NEWS
SEC Mobilises Capital Market Community to Support Tinubu’s $6trn economy
By Tony Obiechina, Abuja
The Federal Government’s aspiration to grow the nation’s economy by a trillion dollars and $3 trillion within a decade respectively has found expression and allies in the nation’s capital market community.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu had told the business community who gathered at the Nigerian Economic Summit in October that Nigeria’s economy can grow by US$1.
0 trillion and US$3. 0 trillion is possible by 2026 and within 10 years respectively. He added that financing the country’s US $3.0 trillion national infrastructure stock can be achieved in 10 years and not 300 years.According to him, “Building megacities in every geopolitical zone of the size and scale of Lagos, must not take us another six decades.
We can do it in one decade. A fully networked and connected Nigeria by rail, gas, fiber optics and road network can be constructed in less than 20 years.”While some people may consider it as a political statement, the Director-General of the Securities & Exchange Commission Mr. Lamido Yuguda who doubles as Chairman of the Capital Market Committee is confident and optimistic that it can be achieved by unlocking the full potentials of the capital market and aligning it with the Renewed Hope Agenda of the President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, His Excellency Chief Ahmed Bola Tinubu administration.
This he said on Thursday 16th November 2023 at The third 2023 Capital Market Committee (CMC) meeting held at the Federal Palace Hotel, Lagos.
Present were major key decision makers of the capital market and key industry players whom he had invited for the occasion.
Among these were representatives from the National Assembly, the Federal Ministry of Finance, Federal Inland Revenue Service, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Bureau of Public Enterprise (BPE), Asset Management Corporation (AMCON), National Pension Commission (PENCOM), Ministry of Trade and Investment,
Nigeria Investment Promotion Council (NIPC); Representatives of Trade Groups; Chairman of the Senate Committee on Capital Market; Chairman of the House Committee on Capital Market and Institutions; Chief Executive Officers of Nigerian Exchange; Abuja Securities and Commodity Exchange; Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS); and Chartered Institute of Chartered Brokers (CIS); Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON); Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC); Debt Management Office (DMO); Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN); Federal Ministry of Finance (FMF); Federal Mortgage Bank; Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS); Nigerian Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC); Investment and Securities Tribunal (IST); Nigerian Investment Promotion Council (NIPC);
National Insurance Commission (NAICOM); National Pension Commission (PENCOM).
There was no better and appropriate place to consider an effective implementation of such a big ambition. The capital market is the only platform specifically structured to bridge medium-to-long term financial resource gaps for an economy, distinct from the money market segment which is structured for providing short tenured funds of not more than 12 months.
Lagos as mentioned by Mr. President is not a misstatement. It remains the most industrialized state in Nigeria and sub-Saharan Africa. It resorted severally to the capital market to source its funding through issuance of state bonds to finance infrastructure development projects, made possible with supporting disciplined legal processes such as enactment of new Bond Law, establishment of Irrevocable Standing Payment Orders which guaranteed payment to bondholders; the use of a Consolidated Debt Service Account (CDSA) and Sinking Fund for the benefit of bondholders.
At the meeting, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Capital Market, Distinguished Senator Osita B. Izunaso; his Deputy, Distinguished Senator Peter N. Jiya as well as Chairman of the House Committee on Capital Market and Institutions, Hon Solomon T. Bob; and his deputy Hon. Dr. Mukhtar Umar Zakari was unanimous in pledging the readiness of their committees to contribute towards facilitating the development of an ecosystem that would ensure efficient access to capital formation through regular and effective consultation, cooperation and information exchange.
Senator Osita B. Іzunaso, informed the Committee that legislative initiatives such as the repeal of the Investments and Securities Act (ISA) 2007, has already passed 1st and 2nd Reading at the House of Representatives and also 1st reading at the Senate. His immediate assignment would be to help in expediting the process and aiming for submission to the President for assent by the first quarter of 2024.
He then reaffirmed that the envisioned one trillion-dollar economy can be realized through effective collaboration and productive actions in the market.
The various technical committees’ quarterly reports as presented confirmed the resilience of the nation’s capital market and its positive achievements in spite of the global economic and political turmoil, uncertainties and tension, less than expected growth projections and economic, business activities.
Some major achievements paraded include the about-to-be launched revamped e-Dividend portal, a collaborative effort of the e-Dividend Mandate Technical Committee, the Institute of Capital Market Registrars (ICMR) and Nigeria Interbank Settlement System Plc (NIBSS).
The launch of the revamped e-Dividend portal will bring a host of benefits to investors, further minimizing infractions by registrars. The e-Dividend portal is part of the E-Dividend Management System (E-DMMS) which has been seen as a breakthrough in solving the problems of unclaimed dividends in the Nigerian Capital Market, now risen to about #190 billion.
Since its launch on November 23, 2015, it has provided investors with direct access to their dividends while the endemic problem of stale dividend warrants has been eliminated. Furthermore, travelling from one place to another to deposit dividend warrants has been eliminated.
The revamped portal will provide more comprehensive and updated data from 18 out of 19 Registrars.
The dynamics of the non-interest capital market is blossoming as more and more investors enter to participate in successive issuances of Sukuk.
The issuance of the 6th FGN Sukuk by the Debt Management Office (DMO) witnessed a remarkable success in subscription level of 435 percent. There was also a flotation of an additional Shariah-compliant fixed Income fund. Plans are being finalized to expand awareness and engagement of various stakeholders to explore the development of Shariah-compliant Liquidity instruments for the commodities market and more efforts are being made towards the creation of short-term Sukuk with DMO.
Plans are also underway to secure approval of certain standards and the adoption of additional commodity standards that are already sanctioned by the African Organization for Standardization (ARSO)
De-risking the commodities’ ecosystem is also being envisaged to introduce insurance products suitable for the needs of commodities producers and traders.
From the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) there was a +36.67 percent rise in performance of the All Share Index underscoring the market’s resilience in spite of a slow-down in the participation of foreign investors. Improved sentiments among domestic retail investors and attractive yield of some stocks were some of the major contributors to the improved performance.
FMDQ emerged from the 3rd Quarter with a number of good news, including its recent launch of the Nigerian Housing Strategy Blueprint (NHSB) to the Federal Ministry of Housing and Urban Development. It was also reported that all stages of the FMDQ Derivatives Market Development Project have been successfully executed, while necessary regulatory approvals have been secured for additional derivatives products.
A 23 percent growth in the average daily clearing and settlement value brought the Central Clearing and Settlement value to around #10.7 billion in the third quarter of 2023 and a 60 percent increase on a year-on-year basis is good news. It was also noted that monthly investor KYC recorded 8,572 Accounts being updated, amounting to 31 percent increase when compared to Q2, 2023 record.
Capacity building for the Nigerian Capital Market will soon receive a boost , courtesy of the Nigerian Capital Market Institute (NCMI) which has turned around its faculties towards achieving academic excellence and injecting industry experience. Its Board of Directors has approved the introduction of seven (7) new specialized programs on Investment Banking, Compliance, Islamic Finance, Investment Management, Corporate Governance, Commodities Market and Fintech.
The appointment of Mr Anthony Atuche as Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Commodities Exchange and the rebranding of the Agency are welcome developments for revamping the agency and refocusing it for optimum performance. For several years, the organization has been operating under a Transition Management Team. It has now been rebranded as an institution with a private sector outlook but with public sector ownership.
In order to launch out fully towards deploying all its arsenals to support the president’s ambition, more effort must be expanded in the following areas: Digitization; Market modernization; Further collaboration with local and international bodies, e.g. the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO), African Stock Exchange Association (ASEA), multilateral Agencies such as the World Bank; creating more awareness of the benefits of the capital market, non existence of the Non-Interest Pension Funds; establishment of commodities market for Non-Interest instruments; expanding the current limited pool of investment grade potential for corporate Sukuk issuers within the Capital Market, increase the patronage of foreign investors which market has remained skewed domestic investors, the recent reclassification of Nigerian securities indices by FTSE-Russel and MSCI, due to foreign exchange liquidity challenges and its effects on investor confidence.
The Securities & Exchange Commission has noted these challenges and are taking drastic measures to overcome them with new strategies, taking into consideration the detailed and revised Nigerian Capital Market Master Plan 2015–2025 which remains a blueprint for positioning the capital market for efficiency and international competitiveness.
Chief Bode George, a former Deputy National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), has urged President Bola Tinubu to reduce the price of petrol to N300 per litre ,to make things easy for Nigerians during the festive season.
George, the Atona Oodua of Yorubaland, made this plea at an interactive session with newsmen on Wednesday in Lagos.
The price of Premium Motor Spirit, popularly known as petrol, is currently above N1,000 per litre.
According to the elder statesman,Nigerians are going through hardship, the President should give an order to reduce fuel price, specifying time frame the people will enjoy such window of relief.
He said that the federal government as well as well- meaning individuals and businesses could bear the cost of such price slash , to bring happiness to all Nigerians.
The PDP leader, who noted that December and January are special months , said that such gesture could start from the middle of December and run through January.
“I have been thinking, as a Nigerian, what can we do because the anger and the hunger are almost equal on the streets of Nigeria.
“What am I suggesting is that Mr President should sit down with his managers and give an order that from the middle of December to the end of January, the cost of petrol will be N300 per litre.
“The government can absorb the losses in the interest of the suffering people.
“If they (government) want others to contribute, let us know how much that is going to cost and ask people to donate, to bear the cost.
“We will be sending a lot of messages of happiness across the tribes and homes.
“Everybody in Nigeria will be happy because it will positively impact on this period of the year. It is a challenge and he (Tinubu) can do it.
“We need this in this December and January to put smiles on the faces of Nigerians, ” George, a PDP Board of Trustees (BOT) life member, said.
Advising the President to take further measures to bring relief to the people, he said that the gesture would crash prices of essential commodities and services for the benefit of all .
He said that government’s efforts should be concentrated on reducing high inflation rate, unemployment, poverty and youth restlessness in order to create a better future for Nigerians
Speaking on the recent presidential election in Ghana, George noted that Nigeria’s electoral system needed reforms to guard against electoral frauds and manipulations.
According to him, the nation will continue to grope for development if the system fails to encourage best candidates to emerge.
Stating that election must reflect the wishes of the people and be devoid of religious and tribal sentiments, George said that Ghana election should be a wake up call for Nigeria.
“INEC performance must improve. The commission must make sure that the voice of the people is heard in elections.
“Electoral offenders should be made to face the music and sent to jail. We must be very firm about due process, credibility and transparency in elections,” he said.
Urging the President to revisit resolutions in the 2014 Constitutional Conference, George said that the current constitution was not federal in principle and practice.
“We should not deceive ourselves, the constitution is a problem. It is a military constitution, it is not democratic,” he said.
George called on the National Assembly to ensure devolution of powers and electoral reforms that would do away with manual collation of election results and mandate electronic transmission of election results from polling units.
George disagreed with political watchers saying no vacancy in presidency in 2027.
On the dwindling strength of the former ruling party, George, who noted that all organisations had its ups and downs, said that selfish interests and disregard for party rules remained PDP’s major challenge.
He said that PDP could bounce back and win presidential election if the leadership decided to elevate national interest above selfish interests and adhere to the party’s constitution.
“We will tell ourselves some serious old truth. We messed ourselves up. ” he said.
Stating, however, that the PDP was not dead, George said that lack of justice, equity, fairness and the inability to adhere to the party’s zoning and rotational principle cost the party victory in 2023.
Calling on the party’s founding fathers alive to wake up and rescue the party, George said that Nigerians were still waiting for the former ruling party to take over power and put things right. (NAN)
President Bola Tinubu, is set to perform the groundbreaking of 2,000 housing units of the Renewed Hope City in Ibeju Lekki, Lagos, in the next few weeks.
Mr Ahmed Dangiwa, Minister of Housing and Urban Development, announced this during an official assessment visit, on Wednesday in Lagos
Dangiwa said Lagos would represent the South-west, while the president would do that of the North-West in Kano, before doing that of the four other regions.
“Arrangements is already on ground, we have gotten sites, and work has commenced for 2000 houses in the Renewed Hope City that we intend to build in Ibeju-Lekki,” he said.
Towards achieving the set goal, the minister said the visiting team also paid a courtesy visit to Gov.
Babajide Sanwo-Olu to discuss area of collaboration between the federal and state governments.He disclosed that the federal and Lagos state governments had agreed to set up a Tripartite committee and ensure all the issues of concerns between the parties were resolved amicably for the benefit of all.
Earlier, the Minister embarked on an assessment visit of deplorable Federal Government buildings and assets across Lagos state in a bid to commence rehabilitation on them in a few months.
Dangiwa said the rehabilitation was necessary as the deplorable buildings posed a challenge and security concerns to the Lagos state government. (NAN)
Gov. Hyacinth Alia on Wednesday presented the sum of N550.1bn as the 2025 appropriation bill to the Benue State House of Assembly for consideration and passage into law.
Alia told the lawmakers that out of the total budget size, N175.4 billion is for recurrent expenditure while the N374.
7 billion is for capital expenditure.The governor said that the total estimate represented a 47.
5 per cent increment over the 2024 revised and approved figure of N373 billion.He stated that the appropriation bill tagged “Budget of Human Capital Development, Food Security, and Digital Economy” was to consolidate the gains made in 2024.
Alia further explained that the proposed recurrent expenditure of N175.
4 billion was 13.55 per cent higher than the previous year.According to him, budgeted capital expenditure of N374.7 billion represents a 71.5 per cent increment on the 2024 revised capital expenditure.
“The budget breakdown indicated that the sum of N212.2 billion, representing 38.52 per cent is for administration; N196.6 billion, representing 35.68 per cent is for the economy; law and justice will take N26.6 billion, representing 4.84 per cent while social welfare will gulp N115.5 billion, representing 20.96 per cent.
“We have the vision. We have the will. And most importantly, we have the people ready to work alongside us to turn this vision into reality.
“Together, we will build a state where every citizen has the opportunity to succeed, where food is plentiful, and where the digital economy opens new frontiers of opportunity for all,” he said.
The governor said the intention of the government was to stay within the limits of its recurring revenue to build the state without accruing unnecessary debts for generations unborn.
He, however, said that since the 2025 budget was a deficit one, it proposed a borrowing plan of a conservative sum of N26bn, representing a modest 4.7 per cent of the proposed aggregate expenditure for 2025.
“This is lower than the state’s debt-to-GDP ratio of 8.2 per cent which is within the benchmark of the 25 per cent debt sustainability threshold.
“Despite these favourable debt ratios, I want to reiterate that borrowing will only be considered as a last resort and for regenerative investment purposes,” he added.
Alia stated that the problem of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) remained a challenge, adding that they have reasonably improved their living conditions.
He said the Bureau of International Cooperation and Development has elicited substantial grants from donors, totalling N85bn. (NAN)
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