Category: Industry

Heritage Bank Plc, Nigeria’s most innovative banking service provider, disclosed that Nigeria’s Gold market is worth £4 billion Pounds with high prospects of profitability for all players in the subsector.

The MD/CEO, Ifie Sekibo, who stated this at the Nigeria-Canada Investment Summit, held in Abuja, yesterday also disclosed that the enormous potential of the industry was one of the reasons why Heritage Bank delved into the mining sector despite enormous risks.

According to him, the bank has Dukia Gold as its partner that would facilitate access to local miners and artisans to get value for their commodity at international market price after being registered with Dukia Gold.

Sekibo, who was represented by the Team Lead, Agric Finance and Export, Adelana Ogunjirin, explained that prior to now, local miners of Gold found it difficult to trade their commodities favourably but with the involvement of Dukia and its partner, Heritage Bank, a Quality-and-Quantity test will be conducted based on the arrangement they made with Dukia Gold and that will lead to additional value to the small holder miners. He explained that this will leverage the small miners the opportunity to also trade their commodities at international market price.

He further stated that a metric tonne of Gold is currently valued at $30million adding that it is worth investing in the industry, especially as gold is a kind of commodity that does not easily lose its value.

He said: “Mining sector is an area which has not been fully tapped in terms of the potentials around it, as there are quite a lot of opportunities around that sector. Recently we secured $1 billion funding line with our funding partner AfreximBank, which also is to support areas like solid minerals.

“Now with respect to this we have looked at the value chain of this space and we have looked at the opportunities that are there. A lot of fund providers have not really delved into this and it is because of the lack of understanding of the market.

“In terms of value, gold is an area where you can enhance the value. You hardly see Gold losing value and you see that in different exchanges you even trade those commodities.

“Looking at it in terms of trend, you see that gold is something that will appreciate definitely. So in terms of the profitability of this business, we have looked at it, the crunch, the numbers we see that is a space that the Bank will definitely earn a lot of income.”

He also expressed optimism that other banks would like to come into the Nigerian mining sector, but may be studying to understand the sector properly.

“Definitely other banks will come into the sector. For us we are leading, but the truth is they need to play in an area and space that they understand, as not everybody would be able to play in that space.

“Heritage Bank has already carved a niche for itself in agribusiness space, just like the Gold commodity, this would be exported. So, in terms of export proceeds too, there are opportunities to be explored. Generally, looking at the Nigerian outlook, on the long run, this will also enhance the country’s external reserves. There are multiplier effects of what we are doing today and that is why we are also moving in this direction,” the MD noted.

Also speaking, Managing Director, Nigeria Export-Import Bank, NEXIM, Abba Bello, revealed that the bank had gone into high level discussions with heavy equipment manufacturers and suppliers that would lease equipment to miners for exploration and processing, adding that this was expected to make the equipment accessible and affordable.

Bello said, “For equipment supplier or outright purchase of equipment, we have gone into discussions with Bluecare and now Mantrac for the supply of heavy equipment for gold processing or exploration on lease basis and, it is something that does not exist currently within the industry.

“Barrick Gold and Bullion Mart is something that happen in the mining world. You don’t have to own the equipment, but there are vendors who supply the equipment for explorers to hire.

“Discussions have gone very far with the equipment suppliers and very soon we will announce the programme.”

Meanwhile, the Country Manager, ITM, Nigeria, Habibah Waziri, raised concerns on human resources development that would sustain the sector.

Waziri also said there is need to formalize the sector and also invest in human capital in the sector for growth and development.

In a bid to boost the nation’s economic growth, Heritage, Zamfara State Government and the Pan African Capital, at the just concluded Russian-African Summit in Sochi, Russia, held a meeting to brief President Muhammad  Buhari on the African Export Import Bank cooperation with Zamfara on solid minerals development put together by the two aforementioned financial institutions.

This is coming on the heels of the signing of $1bn Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in the areas of mining, agriculture, water resources and others, between Afreximbank and Zamfara, which Heritage Bank is the banker to the project.

For many years, until the early 1980s, the Nigerian textile industry was the highest employer of labour, after the public sector. Sadly, the industry is in dire straits battling for survival in recent times.

Among the challenges that confronted the sector were policy inconsistency leading to closure of many textile companies occasioned by poor power supply, smuggling, poor access to finance and high operating cost, among others.

It is unarguable that the closure of many textile companies contributed to the rise in the country’s high unemployment rate, rising insecurity and other social vices.

It is against this backdrop that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor, Mr Godwin Emefiele, recently lamented the country’s descent from being a textile giant to a mediocre player in the world economy.

Emefiele said Nigeria used to be home to Africa’s largest textile industry in the 1970s and early 1980s with the employment of over 450,000 people.

“The textile industry at that time was the largest employer of labour in Nigeria after the public sector, contributing over 25 per cent of the workforce in the manufacturing sector.

“The industry was supported by the production of cotton by 600,000 local farmers across 30 of Nigeria’s 36 states.

“This sector supported the clothing needs of the Nigerian populace, as our markets were filled with locally produced textiles from companies such as the United Textiles in Kaduna, Supertex Limited, Afprint, Texlon, Enpee and Aswani Mills, among others.

“In addition, the cotton growing sector has gone dead, thereby depriving thousands of smallholder farmers the chance to earn a living.

Furthermore, a large proportion of our clothing materials today are imported from China and countries in Europe,” Emeifele stated.

It is against this background that First Bank of Nigeria Ltd, in line with its celebratory 125th anniversary , themed, “Woven into the Fabric of Society”, on Oct. 2 commemorated the country’s independence with a locally made textile attire.

Specifically, the bank set aside Oct. 2 to have all staff wear a locally made textile attire adorned in its 125 anniversary logo and over 18,000 staff across the bank and FBN Holdings participated.

The bank in a statement attributed the initiative to moves to celebrate the country’s 59th Independence anniversary and at the same time support the textile industry.

“The native attire fashion statement by FirstBank and the FBN Holdings Group is rooted in our trust in the diverse opportunities the textile industry provides.

“And indeed its contribution to national growth and development, vis-à-vis the job opportunities, youth and women empowerment, as well as the entrepreneurship driven influence its creates cannot be overemphasised.

“The bank is indeed honored to have been woven into the Fabric of Society in the last 125 years and is committed to keep promoting activities and opportunities that contribute to the growth of the textile industry.” it added.

Apart from the above intitative, FirstBank also provide access to market and provide opportunities for entrepreneurs in the Small Medium Scale Enterprise (SMEs) of the fashion industry with an initiative tagged Fashion Souk.

The bank partners with Eventful Nigeria Ltd with Fashion Souk, a platform that creates an opportunity for players in the fashion industry to exhibit and sell their wares to the thousands of event participants.

The bank also in a bid to ensure sustainability of the industry recently introduced fashion design loan specifically designed to offer financial support to the participants in the textile industry.

The bank’s fashion design loan with a single obligor limit of up to two million naira is targeted at tailors, dressmakers and traders in clothing accessories with no tangible collateral required.

To be eligible for the loan, applicants must have been in line of business for a minimum of three years.

Commenting on the development, Mr Moses Igbrude,  Publicity Secretary,  Independent Shareholders Association of Nigeria (ISAN), described the initiative as a wonderful concept.

“I hope those in the local textiles value chain will key into it and take advantage of this initiative.

“FirstBank should also ensure that the concept is properly communicated to the larger audience to ensure more patronage of locally made textile,” Igbrude said.

He noted that the Federal Government on its part should encourage institutions that are supporting our local industries by way tax incentives.

Also speaking, Mr Shehu Mikail, National President, Constance Shareholders Association of Nigeria, commended the bank’s support for local fabric and the textile industry.

Mikail said that the initiative would boost the morale of interested bodies who would like to venture into local fabric in promoting our culture to the world.

He said that the bank should focus on the fashion designers who would be ready to promote Nigerian mode of dressing to meet the world class in fashion design.

“This will help in promoting Made in Nigeria fabric and it will also encourage an interested investor to venture into textile industry business and this will tranform our economy,” Mikail stated. (NAN)

Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu on Thursday, met with market leaders from Alaba, Trade Fair axis in Lagos West senatorial district. The consultative meeting, which was at the instance of the Governor and coordinated by the Managing Director Fidelity Bank, Mr. Nnamdi Okonkwo, lasted for about 90 minutes and it was centered around the State Government’s plans to improve security and upgrade infrastructure around the markets.

Speaking to newsmen after the meeting, Gov. Sanwo-Olu said the discussion was aimed at fostering collaboration with the traders and to carry them along in the plans of the Government. The Governor said he was pu satisfied with the conditions under which businesses were conducted in the markets, expressing disappointment over the state of roads and absence of relevant public facilities around markets. In fulfilling his campaign promises to the traders, Sanwo-Olu said his administration was prepared to change the condition by investing in infrastructure that would improve the quality of lives and commercial activities in the area.

He said: “We have just finished an interactive meeting with the leaders of various markets around Alaba, ASPAMDA, Trade Fair areas in Lagos West Senatorial District and the discussion was coordinated by our friend in the banking sector, Fidelity Bank. We all agreed that we all have roles to play to address infrastructure and other challenges around the markets. As a government, we are taking up the responsibility to design an all-inclusive model that will improve the economic wellbeing of people around the markets. Once we put infrastructure in place, not only would businesses flourish, employment will also be created.” Aside constructing network of roads surrounding the markets, the Governor said part of the Government’s long-term plans was also to complement the efforts with provision of amenities, including fire stations, clinics, general hospitals and security protections that would aid commercial activities in the markets.

Sanwo-Olu said the market leaders agreed to work with the Government on documenting all businesses in their respective jurisdictions, which would facilitate easy payment and collection of tax for developmental purposes.

The Governor said: “we had conversations around being socially responsible. So, we will see the traders living up to the expectations in terms of doing what they are meant to be doing to support government in the areas of their taxes, wages and levies. We also want to eliminate multiple taxations; any agency that is not meant to be around the market will be stopped.

“We also discussed security issues, and I assured that government would help to improve on the security of lives and properties in the area and the state in general. We will address the menace of Okada riders all around those markets. We will also ensure that the work that is going on around Lagos-Badagry Expressway is well coordinated, so that they can have some relief at various periods of the day, even when construction is going on.”

The Governor said the meeting would not be the last in his engagement with the market leaders, pointing out that Chairmen of local councils in which the traders operate would be invited to subsequent discussions before the start of regeneration work across the markets within the senatorial district.

Fidelity Bank’s Managing Director, Mr. Nnamdi Okonkwo, hailed Sanwo-Olu for partnering with the market leaders to drive the regeneration programme, saying the Governor understood the importance of engagement in leadership. According to him “Fidelity Bank was one of the first banks to open in the area and we understand their challenges from the extensive engagements we do have with them. We bank most of them and when there are issues we come together to interact and find solutions. This is exactly the approach that Gov. Sanwo-Olu is using today. The Governor has outlined a course of action and we also use our knowledge of their needs and working in collaboration with the government, to come up with a model that will work for all stakeholders. The traders are ready to take this collaboration to the end and make sure they have better market conditions so when they want to pay their taxes, they will pay them happily.”

President General of Alaba Amalgamated, Chief Fabian Ezeojika, said the discussion with the Governor and his Deputy was fruitful, promising to mobilise traders to respect the agreement made with the State Government.

Markets and dealers represented at the meeting included Alaba International Market, Auto Spare Parts and Machinery Dealers Association (ASPAMDA), BBA Trade Fair, Alaba Fancy and Furniture Dealers, and Electrical Dealers Association of Nigeria (EDAN), among others