Business
Academics, economists, others discuss African development at AFEA 2026 conference
Policy experts, academics, and researchers have stated that strong public policy implementation and debt management can drive good governance in Africa.
They made these remarks during the just-concluded African Finance and Economics (AFEA) 2026 conference, held in Abuja from 3 to 5 July.
Speaking to PREMIUM TIMES, Evans Osabuohein, a professor of economics, said that the discussions at the event focused on public policy and debt management, which are affecting human capital development in Africa.
“It [is] about how public debt can be managed more efficiently in Africa, so that we can tap into the resources for human capital and energy efficiency in this age of innovation. We need human resources that are well-skilled, equipped, and knowledgeable to harness such potential that technology like artificial intelligence present today,” he said.
“Debt is not bad in itself; the issue is when debt is borrowed but is not used for capital investment, the servicing of debt becomes a burden. We have seen this in most African countries where some of the borrowings are not geared towards human capital development.”
Mr Osabuohein, a board member of AFEA, explained that it would be a win-win option for both governments and citizens if public debt is used judiciously, saying that the execution of projects translates into employing the populace to do the labour.
More details
The three-day international conference, hosted by Nile University Abuja’s faculty of arts and social sciences, brought together scholars, policymakers, and industry experts in the field of economics.
Themed ‘Africa’s Geoeconomic Development Agenda in a Global Realignment Era’, it sought to contribute expert input on shifting geopolitics, climate risk, and development finance across the continent, and drew attendees from Canada, Ghana, Nigeria, and other countries.
Emotimo Agama, director-general of the Securities and Exchanges Commission (SEC); Tope Fasua, an economic adviser to President Bola Tinubu; Tony Okpanachi, managing director of the Development Bank of Nigeria, among others, made up the line-up of dignitaries for the event.
Premium Times monitored breakout sessions at the programme, where participants presented papers on topics including debt sustainability, global financial and health governance systems, digital service delivery, mobile money, financial inclusion, and continental digital markets.
Some sessions also focused on youth, gender, demographic change, and inclusive development; as well as migration, urbanisation, and spatial inequality, with a broad focus on Africa-West relations.
The sessions featured interactive discussions for each paper presenter, including how their research work could be further enhanced.
Participants speak
Abogede Marietu, a PhD candidate of economics at Nile University, described the conference as impactful, adding that it has given her opportunities to learn from scholars in her field.
“Today is actually my first time presenting my work at an international conference, and I think that gives visibility to my work. I have also got to learn from other presenters.”
“It is my earnest desire that the government in Africa would look into the policies that myself and other presenters have come up with, so as to improve the economy, and also aid the livelihood of the citizens of the continent,” she said.
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Another paper presenter, Ropheka Bot, stated that she found the discussions in the conference “very timely and engaging as experts gathered to discuss current global issues”
Mrs Bot, a lecturer at Bingham University, Karu, said she hopes that governments in Africa would implement some of their research findings to improve development on the continent.
About AFEA
The African Finance and Economics Association (AFEA) is a professional forum for academics and practitioners (government and industry) of finance, economics, and related disciplines interested in the development of Africa.
It seeks to empower the continent through financial growth and sustainable development, with a mission to promote the exchange of information and ideas among professionals and stakeholders in the field while fostering research that advances knowledge on contemporary African development issues.
With Majune Socrates as its president, Gbadebo Odularu sits as the chairman of the board for the organisation.
A 38-year-old South African lady, Ms. Will Jessica Ann has been arrested by operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport (NAIA) Abuja after she was found to have concealed 14 large blocks of heroin weighing 5.75 kilograms in her luggage, using her three-year-old son as a cover to beat security checks and evade thorough screening.
The suspect was arrested by NDLEA officers on Monday 6th July 2026 during the inward clearance of passengers on Qatar Airways flight QR 1433 from Doha to Abuja. Though she initially denied travelling with check-in bags, but after operatives were able to quickly establish that the two bags containing the drugs had tags which tallied with the claim tags attached to her passport, she recounted and admitted ownership of the bags adding that she forgot she checked in the two bags.
She claimed to have travelled from Cambodia through Doha to Abuja. Intelligence leading to her arrests indicates she is a member of a transnational drug trafficking organization along with her husband/partner, Jan Coenraad De Jager, based in Cambodia from where they operate their drug network along the Cambodian-South African axis.
In another successful interdiction operation, NDLEA officers at the terminal 2 arrival hall of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) Ikeja Lagos on 28th June 2026 intercepted a commercial motorcycle operator popularly known as ‘Okada rider’, 48-year-old Onyechere Daniel Chinadu following his arrival from Madagascar via Addis Ababa aboard an Ethiopian Airways flight.
A thorough search of his back pack, which he had checked in, led to the discovery of 87 wraps of methamphetamine concealed within cloths in his bag. In his statement, Onyechere claimed he has been working for 15 years as an Okada rider at Oke-Afo area of Lagos before his Uganda based friend recruited him into drug trafficking.
He said he ingested the recovered pellets of methamphetamine in Uganda before embarking on his planned journey to Madagascar to deliver the drug consignment. He however said that upon arrival in Madagascar, he was denied entry by Immigration authorities. As a result, his friend and sponsor, Ozor Igo, based in Uganda rerouted his flight to Lagos, where he was eventually arrested by NDLEA officers.
The suspect was unable to state the exact number of pellets he had ingested in Uganda and as a result, he was placed under excretion observation for a period of three days. Between the date of his arrest and 1st of July, he was able to excrete 13 pellets in addition to the initial 87 wraps recovered from him, bringing the total number to 100 wraps of methamphetamine with a gross weight of 1.715 kilograms.
At the Apapa seaport in Lagos, a total of 8,287 nylon bags of Canadian Loud weighing 4,143.5 kilograms worth over N10.3 billion in street value were discovered in a container imported from Canada during a joint examination of the shipment by NDLEA officers, Customs personnel and other security agencies on Friday 10th July 2026.
The discovery followed weeks of targeted tracking and monitoring of the shipment since its departure from Montreal, Canada, by operatives of the Maritime Intelligence Unit of NDLEA in close collaboration with the Apapa Strategic Command of the Agency. Meanwhile, an attempt to export a 2.5kg skunk, a strain of cannabis, concealed in a gas compressor going to Cyprus through a courier company in Lagos has been thwarted by NDLEA operatives of the Directorate of Operation and General Investigation(DOGI).
With the same zeal, Commands and formations of the Agency across the country continued their War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitization activities in schools, worship centres, work places and communities among others in the past week. These include: WADA enlightenment lecture for students and staff of Nnodo Secondary School, Abakaliki, Ebonyi; Government Girls Secondary School, Sabon Gida, Sharada, Kano; Royal Jesuit College, Agbado Ekiti; and Community Secondary School, Idofa, Ogun, while the leadership of Zone 14 Command of NDLEA paid a WADA advocacy visit to Rivers State Governor, Sir Siminalayi Fubara at Government House Port Harcourt, among others.
While commending the officers and men of DOGI, MMIA, NAIA, MIU, and, Apapa Commands of the Agency for the arrests and seizures, Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd) noted their drug supply reduction efforts balanced with WADA sensitization activities while he charged them and their compatriots across the country not to rest on their past laurels.
The post NDLEA intercepts South African lady with 3-year-old son as cover to traffic heroin appeared first on Business Today NG.
The earnings’ season is here once more, with the half-year period already gone past and the publication of corporate results set to commence any moment soon.
The largely positive investor sentiment that dominated trade in that period drove a sweeping rally in Nigerian stocks January though June. That positive has made the country’s equity market the best-performing in the world in dollar terms.
If half-year corporate reports come out stronger than they were a year ago, the market could ride on that momentum to turn out a fabulous yield that could meet investors’ expectations in the short term.
“Nevertheless, we expect pockets of bargain hunting to emerge as investors gradually position ahead of the H1:2026 earnings season, particularly in fundamentally sound stocks that have become more attractively valued following the recent market pullback,” analysts at Meristem Securities said in their note to investors last week.
“We also expect companies with strong earnings prospects and attractive interim dividend potential to continue attracting selective buying interest.”
PREMIUM TIMES has assembled some stocks with sound fundamentals, adopting rigorous approaches to save you the risk of picking equities at random for investment.
The pick, a product of an analytical market watch, offers a guide to entering the market and taking strategic positions, with the expectation that selected stocks will record reasonable price appreciation with the passage of time.
This is not a buy, sell or hold recommendation but a stock investment guide. You may need to involve your financial advisor before taking investment decisions.
Zenith Bank
Zenith Bank tops this week’s pick on the basis of its strong fundamentals and for trading below its intrinsic value. The lender’s net profit ratio (NPR) is 21.8 per cent, while the price-to-earnings (PE) ratio is 4.4x. Its 14-day relative strength index (RSI) is 41.6.
Unilever
Unilever makes the selection for its strong fundamentals. The NPR of the consumer goods company is 14.8 per cent, while the PE ratio is 21.4x. Its 14-day RSI is 14.1.
BUA Cement
BUA Cement appears on the pick on the basis of its attractive fundamentals. The NPR of the cement manufacturer is 36.4 per cent, while the PE ratio is 25.5x. The 14-day RSI is 0.
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Coronation Insurance
Coronation Insurance makes the selection by virtue of its strong fundamentals. The NPR of the insurer is 19.8 per cent, while the PE ratio is 8.1x. Its 14-day RSI is 46.2.
UACN
UACN makes the cut based on its strong fundamentals. The NPR of the conglomerate is 2.3x, while the PE ratio is 26.2x. Its 14-day RSI is 53.
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