Dubai Electricity & Water Authority confirmed that it awarded contracts worth 1.28 billion dirhams ($348 million) to build four substations at the same time to increase the capacity and efficiency of its electricity and transmission networks, the utility said in an emailed statement.
“There are currently 243 132/11kV substations, and 15 inaugurated in 2017, with nine inaugurated since the beginning of 2018,” the company said.
Visa Launches $100,000 Support Initiative For Startups In Africa
Visa is has launched the Everywhere Initiative, to the region of Sub Saharan Africa. The program is meant to support innovative startups that can offer business solutions that fit into Visa’s ecosystem of products and services.
The winners of the competition will walk away with $50 000 funding that they can be used to grow their innovation.
Nigeria and Ghana Show Rising Consumer Confidence – Research
The latest West Africa Consumer Confidence Index (CCI) figures released by Nielsen for Quarter 4, 2017 show a marked increase and continued positive performance for both Nigeria and Ghana. The latter climbed eight points to 120, while Nigeria’s score rose five points to 122, delivering continued optimism in these two West African countries.
Nielsen West Africa and Maghreb Managing Director, Abhik Gupta said, “The economic outlook in both Ghana and Nigeria is turning positive, spurred by a recovery in non-oil sectors, healthier agricultural production, favourable monetary policies, and a slight easing in inflationary pressures.
Russian Firm To Invest $400 Million Platinum Plant In Zimbabwe
Great Dyke Investments (GDI) Ltd said on Thursday it would invest around $400 million to build a precious metals mine and smelter in Zimbabwe, as the country opens up to international business.
The joint venture between Russia’s JSC Afromet and Zimbabwe’s Pen East Ltd expects to produce up to 855,000 ounces (27 tonnes) of platinum group metals and gold per year from the Darwendale PGM project.
Its deposit, which has total resources of around 1,300 tonnes of platinum group metals (PGMs) is part of the Great Dyke in Zimbabwe and is the world’s biggest PGM asset, the companies said in a statement.
How Nigeria Earned N3.8 trn From Crude Oil, Gas Export In 90 Days
The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) in its Foreign Trade Statistics for the Fourth Quarter of 2018, released on Monday said Nigeria earned N3.738 trillion from the export of crude oil and petroleum products in three months, from October to December 2017. According to the report posted on NBS website, petroleum products export accounted for 95.58 percent of Nigeria’s total export in the period under review.
World Bank Cautions Nigerians On Fake Cooperative Schemes
The World Bank on Wednesday cautioned Nigerians against falling prey to fraudulent multi-purpose co-operative scheme being advertised in some local communities in the country. The warning is contained in a statement by the spokesperson of the World Bank Group in Nigeria, Olufunke Olufon, said the global lender is not the mastermind behind the scheme.
Bank Staff Becoming More Involved In Fraud - NDIC
Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) says the number of fraud cases attributed to internal abuse by staff of banks increased from 231 in 2016 to 320 in 2017.
Head, Communications and Public Affairs of NDIC, Mr Mohammed Ibrahim, said in a statement in Abuja on Sunday that the figure was in the organisation’s recent report on off-site supervision of the Deposit Money Banks (DMBs).
“The report relied on a total of 286 responses received from 26 banks during the period and there were 22 NIL monthly responses from the banks as at year ended Dec. 31, 2017.
“The 286 responses received from banks in 2017 cited 26,182 cases of fraud and forgeries which is 56.30 per cent higher compared to 16,751 cases reported in 2016.
How Islamic Finance Can Fund $134bn Infrastructures In Africa
A member of the Financial Regulation Advisory Council of Experts in Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and a reputable Islamic Financial Expert, Dr. Bashir Umar on Wednesday said the non- interest banking system has the potential to bridge infrastructure gap in Africa which is estimated to cost $134bn from 2011 to 2040.
Conflicting Figures Of Passenger Traffic Worry Aviation Stakeholders
Reports indicate that Stakeholders in the aviation sector are concerned over the conflicting statistics of air travelers routinely published by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) and the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA). According to Daily Independent, the figures released by the NBS for air travellers in the country in 2017 is over two million at variance with the earlier one released by the NCAA which put the figure at 11,221,617 passengers.
FG Releases N43.92bn To 330,000 Rice Farmers
The Federal Government has reportedly released about N43.92 billion (122 million dollars) to 300,000 rice farmers to increase Nigeria’s rice production by additional two million tonnes in 2018. The Minister of Women Affairs and Social Development, Aisha Al-Hassan stated this on Tuesday in New York at Nigeria’s side event during the ongoing 62nd Session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW),
Only 15% Of Nigerian Women Have Bank Accounts – UN Resident Coordinator Laments
The United Nations Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Nigeria, Mr. Edward Kallon, has lamented that only 15 per cent of Nigerian women have bank accounts. Kallon stated this on the occasion to commemorate International Women’s Day in Abuja. According to him, only 1per cent of Nigerian women have access to capital from formal financial services, stressing that women have less access to education especially in the rural areas.