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President Buhari Authorises Release of Food Reserves Amongst Other Plans to Cushion inflation Effect

President Muhammadu Buhari has authorized the National Food Security Council (NFSC) to release reserves to cater to the needs of the citizens.

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Agriculture

As Nigeria’s inflation rate continues to surge, President Muhammadu Buhari has authorized the National Food Security Council (NFSC) to release reserves to cater to the needs of the citizens.

Nigeria’s finance minister Mrs. Zainab Ahmed made the announcement during the presentation of the 2022 National Budget to the house of reps.

She also said the government has mapped out plans to alleviate the plight of the citizens in this unfriendly economic period. The minister disclosed that the federal government has set out plans to decongest ports to facilitate trade and remove roadblocks.

She also said the government has introduced very large scanners that will aid in the rapid clearing process which will effectively contribute to decongesting the ports.

In her words, “From the monetary side, what the CBN is doing to manage inflation is monetary tightening by mopping up liquidity. On the side of the government, President Muhammadu Buhari has authorized the National Food Security Council to release reserves. We held a meeting yesterday evening on how some support will be provided.

“One of the means is releasing stocks from the strategic reserves; we are also looking at how to support inputs like fertilizer production as well as inputs such as feeds.

“The committee will be meeting in the next couple of days to provide recommendations to the president that will be announced for implementation.”

Mrs. Zainab added that there will be an extension of the rail line from Lagos to Abuja to Apapa so that containers can be taken out of the Apapa ports to other locations for inspection.

Investors King understands that the annual inflation rate in Nigeria surged to 20.52 percent in August of 2022, from 19.64 in the previous month.

In September, a report by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed that Nigeria’s CPI rose by 20.77% year-on-year in September 2022.

On the other hand, the food inflation rate in September 2022 was at 23.34% on a year-on-year basis, from 23.12% recorded in August.

The high inflation rate has been attributed to the continuous depreciation of the naira against the US dollar, with the USD being traded at ₦763 in the Black Market today, Thursday, October 27, 2022, coupled with sustained supply chain disruptions and the global energy crisis.

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Economy

President Tinubu Approves Concrete Redesign for Abuja-Kaduna Road Amid Contract Termination

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lekki

The Federal Government has announced plans to address the difficulties faced by road users on the Abuja-Kaduna-Zaria-Kano road with the redesign of the dual carriageway.

This announcement was made by the Minister of Works, David Umahi via a statement on Wednesday.

The Ministry revealed that the 127 kilometers project has been approved by President Bola Tinubu.

This development comes two days after the Ministry of Works announced the termination of its contract with Julius Berger for the Section I (Abuja-Kaduna) of the Abuja-Kaduna-Zaria-Kano Dual Carriageway project in FCT, Kaduna, and Kano States.

Investors King understands that the contract for the rehabilitation of the road was awarded to Messrs Julius Berger (Nig.) Plc on December 20, 2017.

The project, initially valued at N155.7 billion, with a 36-month completion period was further categorized into three sections.

However, only Section II (Kaduna-Zaria) has been completed and partially handed over.

Section III (Zaria-Kano) is partially finished while Section I remains in a severely deteriorated state.

A statement from the Ministry explained that the decision to terminate the contract with Berger was based on non-compliance with reviewed cost, scope, and terms, stoppage of work, and refusal to remobilise to site.

The ministry on Wednesday, November 6, confirmed that Section I has been redesigned and re-scoped.

The statement reads, “The President, His Excellency, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR has approved that the remaining 127 kilometres of the Rehabilitation of Abuja – Kaduna – Zaria – Kano Dual Carriageway, Section I (Abuja – Kaduna) be redesigned using continuously reinforced concrete pavement (CRCP) instead of the present asphaltic one.”  

“The contract, divided into three (3) sections, was awarded to Messrs Julius Berger (Nig.) PLC on 20th December 2017 at an initial sum of N155, 748,178,425.50 billion (one hundred and fifty-five billion, seven hundred and forty-eight million, one hundred and seventy-eight thousand, four hundred and twenty-five naira, fifty kobo) with a completion period of thirty-six (36) months.” 

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Tax Expert Warns Tinubu: VAT, PAYE Hikes Will Deepen Hardship for Nigerians

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Company Income Tax (CIT) - Investors King

Due to Nigeria’s economic situation, tax expert Adebisi Oderinde has urged President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to halt plans to increase the VAT and Pay-As-You-Earn (PAYE) tax rates.

Oderinde, who is also the CEO of AOC-Adebisi Oderinde & Co, made the statement during the inauguration of the company’s Head Office in the Kara area of Ogun State.

He said the country’s economic conditions are challenging and particularly unfavorable for SMEs and warned that implementing tax reform could destabilize many small businesses as inflation has already eroded purchasing power in Nigeria.

With over 28 years of experience as a tax consultant, Oderinde noted that new tax reforms would likely worsen hardship across the country.

“My advice is to make hay while the sun shines, as the journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step, and slow and steady wins the race. The country is hard! As a tax practitioner, I continue to pray for our President, but he must heed the advice of elders, especially when it concerns tax reform,” he said.

“This is not the right time to reform any tax, nor to adjust rates. Nigerians’ purchasing power is very low. While some may think of VAT reform as beneficial, it would have a negative impact, especially on Lagos State. One part of the reform aims to cancel the consumption tax, which would hit Lagos hard, as the state earns more from consumption tax than any other state in the federation,” he added.

Oderinde further advised northern Nigeria not to support the proposed policy, warning it could disproportionately affect the region.

“They also want to increase PAYE, and recent data from the NBS in 2023 shows that the total IGR from the 36 states plus the FCT is about N2.4tn, with PAYE accounting for about 63%. If PAYE is raised, it will impact many states significantly. Instead of focusing on VAT, the northern states should consider that an increase in PAYE would affect them even more than VAT,” he explained.

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Power Restored Hours After Lastest Grid Collapse

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Electricity - Investors King

Electricity has been restored in some parts of the states that were hitherto affected by the nation’s power grid collapse.

Investors King gathered that some states including Lagos, Osun, Federal Capital Territory among others now have light.

Recall that the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) had on Tuesday announced the latest National Grid collapse.

Checks by Investors King, however, revealed that the last disruption was the tenth time Nigeria would be experiencing total blackout due to grid collapse in about nine months in 2024 alone.

The situation has been raising concerns from Nigerians and other stakeholders even as others alleged that the collapse has led to inferno in people’s homes among other property destruction.

The General Manager of TCN Public Affairs, Ndidi Mbah, had assured members of the public that the grid collapse which occurred at 1:52 pm on November 5 would be speedily fixed.

The GM revealed that the grid collapse was caused by line and generator trippings, adding that efforts were on to rectify it.

Mbah had disclosed how the national grid experienced a partial disturbance due to a series of line and generator trippings that caused instability in the grid and, consequently, the partial disturbance of the system.

Each time the disruption through citizens into darkness, businesses are affected as many Nigerians task the Federal Government to tackle the menace.

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