By Folasade Akpan

The World Bank says global economy is expected to grow by 4 per cent in 2021, assuming an initial COVID-19 vaccine rollout becomes widespread throughout the year.

It said this in a statement issued in Washington D.C. on Tuesday at the presentation of the January 2021 Global Economic Prospects.

It added that the said recovery would likely be subdued unless policy makers moved decisively to tame the pandemic and implement investment-enhancing reforms.

The bank also said that growth in Sub-Saharan Africa was forecast to rebound moderately to 2.7 per cent in 2021, while Nigeria’s growth was expected to resume at 1.1 per cent.

For the region, it said that while the recovery in private consumption and investment was forecast to be slower than previously envisioned, export growth was expected to accelerate gradually, in line with the rebound in activity among major trading partners.

“Expectations of a sluggish recovery in Sub-Saharan Africa reflect persistent COVID-19 outbreaks in several economies that have inhibited the resumption of economic activity.

“The pandemic is projected to cause per capita incomes to decline by 0.2 per cent  this year, setting Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) further out of reach in many countries in the region.

“This reversal is expected to push tens of millions more people into extreme poverty over last year and this year,” it stated.

For Nigeria, it said activity was anticipated to be dampened by low oil prices, Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) quotas, falling public investment due to weak government revenues, constrained private investment due to firm failures and subdued foreign investor confidence.

It, however,  said that the rebound in Africa was expected to be slightly stronger, although below historical averages among agricultural commodity exporters, adding that higher international prices for agricultural commodities were expected to sustain activity.

Projecting risks for the region, it said that they were tilted to the downside as growth in major trading partners could fall short of expectations.

It said that wide scale distribution of a COVID-19 vaccine in the region would likely face many hurdles, including poor transport infrastructure and weak health systems capacity.

“Such constraints, compounded by natural disasters such as recent devastating floods and rising insecurity, particularly in the Sahel, can  delay recovery.

“Government debt in the region has increased sharply to an estimated 70 per cent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in 2020,  elevating concerns about debt sustainability in some economies.

“Banks may face sharp increases in non-performing loans as companies struggle to service their debt due to falling revenues.

“Lasting damage of the pandemic can  depress growth over  long term through the chilling effects of high debt on investment, the impact of lockdowns on schooling and human capital development, and weaker health outcomes,” it said.

On the global scene, it said that to support economic recovery, authorities also needed  to facilitate a re-investment cycle aimed at sustainable growth that was less dependent on government debt.

It however,  said that the collapse in global economic activity in 2020 was estimated to have been slightly less severe than previously projected, mainly due to shallower contractions in advanced economies and a more robust recovery in China.

“In contrast, disruptions to activity in the majority of other emerging markets and developing economies were more acute than expected,” it said.

David Malpass, the bank’s President said that while the global economy appeared to have entered a subdued recovery, policymakers faced  formidable challenges as they tried  to ensure that this still fragile global recovery gained traction and sets a foundation for robust growth.

“To overcome the impacts of the pandemic and counter the investment headwind, there needs to be a major push to improve business environments, increase labor and product market flexibility and strengthen transparency and governance,” it said.

The report said that the near-term outlook remained highly uncertain and different growth outcomes were still possible, adding that a downside scenario in which infections continued to rise and the rollout of a vaccine  delayed,  could limit the global expansion to 1.6 per cent in 2021.

Meanwhile, it said that in an upside scenario with successful pandemic control and a faster vaccination process, global growth could accelerate to nearly five per cent.

Examining the amplified risks of the pandemic, it said that as severe crises did in the past, the pandemic was expected to leave long lasting adverse effects on global activity.

“It is likely to worsen the slowdown in global growth projected over the next decade due to underinvestment, underemployment and labor force declines in many advanced economies.

“If history is any guide, the global economy is heading for a decade of growth disappointments unless policy makers,  put in place comprehensive reforms to improve the fundamental drivers of equitable and sustainable economic growth.

“Policymakers need to continue to sustain the recovery, gradually shifting from income support to growth-enhancing policies,” it further said.

It added that in the longer run, in emerging markets and developing economies, policies to improve health and education services, digital infrastructure, climate resilience, and business and governance practices would  help mitigate the economic damage caused by the pandemic, reduce poverty and advance shared prosperity.

The bank said that in the context of weak fiscal positions and elevated debt, institutional reforms to spur organic growth were particularly important. (NAN)

By Constance Athekame
The management of the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) says there is no 50 per cent increase in electricity tariff.

This was made known by NERC’s Head of Public Affairs, Mr Micheal Faloseyi, in a statement in Abuja on Tuesday.

Faloseyi spoke against the backdrop in some quarters that electricity tariff had been increased by 50 per cent.

He said: “The commission hereby state unequivocally that no approval has been granted for 50 per cent tariff increase in the tariff order for Electricity Distribution Companies (DISCOs) which took effect from January 1, 2021.

“On the contrary, the tariff for customers on Service Bands D and E (customers being served less than an average of 12 hours of supply per day for a period of one month) remains frozen and subsidised in line with the policy direction of the Federal Government.

“In compliance with the Electric Power Sector Reforms Acts (EPRSA) and the nation’s tariff methodology for biannual review, the rates for Service Bands A, B, C, D and E have been adjusted by N2.00 to N4.00 per kWhr to reflect the partial impact of inflation and movement in foreign exchange rates,” he said.

Faloseyi said that the commission remains committed to protecting electricity consumers from failure to deliver on committed service levels under the service-based tariff regime.

According to him, any customer that has been impacted by any rate increase beyond the above provision of the tariff order should report to the commission at customer.complaints@nerc.gov.ng.

By George Odok
The World Bank has supported the Cross River Government with relief material to cushion the effects on the destruction of properties during the #EndSars protest in Calabar on Oct. 23 and Oct. 24, 2020.

The State Commissioner for International Development Cooperation (MIDC), Dr Inyang Asibong, said this after distributing the donated items to the different units in Calabar.

Asibong recalled that after the destruction, the state government through his Ministry had approached the World Bank to render support to the state, especially in the delivery units of the World Bank Assisted Programme COVID-19 Action Recovery and Economic Stimulus (CARES).

The items donated include furniture, 20-seater conference chairs, air conditioners and inverters, laptop computers and printers, virtual meeting equipment, hybrid inverter with solar among others.

Asibong lauded the World Bank for the gesture, saying that the distribution was coming at the first day of resumption of duties in the year.

She explained that two result areas of the Ministry, FADAMA and Enterprise Development Funding (EDF) were badly affected during the protest and all the items were destroyed by hoodlums.

According to her, the items will go a long way to enable the staff of the result areas to get back to work in preparation for the CARES programme.

The commissioner said: “The CARES is COVID-19 Action Recovery and Economic Stimulus of the government. It is going to be a state owned project and Gov. Ben Ayade is so committed about improving the lives of residents in the state.

“We know that the poverty index in Nigeria is 40.1 per cent and this is really high. Cross River is lower than the national average, 36.3 per cent, we want to further reduce that our percentage to at least a single digit.

“I want to thank the World Bank for coming to our aid at this point in time and we can assure them we will make the best use of these equipment,” she said.

Mr Fidel Udie, the Acting General Manager of Community and Social Development Agency (CSDA), said that the donation confirmed the good working relationship between the state government and the World Bank.

Udie said that the donation would put the state in a good position to participate in the CARES programme.

“This programme is basically meant to target the poor and vulnerable in the society. Gov. Ayade was able to follow up with the World Bank and here we have these equipment to help the delivery units to be ready for this programme,” he said.

He listed the platforms benefiting from the equipment to include; CSDA, the state coordinating unit, FADAMA, EDF, Smart City, Public Work Fare and the state Cash Transfer Unit.

By: Hamza Suleiman

Sen. Ali Ndume, (APC-Borno) has called on President Muhammadu Buhari to establish a Budget Implementation and Impact Assessment office so that he could monitor the releases of funds and performance of his cabinet members.

Ndume, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Nigerian Army, made the call while fielding questions from journalists on Monday, in Maiduguri.

“Buhari is a good leader but quite a number of his cabinet members are not doing enough to reposition the country as enshrined in the President’s Agenda.

“I am impressed with the 2020 national budget performance which stood at about 90 per cent implementation, this feat has never been achieved in the history of Nigeria or by any government in power,” he said.

Ndume said it was unfortunate that the impact of the implemented budget had not been felt in most places, due to poor representation by top political appointees at the federal level.

The senator, therefore, urged the President to reconstitute the Federal Executive Council so as to have an all-inclusive governance at the grassroots.

“Nigerian youths constitute over 60 per cent of the population who are unemployed and frustrated and that is what led to the EndSARS.

“When the President directed the ministers to visit their states to speak to their youths during the EndSARS, some of them could not go because they are not connected with their people.

“The President, in his speech, publicly admitted that they have hurt the youths and that they were right and government is willing to address all their five demands,” he said.

Similarly, he expressed the hope that the President would implement the promises and policies made to the youths so that the country would move forward.

“You can’t be providing and yet the impact is not felt. The problem with the Buhari administration is that the handlers, who are supposed to implement the laudable projects, are either compromising or not doing it appropriately.

“I believe that 2021 will be a turning point in the history of Nigeria, because the problem of leadership normally is either denial, ignore the problem or don’t identify the problem,” he said. (NAN)

By Yakubu Uba

Gov. Babagana Zulum of Borno on Monday signed the state N248 billion 2021 budget into law.

Speaking at the ceremony in Government House, Maiduguri, Zulum charged all government ministries, departments and agencies to comply strictly with the provisions of the budget.

The governor expressed appreciation to the state House of Assembly for the speedy passage of the budget.

Zulum said that his administration would continue to place priority on security, education, healthcare, agriculture and the provision of portable water to the people.

Earlier, the Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Alhaji Abdulkarim Lawan said that the budget was  raised from N208billion to N248billion to lay foundation for industrial growth in the state.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Zulum had on Dec. 9, presented a budget of N208 billion to the House for approval.

But the lawmakers raised the amount to N248 billion. (NAN)