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Areximbank Signs $600m Finance Pact To Dev African Businesses

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7 years ago

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The African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) has reiterated its commitment to deepen its drive to facilitate the growth of intra-Africa trade and support the development of African businesses.
Prof. Benedict Oramah, the bank’s President said this in a statement signed by the Head of Media of Afreximbank, Mr Obi Emekekwue yesterday in Abuja.
To further drive its mandate, Oramah said that the bank last Tuesday in Cairo signed a financing facility totaling 600 million dollars with the Heirs Holdings Group, a pan-African proprietary investment holding company.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Heirs Holdings positions itself as an African leader in integrated natural resources.
It has significant investments across Africa in the financial services, resources, real estate and hospitality and power sectors, plans to deploy the facilities to further support its power, oil and gas strategy.
Afreximbank’s president represented the Bank, while Tony Elumelu, Chairman of Heirs Holdings, represented the group during the signing at the inaugural Intra-African Trade Fair (IATF) in Cairo.
Oramah welcomed the continuing strong relations with Heirs Holdings and commended its potential role in addressing some of the fundamental challenges that had affected the power and energy sectors in Africa.
In his remarks, the Chairman of Heirs Holdings, said the proceeds of the facilities would support the Group’s vision of creating a dynamic resource-based division focused on ensuring value creation on the African continent.
He said it would also ensure the development of value chains that directly benefit the broader African economy and consumer.
“We are delighted to be partnering with Afreximbank, the Bank continues to play a critical role in the economic and social development of the continent.
“Together, we illustrate that Africa can create World class institutions capable of successfully making the long-term investments necessary for Africa’s economic transformation and catalyse the enabling environment that will unleash Africa’s potential,” Elumele said.
The IATF, organised by Afreximbank in collaboration with the African Union, and hosted by the Government of Egypt, will end on Dec. 17.
It is expected to attract about 70,000 visitors, transactions worth about 25 billion dollars are expected to be concluded at the IATF which has almost 1,100 registered exhibitors from 42 countries.

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Kenyan Runners Dominate Berlin Marathons

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22 hours ago

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September 22, 2025

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Kenya made it a clean sweep at the Berlin Marathon with Sabastian Sawe winning the men’s race and Rosemary Wanjiru triumphing in the women’s.

Sawe finished in two hours, two minutes and 16 seconds to make it three wins in his first three marathons.

The 30-year-old, who was victorious at this year’s London Marathon, set a sizzling pace as he left the field behind and ran much of the race surrounded only by his pacesetters.

Japan’s Akasaki Akira came second after a powerful latter half of the race, finishing almost four minutes behind Sawe, while Ethiopia’s Chimdessa Debele followed in third.

“I did my best and I am happy for this performance,” said Sawe.

“I am so happy for this year. I felt well but you cannot change the weather. Next year will be better.”

Sawe had Kelvin Kiptum’s 2023 world record of 2:00:35 in his sights when he reached halfway in 1:00:12, but faded towards the end.

In the women’s race, Wanjiru sped away from the lead pack after 25 kilometers before finishing in 2:21:05.

Ethiopia’s Dera Dida followed three seconds behind Wanjiru, with Azmera Gebru, also of Ethiopia, coming third in 2:21:29.

Wanjiru’s time was 12 minutes slower than compatriot Ruth Chepng’etich’s world record of 2:09:56, which she set in Chicago in 2024.

 

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NIS Ends Decentralised Passport Production After 62 Years

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23 hours ago

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September 22, 2025

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The Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) has officially ended passport production at multiple centres, transitioning to a single, centralised system for the first time in 62 years.
Minister of Interior, Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, made the disclosure during an inspection of the Nigeria’s new Centralised Passport Personalisation Centre at the NIS Headquarters in Abuja, last Thursday.
He stated that since the establishment of NIS in 1963, Nigeria had never operated a central passport production centre, until now, marking a major reform milestone.
“The project is 100 per cent ready. Nigeria can now be more productive and efficient in delivering passport services,” Tunji-Ojo said.
He explained that old machines could only produce 250 to 300 passports daily, but the new system had a capacity of 4,500 to 5,000 passports every day.
“With this, NIS can now meet daily demands within just four to five hours of operation,” he added, describing it as a game-changer for passport processing in Nigeria.
“We promised two-week delivery, and we’re now pushing for one week.
“Automation and optimisation are crucial for keeping this promise to Nigerians,” the minister said.
He noted that centralisation, in line with global standards, would improve uniformity and enhance the overall integrity of Nigerian travel documents worldwide.
Tunji-Ojo described the development as a step toward bringing services closer to Nigerians while driving a culture of efficiency and total passport system reform.
According to him, the centralised production system aligns with President Bola Tinubu’s reform agenda, boosting NIS capacity and changing the narrative for improved service delivery.
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FG To Roll Out Digital Public Infrastructure, Data Exchange, Next Year 

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23 hours ago

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September 22, 2025

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The National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) has announced plans to roll out Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) and the Nigerian Data Exchange (NGDX) platforms across key sectors of the economy, starting in early 2026.
Director of E-Government and Digital Economy at NITDA, Dr. Salisu Kaka, made the disclosure in Abuja during a stakeholder review session of the DPI and NGDX drafts at the Digital Public Infrastructure Live Event.
The forum, themed “Advancing Nigeria’s Digital Public Infrastructure through Standards, Data Exchange and e-Government Transformation,” brought together regulators, state governments, and private sector stakeholders to harmonise inputs for building inclusive, secure, and interoperable systems for governance and service delivery.
According to Kaka, Nigeria already has several foundational elements in place, including national identity systems and digital payment platforms.
What remains is the establishment of the data exchange framework, which he said would be finalised by the end of 2025.
“Before the end of this year and by next year we will be fully ready with the foundational element, and we start dropping the use cases across sectors,” Kaka explained.
He stressed that the federal government recognises the autonomy of states urging them to align with national standards.
“If the states can model and reflect what happens at the national level, then we can have a 360-degree view of the whole data exchange across the country and drive all-of-government processes,” he added.
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