FG approves Nigeria Blockchain Policy in a bid to create a digital Nigeria

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May 5, 2023

The Federal Government of Nigeria has finally made a stand on blockchain by the approval of Nigeria Blockchain Policy

On May 3rd 2023, the Federal Executive Council approved the National Blockchain Policy during its meeting.

This approval is in response to the memo presented by the minister of communication and digital economy, Professor Isa Ali Ibrahim.

Nigeria and blockchain technology

While Nigeria is one of the fastest-growing adopters of blockchain technology, the Central Bank of Nigeria is yet to reverse its memo issued on February 5, 2021.

The memo restricted all banks in the country from involving in cryptocurrency transactions and close all accounts that involve crypto trading.

Nevertheless, this does not prevent Nigeria from buying, selling and holding cryptocurrency in the country via a peer-to-peer market.

In order to push the adoption further, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) issued guidelines on digital assets including cryptocurrency in May 2022.

It should also be noted that the Central Bank of Nigeria include stablecoin and the use of blockchain technology (Distributed Ledger Technology) in its Payment System Vision 2025 (PSV 2025)

After going back and forth on the issue of blockchain technology the Federal Government of Nigeria has directed all relevant regulatory bodies such as National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) among others to develop regulatory framework for the deployment of blockchain technology across various sectors of the economy.

Nigeria National Blockchain Policy

According to the press release by the Federal Ministry of Communication and Digital Economy, “the vision of the policy is to create a blockchain-powered economy that supports secure transactions, data sharing, and value exchange between people, businesses, and governments.

FMCDE acknowledges that blockchain technology can boost innovation, improve public services, create job opportunities, and drive economic growth.

Not only that, blockchain technology has the potential to revolutionize many Industries such as Finance, Healthcare, transportation, supply chain management etc.

The National Information Technology Development Agency will be in charge of organizing the policy while a multi-sectoral steering committee has been established to oversee the implementation of the Nigeria National Blockchain Policy.

In its final note, FMCDE calls for all federal and state governments, and private sectors to leverage blockchain technology in various sectors.

This is coming at a time when Crypto Smart is set to launch Bitsave, the SaveFi protocol of web3 finance, to help individuals save money and interest in cryptocurrency without losing their capital to the market volatility.

You can watch the live presentation here and join the waitlist in order to build a digital Nigeria together.

About Crypto Smart

Crypto Smart is a B2B Crypto Asset Management company founded in January 2021 by Karla Obakpolor, a blockchain business developer and Algorand ambassador in 2020.

The company offers fast and secure services which are based on a well-encrypted system with 24/7 customer support services. It has grown from offering its services to individuals, to companies and major enterprises as well as providing crypto education through various crypto courses.

Crypto Smart upscaled to the Algorand blockchain and offers blockchain products which include SmartChange; a cross-chain P2P marketplace, Bitsave Protocol; a SaveFi protocol that combines savings with DeFi.

House Of Reps Approves Buhari N22.7trn Loan Request

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Rhoda Onuzulike

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May 4, 2023

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The House of Representatives has approved the request by President Muhammadu Buhari to restructure the N22.7 trillion loan from the Central Bank of Nigeria CBN extended to the Federal Government under its Ways and Means provision.

The Ways and Means provision allows the government to borrow from the apex bank if it needs short-term or emergency finance to fund delayed government expected cash receipts of fiscal deficits.

The Federal Government had said that it would repay the loan which as of December 2022 stood at N22.7 trillion with securities such as treasury bills and bonds issuance.

Also, President Buhari had in December last year, asked both chambers of the National Assembly to approve the proposal.

But the lawmakers could not consider the request before proceeding with the election, Easter, and Ramadan breaks.

After resumption on Tuesday, the Senate approved the request on Wednesday while the House of Representatives followed suit on Thursday.

That was sequel to the consideration and approval of the report of the Committee on Finance, Banking and Currency and Aids, Loans and Debt Management, standing in the name James Abiodun Faleke (APC, Lagos) by the Committee of Supply.

The report asked the House to: “approve the requested additional N1 trillion Ways and Means advances for the implementation of the 2022 Supplementary Appropriation Act as passed by the National Assembly.

CBN ‘Ways and Means’ loan to the FG rise to N20 trillion as of June 2022

“Approve the Securitisation of the total outstanding Ways and Means amount under the following terms: amount, N23, 719,703,774,306.90; tenor 40 years; moratorium on principal repayment three years; pricing/interest rate 9 percent per annum.”

Also at the plenary, the ad-hoc committees saddled with the investigation of the volume of fuel consumed daily, and the state of refineries, laid its findings and recommendations for consideration.

In his remarks at the reports were laid, the Deputy Speaker, Idris Wase who presided over the plenary session said the report would be considered next week Tuesday and directed the clerk to make copies of the reports available to members

“Clerk please ensure all members get copies of these reports before Tuesday because they are important and will help in decision-making for the outgoing and incoming government,” Wase said.

NLC Strike: Total Blackout, Flights Cancelled In Imo

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Rhoda Onuzulike

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May 4, 2023

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Following the withdrawal of services by affiliates of the Nigerian Labour Congress and Trade Union Congress in Imo state, the Imo state government has again lashed out on the NLC President, Comrade Joe Ajaero, accusing him of using the Labour platform to fight a personal war.

This followed the immediate shutdown of power supply and flight services in Imo state after the NLC had accused the state government of deploying thugs and armed operatives to disrupt the Workers Day rally at the Labour House in Owerri.

In his reaction, the Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Hon. Declan Emelumba said government had no issues with the Organized Labour in Imo state but stressed that the NLC national President was bent on fomenting industrial crisis in Imo state.

His words: “It is indeed curious that Joe Ajaero has chosen to be the de-facto Chairman of NLC in Imo State, instead of the National President. Otherwise, why did he dissipate all his energy to pour vituperation on Governor Hope Uzodinma, instead of addressing burning national issues affecting Nigerian workers?”

Naira Scarcity: NLC Declares Nationwide Strike

He continued: “The National Executive Council of NLC must not allow him to use a noble organization such as NLC as a platform to fight his personal and clannish political battles in Imo state. They must also not allow him to create an atmosphere of rancour in the country at this time of transition. It is worth mentioning that Ajaero’s unbridled political ambition once turned the NLC to a divided house with daggers drawn. He must not be allowed to precipitate that inglorious infamy a second time as the NLC may not recover from a second fall.

“His Lilliputian efforts to blackmail both the governor and the workers have failed, going by the award bestowed on His Excellency by the workers. This was done in utter scorn of his lame propaganda against the Governor and his administration.

“It is unfortunate that Joe Ajaero has been blinded by political and pecuniary considerations to continue to stoke the embers of discord in Imo State, his home state, as if that was the sole reason he was nominated the President of NLC.”

However, the NLC in Imo state has said that Uzodinma and his administration are the aggressors having severally disrupted their peaceful rallies and forcefully dispersed their members at the Labour House.

The Imo state Chairman of NLC, Comrade George Ofoegbu said in a telephone conversation with our correspondent, that the union has absolutely nothing to do with the purported endorsement of the Governor and has firmly distanced itself from the charade.

Checks by our correspondent showed that there has been total shut down of power supply in Owerri since Tuesday morning.

FG Disconnects Discos From National Grid Over Debt

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Rhoda Onuzulike

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May 4, 2023

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Millions of electricity consumers may be plunged into darkness in the coming weeks as the Federal Government via the Transmission Company of Nigeria and the Market Operator have begun a massive disconnection of debtor electricity distribution companies from the national grid.

The development followed notices of disconnection from the grid served on some of the Discos by the Market Operator.

The MO, a division of the Transmission Company of Nigeria had informed some Discos, including generating companies of the disconnection plan, due to failure to make remittances of ancillary services bills.

Since the noticed by MO, it has been observed that electricity supply had degenerated further across the country, with many areas complaining of either low or no supply.

National Grid Collapse: Nigerian Government Continues Restoration

The Executive Director, MO, Eddy Eje, in a recent statement advised erring Discos to make necessary payments. This followed an intervention by the Minister of Power, Abubakar Aliyu.

Based on the 60 days extension of the grace period, the market defaulters were expected to comply with the provisions of the Market Rules with respect to payment of their outstanding invoices, posting of adequate bank guarantees, and forwarding of their active Power Purchase Agreements as the case may be, to the MO/TCN.

Recent findings revealed that the Discos and Gencos listed among defaulters by the Market Operators included; Abuja Electricity Distribution Company, Benin Electricity Distribution Company, Enugu Electricity Distribution Company, Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company, Ikeja Electric, Jos Electricity Distribution Company, Kaduna Electric, Kano Electricity Distribution Company, Port Harcourt Electricity Distribution Company, APL Electric Company Aba, Ajaokuta Steel Company- a special electricity customer. The defaulting Gencos are Niger Delta Power Holding Company plants and Paras Energy.

Although the spokesperson for the Association of Nigerian Electricity Distributors, Sunday Oduntan declined comments on the development, a notice sent to customers by Ibadan Discos.

IBEDC Managing Director/CEO, Kingsley Achife in a statement stated that there would be a mass disconnection from the national grid.

According to him, the decision was a result of poor remittances by customers.

Achife said that the action may result in power outages to customers within the IBEDC franchise areas, especially locations with the highest population of defaulters.

Areas to be affected by the mass disconnection are Oyo, Ogun, Osun, Kwara, and parts of Niger, Ekiti and Kogi states.

First Petrochemical Company In Saudi Arabia Dispatches First Shipment Of Low-Carbon Ammonia To India

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Angel Gimalo

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May 4, 2023

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Affirming its long-standing partnership with India, SABIC Agri-Nutrients has exported its first shipment of low-carbon ammonia to Asia’s second-largest economy.

The firm, 50.1 percent owned by Saudi Basic Industries Corp., shipped 5,000 metric tons of low-carbon ammonia to India, in line with its long-term cooperation with the Indian Farmers Fertilizer Cooperative.

India has vowed to achieve net-zero emissions by 2070, and the country is accelerating the use of renewable energy through various initiatives and programs.

Abdulrahman Shamsaddin, CEO of SABIC Agri-Nutrients, said that the first shipment of low-carbon ammonia will catalyze India’s journey to achieve its net-zero targets.

Meanwhile, SABIC CEO Abdulrahman Al-Fageeh said that the firm has a long-standing relationship with India.

In 2022, SABIC Agri-Nutrients and Saudi Arabian Oil Co. obtained the world’s first independent certification for low-carbon ammonia and clean hydrogen production from TUV Rheinland, an independent agency in systems testing, inspection, and certification services based in Germany.

Earlier in May, SABIC Agri-Nutrients, in a bourse filing, revealed that its net profit dropped by 61 percent to SR981 million in the first quarter of 2023, from SR2.51 billion in the same period of 2022.

The company attributed the fall in net profit to a 40 percent decline in the average selling prices of its products.

UK Deploys 11,000 Policemen For King Charles’s Coronation

By

Koko Lawrence

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May 4, 2023

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More than 11,000 police officers will patrol London’s streets for King Charles’ coronation on Saturday, the biggest ceremonial event staged in the British capital for 70 years, and they are well prepared to handle any incident, officials said.

Security forces have spent months preparing for the event, which about 100 heads of state will attend as well as huge crowds of spectators.

Thousands of military personnel will take part in a procession.

However, demonstrations are also planned by anti-monarchists in Trafalgar Square and along the procession route.

Security Minister Tom Tugendhat told Times Radio the event was one of the most important security operations the country has ever mounted.

“The police are, to put it mildly, all over it, and our intelligence and other security forces are extremely aware of the challenge that we face,” he said.

Readiness for the event had been shown by the swift response to an incident on Tuesday evening when a man was detained after throwing what were believed to be shotgun cartridges outside Buckingham Palace, Tugendhat said in an interview.

Police carried out a controlled explosion.

“We’re in no way complacent” Tugendhat said.

Charles, along with his wife Camilla, will be crowned at Westminster Abbey on Saturday and Deputy Assistant Commissioner Ade Adelekan of London’s Metropolitan Police said there was no intelligence of any specific threat to the event.

The biggest issue is likely to be protesters seeking to use the occasion to highlight their causes, although a new law passed this week gives police extra powers to deal with these.

IMF Cautions As ENaira Transactions Hit N1.4m

By

Rhoda Onuzulike

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May 4, 2023

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The Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund, Kristalina Georgieva, has cautioned about the unforeseeable consequences that could be brought about by the retail central bank digital currencies.

Georgieva expressed her concern about retail CBDCs in a May 1 interview at the Milken Institute’s 2023 Global Conference.

According to the IMF boss, the IMF considers retail CBDCs to have far more room for error than wholesale CBDCs.

She said, “We think that wholesale CBDCs can be put in place with fairly little space for undesirable surprises, whereas retail CBDCs completely transform the financial system in a way that we don’t quite know what consequences it could bring.”

According to a report by Cointelegraph, retail CBDCs are state-backed virtual currencies issued by central banks for use by consumers and businesses while wholesale CBDCs are similarly central bank-issued but are designed to allow financial institutions to carry reserve deposits with a central bank.

Digital Currencies: IMF Seeks to Modernise Payment Systems

The IMF MD noted that the organization was collaborating with about 50 countries to ensure best practices are adopted, which she expects to have a huge influence on banks and economies in the future.

Earlier, the IMF had announced that it would publish a CBDC handbook to help central banks with CBDC design and implementation, a decision resulting from the unprecedented levels of interest from nations around the world.

The eNaira introduction on October 25, 2021, made Nigeria one of the first countries in the world to develop a central bank digital currency, that is available to the public.

Africa’s most populous nation joined the Bahamas and the Central Bank of the Eastern Caribbean on the coveted list.

During the launch, the Governor, Central Bank of Nigeria, Godwin Emefiele, stated that the eNaira was presented after four years of research by the apex bank. The CBN defines the eNaira as a digital currency denominated in naira that serves as a medium of exchange and a store of value.

The CBN governor claimed that 33 banks were successfully integrated into the eNaira network, with the apex bank minting N500m for the currency’s inauguration.

The regulator said N200m had been issued to financial institutions and over 2,000 customers had also been on-boarded as of the time of the launch.

The CBDC speed wallet app and merchant wallet were made available for download once eNaira became operational.

As of December 2021, the eNaira consumer wallet had over 583,000 downloads, while the merchant wallet had 83,000 downloads from over 160 countries.

On Tuesday, the CBN governor disclosed that e-Naira transactions hit about N1.4m as of March 31, 2023.

Emefiele, who was represented by the Director, of Policy, of the CBN, Dr Hassan Mahmoud, said that his team took advantage of COVID-19 and other developments in-country to drive the electronic payment channels.

He said, “The advent of the Corona Virus pandemic no doubt triggered rapid advancements in financial technology leading to speedy digitisation of money and finance.

Citizens Of Kuwait Now Allowed To Travel Visa-Free To 50 Countries

By

Angel Gimalo

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May 4, 2023

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Kuwaiti citizens can now travel to 50 countries without the need for a visa, according to the Consular Affairs Sector of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The annual bulletin for 2023 has provided detailed information on visa procedures for entry into foreign lands, whether through embassies or ports.

The bulletin lists a total of 199 countries that allow Kuwaiti citizens to enter, with some offering visa exemptions and others requiring entry visas.

Out of the 199 countries listed, 50 nations allow Kuwaiti citizens with ordinary passports to enter without a visa.

These include 10 European countries, 3 countries in Australia and its neighbouring regions, 6 Asian countries, 4 African countries, 13 from the American continent, and 14 Arab countries.

Meanwhile, 43 countries require an entry visa to be obtained at the airport or through their website, and 106 countries require obtaining an entry visa through their country’s embassy.

Two More Abducted Chibok Girls Rescued

By

Rhoda Onuzulike

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May 4, 2023

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Two more girls abducted from Chibok Local Government Area, Borno State, by Boko Haram in April 2014 have been rescued by troops of Operation Hadin Kai Theater Command.

Esther Marcus and Hauwa Malta, both of them 26, were rescued by troops at Lagara, a Boko Haram enclave in Sambisa Forest, on April 21, 2023.

These bring the total number of girls now out of the terrorists’ captivity to 125, including 107 released by the terrorists themselves in 2018, three rescued by troops in 2019, two in 2021, and 11 in 2022.

Rescued Chibok Girls Plead To Return To School

“94 are still unaccounted for,” the Theater Commander, Operation Hadin Kai Theater Command, Maj. Gen. Ibrahim Sallau Ali, told newsmen, Thursday, May 4, in Maiduguri while parading the rescued Esther and Hauwa to newsmen shortly before handing them over to Borno State Ministry for Women Affairs officials.

“Esther was rescued with her one-year-old baby girl,” he announced further, explaining, “While in captivity, she was first married to one Garba, alias Garus, a terrorist, who was later killed by troops; and she was remarried to another terrorist called Abba; she was with him until her rescue.”

General Ali continued, “Hauwa Malta was rescued with an eight months and 10 days pregnancy; she delivered a baby boy at the Seven Div health facility 10 days after their rescue.”

The Theater Commander disclosed that while in Boko Haram captivity, she was first married to a terrorist called Salman who was killed in a troops-terrorists duel in Lake Chad, after which she was married to another terrorist called Malam Mohammed who was killed in a Boko Haram-ISWAP clash.

He said the troops of the joint taskforce of the Theater Command would not relent in their efforts at ensuring that all the abducted girls were rescued.

Deadly Noodles: NAFDAC takes Probe to Factories, Markets

By

Cleopatra Okohai

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May 4, 2023

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The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control on says it was extending its investigation of Indomie noodles to factories and markets, following fear of the presence of ethylene oxide, a potential cancer-causing substance in the ‘Special Chicken Flavour’of Indomie instant noodles.

NAFDAC, however, noted that Indomie’s “special chicken flavour instant noodles recalled by the Malaysia and Taiwan authorities is not registered for sale in Nigeria.”

NAFDAC also said Indomie noodles are on the import prohibition list in Nigeria and not permitted for importation into the country.

The agency added that it had begun the random sampling of Indomie noodles, including the seasoning from the production facilities and the markets for the presence of ethylene oxide, as well as extending the investigation to other brands of instant noodles offered for sale to Nigerians.

Malaysia and Taiwan health officials had said they detected ethylene oxide, a potentially cancer-causing substance in Indomie’s “special chicken” flavour noodles, but the makers of the product, Indofood, said all instant noodles produced by the ICBP in Indonesia were processed in compliance with the food safety standards from the Codex Standard for Instant Noodles and standards set by the Indonesian National Agency for Drug and Food Control.

The Director General of NAFDAC, Prof Mojisola Adeyeye, said in a statement on Tuesday that the Ports Inspection Directorate was on alert to guard against the importation of the implicated product into Nigeria.

“NAFDAC, as a responsible and responsive regulator, is taking swift actions to carry out random sampling and analysis of Indomie noodles, including the seasoning, for the presence of ethylene oxide, as well as extending the investigation to other brands of instant noodles offered for sale to Nigerians.

“We use this medium to assure the public that a thorough investigation of the products will be conducted both at the factory and market levels and our findings will be communicated.”