Major International Business Headlines Brief::: 21 March 2021

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Major International Business Headlines Brief::: 21 March 2021

 


 

 


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ü  Renesas says it will take at least a month to restart fire-damaged chip
line

ü  Apple CEO Cook, execs on tentative list of witnesses in Epic Games case

ü  Stellantis pickups hit, Ford cuts production due to global chip shortage

ü  Saudi Aramco to cut capex after 2020 profit drops 44.4%

ü  IMF sees signs of stronger global recovery, but significant risks remain

ü  Qantas boss: Governments 'to insist' on vaccines for flying

ü  Russian pleads guilty to Tesla ransomware plot

ü  African Countries Seek to Fill Yawning U.S.$92.8 Billion Finance Gap

ü  Nigeria: Special Report - Nigeria's Poultry, Egg Prices 'Highest Ever'
Amidst Inflation, Insecurity

ü  Tanzania: Fate Awaiting Magufuli Mega Projects

ü  Uganda: Hass Avocado - Uganda's Next Cash Cow

ü  Ethiopia: Empowering Women With Digital Technology

 

 


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Renesas says it will take at least a month to restart fire-damaged chip line

Japan's Renesas Electronics (6723.T), a key automotive semiconductor
supplier, said on Sunday that production at a fire-damaged plant will take
at least a month to restart, potentially worsening a chip shortage that is
disrupting car production.

 

About two-thirds of production on the advanced 300mm wafer line affected by
Friday's fire is automotive chips, CEO Hidetoshi Shibata told an online
briefing.

 

"It comes at a time when there isn't excess production capacity," he said.

 

Carmakers are already struggling with a global chip shortage caused by a
COVID-19-driven boom in consumer electronics and an unexpected strong
rebound in auto sales. Makers such as Ford Motor Co (F.N), Honda Motor Co
(7267.T)and Nissan Motor Co(7201.T) have had to trim production plans as a
result.

 

Carmakers will start to feel a supply pinch in about a month, according to
Renesas.

 

The chipmaker said it along with automakers and their key suppliers are
looking for ways to minimize the impact of the stoppage, Shibata said.

 

A Toyota Motor Corp (7203.T) spokeswoman said the world's largest carmaker
is currently assessing the situation.

 

The fire at the Naka chip plant in northeast Japan destroyed 11 machines, or
2% of the manufacturing equipment, and sent smoke billowing through the
clean room where even small particles of dust can damage wafers during the
sensitive fabrication process.

 

Renesas may not be able to replace all the destroyed equipment within a
month, Shibata said, meaning that a return to full production could take
longer.

 

The company, he added, may be able to rely on other plants to replace around
two-thirds of the lost production, which is worth around 17 billion yen
($156 million) a month.

 

The latest disruption at the Naka plants comes after production stopped for
a few days last month after an earthquake cut power and back up generators
failed to start.

 

In 2011, Renesas had to close the facility for three months following the
deadly earthquake that devastated Japan's northeast coast.

 

($1 = 108.8700 yen)

 

 

 

Apple CEO Cook, execs on tentative list of witnesses in Epic Games case

Apple Inc's (AAPL.O) CEO Tim Cook, software chief Craig Federighi and other
executives were named on a tentative list of witnesses in the software
giant's case against Epic Games, a court filing dated March 19 showed.

 

App Store Vice President Matt Fischer and Apple Fellow Phil Schiller were
also named on the list submitted to the U.S. District Court Northern
District of California Oakland Division, a copy of which was seen by
Reuters.

 

The iPhone maker has been at loggerheads with Epic Games, the creator of the
popular game Fortnite, which last year tried to avoid a 30% fee which Apple
charges developers on the App Store by launching its own in-app payment
system. The move prompted Apple to ban Fortnite from its store. read more

 

In a separate court filing, Epic Games listed its founder and Chief
Executive Tim Sweeney among its own witnesses in the case.

 

Apple did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment, but told
Bloomberg in a statement that it felt "confident the case will prove that
Epic purposefully breached its agreement solely to increase its revenues."

 

A direct message to Epic Games on one of its official Twitter handles did
not elicit an immediate response.

 

 

 

Stellantis pickups hit, Ford cuts production due to global chip shortage

The impact of the global semiconductor shortage on the auto industry spread
on Saturday, as Stellantis (STLA.MI) warned its highly profitable pickup
trucks were hit, while Ford Motor Co (F.N) said it would cut more U.S.
production.

 

Stellantis, the world's fourth largest automaker, said it will build and
hold for final assembly its Ram 1500 Classic trucks at its Warren, Michigan,
and Saltillo, Mexico, assembly plants. When chips become available, the
vehicles will be completed and shipped to dealers.

 

The action will last "a number of weeks," a Stellantis spokeswoman said,
declining to reveal how many trucks would be affected.

 

The chip shortage, which has hit automakers globally, stems from a
confluence of factors. Carmakers shut North American plants for two months
during the COVID-19 pandemic last year and canceled chip orders. Meanwhile,
demand for chips surged from the consumer electronics industry as people
worked from home and played video games. Now carmakers must compete for
chips.

 

Carmakers have repeatedly said they will prioritize chips for their most
profitable vehicles, but the impact on the Ram, as well as previous reports
by Ford and General Motors Co (GM.N) of lost or impacted production of their
full-size trucks, shows the shortage is hitting companies where it hurts.

 

Stellantis Chief Executive Carlos Tavares said earlier this month the
problems might not be fully resolved by the second half of 2021, as some
auto rivals have flagged, describing supplies as the "big unknown" for
revenues in 2021. read more

 

Ford said Saturday it will idle its Ohio assembly plant next week, while its
Kentucky Truck Plant in Louisville will only work two of three shifts. Both
plants will return to full production the week of March 29.

 

The U.S. automaker said the latest action is part of a prior forecast it
made that the shortage could hit 2021 profits by $1 bln to $2.5 bln.

 

On Thursday, Ford said it would assemble its flagship, highly profitable
F-150 pickup truck as well as Edge SUVs in North America without certain
parts and then hold them "for a number of weeks" until they can be completed
and shipped, affecting "thousands" of vehicles. It also said it would idle
production at plants in Louisville, Kentucky, and Cologne, Germany. 

 

 

 

 

 

Saudi Aramco to cut capex after 2020 profit drops 44.4%

Saudi Arabian state oil giant Aramco (2222.SE) said on Sunday it expects to
cut capital expenditure after it reported a 44.4% slump in 2020 net profit,
hit by lower crude oil prices and sales as the coronavirus pandemic
depressed demand.

 

The company lowered its guidance for spending to around $35 billion from a
range of $40 billion to $45 billion previously, according to a disclosure to
the Tadawul bourse.

 

Aramco declared a dividend of $75 billion for 2020 and signalled it was
seeing pickup in oil demand.

 

"The dividend is in line with expectations, which is what holders of Aramco
will care about most, but lower capex implies the company does not expect
high oil prices to last for the long-term," said Hasnain Malik, head of
equity research at Tellimer.

 

Net profit fell to 183.76 billion riyals ($49.00 billion) for the year that
ended Dec. 31, from 330.69 billion riyals a year earlier.

 

Analysts had expected a net profit of 186.1 billion riyals in 2020,
according to the mean estimate of analysts in Refinitiv's Eikon.

 

"Looking ahead, our long-term strategy to optimize our oil and gas portfolio
is on track and, as the macro environment improves, we are seeing a pick-up
in demand in Asia and also positive signs elsewhere," Saudi Aramco Chief
Executive Amin Nasser said in the statement.

 

Aramco's 44.4% drop in 2020 profit compares with a 30.7% decline in oil
revenues last year for the Saudi government, with steady dividends to the
government despite the lower oil prices contributing to Aramco bearing the
brunt of the crisis more than the treasury, said Monica Malik, chief
economist at Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank.

 

Earnings in the top western oil and gas companies including Royal Dutch
Shell (RDSa.L) and BP (BP.L) dropped to multi-year lows in 2020. Exxon Mobil
(XOM.N), the largest U.S. energy company, posted its first annual loss.

 

Brent crude last traded at $64.53 a barrel on Friday, up from $51.80 on Dec.
31, 2020. Oil prices lost just over a fifth of their value in 2020. read
more

 

Aramco said free cash flow amounted to $49 billion last year, down from
$78.3 billion in 2019.

 

The company has a $5 billion payment towards the acquisition of a stake in
Saudi Basic Industries Corp(2010.SE)coming up this April, according to an
HSBC report in February.

 

It has only paid $7 billion out of the combined $75 billion transaction
cost, including interest, for the SABIC deal.

 

($1 = 3.7505 riyals)

 

 

 

 

IMF sees signs of stronger global recovery, but significant risks remain

The No. 2 official at the International Monetary Fund on Saturday pointed to
emerging signs of a stronger global economic recovery, but warned that
significant risks remained, including the emergence of mutations of the
coronavirus.

 

IMF First Deputy Managing Director Geoffrey Okamoto said that in early April
the Fund would update its January forecast for global growth of 5.5% to
reflect additional fiscal stimulus spending in the United States, but gave
no details.

 

In a speech to the China Development Forum, Okamoto raised concerns about
the growing divergence between advanced economies and emerging markets, with
some 90 million people seen falling below the extreme poverty threshold
since the pandemic began.

 

Okamoto said China had already recovered to pre-pandemic growth levels ahead
of all large economies, although private consumption was still lagging
investment there.

 

Outside of China, he said, there were worrying signs of a widening gap
between advanced economies and emerging markets.

 

The IMF projects that cumulative income per capita in emerging and
developing countries, excluding China, between 2020 and 2022 will be 22%
lower than it would have been without the pandemic, which will push more
people into poverty, he said.

 

The overall outlook remained "exceptionally" uncertain, Okamoto said, adding
that it was unclear how long the pandemic would last and access to vaccines
remained very uneven, across both advanced and emerging economies.

 

Okamoto said some countries also had little scope to boost spending to fight
the pandemic and mitigate its economic impact, especially low-income
countries with high debt levels.

 

He said tighter financial conditions could exacerbate vulnerabilities in
countries with high public and private debt, citing recent increases in bond
yields triggered by market expectations of an earlier withdrawal of monetary
stimulus.

 

He said the crisis could also leave deep scars.

 

In the past, advanced economies have seen their output reduced almost 5%
below pre-recession trends five years after the beginning of a recession,
and it could be worse in countries that cannot afford a strong macroeconomic
response and/or had large services sectors more affected by the pandemic, he
said.

 

 

 

 

Qantas boss: Governments 'to insist' on vaccines for flying

The boss of Australian airline Qantas has told the BBC that "governments are
going to insist" on vaccines for international travellers.

 

Coronavirus vaccines are seen as crucial to reviving an industry that saw
worldwide passenger numbers fall 75.6% last year.

 

Chief executive Alan Joyce said many governments were talking about
vaccination as "a condition of entry".

 

Even if they weren't, he thought the airline should enforce its own policy.

 

"We have a duty of care to our passengers and to our crew, to say that
everybody in that aircraft needs to be safe," Mr Joyce said.

 

He believes that would justify changing the terms and conditions on which
tickets are booked.

 

And Mr Joyce thinks passengers would be willing to accept the change. "The
vast majority of our customers think this is a great idea - 90% of people
that we've surveyed think it should be a requirement for people to be
vaccinated to travel internationally."

 

But some powerful voices are among those who disagree, including the World
Health Organisation. Its director of digital health and innovation, Bernardo
Mariano, told the BBC: "We don't approve the fact that a vaccinations
passport should be a condition for travel."

 

He added that - regardless of what the private sector wanted - a unified
approach from governments would be needed to make such a change work.

 

Managing virus risk

Aviation is vital to the global economy. The International Air Transport
Association (Iata) estimates that it supports $1.8 trillion (£1.3tn,
A$2.3tn) in global economic activity.

 

But government restrictions and fears of catching coronavirus have led to an
unprecedented fall in passenger numbers in an industry which carried 4.5
billion people in 2019.

 

Australia's government has closed its borders to almost all foreigners and
has also periodically closed internal borders.

 

Even with vaccines, Mr Joyce thinks that "once we open up our international
borders, we're going to have the virus circulating".

 

"And that's going to be a big change for a lot of Australia, to find that
acceptable," he said. "We need people to understand they can't have zero
risk with this virus. We manage risk in so many different other ways for
other parts of life."

 

Pandemic losses

The lack of passengers means that in the last six months of 2020 Qantas lost
$800m (£580m, A$1.03bn). That compares with a profit of $596m (£430m,
A$771m) in the same period of 2019. It's also meant 8,500 job cuts from a
pre-pandemic staff of about 29,000.

 

And thousands of others are on furlough, with the Australian government
paying their wages. Other international carriers have seen similar reversals
in their fortunes.

 

In response, airlines have cut their capacity, with huge numbers of
aeroplanes put into storage. For Qantas that was about two-thirds of their
314 aircraft.

 

Among them are the airline's fleet of giant, double-decker Airbus A380s, one
of which was being refurbished when the pandemic took hold. It "went from
Dresden in Germany where the reconfig took place straight to the Mojave
Desert, and nobody sat on those seats", Mr Joyce said.

 

Qantas says vaccines will be required to fly

 

Having less supply of any product normally means that prices climb in
response to an increase in demand. However, Mr Joyce doesn't think the
combination of fewer seats and the easing of restrictions will lead to
higher prices.

 

"In some cases, we think the airfares could be half of what they were
pre-Covid," he said. "And that will be there to stimulate demand."

 

It could be that way for some time. "Internationally it's going to take a
while for it to recover to 2019 levels," the airline boss said.

 

When flights do get going again, the priority will be bringing money in and
any surge in demand can be dealt with by bringing more aircraft back into
service.

 

"So we're very confident that it's not going to be higher airfares," Mr
Joyce insisted.

 

Boost to ultra-long haul

Last month Qantas pushed back the date at which it expects its international
flights to resume from July to the end of October. That's the point at which
the Australian government hopes to have vaccinated all adults and the date
for which the airline is now selling international tickets.

 

"The number one flight by a significant amount is Perth to London non-stop,"
says Mr Joyce. The demand for the ultra-long haul flights is, he says, "a
good indication" that after pandemic passengers will try to avoid
changeovers in airports filled with other people.

 

That desire to travel direct means "the business case is probably going to
be stronger" for what Qantas calls "Project Sunrise". It is likely to
eventually involve direct flights "from Sydney and Melbourne non-stop into
Europe and non-stop to the east coast of the United States", he said.

 

Tests have already taken place but the launch has been delayed, and is now
not expected until 2024.

 

Tackling climate change

Aviation is responsible for about 2.5% of global carbon emissions.

 

But Qantas claims to have the "world's biggest airline carbon offset
programme". It is also investing $38.7m (£28m, A$50m) in a partnership with
BP to develop a sustainable aviation fuel industry in Australia. In
addition, it said it was looking at technology such as more fuel-efficient
planes as well as electric and hydrogen-powered vehicles.

 

"I think you have to do it," Mr Joyce said. Spending money to cut emissions,
he says, shows "it's not just a focus on the bottom line".

 

"You have to actually do the right thing by the environment, do the right
thing by society. Otherwise, you don't have a social licence to operate in
the future."

 

Selling wine and biscuits

To keep the finances on course during the pandemic Qantas has raised
$770,000 (£560,000, A$1m) by selling bar carts that in-flight drinks were
served from on its now-retired Boeing 747s, as well as wine in plastic
bottles and a stock of the quintessentially Australian chocolate biscuit,
Timtams.

 

Mr Joyce says: "You just have to have that flexibility, that adaptability,
to survive."

 

"It's the reason why Qantas survived for 100 years" and is the oldest
continuous operating airline in the world, he said.

 

"That's part of our DNA. That's why we're going to survive for at the least
the next 100 years."--BBC

 

 

 

Russian pleads guilty to Tesla ransomware plot

A Russian man in the US has pleaded guilty to plotting to extort money from
the electric car company Tesla.

 

Egor Igorevich Kriuchkov is accused of offering an employee $1m (£721,000)
to place ransomware in the computer network of the company's battery plant
in Nevada.

 

He planned to use the ransomware to steal company secrets for extortion,
prosecutors alleged.

 

The 27-year-old pleaded guilty on Thursday in Reno, Nevada.

 

Mr Kriuchkov acted on behalf of criminals abroad and tried to bribe a Tesla
employee in person, prosecutors said.

 

Ransomware attacks companies or organisations by scrambling their internal
computer networks, stealing information or locking users out. The attackers
then demand large sums of money in return for ending the hack.

 

The FBI said the planned attack on Tesla was stopped before it could take
place.

 

Mr Kriuchkov told a court in September that the Russian government was aware
of the planned hack, but the FBI and lawyers have not alleged that there
were ties to the Kremlin.

 

"The swift response of the company and the FBI prevented a major
exfiltration of the victim company's data and stopped the extortion scheme
at its inception," Acting Assistant Attorney General Nicholas McQuaid said
in a statement.

 

Mr Kruichokov was in the US for five weeks on a tourist visa in July and
August last year when he tried to recruit the Tesla employee, according to
court documents reported in US media.

 

He was quoted as saying that he and his co-conspirators would steal the
data, and if Tesla refused to pay the ransom the company's secrets would be
placed on the internet.

 

The US Department of Justice said that he took the employee out for drinks
multiple times and gave him a phone. After the employee told Tesla about the
plan, the company contacted the FBI who instructed the employee to record
their conversations with Mr Kruichokov.

 

Mr Kruichokov faces up to ten months in prison after signing a deal with
prosecutors to plead guilty, according to technology website The
Record.--BBC

 

 

 

African Countries Seek to Fill Yawning U.S.$92.8 Billion Finance Gap

AFRICAN countries are looking for inventive ways and means to fill the
annual development financing gap of US$92,8 billion.

 

This will enable the continent to implement the 2030 Agenda, achieve Agenda
2063, actualise the Paris Agreement as well as respond to the Covid-19
crisis whilst also tackling the growing levels of inequality.

 

This was revealed by Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) chief of green and
blue economy section technology, climate change and natural resources
management Nassim Oulmane while presenting a paper during a meeting of
experts at the 53rd Conference of Ministers in Addis Ababa Thursday.

 

Oulmane noted that Africa is not yet on track to achieving most of the
sustainable development goals given the current pace of implementation.

 

In his report, he reiterated the call on member states to strengthen
regional and national innovation hubs and advance science, technology and
innovation.

According to the ECA expert, the unprecedented Covid-19 pandemic, alongside
climate change effects, has undermined development progress and the
continent's ability to finance the sustainable development goals (SDGs) and
the realisation of Agenda 2063.

 

"Climate change is an existential threat," Oulmane said.

 

He went on to report that ARFSD7 resolved that raised ambitions, urgency and
redoubled efforts in implementing the Paris Agreement alongside full,
effective and timely implementation of the SDGs remained the best pathways
to achieving shared prosperity, responding to Covid-19 and tackling climate
change.

 

To this end, a key resolution of the ARFSD affirmed that it was crucial to
urgently strengthen systems to improve collection, availability,
accessibility, timeliness and use of quality and disaggregated data and
statistics to strengthen monitoring and reporting on the two development
agendas in the context of the Decade of Action and Covid-19.

 

Another key resolution in his report urged African Member States to leverage
the agreement establishing the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA)
to support increased production, create jobs, strengthen regional value
chains and develop resilience to external shocks and future crises.

 

The report notes that the hosting of ARFSD conferences had engendered strong
collaboration and cemented relations between the ECA, host Governments of
Morocco in 2019, Zimbabwe in 2020, Republic of Congo in 2021, the African
Union Commission (AUC), African Development Bank (AfDB) and the United
Nations System.

 

African Member States should leverage the Agreement establishing the
AfCFTA.-New Zimbabwe.

 

 

 

Nigeria: Special Report - Nigeria's Poultry, Egg Prices 'Highest Ever'
Amidst Inflation, Insecurity

Nigeria's food inflation is highest in 15 years and insecurity, COVID-19,
climate change and economic policies have pushed food prices beyond the
reach of millions.

 

The prices of poultry products in Nigeria are at their highest levels ever
as the country faces its worst food inflation in at least 15 years, traders,
consumers and producers in the sector have told PREMIUM TIMES.

 

Food inflation reached 27 per cent in February 2021, according to the
National Bureau of Statistics, making it the highest since at least 2005.
The rise has seen the prices of all classes of food skyrocket almost on a
daily basis, leaving Nigeria's large population of poor citizens struggle to
get food and key ingredients.

 

A bag of rice that sold for about N7,000 around 2016 now sells as much as
N40,000 for some brands. A sachet of tomato that sold for N50 now sells for
N150, while a loaf of bread has risen from N250 to N400.

One food sector that has been particularly hit is poultry, which millions
rely on for protein needs. A kilogramme of chicken that previously sold for
N800 now sells for N2000, while a crate of egg that sold for N700 now sells
for N1500.

 

A PREMIUM TIMES examination shows how several factors have contributed to
the rise in poultry prices, and how the government's efforts have yielded
little or no impact in solving the problem.

 

In several interviews, poultry farmers, livestock feed processors and
marketers said the rise in the prices of key ingredients for poultry feeds
is the major reason for the hike in prices of poultry products in the
country.

 

The two most important ingredients are maize and soybeans. The supply of
these two crops has fallen steeply in recent months, they said, and a key
reason has been insecurity that has put farmers off work last year, Covid-19
disruption, weather changes, and challenges with importation.

"It has never been this bad," said a poultry farmer in Ekiti State, Uthman
Awwal. "This increase is directly from the farmers who plant maize, we are
unable to get maize and soybean this period, so those that have maize are
selling to the feed millers at higher prices.

 

"The maximum price we have noticed for the past 20 years ranges between
N108, 000 to N110,000 but now, I just came back from Abuja yesterday, I was
told that it has gone up to N500,000 per tonne which has never happened."

 

Mr Awwal said about a year ago, "when things were still normal", poultry
feeds sold between the range of N2,900 and N3,000. By 2020, feeds rose to
between N4,000 and N4,500. Lately, it jumped to N6,500.

 

These high costs have translated along the chain to the final poultry
products.

 

At Babangida market at FHA in Lugbe, Abuja, Iya Hikima told PREMIUM TIMES
that 10 kilograms of chicken she used to buy for N10,000, now sells for
N13,500 and above. The price of 10kg of turkey previously at N14,000 stands
at N18,000.

"We did sell a kg of hard chicken at a rate of N1,500 before, it is now N1,
800," she said.

 

At Ogbete Market in Enugu State, buyers said as of October 2020 a crate of
eggs sold for N950, but later increased to N1, 200 per crate in November.

 

Ajewole Zaccheaus, a poultry farmer in Ayetoro Ekiti, Ekiti State, who spoke
with this newspaper, also attributed the rising prices to the high cost of
feeding.

 

Mr Zacchaeus said when he started poultry farming over two years ago, he
used to buy a bag of feed at N3,000, but that as of today, the price of feed
goes over N5,000.

 

"The current challenge in the sector now is feed, the cost of feeding is too
high in Nigeria and even the challenges have reduced the profit maximisation
in the poultry sector," he said.

 

The feeds are expensive because their ingredients are costly and scarce.

 

The president of Poultry Farmers Association of Nigeria, Kaduna State
chapter, Timothy Okunade, told PREMIUM TIMES farmers now buy a tonne of
maize at N195,000 against N90,000 it sold for a year ago. Soybeans goes for
N310,000 a tonne as against N130,000 last year.

 

Maize and soybean production

 

Between 1999 and 2020, Nigeria produced more maize than it did at
independence, data from the United States Department for Agriculture (USDA)
says.

 

The country's maize production figures in the last five years were the
highest ever. Production rose from 10.1 million metric tonnes (mmt) in 2014
to 11.6 mmt in 2016, and by 2017, the figure fell to 10.4 mmt, before
surging in 2018 to 11.0 mmt, a figure maintained in 2019. It rose to 11.5mmt
in 2020.

 

Data from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) shows that soybean
production in Nigeria has been rising and falling. It rose from 588,523
tonnes in 2015 to 936,887 tonnes in 2016. In 2017, the figure increased
further to 993,955 tonnes, but fell to 650,000 and 630,000 tonnes in 2018
and 2019 respectively.

 

Market survey: Processors

 

The produced quantities of maize and soybeans have clearly not complemented
domestic demand. And things became worse in the last one year for many
reasons, traders and feed manufacturers told PREMIUM TIMES.

 

Mr Okunade, who heads the poultry farmers association in Kaduna, said a key
factor has been insecurity that made many farmers abandon their farms for
fear of being kidnapped or killed.

 

In Kaduna alone, about 937 people were killed and 1,972 kidnapped in 2020,
according to Kaduna State security report presented early March.

 

Mr Okunade lamented that government policies also contributed to the problem
as the country still exported some of these commodities even when domestic
needs had not been met. He also blamed climate change.

 

"Flooding washed away some large areas of farmlands especially up north,
while down south, early stoppage of rain led to failed or poor harvest," he
said.

 

Mr Okunade noted that supporting main users to import these commodities
might help cushion the effect of scarcity.

 

Abdulganiyyu Lukman, managing director, Royal D feeds, a poultry feed
factory based in Iwo, Osun State, said in the south west region, maize,
soybeans and groundnut suffered because of reduced volume of rainfall
experienced by farmers during last year's planting season.

 

"Maize, soybeans and groundnut are very expensive and it is the by-product
derived from these crops that's used for poultry feed formulation," he said.

 

"We have different types of feed for poultry birds, and they're all
expensive. The prices of these feeds have risen by 70 per cent. The feed we
were selling N1000 before is now sold for N1,700."

 

He lamented that they used to buy a kilogramme of maize at between N80 and
N82 before, but now, the same quantity goes for between N195 and N200.

 

"You can see that the price has tripled, that's an increase of about 130 per
cent," he added.

 

Mr Lukman also said by January 2020, he bought 1kg of soybeans at the rate
of N110, but that they are currently buying a Kg of soybeans between the
rate of N310 and N320.

 

Ayodele Uwala, who is the president, Soybean Farmers Association of Nigeria,
gave similar reasons.

 

"The farmer-herder clashes prevented most of their farmers from accessing
their farms to plant, coupled with the federal government policies on border
closure," he said.

 

Uche Edwin, president, Maize Growers, Processors and Marketers Association
of Nigeria, said the coronavirus pandemic contributed to the increase in
prices.

 

Mr Edwin said farmers had challenges in production in 2020 there were
triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown policy.

 

"Farmers could not plant during the wet season, that is during the COVID-19,
for the year 2020 production was poor. Other factors like flood, drought and
insecurity contributed to the poor production," he said.

 

He said he expected the price of maize to fall later in the year following
the government's intervention during the late wet season.

 

"We are doing the best we can so that in the next three months the issues
surrounding the hike in price will reduce and the prices of poultry feed
will be back to normal," he said.

 

He said farmers are already harvesting what was cultivated in the 2020 dry
season.

 

Jimmy John-Mark, a poultry farmer in Kaduna, said the restriction on maize
importation also aggravated the scarcity of the commodity.

 

On July 13, 2020, the Central Bank of Nigeria stopped the issuance of forex
for the importation of the cereal. The decision, according to CBN, was to
boost local production of maize.

 

"A lot of farms are closing down because of this, when they cannot keep up
with the hike in the prices of feed," Mr John-mark said.

 

Goodnews Jeremiah, a major feed distributor in Abak market of Akwa Ibom,
said increased electricity and transportation charges also affected the
prices of poultry feeds.

 

"This is because feed processors spend much on fuel to power their engines
when there is no stable power supply, and on transportation," he said.

 

Mr Jeremiah said this has also led to a significant increase in the price of
day-old chicks.

 

In Nasarawa state, Susan Godwin, who grows maize said the price of a 50 kg
bag of maize was sold at N8000 before the pandemic started, but went up to
N10,000 in June.

 

She explained that the price of a 50kg bag of maize is now N15000, while a
100 kg bag is N25000 but used to be N15000.

 

"A lot of things have caused the prices of feed to increase. Some farmers
planted late when the rains were almost leaving. So it was difficult to
harvest enough," she said.

 

Government's intervention

 

The increase in prices across the value chain shows that the few initiatives
by the Nigerian government have failed to stem the problem and ensure food
security.

 

On July 8, 2019, the Central Bank of Nigeria launched an intervention
programme tagged, University-based Poultry Revival Programme, with the hope
of reviving the comatose poultry sub-sector in the country.

 

The bank said the initiative was in tandem with the fulfillment of its
resolve to diversify the economy, create jobs and engender inclusive
economic growth in the country.

 

According to the CBN governor, Godwin Emefiele, the initiative would also
raise a new crop of entrepreneurs in the agricultural sector in modern
poultry production, provide infrastructure that would support the
sustainable production of poultry, and reduce pressure for foreign exchange
demand through import substitution by local poultry production.

 

Nearly two years after, the programme has yet to increase the supply of
poultry products, and make them more affordable.

 

Osita Nwanisobi, spokesperson for the CBN, did not respond to PREMIUM TIMES
enquiries about the project.-Premium Times.

 

 

Tanzania: Fate Awaiting Magufuli Mega Projects

Dar es Salaam - President John Magufuli may have returned to his Maker; but
he has left a legacy that will be remembered by his fellow Tanzanians.

 

He was a man who walked his talk. He was elected for his first Five-Year
term in 2015 on a promise of undertaking several mega infrastructure
projects, reviving Air Tanzania Company Limited (ATCL) and ending
corruption, among other feats.

 

However, the question that is currently making the rounds is whether or not
his successor, President Samia Suluhu Hassan, will continue with the
projects.

 

Experts believe the new Head of State will definitely advance the projects
since she worked closely with Dr Magufuli and therefore was part of the
efforts.

 

"I'm optimistic that she will continue the plans. The good thing is that the
projects implemented by Magufuli will now be under the newly sworn-in
President who worked with the immediate former president," said Prof Delphin
Rwegasira of the University of Dar es Salaam's School of Economics.

"The projects have brought a positive impact on the economy when you look at
the Kijazi (Ubungo) Interchange, transporters use them to transport cargo
from the Dar es Salaam port to their destinations while expansion of
Morogoro Road has reduced traffic," said chief executive officer of the
Institute of Management and Entrepreneurship Development (IMED), Dr Donath
Olomi.

 

It was during his first year in office when Tanzania was reported to have
secured a $7.6 billion concessional loan from China's Export-Import Bank
(Exim) for the construction of a railway line that will link it with
Burundi, Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

 

But that deal did not materialize for undisclosed reasons and President
Magufuli decided to solider on. Next on the plate was an announcement that
the country was contracting Turkey's Yapi Merkezi and Mota-Engil Africa of
Portugal to build the SGR line between Dar es Salaam and Morogoro.

A lot have moved on since then. The Dar es Salaam-Morogoro section is almost
complete.

 

In October 2017, the country awarded Yapı Merkezi with another $1.92 billion
contract to build the 336km Morogoro- Dodoma section of the railway.

 

Makutupora SGR line

 

The project is intended to create an international route connecting the port
of Dar es Salaam to Lake Victoria, offering shipping connections to Uganda
and Kenya and even serve South Sudan, while the second route will run west
to Burundi, Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

 

It is being implemented in six phases.

 

Indeed even in the 2021/22 financial year, the government plans to spend a
sizable chunk of its development budget on the project.

According to the national development plan, which was presented by Finance
and Planning Minister Phillip Mpango to Members of Parliament in Dodoma last
week, the SGR will take up Sh3.19 trillion of locally-sourced funds.

 

"During the coming financial year, we will complete the construction of the
300-kilometre phase that stretches between Dar es Salaam and Morogoro of the
SGR project," Dr Mpango told Parliament.

 

The government will also continue with the ongoing construction of the
422-kilometre phase that runs between Morogoro and Makutupora. During the
2021/22 financial year, the government will also start the construction of
the 341-kilometre phase between Mwanza and Isaka while the remaining other
phases of the project will also be subjected to tendering, consulting
engineering and other processes associated with actual construction.

 

In showing that he was a man of action who walked his talk, President
Magufuli's administration signed a contract with a joint venture of Arab
Contractors and Elsewedy to build the 2,115MW Julius Nyerere HydroPower
Project.

 

This was despite stiff opposition from some quarters that the project would
have some dire consequences on the world human heritage site, considering
that the project takes up less than one percent of what is known as Nyerere
National Park. But President Magufuli stood unmoved.

 

His government believed that spending Sh6.5 trillion on a project that would
bring 2,115MW to the national grid was the best way to build the foundation
for an industrial economy which he had promised to advance during the 2015
election campaigns.

 

The ultimate goal of Dr Magufuli's administration was ensure that Tanzania
was able to produce 5,000MW of electricity by the year 2025.

 

Currently, the country produces 1,604MW against a demand of 1,180MW.

 

Dr Magufuli believed that with excess electricity, Tanzania could export the
excess to its neighbours.

 

The project is set for completion come June 2022.

 

Data from the Energy Ministry shows that hydropower remains the cheapest
source of electricity and this means that the Julius Nyerere Hydropower
Station will bring electricity costs down.

 

It shows that it costs only Sh36 to produce a unit of electricity from
water. Nuclear comes second because it required Sh65 to a unit.

 

Wind and geothermal are the third and fourth cheapest sources, with the
production of each unit costing Sh103 and Sh112 respectively. During the
coming financial year, the Julius Nyerere Hydropower Station will consume
another Sh1.34 trillion of locally-sourced funds ahead of its completion in
June, 2022.

 

During the 2015 election campaigns, President Magufuli promised to revive
Air Tanzania Company Limited (ATCL).

 

True to his promise, the government took delivery of two

 

turboprop aircraft. On April 2, 2018, Air Tanzania received its third and
final Q400 aircraft.

 

The government later delivered two CS300 jetliners and one Q400 turboprop
aircraft. The government also ordered two Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft
valued at $224.6 million at list prices

 

On April 2, 2018, Air Tanzania received its third and final Q400 aircraft
with tail number 5H-TCE.

 

With the new airplanes, Air Tanzania resumed service to various domestic
destinations.

 

On July 8, 2018, Air Tanzania took delivery of a Boeing 787 Dreamliner,
which was deployed on intercontinental flights.

 

Air Tanzania received its first Airbus A220-300, registered as 5H-TCH, in
December 2018. On January 11, 2019 the airline's second Airbus A220-300
aircraft, christened Ngorongoro and touched down at the Julius Nyerere
International Airport in Dar es Salaam. So far ATCL has a fleet of nine
aircraft and more have been ordered for delivery. According to Dr Mpango,
during the 2021/22 financial year, the government will complete payments for
two Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner aircrafts, complete the purchasing of Airbus
A200-300 and one Boeing 767-300 for cargo," he said, detailing a number of
other projects on which the money will be spent.

 

A total of Sh1.5 trillion (of locally-sourced funds) will be spent on
building passenger terminals, as well as payment of debts and purchasing of
more airplanes for ATCL.-Citizen.

 

 

 

Uganda: Hass Avocado - Uganda's Next Cash Cow

The Ministry of Agriculture Animal Industry and Fisheries is calling upon
farmers to invest in avocado production.

 

There is an on-going national campaign for increased avocado growing
launched last year in Mayuge District by the Minister of Agriculture,
Vincent Ssempijja.

 

He laid more emphasis on the Hass avocado variety because of its bigger
export market but generally avocados are good fruits for all of us to eat
due to their high nutritive value.

 

They are now viewed as the new crop whose production could alleviate poverty
and malnutrition.

Dr Barbra Mugwanya Zawedde the director of research at Mukono ZARDI, told
journalists last week that the Hass avocado has become a highly demanded
fruit on the international market and that Mukono Zardi has been charged
with production of the fruit's seedlings for farmers to plant. Mr Owen
Sungura the avocado project research officer at Mukono ZARDI revealed that
their target is to produce 600,000 grafted seedlings every year.

 

He further revealed that interested farmers from across the country will
purchase each seedling at Shs5,000 which is a subsidized price and that the
farmers growing the fruits will be monitored and assisted by National
Agricultural Research Organisation (Naro) free of charge to come up with
good results.

 

"We want to emphasize good agronomic practices and to ensure that the
farmers meet the expected international hygienic fruit production standards.
Our other goal is to link them to avocado exporters and, where possible, get
them into contract farming. We are not by the way putting all our eggs into
one basket. We are still promoting farming of other avocado varieties and
researching on them as well so that if in future we discover some with high
oil content or better taste we can take advantage of them as well. We want
to have the biggest number of avocado varieties in East Africa," Dr Zawedde
says.

According to Naro eating avocado comes with a lot of health and nutritional
benefits which is why they are on demand worldwide. Avocados are rich in
heart-healthy oil which can lower cholesterol levels and reduce the risk of
heart diseases. Avocados are rich in potassium which is essential for muscle
activity regulation. They are rich in dietary fibres which lower the risk of
developing stroke, hypertension, diabetes and obesity.

 

They are an important diet for pregnant women since they contain folic acid,
which is essential in developing the red blood cells and preventing birth
defects. Avocados are very nutritious with four times more nutritional value
than any other fruit except banana. They are rich in vitamins, proteins and
minerals.

Avocados are rich in Vitamin K which is essential for bone health and blood
clotting. They contain Vitamin E which is an antioxidant important for
maintaining healthy hair and skin. Avocados are rich with antioxidants that
improve eye health and have anti-aging properties.

 

Maturity

 

Hass Avocado is today the most recommended variety for growing because of
the following attributes, according to NARO. The Hass trees are quick
maturing (two to three years) and high yielding.

 

Hass avocados have a small seed and big flesh with high oil content. It has
a thick skin which makes it easy for packaging and shipping. It also has a
long shelf life, shape and size that make Hass fruits ideal for export.

 

Agronomy

 

Intending farmers with some land may set up separate Hass avocado gardens
and plantations or integrate the Hass avocado trees in gardens already
planted with other crops such as coffee or banana in what is known as
agro-forestry.

 

Some people can also plant them in their compounds as shade trees. Avocado
is already a big thing at the National Forestry Resources Research Institute
(NaFORRI) where already Hass avocado seedlings have been produced under the
supervision of Dr Samson Gwali, a senior research scientist.

 

A 10-acre-avocado mother garden is undergoing preparation together with a
screen house almost an acre wide. The institute aims at producing a million
avocado seedlings every year according to Dr Hilary Agaba director of
research and head of NaFORRI. The institute also has an attached field gene
bank for some 11 avocado varieties at Kifu Forest Reserve.

 

Value addition

 

Another government strategy is to use avocado for job creation and poverty
alleviation through value addition. Dr Jackie Atim heads the avocado value
addition research at Mukono ZARDI. She looks at the avocado fruit as a form
of raw material for production of several products including cosmetics,
charcoal briskets, and cooking oil.

 

"Not all people can become growers of avocado but many young people could
use the fruits grown by farmers to make products such as cosmetics, cooking
oil,". She is looking at using cottage industries similar to those in India
and China to make avocado products and has strong faith in fabricators in
Uganda to make the tools and machines that can be used to manufacture
avocado products.

 

The money

 

According to Naro projections, a farmer can earn good money from Hass
avocado growing. With good agronomic practices a tree begins fruition after
about two and half years and incrementally the number of fruits per tree
keeps increasing.

 

At about four years each tree should produce some 800 fruits. If the farmer
plants 160 trees on an acre (at 5 by 5 metres spacing), gets 128,000 fruits,
and chooses to sell each fruit at the very minimal farm gate price of Shs100
per fruit, he or she earns Shs12,800,000.-Monitor.

 

 

 

Ethiopia: Empowering Women With Digital Technology

Women in Africa are more likely to be entrepreneurs, than men. They make up
58 percent the continent's self-employed population and women's formal
ownership of SMEs currently stands at around a third of all registered SMEs
in Africa-and we know SMEs are estimated to account for over 90 percent of
all firms outside of the agricultural sector in the region, says a document
published recently.

 

The African Development recognizes the important role that women
entrepreneurs play in the development and economic growth of our continent.
However, African women business owners continue to face gender- specific
legal, social and administrative barriers, even while Africa leads the world
in terms of numbers of women business owners, it added.

To end this and enable women access financial services get the required
timely information and to flourish their business the application of digital
technology is of paramount importance.

 

Taking this into consideration, the African Development Bank, along with
African governments is working persistently to empower women entrepreneurs
with digital technology.

 

'50 million African Women Speak', a digital platform designed to contribute
to the economic empowerment of women across Africa, is one of the initiative
in this regard. Last Thursday, 'Ethiopia's 50 Million African Women Speak'
(50MAWSP) was held, here in Addis Ababa.

 

Launching the project, President Sahlework Zewde said that women encounter
multilayered challenges while trying to engage in the business. Ranging from
financial constraints and lack of market linkage to information ga, they
face many challenges. The 50 Million African Women Speak platform has
crucial role in empowering women entrepreneurs to run their enterprises in a
digital environment.

As to her, inaccessibility of information coupled with absence of financial
services, many women are employed in the informal works. However, the
availability and accessibility of this platform enable them to have
sufficient information and access the required services to join the formal
sector.

 

Noting that the platform bridges information, financial and market gaps of
women, she said the digital network will also bring multiple opportunities
for women mostly engaged in informal businesses in Africa.

 

Filsan Abdullahi, Minister of Women, Children and Youth mentioned that the
platform which is a first-of-its kind continental network will create access
to several facilities such as tools for business training, mentorship in
addition to financial products, and market information.

As to her, women globally engaged in "informal sector," with insufficient
payments and benefits. They are also more likely to work in industries which
are hardest hit by the pandemic, such as hospitality and childcare.

 

Thus, the launching of the platform is also expected to assist in the
realization of the targets set for women entrepreneurs' in nation's ten year
development plan, she stressed.

 

Dr. Abdul B. Kamara, Deputy Director General, East African Region of African
Development Bank on his part stated that the platform is critical to empower
the existing entrepreneurs and those women who aspire to run their own
enterprises through using digital platform.

 

As the COVID-19 pandemic has worsened, women in business encounter more
challenges. This platform has the potential to alleviate those challenges,
as to him.

 

The opportunities the '50 Million African Women Speak' platform present are
immense, it was mentioned in the panel discussion.

 

This platform is devised to impact 50 million women in the 38 countries
across three regional economic blocs- The Common Market for Eastern and
Southern Africa (COMESA), the East African Community, and the Economic
Community of West African States- and funded by the African Development
Bank.

 

The platform was first launched last year in Kigali, Rwanda in the presence
of President Sahlework Zewde during the Global Gender Summit.-Ethiopian
Herald.

 


 


 


Invest Wisely!

Bulls n Bears 

 

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INVESTORS DIARY 2021

 


Company

Event

Venue

Date & Time

 


 

 

 

 

 


Old Mutual

analysts briefing

 

24/03/21 | 2:30pm

 


Willdale

AGM

Boardroom, Willdale Administration Block, Teneriffe, 19.5km peg Lomagundi
Road, Mt Hampden

25/03/21 | 11am

 


TSL

AGM

Virtual | https://eagm.creg.co.zw/eagmzim/ Login.aspx | in the Auditorium,
Ground Floor, 28 Simon Mazorodze Road, Southerton

25/03/21 | 12pm

 


CFI

AGM

Farm & City Boardroom, 1st Floor Farm & City Complex, 1 Wynne Street

31/03/21 | 11am

 


 

Good Friday

 

02/04/21

 


 

Easter Sunday

 

04/04/21

 


 

Easter Monday

 

05/04/21

 


 

Independence Day

 

18/04/21

 


 

Public Holiday in lieu of Independence Day falling on a Sunday

 

19/04/21

 


 

 

 

 

 


Companies under Cautionary

 

 

 


 

 

 

 


ART

PPC

Dairibord

 


Starafrica

Fidelity

Turnall

 


Medtech

Zimre

Nampak Zimbabwe

 


 

 

 

 


 <mailto:info at bulls.co.zw> 

 


 

 


DISCLAIMER: This report has been prepared by Bulls 'n Bears, a division of
Faith Capital (Pvt) Ltd for general information purposes only and does not
constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy or
subscribe for any securities. The information contained in this report has
been compiled from sources believed to be reliable, but no representation or
warranty is made or guarantee given as to its accuracy or completeness. All
opinions expressed and recommendations made are subject to change without
notice. Securities or financial instruments mentioned herein may not be
suitable for all investors. Securities of emerging and mid-size growth
companies typically involve a higher degree of risk and more volatility than
the securities of more established companies. Neither Faith Capital nor any
other member of Bulls 'n Bears nor any other person, accepts any liability
whatsoever for any loss howsoever arising from any use of this report or its
contents or otherwise arising in connection therewith. Recipients of this
report shall be solely responsible for making their own independent
investigation into the business, financial condition and future prospects of
any companies referred to in this report. Other  Indices quoted herein are
for guideline purposes only and sourced from third parties.

 


 

 


(c) 2021 Web: <http://www.bullszimbabwe.com>  www.bullszimbabwe.com Email:
<mailto:info at bulls.co.zw> info at bulls.co.zw Tel: +263 4 2927658 Cell: +263 77
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