NTA To Broadcast Live the Youth Entrepreneurship Summit and Expo

In the bit to encourage SMMEs NTA partners to bring Youth Entrepreneurship Summit & Expo Nigeria which will convene heads of government ministries, agencies and parastatals, leaders of financial institutions and entrepreneurs to discuss key issues facing SMMEs in Nigeria on July 12, 2016 at Eko Convention Centre, Victoria Island, Lagos.

Palm3 Strategy, in partnership with Zenera Consulting and Africa’s largest television network, the Nigerian Television Authority, Saturday, June 18, 2016 announced that the Youth Entrepreneurship Summit and Expo would be broadcast LIVE on the NTA as part the network’s commitment to the economic advancement of Nigeria.

Prof. Yemi Osibanjo, vice president of Nigeria, is expected to give the keynote address at the opening plenary. The summit is a social investment to empower entrepreneurs, create sustainable jobs and boost economic opportunities by providing access to finance, skills, knowledge and other critical resources. A Proudly Nigerian Expo would run beside the conference and attract more than 5,000 youth nationwide.

Registration is now open for the summit, which will be held at the prestigious Eko Hotel and Suites Convention Centre, Victoria Island Lagos, on Tuesday July 12th, 2016.

The meeting’s theme is “Towards a diversified economy: harnessing the power of Africa’s largest consumer market, agro-allied resources and technology for innovation through entrepreneurship.” 

Other speakers and panelists include Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode, governor of Lagos State; Mr. Waheed Olagunju, acting managing director, Bank of Industry; Mr. Kyari Bukar, chairman, Nigeria Economic Summit Group; Dr. Abdu Mukhtar, chief strategy officer of the Dangote Group; the executive secretary, Lagos State Technical Vocational Education Board, Engineer Olawunmi Gasper; CEO, Wecyclers, Mrs. Bilikiss Adebiyi-Abiola; Mr. Bunmi Otegbade, CEO, Generation Enterprise, amongst others.

The speakers will share on the current economic climate and what opportunities exist for entrepreneurs, how to get past challenges in accessing finance and investment, and also disseminate in-depth knowledge via master classes from entrepreneurs who have made it and succeeded in Nigeria despite the challenges.

There will also be a business matchmaking session where delegates will be able to network and get one-on-one advice from business leaders and the speakers on the day. In addition, a Proudly Nigeria expo will run concurrently, showcasing the rich diversity of Nigeria’s entrepreneurs. Budding startups can obtain free legal and financial advice and business consulting services on the day. The expo is free to attend but registration information can be found at the yesnigeria website.

“We are very excited about the level of enthusiasm we have received from speakers, sponsors and attendees for this unique conference,” said Mr. Ndiana Matthew, managing director of YES Nigeria on behalf of the organisers. “We look forward to the growth and enhancement of the MSME sector in Nigeria and to our youth being job creators, and not just job seekers.” 

According to Mr. Meka Olowola, the chairman of Youth Entrepreneurship Summit, “Nigerians can look forward to a well-facilitated conference that meets the public and private sector’s aspirations of stimulating the Nigerian economy away from current recessionary trends. We have put our several years of research on the Youth and SMME sector at Zenera Consulting behind this legacy summit, and we are confident that this summit will not be a mere talk-fest, but a truly national initiative that accounts directly for a revolution in sustainable wealth creation across the bottom half of the socio-economic value chain.”

Delegate fees are discounted at N30,000 and N5,000 for students. For more information, and to register for the conference, please visit www.yesnigeria.com.ng.

YES Nigeria is a collaboration between Palm3 Strategy, a Pan African event and strategic communications consultancy, and Zenera Consulting, a reputation management and investor relations firm in Nigeria. Both companies have over 35 years of strategic business, investor relations and event management experience between them. 

Youth Entrepreneurship Summit and Expo 2016 is endorsed by the following MDAs; Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports, Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment, Nigeria Export Promotion Council, Small And Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria, Government of Lagos State (LASTVEB).

Presidency makes threats on Certificate Comments.

Presidency threatens to sue lawyer over comments on Buhari’s certificate.

    
It's clear Buhari wouldn't be showing any certificate soon or later. And speaking about it may certify you for a court appearance. Literally the President wouldn't want you to exercise your freedom of speech where his certificate is involved.

Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu

Olalekan Adetayo, Abuja

The Presidency on Sunday carpeted a lawyer, Mr. Nnamdi Nwokocha, over his public comment on a pending suit on President Muhammadu Buhari’s certificate.

The Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, reacted on behalf of the Presidency in an interview with journalists in Abuja.

Shehu warned the lawyer that if he did not stop his “unfair and professionally inappropriate abuse of free speech”, the President’s lawyers would use the instrumentality of the law in dealing with his unethical actions,

Shehu faulted a recent interview Nwokocha granted a national newspaper (not THE PUNCH), saying it is unfair for a lawyer who is a litigant in a case pending in court to hijack the power of a judge by declaring the President guilty of what he is accused of on the pages of newspapers.

He said, “Newspaper pages are not alternative courts where a lawyer can declare anybody guilty of anything when the court has not formally given a definitive judgment on an issue before it.

“The two-page interview published on Saturday, June 11 breaches lawyers’ ethical code and we hope that the court and the Nigerian Bar Association will take notice of this.”

Shehu said any lawyer that sincerely believes in judicial process and the rights of other parties to a case would not have engaged in what he called “the inappropriate and unprofessional practice of trial by media.”

He particularly faulted a situation where Nwokocha openly declared the President guilty when the court had yet to make such declaration.

The presidential aide observed that gag orders emerged in the United States on account of lawyers’ inappropriate conduct on trying and convicting people on the pages of newspapers or the court of public opinion.

“Free speech is not synonymous with recklessness and wanton abuse of the rights other parties to a case in court.

“The litigant’s unabashed claim that he was a card-carrying member of the opposition PDP which lost power in the last election clearly indicates a scheme that seeks power by circumventing the democratic process of elections,” he added.

14.1 billion bailout fund for Cross River.

I wonder when the government will realise that this bail out fund is misused in several states. There are no monitoring teams to ensure funds from the federal pocket is used properly for what it is intended for.

The Cross River Executive Council has given approval for the state to access another N1.4bn bailout from the federal government.

The Finance Commissioner, Asuquo Ekpenyong, who disclosed this to newsmen in Calabar shortly after an emergency Exco session chaired by the Deputy Governor, Professor Ivara Esu, approved that memo be raised to access the loan facility.

Ekpenyong said “State government will access the N14.1 billion fund available to each state of the federation from the federal government in order to support developmental projects in the state.

“It is no longer news that the economic realities are tough nationwide and as we witnessed last month, we had a negative statutory allocation from the federal government. Thus, the Budget Support facility.”

“We have now being granted access to the sum of N14.1 billion which will help to smoothen and stabilize the expenses of state governments. And this was as a result of the outcome of that meeting (with Finance Minister Adeosun) led to the emergency Exco to get approval for us as a state to access this funding from the Federal Government,” Ekpenyong said.

He further disclosed that the terms for facility include “a tenure of ten years, a concessionary interest rate of 9 percent as well as a 1 year moratorium which will really help the state.”

According to him, what the federal government has done by setting up these stringent terms is to ensure fiscal discipline and added that the facility will be disbursed within a period of 12 months.

The Commissioner for finance said “For the first three months, the state will receive N1.3 billion and then N1.1 billion for the remaining 9 months of the year.”

He said arrangements have been concluded to approach the State House of Assembly to get clearance and an issuance of a resolution so as to support the exco’s documentation.

Uyo church Attack.

Uyo is the capital of Akwaibom, quite a beautiful city and peaceful, which leaves me asking why anyone in their right mind would attack of all places are church.

The Christians Association of Nigeria in Akwa Ibom State has condemned attacks on some churches in Uyo, the state capital.

Hoodlums on Thursday set ablaze the altar of The Apostolic Church, along Information Drive; Mount Zion Gospel Church, along Aka Itiam; The Apostolic Church along Bassey Esau Street, and Salvation Army Church, destroying pastoral seats, musical instrument, pulpits, among others.

The CAN state chairman, Rev. Nduoso Ekwere, said on Today that he would not directly pass the blame on the outsiders as such attacks usually involve insiders..

Ekwere, who described the attacks as abominable, called on the security agencies in the state to identify those behind the burning of the church items.

He added that those who perpetrated the act would not go unpunished.

“I personally had to drive round the Uyo metropolis to look for the churches in which items had been burnt. I have personally seen those things, and they range from musical instrument, pastoral seats in the church to pulpits. They were completely burnt down.

“There is no evil that will go unpunished. I do not want to suspect much of the outsiders. I want to believe that nothing happens without an insider and, if there is anybody in this state or in this metropolis that is linking him or herself to such devilish destruction, such individual should know that the destruction of church property is a serious abomination.”

He said he and other church leaders were praying for the perpetrators to repent and advised churches to be vigilant and make appropriate security arrangements.

Also, Ekwere said CAN would investigate the whereabouts of N100m that the former governor of the state, Godswill Akpabio, gave to the association to build a secretariat.

He said, “The Akwa Ibom State government under Godswill Akpabio, gave CAN N100m to build a secretariat. I will say as I am seated here, nothing known as a structure has been raised, but we know that the money had been given.

“We received some papers during the handing over; we want to a settle down and go through the papers to know how the money was used and for what purpose?”