Business
EITI Seeks Stakeholders Commitment To New Standards For The Sector
The Chair of the Board, Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI), Helen Clark, has called on the stakeholders in the sector to show commitment in strengthening transparency and the implementation of EITI goals.
She made the call during the launch of a new standard for the extractive industries at the just ended EITI 2023 global conference in Dakar, Senegal, themed “Transparency in Transition.”
At the event, hosted by the government of Senegal at the Centre International de Conférences Abdou Diouf, Diamniadio, and which drew participants from across the globe, she said that the new standard focuses on beneficial ownership transparency as a key anti-corruption mechanism in the extractive sector.
The key players in the industry deliberated on different areas bordering on key issues plaguing the institution in promoting transparency and accountability in the extractive industry, benefits of disclosing contract from energy in the extractive and energy transition.
Highlights of The New Standard
• A new requirement to request full disclosure of beneficial ownership by politically exposed persons (PEPs), regardless of their level of ownership.
This is intended to ensure that any amount of ownership by PEPs is publicly disclosed, and if implemented effectively, will act as an important mechanism to detect conflicts of interest, for example in the awarding and management of licences.
• The Standard now encourages EITI implementing countries to adopt a threshold of 10% or lower for beneficial ownership reporting.
In extractives, a high-risk sector for corruption, it has long been acknowledged that low thresholds are important for understanding ownership, for example of a small percentage stake in a very large extractives company.
• Requirements for information to be disclosed when state-owned enterprises (SOEs) hold beneficial ownership or control. The Standard now specifies the key information that is required: the name of the state, level of ownership, and detail about how ownership or control is exerted.
Given the prominent role of state-owned enterprises in the extractive sector, when combined with the EITI requirement on PEP disclosure, this represents a significant strengthening of the potential for the EITI Standard to deliver anti-corruption impact.
• Requirement 2.6e) also encourages SOEs to disclose beneficial ownership information for their agents, intermediaries, suppliers or contractors.
•The Standard now contains additional requirements to support the disclosure of full ownership chains where beneficial ownership is held indirectly.
This comprises a new requirement to disclose the legal ownership of entities as well as beneficial ownership, and is coupled with an encouragement for companies to disclose their ownership structure and full ownership chain.
• Finally, the Standard now encourages the EITI multi-stakeholder groups to review the comprehensiveness and reliability of beneficial ownership information disclosed through stock exchange filings for listed extractives companies, although it does not require any action if the data is not found to be reliable.
This remains an issue for actors wishing to understand ownership and control in listed companies in the extractive sector, as in practice there is wide variation in the availability of information from different stock exchanges.
Together, these new developments in the 2023 EITI Standard signal the continued strengthening of the ambitions of the EITI and its work to embed beneficial ownership transparency.
The transition from fossil fuel to renewable energy took the center stage of the discussion.
Business
BOI Secures $200m fresh Loan from AfDB
Dr. Olasupo Olusi, MD/CEO Bank of Industry, said: “BOI is pleased to deepen its long-standing partnership with the African Development Bank through this landmark facility, building on the successful collaboration under the bank’s previous $100 million line to BOI, which was fully repaid in 2025.
The Bank of Industry (BOI) has secured a $200 million sovereign-guaranteed thematic financing facility from the African Development Bank Group for onward lending to enterprises in the industrial sector of the economy including infrastructure and transport, agro-food processing and health.
The facility will also support climate-resilient and low-carbon investments, including renewable energy, energy-efficient industrial processes, climate-smart agriculture, and sustainable infrastructure solutions.
These investments are expected to improve productivity, promote local manufacturing, strengthen healthcare and pharmaceutical value chains, and reduce dependence on imports.
The package is strengthened by a $650,000 technical assistance grant from the Fund for African Private Sector Assistance (FAPA) to boost SME capacity, improve environmental, social, and governance (ESG) practices, support climate-smart initiatives, and enhance BOI’s impact measurement systems.
Dr. Abdul Kamara, Director General of the African Development Bank Group Nigeria Country Department, said the approval demonstrates the Bank’s continued commitment to supporting Nigeria’s private sector and industrial growth ambitions.
Reacting, Dr. Olasupo Olusi, Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of the Bank of Industry, said: “BOI is pleased to deepen its long-standing partnership with the African Development Bank through this landmark facility, building on the successful collaboration under the bank’s previous $100 million line to BOI, which was fully repaid in 2025.
This new facility will further strengthen our capacity to provide long-term financing to enterprises operating in sectors critical to Nigeria’s economic transformation.
Business
Dangote expands Investment in Ethiopia to $4bn
The expanded scope includes critical infrastructure such as a 110-kilometre pipeline, a 120MW power plant, a polypropylene packaging facility, and a two-million-tonne NPK blending plant, among other new components.
•Aliko Dangote
President of Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote has announced a significant increase in the Group’s investment in Ethiopia, rising from $2.5 billion to over $4 billion.
“This makes Ethiopia the second-largest recipient of our investments in Africa, accounting for nearly nine percent of our continental outlay between now and 2030,” said Dangote, describing Ethiopia as a key strategic destination for Dangote Group’s long-term investments.
The expanded scope includes critical infrastructure such as a 110-kilometre pipeline, a 120MW power plant, a polypropylene packaging facility, and a two-million-tonne NPK blending plant, among other new components.
Dangote stated this while addressing journalists in Gode, Ethiopia’s Somali region, during a high-profile visit hosted by Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, a statement by Dangote Group said.
According to the statement, the prime minister personally received Dangote and accompanied him to inspect the site of the proposed fertiliser plant, where construction activities are already underway.
Speaking on the strategic importance of fertiliser in agricultural productivity, Dangote noted that Africa’s food insecurity challenges were largely due to limited access to key inputs.
“Africa holds immense agricultural potential, yet continues to grapple with food insecurity due to limited access to fertiliser.
Through our investments, we are committed to reversing this trend by boosting productivity, empowering farmers, and advancing a sustainable path to food self-sufficiency”, he said.
Business
PenCom bracing up to invest in Dangote Refinery’s IPO, urges PFAs
The decision effectively grants PFAs access to part of Nigeria’s N29.5 trillion pension assets for investment in the refinery, marking it one of the most significant regulatory adjustments in the pension industry in recent years.
The National Pension Commission (PenCom) has approved the investment of pension assets in the proposed initial public offering (IPO) of Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals, opening the door for pension fund administrators (PFAs) to participate in one of Africa’s biggest industrial projects.
The decision effectively grants PFAs access to part of Nigeria’s N29.5 trillion pension assets for investment in the refinery, marking it one of the most significant regulatory adjustments in the pension industry in recent years.
PenCom, in a circular displayed on its website, described the approval as a “specific and singular exception” to existing investment regulations because of the refinery’s strategic importance to the Nigerian economy.
Under current pension investment guidelines, PFAs are generally prohibited from investing contributors’ funds in companies without a proven history of profitability and dividend payments.
However, the commission said the refinery’s scale, financial structure and expected economic impact justified the waiver.
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