Author: darelasisi@gmail.com

By Tony Obiechina, Abuja The Federal Government has obtained a $750 million World Bank credit facility to finance the Fiscal Transparency, Accountability and sustainability programmes of 24 states of the Federation. The Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Dr Zainab Ahmed who disclosed this on Tuesday, said $700 million of the money would be to support the states through the provision of performance-based grants. She explained that the balance of $50 million is for the financing of technical assistance to enable the States to achieve specified Disbursement Linked Indicators (DLIs) towards qualification for the grants. She further explained that the DLIs are derived from…

The Ogun House of Assembly has appealed to Community Development Associations (CDAs) to partner the government in intensifying the sensitization campaign on the coronavirus. The Speaker of the Assembly, Mr Olakunle Oluomo, made the appeal at plenary on Tuesday in Abeokuta. Oluomo, who was responding to the submission of Mr Ademuyiwa Adeyemi (APC – Abeokuta South II) who spoke under personal explanation, noted that it was important to do everything possible to contain the virus. The Speaker noted that the state government through the Ministry of Health had done a lot in the area of sensitization, especially through the mass…

Mixed reactions have trailed policy measures announced by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to tackle the effect of COVID-19 on the nation’s economy. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the apex bank Governor, Mr Godwin Emefiele, on Monday, announced that CBN intervention facilities had been granted a further one-year moratorium on all principal repayments, effective March 1. Emefiele also said that the bank had decided to reduce the interest rate on all of its intervention funds from nine per cent to five per cent per annum, for a one-year period effective March 1. Among other policy measures,…

The Onitsha Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (ONICCIMA) has applauded Federal Government decision to suspend its planned borrowing of 22.7 billion dollars external loan for infrastructural projects. The Chamber’s Vice President, Mr Chinedu Nwonu made the position of the group known in a statement issued in Onitsha on Tuesday. Nwonu noted that the suspension was a better opportunity for the government to review the imperative of the loan as well as review how such a facility would be used subsequently. He said that the distribution of the listed infrastructural projects for the proposed loan lent credence to the…

The Ministry of Water Resources has urged all the ministries, agencies and other relevant organizations to collaborate effectively to achieve access to sustainable Water Sanitation Hygiene (WASH) services by 2030 Mr Suleiman Adamu, the Minister of Water Resources made the call on Tuesday at the Inter-Ministerial Dialogue on Sanitation with some ministers in Abuja. Adamu said that the collaboration would provide access to sustainable and safety WASH services by 2030, adding that by 2025 open defecation would as well end. “Riding on the strong political leadership demonstrated by the President and the Vice President, we on our part should not…

APIN Public Health Initiatives, an NGO, says it is providing technical assistant to six states toward improving immunization coverage in the Prevention of HIV transmission from mother-to-child. ( PMTCT). Dr Prosper Okonkwo, CEO of the organization, disclosed this at a meeting of Saving One Million Lives Programme For Results (SOML-PforR), on Tuesday in Owerri, Imo. Okonkwo, represented by Dr Jay Samuel, APIN’s Director Laboratory Service, said that the six states were Abia, Anambra, Benue, Ebonyi, Enugu, and Imo. The CEO said that with expertise developed from HIV programming in PMTCT, the NGO developed competencies to implement sustainable maternal, newborn and…

The Lagos State Government says it has started intensive contact tracing for the passengers that traveled with the third confirmed case of COVID-19 on board British Airways. The State Commissioner for Health, Prof. Akin Abayomi, made this known at a media briefing on Tuesday in Lagos. Abayomi said that the third case came on a BA75 flight that arrived in Lagos on March 13. According to him, the third case lives with her parents and one sibling, saying that the entire family had been transferred to the infectious diseases Hospital at Yaba, as a preventive measure, and for monitoring. The…

The Lagos State Government says it will do all within its power to accommodate Nigerians, especially youths through programmes and policies that will help to develop them. Gov. Babajide Sanwo-Olu made the promise on Tuesday while playing host to members of the House of Representatives, Committee on Youths Development. Sanwo-Olu, represented by his deputy, Dr Obafemi Hamzat, said that Lagos should be seen as a place where Nigerians would be proud to call home. He urged the Federal Government to engage more with youths by letting them know the importance of diversity. Commenting on the National Youth Service Corps, the…

The Lagos State Government may postpone the 2020 edition of its annual Greater Lagos Regatta and Festival, due to coronavirus infection. The state Commissioner for Tourism, Arts and Culture, Mrs Uzamat Akinbile-Yussuf, made the disclosure on Tuesday in Ikeja at a media briefing on the festival. Akinbile-Yussuf said that the postponement had become necessary because of the need to ensure the safety of the state residents and participants. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Lagos State recorded a third case of coronavirus also known as COVID-19 on Tuesday (March 17). The first case was an Italian who has…

Facebook is rolling out a plan to give 100 billion dollars in aid, through loans and ad credits, to small businesses affected by the coronavirus outbreak, it announced in a blog post on Tuesday. “The programme aims to reach up to 30,000 eligible small businesses in over 30 countries where we operate. “We’ll share more details as they become available,’’ the social media giant said, adding that it would begin taking applications in the coming weeks. Report says part of Facebook’s business model is becoming a site that helps smaller businesses connect to customers. “Small businesses are the heartbeat of…