Plans to overhaul Nigeria’s transport links are gaining pace, spearheaded by a major railway expansion project. In August, Rotimi Amaechi, minister for transport, announced the government would be investing billions of dollars in upgrading and expanding the rail network, a move seen as key to plans to boost production in strategic sectors. Headline projects under the expansion plans include construction…
En Français Oxford Business Group’s Africa research comes in several different forms, from business confidence surveys and face-to-face interviews, to monthly sector updates and annual country analyses. Putting all this together takes a lot of behind-the-scenes work. In addition to the time they spend in traffic jams and office lobbies, our field teams in each country spend hours every…
The Nigerian government has launched a national economic and growth plan for the next four years, with emphasis on the local gas sector.With this in mind, theNNPC (Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation)has strategically aligned itself with the Nigeria Gas Summit 2017, which will be held September 26-28 in Lagos. TheNNPChaslisted seven critical gas projects…
The event aims to address the impact of the geopolitical, economic and societal challenges facing the real estate industry and create new sources of growth. In this way, stakeholders will need to adapt and rethink their strategies by collaborating with fellow players and creating new forms of philosophies. The NIRESE summit is designed to offer insights, inspiration and solution-oriented tools to…
A recent round of executive orders in Nigeria should help streamline business processes at ports and boost transparency. On May 18 the vice-president, Oluyemi Osinbajo – acting in lieu of President Muhammadu Buhari during the latter’s absence for medical leave – signed several executive orders aimed at improving transparency and efficiency, targeting improvements in port, visa and business…
On the tech scene and digital infrastructure What is being done to address digital infrastructure issues in Nigeria? What are the most pressing priorities for improving connectivity? One big challenge is broadband infrastructure, specifically its availability and reliability. In recent years the Federal Ministry of Communications, in collaboration with the private sector, created the National…
Nigeria’s start-up scene is expanding rapidly, securing the most seed funding of any country in Africa and attracting increased international support. Since March three Nigerian tech start-ups have received $8.35m in seed capital from local and foreign investors: Wi-Fi provider Tzeti ($2.1m), e-commerce start-up Cars45 ($5m) and fintech firm Lidya ($1.25m). Seed funding is on the rise across…
Operating during a time of low oil prices What impact have you seen from the drop in oil prices on offshore activity in Nigeria? JADESIMI: On one hand, the drop in prices has slowed down activity in the country. On the other hand, it has had very significant long-term benefits because oil companies, our government and the local private sector have had to restructure. They have now created an environment…
A spate of new investments in Nigeria’s sugar sector should help move the country closer towards its objective of self-sufficiency, although current production is lagging behind government targets. In early June Dangote Sugar Refinery and the Nasawara State Government signed an agreement to build an N217bn ($700m) integrated sugar complex in Tunga. In its first phase, the complex will include…
En Français Falling on their feet “The bigger they are, the harder they fall” is an adage familiar to anyone who played sports in their youth – or at least those who looked worryingly at an opponent who had clearly gone through a growth spurt a few years early. The same adage might be said of Africa’s economies. After a long stretch of seemingly boundless growth, many of…
