News
Youth Groups, 9 NGOs Honour New Horizons CEO For Youth Empowerment
Mr. Tim Akano. the CEO of New Horizons Nigeria, has been honoured by Nigerian youths for his relentless commitment and unparalleled passion for youths’ empowerment.
The nine groups with over 60 million strong memberships cut across Nigeria, Africa and in diaspora came through their representatives to recognise and honour the CEO with various awards at New Horizons Head office in Lagos.
Among the groups are the National Association of Polytechnic Students (NAPS), Northern Nigeria Students (ANNS), Nigeria Youth Representative Council (NYRC), Coalition of Nigerian Young Patriots (CNYP), Nigerian Youths Initiative for Peace and Good Governance (NYIPGG), Students Coalition Rebirth of Nigeria (SCRN), Inter-Faith Youth Council of Nigeria (IFYCN), National Association of Mathematical Science Students of Nigeria(NAMSSN) and League of African Development Students (LEAD Africa).
Recently, the federal government of Nigeria named Akano as Nigeria’s Icon of Youth Empowerment through the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) Skills Acquisitions and Empowerment Department (SAED).
Similarly, over 120 national, continental and international organisations including the Students Union Council (Nigeria Universities Students), Northern Youth Council, Oodua Youths Parliament, Trans Africa Youth Initiatives (TAYI) and Nigeria Committee of Vice-Chancellors have conferred different honours in appreciation of his contributions to mankind.
Speaking for the Association of Northern Nigeria Students( ANNS), the national secretary, Amb. Nafiu Danlami, said, “We want to appreciate you for what you have been doing for Nigerian and African youths. You have given us a better platform to showcase Africa to the world through what we produce on the continent and also earn money from it.
“With this, I am challenging everyone that we can make Nigeria a force to be reckoned with again because you are a man of substance and we encourage you to leave your comfort zone and seek political office to liberate the youth from the shackles of poverty”
Also speaking, the president of the National Association of Polytechnic Students (NAPS), Sunday Asuku said Akano has proven that he has the interest of the youth at heart even when the leaders of the country are not looking at the youth.
“I want to tell you that you have rekindled our hope with all you are doing for us and we are glad. So, on behalf of 20 million Nigerian students home and abroad, we honour you with the most prestigious NAPS award, The 2022 Beacon of Hope award, which is given yearly to just one most outstanding Nigerian,” he said.
Vice President, Inter-Faith Youth Council of Nigeria (IFYCN), Daniel Friday, on his part, said: “We are here to honour Tim Akano with the Ambassador of Peace Award because we see him as a leader with an innovative mind and the impact he has made in the lives of youths that once took to violence but now living in peace with others. We appreciate him for that.”
Receiving the awards from the groups, an elated Akano said he appreciated the thoughts and the thinking that went into it and assured them that it would challenge him to do more. He said many people have seen the work his company has been doing to transform the lives of youth and this prompted them to give him the awards.
Akano, however, said he was not doing it because of the recognition but narrated a story of how he met a Nigerian graduate refugee graduate seeking employment many years ago in Switzerland which challenged him to stand in the gap for millions of Nigerian youths who need help and mentorship to identify their talents and guide them to success.
“Over the last two years, I have been receiving dozens of awards from all over the world, and they [these groups] validate the decision I made 18 years ago to leave my job at Coca-Cola and dedicate my life to youth empowerment. I do not do it for the recognition, but it feels good to know that we are truly making an impact in the lives of these young people”
“This forms the imperative of the establishment of One Africa Initiatives Academy where we Mentor African youths from over 50 countries worldwide. The soon-to-be-unveiled FABAAW is the platform set up to bring prosperity to Africa, especially to the youth. With FABAAW, African youths can network, showcase their talents and do genuine businesses with the global community on mutually beneficial terms, better terms than what is obtainable today on e-commerce and social media platforms”
The New Horizons Nigeria CEO believes that poverty and unemployment are Africa’s twin problems. “Our problems in Africa are the same. Go to Uganda, South Africa, or Nigeria it is the same. Africa has the largest unemployment rate in the world”
Akano said across the globe, African people are known for going to school, graduating and earning certificates. “If you want to be successful in life today, the youth need 4th Industrial skills in Data Science, Cloud Architect, Big Data, and Artificial Intelligence, among others.
“For instance, India’s raw materials are its population and it decided to develop along software line. China toed the line of manufacturing, Israeli owns military security, and Germans are known for their machinery. So for us in Africa, what we can bring to the table that would make our youth prosperous are 4.0 skills.”
He said there is a solution to every problem and the solution to this present generation’s problem is knowing how to use technology to solve the poverty problem, using the newly created FABAAW platform due to be launched in July.
“I have committed the rest of my life to concentrate on the transformation of Africa by raising and grooming the Youths that will take Africa to the promised land before 2063,” concluded Akano.
News
PalmPay, Jumia Reward Users in Festive Campaign
This holiday season just got a whole lot more exciting! PalmPay, one of Africa’s leading fintech platforms, operates Nigeria’s most used mobile wallet and has teamed up with Jumia, the continent’s e-commerce giant, to launch a festive campaign that’s all about convenience, rewards, and enhancing your shopping experience.
Running from December 11th to 28th, 2024, this holiday campaign is set to reward shoppers who use the new “Pay with PalmPay” feature on Jumia with cash prizes. Every purchase made using the direct payment method automatically enters participants into a draw, giving them a chance to win exciting cash rewards while enjoying the seamless shopping and payment process.
A Strategic Partnership To Enhance Digital Payments
The integration of the “Pay with PalmPay Wallet” feature on Jumia marks a major milestone in the partnership between the two industry leaders.
Speaking at the media announcement, Mr. Chika Nwosu, Managing Director of PalmPay, highlighted the broader mission driving this collaboration: “We are thrilled to join forces with Jumia to redefine convenience for shoppers. At PalmPay, our mission has always been to drive economic empowerment through accessible and user-friendly financial services. This partnership is a natural step forward in achieving that goal.”
Beyond the holidays, this partnership with Jumia m,k is a signal of bigger things to come. Mr. Chika added: “This is more than just about payments—it’s about creating value for our customers. We are excited about the opportunities this partnership will unlock in 2025, including campaigns and innovative initiatives that will further transform the online shopping landscape.”
Sunil Natraj, CEO of Jumia Nigeria, highlighted the shared vision between both companies, stating: “At Jumia, we are dedicated to creating value for our customers by ensuring a convenient, reliable, and secure shopping experience. This partnership with PalmPay strengthens our commitment to enhancing the digital payments within our platform. By integrating PalmPay, we are providing more options for customers to access affordable and quality goods with the convenience of cashless transactions.”
How to Join the Holiday Fun
Participating in the campaign is simple. When shopping on Jumia, select the “Pay with PalmPay” option at checkout, and your entry into the draw is automatic. It’s that easy!
Bonus Entry: Share a screenshot of your purchase on X (formerly Twitter) using the hashtag #PalmPayXJumia to increase your chances of winning. Additional winners will be selected from participants engaging with the campaign on Twitter.
Whether you are shopping for gifts, or gadgets this festive season, PalmPay and Jumia are making sure your experience is not only seamless but also rewarding.
To learn more about the campaign, stay tuned to the official X accounts (formerly Twitter) of @palmpay_ng and @JumiaNigeria. for updates, announcements, and more chances to win.
News
Corruption: ICPC Threatens Sanctions as 330 MDAs Fail Financial, Governance Tests
Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offenses Commission (ICPC), has revealed that none of the Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs), in the country complied fully with ethical standards, policies, and anti-corruption measures in the passing year.
This was following the findings from the Commission’s Ethics and Integrity Compliance Scorecard (EICS) for the MDAs.
The Commission warned that henceforth, non-compliant MDAs will face necessary actions, including enforcement, to ensure adherence to government directives.
According to the EICS scorecard released on Thursday in Abuja by Demola Bakare, ICPC spokesperson, no MDA out of 330 MDAs that were assessed through physical deployment by ICPC teams achieved full compliance.
The EICS serves as a preventive tool used to assess and enhance the compliance of MDAs with ethical standards, policies, and anti-corruption measures.
Findings from the report indicated that no MDA achieved full compliance, while 29.55 per cent of MDAs captured attained substantial compliance, and 51.62 per cent had partial compliance.
The report also observed that 15.91 per cent showed poor compliance, while 292 per cent were non-compliant.
According to the report, common gaps included a lack of whistle-blower policies, strategic plans, and effective stock verification units, adding that many MDAs failed to conduct any forms of system studies or render financial and audit reports.
Commenting on the report, Bakare noted: “This year, 2024, the tool covered 323 responsive MDAs, with 15 MDAs non-responsive and categorised as high corruption risk.
“It is imperative to inform you that this initiative has yielded some positive and value-driven impacts, and these are, but not limited to, increased awareness and compliance with anti-corruption measures, enhanced competition among MDAs to meet criteria, and improved procurement processes and data reliability.
“The Commission recognises the MDAs with substantial compliance and will continue deploying these tools to promote integrity and accountability.
“Non-compliant MDAs will face necessary actions, including enforcement, to ensure adherence to government directives. We are certain that these efforts will continue to underline ICPC’s dedication to enhancing good governance and preventing corruption.”
News
Dangote Refinery Denies Liquidity Challenges, Dismisses NNPCL’s $1Bn Loan Claim
Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals (DPRP) has dismissed claims that the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) used a $1 billion loan secured through a crude forward sale agreement to support the refinery during a liquidity crisis.
In a statement on Wednesday, Anthony Chiejina, company’s chief branding and communications officer, said the NNPCL’s stance was a distortion of the facts.
“We would like to clarify that this is a misrepresentation of the situation as $1bn is just about 5% of the investment that went into building the Dangote Refinery,” Chiejina said.
Chiejina stated that the refinery’s decision to enter into a partnership with the NNPCL was based on the recognition of “their strategic position in the industry as the largest offtaker of Nigerian crude” and at the time, the sole supplier of petrol into Nigeria.
“We agreed on the sale of a 20% stake at a value of $2.76 billion. Of this, we agreed that they will only pay $1 billion while the balance will be recovered over a period of 5 years through deductions on crude oil that they supply to us and from dividends due to them,” Chiejina said.
“If we were struggling with liquidity challenges we wouldn’t have given them such generous payment terms. As at 2021 when the agreement was signed, the refinery was at the pre-commission stage.”
According to the statement, the agreement would have been cash-based rather than credit-driven if the refinery struggled with liquidity issues.
The refinery’s spokesman said the NNPCL was subsequently unable to supply the agreed 300,000 barrels a day of crude (bpd).
He stated that the shortfall was because the NNPPC “had committed a greater part of their crude cargoes to financiers with the expectation of higher production which they were unable to achieve”.
“We subsequently gave them a 12-month period for them to pay cash for the balance of their equity given their inability to supply the agreed crude oil volume,” he said.
“NNPCL failed to meet this deadline which expired on June 30th 2024. As a result, their equity share was revised down to 7.24%. These events have been widely reported by both parties,” he said.
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