ABUJA (National Conference Report) – The consideration of the Report of the Committee on Energy was completed with a resolution by the Conference that the powers of the Minister to grant exemption to gas flaring should be abolished under Nigerian law. The Conference adopted the recommendation on a total ban on the flaring of associated gas, noting that any oil field that does not have infrastructure to capture associated gas should be shut down by the end of 2014. The delegates agreed that communities in the Niger Delta region should be paid adequate compensation for the gas flaring which has affected…
Author: FRN News
ABUJA (National Conference Report) – Commendations and criticisms have trailed the report of the National Conference Committee on Agriculture and Water Resources on Tuesday June 17, 2014 as the Conference commenced debate on the 44-paged report earlier presented by the Committee Chairman, Umaru Muhammad Hadeija. Sources from the Conference Secretariat said that the report was an assessment of Nigeria’s agricultural and water resources policies, especially as they relate to food security and refocusing of agriculture as a business to create jobs and wealth. “It is also the most viable way to stem the current large scale rural-urban youth migration and thus…
Bauchi (SURE-P Report) – The Convener on SURE-P Road and Bridges, Kassim Bataiya has mandated the contactors handling the dualisation and rehabilitation of Kano – Maiduguri Road, Kano – Yobe and Abuja – Lokoja Road to ensure that they finish their work as stipulated in the contract awards. He made the statement while inspecting the construction work on the Ningi – Yadagungume Fuskar Mata Road in Bauchi, saying SURE-P has made available the sum of 1.5bln for the construction of four bridges and further extension of the construction work on the road. He also mandated the contractor handling the rehabilitation…
ABUJA (National Conference Report) – “Except otherwise decided, henceforth, legislators at national and state levels would operate on part-time basis.” This was the decision of the on-going National Conference based on a recommendation by the Committee on Public Service headed by Ebele Okeke (Engineer) with Adamu Aliyu as Deputy Chairman. Sources from the Conference Secretariat recently noted that the Conference decided that former State Governors and their deputies be exempted from the payment of severance allowances, life insurance and pension. It further agreed that every State of the federation should have its own State Character Commission to protect the interests of…
ABUJA (Water Resources Ministry News) – The Water Supply and Sanitation Collaborative Council through the Global Sanitation Fund has provided the sum of five million Us Dollars ($5,000,000) to implement rural sanitation and hygiene promotion in Nigeria. The Minister of Water Resources, Sarah Reng Ochekpe disclosed this on Monday 16th June, 2014 while signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Federal Government of Nigeria, the Water Supply and Sanitation Collaborative Council (WSSCC) and two benefiting States – Cross River and Benue State Governments. The Minister said that the signing of the MoU signifies a take – off…
ABUJA (Water Resources Ministry Report) – The Nigerian Government in partnership with the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) and the World Bank (WB) has reaffirmed its commitment to completing the rehabilitation of the Jebba and Kainji dams to improve the availability of power and boost economic activities in the country. The Minister of Water Resources, Sarah Reng Ochekpe made this declaration lately while meeting with representatives of the team handling the project as well as the Niger Basin Authority (NBA), the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) and the World Bank. She recalled that in 2011, the Nigerian Government…
ABUJA (National Conference News) – The National Conference sitting in Abuja has recently resolved that henceforth, where the President or National Assembly fails to meet the timelines for passage of the Appropriation Bill, government will have to shut down operations. The conference also agreed that Section 82 of the 1999 Constitution which deals with authorization of expenditure in default of appropriation is to be amended to stop any expenditure by government in the event of delay in the passage of the budget with established timeline. The delegates also completed debate and adopted the resolutions on the Report of the Committee on…
ABUJA (National Conference Report) – The controversy surrounding the recommendation by the Public Finance and Revenue Committee at the on-going National Conference demanding complete removal of the subsidy on petroleum products has been resolved. A report from the conference Secretariat in Abuja lately has revealed that the Conference unanimously resolved that private sector investors granted licenses to build new refineries shall within a period of three years, build such refineries or automatically forfeit the licenses to enable other participants who are ready and willing to build them do so. ‘The Conference, the report said also observed that the issue of total…
ABUJA (National Conference Report) – The on-going National Conference in Abuja witnessed a heated session on Monday as delegates spoke either in support of or against the complete removal of fuel subsidy as recommended by the Committee on Public Finance and Revenue. The Committee which is headed by Adamu Aliero (Senator) did state in its report submitted earlier that the subsidy on petroleum products was an avoidable major financial burden that the nation has been made to bear. It said that between 2006 and 2007, subsidy accounted for 30% of government expenditure which translated to 118% of capital budget and 4.18%…
Abuja (National Conference News) – The National Conference in Abuja has tasked states and local governments across the country to revitalize the already existing skills acquisition and agricultural training centres in each senatorial district as initiative for agricultural transformation. In a bid to make farming attractive to the younger generation, the Conference demanded a policy prohibiting educational institution (primary to secondary) from using farm work as a form of punishment for students’ misbehaviour. On the loss of soil fertility, the Conference urged government to in formulating its policies, take cognizance of climate change and desertification by introducing species of trees and…