Business
AFAN Demands Compensation To Farmers
The All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN), Abia chapter, has called for the payment of compensation to farmers in the state whose farm fields were razed by cattle.
The Chairman of the association, Chief Dunlop Okoro, made the call recently in an interview with newsmen in Umuahia. Reports said that Okoro’s demand followed the destruction of farm fields in some parts of Abia by cattle.
He said that the call became necessary due to the extent of the destruction, which, he said, had brought untold hardship to victims who were basically rural dwellers. Okoro identified the affected communities as those in Arochukwu, Isiukwato, Ohafia and Bende local government areas.
He said that such incidents had become endemic and “I think every effort by the state government in handling the situation has not yielded any result”.
The chairman said that he feared possible outbreak of epidemic in the rural communities affected by the menace.
According to him, cattle swim in and mess up the streams that serve as sources of drinking water to the people
“And when they now start moving out they can pull down so many things in the farm. You need to go to a farm where these cattle passed through and find out that it’s just like where a bulldozer passed.”
Okoro said that all efforts to get the herdsmen to conduct their activities in a way that would ensure peaceful co-existence with their host communities had failed.
The AFAN chairman recalled that the state Ministry of Agriculture sometime ago commenced negotiation between farmers and herdsmen with their principals who came from all corners of the country”.
Okoro said such negotiations had yet to produce any meaningful result.
He said that the affected farmers had been left to rue their plight without any form of assistance from any quarters.
“We have been doing our best pleading with them not to take laws into their hands and I don’t know how long we shall continue to do that,” he said.
Okoro appealed to the state government to fast track the delineation of grazing reserves and stock routes in the state to put an end to the menace.
AFAN had during the 2011 farming season, raised similar concern over the destruction of crops worth millions of naira.
“Payment of tuition fees for undergraduate/postgraduate studies shall be subject to a maximum limit of $25,000.00 per semester,” the Manual states.
The expansion of international card limits also reflects growing confidence among lenders that foreign exchange liquidity has improved enough to support retail dollar transactions.
Speaking recently at the BusinessDay 14th Annual CEO Forum in Lagos, CBN Olayemi Cardoso, governor of the CBN said buying and selling activities now increasingly determine outcomes in the foreign exchange market, unlike in the past when market participants relied heavily on routine Central Bank interventions.
According to Cardoso, Nigeria’s net foreign exchange reserves have risen from just over $3 billion at the start of the reform programme to more than $40 billion, while gross reserves have climbed to about $52 billion, providing stronger confidence for investors and enabling the Central Bank to reserve interventions for periods of market stress rather than day-to-day liquidity management.
The restoration and expansion of international naira card spending limits are increasingly being seen as one of the clearest signs that the benefits of the CBN’s foreign exchange reforms are beginning to reach households, students and businesses making legitimate cross-border payments.
The Secretary-General and Chief Executive Officer, WEC, Dr Angela Wilkinson, disclosed this in a statement, last Thursday.
“Nigeria’s participation comes at a pivotal time as the country seeks to expand energy access, strengthen energy security, accelerate gas development and mobilise the capital required for industrialisation and sustainable economic growth.
“WEC Nigeria will convene leaders from across the energy ecosystem, apply the WEC’s globally recognised Energy Trilemma framework to Nigeria’s unique context, and promote evidence-based dialogue, practical collaboration and informed policymaking.
“It will also ensure that Nigerian and broader African perspectives contribute meaningfully to global energy conversations,” she said.
Wilkinson expressed confidence that Nigeria would play a significant leadership role at the World Energy Congress scheduled for Riyadh in April 2027 and beyond.
The statement also quoted the Chairman of WEC Nigeria, Isa, as describing the country’s participation as an opportunity to deepen national and African leadership within the global energy community through practical solutions tailored to regional development priorities.
He said the platform would promote collaboration across sectors and attract sustainable investments into Nigeria’s energy sector.
The Chief Executive Officer of WEC Nigeria, Wunti, was quoted in the statement as saying that the council would connect leadership, evidence and investment to build a secure, affordable and sustainable energy system.
“This system will be capable of driving economic growth and shared prosperity.”
According to him, the platform will also connect Nigerian institutions and businesses with international knowledge, technology, partnerships and investment opportunities through the World Energy Council’s global network.
Recall that WEC, founded in 1923, is the world’s oldest independent and impartial community of energy leaders and practitioners, advancing informed, collaborative and practical action across the global energy system.