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High Rates Hike Weakening domestic production- MAN

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The Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) , said on Thursday that the continuous rise in interest rates by the Central Bank of Nigeria is weakening domestic production of finished goods.
MAN, therefore, called on the CBN to stop the rate hike and explore more of the monetary-fiscal policy handshake options to curb inflation.

This was the MAN reaction to the September increase in the Monetary Policy Rate (MPR) by 50 basis points, from 26.75% to 27.25% by the apex bank.

Segun Ajayi-Kadir,  the MAN Director-General,  said that despite the manufacturers expectation for a rate hold or reduction, given that price increases had slowed for the second consecutive month in August to an annual rate of 32.2%, the MPC opted for a tightening of monetary policy.

“The decision to raise the MPR to 27.25% has far-reaching implications for the manufacturing sector in Nigeria,” said Ajayi-Kadir.

Over the first six months of the year, manufacturers incurred more than ₦730 billion in capital expenses due to the continuous rise in interest rates imposed by commercial banks

He said: ” The continued increase in interest rates, which now totals 15.75 percentage points since May 2022, would compound the challenges faced by the sector, including rising production costs in the face of declining consumer purchasing power.

With the increase in borrowing costs, manufacturers will now pay over 35% on their credit facilities.

Clearly, this will lead to increase in production costs, higher prices of finished goods, lower competitiveness and production capacity expansion.

The impact of higher interest rates goes beyond compounding the challenges of manufacturers, it stifles opportunities for investment in crucial areas such as technology, retooling, and expansion within the manufacturing sector.
Manufacturers will, all the more, be compelled to choose servicing existing credit facilities over expansion and investment in new product lines.

For instance, over the first six months of the year, manufacturers incurred more than ₦730 billion in capital expenses due to the continuous rise in interest rates imposed by commercial banks.

This dilemma hampers innovation, productivity and growth.”

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Senate Constitutes Abdullahi Yahaya Tax Harmonisation Committee

Altogether, the four Tax Reform bills were Executive Bills transmitted by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to the two chambers of the National Assembly in November last year.

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The Senate on Thursday constituted a committee saddled with the responsibility of harmonizing its amendments to the tax reform bills with the House of Representatives version for final transmission to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, announced this during plenary after the passage of the bills.

Akpabio named senator Abdullahi Yahaya (Kebbi North) as chairman of the committee.

The members of the committee as announced by the Senate President are Senate Minority Leader, Abba Moro (PDP, Benue South), Chief Whip, Tahir Mongumo (APC, Borno North), Enyinnaya Abaribe (Abia South), Abdulaziz Yari (Zamfara), and Solomon Adeola (APC, Ogun West).

Earlier, the remaining two Tax Reform Bills — the Nigeria Tax Bill 2025 and the Joint Revenue Board (Establishment) Bill, 2025.

This was in addition to passage of the Nigeria Revenue Service (Establishment) Bill, 2025, and the Nigerian Tax Administration Bill, 2025.

Altogether, the four Tax Reform bills were Executive Bills transmitted by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to the two chambers of the National Assembly in November last year.

The passage of the bills was sequel to the consideration and adoption of a report of the Senate Committee on Finance presented by its Chairman, Senator Sani Musa (APC, Niger East).

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Meta’s Exit to Throw 20 million Nigerian MSMEs Out of Business

The Global System for Mobile Communications Association reported that Nigerian MSMEs rely heavily on Facebook and Instagram for sales, customer engagement, and brand visibility.

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A Digital Marketing Consultant at EssenceMediacom, Olayinka Shobola, believes that a shutdown of Facebook and Instagram operations in Nigeria would deal a serious blow to Nigeria’s digital economy, especially millions of micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs).

The Global System for Mobile Communications Association reported that Nigerian MSMEs rely heavily on Facebook and Instagram for sales, customer engagement, and brand visibility.

“Meta Platforms’ threat to halt operations in Nigeria could devastate 56 percent of the nation’s 39.6 players in the information technology space,” Shobola said, stressing that such an exit would erode tax revenues and force businesses to seek costly alternatives, as a $290 million fine dispute with regulators intensifies.

“Businesses that built their brands on Meta’s platforms would face immediate challenges.

The platforms have become essential tools for business survival and growth in Africa’s largest economy, where SMEs contribute nearly 50 per cent to GDP and represent more than 96 per cent of registered businesses.

“Most likely affected businesses will pivot to platforms like X or TikTok for short-term survival, but long-term, they’ll need to invest in standalone e-commerce or offline channels,” Shobola said.

“Jobs will take a hit; marketers, influencers, and agencies will lose contracts overnight.”

Statista forecasts a $148.2m social media ad market in 2025, with Facebook commanding up to $120m, driven by 38 million ad-reachable users.“My shop practically lives on these platforms, especially Instagram,” Lagos-based baker Fatima Tunde said. “If it’s gone, I’m out of business.”

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UAE Invests in $25bn African- Atlantic Gas Pipeline

The gas pipeline will connect Nigeria’s gas network with Morocco’s southern city of Dakhla and then go northward toward Europe.

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Gas pipelines

Morocco’s Minister of Energy Transition and Sustainable Development, Leila Benali, said that the UAE is now one of the supporters of the Nigeria to Morocco gas pipeline project, which is estimated to cost $25 billion.

“The project now called the “African-Atlantic Gas Pipeline”, has won the support of IDB, OPEC Fund, EIB and the UAE,” Benali told Nigerian lawmakers, this week.

Benali also said that Morocco has finished all the feasibility and engineering studies needed for the pipeline.

Moroccan industry experts said that the project has already passed the feasibility study and Front End Engineering Design stages.

The gas pipeline will connect Nigeria’s gas network with Morocco’s southern city of Dakhla and then go northward toward Europe.

The line will pass through 15 African countries, boosting trade, development, and access to electricity in the region.

In Phase One, it will link Morocco to gas fields near Senegal and Mauritania, and connect Ghana to the Ivory Coast.

Phase Two will link Nigeria to Ghana, while Phase Three will connect the Ivory Coast to Senegal.

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