Connect with us

Business

Mortgage Stakeholders Make Case For PABOD Finance

Published

on

Worried by some

difficulties faced by developers in accessing fund for housing development, especially in Rives State, and the need for the state to own a mortgage institution that will facilitate access to fund for housing development, stakeholders in the housing sector, have urged the Rivers State Government to resuscitate and upgrade the PABOD Finance and Investment Company Limited to a full mortgage finance institution.

The stakeholders have also called on the state government to set up a committee that will look into all the problems of PABOD Finance, with a view to identify areas to tackle in the transformation of the company, which they said have been struggling to survive over the years.

Speaking to The Tide on the development, a property developer and a structural Engineer in Port Harcourt, David Onunwo stated that access to fund is directly proportional to the rate of growth in housing development.

According to him, one major set back that developers face in Rivers State, even in the midst of high demand for housing is the problem of access to funds, which he said that primary mortgage institute could provide.

He said that a state like Rivers where housing demand is on the increase ought to have such mortgage institution that can facilitate access to funds for housing development, even for the public servants as to enable them own houses before their retirement.

Onunwo also explained that the existence of PABOD finance will be better appreciated if the state government will properly reorganise the company, and upgrade it to a full mortgage institution.

That way, he further explained that issues of long-term mortgage financing that many private non indigenous mortgage institutions shy away from could be provided by the new PABOD finance mortgage, to finance low-cost housing for the people.

Also on his part, the principal consultant of Benjamin Oti, a property consultancy firm in Port Harcourt, Mr. Benjamin Oti has also said that the Rivers State government should upgrade, monitor and supervise operations of the PABOD Finance, to make it more beneficial to the people of the state in terms of mortgage financing.

He stated that the present status of the company does not benefit the people of Rivers State in the area of mortgage, even as a finance company, but quickly urged government to upgrade the firm to a full primary mortgage instruction.

Continue Reading

Business

Kenyan Runners Dominate Berlin Marathons

Published

on

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.

 

Continue Reading

Business

NIS Ends Decentralised Passport Production After 62 Years

Published

on

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.
Continue Reading

Business

FG To Roll Out Digital Public Infrastructure, Data Exchange, Next Year 

Published

on

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.
Continue Reading

Trending