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Stephen Covey, a motivational speaker, has said that in order
for organisations to grow effectively they need to first discover their “road
map.”

Speaking at an event with business representatives in Nigeria on
Wednesday in Lagos, organised by Zain Nigeria and tagged ‘An Evening with Dr.
Stephen Covey’, Mr. Covey said only an accurate road map will lead to great
improvement in business.

Maps and principles

“In business, there is need to practice positive mental attitude
but attitude and action is insufficient, the key is to have an accurate map,”
he said. “Every great breakthrough is a great win. If you want to make minor
involvement, work on behaviour and attitude; if you want to make quantum
involvement work on paradigms. A paradigm is like a model for assumption of a
map.

“To have an accurate map is extremely important and that can be
embodied in your mission statement. Secondly, the power of principles is very
in important in organisations. A true principle is always the same. So, the
idea is that you build your life and organisation on the correct paradigm or
map and the principles that are universal and timeless.”

Mr. Covey explained that principles are important in any
organisation or cultural environment but should not be misunderstood as values.

“Principles are not values; the key is to value principles. The
different is that values are social norms, personal, emotion and subjective
while principles are natural laws, impersonal, objective and factual,” he said.
“These principles are applied in any country and in any culture. The more you
value principles and live by principles the higher the trust become. The higher
the trust is, the lower the cost is and speeds is exalted enormously. When you
have lower trust, speed really slows down and cost goes up. So that is why it
is important to have a correct map or paradigm and live by principles. The
essence of what I teach over 140 countries around the world is to teach people
about research, strategic planning and leadership.”

Growth and impact

However, Mr. Covey said that in order for organisations to grow,
they must seek customers who can also aid in promoting their products and such
a relationship must be built on principles.

“Relationship with organisations and customers/clients must be
built on principles so that on the net promotion scores you get 9-10 scores on
the scale; people will be committed, loyal and would stay with you,” he said.
“After decade of research only one question correlative to an organisation’s
profitable growth (is relevant): how likely is it that a customer could
recommend this product to others? If they give you 9-10s, they become
promoters; anything less than eight are detractors, they would find fault with
your products and service and would not recommend you to others.”

Speaking with NEXT at the event, business participants agreed
that motivational lectures can help change and develop organisation and
governance in Nigeria.

Tunde Ayeye, a business consultant, said “I think it goes beyond
organisation effectiveness; it helps you in your life as an individual and I
think it very useful.”

Mr. Ayeye added that despite the problems in Nigeria, especially
corruption, there is a basic need to adopt principles in order to transform
society. “The truth of the matter is corruption is global and its pervasive.
You are a product of your choices, and you make choice based on principles. So,
I think other business and governance need to adopt those principles if we want
to transform our businesses and our society,” he said.

However, Ayo Akintujoye, a marketing executive at 2G Consulting
firm, said that the virtues recommended by the speaker are good, but the
cultural reality of the country has not fully allowed for change to take place.
“I have been to events like this both international and local and you discover
that there is a vacuum from what you learn and the cultural reality of
Nigeria,” he said.

The world’s top
cellphone maker Nokia cut its profit outlook and delayed the launch of
phones it needs to compete with the iPhone and Blackberry in the
fast-growing high end of the market.

Nokia still lacks a
top-range model to challenge Apple’s iPhone three years after its
launch. It’s last high-end hit phone was the N95, which was unveiled in
2006.

Nokia reported on
Thursday a rise in January-March earnings and sales, roughly in line
with expectations, but cut the outlook for its 2010 operating profit
margin at its key phone unit to 11-13 percent from 12-14 percent.

The average forecast of 33 analysts in a Reuters poll was 13.7 percent.

Shares in Nokia
were 14.5 percent lower at 9.64 euros by 1142 GMT, dragging the STOXX
Europe 600 Technology Index .SX8P four percent lower.

The smartphone
market continued to expand through the economic downturn, helped by
cheaper models, and research firm Gartner has forecast it will grow a
whopping 46 percent this year.

Nokia delayed the
renewal of its Symbian software — seen as crucial to improve its
position in the high-end of the market — to the third quarter from
second quarter.

“This is pretty
significant as Nokia and Symbian have lost a lot of market share in the
last few years,” said analyst Neil Mawston from Strategy Analytics.

“Psychologically it
is a blow as well as iPhone, Blackberry ad Android are surging ahead
with software updates. Symbian cannot afford any delays,” said Mawston.

Smartphone prices drop 17 pct in one quarter

Nokia slashed
prices of its cell phones across its portfolio this week, with the
deepest cuts of around 10 percent seen for some smartphone models, data
seen by Reuters showed on Thursday.

Nokia is struggling
to battle with new rivals Apple and Blackberry maker Research in Motion
(RIMM.O) at the high end of the cellphone market, and sees a cheaper
price as its strongest weapon to hold on to market share, analysts said.

Nokia is benefiting
from growth among cheap smartphones, which dragged the average sales
price of a Nokia smartphone 17 percent from the previous quarter to
just 155 euros ($208). This compares to more than $600 for iPhone.

Apple’s quarterly
results blew past Wall Street expectations on the back of record iPhone
sales earlier this week, and the company gave a strong revenue
forecast, sending its shares to an all-time high.

For Nokia,
underlying first-quarter earnings per share rose 40 percent from a year
ago to 0.14 euros ($0.19), marking the first annual rise since the
second quarter of 2008 but missing the average forecast of 0.15 in a
Reuters poll of 43 analysts.

Earnings were
boosted by massive cost cuts as Nokia slashed thousands of jobs last
year, aiming to reduce costs at its key handset unit alone by more than
700 million euros to counter recession-hit demand.

January-March sales
at the market leader, which makes one in three phones sold globally,
grew 3 percent from a year ago, also rising for the first time since
the second quarter of 2008.

Nokia shares had
gained 26 percent in 2010 prior to the result, boosted by strong
fourth-quarter results and hopes that its smartphones business was
winning back lost market share. The share remains 8 percent higher for
the year.

($1=.7439 Euro)

Lately, it seems like every day the headlines talk about thousands of people facing retrenchment. What would you do if your boss called you aside to let you know that due to the recent restructuring, your position no longer exists and they are letting you go? Are you financially prepared for this type of news?

The days of “job security” are a thing of the past. In an era of downsizing, restructuring and retrenchment, no one is assured of long-term employment any longer, so it is important to have a plan of action in case you are suddenly laid off. Many employees see some warning signs that their jobs may be at risk but it is so easy to brush this aside when you don’t feel any immediate threat or are not under undue pressure.

The future is largely uncertain and the threat of sudden unemployment is all too real for many people. Whether you are 25 or 55, chances are that at some point in your life you could find yourself out of work. Even if you feel secure in your job right now, it is best to be financially prepared rather than to be caught off guard. Consider the following tips:

Review your expenses

When you are in a “secure” job you tend not to dwell on what you spend each month and where you can cut back. Do you know how much you spend on your weekly grocery bill or eating out? Are your utility bills exorbitant? Can you reduce your mobile phone bill? Are you paying subscriptions or membership fees for services you don’t even use?

While the job outlook is uncertain, it is important to try to live below your means and avoid unnecessary spending. Try to determine the minimum sum that you may need to cover basic expenses, such as rent or mortgage payments, utility bills, food, transportation and health insurance. Develop a budget that reins in most non essential spending until the job outlook improves. If you had already been on a budget, it would be much easier to cope financially if you have to look for another job.

Start to save

If savings have never been a priority for you, now is the time to start to set some money aside. It is recommended that you have the equivalent of three to six months’ income to tide you over if you lose your job, but given the current state of the job market, it is wise to save more especially if you have a family to support. This for many might seem like an impossible amount to accumulate but by tracking your expenses you can start to work towards this goal rather than to do nothing at all.

Even if you do not have the entire amount saved, whatever you manage to save could go towards your rent, mortgage, food and debt. It will also help to protect your retirement savings. Place such emergency savings in a high yield money market account where it is easily accessible.

Be cautious about debt

Are you in debt? A poor credit profile can negatively impact upon a future job search and limit your financial options. If you sense that redundancy might be in the offing, be cautious about taking on any new debt. Credit card and other high interest debt should become your first priority and should be reduced or paid down immediately. If you were to lose your job while paying thousands of naira in interest and principle, it would be challenging to get yourself out of this difficulty.

Review your health insurance policy

One of the big pitfalls of retrenchment is the loss of health insurance. Review the health benefits at your current job and check what options will be available to you in the event of a lay off. How much would cost you to maintain your insurance cover privately? Remember that you would have to pay both the employer and employee shares of the premiums in order to keep the same coverage.

Improve your skills

You should continually be looking for opportunities for self-development to improve your knowledge, skills and certifications. Do not depend totally on your current employer to put this in place for you; you owe it to yourself to develop yourself. Constantly update your CV to reflect your new skills so that you will always be able to present the most updated version.

It is also worth exploring other income earning opportunities that you can pursue without their having any impact on your present job. This must not become a distraction as if you do not stay totally focused on the job at hand you might actually be accelerating your retrenchment!

Network, network, network

Take networking seriously as some of the contacts you make may well end up being your potential employers in the future. Reactivate your network if you have been a bit lax about keeping in touch with acquaintances and associates; it is much easier to call someone just to say hello than it is to call them to ask for a job, especially when you haven’t spoken to them in several months.

Don’t get unduly stressed by the possibility of being made redundant as this is largely out of your control. As you continue to work with a positive attitude, build a sound business reputation and give your job your very best commitment, you are less likely to face this prospect. But no matter how good your prospects may be, it does no harm to be prepared and to get your finances in order.

Finance
experts argue that the 2010 fiscal budget is becoming countercyclical
in that it is aimed at stimulating the economy from its current state
of contraction, a fall-out from the global financial crisis.

Financial
Derivatives Company, a finance and research firm, says that although
some macroeconomic variables paint a relatively healthy post-crisis
economy, the underlying structure that propels sustainable growth is
still tenuous and requires fundamental shifts that could alter the
growth paradigm.

How will the markets react?

In
its economic bulletin issued on Friday the firm says Money and Stock
markets would have their own fair share of economic reactions, arising
from the signed budget.

“Interest
rates are now well below inflation rate which could induce capital
flight and a switch to other asset class,” he said. “The $5.98bn to be
raised by the government through domestic borrowing could help
stabilize rates which are currently at record low. However, this could
have the unintended consequence of crowding-out the private sector.”

The
record low interest rates are already threatening to lead to capital
flight and portfolio rotation by institutional investors, it added.

The
bulletin also highlighted that the equity market has been oblivious to
the signing of the budget, recording a fall of 0.1 per cent and 0.31
per cent in the two days the budget has been in existence. It however
revealed that the indifference of the market comes as no surprise as
there is no direct link between a non-implemented budget and the
market.

The
finance firm says some indicators that back up the requirement for a
fundamental shift include the nation’s external reserves (now
$40.56bn), which have declined sharply by 33 per cent from $60.2bn in
2008, compared to other emerging economies like Brazil and Mexico that
have built their reserves by 34 per cent and 21.5 per cent in the same
period.

Also,
the Excess Crude Account (ECA) has been depleted from $20bn in the
pre-crisis era to less than $4bn while average oil price YTD of
$78.89pb is still about 47 per cent below its all-time peak of $149pb
in 2008.

Oil
production (according to OPEC estimate was 1.986mbpd in March) has
improved, but it is still below productivity of three million barrels
per day.

Money and stock markets remain ambivalent in spite of record low interest rates.

Inflationary pressures

Inflation
has however declined modestly Year on Year to 11.8 per cent in March
from 12.3 per cent in February which is far above short term interest
rates. The inflation gap, which measures the difference between money
supply (M2) growth and GDP growth rate, was 10 per cent as at 2009
compared to 51.82 per cent in 2008.

Inflation
pressure will increase as a result of the budget spending – 45 per cent
of total spending is billed for recurrent expenditure. Other sources of
inflation risk include budget leakages and the proposed deregulation of
the downstream oil and gas sector, the statement highlighted.

According
to the bulletin, the Nigerian economy possesses the absorptive capacity
to convert this budget into a catalyst for growth, but this will depend
largely on monetary policy stability and the success of reform policies
like the Asset Management Company and the Petroleum Industry Bill.

Economic distortion, excess liquidity, no credit

The
economic bulletin also argues that the presence of excess liquidity and
absence of credit is countercyclical, adding that with a massive fiscal
deficit now estimated at six per cent of GDP, maintaining monetary
stability at this time will be a major challenge.

“The
Central Bank has resisted the temptation of tightening when price
inflation is in double digits of 11.8 per cent and interest rates very
low- 2-3 per cent per annum,” it says. “With the budget now signed and
spending kicking in, the Central Bank will have to steer a mid-course
between neutral and tightening.”

The
$31billion spending bill was signed into law by the acting president,
setting the stage for Nigeria’s most ambitious and possibly profligate
spending program in two decades. Capital expenditure is projected to
increase by 82 per cent to $12.3billion while recurrent expenditure is
to shoot up to $13.8billion, a 27 per cent increase from the 2009
budget.

The
weekly report from Afrinvest, also a finance and research analysis
firm, states that the Nigerian Stock Exchange All-Share Index lost 31
bps as at Friday, closing at 27, 400.21 from 27, 486.62 the previous
day. Market capitalisation also moved in the same direction, closing at
N6.6 trillion as a total of 598.4million shares valued at N5.8billion
were traded on Friday.

The management of
First Hydrocarbon Nigeria Limited (FHN), an indigenous company in the
Nigerian oil and gas upstream sector, has promised to realise its
vision of expanding local upstream ownership in the country with its
new directors.

Egbert Imomoh, a
director at the company, while welcoming Owoye Andrew Azazi, Udoma Udo
Udoma and Tosin Runsewe on board, at the weekend said, “I am delighted
to have marked this milestone in our development. I look forward to
working with the Board of Directors and management team to realise our
vision of expanding local upstream ownership and significantly adding
to Nigeria’s production base.”

The board confirmed
the appointment of the three new directors after a meeting in Abuja.
They join Oladele Fajemirokun, Jonathon Long, Magaji Muhammad Inuwa and
Afren Plc Founders -Egbert Imomoh, Osman Shahenshah, Ethelbert J.L
Cooper and Constantine Ogunbiyi as directors of the company.

AfricapracticeR&B,
FHN’s marketing firm, in a statement, said the hydrocarbon company was
established in 2009 as a home-grown business to “fulfil the Nigerian
government’s criteria for indigenous operators.”

According to the
statement, the company intends to acquire and develop substantial oil
and gas assets, including holdings in assets currently under
negotiation and held by the joint ventures between the Nigerian
government and International Oil Companies. It also intends to develop
under producing and shut-in fields to their full potential.

Wealth of experience

Meanwhile, Mr.
Imomoh, who is also the Chairman of Afren Nigeria, an independent oil
company, said the decision of the new directors to accept these
positions is “a significant endorsement of the company’s vision and we
are delighted to welcome such high calibre individuals to our Board of
Directors.”

He said, “Each will
bring a wealth of experience to the company as we embark on our
acquisition and development plans. FHN has in place a strong Board of
Directors combining Afren Nigeria’s operational expertise and the
financial strength and local network of two of the largest financial
institutions in the country.”

Mr. Fajemirokun,
another director, said the company’s vision is compelling, adding that
“the intention to list the company on the Nigerian Stock Exchange in
the near future, offering all Nigerians an opportunity to invest in the
upstream sector is particularly appealing.”

The new directors

Mr. Azazi is a
retired General in the Nigerian Army, and has served as chief of
defence staff, as well as chief of army staff. He is currently involved
with Weiboro Properties Ltd and Total Transformation Associates
(security sector reforms consultancy).

Mr. Udoma was a
two-term member of the Nigerian Senate from 1999-2007. At present, he
is the part time Chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Mr. Udoma specializes on Nigerian investment laws.

Tosin Runsewe is
the chief client officer/executive director of Guaranty Trust Assurance
Plc. Prior to joining the insurance industry over six years ago, he had
acquired over 12 years experience in the banking sector in Nigeria. He
was the head of the oil and gas group in Guaranty Trust Bank.

Market overview The stock market
had been mixed so far in the week having given up part of the gains
accrued in the past weeks. The market ended last week’s trades with
some declines after witnessing fluctuations in terms of its daily
performance. By the end of the week, the NSE AS index closed at
27,400.21 basis points, down by 2.10 per cent while the market
capitalisation lost N142.34 billion in a week after closing at N6.63
trillion .
The volatile
movement of the market’s indices was as a result of profit taking
transactions on one hand and purchase activities, which were mostly
speculative, on the other. The decline was also occasioned by losses
with stocks in major blue chip companies.
Furthermore, listed
companies continued to announce their annual results for the year 2009.
First Bank, Skye Bank, NAHCO, and BIGTREAT were among the companies who
released their corporate earnings and performance in the just concluded
week. However, the market further retreated due to disappointing
earnings reports from some of these companies.
Meanwhile, the
acting president Goodluck Jonathan during the week signed into law the
2010 appropriation bill of N4.6 Trillion. The budget is aimed to
accelerate economic recovery through targeted fiscal interventions
designed to stimulate the economy and support sustained private sector
growth. This has been based on assumptions reflecting outlook for the
fiscal year, including: oil production of 2.35 mb/d; benchmark oil
price of US$67/barrel, and average exchange rate of N150 to the US
dollar.
Looking ahead, the
market will focus over the coming weeks on more corporate results and
other economic indicators even as speculation and the taking of swift
profits continue to dominate market activities. Currently, attention is
drawn to 2010’s first quarter results in light of NSE’s registered
gains during the first three months of the year. The market will remain
steady in the coming weeks as investors monitor new moving factors on
the strength of future corporate earnings.
During the week,
both the market capitalisation and the NSE AS Index lost 2.10%
respectively. So far, the market has recorded a YTD-high market
capitalisation of N6.78 trillion, representing a YTD yield of 35.88%.
Overall, the market traded a total of 3.36 billion units of shares,
valued at N35.82 billion in 52,134 deals.
Most Active Sector The Banking sub
-sector remain the most active (measured in terms of traded volume) as
it recorded 1.43 billion shares valued at N19.64 billion exchanged in
18,798 deals while the Insurance sub -sector was second with traded
volume of 494.24 million shares valued at N532.78 million in 3,467
deals.
Corporate actions and results In the past week,
First Bank Plc proposed a dividend of 10 kobo and one new share for
every eight shares held in its corporate earnings and benefits
announced.
Guaranty Trust Plc
also released its interim report for the period ended (Q1) March 31,
2010 to the floor of the Nigerian Stock Exchange. The company declared
a Gross Earnings of N44.382 billion and a Profit After Tax of N8.847
billion.
In addition, Skye
Bank Plc released its full year audited financial report. The bank
declared a gross income of N126.665 billion and a profit after tax of
N1.130 billion. The directors also recommended a dividend of 5 kobo per
share.
Market outlook The stock market
will likely be driven again by company earnings reports over the next
two weeks, as investors try to get a sense of how well corporate
profits and benefits will hold up in second quarter of the year.

The Nigerian
Communications Commission (NCC) and telecom operators have expressed
optimism over the commencement of the Sim card registration from May 1.

In a telephone
interview with NEXT, Reuben Muoka the spokesperson for the commission
said, “Any new sim card bought subsequently from May 1, 2010 must be
registered for life.”

The commission
announced in December that the sim card registration is part of efforts
to curb crime in the country, but the exercise will, however, begin
with new sim cards purchased by new subscribers.

Mr. Muoka explained
that the registration will be done online, adding that “operators are
expected to put all machinery in motion for the commencement of the
process. We suspect that they will sell what is called partially
activated lines, whereby, you may get a line but can only receive calls
or Short Message Service (SMS) but not able to make calls or send
texts. So, you must now go to a particular place where you will have
your sim registered before you can begin to enjoy these services,” said
Mr. Muoka.

MTN is ready

In an email
response to NEXT, Funmilayo Omogbenigun, the General Manager,
Communications, MTN Nigeria said, “Yes, MTN Nigeria is ready to
commence its Sim cards registration come May 1, 2010. We have installed
equipment that captures bio-metric and demographic data.”

Ms. Omogbenigun noted that the registration exercise will not affect the prices of Sim cards in the market.

Registration requirements

However, there are some basic requirements from new subscribers to ensure a successful exercise.

Visafone Nigeria
explained, “We need to capture subscriber’s name, phone number,
address, digital photo and biometrics (thumb & index finger print).
These are the specific requirements needed from the subscriber at no
cost to ensure the smooth flow of the process.”

Existing subscribers

The Communications
Commission, the industry regulator said it will handle the registration
of the active subscribers sims estimated in excess of 70 million, even
as it has not yet decided on the commencement date.

“We hope to start
within the next three months. The duration for the process will depend
on when we start, because we need to review when we begin and know what
kind of deadline is appropriate in this circumstance,” said Mr. Muoka.

Price Cap

Ahead of the Sim
card registration, the commission has also announced the introduction
of a price cap system for the benefit of subscribers.

Stephen Bello, the
acting vice chairman of the commission, in a recent statement said, the
regulator has developed a policy of price cap regulation, “where we
give a price and the competition can make you to operate within this
degree of freedom, but not beyond it.”

He argued that the
measure became necessary to forestall a situation in which operators
may “cooperate and try to maximize their profit”.

“Now we know for a
fact that the number of lines has increased, there is economy of scale
and you know that as you have advantages of economy of scale the unit
price comes down. We believe that the competition in the industry will
control prices,” added Mr. Bello.

Mr. Muoka
expantiated, “In order to make tariff to come down further just as the
interconnect rate came down last year, the expectation is that the
retail price will also come down. In order to actually make it happen,
we put a price cap that is, a price at which no operator will charge
above.”

He, however said
the price cap has not yet been determined, as such a judgment will be
based on “the market situation, what the competition is, the
interconnect rate and say no operators can charge above a certain
amount. We are going to review it, get more data from the operators
about their current rate and also do this in other services like SMS
etc., before implementing.”

The Minister of
Science and Technology, Mohammed Ka’oje Abubakar, tasks two agencies in
the ministry to exploit the possibilities of the local production of
solar cells and solar panels as key to solar energy supply.

The Minister who
said this when he visited the Sheda Science and Technology Complex,
Kwali and the National Agency for Science and Engineering
Infrastructure, Idu , both in Abuja, lamented that the agencies are not
proactive in research and development, which has potential for
commercialisation.

“There are some
good research works carried out by the technology complex, some of them
are ongoing and all of them have potential for commercialisation. But
unfortunately, very little commercialisation of these works have taken
place,” he said.

Solar cells and panels

In line with the
commercialisation efforts, the minister charged the complex to produce
solar cells in the laboratory. “You have all it takes to produce solar
cells. You have all the machines and the testing equipment for
production of solar cells. I am sure you will understand that solar
cell is critical to solar energy generation. This is your major
challenge now, to produce solar cells for the benefit of Nigerians.”

He said their
production will be complemented by the efforts of the engineering
infrastructure agency, which he said already produces solar panels,
adding that the agency has the requisite technical and human capacities
to execute the project.

Thomas Oberafo, the
Director General of the technology complex, said the agency is
determined “to use science and technology to contribute to the
development of our country.”

Anthony Oberafo,
Director of Physics Advanced Laboratory, disclosed that they have
produced samples of solar cells, adding that “what is left is to
improve on the efficiencies of these samples and once we are satisfied,
we try to work on the economics then bring in entrepreneurs who will do
the mass production,” adding that Nigerians will have solar cells in
commercial quantities by 2012.

The laboratory boss
argued that “depending on fossil fuel alone for energy is not too good.
For now, they may be sufficient because we have them all over the place
but eventually it will be a scarce resource. But the sun is there
forever. The percentage of energy mix attributable to solar is very low
all over the world but it is going to go up when people are able to
produce cheaper solar cells.”

Also, Olusegun
Adewoye, Director General of the engineering infrastructure hinted that
the agency will commence the production of solar panels in the third
quarter of 2010. “The building is ready, the equipment have been
imported and the human capacity is built. We are only waiting for the
Chinese contractors to install the equipment so that production can
start.”

Lead Capital
Markets Limited Consortium has emerged the Transaction Advisers for the
Initial Public Offering (IPO) of NIRMSCO Properties Limited (owners of
Transcorp Hilton Hotel Abuja). The consortium outscored three others
with 92.58 points to win the bid.

The others are:
FCMB Capital Markets Limited Consortium, which came second with 69.13 ,
FBN Capital Markets Limited Consortium, third with 58.90 and Chapel
Hill Management Consortium, fourth, with 54.44points.

The Bureau of
Public Enterprises (BPE) announced the results at the end of the
financial bid opening for the selection of Transaction Advisers for
NIRMSCO, last week, in Abuja.

Declaring the
exercise open, acting director general of the BPE, Bolanle Onagoruwa
scored Transcorp Hilton Hotel, Abuja, high in the hospitality industry,
saying the hotel is one of the few in the industry that distributes
profit to shareholders on quarterly basis.

Ms. Onagoruwa said,
“With its performance, the National Council on Privatization (NCP)
through the BPE decided to divest 24 percent out of the outstanding
FGN’s 49 percent equity in the company to the general public through an
initial public offering of its shares” while 10 percent of the shares
on offer would be preferentially allotted to staff of the company.

She charged the
successful advisory firm to show a high level of diligence,
accountability and transparency throughout the duration of the
transaction process.

The management of
Western Union Company has named its chief operating officer, Hikmet
Ersek, 49, to succeed Christina Gold, 62, as president and chief
executive officer, effective September 1, 2010. The company’s Board
also elected Mr. Ersek to the Board of Directors, effective April 26.

The company’s
chairman of the Board of Directors, Jack M. Greenberg, said, “Christina
has been instrumental in transforming the company into a global leader
in money transfer. Since joining the company as president in 2002,
Western Union‘s revenue has nearly doubled and its market share has
significantly expanded.” Ms. Gold said, “This has been an incredible
journey for me, a unique experience to have led the building of an
iconic brand on a global scale.

I am looking
forward to my retirement, and I am very confident that Hikmet Ersek is
the right person to lead Western Union forward.” Meanwhile, the newly
appointed head, said, “I look forward to continuing to drive our
strategies of growing our core money transfer business.”

Prior to joining
First Data Corporation, the former parent company of Western Union, in
May 2002, Ms. Gold was president and chief executive officer of
telecommunications and e-commerce services provider Excel
Communications.

Ersek assumed the
role of chief operating officer in January, 2010, after serving as
executive vice president and managing director for Europe, the Middle
East, Africa and the Asia Pacific region.