News
Winners emerge in Sterling’s ASA 2023 AgroPitch
Photo caption:
Photo caption:
L-R: Group Head, Agric Finance and Solid Minerals, Sterling Bank Plc, Dr. Olushola Obikanye; Executive Director, Technical Services, Leadway Assurance, Adetola Adegbayi; Winner of ASA 2023 AgroPitch, Green Republic Farms Limited, Baliqees Salaudeen and Commissioner of Agric and Natural Resources, Plateau state, Samson Bugama, at the Agriculture Summit Africa 2023, in Lagos recently.
Five winners emerged in the grand finale of the 2023 edition of Sterling’s Agriculture Summit Africa. This year’s edition, which featured a pitch competition called AgroPitch, saw Green Republic Farms Limited crowned the top agroprenuer, walking away with five million naira in grants and an agribusiness entrepreneurship training program from the Lagos Business School. This year’s summit was sponsored by Sterling Bank, Leadway Assurance, Thrive Agric and Noor Takaful,
Green Republic Farms Limited, a youth and women-led enterprise emerged the overall winner and got N5 million cash prize, and a scholarship to attend the Agribusiness Management Programme of the Lagos Business School (LBS) which provides participants with the individual insight, coaching strategies and leadership skills needed to achieve better decisions and results for their companies.
The remaining agribusinesses which emerged as winners are Eden-Acres Integrated Farm, Duketrah Fisheries, Kernelinc Resources Limited, and OG Capital.
Speaking at this year’s ASA, themed Empowering Innovation: A confluence of Capital, Vision and Agribusiness Enterprise, Group Head for Agriculture & Solid Minerals Finance at Sterling Bank, Dr. Olusola Obikanye, said that this year’s summit has shown that there is huge and yet-to-be-realized potential for innovation in the nation’s agribusiness sector.
Dr. Obikanye continued by saying that “The quality of submissions and presentations have shown a clear path towards investment opportunity for the private sector to fund exponential growth in the sector towards achieving a stable and sustainable food economy for the country, while delivering value to operators and investors alike.”
Also in attendance were the Honorable Commissioners of Agriculture for Plateau and Ekiti states, Samson Bugama and Ebenezer Boluwade, who enjoined entrepreneurs in agribusiness to take risks and turn around the fortunes of the sector and help it achieve its potential.
Conceived by Sterling Bank and now in its sixth year, this year’s Agriculture Summit Africa represents a historic milestone in the summit’s history, which stands as a prominent platform for showcasing promising agro-innovators, aligning with the bank’s unwavering commitment to shaping the forefront of agricultural excellence both within Africa and beyond.
Renowned for its now famous HEART of Sterling strategy; which focuses investments in the Health, Education, Agriculture, Renewable Energy and Transportation; its irreverent brand voice and enviable talent management practices, Sterling has been awarded the Most Innovative Bank of The Year for by BusinessDay, been named the Overall Best Place To Work In Nigeria by the Great Place To Work Institute, and has featured on the prestigious top 100 fastest growing companies in Africa, as published by the globally recognized Financial Times, all in 2023.
News
Supreme Court to rule on ADC, PDP cases Thursday
The Supreme Court of Nigeria will on Thursday, deliver judgments in two cases involving the leadership crises rocking the African Democratic Congress and the Peoples Democratic Party.
According to information on the official website of the court, the matters, listed under “Political Appeals”, have been added to the cause list for Thursday, April 30, 2026.
While judgment in the ADC matter, marked SC/CV/180/2026, has been fixed for 2 pm, there is no time yet for that if the PDP.
News
Tinubu to reconstitute NHRC board, retains Ojukwu as ES/CEO
President Bola Tinubu has written the Senate, seeking the screening and subsequent confirmation of fifteen nominees to the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC).
The letter was read by the President of the Senate, Senator Godswill Akpabio.
The letter seeks the reconstitution of the commission’s board in line with statutory provisions with the list comprising nominees from diverse professional backgrounds, including the media and legal sectors.
Among the nominees are the President, Nigeria Guild of Editors and Editor, Vanguard Newspapers, Mr. Eze Anaba; and Dr. Salamatu Hussaina Suleiman, who has been proposed as chairman of the board.
The Executive Secretary of the Commission, Dr. Anthony Ojukwu (SAN) is to retain his position as the Chief Executive Officer.
Other nominees include Mrs Roseline Tasha, Ambassador Adam Yubak Baku, ACG Felix Lawrence, Mr. Edmund Chinonye, Mr. Chinonye Obiaku (SAN), Oluwakemi Asiwaju Okere-Odo, Professor Adedeji Ogunji, Kingsley Chidozie, Mohammed Adelodu, Maupe Ogun Yusuf, and Otunba Francis Meshioye as members.
Also nominated are Patience Patrick and Hawwa Ibrahim, listed as members.
The President said the nominations were made pursuant to Section 2(3) of the National Human Rights Commission (Establishment) Act, 2010, which empowers him to constitute the board subject to Senate confirmation.
He explained that the reconstitution of the board was necessary to enhance the commission’s institutional capacity and enable it to more effectively discharge its mandate to promote and protect human rights across the country.
If confirmed, the new board is expected to play a critical role in reinforcing the NHRC’s oversight functions, particularly at a time of heightened concerns over rights protection and accountability in Nigeria.
Following the presentation of the request, the Senate referred the nominations to its Committee on Judiciary, Human Rights and Legal Matters for screening and report within two weeks.
News
Breaking: EFCC investigates Pastor Jerry Eze over alleged money laundering
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, has revealed that it investigated the founder of Streams of Joy International, Pastor Jerry Eze, for six months over suspected money laundering before clearing him.
Ola Olukoyede, chairman of the Commission, disclosed this on Wednesday while speaking at the Jerry Eze Foundation Business Grant Award Ceremony in Abuja.
According to him, the probe was triggered by intelligence reports and petitions after the commission observed large inflows of foreign currencies into the cleric’s domiciliary account.
“We work by intelligence, we work by petitions. At some point, I saw there was an account, a domiciliary account. Dollars, pounds were dropping in like raindrops, from Colombia, from America, from Sri Lanka, even from Togo.
“I said who is this man? Yes, I’ve been hearing about his name, I’ve seen his face a couple of times. I never bothered about what he was doing. I knew he was a pastor.
“So they said this one pastor of streams of joy, go and investigate him. So we went to the investigation. We combed the books,” Olukoyede stated.
The EFCC boss said he subsequently invited Eze for questioning after preliminary findings were compiled by investigators.
He added that upon meeting the cleric and reviewing the findings of the investigation, the commission found no wrongdoing.
“So he came to my office. He told me what happens and all of that, and how the money came, what he does, how he has been helping people, and all of that.
“I said, you know what, I didn’t call you here to explain to me. We have already done our work. I called you here to commend you,” he stated.
The remark drew applause from the audience, as Eze, who was present at the event, acknowledged the commendation.
He noted that the commission has a responsibility not only to investigate financial crimes but also to recognise individuals found to have acted with integrity.
The EFCC chairman, however, stated that the agency would continue to monitor financial activities where necessary, stressing that its preventive mandate remains critical in tackling corruption.
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