Spending cuts imposed by the International Monetary Fund may have contributed to the rapid spread of Ebola in West Africa, UK-based researchers say. …read more      

Supporters will be allowed to attend league matches in Egypt in limited numbers for the first time since the Port Said disaster in 2012. …read more      

Adam Lallana says Liverpool were disappointed not to have turned a dominant display against Arsenal into three points, but believes Martin Skrtel’s 97th-minute equaliser could prove a defining moment in their season.

Liverpool came back with a Skrtel header deep into stoppage time to earn a well deserved 2-2 draw at Anfield on Sunday.

Lallana told Liverpoolfc.com: “I’m thoroughly disappointed we didn’t take all three points, but there was a good feeling about the whole atmosphere and the performance today – and it’s been like that for the last few games.

“We feel we’re turning a corner and getting a little bit of rhythm into our game. That goal was huge for us at the end because we would have been thoroughly disappointed with losing, but it was a point, a good performance and we move on.”

He spoke further; “Although we didn’t get the result, we picked up a vital point by getting a goal in the last minute and when we meet up again for training (on Monday) there won’t be that bitter disappointment at not putting in a good performance.

“We know we’ve played well, so there are encouraging signs and we’ll hopefully take that into the Burnley game.”

Liverpool at many times during the match, laid siege to Wojciech Szczesny’s goal, always threatening to score with the 3-4-3 formation believed to be helping them discover their attacking rhythm.

“We’ve found a system that the gaffer has changed and got us playing and I think it’s working,” said Lallana. “We’ve been creating a lot more chances, in the United game, Bournemouth game and today.

“We’re disappointed at conceding the first goal on the stroke of half-time. It probably gave Arsenal a little bit of momentum that could have been avoidable. But there was great character shown by the lads to keep pushing and get the …read more      

The International Monetary Fund, IMF, is forecasting that Nigeria’s growth rate would slow to about 5 percent in 2015 as falling oil prices cut revenues and spending.

In a statement by the IMF Mission Leader to Nigeria, Mr Gene Leon, the country would have to rely more on the non-oil sector which helped it grow 6.1% in the third quarter of 2014.

According to Mr Leon, the CBN’s 8% devaluation of the naira would likely boost inflation, but the effect is likely to be contained, owing to lower food prices from increased local production of staple food crops.

“Nigeria remains vulnerable to oil price volatility and global financial developments,” Gene Leon said in the statement. There are domestic risks including uncertainty ahead of February elections and security, he said.

“Capital outflows have continued and, with lower oil receipts, have led to sustained pressure on the naira.

“Despite the outlook, Nigeria could surmount its challenges, especially if a national spirit of burden sharing and rebuilding together is actively embraced.”

President Goodluck Jonathan of the ruling People’s Democratic Party (PDP) faces a united opposition of the All Progressives Congress (APC) led by former military Head of State, Muhammadu Buhari, in February 2015.

The duel has been considered the party’s stiffest challenge since it came to power at the end of Army rule in 1999.

The post IMF Forecasts 5% Slow Growth For Nigeria In 2015 appeared first on Channels Television.

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The Director-General of the Budget Office in Nigeria, Bright Okogu, says the 2015 budget has been designed with a focus on growth promoting areas of the economy.

Speaking during a conversation on Channels Television, Mr Okogu said that the authorities have recognized that there is a cash crunch in Nigeria just as it has been in other oil producing countries.

He mentioned infrastructure related expenditure, security and others among the focus of the budget to ensure stability of the economy, explaining that they would be using the available resources “even though they are reduced” to ensure “that the economy keep running”.

The Minister of Finance, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, had given an analysis of the 2015 budget to key players in the financial sector, during which she announced an oil benchmark price of 65 dollar per barrel for the 2015 budget.

The expectation of Nigerians had been that the 2015 budget would show that Nigeria’s was not an oil economy and they have questioned why the benchmark was pegged at 65 dollars.

Okogu explained, “We have excessive volatility in the oil market. Everybody has recognised that, and there’s no point in pretending. It could go up and it could be even lower than that in 2015.

“Some of the critical elements that are driving the main oil market at this time include the geopolitical developments in Europe, vis-a-vis Russia. It also includes the fight for market share between OPEC countries and American oil producers and other oil producers.

“We know that everybody is going to lose from a lower price of oil internationally. So, the best thing to do under such circumstances of uncertainty is to make sure that you approach this thing on a scenario basis.

“This means that you develop your budget structure using a variety of different price scenarios and then crafting a whole series of …read more      

South Africa has one of the highest murder rates in the world and drugs and gun crime fuel the cycle of violence in the Cape Flats, an area notorious for gangs. …read more      

Caretaker leader Moncef Marzouki refuses to admit defeat in Tunisia’s first free presidential election after exit polls suggest a win for Beji Caid Essebsi. …read more      

Voters in Tunisia are choosing their first freely elected president in a run-off election seen as a landmark in the country’s move to democracy. …read more      

The Governor of Edo State, Adams Oshiomhole, has advised politicians in Nigeria not to be too desperate for power, as campaigns for the 2015 election begin across the country.

Mr Oshiomhole told Channels Television in Benin-City, the Edo State capital, that Nigeria won its democracy the hard way and that it would be senseless to mortgage it on the altar of political violence and greed.

“What is coming in 2015 is not war. That is not the promise of democracy.

“Even soldiers, military government recognise that you can’t wage war against your people.

No Hiding Place

“If Nigeria has attained democracy today, it is not courtesy of a willing military. The military had to agree at a point that it can no longer hang on because Nigerians were unanimous,” he said, explaining the struggle that Nigerians had passed through to get a democratically elected government running for the last 15 years.

He cited the removal of the leader of Burkina Faso, pointing out that “the leader, who thought he had succeeded in making himself a monarch, a life ruler, is seeking exile now unable to live in that country”.

Governor Oshiomhole further expressed the belief that nobody in Nigeria would want Nigeria to go into ruins.

“When people have been so oppressed, dehumanised and they have become very desperate… The more you have taken, the more your stake in ensuring that the system is not undermined.

“The world is now such that when people overwhelm a people, it becomes a matter of international community. There is no hiding place now for anyone.

“If you resort to measures that are undemocratic, if you resort to killing and you resort to promoting war under any guise, if you are too strong for your country, you cannot be too strong for the international community,” the Governor, who was once a labour …read more      

The Secretary-General of the United Nations, Mr Ban Ki-moon has expressed the UN’s solidarity with the governments and people of Nigeria, Pakistan and Yemen in their fight against terrorism.

Mr Ki-moon, in a message in New York, also expressed his heartfelt condolences to the families of the victims who lost their lives in the terror attacks in the countries.

The Secretary-General said he was dismayed by the attacks and strongly condemned the pattern of attacks against innocent civilians, including women and children, by militant groups and terrorists.

Mr Ki-moon said the perpetrators of the despicable acts of violence must be brought to justice.

He further called for more commitment by the governments of the countries and the international community in the war on terror.

For over five years Nigeria has continued to witness several attacks mostly in the north-east. thousands have been killed and many have been displaced from the region.

A terrorist group, Boko Haram, has claimed responsibility for most of the attacks. The group is seeking an Islamic State and an end to western education in the region.

A counter-terrorism operation by the Nigerian Armed Forces has been on in the region, with the military promising to end the insurgency.

The post UN Scribe Expresses Solidarity With Nigeria In Fight Against Terrorism appeared first on Channels Television.

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