Nigeria's loss-making state oil giant is to be broken up into 30 "profit-making" companies, the government says.
The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has been mired in corruption allegations and losing money for many years.
Despite pressure to sell it off, the government says that it can transform the NNPC into a profitable enterprise.
Nigeria is Africa's biggest oil producer, but the economy has suffered because of the declining oil price.
Can Nigeria defeat oil corruption?
Oil Minister Emmanuel Ibe Kachikwu said that the NNPC's monthly losses have rapidly declined and now stand at $15m (£11m).
He told an audience in the capital, Abuja, that it would soon be in profit, an NNPC statement says.
Mr Kachikwu, a former top official at ExxonMobil, was appointed to head the NNPC last year after President Muhammadu Buhari won elections and was then also named junior oil minister.
Mr Buhari has vowed to tackle corruption in the country.
In 2013, then central bank governor Lamido Sanusi said that the NNPC had failed to account for billions of dollars of earnings.
Nigeria's government benefits from revenues from the sale of the country's oil by several private oil companies which also operate in the country.
Mr Kachikwu also announced that some oil producing countries will be meeting on 20 March to see if they can work together to end the instability in the oil price.
Nigeria has introduced foreign exchange controls and import bans in an effort to maintain the value of the currency, the naira, in the face of pressure over the declining oil price.
BBC
Friday, March 4, 2016
Thursday, March 3, 2016
Video - Former Super Eagle star striker Daniel Amokachi now coaching Finland club JS Hercules
For African football coaches, there are not many opportunities to take charge of a club outside the continent. Former Nigerian Super Eagles striker Daniel Amokachi is an exception to the rule, after making the decision to move to Finland's second-division as coach of JS Hercules. He now hopes that he can open doors for more African tacticians to take up coaching in Europe and further abroad.
Nigeria hosting event focusing on Africa's potential in the videogame industry
Africa’s gaming potential is to be explored and celebrated at WrB Africa, taking place on 11-12 April at The Sheraton Lagos Hotel, Nigeria.
As part of the WrB Series run by Clarion Events, WrB Africa is the first ever summit dedicated to exploring the exciting opportunities and encouraging a regulatory framework that will produce a thriving and sustainable gaming industry in Sub-Saharan Africa.
“We have launched WrB Africa for those seeking to unlock the huge potential of this region, but who may be unsure of the complexities of the regulatory environment. Perhaps they are already operating in one of the fast growing African regions but want to step up a level”, says Curtis Roach, senior conference producer on the event.
Delegates will be presented with a heavy-weight agenda and over 30 market-leading organisations to network with and to do business with, as well as the opportunity to learn directly from the leading companies based in East, West and Central Africa, in addition to the continent’s major regulators.
The speaker line-up includes a keynote session from Lanre Gbajabiamila, chief executive of the Lagos State Lottery Board (LSLB).
Other speakers include John Kamara, Director of Global Gaming Africa, Tarimba Abbas, Director General of Tanzania Gaming Board, Edward Lalumbe, COO of the Gauteng Gambling Board and Matthias Jacek Wojdyla, Head of International Affairs at FIFA.
Gbajabiamila is optimistic about the continued growth of gambling in Lagos and Nigeria, with technology and the public’s appetite for sport among the driving forces.
“The Nigerian gaming industry is an evolving one and gradually expanding. More states and individuals are becoming more aware of the opportunities that exist in the industry in terms of entertainment, revenue and employment.
“We are really pleased to be associated with WrB Africa, it’s a great event that the market demands and I’m excited at the opportunities that it will create for the Sub-Saharan gaming industry.”
Rory Credland, Event Director added: “It will be fantastic to bring together so many people from across the globe to talk about responsible gambling and how we can help to create a sustainable future for one of the Gaming industry’s high-potential markets.”
WrB Africa is taking place at The Sheraton Lagos Hotel, Lagos, Nigeria, from April 11th – 12th in Lagos, Nigeria. More information including the agenda, speaker list and booking details is available at http://Africa.WrBriefing.com
PCTECH
Related story: Nigeria's growing video game industry
Call of Duty Advanced Warfare gives authentic rendition of Lagos, Nigeria
As part of the WrB Series run by Clarion Events, WrB Africa is the first ever summit dedicated to exploring the exciting opportunities and encouraging a regulatory framework that will produce a thriving and sustainable gaming industry in Sub-Saharan Africa.
“We have launched WrB Africa for those seeking to unlock the huge potential of this region, but who may be unsure of the complexities of the regulatory environment. Perhaps they are already operating in one of the fast growing African regions but want to step up a level”, says Curtis Roach, senior conference producer on the event.
Delegates will be presented with a heavy-weight agenda and over 30 market-leading organisations to network with and to do business with, as well as the opportunity to learn directly from the leading companies based in East, West and Central Africa, in addition to the continent’s major regulators.
The speaker line-up includes a keynote session from Lanre Gbajabiamila, chief executive of the Lagos State Lottery Board (LSLB).
Other speakers include John Kamara, Director of Global Gaming Africa, Tarimba Abbas, Director General of Tanzania Gaming Board, Edward Lalumbe, COO of the Gauteng Gambling Board and Matthias Jacek Wojdyla, Head of International Affairs at FIFA.
Gbajabiamila is optimistic about the continued growth of gambling in Lagos and Nigeria, with technology and the public’s appetite for sport among the driving forces.
“The Nigerian gaming industry is an evolving one and gradually expanding. More states and individuals are becoming more aware of the opportunities that exist in the industry in terms of entertainment, revenue and employment.
“We are really pleased to be associated with WrB Africa, it’s a great event that the market demands and I’m excited at the opportunities that it will create for the Sub-Saharan gaming industry.”
Rory Credland, Event Director added: “It will be fantastic to bring together so many people from across the globe to talk about responsible gambling and how we can help to create a sustainable future for one of the Gaming industry’s high-potential markets.”
WrB Africa is taking place at The Sheraton Lagos Hotel, Lagos, Nigeria, from April 11th – 12th in Lagos, Nigeria. More information including the agenda, speaker list and booking details is available at http://Africa.WrBriefing.com
PCTECH
Related story: Nigeria's growing video game industry
Call of Duty Advanced Warfare gives authentic rendition of Lagos, Nigeria
Nigerian prisoners in the U.K. to complete jail term in Nigeria
Nigerians serving jail terms in the United Kingdom will soon be transferred to Nigeria to complete their period, following an agreement signed yesterday between the Federal Government and the UK government. According to a top government source, former Governor of Delta State, James Ibori, will be part of those that will be repatriated to complete their jail term in Nigeria.
Ibori still has more than six months to stay in prison.
The British government has also promised to give Nigeria one million pounds (about N280 million) to assist in the comprehensive reformation of Nigerian prisons to ease the stress of the inmates.
The United Kingdom Minister of Justice, Mr. Jeremy Wright, revealed this when he led the UK team to visit the Minister of Interior to finalise the process of prisoner exchange between the two countries.
He said under the agreement, which he signed, Nigerians in British prisons would be repatriated to complete their jail terms in the country.
Wright told the minister the importance of the two countries respecting the agreement, saying there is need for the state of prisons in Nigeria to be improved.
Wright, who led a five-man delegation to the ministry, said even though the prisoners were paying for the crimes they might have committed, conditions in detention centres where they were staying should be made humane and accommodating.
He hailed the Federal Government and the Minister of Interior for making it possible for the two countries to finalise the agreement, which would lead to the mutual exchange of prisoners and said efforts would be made to foster the cordial relationship between Nigeria and the United Kingdom.
The Nation
Starving Boko Haram militants surrender to Nigeria military
Dozens of emaciated-looking Boko Haram members begging for food have surrendered in northeast Nigeria, the military and a civilian self-defense fighter said Wednesday.
Seventy-six people including children and women gave themselves up to soldiers last Saturday in Gwoza, about 60 miles southeast of Maiduguri, according to a senior officer.
All are being detained at military headquarters in Maiduguri, the birthplace of Boko Haram and currently the command center of the war against the Islamic extremists, according to the officer. He insisted on anonymity because he is not authorized to speak to journalists.
The detainees said many more fighters want to surrender, a self-defense civilian fighter who helped escort them to Maiduguri told The Associated Press.
Food shortages could indicate that Nigeria's military is succeeding in choking supply routes of the Islamic extremists who have taken their fight across Nigeria's borders. Some 20,000 people have died in the 6-year-old uprising. Boko Haram was declared the deadliest of all terror groups in 2014, surpassing the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) to which it declared allegiance last year.
Nigeria's military reported that dozens of Boko Haram fighters were surrendering in September and October last year. It promised those who give themselves up voluntarily that they will be rehabilitated through a de-radicalization program.
In the 10 months since he took office promising to halt the insurgency, President Muhammadu Buhari has replaced the leadership of the military, moved the headquarters for the fight from the distant capital, Abuja, to the heart of the northeastern insurgency and resupplied soldiers.
As the military has driven the insurgents from the towns and villages where they had set up an Islamic caliphate, Boko Haram has returned to hit-and-run tactics and suicide bombings.
CBS
Seventy-six people including children and women gave themselves up to soldiers last Saturday in Gwoza, about 60 miles southeast of Maiduguri, according to a senior officer.
All are being detained at military headquarters in Maiduguri, the birthplace of Boko Haram and currently the command center of the war against the Islamic extremists, according to the officer. He insisted on anonymity because he is not authorized to speak to journalists.
The detainees said many more fighters want to surrender, a self-defense civilian fighter who helped escort them to Maiduguri told The Associated Press.
Food shortages could indicate that Nigeria's military is succeeding in choking supply routes of the Islamic extremists who have taken their fight across Nigeria's borders. Some 20,000 people have died in the 6-year-old uprising. Boko Haram was declared the deadliest of all terror groups in 2014, surpassing the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) to which it declared allegiance last year.
Nigeria's military reported that dozens of Boko Haram fighters were surrendering in September and October last year. It promised those who give themselves up voluntarily that they will be rehabilitated through a de-radicalization program.
In the 10 months since he took office promising to halt the insurgency, President Muhammadu Buhari has replaced the leadership of the military, moved the headquarters for the fight from the distant capital, Abuja, to the heart of the northeastern insurgency and resupplied soldiers.
As the military has driven the insurgents from the towns and villages where they had set up an Islamic caliphate, Boko Haram has returned to hit-and-run tactics and suicide bombings.
CBS
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