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Our Armed Forces are the best in the world – Hope Uzodimma

Our Armed Forces are the best in the world – Hope Uzodimma

Nigerian Army has always been known in the ECOWAS region for their strides in peacekeeping efforts, presently, the army is fighting terrorists, insurgents and bandits in the Northern part of the country, in the southern part of the country, militants and secessionist are contending with the army, lots of personnel have died in line of action, this has made the Government of Nigeria to declare every January as Armed Forces Remembrance day. A day set aside to honor fallen heroes. This ceremony is done accross the 36 states of the federation, Imo State inclusively. Hope Uzodimma the governor of Imo State eulogized the army descrbing them in glowing terms .

In his words, the Imo State governor said “I have yet again advocated for a united Nigeria where National integration, cohesion and cooperation should be the watchword. This formed the core of my address at the occasion of the 2021 Armed Forces Remembrance Day held today at the Heroes Square Owerri. “

“Our Armed Forces are the best in the world. They are committed men and women who are not only energetic and patriotic, but are also fit-looking in their display at their parade performances and at the battle fronts, combating all forms of extremisms and threats to our National existence. “

“To this end, I have reassured the Nigerian Armed Forces that the Imo State Government will continue to support and corporate with them in the discharge of their official duties, and primarily, the protection of the unity of Nigeria.”

“January 15 of every year in Nigeria is a day of sober reflection meant to remember our brothers who lost their lives in defense of our dear country as well as a day to remember the end of the ugly Civil War in Nigeria which took the lives of many, but to the glory of God, today, we have a united Nigeria.Furthermore, I have reassured the widows of the fallen heroes that our Government will not relent in supporting, encouraging and assisting them in their onerous task of bringing up their families either as single parents or in any way that is possible to enable them overcome the challenges they may be facing. “


“On behalf of the Government and the good people of Imo State, we pledge to continue to support and partner with the Armed Forces in their job of defending our dear country, Nigeria”, Hope said.

Highlights of the ceremony were the salute from Parade Commander/laying of wreath at the grave of the Unknown Soldier. Other activities include the reveille and three gun salutes and release of Pigeons to signify peace, marking the 2021 Armed Forces Remembrance Day celebration.

“I was joined by the Speaker Imo State House of Assembly, the Acting Chief Judge of Imo State, the Army, Navy, Air Force and Police Commanders, the Chairman of Nigerian Legion, Chairman of Imo State Police Community Relations Committee and Representative of the widows of the fallen Heroes, others”, Hope Concluded.

Anthony Nwosu

FMCDE PERM. SEC. CHARGES NITDA TO DEVELOP NIGERIANS CAPACITIES IN IT SECTOR

FMCDE PERM. SEC. CHARGES NITDA TO DEVELOP NIGERIANS CAPACITIES IN IT SECTOR

The Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy, Engr. Festus Y.A Daudu has charged the management of National Information Technology Development Agency, (NITDA) to ensure that it keeps building the capacity of Nigerians in information and Communication Technology Sector.
The Permanent Secretary made this charge today at the Ministry’s headquarter when the NITDA’s Director General, Mallam Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, CCIE, led some members of his management to brief the Permanent Secretary about the activities of the Agency.


He said, “you need to make sure that the necessary capacity is developed within the ecosystem because you have a lot to do and if you do not develop your capacity; in this particular sector that is dynamic, you will lose touch with current realities.
Engr. Daudu observed that with the abundant human resources the nation is blessed with the country, has all it takes to drive most of her processes with information technology. He said “Nigerians excel anywhere they go; I see no reason why with the abundant human resources we have, we cannot use it effectively to develop this nation.


The Permanent Secretary commended NITDA for what he termed laudable achievements and enjoined the management of the Agency to ensure that it works harmoniously with other parastatals and IT stakeholders because the objective of achieving a digital Nigerians is the same. “We have to work together; we have one objective, to make the lives of Nigerian better. We are a communication and Digital Economy family”.
While applauding the Agency for being up and doing, Engr. Daudu assured NITDA of his supports that would make the Agency carry out its mandate effectively especially in the area of clearing IT projects of other ministries, Department and Agencies.
Earlier in his presentation, the NITDA boss informed the Permanent Secretary of various NITDA’s initiatives and how they have been impacting positively on the Digital Economy Policy of the government.


The DG stated that the Agency’s efforts at localizing the government data has resulted into the repatriation of 98% of government that hitherto hosted off shore of the country back to Nigeria.


On Indigenous Content Promotion, Abdullahi said “the Agency has issued a total number 297 Compliance notice. This is to enforce the local content policy especially on ICT. “We have a surveillance team that looks at all ICT content”
Mallam Abdullahi further stated that the sales of hardware under the indigenous content development has witnessed unprecedented record of over 1.2million devices sold between 2015 to 2019. Adding that the investments in indigenous software development mandated by NITDA by Federal government institutions stand at over N1.3 billion.


The DG disclosed that most of the Agency’s interactions are targeted at developing the economy of the country, adding that the country recently focused on building the capacity of Nigerians to acquire skill necessary to drive a digital economy.
“In 2020, we went around all the six geopolitical zones to train people. We do a lot of in-person and virtual training. We have trained over 35,000 on different courses on ICT virtually and developed the capacity of 1500 Nigerians at our e-Government Training Centre,” he said.


While commenting on Nigeria Data Protection Regulations, the DG said, NITDA has created N2.2billion industry, and 2686 jobs were created through the implementation of the regulation, remitted N12.6million to the federal government purse from the filling of NDPR audit report among others.
Mallam Abdullahi added that NITDA roadmaps of 2016-2020 are aligned with the National Economy Policy and Strategy and the yet to be launched 20121-2024 would consulate the pillars of NDEPS.


He said the National IT Policy the Agency was created to implement has become obsolete and the new policy of Digital Economy has compelled the Agency to rebrand and reposition itself for better performance. “All these things are not the end but means to the end because the end is how the Agency is impacting in people lives for digital Economy development.

LASUBEB PARTNERS KOICA ON SMART MODEL SCHOOL

LASUBEB PARTNERS KOICA ON SMART MODEL SCHOOL

As part of efforts to improve the quality of teaching and learning in the Basic Education sector, the Lagos State Universal Basic Education Board, in collaboration with the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC), has partnered with Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) in the deployment of state-of-the-art equipment, capacity building for teachers, provision of technical expertise and online portal in the UBEC Model School undergoing construction at Iworo-Ajido, Badagry, Lagos State.

The Executive Chairman, Mr. Wahab Alawiye-King, who disclosed this during a stakeholders’ meeting held today at LASUBEB Hall, Maryland, Ikeja, expressed his gratitude to the KOICA group for their partnership and willingness to provide ICT facilities upon project completion.

He explained that Iworo-Ajido Community in Badagry was chosen for the project due to its vast expanse of land, good terrain and serene environment, stressing that the project is a prototype model school initiated by UBEC under the FGN/UBEC direct intervention.


Alawiye-King noted that Governor Sanwo-Olu is massively contributing to the digital transformation of the education sector in line with the T.H.E.M.E.S. agenda of the present administration, particularly with the EKOEXCEL initiative.

Mr. Woochan Chang, Country Director of KOICA Nigeria, said that the Agency is committed to satisfying the developmental needs of the Nigerian Government.


He stated that Lagos was chosen as one of the States in Nigeria to replicate the Nigeria/Korea Model School that was established by UBEC in Abuja, due to its capacity and commitment, adding that the agency wants to disseminate digital education in the country.

The Honourable Commissioner for Education, Mrs. Folasade Adefisayo, who later received the UBEC/KOICA delegation on behalf of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, pledged the support and readiness of the State to take ownership of the project upon completion.


Mrs. Abosede Adelaja, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Education expressed appreciation to KOICA Group for the huge collaboration and support for education in the State.

3G, 4G Telecom Towers in Nigeria now 53,460—Danbatta

3G, 4G Telecom Towers in Nigeria now 53,460—Danbatta

…Receives Ministry’s New Perm Sec applause

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

These were parts of industry growth data reeled out by the Executive Vice Chairman of Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Prof. Umar Danbatta 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 on Tuesday.

In the comprehensive briefing, the EVC spoke on NCC’s enabling laws, mandates of NCC, structure of NCC, implementation approach of its mandates and methodology, key focus and targets, scorecards, the new soon-to-be-unveiled Strategic Management Vision (SVP), NCC’s contributions to the economy, various regulatory frameworks aimed at improving service delivery, challenges confronting the sector and proposed solutions, among others.

According to Danbatta, the effective regulatory regime emplaced by the leadership of the Commission has resulted in increased deployment of infrastructure by telecoms operators, which in turn, helped to improve broadband penetration and other related service delivery in the telecoms industry.

“The BTS, fibre optic cables and other related infrastructure are central to the provision of improved service experience for Nigerians by their respective telecoms service providers,” he said, adding that the licensed Infrastructure Companies (InfraCos) are also expected to add 38,296km to optic fibre cables when they commence fully operations.

According to the EVC, as at November, 2020, active telephony subscribers stood at 208 million with teledensity standing at 108.92 per cent while active Internet subscriptions were 154.9 million and a broadband penetration of 45.07 per cent, among others.

He also talked on various initiatives undertaken by the Commission to ensure consumer protection and empowerment. These, according to him, include the Declaration of 2017 as Year of the Telecom Consumer, introduction of the 622 Toll Free Line for lodging and resolving consumer complaints and the provision of the 112 Emergency number and activation of 19 Emergency Communications Centre (ECCs).

Other such consumer-centric regulatory measures intervention, according to the EVC, include, issuance of various directions to mobile network operators (MNOs) to protect the consumers from being short-changed, ensuring smooth transition of Etisalat to 9Mobile, consumer outreach programmes, introduction and enforcement of mobile number portability (MNP) as well as introduction of the Do-Not-Disturb (DND) 2442 to check cases of unsolicited text messages.

The EVC disclosed that the number of subscriptions to DND service has hit over 30 million as the service empowers Nigerians to be able to protect themselves from the menace of unsolicited text messages.

In recognition of the tremendous economic growth opportunities afforded by the deployment of broadband and its associated technologies, Danbatta said the Commission has positioned itself in government’s drive for a digital Nigeria, as contained in the Nigerian National Broadband Plan (2020 – 2025), the National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy (2020 – 2030) and the Strategic Management Plan (2020 – 2024) of the Commission.

“The Commission will continue to put in its best in the discharge of its mandates, especially in facilitating the deployment of broadband, which is central to diversifying the Nigerian economy and national development. Also, it is our belief that the communications industry, under the leadership of the Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy, will experience more quantum leaps and retain its current leadership role in the telecommunications space,” he said.

In his reaction, the Perm Sec commended the leadership of the Commission, acknowledging the upward growth attributed to the effective regulatory regime, the central role NCC is playing in the digital transformation of the Nigerian economy as well as the impressive contribution of the sector to the country’s Gross Domestic (GDP).

“I want to thank NCC for its contribution to the Nigerian economy so far. I am not exaggerating about the achievements of NCC, in terms of contribution to GDP and how NCC’s effective regulatory role has been helping the economy in so many ways,” he said, adding that NCC leadership also contributed to his success as the Chairman of the World Radio Conference in 2015.

Engr. Daudu urged the Commission on the need for increased collaboration and teamwork with the Ministry, other agencies and industry stakeholders towards achieving the Federal Government’s objective of a digital economy. He also promised to support the Commission in whatever ways possible towards achieving its regulatory mandates.

NIN-SIM Linkage Exercise: Federal Government Expresses Appreciation

NIN-SIM Linkage Exercise: Federal Government Expresses Appreciation


At the end of a review meeting on 18th January 2021, the Technical Implementation Committee under the Ministerial Task Force has reported significant progress in the ongoing NIN-SIM linkage exercise.

So far, a total of 47.8 million NINs have been collected by the mobile operators. At an average of three to four SIMs per subscriber, this means many millions will be linked up before the deadline in February 2021.

Reacting to the report, the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr. Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami, expressed satisfaction with this commendable achievement. He expressed the Federal Government’s appreciation for the commitment demonstrated by all stakeholders and citizens and urged them to submit their NINs before 9th February, 2021 deadline.

The Minister urged the technical team to fast-track the processes so that the project is delivered soonest.

The Technical Committee drew attention to the App developed by Federal Government which allows subscribers to link up to a maximum of seven (7) SIMs to their NIN.

The Minister concluded by reminding Nigerians to secure and protect their NINs, urging subscribers to desist from selling their NINs or allowing others to use their NINs for registration. “For any action committed with the SIM, good or bad, it will be officially traced and attached to the NIN owner,” the Minister warned.

U.S. Secretary of the Air Force Takes Military Cooperation to New Heights

U.S. Secretary of the Air Force Takes Military Cooperation to New Heights

U.S. Secretary of the Air Force Barbara Barrett visited Abuja January 4 – 5, 2021, where she met members of the National Assembly and senior military officials at the Ministry of Defence.  Secretary Barrett’s visit highlighted the positive trajectory of the military cooperation between the United States and Nigeria.  Her discussions covered a range of defense and security matters of mutual interest, including the 2021 delivery of the A-29 Super Tucano aircraft.  Secretary Barrett also toured the Defence Space Administration and initiated the first-ever collaboration between the U.S. and Nigerian defense space institutions.

Secretary Barrett expressed the U.S. readiness to deliver twelve A-29 Super Tucano aircraft as scheduled in 2021.  Along with the delivery, the U.S. will train 60 Nigerian military pilots, instructors, and aircraft maintenance specialists over the span of 24 months.  The Nigerian pilots will train on the same aircraft that they will fly in combat operations against insurgent groups and terrorist organizations.

Secretary Barrett also was briefed by the Ministry of Defence and the Nigerian Armed Forces on their continuing efforts to strengthen military professionalism through programs such as Air Ground Integration (AGI).  Through AGI, the Nigerian Air Force plans to increase both its tactical and operational competencies.  The training that enhances these competencies will also address the laws that govern armed conflict and respect for international human rights in ways aimed at reducing the risk of civilian harm.

The Secretary also paid the first-ever visit by a senior U.S. official to the Defence Space Administration where she conveyed the importance of being ready to address the novel security challenges in space.  Noting that the U.S. Space Force recently marked its first anniversary following its establishment last year, Secretary Barrett discussed with her Nigerian counterparts the opportunities for bilateral engagement as well as the necessity of developing a long-term vision for security cooperation in space.

Secretary Barrett began her tenure as 25th Secretary of the Air Force on October 18, 2019.  She leads the Department of the Air Force, comprised of the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Space Force.  She is responsible for organizing, training, and equipping Air and Space Forces and for the welfare of 695,000 active duty, Guard, Reserve, and civilian Airmen and Space Professionals and their families.  Overseeing an annual budget of more than $205 billion, Secretary Barrett directs strategy, policy, acquisitions, technology, personnel, and risk management.  She implements decisions of the President and Congress and fulfills Combatant Commanders’ operational requirements.  Previously, Secretary Barrett led business, government, and academic enterprises.  She was an executive of two global Fortune 500 companies, CEO of the American Management Association, and CEO of a hotel.  Her leadership roles included U.S. Ambassador to Finland, Deputy Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration, and Vice Chairman of the U.S. Civil Aeronautics Board.  She taught leadership as a Fellow at Harvard’s Kennedy School and was President of Thunderbird School of Global Management.

Source

NIN-SIM Linkage Exercise: Federal Government Expresses Appreciation

NIN-SIM Linkage Exercise: Federal Government Expresses Appreciation

At the end of a review meeting on 18th January 2021, the Technical Implementation Committee under the Ministerial Task Force has reported significant progress in the ongoing NIN-SIM linkage exercise.

So far, a total of 47.8 million NINs have been collected by the mobile operators. At an average of three to four SIMs per subscriber, this means many millions will be linked up before the deadline in February 2021.

Reacting to the report, the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr. Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami, expressed satisfaction with this commendable achievement. He expressed the Federal Government’s appreciation for the commitment demonstrated by all stakeholders and citizens and urged them to submit their NINs before 9th February, 2021 deadline.

The Minister urged the technical team to fast-track the processes so that the project is delivered soonest.

The Technical Committee drew attention to the App developed by Federal Government which allows subscribers to link up to a maximum of seven (7) SIMs to their NIN.

The Minister concluded by reminding Nigerians to secure and protect their NINs, urging subscribers to desist from selling their NINs or allowing others to use their NINs for registration. “For any action committed with the SIM, good or bad, it will be officially traced and attached to the NIN owner,” the Minister warned.

DG NITDA Receives MTN CEO, Urges More Collaboration To Encourage Innovation

DG NITDA Receives MTN CEO, Urges More Collaboration To Encourage Innovation

The Director General of National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) Mallam Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, CCIE has today received the newly appointed MTN Nigeria’s Chief Executive Officer, Mr karl Toriola and his team at the Agency’s corporate headquarters.

Mr Toriola was at the Agency to familiarize himself with the activities of NITDA and to further strengthen the partnership already existing between the Agency and organisation
The DG NITDA while addressing the team stated that MTN is one of the supporting organisation that has helped the Agency in achieving some of its set goals. Adding that “as such, we need to find ways we can work hand in hand in terms of regulations and make sure what we do is in the best interest of the public.”

“The regulation we do is not to discourage innovation or to limit you rather our regulations are developmental regulations which helps to unlock opportunities and to also create an enabling environment for you and others players”, he added.

Mallam Abdullahi said that NITDA’s regulations are form in two ways either the Agency deciding on what and what to set as regulations or they sit with the industry players to decide on what kind of regulations can be made.

He said that human capital development is one of the key areas the agency is focusing on “as we need to train our people to understand the new technologies before we develop and use it.” In this regards, the DG NITDA urged MTN to collaborate with the Agency to train as many persons as possible.

“In terms of infrastructure, we have done a lot in that aspect as we have provide infrastructure to under served and unserved communities because you need to have infrastructure to be able to connect to the service. As business people, I urged you to create an avenue where people are easily and freely connected to the service as it will create more users and in turn generate more fund”, he said.

NITDA Boss applauded MTN for doing its best in the area of compliance and commended the company for the prompt payment of its levies.
Speaking earlier, Mr Toriola asserted that the MTN Nigeria Privacy and Data Protection service has been developed and adopted by the board. He said, “It has been deployed across our business and with constant engagement with NITDA officials who have provided us with necessary support and guidance, we have carried out an audit of our privacy data compliance practices with the Nigerian Data Protection Regulations requirements.

He stated that the data breach management has been developed and deployed adding that the company has embarked on a programme that will promote local content in Nigeria which includes ecosystem support to provide ICT innovation, STEM to accelerate local innovations.

Gov Badaru Calls For Youths’ Involvement In Critical Thinking, As Pantami Commends Jigawa For Digital Economy Drive

Gov Badaru Calls For Youths’ Involvement In Critical Thinking, As Pantami Commends Jigawa For Digital Economy Drive

The Jigawa State Governor, Alhaji Muhammadu Badaru Abubukar, has urged Nigerian youths to key into the digital technologies and focus more on critical thinking in order to find solutions for Nigeria’s economic and security challenges, according him that is the only way to move the country forward.

Governor Badaru made this call at the 1st Jigawa Innovation Summit with the theme: ‘Creating a Viable Innovative Ecosystem for Economic Development’ organised by the state government in collaboration with National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) and Youth Coalition for Development (YCD), an NGO that canvasses youth engagement in changing the status quo for the betterment of Nigerians.

The governor said it is only through critical thinking that the minds of Nigerian youths can be opened, so that they can look around their environment and see the opportunities around them that they can turn into business and create jobs, adding that the more problems are being solved, the more income can be generated.

He further said that the vision and focus is to bring world of innovations to the state, noting that oil economy is almost over because of what is happening around the globe – electric cars are on the rise, solar energy is becoming cheaper, wind energy becoming supportive, and the unknown fuel energy-drive currently ongoing can surely drop the demand of oil, and if this happens, national income will continue to decline and that will affect all the states of the federation, including Jigawa.

“We have to look at the areas where we have competitiveness and see how best we can make our economy work through those areas. Like I have always said, we can achieve this largely in Agriculture. We have vast land and water for irrigation in Jigawa. We will continue to focus on how to develop Agriculture and its value chain.

“I want to challenge this Summit to see how best we can to improve in what we are doing and how best we can to create jobs around the value chains in Nigeria digitally.

“We have Informatics Kazaure that produced so many IT professionals in the country. So I expect this Summit to bring to our table advises in our educational arena so that we can do more in developing our youth by making them employers, not just employee,” he added.

While delivering his speech, the Honourable Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr Isa Ali Ibrahim (Pantami), commended Jigawa State for its drive in Digital Economy, noting that the State Government showed its willingness to support the effort of the Federal Government and collaboration in order to develop indigenous digital economy in the country.

Dr Pantami said the rate of unemployment in the country motivated Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy to think outside the box by focusing more on creating potential employers rather than potential employees.

He said, “If you enrolled people in university and they graduated without sufficient skills, they will never be self-reliant, they will always go around looking for jobs. But when you provide digital skills for your citizens, they will be employers of others, which Jigawa Innovation Summit should also focus on.

The minister cited Jeff Bezos, owner of Amazon, second richest person in the world, as the perfect example potential employer, who million of people are working under him.

He stated how Netherland used digital technology to boost its agricultural activities despite having lesser landmass compare to some states in Nigeria. He added that if Jigawa State deploy digital innovation to agriculture it will go along the way in creating many jobs and generating revenue for Federal and State Government.

On his part, the Director General, National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Mallam Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, CCIE, while giving a Keynote Address, recalled that the journey to Innovation Summit is more exciting than the theme of the event, because the journey started in January last year when the Honourable Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr Isa Ali Ibrahim (Pantami) commissioned Hadejia Community IT Centre.

He said, “While delivering his Keynote Address at the commissioning, the Honourable Minister explained potential benefit of Digital Economy in our country and Jigawa State in general. Our governor showed interest in Jigawa State’s readiness to embrace the initiative, and the Honourable Minister responded positively by directing me to engage all the stakeholders to ensure Jigawa benefit immensely from Digital Economy.”

“Whatever the state government, ministry and NITDA are doing are in line with President Muhammadu Buhari’s economic diversification agenda, therefore all the credits should go to Mr President, because he campaigned before election and after he was voted to lead the country, he appointed my boss and mentor as minister, who also recommended me for this position,” he added.

Mallam Abdullahi opined that with new measures being put in place in regard to innovation and also what Governor Muhammadu Badaru Abubakar is doing in the state, Jigawa is in the forefront of zero-oil revenue.

He explained that innovation has been generally defined as the processing and taking idea from inception to impact, adding that innovation is not all about Information Technology, it is also something that has to do with invention, in terms commercialisation, business model, customer experience and organisational structure.

The DG said the event organised by Jigawa State Government in collaboration NITDA and YCD, attended by IT experts, entrepreneurs, academia, private sectors and other stakeholders is put heads together and look for competitive advantage in Jigawa; look at what each local government has, and come up with a strategy that can help unlock opportunities and create prosperity for the citizens.

“Jigawa State has a lot of potentials in terms of agricultural resources. Jigawa is the largest producer of dates, hibiscus and gum Arabic in Nigeria, and largest producer of sesames in the whole of Africa. The state also stands third in rice production, and we are utilising less than 10% of our arable land. Recently, His Excellency, the Executive Governor of Jigawa, Muhammadu Badaru Abubakar negotiated with stakeholders from Mexico to boost hibiscus production, which is a big plus for us as a nation.”

“All these can be achieved through digital technologies; this is why we are building IT centres across the country. So far, we have established 18 IT community centres out of 27 local governments, and we will build in the remaining ones. This is to prepare our future generation and create job opportunities, not only government jobs, but for youths to become self-reliant.

“We are coming with strategy where the state government can provide enabling environment that will unlock opportunities. In some countries, government job is the last resort, because you will make more money in business than in government; you will have more time in your private business than government,” he concluded.

Heirs Holdings Significantly Expands Oil and Gas Portfolio

Heirs Holdings Significantly Expands Oil and Gas Portfolio

Heirs Holdings (“HH”) (HeirsHoldings.com), the leading African strategic investor, in partnership with affiliated company Transnational Corporation of Nigeria Plc (“Transcorp”) (TranscorpNigeria.com), Nigeria’s largest publicly listed conglomerate, announced today the unconditional acquisition of a 45% participating interest in Nigerian oil licence OML 17 and related assets, through TNOG Oil and Gas Limited (a related company of Heirs Holdings and Transcorp) (TNOG.HeirsHoldings.com), from the Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited, Total E&P Nigeria Limited and ENI. In addition, TNOG Oil and Gas Limited will have sole operatorship of the asset.

The transaction is one of the largest oil and gas financings in Africa in more than a decade, with a financing component of US$1.1 billion, provided by a consortium of global and regional banks and investors. OML 17 has a current production capacity of 27,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day and, according to our estimates, 2P reserves of 1.2 billion barrels of oil equivalent, with an additional 1 billion barrels of oil equivalent resources of further exploration potential.

We have a very clear vision: creating Africa’s first integrated energy multinational, a global quality business, uniquely focused on Africa and Africa’s energy needs

The investment demonstrates a further important advance in the execution of Heirs Holdings’ integrated energy strategy and the Group’s commitment to Africa’s development, through long term investments that create economic prosperity and social wealth. Heirs Holdings’ heritage and approach to business fundamentally underscores its commitment to inclusive development and shared prosperity with its host communities. Heirs Holdings is fully invested in the development of the Niger Delta region.

Heirs Holdings’ strategy of creating the leading integrated energy business in Africa is executed through a series of strategic portfolio holdings. Transcorp is one of the largest power producers in Nigeria, with 2,000 MW of installed capacity, through ownership of Transcorp Power Plant (https://TranscorpPower.com) and the recent acquisition of Afam Power Plc and Afam Three Fast Power Limited. Transcorp closed the US$300 million Afam acquisitions in November 2020.  Transcorp supplies electricity to the Republic of Benin, as part of an emphasis on promoting regional integration and delivering robust power supply to catalyse development in Africa. Transcorp also operates OPL281, under a production sharing contract with the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (“NNPC”). Similarly, Heirs Holdings’ subsidiary, Tenoil is the operator of OPL 2008, under a production sharing contract with NNPC. Tenoil also owns the Ata Marginal Field, which will commence production in Q2, 2021, with 3,500 barrels of oil per day.

Chairman of Heirs Holdings, Tony Elumelu stated: “We have a very clear vision: creating Africa’s first integrated energy multinational, a global quality business, uniquely focused on Africa and Africa’s energy needs. The acquisition of such a high-quality asset, with significant potential for further growth, is a strong statement of our confidence in Nigeria, the Nigerian oil and gas sector and a tribute to the extremely high-quality management team that we have assembled. As a Nigerian, and more particularly an indigene of the Niger Delta region, I understand well our responsibilities that come with stewardship of the asset, our engagement with communities and the strategic importance of the oil and gas sector in Nigeria.  We see significant benefits from integrating our production, with our ability to power Nigeria, through Transcorp, and deliver value across the energy value chain.”

Speaking further, he said “I would like to thank Shell, Total and ENI, for the professionalism of the process, the Federal Government of Nigeria, the Ministry of Petroleum Resources, and the NNPC for the confidence they have placed in us.”

Speaking on the investment, the President/GCEO of Transcorp, Owen Omogiafo, said “This deal further demonstrates Transcorp’s integrated energy strategy and our determination to power Africa.”

Heirs Holdings was advised by Standard Chartered Plc, as Global Coordinator, and United Capital Plc (UnitedCapitalplcGroup.com), with a syndicate of lending institutions including Afreximbank, ABSA, Africa Finance Corporation, Union Bank of Nigeria, Hybrid Capital, and global asset management firm Amundi. The deal also involves Schlumberger as a technical partner, as well as the trading arm of Shell as an offtaker.

Heirs Holdings has created one of Africa’s largest, indigenous owned, oil and gas businesses, headquartered in Lagos, Nigeria and led by a board and management team with significant regional and global experience in production, exploration, and value creation in the resources sector. The HH Group is committed to the highest standards of safety, health, and community relations, together with best practice in governance and accountability.