In Burkina Faso, cotton output will stand at 750,000 Mt in the 2016/17 season, due to good weather conditions, revealed the minister of agriculture, Jacob Ouedraogo. The new output is 150,000 Mt up compared to the previous season. The increase is, according to the official, due to a better quality of the crop. Indeed, 100% of seedlings used in cultivating the crop this season are traditional...

Fidelity Bank Plc, a commercial bank in Nigeria, has announced that a sum of N64 million (almost $204,000) would still be paid to its account holders and customers under the ‘Get Alert in Millions Savings’ promo aimed at extending the financial inclusion in the country. According to Chijioke Ugochukwu, the bank’s Executive Director, Shared Services, the bank had so far dispersed a...

Nigeria has revealed plans to extend telecommunications services to another 40 million people with no access to communication in 2017. According to Umar Danbatta (photo), the Executive Vice-Chairman of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), a survey carried out has revealed about 200 communities nationwide with telecommunication access gap. He said through the Universal Service Provision...

In Nigeria, three states have met the 30% counterpart funding needed to access the European Union's (EU) N2.4 billion grant for water project in the Niger Delta region. The three states are Bayelsa, Delta and Edo, Business Day reports. According to Albert Achten, the Leader of the EU expert team, two out of the five beneficiary states targeted in the region are yet to fulfill the requirement in...

The Association of Telecommunications Companies of Nigeria (ATCON) has appealed to regulators in the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) industry to consider convergence. According to ATCON’s President, Olusola Teniola (photo), the lack of a united regulatory environment in the country is deterring the convergence of services in the industry. He said convergence signifies the coming...

The Government of Finland has expressed interest in supporting Nigeria in the development of its geological prospects and entire mining sector. This was declared when officials of the Geological Survey of Finland visited the minister of mines and steel development, Kayode Fayemi (photo), in Abuja, Business Day reports. According to Philipp Schmidt-Thomé, the leader of the Finish delegation,...

The President-elect of the United States, Donald Trump (photo), has raised questions as to why the U.S was still spending money to fight the Boko Haram insurgency in Nigeria and why all of the abducted Chibok girls have not been rescued. This is part of the queries contained in a four-page write up of Africa-related questions relating to terrorism and corruption raised by Donald Trump’s...

Nigeria is preparing to join force with other West African countries to intercede militarily in Gambia, if President Yahya Jammeh (photo) does not relinquish power to the president-elect, Adama Barrow, according to a Nigerian military source on Tuesday. “A decision has been taken that he will not remain president of Gambia at the expiration of his tenure,” the source told Reuters. Nigeria...

The Bank of Industry (BoI) has included authorization from the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) in its conditions for the approval of loan requests by manufacturers of drugs, pharmaceuticals, and food products in Nigeria. This new condition according to the bank, is to ensure that food and drugs produced in the country meet international standards and that...

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has raised concerns on the increasing cases of Lassa fever in the country and has urged more focus on prevention and preparedness. According to Lawal Bakare, the Technical Assistant Communication, NCDC in Lagos, 19 confirmed cases and six deaths had been reported in seven states so far. He said in the last quarter of 2016, the center began the...