Business

Afreximbank Loan To Seal Industrial Sector’s Funding Gap -BoI

Published

7 years ago

July 16, 2018

The Bank of Industry (BoI) says the 750 billion dollars loan facility by the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) will be used to fill the funding gap in Nigeria’s industrial sector.
The bank’s Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, MrOlukayodePitan, said this in an interview in Abuja yesterday.
Pitan said that the loan granted to the BoI was the largest that had been done for any Nigerian financial institution by Afreximbank.
“This gives us additional roughly N230billion to N250billion depending on the exchange rate, to deploy to the industrial sector.
“We have done our own study and found that there was a gap on the funding of the industrial sector; our study showed about N704billion.
“So, this is our way of trying to fill that gap and basically, we are looking at the small, medium and large enterprises.
“We are looking at enterprises/ companies that have a focus in using our local raw materials, companies that generate employments and we want to bring down their cost of borrowing.
“We have met with CBN, this fund will be deployed at less than 10 per cent per annum,” he said.
Pitan, who said the loan by Afrexim was medium term, said that it would run for three years with a pricing that was liable for six per cent, which is very good.
He said that the bank planned to focus on the creative industry, light manufacturers, miners, gender businesses and various ways of promoting the Nigerian business sector.
On the pricing, Pitan explained that the three years arrangement was good as it was cheaper and would allow the bank to be able to refinance again.
He said: “If we are going for six years, the pricing will be more expensive, the plan is that the time we would have done three years of this, we will refinance again.
“What this has done basically is to allow us to borrow more, so definitely we are going to do more than three years.
“We are looking at seven to eight years for the industrial sector, but like I said, this is just for us to go out there in the market and raise money.
“What we are working with the CBN will be a longer term loan where people can borrow for between seven and eight years.
The Afreximbank had on July 14 signed a 750million dollar loan facility with BoI to support industrialisation and export development in Nigeria.

Business

NPA Assures On Staff Welfare

Published

3 days ago

June 27, 2025

The Tide

The Managing Director, Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Dr. Abubakar Dantsoho, has said the management will continue to accompany its port infrastructure and equipment modernization drive with the development of the welfare of its personnel.

Dantsoho made the disclosure recently while responding to the commendation by the Maritime Workers Union (MWUN) and the senior Staff Association of Statutory Corporations and Government-Owned Companies (SSASGOC) on the clearing of the age-long problem of employee stagnation, when the union paid him a courtesy visit at the Authority’s headquarters in Lagos.

A Statement by NPA’s General Manager Corporate & Strategic Communications, Mr. Ikechukwu Onyemekara, quoted Dantsoho as saying, “our Port infrastructure and equipment modernization drive will go hand-in-hand with continuous staff welfare improvement”.

The NPA MD disclosed that human capital development constitutes the key strategy for creating and sustaining superior performance under his watch, adding that “talent development constitutes a critical success factor for the actualization of the big hairy audacious goals we have set for ourselves especially in the area of Port competitiveness.

“The only way we can meet and indeed exceed stakeholders’ expectations is to deepen the competencies of our human resources assets and boosting their morale.”

Speaking further, Dantsoho commended the Honourable Minister of Marine & Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola, for approving the strategic proposal of the Dantsoho-led Management team that solved the over a decade-long problem of lack of promotion that had fuelled industrial disharmony.

“I must specially appreciate our amiable Minister for graciously approving the multi-pronged stratagem we deployed that cleared all outstanding cases of employee stagnation by conducting examinations in one fell swoop and instituted timelines to forestall a recurrence of such anomaly”, he sad.

Speaking on behalf of the joint maritime labour unions, the President of Senior Staff Association of Statutory Corporations & Government-Owned Companies (SSASCGOC), Comrade Bodunde stated, “In addition to clearance of the backlog of stagnated promotions, we also wish to express our appreciation for the increase in productivity bonuses, provision of end-of-year welfare packages for staff, and the revision of the Financial Guide to the Condition of Service, which now addresses our members’ concerns about inflationary pressures.”

Nkpemenyie Mcdominic, Lagos

Business

ANLCA Chieftain Emerges FELCBA’s VP

Published

3 days ago

June 27, 2025

The Tide

National Secretary of the Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA), Elder Olumide Fakanlu, has been elected Vice President of the Federation of ECOWAS Licensed Customs Brokers Association (FELCBA).

The election took place during the FELCBA Congress, held from Tuesday, June 17th to Thursday, June 19th, 2025, in Freetown, Sierra Leone.

Fakanlu’s emergence as Vice President marks a significant achievement for Nigeria within the regional customs brokerage community.

Apart from Fakanlu, Secretary of the Seme Chapter of ANLCA, Austin Nwosu, was also elected, securing the role of Secretary of Relations with Institutions.

The Nigerian delegation played an active role in the congress, with Michael Ebeatu nominated as a member of the electoral officer team, ensuring a fair and transparent election process.

The three-day congress concluded with delegates undertaking a visit to the Sierra Leone Port, offering insights into the host nation’s maritime operations, followed by a recreational trip to the Tokeh Beach.

The newly elected executives are expected to lead FELCBA in its efforts to harmonize customs brokerage practices, promote trade facilitation, and advocate for the interests of licensed customs brokers across the ECOWAS sub-region.

Nkpemenyie Mcdominic, Lagos

Business

NSC, Police Boost Partnership On Port Enforcement

Published

3 days ago

June 27, 2025

The Tide

In a bid to enhance more enforcement in the nation’s Port, the Nigerian Shippers’ Council (NSC) has reaffirmed its commitment to stronger inter-agency collaboration with the Nigeria Police Force (NPF).

The Council said the collaboration is aimed at enhancing stronger enforcement, compliance and improve operational efficiency across Nigeria’s ports.

Executive Secretary/Chief Executive Officer of NSC, Dr. Pius Akutah, made this known during a visit to the Inspector-General of Police, Dr. Kayode Adeolu Egbetokun, at the Force Headquarters, Abuja.

The visit, which he said, focused on strengthening institutional synergy, comes in the wake of growing responsibilities for the NSC under the newly created Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy.

Akutah emphasized the critical role of security agencies in supporting port operations and ensuring regulatory compliance.

He called for the posting of police officers to assist the Council’s monitoring and enforcement teams at key port locations including Lagos, Warri, Onne, Port Harcourt, and Calabar.

“The posting will complement the activities of our revived task teams and enhance our ability to enforce standards across the maritime logistics chain”, he said.

Earlier, the Inspector-General of Police, Dr. Egbetokun, assured the Council of the Force’s readiness to continue supporting the growth of the maritime sector.

The IGP acknowledged that compliance enforcement is essential to the successful implementation of Nigeria’s Blue Economy objectives.

“The NSC and NPF are expected to deepen collaboration in the months ahead, with a shared focus on building a secure, efficient, and competitive port environment”, to the IGP emphasized.

Chinedu Wosu