Business News

Central Bank of Nigeria may ban importation of milk, other dairy products

The CBN have plans to add milk and other dairy products to items on the foreign exchange restriction list with a view to boosting local production, and investment in ranches.

Published

12 months ago

July 22, 2019

Amaka Obioji

CBN to regulate Fintech companies, Financial inclusion, CBN FX Manipulation, CBN Governor, Foreign exchange, Economic report, Outflow, Inflow, Forex, Godwin Emefiele, Central Bank of Nigeria, Forex reserves

Milk and other dairy products might be added to the Central Bank of Nigeria’s list of restricted products on the foreign exchange.

This is connected to the desire of the apex bank to boost local production of dairy products and increase investment in ranches within the nation.

According to reports, CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele told operators in the industry that milk and some other dairy products would be restricted from accessing foreign exchange, both at the official and parallel markets if they don’t invest in ranches.

What this means: Ranching has become delicate since the Federal Government’s proposed RUGA policy. This move made by the CBN could intensify the struggle for land between herders and farmers.

Operators in the industry might feel coerced to participate in the policy without CBN checking the existing business model and the socio-ethnic concerns milk and meat may incite.

The decision was reached after two meetings by the Central Bank of Nigeria with dairy product manufacturers. The meeting focused on better ways they can start investing in ranches, as the operators in the meeting expressed concerns about the bank’s use of monetary policies to address fiscal issues.

Operators’ views: Many of the operators in the industry said that adopting ranching in other locations would not align with their companies’ strategies. They also said that the successful model for Nigeria would be driven by the conversion of pastoralist community breeds to better yielders through cross-breeding, milk collection, and the introduction of smallholder farming model. They urged the CBN to ensure that the existing 5% import duty on milk raw materials and access to forex remains for all dairy companies involved in backward integration with proof of on-ground facilities, milk collection, and usage.

The operators also noted that powdered milk should remain a raw material since it’s been used in producing other products consumed in the country.

[READ MORE: Nigerians spent N148 billion in 3 months to import used cars]

Importation of milk: Audu Ogbeh, former Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, disclosed that milk worth $1.2 billion is imported into the country yearly. He further noted that national dairy output and demand were estimated at 700,000 metric tonnes and 1,300 metric tonnes, leaving a supply gap of about 600,000 metric tonnes.He said that an average cow in the country produces less that one litre of milk per day, compared to other climes where a cow could produce 100 litres per day, and that moving cows from place to place is a major problem affecting the animals and milk production in Nigeria.Can Nigeria meet up with the demand gap? According to some of the operators, there could be implications for consumers if the bank succeeds in its resolve to restrict access to foreign exchange for dairy products without a backward integration plan.

They also noted that consumers may have to pay more for the products, and since the demand gap for milk cannot be immediately met, it would encourage smuggling. Also, companies’ investment in the industry might be at stake and the renewed struggle for land between herders and farmers could worsen.

[READ FURTHER: CBN is set to recapitalise Nigerian banks again]

Related Topics:Central Bank of Nigeria Diary products Ranch

Amaka Obioji

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Coronavirus

COVID-19 Update in Nigeria

On the 13th of July 2020, 595 new confirmed cases and 4 deaths were recorded in Nigeria.

Published

3 hours ago

July 14, 2020

Samuel Oyekanmi

The spread of novel Corona Virus Disease (COVID-19) in Nigeria continues to record significant increase as the latest statistics provided by the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control reveal Nigeria now has 33,153 confirmed cases.

On the 13th of July 2020, 595 new confirmed cases and 4 deaths were recorded in Nigeria, having carried out a total daily test of 2,046 samples across the country.

To date, 33,153 cases have been confirmed, 13,671 cases have been discharged and 744 deaths have been recorded in 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory. A total of 183,294 tests have been carried out as of July 13th, 2020 compared to 181,248 tests a day earlier.

COVID-19 Case Updates- 13th July 2020,

Total Number of Cases – 33,153
Total Number Discharged – 13,671
Total Deaths – 744
Total Tests Carried out – 183,294

According to the NCDC, the 595 new cases were reported from 20 states- Lagos (156), Oyo (141), FCT (99), Edo (47), Kaduna (27), Ondo (22), Rivers (20), Osun (17), Imo (13), Plateau (10), Nasarawa (8), Anambra (8), Kano (5), Benue (5), Borno (5), Ogun (4), Taraba (3), Gombe (3), Kebbi (1), Cross River (1).

Meanwhile, the latest numbers bring Lagos state total confirmed cases to 12,583, followed by Abuja (2,675), Oyo (1,867), Edo (1,778), Rivers (1,388), Delta (1,359), Kano (1,314), Ogun (1,091), Kaduna (1,016), Ondo (738), Katsina (669), Ebonyi (616), Borno (591), Plateau (543), Gombe (533), Bauchi (521), Enugu (476), Abia (405), Imo (399), Kwara (330).

Jigawa state has recorded 321 cases, Bayelsa (313), Osun (262), Nasarawa (252), Sokoto (153), Akwa Ibom and Niger (145), Benue (126), Adamawa (110), Anambra (101), Kebbi (87), Zamfara (76), Ekiti (63), Yobe (62), Taraba (30), Cross River (10) while Kogi state has recorded 5 cases only.

Lock Down and Curfew

In a move to combat the spread of the pandemic disease, President Muhammadu Buhari directed the cessation of all movements in Lagos and the FCT for an initial period of 14 days, which took effect from 11 pm on Monday, 30th March 2020.

The movement restriction, which was extended by another two-weeks period, has been partially put on hold with some businesses commencing operations from May 4. On April 27th, 2020, Nigeria’s President, Muhammadu Buhari declared an overnight curfew from 8 pm to 6 am across the country, as part of new measures to contain the spread of the COVID-19. This comes along with the phased and gradual easing of lockdown measures in FCT, Lagos, and Ogun States, which took effect from Saturday, 2nd May 2020, at 9 am.

On Monday, 29th June 2020 the federal government extended the second phase of the eased lockdown by 4 weeks and approved interstate movement outside curfew hours with effect from July 1, 2020.

Date	Confirmed case	New cases	Total deaths	New deaths	Total recovery	Active cases	Critical cases
July 13, 2020	33153	595	744	4	13671	18738	7
July 12, 2020	32558	571	740	16	13447	18371	7
July 11, 2020	31987	664	724	15	13103	18160	7
July 10, 2020	31323	575	709	20	12795	17819	7
July 9, 2020	30748	499	689	5	12546	17513	7
July 8, 2020	30249	460	684	15	12373	17192	7
July 7, 2020	29789	503	669	15	12108	17012	7
July 6, 2020	29286	575	654	9	11828	16804	7
July 5, 2020	28711	544	645	11	11665	16401	7
July 4, 2020	28167	603	634	6	11462	16071	7
July 3, 2020	27564	454	628	12	11069	15867	7
July 2, 2020	27110	626	616	13	10801	15693	7
July 1, 2020	26484	790	603	13	10152	15729	7
June 30, 2020	25694	561	590	17	9746	15358	7
June 29, 2020	25133	566	573	8	9402	15158	7
June 28, 2020	24867	490	565	7	9007	14995	7
June 27, 2020	24077	779	558	4	8625	14894	7
June 26, 2020	23298	684	554	5	8253	14491	7
June 25, 2020	22614	594	549	7	7822	14243	7
June 24, 2020	22020	649	542	9	7613	13865	7
June 23, 2020	21371	452	533	8	7338	13500	7
June 22, 2020	20919	675	525	7	7109	13285	7
June 21, 2020	20242	436	518	12	6879	12847	7
June 20, 2020	19808	661	506	19	6718	12584	7
June 19, 2020	19147	667	487	12	6581	12079	7
June 18, 2020	18480	745	475	6	6307	11698	7
June 17, 2020	17735	587	469	14	5967	11299	7
June 16, 2020	17148	490	455	31	5623	11070	7
June 15, 2020	16658	573	424	4	5349	10885	7
June 14, 2020	16085	403	420	13	5220	10445	7
June 13, 2020	15682	501	407	8	5101	10174	7
June 12, 2020	15181	627	399	12	4891	9891	7
June 11, 2020	14554	681	387	5	4494	9673	7
June 10, 2020	13873	409	382	17	4351	9140	7
June 9, 2020	13464	663	365	4	4206	8893	7
June 8, 2020	12801	315	361	7	4040	8400	7
June 7, 2020	12486	260	354	12	3959	8173	7
June 6, 2020	12233	389	342	9	3826	8065	7
June 5, 2020	11844	328	333	10	3696	7815	7
June 4, 2020	11516	350	323	8	3535	7646	7
June 3, 2020	11166	348	315	1	3329	7522	7
June 2, 2020	10819	241	314	15	3239	7266	7
June 1, 2020	10578	416	299	12	3122	7157	9
May 31, 2020	10162	307	287	14	3007	6868	7
May 30, 2020	9855	553	273	12	2856	6726	7
May 29, 2020	9302	387	261	2	2697	6344	7
May 28, 2020	8915	182	259	5	2592	6064	7
May 27, 2020	8733	389	254	5	2501	5978	7
May 26, 2020	8344	276	249	16	2385	5710	7
May 25, 2020	8068	229	233	7	2311	5524	7
May 24, 2020	7839	313	226	5	2263	5360	7
May 23, 2020	7526	265	221	0	2174	5131	7
May 22, 2020	7261	245	221	10	2007	5033	7
May 21, 2020	7016	339	211	11	1907	4898	7
May 20, 2020	6677	284	200	8	1840	4637	7
May 19, 2020	6401	226	192	1	1734	4475	7
May 18, 2020	6175	216	191	9	1644	4340	7
May 17, 2020	5959	388	182	6	1594	4183	7
May 16, 2020	5621	176	176	5	1472	3973	7
May 15, 2020	5445	288	171	3	1320	3954	4
May 14, 2020	5162	193	168	3	1180	3815	4
May 13, 2020	4971	184	164	6	1070	3737	4
May 12, 2020	4787	146	158	6	959	3670	4
May 11, 2020	4641	242	152	10	902	3589	4
May 10, 2020	4399	248	142	17	778	3479	4
May 9, 2020	4151	239	127	11	745	3278	4
May 8, 2020	3912	386	118	10	679	3115	4
May 7, 2020	3526	381	108	4	601	2818	4
May 6, 2020	3145	195	104	5	534	2507	1
May 5, 2020	2950	148	99	5	481	2370	4
May 4, 2020	2802	245	94	6	417	2291	2
May 3, 2020	2558	170	88	2	400	2070	2
May 2, 2020	2388	220	86	17	351	1952	2
May 1, 2020	2170	238	69	10	351	1751	2
April 30, 2020	1932	204	59	7	317	1556	2
April 29, 2020	1728	196	52	7	307	1369	2
April 28, 2020	1532	195	45	4	255	1232	2
April 27, 2020	1337	64	41	0	255	994	2
April 26, 2020	1273	91	41	5	239	994	2
April 25, 2020	1182	87	36	3	222	925	2
April 24, 2020	1095	114	33	1	208	855	2
April 23, 2020	981	108	32	3	197	753	2
April 22, 2020	873	91	29	3	197	648	2
April 21, 2020	782	117	26	3	197	560	2
April 20, 2020	665	38	23	1	188	466	2
April 19, 2020	627	86	22	2	170	436	2
April 18, 2020	541	48	20	2	166	356	2
April 17, 2020	493	51	18	4	159	317	2
April 16, 2020	442	35	13	1	152	277	2
April 15, 2020	407	34	12	1	128	267	2
April 14, 2020	373	30	11	1	99	263	2
April 13, 2020	343	20	10	0	91	242	2
April 12, 2020	323	5	10	0	85	228	2
April 11, 2020	318	13	10	3	70	238	2
April 10, 2020	305	17	7	0	58	240	2
April 9, 2020	288	14	7	1	51	230	2
April 8, 2020	274	22	6	0	44	226	2
April 7, 2020	254	16	6	1	44	204	2
April 6, 2020	238	6	5	0	35	198	2
April 5, 2020	232	18	5	1	33	194	2
April 4, 2020	214	5	4	0	25	185	0
April 3, 2020	209	25	4	2	25	180	0
April 2, 2020	184	10	2	0	20	162	0
April 1, 2020	174	35	2	0	9	163	0
March 31, 2020	139	8	2	0	9	128	0
March 30, 2020	131	20	2	1	8	121	0
March 29, 2020	111	22	1	0	3	107	0
March 28, 2020	89	19	1	0	3	85	0
March 27, 2020	70	5	1	0	3	66	0
March 26, 2020	65	14	1	0	2	62	0
March 25, 2020	51	7	1	0	2	48	0
March 24, 2020	44	4	1	0	2	41	0
March 23, 2020	40	10	1	1	2	37	0
March 22, 2020	30	8	0	0	2	28	0
March 21, 2020	22	10	0	0	1	21	0
March 20, 2020	12	4	0	0	1	11	0
March 19, 2020	8	0	0	0	1	7	0
March 18, 2020	8	5	0	0	1	7	0
March 17, 2020	3	1	0	0	0	3	0
March 16, 2020	2	0	0	0	0	2	0
March 15, 2020	2	0	0	0	0	2	0
March 14, 2020	2	0	0	0	0	2	0
March 13, 2020	2	0	0	0	0	2	0
March 12, 2020	2	0	0	0	0	2	0
March 11, 2020	2	0	0	0	0	2	0
March 10, 2020	2	0	0	0	0	2	0
March 9, 2020	2	1	0	0	0	2	0
March 8, 2020	1	0	0	0	0	1	0
March 7, 2020	1	0	0	0	0	1	0
March 6, 2020	1	0	0	0	0	1	0
March 5, 2020	1	0	0	0	0	1	0
March 4, 2020	1	0	0	0	0	1	0
March 3, 2020	1	0	0	0	0	1	0
March 2, 2020	1	0	0	0	0	1	0
March 1, 2020	1	0	0	0	0	1	0
February 29, 2020	1	0	0	0	0	1	0
February 28, 2020	1	1	0	0	0	1	0

Energy

FG approves new board for NLNG, BGT

The change was necessary because the current board members had been in office since 2005.

Published

5 hours ago

July 13, 2020

Abiola Odutola

Federal Government has approved the newly reconstituted boards of Nigeria Liquified Natural Gas(NLNG) and Bonny Gas Transport Limited (BGT).

This was disclosed in a statement issued by the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Chief Timipre Sylva, in Abuja on Monday.

According to him, the new board, which was approved by President Muhammadu Buhari, was necessary because the current board members had been in office since 2005.

He disclosed that the new board members for the NLNG include Dr Edmund Daukoru as Chaiman, Mr Henry lkem-Obih as a Member and Dr Rabiu Sulaiman as a Member.

Other Members include the Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Corporation (NNPC), Malam Mele Kyari and the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Petroleum Resources, Mr Bitrus Nabasu.

He also said that Daukoru was also approved as the President of the Board of BGT while Doyin Akinyanju and Abdul Abba are members.

The minister noted that Kyari and Nabasu were also members of the board.

“I will like to use this opportunity to thank the chairman and other outgoing board members of NLNG for steering the companies to record successes, particularly the Train 7 FID.

“l wish the exiting members good health and more successes in their future endeavors.

“To the incoming members of the board, I congratulate you on this appointment; your selection is based on your experience, integrity and expertise.

“I, therefore,urge you to bring all these to bear in the discharge of your responsibilities in line with the progressive agenda of Mr President,” he said.

The News Agency of Nigeria(NAN) reports that some of the new board members had worked in the industry in the past.

Daukoru was a former Minister of State for Energy and also Secretary General of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries in 2006.

He became the Amayanabo, or traditional ruler, of Nembe Kingdom in 2008.

Also, Ikem-Obih was a former Chief Operating Officer, Downstream of the NNPC and Rabiu a former Group Executive Director at the corporation.

Hospitality & Travel

Passengers can now arrive 90 minutes before departure for domestic flights – FG

Published

9 hours ago

July 13, 2020

Chike Olisah

international passengers, Coronavirus: FG enforces immediate screening of travellers at airports with new directive

The Federal Government has announced the reduction of arrival time for passengers from three hours to one hour and a half before departure for domestic flights.

This was disclosed in a tweet post by the Minister for Aviation, Hadi Sirika, through his Twitter handle on Monday, July 13, 2020.

The minister said that the decision was arrived at after they have reviewed passenger facilitation at the airport while noting that passengers should check-in online.

In the tweet post, Sirika said, ‘’My colleagues and I have reviewed passenger facilitation at our airports, consequently I am happy to announce that, henceforth travellers are to arrive one hour and half before their departure time for domestic flights. Travellers are advised to check-in online, please.’’

My colleagues & I have reviewed passenger facilitation at our airports, consequently I am happy to announce that, henceforth travelers are to arrive one hour and a half before their departure time for domestic flights. Travelers are advised to check in online, please 🙏🏽🇳🇬🇳🇬🇳🇬🙏🏽

— Hadi Sirika (@hadisirika) July 13, 2020

It can be recalled that the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) had earlier in June issued flight resumption protocol for both international and local passengers across the country, advising passengers to arrive at the airport three hours before their time due to the new COVID-19 safety checks for domestic flight operations and five hours for international flight operations.