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Oramah: Intra -African Trade Will Rise to $400bn if Hindrances are Removed

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  • Intra -African Trade Will Rise to $400bn if Hindrances are Removed

Achieving economic integration among African countries which will give way to the continent’s economic growth is capable of growing the size of intra-African trade from its current level of $170billion to $400billion, if impediments are removed, president and Chairman, African Import Export (AFREXIM) Bank, Dr. Benedict Oramah has said.

Oramah, who stated this at the 24 annual general meeting of the bank held in Kigali, Rwanda, identified the growth factors as enabling environment such as political will, market knowledge, conducive environment and right policies combined with adequate financial resources.

He said there is urgent need to address the existing problem of trading information gap among the member countries.

Speaking on the topic, ‘Expanding African Trade in a World of Rising Protectionis’, Oramah noted that the rise of anti-globalisation, protectionism and nationalism has got direct attack on capital mobility, from advanced to developing countries, despite the fact that this is the hallmark of globalisation.

He observed that advanced countries, who have been the apostles of globalisation are now building anti trade walls against developing countries.

“During the last one and half decades, foreign direct investment flows into developing economies grew by more than 200per cent from $230billion in 2001 to over $760 billion in 2015.

“The capital flow was accompanied by movement of technology and jobs. Industrial and manufacturing activities moved from Europe and North America to Asia where return to capital was highest. As Asian developing economies narrowed their technological gap and became more competitive, accumulating trade surpluses, many advanced economies had resorted to subtle “anti-market” policies to contain rising external imbalances,” he observed.

Oramah, quoted the World Trade Organisation (WTO) as saying: “The stock of trade restrictive measures increased from 424 in 2010 to 2,238 measures in 2016; between October 2015 and October 2016, 182 new trade-restrictive measures were put in place mostly by advanced economies; G20 countries introduced an average of 19 trade-restrictive measures per month during 2016.”

He however expressed optimism that despite these, Africa as a continent, has all the ingredients required for a big economic push and to accelerate its trade, adding that relative low intra-African trade provides room for growth in a context of contraction of global trade and creeping protectionism.

According to him, Political will, market knowledge, conducive environment and right policies combined with adequate financial resources are the ingredients that will put the continent on the path to industrial transformation and a quantum leap in intra-African trade.

He said due to lack of knowledge of the African continent and limited access to trade information among African businesses, a number of African countries are spending their foreign exchange in importing what they produce at home from abroad.

Giving analysis of this, the AFREXIM Bank boss said:

“Australia, is the main source of tanned hides and skins for Southern Africa, while Zambia, globally exports this same input at a lower cost and its exports are higher than South Africa’s imports.

Again he said: “South Africa imports leather further prepared after tanning from India at a price which is double the price at which Ethiopia exports the input to the world.

“Mauritius and Nigeria, globally import leather products from Italy and Belgium at a much higher costs as compared to what South Africa and Botswana globally exports”.

Highlighting some of the potential of the continent, Oramah said: “Africa has diverse natural resources and abundant labour that can form the foundation for export manufacturing and industrial take-off. Africa has a pan African trade finance bank, the Afreximbank that has the capacity to de-risk the trade and financial flows within the continent.”

A number of African champions have emerged creating manufacturing capacities and fostering the emergence of regional and continental supply chains. For instance: El-Sewedy Electric, an Egyptian entity, has become one of the largest suppliers of electricity generation and distribution equipment and technologies in Africa.

The Dangote Group has cement plants in about 14 African countries and is now the largest supplier of cement in Africa. The Group will by 2018 open one of the largest refineries in the world. The refinery, with capacity of about 650,000 bpd, can supply the total refining requirements of West Africa.

ShopRite, the retail giant from South Africa now operates in not less than 18 African countries; MTN, an African telecom giant, now operates in 22 countries”, he enumerated.

Is the CEO and Founder of Investors King Limited. He is a seasoned foreign exchange research analyst and a published author on Yahoo Finance, Business Insider, Nasdaq, Entrepreneur.com, Investorplace, and other prominent platforms. With over two decades of experience in global financial markets, Olukoya is well-recognized in the industry.

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Energy

How Nigeria’s National Power Grid Collapsed Ten Times Within 9 Months 

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The national power grid has again collapsed, leaving many Nigerians in total darkness.

Investors King can authoritatively report that this is the tenth time the power grid will be disrupted this year alone.

For this recent collapse, the grid, reportedly lost power generation around 1:39 pm on Tuesday.

Information revealed that power generation was 2,711 megawatts as of 1:00 pm, having previously peaked at 3,631 MW.

Earlier, power generation peaked at 3,934.77 MW around six o’clock in the morning.

However, between 2 pm and 3 pm, hourly generation dropped to 0.00 MW.

The Transmission Company of Nigeria confirmed that the national grid experienced a partial disturbance at about 1:52 pm on Tuesday, 5th November 2024.

TCN spokesperson Ndidi Mbah mentioned that the recent collapse was due to a series of line and generator trippings that caused instability in the grid and, consequently, the partial disturbance of the system.

Mbah pointed out that data from the National Control Centre revealed that a part of the grid was not affected by the bulk power disruption.

TCN however indicated that work work is in progress to restore power.

She explained that engineers are already working to quickly restore bulk power supply to the states affected by the “partial disturbance.”

Mbah noted that presently, bulk power supply has been restored to Abuja at 2:49 pm, maintaining that “we are gradually restoring it to other parts of the country.”

She apologized to Nigerians for whatever inconvenience the collapse might have caused.

Findings by Investors King revealed that the grid had collapsed at ten different times between March and November, this year.

Times the grid collapsed included February 4, March 28, April 15, July 16, two times in August 5, October 14, October 15, twice in October 19 and now today, November 5.

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Darkness Falls Again: TCN Explains Latest National Grid Collapse

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The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) has provided an explanation for the latest National Grid collapse, which occurred on Tuesday, November 5.

Tuesday’s collapse, marking the 10th in 2024 alone, left Nigerians in total darkness.

Recall that the National Grid collapsed twice in October, sparking concerns among Nigerians.

Reacting to the latest collapse via a statement on Tuesday, the General Manager of TCN Public Affairs, Ndidi Mbah, disclosed that the collapse happened at 1:52 pm.

The GM revealed that the grid collapse was caused by line and generator trippings.

Mrs. Mbah said, “TCN states that the national grid experienced a partial disturbance at about 1:52 pm today, 5th November 2024.

“This followed a series of line and generator trippings that caused instability in the grid and, consequently, the partial disturbance of the system.

Data from the National Control Centre (NCC) revealed that a part of the grid was not affected by the bulk power disruption.

Mbah disclosed that operators are working to restore power in affected states, adding that power was restored in Abuja.

She explained, “TCN engineers are already working to quickly restore bulk power supply to the states affected by the partial disturbance. Presently, bulk power supply has been restored to Abuja at 2:49 pm, and we are gradually restoring power to other parts of the country.”

Apologizing to Nigerians, TCN said, “We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this may cause our electricity customers.”

Investors King, in an earlier report, revealed that in an attempt to address the persistent collapse of the national grid, the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) announced that discussions were underway with Independent Operators to take over the management of the grid.

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Energy

Nigeria Partners with ECOWAS and Morocco to Launch $26B African Gas Pipeline

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The Nigerian government, in partnership with the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), Morocco, and Mauritania, has announced plans to advance the $26 billion African Atlantic Gas Pipeline project to drive economic growth across Africa.

This development was revealed on Monday, November 5, by Mele Kyari, Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), at the ECOWAS Inter-Ministerial Meeting on the Nigeria-Morocco Gas Pipeline Project.

Speaking at the meeting, which was attended by ECOWAS Ministers of Hydrocarbons and Energy as well as representatives from Morocco and Mauritania, Kyari stated that, once completed, the project will connect 13 African countries.

Represented by Olalekan Ogunleye, NNPC’s Executive Vice President for Gas Power & New Energy, Kyari said this will be Africa’s largest pipeline project.

Ogunleye confirmed that progress has been made with the front-end engineering design completed, the phase two study finalized, and work ongoing for environmental and social impact assessments as well as land acquisition and resettlement.

He emphasized NNPC’s readiness to execute the project: “Today, we come together to make significant progress in the African Atlantic gas pipeline project, which is a transformative initiative connecting at least 13 African nations in shared prosperity and development. These achievements underscore our capability to deliver this landmark project, supported by strong regional collaboration.”

Ekperikpe Ekpo, Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Gas), described the project as a game-changer for the regional economy, stating, “We stand at a critical juncture where these agreements can reshape our energy landscape, strengthen our economies, and uplift our people.”

He also highlighted that the project will increase Africa’s presence in the global gas market, noting that “the agreements demonstrate a strong commitment to advancing hydrocarbon and energy trade across ECOWAS, enhancing access to natural gas in West Africa, and expanding Africa’s global footprint in the gas market.”

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