A Nigerian newspaper and Online version of the Vanguard, a daily publication in Nigeria covering Niger delta, general national news, politics, business, energy, sports, entertainment, fashion,lifestyle human interest stories, etc
Lawmakers from the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation's (NATO) Parliamentary Assembly on Monday said climate change would worsen food and water shortages in the Middle East and North Africa.
They also said that the change in weather conditions might trigger more conflicts and mass migration, with serious implications for the wider world.
Osman Askin Bak, one of the lawmakers said "the long-term prospects for food and water security in the MENA region are dire."
Bak, a member of the Turkish Parliament will present the draft report on Saturday at the Parliamentary Assembly – a gathering of senior parliamentarians from NATO's 28 member states.
He said "climate change will worsen the region's outlook. War, poor governance, climate change and other issues have worsened tensions over competition for scarce water and food in the Middle East and North Africa."
The region is home to five per cent of the global population, and one per cent of the world's renewable water supply, Bak said.
He, however, added that the tension could be eased with better management of water and food resources, including recycling waste water, improved regional cooperation on agriculture and water, and using renewable energy to power desalination plants.
Bak's report urges NATO governments to stick to their commitments under the Paris Agreement, including pledges on climate finance to help developing countries adapt to climate change impacts and grow using clean energy.
"The potential for conflict between regions affected by climate change should not be ruled out," said Lilja Alfreðsdóttir, Iceland's former Minister of Foreign Affairs, who drafted a separate report on the costs of climate change for the assembly.
"The refugee crisis shaking political stability throughout much of the Middle East and posing serious problems in Europe could be a harbinger of things to come," her report said.
The Parliamentary Assembly is a separate organisation to NATO but, if the lawmakers adopt the reports, they will send a signal to NATO headquarters.
"It indicates what member states' interests are and that should be reflected in what happens at headquarters," said Shiloh Fetzek, a senior fellow at the Washington-based Centre for Climate and Security (CCS).
However, climate change also needs to be on the agenda of major meetings of military alliance, like Thursday's summit of NATO leaders in Brussels, she said.
"Successive secretary generals have indicated … that this is a major issue that will have huge implications for the security of member states in the future," Fetzek said.
"But there hasn't been much by way of follow through putting it on the agenda," she added.
Earlier this month, Denis Mercier, NATO's supreme allied commander for transformation, General , said climate change poses a global security threat that all countries must fight together.
He was speaking about the importance of upholding the Paris accord amid lingering tensions between the NATO leadership and U.S. President Donald Trump, who at one point called the U.S.-European military alliance "obsolete".
NATO risks being "caught off-guard" unless it does more to monitor and prepare for climate-related instability, said the Centre for Climate and Security, a policy institute whose advisory board comprises retired senior military officers and national security experts.
Increasingly frequent, severe and intense droughts play a role in various conflicts including those in northern Nigeria, Syria, and Afghanistan, Fetzek said.
"We know there is an element of climate vulnerability at the root of extremist organisations like Boko Haram in northern Nigeria, and we only anticipate that these situations will intensify as climate change intensifies," she said.
In Afghanistan, farmers are turning from water-intensive crops such as wheat to more drought-tolerant opium poppies, which in turn provide a source of income for the Taliban, she added.
A global shift from oil and gas to renewable energy sources may also have major security repercussions.
"There's a broad question around Russia's economy as an oil and gas exporter, and how Russia may behave as an international actor if its economy is affected by (the energy shift),'' she said.
Every country will be affected in some way by worsening insecurity, and there will often be surprises, she said.
"No one anticipated Syria being involved in the Arab Spring, but the severity of the drought leading up to that conflict was an example of how we should expect the unexpected under conditions of climate change affecting global stability," said Fetzek. 2017
Singer Katy Perry will get as judge on “American Idol” according to sources familiar with the negotiation.
Katy Perry
According to reports, ABC was desperate to sign a name before the Upfronts last week, when honchos announced she was the lead judge.
Reports state that Perry had rejected an initial offer of $20 million back in 2012
Ryan Seacrest was making $15 million a season at his high point, a souce said while Jennifer Lopez was also raking in $15 million a season so Katy blows them both away.
Abuja – A defence witness, Philip Akolo, orderly to former Gov. Jolly Nyame of Taraba, told an FCT High Court, Gudu, on Monday that he signed only allowances on behalf of the former governor while he was in office.
Jolly Nyame
The witness spoke during the continuation of cross examination by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) prosecutor, Mr Rotimi Jacobs(SAN).
Akolo , who earlier testified on the last adjourned date of April 25,2017, told the court that as an orderly, he was the closest to Nyame and was always with him.
He said that apart from allowances, he never signed for any other money on behalf of the ex-governor.
He denied any knowledge on the purchase of equipment, grains, materials or anything for that matter throughout the eight years he was with Nyame.
He said that he neither collected any money for the purchase of security equipment, nor was he privy to any approval made by Nyame for any purchase.
Akolo, who said that the only time he was not with the ex-governor was only when Nyame retired to bed at night, also denied knowing anything about disbursement of money.
"I don't know anything about the disbursement of any money for the purchase of anything,'' Akolo told the court.
The witness confirmed that in 2006, there was no month he did not travel with Nyame to Abuja, but that he never had anything to do with financial transactions.
He said that he could remember 65 per cent of the happenings in Taraba government during Nyame's tenure from 1999 to 2007.
He insisted that he could not remember what happened on the specific dates of July 3, 2005, April 11, 2017 and April 12, 2007.
Rev. Jolly Nyame is facing trial on a 41-count charge bordering on misappropriation of state funds to the tune of N1.64 billion while in office.
The judge, Justice Adebukola Banjoko, adjourned the case until Tuesday, May 23 for continuation of defence.
A fourth person has died in an Ebola virus outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo, a spokesman from the World Health Organisation (WHO) said on Monday.
Since the WHO declared the outbreak on May 12 in north-eastern Bas-Uele province, 37 suspected cases are being monitored, WHO's Eugene Kabambi said.
Of these suspected cases, two were confirmed in the laboratory and three were regarded as probable Ebola cases, Kabambi said.
Community health agents are monitoring 400 people who may have come into contact with those killed by the virus.
"People who were in contact with the first case reported on April 22 came out unscathed after the 21 days of observation,'' Kabambi said.
The Democratic Republic of the Congo has suffered seven previous outbreaks of Ebola since the virus was discovered in the country in 1976.
The last outbreak, in 2014, left 49 people dead.
West Africa was worst affected during 2014, with the haemorrhagic fever claiming more than 11,000 lives, most of those in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone.
Governor of Ekiti State, Ayodele Fayose Monday evening dropped a bombshell when he declared that he would contest the 2018 gubernatorial election so that he could serve his term which was truncated through an orchestrated conspiracy of illegal impeachment in 2006.
Ayodele Fayose
It would be recalled that the Supreme Court in 2014 nullified the impeachment saga that ousted Fayose from office about seven months to the end of his first term. The apex court described the said impeachment as null and void.
Speaking in a live broadcast on Ekiti State Television in Ado-Ekiti on Monday evening, Fayose who was explaining why he chose to put his image on a campaign poster currently circulating the nooks and cranny of the state, said that since the apex court had said that. Hiss impeachment in 2006 was illegal, he would then have to approach same court to interprete what that ruling means and also consider seeking a re-election in 2018.
” the Continuty poster you see my image in and which is spreading across the state can interpreted in two ways. First is the need for me to ask the apex court to explain its 2014 ruling that my so called impeachment in 2014 was illegal, null and void and consider a re-election in 2018 so that I can complete my term.
“Second is for me to get our own man, one who is like Ayo Fayose to continue after my tenure in 2018.,” Speaking also about the lingering non-supply of petrol to the state by the Independent Petroluem Marketers of Nigeria (IPMAN), Fayose alleges that the decision of the fuel marketers to stop supply to the state days prior to the burial of late Major Gen. Adeyinka Adebayo waspolitically motivated and done in conspiracy with the opposition so as to ensure that the burial of the late governor of Old Western Region failed to be successful and colourful as the governor has planned.
Vowing to resist any attempt to run business through illegal and questionable means, governor Fayose ordered that as long as fuel supply doesn’t come to Ekiti, commercial activities in all petrol station must stop henceforth. He also ordered that all petrol stations defaulting in proper legal proceedings will be demolished henceforth.
Forty-five Defense special forces weekend, graduated from the Nigerian Navy Special Boat Service , SBS having undergone training on Tactical Riverine Operation and Fast Rope Insertion and Extraction System, FRIES with a view to building a formidable team that would assist regular forces in the military at the theatre of war.
But three out of the 48 trainees who enlisted for the three months course were disqualified for not meeting up with the standard of the training described as rigorous.
Speaking at the graduation ceremony of the Defense Special forces, the Flag Officer Commanding , FOC Western Naval Command, Rear Admiral Ferguson Bobai, described the special forces as a very important unit which carry out significant operation in the theater of war.
He said “, these ones(Defense are specialised section of the military that are inserted to carry out a particular task and pullout so as to make a place conducive for the regular forces to move. The special forces are not part of the regular forces . By the nature of their work they are supposed to be together and anytime there is operation, they are called upon to render their services and pull out”
Addressing the graduands at the end of a mock insertion and extraction demonstration of a scene of war, the FOC who was represented by Commodore Samuel Kure , charged them to put everything they learned into practice in real war, assuring them of the military support .
In his remark, Acting Commander, Nigerian Navy Air base, Captain Mustapha Braimah, expressed satisfaction over the demonstration of the graduands . He explained that one of the reasons why the training was necessary was to build capacity , with a view to addressing the menace of insurgency in the North/ East and Militancy in the Niger Delta region.
Braimah further explained that the integration of the Nigerian Air Arm with the SBS ” is to prepare us and build our capacity to meet up with every challenge . Whenever we are being called upon, the air arm must contribute its own quota”, stating in particular that the air arm of the Navy had played a key role in the area of surveillance and aerial patrol around Ishawo , Ikorodu area of Lagos , as well as provided platforms that had helped to dislodge militants from creeks around Ikorodu.
Earlier in his welcome address, the Commander, SBS, Commodore Samuel Michaels , explained that the Insertion and Extraction System which the graduands were trained on, was established to ensure access into areas where aircraft can not land on, during operation.
He said ” the special forces units are a team of small and highly trained military personnel meant for special operations which are conducted in denied , hostile and politically sensitive environment. In the selection process, we task and push every individual to the limit of their mental and physical tenacity . The moment anyone breaks, we take him out. We don’t compromise, it is either you are with us or not.
Apart from the fact that it is a very sharp and leading edge training, we need trainees to be able to catch up fast because the special force has a wider latitude of skill than the regular forces. That is why we deploy them in small numbers where one person can do the work of many soldiers. And if you can not process it very fast, it is a factor to take one out”
It is a very dangerous training. If you make mistake, you will either lose a limb, die or suffer paralysis. So, there is utmost degree of safety required”
He was however quick to add that those disqualified could be fit for any other military duties, boasting that at the SBS, ” boys are trained to be men while men are turned into flaming warriors ready to go on the tide. We turn men into invincible beings , we make them indestructible and that is why we operate in small numbers and we usually leave no trace. We have an ego of living no one behind , whatever happens, whether dead or alive , we extract our own because it is one blood , one brotherhood” Michaels said.
By Michael Eboh Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Mr. Ibe Kachikwu, Monday, vowed that he will ensure that Nigeria achieves self-sufficiency in crude oil refining in 2019, stating that he would resign if he fails to achieve the target. Ibe Kachikwu In an interview with the BBC aired yesterday, Kachikwu insisted that the target for Nigeria to attain self-sufficiency in terms of crude oil refining remains 2019, adding that Nigeria should be more concerned about processing crude oil rather than shipping it out for processing elsewhere and importing refined products.
The BBC also reminded him that 2019 is near and asked if he would take a walk if the targets are not met, Kachikwu replied, "Yes, of course that is the reason why you are in government. Don't worry, I have set the target and I am committed to walking the talk. Kachikwu declared that since assumption of office, the present administration had been able to improve the output of the refineries and that the refineries are currently undergoing refurbishment.
He said, "Since coming we have been able to get them back to begin to produce 7 million litres versus zero. That is not the 90 per cent template. We are now refurbishing the refineries."
Kachikwu further stated that he has delivered on every of his targets since coming into office and would not relent until all his targets are met.
He said, "I have delivered on everything since I came to office. First, I took NNPC and moved them into a profit making organization; first time in history and reshaped the organization.
"I removed cash call deficit of over $6 billion, negotiated it. Everything that I have promised since coming into office, I have delivered. I will deliver on the refineries and I am committed to that and I will also deliver a future for oil that makes sense for Nigeria.
"But bear in mind one has been there for one and half years, the president has been there for two years. I can't pretend that we are going to solve in one day all the problems that happened in Nigeria in the past."
Kachikwu further stated that sustained engagement had been the missing component in the Niger Delta militants challenges, noting that the Acting President Yemi Osinbajo is currently leading efforts in addressing the challenges.
A couple of weeks ago, Kachikwu had stated that the Federal Government had initiated a model which attracted foreign investors to partner with the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) to repair the country's refineries within the two years period.
This, he said, had consistently served as a target for the government so that by December 2018, NNPC must be able to deliver on some of the terms given them, one of which is to reduce petroleum importation by 60 per cent.
According to him, selling crude oil is not different from selling agricultural produce in an unprocessed manner.
"By 2019, we should be able to exist completely on the importation of petroleum products in this country. Cognisant of the fact that Dangote is building one refinery, we expect to have an excess situation," Kachikwu had explained.
Ali, a jubilant 24-year-old, is finally in the stands himself for an international football match in Iraq — the first to be held in the country in years.
“Before, I watched these matches on TV. Today I’m at the stadium,” says Ali, wearing an Air Force Club jersey and a flag bearing the team’s falcon emblem around his neck.
The match between the Air Force and Al-Zawraa clubs — part of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Cup, which the former team won last year — marks the return of international play to football-crazed Iraq for the first time since 2013.
“Football is our oxygen — we breath football,” Ali says.
The law student came by bus along with other fans to the Kurdish regional capital Arbil, where the match was held.
“I would have liked it to be in Baghdad, but that’s how it is. We’re so happy,” Ali says.
Arbil and other areas of Iraqi Kurdistan have largely been spared the years of brutal bloodshed that have plagued other parts of Iraq.
Iraqis’ passion for football cuts across the deep religious and political divisions that have fuelled horrific violence in the country for years, and the country’s national teams have brought people together amid some of the worst of the unrest.
But world football’s governing body FIFA and the AFC have periodically banned Iraq from hosting international matches, most recently in 2013 after a coach was killed by security forces.
Violence was rising, part of a multi-year crescendo of bloodshed that culminated in the Islamic State group’s takeover of large areas north and west of Baghdad the following summer.
Among the targets of frequent jihadist attacks in 2013 were football pitches where Iraqi children played the sport and cafes broadcasting matches.
– Security tight –
At the stadium in Arbil, soldiers patrol and security is tight for a match that is a test of Iraq’s ability to host such events, and which comes during a three-month FIFA-imposed probation period for the country.
In the stands, fans jump, sing and scream, with Air Force supporters and their deafening vuvuzelas winning the battle of decibels.
“The heart is mine but what makes it beat is Al-Zawraa,” proclaims one of their flags.
“We are going to show a good image of Iraqi stadiums, of Iraqi football, says Anwar, a 25-year-old Al-Zawraa supporter.
“We have a responsibility, we the public,” says Ahmed Abdullah, another fan of Al-Zawraa.
He came from Baghdad on one of 15 buses chartered by the club.
“We are so happy, even if it’s far away,” he says, while adding that the ban on international play in Baghdad should be lifted because “it will not always be possible to come this far.”
It is a common sentiment among fans: they want the ban on matches being held elsewhere in the country to be lifted.
“The public is thirsty for matches like this,” says Ali Fadel, a 50-year-old taxi driver.
Founded in 1931, Air Force is the oldest club in Iraq and the current holder if the AFC title, while Al-Zawraa, with 12 Iraqi league championships, is the most titled team in the country.
Fadel, who has been an Air Force fan since he was seven years old, splits his time between Cairo and Baghdad, and came to Iraq especially to watch the match.
For him, the match rights the wrong of the “unnecessary” and “unjust” ban on international play in Iraq.
“We have a good public, beautiful stadiums. We have been deprived of such matches for too long.”
Award winning Nigerian singer, Harrysong will on Sunday the 28th of May, 2016 share the Real Deal Experience stage with music star, Orezi at the C.S. Park in Aba, Abia State.
The duo will be joined by live band, Tipsy Kelvano and popular comedian, De Don who will be hosting the show.
Harrysong and Orezi who last worked together on the hit song "Raggae Blues" in 2015 will collaborate once again on the Legend Real Deal Experience stage. Speaking on the impending performance, Orezi enthused,
"Uyo was amazing but Aba will be different because Harrysong will be joining us. He's an amazing performer and I know the Aba people will have a great time. The Real Deal Experience is a great way of meeting my core fans and I'm excited to meet more of them in Aba. I have to commend Legend for their efforts on this."
Harrysong also added that, "It's my first time on the Real Deal Experience and from what I know about it, the show allows for Nigerian stars to showcase their unique music to core fans and I can't wait to do that with the fans in Aba. Plus I get to share the stage with Orezi. I'm sure it will be great!"
The Real Deal Experience, which has already been to Nnewi, Enugu and Uyo and now berthing in Aba, will feature a simulation room where consumers can experience how the unique bitter tasting stout Legend Extra Stout is brewed as well as exciting game shows with lots of prizes to be won at the event.
Speaking on the games and the consumer experience, Portfolio Manager-Mainstream, Lager and Stout brands Nigerian Breweries Emmanuel Agu said that,
"Legend Real Deal Experience is known to always reward its consumers and this stop in Aba will prove it as did the ones in Nnewi, Enugu and Uyo earlier this year. The consumers will not only be rewarded with numerous prizes but also with great music and a nice ambience. We are counting on Legend fans to come out in their numbers, not only for Harrysong and Orezi but also for other performances set to thrill everyone."
The Real Deal Experience, which has also featured dance hall star Timaya in the Nnewi and Enugu, will visit other major cities in Nigeria in the coming months.
Former Speaker of Enugu State House of Assembly, Chief Eugene Odo, has boasted that there is nothing like the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in Enugu state again. Mr. Odo also said that the growing popularity of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state is a call for good governance.
Odo told newsmen in Enugu on Monday that the current leadership style and quality in the state was inconsistent with what obtained in the past.
He said the leadership lacuna was so glaring that members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state were joining the APC in their numbers.
Eugene Odo
"Part of the reasons why we joined the APC is that with the level God has assisted us, I do not think the state government has anything to offer for now.
"We do not want to show the difference between what is happening now and what happened in the past because the facts are glaring.
"God has benefitted us and we should be in the vanguard of benefitting others. That is our mission in APC," he said.
The former speaker lauded residents of the state for embracing the APC, adding that with committed men and women, the state will go back to its former glory.
He appealed to members of the party not to join issues with other political parties but to work assiduously in ensuring that APC won future elections in the state.
"We should not be reactive to the threats from the PDP because they are confused.
"Most importantly, there is nothing like PDP in Enugu again. What we have is a group of people that will soon be lumped into another party," he said.
Odo said that the party faithful in Igbo-Etiti Local Government Area were working round the clock to make the APC formidable.
"Our slogan and strategy is that any political appointee in the other parties must lose their polling booths during future elections and we are working towards that.
"We thank God that the PDP is now history in Enugu State so whatever reaction coming from there is panic measure," he said.
He said that it was imperative that members of APC worked together to achieve its set goals.
"We were thinking of how to develop and transform APC into a formidable party in the state when former Gov. Sullivan Chime joined us.
"His presence has assisted us even in our respective local government areas because people who might not have taken some of us serious now know that we are powerful.
"By the grace of God, APC will certainly take over the Government House in Enugu in 2019," Odo said.
Odo, who led the state assembly for eight years as speaker joined the APC in January, 2017.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Monday said the call by Nigerians for decentralisation of voting was unconstitutional.
Mrs Ndidi Okafor, Deputy Director, Public Relations, INEC, Federal Capital Territory (FCT), told newsmen that it was not possible to register in one place and vote in another.
Okafor said that the law establishing the commission did not give it power to allow decentralisation of voting, adding that it would be illegal to embark on such idea.
"It is a legal matter; it has nothing to do with the internal administration of the commission. The Electoral Act says vote where you register.
"So, you must endeavour to ensure that where you register is where you have to vote because on Election Day, movement is restricted and that is why the law says `go and vote where you registered'.
"As long as that law remains and has not been amended, there is nothing the commission can do to allow decentralisation of voting.
"All INEC needs to do is to appeal that Nigerians be law-abiding and register close to where they live for easy access to polling centres during elections.
"Election is a national project guided by the laws of the land, the Constitution and the electoral Act; so I appeal that we should respect and obey the law,'' she said.
Okafor said that all Nigerians could do for now was to start lobbying for a change of the law to meet their request.
She, however, encouraged those that had moved from where the registered to go to the continuous voter registration centre in their area councils to transfer their votes to their present location.
She said INEC had provided an electoral product called "transfer of documentation'' for Nigerians to transfer their votes, inter-state or intra-state as they wished.
Okafor said that in the ongoing Continuous Voter Registration (CRV), INEC made provision for three main electoral products.
She said that the products were fresh registration, which was opened only to those who just turned 18, those not registered before, or persons with temporary voter card, but names not in the voter register.
According to her, persons in these three categories can now access fresh registration and INEC officers are on ground to help them.
Okafor said that the voter registration was progressing smoothly, adding that INEC would soon seek ways to decentralise the process so as to capture every area.
Budding singer, Osenuwavie Ajasa, who preferred to be called Wavie has released a viral video to demand answers on the alleged several unfulfilled promises of President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration.
The video published on his official Twitter handle, @realwavie on Monday, titled, "Buhari stay with us" is already gaining momentum on the internet via a newly created hashtag, #Buharistaywithus
Wavie who delivered most of the lines in his 'Buhari stay with us' song in Pidgin English stressed that Buhari still owes Nigerians change and begs him to stay in and deliver his promises.
Marcelo Diaz has had a busy season with his club, Celta Vigo. The side’s runs to the Copa del Rey and UEFA Europa League semi-final have seen them shoulder a heavy workload of two games a week since January, with the Chilean’s body enduring a testing period. Yet even though the domestic campaign is nearing an end, Diaz is not letting his thoughts turn to a well-earned holiday.
Diaz
A mainstay of the Chile midfield over the last few years, Diaz does not want to miss La Roja's upcoming engagement at the FIFA Confederations Cup Russia 2017. We spoke to the man they call El Chelo about the immediate challenges facing Juan Antonio Pizzi's side.
"Germany are the toughest opponents in our group," Diaz began by saying. "They're the world champions and they're playing well right now. Australia are very strong, as we saw for ourselves when we played them at Brazil 2014. We were fortunate enough to beat them, but it was a very tight game. And Cameroon, who are the African champions, will be a difficult proposition too."
In then assessing his side's chances of success in Russia next month, the 30-year-old midfielder focused on their many attributes.
"Chile's big strength is that we always play as a team," explained the Celta man. "It doesn't matter who we're up against; all we're concerned about is giving everything we've got. The players in the Chile team all stick together. They'd die for each other. It's a very close-knit team and very grounded. I think that's why things have gone so well for us in the last few years.
"The spirit in the dressing room is great and we all share the same idea," he added. "We all have very high standards when it comes to work. We've got some great players who are achieving big things with their clubs, like Alexis Sanchez and Arturo Vidal. Gary Medel and Charles Aranguiz are also doing really well. I could mention the whole team, in fact, because it's a really good generation of players."
Asked to assess the impact Chile's recent coaches have had on the side's development, Diaz was quick to pick out one, even though he never played under him.
"[Marcelo] Bielsa changed the face of Chilean football," he explained. "His approach and style of play caught the eye, but more than anything he changed the mindset of the Chilean footballer. Before, Chilean players were a bit more… second-rate? If you came up against Spain, Brazil or Germany, you went out there thinking you were going to lose. But these days Chilean players will tell you before the game that they're going to beat Spain, Brazil or Germany. We're not scared of anyone now because we know that if we play as a team, then we can hurt anyone.
"Then along came [Jorge] Sampaoli. The structure was already in place and all he had to do was continue the process. That's when the team was at its most expressive. And now, with Pizzi, the team's taken on some of his unique characteristics. I think we're doing pretty well too. We have to keep it up because things have been going pretty well for us.
"We're not inferior to anyone now," added Diaz with a sense of conviction. "We know that the only way to achieve success is by working hard and maintaining the belief that we can pull off something big."
Former Speaker of Enugu State House of Assembly, Chief Eugene Odo, says the growing popularity of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state is a call for good governance.
Odo told newsmen in Enugu on Monday that the current leadership style and quality in the state was inconsistent with what obtained in the past.
He said that the leadership lacuna was so glaring that members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state were joining the APC in their numbers.
"Part of the reasons why we joined the APC is that with the level God has assisted us, I do not think the state government has anything to offer for now.
"We do not want to show the difference between what is happening now and what happened in the past because the facts are glaring. "God has benefitted us and we should be in the vanguard of benefitting others. That is our mission in APC," he said.
The former speaker lauded residents of the state for embracing the APC, adding that with committed men and women, the state will go back to its former glory.
He appealed to members of the party not to join issues with other political parties but to work assiduously in ensuring that APC won future elections in the state. "We should not be reactive to the threats from the PDP because they are confused.
"Most importantly, there is nothing like PDP in Enugu again. What we have is a group of people that will soon be lumped into another party," he said.
Odo said that the party faithful in Igbo-Etiti Local Government Area were working round the clock to make the APC formidable.
"Our slogan and strategy is that any political appointee in the other parties must lose their polling booths during future elections and we are working towards that.
"We thank God that the PDP is now history in Enugu State so whatever reaction coming from there is panic measure," he said.
He said that it was imperative that members of APC worked together to achieve its set goals. "We were thinking of how to develop and transform APC into a formidable party in the state when former Gov. Sullivan Chime joined us.
"His presence has assisted us even in our respective local government areas because people who might not have taken some of us serious now know that we are powerful. "By the grace of God, APC will certainly take over the Government House in Enugu in 2019," Odo said.
Newsmen recall that Odo, who led the state assembly for eight years as speaker joined the APC in January, 2017.
Stakeholders in the nation's power sector have identified measures to reduce the challenges inherent in the power sector.
They identified the measures in a communique at the end of an interactive forum organised by the Market Operator, an arm of the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN).
The communique issued in Abuja on Monday was jointly signed by Mr Sola Adeyegbe of Ibadan Generating Company (GENCO), Mr Kabiru Adamu of TCN and Emeka Akpara of Omotosho Electric Power Plc.
The communique said that the GENCOS had the capacity to generate 8,500MW of electricity for the country.
The GENCOs, however, called for an improvement in transmission and distribution capacity to accommodate their envisaged generation.
It said that the GENCOs also called for centralisation of market collection and appropriate disbursement based on the agreed percentages.
According to the communique, the GENCOs and Service Providers have called for the declaration of eligible customers in the nation's power sector.
They also advocated for the denomination of gas price in Naira with the DISCOs calling for harmonisation of currency for all transactions in the market.
It said that the GENCOs also demanded for the payment mechanism for their outstanding N504 billion owned it by the sector players.
According to the communique, the DISCOs advocate for the implementation of the last tariff review.
The DISCOs called for immediate payment of Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) outstanding debts to improve liquidity in the market.
It further said that the DISCOs made case for provision of subsidy in the market to support purchase of power from the GENCOs.
According to the communique, the service providers recommended the formation of a metering company to manage both trading and consumers metering to ensure standards and efficient deployment of meters in the industry.
It said that the Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading Company (NBET) should be empowered to fulfill its mandate of bridging the revenue shortfall in the electricity market.
It resolved that the Transmission Service Provider (TSP) should have a clear service level agreements with DISCOs and GENCOS for effective service delivery.
The Market Operator and Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) should be mandated to enforce full compliance of the market rules and sanction the noncompliance by defaulting stakeholders.
Sunny Verghese is Co-Founder, Group Managing Director and CEO of Olam International, one of the world's biggest agricultural commodity trading companies. Verghese co-founded Olam in 1989 and has alongside his team built the business to more than $17.1 billion dollars in sales revenue. The company now operates in 65 countries, delivering 44 products to more than 11,600 customers in 70 destinations markets and employs 17,000 people worldwide. In this interview, Verghese discusses the company's strategy.
WHAT are the biggest challenges to vertical integration in Africa's agricultural sector?
Farmers face several challenges in the upstream part of the value chain, including lack of credit and knowledge, logistics constraints and adequate access to markets. The lack of credit to smallholders has resulted in long periods of underinvestment in farms. However, given that private entities (notably, local commercial banks) are starting to provide microfinance, this situation is improving.
In processing and distribution, the challenges essentially boil down to one problem: preserving product quality given the lack of infrastructure for storage and transport. In Nigeria, even though peanuts are a key crop, the country is unable to export them; the lack of warehousing means that the peanuts are left too long in the fields, resulting in the growth of Alfa toxin, which prime export markets like the US do not accept.
Overall, the most significant bottleneck lies in the logistics part of the African supply chain, including road, rail and port access. Agribusinesses can invest in storage, but ports are a different matter; they are highly congested, generally inefficient and costly. Addressing these issues would not only facilitate trade, but help to reduce food lost through spoilage, which in turn aids global food security. The Nigerian government is already making moves to tackle the issue but more needs to be done across the continent.
In the last seven years there has been a huge issue made of these large land deals in Africa. And many of them have failed. Going forward, how do you think this land acquisition process will evolve?
Many people made the mistake of believing that the [central] government confers the land to you. The government can transfer legal title to you, but in our view customary rights are more important. If a person's forefather has cultivated that piece of land, then—according to human rights convention—that has precedence over any legal right. A lot of people come from overseas to invest there, they don't understand this. They feel the government has given them the title and therefore the title is clear.
To what extent can West Africa replicate the success of agricultural processing in Asian countries?
Africa can replicate and even exceed the success of Asia in agricultural cultivation and processing, but a few elements need to be taken into consideration. Proper land use, planning and management are essential, whether it is for a new plantation or a new processing plant. Indeed, clarity on land rights overall remains a major issue across Africa. Equally, countries need to make use of what is already available. Gabon, for example, is currently reviewing its land use policy to ensure sustainable agricultural development. If governments can help to kick start the rejuvenation of the neglected plantations through low interest loans and the creation of agricultural hubs, it would help to accelerate on production.
Additionally, the spread of knowledge is crucial. Many expert organizations have been sharing best practices with smallholders and with governments. Yet, the key is to being able to scale-up and replicate initiatives through multi-stakeholder collaboration. Furthermore, encouraging sustainable development is fundamental, not just for biodiversity and local communities, but for the long-term viability of the business.
Finally, governments need to facilitate foreign investment for in-country processing. Encouraging foreign investment with tax incentives that account for social and infrastructure investment is a case in point, as is ensuring that legislation is fit for purpose.
Being vertically integrated in commodities from sourcing to branded products, why did you decide to fully integrate from being just a trader of commodities.Going up and down the value chain?
The way we look at where to participate in the value chain is that we do profitability analysis as to where the profit resides. Is it upstream of the grower/planter? Is it mid-stream at the processor? Then we ask ourselves how we can attract a slice of the profit. If it is distributed upstream, do we have ability? Can we really enter upstream and successfully capture the production economics in terms of farming and plantation management skills?
If we believe that it's doable, then we want to invest there. It is very nuanced, so there is no strategic orthodoxy as to where we will similarly invest. We only invest when we know that we have a competitive cost to production, both capital cost of production and cash cost of production. That will allow us a cost position below the marginal cost producer's cost of production.
What sort of obstacles do investors face in terms of acquiring land in West and Central Africa?
There are many challenges. Chief among them are the general absence of national land use plans – detailed information about soil types or topographical maps. These can be overcome by ensuring that the firm has long-term lease conventions with the national government, and by ensuring that the local authorities have the same understanding. Clear agreements are needed with the local government within the framework of the legislation, as well as ensuring compliance with the existing regulatory process.
However, care must be taken that communities grant the social license to operate and that ongoing dialogue is maintained. Once the concession land is allocated, a thorough assessment of its suitability must be undertaken. Given that detailed land plans are lacking in many countries, plots can be mistakenly allocated (such as land with a high conservation value). Therefore, it is imperative that Environmental and Social Impact Assessments are undertaken by independent third parties.
Let us look at comparative advantage. You know China and India can be looking at consolidating farm holdings, and being self-sufficient in food. But sub-Saharan Africa has a comparative production advantage for key food commodities. So, how do you think Africa plays a role in supplying the food needs of India and China?
Well, 55% to 60% of the world's arable land is in Africa, but considerable investment needs to go in to build that infrastructure to make that arable land fully productive. You need to make long-term bets in farming; because it's not something you can pull out and abandon a year after you invest it. You need the certainty of being able to make agriculture investments—whether it is governance or good infrastructure. For Africa to realize the potential is a long way off. And there have to be significant private/public partnerships to really exploit the potential.
Which countries in Africa -please name your top three preferences – are better producers compared to others in the next five years?
Typically we look at a few factors. One is we want countries with low population density where land is not a big issue. So Gabon is a good example. It has 1.6 million people, a lot of land and not too much cultivation. So, one factor is population density, availability of land.
Second is labor, cost of labor and the trajectory of wage/price inflation. If you're feeling wages are going to go up very fast in this country because of the developing economy, then you might be priced out. So, you need to understand not only what current wage costs are, but you also need to have a point of view on wage/price inflation. Also, what is the capital cost of production? What does land cost? How are land prices increasing? Is the focus of government policies pro-business and pro-investment? Can you look at the communities and be equal partners to manage your supply chains? Because you will need them to support it. If they are against you, you have no hope of establishing assistance long term.
I know you mentioned Gabon, but what are the two other countries?
We have farm plantations in Nigeria. We've got a couple of [oil palm] plantations in Ghana and Liberia. We've got rice farming in Nigeria. We have forestry interest in Congo and Gabon.
Based on your experience in African countries, what would be your message to the regulators or policy makers?
Clearly they have to make agriculture the priority sector and they have to ensure an environment that allows planning for long-term investments. It should not be ad hoc, but the law, a law of parliament so that investors have predictability when they are investing. It should not be the case that in four or five years, the government changes and a new administration might reverse all these policies. Foreign investors need the security of policy lasting for the lifetime of the project. That has to be through an act of parliament. It should not be politically partisan; it should be consensual and broad-based.
Gov. Simon Lalong of Plateau on Monday donated N10 million to newly elected officials of Plateau Youth Council (PYC).
Laong, who made the donation in Jos, at the inauguration of the officials of the reconstituted council, also promised to empower Plateau youths through agriculture.
Newsmen, report that the PYC was reconstituted after 10 years of inactivity following series of litigation over its past executive councils.
The governor said that the money was a take-off grant to help the new officials to re-position the council to address challenges faced by Plateau youths.
Lalong, who noted that youths were very crucial to the growth of every society, promised to renovate the Azi Nyako Youth Centre in Jos, and also provide a vehicle to ease the movement of PYC officials.
He said that the state government would empower the youths with funds and materials to go into agriculture to boost food production, generate employment and boost self-reliance.
"My administration is using a three dimensional approach of Empowerment, Employment and Engagement so as to encourage Plateau youths to explore their talents toward improving their lots," he said.
He said that government was taking advantage of viable agricultural value chains to provide opportunities in integrated animal farming, packaging industries as well as crop and vegetable production.
Mr Danladi Mann, Commissioner for Youth and Sports, in a remark, pledged to work with the council to address the needs of Plateau youths.
Mr Eze Onyekpere, Lead Director, Centre for Social Justice, has called for coherence between the Federal Government's Agriculture Promotion Policy (APP) and the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP) to boost agriculture.
Eze, who made the call in a paper he delivered at the Stakeholders Consultative Meeting on 2018 Agriculture Budget in Kaduna on Monday.
He underscored the need for greater policy coherence in ongoing efforts to develop the agriculture sector.
He said that while ERGP was a short term ad hoc policy which ran from 2017 to 2020, the APP seemed to be more long-term and embedded in the continuum of previous policies.
"Agriculture Promotion Policy (APP) is still short term since it is a policy of an administration that may likely not survive the administration,'' he said.
Eze said that while ERGP was the overarching policy framework, the specifics and details of agriculture were worked out in the APP, adding, however, that the details came before the overarching framework.
He said that APP, on the other hand, introduced food as a human rights issue, which should compel the government to recognise, protect and fulfil the irreducible minimum degree of freedom from hunger and malnutrition.
"The clear duties of state in human rights jurisprudence, the minimum core obligation and minimum core content of the right to adequate food in this context becomes clear targets for state accountability,'' he said.
Eze noted that even though the value chains approach was embedded in the two policies, ERGP saw value chains beyond the agriculture and linked them up with the Nigeria Industrial Revolution Plan (NIRP).
He stressed the need to maximise the benefits from the country's agricultural resources by building an end-to-end integrated agriculture value chain, boosting local production to meet local demand, while reducing the country's reliance on imports of processed food products.
Eze cited palm oil as a veritable example of the full value chain of a commodity, saying that palm oil was used for the production of soaps, detergents, lipstick, chocolate, ice cream, instant noodles, shampoo, bread, biodiesel, cookies and pizza, among others.
He also said that what the local cocoa farmer could get out of the primary commodity was less than 20 per of what he would have got from a processed commodity like chocolate.
Eze, however, said that the value chains approach seemed to be questioned by the export crops orientation, which the APP proposed to add on beyond 2018.
"The APP is now clear that we can no longer continue to export primary commodities without beneficiation and value addition.
"Export of primary products will not solve the challenges of foreign exchange, job creation and technology acquisition, among others, besetting our country,'' he said.
Eze conceded that import substitution was a great idea, adding that the policy had some reservations.
"But for export orientation to compliment the diversification of the economy, it must come with value addition, which links it with industrial and trade policy; energy policy in terms of renewables, the environment, works and water resources,'' he said.
Eze noted that APA and ERGP strongly underscored the need to facilitate and encourage research, adding that the two policies viewed agriculture as a business.
"Building infrastructure to support the sector; marketing and trade, storage, processing, access to finance; inputs- seeds, seedlings, fertiliser; crops, fish and aquaculture are all covered by both policies,'' he said.
Eze said that agriculture was central to the pillars of ERGP for 2020, adding that restoring growth would involve the improvement of agricultural productivity as well as utilisation and conversion of agriculture commodities into finished valuable products.
"This is because building a competitive economy will need to fall back on our areas of comparative advantage, which must include agriculture — crops such as cocoa, cotton, palm produce and cassava.
"If agriculture grows, increases productivity and delivers more income along its value chain, there will be greater resources for investing in our people, leading to job creation, youth empowerment, social inclusion and improvement of human capital,'' he added.
Also speaking, Mr Azubike Nwokoye, Programme Advisor, Food and Agriculture, ActionAid Nigeria, commended the Federal Government for the increase of budgetary allocation to the agricultural sector in the proposed 2017 budget.
Nwokoye gave the commendation in his paper on "Analysis of the 2017 Proposed Budget of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (FMARD).
He also lauded the government for implementing one of the recommendations of the stakeholders' consultative meeting in 2016, which was to allocate research funds to institutions and agencies set up to carry out research and development activities, instead of concentrating such funds at the headquarters of FMARD.
He said that although there was a year-to-year improvement in the budget of the agricultural sector from 2015 to 2017, the budget was still very low, when juxtaposed with the total Federal Government's budget.
"This is not encouraging, especially when one considers the significant role of the sector in digging this nation out of recession, reducing unemployment, improving our foreign reserves and ensuring the nation's food security,'' he said.
Besides, Nwokoye said that the 2017 proposed budget for the agricultural sector did not provide details on how smallholder farmers would benefit from the promotion and development of the value chain of the various agricultural products.
"Hence, we cannot say smallholder farmers have been prioritised or will benefit from the allocations,'' he added.
He, therefore, recommended that the proposed 2017 agriculture budget be revised to significantly support the growth of smallholder farmers, while spelling out how it would promote smallholder farmers' productivity and wellbeing.
Nwokoye also urged the Federal Government to honour the Maputo Declaration by allocating 10 per cent of the total 2017 national budget to agriculture, taking into consideration the recovery and growth plans for the national economy.
ABUJA- THE Health for Mother Earth Foundation, HOMEF, and some scientists have called on the Buhari-led government to repeal the National Biosafety Act.
This was contained in a statement jointly signed by the Director, HOMEF, Rev Nnimmo Bassey, Convener of Nigerians against GMOs, Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour, Food Sovereignty Programme, Friends of the Earth Nigeria/Africa, Mariann Bassey-Orovwuje, and African Health Magazine, Dr. Ifeyinwa Aniebo, at a media training organised to create more awareness over the controversies surrounding the acceptance of Genetically Modified Organisms, GMOs, in Nigeria.
According to the statement the National Biosafety Management Agency Act 2015, which was eventually signed by former President Goodluck Jonathan, was trailed by unresolved controversies and complaints from key stakeholders including farmers, consumers and civil society groups.
Also the statement titled 'We Demand the Protection of Our Food and Environment- Revocation of Monsanto's GMO Permits and Repeal of the National Biosafety Management Agency Act 2015', pointed out some loopholes, which it described as unacceptable.
The statement reads in part, "The National Biosafety Management Agency (NBMA) Act, 2015, was signed into law in the dying days of the administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan.
"In spite of the far-reaching importance of biosafety matters to citizens of Nigeria, the process that led to the passage of the Biosafety Bill and its eventual signing into law was trailed by unresolved controversies and complaints from key stakeholders including farmers, consumers and civil society groups.
"Besides the lack of elegance in the drafting of the law, some provisions do not make sense at all and in some places, references are made to incorrect sections or to nonexistent sections.
"We believe the Act requires to be repealed or at a minimum have a thorough reworking, particularly with regard to the following; Access to information; Public consultation and participation, Liability and redress, Labelling and the right to know, Decision-making, Appeals and reviews, Conflict of interest: The Composition of the Governing Board is arbitrary and populated with GMOs promoters, and the Precautionary Principle.
"In this era of change we cannot cling to wrong-headed policies or cling to the wrong foot put forward by the previous government. Having a biotech policy cannot be a justification for opening up the nation's fragile ecosystems and environment to genetically modified organisms. A biotech policy cannot erase the globally accepted Precautionary Principle on which Biosafety regulations hang. We demand that these permits be overturned and the Biosafety law itself repealed and replaced with a people/environmentally sensitive and friendly law.
According to the statement conflict of interest was inbuilt in the NBMA Act and raises acute red flags about the administration of biosafety in Nigeria, which it also alleged that two of the permits issued by NBMA to Monsanto Agriculture Nigeria Limited (the confined field trial of two maize varieties) were applied for by the company in partnership with one of the members of the NBMA board, the National Biotechnology Development Agency (NABDA).
"With a GMO promoter applying for a permit in partnership with a biotech company, and sitting to approve the same permit, there are obvious reasons to call the entire transaction to question.
"The NBMA Act gives the agency enormous amounts of discretionary powers with not enough mandatory duties in the operational provisions to ensure that the agency performs a stewardship role to ensure that GMOs do not pose harm to human and animal health, society and the environment", it added.
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