Dr Okonjo-Iweala, the returning finance minister and new economy Czar (couldn’t resist that one) starts talking at about 4:30. She talks about agriculture, manufacturing, job creation and even Nollywood. I don’t yet have an opinion on her and her new team – it is much too early – but in a few months, one should… Read More »
Ever heard of the D8? They are Iran, Nigeria, Bangladesh, Egypt, Indonesia, Malaysia, Pakistan and Turkey. Their central bank governors and foreign ministers met in Abuja on Tuesday. The aim? to seek closer economic cooperation that would help protect the group from another global financial crisis. The decision? Under a draft Abuja declaration, the group… Read More »
Apparently, nobody knows. Check this out: The Nigeria Extractive Industry Transparency Initiative (NEITI) has described the records of the country’s crude production and export as unclear, saying that after 58 years of oil production, the country does not know exactly the quantity it produces. Speaking at the presentation of a research report on the Nigeria… Read More »
The Nigerian president got back to the country in the early hours of Wednesday. It is reported that his flight landed in a well-guarded presidential wing of the international airport in Abuja. From an investigative report by NEXT, we learn that the acting president, Goodluck Jonathan, as the acting Commander-in-Chief, did not release the troops… Read More »
So, apparently, the Nigerian president has decided to return home, only a few days after the vice president was named acting president. Interesting. NEXT reports that the president’s ambulance arrived in Aso Rock, Abuja, the presidential ‘grounds’ about 4 hours ago. See this Aljazeera report for some background to the story. So, what happens to… Read More »
Nigeria’s debt profile at the end of last year stands at $3.97 billion, the Minister of Finance, Mansur Mukhtar said yesterday at the beginning of a two-day public hearing on the loans and debt collected by federal and state governments organised by an ad-hoc committee of the House of Representatives in Abuja. Mr Mukhtar said… Read More »
Matthew Tostevin, Reuters editor for Africa, writes in the Reuters Africa News blog: It now appears very unlikely that Yar’Adua will ever return to office, but that only intensifies the battle ahead of the election due by 2011. According to an unwritten agreement within the ruling PDP party for rotating power between Nigeria’s regions, Jonathan… Read More »
Yahoo! news: ABUJA (AFP) – Nigeria on Monday signed a deal worth almost a billion dollars with a state-owned Chinese engineering firm to resuscitate part of its dilapidated railway system, the transport minister said. The 875-million-dollar (588-million-euro) contract was signed by Transport Minister Ibrahim Isa Bio and the managing director of the China Civil Engineering… Read More »
reports the BBC: Nigerian officials are reportedly planning to give 10% of the country’s oil revenues to people in the Niger Delta, an area plagued by insurgencies. Presidential adviser Emmanuel Egbogah told the UK’s Financial Times that the money would go directly to communities, bypassing powerful state governors. Analysts say the government fears local officials… Read More »
Ban the use of foreign products at official functions and in government offices: Nigeria’s Daily Champion -The Federal Government on Tuesday imposed a ban on the use of foreign beverages at official functions and in government offices. The ban covers tea, coffee, biscuits, fruit juices, water and soft drinks. President Umaru Yar’Adua gave the directive… Read More »