Executive Committee of the Nigeria Football Federation, has praised the Under-20 Women National Team, Falconets for its excellent performance at the ongoing FIFA U20 Women’s World Cup in Costa Rica, at which the team has won all three matches of the group phase and qualified for the quarter-finals as group leader.
The Falconets Thursday rounded off their group stage campaign in style; beating Canada 3-1 at the Estadio Alajuela Morera Soto.
Coach Chris Danjuma’s ladies had before now relied on late goals to secure slim 1-0 wins over France and the Korea Republic but the game against Canada was a completely different ball game.
Falconets’ imperial campaign in the group stage earns the Falconets a quarter-final date with The Netherlands in Alajuela as from 1am on Monday
The committee, speaking at the executive meeting in Lagos on Thursday, noted that the achievement, as well as the triumphs of the U20 and U17 Boys in regional tournaments in Niger Republic and Ghana, and the qualification of the U17 Girls for the FIFA U17 Women’s World Cup India 2022, is a marker of the dedication, vision and investment of the present NFF administration in youth development.
krainian heavyweight Oleksandr Usyk has drawn on his Cossack heritage as he prepares for his world title clash with towering Briton Anthony Joshua, whose career could face a reckoning on the Red Sea.
Usyk, roared on by millions of war-wracked Ukrainians, is the bookies’ favourite for Saturday’s clash in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, after he dismantled Joshua to snatch his belts in London last year.
Ukranian boxer Oleksandr Usyk adopted a Cossack look for the press conference ahead of his heavyweight rematch with Anthony Joshua
Joshua, the 6ft 6ins (1.98m) former Olympic heavyweight champion, has recruited respected coach Robert Garcia and looks set to unleash a more aggressive style to avoid back-to-back losses.
Usyk appeared the more relaxed pre-fight, donning a Cossack costume – complete with a traditional haircut, shaved apart from a single lock – and singing a centuries-old resistance song with gusto from the stage in front of the world’s media.
If any extra motivation were needed, Usyk spent time as a volunteer soldier fighting the Russian invasion before accepting the rematch, which will be screened free-to-air across Ukraine under a special deal.
“We learned from each other in the first fight, but this is a continuation and the first round on Saturday will be round 13,” the 35-year-old said.
“We had enough time to study each other. We were born to compete for life, for belts, for everything. The one who does not compete, does not win.”
Usyk’s Cossack routine is not the only unconventional part of his build-up, in which he showed off his reflexes by balancing four coins on the back of his hand, throwing them in the air and catching them separately as they dropped.
– ‘Looks like a cyborg’ –
The gap-toothed southpaw also went on 100-kilometre (60 miles) bike rides in 45 Celsius (113 Fahrenheit) heat, swam for up to five hours and was able to hold his breath underwater for four minutes and 45 seconds, until he almost passed out, his manager Egis Klimas said.
“He looks like a cyborg. He went through hell in the training camp in the last three months,” promoter Alexander Krassyuk said of Usyk, who enjoyed a stellar amateur career and is unbeaten in 19 professional fights.
Krassyuk added: “He made his decision to take the rematch in these circumstances after he had received massive support from his Ukrainian compatriots.
“He was in touch with high-ranking military officers and he visited the hospitals with injured soldiers. In every conversation he heard words of blessing and support to take the rematch. People wanted him to fight.”
Joshua has kept his counsel about his tactics but he is expected to try to impose his physique on Usyk, the shorter man at 6ft 3ins, whose speed and variety flummoxed the Briton last September.
The 32-year-old has dismissed speculation that a defeat would end his career, but admitted he could not afford to slip to a third career loss.
“It’s a must-win fight. Preparations have been tough, but I like the pressure,” said Joshua, adding: “I want to compete. I’m looking forward to it.
“I can’t really say much else, but you’ve got to have a competitive spirit. I’m prepared to do whatever it takes and I’m looking forward to competing this weekend.”
Anthony Joshua said the bout was a ‘a must-win fight’
Joshua has tasted revenge before in Saudi Arabia, when he came back from his shock TKO to Mexico’s Andy Ruiz Jr by winning the rematch in Diriyah by unanimous decision in late 2019.
One wildcard is Usyk’s added bulk, after the former world cruiserweight champion gained a reported 15 kilos (33 pounds) in muscle, giving him greater strength and durability but potentially affecting his speed.
“That’s the only thing that I’d be concerned about. I keep in mind that he’s a lot bigger,” Evander Holyfield, a former cruiserweight and heavyweight world champion, told AFP.
“But that’s a decision that he chose to make. Does it help you or not? We’ll see.
“The art of the game is the fastest man and the most skillful boxer is usually the one that wins,” added Holyfield.
The Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) has raised the alarm that Nigeria may have to import medical doctors to treat local patients in the future if urgent steps were not taken to fix the persistent brain drain in the health sector which may lead to a total collapse of the system in the country.
The Oyo State NMA Chairman, Dr. Ayotunde Fasunla, raised the alarm in Ibadan recently, at the official opening of the 2022 scientific conference titled, ‘National Health Authority Act – The Sound Bites.’
The body also called for a state of emergency in the health sector to holistically address the menace of pull and push factors, responsible for the mass migration of health personnel to Europe, America, the Middle East, and other African countries.
Fasunla further stated that the poor state of the government-owned hospitals in the country was largely due to poor funding.
He noted that the budgetary allocation to the health sector in 2022 was approximately 4.2 per cent of the national budget.
According to him, “The figure falls significantly below the recommendation of the African Union at the Abuja Declaration of a minimum of 15 per cent. The situation, he said, was worse at the state level.
The Chairman, Medical Advisory Council, University College Hospital, UCH, Ibadan, Dr. Abiodun Adeoye, stated that the brain drain in the health sector should be treated as a national emergency.
Adeleye, who represented UCH Chief Medical Director, Prof. Abiodun Otegbayo, stressed the importance of the power of industrial harmony in the health sector towards boosting quality and robust healthcare in Nigeria.
He urged the health sector personnel to shun all forms of rifts that had been considered to be deleterious to the healthcare system.
The Executive Committee of Nigeria Football Federation met on Thursday, 18th August 2022 at the Best Western Hotel, Victoria Island, Lagos to deliberate on important issues in Nigeria Football and resolved as follows:
1) The Executive Committee commended the Federal Government for the support and encouragement that it has always provided for the Nigeria Football Federation, the various National Teams and Nigeria Football generally to grow and blossom in spite of certain debilitating challenges.
2) After listening to the presentation of the 2nd Vice President/Chairman, LMC on the challenges that beleaguered this year’s AITEO Cup competition, the Board adopted resolutions reached at the meeting of the NFF with the owners of Clubs that reached the men’s quarter-finals that the competition reboot at that stage and the Clubs be refunded their expenses for travelling for last-eight matches that did not take place. However, Heartland FC, who defeated Katsina FC in their quarter-final game in Ilorin, are already through to the semi-finals. It was agreed that the competition (men’s version) restarts after the NFF Annual General Assembly of Thursday, 18th August 2022, with the key objective of providing considerable mileage for sponsors, AITEO.
3) Following a detailed presentation by the Head of Delegation of Nigeria team to the 12th Women Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco, the Executive Committee directed its Technical and Development Sub-Committee to hold a meeting and make recommendations on the way forward for the Senior Women National Team, Super Falcons, including but not limited to a thorough evaluation of the capability of the coaching crew to lead the team to a creditable performance at the FIFA World Cup finals in Australia and New Zealand next year.
4) After his solemn declaration that he would not be contesting to retain his seat as President at the next NFF Elective General Assembly, the Board greatly commended the President for his huge sacrifices for Nigeria Football in the past eight years, and wished him success and progress in his future endeavours and pursuits. The President stated that he would be ready at all times to offer his support, encouragement and wealth of experience to the incoming President and the Board.
5) The Executive Committee praised the U20 Women National Team, Falconets for its excellent performance at the ongoing FIFA U20 Women’s World Cup in Costa Rica, at which the team has won all three matches of the group phase and qualified for the quarter-finals as group leader. It noted that the achievement, as well as the triumphs of the U20 and U17 Boys in regional tournaments in Niger Republic and Ghana, and the qualification of the U17 Girls for the FIFA U17 Women’s World Cup India 2022, is a marker of the dedication, vision and investment of the present NFF administration in youth development.
7) The Board directed the Secretariat to ensure that no stone was left unturned in preparations ahead of the African Nations Championship qualifying fixture between Nigeria and Ghana at the end of this month. The first leg of the final qualifying fixture will take place in Cape Coast on Sunday, 28th August while the second leg will hold at the MKO Abiola Stadium, Abuja on Saturday, 3rd September.
IN ATTENDANCE: Amaju Melvin Pinnick (President); Shehu Dikko (2nd Vice President); Ibrahim Musa Gusau (Member); Yusuf Ahmed ‘Fresh’ (Member); Felix Anyansi-Agwu (Member); Suleiman Yahaya-Kwande (Member); Babagana Kalli (Member); Sharif Rabiu Inuwa (Member); Ganiyu Majekodunmi (Member); Aisha Falode (Member); Mohammed Alkali (Member); Mohammed Sanusi (Secretary)
COMMUNIQUE OF THE 77TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE NIGERIA FOOTBALL FEDERATION HELD AT THE BEST WESTERN HOTEL, VICTORIA ISLAND, LAGOS ON THURSDAY, 18TH AUGUST, 2022
1) The General Assembly expressed heartfelt appreciation of the entire Nigeria Football fraternity to the President and Commander-In-Chief of the Armed Forces, President Muhammadu Buhari, GCFR as a person and the Federal Government as a body, for the continued support and encouragement of the NFF, the various National Teams and Nigeria Football generally.
2) The Congress approved the suspension of the provisions of the NFF Statutes (2010) and the NFF Electoral Code (2009) that provide a certain duration between the time of constitution of the Electoral Committee and the conduct of elections into the NFF Executive Committee. The Congress thereby adopted Friday, 30th September as date for the NFF Elective Congress 2022.
3) Following from the above, the Congress constituted the NFF Electoral Committee and the NFF Election Appeals Committee 2022 thus:
NFF Electoral Committee 2022: Aikhunegire Anthony Malik (Chairman); Justice Abdulkadir Zakariyya (Vice Chairman); Babatunde Ogala – SAN (Member); Daha Umar Daura – Danburam (Member); Gambo Mamman (Member). Alternate Members: Barrister Ifeanyi Dike; Barr. Ransom Ariyo
NFF Election Appeals Committee 2022: Barrister Gandi Umar, mni (Chairman); Ayo Akindele – SAN (Vice Chairman); Rev. Obioma Onyeaghala (Member). Alternate Members: Barrister Chive Kaave; Barrister Idi Halidu Ali
4) The General Assembly approved Benin City, capital of Edo State as venue for the NFF Elective Congress 2022.
5) Following a motion on the floor of the General Assembly, the Congress approved that the present NFF Executive Committee remain in office to conduct the 30th September 2022 elections in order to avoid any form of vacuum.
6) Congress approved that all decisions reached at the Annual General Assembly, in particular the Electoral Roadmap, be communicated to world football-governing body, FIFA by the NFF General Secretary without delay, for approval, endorsement and ratification.
7) The General Assembly expressed appreciation to the Lagos State Government for its support and encouragement of Nigeria Football at all times.
The Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Prof. Isa Pantami, has tasked the management and staff of Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) on effective performance.
Pantami made this call during a two-day retreat jointly organised by the Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy and NCC in Abuja.
The retreat, which was facilitated by Pantami had the theme: “Effective Management in the 4th Industrial Revolution”, particularly in respect with delivering the ministry’s mandate.
He said the performance was required to mitigate emerging leadership challenges facing telecommunications sector.
Pantami added that critical, collaborative, analytical skills were germane to organisational growth.
He also said that the government was committed to improving the intellectual capacity of its employees.
The minister emphasised on the importance of leadership skills and healthy living for managers as it enhances the performance and quality of service delivery.
Pantami said:”Most of the institutions are doing well, but as the saying goes: the result of hard work is more work.
“Secondly, we want to make sure that our today is better than yesterday and our tomorrow is better today.
“We are here to improve on the performance of work done by agencies, parastatals under the ministry, but now they are most important.
“Let us ensure that after this event we become better managers and leaders.
“It is better for leaders to under promise and over deliver rather than over promise and under deliver.”
Pantami added that promising 100 per cent and delivering 80 per cent, it will be termed a failure.
“But if you promise 60 per cent and deliver 80 per cent you have over delivered.
“You must learn to do your assignments before deadline to avoid being under pressure to deliver and avoiding mistakes.
“And it is not also good for your health, to work under pressure that may result to high blood pressure,” he said.
Earlier, the Executive Vice-Chairman of NCC, Prof. Umar Danbatta, said the retreat would help in repositioning the commission.
Danbatta said that the program would not only impact the Commission positively, but also boost better service delivery to Nigerians and Nigeria’s telecommunications industry.
He challenged the participants to enhance strategies towards addressing the various aspects of the digital ecosystem and ensure their effective interworking in the national interest.
“The commission will continually innovate to meet its mandate and to ensure satisfaction of all stakeholders; government, consumers, and licencees.
“Our gathering is to brain storm on effective management in the FIR to strengthen our continuous regulatory commitment towards this important theme of this retreat,” he said.
NCC’s Board Chairman, Prof. Adeolu Akande, Executive Commissioner Stakeholder Management (ECSM), Adeleke Adewolu, other Commissioners, senior management staff, and Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy Officials were present.
The Nigerian government has in the last seven years spent over N6 trillion on revamping the Education sector.
The Minister of Education, Adamu Adamu stated this on Thursday, at the weekly briefing organised by the Presidential Communications Team.
Adamu said the money was spent on the provision of infrastructure and Information Communication Technology equipment to public institutions of learning.
He said; “The implementation of the sector’s blueprint is on course. In the last seven years we have undertaken massive physical development of infrastructure, ICT development at all levels of our educational system, established new institutions, improved the carrying capacity of our institutions and expanded access to quality education at all levels.
“Steps are also being taken to accelerate the implementation of the 2020 presidential approval for the revitalisation of the teaching profession.”
”The government of President Muhammadu Buhari has expended a total of N6, 300, 947, 848, 237 on capital and recurrent expenditure in the education sector in the last seven years,” he said.
The Minister appreciated the support schools at all levels were receiving from state governments and the private sector.
He pledged that the government would continue to improve on the implementation of its strategic plans as well as create the necessary environment for the overall development of the education sector in Nigeria.
Boosting education, Adamu announced that all States of the federation can now boast of at least a federal university and polytechnic in each of them.
“This administration has ensured that all States of the Federation now have a federal university and a federal polytechnic, with nine Universities, nine Polytechnics and six Colleges of Education established between 2018 and today and this administration is determined to ensure that they take off very well that is why providence has been made for all of them.,” he said.
The Education Minister highlighted that the basic and secondary level of education has also received attention for the current administration, with about N553 billion spent in the process.
He said: “When we look at basic and secondary education, the ministry has invested heavily in the construction, renovation and rehabilitation of classrooms, hostels and laboratories as well as some other issues like security and other infrastructural facilities at the basic and secondary levels.
“In the last seven years, a total of N553, 134, 967, 498.50 had gone into the development of infrastructure at basic and secondary school levels.”
He stated that the emergence of Covid-19 affected the timing of final examinations for secondary school leavers but everything would go back to normal from next year.
*STRIKE*
Commenting on the ongoing strike by University lecturers and other workers, Adamu said all the unions involved have accepted the offer made by government except the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), which insists that its members must be paid for the period of the strike, but government declined based on its ‘no work no pay rule.’
He also said hopefully, all other unions like Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities, (SANNU) Non-Academic Staff Union of Education and Associated Institutions, (NASU) and the National Association of Academic Technologists (NAAT) will resume work in the next one week.
Boniface Offokaja, known as Bonny to his family, was born in Kano state, Nigeria on May 21, 1940, the first son of Thomas Igala Offokaja and his wife Susanna Offokaja. Thomas Offokaja was a businessman and leader in the Kano’s Igbo community.
Boniface Offokaja was the break-out star of the 1957 season of the High School Exchange Debaters from 32 Countries in the United States of America that year. At Sixteen years of age, he demonstrated remarkable oratory skills way beyond his age while still a student of St Gregory, Obalende, Lagos.
He was an outstanding debater among the exchange students who visited the USA that year and left a lasting impression on the American public who viewed the televised debate program among the high school students picked from all over the world.
This was at a time when America was deeply battling racial segregation between the white and the black population, South Africa was deeply under Apartheid rule and Martin Luther King Jr, the Baptist Minister, was just starting the Civil Rights Movement.
During his exchange programme in the United States, he was not afraid to speak against unfairness in the treatment of people of African descent in the United States especially when his debates were televised live to millions of homes in the US.
Beyond the treatment of blacks in the United States, young Boniface was unsparing in his query of the Apartheid rule in South Africa.
This endeared him to many of his fellow exchange students, who were equally baffled by the methods of the American authorities while in the country.
On his return to Nigeria, after his exchange programme his father, Thomas Offokaja became a traditional leader – Igwe Thomas Offokaja of Akwu-ukwu, in the Idemmili South local government area of Anambra State, Eastern Nigeria.
Education
Young Bonny grew up in Kano and was fluent in Hausa at an early age. On completing primary school, he was among outstanding students who got admitted to the highly competitive St Gregory’s College, Obalende, Lagos.
In Lagos, he was doubly promoted as a result of his outstanding performance and graduated in 1957 (aged 17). The teenage Offokaja excelled in his academics at St. Gregory’s College and won the national essay competition organized by the New York Herald Tribune on the subject “The World We Want”.
Consequently, Offokaja was picked to represent Nigeria at the World Youth Forum in the United States of America. In the United States, Boniface excelled among high school students from 32 other countries. Several remarkable quotes are attributed to him.
In 1958, after his school certificate exam, Offokaja’ s flair for writing and speaking landed him a job as a newscaster with the Nigerian Broadcasting Corporation (NBC).
He cut his broadcasting teeth at NBC and was sharpened through NBC’s training programmes. At NBC, Offokaja championed workers’ rights and got into a bit of a tiff with management and the Federal Minister of Information.
The Premier of Eastern Nigeria, Dr Michael Okpara headhunted Offokaja just before independence in 1960 and transferred him to the Eastern Nigerian Broadcasting Service (ENBS).
At ENBS Offokaja excelled at radio and television presentations. He moved rapidly to the top in the news division where he read news report daily and was a delight to listen to during the daily evening news broadcast.
During the Nigerian Civil war (1967-1970), Offokaja was a wartime correspondent for the AFP (the French International news agency) and had a good working relationship with Frederick Forsythe who worked for Reuters, BBC, and later became a freelance reporter.
Offokaja was under 30 when the war ended so he decided to pursue his tertiary educational dreams, hitherto unrealized because of his broadcasting commitments. He then attended the University of London, and later returned to broadcasting as a turnaround manager & administrator.
Offokaja studied History and Economics at the University of London. He obtained a degree in the History of Ideas from La Sorbonne (University of Paris).
He returned to Nigeria and was appointed Director of News and Current Affairs in East Central State Broadcasting Service (ECBS). Dr Nnamdi Azikiwe, Dr Michael Okpara, Administrator Ukpabi Asika and other top leaders chose him to anchor their programs and conduct their interviews.
In 1978 (aged 38) Offokaja became the youngest Director-General of the ECBS where he ran an efficient and innovative operation. He secured land for and superintended the establishment of a commercial radio station at Onitsha.
This new station morphed into the Anambra Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) headquarters. The renowned Nigerian Actor, Pete Edochie was the Director of Programmes at ABC in a different era from Mr Boniface Offokaja.
Offokaja also organized in-house training programs for all staff (skilled and unskilled) and was a delight to have around for members of staff due to his wealth of knowledge and experience.
He established the University of the Air perhaps, Nigerian’s First Open University, in partnership with the Institute of Management and Technology (IMT) Enugu.
IMT delivered lectures through ABC’s radio and TV resources and provided non-conventional avenues for many young people to pursue their academic and professional training.
In 1984 (aged 44) Offokaja retired from broadcasting to pursue his entrepreneurial dreams. He established a large poultry farm named Ekulo Farms, at the time the biggest in the South East Zone of Nigeria.
The farm possessed not only a poultry feed mill that fed its birds and supplied other farms in Nigeria, but also an ethanol production plant.
He got involved in politics in the early 90s running for Anambra State Chairmanship under the National Republican Convention (NRC). The NRC was the all-Nigerian political party established by the government of General Ibrahim Babangida and ultimately disbanded by the military regime of General Sani Abacha in 1993.
In 1996, Offokaja was appointed Sole Administrator of the struggling Anambra Broadcasting Corporation, which he turned around within 18 months.
Offokaja spent the last two decades of his life publishing with Enterprise Today, a digital-age economic and business journal. Then, Health and Lifestyle, an informative and motivating health magazine.
He also published books such as Great Igbos of the Last Millennium and The Nigeria Energy Crisis- a Rush to Coal.
Offokaja married Sorbonne Alumna Ndidi (nee Obianwu) on December 30th 1979 and has 2 sons, 5 daughters and 10 grandchildren.
Offokaja passed on November 10, 2018, at the age of 78 years.
Borno State Governor, Professor Babagana Umara Zulum, on Wednesday confirmed to the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, that he will not sack the 11, 790 unqualified teachers in the state.
Zulum spoke when Labour officials led by the NLC Chairman in Borno State, Yusuf Inuwa, paid him a visit.
During the meeting, the officials thanked the Governor for his commitment to the welfare of workers and also called his attention to other areas that include payments and promotion benefits.
Speaking further at the meeting, Zulum said he had approved the payment of N30,000 minimum wage to 5, 439 teachers of the Local Education Authority, LEA, who passed competency test.
The governor told the NLC that since the assessment committee had found that out of 11, 790 unqualified teachers, there are 7,975 teachers representing 46.3% who are trainable, the state will soon support the first batch of 1,000 to further their education through a special in-service facility that would enable the teachers to go back to tertiary schools as full-time students while getting their monthly salaries.
Zulum said, however, that the 7,975 unqualified teachers would only be enlisted for minimum wage after completing their education and becoming qualified to teach.
At the meeting with NLC’s leadership, Governor Zulum also directed the submission of a comprehensive list of all existing vacancies and eligible civil servants preparatory to a promotional exam to be held.
Zulum promised to look into all other issues raised by the labour leaders and also promised to work with chairmen towards engaging some consultants to manage the payroll systems of local government councils.
The NLC Coordinator, however, appreciated Governor Zulum for his commitment to the welfare of workers in the state.
Inuwa made special note of the governor’s payment of 2020 and 2021 leave grants to entitled workers, as well as constant payment of monthly salaries, pensions, and significant progress made on gratuities.
The NLC however appealed to the state government on outstanding issues that include promotion arrears and arrears for re-verified local government staff and LEA teachers as well as minimum wage for local government and LEA staff.
From next week, Nigerians will be able to open an eNaira wallet and conduct transactions by simply using a designated USSD code on any phone.
To carry out these transactions, Nigerians will only have to dail *997# from their phones.
Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor Godwin Emefiele stated these at the Grand Finale of the 2022 eNaira Hackathon in Abuja.
According to him: “Nigerians, both banked and unbanked, will be able to open an eNaira wallet and conduct transactions by simply dialling *997# from their phones.
“Shortly after this, both merchants and consumers with bank accounts can use the NIBSS Instant Payment (NIP) to transfer and receive eNaira to any bank account”.
“This will further deepen the integration of the eNaira with the existing national payment infrastructure”.
The CBN Governor reiterated his “promise to increase the level of Financial Inclusion in the Country because just like the Naira, the eNaira is expected to be accessible to all Nigerians and would provide more possibilities to bring in the unbanked into the digital economy”.
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on Thursday, said it reduced the minting of the Naira to boost electronic banking transactions in the country.
CBN Deputy Governor, Economic Policy Directorate, Dr Kingsley Obiora, said this on Thursday, at the Grand Finale of the eNaira Hackathon, held in Abuja.
The Hackathon is an initiative, which creates a collaborative environment for experts with a diverse set of skills to drive sustained innovation, geared towards making the eNaira the pinnacle for digital financial services and the gateway to the Digital Economy.
It is intended to seek solutions that would drive financial inclusion, SME growth and the creation of start-ups; facilitate cross-border trades and transfers, as well as international remittances and foreign exchanges; effective implementation of welfare-inclined government programs; and enhance efficiency in the interbank market.
Thursday’s event is targeted at providing an engagement with critical stakeholders in the financial technology space to deepen the link between eNaira and Fintechs.
Speaking at the event, Obiora said major economies of the world have started reducing the use of cash as a form of business transactions.
He said in South Korea, 77 percent of the people no longer use cash to make payments, while 30 percent of the population in the Philippines don’t use cash as a form of exchange.
Obiora said in Nigeria, the reduction in the use of cash as a medium of exchange has led to an explosion in electronic businesses.
He said, “In South Korea, 77percent no longer use cash to make payments, while in the Philippines it is 30 percent.
“In Nigeria too, we are also seeing the same decline in the use of cash, the minting of currencies in the CBN has been reducing in the last couple of years.
“So, alongside this reduction in the use of cash has also been an explosion in electronic business and e-business and we have seen the value of e-business grow from N393bn in 2014 to about N2.4trn now.
“And so, if you look at this movement, you will realise that the central banks in the world are responding to the yearnings of citizens which is why citizens in 96 percent of Central banks in the world are either working on digital currencies or they have done so already.”
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