Nigerian Economy

On Monday, the currency exchanged for 475 at the parallel market, against the 383 central bank’s official rate. Inflation hit 15.75 per cent in December 2020, the highest in three years, according to the National Bureau of Statistics.

Former chairman of Nigeria’s electoral body, Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, Professor Attahiru Jega, has criticised the Buhari administration over its handling critical national issues.

President Muhammadu Buhari on Thursday directed the Federal Inland Revenue Services (FIRS) and related government agencies to plug all revenue leakages by ensuring strict compliance of tax payments by foreign companies operating in Nigeria, urging the deployment of more digital platforms and seamless connections.

The Executive Vice Chairman of the Commission, Professor Umar Danbatta disclosed this while reeling out industry growth data at a briefing for the new Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy, Engr. Festus Yusuf Daudu, on the functions and regulatory activities of the Commission in Abuja.

Telephone subscribers in Nigeria are now 208 million, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has disclosed.

As a result of improved broadband/telecoms service delivery to Nigerians, third generation (3G) and fourth generation (4G) base transceiver stations (BTS) deployment in the country has increased from 30,000 to 53,460 while Fibre Optic Transmission cables expanded from 47,000 km to 54,725 km in the last five years.

The Nigerian government spent N1.85 trillion on food imports in 2020 after it closed the country’s land borders, the chairman of the presidential economic advisory council, Doyin Salami, has said.

The Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) says it collected N4.9 trillion as tax revenue in the 2020 fiscal year.

An economist, Ms Razia Khan, also Managing Director/Chief Economist, Africa and Middle East, Global Research, Standard Chartered Bank, on Tuesday said Nigeria would see a restoration of positive growth.

As Nigerian and Nigerians grapple with economic recession and second wave of COVID-19 pandemic, Civil Society Organisations, CSOs, Monday, disagreed and condemned the alleged move by the Federal Government to sell public assets to implement 2021 budget.

Reason: the industry is faced with a tougher operating environment that could threaten the operators’ ability to meet their stakeholders’ needs and expectations yet perform meaningful corporate social responsibility roles.

Just as global technology giants including Google Inc., HUAWEI, and top social networking company, Facebook, another international tech heavyweight, Microsoft Corporation, has disclosed plans to partner with the Federal Government for the benefit of the Nigerian people, especially young people.

Part of the law provides that, “Any unclaimed dividend of a public limited liability company quoted on the Nigerian Stock Exchange and any unutilised amounts in a dormant bank account maintained in or by a deposit money bank, which has remained unclaimed or unutilised for a period of not less than six years from the date of declaring the dividend or domiciling the funds in a bank account, shall be transferred immediately to the trust fund.”

It will be recalled that on Jan 4, Intels announced that it had severed ties with its former shareholder, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, after the latter sold his interests in Intels’ parent company, Orlean Invest Holding.

Integrated Logistic Services (Intels) Nigeria Limited has debunked claims that the divestment from the company by former Vice President Atiku Abubakar was because its business was being hindered by political influnces from the Buhari administration.

A Nigerian Fintech startup, Shago Payments Limited has finally launched its bill payment and e-commerce platform, Shago, into the Nigerian financial sector to serve the banked, unbanked as well as the underserved in the country and internationally.

Senator representing Kaduna Central in the red chamber of the 9th assembly, Uba Sani (APC) on Friday hopeful that greater good things lie ahead of Nigerians in the year 2021.

President of the Nigeria Football Federation, Amaju Pinnick, says the Nigerian Professional Football League Television is expected to make at least 18 billion naira annually.