Author: Gift Ifeanyi

LAGOS — In a direct response to impending changes in national fiscal laws, First Bank of Nigeria Limited has organized a crucial capacity-building intervention for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The SMEConnect Webinar, scheduled for Wednesday, November 26, 2025, is strategically themed: “Strategies for SMEs: Securing Your Business Under the New Tax Law.” The event demonstrates the premier bank’s commitment to capacity building, bringing together top government and industry experts to help SMEs navigate mandatory tax compliance ahead of the new regulations. The Fiscal Policy Imperative The significance of the webinar is underscored by the lineup of high-profile speakers addressing…

LAGOS / CAPE TOWN — The global cultural force of African music, driven by the explosive rise of Afrobeats and Amapiano, is strategically converging with decentralized Web3 technology to solve the endemic economic crisis facing global music creators. This convergence represents a direct challenge to the established, yet economically stagnant, streaming revenue models that have historically exploited both Western artists and emerging African talent. The simultaneous maturation of music from the African diaspora (Hip-Hop, R&B) and the African continent (Afrobeat, Amapiano) creates a unique market opportunity. While streaming helped propel African artists like Wizkid, Burna Boy, and Major League Djz…

LAGOS — The National Films and Videos Censors Board (NFVCB) has concluded a major industry summit that articulated the strategic shift required for Nigeria’s motion picture sector to thrive in the competitive global digital environment. The two-day Peace Anyiam-Osigwe conference, which gathered an extensive delegation of film and television practitioners, centered on the theme “From Volume to Value,” signaling a consensus to move beyond high output toward quality-driven profitability. The core message, reinforced by NFVCB Executive Director Dr. Shaibu Husseini, was a regulatory commitment to quality assurance and empowering filmmakers to focus on generating verifiable value rather than mere production…

ABUJA — The Nigerian engineering sector has launched a seven-month, industry-backed incubator, the Nigerian Engineering Olympiad (NEO), specifically designed to address the critical skills gap and high rate of intellectual property (IP) dormancy in Nigerian universities. The initiative, a collaboration between the Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE), the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), and energy-sector partners, is explicitly framed as a policy response to the ongoing brain drain and the industry’s reliance on expatriate talent. According to the NCDMB, up to 70% of engineering graduates currently lack the hands-on technical ability aligned with industry standards. The NEO aims…

LAGOS — In a significant move to elevate Nigeria’s professional landscape, the real estate sector is positioning itself as a key driver for international competitiveness. This was the central message at a major conference in Lagos on Saturday, where over 4,000 professionals from real estate, business, and youth development gathered to build capacity for a strategic “2025 Takeover.” The summit, hosted by the Ultimate Vibrant Realtors Group (UVRG), transcended typical industry networking. Its “Takeover 2025” theme was reinforced by high-level diplomatic and leadership figures who challenged attendees to look beyond domestic markets. Nigeria’s Special Envoy to Tanzania, Amb. Adeniran Michael…

KANO — The strategic importance of Nigeria’s northern commercial hub is set to be a focal point of the upcoming Kano International Trade Fair, as major industrial players move to align with the region’s economic ecosystem. The event, running from November 22, is poised to become a key testing ground for linking large-scale industrial projects with local SME development. This synergy is central to the Dangote Group’s participation. The conglomerate is actively framing its sponsorship as a vehicle for national food security, highlighting Kano’s role as the anchor for its 1.5 million-tonne per annum rice milling capacity being built across…

LAGOS — A detailed analysis of Nigeria’s digital landscape reveals that the “creator economy” is undergoing a significant professional maturation, moving decisively beyond a reliance on viral fame and large-scale brand endorsements. The dominant public perception of influencers is being rendered obsolete by a much larger, more stable economic subsystem. In this model, creators are monetizing their influence through sophisticated, often overlooked, structured methods that function independently of audience size. Industry observers note that the most sustainable incomes are now being generated through a diversified portfolio of activities. This includes a “long-tail” economy where creators leverage niche-but-loyal followings to secure…

LAGOS — Nigeria’s corporate communications sector is experiencing a strategic pivot from traditional product marketing to a more complex field: the personal branding of executives. According to industry experts, this shift is driven by a market realization that in a crowded digital landscape, a leader’s personal reputation is a primary business asset. This trend is the foundational principle for the CEO of Brands and PR, a firm that evolved from managing consumer products to specializing in building the public identity of founders and C-suite leaders. “I tell clients all the time that ‘people buy you before they buy what you’re…

PRETORIA — In a major diplomatic and economic offensive, Nigeria’s administration executed a high-level trade and investment dialogue in South Africa on Friday, strategically timed just ahead of the G20 Summit. The event signaled a coordinated, top-down effort to attract South African capital, led by Nigeria’s Minister of Finance, Adebayo Olawale Edun, and a special adviser to the President. Minister Edun delivered the administration’s core message to the assembled South African CEOs and investors, stating unequivocally: “Nigeria is open for business, safe for investment.” This message of macroeconomic stabilization was reinforced by concrete policy goals. Sanyade Okoli, Special Adviser to…

ABUJA — Following a recent equity acquisition by Afreximbank, tech entrepreneur D’banj’s C.R.E.A.M Platform is being leveraged to power a new, large-scale social impact initiative. The project, “Nigerian Youth Positively Driven” (NYPD), was launched at the UN@80 celebration in Abuja. It functions as a nationwide crowdsourcing campaign designed to identify and fund grassroots community projects. The initiative employs a dual-incentive structure to generate content: it offers a weekly ₦1,000,000 grant to the subject of a positive story and a ₦250,000 grant to the person who uploads the content via the NYPD portal. However, the grant system is only the first…

In a bid to nurture the next generation of finance professionals, the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) and Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) have partnered with Thomas Adewumi University and Landmark University to introduce the CGMA Finance Leadership Programme in Nigeria. This innovative, digital, self-paced programme enables accounting and finance students to access comprehensive learning and assessment resources remotely. It offers a direct pathway for students to complete CIMA’s CGMA Professional Qualification, ultimately earning the prestigious CGMA designation. The curriculum is grounded in real-world case simulations, equipping students with essential finance, accounting, business, leadership, people, and digital…

TotalEnergies has strengthened its position in Nigeria’s offshore oil sector by acquiring an additional 50% interest in oil exploration block OPL 257 from long-standing Nigerian partner Conoil. This strategic move brings TotalEnergies’ holding in the block to 90%, with Conoil retaining a 10% stake. The agreement is pending regulatory approval. Located 150 kilometers off Nigeria’s coast, OPL 257 sits adjacent to PPL 261, the site of the Egina South oil discovery in 2005—a project also involving TotalEnergies and its partners. As part of the new deal, an appraisal well on OPL 257 is scheduled for 2026, underscoring the block’s ongoing…

Africa’s digital revolution has produced a handful of transformative companies, and few have shaped the continent’s fintech landscape as profoundly as Moniepoint. In less than ten years, the Nigerian firm—formerly TeamApt—has evolved from a boutique banking software provider into one of Africa’s largest and most influential financial platforms. The company’s meteoric rise has caught the attention of global investors. Its latest $90 million funding round, which included heavyweight backers like Google’s Africa Investment Fund and Visa, pushed Moniepoint’s total capital raised past $200 million. Such investor confidence underscores both the platform’s leadership and the continent’s growing clout in the world’s…

A new call to action is reverberating through Nigeria’s higher education landscape, as the National Universities Commission (NUC) and EyeCity Africa urge universities to reimagine their role—not merely as institutions that produce job seekers, but as incubators for future job creators and innovators. This message was at the forefront of a recent roundtable in Abuja, which convened key stakeholders from the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund), the British Council, regulatory agencies, international organizations, and private sector partners. Their collective aim: to chart a bold course for entrepreneurship and innovation in Nigerian universities. Representing the NUC, Lawal Mohammed Faruk, Director of…

In a landmark financial move, Nigeria recently secured $2.35 billion from an international bond issuance, with investor orders exceeding $12 billion—setting a new record for demand in the nation’s sovereign debt history. This overwhelming response stands out against a backdrop of global investor caution toward emerging markets, highlighting a significant shift in sentiment toward Nigeria’s economic prospects. A Vote of Confidence in Economic Reforms What’s fueling this optimism? After years of volatility, Nigeria’s macroeconomic landscape is showing real signs of improvement. Recent foreign exchange reforms have stabilized the naira, while six consecutive months of declining inflation and ongoing fiscal consolidation…

In the heart of Ogun State, the town of Ogijo has become the continent’s epicenter for lead recycling, outpacing any other African location. Arriving in Ogijo, visitors are greeted by a haze the color of old parchment—a sky heavy with pollutants. Throughout the town, smoke pours not just from factory chimneys but also from corroded rooftops, evidence of a pervasive, unchecked environmental threat. Despite persistent complaints from residents about symptoms like headaches, stomach pain, and chronic fatigue—hallmarks of lead poisoning—there has never been a government-led, comprehensive screening program. High testing costs and competing public health crises, such as malaria, have…

A fresh wave of financial innovation is sweeping through the U.S. housing and fintech sectors, and at its heart is Nigerian-born entrepreneur Wemimo Abbey. As co-founder of Esusu, along with Samiir Goel, Abbey is tackling a critical flaw in the American credit system—the exclusion of rental payment histories from credit building. Esusu’s platform is rapidly becoming a game-changer for immigrants, minorities, and low-income earners striving for economic mobility. Esusu enables renters to report their on-time rent payments to all major credit bureaus, improving their credit scores and unlocking access to financial products that were previously out of reach. For property…

Digital payment adoption in Nigeria has reached unprecedented heights, with 2024 seeing electronic transactions soar to ₦1.08 quadrillion—an 80% leap from the previous year, according to the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System. Point-of-sale activities surged in parallel, reflecting a dramatic shift toward digital finance and growing confidence in secure, accessible payment options. In response to this evolving landscape, Mastercard and Zenith Bank have partnered to unveil the Essential Debit Card, a scalable solution purpose-built to bridge the financial inclusion gap. Targeted at underserved individuals—especially those previously excluded from the banking sector—the card empowers users with reliable, everyday banking tools that meet…

Across boardrooms and startups alike, artificial intelligence has become an integral part of how Nigerian organisations operate, serve customers, and chart their growth. The rapid integration of AI into everyday business isn’t just about efficiency or innovation—it’s also a test of our values, trustworthiness, and responsibility to those whose lives and data are impacted by these technologies. With the introduction of the General Application and Implementation Directive (GAID) under the Nigeria Data Protection Act in September 2025, the rules of engagement have fundamentally changed. No longer can companies afford to treat data governance as an afterthought. To thrive in this…

From Abuja to Accra and beyond, a new entrepreneurial energy is sweeping across Africa. At the forefront of this movement, the Africa 10X Business Summit debuted in Nigeria’s capital, gathering visionaries and industry leaders determined to redefine the continent’s economic future. The summit’s convener, Theo Godson, set a bold agenda: to cultivate entrepreneurs who don’t just play on the local stage but command a presence worldwide. “Those who invest the most in customer acquisition ultimately triumph,” Godson asserted, urging founders to adopt intentional, data-driven strategies for growth. Adding to the summit’s momentum, Judith Okafor—a respected wellness coach and entrepreneur—emphasized that…