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Students from Nasarawa, Ondo and Lagos State to Represent Nigeria at International Spelling-Bee Competition in Dubai

Students from Nasarawa, Ondo and Lagos State to Represent Nigeria at International Spelling Bee Competition in Dubai

Schools from Nasarawa, Ondo and Lagos State recently emerged winners at the recently concluded ninth edition of the International Spelling Bee Nigeria, organised by Peat Philips Foundation, while six students outwitted other finalists at the national final which took place at Marcellina’s place in Ikeja, Lagos.

Agbo Divine Capable of Intimacy with Christ International School, Nasarawa came first in the senior category while Miss David Kate Ene also of Intimacy with Christ International School, Nasarawa and Master Charles David from Greater Tomorrow International School Ondo State came second and third respectively.

The junior category was won by Ojochenemi Solomon Ojotumale of Intimacy with Christ International School, Nasarawa, and Fakande Ifeoluwa David of The Truth Academy Lagos and Odunlami Temiloluwa Janet of Bopton Nry & Pry School, Lagos coming second and third respectively.

Speaking at the national final of this year’s The Spelling Bee Nigeria Competition, the Team Lead at Peat Philips Foundation, organisers of the competition, Mr Akinleye Olu-Philips, said such competitions would build the knowledge of participants, boost their memory and confidence, as well as create healthy competitive spirit.
“Spelling bee involves the use of words and how it is applied in communication”. We believe that when the young ones are taught to develop critical thinking ability at early stage, it will help equip them as great leaders in adulthood. When a word is called out to be spelt, a participant should not assume what it could mean and that is why the participant has the right to ask relevant questions, which are known as the Lifelines. For instance, reign and rain may sound similar, but they are not the same. That is telling the participant not to assume, assumption could be dangerous at times.

“Assumption is one of the factors that is drawing us back in our nation”. The competition is also to help participants develop critical thinking skills. Today ’s world requires people who can think out of the box. Critical thinkers are needed for the growth of our society,” he said.

The Team Lead at Peat Philips Foundation, Mr. Akinleye Olu-Phillips, said spelling enhances education by improving students’ critical reasoning skills and helps Learners develop poise and composure.

“It also encourages reading because if you are a reader, you will be a great speller, and you will have depth and can contribute meaningfully to the development of any nation you find yourself in,” stated Olu-Phillips.

He said the foundation runs two literacy programmes, with international affiliations, The spelling bee and The young orators, which are focused on leadership and communications, believed to be one of the country’s major challenges.
While congratulating the winners, he advised them not to rest on their oars but to study hard and prepare for the intercontinental stage in the first week of October, 2022.

The event this year was sponsored by Learn Africa Plc formerly known as Longman Publishers with support from Indomie Noodles and Rite Foods Plc.

In his speech, the Managing Director, Learn Africa Plc, Alhaji Hassan Bala said Spelling Bee Competition would improve students Spelling and vocabulary and boost their confidence. He said Learn Africa dictionaries comprising Learn Africa Student’s English Dictionary for intermediate students and Learn Africa English Dictionary for Advanced Learners are the official dictionaries of the International Spelling Bee and The Young Orators competitions in Nigeria.

Redefining supply chain in Nigeria’s retail market space

Redefining Supply Chain in Nigeria’s retail market space

There is hardly a neighbourhood in the country where a retailer is not found and a vacuum automatically gets created in the absence of a formal retail store on any street.

The retail business is growing with the redefinition of how supply meets demand. Most recently, retailers need not worry on how to restock their stores with groceries as technology is being deployed by fast rising business to business (B2B) firms.

This evolution is bringing more fulfilment to retailers, wholesalers, manufacturers and these tech firms that play the middleman role with their services readily accessible online and offline.

A micro business owner, Aliyu Bala Idala in Kano is happy that Alerzo, a B2B e-commerce firm goes the extra mile by offering free delivery of goods he orders.

He shared:”I do buying and selling in Kachachi market, a local government in Kano. I sell provisions and food items at wholesale prices. I have been running this business for the past 10 years. We give glory to God that I have been doing business with Alerzo for the past two years and I am happy doing business with them.

“In the past, we usually wouldn’t get goods delivered to us. We would go round the markets buying from one shop to the other. But now we don’t go through the stress of going to the markets; we order what we want and they deliver to us at our shop. This is a big achievement for Alerzo.”

Not only that he and other traders get his goods delivered at the right time for free by Alerzo, he added that Alerzo empowered them with PoS machines, “We enjoy making use of the PoS. It helps in our daily dealings with customers.

Bayelsa Govt. seeks Heritage Bank support on Youth Development in sport

Daniel Igali; Commissioner for Youths and Sports, Bayelsa State; Osepiribo Ben-Willie, Directorate Head, South-South, South-East & Private Wealth Management; Senator Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo, Deputy Governor; Jude Monye, Executive Director, Heritage Bank and Hon. Tare Porri, Chairman House Committee on Sports – Bayelsa state house of assembly during a courtesy call by the officials of Bayelsa State Government on the Management of the Bank, at Heritage’s Head Office in Lagos recently

The Bayelsa State Government has indicated interest in partnering Heritage Bank Plc on youth empowerment and sport development.

The Deputy Governor, Senator Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo disclosed the interest of the State Government during a courtesy call with the Commissioner for Youths and Sports, Daniel Igali and others on the Management of the Bank, at Heritage’s Head Office in Lagos recently.

Ewhrudjakpo expressed the State Government’s readiness to collaborate with Heritage Bank to empower youths and develop sports at all levels with the intent to put measures in place to play-up their socio-economic wellbeing and for the identification and development of budding talents.

He also commended Heritage Bank for its pivotal role in enhancing youth development and supporting the entrepreneurial spirit for economic growth.

“We believe with that, there is going to be first, removing our youths from drugs dependency and we are also using them to win.

We really want to see how Heritage Bank can partner with us or support of which we have adequate publicity,” he stated.

Meanwhile, Ewhrudjakpo affirmed that Governor Douye Diri-led administration would do everything within its reach to foster a mutually beneficial partnership.

Whilst responding, the Executive Director of the Bank, Jude Monye who welcomed the delegates assured the Deputy Governor of Heritage’s readiness to support the Bayelsa Government on youth empowerment and sport development.

He noted that with the bank’s feats toward empowering young Nigerians and sport development showed the bank has strong desire towards developing and positioning youths to become world-class citizens equipped and ready to be absorbed into an increasing competitive professional skills and endeavours.

Monye further disclosed that Heritage Bank have been at the forefront of supporting good courses involving youth and sport, whilst reiterating the bank’s MD/CEO, Ifie Sekibo’s readiness to partner with Bayelsa State Government.

“On behalf of the CEO and the Board, I want to say, we will support the course of Bayelsa State as far as sports in concerned. Whether it is wrestling, athletic, football, soccer, we will be part of it,” he assured.

Adding, the ED said, “We have always supported good courses; we are a small bank and relatively new. We will support the Bayelsa State Government because we want to see the youth brought out of drug peddling and drug consumption to where their life can be useful.”

He recalled that when it concerns youth empowerment and sport development, the Bank had carved a niche in collaborating with public and private organisations, especial state governments such as Lagos, Rivers State, Ibadan amongst others to build a culture of sports together with the formal education and entrepreneurship in a bid to secure the future of the teaming population.

“As a bank, we have done something in sports known as schoolympics which was organised by the bank, partnered with the 3rd Edition of the annual Lagos Value Jet Para Table Tennis championship, Ibadan Golf Club’s 30th anniversary, 14th edition of the West African Universities Game (WAUG), partnered with Lagos State Government to back the 3rd Edition of the annual Lagos Value Jet Para Table Tennis championship, 2014 Port Harcourt Amateur Open Golf Championship, IBB Golf Tournament in Abuja to list but few,” he hinted.

According to him, “Heritage Bank believes in development. We have the tenacity to develop, and sport is a way of developing Nigerians both young and old to help foster their physical, social, and emotional wellbeing. It is a well-known fact that physical education and sports help in character and community building, delinquency reduction, community safety, economic and social development.”

Monye further noted that the drive to continue in the support of youths was to create, preserve and transfer wealth across generations.

He explained that the entrepreneur schemes of the bank in the support for business especially among the youths have always focused on dependable job-creating sectors, such as agricultural value chain (fish farming, poultry, snail farming), cottage industry, mining and solid minerals, creative industry (tourism, arts, and crafts), and Information and Communications Technology (ICT).

Ecobank Nigeria Extends Remittance Services To Business Accounts Holders

Ecobank Nigeria has extended its innovative remittance services to its business account holders. This implies that Business Account holders can now receive funds sent through Ecobank Rapidtransfer or any of its Remittance franchise partners through the Business to Business (B2B), Business to Customer (B2C) and Customers to Business (C2B) transaction types directly into their business accounts. The bank is also working to enlist other International Money Transfer Operators (IMTOs) for a more robust remittance offering.

Disclosing this in Lagos, Head of Consumer Banking Korede Demola – Adeniyi, said the launch of the service affords business owners in Nigeria to receive monies sent by both individuals and corporate organizations anywhere in the world instantly to their Ecobank domiciliary accounts, stating that the bank has put in place seamless account opening procedures for those who do not have domiciliary accounts for them to enjoy the service. She maintained that the development is in line with the bank’s strategy to provide accessible remittance services to Nigerians, listing the various channels which these remittances can be accessed as Rapidtransfer app, Ecobank Mobile App, Ecobank Online, and any of the bank branches.

“For us as a bank, we are excited about these and other future collaborations as our contributions to drive remittance inflows into the country, promotes trade and foreign direct investments, create businesses, spur entrepreneurship, and generally develop the Nigerian economy. Some of the benefits for business account holders includes no limits to how much they can receive, no hidden charges and there is also the opportunity to invest the funds received in foreign currency at a competitive rate.” “The Rapidtransfer is our proprietary product. It is licensed by the nation’s apex bank; Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) as an international money transfer product and it is also licensed in Europe. Diaspora remittances can be sent from anywhere in the world using the Rapidtransfer app – available for download in the Google play and iOS stores.”

ZENITH BANK RANKED NUMBER ONE TIER-1 BANK IN NIGERIA FOR THE THIRTEENTH YEAR IN A ROW IN THE 2022 TOP 1000 WORLD BANKS RANKING

Zenith Bank Plc has been ranked as the Number One Bank in Nigeria by Tier-1 Capital in the 2022 Top 1000 World Banks Ranking published by The Banker Magazine. For the thirteenth consecutive year, the Bank retained its position as the number one Tier-1 bank in Nigeria with a Tier-1 Capital of $2.75 billion, emerging as the 460th Bank globally.

The ranking, which was published in the July 2022 edition of The Banker Magazine of the Financial Times Group, United Kingdom, was based on the 2021 year-end Tier-1 capital of banks globally. Zenith Bank’s financial performance for the year was underpinned by double-digit growth of 10% in gross earnings, with an improved market share in both retail and corporate sectors despite a very challenging macroeconomic environment aggravated by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Commenting on the 2022 Top 1000 World Banks Ranking, the Group Managing Director/CEO of Zenith Bank Plc, Mr. Ebenezer Onyeagwu, said: “This ranking is a testament to our resilience and doggedness as an institution despite economic headwinds and a persistent challenging macroeconomic environment. Indeed, being ranked as the Number One Bank in Nigeria by Tier-1 Capital for the thirteenth year in a row underscores our commitment to sustaining the superior performance we are renowned for and creating value for our highly esteemed customers.” He expressed his appreciation to the Founder and Chairman of Zenith Bank Plc, Jim Ovia, CON, for his guidance and for laying the foundation and building the structures of an enduring and very successful institution; the Board for the outstanding leadership they provide; the staff, whose drive and commitment sustains the exceptional performance; and the Bank’s customers for their unflinching loyalty to the Zenith brand.

Tier 1 Capital describes capital adequacy, which is the core measure of a bank’s financial strength from a regulator’s point of view. According to the ranking, Tier 1 Capital, as deﬁned by the latest Bank for International Settlements (BIS) guidelines, includes loss-absorbing capital, i.e. common stock, disclosed reserves, retained earnings and minority interests in the equity of subsidiaries that are less than wholly owned.

Zenith Bank’s track record of excellent performance has continued to earn the brand numerous awards, with this latest accolade coming on the heels of several recognitions, including being recognised as the Best Bank in Nigeria for three consecutive years from 2020 to 2022, in the Global Finance World’s Best Banks Awards; Best Commercial Bank, Nigeria 2021 and 2022 in the World Finance Banking Awards; Best Corporate Governance Bank, Nigeria in the World Finance Corporate Governance Awards 2022; Best in Corporate Governance ‘Financial Services’ Africa, for three consecutive years from 2020 to 2022, by the Ethical Boardroom; Best Commercial Bank, Nigeria and Best Innovation In Retail Banking, Nigeria in the International Banker 2022 Banking Awards; and Bank of the Year (Nigeria) in The Banker’s Bank of the Year Awards 2020. Also, the Bank emerged as the Most Valuable Banking Brand in Nigeria in the Banker Magazine Top 500 Banking Brands 2020 and 2021, and the Retail Bank of the year at the BusinessDay Banks and Other Financial Institutions (BOFI) Awards 2020 and 2021.

Similarly, Zenith Bank was honoured as Bank of the Decade (People’s Choice) at the ThisDay Awards 2020 and emerged winner in four categories at the Sustainability, Enterprise, and Responsibility (SERAS) Awards 2021, carting home the awards for “Best Company in Reporting and Transparency”, “Best Company in Infrastructure Development”, “Best Company in Gender Equality and Women Empowerment”, and the coveted “Most Responsible Organisation in Africa.

Singer Hice King Drops ‘Child of Nobody’

Sensational singer and songwriter Hice King is gradually putting his feet down in the Nigerian music industry, born Okon Samuel Monday, in Uyo LGA of Akwa-Ibom State, he sojourn to Lagos began when he lost his late grandparents who trained him since he was a baby in a little farming village in Cross-Rivers State.

According to the budding music star his relocation to Lagos was not as smooth as he had expected, in his words “When I moved to Lagos I was only able to work for 7 months and since then it has been very difficult to get another job, it was very tough as accommodation and feeding were just by the grace of God.

“I was sleeping from one church member’s house to another and whenever that is not possible I will sleep either in an uncompleted building or under bridge, friends and families could not help as it was generally tough, it got to an extent that I begin to lose hope in myself. It was all that I am facing that gave me the inspiration behind the song ‘Child of Nobody’ which is to explain the kind of hardship I had faced and ones that I am still facing”. He explained.

The new song is an easy sing along song which talks about the hardship on day to of every young men aspiring to make ends meet, it is full of positive talks and thought. it is currently available on all music streaming sites and app and the last check shows that the stream for it is gradually climbing up.

Arsenal Demolish Chelsea In Pre-Season Match

Premier League side, Arsenal in the early hours of Sunday defeated thier opponent, Chelsea 4-0 in a pre-season friendly in Florida, Unites States of America.
Gabriel Jesus, who only joined Arsenal from Manchester City earlier this month, continued his impressive pre-season form with another goal during the encounter.

Jesus took his goal tally to four goals in three games for his new club in a clinical win for the Gunners in front of 63,811 fans at Orlando’s Camping World Stadium.

It was another encouraging performance for Mikel Arteta’s side, who took control of the game with two first-half goals after dominating the opening 45 minutes.

Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel could not hide his anger during a lacklustre first-half display from his team, who were repeatedly exposed by Arsenal’s nimble counter-attacking.

The Blues had one promising attack after five minutes when new signing Raheem Sterling played Timo Werner into space, but French defender William Saliba snuffed out the danger with a solid covering tackle.

Arsenal should have opened the scoring moments later, when Gabriel Martinelli burst clear on the counter.

The Brazilian passed to Bukayo Saka but the English international’s shot was saved by Chelsea goalkeeper Edouard Mendy.

The Arsenal pressure finally told in the 15th minute with a goal that came after Chelsea’s Nathaniel Chalobah surrendered possession with a misplaced pass that went straight to Granit Xhaka.

The Swiss international played a superb first time ball into Jesus who coolly chipped over the advancing Mendy to make it 1-0.

Martin Odegaard made it 2-0 to the Gunners in the 36th minute with another well-worked move.

Martinelli’s pass found the Norwegian playmaker in space inside the Chelsea area, and the attacking midfielder turned smoothly and tucked a low finish past Mendy.

Chelsea’s best chance of a lacklustre half came in stoppage time when Mason Mount curled a shot from the edge of the area which beat Aaron Ramsdale but crashed back off a post.

Arsenal extended their lead midway through the second half when Saka buried a rebound from close range after Mendy parried Xhaka’s long-range strike.

Arsenal continued to create chances but had to wait until injury time for their fourth goal when Albert Sambi Lokonga headed past Mendy after a superb cross from the right by Portuguese international Cedric.

Terrorists Flog Victims Of Kaduna Train Attack, Threaten To Kidnap Buhari, El-Rufai, Senators

A new video released by terrorists that kidnapped the victims of the Kaduna – Abuja train attack has shown how the abducted victims were been assaulted and flogged amidst tears and agony.

The victims were seen in the video begging their oppressors as they were indiscriminately whipped by unmasked and masked men, who surrounded them.

The video also showed the women watching in agony.

Addressing the federal government, a representative of the terrorists threatened to enslave and sell some of the victims if their demands are not.

“This is our message to the government of Nigeria and just as you have seen these people here, by God’s grace, you will see your leaders; your senators and governors will come before us.

“These ones you are seeing here, we will keep some as our slaves and sell them off just as our Imam told you in the past.

“Just like the Chibok girls that were sold off, we will equally sell these ones as slaves. If you don’t adhere to our demands, we will kill the ones we need to kill and sell the remaining. By God’s grace, El-Rufai, Buhari, we will bring you here”.

Pleading to the government, one of the victims called on the international community and the United Nations to intervene and facilitate their release.

He stressed that the captors were not willing to be lenient any further and as such, the government should meet the demands of terrorists in exchange for their freedom.

On March 28, terrorists abducted at least 63 passengers from an inbound Kaduna – Abuja train.

They revealed that the abduction was not financially motivated, but for the release of some of their commanders incarcerated in various facilities of the government.

However, reports have shown otherwise as 13 victims who were earlier released on different occasions were said to have paid huge ransoms for their freedom.

THE WHISTLER had authoritatively gathered that the terrorists have demanded N100m each for the release of the victims.

The last released seven had paid no less than N800m.

Erik Ten Hag Gives Update About Ronaldo’s Situation At Man Utd

Manchester United manager, Erik ten Hag says he will focus on the players he has in the club for now rather than lose sleep over the absence of Cristiano Ronaldo.
Ten Hag says he will continue pre-season with the available players as nothing has changed about the situation of Ronaldo.

Naija News understands Ronaldo is yet to turn up for pre-season training after he asked to leave the club.

But with just about two weeks to the start of a new season, the United manager says his focus is on players available at his disposal and whenever Ronaldo returns, they can look at how to integrate him.

“It is the same as last week,” Ten Hag responded when asked about the situation with Ronaldo.

“But concerning is maybe not the right word. I focus on the players who are there, they are doing really well, they are in good shape.

“I prefer to focus on that and develop that. I cannot wait for him to come in, then we will integrate him,” he added.

Naija News reports Manchester United will play their first game of the 2022/2023 campaign at home to Brighton.

BREAKING: United Nations Orders Buhari Govt To Immediately Release IPOB’s Nnamdi Kanu

The United Nations, UN Human Rights Council Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, has ordered for the immediate release of of the Leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu.
The UN indicted both Nigeria and Kenya Governments for the arrest and extraordinary rendition, torture and continued detention of Nnamdi Kanu without due process.

More details to come…