival of the steel making plant that has been in ruins for long.

President Buhari has in October 2019, reached a deal with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin. According to BusinessDay, the Russians are investing $460 million in the project while Afrexim is doling out the larger sum of $1 billion.

Russian company TyazhpromExport designed the Ajaokuta Steel Company Ltd on June 4 1976, with the aim that it would be producing 1.3 million tons of steel per year. Ever since then, the 44 years old company has failed to make use of the mineral resources in the country to live up to the expectation.

The Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Boss Mustapha, who inaugurated the committee, said the development will present Nigeria with the opportunity to diversify its economy, especially in the face of dwindling oil revenue that has grossly affected the country.

“Revamping the Ajaokuta Steel Plant, clearly presents a unique opportunity to make us West Africa’s largest fully integrated steel producer and most importantly accelerate our industrialization especially in the steel related industry,” he said.

However, there is a legal issue involving Global Steel Holdings Limited, an Indian firm, concerning the past concession agreement which is said to have given the rights of Nigeria Iron Ore Mining Company (NIOMCO) to the Indian firm. The legal battle has posed a challenge to commencement of work at the Ajaokuta Steel Company.

But the Minister of Mines and Steel, Olamilekan Adegbite said the legal challenge will not stop the project, that Nigeria will not surrender its ownership of Ajaokuta Steel Company and NIOMCO to the Indians.

“Yes, the legal issues are there, but now that the Russians who built the place have shown interest, all the legal issues will be resolved. Steel was produced from Ajaokuta in the past but with imported billets. Now we are working with the Russian government to commence local production using the abundant raw materials available in Ajaokuta.

“The beauty of this proposal is that it does not involve Nigeria putting money; the project will pay for itself. It is taking a while because of government bureaucracies involved. It is worth it and we will get it right,” he said.

He shed some light on the legal challenge while explaining the process of the deal. He said the office of the vice president is handling the legal matters.

“It is a situation whereby a contract is given to somebody to perform and got terminated but not according to the rules. The corporate body went to arbitration. We are trying to extricate ourselves. It won’t affect the Russian deal. We are trying to do a coordinate settlement on that. The legal issue is being addressed by the office of the vice president and other issues of revitalization ongoing.

“There have been lots of correspondences and they have asked several questions and we have responded. Afrexim is bringing the money, the Russians are bringing in the technical expertise and we are bringing in mineral resources which we have.

“Essentially, what the deal said is that the Russian government would help us nominate a body that have the engineering skills to complete the work and possibly the same body to run and manage it for a number of years. We agreed on of course with a reasonable profit and revert back to Nigeria’s ownership on complete manage and transfer terms,” Adegbite said.

The committee named Ajaokuta Presidential Project Implementation Team (APPIT), is made up of the SGF who will chair the team, the Minister of Mines and Steel Development (alternate chairman), the permanent Secretary, Mines and Steel Development; Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Finance; Solicitor-General of the Federation/Permanent Secretary Ministry of Justice.

Others are; the Sole Administrator, Ajaokuta Steel Company Ltd; Sole Administrator, National Iron Ore Mining Co. The members are made up of industry experts; Vincent Dogo, Elegba S.B and the director-general of ICRC, Godwin Adeogba.

According to the SGF, the committee is tasked to develop a work plan that involves a quarterly report of progress besides developing concession contract terms.

The Ajaokuta Steel Company has been a bone of contention through successive administrations for over four decades. So much resource has been invested on efforts to revitalize the plant. It is hoped that this approach by the Buhari administration will drive in the nail that will seal the loopholes that have prevented the steel company from working for years.

Competence and Preparedness should be Determinants for Leadership, Not Necessarily Age – Adedayo Adeniyi

By
Rasheed Adebiyi
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0

Adedayo Adeniyi, popularly known as Dayo Nigeria, is the Executive Director of Matadors Leadership Institute, an organization that is committed to redefining the concept of leadership as service rendered in the society, not the titles acquired. He is a Fellow of the Mandela Washington Fellowship for Young African Leaders. He spoke with Rasheed Adebiyi on the roles of the youth volunteerism in combating the COVID 19 and other issues on youth leadership.

Here are the excerpts.

Tekedia: Could you tell us about yourself.

Adeniyi: My name is Adedayo Adeniyi, popularly known as Dayo Nigeria. I am a development worker and leadership trainer with about a decade experience in preparing young people for effective and responsible leadership.

Tekedia: The advent of COVID 19 has again brought to the limelight the importance of volunteering. Do you think Nigerian youths are rising to the occasion?

Adeniyi: Honestly, it is neither here nor there. We have a handful of youths in different parts of Nigeria who have risen up to the responsibility and contributing in diverse ways to either aid the effort of Government and the health workers in containing the pandemic, while some others have chosen to approach from the economic and livelihood point of view where they have raised money to get palliatives for people hit by the effect of Covid-19. It is however sad to admit that a large proportion of Nigerian youths, just as with most other issues, are looking at this through the lens of political sentiment or religious agenda, which has led to the propagation of unfounded conspiracy theories that are unfortunately hampering the work that Government is doing.

Tekedia: You are interested in youth leadership and mentorship. In the face of Not Too Young to Run Law, do you think the Nigerian youths are ripe to rise to leadership positions at all levels of government?

Adeniyi: This issue is relative. At the moment, we have a lot of Nigerian youths who are doing well in the leadership position they occupy. If this category of youths is given opportunities in government, I believe they will do well. On the other end, there is a teeming population of youths who have not sorted out their priorities and do not even know what being a leader entails. It is sad but true, we have them all around. This category of youths does not deserve a chance at leadership because it would end up in a disaster that could have been avoided by not giving power to them. When you look at a lot of youth led initiatives, we can only conclude that it is best that we look at leadership more from the angle of competence and preparedness, than age.

Tekedia: Rising incidence of fake news and misinformation on the social media has made governments to seek to control internet communication. Do you believe that these efforts are justifiable?

Adeniyi: The challenge of fake news is beginning to pose more threat to our existence than any other challenge that the world has seen and the sharp rise can be linked with the advent of the social media becoming the fastest platform of news dissemination. We all must choose to be more responsible as citizens of the world and ensure that we don’t just share news without confirming, especially if it looks as if those fake news support a bias in our minds. The government on its part should also prioritize developing a responsive and timely communication process that will ensure that authentic news is disseminated. The best weapon to fight evil is good. If we want to curb misinformation and spread of fake news, transparency must be promoted and people who deliberately spread falsehood should also be made to pay for their crime within the ambit of the law without stifling press freedom.

Tekedia: During the ongoing lockdown, emphasis has been on skills acquisition online. Do you also agree that anyone who emerges from this lockdown without a new skill is not focused?

Adeniyi: It is a good notion but we should be careful about over-generalizing. For me, the goal should not be coming out of the lockdown with a new skill. This is just a means to an end. The end in itself is that you become a better person and more valuable.  Why do you need a new skill? It’s to develop yourself and be able to add more value. Luckily there are many means to this end i.e. a new skill is not the only way to self development.  So, I will advise that instead of focusing on a new skill, let us all just come out of the lockdown a better person than we were when it started. The realities of individuals are different but everyone must strive to be more and do more.

Covid-19 Dislocates Nigeria As Naira Hits N445 Per US$1

By
Ndubuisi Ekekwe
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1
Nigeria Naira US Dollar

No panic but we have to report facts: Naira is losing value, and the economic and policy gravitational force has been unable  to bring anything to equilibrium. “Amid scarcity of foreign currency, the naira exchanged at N445 against the dollar in the parallel market on Monday…against the British pound at N535; and against the Euro at N455.”, Premium Times reports.

Amid scarcity of foreign currency, the naira exchanged at N445 against the dollar in the parallel market on Monday.

Analysts attributed the development to scarcity and shrinking liquidity in the forex market.

The president, Association of Bureax De Change Operators of Nigeria, Aminu Gwadabe, attributed the development partly to the extension of airport lockdown across the country. The extension further affected the access to forex by the bureau de change operators, he explained.

Last week, as part of efforts to curtail the spread of coronavirus, the Nigerian government extended the ban placed on flights in the country.

“The extension of airport lockdown as well as sale of forex to the BDCs pending when air travels resume has impacted the naira negatively from N425/$ to $445/$ in the parallel market,” Mr Gwadabe was quoted as saying on Monday by Punch newspaper.

The truth is this: banks do not have enough hard currency to serve customers and provided airports remain closed, this problem will remain. Typically, a big chunk of the foreign currency liquidity comes from visitors into Nigeria.

The next three months would be the most consequential period, post Covid-19, if Nigeria hopes to change the trajectory of the deterioration of Naira. We are already in a vicious loop and unless we find a way to break out, this can turn out very ugly.

Stablecoins like Centi will have pathways in this period of massive dislocation. We created it to help people mitigate this paralysis. Read the Whitepaper here.

https://www.tekedia.com/nigeria-could-go-bankrupt-like-venezuela/

4 Reasons to Steer Clear of Payday Loans

By
TI Partners
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0

An extra expense can blow your budget when you’re living paycheck to paycheck. An unexpected cost like your car breaking down on the way to work, or your child needing to visit the emergency room with a fever can leave you strapped with bills you’re unable to pay.

Some people feel they have no choice but to turn to payday loans when something like this happens. After all, they’re easier to access than other forms of credit due to their lax credit rating requirements for borrowers.

However, easy acquisition disguises four good reasons to steer clear of payday loans. 

You’ll Have to Grant Access to Your Bank Account

Payday loans are pretty invasive by nature. To apply, you’ll need to offer up your ID, checking account information and proof of income. You’ll then receive the amount of the loan upon approval. When your next payday arrives, the lender will likely access your bank account to collect that amount back from you — plus any fees and interest.

If the lender doesn’t automatically withdraw the funds from your bank account, they will have you sign a post-dated check to coincide with your payday. This ensures the lender can get their money back immediately when you get paid, possibly even before you fulfill your other financial obligations.

The Average Interest Rate Is 391 Percent

All loans carry interest, but certainly not to the tune of 391 percent on average — which is the average payday loan annual percentage rate (APR) if paid in full after two weeks. It’s not uncommon to see payday loan interest rates ranging from 35 percent to a whopping 400 percent. Rates will vary by state, but some allow even higher rates, like Texas with 661 percent.

Compare these triple-digit figures to the average APR on a credit card, which is closer to 20 percent. As you can see, it’s incredibly expensive to borrow money through a payday lender. Although legislation in the House of Representatives and Senate have been introduced to cap all payday interest at 36 percent — which lawmakers have already done for members of the military — the proposed bill has a way to go before it’s enacted. 

You Could Pay More in Fees Than You Borrowed

Fees and interest on payday loans are actually so expensive you may end up paying more for the privilege of borrowing the money than the amount you borrowed in the first place.

Say you want to borrow $1,000 to float your bills between paychecks. A fairly typical fee per $100 is $15. So, you’ll have to present the lender with a postdated check for $1,150 or access to your checking account so they can deduct that amount. However, problems arise if you’re unable to pay on the specified date because you’ll have to roll the loan over for additional charges and interest.

Depending on the amount you borrowed and the interest rate at play, you may end up paying more in extra charges than you originally needed to take out.

For this reason alone, it’s well worth exploring other options before jumping into a payday loan. You may be able to qualify for a personal loan at a more reasonable interest rate that you can pay back to the lender in installments instead of all at once from a single paycheck. Debt settlement is another potential avenue for dealing with certain financial obligations — these Freedom Debt Relief reviews provide more context for what to expect from that process.

Borrowers Can Become Dependent on Payday Loans

According to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, most borrowers have to renew or reborrow payday loans. In fact, eight in 10 payday loans are taken out within just two weeks of a consumer repaying their previous payday loans.

This speaks to how easy it is to get trapped in a vicious cycle fraught with ever-growing interest. The industry is built upon borrowers’ inability to pay back loans in full — often leaving them much worse off than before they borrowed any money at all.

These four reasons just go to show why you should stay away from payday loans unless you have literally no other options. They’re expensive and predatory, to say the least.

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