Aso Villa Reads for 24/07/2020
Every day, we bring you the best stories that the media is reporting about the Government of Nigeria
Nigeria has received the sum of $890 million as a grant from the Global Fund to fight HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis (TB), malaria, and support Health Systems Strengthening Programmes over an implementation period of three years, beginning from 2021 to 2023. The grant, according to the federal government, is the single highest allocation to any country in this funding cycle and is sequel to a successful funding request made by the Nigeria Country Coordination Mechanism CCM submitted on 23rd March 2020. Nigeria has contributed a cumulative sum of $28.62 million to the Global Fund since its inception in 2002. At the Fund’s last replenishment conference in Lyon, France, in October 2019, Nigeria increased its contribution by 20% with a pledge of $12 million for the period 2021–2023 Osagie Ehanire, minister of health, who disclosed in Abuja on Tuesday, informed that the implementation of the grant will support the access to malaria prevention, diagnostic and treatment services in 13 states. The minister listed the states to include Adamawa, Delta, Gombe, Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kwara, Niger, Ogun, Osun, Taraba, and Yobe States. Business Day reported.
The Presidency on Friday denied reports that it has dissolved the Interim Management Committee of the Niger Delta Development Commission. There have been recent calls by the National Assembly for the dissolution of the committee and the return of the NDDC to the Presidency for direct supervision. But reacting to reports in some sections of the media that the IMC has been dissolved due to the calls by the legislature, the President’s Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, said there was nothing as such. In a statement on Friday titled, ‘Fake News On NDDC Attributed To Me’, Adesina wrote, “A statement purportedly signed by me has been making the rounds that the Federal Government has dissolved the Interim Management Committee of the NDDC. Merchants of fake news in action. The communication did not emanate from the media office of the President. Please ignore.” According to Punch, the President had in October 2019 set up a three-man committee “to create the enabling environment for the forensic audit” that covers 18 years of NDDC’s operations between 2001- 2019. The NDDC IMC was later enlarged to five in February 2020 by the President following the termination of the appointment of the then acting Managing Director, Joy Nunieh, who was replaced by Kemebradikumo Pondei.
The Federal Government on Thursday said 33 states had signed its Partnership for Expanded Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene programme, as it expressed hopes that the remaining states would come onboard soon. The Minister of Water Resources, Suleiman Adamu, said this during a virtual press briefing in Abuja to officially inaugurate the second phase of the PEWASH programme. According to the government, the PEWASH programme is aimed at improving the livelihood Nigerians through the provision of safe water supply and sanitation facilities. Adamu said, “33 states have signed the PEWASH Protocol, expressing interest to partner the Federal Ministry of Water Resources on the programme implementation. I am still hopeful that the remaining three states, Rivers, Borno, Anambra and the Federal Capital Territory, will soon join the league.” Adamu said the pilot programme was initiated and successfully completed in Kano and Ogun states. He noted that in the two states, the government rehabilitated, upgraded and constructed a total of 738 water supply facilities in eight Local Government Areas at a cost of over N1.6bn. Punch reports.
About 950,000 metric tons of liquefied natural gas (LNG) belonging to Nigeria LNG limited and valued at N354 billion carried by over 16 vessels have left in the last few months to various destinations. Majority of the cargoes headed to the Sines Port in Portugal which has taken delivery of 141,000 cubic meters of the product. According to Marine and Petroleum Nigeria, It is the first batch of the 2020 exports by Nigeria as gas demand is on the increase in the ports of Spain, China, Portugal and Turkey. The country is also the fourth largest producer of LNG in the world. To further boost export of the cargo this year, the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas Limited ( NLNG) has appointed one of Japan’s leading banks and the core unit of Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group — Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC) and Guaranty Trust Bank Plc, as financial advisers, for Train 7 project estimated at between $10 billion and $12 billion. Train 7 is expected to create over 12,000 jobs at construction and on completion will generate more revenue to the government in dividends, taxes and feed gas purchases and will further reduce the level of gas flaring in the country. Sines Port had already taken delivery of 315,900 cubic meters of liquefied natural gas from Onne Port in the last six months. Other vessels, according to the Nigerian Port Authority (NPA’S) shipping data, berthed in China, Spain and United States include LNG Lokoja in the last few months with, 66,000 tons; Maran Gas Olympias, 70,000tons; LNG Cross River, 63tons; LNG Borno, 66,000 tons; LNG Bayelsa, 63,000 tonnes; Castillo De Caldelas, 70000tons; Valencia Knutsen, 70,000tons; LNG Bonny II, 72,000tos; Catalunya Spirit, 65,000 tons; LNG Finima II, 72,000 tons and LNG River Niger, 63,000 tons. Business Day reports.
The Federal Government of Nigeria has appealed to motorists to show understanding as repair work continues on some bridges in Lagos with partial closure of those bridges, making access to them difficult and stressful in some cases. When maintenance work commences on Third Mainland Bridge on Friday, July 24 as scheduled, there will be three major bridges in Lagos that will be either totally or partially closed to motorists. The other two are the Alaka end of Eko Bridge and Marine (Apapa-Ijora) Bridge. Already, contractors have mobilized to site on both Alaka and Marine bridges. At the Marine Bridge project site on Wednesday, where the construction workers were seen changing creaiungs and expansion joints on the bridge, Kayode Popoola, Federal Controller of Works, Lagos, explained to journalists that government was committed to completing the project ahead of schedule. Babatunde Fashola, Minister of Works and Housing, had at a media briefing in Abuja on Tuesday, explained that the repair work on the bridge was about prioritizing safety of Nigerians who commute on the bridge on daily basis. Fashola also assured that a combined selected team from the Federal Roads Safety Corps would continuously guide driving on the partially closed Third Mainland Bridge bridge and also brief people on the alternative routes to follow as long as the maintenance work lasts. Business Day reports.
The Federal Executive Council, FEC, on Wednesday approved the sum of N75 billion for the establishment of a Nigerian Youth Investment Fund. This fund is meant to create a special window for accessing credit facilities and financing on the part of our youths that will help to fund their ideas, innovations, and also support their enterprise. Briefing State House correspondents after the 9th virtual meeting presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari at the Council Chamber, Presidential Villa, Abuja, the Minister of Youths and Sports Development, Sunday Dare explained that the special fund will be for youths within the age bracket of 18 and 35. According to him, “For the first time in the history of Nigeria, the Federal Executive Council today approved the establishment of the Nigerian Youth Investment Fund (NYIF) to the tune of N75 billion. ” This fund is meant to create a special window for accessing credit facilities and financing on the part of our youths that will help to fund their ideas, innovations, and also support their enterprise. “The best way to call it is that for the first time the country will have a youth bank. A fund that will cater specifically for our youth within the stipulated age band, which is going to be between 18 and 35 years. “The second approval that secured was for the Ministry of Youth and Sports Development to play a lead role in working on necessary steps that need to be taken in terms of legislation, organisation and other aspects of financing.” He said that the Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget, and National Planning will take the lead when it comes to the aspect of the financing, working with the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, the Ministry of Youth and Sports Development and other relevant Ministries, Department and Agencies, MDAs. Vanguard reports.
