₦airaland Forum

State House Press Release

NIA DG: Facts Of The Matter

A lot of half-truths, misinformation, and outright falsehood have attended the announcement of a new Director-General for the National Intelligence Agency (NIA), in the person of Mr Ahmed Rufai Abubakar .

Some of such unfounded stories include that Abubakar had retired from the services of NIA as an Assistant Director, because he failed promotion examinations twice, and had to quit, willy-nilly. Others claim he is married to a Moroccan, and so cannot hold such sensitive security position, while others say he was born and bred in Chad, and he holds dual nationality. All these have been widely disseminated on the social, and some mainstream media. With the formal assumption of office by Mr Abubakar, it is now necessary to set the facts straight.

The new NIA DG retired from Foreign Service as Deputy Director (not Assistant Director) and three times during his career, had won Merit Award for competence and meritorious service. Failing promotion examination can only exist in the fecund minds of fiction writers. His last position before the new appointment was as Senior Special Assistant to the President on Foreign Affairs/International Affairs where again he quietly proved himself.

Abubakar's parents hailed from Katsina State, and had settled in Chad at a point in their lifetime. The new DG did his primary school in Ndjamena (then Fort-Lamy), but returned to Nigeria for his secondary and University education. He never at any time held Chadian nationality.

Mr Abubakar's only wife hails from Katsina State, indeed, from the same community as the husband. The story of being married to a Moroccan can only be tale by moonlight, concocted by people who love a fib.

The President appointed the new DG because he had worked closely with him in the past two years, and sincerely believes that he would add value to the NIA.

Femi Adesina
Special Adviser to the President
(Media and Publicity)
January 28, 2018

Ministry Of Budget And National Planning

Press Release

Thursday, January 24, 2018

Attractive opportunities exist in Nigeria, Udoma tells investors at Davos

Foreign businesses interested in investing in Africa have been encouraged to take a look at the very attractive opportunities available in Nigeria as the country’s economic outlook for 2018, and in the near future is very positive.

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, Budget and National Planning Minister, Senator Udoma Udo Udoma and Trade, Industry and Investment Minister, Dr Okey Enelamah at various events and bilateral meetings with global business leaders at the World Economic Forum (WEF) which ends in Davos, in Switzerland, on Friday, marketed the potentials of Nigeria and encouraged investors to take advantage of the opportunities on offer.

At a dinner hosted by the Vice President for investors in Davos on Wednesday night, Senator Udoma said that there are opportunities available in agriculture and agro-processing, industry, mining, construction, infrastructure and services as Nigeria has one of the largest markets in Africa.

He told the gathering, which also included Nigerians in the Diaspora, that the government is determined to revamp the economy by improving the enabling environment for all investors, both domestic and international. He informed them that the aim of the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP), which was launched by the President last year, is to restore growth by diversifying the economy, stabilizing the macroeconomic environment, investing in infrastructure and improving the country’s business environment, amongst others..

The Minister emphasized that the main principles behind the ERGP are to tackle the constraints to growth, leverage the power of the private sector, allow markets to function, whilst upholding the country’s core values and promoting national cohesion and social inclusion.

The Minister was happy to report that since the ERGP was launched and implementation commenced, the economy has started showing signs of improvement. Indeed, he pointed out that, already, one of its objectives has been achieved as the economy emerged from recession in the second quarter of 2017, with GDP showing a marginal growth of 0.72%. By the third quarter of 2017, the growth level doubled to 1.40% with strong showing in Agriculture which grew by 3.06% and Industry by 8.83%.

Other positive indicators, he emphasized are the growth in the level of Capital Importation which increased to $4.145 million in Q3 of 2017; Foreign Reserves which grew to N39.43 billion in January 2017 and Inflation which declined to 15.37% by December 2017. He also indicated that there has been a narrowing of the gap between the CBN rate for foreign exchange and the parallel market rate. All these he listed as evidence that confidence in the Nigerian economy is coming back.

He was also happy to report that even though the Nigerian Government set itself the target of moving 20 places up the World Bank Ease of Doing Business rankings by the end of 2017, Nigeria actually surpassed that target, as the 2017 report issued in October last year showed that Nigeria had moved up 24 places to 145 from the 2016 placement of 169. The World Bank also recognized Nigeria as one of the top ten reforming countries in the world, the Minister added.

Emphasizing government’s determination to drive its economic agenda to achieve the broad principles of restoring and sustaining economic growth, building a competitive economy and investing in the people, the Minister said government is focused on achieving a least 7% GDP growth;$10 billion in Foreign Direct investment; 10 GW of power generation and placing among the first 100 countries on the Ease of Doing Business ranking by 2020.

He assured the gathering that all these goals were achieveable with the effective implementation of the ERGP. He pointed out that one of the measures, amongst many others, that government was embarking on to see to the effective implementation of the ERGP is the holding of sector specific labs, or workshops. These sector specific labs, which are fashioned after the Malaysian model, will be conducted, initially in three sectors i.e. Agriculture and Transportation, Manufacturing and Processing and Power and Gas.

He explained that the objective of the labs is to gather together in one place all the persons required to take decisions on major investments that can revamp the particular sector, i.e. the potential investors, senior government officials, sector experts, state government officials and so on, to resolve all project implementation hurdles. At the end of the labs MOU’s will be signed for specific projects. The Minister indicated that, in selecting possible projects for implementation there will be emphasis on those that will increase investments and job creation. He went on to say that the MOUs will include detailed implementation plans for each project, with identified budgets and key performance indicators.


Akpandem James
Special Adviser (Media) to the Hon Minister

Office Of The Vice President

Press Release

Ensuring Effective Security For All Nigerians Is Buhari Administration's Priority, Says VP Osinbajo

*Highlights the administration’s successes in the areas of power and ease of doing business at Davos business dinner

“It’s possibly more important for us as sole business of government to ensure that people can walk around free and can do their business without looking over their shoulders. Because of our commitment to that, we are reasonably certain that we will achieve maximum security. By and large, we are really focused on ensuring security and most of the country is entirely peaceful and ready for business.” – Vice President

Speech Delivered By His Excellency, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, SAN, GCON, The Vice President Of The Federal Republic Of Nigeria, At The Business Dinner He Hosted At The 2018 World Economic Forum, In Davos, Switzerland, On Wednesday, January 24, 2018.

The truth is that what we are trying to achieve is just exactly what was described by the Honourable Minister who had just spoken; one that addresses specific issues and then we can deal with them with the partners and government through the right people; and that access will be made available. That’s why we have the industrial council. We also have the business forum and would ensure that we are opened at all times.

I think it is important that we emphasise and keep emphasising that the partnership that we are trying to build is a genuine partnership, because we understand that in a big country, especially a federation, many times we have issues, even with the state governments, and we have to be able to resolve them. Some of them are easy to resolve through a phone call, but we insist that those we do business with in Nigeria must find it easy to do business and that really has been the way that we have tried to function, especially in the last two and half years. We intend to maintain that approach and we really would like you to join us in proving that this will work.

Some of the issues that were mentioned (there was a Q & A before the VP spoke) include security, for example. As you can imagine, security is obviously an ongoing issue, but l want to say that, perhaps, for people in the diaspora and if you are following the social media, it might be difficult to appreciate; maybe you have been away too long, maybe you also come back and see for yourselves.

In the country, people are doing business and are doing fine, but that’s not to say there are no herdsmen and farmer clashes and all that, or to say that all is settled down in the North East; but in major places where business is being done, where investments are been done.

But by and large, we should raise (the issue of) adequate security. l think a lot of people are reasonably satisfied with the security, but we are doing all we can to improve on security. A lot of police reforms are going on, we are ramping up even the number of police officers we are recruiting. We are also getting joint task forces, sometimes involving the military in some of these joint task forces, where we think that there might be trouble.

A few months ago, we held a security summit with all of the governors and the service chiefs, where security agencies looked at all of the specific places where there are problems, and tried to identify what the problems could be, especially in areas that people have investments.

In the Niger Delta, I’m sure that you will agree with me that between last year and now, a lot has changed; we still find opportunistic vandalism where people are vandalising properties, but by and large improvements are being made and we are working very hard on ensuring that we sustain that.

It’s possibly more important for us as sole business of government to ensure that people can walk around free and can do their business without looking over their shoulders. Because of our commitment to that, we are reasonably certain that we will achieve maximum security.

I think it was Tony (one of the participants at the Q & A) that said that in many parts of the world there are places that you may not want to go and there are always situations where there are breaches of security. But l think, by and large, we are really focused on ensuring security and most of the country is entirely peaceful and ready for business.

In respect to power, a lot has happened and I just wanted to address that. In power, I’m not going to talk about the issues that have been addressed already, but l think that the critical thing is that we have identified primarily what the issues are and now some of our reforms are going on. We are enabling a situation where industry or private sector and businesses can actually access power on their own without necessarily going through the DISCOs; we have a willing buyer-willing seller arrangement. Recently NERC issued a declaration to that effect.

So we are concentrating also on powering industrial areas, a lot of that is going on and is private sector-driven.

A lot of that has to do with the cost of power etc., and whether or not the cost is adequate, whether the cost is too high or too low and all that.

But what l will want you to do is to take advantage of some of the new regulations, especially in the willing buyer-willing seller that we are putting in place, so that industries can buy their own power and can even develop their own power structure, and even in the states. A lot of the state governments are now investing in power plants. Off-grid power is one of the very critical solutions for us because a lot of the power that is going onto the grid, we are able to take that much. But if that is the solution in Nigeria, we must have plenty of off-grid power opportunities and we are trying to work hard on all of those off-grid power facilities and create an environment where people can invest in power and supply power to those who need it without going through the system that we have at the moment.

So we think that, in the next couple of years, we will have a power situation that will certainly be a lot better than what we are experiencing today.

What we are trying to do is to ensure that we are not constrained by some of the problems that we have been experiencing in the past years, and we let go of the power marketing in such a way that many players can come in to do a lot more from generation to distribution, and especially transmission because we find that that is one of the critical areas for us today.

Transmission and distribution are critical areas for us and we are working very hard to ensure that we are able to do a lot with some of transmission and the distribution assets that we have. l know that a lot of those who are here are converts or at least people who do business and want to continue to do business in Nigeria, l want to thank you for the support you have given us over the years and hope that you will not only maintain that support, but also work with us in being able to create a better business environment and being able to do the kind of businesses that can be done in Nigeria.

There is no question at all as to why our country is a good destination; we know that the critical issue is to ensure that the environment is friendly enough and that we offer the necessary incentives where such incentives are crucial. We are ready to do that and we are ready to work with you to ensure that business is comfortable for you and that you can make profit and create the jobs and opportunities that we are also looking at.

Thank you very much.

Released by
Laolu Akande
Senior Special Assistant to the President (Media & Publicity)
Office of the Vice President
January 25, 2018

Today, President Muhammadu Buhari received security briefing at the State House, Abuja.

Present at the briefing were: Minister of Defence Brig General Mansur Dan Ali, Chief of Defence Staff General Abayomi Olonishakin, Secretary to the Government of the Federation Boss Mustapha, National Security Adviser Major General Babagana Monguno, Chief of Defence Intelligence (CDI) Air Vice Marshal Mohammed Saliu Usman, Director General National Intelligence Agency (NIA) Ambassador Ahmed Rufai Abubakar, and Inspector General of Police Ibrahim Idris.

Tomorrow, President Muhammadu Buhari will depart Abuja for Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, to participate in the 30th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the African Union (AU).

The highlight of the President’s engagements during the visit will be his Statement under the historic theme for the AU Summit, namely: “Winning the Fight against Corruption: A Sustainable Path to Africa’s Transformation.” This is the first time in the 54-year history of the African Union that anti-corruption will be made a theme of the gathering of the regional leaders.

It would be recalled that during the 29th Session of the AU, African leaders unanimously endorsed President Muhammadu Buhari to champion the fight against corruption on the continent. The endorsement was in recognition of his personal commitment and widely acclaimed anti-graft drive at the domestic level.

On July 25, 2017, the President in a letter to President Alpha Conde of Guinea, who is also the out-going AU Chairperson, formally accepted his nomination to lead members of the AU on this crucial crusade against Corruption.

While in Addis Ababa, President Buhari will also hold bilateral meetings with some of his colleagues on issues of common interests.

On the President's delegation are Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama; Minister of Justice & Attorney-General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, Minister of Interior, Abdulrahman Dambazau; Minister of State for Aviation, Hadi Sirika; National Security Adviser, Babagana Monguno; & Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ibrahim Magu.

Follow [url]#PMBatAU[/url] (on twitter) for more updates.

Office Of The Vice President

Press Release

Nigeria's Manufacturing Sector Ready For International Investors

The Buhari administration working with the Private Sector, is determined to boost the Nigerian manufacturing sector and will be engaging with international partners and friendly nations to realize that goal, according to Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, SAN.

Prof. Osinbajo was speaking earlier today at the ongoing World Economic Forum in Davos, while meeting with a delegation of the Japan External Trade Organization, JETRO, led by Mr. Hiroyuki Ishige, the organization’s Chairman and CEO.

“Nigeria and Japan should be doing more, far more based on the existing long relationship and trade between both countries,” the Vice President stated while noting that this would be to the mutual benefits of both countries.

He said manufacturing is one sector that Nigeria and Japan can work together and deepen their economic relations.

According to Prof. Osinbajo “Nigeria, the largest economy in Africa will be getting involved in the manufacturing global chain and it would be private sector led, government would be backing it up.”

He cited the example of the Special Economic Zones, SEZ, which are being set up in the country, adding that the zones would have all the needed infrastructure.

“We will provide world-class infrastructure and this is a good opportunity for investors around the world to tap into, an opportunity to do some game-changing projects, to do something big,” Osinbajo said.

Earlier in his presentation at the meeting with the Vice President, on the sidelines of WEF, JETRO’S Chairman Ishige noted the rise of Japanese firms in Africa, the country’s readiness to promoting business in Nigeria and supporting Nigeria’s export promotion.

Also today the Vice President participated in the WEF’s solo video message recording on the conference’s theme “Shared Future in a Fractured World”, where heads of governments, business leaders answer one question around economic development sent in from the global public. Other leaders who participated in the video earlier today included French President Mr. Emmanuel Macron and the Prime Minister of Norway Mrs. Erna Solberg.

Laolu Akande
Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media & Publicity
Office of the Vice President
January 23, 2018

President Muhammadu Buhari received President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo of the Republic of Equatorial Guinea, at the State House.

At a press conference, following bilateral talks between the two countries, President Obiang said: "I’m glad to be here in Nigeria. I’m also glad to see President Buhari is back in good health".

He continued: "I congratulate President Muhammau Buhari for the great job he has done in the fight against Boko Haram, which has been wreaking havoc all across the subregion.

"We have to work together to ensure the maintenance of security in the subregion. Instability anywhere will have implications everywhere. We also have to work together for the welfare and development of our countries and people."

Some of projects to watch: Abuja Light Rail, 25 Road Projects funded by the N100 billion Sukuk bond (16.67bn Naira to each geopolitical zone), Lagos-Ibadan Rail, and several power projects (expected to add as much as 1,600MW generation capacity, and 2,000MW distribution capacity).

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo is leading Nigeria's delegation to the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland, starting tomorrow 23 January, 2018.

On the delegation are Ministers of Industry, Trade & Investment and Budget & National Planning, and Special Adviser, Economic Matters.

Follow [url]#NigeriaInDavos[/url] on twitter for updates. [url]#WEF18[/url]

Press Release: How New Pan-Africanist Businessmen, Women Are Driving Africa’s Economic Transformation, by VP Osinbajo in Harvard

Africa’s impressive economic transformation is currently being driven by ambitious businessmen and women who are stepping beyond national borders and going global, says Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, SAN, at the inaugural Africa Rising lecture of the Harvard University Business School on Tuesday evening.

According to him, “Africa Rising is as much about improving standards of governance as it is about an increasingly confident youth and civil society. It is also about businessmen and women who are stepping beyond national borders and going global.”

The Vice President spoke at Harvard Business School in Cambridge Massachusetts, USA where he delivered the keynote lecture at Batten Hall on the course “Africa Rising, understanding business, entrepreneurship, and the complexities of a continent” to a gathering of erudite scholars, academics, professionals, faculty, alumni and students of Africa ancestry.

Before the lecture Prof. Osinbajo met with top Harvard professors at the Law School, Africa Studies Center, the Business School and the University Marshal. He also interacted with several Harvard students who including a good number of Nigerians among them.

Dwelling on the topic of his lecture, the Vice President noted that “it appears the political pan-Africanists of old have given way in terms of prominence to the business pan- Africanists the likes of Aliko Dangote, Issad Reb Rab(Cevital) Mike Adenuga, Kim Bello-Osagie, the Sawiris owners of Orascom from Egypt, and mining magnate Patrice Motsepe amongst others.”

Prof Osinbajo traced the genesis of Africa’s economic turnaround to the last decade of thé twentieth century and noted that democracy provided the fulcrum for change in the mid 1990s. He observed the change was accelerated by “phenomenal rise in Chinese resource bullishness, the commodities boom including new oil and gas discoveries in many African countries, digital technology, mobile phones and the Internet.”

He explained that the creative ingenuity of Africa’s businessmen and women cut across different sectors of the economy such as in agriculture, telecommunications , manufacturing and IT, adding “we’ve been seeing the slow but steady maturing of institutions; press and civil society that are boldly taking advantage of the empowering nature of the Internet; and an increasingly engaged diaspora.”

Drawing attention to Africa’s phenomenal growth, Vice President Osinbajo observed that the continent development experience had thrown up very important lessons one of which is that “economic growth is not sustainable without nation-building, and even of greater importance, State building.”

“Many of the ethnic and other parochial tensions that have tended to create insecurity and outright conflict time, and time again are largely as a result of failure to deliberately undertake nation- building efforts”, he submitted.

Other lessons highlighted by the VP during the well-attended speech include:

i) the benefit of discarding the error of African Exceptionalism – the belief that African countries are in some way exempted from the rules by which other countries and continents have succeeded ; that somehow Africa must not be judged by the standards and expectations that apply to other countries.

ii) the need for a healthy distrust of purist ideological prescriptions, in favour of a commonsense introduction of markets with a fair balance of state participation or intervention that has shown interesting results.

iii) that sustainable growth comes from productivity increases in the real sector, which perhaps explains the continued high unemployment in Africa even at 6% growth rates; the ‘jobless’ growth phenomenon .

iv) that Africa cannot afford to underestimate the power of technology to fast-track the continent’s rise. Emerging technologies have played extraordinary roles in every aspect of the continent’s most touted successes, and

v) that many – including Africans themselves – constantly need to be reminded that Africa is not a country. Policy-makers and development partners must understand that what worked in Rwanda or Zambia might not necessarily work in Ghana.

Prof. Osinbajo cautioned African leaders to pursue a people centered economic model which translates economic growth to an improved standard of living of the average citizens on the continent. He stated that social safety nets have become imperative, citing the over 500 billion naira social Investment programmes of the Buhari Presidency which is committed to targeting the youths, artisans, market women and the vulnérables in Nigeria.

Earlier, in her welcome remarks, Prof. Caroline Elkins of the Harvard Business School, noted the contributions of the Vice President to legal profession in Africa and his impressive public service career especially during his tenure as Attorney-General of Lagos State

In the delegation of the Vice President to Harvard were Nigeria’s Ambassador to the United States, Amb. Sylvanus Nsofor and Nigeria’s Permanent Representative at the United Nations, Prof. (Amb.) Tijani Mohammed Bande.

Laolu Akande
Senior Special Assistant to the President (Media & Publicity)
Office of the Vice President
January 21st, 2018

Source--->> http://statehouse.gov.ng/news/press-release-how-new-pan-africanist-businessmen-women-are-driving-africas-economic-transformation-by-vp-osinbajo-in-harvard/

2018: The Year Of Infrastructure

- The Federal Government has so far released 1.2 Trillion Naira released for capital expenditure in the 2017 Budget, which was signed into law in June 2017. (Recall that the total amount released for capital projects in the 2016 budget was 1.2 Trillion Naira -- a record at the time).

- The Federal Executive Council (FEC) last week approved a framework for mobilising additional investment to expand distribution capacity, to enable consumers access 2,000MW of power currently available in Nigeria but not distributed because of capacity issues. Nigeria can today generate 7,000MW of electricity. Following extensive grid expansion in the last two years, the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) now has the capacity to wheel the 7,000MW. Bottlenecks however exist at Disco level, with only 5,000MW of distribution capacity, hence the need for the expansion.

- On January 4, 2018, President Muhammadu Buhari commissioned the first Inland Dry Port in Nigeria - the Kaduna Inland Dry Port, in Kakuri, Kaduna State. Read the President's Speech at the commissioning--->> https://statehouse.gov.ng/news/speech-president-buhari-at-the-commissioning-of-the-kaduna-inland-dry-port-january-4-2018/?utm_source=Aso+Villa+Newsletter+-+Government+At+Work&utm_campaign=b6bb71adf4-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2018_01_19&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_c7d9702208-b6bb71adf4-165673361

- Also on January 4, President Buhari commissioned 2 additional locomotives and 10 additional passenger coaches for the Abuja-Kaduna standard-gauge rail service. Read the President's Speech at the Commissioning--->>https://statehouse.gov.ng/news/speech-president-buhari-at-the-launch-of-new-locomotives-and-coaches-for-the-kaduna-abuja-train-service-january-4-2018/?utm_source=Aso+Villa+Newsletter+-+Government+At+Work&utm_campaign=b6bb71adf4-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2018_01_19&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_c7d9702208-b6bb71adf4-165673361

- The 12 stations on the Phase 1 corridor (Blue and Yellow Lines) of the Abuja Light Rail Transit system have now been completed. Also, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Administration has taken delivery of 3 coaches meant for trial operations of the Light Rail -- the first to be completed and operational in West Africa.

- Still on Rail, work is ongoing on the Lagos-Ibadan leg of the standard-gauge rail line between Lagos and Kano, and is expected to completed by December 2018. (The first section, Abuja-Kaduna, was completed and commissioned by President Buhari in 2016).

- On January 8, the Ministry of Power, Works and Housing announced that its Incremental Power Journey has recorded the following milestones:

-/ Generated power has gone up to 7,000 MW in 2017 from 3,000 MW in May 2015
-/ Transmission Capacity now at 6,900MW in 2017, from about 5,000 MW in May 2015
-/ Peak Distribution now averaging 5,000 MW in 2017 from 2,690 MW in 2015.

- In 2018, an additional 1,600MW of power is scheduled to be added to the national grid, including the following:

Azura (450 MW)
Katsina Wind Farm (10 MW)
Gbarain (115 MW)
Kashimbilla (40 MW)
Afam III (240 MW)
Gurara (30 MW)
Dadin Kowa (29 MW)
Kaduna (215 MW)

- In 2017 the Federal Government raised 100 Billion Naira in its debut Sukuk Bond. The proceeds of the Bond have been allocated to major road projects across the six geopolitical zones - each zone gets 16.67 Billion Naira. Another reason why 2018 is the Year of Infrastructure!

- The Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA) has commenced repairs of damaged sections of federal roads across the country. Citizens can tweet pictures of bad roads and tag [url]@FedRoadsNGR[/url] (on Twitter) for prompt attention.

- British entrepreneur Richard Branson writes on the work the Rural Electrification Agency (REA) is doing in partnership with the World Bank and Rocky Mountain Institute to unlock Nigeria's mini-grid energy market: "If you are an impact investor that wants to make a difference in energy access next year, I’d suggest a trip to Nigeria." Read the article here--->>https://www.virgin.com/richard-branson/nigeria-kick-start-10-billion-renewable-mini-grid-market-impact-investors?utm_source=Aso+Villa+Newsletter+-+Government+At+Work&utm_campaign=b6bb71adf4-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2018_01_19&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_c7d9702208-b6bb71adf4-165673361


Numbers:
a. On January 8, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) announced that Nigeria’s external reserves is now $40.4 billion - the first time in four years the reserves are hitting the $40 billion mark.

b. On January 9, the Nigerian Stock Exchange All Share Index (NSE-ASI) hit the 40,000- point mark for the first time since 2014. On January 19 the NSE-ASI hit 45,000 points. The NSE-ASI was also one of the world's best performing markets in 2017, surging by 42%.

c. As part of efforts by the Federal Government to block revenue leakages (about N100 billion was discovered as tax revenue shortfall by contractors between 2012 and 2017), on January 9, the Ministry of Finance ordered vendors of Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) to display their Tax Identification Numbers (TINs) on their invoices before payments are effected by the MDAs. Details here--->>https://web.facebook.com/HMKemiAdeosun/videos/542298542789461/?utm_source=Aso+Villa+Newsletter+-+Government+At+Work&utm_campaign=b6bb71adf4-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2018_01_19&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_c7d9702208-b6bb71adf4-165673361&_rdc=1&_rdr

In other news:
a. President Muhammadu Buhari on January 11 appointed a substantive Director General for the National Intelligence Agency (NIA). The new Director-General is Ahmed Rufai Abubakar, a retired career Foreign Service officer, who till his appointment served as Senior Special Assistant to the President (SSAP) on Foreign Affairs/International Relations. Prior to that he served as Senior Political Adviser, Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF) in Ndjamena; Director Political Affairs, United Nations Office for West Africa (UNOWA), Dakar; Acting Director, Political Affairs Division, African Union-United Nations Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID); and Chief of Staff, AU-UN Joint Mediation Support Team, in Doha, Qatar. Between 1993 and 2005 he held various positions as a career Foreign Service Officer including four and a half years in the Embassy of Nigeria, Rabat, Morocco as Head of Chancery.

b. On Tuesday, January 16, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo delivered the inaugural keynote lecture at Harvard Business School's “Africa Rising” course. Summary of his lecture here--->> https://statehouse.gov.ng/news/press-release-how-new-pan-africanist-businessmen-women-are-driving-africas-economic-transformation-by-vp-osinbajo-in-harvard/?utm_source=Aso+Villa+Newsletter+-+Government+At+Work&utm_campaign=b6bb71adf4-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2018_01_19&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_c7d9702208-b6bb71adf4-165673361

c. Another Chibok Girl rescued: On January 4, troops of Operation Lafiya Dole deployed in Pulka rescued Salomi Pogu, one of the Chibok girls abducted by Boko Haram terrorists earlier in 2014. Salomi was rescued in the company of another young girl, 14-year old Jamila Adams, and a child. Salomi is the 107th Chibok girl to be freed. Find a Timeline of the Chibok Girls here--->> https://medium.com/@TheAsoVilla/chibok-girls-a-timeline-571a36e7c173

d. Following the publication of videos obtained by CNN showing the existence of slave camps in Libya, President Buhari ordered the commencement of evacuation of Nigerians stranded in the North African country. So far about 1,500 Nigerians have been repatriated home, and the evacuation is still ongoing. Read our 'Factsheet On The Migrant Crisis Involving Nigerian Citizens’ here--->> http://statehouse.gov.ng/news/factsheet-on-the-migrant-crisis-involving-nigerian-citizens/?utm_source=Aso+Villa+Newsletter+-+Government+At+Work&utm_campaign=b6bb71adf4-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2018_01_19&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_c7d9702208-b6bb71adf4-165673361

e. Vice President Yemi Osinbajo will lead Nigeria's delegation to the World Economic Forum, holding in Davos, Switzerland, this week.

f. The United Nations has appointed Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, into the Investments Committee of the United Nations Joint Staff Pension Fund (UNJSPF). Details here--->> https://web.facebook.com/HMKemiAdeosun/posts/543487132670602?utm_source=Aso+Villa+Newsletter+-+Government+At+Work&utm_campaign=b6bb71adf4-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2018_01_19&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_c7d9702208-b6bb71adf4-165673361&_rdc=1&_rdr

g. Public Hearing for the Bill establishing the Nigeria Center for Disease Control (NCDC) holds today, Monday January 22, at the National Assembly. An important step to provide legal backing for one of the most important agencies in Nigeria.

Factsheets:
Check out our factsheets on the following:

1. The security situation in Benue: here--->> https://statehouse.gov.ng/news/factsheet-federal-response-to-the-attacks-and-killings-by-herdsmen-in-benue-and-other-states/?utm_source=Aso+Villa+Newsletter+-+Government+At+Work&utm_campaign=b6bb71adf4-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2018_01_19&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_c7d9702208-b6bb71adf4-165673361

2. Federal Government's projects in southeast Nigeria: here--->> https://medium.com/@TheAsoVilla/govtatworkng-south-east-60f42a6f5cbc

For Further Communication
Presidency Office of Digital Engagement (PODE)
Office of the Special Adviser to the President - Media & Publicity
State House, Abuja
Nigeria
https://statehouse.gov.ng/

President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the issuance of a TV license to the University of Lagos—Nigeria’s first Campus Television License.

The Economist has disowned a publication which has been making the rounds online, and which claims Nigerians have shown unprecedented level of patience with President Muhammadu Buhari.

We enjoin Nigerians to be very circumspect about the kind of information they are exposed to, and share.

Yesterday, President Muhammadu Buhari hosted All Progressives Congress (APC) chieftains to dinner at the State House in Abuja.

President Muhammadu Buhari today received Letters of Credence from:

H.E. Ms. Maria Saranto, Amb-Designate of Greece to Nigeria

H.E. Maj. Gen. Kazi Sharif Kaikoband, High Comm-Designate of Bangladesh

H.E. Mr. Anthonio Pedro Da Vinha Rodrigues Da Silva, Amb–Designate of Portugal

President Muhammadu Buhari will today receive Letters of Credence from:

H.E. Ms. Maria Saranto, Amb-Designate of Greece to Nigeria

H.E. Maj. Gen. Kazi Sharif Kaikoband, High Comm-Designate of Bangladesh

H.E. Mr. Anthonio Pedro Da Vinha Rodrigues Da Silva, Amb–Designate of Portugal

Yesterday, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo delivered the 'Africa Rising' lecture at the Harvard Business School in Boston, USA.

On the visit, the Vice President held meetings with the interim Harvard University Marshall, Dean Margot Gill; Professor Emmanuel Akyeampong and the Centre for African Studies affiliates at the Centre for African Studies, Harvard University.

He also had a lunch meeting with Harvard Law School Students and Faculty at Harvard Law School.

The rate of inflation in Nigeria's economy dropped to 15.37% in December 2017, against the 15.9% drop in November 2017.

The Consumer Price Index released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) revealed that the drop of 0.53% points recorded in December makes it the eleventh consecutive slowdown in inflation rate.

The report says: “The Consumer Price Index which measures inflation ended the year 2017 with a rate of 15.37 percent (year-on-year) in December 2017.

“This was 0.53 per cent points lower than the rate recorded in November (15.90) making it the eleventh consecutive disinflation (slowdown in the inflation rate though still positive) in headline year on year inflation since January 2017.”

Read the Consumer Price Index (CPI) and Inflation Report December 2017 here http://www.nigerianstat.gov.ng.

Dr Yemi Kale is the Statistician General of the Federation and CEO of National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

This afternoon, President Muhammadu Buhari received President of The Gambia, Adama Barrow, to the State House.

"I'm delighted that Nigeria was able to offer support during a very critical period- the recent political transition in The Gambia. I look forward to continuing collaboration between our two countries".

- President Muhammadu Buhari

Office Of The Vice President

Press Release

VP Osinbajo To Speak At Harvard As Us Ivy School Starts Business Lecture Titled "Africa Rising"

*Nigerian Economic Direction Under President Buhari Gets Praise From Top US University

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, SAN, on the invitation of Harvard University, Boston, United States, would be delivering the inaugural, keynote lecture on “Africa Rising” at Harvard Business School on Tuesday, January 16, 2018.

In extending its invitation to the Vice President, the university noted that it deeply admired the immense progress that Nigeria has made by the Buhari presidency including the work of the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC).

“It would be the highest honour for us were you to accept our invitation as we deeply admire the immense progress that Nigeria has made," the Harvard invitation noted, commending in particular the work of the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council.

Nigeria’s rise in world economic rankings and the vast range of business initiatives in the country were also noted.

The top US university further describes the lecture as "a historic moment" as it would be the first time that an Africa-focused course will be offered at Harvard Business School.

During the lecture, Prof. Osinbajo would highlight the progress made by the Buhari administration in the area of improving the country’s economy and investment climate.

In the latest World Bank Doing Business index, Nigeria climbed up 24 places and was placed on the list of 10 most reformed economies globally.

Alongside the President, the VP has been a strong advocate in the future of a greater Africa, and has proffered solutions on how to make the continent work better for its people and the rest of the world.

In a keynote address at the Financial Times Summit in London recently, the Vice President emphasised the depth of talent and innovation across Agriculture, ICT, Hospitality, Fashion, Energy, Manufacturing, Entertainment, and many other fields.

The Vice President, who will leave for Boston today, is expected back in Abuja later on Wednesday.

Earlier in the day, Prof. Osinbajo had, alongside President Muhammadu Buhari, laid wreaths in honour of fallen heroes of the Nigerian Army at the National Arcade, Abuja to mark the 2018 Armed Forces Remembrance Day.


Laolu Akande
Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media & Publicity
Office of the Vice President
15 January, 2017

Office Of The Vice President

Press Statement

Benue Killings: Reports Vice President Ignored Benue Governor's Letter Absolutely False

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, SAN, was shocked by a news report ostensibly quoting the Benue State Governor Sam Ortom as saying that the VP was warned of the savage and inhumane killings by alleged herdsmen in Logo and Guma local government areas which took place on the 1st of January 2018.

Although the Vice President, Prof. Osinbajo, does not believe that the Governor could ever have said so, it will be a terrible falsehood to suggest that the VP was ever informed by the Governor or anyone else of the imminence of the killing of citizens of our country in those or any other local governments in Benue State.

Governor Ortom wrote to the Vice President, then Acting President, on 7th June 2017 protesting a newspaper publication where the leadership of Miyetti Allah was reported to have stated that it was opposed to the Open Grazing Prohibition law of the State and that they would mobilize to resist the law. The Miyetti Allah had written to the Vice President on the 5th of June 2017 on the same law protesting several sections of the law. The Governor went on to say that the leadership of Miyetti Allah should be arrested because they used words such as “wicked, obnoxious and repressive,” to describe the law, and because these were “utterances that are capable of undermining the peace...”

The Vice President subsequently met with the Governor, discussed the matter and the security situation in the State and then ordered law enforcement agencies to be on the alert to prevent any attacks or violence. This was in June 2017!

In the said letter written by the Governor, there was no mention of any threat to any specific one of the 23 local governments of Benue State, so the best the law enforcement agencies could do even then was to await information or intelligence of an imminent attack. None came. Since then the VP has held several meetings with the Benue State Governor, including a visit to the State on the 6th of September, last year at the behest of Mr. President during the tragic floods in the state last year. At all such meetings, the Vice President discussed the security situation of the State with the Governor.

Following that, the then Acting President convened a major national security retreat which was attended by all State Governors, service chiefs and heads of security agencies. The Retreat featured very detailed discussions on the herdsmen/ farmers’ clashes.

To the best of our knowledge, neither Governor Ortom nor the Federal Government was aware of the imminence of the cowardly attack on Logo and Guma on the 1st of January, and therefore any suggestion that the President or the Vice President ignored the State Governor’s warning is both absolutely false and certainly misleading.


Laolu Akande
Senior Special Assistant on Media & Publicity to the President
Office of the Vice President
15 January 2018

President Buhari attends 2018 Armed Forces Remembrance Day ceremony at the National Arcade, Abuja.

President Muhammadu Buhari, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, Service Chiefs, others lay Wreath in honour of fallen heroes of Nigerian Army at the National Arcade to mark the end of the 2018 Armed Forces Remembrance Day celebrations.

Factsheet: Federal Response to the Attacks and Killings by Herdsmen in Benue and other States

Background

Insinuations and allegations that the attacks and killings are happening because President Buhari is Fulani are both unkind and incorrect. These attacks long predated the Buhari Government. In 2013 no fewer than nine cases of herdsmen attacks were recorded in Benue State alone, with more than 190 people killed. In 2014 there were no fewer than 16 recorded attacks, in Benue, which claimed more than 230 victims. Between January and May 2015, six attacks left more than 300 people dead, again in Benue State alone: See here and here for examples.

This historical context is important for a proper understanding of the issue, and to avoid unnecessarily politicizing what should be regarded and dealt with as acts of criminality. These attacks have been a longstanding issue, and successive governments have struggled to contain the situation.

The Buhari Administration is more than fully committed to bringing the cycle of violence to an end, prosecuting the attackers, and preventing further killings and attacks. The security agencies have standing instructions to arrest and prosecute any and all persons found with illegal arms.

Federal Interventions

The recent killings in Benue and Taraba States have elicited the following Federal responses:

1. President Buhari has met with the Governor of Benue State on the matter, to assure him of the Federal Government’s commitment to protecting farmers and communities.

2. President Buhari has directed the Inspector General of Police to relocate to Benue State.

3. On Monday January 8, 2018, the Minister of Interior, Abdulrahman Dambazau, convened a security meeting on the issue, bringing together Federal and State government officials: Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Heads of security agencies, and the Governors of the most affected States: Adamawa, Benue, Kaduna, Nasarawa, and Taraba.

4. On Wednesday January 10, 2018, the IG held a Stakeholders engagement with the Benue State Government, elders, community, religious and traditional leaders etc

5. Since the first week of January, immediately following the January 1 attacks, the Inspector General of Police has deployed the following to the affected areas:

· Ten (10) Units of PMF
· Police Special Forces
· Counter Terrorism Units
· Conventional Policemen.
· Police Explosive Ordinance Department (EOD)
· Special Police Joint Intelligence and Investigation Teams
· Police Aerial Surveillance Teams (Police Helicopters)

6. The Nigerian Army has deployed Special Forces to Benue, Taraba, and Nasarawa States.

7. In Benue State, eight ( suspected herdsmen are in Police custody over the recent killings, and are currently being prosecuted.

8. The Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development is working to establish cattle colonies across the country, in 2018. These colonies will provide grass and water for the cattle, and education and healthcare facilities for herders. They will also have Agro-Rangers deployed to secure the facilities.

Source--->> http://statehouse.gov.ng/news/factsheet-federal-response-to-the-attacks-and-killings-by-herdsmen-in-benue-and-other-states/

Nigeria's Stock market delivered one of the best returns in the world in 2017, and has opened 2018 on a promising note.

State House Press Release

President Buhari Appoints Substantive DG For NIA

President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the appointment of a substantive Director General for the National Intelligence Agency (NIA).

The new Director General is Ahmed Rufai Abubakar, a retired career Foreign Service officer, who till his appointment served as Senior Special Assistant to the President (SSAP) on Foreign Affairs/International Relations.

Abubakar had extensive experience working with the United Nations in peace support operations, mediation process, preventive diplomacy and good offices, as well as the promotion of good governance and respect for the rule of law and human rights.

He also briefly served as Senior Adviser at the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF), with headquarters in Ndjamena, Chad, before his appointment as SSAP.

Abubakar holds a B.A degree in French Language and Literature, and an M.A degree in Francophone Maghrebian Literature, both from Bayero University, Kano. He is also fluent in English and Arabic.

The appointment takes immediate effect.

Femi Adesina
Special Adviser to the President
(Media and Publicity)
January 10, 2018

The Nigerian Stock Exchange All Share Index (NSE-ASI) yesterday hit the 40, 000- point mark, for the first time since 2014.

The NSE-ASI was also one of the world's best performing markets in 2017, surging by 42%.

The 12 stations on the Abuja Light Rail Phase 1 corridor have been completed. The Central Railway Station also known as Abuja Metro Station is located behind the Abuja World Trade Centre. Also completed are the rolling stock depot and maintenance base at Idu.

Repairs have now been completed on Nigeria's gas supply network, damaged last week in a fire incident near Okada, Edo State. All stakeholders -- GenCos, TCN, DisCos are now working to restore power supply to the levels prior to the incident. We thank you all for your patience.

Nigeria’s external reserves have now crossed the US$40 billion mark, for the first time since 2014.

Remarks By Babatunde Raji Fashola, SAN At The 23rd Monthly Power Sector Operators Meeting Held In Lafia, Nasarawa State On Monday The 8th Of January 2018

I will like to start this my remarks by highlighting the Progress and milestones on our journey for incremental power which reassure us that we are on the right path and inspire us to continue with more belief.

Those milestones are represented by:

a. Generated power has gone up to 7000 MW in 2017 from 3,000 MW in May 2015

b. Transmission Capacity at 6900MW in 2017 from about 5,000 MW in May 2015

c. Peak Distribution now averaging 5,000 MW in 2017 from 2,690MW in 2015.

That said I will like to thank all of you for your contributions towards these milestones.

The reason I thank you is because you are impacting the lives of Nigerians, you are saving them money and changing their lifestyles for the better.

They tell me that their consumption of diesel and petrol to run generators for power has reduced and the hours they run their generators has gradually reduced.

This is the result of incremental power and we must get more of it.

They also tell me that they are now monitoring how they use power and are turning off appliances that are not needed.

Although this is meant to save costs, it also conserves energy, reduces waste and supports incremental power.

In the last 3 months we have increased the supply of power in the dry weather and people’s experience with power was better.

We must thank the Ministry of Petroleum Resources for the increase in gas supply .

The cynics who used to say that it is only during the rains that power improves now see that what we have done is no fluke.

Apart from Gas other stakeholders are also taking commendable steps.

A few months ago the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) formally presented the Mini Grid Regulations at this meeting and its impact is beginning to manifest.

Last month in Abuja, Nigeria through the Rural Electrification Agency hosted a Mini Grids Summit that is the largest ever attended in Africa with 600 participants from about 40 Countries.

The word is spreading around the world as mini grids will help us connect more people and boost incremental power.

We are also putting together a policy position to help expand the distribution network of the DisCos and use this to distribute the 2000MW that is currently available but cannot be distributed.

I also use the opportunity to call out to Manufacurers to let us know where they are, how much power they need, and how we can connect you because we have 2000 MW of undistributed power.

This year we should work harder to increase our people’s access to meters and reduce the incidents of estimated billing as NERC concludes the Meter Regulations that will open up the meters supply and installation business.

In the first few days of the new year we suffered a set back to our power supply which was caused by damage to the gas supply network around Okada.

First, I want to repeat that gas is the fuel that most of the generation companies use to produce electricity and all of us have a stake in ensuring that they are not damaged.

Secondly, I am happy to inform Nigerians that as at last night the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) informed us that repairs have been completed. We thank and commend them for their response.

Thirdly, what remains is to test the lines and restore pressure and supply to the generation companies.

One by one all the stakeholders from GenCos, TCN and DisCos will work to restore supply to the levels they were before the pipeline damage.

From there we will continue our journey of incremental power.

I wish you all a happy new year.

Babatunde Raji Fashola, SAN
Honourable Minister of Power, Works and Housing
8th January 2018