Elon Musk’s internet service company, Starlink, has increased the price of its hardware by 112% in Nigeria.
The Starlink internet router which was being sold for N378,000 until recently now goes for N800,000. However, the monthly subscription for the internet service remains unchanged at N38,000 per month.
While Starlink has not offered any explanation for the increment, Nairametrics observed that this may have been influenced by the declining value of the Naira against the dollar.
The value of the Nigerian currency has been on a steady decline since the beginning of this year, falling from N907 to a dollar in December 2023 to N1,602 to a dollar as of March 7, 2024, at the official market.
Starlink is gaining traction in Nigeria
Despite its higher costs compared with local ISPs, Starlink, which announced its presence in Nigeria in January 2023 had sparked high interest among Nigerians who were eager to change their service providers.
The ubiquitous status of its satellite service also encourages people in areas with poor internet networks to go for Starlink. According to the Internet Service Providers (ISPs) data released by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Starlink is now one of the leading ISPs in Nigeria in terms of customer numbers. As of Q3 2023, Starlink Nigeria’s customer base stood at 11,207.
Many local ISPs that have been in operation in Nigeria for several years are currently having less than that number of customers.
What you should know
Although Starlink officially announced its presence in Nigeria in January last year, Nigerians had been pre-ordering its hardware since 2022. The company, which initially quoted its prices in dollars at $600 for the hardware and $43 for the subscription, changed to naira upon its official announcement.
At that point, Starlink’s hardware and monthly subscription costs stood at N268,584 and N19,260, however, that was at the official dollar exchange rate, which stood at around N450/$1 at the time.
With the unification of the exchange rate, the prices of hardware and subscriptions also shot up to N378,000 and N38,000 as the Naira value continued to fall.
Between October and November last year, Starlink slashed its hardware costs by 21% as it pushed to gain more share of the Nigerian ISP market.
With the price slash, Starlink’s hardware was sold for N299,500. It, however, reverted to the normal price of N378,000 on November 16.
Did You Know Export of Yam Tubers Carries Life Sentence in Nigeria?
In 2017, Nigeria made a failed attempt at exporting yam to the United States of America. It was part of the national response to the recession crisis of 2016. Audu Ogbeh, the then minister of agriculture, publicly announced that the USA rejected Nigeria’s yam exports due to the poor quality of the tubers.
A few days after the international embarrassment, Gaza Jonathan, a member of the then House of Representatives, called the minister out for illegality. According to him, exporting yam from Nigeria was against the law, and he was right.
The Export Prohibition Act of 1989, introduced under the Ibrahim Babangida regime, bans the export of yam. But the list of contraband exports was longer than that. Aside from yam, the act prohibited the export of beans, cassava tubers, maize, rice, yam tubers and their derivatives. The act also prohibited the export of imported food.
What is more interesting, however, is the punishment stipulated by the legislation for exporting these food items. According to the act, the punishment for exporting these items could be as light as a fine or as severe as a life imprisonment sentence.
Below is what the legislation reads as punishments for exporting any of the prohibited items:
“Any person who takes causes to be taken induces any other person to take or attempts to take out of Nigeria any of the goods specified in the Schedule to this Act shall be guilty of an offense and liable on conviction to imprisonment for life.”
“In addition to the penalty specified in subsection (1) of this section
The goods, as well as any vehicle, vessel, aircraft, or other things whatsoever used in connection with the exportation; and
All the assets, movable or immovable, including motor vehicles, of any person convicted of the offense, shall be forfeited to the Federal Government.
Any customs officer or other person who aids counsels procures or conspires with any person to commit an offense under this section, shall be guilty of an offense and liable on conviction to the same punishment as prescribed for the offense under subsection (1) of this section. (4) Any offense committed under this Act shall be triable by the Federal High Court.”
NIGERIANS HAVE BEEN CLAMOURING FOR A REPEAL
Since Nigeria was suffering the backlash of a major recession in 2017, one would assume that anti-export laws like the Export Prohibition Act would be repealed with urgency. However, it took more than the recession or drama between the international community, the legislature and the federal government to effect any changes to this legislation.
It also took consistent clamour for a repeal of the act by stakeholders in the agricultural sector. In 2019, for instance, Solomon Irtwange, the President of the National Association of Yam Farmers, Processors, and Marketers, made several appeals to the federal government to repeal the legislation.
Irtwange, who also doubled as the president of the Technical Committee on Nigeria Yam Export Programme, lamented how the act not only hindered the nation’s attempt at diversification but was also affecting Nigeria’s chances at competing in the international market.
“Nigeria yam is, therefore, being branded as Ghana yam. This is a minus for Nigeria. The Export Prohibition Act of 1989 is the issue, but we have made a lot of efforts trying to advocate to relevant government agencies, ministries and the National Assembly that if we want to diversify this economy, that law has to go,” said Irtwange.
Conversations about the prohibition and the implications on production and revenue in Nigeria were in the media between 2017 and 2022. Media houses like The PUNCH and Tribune wrote editorial pieces addressing the limitations to the country’s revenue sources as a result of the Exhibition Prohibition Act.
THE NIGERIAN SENATE REPEALED THE ACT, BUT THE LAW STILL HOLDS
In what could be considered a stroke of victory, the Senate passed the bill to repeal the 1989 Export Prohibition Act on December 20, 2022. The bill had been sponsored in 2019 by Sabo Nakudu Mohammed, who was representing Jigawa South West District.
But the passage of this bill in the Senate is not enough to make it law. For context, a bill has to be passed by both arms of the legislature and signed by the president before it becomes law in Nigeria.
However, according to the bill tracker of the National Assembly as a collective, the bill has not passed a second reading yet. This suggests two possibilities. One, the Senate has not sent the bill to the House of Representatives for concurrence. Secondly, the House of Representatives has received the bill but has done nothing about it.
Most importantly, FIJ obtained a factsheet of all the bills signed into law under the Buhari administration in his eight years of presidency. However, the bill to repeal the Export Prohibition Act is not on this list.
THE LAW IS COSTING THE NATION CONSIDERABLE REVENUE
Irtwange, in an interview with Business Day in November 2023, offered a glimpse into how a rash decision made 40 years ago is haunting the agro-economy of the country several decades later.
“We had an international NGO that wanted to support yam farmers in promoting the export of yam flour a few years ago, but they withdrew as soon as they learned of the 1989 Export Prohibition Act,” he said.
FIJ gathered, for instance, that the combined global market value for all the food commodities was as high as $560 billion as of 2023. As of 2021, Nigeria was the largest producer of cassava in the world, with an output of about 6 million metric tonnes. The National Bureau of Statistics also pegs Nigeria as the largest producer of yam. In 2021 alone, the country produced 50.4 million metric tonnes of yam.
A 2023 report by Thisday quoted Kingsley Nwokoma, an industry stakeholder, as saying that Nigeria was losing over $1 billion annually because it did not certify these agricultural products for export.
Despite Nigeria’s over-reliance on oil, recent data has suggested that the non-oil sector contributes significantly to the gross domestic product of the country. In Q4 2023, for instance, the non-oil sector contributed 95.30 percent to the country’s GDP.
Policy discussions by stakeholders suggest that Nigeria recognises the relevance of diversification. However, with legislation like this in place, policy decisions towards diversification may not translate to any revenue for the nation.
Chief Olusegun Matthew Okikiola Ogunboye Aremu Obasanjo GCFR (born 5 March 1937) is a Nigerian retired military General and statesman who served as Nigeria's head of state from 1976 to 1979 and later as its president from 1999 to 2007. Ideologically a Nigerian nationalist, he was a member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) from 1998 to 2015, and since 2018.
Born in the village of Ibogun-Olaogun to a farming family of the Owu branch of the Yoruba, Obasanjo was educated largely in Abeokuta, Ogun State. He joined the Nigerian Army and specialised in engineering and was assigned to the Congo, Britain, and India, rising to the rank of major. In the late 1960s, he played a senior role in combating Biafran separatists during the Nigerian Civil War, accepting their surrender in 1970. In 1975, a military coup established a junta with Obasanjo as part of its ruling triumvirate. After the triumvirate's leader, Murtala Muhammed, was assassinated the following year, the Supreme Military Council appointed Obasanjo as head of state. Continuing Murtala's policies, Obasanjo oversaw budgetary cut-backs and an expansion of access to free school education. Increasingly aligning Nigeria with the United States, he also emphasised support for groups opposing white minority rule in southern Africa. Committed to restoring democracy, Obasanjo oversaw the 1979 election, after which he transferred control of Nigeria to the newly elected civilian president, Shehu Shagari. Obasanjo then retired to Ota, Ogun, where he became a farmer, published four books, and took part in international initiatives to end various African conflicts.
In 1993, Sani Abacha seized power in a military coup. Obasanjo was openly critical of Abacha's administration and in 1995 was arrested and convicted of being part of a planned coup, despite protesting his innocence. While imprisoned, he became a born again Christian, with providentialism strongly influencing his subsequent worldview. He was released following Abacha's death in 1998. Obasanjo entered electoral politics, becoming the PDP candidate for the 1999 presidential election which he won comfortably. As president, he de-politicised the military and both expanded the police and mobilised the army to combat widespread ethnic, religious, and secessionist violence. He withdrew Nigeria's military from Sierra Leone and privatised various public enterprises to limit the country's spiralling debt. He was re-elected in the 2003 election. Influenced by Pan-Africanist ideas, he was a keen supporter of the formation of the African Union and served as its chair from 2004 to 2006. Obasanjo's attempts to change the constitution to abolish presidential term limits were unsuccessful and brought criticism. After retiring, he earned a PhD in theology from the National Open University of Nigeria.
Obasanjo has been described as one of the great figures of the second generation of post-colonial African leaders. He received praise both for overseeing Nigeria's transition to representative democracy in the 1970s and for his Pan-African efforts to encourage cooperation across the continent. Critics maintain that he was guilty of corruption, that his administrations oversaw human rights abuses, and that as president he became too interested in consolidating and maintaining his personal power.
The Chairman of Tantita Security Services, High Chief Government Oweizide Ekpemupolo (aka Tompolo), has promised to do everything possible to ensure increased daily crude oil production to boost the country’s revenue.
Tompolo made the promise at the weekend at Oporoza in Gbaramatu Kingdom of Delta State after receiving “Internal Security Meritorious Award” the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) conferred on him.
The Tantita chairman acknowledged the pivotal role of the media in promoting peace and stabilising democracy.
“The only place I have to call my country is Nigeria. So, I will do everything within my powers to see that crude oil production increases.
“The critical role of the media in Nigeria cannot be overemphasised. Nothing reasonable can be achieved without the media. I appeal that they should be appreciated,” Tompolo said.
The Federal Government engaged his TSSNL, a private pipeline surveillance security outfit, to curtail crude oil theft in the Niger Delta region. NUJ President Chris Isiguzo lauded Tompolo’s contributions to internal security, particularly in the Niger Delta region.
He noted that the awardee had substantially helped the country to address crude oil theft which, according to him, had occupied the national life of Nigerians.
Isiguzo said: “Today, somebody has risen to the occasion and gathered an array of young men who have taken it upon themselves to help this country to continue to survive as a peaceful and united nation. His commitment, dedication, and diligence, Nigeria have, to a very extent, reduced the activities of men of the underworld consistently pilfering and taking our common patrimony for their selfish gains.
“We decided that we must accord the necessary recognition to the man who carries the flag, and birthed this organization; a man who has exceptionally distinguished himself and has been celebrated by Nigerians across all walks of life. He is a general in his right, and has distinguished himself, ensured and maintained an appreciable level of internal security.
“We have come to Oporoza to confer on him the Internal Security Meritorious Award of the NUJ.”
Isiguzo, who was accompanied by NUJ National Secretary Shuaibu Leman, among other officials, said the media remained the oxygen of democratic governance.
“If it collapsed, Nigeria will collapse,” he added.
According to him, security is a collective responsibility and not for the government alone, He said all hands must be on deck to address it.
Enoch Adejare Adeboye (born 2 March 1942) is a Nigerian pastor, and the present General Overseer of Redeemed Christian Church of God. He served as the second national president of the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria.
Early life
Enoch Adejare Adeboye was born on 2 March 1942 in Ifewara, near Ife, in the then Southern Region, British Nigeria.[1] He was born into a very humble family,[2] and often tells the story of wearing his first shoes at the age of 18.
Ministry
Adejare Adeboye joined the Redemed Christian Church of God in 1973 and served as an interpreter before he was ordained a pastor in the church by Pa. Josiah Akindayomi in 1975. He became General Overseer of the church in 1981. For three years, he filled the role part-time at Unilorin before giving up his university position to preach full-time. In 2017, Adeboye announced his resignation as General Overseer, but be retained the role.
The church which was not well known before Adeboye became the General Overseer, has branches in about 198 nations as of (March 2017), including more than 14,000,000 worshipers in Nigeria. Adeboye has stated that he aims to put a church within five minutes walking distance in developing cities and five minutes driving distance in developed cities.
Adeboye is considered a preacher of the prosperity gospel, a claim he does not deny, saying that "Pentecostals have such an impact because they talk of the here and now, not just the by and by… while we have to worry about heaven, there are some things God could do for us in the here and now."
He celebrated his 80th birthday in 2022. Adeboye's foundation donated eight dialysis machines to Wuse District Hospital, together with a reverse osmosis medical water purification system and an electrical generator.
Personal life
Adeboye married Folu Adeboye on 17 December 1967. He is a father to four children (three sons and a daughter) and several grandchildren from the marriage. Pastor Enoch Adeboye lost his son Dare Adeboye on 4 May 2021, who died at the age of 42. In May 2023, a film titled “Enoch” was aired, the movie gives a biopic on the life of Pastor Adeboye to celebrate his 81st birthday and Adeola Emmanuel Abolaji starred as the lead actor.
Despite deregulation, Pinnacle Oil and Gas Limited, an indigenous oil and gas company active across the entire downstream value chain, has disclosed that Nigeria is currently paying about N1 trillion monthly as petrol subsidy.
The Managing Director/CEO of the company, Mr. Robert Dickerman, disclosed this while speaking during a panel session six, on Nigeria’s Downstream Forum at the just-concluded Nigeria International Energy Summit (NIES) in Abuja.
He said there is still a massive subsidy, which explains why the product remains cheap, thus encouraging smuggling to neighbouring countries.
He said: “Nigeria has a long history of allocating resources to oil and gas production at the expense of most other economic and social programs. To balance this, there has been a long-standing policy to mitigate consumer costs via palliatives such as fuel and food subsidies.
“But one of the net effects of oil money is underinvestment in local production, manufacturing and other value-added activities that could generate foreign currency through exports. There has also been a large underinvestment in the maintenance and upgrade of existing infrastructure including electricity, roads, health care, water, waste, education and financial infrastructure such as consumer credit.
“As a result, we have a huge negative trade deficit, except for crude oil and Liquefied Natural Gas, LNG, and our banks are not sufficiently capitalized to support significant new capital programs.
“With legacy monetary policymaking currency exchange difficult, we desperately need Foreign Investment. This is a reality. So the best policy during this time of crisis is a national policy to transform our economy/regulations/laws to accommodate and encourage Foreign Direct Investment, FDI.
“Foreign investors, foreign lenders and government-run DFIs have been very clear about what they want to see: Conservative fiscal policy, tackling corruption, enabling competitive markets, and enforcement of fairness in markets through policy, regulation and the ability to enforce contracts. Keeping that context in mind, I want to point out that there is still a massive subsidy in PMS, albeit in the FX portion of PMS Price, not the global price in dollars.
“The consequences of this subsidy are: The cost of gasoline in Nigeria is the lowest in Africa by far, which encourages smuggling out, further depriving Nigeria of value. Smuggling causes Nigeria to subsidize neighboring countries even while our economy struggles. The cost is hurting the entire budget, Federal and State, as critical programs cannot be funded to pay this subsidy. It is currently calculated to be about 1 trillion Naira/month.
“Also, with this subsidy in place, ceasing subsidy payments would result in no petrol supply, if there are no refineries producing gasoline. All supplies come from the international market which will only sell at market prices.
There is no competition in bulk supply, as only the national champion owned by the government can import. Wholesale and retail prices are set based on their subsidized cost and they determine who gets supply. Without a competitive market, foreign investors are discouraged from investing in this sector in Nigeria.
“The solution to this problem seems obvious, even acknowledging the daily struggles most citizens and companies have today with reduced purchasing power, high inflation, high-interest costs and high unemployment that exists today. Short-term palliatives have never resolved long-term issues in any nation at any time in history. We need long-term solutions.”
The naira was stable at between N1550 and N1580 per US dollar in the black market on Friday after the sale of dollars to Bureau De Change (BDC) operators by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
The CBN on Thursday sold about $7.85 million to about 785 eligible BDCs that funded their accounts, BusinessDay learnt.
Each BDC received $10,000 as against the $20,000 weekly allocation earlier planned by the apex bank.
The CBN on Tuesday formalised dollar sales to BDCs operators after a three-year break in a move aimed at stabilising the naira and narrowing the gap between the official and unofficial exchange rates.
A circular issued by the banking and financial institutions regulator on Tuesday stated that the CBN would offer a weekly allocation of $20,000 to each Bureau De Change at an exchange rate of N1,301 per dollar.
BDCs are permitted to sell to end-users with a margin not exceeding one percent above the purchase rate from the CBN.
The naira on Thursday appreciated against the dollar for the second straight day since the increase in the Monetary Policy Rate (MPR) by the Central Bank of Nigeria.
The currency gained 0.90 percent on the day as the dollar was quoted at N1,595.11, stronger than N1,609.51 quoted on Wednesday at the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM), according to the data published by FMDQ Securities Exchange.
Dollar supply increased by 82.25 percent to $217.14 million on Thursday from $119.14 million recorded on Wednesday.
In a circular dated February 27, 2024, signed by Hassan Mahmud, director of the trade and exchange department, the CBN announced measures to tackle continuous price distortions in the retail market, exacerbating the exchange rate disparity.
The apex bank noted the persistent price distortions in the retail market, which have been fueling discrepancies in the parallel market, thereby widening the exchange rate premium.
Furthermore, the CBN directed all eligible BDCs to make Naira payments to designated CBN foreign currency deposit Naira accounts. Subsequently, they are required to submit confirmation of payment along with other necessary documentation for disbursement at designated CBN branches in Abuja, Awka, Lagos, and Kano.
These measures underscore the CBN’s commitment to addressing exchange rate distortions and stabilizing the forex market to promote economic stability and growth.
Let me confess that the label of being a vintage Onitsha-based trader does not in any way confer on me the status of an economic expert. With my vast trading knowledge and my involvement in the real sector,
I am of the strong opinion that the recent decision of the Monetary Policy Committee to increase the Monetary Policy Rate, MPR, to 22.5% and the Cash Reserve Ratio, CRR, to 45% will further worsen the economic situation of most Nigerian households as it is bound to cause more job losses in the productive sector, especially manufacturing and other sectors that rely on bank loans and credit facilities for their funding needs.
Tightening liquidity in the financial system does not improve productivity, ie food production, which is the major cause of inflation in Nigeria. Moreover, only about 12% of N3.6 trillion of the total money in circulation is in the banking system which means that 88%, about N3.2 trillion is outside the banking system.
So, this measure would rather be counterproductive as it would not address the intended purpose of managing the money supply. These new measures will worsen the fragile economy as the supply of funds would dry up for the real sector, and
the new MPR rate hike will push the interest rate on loans to above 30%, which would be very difficult for the real sector operators especially manufacturers and SMEs to repay; resulting, obviously, in increased bad loans, and worsening the nation's economic situation.
The most critical way to manage our high rate of inflation and decline in production is for the government to address the issue of insecurity in the country, which will allow for increased food, and crude oil production, and an overall increase in production,
which will make products, especially food, cheaper. This way we would increase our productivity as well as restore the confidence of FDIs and FPIs to come back to the country.
I must caution that what the Nigerian economy needs now is hard headed practical originality and results. Tinkering with classical economic theories can only deepen our crisis. -PO
Ghana’s parliament on Wednesday unanimously passed a controversial anti-homosexuality bill that has drawn international condemnation.
“After three long years, we have finally passed the Human Sexual Rights and Family Values Act,” said Sam George, one of the main sponsors of the bill on social media.
The bill, which was introduced in the parliament in 2021, not only criminalizes LGBTQ relationships, but also those who support LGBTQ rights.
African countries still widely criminalize same-sex activity, mostly because of colonial era laws. But a raft of recent bills and proposed laws across Africa have looked to clarify and, in some cases, strengthen those laws.
A recent CNN investigation uncovered alleged links between a US nonprofit and the drafting of the homophobic laws. The group denied those links.
The bill in Ghana still needs to be signed off by the country’s president before it becomes law.
The United Nations human rights chief Volker Türk called parliament’s passing of the bill “profoundly disturbing” and urged the government not to sign it into law.
“The bill broadens the scope of criminal sanctions against lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, transexual and queer people – simply for being who they are – and threatens criminal penalties against perceived allies of LGBTQ+ people,” he said.
Responding to the passing of the bill, UNAIDS Executive Director Winnie Byanyima warned that if the bill did become a law it would “affect everyone” and hamper the country’s fight against HIV and AIDS.
“Approaches rooted in inclusion of all people have been crucial to Ghana’s progress in the HIV response,” Byanyima said in a statement.
“To achieve the goal of ending AIDS as a public health threat by 2030, it is vital to ensure that everyone has equal access to essential services without fear, stigma or discrimination, and that providers of life-saving HIV prevention, testing, treatment and care services are supported in their work,” she said.
Byanyima warned if the bill becomes law, “it will negatively impact on free speech, freedom of movement and freedom of association” and “obstruct access to life-saving services, undercut social protection, and jeopardize Ghana’s development success.
“Evidence shows that punitive laws like this bill are a barrier to ending AIDS, and ultimately undermine everyone’s health.”
Amid President Bola Tinubu’s government’s clampdown on cryptocurrency to save the battered naira, the world’s biggest cryptocurrency trading platform, Binance, has disabled its peer-to-peer function for Nigerian users.
Peer-to-peer function, popularly known as P2P, allows users, buyers and sellers to trade without third-party interference.
It allowed Nigerian users to trade when former President Muhammadu Buhari banned cryptocurrency in 2021.
With the disabling of the P2P function for Nigerian users, Nigerians might no longer trade on Binance.
People Gazette also noticed that the Nigerian currency was unavailable on Binance on Wednesday.
These follow Olayemi Cardoso, Central Bank of Nigeria governor, saying over $26 billion passed through Binance in the past year on Tuesday at the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting in Abuja.
Last week, Binance confirmed it was working with Tinubu-led to block dollar-naira trading on the platform.
The cryptocurrency platform also confirmed that its website had been blocked, noting that its app was still functioning for users to access the platform.
In the past week, federal authorities clamped down on cryptocurrency platforms while raiding bureaux de change nationwide to stabilise the free-falling naira.
Competition has commenced on Lagos-London route as Nigeria’s largest carrier, Air Peace pegs it’s economy class ticket at N1.2million, thereby slashing fares by 66 percent on the route.
BusinessDay’s checks show that foreign airlines charge an average of N3.5 million for economy class tickets from Lagos to London. This indicates that with Air Peace’s 1.2 million economy class ticket, the airline has slashed ticket price by about 66 percent.
British Airways which had an exclusive advantage of operating direct flight from Lagos to London now has Air Peace to contend with as Air Peace also has the same advantage as Air Peace would operate flight from Lagos to Gatwick London.
Air Peace went live on Wednesday with its flight schedules for its London service billed to commence on March 30, 2024.
According to the airline, a return economy class ticket goes for 1,200,000 naira while a Return Business Class Ticket sells for 4,000,000 naira, adding that Nigerians studying in the UK can now access their special 15 percent rebate on the already reduced economy fares.
It can be recalled that the airline had announced a special fare for Nigerian students in the UK when it hosted travel agents in Lagos last week preparatory to the launch of the London route.
British Airways Economy class return ticket from Lagos to London cost $2,698 which amounts to about N4.7 million, using the N1778 to a dollar International Air Transport Association (IATA) rate on the airline ticketing platform. British Airways Business class cost $8,598 which amounts to about N15.2million.
For Virgin Atlantic, Economy classic cost $1,745 which amounts to N3.1million, Economy delight cost $1,797 which amounts to almost N3.2million, Economy Premium cost $3,442 which amounts to N6.1 million. Business class on Virgin Atlantic cost $7578, which amounts to about N13.5million.
Return tickets on Qatar Airways for Economy Class tickets costs between ( $973 to $2,095 which amounts to between N1.7m and N3.2m depending on the ticket class.
Business class ticket on Qatar Airways cost between $3,826, and $4,757, which amounts to between N6.8m and N8.4million.
Ndukwe Ginika Ogechi, CEO Geena Travels And Tours Ltd told BusinessDay that Air Peace’s fares are good compared to other airlines, adding that she envisages intense competition on the route soon.
“My clients are already excited, although they expected the fares to be cheaper since Air Peace is a Nigerian carrier and the foreign exchange pressure is not so much on them. However, IATA’s exchange rate on the platform as at Wednesday is N1,778 to a dollar, which is really high. This exchange rate will continue to be a key consideration when airlines fix prices,” Ogechi said.
She said on Monday, the exchange rate on the IATA platform was N1,805. This also pushed ticket prices up on Monday.
John Ojikutu, industry expert and the CEO of Centurion Aviation Security and Safety Consult, Nigeria said “competition has started, I hope, with the foreign airlines and their multiple frequencies and destinations in our country can gradually get reduced.
“This is the beginning of the competition for scrapping the exploitation of the foreign airlines on the Bilateral Air Service Agreement (BASA) routes. We hope those in the administration of our government and the management of the agencies will give the necessary support to Air Peace?,” Ojikutu said.
Air fares in the last two years has risen by over 400 percent as a result of accumulating trapped funds of foreign airlines in Nigeria caused by the foreign exchange rate.
The CBN has directed banks to remove the cap on the investors and exporters’ (I&E) window of the fore market to allow for the free float of naira exchange rate.
Last year, Nigeria officially floated its naira currency after years of sticking with a hard peg that spooked investors and drained dollars from the economy.
Recalled that since two years now, airlines blocked low ticket inventories, leaving high inventories to be sold in naira only while the low ticket inventories on most airlines’ websites can only be bought with dollar cards only. This was in a bid to cushion the effect of their trapped funds in Nigeria.
Bankole Bernard, chairman of Airlines and Passengers’ Joint Committee (APJC) of the International Air Transport Association (IATA) said Air Peace London flight is a welcome idea, especially as Nigeria would now have its own carrier creating balance of trade which is not tilted to one side.
“There will be a bit of balance. Air Peace has been given a daily slot to Gatwick which amounts to seven frequencies, compared to 21 frequencies that the legacy airlines have; 14 in Lagos and seven in Abuja. To an extend, we have something that will balance it up.
“Air Peace is not going to be faced with challenges of foreign exchange because the fares will be in naira. It is a welcome idea for travel agents and Nigeria as a whole. We appeal to Air Peace to try it’s best to sustain the London route. We are willing to give them all the support to ensure this is successful. With Air Peace, travel agents envisage a 50 percent fare reduction,” Bernard said.
Oluwatoyin Olajide, chief operating officer, Air Peace during the launch of the Lagos-London flight with travel agents said the service will be operated with the airline’s Boeing 777 aircraft and the Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft, one of the most modern and efficient aircraft in the skies.
She also said the airline will be launching with special promo fares and attractive plans for agents.
“Operating daily, this service will also offer several other benefits which give Air Peace an edge over the competition. It’s a direct flight without stop-overs and offers unbeatable fares. The specifics of these offers and other Unique Selling Points will be presented as this engagement progresses.
London will be the Air Peace’s 7th international destination since kicking off operations less than 10 years ago.
Air Peace currently leads Nigeria’s aviation industry with a rapidly expanding network of 21 domestic routes, 10 regional routes and 6 international destinations with a growing modern fleet of over 30 aircraft.
A handful of crypto companies in Nigeria will no longer allow users to buy the USDT and USDC stablecoins with Naira after renewed scrutiny from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
“There was a meeting of crypto founders on Tuesday morning, and a number of them agreed to suspend the trades on their platform,” a person at that meeting told TechCabal. A second crypto industry player confirmed the meeting but declined to share details.
At least two crypto exchanges have told their Nigerian customers about the new development.
“We are suspending the buying and selling of USDT and USDC for Naira. This means you can’t buy or sell USDT or USDC with Naira,” said a notification sent by one exchange to customers.
Crypto exchanges in crosshairs as CBN talks tough
Binance and other exchanges have found themselves in regulatory crosshairs as regulators believe that crypto platforms encourage speculators to manipulate exchange rates. This week, users could not access the websites of crypto exchanges like Coinbase, Quidax, and Binance.
Increased volatility in Nigeria’s FX markets has triggered several policy actions, and on Tuesday afternoon, Olayemi Cardoso, the Central Bank governor, claimed “$26 billion has passed through Binance Nigeria from sources and users we cannot identify.”
An autonomous group, the Digital Currency Coalition, also claimed in a presentation seen by TechCabal that speculative trading on the Binance peer to peer offering significantly contributed to the “113.1% devaluation of the naira against USDT” since February 2023. It is unclear how the Coalition arrived at its numbers.
Unconfirmed reports claimed two executives at a crypto company were arrested on Tuesday in a move to force the company to share its KYC data.
Zakari Mijinyawa, a special adviser to Nigeria’s National Security Adviser, Malam Nuhu Ribadu, said he was unaware of any arrests and suggested that law enforcement agencies may have done them.
Crypto exchanges are treading cautiously, three people who work in the industry told TechCabal.
“The office asked us not to wear Binance t-shirts and caps and to not attend Binance-related events for now,” a Binance employee who asked not to be named told TechCabal, describing uncertainty and fear similar to last year when the Securities Exchange Commission announced that Binance was operating illegally in the country.
At least five leading leaders in the crypto space declined to comment on this story, citing regulatory fears.
“It is exactly as it was during the EndSARS protests in 2020,” an early-stage crypto investor in the country told TechCabal, adding that he has received warnings from peers to avoid attracting attention from law enforcement.
Suspected electricity vandals have intensified their assault on the nation's capital city, Abuja following reported the bombing of the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) Tower 70, along the 330KV Gwagwalada -Katampe transmission line in the Federal Capital Territory.
The horrific incident has reduced bulk power supply flexibility and the volume of power into Abuja by 250MW, according to TCN's spokesperson, Ndidi Mbah.
Ndidi said the incident occurred at about 11.32pm on 26th February which forced the company to deploy a patrol team after an attempt at reclosure of power trip at the Gwagwalada Substation failed.
She said the tower is presently standing precariously with support of conductors.
"The sad incident occurred on the 26th of February, 2024, at about 11.32 pm. At the said time, the Gwagwalada - Katampe Transmission line tripped at Gwagwalada Transmission Substation and trial reclosure by TCN Operators failed, necessitating a physical patrol of the line.
"The TCN lines and patrol team discovered that the four (4) tower footings of Tower 70 were bombed, destroying the tower legs and causing the tower to stand on the ground, supported by conductors."
Mbah disclosed that the company had mobilised to the location for emergency repairs while calling for vigilance on the part of citizens .
"Meanwhile, TCN has mobilised to the site of the incident and has commenced an emergency repair of the damaged tower and its associated equipment.
"We reiterate the need for vigilance in the fight against vandalism of power equipment. It is important that we report suspicious movements around all power equipment to security operatives or to the nearest TCN offices nationwide."
The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Olayemi Cardoso, says himself and his team are not responsible for the current economic woes in the country.
This was made known by Cardoso while answering questions from journalists at the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting of the apex bank, on Tuesday, February 27, 2024, in Abuja, the first since he assumed office in September 2023.
Cardoso, however, said the CBN is taking the necessary steps to get the country’s fiscal and monetary health back to normal.
He said the current management of the CBN assumed responsibility at a time of crisis of confidence, adding that efforts being made to redress this are beginning to yield results.
We need to do the difficult thing to make things better
While responding to a question that the CBN was responsible for the current economic challenges faced by Nigerians, Cardoso said,
“I laugh at that question but it’s not a laughing matter,” Cardoso retorted. “And I think it is very important for Nigerians to understand that the Central Bank Governor — I and my team — are not responsible for the woes that we have today; we are part of the solution.
“We are determined to ensure that we work hard to get out of the mess that Nigeria is in. We assumed responsibility in a time of crisis of confidence; there was a crisis of confidence and you may all want to go to bed and wish that crisis of confidence was not there but it was, and we can’t turn back the clock.
“All we can do is do the difficult things to make a bad situation better and I do believe that the efforts that we are making are beginning to bring back confidence because to be frank, without confidence in your business, you are not going to get far.”
What you should know
Nairametrics had earlier reported that the CBN had raised the monetary policy rate (MPR) by 400 basis points to a record 22.75%. This is the highest level we have seen the MPR topping 18.75% which had remained since the last MPC meeting on the 24th and 25th of July 2023.
The apex bank also increased the Cash Reserve Ratio to 45% and maintained the liquidity ratio at 30%. The Asymmetric Corridor was also raised to +200/-700.
The CBN Governor had said with inflation rate at 29.90%, he said the new MPR is part of moves to tackle the country’s inflation.
What Does a 188MW Geometric Power Plant Mean for Residents of Aba?
Here are my immediate thoughts on this very important milestone in the future of the power sector in Nigeria.
The power arrangement is an Embedded Power where power is generated close to the point of consumption, typically within an industrial or commercial facility or a specific geographic area.
In the case of Geometric Power Aba Ltd (GPAL) In the case of GPAL, it means that the power plant is located near Aba, where the electricity demand exists, rather than being part of a large centralized grid.
Power will thus be ring fenced to the 9 local government that will be impacted giving them 24/7 power.
For context of the size is 188MW, Lagos State generates around 800-1000MW monthly, even though demand is thought to be in the region of 2000MW.
Abia State, which falls under Enugu Disco, accounts for just 11.8% of the power on the grid.
So, assuming a total generation of 4000MW, it receives only 472MW, shared among all the states including Abia.
To grasp the magnitude of this development, a 188MW power plant operating 24/7 should generate approximately 135,360,000 kWh of electricity per month assuming operating at full capacity (not always the case).
Assuming an average consumption of roughly 500 kWh per household, this capacity could potentially impact around 270,720 households.
To deliver this power to the residents of Aba, several steps need to be taken. Firstly, the gas contract between Geometric and its gas suppliers needs to be airtight.
Without gas, the plant will be underutilized. They claim to have constructed a 27km natural gas pipeline to the location in Osisioma.
There will also be a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) signed between Geometric, APLE (the local distributor), and the end-user customers.
These contracts will need to be enforceable. From what we gather, power will be sold to industrial customers first, and then to residents, possibly those living around the clusters.
Geometric also plans to sell power to the national grid. Aba is said to need around 100MW, while the rest will be sold to the grid. This sale will also require a contract to be signed between parties on the grid side. I suspect Enugu Disco and even PH will be off takers. Transmission and the gas companies will also be likely parties. TBH, GPAL will need grid off take as that helps with capacity utilization, a key component of tariff economics. If they don’t, it could impact cost and even service down the line. Good enough, there is demand downstream
One issue that will need to be resolved is the legacy debts owed to the Discos by the customers. It's either these debts will be written off forever, or the Disco and the customers will figure out a way to resolve them.
In terms of tariffs, it appears they will be implementing a cost-reflective tariff, which may not align with the current tariffs being charged under the national service-based tariff. I haven’t seen the details yet, but I suspect it could be higher. NERC will likely need to approve it.
There is an also the issue of redundancy that may have been created for legacy power assets in these communities. For example, transformers, 415 lines, distribution lines, meters etc. I suspect distribution use of service contracts may have been signed with the local disco. If that’s the case then customer should be slightly wary.
Will there be 24-hour power? I believe this could be the case, assuming the contracts are airtight and the usual challenges in Nigeria do not interfere.
Key issues to note are gas supply, maintenance contracts, tariffs, energy losses, and service levels. If there are any issues in any of these layers, the system could fail at some point.
For now, congratulations to the people of Aba and Abia State at large. This could be a major game changer not just for their local economy but for the country in general.
Finally, stakeholders in the industry, particularly those with a long-standing presence, will be closely monitoring how this unfolds. If the contracts are robust and service delivery is exceptional, it could serve as a model for others to emulate.
This development has the potential to disrupt the entire sector. As is typical with disruptions, there will be both gleeful winners and sore losers.
In a major development aimed at financial stability and strengthening the naira, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) plans to resume its weekly intervention in the country’s foreign exchange (FX) market through the Bureau de Change (BDC) operators, THISDAY has gathered.
In 2021, the central bank, in a bid to achieve its mandate of safeguarding the value of the local currency, ensuring financial system stability, and shoring up external reserves, announced the immediate discontinuance of foreign currency sales to Bureau de Change (BDC) operators in the country.
However, the resumed intervention, which would reportedly commence today for funding as well as Tuesday for collection, will see the apex bank inject FX into the subsector in a bid to rescue the naira from further depreciation against major currencies, particularly the US Dollar. The collection will be at designated CBN branches in Lagos, Abuja, Kano, and Awka, while details of the naira accounts to be credited for funding bidding will also be made available today.
CBN is also expected to publish the list of eligible BDCs to benefit from its funding using certain compliance criteria.National Executive Council of Association of Bureau De Change Operators of Nigeria (ABCON) hinted on the latest developments through a memo to its members over the weekend.
The association also warned members that it will no longer be business as usual under the new supervisory regime of the central bank, as any infringement or infraction would result in outright revocation of license and prosecution.
ABCON said through the association’s various engagements with the central bank, in conjunction with ABCON’s strategic partners, CBN had agreed to its request, under the bank’s supervision, to inject liquidity into the market through a weekly intervention beginning today.
CBN assured ABCON that the new circular on the Revised Regulatory and Supervisory Guidelines to BDCs, which was introduced over the weekend, was only a draft exposure that required the association’s inputs before the release of the final guidelines by the apex bank.
To that effect, the letters of the guidelines were not cast in stone, the association’s leadership told its members, who had been worried over the sweeping reforms in the document, which, among other things, prescribed N2 billion and N500 million minimum capital for national and state BDCs, respectively.
Romance › Re: Help, This Little Child Is Missing by nlfpmod(mod): 1:39pm On Mar 09, 2024
