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Plateau Govt, FAAN Partner to Establish Food Cargo Hub at Jos Airport

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In a strategic move to curb Nigeria’s staggering annual post-harvest losses estimated at N3.5 trillion, the Plateau State Government has partnered with the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) to develop a food cargo hub at the Yakubu Gowon Airport in Jos.

The partnership, formalized on Wednesday at FAAN’s headquarters in Lagos, is aimed at upgrading the Jos airport into an international cargo facility. The goal is to boost agricultural exports and position Plateau State as a key player in global food logistics.

Governor Caleb Mutfwang described the initiative as a landmark moment for Nigeria’s agricultural sector, noting that despite the country’s abundance of high-quality produce, farmers struggle to access viable markets.

The collaboration will see the state government provide financing for facility upgrades, while FAAN delivers professional expertise, guidance, and security.

He noted that for years, farmers have toiled, producing world-class potatoes, maize, vegetables, and fruits, only to see their hard work perish due to limited market access.

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AIICO Insurance Denies False Allegations, Sues Obinna Nwosu Over Defamation

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BY NKECHI BAECHE-ESEZOBOR—In a decisive move to protect its corporate reputation, AIICO Insurance Plc has taken legal action against a dismissed agent, Mr. Obinna Adolphus Nwosu, suing him for defamation after he circulated unsubstantiated claims to regulators, the media, and the general public.

For the avoidance of doubt, Mr. Nwosu’s appointment as an agent of AIICO Insurance Plc was terminated. Following the termination of his appointment, the Company published a public notice in national newspapers on 26 June 2025, expressly warning customers and members of the public against continuing to transact or maintain any business relationship with him on behalf of, or in connection with, AIICO Insurance Plc.

A statement released by the company reads: “AIICO Insurance Plc has become aware of a sustained campaign of false and misleading allegations being circulated by Mr. Obinna Adolphus Nwosu, a former agent of the Company, to various stakeholders, including regulatory authorities, law enforcement agencies, media organisations, bloggers, employees and other members of the public.

“Notwithstanding this, Mr. Nwosu has continued to circulate false and misleading narratives about the Company through various channels, including digital platforms and direct communications with stakeholders.

“His persistent and increasingly aggressive efforts to disseminate these claims have the potential to cause unwarranted damage to the Company’s reputation and create unnecessary concern among its employees, customers and other stakeholders.

“AIICO Insurance Plc wishes to state unequivocally that these allegations are false and should be treated with the utmost caution. Rather than engage in a media exchange or submit to a trial in the court of public opinion, the Company has elected to pursue the matter through the appropriate legal channels and has consequently commenced a defamation action against Mr. Nwosu at the Lagos State High Court.”

The statement added that “AIICO Insurance Plc will not be drawn into a public exchange with a former agent who has chosen to continue making unsubstantiated allegations while the matter is being pursued through the courts. The Company remains confident that the facts will be properly examined and determined through the established judicial process.

It further urged the media, regulators, employees, customers and the public are therefore urged to exercise due caution and discountenance the false and misleading narratives being circulated by Mr. Nwosu.

The statement also called on Nwosu to  make himself available to receive the relevant court processes and allow the matter to proceed in accordance with the law, rather than continuing to prosecute his claims through digital media and direct approaches to individuals within and outside the Company.

While noting that any genuine grievance or complaint should be presented through the appropriate regulatory, investigative or judicial channels, where it can be properly examined and determined based on verifiable facts and evidence.

The company reaffirmed assured “AIICO Insurance Plc remains committed to the highest standards of integrity, accountability and transparency.

The Company will continue to pursue all lawful avenues available to protect its reputation, its employees, customers and other stakeholders, and to ensure that the matter is resolved through due process and in accordance with the law.

The post AIICO Insurance Denies False Allegations, Sues Obinna Nwosu Over Defamation appeared first on Business Today NG.

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Dangote to sell 30% shareholding of new refinery to East African countries – Report

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Dangote Group, the empire of Africa’s richest man Aliko Dangote, has offered a 30 per cent holding in its proposed 700,000 barrel-per-day (bpd) refinery to nations in East Africa, the region where the mega crude-processing plant is to be located, Bloomberg reported Friday.

Kenya, where the new refinery will be sited at the southeastern coastal town of Lamu, will take a 10 per cent stake estimated at around half a trillion dollars, David Ndii, a top economic adviser of President Ruto, told Bloomberg.

“The total for the region is about $1.5 billion. I don’t actually see a challenge in doing that, and if some of them are not off-taking we will backstop,” Mr Ndii was quoted as saying at a capital market conference in Nairobi on Thursday.

Ethiopia and Rwanda are said to have indicated willingness to participate.

Mr Dangote is turning to business-friendly Kenya and other promising markets in East Africa to expand his multi-billion dollar empire after facing an avalanche of resistance from his home country Nigeria in bringing a refinery of similar capacity to completion.

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The Nigerian refinery, situated in the outskirts of Lagos and initially projected to be completed in 2016, did not see the light of the day until eight years after, held back by logistic delay, infrastructure constraints and COVID-19 lockdowns.

The magnate, who has built his fortune around cement, sugar and a couple of fast-moving consumer products, accused international oil companies of sabotaging efforts at getting the refinery running seamlessly in its early days.

He claimed that the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, which serves as the top watchdog for the midstream and downstream segments of the oil industry, issued new licences to some players to import “dirty fuel” as part of a broader conspiracy to frustrate his push to wean Nigeria off its longstanding dependency on fuel imports.

In the heat of the crisis, Farouk Ahmed, the CEO of the regulator at the time, resigned his appointment, while Mele Kyari, the immediate past managing director of state oil company NNPC Limited, whom Mr Dangote accused of surreptitiously running a fuel blending plant off the coast of Malta, was shown the exit door.

“I knew there would be a fight. But I didn’t know that the mafia in oil, they are stronger than the mafia in drugs,” he told an investment conference in June 2024.

ALSO READ: Dangote Refinery raises $2.5 billion in Africa’s largest private equity placement

A private placement, which raised $2.5 billion ahead of the Nigerian refinery’s planned $5 billion initial public offer scheduled for October, valued the refinery at $40 billion.

The private equity capital raise was 3.7 times, drawing interest from African institutional investors and institutional investors from outside the continent.
The groundbreaking of the Kenyan refinery is expected to kick off next month.

That puts the company on course to achieve the ambition of doubling its refining capacity to 1.4 million bpd in the next three years, with processing capacity at the refinery in Lagos already upped to 700,000 bpd from its original 650,000 bpd.

The planned refinery in Kenya is expected to cost $15 billion to $17 billion.


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