According to the General Household Survey report by the National Bureau of Statistics, almost two out of three Nigerian households are going hungry, with families skipping meals as they cannot afford enough food. The number of households that reported not having enough food to eat because of lack of money doubled to 62.4% in 2023 from 37% in 2019. “Furthermore, 12.3% reported that at least one person in the household went without eating for a whole day,” the report said, underlining the impact of food inflation that peaked at a near-three-decade high of 41% in June. About 21% of households rely on help from friends or relatives. Already, poor nutrition is leading to physical effects such as stunted growth, with a quarter of boys and girls regarded as underweight for their age, up from 19% four years ago.
Ghana’s total pension funds recorded a significant growth to GH¢84 billion as of the third quarter of 2024. This is compared with GH¢61.8 billion recorded in December 2023 and GH¢46.6 billion in December 2022. According to the National Pensions Regulatory Authority (NPRA), the Tier-2 pension fund managed by private pension firms constitutes the biggest with a share of 54%. This is followed by Tier-1 managed by the Social Security and National Insurance Trust with a share of 25% and Tier-3 (provident fund) with a share of 21%. About 75% of the pension funds are invested in treasury bills, treasury notes, treasury bonds, Eurobonds and green bonds. Meanwhile, the pensions regulator recorded an impairment loss of GH¢1 billion in 2023 and wrote off GH¢101 million. As of 31 December 2023, GH¢4.2 million has been recovered from the prosecution of recalcitrant defaulting employees.
Kenyan President William Ruto said on Thursday he had ordered the cancellation of a procurement process expected to award control of the country’s main airport to India’s Adani Group after its founder was indicted in the United States. Ruto also said he was cancelling a separate 30-year, $736-million public-private partnership deal that an Adani Group firm signed with the energy ministry last month to construct power transmission lines. Ruto said this in his State of the Nation address, attributing the decision to “new information provided by investigative agencies and partner nations”. The deals have drawn sharp criticism from many politicians and members of the public over concerns about a lack of transparency and value for money.