PPP panacea for infrastructure advancement says Danbatta – ITREALMS

ITREALMS ... making leadership SENSE with digital news!

The Public-Private Partnership (PPP) has been described as the panacea for resilient infrastructure development for the advancement of digital economy, reports ITREALMS.

EVC of NCC, Prof. Umar Garba Danbatta

This was the position taken by the Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Prof. Umar Garba Danbatta, in a keynote at a panel session during a two-day 2021 virtual conference and exhibition on Information Communication Technology & Telecommunications (ICTEL) organised by the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), on Tuesday, July 27, this year with overarching theme: ‘Disruptions, Resilience and Governance in Digital Economy.’

Pantami says ICT, panacea to sustain national development

ITREALMS:

… As NITDA emerges MDA of the Year @BoICT’18

The Director General of National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Dr Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami, has said that Information and Communication Technology (ICT) is panacea to sustaining national development, reports ITRealms.

This is coming as NITDA emerged the NITDA emerged the Government Agency of the Year, while it’s Director General/CEO Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami was proclaimed the Public Sector CEO of the Year, at the just concluded Beacon of Information and Communication Technology (BoICT) Awards held on Saturday at Eko Hotels and Suites, Victoria Island Lagos.

Dr Pantami, represented by the Head of Corporate Affairs and External Relations Unit of NITDA, Hajiya Hadiza Umar, said in a keynote address that, the theme, ‘Leveraging ICT Value for Building Institutions’, aligns well with the growing movement to use ICT to foster sustainable development in institutions.

This theme, he said, is echoed in both the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP) of the Federal Government.

“Accountable, inclusive, effective and smart institutions are necessary to achieve the SDGs, whether the goal is quality education, zero hunger, improved healthcare, economic growth or innovation. All the goals are to be driven by institutions and ICT provides a ready tool to attain these goals,” Pantami said.

He revealed that Nigerians, institutions and indeed the nation can experience a high level of sustainable development through the effective use of ICT, stressing that “data is the new oil and organisations can now use data to create wealth”

Citing example with an average smartphone which he said, could have as many as 10 sensors. And with about 144 million active mobile lines in Nigeria, a sizable portion of which are smartphones, potentially giving us access to large volumes of data. With Artificial Intelligence and Big Data Analytics, such data can be translated into actionable insights for that would lead to sustainable development in the country, he noted.

While urging captains of industries in the ICT sector to support ICT capacity building efforts both within their institutions and within the ICT Startup ecosystem, he stressed that the future of the ICT industry depends on it.

He added that, “as a country we expend vast sums to deploy ICT solutions both in the public and the private sectors but some of these projects are not sustainable because the main parts of the project are deployed and sustained by foreign partners. The Executive Orders #3 and #5 and the NITDA Local Content Guidelines aim to check this. It is important that the ICT industry supports the implementation of these Orders and Guidelines as they are the surest way of building our institutions and developing the ICT sector of our dear nation.”

The climax of the event witnessed honours of awards to deserving institutions, organisations and individuals who were voted online by ICT stakeholders and the general public.  NITDA emerged the Government Agency of the Year while it’s Director General/CEO Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami is the Public Sector CEO of the Year.

The event has in attendance Dr Leo Stan Ekeh, Founder/Chairman, Zinox Group and Chairman of the occasion; former NCC, EVC Dr Ernest Ndukwe, Chairman, Open Media Group; Femi Adeoti, Managing Director Inlaks; Ayotunde Coker, Managing Director Rack Centre; Ike Nnamani, President/ CEO of Medallion Communications Limited; Mr Olusola Teniola, President, Association of Telecoms Companies of Nigeria(ATCON) among others.

Nenye Dom/GEE

ITREALMS ... everything news digitally!

Restructuring panacea to growth, development - Martins

Sundaysermon@ITREALMS:

The Metropolitan Archbishop of Lagos, His Grace, Most Rev Dr. Alfred Adewale Martins has reiterated that for Nigeria to successfully toe the path of growth and development, it must, of essence, be restructured along true federalism as the current bloated structure of governance had become obsolete, reports ITRealms.

In his 2017 Christmas Message made public through the Director, Social Communications, Catholic Archdiocese of Lagos, Msgr. Gabriel Osu, Archbishop Martins warned that any attempt by the political class to jettison the full restructuring of the country as is being clamoured for by the masses and members of the civil societies, would not only set the nation back, but may equally constitute a clog in the wheel of the successful execution of the 2019 elections.

While noting with dismay that the political class, including the ruling party has since commenced their usual flurry of activities ahead of the 2019 election, Archbishop Martins called on Nigerians not to allow themselves to be deceived anymore by mere rhetoric and promises but to insist on the building of appropriate and realistic political structures that would help guaranty that they enjoy access to good quality of life and self actualization in line with God’s plans for His creatures.

Archbishop Martins equally frowned at the recent inhuman treatment being meted on Nigerian immigrants and those of other African countries by some Libyans and their collaborators who sell them into bondage for monetary gains. According to him, such indignity being meted on Africans by fellow Africans, is not only repulsive and evil, but a clear indictment of the leadership for failing to provide the enabling environment for African youth to have access to basic necessities of life.

He therefore wants the Nigerian government to as a matter of urgency declare a state of emergency on the economy so as to rescue the nation out of the woods and set-up a realistic road map that would stabilize the naira and help the private sector create viable industries that would provide adequate job opportunities for the teeming youths who are growing more restless by the day.

“We need to be true to ourselves. We cannot be talking of 2019 when little is being done at the moment to address the rot in the system. Our people are going hungry daily, our youths are dying in their quest for better options to life outside our shores and yet our leaders appear more concern with how to clinch to power. I think the time has come for all of us to reason together to resolve and restructure the current the lopsided political structures we are currently operating and set up realistic goals that would help move us forward. Except all these are given top priority, I fear that the 2019 election may end up a mirage, after all.”

While congratulating all Christians on the occasion of the birth of Christ, Archbishop Martins reminded them to always put their trust in Jesus Christ who is the reason for the season, noting that the season of Advent should also enable us to prepare with hope and expectation for the second coming of our Lord and saviour, Jesus Christ.

Nonye Dom/GEE

ITREALMS ... everything news digitally!

Nigeria: Multilateral loans, panacea for recession?

Commentary@ITRealms:

 Olutayo Isaac writes that the federal government’s decision to seek external help from international organisations is perhaps one of the best economic decisions the President Muhammadu Buhari-led government has taken in response to the country being in recession

The federal government may not be left with too many options to get Nigeria out of its current economic crisis as fast as Nigerians expect. But the recent announcement of seeking external help from international organisations, perhaps, remains one of the best economic decisions the President Muhammadu Buhari-led government has taken in response to the country being in recession.

Buhari at a recent Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting approved a new external borrowing plan to retract the country from the scourge of recession which has impacted eating deep and fast negatively on the nation’s economy.

Data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has indicated negative growth (a fall by -2.1%) for three months to the end of June 2016. This makes it the second successive quarter of negative growth report.

Economists are agreed that a negative economic growth for two consecutive quarters is recession. It is a period of economic decline during which trade and industrial activity are reduced. It is generally indicated by a fall in GDP in two successive quarters.

Experts have fingered the mono-product nature of the Nigerian economy as one the main reasons why the country has found itself in the current economic crisis. The nation is largely known to be an oil dependent economy, therefore facing the repercussions of lack of diversification.

The NBS puts inflation rate in Nigeria at 17.1 percent year-on-year in July of 2016, following a 16.5 percent increase in the previous month, compared to market expectation of 17.15 percent rise. It was the highest record since October 2005 as weak naira keeps pushing up food prices.

For an economy that has largely depended on revenues from crude oil production, coping with the crash in oil prices, which has by extension resulted in inflation and foreign exchange scarcity, it is indeed high time it sought help externally in ways that would once again stimulate economic activities.

Seeking External Help

Borrowing from multilateral organisations is not an uncommon practice by nations faced with economic challenges. As a matter of fact, some developed nations depend heavily on borrowing to sustain their economies. It has been argued that such countries that borrow from international organisations to support investment will always be better off in the future if the investments are profitable.

In as much as Nigerians would be supportive of the idea of reducing the country’s external debt, many would frown at government policies that advocate increase in VAT, higher pension age and the likes. There are assumptions that it is even more politically damaging for a government to increase taxes than to borrow, particularly in a period of recession such as Nigeria is faced with.

The Federal Government, at this point in Nigeria’s economy, has a legitimate reason and the best opportunity on its decision to borrow externally, particularly when such borrowing would be tied to major capital projects which would in turn raise the standard of living of citizens.

Capital projects and infrastructure spending have always been indications of economic growth over the long terms in any economy. If the federal government makes huge infrastructural investments, quality jobs can be created and the Nigerian economy can once again gain confidence that it requires.

In essence, the federal government must invest massively in infrastructural projects such as roads, refineries, power, transportation, etc.

The federal government will have to source or take only project driven loans with single digit interest rates. That is the government should be looking out particularly for multilateral loans with very low interest rates and with long duration of repayment period; twenty five to thirty years.

Multilateral funding sources remain important sources of funding for governments looking to better livelihoods in their nations. Many of these sources have at the core of agenda, poverty alleviation projects, environmental projects and the likes. Basically, they pay attention to capital projects that have the potentials to improve peoples’ lives.

The benefits tied to borrowing from multilateral lenders cannot be over emphasised as Nigeria has been encouraged to seek economic help from these institutions.

The IMF managing director, Christine Lagarde, during her visit earlier in the year, advised Nigeria to seek economic help from international institutions, specifically noting that the IMF was willing and ready to assist Nigeria if it sought help from the institution.

She emphasised the urgent need for the country to massively diversify its economy in order to stop depending exclusively on dwindling oil revenues.

Nigeria is obviously not buoyant enough to embark on the massive diversification process. This indeed is the right time to look for help from external sources. If the fund the Federal Government intends to borrow from multilateral sources is properly invested, the economy can be sure to find its feet once again.

Due to the autonomous nature of most multilateral agencies, interactions between them and the federal government, while official, can remain less politicised when compared to inter-governmental links or even from the Nigerian capital market or private sector.

Multilateral loans are also usually characterised by single digit interest rates.

Loans sourced from multilateral organisations are largely characterised by rigid auditing and reporting, hence capital projects agreed upon by the federal government and the lender are more likely to reach full execution with less or no compromise because these agencies will monitor economic developments and new policies by the government and ensure that existing conditions are kept.

The Hitches

Borrowing from multilateral sources however comes with tedious processes due to their regional and global structures. Their policies and priorities are usually determined through complex consultative processes between members and partners.

Also, influencing their priorities sometimes to align with what the government may feel is best for its people could be daunting. The federal government may have to go through some of these cumbersome procedures which usually require some time.

The IMF for instance under concessional and non-concessional arrangements approved by the IMF Executive Board require the member to observe specific terms and subject to periodic reviews in order to continue to draw upon the loans.

However, when one looks at the benefits of borrowing externally, the hitches attached to the process become of less concern.

The Director General of Debt Management Office (DMO), Dr. Abraham Nwankwo, during a speech at a workshop held in Kaduna State said that the Nigerian economy remains resilient and diversifiable despite the nation’s huge debts. He encouraged the Federal Government to draw on the positive side of borrowing.

According to the DMO, Nigeria’s external debt profile now stands at $11 billion with the domestic debt hitting 11 Trillion Naira (about $55.2 billion). The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) revealed that external Debt in the nation averaged 375.33 USD Million from 2008 until 2015.

It was initially argued that the country’s debt profile can best be maintained by reducing the level of external borrowing and increasing the rate of domestic borrowing; precisely 84% domestic borrowing to 16% external borrowing.

The implication of this however is that the federal government would have to depend largely on the nation’s private sector that is already enmeshed in the ongoing recession in order to run the economy. In essence, the country cannot sustainably depend on the private sector to bring the country out of recession.

More so, when compared to multilateral loan, domestic borrowing comes short of two things among others; first, it lacks the open-handedness to give very low interest rates and secondly, they don’t have the luxury of convenient grace periods.

*Olutayo Isaac contributed this piece.

ITREALMS ... everything news digitally!

FG says ‘National Addressing System, panacea against crime’

ITRealms:

The Federal Government has described the holistic National Addressing System (NAS) as the panacea against crime in the country, reports ITRealms.

Speaking through the Communications Ministry, the Federal Government urged for the establishment of a national addressing system nationwide.

According to a press release made available to ITRealms by the Special Assistance on Media to Minister of Communications, Victor Oluwadamilare, this was contained in a presentation by the acting Post Master General of Federation, Mr. CYB Ndahi, to the minister of in Abuja.

 According to him, the new development will help individual to secure a legal identity, facilitating the planning and implementation of public policies and to fight against any national disasters and diseases.

He further explained that this is necessary to reinforce national and international security and helps in sending mails, adding that people need addresses to be recognized as members of their communities.

“The national addressing system will help individual secure a legal identity and facilitate the planning and implementation of public policies and services. It is also useful to fight against national disasters and diseases. It will reinforce national and international security and enable tax levy better and dispatch emergency services.”

Ndahi maintained that the establishment of national addressing system is the only way to control criminality and fight corruption, adding that government should do all in its capacity to ensure it work out.

“Banks and other commercial institutions need accurate addresses to locate their customers against fraudulent activities. Water boards and electrical distribution companies need accurate addresses for distribution of their bills and revenue collection, he noted.”

ITREALMS ... everything news digitally!