By Fatima Ibrahim Maikore | – The recent abduction and murder of some geologists and engineers of the University of Maiduguri have again highlighted the perils facing professionals who work quietly in the background but whose occupational outcome is part of what is responsible for the prosperity of our nation. On the fateful day of Tuesday, July 25, 2017 the NNPC/University of Maiduguri Exploration team and a detachment of Nigerian Army and Civilian JTFs were attacked by some insurgents, while in the line of duty. …

By Abebe Aemro Selassie | – Six countries in central Africa have been hit hard by the collapse in commodity prices. Oil prices dropped, economic growth stalled, public debt rose, and foreign exchange reserves declined. A delayed response from policymakers, and a regional conflict have worsened the situation further for people in the region. The countries of the Central African Economic and Monetary Community are Gabon, Cameroon, Chad, the Central African Republic, the Republic of Congo, and Equatorial Guinea. They share a common currency—the CFA franc—that is pegged to the euro, and have …

By Egufe Yafugborhi | – Nigeria’s Vice President Yemi Osibanjo, who, like the Minister of State for Petroleum, Ibe Kachikwu, is fond of telling people what they want to hear, declared in passing that oil companies should relocate to producing environment in the Niger Delta. Flamboyantly academic and articulate, Osibanjo flatters Niger Deltans with such promissory note and it turned instant opium that incited a legion of Niger Delta activists (jobbers or genuine), groups, communities, self-imposed leaders and crusaders into harping on “oil firms must …

By Neftegaz | – The growing consensus that the OPEC oil cutback initiative isn’t working has been met by OPEC members insisting that their efforts combined with rising demand will result in a market rebalance – but a new forecast from the International Energy Agency on March 16, 2017, says demand is in fact slowing. An IEA report predicted that global demand growth for oil will drop from 1.6 million barrels per day (bpd) in 2016 to 1.4 million bpd this year, due to a …

By Wesley Dockery | – A recent World Bank report has claimed the Libyan economy is “near collapse” due to inflation and lack of oil production. What are Libya’s economic challenges and do Western countries harbour any responsibility to help? The report, titled “Libya’s Economic Outlook – October 2016” suggested that Libya’s lack of exploitation of its main resource, oil, is partially to blame for the country’s economic problems. Libya also faces inflation and trade deficit issues, as well as political instability due to the …

By Reginald Uwadiegwu Ibe | – High-level government officials and ranking politicians tell us that the problem with the Nigerian economy and the reasons we are in such a very deep recession are the crash in crude oil prices, renewed Niger Delta militancy and, of course, corruption. Central Bank Governor Godwin Emefiele said the other day in Lagos that a failure to save for the rainy day as well as poor monetary and fiscal policies were partly responsible for the country’s current recession. He also …