AKINWALE ABOLUWADE
The University Press Plc. has linked the success being recorded by the company amid the current economic realities in the land to its carefully managed operational and financial strategies.
Making this disclosure at the sideline of its 44th Annual General Meeting, on Thursday, 29th September 2022, were the Chairman, Board of UPPlc., Obafunso Ogunkeye; and the Managing Director of the company, Samuel Kolawole.
The duo said that like other businesses in the land, UPPlc. operated under very challenging circumstances made tougher by the dwindling fortune of the naira and other factors.
Ogunkeye, who said that the company was able to pull through partly because it relied on spending from its reserve rather than taking loans from the bank, explained that UPPlc. was, therefore, not affected by the high interest rate by the Central Bank of Nigeria.
The leading publishing company declared a dividend of 10 kobo per share for the financial year 2021/2022, ended March 31.
The chairman of the firm said that “We limited the amount we paid out as dividends to conserve funds that can be deployed into servicing our customers without depending on banks.
“The outcome we have seen today at the AGM is from the dedication of staff, management and direction of the board in ensuring that the business is sustained. We are quite happy with the results and the shareholders are delighted because expectations were low since we just came back from the lockdown.”
Kolawole explained that the impact of the foreign exchange crisis on the economy placed burden on the operations of the firm.
Kolawole expressed worries that businesses in the country might suffer in the wake of the 2023 elections as politicians would concentrate more on electioneering instead of the economy.
Like other businesses, Kolawole said that publishing had been operating under a tensed environment as a result of COVID-19, forex crisis, energzy crisis and insecurity.
He stated, “We operated in the past year under very challenging circumstances. We know the effect that foreign exchange uncertainty has caused to businesses in Nigeria. For publishing specifically, most of our raw materials are imported, the paper, the inks and other things we use. The prices of these things have gone up while the value of the naira went down drastically. The business environment became more challenging.
“The inflation in the country is also telling on us because it has also led to the increase in cost of production. It has also affected the purchasing power of our customers. With all of that, we had to continue to struggle but we are happy that despite that, we were able to do well and declare a dividend.”
The Chairman, Ibadan Zone Shareholders Association, Eric Akinduro, lauded the company, saying, “We appreciate the board and management of UPPlc. for being proactive to the business and that is why we are able to have regular dividends every year. Though it is not a big dividend, when it is regular and comes frequently and consistently, we are quite sure that we will get something.”
