Business
Food Security: Dangote Cement Ibese Donates Agric Inputs To Host Communities
Determined to boost food production and enhance socio-economic development of its host communities, Dangote Cement, Ibese Plant has donated agricultural supplies to local farmers.
It was gathered that the initiative formed part of the company’s broader empowerment programme designed to ensure food security for the people.
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In what has become an annual programme, 60 farmers from the 17 host communities of the Cement Plant received fertilizers, herbicides, and knapsack sprayers to aid them in the upcoming farming season.
During the presentation event at Ibese, the farmers also received training on “Integrated Pest Management and Crop Protection,” which covered the application of the donated inputs as well as general pest management and crop protection techniques.
Director of the Ibese Plant, Roy Uttam, explained that this donation is part of Dangote Cement’s Social Investment drive, which focuses on four key areas: Education, Health, Empowerment, and Infrastructure.
He emphasised that the company’s community investments and their positive impacts on local residents demonstrate Dangote Cement’s commitment to adding social value to its host communities.
Uttam said, “Today, sixty farmers across our 17 host communities are being trained on the theme ‘Integrated Pest Management and Crop Protection’ and each will go home with 2 bags each of 50KG NPK 15:15:15 and Urea Fertilizers, 3 litres of Force Up Herbicide and 15 litre capacity Knapsack Sprayer.”
According to him, the gesture aimed to enhance the productivity of the participating farmers, strengthen food security, and boost revenue across the agricultural value chain in the host communities. “It is our hope that this intervention will positively impact the production of garri, fufu and kokoro, which are the major foods in the host communities.”
Uttam noted that climate change and extreme weather conditions have significantly impacted crop production and agricultural pests. He highlighted that inconsistent rainfall this year has negatively affected farmers’ productivity in the first planting season. Experts predict that these challenges may continue to impact food harvests in 2024 and beyond.
“Today’s gathering is twofold, because apart from the distribution of farm inputs, we have also engaged the services of an agricultural experts who will equip the farmers with information on best practices to remain resilient even in these times of uncertain climate trajectory,” Uttam noted.
Recalling past support initiatives, Uttam revealed that since the start of the Community Development Agreement (CDA) in 2022, 180 farmers from the Ibese Plant’s host communities have received training, farm inputs, and tools. These efforts have had a significant impact on the local economy. He assured that the Cement Company is committed to continuing its support for farmers across the host communities.
Uttam emphasised that the distribution of farm inputs underscores the strong relationship between the Plant and the host communities.
He noted that such empowerment programs can only thrive in a peaceful and stable business environment.
“We do not take the support of our stakeholders, both young and old, for granted and as committed in the CDA, we will continue to strive to complement the effort of the Government towards the socio-economic development of the local communities,” he added.
The Plant Director acknowledged the crucial role farmers play in sustaining every community, emphasising that their daily efforts in tilling the land to ensure food availability are essential to human existence.
To maximize the positive impact of Dangote Cement’s contributions to enhancing farmers’ productivity, he urged the beneficiaries to utilize the provided resources to expand their farms. He encouraged them to elevate their communities to become the leading food producers of Yewa and Ewekoro, and to contribute to Ogun State’s overall agricultural success.
“I also implore you to also continue to get updated with new developments in the agriculture space and as much as possible, embrace the use of technology to remain competitive in this rapidly changing world. At Dangote Cement, Ibese, we assure you of our unflinching commitment to complementing the Government’s effort through value adding initiatives geared towards the overall development of the Community on a continuous basis,” Uttam concluded.
In his remarks, Chairman of the Communities’ Representatives, Dayo Ogunyinka, expressed gratitude to Dangote Cement’s management for the intervention. He highlighted that the farmers’ empowerment comes at a critical time, as nearly 80 percent of the incomes in these communities are spent on food. Ogunyinka noted that the donated implements would greatly assist the farmers in achieving better yields and bumper harvests. He urged the farmers to take the training seriously, as it would provide essential guidance on the proper use of the donated items.
On behalf of the beneficiaries, farmer Waheed Orisatola from the Abule-Oke host community assured that the farmers would honour Dangote Cement’s support and use the implements as intended.
As part of efforts to ensure sustained growth for the Keystone Bank, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has put in place a new board of directors for the lender.
The development was made public on Wednesday in a statement by the commercial bank.
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From the statement, it was gathered that Lady Ada Chukwudozie has been appointed as the new board chairman, alongside five other non-executive directors, made up of Abdul-Rahman Esene, Fola Akande, Akintola Ayodeji Olusoji, Obijiaku Samuel, and Senator Farouk Bello.
The CBN also named two new executive directors, Ladi Oluwole and Abubakar Usman Bello.
Lady Chukwudozie, a prominent figure in Nigeria’s corporate sector, brings nearly three decades of experience in business strategy, management, and administration.
Her expertise cuts across multiple industries, including De-Endy Industrial Company Limited, Dozzy Group, the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria, and Vogue Afrique Magazine.
On his part, Esene, comes with over 43 years of experience in banking, investment management, and corporate finance.
He has held leadership roles in major institutions such as Fidelity Bank, Afrinvest, and Global Arbitrage International Inc.
Similarly, Akande boasts over 25 years of experience in legal, compliance, and risk management. She had worked with global brands like Cadbury, Stanbic Chartered Bank and Shell.
While Olusoji has a distinguished 30-year career in accounting, finance, and business development, having served at institutions such as Sterling Bank, Access Bank, and Intercontinental Bank.
For the board position, Obijiaku comes with more than 35 years of experience in banking and treasury operations, has left a significant mark on Nigeria’s financial sector, previously working with Zenith Bank and Fidelity Bank.
Senator Bello is a seasoned banker with over 20 years of experience, has led initiatives across both the public and private sectors, including the National Assembly and Guaranty Trust Bank.
In the same vein, the two new executive directors bring their vast expertise to the table.
Oluwole, the new Executive Director of Risk Management, comes with over two decades of experience in credit and enterprise risk management, including previous roles at Bank of America.
On his part, Bello, Executive Director for the Northern Directorate, has extensive experience managing corporate, retail, and public sector clients.
On the appointments, Managing Director/CEO, Keystone Bank, Hassan Imam, expressed confidence in the new board members, stating that their wealth of experience would play a crucial role in the bank’s continued repositioning and growth.
“We are pleased to welcome the new chairman, non-executive directors, and executive directors to the board of Keystone Bank. We are confident that their extensive experience will be invaluable as we continue to reposition the bank to seize emerging economic opportunities while maintaining strong corporate governance and providing our customers with a secure and reliable banking experience,” Imam said.
Former U.S. President Donald Trump, alongside his sons and several entrepreneurs, introduced a cryptocurrency platform late Monday, though few details were shared.
During a two-hour online event, the Trump family’s crypto initiative remained vague, with the primary offering being digital “tokens” that allow users to participate in platform decisions by voting.
The event went ahead as planned despite an apparent assassination attempt against Trump on Sunday at his golf club in West Palm Beach, Florida.
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World Liberty Financial intends to offer services based on so-called decentralized finance, a mechanism that eliminates the need for an intermediary such as a bank to carry out transactions with a third party, the politics-laced discussion indicated.
Decentralized finance, or DeFi, is based on so-called blockchain technology, which keeps a theoretically open but tamper-proof record of transactions.
World Liberty Financial will enable users to lend or borrow cryptocurrencies to or from one another, a service already offered by many platforms, one of the best-known of which is Aave.
The former president’s son Donald Trump Jr. touted this as “the start of a financial revolution,” during a session streamed on X, formerly Twitter.
Zachary Folkman and Chase Herro, the linchpins of the project and established cryptocurrency entrepreneurs, said the platform would primarily use “stablecoins”, which are backed by a traditional currency, most often the dollar.
As a result, they are free from the sometimes brutal fluctuations experienced by digital currencies untethered to real-world money.
World Liberty Financial wants to attract the masses to cryptocurrencies, creating a platform easily accessible to people, Folkman said.
Project leaders said they would sell tokens that give owners the right to take part in the governance of the platform, with 63 per cent of them offered to the public, 20 per cent going to the founding team and the rest set aside as rewards for users.
No timetable for the project was disclosed.
During his presidency, Trump labeled cryptocurrencies as a scam, but he has since drastically shifted his stance, now portraying himself as a “pro-Bitcoin president” if re-elected in November.
In taking this position, he opposes the Biden administration, which is viewed as advocating for increased regulation of the crypto industry.
The Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) has urged the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd) to ensure that locally manufactured petroleum products are not sold higher than imported fuel.
The IPMAN took the position on Monday, while reacting to new pricing regime release by the state oil major as it commenced lifting refined products from the Dangote Petroleum Refinery, Lagos.
According to the IPMAN, such a disparity would be counterproductive to Nigeria’s drive for energy self-sufficiency with the possibility of impacting negatively on consumers and marketers alike.
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The IPMAN noted that the pricing strategy for locally refined petrol should reflect the advantages of domestic production, which should offer Nigerians a more affordable option.
The association maintained that maintaining competitive pricing was crucial for the success of the Dangote Refinery and for fostering a sustainable fuel market in the country.
The National Welfare Officer, IPMAN, John Kekeocha, shared these view on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief breakfast programme, monitored by Biztellers.
He pondered, “If NNPC can sell Dangote products higher than the imported products then it doesn’t make sense. What is the celebration we are having all these while then?”
Recall that the NNPC Ltd began loading the first batch of petrol from the Dangote Refinery on Sunday, saying it got petrol at N898 per litre from the private refinery.
Before lifting petrol from the Dangote Refinery on Sunday, NNPC Ltd retail outlets in Lagos were selling petrol for around N855 but said a litre of Dangote petrol would henceforth sell for N950 per litre in Lagos and N1,019 in Borno.
However, Dangote Refinery denied selling petrol to the NNPC Ltd at N898.
In a statement late Sunday, Dangote Group’s spokesman, Anthony Chiejina, described the claim by the NNPCL as “misleading and mischievous”.
Cheijina asserted, “It should also be noted that we sold the products to NNPCL in dollars with a lot of savings against what they are currently importing. With this action, there will be petrol in every local government area of the country regardless of their remote nature.”
The NNPC Ltd insisted that it got petrol from Dangote Refinery at N898 per litre and challenged the latter to release the price it sold petrol.
To drive the point home, the state oil major released a breakdown of pricing it sells Dangote petrol at its filling stations across the country.
Last December, Dangote, Africa’s leading industrialist, commenced operations at his $20bn facility sited in Lagos with 350,000 barrels a day.
The refinery, which was initially bogged by regulatory battles, hopes to achieve its full capacity of 650,000 barrels per day by the end of the year.
The refinery started with the supply of diesel and aviation fuel to marketers in Nigeria before progressing to petrol.
Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation, faces energy challenges, with all its state-owned refineries non-operational. The country is heavily reliant on imported refined petroleum products, with the state-run NNPC being the major importer of the essential commodities.
Fuel queues are commonplace in the country. Prices of petrol tripled since the removal of subsidy in May 2023, from around N200/litre to over N1000/litre, compounding the woes of the citizens who power their vehicles, and generating sets with petrol, no thanks to decades-long epileptic electricity supply.
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