The Financial Technology Report, a global media authority in the fintech industry, has recognized the Interswitch Group Founder and CEO, Mitchell Elegbe, as one of the top Fintech CEOs for 2023, alongside other industry titans including Dan Schulman, CEO of PayPal, Ryan McInerney, CEO of Visa, and Michael Miebach, CEO of Mastercard.

This distinctive achievement underscores Elegbe’s exceptional leadership and Interswitch Group’s ever-evolving and groundbreaking contributions to the revolutionisation of the financial technology landscape in Nigeria and Africa.

The report recognises esteemed leaders whose roles in the financial technology space, both regionally and globally, continue to redefine and revolutionize traditional payment systems. Furthermore, it highlights the remarkable feats achieved owing to their relentless pursuit of innovation.

Elegbe, the inspirational leader behind Interswitch Group, expressed his gratitude for the prestigious recognition, stating, “It is an honour to be recognised among the top Fintech CEOs for 2023. This recognition is a testament to the dedication and unwavering commitment of the entire Interswitch team in driving transformative solutions that empower individuals, communities and businesses across Africa and beyond.”

Recently, in Monaco, Mitchell Elegbe was inducted into the esteemed Ernst and Young (EY) World Entrepreneur of the Year (WEOY) 2023 Hall of Fame as the sole African delegate, solidifying his position as a leader extraordinaire. This prestigious recognition highlights Elegbe’s outstanding and visionary leadership and buttresses his remarkable contribution to the business world through technology.

Prior to this remarkable achievement, Elegbe had earned notable acclaim as a recipient of the esteemed EY Entrepreneur of the Year (Emerging Entrepreneur category) 11 years ago, in 2012 and his emergence, in March 2023, as the West African Entrepreneur of the Year in the Master category, further cemented his significant strides in the industry.

Under Elegbe’s visionary leadership, Interswitch Group, in its two decades of existence, has been at the forefront of reshaping payments and driving financial inclusion across the African continent. With a focus on payments innovation, Interswitch Group has consistently delivered cutting-edge solutions, enabling seamless digital payments, and transforming the way people transact.

The Financial Technology Report’s recognition of Mitchell Elegbe highlights his pioneering role in Africa’s fintech industry. Elegbe’s recognition as one of only two Africans on the list and the only Nigerian Fintech CEO, along with Interswitch’s inclusion as the only Nigerian-founded company, highlights the remarkable progress it has made in the financial technology industry, both locally and internationally.

By providing advanced payment solutions and creating a robust digital ecosystem, Interswitch Group continues to play a pivotal role in accelerating Africa’s economic growth and pushing the frontiers in digital payments.

SOURCE:https://brandspurng.com/2023/07/14/interswitch-group-mastercard-visa-paypal-ceos-recognised-among-2023-top-fintech-ceos/

In a bid to mitigate the shortage of dollars which is currently affecting most African countries, the central banks of Ethiopia and Nigeria have swapped $100M in blocked funds.

This deal involved the swapping of revenues of Ethiopian Airlines from Nigeria and earnings of Dangote Cement in Ethiopia, which has been struggling to repatriate profits due to forex shortages in both countries.

This swap deal would enable Ethiopia to access funds that they have been struggling to gain from Nigerian banks, likewise, Nigeria would get access to money which have been stuck in Ethiopia.

Nigerians have benefited hugely from Ethiopian Airlines due to its extensive flight networks which cut across major cities like Lagos, Abuja, and Kano as well as foreign countries While the airline has benefitted from strong patronage from Nigerian travelers going abroad but has resulted in much of its revenue being stuck in Nigeria.

Meanwhile, Dangote Cement which is a major player in the Ethiopian construction industry for over 10 years has also struggled to repatriate profits in Ethiopian currency where it produces up to 2.5 million tons of Cement yearly.

This situation was what caused the CBN to offer Dangote Cement the option of a currency swap proposal which would allow the exchange of its excess Ethiopian birr for USD held by overseas firms which are operating in Ethiopia.

According to sources at the Central Bank of Ethiopia, it has been confirmed that it had reached an agreement with the Central Bank in Nigeria to conduct a “temporary swap of foreign currencies.”

While Aviation sources also claim that Ethiopian Airlines exchanged USD 100M of the USD 180M in blocked funds in Nigeria for birr from Dangote Cement.

Airline CEO Mesfin Tassew told The Reporter saying “The National Bank will pay us the equivalent swapped amount in birr,”. It also added that there are no plans to swap the remaining amount. Other sources also claim Dangote still has over $200M stuck in Ethiopia.

Nigeria and Ethiopia have suffered greatly due to foreign currency shortages, with CBN resorting to rationing dollars to reduce the effect of the shortages on its reserves while the National Bank of Ethiopia had to introduce reforms which is aimed at easing the burden of investors in their country.

The central bank has also begun to provide assurance to investors who are willing to invest in key sectors through public-private partnerships with the Ethiopian government for easy access to repatriating their profits.


SOURCE:https://brandspurng.com/2023/07/14/ethiopia-and-nigeria-swap-100m-for-local-currency/

Super Eagles and Arsenal Football Club legend, Kanu Nwankwo, former Chelsea midfielder, Mikel Obi and former Bolton Wanderers and Super Eagles captain, Jay Jay Okocha, have been included in the Premier League greatest Africa XI.
The list was announced by SuperSport, the official broadcast rights owner of the Premier League in Africa, at a Gala Night in Lagos on Thursday.
Premier League Africa XI was voted by football fans across Africa, as part of activities marking the 30th anniversary celebration of the Premier League.
Other African Premier League legends on the list are former Arsenal defender, Kolo Toure; former Chelsea goalkeeper, Edouard Mendy; Manchester City winger, Ryad Mahrez; Chelsea legend, Michael Essien; former Liverpool striker, Sadio Mane; Liverpool winger, Mohamed Salah; Chelsea legend, Didier Drogba and Manchester City legend, Yaya Toure.
Speaking on the essence of Premier League Africa XI project, CEO Designate, SuperSport, Rendani Ramovha said: “It has been an amazing journey. To have a partnership of 30 years with the Premier League and bringing the trophy to Lagos is special. It has been twelve months of consistency. Our core objective is to be obsessed with the fans. Our objective at SuperSport is to impact people’s lives through sports. This is about giving the fans a voice and the fans have made their choice. All I feel about this is gratitude.”
Between March 24 and June 30, a 30-man list was presented to football fans across Africa to vote for their best African footballers to have graced the EPL, on SuperSport website. Players with the highest number of votes were announced as Premier League’s greatest Africa XI.


SOURCE:https://brandspurng.com/2023/07/08/kanu-okocha-mikel-make-premier-league-best-africa-xi/

According to a recent Juniper Research study, the total value of transactions using digital wallets will increase from $9 trillion in 2023 to $16 trillion in 2028, a 77% increase.

Growth in both developed and developing markets is fueling this trend, and end-user engagement is being boosted by the rising use of cutting-edge services like BNPL (Buy Now Pay Later) and microloans. According to the study, it is crucial for wallet manufacturers to broaden their user base in an extremely competitive wallet market.

A software-based system called a “digital wallet” can be used to store a user’s payment, identity, loyalty, or ticketing information.

The report named advanced services as a major driver of digital wallet revenue growth. Digital wallet service providers are able to diversify their sources of income thanks to cutting-edge services like BNPL or microloans. The popularity of BNPL will attract more users and bring in more money, especially among younger consumers. This strategy is evident in Apple’s introduction of supplemental services, such as Apple Pay Later.

“Advanced services give digital wallet providers an opportunity to differentiate themselves in a crowded market and generate additional revenue,” said study author Michael Greenwood. Many digital wallets are pursuing super app strategies, which will depend on the successful implementation of advanced services at scale.

SOURCE:https://brandspurng.com/2023/07/12/digital-wallets-transaction-value-to-surpass-16tn-by-2028/

As one of the largest and most recognizable brands on the planet, Nike holds the biggest share of the global sportswear market, generating more revenue than any of its competitors. The sportswear titan also has much higher brand value than any other name in the market.

According to data presented by SportsLens.com, Nike is the world’s most powerful sportswear brand with a media Impact value™ (MIV®) of $2.6bn, $450 million more than its biggest rival, Adidas.

Nike`S Media Impact Value Worth More Than Those Of Adidas And New Balance Combined
No brand stands close to Nike in the sportswear industry. The sportswear titan has acquired several footwear and apparel companies over the years, including Converse, Cole Haan, Starter, Bauer Hockey, Umbro, and Hurley International. The company also sponsors many high-profile professional athletes like Cristiano Ronaldo, Rafael Nadal, Lebron James, and Tiger Woods and provides uniforms for many top sports teams, including Manchester United, Barcelona, Chelsea, and Paris Saint-Germain.

These deals have helped Nike’s apparel sales revenue to grow by a massive 50% in the past six years, rising from roughly $9bn in 2016 to $13.5bn in 2022. The company`s media impact value also outpaced all other competitors in the market.

According to Statista and Launchmetrics, Nike’s media impact value™ (MIV®), which values the impact of all media placements and mentions in the fashion, lifestyle, and beauty industries, hit an impressive $2.6bn last year, more than MIV® of Adidas and New Balance Combined. Adidas ranked second with a media impact value of $2.15bn, or 17% less than Nike. New Balance Puma and ANTA Sports make the top five names, with media impact values of $435 million, $417 million, and $319 million, respectively.

Nike Makes One-Third Of Global Media Impact Value™ (MIV®) In The Sportswear Market
The Statista and Launchmetrics data also revealed that Nike made one-third of global media impact value in the sports market, worth $7bn last year.

The sportswear titan ranked as the top brand in the Americas, which accounted for $2.7bn in global MIV® and ranked as the highest regional contributor. In EMEA, which accounted for another $2.1bn in global MIV®, German Adidas remained the top sportswear brand.

However, in China and APAC, which witnessed a significant surge in MIV®, Nike was also the number-one sportswear brand. China’s MIV® skyrocketed by 52% year-over-year to $$1.8bn, while APAC saw a 27% growth, bringing the MIV® to $1.1bn.

SOURCE:https://brandspurng.com/2023/07/12/nike-knocks-adidas-as-worlds-most-powerful-sportswear-brand-with-media-impact-value-of-2-6b/

The CEO of Junior Achievement (JA) Africa, Simi Nwogugu of Nigeria, has been named the recipient of the 2018 Africa Education Medal, which was established last year by T4 Education, HP, and Microsoft.

The Africa Education Medal was established to honor the pioneers who are reshaping African education for the better. According to Unesco data, sub-Saharan Africa has the highest rates of educational exclusion worldwide. Between the ages of 6 and 11, more than one-fifth of children are not in school, with girls experiencing particular disadvantage.


However, in the decades prior to the pandemic, Africa made significant advancements in increasing enrollment thanks to tireless international efforts. The Africa Education Medal aims to encourage others to follow in their footsteps and bring about long-lasting change in African education by honoring the stories of those who work tirelessly to build on these essential advancements.


Simi Nwogugu is the CEO of JA Africa, a branch of the nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize JA Worldwide, one of the biggest youth-serving NGOs in the world that helps young people get ready for the future of work. While employed by Goldman Sachs in New York City, she first met JA. She left her lucrative job at the age of 24 to bring JA to Nigeria, where it now reaches more than 100,000 young people yearly, after being inspired by the organization. She later went on to oversee JA’s operations throughout the continent.

The fact that 37% of the workforce and 60% of the population of sub-Saharan Africa are under the age of 25 emphasizes the critical importance of Nwogugu’s work. 25% of the world’s youth will reside in Africa by 2025. Her organization helps young people develop their entrepreneurial ideas, improve their work readiness skills, manage their money, and secure better lives for themselves, their families, and their communities by providing hands-on, blended learning in financial literacy, work readiness, and entrepreneurship.

Nwogugu has been overseeing JA’s initiatives in a variety of capacities for the past 25 years as it set out on a mission to assist young people in developing and managing their wealth, creating jobs for their communities, and applying entrepreneurial thinking to the workplace and developing the skills that will secure their financial future. Her love of innovation and strategy inspired the creation of a number of significant initiatives that guarantee young Africans have the aptitude and outlook for success.

She is an ardent supporter of girls’ education, and one of her innovative projects is the Leadership, Empowerment Achievement & Development (LEAD) Camp for Girls, which has motivated and inspired more than 1,200 young girls to become high-achieving women leaders in society.

Another project she has supported is the Venture in Management Programme (ViMP), which aims to empower young people by teaching them how to manage various aspects of a business, how to make critical business decisions, and how to develop general management and social responsibility skills.

Graduates of the program have gone on to found some of Nigeria’s top companies and to lead some of the continent’s most significant non-profit organizations. In addition, she developed digital and after-school youth programs that allowed her organization to reach underserved communities in Nigeria’s north, even during the Boko Haram crisis and the Covid-19 pandemic.

She led JA Nigeria, which had an impact on the lives of over one million Nigerians in 5,000 schools, before she was named CEO of JA Africa in 2020. Iyin Aboyeji, the creator of the unicorns Andela and Flutterwave, is one of the many JA graduates who have gone on to create jobs and work in social entrepreneurship. She said, “JA gave me my first taste of entrepreneurship when I participated in the company program in secondary school. Simi deserves my gratitude for bringing this program to Nigeria.

Nwogugu also holds the position of President of the Harvard Business School Alumni Association of Nigeria (HBSAN)’s governing board. He has received numerous honors from the university, including the Bert King Award for Social Impact from the Harvard Business School African-American Association.

SOURCE:https://brandspurng.com/2023/07/12/simi-nwogugu-wins-2023-africa-education-medal/

Africa’s leading integrated payments and digital commerce company, Interswitch, has successfully concluded the second edition of its Technovation competition, a hackathon aimed at nurturing innovation and creativity among its employees.

The initiative showcases Interswitch’s commitment to fostering innovation and creating impactful solutions that address diverse challenges across the African continent.

The competition, which spanned several weeks, provided a unique platform for Interswitch employees to explore their problem-solving capabilities and devise innovative solutions to real-world problems. With a strong focus on technology-driven advancements, this program provided participants with the necessary tools, mentorship, and a platform to develop groundbreaking ideas and transform them into viable prototypes.

Following a review of numerous entries, five teams were shortlisted to compete at the grand finale. The chosen teams include Paystars, The Innovators, Team Spark, Team Flash, and The Pioneers who pitched solutions focused on healthcare, food and financial technology.

At the end of the keenly contested pitch session which took place on Friday, July 7, 2023, at the Radisson Blu Anchorage Hotel, Victoria Island, Lagos, Team Flash emerged winner of Technovation 2.0, receiving N1,000,000. Team Spark followed closely behind in second place, wining N750,000 and Team Paystars emerged in third place, winning the sum of N500,000.

Interswitch recognizes the immense potential within its workforce and is dedicated to unlocking the creative genius of its employees. By providing a conducive environment for innovation, the company continues to harness the collective brilliance and expertise of its staff members to drive positive change in various sectors, including finance, e-commerce, healthcare, oil and gas and transportation, among others.

Speaking on the successful completion of the Technovation 2.0, Akeem Lawal, Managing Director, Payment Processing & Switching (Interswitch Purepay) emphasized the significance of empowering employees to design solutions that address Africa’s unique challenges.

He said, “At Interswitch, we firmly believe that the key to driving meaningful change in Africa lies in nurturing and empowering our talented people. The Technovation 2.0 competition is a testament to our commitment to innovation and our unwavering belief in the transformative power of technology. By supporting our staff members in their pursuit of groundbreaking solutions, we aim to create a brighter future for Africa.”

Throughout the competition, participants were encouraged to avidly explore novel approaches to tackle complex problems. Leveraging Interswitch’s extensive industry expertise and cutting-edge technologies, the developers devised ingenious solutions that hold the potential to revolutionize various sectors and improve the lives of millions of people across Africa.

The grand finale ended on a high note as participants and other Interswitch employees were treated to an exciting after-party.

As an organization deeply rooted in Africa, Interswitch understands the unique challenges facing the continent and is dedicated to playing a pivotal role in developing solutions to these challenges and driving the growth and development of the continent. The Technovation competition serves as a testament to Interswitch’s unwavering commitment to creating innovative solutions that address Africa’s most pressing needs, ultimately contributing to the continent’s overall advancement.

SOURCE:https://brandspurng.com/2023/07/11/https-brandspurng-com-interswitch-technovation-competition/

Nigeria’s music sensation, Tiwa Savage commemorates a significant milestone in her career as she celebrates the 10th anniversary of her groundbreaking album, Once Upon a Time.

The debut album did not only mark the beginning of her successful career but also showcased her exceptional talent, paving the way for her ascent to becoming one of Africa’s most influential artists.

In a tribute to mark the anniversary of the album, rising Nigerian musician and Spotify RADAR Africa artist for 2023, Ria Sean has released a special Spotify Singles version of one of the iconic tracks, Kele Kele. The Spotify Singles, available exclusively on Spotify, is an alternative-inspired take on the classic decade-old Afro-pop banger by Tiwa.

Kele Kele is one of 21-tracks on Once Upon a Time that captures the essence of Tiwa Savage’s artistry and introduces her unique sound to the world. The song is familiar to just about every Afrobeats fan and it’s still a staple at Afrobeats raves and club nights across Africa.

Speaking about the importance of the song, Ria Sean says, “Kele Kele love was the first time I discovered Tiwa. She is a big inspiration to me. When I saw that video on TV, the song, everything just spoke to me like Yooo! The original version was more Afro-pop but I tried to switch it up to be very alternative. The track is for everytime, for everywhere and for everybody.”

Spotify’s Artist and Label Partnerships Manager for West Africa, Victor Okpala says of the Spotify Single: “With Ria Sean’s distinct talent and style, fans can expect a fresh and captivating rendition of the song, which breathes new life into the timeless classic.”

To celebrate Tiwa Savage’s decade-long career and her debut album, Spotify data gives a glimpse into just how popular Once Upon a Time has been since release.

Among the tracks featured on the album, the standout hit that continues to captivate listeners is Eminado featuring the legendary Don Jazzy. The song is the first song by Tiwa Savage to surpass 1 million streams on Spotify.

Tiwa Savage’s music transcends borders as evidenced by its presence on user-generated playlists with her tracks having found their way onto over 4 million user playlists. Ma Lo, a chart-topping collaboration with Wizkid, topped the list of most playlisted tracks and also became the first track in her discography to reach an impressive 10 million streams.

Stamina tops the list as her most exported song among listeners in the 18-35 age group, followed by Loaded, her collaboration with Asake, and her track Koroba rounds out the top three.

Several countries stand out as major hubs for streaming Once Upon a Time in 2023. Nigeria, Tiwa Savage’s home country, demonstrates a strong connection to her music, with a significant portion of her global fan base located there, accounting for 23% of the streams. This is followed by the United States at 20%, the United Kingdom at 15%, Canada at 6%, and France also at 6%.

“Once Upon a Time marked a significant turning point in the African music landscape and it showcased Tiwa’s undeniable talent. Over the past ten years, Tiwa Savage has played a significant role in expanding the global reach of African music,” says Okpala.

According to data shared as part of Spotify’s Afrobeats: Journey to a Billion Streams project, Tiwa Savage ranks among the top ten most streamed Afrobeats artists on the platform.

SOURCE:https://brandspurng.com/2023/07/05/tiwa-savages-groundbreaking-debut-album-turns-10/

Commercial banks’ customers deposited N8.9 trillion new cash in banks’ vaults in the last one year, members of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)-led Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) have said.

MPC member, Prof. Festus Adenikinju, said the deposit base represents 21.4 per cent increase to about N44 trillion total industry deposits between April 2022 and April 2023.

Likewise, industry credit increased by N4.54 trillion or 17.40 per cent while gross credit has been on an upward trajectory within same periods.

The stress tests conducted on the industry show that it can weather the major risks and vulnerabilities in the system.

Adenikinju said the gross external reserves stood at US$35.19 billion within in April 2023, and could provide 6.46 months cover of import of goods and services or 8.88 months cover of import of goods.

He said the financial soundness indicators f remain positive and showed that the banking system remains strong, sound, and resilient.

“The capital adequacy ratio (CAR) stood at 12.8 per cent in April 2023, still within the prudential requirement of between 10 per cent – 15 per cent. Non-performing loans (NPLs) ratio declined from 4.5 per cent in March 2023 to 4.4 per cent in April 2023. Liquidity ratio (LR) rose to 45.3 per cent in April 2023, from 43.8 per cent in March 2023. This is above the minimum 30 per cent recommended by the prudential requirement,” he stated.

Adenikinju, said both the Return on Equity (ROE) and Returns on Asset (ROA) increased between March 2023 and April 2023. ”ROE rose from 21.6 per cent to 22.6 per cent; while ROA increased from 1.6 per cent to 1.7 per cent between March 2023 and April 2023, respectively,” he said.

CBN Deputy Governor, Mrs. Aisha Ahmad, said sustaining banking sector lending to critical sectors of the economy as monetary policy tightens to contain inflation, therefore, remains paramount.

She said that given the positive correlation of market lending rates to the Monetary Policy Rate, borrowing costs have risen, while growth in credit has slowed.

She added: “Stress test results showed that industry solvency and liquidity positions could withstand mild to moderate shocks in the short to medium term. Nonetheless, the sector must continue to build adequate capital buffers – ongoing implementation of the Basel III capital standards (which prescribes additional capital buffers) are relevant in this regard.”

Also, CBN Deputy Governor, Edward Adamu, said the short-term outlook for inflation and its major drivers remains unfriendly.

“Although the pace of increase has subsided, year-on-year inflation could continue to rise according to in-house estimates. To ensure that flattening is quickly achieved to pave the way for deceleration, the stance of monetary policy needs to be firmer”.

This, he said is against the backdrop of an uncertain outlook for fiscal policy, energy prices and wages in the rest of the year.

Adamu said although much of the impact of the initial shocks to inflation may have dissipated, inflation expectation has remained significantly elevated.

“This needs to change, and quickly so. I believe communication is key in this regard, but equally important is what the market can see the Bank doing. I am persuaded that policy must strive to rein in inflation expectation as a deserving complement to effective liquidity management,” he said.

SOURCE:https://brandspurng.com/2023/07/04/bank-customers-deposited-n8-9tr-new-cash-in-12-months-mpc-report/

The GMD, Adron Homes and Properties Aare Adetola Emmanuel King, who represented His Excellency, Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, Governor of Lagos State as Chairman of the annual Ojude-Oba Epe cultural festival held on Friday 30th of June 2023 admonished Epe indigenes on the prospects of Epe becoming a Metropolitan city years to come.

On Friday the 30th of June 2023, at the Ogunmodede High School, Papa Epe,

The Prince of Epe who hails from the Oba Atoyegbe ruling house made this revelation while speaking on behalf of Governor Sanwo-Olu at the event where he laid more emphasis on the need for more development and investment opportunities within Epe Town which will make it a more viable investment hub for investors which would transit the town from a rural area to an urbanized metropolis in a decade time.

Aare Adetola, who is also the Onile Aje of Epe while addressing indigenes on behalf of Governor Sanwoolu disclosed the need for more people to leverage on the current economic boom and massive infrastructural development ongoing in Epe town projecting the town will witness more unprecedented development owing to its proximity and closeness to Ibeju-Lekki and the newly opened Dangote Petrochemicals and Refinery, Lekki Free Trade Zone, 4th Mainland bridge and the projected Airport.

The Real Estate magnate also said anyone who secures investment in that axis would get a massive Return on Investment in no time as Epe will soon transform into a full metropolitan city with numerous amenities. “Epe will be a metropolis in less than Ten years.

Our people should begin to see themselves at an advantage because of the strategic investment sited within our domain and the recent boom in real estate investment as many people are relocating to Epe because of its proximity to other states. We should also begin to open our arms and be accommodating to more investors, investments, and foreign nationals from all over the world because we have vast virgin land and we are also surrounded by water. We should all come together to ensure our town transforms in no time to a cosmopolitan metropolis that will be an investment hub to prospective investors and also put our town on the map.”

The Adron home boss who is also a prominent investor in the real estate sector highlighted the need for Epe indigents to embrace peace and unity to ensure they maximize all benefits. After admonishing the giant strides of Epe indigenes for coming home to celebrate with their monarch by paying homage and displaying the rich culture and traditions of the Epe people via a grand display of regal outfits and other ornamental paraphernalia he also advised the host of the event; His Royal Majesty, Oba Kamorudeen Ishola Animashaun, the Oloja of Epe to try and unite all Epe indigenes because the success of any community is the strength in unity.

“The growth of Epe is in the hands of our father, the Oloja of Epe and the responsibility is on him to ensure all hands are on deck to open Epe to more investment opportunities and also using his native intelligence to promote the ease of doing business. When investors are comfortable in their host domains and their investment guaranteed with internal security by the indigenes they will bring more investment that will benefit all sundry and there would be jobs created and more opportunity for Epe to grow beyond imagination.”

Aare Adetola also concurrently visited the Awujale of Ijebu land in celebration of the Ojude-Oba Ijebu-ode and Orimolusi of Ijebu-Igbo on the commemoration of the Ojude-Oba Ijebu-Igbo.

SOURCE: https://brandspurng.com/2023/07/03/open-your-arms-for-more-investors-to-make-epe-a-metropolis-aare-adetola-emmanuel-king-to-epe-indigenes/

The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has said it’s looking at the possibility of allowing candidates use personal devices, particularly mobile phones, during its Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination, UTME.

Speaking in Abuja over the weekend, JAMB Registrar, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede said the policy which falls under the “Bring Your Own Device” was being considered given the increasing cost of logistics in taking the UTME nationwide.

According to him, it cost the Board over N1.2 billion to equip a CBT center in Kaduna state, particularly in procuring computers that candidates use to take the examination.

He said the policy may require candidates wishing to take UTME in the future to bring their own devices to the examination hall.

SOURCE:https://brandspurng.com/2023/06/26/jamb-proposes-use-of-mobile-phone-for-utme/

A new partnership between Google Cloud and Moniepoint, an African-focused business banking platform that offers financial services to Nigeria’s underbanked businesses residing in outlying communities, was announced today. By bridging the banking gap in suburban areas, the collaboration makes financial services scalable and accessible to millions of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

In Nigeria, there are more than 41 million microbusinesses, according to Statista. To succeed, these companies must be able to accept payments online. Moniepoint turned to Google Cloud’s scalable cloud infrastructure as it transitioned into consumer-facing products intended to digitise these businesses and equip them for success.

Moniepoint benefits from low-latency internet access from Google Cloud’s scalable infrastructure, which enables the company to offer effective banking services to its clients without causing any lag when they use the platform. As a result, Moniepoint is able to successfully make its banking services available in Nigeria’s remote towns and communities where businesses operating outside the country’s commercial hubs—where mainstream banking is more accessible—have trouble getting access to the internet.

Additionally, Moniepoint was able to double its customer base and increase it from 300,000 small and medium-sized businesses at the beginning of 2022 to 1.3 million businesses today as a result of the simplicity of using Google Cloud. To process financial transactions and accept payments for their services, these businesses now rely on Moniepoint’s payments application.

Moniepoint established a portion of its payments application on Cloud Spanner, which depends on the scalable infrastructure of Google Cloud, as part of a hybrid cloud strategy, and now manages an average of 200,000 financial requests per minute. The application, which is designed to handle planet-size volumes of transactions, keeps track of all the requests and financial transactions that Moniepoint processes. With Moniepoint poised for greater growth, the application is ready to scale to handle 300 million transactions each month as the company anticipates supporting more than 500% of its current workload.

Felix Ike, Chief Technology Officer, Moniepoint, said:

“GOOGLE CLOUD HAS BEEN A KEY ENABLER IN FUELING MONIEPOINT’S GROWTH JOURNEY FROM DAY ONE, AS WE EXPANDED FROM A SMALL BUSINESS TO BECOME A LICENSED BUSINESS BANK THAT CATERS TO 1.3 MILLION BUSINESSES ACROSS NIGERIA TODAY. OUR DEVELOPMENT TEAM IS EMPOWERED WITH THE LATEST TECHNOLOGY TO PROCESS FINANCIAL TRANSACTIONS QUICKLY AND MOVE FAST WITH REQUESTS AS GOOGLE CLOUD TECHNOLOGIES ARE EASY TO DEPLOY. WITH GOOGLE CLOUD’S SCALABLE INFRASTRUCTURE, WE ARE CONFIDENT THAT WE CAN GROW OUR CUSTOMER BASE EXPONENTIALLY TO CATER TO THREE MILLION CUSTOMERS IN THE COMING 18 MONTHS AS WE EXPAND OUR FOOTPRINT ACROSS AFRICA.”

In order to scale the volume of transactional requests, such as payment transactions and accounting ledgers, the company also uses Google Kubernetes Engine. Moniepoint increased the workload processing capacity from 1,000 to 4,000 requests per minute, allowing the company to respond to customer requests swiftly and seamlessly.

Niral Patel, Director, Google Cloud Africa, added:

“NIGERIA’S INTER-BANK SETTLEMENT SYSTEM (NIBSS) REVEALED THAT 50 PER CENT OF NIGERIA’S 207 MILLION ADULT POPULATION IS CURRENTLY UNDERBANKED. MONIEPOINT IS A UNIQUE BUSINESS MODEL ESTABLISHED TO POSITIVELY IMPACT THE LIVELIHOOD OF PEOPLE BY PROVIDING SMES WITH ACCESS TO BANKING SERVICES. THE COMPANY HAS SUCCESSFULLY GROWN FROM A SMALL TO A LARGE-SCALE BUSINESS BY CAPITALIZING ON GOOGLE CLOUD’S COST-EFFECTIVE CLOUD SOLUTIONS THAT HAVE ENABLED THE AUTOMATION OF ITS MANUAL PROCESSES. BANKING AND FINANCIAL SERVICES CAN BE A PROCESS-HEAVY DOMAIN, BUT WITH GOOGLE CLOUD’S INFRASTRUCTURE, THE TEAM AT MONIEPOINT HAS AUTOMATED TRANSACTIONAL PROCESSES THAT WOULD TAKE UP TO EIGHT HOURS INTO 10 MINUTES. THIS HAS TRANSLATED INTO GROWING THE VOLUME OF CUSTOMERS RELYING ON MONIEPOINT, AS MORE BUSINESSES BECOME CONFIDENT IN ITS SEAMLESS AND SECURE SERVICES.”

SOURCE:https://brandspurng.com/2023/06/21/moniepoint-empowers-nigerias-under-banked-businesses/

A submersible watercraft with five people on board has been missing since shortly after it set out early Sunday to explore the site of the Titanic shipwreck in the North Atlantic.

On Wednesday, U.S. Coast Guard officials said that airplanes participating in the search had detected underwater noises in the North Atlantic on both Tuesday and Wednesday, leading authorities to focus their mission on the area the sounds are coming from.

On Tuesday, Capt. Jamie Frederick of the U.S. Coast Guard said during a news conference that the vessel had about 40 hours of breathable air left.

Here are nine questions about the Titan and the effort to find it. We’ll be updating this post as the story develops.
1. When and where did the Titanic submersible disappear?
After departing from St. John’s on the eastern edge of Newfoundland on June 16, the Polar Prince dropped anchor roughly 900 miles east of Cape Cod and was scheduled to deploy the Titan at 3 am ET the morning of June 18, although the Coast Guard said it didn’t begin its descent until around 7 am ET. The sub was supposed to send out a ping every 15 minutes during its descent down to the Titanic shipwreck, nearly 13,000 feet below the ocean’s surface. The entire voyage was supposed to take just two and a half hours, but the Polar Prince lost contact with the Titan approximately an hour and 45 minutes into the trip, triggering a desperate search for the now-missing sub. —Adam Clark Estes

2. Who is on board?
There are five people aboard the Titan submersible, including Stockton Rush, the 61-year-old pilot. He’s the founder and CEO of OceanGate Expeditions, which organized the expedition that the submersible embarked on to see the wreckage of the Titanic. Rush is an aerospace engineer with a well-documented love of deep-sea exploration and designing experimental aircraft and modded submersibles (there’s been a lot of talk of how the Titan is maneuvered by a jury-rigged video game controller). Though OceanGate was founded in 2009, tours to the Titanic weren’t available to paying customers until 2021. As of April 2020, the company had raised almost $37 million in total funding, according to data from PitchBook, including a new $18 million investment that year to help fund the nascent Titanic expeditions.

Also on board is Hamish Harding, a 58-year-old British billionaire with a penchant for adventuring to the extremes of the Earth. In 2016, he visited the South Pole with astronaut Buzz Aldrin; he holds three Guinness world records, including one for a more than 4-hour dive in the deepest part of the Mariana Trench. Last summer, he joined the six-person crew of a suborbital flight with Blue Origin, the space exploration company started by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos. He also flies planes and skydives; in 2022, he was inducted into the Living Legends of Aviation, an award recognizing people who have made significant contributions to aviation — other honorees include space billionaires Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, Richard Branson, and actors Tom Cruise and Harrison Ford.

Paul-Henri Nargeolet, a 77-year-old former commander of the French Navy, is a deep-sea search expert who has completed at least 35 dives to the wreck of the Titanic. An authority on the famous shipwreck, Nargeolet is also the director of underwater research at RMS Titanic Inc, which has exclusive rights to salvage artifacts from the wreck. Nargeolet was part of the Air France Flight 447 search efforts, helping to find the plane that had disappeared over the Atlantic Ocean.

Shahzada Dawood, a 48-year-old Pakistani-British businessman and philanthropist, joined the Titan crew with his 19-year-old son Suleman. He heads the Engro Corporation, one of the largest conglomerates in Pakistan, which operates in the food and agriculture, energy, and telecommunications sectors. He sits on the board of trustees of his family foundation, which focuses on education in the sciences and technology. Dawood is also on the board of the SETI Institute, a renowned scientific research organization that, in part, searches for extraterrestrial life.

The five passengers aboard the submersible are connected by an interest — and some experience and bona fides — in exploring air, space, and sea, as well as the financial means to pursue these passions. Again, OceanGate’s Titanic expeditions to the wreckage site cost as much as $250,000 per passenger. The company has claimed that its aim is to increase access to the deep sea for tourists and to contribute research on the wreck and its surrounding debris. —Whizy Kim

3. How exactly does the sub work and why does it need help?
The Titan is not a big submersible, nor is it designed for extended periods of time underwater, or capable to travel to a port without help from another vessel, as naval submarines are. The teardrop-shaped vessel is 22 feet long, can carry five people, and is equipped with one, small porthole window on the front of the vessel, where there is also a small toilet. The cylindrical, all-metal interior otherwise lacks seats and is approximately the size of a minivan, according to David Pogue, a CBS reporter and former passenger. Mike Reiss, a producer and writer for The Simpsons, traveled on the Titan in 2022 and said passengers were given sandwiches and water on board his voyage, which lasted 10 hours, during which the vessel’s compass was “acting very weird” and the passengers only had about 20 minutes to view the Titanic wreckage.

Because it travels so deep in the ocean, the submersible cannot use GPS and communicates with the Polar Prince through a text messaging system. It’s piloted with a video game controller, which is not as weird as it sounds. Even the US Navy uses Xbox controllers to operate the photonic scopes that replaced periscopes on submarines.

Critically, the Titan submersible only has 96 hours of oxygen reserves on board. That means that as soon as the vessel went missing, the clock started ticking on remaining life support. Even if the sub were able to resurface on its own, the passengers would be stuck inside until help arrived, since the hatch is closed from the outside and sealed shut with 17 bolts. —ACE

4. Who owns and operates the Titan sub?
The Titan is operated by OceanGate Expeditions, a Washington-based private company that offers chartered deep-sea exploration for commercial and scientific purposes. The company has also become known for leading deep-sea tourism trips. Its first trips to the Titanic were in 2021 and 2022, and OceanGate has said it would return to the shipwreck annually to survey its decay.

OceanGate has led more than a dozen underwater trips, including to shipwrecks like the Andrea Doria, which lies up to 240 feet underwater near Nantucket. It has three five-person submersibles in its fleet: Antipodes, Cyclops 1, and Titan. While Antipodes and Cyclops 1 can travel just 1,000 and 1,640 feet below the surface, respectively, OceanGate says the Titan is designed to go 4,000 meters, or 13,123 feet deep — just enough to reach the Titanic wreckage, which lies about 12,500 feet down. That seems uncomfortably close to the vessel’s maximum depth.

OceanGate has for years faced criticism from experts about Titan’s safety. David Lochridge, who was an OceanGate employee from 2016 to 2018, warned about the thickness of the Titan’s hull and “the potential dangers to passengers of the Titan as the submersible reached extreme depths” in a 2018 report. Lochridge later said in a court filing that he was wrongly terminated after raising these concerns. More than three dozen experts subsequently sent a letter to OceanGate’s CEO Rush saying that the “‘experimental’ approach adopted by [the company] could result in negative outcomes (from minor to catastrophic).”

OceanGate offered a response of sorts in a 2019 blog post that explained why the company had decided not to class the Titan — that is, get an independent group to evaluate whether a series of standards, including on safety, have been met, which is the industry norm. OceanGate argued that “innovation often falls outside of the existing industry paradigm” and that “by itself, classing is not sufficient to ensure safety.”

Rush seems quite cavalier in his own right. “I mean, if you just want to be safe, don’t get out of bed, don’t get in your car, don’t do anything,” Rush told CBS’s Pogue in 2022. “At some point, you’re going to take some risk, and it really is a risk-reward question.” He added that safety is a “pure waste.” —ACE

5. What do we know about the search and rescue process?
OceanGate contacted the Coast Guard after it lost touch with the Titan on Sunday afternoon. This kicked off what has become an international rescue effort on the water and in the air. The search yielded few updates until early Wednesday, when several maritime surveillance planes detected underwater noises, described as “banging noises,” in the area where the Titan went missing.

That effort included two American C-130 aircraft and two Canadian P-3 aircraft that can deploy sonar probes into the water. On the surface, the Polar Prince and Deep Energy, a Bahamas-flagged pipe-laying ship with two remotely operated vehicles that can dive nearly 10,000 feet, are assisting with the search. A French research vessel, the Atalante, which is equipped with an underwater exploration robot called the Victor 6000, is expected to arrive on Wednesday. The Victor 6000 is capable of descending nearly 20,000 feet, which is more than deep enough to reach the Titanic shipwreck. Even more ships are on their way to help.

In a press briefing on Wednesday afternoon, Capt. Frederick would not offer a timeline for the search. He said that the search area was now two times the size of Connecticut, or more than 10,000 square miles, and that the number of planes and ships assisting in the search would double from five to 10 in the next 24 hours. Frederick also emphasized that the amount of oxygen believed to be left in the Titan was just one data point for rescuers. If the 96 hours of reserve oxygen figure is correct, that would leave rescuers working under the assumption that the supply would run out some time on Thursday. —ACE

6. Why is it so difficult to explore the deepest parts of the ocean?
You’re probably familiar with how 70 percent of the Earth’s surface is ocean, but its depths are a much bigger mystery. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, less than 10 percent of the world’s ocean depths are mapped with sonar.

Think of the ocean floor not as flat and even, but with geological features just like land on the surface. There are canyons, plateaus, mountains, and submarine volcanoes, among other types of formations. Crucially, the technology we have to map above ground doesn’t work as well underwater. Water is a very good shield. It’s excellent at attenuating light, radiation, electromagnetism — all of our conventional tools for studying stuff. Terrain mapping can include satellite imagery and GPS, both of which can’t operate beyond rather shallow depths. So beyond 50 meters of depth, you really can’t know what’s going on unless you’re physically there.

To identify objects in the very deep parts of the ocean, researchers are left to use sound waves, which can travel through water much more accurately, via sonar. We can use echo sounding to map the ocean floor in a practice called bathymetry. There’s also geodesy, a satellite technology that’s increasingly being used to map by measuring tiny changes in gravity, which in turn illustrate the bottom of the ocean.
A part of the struggle comes through relying on sound waves, which physically have to be deployed. It’s expensive to make vessels that can withstand the pressures of the depths, and even more expensive to get people in said vessels. The farther down you go, the higher and more deadly the pressure is. In 2016, scientists estimated it would cost more than $3 billion to map the ocean floor. OceanGate claims to provide submersibles for scientific projects as well.

“In some ways, it’s a lot easier to send people into space than it is to send people to the bottom of the ocean,” oceanographer Gene Carl Feldman told Oceana, an ocean conservation group. “The intense pressures in the deep ocean make it an extremely difficult environment to explore.”


So while we know where the oceans are, and their surface is mapped with satellites, the depths are still just roughly estimated. We have a better understanding of Mars’s geography than we do of the ocean’s.

As for the rescue, the OceanGate submersible only has sonar to rely on — and that’s if their technology is working. (The New York Times reported that it’s unclear whether the Titan even has an acoustic homing beacon.) —Izzie Ramirez

7. How dangerous is deep sea tourism?
In most cases, folks who aren’t experts in deep-sea exploration aren’t ending up down near the sea floor. And if they are, usually they’re accompanied or trained by people who know how to operate deep-sea machinery and what to do in emergency situations. That’s what makes this particular incident with OceanGate precarious — generally, deep sea equipment has several, redundant failsafes to protect the people inside.

Because deep sea exploration trips are so expensive, there are limited ways to get on one. You can be conducting government-funded research, have extremely wealthy benefactors (or are wealthy yourself), or be contracted as an employee of an industry that’s operating in the depths. In the research arena, that’s improved loads. Just earlier this month, a Florida scientist — nicknamed “Dr. Deep Sea” — broke the world record for living underwater the longest. He stayed in a subaquatic compound for 100 days.

But it hasn’t always been so safe. And safety, of course, is dependent on the infrastructure and systems around an individual. In 1983, a team of saturation divers for Byford Dolphin, a semi-submersible oil rig in the North Sea, experienced a terrible accident. The diving bell, or the structure that maintains pressure to keep divers safe, released before a connecting chamber’s doors were entirely closed, instantaneously decompressing the area. Three of the divers died instantly, with the nitrogen in their bodies erupting, “boiling” into gas. Another was sucked through an opening — his internal organs scattered onto the deck after being torn from his body.

The danger of pressure underwater will likely never go away, but we’ve gotten better at building vessels and ships that have backup plans for their backup plans. That, and we don’t send as many crewed vessels into the deep. —IR

8. How does deep-sea tourism compare to space tourism?
Rush, in an interview with the New York Times last year, argued that OceanGate’s private explorations served a public good. “No public entity is going to fund going back to the Titanic,” he said. It’s an argument not dissimilar to the one spacefaring billionaires make about the societal value their multibillion-dollar ventures provide. They too point to a diminishment of interest and funding for space exploration — so thank the heavens they’re magnanimously picking up the slack. In a 2017 interview with Fast Company, Rush noted that as a teenager he dreamed of being the first person on Mars, only later turning his eye to the ocean.

He also said that the cost of OceanGate’s expeditions were a “fraction” of going to space. That’s true more broadly — setting up an aerospace company and building reusable rockets probably requires a lot more capital than sending submersibles into the depths of the ocean. But a ticket on a Virgin Galactic spaceflight also cost around $250,000 in 2021, though it has since upped the price to a cool $450,000. In February of this year, Rush was sued for fraud by a Florida couple alleging that the Titanic voyage they paid a hefty sum for had never happened.

In recent years, space exploration — often with dreams of colonizing Mars — has become the billionaire pet project du jour. But there have been plenty of other trendy, expensive fascinations too. In fact, the elite fascination with the deep sea appeared to be having a moment in the early 2010s. Richard Branson spent an estimated $17 million on a submarine in 2011, and Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen also revealed in 2011 that he had a megayacht big enough to house a personal submarine. Ex-Google CEO Eric Schmidt founded the Schmidt Ocean Institute in 2009, which aims to advance oceanographic research. To date, Schmidt and his wife Wendy have contributed over $360 million to the institute.

While the degree of danger associated with the hobbies of the ultra-rich varies greatly, there’s a surfeit of adventurous pastimes enjoyed by the wealthy, whether it’s yacht racing — enjoyed by the likes of Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison and Wendy Schmidt — or flying private planes, an infamously perilous activity that nonetheless remains a favorite hobby of rich people. —WK

9. Why does the media care so much about this story?
The quick answer to that question is that it’s pretty hard to imagine people spending $250,000 to voluntarily go to an extremely dangerous place in a claustrophobic tube with no additional safety. Rich people doing something astonishingly baffling and risky is always a point of curiosity. It’s a story, in the classic sense of the word.

The more complex — and arguably interesting — answer is that such a search endeavor reveals how little we know about the ocean. The hurdles with sonar, the physical challenges, the fact there’s so much science and guessing involved (Are they still alive and running out of oxygen? Were they instantly crushed?) can lead to a lot of important development in the future. This might be the impetus for governments to invest more in ocean exploration.

And yes, migrants unfortunately do go missing in oceans regularly in arduous, treacherous journeys for a better life. At least 78 migrants died and hundreds of others are missing after a boat capsized in the Mediterranean earlier this week, for instance. Outlets could do more to cover this painful issue with justice and accountability. As local and national outlets continue to cover immigration, human rights, and poverty, it’s a dual responsibility from news organizations and readers alike to decide what really matters.

SOURCE:https://brandspurng.com/2023/06/22/nine-things-to-know-about-the-missing-titanic-submersible/

In collaboration with the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), the MTN Foundation has kick-started the second edition of its Anti Substance Abuse Programme (ASAP) quiz competition for secondary school students in Nigeria.

Following the elimination stage, which was held virtually between June 6, and 7, 2023, six finalists emerged and will be competing for the grand prize on June 23, 2023 in Abuja. The finalists include; PTA/NADP International College, Lafia, Nasarawa State; Girls’ Secondary School, Abakpa-Nike, Enugu, Enugu State; Girls Secondary School, Yola, Adamawa State; Katsina College, Katsina State;, Olivet Baptist High School, Oyo State and Anglican Girls Grammar School, Benin-City.

The quiz competition is part of the MTN Foundation’s efforts to raise awareness about substance abuse and addiction among Nigerian youths. Its purpose is to reduce first-time substance use and casual substance use among secondary school students across the country.

The three-hour quiz competition was moderated by the Director, Drug Demand Reduction, National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Dr Ngozi Maduibuike; Team Leader, United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), Abimbola Adewumi and Assistant Director, Drug Demand Reduction Directorate NDLEA, Chigbu Odoemelam.

According to the NDLEA director, the uptake in the use of substances by young Nigerians has led to the agency’s partnership with MTN Foundation. She said, “More young people between the ages of 15 and 35 are more involved in drug abuse. Studies have shown that 14.3 million Nigerians are using psychoactive substances with 1 in 5 persons who use drugs in Nigeria suffering from drug use disorders. This has become worrisome hence the need to raise awareness through the inter-school quiz competition.”

Encouraging students during the online competition, Dr Ngozi Maduibuike urged them to arm themselves with the knowledge gained during the competition and act as ambassadors in the fight against substance abuse.

“We need to raise more students who will act as champions in the fight against drug abuse. We hope to provide students with coping skills to help them deal with peer pressure to take drugs. We know that many people who first start using drugs have done so through the pressure of their friends. Through the ASAP quiz competition, we hope to provide you with the necessary knowledge needed to have a healthier life as you become ambassadors against substance abuse. We expect you to take the ASAP message back to your classrooms, homes and communities.”

Speaking on the MTN Foundation’s partnership with NDLEA and UNODC on the ASAP quiz competition, the Executive Secretary of the Foundation, Odunayo Sanya said, “The reality of substance abuse in our community is one we must no longer ignore. In 2019, MTN through its Foundation initiated the Anti Substance Abuse Programme (ASAP) in partnership with NDLEA and UNODC. We remain committed to driving the ASAP message through multi-sectoral partnerships because we believe that the fight against substance abuse is everyone’s fight.”

In total, 18 schools across the six geopolitical zones in Nigeria with a prevalence of high rate of substance abuse were selected for the quiz competition by the NDLEA and the UNODC.

The MTN Foundation launched ASAP in 2019 as a platform to promote awareness about the dangers of substance abuse and addiction and to reduce first-time substance use and casual substance among young Nigerians.

SOURCE:https://brandspurng.com/2023/06/16/mtn-foundation-ndlea-unodc-kick-start-second-edition-of-quiz-competition-on-substance-abuse/

It was all glitz and glamour at the cocktail event to kick off the sixth edition of the Lagos Leather Fair, the event had in attendance key stakeholders, influencers, and the media. An amazing live band was in place to fill the room with beautiful sounds and masterful musical expressions.

The event also featured a beautiful spoken word rendition by Ms. Kemi Adedipe who kept the audience spell bound in a heartfelt poetry redition. The cocktail event also provided attendees the opportunity to connect with industry leaders, fashion enthusiasts, and other players in the leather industry. This was a great opportunity to build relationships, exchange ideas, and explore potential collaborations.

The cocktail event was more than just a social gathering. It also functioned as a private tour of the event, as the convener, Mrs. Femi Olayebi facilitated a tour of the exhibition area for a first-time view. This gave attendees an opportunity to have a sneak peek of what to expect at the fair and first purchase of any of the amazing wears from exhibitor stands.

At the cocktail event which was anchored by the spectacular on-air personality and broadcaster, Ms. Ronke Giwa, had in attendance representatives of the sponsors such as the MD CEO Remita, Mr Deremi Atanda and the Group Chief Marketing Officer Leadway Holdings, Mr. Labeodan who both gave remarks as to their excellence of the fair, their unwavering support of the leather sector and the made in Nigeria brand.

On the 17th and 18th of June 2023 at the Balmoral Convention Centre, Victoria Island, the fair will be featuring other exciting activities such as conversations, social media and marketing presentations using a case study review of different brands as well as workshops for upcoming designers. The fair will also feature established leather brands that will showcase their latest collections through unique presentations.

In conclusion, the Lagos Leather Fair 2023 kicked off on a high note with a leather cocktail event that was both entertaining and informative. The event provided a platform for attendees to have a first-hand experience of what to expect at the fair, connect with industry leaders, and explore potential collaborations. We can’t wait to see what the Lagos Leather Fair 2023 has in store for us. Taking hints from the cocktail event it is sure to be something special!

SOURCE:https://brandspurng.com/2023/06/17/lagos-leather-fair-2023-kicks-off-in-style-with-a-leather-cocktail-event/

BrandSpur Nigeria reports that Musa Jimoh, Director payments system management Department, said, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) is in the process of finalizing the guideline to govern and promote the use of contactless payment in Nigeria.

Musa stated this at the just concluded Digital PayExpo 2023 held in Lagos, Nigeria.

The CBN’s proposed guideline for contactless payments in Nigeria is designed to foster the adoption and secure implementation of this payment method. Mr. Musa Jimoh said the introduction of contactless payment is another tool the apex bank will introduce before the end of 2023, to mitigate any inconvenience that may arise when the old notes make way for the new ones.

Musa said the guidelines would cover the technical and operational requirements for implementing contactless payment systems and the security measures needed to protect customers’ information.

An interesting feature of contactless payment is the introduction of Free on board (FOB). In this case the risk of loss shifts from the buyer to seller”, he said.

Identifying some of the benefits of contactless payment which include ease of payments, speed and convenience to consumers’ in-person transactions using their phone, Adefuye noted that this would enhance customer experience.

According to Musa, “the contactless payment system is more secure than traditional payment methods thus giving customers peace of mind; it will reduce printing of currency thus save the regulator cost of printing and managing currency in circulation; and it reduces the spread of contagious diseases during payment due to the lack of contact”.

SOURCE:https://brandspurng.com/2023/06/13/digital-payexpo-2023-cbn-to-release-guidelines-on-contactless-payment-in-nigeria/

Game changers in the Real Estate industry, Zealand Properties has announced the latest Guinness Book of world records holder, Hilda Baci, as the latest Landlady at one of its estates, Yomade Heritage in Epe.
Hilda Baci was at Zealand’s Headquarters in Ikeja earlier today to sign and receive her land document, an event that made her an official Landlady at Yomade Heritage.

Recall that Zealand properties had earlier promised to gift Hilda Baci with a plot of land worth N5.7m at Yomade Heritage Estate when she attempted to break the erstwhile Guinness world record in a cooking marathon.

After receiving her land document and discovering the investment potential in Yomade Heritage, Baci said she’d cash in on the current price and buy one more plot of land for herself

“I’m super excited because they were so kind to gift me a plot of land in one of their prime locations in Epe, and trust me, at the price that they are currently selling, I’d probably buy one for myself because it honestly feels like a steal”.
Meanwhile, the Managing Director of Zealand Properties, Mr. Adedeji Agarawu while addressing Hilda Baci stated that her drive and hard work was worthy of emulation by other youths and she deserves to be rewarded.

“I appreciate hard work, and what you pulled out there was incredible hard work. You must have gone the extra mile and conquered a lot of fear to have achieved your feat”.

Hilda Baci’s confirmed new record of 100 hours 40 minutes in a cook-a-thon has officially surpassed India’s Lata Tondon who set the record in 87 hours 45 minutes in 2019.



SOURCE:https://brandspurng.com/2023/06/14/double-celebrations-for-hilda-baci-latest-landlady-at-yomade-heritage/

The SnackFix small-scale cereal bar production system from Swiss technology group Bühler is the ideal solution for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to add value to locally produced grains in Nigeria and assist the country to address food security, says Manuel Murrenhoff, Managing Director, Bühler Nigeria.

On-the-go snacking consumption in Nigeria is rising steadily, presenting opportunities for SMEs to enter the market. “In terms of bars, fruit, and sweet snacks alone, this market segment is expected to exceed half a million tonnes by 2025,” says Murrenhoff. The main driver is the burgeoning population, estimated at 223.8 million in 2023, a 2.41% increase over 2022, and expected to grow to 377 million by 2050.

“The economically active part of the Nigerian population is quite sizeable and very mobile, which is boosting on-the-go snacking consumption,” says Murrenhoff. In addition, with half of the population living below the poverty line, there is more than ever the need to drive consumption of the full range of locally grown grains to keep final product prices in check.

“With the price of wheat projected to rise to record heights, Nigeria cannot possibly feed the growing population by importing wheat and other products. On the one hand, there is a shortage of forex and on the other hand, prices are escalating globally. That is where innovation, using local grains, plays an important role in food security, especially as these can be successfully incorporated into ready-to-eat foods,” says Murrenhoff.

Iyore Amadasun, Sales and Channel Business Manager at Bühler Nigeria, says that Bühler’s Snackfix, designed for food producers seeking a share from the on-the-go snack segment, promotes the processing of locally sourced grains for snacks while maintaining the highest food safety standards.

SnackFix is a multi-grain solution that allows SMEs to innovate across the spectrum of locally produced grains in Nigeria. The technology presents an entry-level, plug-and-play solution that is compact, cost-effective, and easy to commission and operate.

SnackFix includes a continuous mixer, a cooling tunnel, and a cutting system, all in one – everything needed for quality production. The combination allows SMEs to manufacture a huge variety of cereal bars at a volume of up to 130 kg per hour.

Customers benefit from Bühler’s experience in product development using a wide range of locally produced grains including, for example, sesame seeds, cashews, and peanuts. “We can help newcomers in the market achieve the best recipe to satisfy functional and indulgence consumer requirements in this segment and then supply them with a customised solution,” says Amadasun. In addition, Bühler has an innovation centre and laboratory in Switzerland to assist with different formulations and product development.

“The ready-to-eat market is of strategic importance to Nigeria, as it can adapt local grains for snacking consumption, promote healthy eating habits, and at the same time assist with Food Security,” says Amadasun.

With offices in Lagos and Kano, Bühler Nigeria is a leader in grain and food processing and offers solutions for grain drying and storage, flour milling, rice milling, cacao and chocolate processing, wafer and biscuit, pasta and noodles, feed, and aqua feed milling. Bühler Nigeria also provides support in the form of solutions for ink and coating applications and flexible packaging systems.

SOURCE:https://brandspurng.com/2023/06/08/snackfix-from-buhler-adds-value-to-local-grains-in-nigeria-and-boosts-food-security/

Nigeria’s mobile subscriptions shrank by 3.49 million mobile subscriptions in the last three months, leaving a dent in the country’s march toward mobile inclusion for all.

Since mobile subscriptions hit an all-time high of 226.84 million in February of this year, it has been on a steady decline.

It first fell to 225.82 million in March, before slumping further to 223.34 million, according to new industry data from the Nigerian Communications Commission. This is also the first time since June 2021 that mobile subscriptions have fallen consistently.

In 2020 and 2021, a Federal Government policy to link SIMs to National Identification Numbers affected the mobile industry and caused a steep decline in mobile subscriptions. Since then, subscriptions have improved, and risen to record highs.

MTN Nigeria is the only telecommunication firm to have lost mobile subscriptions in the period under review, losing 4.03 million (from 92.71 million to 88.68 million), while retaining its spot as the largest mobile network operator in the country.

Other telcos had better fortunes, with Globacom marginally growing by 172,867 from 60.76 million to 60.93 million; Airtel added 31,705 new subscriptions and grew from 60.30 million to 60.33 million; and 9mobile witnessed the largest growth, adding 330,003 new subscriptions to hit 13.40 million from 13.07 million in the period under review.

Within the three months, teledensity (the number of active telephone connections per one hundred (100) inhabitants living within an area) fell to 117.17 per cent in April from 119.01 per cent in February.

In MTN’s first quarter report, MTN Nigeria’s Chief Executive Officer, Karl Toriola, noted that global macroeconomic factors, inflation, and cash shortages, among others, were affecting its consumers.

He said, “We continued to experience headwinds in our operating environment in the first quarter of 2023. The impacts of the ongoing global macroeconomic and geopolitical developments on energy, food, and general inflation were exacerbated locally by petrol and cash shortages experienced during the period. This placed additional pressure on economic activity, consumers, and businesses.”

Nigeria’s mobile population is the largest in Africa and the prior steady growth in the number of mobile subscriptions had been attributed to increased productivity and efficiency in other sectors.

SOURCE:https://brandspurng.com/2023/06/06/mobile-subscriptions-shrink-by-three-million/

TECNO has announced the introduction of the first “Magic Skin” in Africa, an innovative material aimed at enhancing smartphone design across the industry.

According to the global innovative technology brand, the brand-new material technology will create phone backs that are skin-friendly, stylish, and easy to clean.

The tech brand, in a statement, explained that the introduction of the new materials, which will be integrated into the body of TECNO’s phones and applied to CAMON, SPARK, and POP series, is to ensure that African consumers stay abreast of global trends on smartphone design innovations.

It described the design as the outcome of extensive user research, involving thousands of African consumers to understand their aesthetic preferences and functional demands.

“The team then refined every aspect of the process, from perfecting the color implementation to scrutinizing the quality of the patterns,” it stated.

The Magic Skin, it further explained, has been engineered to reduce the weight and thickness of the back cover while maintaining durability and practicality.

Besides, the advanced manufacturing process put into the production, the company stated, the material will also ensure that the phone can withstand extreme conditions.

SOURCE:https://brandspurng.com/2023/06/06/tecno-introduces-magic-skin-aimed-at-enhancing-smartphone-design/

The 2nd edition of Cycling Lagos, one of the biggest cycling competitions in Africa has been scheduled to hold between October 21 and 28, 2023.

The event which is expected to further promote cycling as a major sporting activity in the country was designed to encourage Nigerians to embrace the culture of riding bicycle in their various communities for its health benefits.

The 2nd Cycling Lagos event with the theme, Greener Ride is designed to promote a lifestyle that is environmentally friendly.

The competition is also aimed at championing healthy competition among corporate organisations as a way of promoting healthy lifestyle among corporate executives and Nigerians.

In a statement by Mr Bamidele Adeleye, Chief Executive Officer, BrandEscort Communications, organizer of the Cycling Lagos 2023 said the event will include; the Celebrity Race, Professional Challenge, Amateur Race, Corporate Contest and the children/ youth race.

“The children edition slated for October 21 at the Teslim Balogun Stadium will hold simultaneously with the Mini Tour Lagos, a promotional race designed to demonstrate readiness for the final race. The grand finale will hold on October 28. The event will end with a corporate Lagos dinner and awards in the evening of that same October 28, 2023,” he said.

According to him, “Corporate organisations through their participations are to encourage the general public to engage in cycling in their various communities for healthy living. Corporate representatives will compete for medals, it will provide a platform for talent discovery and grooming (Children and Youth Participation), and professionals will compete for various category of prizes.”

Adeleye noted that his organization is working with key stakeholders in the sector to stage a cycling competition that will meet international standard and further enhance its development in the country.

Chairman Cycling Lagos 2023, Mr Goddie Ofose urged corporate organizations to participate in the corporate race category of the competition to promote a lifestyle that is environmentally friendly.

“The theme for this year’s edition is Greener Ride. This is very important for us to drive conversations on the need to embrace a lifestyle that is environmentally friendly to save the planet earth,” Ofose said.

The grand finale of the maiden edition was held in Lagos on October 27, 2018 before the global pandemic (COVID-19), that led to a massive shutdown of businesses across the global. The 2018 event was supported by the Lagos State Government, DSTV, Leadway Assurance, Elizade Autoland, Seven Up Bottling Company, Eko Hotels and Suites, Access Bank, Simba Group and Cool FM.

SOURCE:https://brandspurng.com/2023/06/03/2nd-cycling-lagos-holds-in-october/

The Group Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of Zenith Bank Plc, Dr. Ebenezer Onyeagwu, has been named ‘Best Banking CEO of the Year in Africa’ in the International Banker 2023 Banking Awards. The award, published in the Spring 2023 Issue of the International Banker Magazine, sees Dr Onyeagwu honoured alongside other individuals and banks from the Middle East and Africa.

Expressing gratitude for the recognition, Dr. Onyeagwu commended the Publishers of the International Banker for considering him a fitting recipient of the ‘Best Banking CEO of the Year in Africa’ award. He stated, “This award reflects the bank’s position as a leading financial institution in Nigeria and the African continent. It also attests to our commitment to principles of sustainability and high ethical standards, which have become integral to our overall strategy as an institution”.

He dedicated the award to the Founder and Chairman, Jim Ovia, CFR, for his guidance and mentorship; the bank’s management team and staff, for being the shoulder upon which his achievements and success as CEO rests; and the bank’s customers for making Zenith Bank their bank of choice.

Dr Onyeagwu’s outstanding career has led to him receiving multiple awards, including Bank CEO of the Year (2019) by Champion Newspaper, Bank CEO of the Year (2020, 2021 & 2022) by BusinessDay Newspaper, CEO of the Year (2020 and 2021) – SERAS Awards, and CEO of the Year (2022) – Leadership Newspaper.

As Group Managing Director/CEO, Dr Onyeagwu has led Zenith Bank to achieve tremendous feats and milestones in financial performance (including 47 per cent growth in the bank’s market capitalisation in four years), financial inclusion, corporate governance and sustainability. These efforts have culminated in several local and international awards and recognitions including being recognised as Number One Bank in Nigeria by Tier-1 Capital, for the 13th consecutive year, in the 2022 Top 1000 World Banks Ranking published by The Banker Magazine; Bank of the Year (Nigeria) in The Banker’s Bank of the Year Awards 2020 and 2022; Best Bank in Nigeria, for three consecutive years from 2020 to 2022, in the Global Finance World’s Best Banks Awards; Best Commercial Bank, Nigeria 2021 and 2022 in the World Finance Banking Awards; Best Corporate Governance Bank, Nigeria in the World Finance Corporate Governance Awards 2022; ‘Best in Corporate Governance’ Financial Services’ Africa, for four consecutive years from 2020 to 2023, by the Ethical Boardroom; and the Most Responsible Organisation in Africa 2021 by SERAS Awards.

On March 25, 2023, he was conferred with a Doctorate Degree in Business Administration by the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, Nigeria’s first indigenous University, in recognition of his immense achievements as Group Managing Director/CEO of Zenith Bank as well as his contributions to the growth of the financial services sector in Nigeria and across the African continent. The award was given during the 50th convocation ceremony of the University.

Published by Finance Publishing Limited, the International Banker is a leading global source of authoritative analysis and opinion on banking, finance and world affairs. Its influence, integrity, accuracy and objective opinion have earned it global recognition. The International Banker Awards strive to recognise the most worthy financial institutions around the world – those not just doing their jobs well but exceptionally well – those operating at the industry’s cutting edge and setting new performance levels to which others will aspire. The 2023 Banking Awards focused on various criteria, including the provision of much-needed capital for economic growth, cutting-edge innovation to enhance security and efficiency, commitment to sustainability and ESG principles, as well as intelligent investing to maximise profits and shareholder value.

SOURCE:https://brandspurng.com/2023/06/05/ebenezer-onyeagwu-named-best-banking-ceo-of-the-year-in-africa-in-the-international-banker-awards-2023/

The premium non-alcoholic sparkling wine brand, St. Lauren, has taken the new look bottle wine to Port Harcourt in River State and Abuja, where its promised trade partners unprecedented profitable partnership in wine sales for 2023.

St. Lauren, which recently launched its new packaging and two variants- Red and White in Lagos treated customers and partners in Port Harcourt and Abuja to an exquisite wine-tasting event attended by existing and potential trade partners, wine lovers, customers, and influencers.

During his remark, Stanley Obi, Director, Grand Oak Limited, Prime Business Unit, reiterated the unique value that St. Lauren offers its Abuja and Port Harcourt customers. He said, “Just like we did in Lagos, we are thrilled to present the new look of St. Lauren to our esteemed customers in Abuja and Port Harcourt. This relaunch represents our commitment to providing a luxurious and exceptional experience to our consumers and event planners. With the quality of the St. Lauren wine and its exceptional taste, our customers can rest assured that they will always win!

The unveiling of St. Lauren’s new elegant look in Abuja and Port Harcourt gives wine and food lovers an opportunity to enjoy celebratory moments, special occasions and even meals in great style, while creating opportunities for trade partners in both markets to earn exceptional profits across all St. Lauren’s SKUs and variants.

Sharing more insight into how trade partners can earn more with St. Lauren, Brand Business Manager, St. Lauren Non-alcoholic Sparkling Wine, Oluseun Mudashiru said that trade partners can now realise the best profit value that any non-alcoholic wine brand has to offer upon partnership with St. Lauren.

“Thanks to our pricing strategy that accommodates your profit advantage, you are able to buy the St. Lauren wine at considerably affordable prices and retail at set consumer-friendly prices that promise good profit.” While urging trade partners looking to expand their businesses to capitalise on the growing demand for premium non-alcoholic wines by choosing St. Lauren.

Seun also reeled out the various occasions for St. Lauren wine, urging wine lovers and partners to adopt the brand as their celebratory drink for all special moments.

“Crafted with the finest ingredients, St. Lauren ensures a refreshing and satisfying taste as the perfect accompaniment to any event. From hosts to event planners and food curators, you are guaranteed exquisite taste and experiences with St. Lauren at your events” She said.

Commenting on the wine’s taste and flavours, a guest at the event, Uche Opene said, “As a lover of premium non-alcoholic wines, St. Lauren has been exceptional in offering the premium taste that I crave. The wine is simply amazing for the price and the new look is truly elegant. I will encourage lovers of premium non- alcoholic wine to try St. Lauren wine and include it in all their celebratory occasions”.

SOURCE:https://brandspurng.com/2023/05/31/st-lauren-pledges-support-for-trade-partners-in-ph-abuja/

Telecommunication firms have begun to phase out old Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD) shortcodes for new harmonized ones as directed by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC).

With this move, famous USSD codes such as *556# are now outdated. Customers of MTN Nigeria told The PUNCH that old USSD prompts now redirect them to a message that reads, “Y’ello Our codes have changed.

While MTN seems to have phased out its old USSD shortcodes, other telcos are yet to do so. Checks on Airtel showed that old USSD codes are working simultaneously with the new ones.

In March, the NCC approved and released harmonised shortcodes for certain mobile operations in the country. The commission stated that this was aimed at achieving uniformity in common short codes across networks, allowing the code for checking airtime balance, for instance, to become the same across all mobile networks.

It gave the mobile network providers a deadline of May 17, 2023, to fully migrate to the harmonised codes. It explained that while the old and new harmonised shortcodes would run concurrently up until May 17, 2023, all networks are expected to have fully migrated to the new codes by its deadline.

Commenting on the codes, the commission said, “Consequently, under the new harmonised shortcodes regime, 13 common short codes have been approved by the Commission.

“They include the following codes: 300 to be used as the harmonised code for Call Centre/Help Desk on all mobile networks; 301 for voice Mail Deposit; 302 for Voice Mail Retrieval; 303 for Borrow Services; 305 for STOP Service; 310 for Check Balance, and 311 for Credit Recharge.

“Also, the common code for Data Plan across networks is now 312. In line with the new direction, 321 is for Share Services, while 323 is for Data Plan Balance. The code, 996, is now for Verification of Subscriber Identity Module Registration/NIN-SIM Linkage.

“The code, 2442, is retained for Do-Not-Disturb unsolicited messaging complaint management, while the common code, 3232, is also retained for porting services, otherwise called Mobile Number Portability.”

The NCC added that the initiative will make life much easier for telecom consumers since it will now become easier for consumers to memorize single codes for various services across all mobile networks they may be using.

Commenting on the harmonized shortcodes with The PUNCH, a telecommunications expert, Ajibola Olude, said, “The whole essence is just to have it unified. The short code for each service you want is now the same, there is no need to say because I am on MTN I must use this number, if I am using Airtel, I must use another number. The era of that has passed.”

SOURCE;https://brandspurng.com/2023/05/31/telcos-phase-out-old-ussd-codes/

The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr Mohammad Mahmood Abubakar has revealed that the Federal Government had provided N5Billion Loan Facility to Bank of Agriculture, (BoA), for livestock farmers across the country.

The Loan Facility would ensure more access at reasonable interest rates for farmers to expand their business and attract potential Investors into the Livestock Value Chain.

Speaking during a media briefing at the Ministry’s Conference Room in Abuja, recently, the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr. Mohammad Abubakar said that the Present Administration was committed to reforming the livestock Sector with notable programmes like the National Livestock Transformation Plan, (NLTP) and Livestock Productivity Resilience and Support Plan, (LPRESP), among others.

The Minister pointed out that the “crop sub-sector has always gotten more attention because it comes with food security but nutrition security is the other nutrient that would complement the grains otherwise you will have a different kind of growth’’.

Abubakar revealed that ‘’the N5 billion in the Bank of Agriculture was part of recapitalization that would be given out to livestock herders. The bank is being recapitalized and so more money will be coming to the bank.”

He noted that the scheme would bring more stability to develop the livestock sector, improve security and harmonious existence between farmers and herders.

In his remarks, the Managing Director, Bank of Agriculture, BoA, Alwan Ali Hassan, explained that, “The Federal Government has recapitalized the Bank of Agriculture, we have received some funds and one of the mandates of the bank is financing the agric value chain completely’’.

Alhaji Hassan pointed out ‘’ “The modality in giving out the loan is going to be exactly as enshrined in loan conditions. We have set rules for giving out loans which is governed by the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, regulations and also regulated by the bank and financial institutions body’’.

He added that “For interest rate, depending on which value chain you are taking. Our rates start from nine per cent up to 15 per cent depending on which value chain you are taking. That means it depends on the risk factor of the business you are going into’’.

On whether individuals farmers, who are not registered members of associations could apply for the loan, the Managing Director answered in the affirmative stating:
“In fact, we do not intend to give loan to the association, we are giving their members. All that the association has to do is to introduce their members’’

Reacting to this development, the National President, Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association, MACBAN, Baba Usman Ngelzarma lauded Federal Government for the loan facility as an important intervention for the livestock Value Chain.

SOURCE:https://brandspurng.com/2023/05/25/fg-unveils-n5billion-loan-facility-for-livestock-farmers/

Mouka, Nigeria’s leading brand of mattresses, pillows, and other sleep products, has bolstered its trade relations by taking 50 Business Partners on an exotic trip to Morocco in May 2023.

At the recent trade conference hosted by the company at the Lagos Intercontinental Hotel, Victoria Island, Mouka’s Chief Commercial Officer, Dimeji Osingunwa, unveiled the ‘World of Comfort Trip Promotion’ to its Business Partners.

The promotion ran for four months, with 50 partners emerging as winners. 40 (forty) qualified for a trip to Morocco, while 10(ten) achieved the threshold for a trip to Brazil.

Speaking on the reward scheme, Mr Osinguwa had this to say. “At Mouka, we see our trade partners as a part of the Mouka family. We have and continue to invest significantly in ensuring the relationship remains mutually beneficial for both parties. We have previously rewarded our partners with scholarships for their children, health packages, logistics trucks, tricycles, high-end electronics and many more benefits. This time we thought to ourselves, our partners need a break away from the hustle and bustle of Nigeria. They need to unwind and re-energise themselves in preparation for the work to come. As you know, good rest is required to safeguard one’s wellbeing”.

When asked about the choice of locations, Mouka’s CCO shared the rationale. According to him, Morocco was picked for two reasons. First, Marrakesh is one of the most recommended tourist destinations, famous for its palaces, 5-star restaurants, luxury spas, charming riads (traditional houses) and enchanting gardens. Secondly, Morocco is the headquarters for the Dolidol International group, Mouka’s parent company.

Miss Memuna Idegwu, Mouka’s Trade Marketing Manager, also shed more light on this. “In Casablanca, we have Dolidol’s magnificent factory. We thought it would be great for our partners to see the facilities and meet with some key Dolidol group management team members. Our partners were warmly received, taken on a factory tour, and the visit ended with a grand traditional Moroccan meal spread courtesy of our amiable hosts. The technological prowess of the group indeed wowed them, evident in the product innovations responsible for Dolidol’s position as the No 1 sleep solution provider in Africa.”

When asked about the impact of the promotion on the business, Mouka’s CCO said the objectives were fully met as the Trade Partners demonstrated a renewed commitment to the company’s growth trajectory. He also called for more business partners to join the winning team Mouka to experience this remarkable relationship.

Extolling Mouka for the immense benefits of the trips, a business partner, Starbiz, stated “The fraternity was fun, the bonding was great, and we were honoured with the presence of the Mouka team during our stay in Morocco. I believe this experience would have a multiplier effect on our performances and create a positive zeal to make us move the company to greater heights”.

Roladap, another beneficiary, affirmed, “My heartfelt appreciation goes to Mouka Management for the unique and memorable vacation”.

The representative of Abisoye Stores praised the company, saying, “Having the opportunity to travel to Morocco is an honour, and Mouka has done well to broaden our business skills and the fun associated with the journey.”

Godcell International Limited thanked Mouka for the benefits derived from the tour and the good treatment and experience.

Buzned Nigeria Limited, Ayo Ibidapo Investment, and Tolutobi Stores, among others, also lauded Mouka for the amazing opportunity to travel and explore Morocco. “We are indeed grateful, and together we will continually make giant strides”, they declared.

Mouka has been providing top-quality sleep solutions since 1959, with a wide range of products for every consumer based on age, bodybuild, lifestyle and budget. These include the Wellbeing range of orthopaedic mattresses, Royal Luxury Pillow Top Mattress, Mondeo Spring Mattresses, Royal Memory Foam Pillows and Mouka Bio Crystal Pillows.


SOURCE:https://brandspurng.com/2023/05/25/mouka-fulfils-its-promise-flies-50-business-partners-to-morocco-to-strengthen-trade-relationships/

Promoters of the Lagos Free Zone (LFZ), Tolaram have stated that the LFZ would contribute over $12 billion to Nigeria’s annual Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by 2032.

According to the Business Development and Marketing Manager, LFZ, Chinju Nwankwo-Udora, the zone currently contributes about 1 per cent to the GDP with projections to hit 2-3 per cent by 2032.

The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, LFZ, Dinesh Rathi, at a media tour of the LFZ, said the whole free zone along with the Lekki port would be a game changer for the Nigerian economy in the years to come.

He pointed out that developed economies like China and Dubai have both recorded significant economic growth with the help of free zones and deep sea ports.

He added that so far, the impact of the zone since inception has generated Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) worth over $2.5 billion currently committed investment into the zone with more than $5 billion FDIs expected over the next 10 years.

He added that the zone has also keyed into the federal government’s ease of doing business mandate by simplifying the entry and operations for foreign investors and by extension, improving the ease of doing business in the country.

He noted that over 15,000 jobs have been created in the zone with over 32,000 more jobs to created in the next ten years within the industrial and services sector.

The Managing Director added that a highly efficient port like Lekki is expected to reduce ocean and cost efficiency and landside congestion, thereby reducing total cost of logistics for companies by up to 40 per cent.

He ala stated that LFZ is on track to commission a dedicated skills developmwnt center at the zone by 2024 to further enable absorption of local youth into its employment pool.

Nwankwo-Udora said LFZ has signed a 20 year Gas Infrastructure Development Agreement (GIDA) to connect LFZ with the national gas transportation grid, saying that Optimera Energy LFZE a consortium of Falcon, FHN and ND Western will implement the GIDA and deliver piped natural gas to all LFZ tenants, adding that plans are ongoing to develop 300 hectares of the zone is to be developed by end of 2024.

SOURCE:https://brandspurng.com/2023/05/23/lagos-free-zone-targets-12bn-contribution-to-nigerias-annual-gdp/

Oando Clean Energy Limited, a subsidiary of Oando, in collaboration with Lagos Metropolitan Area Transport Authority (LAMATA), has announced the commencement of operations of Oando’s electric mass transit buses at the Lagos Bus Services Limited Head Office, Ilupeju, Lagos.

According to a statement made by the energy company, the initiative is aimed at transitioning the Lagos State Public transport system by providing a solution to a carbon-free mobility ecosystem within Lagos.

Oando stated that the buses would provide a viable, competitive, and environmentally friendly alternative to the current carbon-emitting engine mass transit buses.

Abinbola Akinajo, Managing Director, LAMATA emphasized the importance of public-private partnerships, adding that “this initiative is a major aspect of our vision for transportation in Lagos State, we are desirous of having a clean and efficient transportation system.

“Today’s event is proof of our desire to involve the private sector in our activities to give the average Lagosian the ability to meet their mobility needs. LAMATA is a multi-fuel transport regulatory agency for Lagos, hence the partnership with OCEL for the use of EV buses in passenger operations.

“From LAMATA’s perspective, we are open to do business with the private sector while ensuring that these partners are aligned with the vision of Lagos state. I am elated that in just over a year since Oando Clean Energy came to us to discuss the possibility of working with us in the deployment of electric buses we have signed an MoU with a key deliverable being the implementation of a PoC that would allow us finally include electric buses in our ecosystem.”

Lagos being the most populous city in sub-Saharan Africa, has a population of over 20 million people, with the last decade, seeing the population of vehicles on Lagos roads increase exponentially, with also, over 3,000 mass transit buses operating in the state.

A recent study has shown that Lagos contributes 44,000kg of carbon dioxide equivalent per day, which has led the state to keep introducing several efficient means to combat transportation issues with sustainable technologies.

Speaking on the urgent need for electric vehicles to address transportation’s 62% contribution to Nigeria’s Green House Gas emissions, Dr. Ainojie Irune, President, OCEL added that “This is an opportunity for us to revolutionize mobility in our country as well as build local capacity for the renewable and clean energy ecosystem.

“While today these buses have come from across the world, in the very near future they will be produced here in Nigeria. In the very near future, we will have a multitude of locally trained engineers who are capable of operating, maintaining, and servicing these buses and other renewable energy assets. We see these buses as a first step.

“This PoC facilitates the collection of the first sets of data points to support the development and deployment of EV for municipal and public transport on the continent. Our ambition together with Lagos state, is to set our sights on the future and chart a path for others to follow.”

He also expressed the commitment of the partners to achieve this current result, which he said “We are confident that the steps we are taking, which I must reiterate would not have been possible without the support of Lagos state, LAMATA,”.

While Dr. Frederic Oladeinde, Commissioner of Transport, Lagos State, representing Babajide Sanwo-Olu, Governor of Lagos State, said “We are here today to write the script for a new future. Today, there is abundant evidence that shows that human activities have been the main drivers of climate change primarily due to the burning of fossil fuels like coal, oil, and gas.

“This situation has given rise to affirmative actions by world leaders and environmentalists to act fast to save our world. Lagos is the only state in Nigeria that has prepared and initiated the execution of a climate action plan. The plan outlines 26 efforts covering adaptation and mitigation actions to build a sustainable low carbon economy in the pursuit of achieving net zero emissions by 2050.”

SOURCE:https://brandspurng.com/2023/05/24/lamata-upgrades-transportation-in-lagos-with-electric-bus-inauguration-with-oando/

As a boy growing up in an average African home, Daniel Oseni was exposed to various African dishes prepared with tomatoes. In his words, “Purchasing these tomatoes was a nightmare because they easily got spoilt because the sellers didn’t have a proper preservation and storage system.”
Interestingly, Nigeria is the 14th largest tomato producer in the world, and the 2nd in Africa; producing more than 2.3 million tonnes every year. Unfortunately, the country spends more than $9.8 billion on importing tomatoes because it doesn’t meet the demand for fresh produce. In previous years, Nigeria has experienced more than 56 percent of waste due to a lack of proper storage and preservation facilities.


To solve this problem, Daniel founded PeriPES, a natural cooling system that preserves and stores tomatoes for up to 3 to 4 months without getting spoilt. PeriPES is made out of clay bricks, sand water, and air. It works by reducing the room temperature of the tomatoes to less than 15°C at 90 percent humidity, in order to stop the production of ethylene, which is the major chemical component that causes ripening and spoilage in all agricultural products. In his words, “Our technological input is harnessing the power of nature to preserve. This science is known as evaporative cooling. It is a circular movement of moist air from a cooler region to a hotter region, by passing through a damp sand medium. It is a very viable and stable means of preservation because it creates a conducive humidity for the tomatoes, which helps to retain the nutritional value.”

Daniel believes that tomato farmers, wholesalers, and retailers in Nigeria will benefit from his solution. His primary target is those in the “Shasha” market located in the Ondo state of Western Nigeria. This market is one of the biggest markets for tomatoes in the Southwestern region of the country. Daniel believes that if he is successful, the world will be better off because “PeriPES will reduce the carbon footprint being released into the atmosphere every day. It will reduce post-harvest loss by over 50 percent, and reduce the scarcity of tomatoes, which usually leads to the inflation of the tomato prices.” He believes that PeriPES will ensure the availability of tomatoes all year round, and will subsequently increase the GDP of the Nigerian economy.

Recently, Daniel emerged as the grand prize winner of the 2023 Savvy Prize for Impact-Driven Entrepreneurs. When asked how the Savvy Prize will help his project become successful, he said, “With our passion and resilience, we will replicate our solution to 8 other Nigerian states that are major producers of tomatoes. We will ensure that PeriPES will reach other crop farmers that are vegetable and fruit farming, such as pepper, onion, okra, carrot, cucumber, and cabbage. In the long run, we will save the agricultural sector of the Nigerian economy by reducing the waste coming out by over 50 percent.” Daniel and his team will also focus on increasing their visibility by 45 to 80 percent, for more productivity and profitability. After receiving the Savvy Prize, he is looking for more investment opportunities in order to expand.

Daniel’s vision is a Nigeria where “the prize of tomatoes is normalized, and when PeriPES reaches the hands of over 75 percent of tomato farmers in the country.” He envisioned a country where tomatoes are available all year round without abnormal increase in prices, and when the tomato market becomes well saturated.” Daniel’s team is made up of Robinson Osas, Ogunlade Busayo, and Omoniyi Joshua. Osas is an agriculturist with a specialization in crop, soil, and pest management. Busayo is a bio-medical scientist with experience in crop health services and waste management, while Joshua is an Architect with experience in social media management. Daniel believes his team is the right fit to solve this problem because they’re innovative and creative individuals with experience and knowledge in preservation, storage, and food handling.

SOURCE:https://brandspurng.com/2023/05/24/daniel-invents-a-cooling-system-for-tomato-farmers-in-rural-nigeria/

It is a dream come true for coach Emmanuel Biodun Tanko, head coach of Father O’Connell Science College, Minna, Niger State, as his team defeated their counterparts from Government Secondary School, Karu, FCT in the final of the boys’ category in the just concluded Central Conference of the MILO Basketball Championship.

According to Coach Tanko, his team lost to the same opponents last year in the same championship. On the team’s preparation on the road to victory this year, Coach Tanko said, “We had a 70-day period of training. During Ramadan, we were there. It is a testimony that hard work pays. Also, without God we would not have been able to achieve this feat.”

Captain of the winning team from Father O’Connell Science College, Minna, Niger State, Mahmood Mustapha Mohammed, thanked Nestlé MILO for supporting and sponsoring them. The young man who says his dream is to play with globally recognised stars in the National Basketball Association (NBA) one day, also said, “I want to give a big shout out to our parents and coaches for always being there for us and believing in us, trusting that we will come back with the trophy.”

The boys from Father O’Connell Science College, Minna, Niger State fought hard in a keenly contested encounter to defeat the boys from Government Secondary School,

Karu, FCT with 53 points to 49. They were therefore crowned champions in the boys’ category at the Central Conference of the 23rd MILO Secondary Schools Basketball Championship held in Abuja from the 12th to the 19th of May 2023.

Karu, FCT with 53 points to 49. They were therefore crowned champions in the boys’ category at the Central Conference of the 23rd MILO Secondary Schools Basketball Championship held in Abuja from the 12th to the 19th of May 2023.

In the final game of the girls’ category of the championship, Government Secondary School, Karu, FCT defeated their counterparts from Queen Amina College, Kakuri, Kadun State by 35 points to 24 points.

Both Father O’Connell Science College, Minna, Niger State and Government Secondary School, Karu, FCT will represent the Central Conference at the national finals of the 23rd MILO Basketball Championship in Lagos in July.

Other teams who will be in Lagos for the national finals are winners from the already concluded Savannah Conference which held in Kano from the 3rd to the 10th of May and winners from the two upcoming conferences – Atlantic Conference in Asaba from 20th to 27th of May and Western Conference in Ibadan from May 30th to June 6th, 2023.

Funmilola Oyewole – Category Development Manager Beverages at Nestlé Nigeria PLC delivering the welcome address during the finale of the Central Conference of the 23rd MILO Basketball Championship at the Indoor Sports Hall, Package ‘B’ of the MKO Abiola Stadium in Abuja.

Category Manager for Beverages, Nestlé Nigeria, Mr. Olutayo Olatunji, reiterated Nestle’s commitment to developing talents, promoting healthier lifestyles, and instilling values for success in life through sports. “MILO, firmly believes that through participation in sports, children learn enduring values to help them achieve success in life,” he said.

“We are therefore, pleased to have this opportunity to provide a platform where young talents find expression through MILO Secondary School Basketball Championship. On the field of play, the teams depend on the discipline, perseverance, courage, self-belief, and respect that they imbibe during practice and through their interactions with each other. These life skills are not only for basketball; they equip the players to navigate their careers and to be productive in society. In a nutshell, ‘the GRIT’ you learn in sport, you keep for life.”

Nestlé Nigeria’s MILO Secondary School Basketball Championship has been promoting the value of grit for over 23 years, helping schoolchildren learn essential life skills such as resilience, persistence, stamina, cooperation, and self-belief. These values enable them to overcome challenges and achieve their goals in life.

Nestlé continues to lead grassroot sports development in Nigeria through its MILO Basketball Championship, contributing to the growth of many players in the Nigerian national teams, and notable clubs across the world today.

States who competed in the Central Conference of the MILO Basketball Championship at the Indoor Sports Hall, Package ‘B’ of the MKO Abiola Stadium in Abuja from the 12th to 19th of May, 2023 are Kebbi, Kogi, Nasarawa, and host FCT.

Others are Kaduna, Niger, Plateau, Benue and Sokoto states.

The MILO Basketball Championship has grown tremendously from about 500 schools at its commencement in 1999. It now reaches over 150,000 individual players from over 10,000 schools across Nigeria every year.

SOURCE:https://brandspurng.com/2023/05/22/nestle-milo-basketball-championship-2023-fct-niger-shine-in-central-conference/

Nigeria’s senior men national rugby team, The Black Stallions will kick-off their campaign for Paris 2024 Olympics qualifiers with the first match against Ghana in Mauritius.

The Black Stallions’ target is to finish in the top three and move on to the next phase of qualifiers at the Africa Cup Sevens in Zimbabwe.

The team will then take on Burundi which would be crucial before tackling Democratic Republic of Congo in their last pool A match

Nigeria began their preparation for the Olympics qualifiers in early May with the convergence of players based in the United Kingdom under the watchful eyes of Temitope Okenla while newly appointed Black Stallions coach Steve Lewis has been supervising other players based in Europe, United States of America and Nigeria

The bulk of the selected players are expected to go into a closed camp before travelling to Mauritius for the first phase of the qualifiers.

Twelve Countries will converge in Mauritius on June 24-25 to compete for the available four slots in the Africa Cup Sevens slated for Zimbabwe in September.

Participating countries includes; Mauritius, Cote D’Ivoire, Ghana, Botswana, Cameroun, Algeria and Nigeria.

Others include; Burundi, Congo, Lesotho, Sénégal and Egypt

SOURCE:https://brandspurng.com/2023/05/19/nigeria-battles-ghana-in-olympic-qualifiers-as-rugby-africa-release-fixtures/