Press spotlights over $46bn spent by Nigeria on imported goods from China, others

By Agence de Presse Africaine Last updated Dec 28, 2021

APA– Lagos The report of the analysis by The Guardian from Trade data gleaned from the National Bureau of Statistics show that Nigeria has spent N19.12 trillion on imported commodities from China in less than four years is one of the trending stories in Nigerian newspapers on Monday. The Guardian reports that the trade data gleaned from the National Bureau of…

APA – Lagos (Nigeria) The report of the analysis by The Guardian from Trade data gleaned from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) show that Nigeria has spent N19.12 trillion on imported commodities from China in less than four years is one of the trending stories in Nigerian newspapers on Monday.

The Guardian reports that the trade data gleaned from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) and analysed by The Guardian show that Nigeria has spent N19.12 trillion on imported commodities from China in less than four years – from January 2018 to September this year.

Economists have seen the deepening Chinese influence in the local market as a huge drain and cost on the ailing domestic economy as imports constitute leakages on any economy.

Sadly, Nigeria’s trade relations with China reflect the widespread imbalance the Southeast Asian country is known for. Within the referenced period, Nigeria exported a paltry N2.09 trillion worth of commodities to China, putting the trade deficit at N17.03 trillion.

In each of the quarters in the four years, China accounted for 27 per cent of Nigeria’s total imports, leading the country’s second top trading partner, India, and other top trading partners with a wide margin, in each of the years.

The first quarter of this year (Q1,2021) showed a N2 trillion import bill on goods freighted in China and moved across the sea to an import-dependent Nigeria. The figure is about three times the value of imports from the Netherlands, which was second to China on Nigeria’s import partner index. The Asian giant held 29.3 per cent of the value of the country’s total imports, which totaled N6.85 trillion in the quarter.

Data sourced from a joint platform of the China Africa Research Initiative and John Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, yesterday, show that the value of Nigeria’s imports from China has increased by at least 400 per cent in the last decade – from 2009 to 2019 – and by 4,200 per cent in the last two decades stretching from 1999 to 2019.

The newspaper says that with an estimated 1.6 billion people (one third of the world’s urban population) expected to face affordable housing challenge by 2025, the Federal Government has launched a five-year National Development Plan (NDP) medium-term blueprint designed to unlock the country’s potential in housing sector of the economy.

To achieve the goals outlined in the housing sector, the estimated public investment is N3.53trn from 2021-2025. This includes an estimated public investment in the urban road development of about N1.68trn.

The plan was formulated against the backdrop of several subsisting development challenges in the country and the need to tackle them within the framework of medium- and long-term plans. These challenges include, low and fragile economic growth, insecurity, weak institutions, insufficient public service delivery, notable infrastructure deficits, climate change and weak social indicators.

Hence, the plan seeks to invest massively in infrastructure, ensure macroeconomic stability, enhance the investment environment, improve on social indicators and living conditions, implement climate change mitigation, adaptation and resilience strategies and others.

It aims to generate 21 million full-time jobs and lift 35 million people out of poverty by 2025; thus, setting the stage for achieving the government’s commitment of lifting 100 million Nigerians out of poverty in 10 years.

The Punch reports that President Muhammadu Buhari, on Sunday, condoled with his South African counterpart, Cyril Ramaphosa, and South Africans on the demise of Archbishop Desmond Tutu, a Nobel Peace Prize laureate.

The South African anti-apartheid icon died on Sunday at the age of 90, a statement by the Minister in the Presidency of South Africa, Mondli Gungubele, said.

Buhari, according to a statement by the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Mr Femi Adesina, described him as a global citizen and renowned world leader.

He noted that the historic role Tutu played in the fight against apartheid, enduring physical assaults, jail terms and prolonged exile took him beyond the pulpit to global, political relevance, and his position, under President Nelson Mandela, in heading the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, provided healing and direction for his country and the world.

The statement said, “On behalf of government and people of Nigeria, President Muhammadu Buhari condoles with President Cyril Ramaphosa, South Africans and the global Christian body, particularly Anglican Communion, over passing of Archbishop Emeritus, Desmond Tutu, 90, on Sunday, December 26, 2021.

“President Buhari believes the death of the iconic teacher, human rights activist, leader of thought, scholar and philanthropist further creates a void in a world in dire need of wisdom, integrity, courage and sound reasoning, which were qualities that the Nobel Peace Prize winner, 1984, typified and exemplified in words and actions.”

According to the statement, the President sent his condolences to Leah Tutu, the spouse of the spiritual leader and lifelong partner in the struggle against injustice, corruption and inequality; the Tutu family; the board and staff of Desmond and Leah Tutu Legacy Foundation; the Elders, and Nobel Laureate Group.

A former President of Nigeria, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, described the death of the human rights crusader as a personal loss to him.

Obasanjo, in a condolence letter to Ramaphosa, recalled the role played by Tutu in getting Nigeria’s debt cancelled.

The newspaper says that telecom consumers under the aegis of the National Association of Telecoms Subscribers have kicked against the plan by the Federal Government to introduce a suite of digital tokens to enhance the verification of the National Identity Number, effective January next year

According to the Federal Government, the digital token consisting 16 alphabets and numbers will be accepted for third-party verification, instead of the 11-digit NIN.

The development has been greeted with mixed reactions from Nigerians.

However, the President, NATS, Adeolu Ogunbanjo, said the move was currently uncalled for, and shouldn’t be implemented without proper consultation with stakeholders.

He said, “Why can’t the FG engage stakeholders before coming up with this plan? It is a serious policy and they didn’t even engage stakeholders. Why can’t we do that?

“Until they discuss with all relevant stakeholders, and we look at the merits and demerits; they can’t impose this on us.”

Ogunbanjo recalled the development was coming barely a year after the Federal Government mandated citizens to link their SIMs to their NINs within a short period, forcing many Nigerians to besiege registration centres.

He said, “I do not know why the FG is always rushing things on its citizens, remember when they were also going to start the SIM-NIN linkage, it was announced in a hurry too.”

The Vanguard reports that President Muhammadu Buhari commenced the week under review with the inauguration of a US$ 73 million intervention fund for irrigation, to boost the Sugar backward integration programme aimed at making Nigeria a leading sugar producing country in Africa.

The newspaper quotes the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports as saying that to actualise this dream, an agreement between the federal government and the operators of the Sugar backward integration programme was also signed on Dec. 21, 2021, at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

Speaking at the event, the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Niyi Adebayo, who represented President Buhari, said: “This morning I represented the President at the formal commissioning of the Presidential project on irrigation infrastructure.

“The intervention is the setting up of a US$73 million intervention fund for irrigation, for operators of the Sugar backward Intervention Programme.

“The goal is to support the development of irrigation infrastructure on 10,000 hectares of sugar plantations located in six sites in Numan (Adamawa State), Sumti (Niger State), Lafiagi (Kwara), Bacita (Kwara) as well as in Toto and Tunga, both in Nasarawa state.

“The Central Bank of Nigeria is also involved in the provision of required funding for the project as well.”

The Nation says that the Nigerian stock market is set for its second consecutive positive return with average price gain in 2021 standing now at 4.95 per cent, equivalent to more than N1 trillion in net capital gains.

Yields at the fixed-income markets are also on the rise, supporting declining inflation to reverse, to some extent, losses suffered in the previous year.

For eight consecutive months, inflation rate has decelerated closing at 15.4 per cent in November 2021 as against 18.2 per cent in March 2021.

The Nigerian economy has shown steady growth this year with the Gross Domestic Products (GDP) recording positive growths in the past three quarters. GDP rose by 0.5 per cent in the first quarter, leapt to five per cent and moderated to four per cent in the third quarter.

All indications point to a stronger full-year GDP performance in 2021 with analysts’ estimate around three per cent, seven percentage points above its 2019 pre-recession growth of 2.3 per cent.

GIK/APA