Business
“Why I Don’t Take Food and Beverages in Aba “

Image credit: toppng
By Ichaburu Ochefa
Some time ago, a friend of mine living in Lagos State told me that whenever he is on business travels to Aba, Abia State, he doesn’t drink water or tea neither in the hotel he lodges nor buys from the shops outside.
Curiously, I asked him why.? “
They are fake products,” he replied. He added, “From water to tea, wine, spirits, juices, etc.
“I further asked, “So how do you survive while you are there.?
“I prepared myself from Lagos,” he said. “But there are fake products in Lagos, too, and all over Nigeria,” I told him as a matter of fact.
They are at Oke-Arin market on Lagos Island, Alaba International; the Oyingbo market … they are at Ogbete main market, Enugu …”
“I know, he cut me short and said: “Not like Aba; Aba is worst in counterfeiters…”
What my friend told me months ago matches the NAFDAC’s recent regulatory actions against fake product manufacturers in Aba.
An official statement from the agency on Tuesday, 28 January 2025, signed by Prof Mojisola Adeyeye, the NAFDAC Director-General, described the Cemetery market Aba as ” the most dreaded and hitherto safe haven for the largest cartel ring for the manufacture of fake wines and beverages in Africa.”
NAFDAC further said that its enforcement agents, in collaboration with a large contingency of the military, DSS, and Nigeria Police, in a rare display of inter-agency cooperation, confiscated adulterated wines, fake food, and beverages valued at over N5 billion. ”
The current action of NAFDAC is the most audacious in the history of the market, with specific zones barricaded with iron welding and access gates locked to date.
The operation carried out was a follow-up to a similar raid that was carried out in December 2023.
Some of the nefarious activities of the counterfeiters included the manufacturing of all kinds of adulterated products especially different kinds of wine from a wide variety of brands ranging from the following: · Seaman Schnapps, Henessy, Four Cousins · Carlo Rossi, Jenney, Chelsea London Dry Gin · Schnapp Dry Gin, McDowells, Black Labels · Gordons, Martell, Campari, Smirnoff ice · Eva Non-Alcoholic Drink, Evra Non-Alcoholic Drink, Cartel and others.
As a consequence of the extensive operation, the agency raided over 240 shops and turned factories where the harmful products were being produced and marketed.
The shops turned factories are very filthy, using water from very unhygienic sources, harmful chemicals, saccharin, coloring, dirty recycled bottles, and cloned packaging materials of other brands.
The adulteration of alcoholic beverages by criminal elements in the country is done by mixing cheaper sources of sugar and starch besides grapes or fruit, among other harmful chemicals unsuitable for human consumption.
Over 1500 cartons of fake and substandard products were destroyed during the operation.
The street value of the confiscated and destroyed fake products in 2023 is estimated at over seven hundred and fifty million naira only. (N750,000,000).
The estimated value of products mopped up during the December 15, 2024, operation is five billion naira.
The products being revalidated and mopped up include: · Soft and carbonated drinks such as Fanta, Coca-Cola · Schweppes, Lacasera, Sprite, Hollandia Yoghurt · Super Commando Energy Drink, Feyrouz and Amstel Malta. Aside from drinks, notable fake home-use beverages such as: · Peak Sachet Milk, Cowbell Sachet Milk, Peak Chocolate Drink · Miksi Sachet Milk, Cadbury Chocolate Drink, and Ovaltine adulterated versions.
Before the evacuation of the products by NAFDAC, they were being produced in the market and neatly packaged and sold to unsuspecting consumers.
NAFDAC management appreciates the support from the Government of Abia State led by His Excellency Governor Alex Otti for his unwavering support for this project OPERATION CLEAN UP ABA.
The Mayor of Aba South, the interim management committee of the market, and other stakeholders have been working assiduously with NAFDAC on the project, leading to another discovery of three major warehouses stockpiling expired HOLLANDIA YOGHURT for revalidation on the 22nd of January 2025.
Business
PENGASSAN – Dangote Rift: A needless attack on private enterprise

The Director-General, Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), Segun Ajayi-Kadir, has described the rift between Dangote Refinery and Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) as unfortunate, and a needless attack on private enterprise.
He noted that the strike had far-reaching implications on residents and businesses, as factories suffered cuts in production schedules, with a hike in transportation fare.
Fielding questions from reporters at MAN House, yesterday, while announcing the association’s coming Annual General Meeting (AGM), he revealed that imported products, which were not suffering disruption, were likely to fill the gap and if the rift rears its head again, it would affect daily workers and people in the logistics value chain that rely on the products made in those factories.
Meanwhile, PENGASSAN has said it decided to suspend its two-day strike to protect the jobs of its members in Dangote Refinery.The President, Festus Osifo, explained that the union was unsatisfied with the posting of about 800 sacked staff to Dangote’s subsidiaries to prevent job loss.
Business
FG Spends $2.86bn on External Debts Servicing – CBN
By August 2025, debt service climbed to $302.3m, which was $22.35m or 8 per cent higher than the $279.95m of August 2024.

The Federal Government spent a total of $2.86 billion to service external debt in the first eight months of 2025.
This was disclosed in the international payment data from the Central Bank of Nigeria.
The figure shows that external debts accounted for 69.1 percent of the country’s total foreign payments of $4.14 billion in the period.
In the same eight-month stretch of 2024, debt service stood at $3.06 billion, representing 70.7 percent of total foreign payments of $4.33 billion.
The figures show that while the absolute value of debt service fell by $198m between 2024 and 2025.
The share of debt in overall foreign payments has remained persistently high, with about seven out of every ten dollars leaving the country used to meet debt obligations.
The monthly breakdown highlights the volatility of Nigeria’s repayment schedule:
In January 2025, $540.67m was spent compared with $560.52m in January 2024, a fall of $19.85m or 3.5 per cent.
February 2025 recorded $276.73m, slightly below the $283.22m in February 2024, down by $6.49m or 2.3 per cent.March 2025 surged to $632.36m against $276.17m in March 2024, an increase of $356.19m or 129 per cent.
In April 2025, payments reached $557.79m, which was $342.59m or 159 per cent higher than the $215.20m of April 2024.
May 2025 stood at $230.92m, sharply lower than the $854.37m in May 2024, a drop of $623.45m or 73 per cent.
June 2025 rose to $143.39m compared with $50.82m in June 2024, a rise of $92.57m or 182 per cent.
July 2025 fell to $179.95m, down by $362.55m or 66.8 per cent from $542.5m in July 2024.
By August 2025, debt service climbed to $302.3m, which was $22.35m or 8 per cent higher than the $279.95m of August 2024.
Business
ECOWAS Bank okays $308.63m for Nigeria, Guinea
The bank gave the approval during its 93rd Ordinary Session convened at the it’s headquarters in Lomé, the Togolese capital.

ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development (EBID), has approved $308.631 million for the implementation of various projects in Taraba State, Nigeria, and a $40 million credit line for Vista Bank, Guinea, to bolster trade-related activities, including import-export operations and commercial value chains.
The bank gave the approval during its 93rd Ordinary Session convened at the it’s headquarters in Lomé, the Togolese capital.
President and Chairman of Board of Directors of the bank, Dr. George Agyekum Donkor, said the newly approved financing would advance strategic public and private sector initiatives, aligned with EBID’s mandate to promote sustainable development throughout the Economic Community of West African States by strengthening regional integration and fostering economic diversification.
The approved facilities include the $98.18 for a 50 MW Solar Photovoltaic Power Plant in Taraba State, Nigeria, , which will augment the supply of reliable, clean electricity to spur inclusive economic development, alleviate energy poverty, and improve environmental sustainability.
Anticipated benefits include direct electricity access for roughly 390,000 individuals, enhanced power reliability for at least 200 public institutions, the creation of 400 direct jobs during construction, and approximately 50 permanent operational roles.
The bank noted that an estimated 1,200–1,500 indirect jobs were expected to emerge across supply chains, maintenance services,and small businesses.
Another facility is the $79.219 million modern rice processing complex and 10,000-hectare irrigated rice production unit also in Taraba State.
Also included is the $91.232 million facility for Taraba State Industrial Park, an initiative conceived to accelerate local industrialisation and economic diversification through the establishment of a modern, integrated industrial ecosystem.
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