Business News
Dangote Sugar Refinery in Tunga to produce 450,000 MT
Abdullahi Sule has disclosed that Dangote Sugar Refinery in Tunga will produce 450, 000 metric tons of sugar yearly, and 90 megawatts of power.
Dangote Sugar Refinery in Tunga, Nassarawa State is expected to produce 450,000 metric tonnes and generate about 90 megawatts of power annually when completed.
Governor Abdullahi Sule of Nassarawa State, said at a sugar sensitisation workshop organized by the National Sugar Development Council, Lafia, that aside the refinery producing 90 megawatts of power yearly, it would only use an average of 45 megawatts to operate.
The remaining 45 megawatts would serve the community as it is more than enough power for Lafia to use alongside other areas like the Obi, Keana and Awe local government areas of the state.
Recall that Nassarawa Government signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Dangote Sugar Group to construct a $700 million sugar project located in Tunga, Awe Local Government Area of the state.
[READ MORE: Dangote Sugar Refinery to merge with Savannah Sugar)
Governor Sule said that the constraints on agricultural financing in the country was enormous. Also, the challenges posed by the land tenure system, he said made it difficult for investors to acquire land.
“The masterplan for Tunga sugar plantation started 7 years ago, but we have not gone more than 7%. We are supposed to be at 70% by now. And the reason is simple. The challenges are enormous, we are used to refineries in Nigeria.
“But with the refineries, you lose all the opportunities of the value chain. You lose the opportunity of the greatest of all, employment opportunities.
“Sugar industry has an excellent formula of what we call out-grower. They can take land from a farmer, and give it back to the farmer and also guarantee buying of this product so that at the end of the day, it’s the same sugar industry that is growing,” Sule said.
What you should know: The aim of the sugar project by Dangote in collaboration with the Nassarawa State Government was to create job opportunities for 30,000 teaming youths in the state.
Aliko Dangote had said that the project was to further align Dangote Group with the present government’s policy of diversifying the economy by a renewed focus on the non-oil sectors like manufacturing, agriculture and solid minerals, where the group is already well-positioned and is a leader.
Coronavirus
Covid-19: WHO approves China’s Sinopharm vaccine
WHO has announced the approval of China’s Sinopharm vaccine for Covid-19 vaccination.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has announced the approval of China’s Sinopharm vaccine for Covid-19 vaccination. The vaccine is reported to have 79% efficacy against covid.
This was disclosed today in a report by Reuters. The vaccine would also be the second Chinese-made vaccine after Sinovac vaccine and would be the first developed outside Europe and North America to receive WHO accreditation.
“This expands the list of COVID-19 vaccines that COVAX can buy, and gives countries confidence to expedite their own regulatory approval, and to import and administer a vaccine,” WHO Director-General, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said.
The WHO added that the easy storage requirements make it highly suitable for low-resource settings.
“Its easy storage requirements make it highly suitable for low-resource settings,” a WHO statement said while also disclosing that the vaccine has been approved for people above the age of 18 to receive two shots.
“On the basis of all available evidence, WHO recommends the vaccine for adults 18 years and older, in a two-dose schedule with a spacing of three to four weeks,” the statement added.
The vaccine was created by Beijing Biological Products Institute, a subsidiary of Sinopharm subsidiary China National Biotec Group, with an efficacy of 79% for all age groups.
The WHO however, admitted that few older adults (over 60 years) were enrolled in clinical trials, so efficacy could not be estimated in this age group.
In case you missed it
The quest for vaccine efficiency got a major boost earlier this week as Nairametrics reported that the United States government announced that it supports the waiver of Intellectual Property Protections on Covid-19 vaccine development, in a bid to boost the fight against the pandemic, and says it will participate in the Okonjo-Iweala-led WTO negotiation to make it happen.
Obituaries
“Mama Taraba”, Former minister and senator, Aisha Al-Hassan is dead
Ex-Women Affairs minister, Aisha Jummai Al-Hassan, popularly known as Mama Taraba is dead
A former Minister for Women Affairs and ex-Governorship Candidate in Taraba State, Aisha Jummai Al-Hassan, popularly known as Mama Taraba is dead.
According to media reports she died in a hospital on Friday in Cairo, Egypt at the age of 61.
Al-Hassan, who was a former senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria from Taraba North Senatorial District, was the All Progressive Congress (APC) Governorship Candidate for Taraba in the 2015 general elections.
READ: Abba Kyari’s last letter to President Buhari
She later contested for the same seat on the platform of the United Democratic Party in the 2019 general elections after resigning from APC and as a minister in the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari on July 27, 2018.
The former senator was born on the 16th of September, 1959 in Jalingo, Taraba State, to Alhaji Abubakar Ibrahim, Sarkin Ayukan Muri.
READ: Chad’s President Deby dies of injuries suffered on the frontlines, as son takes over
Aisha Jummai Al-Hassan attended Muhammed Nya Primary School, Jalingo and LEA Primary School, Tudun Wada, Kaduna before proceeding to Saint Faith College (now GGSS) Kawo Kaduna where she studied between January 1973 and June 1977.
Details later…
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