… NCDMB, NAICOM sign insurance services guidelines***
African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) has disbursed 150 million dollars to First Bank of Nigeria Ltd., under its Pandemic Trade Impact Mitigation Facility (PATIMFA).
Group Head, Marketing and Corporate Communications, FirstBank, Mrs Folake Ani-Mumuney, said this in a statement on Monday in Lagos.
According to the statement, the President and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Afreximbank, Prof. Benedict Oramah, said the disbursement was further proof of the relevance of the programme in helping African economies to recover from the crisis-induced by the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Since April 2020, when PATIMFA was launched, we are more than proud to have disbursed more than 7 billion dollars to help Afreximbank member countries manage the adverse impact of the financial, economic and health shocks caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Through First Bank, one of our trade finance intermediaries, this 150 million dollar facility will help build the resilience of many businesses to the adverse impacts of the pandemic, while helping them overcome the consequences of the current Ukraine crisis,” Oramah said.
Dr Adesola Adeduntan, FirstBank’s CEO, commended Afreximbank for the impactful financial support.
“We commend Afreximbank for this impactful financial response, It will immensely contribute to empowering many businesses adversely impacted by the economic shocks caused by COVID-19.
“The selection of FirstBank as a partner in this initiative is a testament to their confidence in our capacity and proven track record over the years.
“As a bank that has been woven into the fabric of our society for over 128 years.
“We remain committed to the success of businesses in our host communities and ensuring they are given the needed boost to sustain their operations and further drive economic growth in the nation,” he said.
The statement said the Afreximbank’s 150 million dollar support would be accessible to FirstBank customers involved in the manufacturing and importation of products and equipment required to combat the COVID-19 pandemic.
It will also be accessible to organizations with initiatives to rehabilitate hospitals and strengthen diagnostic and testing capacity.
It added that the proceeds of the facility would help beneficiary businesses manage the impacts of the Ukraine crisis.
In another development, the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) and the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) have signed insurance services guidelines that would oblige the oil and gas industry to patronize the local insurance sector.
A statement issued on Monday by the NCDMB’s Corporate Communications Department said the guidelines would help to retain insurance spending by operators in the economy.
The statement said the Executive Secretary, NCDMB, Mr Simbi Wabote and the Commissioner for Insurance, Mr Sunday Thomas, signed the guidelines recently on behalf of their organizations in Bayelsa.
It said the guidelines would address loopholes that had been identified while implementing the provisions of the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development (NOGICD) Act, particularly sections 49 and 50, which deal with insurance of oil and gas activities.
The statement quoted Wabote as saying that the sections required all operators engaged in any project in the oil and gas industry to insure all insurable risks related to their business with an insurance company, through an insurance broker registered in Nigeria.
He said the Act provides that where an operator seeks to place an insurable risk offshore, written approval of NAICOM must first be sought and obtained.
Wabote added that that NAICOM before the issuance of the approval must also ascertain that local capacity has been fully exhausted.
He maintained that the Insurance guidelines would strengthen the board’s local content drive.
He said it would ensure that a greater portion of the spending in the Insurance industry as it relates to oil and gas activities in Nigeria was retained in-country.
Wabote said: “The insurance guidelines being launched today were developed by the two regulatory bodies.
“It is to ensure that government’s intention of promoting insurance services within the country is achieved so as to capture significant financial spend under oil and gas insurance services in the country.”
He said the collaboration between NCDMB and NAICOM would further ensure the successful implementation of the Insurance guidelines and every other activity.
According to him, this will lead to the attainment of the objectives of the NOGICD Act, 2010 as well as 70 percent Nigerian Content by 2027 under the Board’s 10-Year Strategic Roadmap.
He added that finer details of the guidelines would be released at the Nigerian Content Seminar at the 2022 Nigerian Oil and Gas Conference scheduled for July 2022.
On his part, Thomas charged all stakeholders engaged in any form of business, operations or contract in the Nigerian oil and gas industry to ensure compliance with the relevant laws and the insurance guidelines.
He expressed optimism that the partnership between the board and NAICOM would realize the benefits of increased local content, in-country value retention, job creation, employment generation and Gross Domestic Product growth.
Thomas also reiterated the agency’s commitment to create an enabling environment that would consistently enhance the increased capacity of the insurance institutions both financially and technically.
