Radisson Announces its 10th Hotel in Nigeria

Esan Bolaji
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Radisson Announces its 10th Hotel in Nigeria

Radisson Hotel Group announced its 10th hotel in Nigeria and the third brand in Abuja, the capital city of Nigeria and headquarters of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).

Radisson Announces its 10th Hotel in Nigeria
Radisson Announces its 10th Hotel in Nigeria – www.brandspurng.com

The opening of Radisson Hotel Abuja Gudu will further strengthen the group’s presence in one of its key African markets, bringing its Nigerian portfolio to 10 hotels in operation and under development and placing it firmly on track to reach a 50% portfolio increase by 2025.

The hotel, currently under construction and due to open within the next 18 months, is located in Gudu, an established district which occupies a strategic location just outside Abuja’s city centre and is primarily a residential and premium commercial area.

Erwan Garnier, Senior Director, Development, Africa, Radisson Hotel Group, said:

“We are delighted to introduce the fast-growing, upscale, Radisson brand to Abuja with what is set to be a landmark hotel and key contributor to the countries positive travel and tourism industry. It will perfectly complement our two hotels currently under development in the city, Radisson Collection Abuja ASO Tower, scheduled to open in 2022 and Radisson Blu Abuja City Centre, on track to open its doors in 2024. Beyond Abuja, our expansion strategy in Nigeria focuses on Lagos and Port Harcourt as well as the countries six main state capital cities.”

Commenting on the group’s development plans in Nigeria, Ramsay Rankoussi, Vice President, Development, Africa & Turkey, Radisson Hotel Group, said:

“In line with our strategic review across the continent and further supporting our ambitions across Africa to reach over 150 hotels within the next five years, Nigeria represents one of our core focus growth markets. I take this opportunity to thank our partner for this new addition and we certainly look forward to further reinforcing our presence across the country in the coming years. We aim to accelerate our presence across Nigeria, predominantly through conversions and new build hotels but also with a diversified offering from business hotels to serviced apartments and mixed-use developments.

“The 100-room hotel will comprise of various standard room types and suites, furnished with contemporary layered styling and a Scandinavian-inspired aesthetic. This design will flow through the hotels four restaurants and bars too, from the lobby bar and café and all-day-dining restaurant to the restaurant and pool terraces and Business Class Lounge. The hotel will also feature a fully equipped gym and an outdoor swimming pool, providing guests with a harmonious business and leisure experience.

“The meetings and events space of 242 sqm will be made up of three meeting rooms, a boardroom and a pre-assembly area.”

Prince Ify Godfrey Ejim, Chief Operating Officer, 1st Impression Investment Company Limited, the hotel’s owning company, said:

“We are thrilled to be partnering with Radisson Hotel Group in introducing the Radisson brand to Abuja, the countries powerhouse city. With a combination of endless aesthetic beauty and world-class hospitality, together, I believe we will create the city’s must-visit hotel.”

Nigerians pay heavy price as laptop scarcity bites harder

Esan Bolaji
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Nigerians pay heavy price as laptop scarcity bites harder

The ongoing scarcity of laptops and personal computers (PCs) may worsen as industry experts are now projecting that the prevailing paucity may persist until the third quarter of 2021.

Previous reports indicate that the situation is a result of disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and increased demand for units worldwide.

Nigerians pay heavy price as laptop scarcity bites harder

Equally important, global computer Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) have admitted that there are no easy fixes or a quick way out of the current scarcity, with a number of paid-up orders already being recalibrated for shipment in April/May or June next year. The situation has seen urgent requirements of laptops for business, learning and leisure needs grossly affected the world over.

Enquiries from major distributors in Dubai and Nigeria indicate that back-log of orders are still yet to be shipped. They insist that manufacturers, who are struggling to cope with supply chain disruptions, are finding it hard to clear their demand logs. The situation is the same with all the big players including HP, Lenovo, Dell, Asus, among others.

Nigerians pay heavy price as laptop scarcity bites harder

Nigeria, Africa’s biggest market, is one of the hardest hit by the current scarcity.

Consumers, including businesses, educational institutions and individual users, are bearing the brunt of the situation, with prices flying for the few available units in the market as greedy retailers cash in on the prevailing scarcity to jack up their margins.

A commentator, Bayo Oshunde, says the situation will get even worse as university students prepare to return to school in the face of a potential compromise between the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) which has been on a 10-month strike and the Federal Government.

‘‘The scarcity is really biting hard here in Nigeria. Prices are at an all-time high for few systems available in the market and a number of sellers are taking a pound of flesh from consumers as a result.

‘‘But this is just the beginning for Nigeria. In my opinion, the situation is going to get even worse before it gets better. Right now, the Federal Government has made a few significant concessions to ASUU and the word on the street is that the strike may be called off soon. The resumption of university students will put even greater pressure on demand for laptops, PCs and other devices.

‘‘The downside of this is that many of our students in their final or penultimate years in school, whose parents or guardians cannot afford to compete for the heavily-priced few units on sale, will be forced to enter the already overstretched and fiercely-competitive labour market as analogue graduates,’’ he lamented.

DStv Premium Golf Day: Promoting Development of Sport in Nigeria

Esan Bolaji
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DStv Premium Golf Day: Promoting Development of Sport in Nigeria
Sport was one of the major activities missed by billions of sports lovers across the world during the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. Now, sports activities are gradually returning with top leagues such as; the La Liga, English Premier League, Serie A, NBA, IAAF meet, Grand Slam and some other tournaments gearing up for a face-off.

Although sports events are being held behind closed doors, the fans are very excited their favourite leagues are back following the four-month unprecedented disruption.

DStv Premium Golf Day: Promoting Development of Sport in Nigeria

Football may be the most popular sport in Nigeria but golf is a sport that is slowly creeping into the hearts and minds of Nigerians, especially the older generation. In recent times, Nigeria has made a name in the golf sport, both locally and internationally through the performance of 16-year-old Georgia Oboh who won the U.S. Kids Golf Teen World champion in 2015.

Recently, leading pay-television operator MultiChoice Nigeria hosted its maiden DStv Premium Golf Day at the Ikeja Golf Club in Lagos, to further promote sports in Nigeria. The tournament was well received by the golfing community in Nigeria and is considered a premier event amongst golfers. The event had golfers from Ikeja Golf Club, Ikoyi Club Golf Section, Ibadan Golf Club, Abeokuta Golf Club, Benin Club Golf Section and Ekiti Golf Club.

DStv Premium Golf Day: Promoting Development of Sport in Nigeria

It is very exciting to note that of a total of ninety-nine (99) golfers selected for the one-day tournament, eighty-three (83) of the participants were male, while sixteen (16) were female golfers. The tournament which kicked off at the early hour of Saturday, November 14, saw many golfers go head-to-head to battle for the mouth-watering prizes offered by DStv. There were a lot of mixed feelings at the event, while some golfers were elated as their balls entered the holes, others were unhappy as their game wasn’t going as planned.

The tournament was followed by a cocktail event which had in attendance golfers, actors and past big brother Naija housemates, for formal announcements of results and rewards for the winners.

The winner of the DStv Premium Golf Day tournament Dr. Ogunbiyi Ogunbanjo, got a business class ticket to Dubai for a weekend stay at a five-star hotel, while the first-runner up Mr. Remi Olukoya got a business class ticket to Rwanda for a weekend stay at a five-star hotel and the second runner up Mr. Rasheed Adebisi was also rewarded with a weekend stay at a five-star hotel in Lagos.

Other winners of the tournament were Mrs. Linda Obieze who won the female category and was rewarded with a golf bag, Mr. Femi Ajala, won the prize for the longest drive and was rewarded with a 55-inch television set and Mr. Ife Muritala, was given a golf bag for the nearest to the pin.

The captain of Ikeja Golf Club appreciated DStv for organising the event and aiding the of promoting the development of the sports in Nigeria, “We thank the DStv team for bringing such initiative to Ikeja Golf Club. This is the first tournament and the feedback from players have been very impressive. We sincerely hope this will become an annual event,” Durojaiye said.

MultiChoice Nigeria is a brand that has constantly shown its support and commitment to the development of sports in Nigeria. Aside from its wide coverage of local and international sports activities that expose talents and sports administrators to global best practices, the company has also shown support for football, basketball, boxing and now golf.

Nigeria’s Real GDP Contracts by -3.62% in Q3 2020, Officially Slides into 2nd recession in 5 years

Esan Bolaji
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Nigeria’s Real GDP Contracts by -3.62% in Q3 2020, Officially Slides into 2nd recession in 5 years
Nigeria’s gross domestic product (GDP) recorded a growth rate of -3.62% (year-on-year) in real terms in the third quarter of 2020. While this represents an improvement of 2.48% points over the -6.10% growth rate recorded in the preceding quarter (Q2 2020), it also indicates that two consecutive quarters of negative growth have been recorded in 2020.

Furthermore, growth in Q3 2020 was slower by 5.90% points when compared to the third quarter of 2019 which recorded a real growth rate of 2.28% year on year.

The last time Nigeria recorded such cumulative GDP was in 1987 when GDP declined by 10.8 percent. The nation’s inflation rate is currently astronomically evidenced by the high prices of commodities in the market.

The performance of the economy in Q3 2020 reflected residual effects of the restrictions to movement and economic activity implemented across the country in early Q2 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Nigeria's Real GDP Contracts by -3.62% in Q3 2020, Officially Slides into 2nd recession in 5 years

As these restrictions were lifted, businesses re-opened and international travel and trading activities resumed, some economic activities have returned to positive growth. A total of 18 economic activities recorded positive growth in Q3 2020, compared to 13 activities in Q2 2020.

During the quarter under review, aggregate GDP stood at N39,089,460.61 million in nominal terms. This performance was 3.39% higher when compared to the third quarter of 2019 which recorded an aggregate of N37,806,924.41 million.

This rate was, however, lower relative to growth recorded in the third quarter of 2019 by -9.91% points but higher than the proceeding quarter by 6.19% points. For clarity, the Nigerian economy has been broadly classified into the oil and non-oil sectors.

Oil Sector

The average daily oil production recorded in the third quarter of 2020 stood at 1.67 million barrels per day (mbpd), or 0.37mbpd lower than the average production recorded in the same quarter of 2019 and 0.14mbpd lower than production volume recorded in the second quarter of 2020.

Real growth for the oil sector was -13.89% (year-on-year) in Q3 2020, indicating a sharp contraction of -20.38% points relative to the rate recorded in the corresponding quarter of 2019. Furthermore, real oil growth decreased by -7.26% points when compared with oil sector growth recorded in Q2 2020 (6.63%).

Quarter on quarter however, the oil sector recorded a growth rate of 9.64% in Q3 2020. The sector contributed 8.73% to total real GDP in Q3 2020, down from 9.77% and 8.93% respectively recorded in the corresponding period of 2019 and the preceding quarter, Q2 2020.

Non-Oil Sector

The non-oil sector grew by -2.51% in real terms during the reference quarter, which is -4.36% points lower than the rate recorded in Q3 2019 but 3.54% points higher than in the second quarter of 2020.

The non-oil sector was driven mainly by Information and Communication (Telecommunications), with other drivers being Agriculture (Crop Production), Construction, Financial and Insurance (Financial Institutions), and Public Administration.

In real terms, the non-oil sector contributed 91.27% to the nation’s GDP in the third quarter of 2020, higher than its share in the third quarter of 2019 (90.23%) and the second quarter of 2020 (91.07%).

Nigeria's Real GDP Contracts by -3.62% in Q3 2020, Officially Slides into 2nd recession in 5 years Brandspurng2

How should an employer handle a discrimination case?

Esan Bolaji
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How should an employer handle a discrimination case?
A hot subject in everyday conversation and a nail-biting idea for most company owners is a lot to understand about discrimination before navigating one of these cases internally.  Whether based on gender, sexuality, ethnicity, or any other protected status, every version has a depth of empathy and patience needed.

Regardless of the type of case, some steps have to be undertaken to get your office back in order and your employees comfortable again. Nobody deserves to be disrespected for anything they can’t control.

How should an employer handle a discrimination case?

Talk to The Victim

If your company has a human resources department, they should be first in line with your employee.  The victim should be allowed to say their part on what they experienced without judgment or coercion.

Don’t try to talk over the victim or blame them for playing some interest in what happened. Just listen. When they’re done, ask what they’d like done about the current situation. You can take it to a certain point, but they may have to file a police report after that.

Talk To The Perpetrator

Whoever is being accused of discrimination should be allowed to say their piece if you didn’t witness what happened.  If they admit what the victim says happened, you can skip to the step where you go over information thoroughly.  If their side of the story is drastically different, you should take down everything they say verbatim.  Try not to allow any finger-pointing or shouting over this; it’s best to keep them separated.

Find Witnesses Either Way

Regardless of what you think happened or what each party says, try to find evidence of what happened.  This decision may be difficult since many would rather stay out of the situation, but you should clarify that their testimony is necessary. Get detailed accounts from each witness, and attempt to ensure that they’re unbiased.

This truth may seem hard to keep track of, but if any opinions are starkly different from the majority, they may not be giving an honest account of what happened. It would help if you still wrote it down, but take it with a grain of salt.

Go Over Information Thoroughly

Review everything you can about the situation.  Double-check your own biases, and ensure that you aren’t leaning one way or another because of your personal feelings.  If you need an outside view, you can get economic consulting in Washington, DC to help you further look into what happened.

Punish and Re-educate

Although the word punish may seem harsh, those who misbehaved should be taken down a peg for what they’ve done.  Whether it’s losing out on some of the office’s perks until they’ve completed sensitivity training or not allowing them any group projects or overtime until they’ve shown they have changed.

Focus on education and training and clarify that you don’t want that kind of behaviour in your company.  If the action was bad enough to warrant it, consider firing the employee to give your company a chance at a fresh start.  Although you can’t undo what happened to your employee, you can make sure it doesn’t happen again.

Zambia Default: Lessons for other African countries

United Capital Research
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Zambia Default: Lessons for other African countries

Last Friday, Zambia became the first African economy in the pandemic era to default on a part of its debt after predictably failing to make an interest payment on a Eurobond. Recall that the country, in September, requested that interest rates for 3 Eurobonds be deferred and in October, missed a $40mn interest payment due on one of the bonds.

Notably, Zambia is not the only African nation with debt struggles. For instance, Kenya, Ethiopia, Angola, and Nigeria, are seeing rapidly increasing levels in dollar-denominated debt, aggravated by the battle with COVID-19.

Zambia Default Brandspurng Lessons for other African countries
Will a Zambian default risk worsen credit risk premium for SSA issuers
President of Zambia, Edgar Lungu – www.brandspurng.com

Notwithstanding, the conversation around debt management and default risk is more nuanced.

Zambia is an extreme case in an environment plagued by systemic issues, including but not limited to subpar revenue collection, currency devaluation, commodity price decline, lack of transparency and irresponsible fiscal spending.

While it is important not to paint other African countries with the same brush as Zambia, these countries can take a few lessons on how to better handle their precarious debt situations.

Despite the G20’s recent agreement on a common approach for restructuring government debt, Africa’s increasing dependence on debt relief-resistant China might dampen the impact of this otherwise unsustainable approach which fails to address the issues contributing to the debt crisis.

Summarily, African countries must tackle the fundamental issues plaguing their economies.

10 Nigerian Movies to Watch on Netflix this Weekend

Brand Spur
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10 Nigerian Movies to Watch on Netflix this Weekend

A lot of Nigerian movies have come out on Netflix recently. If you’ve been looking for what to watch and you’re not sure where to start from, check out these movies below.

Citation

Of course, we would start from Citation by Kunle Afolayan. The film is about a student who speaks out after a university professor attempts to rape her and the reaction of the university institution to the claims. The film is broadly based on true events.

In-Line

A convicted murderer is released from prison and reunites with his wife, who is plotting revenge against him after years of physical and emotional abuse.

The Governor

The Governor” is the riveting tale of Angela Ochello, the Deputy Governor of Savannah State, who with no governorship ambitions finds herself suddenly entangled in a web of political intrigue after the untimely death of the incumbent Governor.

As audiences embark on this journey with Angela, they get to see how with the help of her trusted Chief of Staff, she learns how to manoeuvre through the rough and shark-infested waters of politics whilst balancing the demands of her matrimonial home.

Coming From Insanity

In the mid-nineties, a 12-year-old boy (KOSSI) with genius-level intelligence, is one of many children trafficked through the Nigerian borders from Togo. He ends up with the MARTINS, an upper-middle-class family of 4 in Lagos.

At their home, he will work overtime for his meals and shelter as a houseboy. Fast forward to the present day, Kossi is still a houseboy with the Martins. He dreams of a better life, but with barely any education, he knows his future is compromised.

He relies on his natural abilities and talent to carve out a way for himself, soon discovering the art of counterfeit money printing and floating the most flawless counterfeit dollars this side of the world. Now out on his own, he employs the services of a few friends and grows the operation substantially, landing him on the radar of a young determined agent at the EFCC who will stop at nothing to bring him to justice.

The Eve

A man has second thoughts about his upcoming wedding when he meets another woman at his bachelor party.

Hire A Woman

An uptight man attempts to make his ex-girlfriend jealous when he pays his co-worker to act as his lover at a university reunion. Starring: Alexx Ekubo, Nancy Isime, Mike Godson.

Taxi Driver (Oko Ashewo)

After his father dies, a young mechanic moves to the city to drive the old man’s taxi. Along the way, he encounters assassins and a motley crew of other urban weirdos.

The First Lady

A prostitute who is tired of the kind of work she does doing everything in her power to stop and also looking unto a man to save her from her predicament

Black Rose

Rose has a firm understanding of the virtuous woman as imparted by her mother, not so practised by her sister. Her desire for a better life without selling her dignity seems to be in the person of Desmond, a man she fell in love with at first sight regardless of their differences.

Meet the in-laws

A Yoruba man proposes to his Igbo girlfriend, but when the news eventually reaches their parents, their reactions aren’t exactly what they expected due to tribal prejudice.

By: Dammy Eneli

UBA grew topline income by 9.03% Amid Higher Operating Expenses

PFI Capital
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UBA grew topline income by 9.03% Amid Higher Operating Expenses
United Bank for Africa PLC (UBA) Q3-2020 earnings shows an impressive topline as gross revenue advanced by 9.03% majorly driven by 6.46% increase in interest income despite the drag in fees and commission income.

Specifically, UBA interest income advanced from N297.90bn to N317.14bn followed by a 5.66% reduction in interest expenses. Consequently, net interest income advanced by 17.06% to N186.02bn amid increasing impairment charges. A 72.23% increase in impairment charges pressure down net interest income after impairment to N174.55.

UBA grew topline income by 9.03% Amid Higher Operating Expenses

Higher cost put pressure on bottom-line performance.

Income from fees and commission declined by 11.14% arising from lower-income from credit-related fees and commission despite increase trade transactions income. A 19.20% increase in operating expenses also reduced Profit Before Tax by 8.00% down to N90.37bn.

Consequently, UBA’s profit after tax declined by N5.52 to N77.13 compared to the N81.63bn in Q3-2019. In summary, Earnings per share declined by 6.90% to N2.16 in the current period.

UBA grew topline income by 9.03% Amid Higher Operating Expenses

Zenith Bank Grew Revenue by 3.60%…N159bn PAT Generated

PFI Capital
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Zenith Bank Grew Revenue by 3.60%…N159bn PAT Generated

Zenith Bank Plc Q3-2020 financials shows growth in gross revenue by 3.60% from N491.27 to N508.98bn despite a marginal drop in interest income. Notably, interest income declined by 0.97% from N321.94bn to N318.82 followed by a reduction in interest expense.

A 12.74% decrease in interest expense leads to a 4.92% growth in Net interest income. However, rise in impairment charges by 37.51% moderated net interest income after impairments to N200.07 representing a 1.89% growth when compared with Q3-2019.

Zenith Bank Grew Revenue by 3.60%...N159bn PAT Generated Brandspurng1

Trading income boost earnings amid dwindling fees and commission income

A 34.34 % growth in trading revenue majorly from Treasury bill and bond trading income despite the loss on derivatives instruments boosted operating income by 5.79%.

Particularly, Zenith bank generated N89.82bn in trading revenue up from the N66.86bn in Q3 last year. This was however accompanied by a 19.94% drop in net fee and commission income from N73.85bn in Q3-2019 to N59.12 billion in the current period.

Fall in fee and commission income was major as a result of declining credit-related fees, fees on electronic products with rescue coming from current account maintenance charge income.

Higher Operating cost weigh on the bottom line

In spite of the 5.79% increase in operating income, operating expenses advanced by 10.93% from N176.94 to N196.28 arising from increased personnel and information technology-related cost.

Consequently, Profit before tax only advanced by 0.62% from N176.18 to N177.28 with profit after tax rising by 5.70% buoyed by lower taxes. Specifically, Zenith bank made N159.32bn PAT with EPS increasing to N 5.07 from the N4.80 generated in Q3-2019.

Zenith Bank Grew Revenue by 3.60%...N159bn PAT Generated Brandspurng

Access Bank made N102.30bn Profit After Tax in Q3-2020

PFI Capital
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Access Bank made N102.30bn Profit After Tax in Q3-2020
Earlier, Access Bank PLC released Q3-2020 financial result showing marginal growth in revenue by 0.71% resulting from dwindling interest income and improvement in net fees and commission income.

Notably, interest income declined by 7.34% arising from the low-interest-rate environment despite growth in credit volumes. The surge in loan impairment charges by a whopping 222.71% also contributed to a fall in Access Bank’s net interest income after impairment owing to increased credit risk environment triggered by COVID-19 and aggressive drive to meet LDR requirements from CBN.

Access Bank made N102.30bn Profit After Tax in Q3-2020

Specifically, impairment charges advanced from N10.61bn in Q3-2019 to N34.24bn in the current period while net interest income net of impairments declined by 18.82% from N199.61bn to N162.03bn.

Operating Income Shielded By Fees & Commission And Other Income

A 28.26% and 210.59% upsurge in fee and commission and other non-interest income cushions the effect of lower interest income as operating incoming advanced by 22.24% to N363.49bn.

Specifically, a 24x surge in Net gains on financial instruments to came from gains recorded on fixed-income trading derivative instruments and fair value gain on equity investments while increased fees and commission income was majorly driven by improvement in credit-related commission and e-channels fees.

A total of N28.36bn was generated from credit-related fees compared to the N 24.40bn recorded in Q3-2019 with account maintenance charges stable at N10bn.

Increased Cost Moderated Bottom Line Performance

Following the 22.24% increase in operating income, Access Bank’s operating expenses advanced by 25.60% reducing the increase in PBT to 15.69%. Notably, operating expenses advanced from N196.55 to N246.87 on the back of increased wages and salaries and other personnel expenses. Consequently, Profit after Tax rose by 15.67% from N88.44bn to N102.30bn while earnings per share (EPS) improved to N1.16 from the N0.80 realized in Q3-2019.

Access Bank made N102.30bn Profit After Tax in Q3-2020

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