The World Health Organisation (WHO) announced on Friday, October 6, 2017 that it has delivered nearly 1.2 million doses of antibiotics and released $1.5 million in emergency funds to fight plague in Madagascar.
Dr. Charlotte Ndiaye, WHO Representative in Madagascar
“Plague is curable if detected in time. Our teams are working to ensure that everyone at risk has access to protection and treatment. The faster we move, the more lives we save,” said Dr. Charlotte Ndiaye, WHO Representative in Madagascar.
The UN body has delivered 1,190,000 doses of antibiotics to the Ministry of Health and partners this week, and a further supply of 244,000 doses is expected in the days ahead.
The different types of drugs will be used for both curative and prophylactic care. They are enough to treat up to 5,000 patients and protect up to 100,000 people who may be exposed to the disease.
The medicines are being distributed to health facilities and mobile health clinics across the country with the support of the Ministry of Health and partners.
The WHO is also filling critical shortages in disinfection materials and personal protective equipment for health professionals and safe burials.
WHO and the Ministry of Health are training local health workers on how to identify and care for patients, and how to trace people who have had close contact with symptomatic patients so that they may be given protective treatment.
Most of the 231 infections and 33 deaths that the Ministry of Health has reported since August are associated with pneumonic plague – a more dangerous form of the disease that affects the lungs and is transmitted through coughing at close range.
Both bubonic and pneumonic plague can be cured using common antibiotics if delivered early. Antibiotics can also help prevent infection among people who have been exposed to plague.
WHO has rapidly released $1.5 million from it emergency funds to allow for immediate support to the country until more substantial funds are received.
WHO is appealing for $5.5 million to effectively respond to the outbreak and save lives.
The Federal High Court, Lagos has adjourned further hearing till Monday, October 9, 2017 in the case of a former Governor of Oyo State, Chief Rashidi Ladoja, who is charged with N4.7 billion fraud.
Chief Rashidi Ladoja
Ladoja is being tried alongside a former Commissioner for Finance in Oyo State, Waheed Akanbi.
The trial judge, Justice Mohammed Idris, adjourned on Friday, October 6 at the instance of Akanbi’s lawyer, Mr. Adeyinka Olumide-Fusika, who requested that an official of Oyo State should be summoned by the court to tender some documents as exhibits.
Olumide-Fusika had attempted to tender the document during the proceedings on Friday, but counsel for the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Mr. Oluwafemi Olabisi, opposed the admissibility of the document, contending that Olumide-Fusika failed to lay proper foundation for its tendering.
But Olumide-Fusika, who maintained that the document, which was supplied to the court by the Oyo State Government, was important to the defence of his client, urged the court to summon an official of Oyo State Government to appear in court for the purpose of properly tendering the document as an exhibit.
Ladoja’s counsel, Mr. Bolaji Onilenla, did not oppose the application for adjournment.
Consequently, Justice Idris adjourned the case till Monday to allow for the invitation and appearance of an official of the Oyo State Government.
Ladoja and Akanbi are facing eight counts bordering on money laundering and unlawful conversion of funds belonging to the Oyo State Government.
In one of the counts, Ladoja and Akanbi were accused of converting a sum of N1,932,940,032.48, belonging to Oyo State Government to their personal own, using a Guaranty Trust Bank account of a company, Heritage Apartments Limited.
The EFCC claimed that they retained the money sometime in 2007, despite their knowledge that it was a proceed of a criminal conduct.
In another instance, Ladoja was accused of removing the sum of £600,000 from the state coffers in 2007 and sent it to Bimpe Ladoja, who was at the time in London.
The ex-governor was also accused of converting the sum of N42 million, belonging to the state, to his own and subsequently used it to purchase an armoured Land Cruiser jeep.
He was also accused of converting a sum of N728,600,000 and another N77,850,000 at separate times in 2007 to his own.
The EFCC claimed that Ladoja transferred the N77, 850,000 to one Bistrum Investments, which he nominated to help him purchase a property named Quarter 361, Ibadan, Oyo State.
The EFCC told the court that Ladoja and Akanbi acted contrary to sections 17(a) and18 (1) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2004 and were liable to be punished under sections 14(1), 16(a) (b) and 18(2) of the same Act.
But ex-governor and ex-commissioner have pleaded not guilty to the allegations.
The Nigerian Erosion and Watershed Management Project (NEWMAP), which came into existence about five years ago with seven states, has expanded and now operates in 19 states.
Group photograph of some participants at the the International Conference on Geo-Spatial Technology
National Coordinator of NEWMAP, Mallam Salisu Dahiru, who made the disclosure in Abuja on Wednesday, October 4, 2017 during the opening of the International Conference on Geo-Spatial Technology, disclosed that the development was informed by achievement recorded by the first mover (seven) states under the project.
“The project has been expanded with a total of 19 states in partnership,” he stated, adding:
“Average achievement of physical works and bio-remediation in the 21 initial sites of the first seven states is over 89% with 65% of the sites now fully completed. Fifty-nine new sites designs have been cleared and approved for implementation.”
According to him, the project has disbursed over N865 million to 1,337 project affected persons as resettlement for loss of lands, houses and economic trees, among others.
“Over N140 million has been paid as grant to 4,194 beneficiaries on livelihood enhancements activities. Recently, NEWMAP commenced the distribution of fuel efficient cook stoves to communities across the 21 sites to reduce pressure on the land,” Dahiru pointed out.
He emphasised that the integrated watershed management approach, mixture of civil works and bio-remediation, as well as the livelihood and community participatory aspect made NEWMAP attractive to a considerable number of stakeholders.
“That was why, initially, 11 states indicated the desire to to start off the project. However, seven states – Abia, Anambra, Cross River, Ebonyi, Edo, Enugu and Imo now referred to as the first mover states – were objectively considered and selected,” he said.
He added that management is striving to make the project better. “And to enhance the sustainability of the project is why we are reaching out to other climes, especially where there are flagship World Bank projects like the Karnataka Watershed Programme in Bangalore and the China Irrigation and Drainage Development Centre (CIDDC).
He recalled that NEWMAP was created after several attempts by Nigerian governments. “In less than five years of the project existence, it has recorded tremendous evidence-based success stories in improving the livelihoods of the people, thereby impacting positively to environmental sustainability,” Dahiru stressed.
Tagged the SSKE (South South Knowledge Exchange) Knowledge Fair, the three-day conference was organised by NEWMAP in conjunction with the World Bank and the SSKE.
Kofi Nouve, representative of the World Bank Country Director, Nigeria, said: “The World Bank is pleased to work with Nigeria to convene a knowledge fair to share South-South experiences across China, India, and Nigeria, and also to help showcase other examples of global good practice. This is part of the World Bank’s mission and also supports our work in open data, and improving the use of appropriate modern technology in the programmes we support.
“The world, in particular the IT world around us, is changing quickly and it is important that as professionals we stay abreast of new developments to be able to provide our clients with the most effective and efficient solutions to poverty alleviation.
“I urge you all to participate fully, freely; share knowledge and experiences, and build stronger national and international professional networks. I wish you all a great knowledge sharing experience and I look forward to your taking steps to translate this into a new generation of modernisation in your activities.”
Dahiru had expressed optimism that the conference would “proffer opportunities for projects like NEWMAP, benefit from a wide range of experts from various government, academic, watershed and producer groups for a community of best practices. It will also impact on critical activities including gully restoration design, landscape restoration, agricultural and pastoral improvement and application of remote sensing for more effective project management.”
In its 2016 Sustainability Report released on August 2017, Zenith Bank Plc has unveiled a range of plans and processes through which it is reducing its carbon foot print, albeit by curbing the emission of greenhouse gases (GHG) and consumption of energy.
Zenith Banks says it has chosen to embrace the clean earth principles
Themed “Creating Wealth Sustainably”, the Sustainability Report which is the second in the series, has been touted as the first in Nigeria, and Africa’s financial services industry to adopt the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) Standards in Sustainability reporting.
“We are conscious of the rising global concerns about environmental sustainability and have chosen to embrace the clean earth principles,” the bank wrote as a forward to a chapter on “Environment” in its latest Sustainability Report, which was preceded by the 2015 edition that had “Nurturing People, Planet, Profit” as its theme.
According to the organisation, its largest share of GHG emissions comes from fossil fuel consumption, predominantly to power self-generated electricity, as well as vehicular and air travels.
Energy from the Nigerian national grid is highly complemented by the use of fossil-powered generators, owing to the unstable power supply in the country. According to scientists, the burning of fossil fuel remains one of the highest sources of GHG emissions with the attendant global warming and climate change implications.
“Our aim is to migrate to 70% renewable energy by 2025. And we are already making some progress in this regards,” the bank disclosed, adding that even though some 1,355 of its Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) are being powered by energy efficient inverters, the inverters are still charged using fossil-powered generators whenever power from the national grid fails.
The bank however lists strategies being adopted to reduce GHG emissions to include:
Use solar powered inverters to operate all ATMs
Invest in banking infrastructure that promote 100% end-to-end transaction processing to reduce customers’ commute time
Increase and improve on staff bus fleet and encourage more employees to use them
Encourage carpooling/sharing among staff living in the same locality
Phase-out the use of diesel-powered vehicles
Implement travel control measures for employees
Make active use of internal, remote communication tools – Lync Exchange, Lync Video conferencing, Interactive Voice Response (IVR) and VOIP calls – to reduce commute time
Transit to the use of energy efficient technologies as well as the use of hybrid/electronic cars.
In terms of energy, the bank says that policies and framework are being put in place to drive energy efficient business operations, along with mechanisms for measuring and monitoring progress.
“As we pursue our business expansion goals, Zenith Bank will continue to insist on efficiency adherence to laid down environmental regulations and the adoption of global best practices in the use of energy sources,” the bank emphasised, listing its energy efficiency strategies to include:
Transit to the use of more renewable energy sources for business operations
Introduce solar energy in all branches in place of fossil fuel currently used by power generators
Retrofit all branches with LED energy saving bulbs
Implement 5pm shut down time for Head Office and branches
Install eco-friendly, energy efficient air conditioners bank wide
Ensure reduced energy consumption by switching off energy sources that are not in immediate use.
Another focus of the bank’s environmental impact is the management of effluents and wastes, which it says it will address by:
Implementing the reduce, reuse, recycle policy
Adopting effective waste measurement and progress monitoring processes
Auctioning depreciated items to staff through bidding process
Implementing selective waste collection and differentiation policy
Evaluating and monitoring the e-waste management practices of relevant investees, contractors and vendors, including government authorised waste collectors and recyclers
Ensuring global best practices in e-waste management.
The 12th Meeting of the Conference of the Parties (CMS COP12) to the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS), scheduled to hold from October 23 to 28, 2017 in Manila, Philippines, will address links between sustainable development and the conservation of wildlife.
Manila, capital of the Philippines, is hosting the CMS COP12. Photo credit: Jacqueline Hernandez
The first to be held in Asia, the CMS COP12 is touted to be the largest wildlife summit in 2017, with over 500 delegates from more than 120 countries expected to attend.
The theme of the Conference – “Their Future is Our Future – Sustainable Development for Wildlife and People” – is said to reflect the intrinsic link between the world’s wildlife and the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
At COP12, a number of issues and proposals will be tabled, including the listing of species as well as fresh initiatives, resolutions, action plans and guidelines for aquatic species, birds, and terrestrial species.
A High Level Panel Discussion will precede COP12 on October 22, at which Environment Ministers, executives of international organisations and Goodwill Ambassadors will discuss the links between sustainable development and the conservation of wildlife with special focus on migratory species and the SDGs. The discussion will result in the Manila Declaration, which will be presented to the Conference for consideration.
Also, on the October 22, several governments will be recognised as Migratory Species Champions for their long-term support to initiatives that benefit the conservation of migratory species during a specially convened Champion Night.
There will also be over 50 side events during the week of the COP as well as celebrity events such as the launch of the Report “Cetaceans of the Red Sea” with United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Goodwill Ambassador, Yann Arthus-Bertrand on October 23.
The CMS COP is a triennial summit that brings together States through which migratory animals pass and lays the legal foundation for internationally coordinated conservation measures.
The Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) has upheld a complaint by Forest Peoples Programme against logging company PT Kemakmuran Berkah Timber (PT KBT). The FSC-certified company has been operating on the lands of the indigenous Dayak Bahau community in the Upper Mahakam in East Kalimantan, Indonesia, without their free, prior and informed consent (FPIC) for the past three years.
Indigenous people of Dayak Bahau community in the Upper Mahakam in East Kalimantan, Indonesia
Despite the FSC’S decision to terminate the PT KBT’s certificate and assurances from the company that they would not re-enter the indigenous people’s land, the commitment was broken less than two months later when PT KBT ignored the sanctions imposed on it and entered the customary lands of Long Isun to collect timber.
PT KBT’s FSC-certificate was terminated in July this year. The ruling came six months after the complaint was first lodged with FSC, which is the global multi-stakeholder organisation which promotes the responsible management of the world’s forest. It was filed by Forest Peoples Programme (FPP) on behalf of Long Isun. FPP urged FSC to carry out an independent investigation into the human rights abuses overlooked by FSC-accredited auditors in one of the remotest areas on the island of Borneo.
Instead of independently verifying the evidence, FSC is said to have passed responsibility back to Rainforest Alliance, the certification body which had granted the disputed certificates in the first place. Rainforest Alliance then chose to hold its community consultation in March with the neighbouring community of Naha Aruq, which has close relations with the logging company. Only a short visit was made to Long Isun.
Inui Yeq, a member of the Long Isun community and the mother of Theodurus Tekwan who was arrested and imprisoned without charge in 2014 for a total of 109 days when he tried to enter into a dialogue with the timber company, said: “They (Rainforest Alliance Auditors) arrived escorted by PT KBT workers and BRIMOB (Indonesian mobile police brigade). We were scared, we didn’t want to talk to them and tell them the truth, how the company has been stealing from us and putting our people in jail when we stand up to them.”
Despite this flawed assessment procedure, Rainforest Alliance did find PT KBT to be in violation of FSC’s Principles 2 and 3 and required it to “revise its long-term management plan and move the harvesting blocks for the next three years into areas outside of the ancestral lands of the Dayak Bahau community” until such time as the community had given its Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC) to company operations. FSC acknowledged the findings in June, and in July, terminated KBT’s certificate.
Commenting on the Rainforest Alliance audit, Marta Doq, director of the indigenous organisation Nurani Perempuan, who has been working on the case since 2014, said: “We were very disappointed with the Rainforest Alliance audit. Despite promises to listen to our complaint, they never held a proper village meeting to hear our concerns directly. Does the FSC consider this an independent investigation? We don’t. As an indigenous organisation supporting the community, we feel ashamed by the lack of respect and breach of trust displayed by FSC.”
The experience from the Long Isun case clearly demonstrates how Certification Bodies cannot be relied on to independently assess their own performance.
In July, FPP filed a complaint with FSC against Rainforest Alliance for its inadequate performance. In response, FSC passed responsibility to its wholly owned subsidiary, Accreditation Services International (ASI), the body meant to oversee the performance of Certification Bodies. Based only on a document review, ASI found there was prima facie (at first sight) evidence that Rainforest Alliance had been weak in its verification of the complaint, however, ASI noted it could not check on Rainforest Alliance or KBT’s compliance because “there is no more FSC-related contractual relationship anymore that would bind parties to agree on an ASI assessment”.
In August, in contravention of its assurances that it would cease “all activity on lands where Long Isun claims traditional tenure rights”, the timber company re-entered the disputed lands without consulting the community.
Meanwhile neither KBT nor FSC have provided remedy to Long Isun for the damage to 2,000 hectares of the community’s forests. The community relies on the forest for their livelihoods.
Marcus Colchester, Senior Policy Advisor at FPP, said: “The Long Isun case reveals major shortcomings with FSC complaints procedures which fall far below those required by the United Nations Principles on Business and Human Rights. The procedure almost seems designed to protect the interests of the industry, FSC and Certification Bodies, instead of providing remedy for human rights violations.”
FSC is to hold its general assembly in Vancouver from October 8 to 13, 2017 “to discuss the challenges and solution of responsible forest management” and has agreed to discuss this case, among others.
A year and half after its launch, history beckons as “Mami Water”, a scheme aimed at ensuring sustainable use of the ocean along the West and Southern African coastline, holds its first Expert Working Group (EWG) meeting in Freetown, Sierra Leone from Monday, October 9, 2017.
Participants at the Mami Wata project meeting in Libreville, Gabon on February, 2017
The three-day forum brings together experts from across the Abidjan Convention Region to discuss theoretical and practical means to apply State of Marine Environment Assessments (SoME), CBD Ecologically and Biologically Significant marine Areas (EBSA), and Marine Spatial Planning (MSP). As a first task, the experts will be asked to review and contribute to key documents that will provide guidance on SoME, EBSA, and MSP approaches for the region.
Another outcome of the meeting will be the creation of three Expert Working Groups, which sources say will play an important role in the Mami Wata project. The Expert Working Groups members will share their expertise and experience, and provide key information about challenges and solutions within the region. They will support capacity developing activities and provide guidance on initiatives undertaken.
Launched with an inception workshop in Dakar, Senegal, in April 2016, Mami Wata is a four-year project funded by the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety. The project´s implementing partners are the Abidjan Convention Secretariat and GRID – Arendal.
The Mami Wata project is supporting national and regional action towards enhancing Integrated Ocean Management (IoM) in the Abidjan Convention Region, which covers 22 states from Mauritania to South Africa. The project is building capacity through training and by applying some key approaches in an Integrated Ocean Management framework. These approaches include SoME, CBD and MSP.
The project submitted in a statement: “Millions of people along the coasts of West, Central and Southern Africa rely on the ocean for their livelihoods. The marine and coastal environment of the African Atlantic coast is home to a range of biodiversity hotspots and highly productive ecosystems.
“However, the coastal and marine resources and ecosystems are in widespread decline due to human activities. The management of these natural assets is often challenging, with a large number of potentially conflicting activities taking place in an environment that is changing rapidly. Conservation and sustainable use of marine areas requires cooperation and coordination. Integrated Ocean Management brings together all relevant government bodies, sectors and stakeholders for more effective and holistic management.”
After its launch in April 2016, the Mami Wata project the following year in February 2017 held a meeting in Libreville, Gabon, where participants explored IoM in the context of the Abidjan Convention region. Participants, representing countries and organisations, shared their experience and lessons learnt in IOM, including the tools EBSAs, MSP and SoME.
A new report, “Catalyst for change”, analyses 22 of the largest global chemical companies with a total market capitalisation of $650 billion and responsible for a quarter of all emissions of the sector at 276 million metric tonnes of CO2 emissions per year. The report reveals that the chemicals sector is making progress on climate risk but that rapid process innovations will be required in order for them to have any chance of aligning with the below 2-degree goal set out by the Paris agreement.
Paul Simpson, chief executive officer at CDP. The CDP report reveals that reductions equivalent to 434 million tonnes of carbon dioxide – more than France’s total greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in 2014 – were achieved by suppliers worldwide in 2016
The sector is a large energy user, responsible for an eighth of global industrial CO2 emissions and plays a key role in the world economy, with nearly all manufactured products (95%) relying on chemicals. Despite the industry’s ability to innovate on low carbon, it will struggle to ever fully decarbonise if it doesn’t make rapid and significant changes to its own highly polluting processes.
The report from CDP – voted no. 1 climate change research provider by institutional investors – shows that the sector is still providing solutions on climate change on the product side, and is profiting from the low carbon transition, with around 20% of revenues for the group coming from these products, representing close to $83 billion in revenues. Progress is also being made in their emissions and energy efficiency, with improvements of 2-5% being made year-on-year and this is directly impacting the bottom line.
The report also highlights other potential risks for the sector:
Uneven regulatory risks: European chemical companies such as AkzoNobel and BASF face tougher regulation from national carbon emission cuts and potentially higher capital expenditure as a result.
Upcoming regulation in China: Chinese companies make up 40% of global chemical sales but are not disclosing environmental data. The Chinese Emissions Trading System launching at the end of 2017 could disrupt the wider industry as more Chinese based companies become regulated.
A potential diesel moment: A key output of the chemicals industry is plastic packaging, accounting for over a quarter of global plastics usage, however nearly 8 million metric tonnes of waste (the weight of 2,000 Eiffel Towers) ends up polluting oceans each year. Just as carmakers faced a regulatory backlash when the consequences of diesel on air pollution became clear, chemical companies could face a similar ‘diesel moment’ because of their links to plastic packaging.
Paul Simpson, CEO of CDP, said: “As both a large energy user itself and a crucial part of other industrial supply chains the chemicals industry is an important, but often overlooked, sector when it comes to environmental impact. Today’s analysis shows it’s moving in the right direction across several climate metrics with encouraging signs on annual emissions and R&D, but it needs to go further and faster to invest in the technologies that will deliver efficiency and emissions improvements. Ultimately it needs to set and achieve more ambitious environmental targets to reach a tipping point that both catalyses progress towards the Paris Agreement goals and directly improves the bottom line.”
The CDP report assesses companies on four key metrics aligned with the recommendations from Mark Carney’s Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD). As the TCFD recommendations become mainstream, investors will increasingly expect chemical companies to disclose how they are adjusting their business models to manage physical and transition risks, while taking advantage of the opportunity to generate revenue from the global transition to a low-carbon economy.
Carole Ferguson, Head of Investor Research at CDP, said: “The chemical sector’s significant carbon footprint means it is not just high emitters like petrochemicals that are exposed to the impacts of the low carbon transition but the sector as whole. Our research highlights a widespread lack of transparency and limited disclosure on how processes in particular are being improved. More transparency and tangible commitments to low carbon initiatives will be key to assess who the future industry leaders will be.
“This year AkzoNobel stands out in the industry through its commitment to decarbonization initiatives and as one of only two of the assessed companies with a science-based target. However, long-term investors will increasingly look for all chemical companies to adjust their business strategies in line with more ambitious emissions reduction targets and a rise in carbon pricing schemes globally.”
Asian Paints, Covestro, Ems-Chemie Holding, Petronas Chemicals and Nippon Paint did not respond to CDP’s 2016 climate change questionnaire and are therefore not included in the report.
The Government of Zimbabwe has defended plans to open a donkey abattoir to provide body parts for the Chinese medicine market, amidst criticisms from Animal Welfare Groups.
A donkey
Zimbabwe would join several other African nations that are cashing in on the Chinese belief that the gelatin in donkey skins has healing properties and works as an aphrodisiac.
“We have previously turned down the construction of a donkey abattoir, so I think this time around the company satisfied all the requirements,” Zimbabwe’s Deputy Agriculture Minister Paddy Zhanda said on Thursday, October 5, 2017.
On Wednesday, five animal rights groups released a joint statement saying poor farmers, who sold their livestock for short-term profit, would in fact make a loss in the long term.
“The importance of the working donkey to communal farmers cannot be overemphasised as the donkey population dwindles, so the replacement cost of the donkey sky-rockets,’’ the statement said.
In Kenya, which has three abattoirs, prices for live donkeys have quadrupled in just six months, the statement said.
“Communal farmers can no longer afford to replace their donkeys and their communities have become more destitute as a result,’’ it said.
While the Chinese medicine could sell for up to $1,171, the welfare groups said most of the money would be going to exporters, not the farmers.
Ethiopia and Niger recently banned donkey skin exports to protect rural communities.
The groups, including the Zimbabwe National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, also said they were concerned that lack of regulations meant that the donkeys destined for slaughter could suffer.
Zimbabwe’s 150,000-strong population of donkeys could in fact dry up altogether, they warned.
Zenith Bank Plc says it will continue to promote efforts that improve ICT knowledge and penetration in Nigeria through its sponsorship of Nigerian students in the global Microsoft World Championship.
Nigerian award winner at the Microsoft Word Championships, Katherine Eta, is presented a prize
The bank’s Group Managing Director, Mr. Peter Amamgbo, said this in Lagos on Wednesday, October 4, 2017 at the Annual ReadManna Award and ICT Exhibition where prizes were presented to the Nigerian winner and participants at the Microsoft Word Championships.
The 2017 edition of the Microsoft Word Championship was held in Disneyland, California, U.S.A, where a Nigerian student, Katrina Eta, won the third place. The bank has partnered with ReadManna since 2010 for the Nigerian championship and since 2014 for the world championship.
Amangbo said that the bank was doing this through its commitment to the sponsorship of Nigerian students at the global competition, in line with its corporate social responsibility which has the promotion of ICT as an empowerment tool at its core.
Amangbo, who was represented by Mrs. Wunmi Ogunbiyi, a General Manager in the bank, said that the bank’s partnership with Readmanna, the organisers of the championship in Nigeria, has the potential to further improve ICT knowledge among Nigerian students.
“We will continue to engage in partnerships that will positively impact our people and our country in the short, medium and long terms,” Amagbo said.
He said that the bank was happy with the increased participation of Nigerian students in the global competition and promised that the bank would not relent in its efforts.
Amangbo also said: “To this end, Zenith Bank is committed to sponsoring an expanded Nigerian competition involving more schools as well as supporting the Nigerian contingent to the 2018 Microsoft World Championship.
“Our objective is to see how we can support the initiative to involve more children so as to fast-track the penetration and growth of ICT in Nigeria,” he added.
Katherine Eta, the Nigerian student who came third in Microsoft Word 2017 Championship, said she aspires to be the best world Microsoft office specialist.
The 16-year-old student of Childvilie School, Ogudu, Lagos, said she was happy to make Nigeria proud.
The girl, who said she planned to study Computer Engineering, said: “My aim is to be the best in the world and I will not relent on my efforts.”
“I feel great to have represented Nigeria in the competition in U.S.A. I am also happy to come third in the competition, I’m happy to make my country, my parents, my school, myself and everybody proud,” he added.
Eta said she planned to save the prize money won in the competition for her future education to assist her parents.
On her part, Mrs. Edna Agusto, the Managing Director, ReadManna Empowerment Initiative, said the aim of the competition was to promote proficiency in basic computer literacy aligned to global standards through ICT competitions.
“This is a global competition that challenges students to demonstrate their proficiency in the use of Microsoft word, PowerPoint and excel.
“It is open to all students aged between 13 and 22 years enrolled in an academic institution,” she said.
Agusto said the national championship conducted annually by ReadManna in Nigeria was held over a period of seven months between Aug.1, 2016 and April 30 with about 882 entries from 20 secondary schools in Lagos, Ogun, Rivers, Kwara and Abuja.
According to her, the competition ended with 112 out of 161 students shortlisted for national competition certified in Microsoft Excel, PowerPoint and Word.
Agusto thanked the management of Zenith Bank for its decision to grow the Microsoft Office Specialist World Champion in Nigeria.
She said that this would make every Nigerian student to know the importance of acquiring basic digital skills at early ages.
Some award winners at the event included Mr. Iyke-Osuji Victor from Faith Academy, Ota, Ogun State, who was presented N20,000 cash gift.
Mr. Toluwanimi Osuolale from Louisville Girls High School, Ijebu Itele, Ogun State, was presented N30,000 cash gift.
Miss Husna Bello of Glisten International Academy, Abuja, was rewarded with N50,000 cash gift.
Others included Samantha Onyinye of Aduvie International School, Abuja, who was presented with N20,000 can gift, and Mychal Oluwatumininu of Day-Waterman College, Abeokuta, who was given N30,000 cash gift.
