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Marketers Fleece Kerosene Consumers of N800m Daily

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Diezani Alison-Madueke,Minister of Petroleum Resources
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Marketers of petroleum products and their agents may have been extorting kerosene consumers an estimated N800m daily if official statistics are used as basis of demand, according to National Mirror.

The national daily gathered from the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) that national daily consumption of kerosene currently stood at eight million litres. The official supply price to the market is N50 per litre.

However, users get the product at varying prices that range between N130 and N200 per litre, depending on their locations.

A market survey conducted in Lagos and its environs showed that major marketers, including Mobil Nigeria Plc, Conoil Nigeria Plc, MRS and Oando Nigeria Plc, did not have the product in their retail outlets.

Mr. Thomas Olawore, executive secretary, Major Oil Marketers Association of Nigeria (MOMAN), said that the major marketers did not sell the product because they did not have allocation from the NNPC.

He noted that the major marketers could not market the product because they did not have allocation.

Olawore lamented that marketers could not import because they were not permitted to make claim or seek reimbursement from the government.

“It is only the NNPC that can import kerosene because the Corporation has over the years been permitted to make claims from the Federal Government,” Olawore said.

He said it would not make any economic sense for marketers to import the product from the global market at a higher price to sell at lower price in the domestic market which the price is regulated by the government.

The survey showed that only small scale retailers had commercial stocks of the product for sale at exorbitant prices (between N130 and N200 per litre).

“We always have stocks to sell to our customers because we have people who bring it in tankers to deliver to us,” said one retailer at Mile 12, Lagos.

National Daily reported that the details of the present price regime could not be ascertained at the weekend as the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency, PPPRA website had been shut for reconstruction.

According to National Daily, efforts to reach officials of the agency did not yield any result as calls made to their phones were not responded to.

Mr. Ohi Alegbe, general manager, Group Public Affairs Division of the NNPC, said the corporation had initiated a scheme aimed at cutting off the several layers of middlemen who made it difficult for the end user to enjoy the subsidy on the product.

He said this would be done through the ‘Kero Correct’ initiative, which the corporation claimed had commenced.

Mr. Frank Amego, executive director, Commercial, of the Pipeline and Products Marketing Company, PPMC, explained that the new initiative was aimed at getting kerosene to the masses at the right price.

He noted that the Nigerian masses had not been enjoying the subsidy because of the long arbitrage system involved in its distribution and retail, diversion of the product by marketers to the construction industry where it is used for blending bitumen.

Amego said this happened mainly because NNPC had no direct control over most of the marketers involved in the distribution and sales of the product.

According to him, the Kero Correct initiative is designed to distribute and sell kerosene directly to end users from NNPC retail mega and affiliate stations across the country at the government-regulated price of N50 per litre to ensure effective control.

He assured that PPMC had enough stock of kerosene and that machinery had been provided to ensure efficient distribution of the product from Lagos and Oghara to NNPC retail mega and affiliate stations nationwide.

Mr. Ufford Ibanga, general manager, NNPC Retail, assured that all of the 524 NNPC retail mega, floating mega and affiliate stations across the country had been keyed up for the Kero Correct scheme.

He explained that the volunteers were being brought into the project to help monitor discharge and sales of the product to serve as an independent feedback system aimed at promoting transparency and ensuring that the product gets to the desired end users.

The scheme will involve the distribution of 1,500 trucks of kerosene across NNPC retail’s mega and affiliate stations across the country to ensure that each consumer gets at least 25 litres of the product over the next three months.


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NIA Questions Legality of Reps’ Financial Probe

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The Nigerian Insurers Association has urged the House Committee on Capital Market and Institutions to respect the constitutional separation of powers as it carries out a probe on over 20 insurance firms.

In a statement on Tuesday night, the Director General/Chief Executive Officer of NIA, Mrs Bola Odukale, said the decision of NIA and the affected firms to approach the court was to seek clarity on the constitutional limits of the House Committee’s probe.

It would be recalled that the House of Representatives on Monday is investigating no fewer than 25 insurance companies operating in the country for various financial infractions spanning financial reporting, claims settlement, premium remittance, and issuance of policies.

The Chairman, House Sub-Committee on Capital Market and Institutions, Kwamoti Laori, during a meeting with the management of the insurance companies at the National Assembly Complex in Abuja, said the meeting was convened following the receipt of a petition on infractions by the insurance companies.

In the statement, Odukale said, “The Association wishes to state unequivocally that all actions taken by the NIA and the affected member companies in response to the Committee’s invitations and pronouncements were based entirely on legal advice by its Solicitors. It was on the firm instruction of legal counsel that recourse was made to the courts.

“The objective of approaching the Court is to seek judicial guidance on the legality, propriety, and constitutional limits of the Committee’s intervention in order to safeguard institutional integrity, uphold regulatory independence, and ensure that legislative oversight remains within the bounds of law.

“The Court action seeks to determine whether the current posture of the Committee reflects an exercise of legislative judgment, which, by constitutional design, is the exclusive province of statutory regulators, such as the National Insurance Commission, Securities and Exchange Commission, Nigerian Exchange, Financial Reporting Council, Nigeria Data Protection Commission, and the National Information Technology Development Agency.

“This raises serious questions about legislative overreach and an erosion of the doctrine of separation of powers, a cornerstone of Nigeria’s constitutional democracy.”

Odukale maintained that the NIA was committed to lawful and constructive engagement with all arms of government, provided that such engagement respects the autonomy of statutory regulators and the boundaries established by the Constitution.

“The NIA will continue to provide its full support to all member companies while upholding the principles of legal compliance and sector-wide integrity,” Odukale concluded.

17 of the companies that went to court were represented by their lawyer, Mr Abimbola Kayode, at the meeting with the committee.


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Horn of Africa Leaders Seek Enhanced Digital Integration for Increased Regional Growth

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Finance ministers and development partners from the Horn of Africa have called for enhanced digital integration to boost trade, drive economic growth and promote regional stability during the 25th Ministerial Meeting of the Horn of Africa Initiative (HoAI).

Held in Nairobi, on July 14, the meeting was co-chaired by the African Development Bank’s Vice President for Regional Development, Integration and Business Delivery, Nnenna Nwabufo and Somalia’s Minister of Finance, Bihi Iman Egeh. Discussions underscored the critical role of digital integration in reducing trade barriers, boosting government service delivery and creating employment — particularly for the region’s youth.

“Digital technologies are shaping today’s economy and tomorrow’s industries. By embedding these technologies into our programs, we can not only improve inclusion but also leapfrog outdated development models,” said Nwabufo.

She called for digital integration a “central enabler” in each of the Horn of Africa Initiative’s pillars – trade, infrastructure, resilience, and human capital,

Learning through experience

Drawing from global and regional success stories, speakers highlighted the transformative potential of technology-led development. The ministers pointed to the Philippines as a strong example, where ICT has generated millions of jobs in business process outsourcing. Similarly, Kenya’s fintech innovation—especially the success of M-PESA—was cited as a model for scaling digital financial services across the region.

Participants urged governments to proactively foster digital ecosystems by capitalizing on the demographic dividend, identifying infrastructure upgrades, tighter regulatory reforms, and digital skills trainings as priorities to enable broader participation in the digital economy.

Minister Egeh reiterated the need for more coordinated regional efforts to create the enabling environment required for accelerated digital integration and expansion. He referenced the HoAI Digital Policy Matrix, adopted in 2023 which provides a blueprint on how to address key obstacles to achieving effective digital integration across the region.

Barack Makokha, Kenya’s Cabinet Secretary for National Treasury, underscored the importance of regionally-aligned public private partnerships and advocated for blended financing to reduce investment risk and expand digital access in underserved areas.

World Bank Vice President for Eastern and Southern Africa, Ndiame Diop, called for a comprehensive multi-pronged approach, combining cross-border coordination, large-scale financing, robust policy support, and digital infrastructure investments. He pointed out that such measures could transform digital integration into, “a powerful engine of economic transformation” for the Horn of Africa—ensuring no one is left behind in the digital era.

The meeting concluded with a shared recognition that sustained political will and the determination to implement a multifaceted approach are essential to unlocking the region’s economic potential and driving long-term growth.

The event also welcomed observers from the East African Community, Agence française de développement, and Shelter Afrique, reflecting strong regional and international backing for the HoAI in the development community.


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CSCS Inaugurates Custodian Portal to Enhance Digital Access, Operational Efficiency

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Central Securities Clearing System Plc (CSCS), Nigeria’s capital market infrastructure provider, has launched its Custodian Portal, a user-centric digital solution designed to optimise custodian operations through intuitive, secure and efficient features.

Haruna Jalo-Waziri, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), CSCS, announced this in a statement on Monday.

The CSCS is a Public Limited Company with a diversified shareholder base, which serves as the Central Securities Depository for the Nigerian Capital Market.

It serves as the Central Depository for Equities, Commercial Papers, Corporate Bonds, Sub-National Bonds, certain Sovereign Bonds like the FGN Sukuk and the FGN Savings Bond, Equity-traded Funds, Real Estate Investment Trusts, Mutual funds and Commodities.

Jalo-Waziri said that the custodian portal offered a streamlined experience for market participants with powerful tools that facilitate comprehensive portfolio and trade management, document tracking, share transfer operations, client symbol search, and real-time access to vital data.

He explained that the portal, designed to operate through a flexible subscription-based model, empowered users to manage their records effortlessly and securely through convenient payment channels such as GTPay and Paystack.

According to him, “Digital transformation remains at the core of our strategy to enhance the efficiency, transparency and accessibility of Nigeria’s capital market services.

“The custodian portal is a significant leap in that direction, offering custodians a centralised platform to manage critical processes in real-time.

“We are excited about the value this innovation brings to our stakeholders, and we will continue to evolve the platform in line with users’ needs and industry trends.”

The CEO also explained that the portal was designed with user experience in mind with feature tools like portfolio viewing and downloads in PDF or Excel format.

He further said that it also featured tracking of stock movements across date ranges, inbox messaging and request tracking, as well as robust user management capabilities including role assignment and status tracking.

Similarly, the Divisional Head, Business Technology and Digital Innovation, CSCS Plc, Tobe Nnadozie, said that the portal aligned with CSCS’s drive to automate the market.

“In addition to the normal features, the platform is a part of an omnichannel platform for custodians, and includes API services.

“It also connects to the market-wide workflow, which CSCS has built to ensure secured communication and approvals across all major stakeholders in the market.

“The platform is well secured with best-of-breed cybersecurity solutions and our SOC,” he said.

The Custodian Portal reinforces CSCS’s commitment to leveraging technology to streamline back-office functions and support a more agile, data-driven capital market ecosystem.

All custodians in the Nigerian capital market have now been successfully on-boarded on the Custodian Portal, marking a significant milestone in CSCS’s ongoing drive to enhance collaboration, standardise operational processes, and promote digital adoption across the market.


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