Business
31.7% Youths Lack Access To Businesses Loans – NBS
The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) says that 31.7 per cent of youths in Nigeria lack access to bank loans to finance their businesses due to high interest rates.
The bureau said this in its National Youth Survey for 2020, obtained from its website in Abuja on Monday.
According to it, the report is a collaborative effort between the Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports Development and the NBS.
It also said that stringent bank polices, government policies and other measures adopted by banking institutions make it difficult for youths to finance their businesses through bank loans.
Giving a breakdown of the result from the survey, the NBS said that stringent bank policies accounted for 24.8 per cent youths not having access to bank loans, 7.3 per cent attributed their challenges to government policies while 13.2 per cent of the youths gave other reasons.
“At zonal level, youths from South-South 45.7 per cent and South West 35.5 per cent could not access bank loan due to high rate of interest while youths from North-West 54.5 per cent and North-Central 33.8 per cent could not access bank loans due to stringent policies.
“Youths from South-South 15.7 per cent and North-East 13.3 per cent could not access bank loans due to government policies.”
It however said that for those that had access to bank loans, nationally, 55.1 per cent female youths had access than their male counterparts put at 44.9 per cent.
Analysing major challenges facing youths in businesses, the report said that the survey indicated different types of challenges faced by youths in their business enterprises.
According to it, nationally, 86.1 per cent of youths faced the challenge of access to fund to finance their businesses, while 4.9 per cent faced the challenge of inconsistency in government policies.
It said that another 4.6 per cent faced the challenges of obsolete equipment while three per cent faced the challenges of lack of proper training in relation to their businesses.
“At zonal level, most youths from all the zones reported the challenge of financing their businesses; youths from South-West (100 per cent) top the list followed by North-East at 93.6 per cent while youths from South-East (78.1 per cent) were least.
“However, youths from North-Central (9.2 per cent) faced the challenge of obsolete equipment for their businesses followed by youth from South-East (3.5 per cent).
“Meanwhile, youths from South- East (10 per cent) reported inconsistencies in government policies as a major challenge affecting their businesses.”
For sources of business funding, the survey reported that youths across the six geo-political zones source for funds to set up their businesses enterprises through personal savings, loans, family sources, cooperative/Esusu, grants and other sources.
It said that nationally, 34.5 per cent of youths sourced fund through government grants to set up their business enterprises, while 29.7 per cent of youths used their personal savings.
The report added that 15.1 per cent sourced funds through cooperative thrift and 2.4 per cent of the youth obtained loan to start up their business enterprises.
“The results on zonal level shows that 96.6 per cent of youths from South-South obtained grants to start-up businesses and 49.2 percent of youths from North-Central also obtained grants to start-up their businesses.
Business
Nigeria Loses N17tr Yearly To Abandoned Projects
The Minister of State for Industry, Trade and Investment, John Enoh said this at the 8th annual induction and conference of the Chartered Institute of Project Managers of Nigeria (CIPMN).
He explained that abandoned projects continue to lock up public funds that could have been used for infrastructure development, industrial growth, job creation and essential social services.
Represented by the ministry’s Permanent Secretary, Chris Osa Isokpunwu, he said the impact goes beyond financial losses, as incomplete projects affect communities and limit access to important public services
He cited examples of that remain unopened, schools that cannot accommodate students, roads that fail to connect communities and electricity projects that have not delivered their intended benefits.
The Registrar-General and Chief Executive Officer of CIPMN, Henry Ifeanyi Mbadiwe, also identified poor project management as a major challenge affecting development in Nigeria.
He revealed that the institute had developed a project management curriculum for Nigerian universities, which has received approval from the National Universities Commission (NUC). The programme is expected to enable universities to offer project management as a bachelor’s degree.
Mbadiwe further referenced findings by the Presidential Projects Assessment Committee, which identified 11,886 ongoing federal capital projects in 2011, with an estimated financial commitment of ?7.78 trillion.
He noted that inadequate planning, supervision, accountability and implementation were among the factors contributing to the abandonment of projects across the country.
The minister called for stronger project management structures across ministries, departments and agencies to improve planning, monitoring and evaluation.
He added that the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment had introduced a 90-day implementation reporting cycle to strengthen transparency and monitor the progress of government programmes.
Business
Transcorp Power seeks sustained investment across Nigeria’s electricity value chain
Ikenga said the company remained committed to Nigeria’s power sector and would continue investing in its operations despite the challenging business environment.
He spoke in Lagos at the third edition of the Shell Power Conference, themed “Powering Nigeria’s Progress: Turning Ambition and Action into Sustainable Impact”.
The Transcorp Power chief said the company would sustain electricity generation, invest in its facilities and deliver value to shareholders.
“Transcorp Power is a long-term player, not a short-term player. This year has been challenging, but what is important is getting power to schools, hospitals and businesses to power progress,” he said.
Ikenga said the company’s focus on operational efficiency and investment had strengthened its contribution to Nigeria’s electricity supply.
He disclosed that since acquiring the Ughelli Power Plant in Delta State in 2013, Transcorp Power had quadrupled its available generation capacity.
He also said the company became the first privatised power generation firm to receive a post-privatisation discharge certificate after fulfilling all its privatisation obligations.
The company’s unaudited results for the nine months ended September 30, 2026, showed a profit before tax of N83.1 billion, while its profit-before-tax margin rose to 31.2 per cent from 29.6 per cent recorded in the corresponding period of 2025.
Its total assets rose to 11.7 per cent amounting to N629.5 billion, while shareholders’ funds grew 8.9 per cent to N199.8 billion. Cash and cash equivalents also rose to N10.3 billion, supported by improved collections.
On the company’s contribution to grid stability, Ikenga said Transcorp Power’s black-start capability enabled it to restart operations without relying on electricity from the national grid.
He explained that the capability allowed the company to support power restoration following grid disturbances, helping to restore electricity supply to homes, businesses and industries.
Ikenga noted that Nigeria had an installed electricity generation capacity of about 13,000 megawatts, with an estimated potential of 50 gigawatts, adding that realising the potential would require effective coordination across the entire value chain.
“Everything in the value chain has to work,” he said.
He called for stronger collaboration among federal and state governments, regulators and private-sector operators, alongside increased private investment, to build a sustainable electricity market.
Business
FG generates N33tn revenue in 10 months – Oyedele
This was contained in a statement issued on Thursday by his Senior Special Assistant on Communications and Press Secretary, Maryann Duke.
The statement said Oyedele pointed to “improved digital systems, including electronic invoicing, as a key driver behind a record of N33tn in government revenue collected between January and October 2026.”
The minister said the performance demonstrated the potential of technology to improve revenue administration, strengthen compliance and increase efficiency across government institutions.
Speaking on the theme, ‘Digital Sovereignty and Ethics: Guarding the Economy for the Next Generation,’ Oyedele warned that Nigeria risked losing substantial economic opportunities if it continued to depend heavily on foreign digital infrastructure.
Citing Nigerian Communications Commission figures, he disclosed that the country recorded more than 157 million active internet subscriptions as of May 2026.
He explained that these connections generated significant volumes of information through financial transactions, healthcare, education and taxation.
However, citing estimates from the Nigeria Data Protection Commission, Oyedele said as much as 90 per cent of the country’s data was hosted abroad.
According to him, the situation has implications for foreign exchange expenditure, employment opportunities, technological skills and Nigeria’s control over information generated by its citizens.
He compared the country’s reliance on foreign digital infrastructure with its historical dependence on imported refined petroleum products, warning against a situation where Nigerian data would be processed abroad and the resulting services sold back to domestic users.
The minister consequently advocated greater investment in local data infrastructure, technical expertise, cybersecurity and predictable regulations to enable Nigerian businesses to capture more value from the digital economy.
He clarified that digital sovereignty should not translate into technological isolation but should strengthen Nigeria’s capacity to participate competitively in international markets.
Addressing graduating students, Oyedele urged young Nigerians to become developers of technological solutions rather than remain primarily consumers of products created elsewhere.
He identified artificial intelligence as both a disruptive force and an opportunity for innovation, advising graduates to acquire relevant digital skills alongside critical thinking, creativity, sound judgement and integrity.
The minister also cautioned against irresponsible online behaviour, explaining that digital footprints increasingly influence employment prospects, commercial relationships and professional credibility.
Oyedele outlined five priorities for graduates, including continuous learning, value creation, integrity, responsible digital citizenship and active participation in national development.
“Your degree is evidence of what you have learned. Your competence will demonstrate what you can do. Your character will reveal who you truly are,” he told the graduating students.
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