Marked and accelerated expansions in output and new orders helped drive a pick-up in growth in the Nigerian private sector during April.

However, private sector performance was once again impacted by elevated rates of inflation, uncertainty and unfavourable exchange rate movements. Nevertheless, strong demand encouraged firms to add to their inventories and raise their headcounts at an accelerated pace.

The headline figure derived from the survey is the Purchasing Managers’ Index. Readings above 50.0 signal an improvement in business conditions on the previous month, while readings below 50.0 show a deterioration.

According to Stanbic IBTC Bank, at 55.8 in April, up from 54.1 in March, the headline PMI signalled a sharp improvement in business conditions in Nigeria’s private sector. Growth has now been seen in each of the last 22 months with the latest uptick quicker than the long-run series average. Central to the improvement was an accelerated uptick in new orders.

The overall rate of expansion was marked and the third-quickest in the current 22-month sequence of growth.

Panellists indicated that stronger demand and greater client requirements had been behind the latest increase in new business, with growth signalled across each of the four broad sectors covered by the survey. Strong inflows of new work resulted in a further uplift in output.

The rate of growth was robust and quickened from that in March. Sub-sector data revealed expansions across the board, though agriculture recorded the quickest expansion. Wholesale & retail, manufacturing and services followed, respectively. With workloads increasing, and demand expanding over the last 22 months, firms sought to boost headcounts in a bid to ramp up activity.

Subsequently, backlogs fell at the quickest pace for four months. To cater for higher output volumes, firms increased their buying activity in April. Stocks of purchases also rose, and at a quicker pace than in March.

Turning to prices, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine exacerbated costs for a wide range of raw materials as well as fuel. Firms also indicated higher transportation fees. The overall rate of input price inflation was substantial and the fourth-quickest in the survey’s eight-year history. Firms chose to pass on a large part of the burden to clients, with selling price inflation among the quickest in the series history.

Finally, firms were optimistic about growth in the year ahead, but sentiment dipped to a four-month low. Uncertainty surrounding the global environment and a lack of plans to expand operations led to the moderation in confidence.

The president of the African Development Bank Group, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, made a compelling case for the United States to back the institution’s $1.5 billion emergency food production plan. The plan seeks to avert a looming food crisis in Africa caused by Russia’s war in Ukraine.

The Bank chief, and a panel of witnesses, testified about global food insecurity and persisting impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic before the US Senate subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations and Related Programs. Among others, senators Chris Coons (Delaware), Lyndsey Graham (South Carolina), Dick Durbin (Illinois), Chris Van Hollen (Maryland) and Roy Blunt (Missouri) participated in the hearing.

Senator Coons, Chair of the Senate subcommittee, stressed that the US should move fast and provide sufficient funding. “We should be concerned and even alarmed about the widening food security crisis that this war is causing for hundreds of millions far beyond Eastern Europe,” he said. Senator Graham expressed support for the establishment of a global fund for food security.

Speaking live via videoconference from Accra, Ghana, Adesina said the proposed Africa Emergency Food Production Plan would result in the rapid production of 38 million tons of food across Africa over the next two years. “The African Development Bank, with your support, is prepared to meet this new challenge and others head-on,” he said.

The plan is anchored on the provision of certified seeds of climate-adapted varieties to 20 million African farmers. With the disruption of food supplies arising from the Russia-Ukraine war, Africa faces a shortage of at least 30 million metric tons of food, especially wheat, maize, and soybeans imported from the two countries.

An African Emergency Food Production Plan

Adesina said the African Development Bank would invest $1.3 billion in the plan’s implementation. He called on the US to make up the funding balance. “With US support to reduce the $200 million financing gap – we can ensure the Africa Emergency Food Production Plan’s success,” he said.

The Africa Emergency Food Production Plan is currently before the African Development Bank’s Board of Directors for approval.

Also providing testimony were David Beasley, Executive Director of the World Food Programme and Ms. Tjada D’Oyen McKenna, Chief Executive Officer of non-governmental organization Mercy Corps.

McKenna said, “A perfect storm is leading to heightened global food insecurity, worse, much worse than the previous food crises over the past decade.”

She cited the Covid-19 pandemic and climate change as factors sharpening the current food insecurity.

Beasley said food insecurity had already begun to rise sharply before the war. He said 135 million people were acutely food-insecure before the onset of the pandemic. “Covid comes along and that number went from 135 million to 276 million people marching toward starvation.”

Adesina emphasized that the African Development Bank’s food production plan would foster the production of nutritious food rather than simply calories. “One of the things we will be supporting through this emergency food production plan is bio-fortified foods. Sorghum fortified with iron. Nutritional supplementation is important,” he said

The Bank president said the Bank was setting up meetings with international fertilizer companies to discuss ways to ensure that African farmers continued to have access to such inputs. “If we don’t solve the fertilizer problem, we cannot solve the food problem.

According to Adesina, the Africa Emergency Food Production Plan would have a long-term impact on Africa’s food productivity. The initiative will “drive the structural changes in agriculture, to unleash the full potential of Africa to become a breadbasket to the world,” he said.

Stanbic IBTC Asset Management Limited, a subsidiary of Stanbic IBTC Holdings PLC, is pleased to announce that the N15 billion Series II Offer under its Stanbic IBTC Infrastructure Fund N100 billion Shelf Programme is now open and scheduled to close on Friday, 10 June 2022.

The Fund is designed to bridge the gap between the long-term funding needs of promoters of infrastructure projects and the needs of investors with long-term capital. The Fund, which is structured as a close-ended collective investment scheme, seeks to provide competitive returns above the benchmark Federal Government of Nigeria 10-year bond yield. The Fund Manager successfully closed its Series I offer in September 2021 and raised N6.745 billion across diverse investors, including Pension Fund Administrators, Asset Management Companies, Insurance Companies, and High Net-worth Individuals. The proceeds of the Series I offer were deployed towards the energy and healthcare sectors.

Speaking about the development, Dolu Olugbenjo, Chief Investment Officer, Stanbic IBTC Infrastructure Fund, said, “Subsequent to the deployment of Series I proceeds, we are pleased to present the Offer to investors to support a robust pipeline of investment opportunities currently under our review. These include infrastructure and infrastructure-related project opportunities in healthcare, transport, logistics, renewable power and energy, amongst others.”

“We encourage institutional investors to continue participating in the Stanbic IBTC Infrastructure Fund by partnering with us to bridge the existing infrastructure asset gap that could deliver positive social and economic multiplier effects,” he added while aiming to deliver competitive investment returns to investors within acceptable risk thresholds.”

Stanbic IBTC Bank Plc, a subsidiary of Stanbic IBTC Holdings Plc has rewarded several of its new and existing customers with cash prizes of ₦100,000 in the maiden draw of the season 2 of its savings promo, Reward4Saving.

The first draw of this season, which took place at the Stanbic IBTC Head Office in Lagos, saw 70 customers win cash prizes of ₦100,000 each. The Bank aims to maintain this throughout the 12-month promo time by which a total of 840 customers would have been rewarded with ₦100,000 during the monthly draws.

The Bank also aims to reward 28 customers with ₦1 million each in the quarterly draws, and seven customers with ₦2 million each in the grand finale draw.

Speaking at the May 2022 draws, the Chief Finance Officer of Stanbic IBTC Holdings, Kunle Adedeji, said the bank recognises saving as an important aspect of its customers’ journey to financial freedom, and it is for this reason that Stanbic IBTC has decided to continue with a second season of the Reward4Saving Promo to reward and inspire more customers to reach for their dream of financial freedom by improving their savings culture.

“Our aim is to promote a savings culture by rewarding our existing and potential customers as they save for the future. As an end-to-end financial solutions provider, Stanbic IBTC is committed to creating channels and means of financial empowerment for its millions of customers while rewarding them for their dedication. Simply put, we put our money where our mouth is.

Reward4Saving 2.0, as we like to call it, is themed “Bigger and Better”. This is because we have increased the expected wins to allow more customers from across the geo-political zones of the country walk away with cash prizes worth a total of N156 million, with individual wins ranging from N100,000 to a whooping N2 million.,” he added.

The Chief Finance Officer further stated that existing and prospective customers can take advantage of this opportunity by saving a minimum of ₦10,000 in their savings account or @ease wallet, for at least 30 days. One electronic raffle ticket is issued for every N10,000 saved, thereby increasing the chances of winning. New customers would also be rewarded with ₦500 worth of airtime and three months of free interbank transactions when they open a Stanbic IBTC Bank account.

Stanbic IBTC Bank is a subsidiary of Stanbic IBTC Holdings and a part of the almost 160-year-old Standard Bank Group.

Ahead of the 2023 presidential race, three different groups have purchased the All Progressives Congress (APC) Expression of Interest and Nomination Form for the Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele.

The groups, Rice Farmers Association of Nigeria, Friends of Emefiele and Emefiele Support Group, said Emefiele is the only responsible and responsive person to succeed President Muhammadu Buhari at the 2023 general election.

The forms were procured for the CBN boss for N100 million on Thursday in Abuja.

However, the CBN governor has not officially indicated interest in running for presidency.

Emefiele had said that he was focused on strengthening the nation’s economy amid calls by supporters that he should contest for the nation’s topmost office in 2023.

According to the groups, Nigeria is passing through a lot of economic and security challenges, and the parties and electorates must bring in experience, dynamism, energy, equity and fairness in the choice of who becomes the next President of Nigeria.

Expressing the reason for their push for Emefiele, they said the CBN governor’s tenure as head of the Nigeran apex bank, has shown capacity, focus, courage and worked tirelessly with the economic team of President Mohammadu Buhari to keep the economy of our great country afloat above recession and outright collapse.

Other aspirants of the APC presidential tickets are Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, former Senate President, Ken Nnamani; former Lagos State governor, Bola Tinubu and Governor Kayode Fayemi of Ekiti State, State Minister for Education, Emeka Nwajiuba, Labour and Employment Minister, Chris Ngige, former Imo governor, Rochas Okorocha, Governor Dave Umahi of Ebonyi State and former Abia governor and serving senator, Orji Uzor Kalu.

Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, Governor Ben Ayade of Cross River, former Governor Adams Oshiomhole of Edo State, and Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Godswill Akpabio, Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi State and Governor Abubakar Badaru of Jigawa State are also in the race.