The Abuja Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI) has lauded President Bola Tinubu’s efforts to energise small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) with N125 billion grants.

A statement issued on Thursday in Abuja by the president of ACCI, Al-Mujtaba Abubakar, said that the president recognises the sector as the driver of economic growth.

Recall that Mr Tinubu had announced the release of the grant during his nationwide broadcast on Monday on the effects of the removal of fuel subsidy on businesses and Nigerians.

According to the president, out of the amount, the federal government will spend N50 billion on conditional grants to one million nano businesses between now and March 2024.

Mr Tinubu said the target of his administration was to give N50,000 each to 1,300 nano business owners in each of the 774 local governments across the country.

He added that it would further drive financial inclusion by onboarding beneficiaries into the formal banking system.

“In like manner, we will fund 100,000 MSMEs and start-ups with N75 billion.

“Under this scheme, each enterprise promoter will be able to get between N500,000 to N1 million at nine per cent interest per annum and a repayment period of 36 months,” Mr Tinubu said.

Reacting to the broadcast, Mr Abubakar called for the speedy implementation of the palliatives and collaboration with the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) for the effective implementation of the grants.

While commending Mr Tinubu for his empathy and determination to turn around the economy, Mr Abubakar said that the speedy implementation would boost the economy and make businesses more competitive and productive.

The ACCI president advised that all businesses in the country should be registered with the chamber movement as this will allow for effective and transparent distribution of loans and grants while strengthening the database of business activities in Nigeria.

“Subsidy in the conversion of fossil fuel tanks to CNG gas for vehicles should be hastened as it will further deepen the National Gas Expansion Programme (NGEP) implementation and push for the government to reduce carbon emissions,’’ Mr Abubakar urged.

He expressed confidence in the present administration’s efforts to turn the tide of the economy from consumption to production through pro-business policies that would enhance the business community and attract foreign direct investments.

Mr Abukakar further said that ACCI would continue to speak on friendly policies that would benefit the business community in the ease of doing business.

The naira on Friday depreciated against the dollar, exchanging at N777.82 at the Investors and Exporters window.

The naira lost by 1.26 per cent compared with N768.16, which it exchanged for the dollar on Thursday.

The open indicative rate closed at N779.58 to the dollar on Friday.

A spot exchange rate of N844 to the dollar was the highest rate recorded within the day’s trading before it settled at N777.82.

The naira sold for as low as N700 to the dollar within the day’s trading.

On Friday, $77.99 million was traded at the investors and exporters’ window.

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to establish a Nigeria-Egypt Fintech Bridge.

The move which seeks to accelerate financial inclusion, deepen Nigeria’s payment systems and drive economic growth across the African continent, followed a series of engagements between both parties.

Speaking at the ceremony, which took place at the Seamless North Africa 2023 Conference at the Egypt International Exhibition Center, Cairo, CBN Deputy Governor, Financial System Stability, Mrs. Aishah Ahmad, who signed on behalf of the CBN, said the apex bank was extremely excited over the partnership with the CBE after months of engagement.

In a statement, she said,

“We look forward to cultivating an innovative space for fintech startups and entrepreneurs in Egypt and Nigeria to accelerate financial inclusion, deepen our payment systems and drive economic growth across the African continent.”

The Deputy Governor, Bank of Egypt, Mr. Rami Aboulnaga, commended the MoU and expressed optimism that the partnership would yield the desired expectation.

The groundbreaking partnership between the apex banks of the two largest economies in Africa encompasses a broad range of collaborative initiatives, including joint regulatory innovation projects, coordinated licensing and supervisory frameworks, information sharing, fintech cross referrals, and talent development.

The conference was hosted by the Central Bank of Egypt and had in attendance over 4,000 policymakers, payment service providers, financial institutions, and technology startups from both countries and across the continent.

The Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) says the country’s daily petrol consumption figure stands at 46.38 million litres due to subsidy removal by the federal government.

NMDPRA chief executive Ahmed Farouk disclosed this during a stakeholders’ meeting with oil and gas downstream operators on Monday in Lagos.

The NMDPRA boss said the figure represented a 35 per cent reduction compared with the 65 million litres per day before subsidy removal.

According to him, an average truck out daily for petrol consumption, after announcing subsidy removal on May 29, reduced to 46.38 million litres.

“The current daily consumption has drastically reduced as against 65 million litres which had been the daily consumption before subsidy removal,” stated Mr Farouk.

“In January, it was 62 million per litre; in February, 62 million per litre; in March, 71.4 million per litre; in April, 67.7 million per litre; in May, 66.6 million per litre; June, 49. 5 million per litre and in July, 46.3 million per litres.”

The NMDPRA boss added that the essence of the meeting was to review the downstream sector after the subsidy removal and also to thank marketers who had taken the offer to import petrol.

On petrol importation, Mr Farouk said over 56 companies applied for import licences to bring in petrol, while only 10 made a commitment to import, revealing that three marketers (Emadeb Energy, A.Y Shafa and Prudent Energy) had imported petrol into the country.

He added that others, like 11 Plc, indicated interest in importing petrol in August and September, respectively.

“The era of subsidy payment is gone. We encourage all marketers who are interested in importing petrol to apply for (a) licence. The meeting is to encourage marketers to import so that there will be availability of petrol at every nook and cranny of the nation,” Mr Farouk explained.

“The marketers have the choice to fix their price because it is a free market where there will be competition.”

The NMDPRA chief executive stressed that it was no longer Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL) dominating the market, “there will be other players to compete with NNPCL.”

“We do not want any dominant player in the market. That was why we liberalised the market for everybody to play,” Mr Farouk emphasised.

Mr Farouk also pointed out that the authority was working with the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) to checkmate marketers from taking unduly advantage of the consumers.

He said the NMDPRA would ensure consumer protection at every station, adding that the quality of products imported would be focused upon to avoid substandard petrol.

As farmers begin cropping activities, Bauchi, Gombe and Jigawa state governments have approved 50 per cent subsidy on fertiliser prices to ease access to the commodity.

A check by journalists in Bauchi, Gombe and Jigawa showed that the sale of the commodity at the subsidised rate to the farmers had begun.

The NPK brand of fertilisers is being sold between N15,000 and N19,000 as against the former price of N27,000.

In Jigawa, the state government procured 6,000 metric tonnes of fertilisers for sale to the farmers.

The chairman, fertiliser distribution committee, Sen. Mustapha Makama, said that Gov. Umar Namadi would inaugurate fertiliser distribution exercise on July 17.

He said the commodity had been distributed to the designated sale outlets to make it accessible to the farmers across the 27 local government areas of the state.

“The NPK brand of fertilisers would be sold at N16,000 per bag.

“The gesture is to make fertiliser affordable and accessible to the farmers, especially those who could not afford it due to financial constraints.

“The committee’s role is crucial in facilitating the timely distribution of subsidised fertiliser which will help cushion the effect of the fuel subsidy removal.

“We understand the financial constraint being faced by the farmers. Our goal is to alleviate their burden by providing subsidised fertiliser by making it available.

“We aim to empower farmers and encourage increased agricultural output, ultimately contributing to food security,” he said.

According to him, the committee will ensure fair and equal distribution of the commodity across the state.Similarly, the Gombe state government had pegged prices of NPK brand of fertilisers at N19,000 per bag.

The state governor, Inuwa Yahaya, on June 19, inaugurated the sale of subsidised fertiliser to farmers across the state.Mr Yahaya said the state government expended over N2.8 billion on procurement of the commodity.

Checks at the Gombe Main market showed that prices of the commodity varied depending on its quality.

A 25 kilogramme bag of the NPK-15-15-15 was sold between N24,000 and N27,000, while NPK 20-10-10 sold between N14,000 and N28,000, respectively.

A 50kg bag of Urea brand of fertilisers is sold between N21,000 and N25,000.A cross-section of the farmers lauded the ward-to-ward fertiliser distribution model adopted by the government.

They described the gesture as “commendable”, adding that it would enhance access to the commodity and encourage productivity.

A rice grower in Nafada, Musa Alhaji, said the gesture assisted farmers by cutting down cost of production. This, he said, would enable them to save more money, source for other inputs and increase their production output.

“Some farmers bought the subsidised fertilisers which saved them between N5,000 and N9,000 per bag, depending on its quality.

“So for every 10 bags of subsidised fertiliser, a farmer could save between N50,000 and N90,000; this is good no matter how small.”

Another farmer, Ibrahim Danladi, said that he had benefited from a similar gesture in the previous seasons.

Mr Danladi urged the state government to expand the scope of farmer support services to mobilise participation in the programme.

The Naira on Friday depreciated against the dollar, exchanging at N803.90 at the investors and exporters window.

According to Financial statistics, the Naira decreased by 7.72 per cent when compared with N746.28 for which it exchanged for the dollar on Thursday, July 13.

The open indicative rate closed at N763.36 to one dollar on Friday.

A spot exchange rate of N829 to the dollar was the highest rate recorded within the day’s trading before it settled at N803.90.

The Naira sold for as low as N689.34 to the dollar within the day’s trading.

A total of 46.90 million dollars was traded at the investors and exporters window on Friday, July 14.

International Breweries Plc, a beverage company has said it recorded to N43.7bn gross profit in 2022 financial period.

A statement said it disclosed this at its 46th annual general meeting in Lagos on Wednesday.

The company’s 2022 revenue rose to N218.7bn as of the end of 2022 financial period from N182.3bn in the same period in 2021.

“With the challenging economic circumstances, the gross profit for 2022 decreased to N43.7bn, from N46.4bn in 2022,” it said.

Finance income increased from N3.1bn in 2021 to N5.2bn in 2022, the statement said.It said there was an increase in the net financial cost, accruing N5.6bn in 2022, from N1.8bn in 2021.

The Chairman, Board of Directors, Nnaemeka Achebe, welcomed the shareholders to the meeting which according to him has been the most attended since the COVID-19 pandemic.

Achebe, who is the HRH, Obi of Onitsha, said;

“The company continues to sustain its production volumes despite inflation. 2022 was a year that tested the global economy with multiple challenges. 2022 was a year of transformation for us, and we want to commend the board of directors for their courageous decision to embark on multiple initiatives to position our company for better returns.”

The Managing Director, International Breweries Plc, Carlos Coutino, appreciated shareholders for their commitment.While noting the company’s challenges occasioned by the government’s increase of excise duty from N40 per litre of excise, to N75 per litre, he said there would be a further increase to N100 in 2024.

According to him, “We foresee that the business sector may witness a reduction as consumer disposable income has reduced significantly.

“What have we done so far? We have had the support of the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria and we call on the government and our president to look into these challenges in the beer sector.

“We request a new and positive policy to mitigate the excessive increase and any form of double taxation. We also ask the government to give the industry a three to six months moratorium to plan and adjust to new policies.”

The National Orientation Agency (NOA) says the deregulation of the downstream sector of the petroleum industry will create more job opportunities for Nigeria’s teaming youths.

The NOA director in Kaduna, Zubairu Galadima-Soba, disclosed on Monday that the deregulation policy was to open the petroleum sector for healthy competition where market prices reflected market realities, thereby encouraging competition.

According to him, the policy will encourage foreign investors to enter the sector, create jobs, and bring in infrastructure development.

The policy would also foster petrol imports, which will lead to competition and drive prices down in the long run.

“Trillions of naira spent on subsidies would be used to develop critical infrastructure across different sectors such as health, education, agriculture and many others,” stated Mr Galadima-Soba.

He added,

“The deregulation of the sector will also discourage the smuggling of Nigeria’s already subsidised PMS to other countries, which sometimes is the reason for fuel scarcity.”

Mr Galadima-Soba explained that the agency had embarked on a sensitisation campaign across all 23 local government areas in Kaduna to deepen Nigerians’ knowledge and engender their support for the policy.

He stated that the agency had already taken the message to traditional leaders’ offices, religious worship centres, village squares, motor parks, markets and communities.

The price of petrol has soared in Calabar, Cross River, since the “unfortunate” pronouncement by President Bola Tinubu to end the subsidy regime.

Petrol is being dispensed at N400 and N600 per litre, depending on the filling station.

Only at the NNPC mega station is petrol sold at N194 per litre.

Even with the increment, many filling stations are not dispensing petrol.

A few other stations selling fuel had long queues.

In Calabar South, Murtala Mohammed Highway, Marian, Atimbo and Etta Agbor, no filling station was open for business at the time of the report.

Asked why they were not dispensing fuel, a station manager, who did not want to be named, said he was waiting for a directive from his superiors.