Juliana Taiwo
18 July 2009
Abuja — Up to 10, 000 militants in the troubled Niger Delta could benefit from the amnesty offered by the federal government aimed at ending the crisis in the region, which has almost crippled the oil industry.

The chief coordinator of the Amnesty Implemen-tation Committee, Air Vice Marshal Lucky Ararile, announced this yesterday in Abuja at a special media dialogue on the status of the amnesty deal.

Ararile also announced that the federal government has budgeted N200 million to feed the targeted 10,000 militants that will turn up to lay down their arms at the 50 to 60 camps spread across the six Niger Delta states of Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Delta, Edo, Ondo and Rivers.

"We are working on about 10,000 militants. Each militant will receive an allowance of N20, 000 per month in addition to N1, 500 per day for food while at a reintegration centre, translating to N65,000 a month.

"Disarmament and demobilisation part of the programme will last 60 days. Thereafter, the reintegration programme is indeterminate," Ararile said.

He said a few militants have already surrendered their arms but declined to give a specific figure.

Ararile continued: "If you compute 20,000 per month by 10,000 ex-militants, we will be talking of billions of naira. This is for the disarmament and demobilization part of the programme, which is for 60 days.

"Their duration at the camps will depend on the things they want to do. Some of skills will be acquired at home while others will be sent to relevant institutions to learn a trade, or back to school for those who want an education.

"For the re-integration centres, we are thinking of either building new ones or renovating structures that are available. But because of time constraint, we may be forced to renovate.

"So in certain cases, we are renovating and in others we will build. The degree of renovation varies from facility to facility but there is no fixed figure on that."

He called on more militants to take advantage of the amnesty offer and commended the level of enthusiasm so far expressed by those who have already surrendered their weapons.

"I think is in the interest of everybody to end this right now. Most Niger Deltans are tired.

"They are now the victims of this whole struggle. It is virtually impossible for development to take place in the Niger Delta today with the level of violence that we have.

"It is not just development that is affected, even our individual social lives have been completely affected."

The Media Coordinator of the committee, Dr. Timiebi Koripamo-Agary, added that the consequences of this crisis "as we have seen in Gbaramatu Kingdom, is that it is the women and children that have been displaced.

"This is the reason we think the militants should accept this amnesty and save their parents, their mothers, even their grandparents the pain they are going through.
"If you should visit this camp, you will see a very sorry sight. The activity that led to this displacement shouldn't have happened."

Asked if the committee is in touch with Government Tompolo, a key militant, Ararile said there has been no direct contact with him.

It would be recalled that President Umaru Yar'Adua had announced the offer of amnesty from August 6 to October 4, 2009 for all those directly and indirectly engaged in militant activities in the Niger Delta.

Henry Okah, the leader for the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta had all charges against him dropped as part of the amnesty deal. He was released from jail last Monday.

In response, MEND declared a 60-day ceasefire on its "oil war" which has seen oil production cut by 50 percent.

allafrica.com

THE nation's domestic debt stock has spiralled to N2.58 trillion at the end of this year's first quarter, a 28.7 per cent rise over the level at the end of December, last year.
The disclosure came from the recently released first quarter report of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), which also noted the dwindling foreign exchange inflow and outflow, during the period under review.
The rising debt stock, which was put at 9.6 per cent of the nation's Gross Domestic Product (GDP), was attributed largely to the issuance of additional FGN bonds during the quarter.
Essentially, the output growth in the economy, measured by GDP, according to the CBN report, was estimated at 6.3 per cent in the first quarter under review, compared with 5.8 per cent achieved in the corresponding period of last year.
The growth was said to have been driven mainly by the non-oil sector, particularly agriculture, which constituted 35.8 per cent of the total GDP and contributed 2.2 percentage points to the growth in real GDP in the first quarter.
The report disclosed that foreign exchange inflow and outflow, through CBN in the period under review, was $5.72 billion and $11.26 billion respectively, representing a net outflow of $5.54 billion.
"Relative to the respective levels of $10.78 billion and $18.93 billion in the preceding quarter, inflow and outflow fell by 46.9 and 40.6 per cent respectively," the report added.
The decline in inflow was attributed to the 56.9 per cent fall in oil receipts, while the rise in outfall was due largely to the 39.5 per cent rise in Retail Dutch Auction System (RDAS) utilisation during the quarter.
"Available data on aggregate foreign exchange flows through the economy indicated that total inflow amounted to $19.12 billion, representing a decline of 19.8 and 34.1 per cent on the levels in the preceding quarter and the corresponding period of 2008 respectively.
"Oil sector receipts which accounted for 22.2 per cent of the total, stood at $4.25 billion, compared with the respective levels of $9.87 billion and $10.69 billion in the preceding quarter and corresponding period of 2008.
"Non-oil public sector inflows, which accounted for 7.7 per cent of the total, rose by 62.6 per cent, while autonomous inflow, which accounted for 70.1 per cent, increased by 2.5 per cent," the report stated.
Specifically, the report stated that proceeds from crude oil during the first quarter was an 8.2 per cent higher than the budget estimate, which analysts said, would normally not impair implementation of approved votes by the government.
Also, receipts from non-oil business was N341.46 billion which was 1.6 per cent lower that what was realised in the corresponding period of last year and 37.7 per cent below budget estimate, showing dismal efforts at resource base diversification.
The drop in non-oil receipts relative to the preceding quarter was attributed mainly to the fall in revenue from Customs and Excise, Companies Income Tax and Value-Added Tax (VAT).
According to the CBN report, Federal Government's retained revenue for this year's first quarter was N747.37 billion, while total expenditure was N747.86 billion.
Consequently, the fiscal operations of the government resulted in an estimated overall deficit of N490 million, compared with the budgeted deficit of N140.8 billion.
During this year's first quarter, CBN reported that the states received N352.14 billion, which included the 13 per cent derivation fund and share of VAT, from the federation account. This represents however a decline of 22.8 per cent from their earnings in the preceding quarter and 14.6 per against receipts in the corresponding period of 2008.
On a worrisome note, the CBN report shared that domestic debt stock of the government, at the end if the first quarter, rose by 28.7 per cent to N2.58 trillion over the level in the last quarter of last year.

50112

Despite assurances from government and some experts that the current global recession presents a huge opportunity for Nigeria to diversify its economy and quickly move it from being a natural wealth to a wealth-producing economy, indications have emerged that the country could become a failed state if it fails to take advantage of this opening.
Sharing his thoughts in the country’s largest business center, Lagos with a group of journalists who was attending a regional training on business and financial reporting in Lagos, Managing Director, Financial Derivatives Company Limited, Mr. Bismarck Rewane, observed that if Nigeria fails to take advantage of this global development, it’s economic strength might depreciate further worse than anything it had ever seen.
Rewane, an economic expert who sits on the presidential committee on the global crisis, board of Guinness Nigeria, and part of the team on the reform of Nigeria's stock exchange, stressed that Nigeria was not in a recession, but rather, witnessing a slowing growth.
He shares the recent thoughts of Vice President Goodluck Jonathan and that of the Managing Director of the World Bank, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo Iweala, that Nigeria could become a strong resilient economy if it took advantage of the situation.
Pointing out that Nigeria's economy was already in crisis before the emergence of the global crisis, he added: "It is necessary to use this golden opportunity to achieve an accelerated and sustainable rate of real economic growth and diversify the economy away from overdependence on oil and gas both from a fiscal and foreign exchange earnings perspectives. The global crisis is passing over. Oil prices are going up again.
"If we relax and fail to take advantage of this situation, we may never recover our economy. In fact, we will become a failed state," he submitted.
He was also quick to point out: "In the last eight to 10 weeks, the price of Bonny light has stayed steadily above $60 per barrel. The benchmark for policy easing and reform without adulteration is approximately $55per barrel. The production hiccups due to unrest poses a revenue problem."
The reality, according to him was: "Politicians will have their say but the markets will have their way."
Enumerating the role of journalists in ensuring economic transparency and accountability, he charged them to "take the bull by the horn" and truly become catalysts of debate, "by setting the agenda."
The training was put together by Thompson Foundation and The Investment Climate Facility for Africa to sharpen the skills of journalists on the business and finance beat.

50113

Unless young Nigerians are quickly made to develop interest in cocoa cultivation, the future of the cash crop is bleak, a cross section of farmers has said.
A number of old cocoa farmers, who spoke with the News Agency of Nigeria on in Ibadan, Oyo State said that the crop could go into extinction if young and able-bodied Nigerians were unwilling to take over its cultivation.
``We farmers are getting old and the youth are not interested in the cultivation of the crop. This has been our predicament,'' said Mr Josiah Olayiwola, Chairman Ogo-Oluwa Cocoa Association of Nigeria (CAN).
``We hardly have our young ones getting involved in cocoa farming. Once they are through with their primary or secondary education, they head for towns and cities in search of fast money,'' he said.
Also speaking with NAN, Mr Olajire Babalola, a farmer, said that cocoa's long gestation period had made it unattractive for the youth as they see its cultivation as a waste of time and energy.
``Most youths are not used to hard labour, all they want is to make fast money and buy big cars. We want them to have genuine interest in cocoa farming.
``It is disheartening that those of them (youth) who even studied agricultural sciences are not also showing interest in farming, as all they are interested in is how to make quick money,'' he said.
Mr Gabriel Kehinde, Project Manager, Oyo State Tree Crops Development Unit, urged the government to encourage youths to go into farming by allocating more funds to the agriculture sector.
Kehinde said that although government was doing its best to improve the sector, more farm hands were needed to boost cocoa production.
He said that at present, Oyo State had 4,800 registered cocoa farmers.

50114

The Summit of West Africa Monetary Zone (WAMZ) has resolved that adequate preparation and time were necessary before the launching of the monetary union.
It said the December 2009 dateline is not feasible for the start of the single currency and monetary union in the WAMZ.
A communiqué issued at the end of its 9th summit of the Heads of State and Government of the WAMZ /img]in Abuja, Nigeria’s capital said the summit has committed itself to the achievement of macroeconomic stability and convergence as a necessary condition for launching the WAMZ monetary union.
It added that the summit deliberated on the effects and consequences of the global financial crisis on the economies of the WAMZ and considered its implications on the launching of the monetary union.
According to the communiqué, the summit also extended the period for the completion of the establishment of the common central Bank (West African Central Bank) from January 2010 to June 2014 or earlier as may be determined by the Authority of Heads of State.
It also resolved to work for the launching of the WAMZ Monetary Union on or before January 1, 2015 and adopted an Action Plan in the State of Preparedness Report to be implemented by Member States over the extended period, (2009 - 2015) to achieve convergence as well as structural and institutional benchmarks under the Banjul Action Plan, Extension of the mandate of WAMI from 2010 to 2015.

50118

Desired development and growth would not be achievable if Nigeria did not prioritize the policy of budget tracking and monitoring, ActionAid Nigeria, a nongovernmental organisation (NGO), has said.
Programme Administrator, Governance/Advocacy, Awareness and Civic Empowerment (ADVANCE) of ActionAid, Grace Okechukwu, said at the weekend in Abuja that countries like Brazil and India are doing very well in this regard because the government understand and recognizes that the people voice count in development.
She was speaking at the National Budget Stakeholders’ Summit organised by ActionAid Nigeria, EU-SRIP, Friedrick Ebert Stiftung, WaterAid and Pact Nigeria.
“Civil Society Governance engagement through promotion of participatory budget system in Nigeria is one key aspect of participatory development work that requires full commitment of all stakeholders if we are to reach a people centered development in Nigeria. Countries like Brazil and India are doing very well in this regard because the government understand and recognizes that the people voice count in development.
50117

Due to total neglect of key areas in the education sector, it would be difficult for Nigeria to attain the Education For All (EFA) target in 2015, Mr. Stephen Bradley, team leader of the Education Sector Support Program in Nigeria (ESSPIN), a DFID funded program has said.
Interacting with newsmen on the state of education in Nigeria in Kaduna, a state in the Northern part of the country, he said a lot of work needed to be done in the sector.
He said to assist the government in fast tracking the attainment of the EFA, ESSPIN was investing over 100 million pounds on education in five states of Kaduna, Jigawa , Kwara, Kano and Lagos . He said the intervention which was a six year programme was conceived by the Nigerian government in partnership with the DFID to support federal and state governments in improving the sector.
“ESSPIN is designed to help develop an education system in which every child in Nigeria is given the opportunity to receive basic education.
50116

The Nigeria Labor Congress (NLC) has alerted workers to a plan by the Federal Government to commence full deregulation of the oil industry by the beginning of next month.
NLC President, Abdulwaheed Omar, gave the warning in Maiduguri, Borno State, while addressing workers as part of the nationwide protest against the deregulation of the oil industry, agitation for increase in minimum wage to N52, 200 and the implementation of the electoral reforms.
According the NLC president, since Labor creates wealth which the people in government have decided to squander while a majority of the people suffer, the only option left is for them to ground wealth creation.
He said: "The wheel around our symbol in NLC logo signifies the toil of the workers moving the wheel to create wealth, and the minority group in government has decided to take our own natural resources which is oil beyond our reach, then the only plausible option is to ground the wheel that creates the wealth. The day deregulation is firmly entrenched in this country, Nigerian workers will stop running the wheel and let us see the wealth they will generate and use against us."
Omar said that the existing minimum wage was too poor when compared to the level of inflation in the country and the escalating cost of goods and services, adding that the revenue of government was sufficient enough to pay the minimum wage being agitated for by the workers.
While expressing solidarity with workers, former NLC President, Ali Ciroma, said it was against the rule of justice for political office holders elected to serve the people to increase their own salaries by over 800 per cent while the minimum wage of workers remained stagnant at N 5,500.
He said government should show enough political will to implement the Uwais panel on electoral reform report because it was the only way by which the will of the people through their votes could count.
According to him, the only way for democracy to thrive in Nigeria is to implement the report, which is targeted at eliminating electoral fraud and bringing about good leadership that will take the country to the next level.
As was the case in other state capitals where NLC held similar rallies, a letter was delivered to the Governor of Borno State, Senator Ali Modu Sheriff, by Omar for onward delivery to President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua.
Responding, Sheriff thanked the leadership of NLC and workers generally for toeing the path of peace and urged them to embrace dialogue in their quest for a better society and workers' welfare. He assured them that he would personally deliver the letter to the President.

50115

Brazzaville — Barely two weeks before presidential elections in the Republic of Congo, Marcel Kombo decided to send his wife and children away from Brazzaville.

"When you listen to the politicians talking, you've got to be prudent," said Kombo, a secondary school teacher in the capital. The poll is due on 12 July.

"Their language is a bit violent and they don't give one confidence. I have decided to send my family - my wife, three children and a nephew - to the village so they are safe if fighting breaks out," he added.

With a past marred by army mutinies, rebellions, coups and attempted coups, Congo has been in the throes of a humanitarian crisis for more than a decade. Hundreds of thousands of people remain displaced, especially in the north of the country, where rebel activity is ongoing.

In the Pool region, for example, where government forces fought militias for years until 2003, the conflict destroyed livelihoods and set back years of progress, according to aid agencies.

Primary school enrolment, which used to be almost 100 percent, had by the end of the war dropped to less than 60 percent, according to the UN World Food Programme, which in May expanded its school-feeding programme in the Pool.

"People have not forgotten that elections have led to certain conflicts in the past," Henri Okemba, a former minister, explained. However, he thought the political class had sufficiently matured to avoid a civil war.

Marguerite Kongo, a vendor at Bouemba market, said she had put some cash aside in case the situation deteriorated. "With our politicians anything can happen; they want power so much that they could unleash war on the country again," she said. "When you hear people saying in the media that no one has a monopoly on violence, you get worried and take action."

Service breakdowns

Maixent Hanimbat, chairman of the Forum for Governance and Human Rights (FGDH), said Congo's socio-economic context was an important factor.

"Simmering discontent" was noticeable in the city, with frequent breakdowns in essential services such as water, healthcare and electricity, and discontent could lead to civil war when the election results are announced, he warned.

The socio-economic situation is precarious, with salaries unable to cover basic costs, he added. Education and health facilities are inadequate and unemployment is high - despite significant revenue from oil and timber.

Two supposedly "moderate" opposition candidates on 22 June threatened to withdraw from the elections in protest at the late publication of electoral lists.

They also claimed that the composition of the electorate and the number of polling stations was still not known by 26 June, and disputed the impartiality of the electoral commission.
* Human Rights

Parliamentary elections in 2007 and local elections in 2008, organized by the same electoral commission, were marred by fraud, according to observers from the African Union observers and the Coordination d'appui au processus électoral, a Congolese civil society body comprising more than 20 NGOs.

On 22 June, Prime Minister Isidore Mvouba, who is also vice-president of the National Security Council (CNS), sought to reassure people that adequate security measures were in place.

The CNS was deploying 17,000 security staff to protect polling stations and election rallies, as well as the candidates, including incumbent President Dennis Sassou Nguesso, who has ruled twice, from 1979 to 1992 and from 1997 to date. In March 2002, he won elections with 89.41 percent of votes cast.

[ This report does not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations ]
http://allafrica.com/stories/200906300809.html