News
Gateway Trade Fair: OGUNCCIMA lauds Dangote Group’s collaboration.
THE Ogun State Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (OGUNCCIMA) has commended the Pan African Conglomerate, Dangote Group for its giant strides in economic development of the country through massive investments in several sectors of the economy describing the feat as worthy of emulation by other Nigerians.
President of OGUNCCIMA, Mrs. Adesola Adebutu who made this commendation at the opening ceremony of the 8th Gateway Trade Fair holding in Abeokuta Ogun state said the support given enough by the Dangote Group went a long way in making the staging of the Fair a success.
She explained that the theme of the Fair, “Promoting Agricultural Value Chain through SMES for Nigeria Economic Recovery”, was chosen in line with Ogun state’s policy of Agricultural industrialization which is also in consonance with the national policy of repositioning agriculture as the viable alternative to oil.
Mrs Adebutu stated that OGUNCCIMA was planned to be a clear departure from the past such that this year’s will rekindle the interest of the old investors and introduce new ones in new opportunities for its investments in Ogun State.
In his opening address, Ogun State governor, Ibikunle Amosu, thanked OGUNCCIMA for taking up the challenge to organize the fair despite paucity of funds and logistics challenges.
He said Nigeria is blessed with climate that can sustain agriculture all year round and that it’s heartening that the federal government is leading the way in diversification of the economy from oil based to agriculture whose value chain can create millions of employment.
Dangote Group, which is a leading sponsor of the Fair, stormed the venue with varieties of its consumer goods as well as its flagship product, cement.
“Dangote Group, which is a leading sponsor of the Fair, stormed the venue with varieties of its consumer goods as well as its flagship product, cement”.
Companies from under Nigeria’s foremost indigenous conglomerate, Dangote Group are adding colour to the Gateway Fair with an array edible goods on display. Three companies in the group offering consumer goods at the fair are Dangote Sugar Refinery, NASCON Allied Industries Plc (Dangote Salt), Dangote Flour and Dangote Cement.
Some products on display at the fair include Dangote sugar, Dangote Flour, spaghetti and macaroni, Dangote salt, Danq (seasoning), tomato paste. Dangote Sugar will be offering customers different sizes of granulated sugar packs at the fair.
A statement from Corporate Communications Unit of Dangote Group, said the fair has become a veritable venue for introduction of new innovations to Dangote products and that visitors to the group pavilion at both fairs will have the opportunity of buying products of these companies at reduced prices.
Dangote Flour is staging a wet sampling and offering customers a wide range of products at discounted prices. Buyers are going with several gifts as reward for purchasing Dangote Flour products. Products at the stand include-Dangote, flour for baking, wheat meals, spaghetti and macaroni.
Dangote Group is of the view that the trade fair is coming at an appropriate time, close to the last month in the year. This affords traders and dealers the opportunity to buy and stock their shops while end users buy for yuletide.
NASCON is offering its repackaged salt packs to customers at the trade fair. The new salt pack which is to endear the product to its teeming customers still comes in packs of 250g, 500g and 1kg. It is redesigned is to make the product more accessible and affordable for consumers and other end users.
Also, there will be free samples of the products like salt, seasoning, Tomato paste and the Dansa juice drinks for the visitors. Management of NASCON explained that Dangote Salt, seasoning and Dangote tomato paste will be offering free samples to visitors to the Dangote kitchen/restaurant which will be attached to the Dangote Stand to wet their appetite.
NASCON said the company would be giving its customers a good treat at the fair saying it has added to the richness of its products like Danq seasoning and Tomato paste and embark on an expansion of its distribution network to make the product more readily accessible to consumers.
Aside this, the statement said customers wanting to be distributor of any of the Dangote group subsidiaries would have the opportunity to be offered informed explanations by staff of the companies who would be on hand to put the customers through on how to go about it.
As Nigerians celebrate Christmas amidst festivities and reflections, the Chairman of the House Committee on Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA) and lawmaker representing Ibarapa East/Ido Federal Constituency of Oyo state, Engr. Aderemi Oseni has sent a heartfelt message to Nigerians, emphasising the importance of unity, compassion, and selflessness in nation-building.
In his Christmas message on Wednesday, contained in a statement by his media aide, Idowu Ayodele, and made available to journalists in Ibadan, the lawmaker described the season as a time to reflect on the love and sacrifice demonstrated by the birth of Jesus Christ.
He urged citizens to embrace the spirit of giving, kindness, and shared humanity that Christmas symbolises.
“Christmas is a season of hope, joy, and renewal,” Oseni said. “It reminds us of our shared duty to show love to one another, regardless of ethnicity, religion, or political affiliations. Let us work together to foster unity and peace in our country, especially as we navigate through challenging times.”
The lawmaker also highlighted the significance of collective responsibility in nation-building.
“As we celebrate, we must remember the less privileged in our communities. Acts of charity and kindness, no matter how small, can make a significant impact on someone’s life,” he added.
The APC chieftain expressed gratitude to his constituents in Ibarapa East/Ido for their unwavering support, assuring them of his commitment to delivering more impactful governance.
He also called for patience and cooperation as the government works towards addressing issues affecting the nation, including infrastructure development, economic stability, and security.
“Let this Christmas inspire us to continue building bridges of hope and fostering the true Nigerian spirit of togetherness,” he stated.
As the year draws to a close, Oseni encouraged Nigerians to remain optimistic about the nation’s future, assuring them that better days lie ahead with collective effort and unwavering faith.
The Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has initiated enforcement action against five airlines—two international and three domestic operators—for various violations of its regulations under Part 19.
The offenses include non-payment of passenger refunds within the stipulated timeframe, non-responsiveness to NCAA directives, mishandling of luggage, short-landed baggage, delayed and canceled flights, among other infractions.
Addressing journalists at the NCAA’s corporate headquarters in Abuja on Tuesday, Michael Achimugu, the Authority’s spokesman, stated that airlines must adhere to regulations regarding flight disruptions. He emphasized that failure to comply attracts sanctions.
“Although airlines are not always responsible for flight disruptions, NCAA regulations stipulate actions that airlines must take during such incidents. Failure to comply attracts various levels of sanctions,” Achimugu said.
He reminded airlines of the NCAA’s recent directive mandating refunds to passengers within 14 days for online ticket purchases and immediate cash refunds for tickets bought with cash.
The yuletide season has seen a rise in passenger complaints about delays and cancellations, largely attributed to harmattan-induced poor visibility. Achimugu clarified that airlines are not liable for cancellations due to force majeure but stressed that the enforcement actions are for cases where airlines are found at fault.
“This is harmattan season, so there is poor visibility. Flights must get canceled. This is force majeure, and the airlines do not owe passengers anything in those instances. The enforcement we are initiating today is on cases where the airline is deemed to have been at fault. More will come,” he explained.
Achimugu further disclosed that the NCAA would summon the chief executives of all airlines this week to address flight disruptions and regulatory breaches.
While the names of the sanctioned airlines were not officially revealed, sources close to the Authority identified them as Ethiopian Airways, Royal Maroc Airways, Arik Air, Aero Contractors, and Air Peace.
The Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management, and Social Development, Nentawe Yilwatda, has announced the Federal Government’s plan to reach 15 million households, representing 75 million people, through its conditional cash transfer scheme.
Speaking on Monday during an interview on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief, Yilwatda explained that the initiative is part of President Bola Tinubu’s commitment to mitigating the economic hardships faced by vulnerable Nigerians.
“The president was so specific,” Yilwatda noted.
“There are policies that he brought in to see if that can ease those challenges for people at the lower end of the pyramid. One of those policies is to reach out to 15 million beneficiaries under the conditional cash transfer, targeting households rather than individuals. Each household will receive ₦25,000 monthly, paid three times a year.”
Yilwatda further clarified that the 15 million households being targeted translate to 75 million Nigerians, assuming an average of five persons per household.
So far, the Federal Government has reached five million individuals but is facing challenges in fully sanitizing the social register, particularly with the implementation of the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) policy mandating digital identities for transparency and traceability of payments.
“Currently, only 1.4 million people on the social register have digital identities. Many of those we are targeting are outside the formal banking system,” the minister disclosed.
Yilwatda emphasized that women are specifically targeted as household leaders under the program to ensure the funds are used effectively for the benefit of children and other vulnerable members of society.
The conditional cash transfer programme, which is administered under the National Social Investment Programme, had earlier been suspended by President Tinubu in January due to allegations of corruption. However, the scheme was reinstated in February, with plans to extend the initiative to an additional 12 million households.
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