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While many firms
could hardly raise cheap capital to run their businesses last year, the
state and federal government had a field day accessing funds from the
bond market. Since the stock market crisis which began in 2008, many
believed that the bond market would provide a more reliable avenue for
firms to raise capital.

But that was not to
be. In addition to forays by the federal government, five state
governments, namely Bayelsa, Ebonyi, Kaduna, Niger and Lagos all raised
various sums to meet their developmental needs. The private sector was
not so lucky. Apart from United Bank for Africa and Guaranty Trust Bank
which raised N20 billion and N13.162 billion, UAC Properties raised N15
billion while C & I Leasing raised N2.24 billion. Other firms that
planned to venture into the bond market eventually had to shelve the
plans as market sentiments did not tilt in their favour. The
alternative for these firms was bank borrowing which added to the cost
of business.

On the other hand,
the Debt Management Office (DMO), on behalf of the federal government
raised over N1.1 trillion from the domestic bond market last year. With
plans by the DMO to raise N186.5 billion in the first quarter of this
year, the private sector may yet again be at the receiving end in 2011.
The Debt Office plans to raise N66.5 billion next Wednesday and another
N60 billion in March. This capital raising plan by government, compared
to N5 billion raised by Food Concepts Limited last week already sets
the tone of what to expect in the bond market this year.

Government has been
blamed for crowding out the private sector from the bond market, a
claim often countered by the director general of the DMO, Abraham
Nwankwo, who insists that the government is in the bond market in order
to develop it sufficiently for the private sector to thrive. Mr.
Nwankwo said the goals of the office is to develop the domestic bond
market to enable the private sector access long term funds to develop
agriculture, mining, solid minerals, transportation, manufacturing,
power. “Now, there are funds of up to 20 years in the Nigerian capital
market, through the issuance of FGN bonds. Today, if any private entity
wants to issue a bond to raise five, seven, 10, 20 years money for
investment in agriculture, manufacturing, power sector or other
infrastructure will succeed,” he said in an interview last week.

Mr. Nwankwo said
Nigeria’s debut $500 million Eurobond which was subscribed by 150 per
cent was part of government effort to encourage the private sector to
tap into the international bond market. “Government desires an active
role by the private sector in this direction. What government has done
through the Eurobond issue is to open a new window to facilitate
Nigeria’s private sector to go into the international capital market to
issue their own debt instruments and raise long term monies to fund the
country’s various needs in the real sector and infrastructure.”

However, not many
operators share this outlook. “The sustained expansion in public
borrowing risks crowding out the private sector,” said the interim
administrator of the Nigerian Stock Exchange, Emmanuel Ikhazobor, in
his presentation at a press briefing on the review of 2010 and the
outlook for 2011, held last month in Lagos. Mr. Ikhazobor noted that
the international and Nigerian capital market would be very busy this
year as the federal government and various government agencies source
funds from both markets.

Tola Odukoya, an
analyst at Dunn Loren Merrifield, an investment firm in Lagos is also
optimistic that the corporate bond market will fare better this year.
“We anticipate a strong growth trajectory for corporate bonds on the
back of the revised Pencom guidelines and the success of the corporate
bonds issued in 2010. From our standpoint, over N30 billion will be
raised from the market via corporate bonds in the first half of the
year.”

Unchanging trend

This enthusiasm is
not totally shared across the industry as some operators are still
skeptical, given the huge funds raised by government last year. Akin
Oladeji, chief executive officer of Futures and Bonds Limited, a
financial services firm, said the trend may not change much this year.
“The market will not be different from previous years since FGN has
devised a crafty way of raising bonds to finance its projects. WMarket
will continue to be crowded with FG and State Bonds.” Mr. Oladeji said
attraction of the corporate to the bond market will be determined by
interest rate. “If the usual high lending rate and low deposit rate
should continue, most corporate organisations will consider bond
issuance subject to their existing allowable debt to equity ratio.”

Mr. Odukoya said
the corporate bond market has its attraction as many firms may need to
restructure their debt portfolio and may see the bond market as an
alternative. “Our optimism stems from the obvious need for most
corporates to restructure their debt portfolios, which for the most
part are expensive and short tenured in nature.” Mr. Nwankwo, however,
said government was not unaware of the need not to crowd-out the
private sector and that government is creating space for private sector
in the flow of credit. This may account for the drop in government
activity as shown by the DMO’s issuance calendar. While N186.5 billion
is planned for the first quarter of this year, N238.5 billion was
raised during the same period last year, a 21.8 per cent reduction.

Despite the
decision by the National Assembly to cut the budget proposals by
government ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) by 50 per cent,
the Finance Minister, Segun Aganga, insists the country is buoyant
enough to finance government business.

Many of the
ministries and agencies had their 2011 appropriation sliced in a manner
that members of the various committees say was indicative that the
country is broke and can ill-afford funding the budget.

“The 2010 budget,
in my opinion, is a failed budget,” lamented the chairman, Senate
Committee on Environment, Grace Bent, while appraising the 2010 budget
of the Environment ministry last Thursday.

Mrs Bent’s view was
re-echoed by most of her colleagues in other committees and she finds
it worrisome that the Environment ministry, like many others,
implemented only 47 percent of its capital budget for the year, about
six weeks before the expiration of the 2010 fiscal year, as against 100
per cent recorded in the recurrent expenditure and overhead budget.

Indications are
that out of the total allocation of N29.522 billion in the 2010 budget,
the Finance Ministry has only released N10.115 billion to the ministry
till date.

The Environment
minister, John Odeh, blamed the poor performance of the budget on the
Finance ministry’s failure to release the capital budget in full due to
complaints of shortfall in the country’s revenue.

Mr Odeh’s
counterpart in the interior ministry, Emmanuel Iheanacho, also
announced 100 per cent implementation in recurrent expenditure, while
the capital expenditure was about 43 per cent. Mr Iheanacho’s complaint
was that the Finance ministry released only 50 per cent of the
ministry’s 2010 capital budget, because of the shortfall in the
country’s revenue, though the recurrent and overhead budgets were
released and fully expended.

Prudent management

However, Mr Aganga,
explained that the decision to slice the ministries and agencies’
budget is part of the measures being pursued by government to ensure
discipline and prudence in the management of the country’s finances.

“The truth is that
Nigeria is not broke. The question that one needs to ask is: The ones
that they (ministries) got last year, have they used it? Or how well
did they use it? There is no doubt that the country is making more oil
revenue today because commodity prices are going up. But what one
should know is that we are running a deficit budget, which is the
highest ever budget in the history of the country.

“Besides, this is
an expansionary budget because of what government is doing. We must
learn to live within our means. What government is doing is trying to
reduce the huge cost of running business, by emphasising fiscal
discipline and prudence, without necessarily compromising quality in
the implementation of the budget.” Mr Aganga said. During the recent
presentation of the overview of the 2011 budget by President Goodluck
Jonathan, the finance minister pointed out that this year’s budget was
underpinned by the four pillars upon which the country’s economic
growth strategy and government’s reform agenda rests.

Apart from the
determination to make Nigerians feel the tangible benefits of the
country’s economic growth, the minister said government will optimise
necessary capital spending by rationalising recurrent expenditure,
while accelerating the reforms to enhance the quality and efficiency of
public expenditure as well as promote greater prudence in the
management of the nation’s financial resources.

The minister had
argued before the law makers that government was withholding funds from
those ministries that did not show sufficient capacity to utilise past
releases, with some of them accounting for as low as 23.3 percent
implementation of the budget.

“Government has
been very lousy with budget implementation. This is a failed budget of
a failing nation,” observed Bukar Abba Ibrahim, a senator, who claimed
that a cut in the capital budget of the ministries was suggestive that
the nation cannot afford it.

“Why would the
Finance ministry not be able to cash back the capital budget of the
2010 appropriation, despite the claim by the Finance minister that the
country is buoyant enough to fund government’s business and considering
that crude oil price has been stable above the budgeted benchmark?” Mr
Ibrahim noted.

Following the
extension of trading period at the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) last
December from two and half hours to four and half hours, trading
analysis showed that some sectors of the NSE have improved
significantly in their performance.

The NSE is the
second most capitalised market in Africa after Johannesburg Stock
Exchange, which is open for five hours, and the third place Cairo Stock
Exchange; opens for five and half hours in comparison.

A market assessment
carried out recently by analysts at Proshare Nigeria Limited, an
investment advisory firm, revealed that more sectors of quoted equities
at the Exchange witnessed growth in value. The figures traded in the
following sectors, last Thursday, when compared with the average
figures recorded prior to extended trading hours on December 6th showed
that Automobile & Tyre sector had 937.59 per cent value growth,
Packaging sector 604.90 per cent, Construction 566.02 per cent,
Commercial Services 199.69 per cent and Maritime sector 195.26 per cent
value growth. Other sectors that witnessed significant growth include
the Foreign Listings, Engineering Technology, Breweries,
Food/Beverages, and Mortgage.

Wole Tokede, the
Exchange’s spokesperson, last Thursday, said the extension “has
continued to yield positive results as the market has continued to
record improvement in volume, value and the number of deals.”

The Interim
Administrator of the NSE, Emmanuel Ikazoboh, had also said the
extension “was a strategic move to reposition the market for enhanced
competitiveness which would give foreign investors, especially those in
the United States of America opportunity to participate in the Nigerian
market.” Available data for the two months preceding the extension of
the trading hours with the two months of the extension shows that the
volume of shares traded recorded a growth of 31.93 per cent. The market
recorded 13.892 billion shares in the two months preceding the
extension while the volume of shares transacted in the two months after
the extension rose to 18.328 billion units.

The market value
also recorded a growth of 16.81 per cent in the review period. As
against the value of N147.142 billion recorded in the two month prior
to the extension, shares value now stand at N171.875 billion in the two
months after the extension. The Exchange also recorded growth in the
number of deals in the review period. A total of 171.875 billion deals
were executed in the two months of extension compared to a total of
147.142 billion deals executed in the two months before the extension.
This represents a growth of 16.81 per cent.

Indigenous investors

Meanwhile, some
operators at the nation’s capital market said that while the Exchange
management is focusing on attracting more foreign investors through
trading hour extension, it should place more priority at protecting
indigenous investors.

Tunde
Oladapo-Dixon, chief executive officer, StockPicks Consulting, a
stockbroking firm, said, “Although it is good for the NSE to woo
foreign investors to the market for some capital projects, the main
focus for capital market authority should be to encourage indigenous
investors who will not take their funds out of the market in a long
time because the market actually is a long time investment.” Mr.
Oladapo-Dixon said more priority should be given to local investors
because “it was these same foreign investors that left our market to
crash when they pulled out their funds aftermath the financial crisis
in their countries.” He said local investors want their confidence
guarded jealously in the market.

Analysts at Asset and Resource Management Company, a fund
management firm, said for the nation’s capital market to reach its full
potential, “regulators must constantly focus on promoting a system that
instils confidence by continuously adapting existing or formulating new
rules to promote market discipline.”

When two people become a couple, they
confront a myriad of financial choices and decisions. Are you engaged?
How much do you know about your fiance’s financial situation? After the
excitement of the wedding ceremonies, it will be time to face your
financial future together. Research shows that money matters have some
part in most divorces yet, most couples go into marriage without ever
broaching this subject. It may not be romantic, but it is important.
Here are some of the money issues that you should discuss with your
fiancé or your spouse.

What is your attitude toward money?

You do not just develop good or bad
money habits by chance; attitudes to money are formed very early on in
life and usually develop over many years. You may not even realise the
full effect of your childhood experiences, circumstances, and your
parent’s attitude towards money. Indeed, many people simply assume the
savings and money management habits of their parents. Were they very
frugal, disciplined savers, or were they spendthrifts? Your attitude
toward money can have a significant impact on the financial decisions
you make.

What are your financial goals?

What are your short, medium, and
long-term goals? Where do you see yourselves five, 10, 20 years from
now? Financially, this can mean owning your own home, educating your
children and planning for your retirement.

In relationships, there may be
different goals and priorities. One may be averse to debt whilst for
the other debt is a way of life. He might want a flash car, whilst she
feels more secure with money in the bank. She might spend all the
housekeeping money on jewellery, shoes and bags whilst his priority is
to give the children a sound education. He may view the new home cinema
as their greatest new asset, whilst her priority is to make a down
payment on their own home. If the differences are fundamental, this
will be a source of conflict. At the same time, be conscious of the
fact that it shouldn’t be all about scrimping and saving towards the
future; treat yourselves as well.

Who will manage the family finances?

Women often enter marriage assuming
that their spouse will handle all money issues and thus delegate almost
total responsibility and sit on the sidelines without being involved.
Determine who is best able to manage the routine everyday financial
matters. Teamwork is essential and shared duties work well for some
families, but even if one party is more involved, both should have a
general overview of the total picture. Periodic meetings are important
so you know where you stand financially and can see whether you are
actually moving closer towards your family goals.

How do you feel about budgeting?

It is surprising how many married
couples get by without a budget. Through budgeting, you have a better
idea of what is coming in and how much can be spent. You should both
know how much you pay for your rent or mortgage, utility bills,
insurance, and so on. Budgeting responsibilities should be shared such
that neither partner should feel that they have to shoulder the entire
responsibility. Periodic meetings, say at least once a month are useful
to review bank balances, any outstanding debt, routine expenses as well
as any major expenses that need to be carefully planned for.

How much debt are you bringing to the marriage?

Many people do not discover the full
extent of their spouse’s financial obligations until they are married.
Debt brought into marriage can be a major source of strife if not well
handled. Each partner should know the debt load the other one carries,
as once you are married, that debt load is shared. Whilst you are not
legally responsible for the loans opened in your spouse’s name, it
could certainly affect your eligibility for joint loans such as a
mortgage. It should be a priority to try to deal with it together and
bring it under control.

Who pays for what?

Something as basic as the handling of
everyday household expenses is a source of friction in many families.
How will you handle routine household expenses? You both earn, but how
much should each person contribute? Are you both doing your “share”?
Should it be equal amounts no matter what each person earns, or a
certain percentage? If you earn significantly more or less than your
spouse, it seems only fair to contribute amounts in proportion to your
respective incomes to reflect this imbalance.

Some couples assign expenses – you pay
the rent and school fees, whilst I’ll pay for groceries, utility bills,
and so on. Other couples use one partner’s income for all expenses and
apply the other income to build up savings and investments.

Will you have separate or joint accounts or a combination of the two?

Will you open a joint account and pool
both incomes or have separate accounts? Having a joint account combined
with individual accounts for personal expenses is a good compromise as
each partner takes some responsibility for the household budget, yet is
still able to retain some autonomy. Partners contribute a certain
amount of their monthly salary into the joint account to cover routine
household expenses such as food, utility bills and so on. Some couples
decide to pay their salaries into the joint account and then pay
themselves a monthly allowance.

Remember that parties to a joint
account have a right to withdraw all the money in the account. It is
for this reason that the use of joint accounts is usually limited to
people who have built a solid level of trust. Look critically at the
options and try to come to a compromise that will suit your
relationship.

Will you set spending limits?

Do you have to account for everything
you spend to your spouse? If you show up with an expensive new TV or a
car, could this be a cause of tension? Everyone needs some personal
spending money that doesn’t have to be accounted for. The amount will
vary depending on the couples’ resources and lifestyle. Some couples
set spending limits on how much either can spend without consulting
each other.

Even though there may be the occasional
conflict about money, it is really about how best these conflicts can
be resolved. With careful planning, clear communication and compromise,
you can avoid many frustrating conversations. There is no one size fits
all when it comes to finances in relationships; even the best system
may not always be appropriate so be prepared to modify your system as
your relationship and financial situation evolve. Try to find the right
balance that works for your situation; if one option doesn’t work, try
another. The financial decisions that you make now can have a lasting
impact on your financial future as you go through life together.

Happy Valentine Day!

Internal
communication is an important tool for imparting the culture and values
of an organisation to its employees. This way, employees can be
enlisted to share in the company’s vision and goals.

The focus of this
column last week was on living the brand, but without a functional
internal communication mechanism, there is no way employees can live
the brand well. Internal communication enables the employees to know
what is required of them as they need to be thoroughly immersed in the
firm’s vision. It is very vital for the employees to know where the
organisation is headed. This helps the staff to work with one focus:
the success of the company.

Something happened
some days ago when I went to one of the big banks. The couple seated
beside me commented on an employee who no longer worked with the
branch, hence the much delay they experienced that day at the branch.
Most of the challenges that some organisations face are better
addressed through internal communication before it creates credibility
problems. For instance, the case of the poor customer disposition of
some QSR’s staff discussed last week.

When staff members
are not focused, it creates huge perception challenge for the
organisation. Most employees are just employed without a proper
induction, which later translates into serious adverse effects for the
company. How can employees live the brand when they do not know what
the organisation stands for? This can only come through a proper
internal communication mechanism.

Every organisation
is expected to adopt a specific internal communication approach that
will help it achieve its goals. Employees need to be updated on a
regular basis about the developments in the company, while also being
encouraged to express their views and opinions, especially in
face-to-face staff meetings.

This goes a long
way in empowering them to perform optimally. When their ideas are
welcome, they have a sense of belonging which helps them put in their
best on the job. Internal communication is indeed a motivational tool
when employees are involved in decision making process of the
organisation.

Charity begins at home

Employees who are
on the lower rungs of the ladder should not be alienated, as this makes
them unwilling to buy into the company’s goals and objectives. It is
also a step in the wrong direction when they obtain information about
their organisations through external sources. It is better to sell an
idea to your employees first before you take it outside.

There should be a
proper integration between internal and external communication.
Employees need to understand the brand promise and the customer
deliverables. When they believe in the brand, they will help the
company carry it out through interface with the customers.

There is also a
nexus between internal communication and internal branding. Internal
branding campaign is desired to connect with the staff members in order
to boost their morale and level of satisfaction while on their jobs.

The whole essence
is to explain the company’s strategic direction as well as its vision.
It fills in the gap for the employees and as a result, they have a good
grasp of the brand values which is ultimately delivered to the
consumers. Internal branding immerses the internal audience in the
brand first and enlist their commitment to its vision.

Without a
structured internal communication, consumer experience will suffer,
which portends serious danger to the corporate image of an
organisation. Internal communication helps when employees are not
connected to the company’s vision or when there is noticeable low
employee morale. These can be properly addressed through engagement
sessions to deepen the enthusiasm of the employees.

The ultimate impact
of internal communication is the memorable and exciting experience it
gives the customer. It is what is deposited in the employees that they
manifest to the customers. So, where do we go? Organisations need to
relate with their employees more and immerse them in the vision of the
comapany through internal communication.

Ayopo, a communications strategist and public relations specialist, is the ceo of shortlist ltd

The Enugu State government is to disburse N1 billion to farmer cooperative groups as part of efforts to ensure the success of the Enugu-Songhai Initiative.

The chairman of the State Assembly committee on agriculture, Okey Nwoke, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Enugu on Wednesday that the fund would be accessed from the CBN.

He said that the fund would be used to procure agro-allied inputs for the smooth take off of the Songhai Initiative.

Mr. Nwoke said the exercise was delayed to enable government tidy up the “grey” areas for smooth disbursement of the fund to genuine farmers who were trained for six months at Songhai farms in Benin Republic.

Growth in South Africa’s manufacturing output slowed to just 0.2 per cent in December and was far below analysts forecasts, showing the vital sector still struggling to recover from a recession in 2009.

The number is likely to affect economic growth estimates for the fourth quarter of 2010, but analysts said on its own it was unlikely to shift expectations that interest rates would stay on hold for the next couple of months.

“It’s a bit of a shock. Certainly, we had seen that the PMI (Purchasing Managers Index) number did weaken a little bit in December but it was still above 50,” said Stanlib economist, Kevin Lings.

Egypt’s core annual inflation rose to 9.74 per cent in the year to January from 9.65 per cent in December, the Central Bank said on its website on Thursday.

Core inflation affected subsidised goods and volatile items including fruit and vegetables.

Urban consumer price inflation, the most closely watched indicator of prices, rose to 10.8 per cent year on year in January from 10.3 per cent year-on-year in December, CAPMAS said earlier.