Outbreak of lead poisoning in Niger State troubles Saraki

Senate President, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki, has decried the outbreak of lead poisoning in Rafin Local Government area of Niger State due to small scale or artisanal mining of gold in the area.

Saraki who stated this when the representatives of Doctors Without Borders led by Dr. Simba Tirima paid him a courtesy call, said it was unfortunate that the incident in Niger State occurred at a time the nation is yet to recover from the ravages of a similar incident in Bagega, Zamfara State where over 400 children were affected in 2013.

He lamented that 28 children had already died as a result of the lead poisoning in Rafin Local Government of Niger State and called on the Ministry of Solid Minerals to be proactive in tackling the incidence so as to safeguard the health of the people living in the area especially, children.

He said the Senate would work with the various stakeholders to ensure that all funds made available are utilized for proper remediation of the affected communities and the treatment of children already affected by lead poisoning.

Saraki said: “I want to assure you that this National Assembly will make this issue a matter of great urgency to ensure that all that was made available for the remediation that needs to be done either through the funds of the ecological agency or through the 2016 budget, is done not only to address the case in Niger State but also we must be proactive and there must be a level of funding available for this.

“This cannot happen in any developed society today. We need to begin to also identify areas in this country where gold mining is resulting to lead poisoning. Like he (Tirima) said, we cannot stop the miners because as a result of poverty, this is their only source of income to survive.

“It is our duty to improve and make mining safer. I think it is important also that the Ministry of Solid Minerals takes quick and proactive actions in addressing the issue of lead poisoning.

“The state government has a role to play as well. We must get the government of Niger State and Rafin Local Government involved. They should play their own role in educating the stakeholders there to understand why they must stop their mining activities.

“Really, we must ensure that this does not repeat itself in this country. It is very unfair to the citizens, most especially the children that are affected. We will take it up from here to ensure that prompt action is taken, so we can quickly address the issue and treat those that were affected,” he said.

Earlier, the representative of the Doctors Without Borders, Dr. Simba Tirima, commended the Senate President for his efforts towards curtailing the lead poisoning incidence in Bagega, Zamfara State in 2013 when he was the Chairman, Senate Committee on Environment and Ecology in the 7th Senate.

Tirima said: “Without His Excellency really, the funds that were allocated for that project would not have been released. But he personally went to Bagega to visit the people that were affected. I am very happy to report that Bagega is doing very well.
The kids who are on treatment are being discharged because there has been a lot of improvement and the treatment is going on very well through Doctors Without Borders.

“We want to thank you for your support in dealing with such a serious issue of lead poisoning which primarily attacks the very thing that makes us human and that is its impact on our brains especially poor children who are the future of this country. We thank you for your continued support,” he said.

Chibok girls are alive and can be freed - Sani

Senator Shehu Sani representing Kaduna Central Senatorial District on Thursday said the abducted Chibok girls are alive and can be freed.



He also says the government should use minimal force and negotiation to seek the release of the abducted girls.

According to him, after three failed attempts by the government to negotiate with the insurgents, what is needed in any new negotiation is a guarantee from the government and the insurgents that they will honour agreements.

He also asked the government to reach out to a few people rather than set up a panel of many people that will not be united in their thoughts.

Humblesmith Shares Life’s Untold Story

Now in the spotlight, a place he has toiled several years to arrive at, Humblesmith, born Ekene Ijemba, shares his untold story of struggling in Ebonyi state, eastern Nigeria, where he started out as a dancer, according to Channel Television.

He also worked as a producer and songwriter but was forced to move to Asaba, where he believed he would be able to establish himself as an artiste.

After several years of moving around in the entertainment industry, taking up different opportunities, no matter how little, Humblesmith wrote and released the song ‘Osinachi’, which shot him into the limelight.

Nigerians Must Communicate In Their Mother Tongues —Minister State Education

Prof. Anthony Anwukah, Minister of State for Education

Minister of State for Education, Prof. Anthony Anwukah has warns that Nigeria’s indigenous languages could go into extinction due to decline in usage by the youths.

This was disclosed in a statement issued by the Ministry of Education in Abuja, which said that Anwukah raised the concern during the celebration of International Mother Language Day.

The statement, signed by Mr Agidike Onu on behalf of Dr Ihuoma Priscilla, the Director of Press, said Anwukah was represented by his Special Adviser, Prof. Godswill Obioma.

It said that the minister expressed concern at the sharp drop in the number of Nigerian youths who were able to read or write in their mother tongues.

He expressed concern over youths, especially those living in the urban centres, that hardly communicate in their mother tongue.

The statement quoted Anwuka as saying that the theme of the celebration, “Quality Education, Language(s) of Instruction and Learning Outcomes” was apt.

The statement quoted Mrs Magdalene Maidoh, Secretary-General, Nigerian National Commission for UNESCO, as saying that the Minister of Education was the president of the commission.

According to Maidoh the President of the Nigerian National Commission for UNESCO has the mandate to coordinate all UNESCO activities in the education sector in Nigeria.

UNESCO proclaimed Feb. 21 of every year as the International Mother Language Day in commemoration of the massacre of Benghali speaking people of Indonesia for defending their mother tongue.

Earnings from non-oil exports drop to $1.6 billion

The inability of Federal Government to revive incentives for non-oil exporters, proceeds from the sector has continued to witness a southward trend, as the nation’s earnings hit $1.6 billion from $3 billion recorded in 2013.

According to stakeholders in the sector, earnings from non-oil export can easily cross $5 billion this year and bring some relief to tackle the foreign exchange crisis prevailing in the economy, if suspended incentives are revived and other challenges addressed.

Executive Secretary of the Organised Private Sector Exporters Association (OPEXA), Jaiyeola Olarewaju said that exporters have in the last two years, been sitting on a backlog of over N100 billion worth of unutilized export certificates issued under the seal of the Ministry of Finance, urging government to honour its financial commitments in regards to extant law, The Guardian reported

“It is paradoxical that one sector that had the potential to cushion the commodity shock has been paralysed due to lack of inter-ministerial coordination. Nigeria’s non-oil exports fell from $3billion in 2013 to $1.6 billion in 2015. In 2014, the country had realised $2.7 billion in non-oil exports. In 2015, exports of cocoa, Nigeria’s largest commodity declined by 35 per cent whereas leather exports, which is the main stay of industrial economy in the North plunged by 60 per cent.

“If the EEG policy had been sustained, our non-oil exports today would have easily crossed $5 billion by 2016 and brought some relief to tackle the foreign exchange crisis prevailing in the economy. The officials have been evading the issue by alluding to perceived abuses of the grant which led to its suspension. It is classic case of throwing the baby with the bath water. The exporters relied on the extant policy and repatriated forex through the banks duly verified by the CBN”.

He explained that while diversification is being advocated as the need of the hour to generate employment by boosting production in the non-oil sector, government should clear the backlog of unutilised NDCCs and exports made in 2014 and 2015 under the extant policy to sustain about 11 million Nigerians employed directly and indirectly in the non-oil export sector.

He noted that addressing unutilized export certificates could be done by converting them into government bonds with a medium to long term maturity to avoid undue pressure on current government revenue.

“The ministries of Industry, Trade and Investment as well as Finance, should harmonise their position and come up with a sustainable and effective EEG policy to put non-oil exports back on track,” he said.

Nigeria’s non-oil export sector is still in its infancy and came into mainstream in the last 10 years due to the policies that were put in place that encouraged the sector to invest in agricultural supply chains, export processing factories and overseas marketing.

“The root cause of the decline in non-oil exports was a legacy of the past administration inherited by the present government. There is an opportunity to reverse the trend by restoring the policy framework that led to the rapid development of the sector.

“Non-oil exports were boosted by the Export Expansion Grant or EEG policy meant to cushion the cost disadvantages faced by our exporters due to infrastructural deficiencies. It improves the price competitiveness of Nigerian products in the international market. Since 1999, EEG has been given in form of negotiable duty credit certificates (NDCCs). However, the former Minister of Finance arbitrarily suspended the utilisation of the certificates pending a review of the scheme which for the past three years has been languishing due to lack of inter-ministerial coordination”, he added.

Latest monthly economic report released by the CBN provisionally puts non-oil exports at $244 million in the month of November, noting that the month-to-month decline was precipitated by fall in receipts from the food products and minerals sectors. Industrial products, which earned $79 million, accounted for the largest proceeds.

The sector breakdown shows that proceeds from manufactured products, agricultural products and the industrial sub-sector grew by 13.3 percent, 13.5 percent and 38.3 percent, respectively, on a month-to-month basis.

On the other hand, proceeds from food products and minerals decreased by 86.4 percent and 49.2 percent, respectively.
In the month of November, non-oil exports stayed very low at approximately 1 percent of GDP.

The report stated that, “the agriculture and manufacturing sector, which underpinned non-oil exports in November, grew by 2.6 percent yearly and contracted by minus 1.8 percent in third quarter 2015, respectively. The national accounts are due for later this year.”