The Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA) has faulted the ban on alcohol sold in sachets and small bottles, warning that the policy could worsen smuggling and lead to job losses.

NAN, reports that the Director-General of NECA, Mr Wale Smatt-Oyerinde, expressed the association’s position during a media briefing on Tuesday in Lagos.

He said such a blanket ban was not the appropriate solution to concerns surrounding the products, emphasising that the ban could open more opportunities for smugglers, particularly given Nigeria’s more than 1,000 unmanned entry and exit points.

” The ban poses serious risks to the economy, as it could result in the loss of jobs and investments across the value chain.

“Looking at the overall economic objectives, where do you throw the jobs that would be lost in that place?

” We are not worried about the rate of unemployment. We’re not worried about the business investment that will be lost. We’re not worried about the consequences of the message we are communicating to other investors,” Smatt-Oyerinde said.

He added that banning sachet alcohol would also create additional challenges for law enforcement agencies, the Ministry of Labour and Employment, and the wider economy.

• Femi Otedola

Femi Otedola has sold out his majority shares in Geregu Power Plc to an indigenous firm, MA’AM Energy Limited, an Abuja-based integrated energy company engaged in electricity generation and supply, energy trading and marketing.

The deal is valued at $750 million deal.

The power plant uploaded the filing on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) website.

According to the details cited, the transaction was consummated through the sale of Otedola’s 95 percent stake in Amperion Power Distribution Company Limited to MA’AM Energy Limited.

According to the NGX filing, Amperion Power Distribution Company Limited, the majority shareholder of Geregu Power, has undergone a significant restructuring of its ownership.

The document confirms that “MA’AM Energy Ltd has acquired a 95 per cent equity interest” in Amperion Power, effectively making it the new controlling shareholder of Geregu Power Plc.Consequently, the indirect controlling interest previously held by Calvados Global Services Limited and Otedola “has been transferred to MA’AM Energy.”

The transaction, which closed yesterday, was financed by a consortium of Nigerian banks led by Zenith Bank, with Blackbirch Capital acting as financial advisers.

While the sale involved Otedola’s stake in Amperion, Geregu Power clarified that this “does not involve the direct sale or transfer of shares of Geregu Power Plc,” meaning the company’s public shareholding structure on the NGX remains unchanged.

Geregu Power is currently valued at N2.85 trillion, trading at N1,140 per share and remains one of the most capitalised and profitable firms on the Nigerian Exchange.

• Dr Muda Yusuf, the CEO of CPPE

The Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise (CPPE), has described 2025 as “a year of macroeconomic stabilisation,” for Nigeria; projecting that the economy will in 2026, transition more decisively from stabilisation to growth.

CPPE, in its review of the outgoing year, noted : ” The year 2025 marked a significant turning point in Nigeria’s macroeconomic trajectory following the turbulence associated with the early phase of the government reforms.

“Exchange-rate stability emerged as the most visible achievement, with the naira largely trading within the ₦1,440–₦1,500/US$ band.”

Dr Muda Yusuf, the CEO of CPPE, stressed that the periodic marginal appreciation of the Naira, strengthened business confidence, eased imported inflation and restored predictability to pricing, contracting and investment planning.

“Inflation decelerated sharply from 24.48 percent in January to about 14.45 percent by November 2025.

The slowdown was supported by currency stability, easing logistics pressures and improving supply conditions.

Several food items and imported consumer goods recorded outright price declines, contributing to improved consumer sentiment and reduced price volatility.”

Given the above, Dr Yusuf said that overall, 2025 laid a solid foundation of macroeconomic stability.

He said : ” The outlook for 2026 is reassuring, with expectations of stronger growth, easing inflation, improving investor confidence and a gradual shift toward more inclusive expansion.

He emphasised that if reform momentum is sustained and security challenges are effectively addressed, 2026 could mark the beginning of a more robust growth phase with tangible improvements in living standards.