Day: September 20, 2023

Veritas Kapital Assurance has announced Net Premium Income of N2.699 billion for the 2022 financial year, which translate to a marginal one per cent growth compared to N2.675 billion in 2021.

The Chairman of the Board of Directors of Veritas Kapital, Mr Nahim Ibraheem, said this on Tuesday Abuja at the 46th Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the company.

According to him, the company recorded a 28 per cent reduction in Gross Premium Written (GPW) to N4.37 billion compared to N6.055 billion in 2021.

This, he said , was a result of the strain on operations attributable to the adverse economic environment in the year under review.

“According to the company’s annual report for the year under review, Profit before Tax (PBT) grew to N219.77 million in 2022 from N36.31 million in 2021, which signifies a growth of 505 per cent.

“The report however shows a decline in Profit after Tax (PAT) from N331.24 million in the prior year to N170.13 million in 2022.

“The board chairman noted in his report that ”Shareholders’ equity grew organically by three per cent from N9.320 billion to N9.625 billion in 2022 as total assets declined by per cent from N14.551 billion in 2021 to N13.996 billion in 2022,” he said.

He noted that although the general economic challenges the country was facing affected the company, adding that, the company was working hard to ensure shareholders get dividends in the next business year.

Ibraheem added that the company was strengthening business relations with notable and key players in the upstream and downstream sectors of the oil and gas industry to attract profitable business from the sector.

“The Board and management remain confident and committed as it continues to leverage several key fundamentals in its activities to provide reasonable returns to shareholders.

“Efforts are in high gear to enhance the perception and awareness of the Veritas Kapital Assurance brand geared towards further penetrating the market.

“Your company has re-strategised and has taken deliberate steps to compete favourably while retaining more premiums from the highly lucrative energy sector,” he said.

He said that in the same connection, the strategy to strike a balance between overexposure to capital and total risk aversion in making business decisions remained germane.

“We are well-positioned to take full advantage of the prospects while maintaining excellence and affordable cover for our customers and the insuringpublic.,” he said.

Earlier, shareholders commended the board and management of the company for remaining steadfast in steering the affairs of the company amidst the prevailing economic challenges facing the sector.

They expressed delight that although no dividend was paid during the period, the company was able to pay its clients all their claims during the period under review.(NAN)(nannews.ng)

Source: News Agency of Nigeria

EFCC on Wednesday in Ilorin called on real estate agents to avoid being used as conduit pipes for money laundering.

“You are critical stakeholders in the fight against corruption,’’ Zonal Commander of the Ilorin office of the EFCC, Mr Michael Nzekwe, told the real estate agents.

The agents were represented at a meeting with executive members of the Kwara chapter of Estate Rent and Commission Agents Association of Nigeria (ERCAAN) who paid the EFCC a courtesy visit.

“You should live above board while paying serious attention to the provisions of the new Money Laundering Act, 2022 (as amended) and the Advance Fee Fraud Act and other Fraud Related Offences Act, 2006.

“Ignorance of the law is not an excuse. The EFCC will go after anyone that violates any of the extant laws guiding the operation of real estate business,’’ Nzekwe said.

He stressed that the zone was determined to fight financial crimes through enforcement of all regulations against sharp practices and money laundering, especially in the real estate sector.

He noted that real estate is an avenue through which corrupt Nigerians laundered proceeds of crime and urged ERCAAN members to acquaint themselves with laws and regulations guiding the sector.

Nzekwe also called on members of the association to ensure compliance with the regulation requiring registration and certification of their businesses by EFCC’s Special Control Unit against Money Laundering.

He urged the agents to report cases of suspicious transactions to the appropriate agencies as required by the law.

Earlier, the association’s chairman, Mr Adewole Onibokun commended the EFCC for its giant strides in fighting corruption.

Onibokun expressed the willingness of members of the association to assist the EFCC in the fight against money laundering and other financial crimes in the real estate sector.

He said ERCAAN was founded in 1990 to promote the interests of Nigerian real estate agents who engaged in genuine and honest practices.

“We recognise the role the EFCC plays in checkmating corruption and we recognise that it has added value to our businesses, hence our visit to pledge our solidarity with it,’’ Onibokun said. (NAN) (www.nannews.ng)

Source: News Agency of Nigeria

The Organised Private Sector in Nigeria (OPSN) has urged the National Assembly to strengthen the capacity of business institutions in the country to enable them thrive.

The OPSN is made up of Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), Nigeria Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA).

Others are the Nigeria Employers Consultative Association (NECA), Nigeria Association of Small-Scale Industries (NASSI) and Nigeria Association of Small and Medium Enterprises (NASME).

Mr Segun Kadir, Director General of MAN, said this while addressing newsmen on behalf of OPSN on Tuesday in Abuja.

According to him, the economy is undergoing major macroeconomic changes, with the fallout of recent economic reform measures.

“We urge the National Assembly to focus on strengthening the capacity of the Executive Agencies to effectively carry out their functions.

“To also refrain from carrying out any activity that would constitute a burden or destabilise law abiding businesses in the form of duplicated audit/regulations,” he said.

Kadir, however, alleged that NASS’s ‘incessant investigative hearings’ would have negative economic consequences for the country.

He said: “The National Assembly does not have the constitutional backing to continually interfere in the affairs of private business owners.”

Kadir added that there were agencies under the executive arms saddled with such responsibilities.

He said: “The numerous forced travels of business chief executives to attend the investigative sessions constituted avoidable distractions, loss of manhour and erosion of confidence in the system.

“Members of organised businesses have been inundated with several letters of invitations and summons for different investigative hearings by various Committees and Ad-hoc Committees of the National Assembly.

“That is the Senate and House of Representatives, premised on section 88 and 89 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, as amended.

“This has been a notable challenge since the 7th National Assembly, from 2012,” he said.

Kadir said that recently, several letters were received by member-companies from the Ad-hoc Committee on Non-Remittance to the National Housing Fund and Utilisation of the Fund from 2011 to date.

He urged that the Ad-hoc Committee should investigate the compliance of Ministries, Departments and Agencies of government and corporate bodies with the Industrial Training Fund Act, amongst others.

Kadir said: “We appreciate the efforts of the National Assembly and its various Committees and Ad-hoc Committees to investigate and carry out oversight functions on Ministries, Departments and Agencies of Government.

“We are of the view that sections 88 and 89 of the Constitution, relied upon by the Committees of the National Assembly are not applicable to businesses in the private sector.

“Some of the implications will be the closure of companies in the country and loss of employment by Nigerians, loss of revenue through taxes and levies from the companies, unrest and increase in insecurity, among others.

“The action creates a duplication of the regulatory functions and activities of the various Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) of government.

According to him, the National Assembly has also assume the roles, functions and responsibilities of the MDAs and the executive arm of government.

He added: “We are convinced that this is not the legacy that the 10th National Assembly would like to leave.” (NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

Source: News Agency of Nigeria

The Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Prince Lateef Fagbemi, says the fight against corruption should not be left to the Federal Government and its agencies alone.

Fagbemi posited that the states should be involved in the fight against corruption.

He stated this at a one-day Hybrid Sensitisation Workshop on Revised Guidelines on Negotiation and Drafting of Contracts and Agreements by Government Parties to Prevent Corruption and Illicit Financial Flows and Ensure Sustainable Development

The workshop was organised by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) on Tuesday in Abuja.

“I want to mention that the issue of corruption and the tendency to limit the fight to Federal Government alone is wrong. contracts are not awarded at the Federal level alone.

“States are also involved. There should be a way of bringing some of these states on board,” he said.

Speaking on the revised guidelines initiated by the commission, Fagbemi said the document was mostly needed.

He noted that some of the corrupt practices being fought in the country were perpetrated at the state level but the international laws rarely recognised them (the states).

“The document that we are presenting to the public today will not only be useful to the Federal Government, it will also be useful to the state governments.

“If you look at it, in international law, the states are not known. It is the Federal Government that will stand for the states.

“Some of these atrocities are also perpetrated at the state levels and the Federal Government is called to come and account for it.

“My advice is that there should be another way of bringing the states on board to appreciate the need for your efforts,” he said.

He expressed the support of the Federal Government to the initiatives of ICPC and other government agencies aimed at engendering transparency, efficiency and prevention of corruption.

“The concept of the revised guidelines will hopefully deter corruption in negotiation and execution of government contracts, which is part of the Federal Government’s ministerial deliverables on improved guidelines for effective service delivery.

“The Federal Ministry of Justice is, therefore, committed to supporting initiatives undertaken by MDAs, which is aimed at engendering transparency, efficiency and preventing corruption.

“Equally, at the ministerial level, the ministry has developed policy documents and specific mechanisms to ensure transparency and reduce incidents of bad judgment arising from poor drafting of Federal Government contracts with mala fide intention against the country and its citizens

“Particularly as it relates to contracts within the thresholds of the Federal Executive Council,” he stated.

In his address of welcome, the Chairman of ICPC, Prof. Bolaji Owasanoye, SAN, noted some of the ways contracts were used to fleece the nation through capital flight and other forms of Illicit Financial Flows.

He said they included lack of provisions for periodic review of long-term contracts, grant of licenses and waivers.

He stated further that the choice of laws and the seat of arbitration have often worked to the disadvantage of the nation hence the need for the guidelines.

On his part, the Chairman, Presidential Committee on Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms, Mr Taiwo Oyedele in a paper titled: “Avoiding Tax Defaults and Capital Flights in Commercial Agreements” suggested the way forward to addressing some of the issues encouraging capital flights in commercial agreements.

Oyedele recommended the standardisation of approach using templates and approved checklists constantly reviewed and updated.

He proffered other solutions to include the involvement of specialists and subject matter experts, tax impact assessment and simulation, caps and sunset clauses,

Others, he said, were check local requirements and compliance with counterparty’s jurisdiction, use of clauses in agreements to safeguard national interest, inclusion of local content in projects execution to limit capital flights amongst others.

The workshop featured a panel of discussion on issues around negotiating agreements in the oil and gas, solid minerals, trade and investment and environment standards contracts.(NAN)

Source: News Agency of Nigeria

The Green Sahara Farms (GSF) on Wednesday announced that it had planted 386,000 trees in some communities to manage the impact of climate change in the country.

The Managing Director of the farm, Mr Suleiman Dikwa, who said this while unveiling the Environment Social Governance (ESG) Principles report in Abuja said 10,000 trees were also planted in 24 unity schools across the country.

The ESG is a framework that helps stakeholders understand how an organisation is managing risks and opportunities related to environmental, social and governance issues.

According to him, the activities are part of efforts to meet the Sustainable Development Goal 13, which is targeted at taking urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts.

He said through its activities, young foresters’ clubs have been formed to promote afforestation in schools in targeted states.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the organisation is working in five states of Gombe, Yobe, Adamawa, Plateau and Nasarawa.

He said that within the last 10 years, the organisation had been addressing the obstacles that inhibit the realisation of agro-development goals using landscape restoration and boosting agricultural productivity.

This, he added was to consolidate value chains, synergise resources and ensure food sufficiency in the world with Sub-Saharan Africa as a reliable base.

The managing director said the organisation is focused on achieving SDGs which bother on no poverty, no hunger, partnerships, climate change, education among others.

Dikwa said the organisation had reviewed its current operation to identify emission activities and understand their carbon footprint, saying this provided an insight on the data to be collected and metrics to be tracked.

He stated that no fewer than 85 households had been impacted in the use of bio-gas to achieve the net- zero emission target.

On gender equality and inclusion, Dikwa said 40 per cent of farmers so far reached are females, adding that this had sustained participation.

The organisation, being the first to commit to ESG principles, got recognition from Circular Bioeconomy Alliance (CBA), a program targeted at developing global network of living labs for nature, people and the planet.

CBA was established by His Royal Majesty King Charles III, aimed at demonstrating how harmony can be achieved by empowering people and nature while restoring biodiversity globally. (NAN)

Source: News Agency of Nigeria

The Kaduna State Contributory Health Management Authority (KADCHMA) has engaged members of the State Assembly to improve healthcare financing towards achieving Universal Health Coverage (UHC).

The engagement was supported by Save the Children International (SCI) and Lafia, a United Kingdom and Nigeria partnership for a healthier future.

The Director General, KADCHMA, Mr Abubakar Hassan, said at the close of the two-day meeting in Abuja on Tuesday that the goal was to ensure the prioritisation of health in the state legislative agenda.

Hassan added that the engagement was also to increase the effectiveness of health financing, role of legislators in improving health service delivery and enhance their understanding of the Kaduna health insurance scheme.

He also said that the meeting was to strengthen legislative response on prevention, detection, and response to infectious diseases.

“It is part of our strategies to ensure that all the stakeholders key into the health financing component of health insurance in Kaduna State.

“We started by engaging the local government chairmen and now advocated to the members of the State Assembly to support the process with a view to achieve UHC in Kaduna State,” he said.

Hassan said that the authority had registered a total number of 514,982 beneficiaries in the scheme, representing five per cent of the total population of the state.

He stressed the need to increase investment in the scheme to enroll more residents and reduce out-of-pocket expenditures on health.

According to him, health insurance is the most sustainable mechanism to ensure sustainable health care financing in the state.

The director general described the meeting as a “huge success”, adding that the lawmakers had demonstrated commitment to support the process.

This, according to him, will strengthen working synergy among the different arms of government in the state.

Also, Mr Yusuf Goje, a member of the Civil Society – Legislative Engagement and Accountability Platform, pointed out that only N1.9 billion was allocated to KADCHMA in the 2023 budget.

Goje added that of the amount, only N183.5 million was released as at June, adding, however, that the release was mainly on paper while the larger chunk of the cash was yet to be released to the authority.

He tasked the lawmakers on oversight functions to ensure at least 90 per cent cash release of allocated funds to KADCHMA, ensure budget realism and link allocations to strategic priority areas.

Goje also advised the lawmakers to pay health insurance scheme premiums for the poor and vulnerable in their communities as constituency projects which would impact directly on their constituents.

Mr Muazu Habibu, State Team Lead, Lafiya Programme, reiterated its continued support to the Kaduna State Government to strengthen its health systems.

He said that the objective of the programme was to contribute to improving health outcomes for the poorest and most vulnerable by encouraging the state government to increase investment in the health sector.

Similarly, Mr Farouk Abdulkadir, Advocacy and Campaign Coordinator, Gates IV Project, SCI, urged the lawmakers to place health in the government agenda through their statutory functions of appropriation, oversight, and representation.

Abdulkadir said that engagement of the lawmakers was key, adding that improving health systems would strengthen the government’s ability to provide quality health services and prevent, detect, and respond to infectious disease threats.

The Deputy Speaker, Kaduna State Assembly, Mr Magaji Danjuma, said that the engagement was impactful, adding that they need more engagements to increase their knowledge on how the health insurance scheme works.

Danjuma, who represents Kagarko State Constituency in the assembly, promised that the lawmakers would support the domestication of the National Health Insurance Act, 2022, in line with the peculiarities of the state.

He also assured that the assembly would work towards ensuring that the one per cent consolidated revenue allocation of the scheme was released to KADCHMA to enable the agency to achieve its mandate.

The deputy speaker also promised that the lawmakers would consider providing health insurance cover to the poor and vulnerables in their communities as a constituency project. (NAN)

Source: News Agency of Nigeria

Dr Garba Abari, Director-General of National Orientation Agency (NOA), on Wednesday in Abuja urged all Nigerians to be ambassadors of peace to build a strong and united nation.

Abari made the call at an award ceremony organised by the Arewa Youth Consultative Council (AYCC) in honour of Dr Josephine Oghale-Abraham, the founder of Love to the World Initiative.

The award was in recognition of her exceptional role in peace building.

Abari, who was represented by the Deputy Director, Legal Services, Mr Williams Dogo, said that Nigeria needed peace to become a developed country.

“Though positive things are being said about you, what Nigeria needs now is peace; peace and peace.

“We in NOA have the imperative of peace building; that is why in the past three years, we are implementing a programme called Building a People of Peace.”

The director general urged all Nigerians to emulate the exceptional qualities of the awardee in peace building across the country.

Speaking, President of AYCC, Amb. Zaid Ayuba, said that the council had observed the philanthropic and nation building efforts of Oghale-Abraham and had come to appreciate her.

He said the council had recognised her efforts in educational sponsorships, assistance on healthcare, feeding the orphans, widows and supporting the financially challenged individuals in various communities.

“You are a dedicated mentor to youth and aspiring young entrepreneurs.

“You believe in the power of education and entrepreneurship to transform society through empowering young people, ” he said..

Responding, Oghale-Abraham said that as she was going about her activities without knowing that a day of recognition was coming,

“I have heard about AYCC and read about their activities but never thought of an award from them.

“Being a southerner and receiving an award from a northern group showed that a lot of narratives being paddled about relationships in the country are incorrect.”

She said that the story about hate, divisions and religious differences driven mostly by politicians did not exist in reality.

The awardee said that she had declined many awards in the past for lack of merit by the organisers.

“Nigeria is our project and with this group of youths, you can tell that there is hope for Nigeria; the North and South will be united and Nigeria will be great again.

“We can start by just loving one another; if we do not love and have respect for one another, we will not be loved and respected internationally, ” she said.

She thanked the organisers for the gesture, adding that she was dedicating the award to every Nigerian who was selfless and committed to promoting the cause of Nigeria. (NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

Source: News Agency of Nigeria