News
Konga Kares Spreads Love, Identifies with the Needy, Less-Privilege
Konga, Nigeria’s foremost composite e-commerce giant embarked on a visit to orphanage homes in Lagos and Abuja to spread love to the needy and less-privileged, as part of its 7th Anniversary celebration,
The event, which saw Management and staff turn out in their numbers at both locations, was held on Saturday, July 6th, 2019.
The visit was anchored under the auspices of Konga Kares – a Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative through which the company has identified with and empowered critical segments of the population in need of a helping hand.
With the theme, Sharing the Konga Love to Help Alleviate Poverty, a visit was made simultaneously to theHeritage Orphanage Homes in Lagos as well as the Abuja Children’s Home, Karu and the Christ Foundation Orphanage Home and Widow Outreach, Abuja.
In their numbers, Executive Management and staff of Konga stormed the orphanage homes with household items, consumables, educational materials and other items to support their physical, mental and emotional needs.
Leading the Lagos team was Co-CEO, Konga Group Prince Nnamdi Ekeh who did not fail to engage and interact with the children of the Heritage Orphanage.
Ekeh expressed excitement and satisfaction about the visitation, describing his interaction with the children as an overwhelming experience.
“Giving material support is fantastic butproviding opportunities and other forms of empowerment is critical.
“You cannot overemphasize the generational benefits of creating a life-changing platform which focuses on abandoned and vulnerable children who are future leaders.
“We hope to embark on this kind of visitations on a regular basis and also partner with other institutions that are need of encouragement and empowerment such as skill acquisition which will have great impact in transforming their lives”, Ekeh said.
In Abuja, hundreds of lives were touched at both orphanages as the Konga team put smiles on the faces of children at the centres.
Led by Business Manager (North), Yvonne Enwerem games, Konga made it an enriching experience for the children with several fun activities including musical chairs, card games and board games such as Chess, Checkers, Scrabble and Ludo.
Furthermore, a quiz competition was organized for children within the ages of 7 and 17. Winners of the quiz were rewarded with mouth-watering prizes including Kiddies Tablets and writing materials, among others.
Essentially, the visitation did a lot to lift the moods of the children across all the beneficiary homes and imbue them with hope in a brighter future – a point that was not lost on the recipients.
Mrs. Patricia Agho is Director of the Christ Foundation Orphanage Home, Kuje, said “We are so grateful to the management of Konga for this gesture.
“The happiness and joy on the faces of the children is proof of how delighted we all are. May God bless Konga and continue to elevate the business,” said an obviously elated Mrs. Agho.
Also speaking, Mrs. Attah who oversees the Abuja Children’s Home expressed deep gratitude to Konga, even as she disclosed that the memories of the visit will remain indelible in the minds of the children.
“I am indeed overwhelmed by this show of love from Konga and so are the kids. In fact, I have never seen them this happy. Our appreciation knows no bounds and our prayer is that Konga reaps bountifully from this gesture,” she said.
Through Konga Kares, the company hopes to reach millions of needy, disadvantaged, physically-challenged and voiceless members of the society nationwide and give back in line with its mission of spreading love and alleviating poverty.
Development Bank of Nigeria (DBN) has awarded a total of N13 million in grants to three standout tech startups at the 2025 Techpreneur Summit held in Lagos, reinforcing its commitment to innovation and inclusive growth among Nigeria’s micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs).
The winners include: BuyScrap, a digital marketplace for recyclable materials – N6 million; Qiqi Farms, which connects local farmers to hospitality and export markets – N4 million; Eco-Cyclers, a youth-led recycling initiative based in Enugu – N3 million
Alongside the grant awards, DBN also launched a new digital data asset, a first-of-its-kind platform aimed at enabling data-driven decisions within the MSME ecosystem.
The platform offers deep insights into business trends, sector-specific challenges, and growth opportunities—supporting smarter policymaking and targeted investments.
In his keynote address in Lagos, Tony Okpanachi, managing director/ CEO, DBN, described the event’s theme, “CTRL + SHIFT: Tech Empowered Movement for Naija,” as a strategic call to reimagine enterprise development in Nigeria.
“This isn’t just a keyboard shortcut,” he said. “It’s a mindset reset—powered by technology—to build a more inclusive, innovative, and resilient business landscape. From financing to innovation, DBN remains committed to enabling MSMEs to thrive.”
Okpanachi emphasized that the Summit aligns with DBN’s AMPLIFI Strategy, which integrates digital transformation, sustainability, and scalability into its core programs.
He highlighted initiatives such as the Digital Shift Workshops and the Eco-Innovation Challenge as key steps toward embedding innovation in Nigeria’s MSME sector.
Encouraging young innovators, he added: “The future belongs to those bold enough to imagine and build it. DBN is proud to support the ideas that will shape tomorrow.”
A major highlight was the unveiling of the DBN Data Asset—a digital platform designed to provide real-time, evidence-based insights into Nigeria’s MSME landscape.
The platform combines DBN’s proprietary data with external sources like the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) to offer a comprehensive view of MSME performance by region and sector.
Jeremy Dan Okayi, DBN’s Head of Strategy, Policy & Innovation, described the platform as: “A reservoir of insight, potential, and direction—built on two years of collaboration and shared vision. This tool will support informed decision-making across the public and private sectors.”
News
FCCPC Shuts France, Belgium, and Italy Visa Centres in Abuja Over Alleged Consumer Rights Violations
In a bold enforcement action, the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC), supported by the Nigeria Police Force and the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), has sealed off the visa application centres of France, Belgium, and Italy in Abuja over alleged consumer protection breaches and obstruction of regulatory investigations.
The affected centres—located at Mukhtar El-Yakub House in the Central Business District and operated by TLS Contact, a Teleperformance Company—were shut down following reports that they refused to accept formal correspondence from the FCCPC regarding a consumer complaint. The Commission cited further infractions, including obstruction of investigation and alleged assault of its officers during lawful duties.
Speaking to journalists at the scene, Mrs. Boladale Adeyinka, Director of Surveillance and Investigations at the FCCPC, explained: “This is an enforcement operation against TLS. On March 25, 2025, we served them a letter to address a consumer complaint, which they refused to accept. Instead, TLS officers assaulted our team, and in a subsequent visit on June 17, they also allegedly assaulted uniformed police officers.”
Citing Section 33 of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act (FCCPA), Mrs. Adeyinka emphasized that failure to comply with Commission directives constitutes a criminal offense, punishable by imprisonment, fines of up to ₦20 million, or both.
TLS has been ordered to appear before the Commission on June 20, 2025, to provide testimony, submit evidence, and make formal depositions. The company may be held liable for any financial losses suffered by applicants due to the disruption of visa services.
Despite multiple requests for comment, management at TLS Contact declined to respond as of press time.
Adedapo Segun, chief financial officer (CFO), Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC), has explained why there is a missing sum of N210 trillion in the company’s audited financial statement spanning from 2017 to 2023.
According to Segun, the missing funds are cash calls requested by joint venture (JV) partners and settlement to the JVs.
He spokeat a session of the Senate Committee on Public Accounts chaired by Aliyu Wadada.
Segun was responding to an alarm raised by the committee over missing N210 trillion in NNPCL’s audited financial statement.
Recall that Wadada issued a one-week ultimatum to NNPCL to account for the missing N210 trillion.
Reacting, Segun said, “The N103 trillion and N107 trillion are made up of joint venture cash calls that have been requested by the JV operators and JV cash call payments made by NNPCL, which are yet to be reconciled because governance procedures were not done at that time.
“That is why you see the description reflecting those two items would be washed out because they are two sides of the same transaction, which is the cash calls by JV partners and the settlement by NNPCL.”
However, Habu Sadeik, a financial analyst, in a post on X on Thursday, said Segun’s response was unsatisfactory.
Saidik faulted NNPCL’s response about the fund discrepancies, noting that something is not right with the audited financial statement.
“Forget about the senators’ lack of knowledge.
“The CFO’s response is not satisfactory. Are you saying that cash calls worth hundreds of trillions are just appearing on your FS only in 2024 without 31 disclosure?
“If it’s a cash call, why hasn’t the disclosure said so?
“Which cash call is over 100 trillion?
“Something is definitely not right, and I hope they retrospectively correct that FS.
“Someone somewhere did a chef’s work,” he wrote on X.
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