Thursday, December 1, 2016

Wednesday, November 30, 2016

Video - 39 million people living with hypertension in Nigeria




According to Nigeria’s census numbers, rapid population growth from 160-million people in 2010 to 180-million people in 2016 has also seen prevalence in cases of hypertension - a cardiovascular disease. According to the World Health Organization, 75- percent of the world's hypertensive population will be in developing countries.

Nigeria to start exporting rice in 2017

The Central Bank of Nigeria, (CBN) on Tuesday said it’s Anchor Borrowers Programme for the promotion of Agriculture had set the country to begin exportation of rice by 2017. The Anchor Borrowers Programme of the CBN and the Presidential Committee on Rice Production launched in July had jointly set the target.

The Acting Director of Corporate Communications of the apex bank, Mr Isaac Okorafor, said this in Yenagoa at a sensitisation workshop for farmers. The theme of the workshop is entitled: “Promoting Stability and Economic Development’’. 

According to him, farmers in Kebbi, Jigawa, Ebonyi, Sokoto and Cross River states, among others, have already keyed into the programme, resulting in massive rice cultivation. He said the country would achieve self-sustenance in rice production if the momentum was sustained, adding that the country should commence exportation of locally produced rice by 2017. 

Okorafor said Kebbi State had already harvested one million tons of rice, adding that Ebonyi’s harvest had outstripped the earmarked production for the year. “The development is encouraging and by the end of 2017, we will not only meet our national demand which is between six and seven million tons but have surplus to export. 

“We must rid ourselves of eating foreign rice that has been stored for over nine years in Thailand, Vietnam and India. Nigerian rice is fresh and healthier. “We should eat Nigerian rice provided for by the CBN Anchor Programme; 50 Kg of local rice is now N8, 000 in Ebonyi.

Already, the Abia Government has ordered rice from Ebonyi for Christmas,’’ he said. He further said: “What we have done with this programme so far is to create jobs through farming, especially for the unemployed youths. “Nigerian youths must wake up, dust themselves up and join this worthy campaign. “Remember that the status of our farmers is now better due to the support they are receiving as a result of government’s policy. 

“Our currency is weak because we engaged in needless importation of all kinds of food stuffs, including tooth picks; the government is determined to stop this.’’ 

The Branch Controller, CBN, Yenagoa, Mr. Oke Nwajah, said the state was blessed with rich wet soil that supported rice cultivation. He therefore, urged the farmers to take pride in farming, adding that the Anchor Borrowers Programme was an intervention to reduce their burden.

Vanguard




Price increase in mobile services in Nigeria due to government policies

Around a year ago, Nigeria’s mobile internet subscriber base had nearly hit at a landmark figure: 100 million. But, due to unfavorable government policies, that trend is likely to be reversed.

Last year, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), the country’s telecoms regulator earned praise for deregulating data prices. The removal of a data floor price allowed local telcos to set lower mobile data prices making them cheaper than ever before and enabling more Nigerians access to the internet.

But, in a surprising move, the NCC has reinstated its data floor price, forcing telcos to jack prices back up. In a letter sent to telcos, the NCC claims the price increase is necessary “in order to provide a level playing field for all operators in the industry.” The prices will take effect from Dec. 1.

The NCC cited the need to allow “small operators and new entrants” who hold “less than 7.5% market share” and have operated “less than three years in the market” to operate profitably. Put another way: the NCC thinks that, by charging lower prices for data, large telcos, like MTN, could kill off smaller internet service providers who’d be unable to compete profitably. Reports suggest the new regulation is due to lobbying by smaller operators.

More expensive mobile internet access costs will particularly stifle internet usage growth given Nigeria’s low fixed line broadband internet penetration. The move is being widely criticized by players in Nigeria’s fast-growing tech sector. Iyin ‘E’ Aboyeji, who made his name as a co-founder of Andela, one of the country’s high-profile young tech companies, called the decision the “biggest threat” to the Nigerian government’s own stated ambitions for the local tech sector. Aboyeji who now runs a payments startup called Flutterwave, addressed president Buhari directly in a series of tweets.

The decision also comes at a time when Nigeria’s mobile internet usage has been steadily regressing.

While the NCC’s decision to make telcos hike data prices is surprising, there was a chance the price of internet access was going to increase. As Quartz has reported, in a bid to increase government revenue, Nigerian lawmakers have discussed a bill to levy a 9% communications tax on various services including internet data. But with service providers unlikely to bear the extra expense, the costs was likely to be passed down to end users.

Tuesday, November 29, 2016

Video - Lagos hosts West Africa's first international art fair




Artists from West Africa have had the chance to showcase their work at the region's first international art fair. Art X drew over 5,000 guests to the Nigerian city of Lagos. The event highlighted Nigeria's vibrant connection to the contemporary art scene.