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The Faithful Group(TFG), a political group loyal to Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo, has declared support for the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Asiwaju Bola Tinubu.
This is contained in a statement signed by its National Coordinator, Olusola Orelaja, and made available to newsmen on Saturday in Ibadan.
The News Agency of Nigeria(NAN) reports that TFG had been issued a certificate of recognition following its endorsement of Tinubu as Tinubu Faithful Group(TFG).
“After the APC Presidential Primaries, we held several executive meetings and came to a progressive decision to support Tinubu, the APC flagbearer with capacity and competence,” he said.
Orelaja, who is also National President of Our Nation For Justice Initiative (ONAJI), said he was impressed by Tinubu’s visit to Osinbajo’s home after the primaries and by his forgiving heart.
He described Tinubu’s actions as a good development and morale booster for TFG members, saying it would spur them to campaign and ensure Tinubu emerged president in 2023.
“Tinubu is a visionary leader.
He is a compassionate personality.
TFG members in the Diaspora and different states of Nigeria are ready to support him.
“I can authoritatively say Tinubu has paid enough dues to be President of Nigeria and it’s very clear that none of the other contestants can match his democratic credentials.
“He has an unmatched track record as a public servant in the last 23 years, considering his achievements as governor of Lagos State,” Orelaja said.
The TFG coordinator said that Tinubu possessed the best resume, experience, and exposure.
Orelaja said that Nigeria needed a competent and detribalized leader who will promote unity as well as a prosperous nation.
“This group considers the campaign for Tinubu as an obligation.
We will knock on every door, speak to every Nigerian as well as travel across the length and breadth of the country to preach Tinubu/Shettima,” he said.
He prayed that God grant him good health, strength as well as the needed wisdom ahead of the 2023 presidential elections and beyond.
Vertiv (www.Vertiv.com/en-EMEA) (NYSE: VRT), a global provider of critical digital infrastructure and business continuity solutions, today announced a distribution partnership with Tech First Gulf (TFG), a leading IT infrastructure and security value. dealer added.
With this partnership accelerating presence in the East African market, Vertiv will enhance TFG's existing portfolio with its robust power and IT infrastructure solutions for data center and edge applications.
Additionally, TFG provides its partners and customers with enhanced logistics support, easy credit and local currency payments and will act as an extended arm of Vertiv by providing end-to-end installation, service and maintenance for customers.
TFG positions itself as a "one stop shop" for the digital infrastructure of its partners and clients. With this partnership, TFG will incorporate Vertiv's comprehensive portfolio of IT technologies and services, including Liebert® Uninterruptible Power Supplies (UPSs), such as the Liebert® GXT5 UPS, a double-conversion online UPS solution that offers protection superior against power outages and continuous feeding. packaged in a compact and flexible tower/rack form factor, and dedicated software for partners and customers.
Also included are Vertiv's turnkey solutions such as Vertiv™ SmartCabinet™, a pre-configured stand-alone solution that offers the efficiency, economy, interoperability and control needed to implement an exceptional infrastructure strategy. Easy to deploy by maximizing existing infrastructure and giving administrators seamless control, SmartCabinet™ saves time on integration and installation compared to selecting and installing individual rack, cooling, power and monitoring solutions.
Hemant Mali, Managing Director of TFG and Susan W., Country Manager of TFG in Kenya, commented: “We are excited to begin this partnership with Vertiv, which will not only round out our infrastructure portfolio, particularly in the modular data center space , but also opens up the Vertiv Partner Program (VPP) (https://partners.Vertiv.com/) to our resellers, with benefits like training, incentives to grow with Vertiv, and support required to quickly meet customer demands. With Vertiv, we look forward to continuing our journey of innovation and disrupting IT infrastructure growth with Vertiv's industry-leading infrastructure solutions."
“In the era of Industry 4.0, with increasing interconnectivity and intelligent automation, this distribution partnership will provide East African customers with cutting-edge data center solutions and expertise to support their digital transformation journey,” he said. Pierre Havenga, General Manager of Vertiv in the Middle East and Africa region.
Trade Finance Global (TFG), the leading trade finance platform, has selected the International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation (ITFC) (www.ITFC-idb.org), a member of the Islamic Development Bank Group, as the 'Islamic Funder of the Year' 2022. The award ceremony held in collaboration with the Bankers Association for Finance and Commerce was held on May 4th during the BAFT Global Annual Meetings in Washington, USA. The award ceremony and annual meetings were attended by industry leaders and stakeholders in the global finance and trade sectors. The TFG International Trade Awards, now in its sixth edition, recognize industry players who have made an outstanding contribution to global trade and finance. The awards are presented to companies and service providers in trade, supply chain, and accounts receivable financing. It serves as recognition of award winners and the awards logo is used as a badge of excellence in both the intermediate (B2B) and direct (B2C) markets. The ITFC's underlying approach of working closely with key government, public and private institutions in Member Countries to meet its strategic national development goals enabled it to act quickly and refocus funding commitments to ensure the movement of goods and products, essential items, including medical supplies and pharmaceuticals, staple foods, and energy-related products such as fuel. Consequently, in 2021 cumulative trade finance approvals increased to US$61.41 billion, with trade support extended to the critical sectors of Health, Energy, Agriculture and SMEs, among others. This reflects the ITFC's crucial role as a catalyst for trade development in OIC member countries.
The International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation (ITFC) (www.ITFC-IDB.org), a member of the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) Group, has been named ‘Best Islamic Financier’ by the trade finance platform, Trade Finance Global (www.TradeFinanceGlobal.com), in cooperation with BAFT (www.BAFT.org).
The international work carried out by banks, financial institutions and technology vendors to enable trade has never been more important, particularly in an age of rapid digitization, interconnected supply chains and increased competition.
The winners were selected by an independent steering committee of industry experts from around the world.
Commenting on the achievement, ITFC CEO, Eng. Hani Salem Sonbol, said: “ITFC is proud to have been recognized as the Best Islamic Financier. This prestigious accolade is a testament to the effectiveness of the Corporation’s strategic approach to advance trade and improve lives in all OIC member nations. The recognition also underscores the relevance and viability of ITFC’s unique blend of trade finance and trade development solutions that are designed to support the strategic sectors of member countries, thereby enabling them to improve their trading capacity”.
ITFC’s overarching goals are directly aligned with the UN SDGs aimed at creating greater inclusive prosperity in the developing world. A key component of the Corporation’s strategic focus is to work through partnerships with banks, financial institutions and key stakeholders who have long-term vested interest in the socio-economic development of Member Countries. This allows ITFC to develop Integrated Trade Solutions with Trade Finance and Trade Development components to help remove barriers to trade while providing stronger access to the financing of new trading opportunities.
Mark Abrams, Director at Trade Finance Global and a member of the Awards Steering Panel said: “A core aim of TFG is to help companies access information and education around trade finance. It is important to highlight those leading the way in trade and receivables finance, whether that be from the perspective of financiers, insurers, logistics, law firms or tradetechs.”
“Continuous innovation is needed from within the trade industry, to support businesses around the world, as they navigate the changing landscape of trade finance in uncertain times. We are delighted to be cooperating with BAFT on this industry initiative.”
“At a time when companies face significant challenges fulfilling cross-border trade, it is critical that banks are able to demonstrate leadership in providing financing and innovative solutions that evolve with the changing needs of their clients,” said Tod Burwell, President & CEO, BAFT. “We congratulate the organizations being recognized for their leadership and commend TFG for showcasing these institutions.”
In 2019, ITFC approved US$ 2.1 billion of financing to Least Developed Member Countries, representing 36% of its total portfolio. Of this, US$ 565 million went towards the food and agriculture sector, including pre-export financing in key value chains, such as cotton and groundnuts and import of key commodities for the food security of member countries. ITFC’s financing has provided incomes and contributed to better livelihoods for over 480 000 farmers.
Around US$ 4.5 billion of financing was extended to support a sustainable supply of energy inputs in member countries, which provided an estimated 13 million people with access to electricity. Additionally, in 2019 ITFC strengthened its support to the private sector by channelling US$ 821 million of financing to private sectos and SMEs through 16 partner banks.
Kenya and the U.S.on Wednesday called for more efforts to stabilize Somalia and South Sudan, saying regional stability is crucial for economic development.
Kenyan President Uhuru Kenya and Thomas Waldhauser, commander of the U.S.-Africa Command (Africom), renewed their commitment to peace in the two countries.
Kenyatta, who held talks with Waldhauser, said political turmoil in South Sudan has been made worse by unwarranted fear and mistrust between supporters of President Salva Kiir and rebel leader Riek Machar.
“We shall give it everything we can. But it is not going to be easy,” Kenyatta said in reference to South Sudan, according to a statement issued after the meeting in Nairobi.
The Kenyan leader said Kenya is firmly committed to the cause of finding peace in Somalia, an aspiration that has in the past been negated by lack of adequate capacity, and proper military commands.
Kenyatta said there is need to make both South Sudanese President Kiir and rebel leader Machar to truly appreciate the benefits of working together, adding that regional countries are committed to keeping pressure on the two leaders to work together for the benefit of the people of South Sudan.
Kenyatta said Somalia faces further challenges of mistrust and internal politics between the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) and regional governments.
“The deteriorating relationships between the TFG and the regional governments are of major concern to us,” he said, adding that the conflict is a major security threat to Kenya and the region at large.
He called for structures that will enable the TFG to work with the regional governments, urging its leadership to refocus its attention and energies into addressing issues that cause national divisions and avoid being drawn into partisan distractions.
Waldhauser, for his part, underscored the need for Somalia to strengthen its leadership structures, adding that the instability is partly due to indirect interference from certain Gulf countries, according to the statement.
“We are ready to continue assisting the country so long as the federal government is willing to accept our support,” Waldhauser said.
He called for neutrality from Gulf countries.
“The differences and clashes in these Arabian countries are playing out in Somalia. We call for their neutrality,” Waldhauser said.
Relations between Somalia and the United Arab Emirates have been strained since mid-2017, when Mogadishu defied UAE and Saudi pressure to cut ties with Qatar following a diplomatic dispute between the Gulf neighbors.
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The Somali Government, on Tuesday, announced a ban on flights arrival and departure from Mogadishu Airport and also beefed up security ahead of the Wednesday presidential elections.
The Transport and Civil Aviation Minister, Ali Ahmed Jama, informed travel agencies of the flights suspension as well as traffic movement in the capital during the elections.
“We inform travel agencies that flights at Aden Adde Airport will be suspended on Wednesday for the presidential election,’’Ahmed said.
The minister said that this would not affect other local airports in the country, as the election would take place only in the capital city.
According to him, all major roads in Mogadishu will be closed for two days till the conclusion of the election.
The Mogadishu Mayor, Yusuf Hussein Jimale, imposed a ban on traffic movement in Mogadishu to ensure security of the presidential elections.
The Horn of Africa nation, which has been under near daily attacks from the Al-Shabaab terror group, plans to curb disruption of the presidential elections.
Somali Parliament will elect a new president from 22 candidates including incumbent President Hassan Mohamud on Feb. 8.
In 2012, indirect presidential elections held in Somalia on Sept. 10. The new Federal Parliament elected President Mohamud, as the first President of Somalia since the dissolution of the Transitional Federal Government (TFG).
TFG was formed in 2004 with a mandate towards the establishment of a new constitution and a transition to a representative government.
Edited by: Fatima Sule/Yemi Idris-Aduloju
(NAN)
