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Author: Alpha Maidawa

Donations to COVID-19 relief fund now N25.8bn—–CBN
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on Friday said that monetary contributions to its relief fund under the auspices of Private Sector Coalition Against COVID-19 (CACOVID) had risen to N25.8 billion.
CBN Director of Corporate Communications, Isaac Okoroafor, said in a statement in Lagos that the donations were from 107 donors, including individuals, banks and other corporate bodies.
“The coalition hereby conveys its gratitude to all the institutions and individuals that have generously donated to this fund.
“We urge others to consider contributing to this national solidarity to provide not only medical equipment and materials but also to render urgently needed palliatives to the poor and vulnerable segments of our society.
“We hereby restate our commitment to full disclosure and accountability for all donations made,” he said. (NAN)
April 18, 2020
COVID-19: NIS operatives to wear customised face mask
The Immigration Service (NIS) has developed a customised face mask for operatives of the service in order to fight the spread of COVID-19 in the country.
The Comptroller General, NIS, Mr Muhammad Babandede, confirmed this in a statement by the Service Public Relations Officer (SPEO) Mr Sunday James on Friday in Abuja.
Babandede recalled that the Chairman, Presidential Task Force on Covid-19, Mr Boss Mustapha had directed mass production of face mask using the local fabrics following prescribed standard and size to curtail the spread.
He noted that Kwara state command came up with the initiative, which was welcomed by the Comptroller General, NIS, Mr Muhammad Babandede.
“The CGI is appreciative of the various strides taken by the Officers and men all over the federation as they work at the frontline of the nation’s entry and exit points.
“The operatives have been working to ensure total compliance with the Federal Government directives.
The CGI congratulated the Kwara State Command Comptroller, Mrs Judith Onyeamena, for initiating the production of face mask with customized local service color fabrics. (NAN)
April 18, 2020
COVID-19: Rivers Govt. receives more palliatives from NLNG, MAN, private sector operators
The Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) Limited says it will donate pickup vans, ventilators, monitors and several pieces1of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) to support the fight against COVID-19 in Rivers.
Sir. Joseph Alagoa, the NLNG’s General Manager Corporate Services made this known on Friday while presenting some palliatives meant for the people of Rivers to the State Government.
He commended Gov. Nyesom Wike of Rivers for taking proactive steps to protect the people of Rivers from coronavirus.
According to Alagoa, NLNG will be donating two pickup vans, five Ventilators, 30 monitors and 17,000 pieces of Personal Protective Equipments.
He said the the NLNG would in addition be donating equipment and materials worth one million ($1million) US Dollars to upgrade specific facilities at the Rivers State University Teaching Hospital.
According to him, the NLNG will be donating food items valued at over $250,000USD to its host communities as palliatives.
“We are doing this to guarantee the safety of lives and property. In total, what we have donated is about $2.8millionUSD.
“In addition to that, we will be refurbishing and setting up a 10-bed Isolation and holding Centre at the Bonny Zonal Hospital and this will cost $1.05millionUSD.
“This Centre will be equipped with all the necessary medical equipment to make it is fully functional in the event that COVID-19 becomes present in the Bonny area, he said.
“This is to show our stand and determination to work with the Government of Rivers State and also the people of Rivers State at this time that all hands need to be on deck to work together to tackle this challenge.
“These are trying times and we all need to stay together, stand together and most importantly support each other at this trying time, he said.”
Alagoa also stressed that it is important for the private sector and individuals to provide support in the fight against the spread of the Novel COVID-19 pandemic.
Similarly, Sen. Adawari Pepple, the Chairman, Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), Rivers and Bayelsa States Chapter, also lauded the governor for taking steps against the pandemic in Rivers
He also assured the Rivers Government that the Association will support the state government’s efforts at offering palliatives to the people.
Speaking in the same vein, Pepple lauded Governor Wike for taking the right steps for the state.
He said: “So far, all the steps that have been taken by the Rivers State Government have been very positive. We are glad to note that we haven’t recorded more incidents than what we have.
“Even those who were declared positive have now been treated and they are negative. This is worth celebrating.
“We have come to lend our support to Rivers State Government in its fight to check the spread of coronavirus.’’
Next Cash and Carry donated various foodstuffs and beverages to the state government.
Sir Nnaedozie Okwoli, Chief Financial Officer, Next Cash and Carry Ltd, lauded Gov. Wike for the effort to check the spread of coronavirus.
Responding, Chairman of Rivers State COVID-19 Palliatives Committee, Ambassador Desmond Akawor, thanked the donors for supporting the Rivers government to reach out to her people.
He said: “Today, Next Cash and Carry has scored a major point by donating these items to a friend in need.
“The effort of Governor Wike has yielded results as the State for now has nobody with the virus. But there are consequences for the lockdown.
“The shops and markets are not there. He has set up Committees to buy off foodstuffs from farmers and fishermen and then distribute to the less privileged.’’
The State’s Commissioner for Health, Prof. Chike Princewill assured that all the donations would be judiciously used by the state government for the benefit of the people of Rivers. (NAN)
April 18, 2020
UNGA President warns against COVID-19 response harmful to food supply
President of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), Amb. Tijani Muhammad-Bande, has warned against coronavirus-response measures that can deny citizens access to sufficient food and nutrition.
He gave the warning in his remarks at an extraordinary virtual meeting of the Group of Friends on Global Food Security and Nutrition in New York on Friday.
“As we contend with the COVID-19 pandemic it is critical that the people we serve have equal access to sufficient food and nutrition.
“The effect that COVID-19 has on our food systems cannot be underestimated.
“Although, at present, there are abundant food reserves in the international market, we must remain vigilant,” he said.
Muhammad-Bande specifically warned against trade restrictions, which he said could result in food shortages and increase in the prices of food items.
The UNGA president identified travel restrictions, ”suspended flight operations, border closures and labour shortages, as other factors that can disrupt food supply chains.
”Many countries have shut their doors against foreigners as part of measures to prevent spread of the COVID-19 from abroad.
”There are also reports of farmers struggling to move their products to market due to disruption in transportation systems occasioned by movement restrictions.
Muhammad-Bande, who is Nigeria’s ambassador to the UN, said closure of restaurants, schools and workplaces in many countries had led to reduction in demand for food products.
“Considering food supply chains as an essential sector of economy and guaranteeing movement of essential workers and food – with necessary precautions – as many Member States have done, will ensure stability in the supply.
“We should also protect Small and Medium Enterprises in the food sector including retailers who are highly vulnerable to economic shocks.
“These measures would help us preserve consumer trust in the availability of food at affordable price, which is key to stability in these difficult times,” he said.
At the same meeting, UN Deputy Secretary-General, Mrs Amina Mohammed, said border closures were already disrupting trade and markets, especially in the supply chains, causing price rises in some countries.
“In others, people are struggling to find the resources to buy food, because they have lost their jobs as a result of COVID-19 and the restrictions needed to suppress its transmission.
“Elsewhere, restrictions on the movement of agricultural workers is increasing spoilage and waste.
“The policies we put in place now will shape the future of our food systems and supply,” she said.
Mohammed urged countries to incorporate better food supply measures into their response plans to the pandemic.
“Now is the time to build the sustainable, resilient and inclusive food systems that we need to achieve the 2030 Agenda and create a better future for all on a healthy planet,” she said. (NAN)
April 18, 2020
U.S., Germany, France question China’s virus response as Wuhan death figures rise
The U.S., Germany, and France have questioned Beijing’s response to the coronavirus as Chinese authorities announced a large jump in the official number of fatalities in Wuhan, the original epicentre of the outbreak.
Earlier on Friday China revised the number of virus-related fatalities in the central city up by 1,290, to 3,869 – an increase of around 50 per cent.
U.S. President Donald Trump later lambasted China on Twitter saying their death toll was “far higher than that and far higher than the U.S., not even close!”
German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said he was “naturally concerned” about the dramatic rise in the official number of deaths in Wuhan.
“There are questions that at some point must be answered,” he said in an interview with the Bild newspaper as he called for transparency from Beijing.
French President Emmanuel Macron had earlier told the Financial Times that it would be “naive” to assume that China’s handling of the virus has been better than Western democracies, as some analysts cited Beijing’s heavy-handed lockdowns as successful to curbing the spread.
“We don’t know. There are clearly things that have happened that we don’t know about,” Macron added.
The debate over the real number of deaths came as the worldwide toll from the novel coronavirus passed 150,000, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.
The U.S. has the most reported deaths at 34,575, followed by Italy at 22,745, Spain at 19,613, and France at 18,703.
There are over 2,200,000 reported cases globally with the U.S. the leader in reported cases at 683,786, the university said.
The Hubei province government, home to Wuhan, said that the number of deaths had been revised up due to late reports from medical institutions and to the fact that some coronavirus patients died at home while hospitals were overloaded in the early stages of the epidemic.
“The registration of some death cases was incomplete, and there were repetition and mistakes in the reporting,” said the statement.
Over the past few weeks, there has been intense speculation that the number of casualties in Wuhan had far exceeded official reports, based on the number of urns released to family members in late March. (dpa/NAN)
April 18, 2020
Trump announces 19-billion-dollar relief for U.S. farmers
U.S. President Donald Trump announced a 19-billion-dollar aid package for U.S. farmers on Friday, in a bid to shore up the U.S. food supply chain.
“The programme will include direct payments to farmers as well as mass purchases of dairy, meat and agricultural produce to get that food to the people in need,” Trump said during his daily news conference.
Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue said 16 billion dollars in direct payments will be made to farmers and the U.S. Department of Agriculture will purchase 3 billion dollars in goods.
The money for the relief has already been allocated by Congress in previous aid legislation. (dpa/NAN)
April 18, 2020
India’s COVID-19 death toll rises to 480 as total cases reach 14,378
India’s Federal Health Ministry, on Saturday, said the death toll due to COVID-19 in the country rose to 480 and the total number of confirmed cases reached 14,378.
“As on 8.00 a.m. (local time) today, 480 deaths related to novel coronavirus have been recorded in the country,’’ the information released by the ministry said.
This is a jump of 28 deaths and an increase of 543 cases since Friday evening.
According to ministry officials, so far 1,992 people have been discharged from hospitals after showing improvement.
“The number of active cases in the country right now is 11,906,’’ the information said.
Saturday marks the 25th straight day of ongoing lockdown across the country to contain the spread of the pandemic.
The lockdown, which was announced on March 25, has been extended until May 3.
India’s Federal Health Minister, Harsh Vardhan, has instructed all the medical superintendents of the hospitals in the Indian capital to take proper care of non-COVID patients just like the COVID-19 patients.
Vardhan said he was receiving complaints regarding denial of treatment to patients suffering from critical ailments other than COVID-19. (Xinhua/NAN)
April 18, 2020
World Bank to have COVID-19 related projects in 100 countries by end of April
The World Bank Group says it will have COVID-19-related projects in 100 countries by the end of April.
The Bank’s President, David Malpass, said this in his remarks at the International Monetary and Financial Committee (IMFC) virtual meeting on Thursday.
Malpass said that the world bank had been focused on taking fast, broad-based action, especially for the poorest countries.
He said that the bank was taking steps to provide unprecedented financing to help countries respond to the crisis.
“We thank our shareholders for the capital and funding that you provided for IBRD, IDA, IFC, and MIGA. I invite and urge your early subscriptions.
“This will help materially with the COVID-19 response. We very much appreciate yesterday’s subscription by the United States, which increased the subscribed capital of IBRD by nearly 9.8 billion dollars.
“I strongly welcome the G20’s announcement yesterday to allow the IDA countries that request forbearance to suspend repayment of official bilateral credit on May 1.
”Having the commitment and agreement of all official creditors is a huge achievement, and I commend all involved.
“Kristalina and I championed the debt initiative, and we’re committed to taking all the possible steps to support it. Commercial creditors would be expected to provide comparable treatment,” he said.
According to him, the World Bank will be providing massively scaled up and frontloaded net transfers to IDA countries on highly concessional terms and the IMF has its own highly impactful initiatives.
“This is a powerful, fast-acting initiative that will bring real benefits to the people in poor countries.
Beneficiary countries will use the additional resources to respond to COVID-19 and will fully disclose their public sector financial commitments.
“The World Bank and IMF are being asked to monitor their disclosures and use of the fiscal space created by the debt relief,” he explained.
Malpass said this type of broad debt and investment transparency is a high priority for development and recovery from the crisis, especially urgent in the context of COVID-19, and the low-for-long interest rate environment.
The president noted that it was critical to create the principles of transparency that would reverse the huge capital outflow from developing countries and make debt and investment more productive.
He added that many difficult steps were needed to provide debt transparency and improve the quality of investment.
These, he said include disclosure of loan contract terms and payment schedules.
Malpass cited some others as full disclosure of the stock of public and publicly guaranteed debt, SOE liabilities, and debt-like instruments; and steps by borrowers to request relief from excessive confidentiality clauses in order to proceed with transparent data reporting. (NAN)
April 17, 2020
COVID-19: IMF approves establishment of Short-term liquidity line for countries
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has approved the establishment of a Short-term Liquidity Line (SLL) to further strengthen the global financial safety net as part of the Fund’s COVID-19 response.
Ms. Kristalina Georgieva, Managing Director of the IMF said this in a statement issued on Thursday.
Georgieva said the facility was a revolving and renewable backstop for member countries with very strong policies and fundamentals in need of short-term moderate balance of payments support.
She said in these cases, the Short-term Liquidity Line would provide revolving access of up to 145 per cent of quota.
“The Short-term Liquidity Line will strengthen further a country’s liquidity buffers and thus help in managing liquidity pressures.
“Complementing other instruments during the current crisis, the facility will fill a critical gap in the Fund’s toolkit and help to facilitate a more efficient allocation of resources.” she added. (NAN)
April 17, 2020
US and Russian ISS crew returns safely to earth
Two US astronauts and a Russian cosmonaut returned to earth safely on Friday after months aboard the International Space Station (ISS).
NASA astronauts Andrew Morgan and Jessica Meir, and Russian cosmonaut Oleg Skripochka returned in a Soyuz capsule which came down in a grassland plain in Kazakhstan, south-east of the remote town of Dzhezkazgan. The landing was broadcast live by the US space agency.
The three space travellers had undocked the Soyuz MS-15 spacecraft from the ISS, which is 408 kilometres above the Earth, at around 2200 GMT Thursday.
On Thursday evening, the crew conducted a change of command ceremony in which Skripochka ceremonially handed control of the orbiting laboratory to newly-arrived NASA astronaut Chris Cassidy.
Cassidy and Russian cosmonauts Anatoly Ivanishin and Ivan Vagner remain on the orbiting international space station.
The ISS has been a collaboration of mostly US and Russian crews. The laboratory is tasked with conducting scientific experiments that would be impossible on Earth’s surface.(dpa)
April 17, 2020