By Rukayat Moisemhe

Mr Kudzai Mukuku, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Africa Investment Leaders (AIL), has announced conception of Africa Investment Leaders Forum and Awards aimed at attracting investment into the continent and fostering economic growth.

Mukuku, during a hybrid press conference on Monday in Harare, said that the forum would contribute significantly to the realisation of African Union’s Agenda 2063.

According to him, the forum is in line with the agenda to foster a continent that is economically vibrant, socially inclusive and technologically advanced.

He said that the three-day event would bring together investors, influential leaders, CEOs, industry experts, policymakers, government officials and other key stakeholders from Africa and other parts of the world.

Mukuku added that the event scheduled for June 26-28, 2024, at Rainbow Towers Hotel, Harare, would foster collaborations, facilitate knowledge sharing, and honour exemplary contributions in the area of investment.

He said that, by highlighting Africa’s economic opportunities and investment climate, increased interest and participation from both local, regional and international investors would be created, thereby contributing to Africa’s economic growth and development.

“During these three days, participants will have the opportunity to engage in various sub-forums that cover a wide range of topics relevant to investment in Africa.

“These discussions will be enriched by the diverse range of speakers from around the world, bringing with them their invaluable experiences and insights.

“This forum will be a melting pot of ideas, aiming to establish Africa as a leading investment destination,” he said.

According to Mukuku, top investors who have invested significantly in Africa since year 2000 will be recognised via ‘The Champions List’.

“We created The Champions List so that so no one with Africa at heart is left out, and the list will be released in five-year batches; for example, year 2000 to 2005, year 2006 to 2010, up to 2020.

“In addition to the intellectual exchange, the Africa Investment Leaders Forum and Awards will feature an exhibition,” he said.

He added that the exhibition would provide a platform for organisations, businesses and entrepreneurs to showcase their innovations, projects and investment opportunities.

“It will be an excellent opportunity for networking and exploring potential partnerships with investors.

“Furthermore, as a buildup to the main event, we will be hosting stakeholder briefs in Zimbabwe, South Africa, Nigeria and Morocco as a precursor to the main event.

“By engaging stakeholders across multiple countries, we aim to ensure the inclusivity and diversity of perspectives at the forum,” he said.

He urged investors and other stakeholders to join the forum to drive innovation, create lasting partnerships and pave way for a prosperous Africa.

The AIL Chief of Communications, Mr Farai Muvuti, said that the forum’s primary goal was to foster collaborations and dialogues among key stakeholders in the investment landscape.

He said that such dialogues and collaborations would facilitate sustainable economic growth and development in Africa.

Muvuti said that the event’s ultimate vision was to unleash untapped potential within Africa and drive innovation, job creation and socio-economic advancement.

“By bringing together decision makers and influencers, we hope to stimulate cross-border investments, enhance infrastructure development and empower local industries.

“Together, we can build a legacy of prosperity that resonates across borders, creating a brighter and more sustainable future for generations to come,” he said.

In her remarks, Ms Rumbidzai Takawira, Events Director of AIL, said that the Africa Wealth Forum would bring together thought leaders, economists and experts to discuss strategies for wealth creation, sustainable growth and investment opportunities in Africa.

She added that a part of the forum would be a presidential symposium exclusively designed for African heads of state to create a platform for high-level discussions on critical investment opportunities and challenges facing Africa.

According to her, deliberations in this exclusive setting will focus on creating investor-friendly environments, promoting sustainable economic growth and attracting foreign investment.

“The presidential symposium will serve as a catalyst for meaningful dialogue, enabling presidents to share their insights and collectively drive the continent towards a brighter, prosperous future.

“There would also be an awards ceremony to recognise investors who have excelled in various sectors, with each category boasting the prestigious award title of ‘Investor of the Year’.

“The categories include oil and mining, agriculture, media and entertainment, real estate and construction, manufacturing, technology, finance, tourism and hospitality, transport and healthcare.

“Others include, diaspora investor of the year, friends of Africa and social responsibility, and we shall also be giving awards to governments with the best investor friendly policies,” she said. (NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

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Edited Ijeoma Popoola

By Lucy Ogalue

The Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), has advised the general public to desist from opening /registering businesses that they had no immediate intention of translating into action.

The Director of Compliance, CAC, Mr Justine Nidia, gave the advise in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Sunday.

Nidia said the commission does not encourage people to go ahead and register companies when they had not developed any business idea that would translate into action.

“It is not advisable to register a company and keep it in your briefcase because that is not helpful to the economy,” he said.

According to the director, such companies are termed shelf companies and are discouraged from being kept in the register of companies of CAC; thus, they are delisted.

“The idea of delisting companies is that we should not be seen encouraging shelf companies.

“By shelf companies, we mean registered companies that are redundant or dormant; they are not doing anything.

“So they do not have to be on the register of companies. The appropriate thing to do is to remove them or strike them off the register,” Nidia said.

He said the commission had published an initial list of about 100,000 companies to be delisted.

“We gave an initial period of 90 days, which has elapsed, to those who think they will still be in business to file annual returns for them not to be delisted.

“After the initial publication, about 5,000 companies responded to file their annual returns, with the remaining approximately 95,000 to be delisted.

“What we have done recently is to issue another publication, requesting companies that have filed their returns, and their names are still on the list to get back to us with evidence.

“So we do not delist a company that already filed its return. So we have given an additional period of one month, after which we will gazette the final list,” Nidia said.

The CAC director commended the efforts of the present government led by President Bola Tinubu for ensuring a conducive atmosphere for businesses to thrive in the country.

Nidia said the commission in line with Tinubu’s mandate, developed a four-point agenda to drive the affairs of CAC.

”The strategic direction contained in the renewed hope agenda informed the need to formulate my four-point agenda aimed at repositioning the commission for greater productivity.

“The four-point agenda is diversification of revenue base, enforcement of compliance, promotion of industrial harmony, and improvement of human capital,” he said. (NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

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Edited by Ese E. Eniola Williams

By Rukayat Moisemhe

Mr Gbemi Adelekan, Chairman, Money Lenders Association, has emphasised the need for better regulatory protection for money lending operators and consumers.

Adelekan, also, Chief Client Officer, Kwikpay Credit, a foremost digital money lending service, gave the advice in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Saturday in Lagos.

He said when effective, regulatory protection would protect digital lenders from defaulters and strengthen the money lending ecosystem.

Adelekan commended the tremendous efforts of the Federal Government through Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Council (FCCPC) in making sure that consumers’ rights on loans were protected while illegal and unlicensed loan apps were deleted.

The chairman, however, called for appropriate regulations from the government to address the various critical challenges of digital money lenders.

Adelekan, addressing the importance of money lenders, noted that about 50 per cent of Nigerians were still financially excluded by banks, even though they carry out millions of transactions in the economy.

According to him, this gap creates real opportunities for money lenders as their operations cater for low-income, middle-income and high-income persons alike with the ease of access to funding.

“In recent years, the popularity of digital money lending platforms have grown with lenders providing important services in Nigeria with personal and business loans services including extending loans without security to those that are unbanked and in the informal sector of the economy.

“The growing demand for this service in the country may also be due to the fact that money lenders loan services by design are inclusive and target some important sectors of the economy that may have been excluded from financial services.

“While the lending landscape becomes more competitive and more banks are providing online loans, the heart of the matter for most lenders is that we are lending money to people and businesses that will honour loan commitments and repay the loans,” he said.

Adelekan stated that in spite of technological improvement in credit analysis to enhance the quality of loans granted, the spate of increase in bad loans was worrisome.

This development, he explained, had made it imminent that the government should step in to help save the industry.

He said that the government could save the industry by introducing measures to ensure financial stability and enable healthy evolution due to the huge potential and contribution to the real sector of the economy.

“Digital money lenders have consistently expanded risk acceptance criteria with the use of technology to accommodate more customers thereby improving access to credit in vital sectors of the economy.

“These activities come with critical challenges as the lack of conventional data like bank statements for financially excluded people means digital lenders are using other means of alternative data sources to overcome these challenges.

“It is obvious to digital lenders that even with all the usual measures in place to help mitigate some of the risk that comes with lending online, there are some situations that are completely out of our control,” he said.

Adelekan said the issue of identity theft and serial borrowers moving from one lender to another, using various tactics to circumvent the automated repayment and collection process, have become major challenges to lenders.

He observed that various platforms and groups on social media set up to give tips on ways to avoid repayment of loans to digital lenders operating in Nigeria.

“There have to be consequences for these acts in addition to being disqualified from getting loans in future.

“We need the intervention of the government to improve the access to the courts including the small claims courts to secure judgements for the process of debt collections.

“Licensed digital lenders can also be given access to the Global Standing Instruction (GSI) introduced by Central Bank of Nigeria to reduce non-performing loans in the banking system and place consistent loan defaulters on a watch list.

“There is a need for a robust regulatory framework to address the various challenges in the industry,” he said.

Adelekan reiterated the commitment of members of the association to abide by every laid down ethical code of conduct in their operations. (NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

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Edited by Abdullahi Mohammed/Folasade Adeniran