Business

Obasanjo pledges support for AFRIMA 3.0, says AFRIMA IS A UNIFIER IN AFRICA

Published

9 years ago

March 30, 2016

As part of the activities to the build-up for the 2016 edition of All Africa Music Awards (AFRIMA), African Union Commission (AUC) and The International Committee of AFRIMA paid a courtesy visit to the former President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, GCFR, on Friday March 26, 2016 at his residence in Abeokuta, Ogun State, Nigeria.

Obasanjo commended AFRIMA and AUC for unifying Africa through music. He said music was part of African Culture and reiterated the need for music and culture to be commercialised in order to create jobs and reduced poverty among African youths. He implored AFRIMA and AUC not to relent in achieving their objectives and called on brands and governments in Africa to partner with AFRIMA. He recalled similar projects as president like All African Games (COJA 2003) and Festival of Art and Culture in Africa (FESTAC ’77) as platforms for promoting African culture and unity that require huge resources to organise.

He thanked AFRIMA for honouring him with their visit and challenged the AFRIMA Executive Producer to a squash game thereafter.

Earlier in his opening remark, the President and Executive Producer of AFRIMA, Mr. Mike Dada said, “the meeting and visit was in recognition of the former president as the former Chairperson of the African Union (AU) between July 2004 to January 2006. He is an African global icon, a cultural enthusiast and champion of African renaissance.”

He intimated the former president with the objectives of the All African Music Awards, AFRIMA which is mainly to unite Africans through the instrumentality of art, music, culture and entertainment as well as promote and reward upcoming and established talents on the continent.

Said he “AFRIMA remains steadfast to the AUC’s values of promoting African unity and celebrating cultural uniqueness, thereby thanked the former President for receiving AFRIMA team at his residence and specially invited him to the 2016 AFRIMA schedule to hold in November’.

A giant photo frame for his 79 birthday and Djembe drum were presented to the Former President by the AFRIMA Director of Sponsorship and Communications, Matlou Tsotsesi with the support of the AFRIMA 2015 winner of Best RnB & Soul in Africa, Praiz and Communication Manager,ONE Campaign Africa, Nde Nfodinka (Wax Dey).

The 30-man AFRIMA team that comprise AFRIMA Associate Co-Producer, Efe Omorogbe, AFRIMA jury Member, Mr. Laolu Akins, AFRIMA media Committee member and Mr. Biodun Kupoluyi, AFRIMA Production Manager, Mr. Henry Alade, Entertainment Editor of The Sun Newspaper, Mr.Tosin Ajirire among others were later treated to a scrumptious indigenous food; Amala (Yam flour) with gbegiri soup (cooked mashed coatless beans soup) and ewedu (smashed jute leaf and melon seed) in Abeokuta.

In partnership with the African Union Commission, AUC, The All Africa Music Awards, AFRIMA, is a music property developed to celebrate, reward and showcase the rich musical culture of Africa, stimulate conversations among Africans and between Africa and the rest of the globe about the great potentials and values of the African culture and artistic heritage for the purpose of creating jobs, reducing poverty, calling attention of world leaders to Africa and promoting the positive image of Africa to the world.

For the 2016 edition of the continental awards tagged AFRIMA 3.0, The AFRIMA 2016 calendar will be formally unveiled in May by the African Union Commission (AUC) and International Committee of The All Africa Music Awards, AFRIMA at the 10th Anniversary Celebration of the African Union Youth Charter.

Business

Wema Bank Announces Grand Finale of Hackaholics 5.0: Set to Reward Winners With ₦75 Million Worth of Prizes

Published

39 minutes ago

November 15, 2024

Sahara Weekly

*Wema Bank Announces Grand Finale of Hackaholics 5.0: Set to Reward Winners With ₦75 Million Worth of Prizes

Wema Bank, Nigeria’s foremost innovative financial institution and pioneer of Africa’s first fully digital bank, ALAT, has announced the grand finale of the 5th edition of its flagship youth and startup-focused tech competition, Hackaholics.

Launched in 2019, Wema Hackaholics is a groundbreaking initiative designed to harness the creativity and entrepreneurial spirit of Nigeria’s youth, providing them with a platform to turn their tech-driven ideas into reality. The highly anticipated Hackaholics 5.0 grand finale will take place on November 27th, 2024, under the theme, “Meta Idea: Capitalizing Africa’s Growth Through Innovation.” This year’s theme aims to showcase how tech-driven solutions can fuel Africa’s development by tapping into the continent’s growth potential through innovation and digital transformation.

The grand finale will bring together the brightest innovators from universities and tech communities across the country. These innovators will pitch their Digi-Tech solutions designed to solve real-world problems and contribute to Africa’s economic and social progress. The event promises to be the culmination of months of intensive competition, collaboration, and mentorship, providing a platform for youth-led tech ideas to reach new heights.

Announcing the date of the grand finale, Moruf Oseni, MD/CEO of Wema Bank, highlighted the bank’s vision for Hackaholics. “Hackaholics is more than a competition; it is a movement to equip Nigeria’s youth with the skills, networks, and resources needed to drive Africa’s digital transformation. The Meta Idea theme for this year is a call to action for young innovators to think beyond the present and design solutions that will capitalize on Africa’s growth. We are excited to see how our participants envision and build the Africa of tomorrow.”

Speaking on the prizes, the MD/CEO said “At the grand finale, participants will compete for exciting cash prizes, grants, and access to Wema Bank’s extensive network of investors, mentors, and industry experts. The total worth of prizes for this year is ₦75,000,000. The winning team will receive ₦30,000,000, the first runner-up will receive ₦20,000,000 and the second runner-up will receive ₦15,000,000 worth of prizes. Additionally, we will be awarding a special grant of ₦10,000,000 worth of prizes to the female-led team to encourage gender diversity in tech innovation.” He concluded.

Wema Bank’s Hackaholics is a testament to the Bank’s commitment to shaping Africa’s future through innovation and entrepreneurship. Hackaholics 5.0 began with a nationwide call for entries earlier in the year and has engaged over 10,000 aspiring tech innovators and entrepreneurs across Nigeria. With 2,297 applications across 8 physical pitch centers and 1 virtual pitch center, 34 innovators across all locations are set to pitch their ideas at the pre-pitch stage ahead of the grand finale scheduled to hold in Lagos.

Through Hackaholics, Wema Bank has provided a platform for youth to channel their creativity and entrepreneurial spirit into actionable tech solutions that address Africa’s most pressing challenges. Over the years, Hackaholics has grown into one of the largest and most influential tech competitions in Nigeria, impacting thousands of young minds.

The competition not only offers winners cash prizes and grants, but also access to mentorship, industry networks, and resources to help scale their innovations globally. This initiative is a key part of Wema Bank’s broader strategy to harness technology as a driver of socio-economic growth in Africa.
Interested individuals can register to attend the grand finale via https://hackaholics.wemabank.com/grandfinale

Business

ATMs empty as banks ration withdrawals

Published

1 day ago

November 14, 2024

Sahara Weekly

ATMs empty as banks ration withdrawals

The Automated Teller Machines of Deposit Money Banks have consistently remained empty in recent months as banks grapple with a sustained low cash supply.

It was also gathered on Wednesday that some DMBs, particularly in the Federal Capital Territory, have begun another round of cash rationing, restricting maximum over-the-counter withdrawals to a daily limit between N5,000 and N20,000.

While banks struggle to get cash, Point-of-Sales operators have been fulfilling the cash needs of customers.

Speaking at the Facts Behind the Rights Issue Presentation of FBN Holdings at the Nigerian Exchange Limited recently, the Executive Director/Chief Financial Officer of First Bank, Patrick Iyamabo, said that the matter was an industry-wide one and not peculiar to a specific bank.

He said, “It is an industry problem. Most customers after exhausting the options available in other banks, tend to settle at FirstBank to address their cash needs. The challenge differs by location but we know it is a challenge that the regulator is looking into to address. But as we speak of physical cash, we must appreciate that the direction of the industry is to go digital.

“A lot of our customers do most of their transactions digitally, and you heard the GMD speak to this, very often people don’t want to transact in cash. In terms of this new order, your bank, FirstBank is very well positioned so if you look at the statistics and I’m speaking to independent statistics, just pick up your NIBSS report, the bank with the most stable platform meaning availability to always transact digitally is FirstBank. So, all our customers have the benefits of having their cash in First Bank and having access to this cash anytime anywhere and as necessary. It’s a huge advantage.”

Speaking anonymously with The PUNCH, a banker at a tier-1 bank put the blame on the Central Bank of Nigeria.

As a result, many people have turned to Point-of-Sale operators, who have become the primary channel for cash withdrawals, albeit often at higher transaction fees.

Major commercial banks visited by one of our correspondents on Wednesday claimed not to have sufficient cash allocation hence the ration withdrawals to serve more customers.

The banks visited include Guaranty Trust Bank, Zenith Bank along Airport Road, and EcoBank at Jabi in Abuja.

A bank customer at EcoBank, who spoke without mentioning her name, said she was only allowed to withdraw N5,000 from N20,000 previously allowed.

“I was just informed that I can only withdraw N5,000 from my account. Can you imagine? The amount will can’t even take me home.”

Our correspondent received the same answer when he attempted to obtain cash.

At GTBank and Zenith Bank along the airport road, customers were permitted a maximum withdrawal of N20,000 from N100,000 previously disbursed as a daily limit.

A customer, Mr Faith, who visited the bank expressed shock about the new limit. He said the banks didn’t give any cogent reason for reducing the withdrawal limit.

“I just visited these banks, and I was informed that I can only withdraw N20,000 from N100,000, which was the previous limit. They didn’t even give any reason for reducing, now I have to start looking for cash elsewhere. This country is just so annoying,” He vented.

Cash scarcity became a recurring and widespread issue across Nigeria after the Central Bank of Nigeria introduced a controversial policy in January 2023, which significantly reduced the daily and weekly cash withdrawal limits to N100,000 daily, N500,000 weekly for individuals, and N5m for business entities.

This decision, aimed at encouraging a cashless economy, led to long queues at ATMs, increased difficulty in accessing physical cash, and a general disruption of daily financial transactions for millions of Nigerians.

The policy’s impact was felt particularly by those in rural areas and lower-income groups, who rely heavily on cash for their day-to-day needs, exacerbating economic hardships across the country.

Last week, data from the CBN showed that currency in circulation climbed 56.1 per cent year-on-year to reach N4.31tn, up from N2.76tn in September 2023, reflecting an increase of N1.55tn.

This is just as currency outside banks surged by 66.2 per cent in September 2024, reaching N4.02tn compared to N2.42tn in September 2023, a notable rise of N1.60tn in just one year.

This indicates that the volume of currency retained outside the banking sector outpaced the total released for circulation within the past year.

Compared to August 2024, currency in circulation rose by 4.0 per cent month-on-month, adding N166.2bn from the previous figure of N4.14tn.

The CIC is the amount of cash–in the form of paper notes or coins–within a country that is physically used to conduct transactions between consumers and businesses. It represents the money that has been issued by the country’s monetary authority, minus cash that has been removed from the system.

Earlier in September, the CBN announced plans to sanction banks that fail to dispense cash through their automated teller machines, as part of efforts to improve cash availability in circulation.

The CBN also revealed plans to release an additional N1.4tn into circulation over the next three months to ease cash flow within the banking system.

This strategy aims to ensure that ATMs and bank branches have sufficient cash, addressing ongoing challenges faced by customers over cash shortages.

Efforts to get a reaction from the apex bank on the new situation proved abortive as the acting Director, Corporate Communications, Sidi Ali Hakama, did not respond to enquiries sent to her phone number.

Business

NNPCL Makes New Leadership Appointments

Published

1 day ago

November 14, 2024

Sahara Weekly

NNPCL Makes New Leadership Appointments

The Board of Directors of Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) has just made fresh leadership appointments.

A communication by Olufemi Soneye, Chief Corporate Communications Officer of the nation’s oil company, announcing the development reads…

The Board of Directors of NNPC Limited is pleased to announce a series of strategic leadership appointments. These changes
reflect our continued dedication to enhancing corporate governance, improving operational efficiency, and ensuring long-term success in Nigeria’s energy sector.

The following key appointments have been made:
1. Mr. Adedapo A. Segun has been appointed as the Chief Financial Officer (CFO). Mr. Segun previously served as the Executive Vice President, Downstream, where he made significant contributions to the company’s downstream operations.
2. Mr. Isiyaku Abdullahi has been named Executive Vice President (EVP), Downstream.
3. Mr. Udobong Ntia has been appointed Executive Vice President (EVP), Upstream.

These appointments align with NNPC Limited’s commitment to building a unified and competent leadership team to drive operational excellence and support the organization’s strategic objectives.

The Board and Management also extend their deepest appreciation to Mr. Umar Ajiya and Mrs. Oritsemeyiwa A. Eyesan for their outstanding dedication and service to NNPC Limited.

NNPC Limited remains committed to achieving operational excellence, enhancing global competitiveness, and ensuring financial sustainability, while prioritizing the interests of the Nigerian public in the petroleum industry.

Olufemi Soneye
Chief Corporate Communications Officer
NNPC Limited
November 13, 2024S