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Showing posts with label investments. Show all posts
Showing posts with label investments. Show all posts

Monday, February 19, 2018

Energy impact investor All On seals 3 off-grid investments for Niger Delta

The Nigerian off-grid energy investment company, All On, has closed a financial deal with three firms for accelerated access to affordable and sustainable energy sources in the Niger Delta, reports NaijaAgroNet.

Chief Executive Officer of All On, Dr. Boer Wiebe, made this known to NaijaAgroNet at the weekend, saying it follows the equity investment made in 2017 to Nigeria Solar Home System market leader, Lumos Global BV, in the form of a debt facility to facilitate a quick rollout in the Niger Delta. 

"All On is also providing equity and debt to Port Harcourt based Green Village Electricity (GVE), Nigeria’s leading mini-grid player, for expansion in the Niger Delta and across Nigeria, while ColdHubs is receiving a convertible debt facility to expand its solar-powered marketplace cold storage business to new markets in the region," Wiebe said.

These developments, NaijaAgroNet gathered are coming barely three months after All-On announced its first set of transactions in Nigeria’s off-grid market, and two months after the firm and U.S. Africa Development Foundation (USADF) announced a $3 million partnership to expand access to energy for underserved and unserved markets in Nigeria.

“The investments made in these energy solution providers further demonstrate our firm belief that off-grid energy is indispensable in the improvement of Nigeria’s energy narrative. It therefore deserves adequate attention and financial backing from both the public and private sectors.” Dr. Boer said.

Commenting, Lumos’s CEO Davidi Vortman, said: “This debt facility from All On both cements the strategic relationship between our two companies and goes a long way towards significantly accelerating the speed of penetration of Lumos Solar Home Systems in the Niger Delta region. All On has established itself as a leader in off grid energy in Nigeria and we are therefore excited to work with All On to enhance energy access for Nigerians in the Niger Delta and across the country.”

ColdHubs CEO, Nnaemeka Ikegwuonu, described the investment as a demonstration of All On’s commitment beyond simply addressing the access to energy gap, to harnessing innovative renewable energy solutions for the preservation of perishable foods. “This support by All On will enable Cold Hubs to further refine its business model to help improve the livelihoods of people and enhance food security in the Niger Delta,” he said.

In his reaction to the financial close, Managing Director of GVE, Ifeanyi Orajaka, said: "We at GVE are excited about this relationship with All On. An investment from a world-class organisation such as All On further validates our position as one of the leading and most innovative indigenous clean energy solutions providers in Sub-Saharan Africa.”

All On, an independent impact investing company, was seeded with funding from Shell, and works with partners to increase access to commercial energy products and services for under-served and un-served off-grid energy markets in Nigeria, with a special focus on the Niger Delta.

Isaac Oyimah/GEE
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Tuesday, September 26, 2017

Semedo canvasses more investments, surveillance to curb misuse of antimicrobials

The Deputy Director-General of the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), Maria Helena Semedo, has said that a stronger global effort, including larger investments and improved surveillance measures, is required to ensure that antimicrobials are used responsibly and in ways that do not threaten public health and food production, reports NaijaAgroNet.

Speaking at a United Nations General Assembly side event on Anti-Microbial Resistance (AMR), Semedo said that good health, good productivity and good economies depend on safe and nutritious food.

“Prudent use of antimicrobials in public health and agriculture is essential to achieve this," she said, stressing that globally there is a need for surveillance on antimicrobial use and the spread of AMR; not only through hospitals, but throughout the food chain, including horticulture and the environment for more comprehensive risk assessments.

She said, the world needs to stave off the risk of having less efficient medicines to treat deadly infections due to the fact that more bacteria are becoming immune to antimicrobials.

“But this challenge posed by AMR is also "an opportunity to unite health, agriculture and environmental concerns in collaborative global action," Semedo said and cited FAO's experience in Cambodia.

Further, she said, one and one-half years ago in Cambodia, there was little awareness of AMR in agriculture.

“There was little surveillance and few links with human health officials. By strengthening collaboration between health and agriculture ministries; helping draft rules to regulate the sale of veterinary medicines; and assisting animal health labs - we helped increase awareness and greater cooperation in dealing with AMR," she said.

Semedo noted how Cambodia is now sharing its experience with neighbouring countries and how FAO has experienced similar successes in Ghana, Kenya, Thailand, Vietnam, Zimbabwe, Latin America and Central Asia.

Remmy Nweke/ED, Ops
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Wednesday, January 7, 2015

Investment in ICT to boost healthcare markets in MEA



Investments in the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) sector are anticipated to boost the four core healthcare markets of Middle East and Africa over five years, reports NaijaAgroNet

Latest study made available to NaijaAgroNet by International Data Corporation (IDC), spending on Information Technology (IT) services and products among healthcare providers in Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkey, and the United Arab Emirate (UAE) will grow by 70 per cent over the next five years, expanding at 11.2 per cent Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) over the five-year period from 2013 to 2018.

NaijaAgroNet also gathered that spending priorities based on the study by IDC will be strongly driven by healthcare policy mandates and efficiency improvement needs. 

In the context of a pronounced shortage of IT expertise among healthcare organizations, NaijaAgroNet reports that IDC Health Insights expects the demand for IT services to continue to rise in all four markets. In fact, IT services will be the fastest growing segment of the healthcare providers' market, with particularly intense growth projected in Saudi Arabia and the UAE.

Additional highlights from the data showed that spending on mobile devices and networking equipment will contribute significantly to overall hardware spending growth in all four markets.
In the software segment, NaijaAgroNet reports that system infrastructure software still accounts for the largest share of total external IT spending. 

While clinical information systems, NaijaAgroNet gathered, makes up the smallest share but will post the fastest growth at 13.5 per cent annually.

Nino Giguashvili, senior research analyst for IDC Health Insights, confided in NaijaAgroNet that all the four markets are set to grow at an impressive rate, stressing "While these markets present exceptional opportunities to healthcare IT suppliers across the whole ecosystem, it is the right time to focus on mobile solutions to healthcare providers' organizational needs, and MEA's healthcare challenges overall."

The study further gathered by NaijaAgroNet indicates IDC's Middle East and Africa Healthcare Provider 2013 IT spending and 2014–2018 Forecast provides IT spending data and forecasts for 15 technologies and five countries (Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates).

Anulekha Shetty of the Public Relations told NaijaAgroNet that the study has been designed to help IT suppliers identify short and long-term opportunities and for health providers to assess the state of the market.

Isaac Oyimah/GEE
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Thursday, October 31, 2013

EU, FAO call for funds to combat cassava diseases in Africa




The European Union (EU) and the United Nations’ Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) have called for increased investments to prevent further crop damage and the rapidly spreading strains of cassava disease.

This position was made in a statement by the two bodies as the outcome of the meeting of 70 regional cassava professionals in Nairobi, Kenya where it was decided that a minimum of $100 million ( about  N15.9 billion) is needed to continue the efforts of the EU funded, FAO coordinated Regional Cassava Initiative.

 NaijaAgroNet gathered from the statement that over a four-year period, the initiative has improved food security and repaired damaged yields in the areas affected by cassava disease and noted that the project is set to end without further investment.

Seven countries including Burundi, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of Congo, Gabon, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda worked with the initiative to offer cassava farmers disease resistant plants and clean materials.

Although these efforts curbed the effects of Cassava Mosaic Disease (CMD), Cassava Brown Streak Disease (CBSD) continues to spread, threatening the food security of the 135 million people in the region, while NaijaAgroNet learnt that without continued funding of the Initiative, CBSD is likely to spread into Nigeria, the biggest cassava-producing nation in Africa.



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