BUSINESS
ACCI Hails Workers’ Contributions to Economic Development 
By Tony Obiechina, Abuja
The President of Abuja Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI), Dr Al-Mujtaba Abubakar has commended Nigerian workers for their contributions towards economic development of the country.
Dr Al-Mujtaba Abubakar in a press release commemorating the 2022 Workers’ Day also known as Labour Day with the theme, “Labour, Politics, the Quest for Good Governance and National Development’’, acknowledged the sacrifices of workers despite various challenges facing the country.
He called on government at all levels to implements policies that will be favourable to the business community and favour investors both local and international.
Dr Abubakar also said the issue of insecurity that has been a challenge should be tackled so that investors can come into the country to create employment opportunities for the teaming unemployed population.
Speaking on the theme of the year, he urged that those vying for one electoral position or the others should think of what will benefit the people and build the SME sector for greater Nigeria.
C’tte on African Trade to Develop Policies for Free Trade Flow in Nigeria
The National Action Committee on African Continental Free Trade Area said it has begun the development of policies in partnership with relevant export agencies for free flow of trade in Nigeria.
Mr Ogo Chukwura , The Team Lead Export market development, National Action Committee (NAC), said this in an interview with newsmen on Monday in Abuja.
He said that infrastructure development was imperative to the operating environment of business and a key driver for cost.
According to him, the policies will bring together ministries, departments and agencies that have a role in supporting the growth of trade in the country.
Chukwura said the Commitee was also identifying the opportunities and developing strategies to help boost trade.
He also said the committee was partnering the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment to develop a programme that would allow agricultural produce move seamlessly from Points A to B.
” We have engaged agencies such as the NIPC, NNPC, NEXIM and core institutions based on the over-all vision and strategy set up to identify the cross-over between the roles of agencies and coordinate to increase ease of doing business for SMEs.
“We are also partnering with the Ministry of Tourism and other stakeholders to ensure security . It is essential to ensure Nigeria is safe or at least tourist sites are safe so as to benefit from foreign exchange.
“We have identified and mapped out the goals, opportunities and challenges while working to proffer solutions for challenges.
“Our focus rests on creating projects and programmes that can reduce cost, increase efficiency and increase the capacity of SMEs to trade and be competitive,” he said.
According to him, power availability for businesses is essential and they are working with relevant ministries and stakeholders to find out sources of power that can be made available to business communities.
He added that negotiations were on-going to ensure pricing was kept within the capacity for business owners to pay.
He said the commitee was working with relevant ministries to engage on logistics in produce of business owners for effective service delivery.(NAN)
BUSINESS
NNPC Posts N7.2trn Profit amid Revenue Decline
The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Ltd. (NNPC Ltd.) recorded N7.2 trillion Profit After Tax (PAT) in 2025, a 33 per cent increase from N5.4 trillion.
Group Chief Executive Officer, Bayo Ojulari, disclosed this on Tuesday in Abuja at a media briefing after the company’s AGM and second Earnings Call.
Revenue declined to N34.
5 trillion from N45.1 trillion in 2024.Ojulari attributed the 24 per cent revenue decline to lower crude oil prices and reduced product volumes following market deregulation.
He said earnings per share rose to N35.
90 from N27.07, while return on equity improved by 200 basis points to 16 per cent.The company’s declared dividend increased by 35 per cent to N5.8 trillion, while taxes, royalties and other government remittances rose 39 per cent to N22.3 trillion.
“Stronger earnings in spite of this pressure demonstrate the resilience of NNPC Limited’s operations,” Ojulari said.
He said profit grew because NNPC had improved its operations and maintained discipline across its businesses.
Ojulari said crude oil and condensate production reached a five-year peak of 1.77 million barrels per day.
He added that gas supply reached a three-year high of 7.2 billion standard cubic feet per day.
“Stronger performance gives NNPC Limited more capacity to invest, contribute to public revenue and strengthen Nigeria’s energy security,” he said.
On infrastructure, Ojulari said the mainline of the Ajaokuta-Kaduna-Kano gas pipeline had been completed.
He said work was ongoing on tie-ins to delivery points, beginning with Abuja, followed by Ajaokuta and Kaduna.
According to him, the next milestone is to commence gas flow through the pipeline to industries and power plants.
Ojulari said the company completed the Obiafu-Obrikom-Oben (OB3) gas pipeline in 2026 after several years of challenges.
On the refineries, he said prospective partners under NNPC’s technical equity partnership model had conducted a three-month onsite review.
He said more than 34 engineers participated in the review, adding that NNPC was now concluding the report.
Ojulari said the company was targeting self-sustaining and profitable refineries, with a pathway expected to be defined soon.
He reaffirmed NNPC’s target of producing two million barrels of crude oil daily by 2027 and three million barrels by 2030.
He said gas production targets were 10 billion cubic feet per day by 2027 and 12 billion by 2030.
“NNPC plans to mobilise over 60 billion dollars of investment across the energy value chain,” he added.
Ojulari said more than 1,000 newly recruited professionals joined NNPC in 2025 under its Talent to Value programme.
He said the recruits completed a one-year internship and training programme before being deployed across the company. (NAN)
BUSINESS
FCCPC Calls for Improved Capacity Building on Competition Reporting, Matters
The Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) says there is a need for sustained capacity building in competition reporting and issues.
The Executive Vice Chairman of FCCPC, Tunji Bello, said this in a statement made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Sunday.
Bello described competition matters as a relatively new area in the country adding that it required specialised knowledge among journalists, regulators and other stakeholders.
He said that competition law and consumer protection regulations had made stakeholders’ education a priority for the commission.
Bello said that the FCCPC recently supported the training of judges through the National Judicial Institute (NJI) to deepen understanding of competition-related matters.
He noted that members of the judiciary also required exposure to the nuances of the emerging field.
“We recognised that because it is a new terrain, the judges themselves are not familiar with the nuances.
”So we brought in experts on competition,” he said.
Bello stressed that the media had a critical role in promoting public understanding of competition and consumer protection issues.
“If FCCPC is becoming more known to the public, it is as a result of the kind of publicity you have given us,” he said. (NAN)
BUSINESS
Fire Guts Customs Western Marine Command Office in Lagos
Fire gutted the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) Western Marine Command office in Apapa, Lagos, on Monday, destroying property worth millions of Naira.
The fire, which reportedly started at about 10:23 a.m. from an electrical surge in the conference room, spread to other sections of the building.
Officers on duty made frantic efforts to contain the fire before officials of the Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service arrived at about 10:45 a.
m.The Deputy Comptroller of Customs, Timothy Jonah, who just resumed at the Command, to take over the affairs from his predecessor, described the incident as unfortunate.
He said: “I just resumed duty to take over, only to witness this fire outbreak.
“Every challenge, though negative, is an opportunity to strengthen our operations.
“In the meantime, we will set up a committee to investigate the cause of the fire.”
He commended the swift response of the personnel on duty and their collaboration with the fire service, saying measures would be taken to strengthen safety protocols and prevent a recurrence. (NAN)


