News
PPPRA will publish list of marketers drawing subsidy
By Omoh Gabriel
The federal government has directed the Petroleum Product Price Regulatory Agency (PPPRA)to as from now on make public the names of companies that draw from the subsidy fund. This fact was disclosed by the Minister of Finance and coordinator of the economy Dr. Ngozi Okonjo Iweala in an interview with Vanguard. She said that
She said ASince we are still under a partial subsidy phase out regime, that means we still have to maintain some subsidy. It is important for Nigerians to know that things will be done differently; that the Ministry of Petroleum and the Petroleum Products Pricing and Regulatory Agency, PPPRA, are looking at a new way of managing subsidy.
AThere will be a more limited group of marketers those who have genuine business in the sector and are known. They will look at criteria; we fix the number, limit it to a smaller number that can be more easily monitored and I think all these should be published so that Nigerians will see.
AWe are looking at PPPRA publishing this, so we are not going to be administering subsidy in the old way where there were so many companies more than a hundred were involved. We are going to have a more limited number, we are going to know who they are and the amount of fuel they will be importing will be known. Every Nigerian should be able to follow and this should be published.
ABack to the issue of loan, you asked how we can assure Nigerians that the nation is not yet again brought under a heavy loan burden and that loans are prudently applied. As someone who was involved in the debt cancellation under the President Olusegun Obasanjo=s government; who actually spear headed the discussion, there is absolutely no intent. I will be the last person and the President Jonathan will also be the last person to subscribe to a situation in which we would pile up debts. We watch those indicators like a hawk. Mr President is very clear on this issue. As you well know, we have some ratios that we monitor with regard to GDP.
AThe norm internationally is that it should not exceed 60 per cent of GDP. In Nigeria, we have adopted 30 per cent out of that because we want to be really careful. Right now, our debt to GDP ratio is about 20 per cent well below the 30 per cent ratio we have set for ourselves. I may need to also clarify that the $7.9 billion external borrowing that we are talking about is over three years, not one year. At end of that period, even with the GDP growth rate we have, we are still going to have a ratio of around 20 per cent or so. 20 per cent to 21 per cent is not going to be much because our GDP is growing and our debt is not growing as such. We are very prudent.
AThe only segment that we have monitored even more closely is internal debt. We don=t want domestic debt to keep growing because interest rate is so high in Nigeria. Right now, what the government is trying to do is to issue bonds at an interest rate of about 16 to 17 per cent and that is a very high rate. We want to diminish the amount of borrowing domestically as well and we intend bringing down domestic borrowing from 2011 to 2012. You saw that we brought it down from N852 billion last year to N794 billion this year and we will continue to do that so that we don=t accumulate too much interest on domestic debt@ see details in Financial Vanguard pages 32 and 33
News
Cardano rises as midnight launch triggers rally
Cardano (ADAUSD) climbed amidst tight trading activities in the crypto market, up by 1.05% in the past 24 hours, showing resilience near key support.
The price ticked up on Sunday amidst negative movements in the global crypto market. The gain has reduced its negative movement in the week to 1%. Cardano is showing strength with a $70 million ADA treasury push and a bullish December setup, but it faces key resistance amidst competing traders.
The token is trading at $0.4165 at the time of filing the report on Sunday, gaining more than 1% on the day as volume traded reached $359.252 million. The token is in a notable correction from its November highs. Recent trading activity reflects pronounced investor caution. Over a 30-day period, ADA has declined approximately 15%, mirroring the broader pressure on risk assets from macroeconomic uncertainties.
Sentiment trades mixed, as retail and mid-sized investors are accumulating at lows, but large holders remain sceptical. Cardano’s privacy-centric Midnight Network went live after years of development, introducing NIGHT – the first native asset on Cardano.
According to crypto analysts, Short-term speculation around NIGHT airdrops and interoperability boosted ADA demand. ADA rebounded from $0.371–$0.416 after testing an ascending trend line connecting 2023–2025 lows. Traders interpreted the bounce as a bullish divergence, but ADA remains below critical resistance of $0.5113 and its 200-day EMA of $0.68.
ADA’s minor rally reflects optimism around Midnight’s launch and oversold technicals, but scepticism about its ecosystem impact and whale selling caps upside. While the price surges, analysts stated that Cardano balances technical hope against macroeconomic headwinds, with Midnight’s adoption trajectory and $0.51 resistance serving as critical watch points.
While governance upgrades signal maturing decentralisation, crypto analysts are still querying whether ADA can leverage these developments to reverse its 2025 underperformance.
News
NDLEA intercepts 7.6m tramadol pills, 76,273kg Colorado
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency has recovered over 7.6 million pills of tramadol and a total of 76,273.4 kilograms of different strains of cannabis.
The agency’s spokesman, Femi Babafemi, said this in a statement on Sunday in Abuja. Mr Babafemi said that the drugs, including Colorado, Loud and Skunks, had several members of drug trafficking organisations linked to the seizures arrested.
He said that out of the total opioids seized during the raids, not less than 3,874,000 pills of tramadol, 225mg and 100mg, and others, as well as 252.2litres of codeine syrup were recovered. He said that they were recovered from a warehouse at Oko market, Asaba, Delta, on Saturday. He also said that no fewer than 1.2 million tablets of tramadol 225mg were seized from a suspect on December 3.
This, he said, was when NDLEA operatives on patrol at Orogwe, along the Onitsha-Owerri road, Imo, intercepted his vehicle conveying the consignment, which was loaded at Aba, Abia, and heading to Onitsha, Anambra. Meanwhile, in Adamawa, NDLEA officers on December 1 intercepted a Toyota Hiace bus marked MGU 554 XB along Maraba-Mubi, coming from Jos, Plateau state, and heading to Mubi, with a total of 1,577,112 capsules of tramadol.
“Other drugs intercepted were Exol-5 tablets, all concealed inside jumbo bags mixed with new rubber sandals and slippers. Two suspects were arrested in connection with the seizure. Similarly, another 27-year-old suspect was nabbed along Zaria-Kano road, Kano state, with 197,000 pills of exol-5,” he said.
The NDLEA chairman, Buba Marwa, commended the officers and men of the SOU commands in Delta, Adamawa, Imo, Ondo, Lagos, and Kano for the arrests and seizures. Mr Marwa said that their operational successes, along with those of their compatriots across the country, especially their balanced approach to drug supply reduction and drug demand reduction, were well appreciated. NAN
News
Lagos, Kaduna, Oyo, FCT, Ogun top 2025 subnational ease of doing business report
The Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC) has released the 2025 Subnational Ease of Doing Business (EoDB) Report, with Lagos emerging as the best-performing state, scoring 85.6 per cent.
The report released by the director-general of PEBEC, Zahrah Mustapha-Audu, has Kaduna in second position with 65.1 per cent. Oyo, FCT, and Ogun rounded up the top five with scores of 62.7 per cent, 61.0 per cent, and 59.9 per cent, respectively. Others include Enugu (56.2 per cent) in sixth position, with Plateau (56.2 per cent), Ekiti (55.8 per cent), Kano (54.8 per cent), and Nasarawa (53.4 per cent) rounding out the top 10 states.
The EoDB report is a comprehensive data-driven assessment of how Nigeria’s 36 states and the FCT are shaping business competitiveness through regulation, infrastructure, and administrative efficiency.
The report assesses performance across 16 indicators and 36 sub-metrics covering electricity, infrastructure, digital connectivity, land administration, taxation, trade logistics, justice delivery, investor support and skilled labour readiness.
According to the DG, these states distinguished themselves through consistent reform momentum, improved digital processes, and more predictable regulatory environments. “The 2025 Report also highlights five priority interventions states can implement immediately. These include establishing investor aftercare systems, strengthening MSME credit enablement, harmonising interstate trade rules, upgrading commercial justice processes, and improving power reliability for industrial clusters,” she said.
According to her, PEBEC will continue to support state-led reform adoption, particularly under the $750 million State Action on Business Enabling Reforms (SABER) programme. She added that “the 2025 Subnational EoDB Report provides a critical foundation for policy action, investment decisions, and long-term competitiveness across Nigeria.”
The DG said the Subnational Ease of Doing Business Report is available for download at www.pebec.gov.ng/reports
PEBEC had earlier released its 2025 Business Facilitation Act (BFA) Performance Report, covering MDAs’ performance from January to October. This performance report is part of the council’s effort to track and measure the compliance of federal government MDAs with the BFA’s requirements on promoting Transparency and Efficiency of government-delivered services to the business community.
The report presents a data-driven assessment of 69 priority MDAs, drawing on monthly compliance submissions, independent mystery shopping, website audits, ReportGov analytics, and targeted process-verification exercises.
According to the report, the top five performing MDAs include the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), with an impressive 90.6 per cent score, followed by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) at 89 per cent. The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), ranks third with 86.6percent, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) and Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) secured the fourth and fifth positions, scoring 85.3 per cent and 84.2 per cent, respectively.
PEBEC, currently chaired by Vice President Kashim Shettima, was established in July 2016 by the federal government to oversee Nigeria’s business environment intervention. It has a dual mandate of removing bureaucratic and legislative constraints to doing business and improving the perception of the ease of doing business in Nigeria. NAN
-
News5 days agoNigeria to officially tag Kidnapping as Act of Terrorism as bill passes 2nd reading in Senate
-
Economy5 days agoMAN cries out some operators at FTZs abusing system to detriment of local manufacturers
-
News1 week agoFG launches fresh offensive against Trans-border crimes, irregular migration, ECOWAS biometric identity Card
-
News5 days agoFG’s plan to tax digital currencies may push traders to into underground financing—stakeholders
-
News5 days agoNigeria champions African-Arab trade to boost agribusiness, industrial growth
-
Uncategorized3 days agoChevron to join Nigeria oil licence auction, plans rig deployment in 2026
-
Finance1 week agoAfreximbank successfully closed its second Samurai Bond transactions, raising JPY 81.8bn or $527m
-
News5 days agoEU to support Nigeria’s war against insecurity
