Vincent Kompany: Manchester City have point to prove

Manchester City have "a point to prove" after their struggles to defend their Premier League title last season, says captain Vincent Kompany.

The Belgium defender added to Yaya Toure's first-half brace as City won 3-0 at West Brom in their opening game.

"Last season was below what we're used to doing," said Kompany, 29.

"There are a lot of favourite teams now and we're not part of it, I've heard. It's something that gives us extra motivation."

• Relive Manchester City's win against West Brom
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City, runners-up to Chelsea last season, dominated at The Hawthorns on Monday, with BBC Radio 5 live pundit Robbie Savage saying their performance was "on a different planet" and that they looked the best team following the opening weekend of the new campaign.

Manchester City made 330 more passes in their opening fixture of the season than Chelsea did

A Toure shot trickled in after appearing to be deflected off team-mate David Silva to give the visitors the lead after nine minutes.

Toure then scored a fine second in the 24th minute before Kompany headed in Silva's corner to complete the win for City, who host champions Chelsea on Sunday.

"It will be a big game very early in the season," said Kompany, speaking to Sky Sports.

"We can't go into it thinking it's about winning the league, but it will matter so we need to put in a great performance."

'Sterling adds sharpness and speed'

Raheem Sterling made his City debut after his controversial £49m move from Liverpool this summer and he failed to take two good chances.

However, Kompany believes the 20-year-old England forward's pace has added to City's attacking threat.

"The main thing is that we have some new tools to use this season," he said. "Raheem has given us sharpness and speed to hurt teams when we're defending.

"It gives other teams things to think about. It gives us that bit of danger we need and we have so many tools to hurt teams."

Is Toure back to his best?

Yaya Toure made a total of 86 passes with 96% accuracy

Toure, who went off with an apparent injury late on, was sometimes criticised for his performances last season but put in an impressive display, along with Silva, to inspire City to victory.

"We know what he can give to our team in every game," said manager Manuel Pellegrini.

"Yaya had a strange year last year. It was not the way he normally started a season. He had many problems, with the death of his brother, and then problems with his agent.

"Now he is more calm and we will see the same Yaya that we know."

'Rude awakening' for Pulis

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Pulis 'takes responsibility' for loss

West Brom manager Tony Pulis conceded that he employed the wrong tactics in playing two strikers - Rickie Lambert and Saido Berahino.

"I said to the players after the game I have to take responsibility for this one. I played Saido Berahino and Rickie Lambert and that left the midfield too open. It went against the principles I have always worked to and it has given me a rude awakening.

"I won't be doing that against the big teams. You have to make sure you fill the midfield and don't get out-numbered. I want to be positive but that has taught me a lesson.

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$1.5bn Dry Dock project: NLNG denies financial commitment, stake

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THE Nigerian Liquefied Nat­ural Gas (NLNG) Limited has denied financial commitments towards the proposed $1.5 bil­lion Badagry Dry Dock proj­ect.

The company, according to its General Manager, External Relations, NLNG, Dr. Kudo Eresia-Eke, dispelled recent media reports linking the proj­ect to the company.

‘‘The attention of NLNG has been drawn to recent me­dia reports on the proposed Badagry Dry Dock project, which purport is owned by Nigeria LNG. This is not true as Nigeria LNG is not the owner and is not investing in the building of any dry dock.

“Nigeria LNG has a sin­gular business focus, namely processing and exporting LNG. It has no interest in investing in a dry dock any­where in the world,’’ Kudo- Eresia affirmed.

NLNG explained that the owner of the proposed dry dock in Badagry is a con­sortium of other Nigerian companies under the name of Badagry Ship Repair and Maritime Engineering Company (BSMEC), which NLNG is not a part of.

It maintained that its only interest was and still remains encouraging investors to con­sider building dry docks in the country to save the nation’s foreign exchange and save lo­cal ship owners, like NLNG, the trouble of having to go overseas for dry dock services.

‘‘Nigeria LNG would thus be pleased to see more dry dock projects emerge in dif­ferent parts of the country, but will not be investing in any. It is thus fair to add that not being an investor in dry dock, NLNG cannot dictate to investors where to site their projects.

“Nigeria LNG therefore appeals to those who are is­suing threats based on wrong information, to review their position in the light of this clarification. Besides, threats can only discourage other in­vestors from coming to the region.

“Please be assured that NLNG remains a good and valuable corporate citizen helping to build a better Nige­ria,” the company said.

Observers of Nigeria’s maritime sector have long lamented the absence of an operational dockyard to ca­ter for very large crude car­riers (VLCCs) and liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers, as existing dockyards can only handle smaller vessels.

Lack of such a facility meant that owners of large vessels in Nigeria and the West African region have had to pay large sums of money to docking facilities located mainly in Asia, Europe and the Americas, which can ac­commodate such large ves­sels.

Feasibility studies for cit­ing the dry dock were carried out in seven places – Bada­gry, Lekki FTZ, Ladol Island, Ogogoro Island, Olokola FTZ, Onne and Bonny, before consultants identified Badag­ry as the best-in-class location for the dockyard.

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200 students set for Mobil athletics holiday camping

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REPARATIONS are at an advanced stage for the staging of the 15th AKS/NNPC/MPN Schools Athletics Cham­pionship and the second Holiday Camping and Training programme billed to commence in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State on Monday August 17.

In tune with the first programme of its kind, held at the U.J.Esuene Stadium, Calabar in 2013, this year’s event was scheduled for the Godswill Akpabio International Stadium, Nest of Champions. Already, seven national coaches, under the supervision of the President of the Nigerian Athletics Coaches Association, Mr. Gabriel Okon had confirmed avail­ability for the programme that was aimed at improving the techniques of those who excelled at the last Championship held in Uyo. “ ….We are coming to Uyo with the best. I can confirm to you that apart from our regular experts we have also secured the availability of Mr George Abadoni, a Uni­versity of Glasgow trained coach who holds IAAF certified Coaching Certificates and between 2011 and 2013 was the National coach of Saudi Arabia in the sprints and jumps. He will be in charge of the Jumps in Uyo” Coach Okon said.

Organizers told the media in Uyo on Monday that all the first four place winners in all the events at the 14th Cham­pionships had been invited to participate at the training programme.“We remember and vividly too that the first time we held this programme in Calabar, it was a resounding success. The event gave us the opportunity of exposing our students to the best techniques and modern styles by the na­tional coaches who were in a position to identify their talents and helped to push them on to national stage.

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Eagles hitman destroys FC IfeanyiUbah

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SUPER Eagles forward, Gbolahan Salami was on rampage yesterday in the Glo Premier League, as his brace helped his club, Warri Wolves to record an emphatic 3-0 victory over struggling Nnewi side, FC IfeanyiUbah in one of the match week 21 fixtures.

Just as the mid week matches were being decided, or­ganizers of the league, the League Management Company (LMC) opted to spoil their headline sponsor, Globacom with 95, 000 popular terrace match tickets and 9, 500 re­served terrace access cards.

Lobi Stars of Makurdi playing at home also recorded a 3-0 victory over Bayelsa United, while defending cham­pions, Kano Pillars and 3SC got a result, courtesy of late penalties. Pillars were awarded an 80th minute penalty that saw them beat Heartland of Owerri by 2-1, while Shooting recorded 2-1 victory over Wikki.

The LMC stated that the customized cards exclusively produced for Globacom was in furtherance of the League’s renewed commitment to delivering world class hospitality services to sponsors of the league.

The tickets, printed in fine quality stationery allows in­stant passage to any Glo Premier League match by holders.

It would be noted that the average attendance at Glo Premier League games had risen from about 2, 500 in the 2013/14 season to over 6, 000 this season, a development informed observers attributed to reforms, which the LMC initiated and began implementing since the 2012/2013 sea­son.

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FIFA U-17 WORLD CUP DRAW: Eaglets ready for any foe in Chile – Amuneke

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COACH Emmanuel Amuneke has declared that World reigning champions, the Golden Eaglets, would be ready to take on any op­position in Chile, when they defend the title Nigeria won at the last FIFA U-17 World Cup in the United Arab Emirates two years ago.

The Nigerian team will know its group opponents for the 16th edition of the tournament billed to kick off in October today, when FIFA holds the draw ceremony at the massive Art Centre 660 in the city of Santiago, capital of the nation, Chile as from 12:00 midnight.

“We are waiting to see who and who we are go­ing to meet after the draw on Thursday (today),” the Golden Eaglets’ Head Coach, Amuneke, told the official website of the Ni­geria Football Federation, thenff.com ahead of today’s draw.

“Though we don’t have the luxury of choosing the teams we want, we are pre­paring well for the tourna­ment and we would be ready to give a good account of ourselves,” the former Af­rican Footballer of the Year assured.

24 qualified countries would be drawn into six groups of four teams each, with defending champion and record four-time win­ner, Nigeria and host, Chile, would most likely be the seeded teams in their respec­tive groups.

The 24-team cast was made up of six from Europe (Belgium, France, Germany, Russia, Croatia and Eng­land); four from Asia (Aus­tralia, Korea Republic, Syria and Korea DPR); four from North

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Are, Unibadan colleagues toast Osundare for winning NNOM award

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Niyi Osundare, a professor of English at the University of Orleans, Lakefront, New Or­leans in the United States, shone brightly again in Ibadan, Oyo State capital, recently as he was honoured by people from all walks of life, especially distinguished academics.

It was a luncheon organized by an Ibadan-based business mogul, Dr. Lekan Are, and his family in honour of Osundare, world-acclaimed poet, for winning the 2014 Nigerian National Order of Merit (NNOM) award. The Ekiti-born scholar was the sole winner of the award in December 2014. The NNOM is the officially recognized award for excellence in the academics and it is always appreciated publicly for its non-partisan consideration.

The luncheon held at the Kakanfo Inn and Conference Centre on a Sunday after­noon. The invitation was also extended to celebrate the Nigerian literary brand, who has won virtually all the prizes and awards of global recognition in poetry.

The luncheon, chaired by former Vice Chancellor of the University of Ibadan, Emeritus Prof Ayo Banjo, attracted digni­taries such as Emeritus Prof Ayo Bamg­bose; the Ekerin Olubadan of Ibadanland, Chief Eddy Oyewole; Ekefa Olubadan of Ibadanland, Chief Adebayo Akande; Emeri­tus Prof. Biola Odejide; and Prof. Olutayo Adesina of the Department of History, U.I.

Also in attendance were former Nigerian Ambassador to the United States, Ambas­sador Olusola Saanu; Director, Centre for Sustainable Development, U.I, Prof Labode Popoola; Prof Dan Izebaye; Prof Festus Adesanoye, Prof Wale Adebanwi and so on. Those who had opportunity to speak on the occasion paid glowing tributes to Osundare.

In his welcome address, Are, who is the chairman of Kakanfo Inn and Conference Centre, said he decided to honour Osun­dare because he was the sole winner of the 2014 NNOM, which was conferred on him in December 2014 by former President Goodluck Jonathan.

“In 2014, Prof Osundare was the only person that was given the honour out of 170 million population of the country. The award started about 40 years ago and up till date, we are yet to have up to 70 people that have been conferred with this honour.

“It is won simply on merit. There is no geographical spread for it to be won and you don’t have to be a politician to get it. It is equivalent of our Nobel prize. Only Osundare won it last year. The assessors are eminent people and it is the work you have done that would speak for you. I was happy when I heard the announcement that the award would be conferred on him.

Are stated that he got to know Osundare  through his reputation, adding that he did not know his house and Osundare did not also know his house. According to him, he appreciates success, especially in the aca­demics, where he belonged before moving into business.

Osundare, who was born in Ikere-Ekiti in Ekiti State on March 12, 1947, is an alumnus of the University of Ibadan, where he taught after his postgraduate studies in Canada and the United States. He was once the Head of English Department at the Uni­versity of Ibadan from 1993 to 1997. He is also an old student of Amoye Grammar School in Ikere-Ekiti and Christ’s School in Ado-Ekiti, the current state capital.

Emeritus Prof Banjo commended Are and his wife, Olabisi, for organizing the luncheon. He was one of the teachers that taught Osundare in the English Department of U.I when he was an undergraduate and he had also won the Nigeria National Order of Merit Award.

The former vice chancellor of the premier university appreciated God that he knew Osundare as a budding writer at the university and “in our eyes, Osundare became a flowering writer.” He described him as a unique and talented writer, adding that he had written some enchanting love poems, written a lot of “things about Ni­geria generally and a lot of satires outside poetry. He is a very distinguished personal­ity. He does not copy others. He is creative and accessible to Nigerians.”

Emeritus Prof Ayo Bamgbose is another teacher, who taught the guest of honour. Bamgbose, who had also won the award, said he was proud to be one of the teach­ers of Osundare, who “has won many awards in many parts of the world, apart from Nigeria. Niyi is a pride to UI, Ibadan and I am very happy that Lekan brought him to this function. This signifies the way Lekan holds Ibadan in his heart. Niyi is just 68. The sky is still the limit. He has not let his success enter his head. He comes home regularly and renews his contacts. He is likeable and respectful. His poems are straightforward and not difficult to understand.” Paying tribute to Osundare’s courage and forthrightness, Prof Bamgbose remarked that: “The day he was given the award, he spoke and in his speech, he criticised the government that gave him the N10million”.

Colours were added to the programme when a poet and dramatist, Mr. Ropo Ewenla, took the stage and proposed the toast of Osundare. A prominent Ibadan native and former diplomat, Ambassador Olusola Saanu, averred that Osundare’s po­ems were easy to read as he described him as a pride to the Black people of the world. He congratulated him and prayed that he would continue to be a hero and represent Nigeria creditably.

Osundare, in his response, described the honour as a celebration of excellence, which was greater than he. The founda­tion of his achievement, according to him, was based on the quality education he received from his university teachers, such as Professors Ayo Banjo, Ayo Bamgbose and Dan Izebaye in U.I. He decried the rot in the country’s university system, saying, the critical stakeholders must go back to the drawing board to proffer lasting solution to the menace.

Osundare noted that many of contempo­rary students are more intelligent but the standards have collapsed in many tertiary institutions. He decried the dearth of aca­demic mentors in Nigeria’s universities. This, he reasoned, had caused Nigeria’s in­ability to produce quality graduates for the employment market in recent years.

Osundare was in 2005 caught in Hurri­cane Katrina and he was stuck with his wife in the attic of the home in New Orleans, United States, for 26 hours. But they were rescued by one of their neighbours, who at the time drove by in his boat. He heard the shouts of the Osundares for help and he res­cued them. He lost a lot of assets, including manuscripts of some poems.

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N26bn debt: DISCOs threaten to disconnect police, army barracks, government agencies from power supply

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FOLLOWING the accu­mulation of N26 billion debt owed the electricity compa­nies by the Armed Forces and government agencies, the Association of Nige­rian Electricity Distributors (ANED) has threatened to disconnect power supply to military and police bar­racks as well as ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) across the country.

ANED, a group of 11 DISCOs said it could no longer bear the huge debt owed them by the military, para-military and govern­ment agencies.

The DISCOs have, there­fore, appealed to President Muhammadu Buhari for a bailout to cushion the ef­fects of the debt on their operations.

Daily Sun gathered that the Nigerian military, para-military and MDAs in the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja were currently in­debted to the 11 DISCOs operating in the country.

The association argued that the huge debt owed the DISCOs was now hamper­ing its members’ operations.

The ANED Director, Re­search and Advocacy, Sun­day Oduntan, disclosed that more than N10 billion out of the total debt of N26 bil­lion was owed by military formations in Kaduna, La­gos, Oyo, Kwara and Ogun states.

Giving a breakdown of the debt, Oduntan said the military and MDAs at the federal and state levels were owed Kaduna DISCO, N6.7 billion; Abuja DISCO N7 billion; Ibadan DISCO, N5.2 billion; Eko DISCO, N2.3 billion; Benin DISCO, N3.8 billion, and Kano DIS­CO, N860 million.

His words: “We need to understand that there are three layers in the value chain of electricity. We have the GENCOs; they gener­ate electricity and sell to the Federal Government through the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) that will then sell to us, DIS­COs, 11 distribution compa­nies across the country.

“Which means all the money we are collecting from distributing electricity to the public, we only retain less than 25 percent as our own. The remaining money goes to the other stakehold­ers. When you buy elec­tricity, you supply out and the military, the MDAs and people are either not paying their debts or steal­ing energy, you now have commercial and collection losses.

“In the case of non-pay­ment, the greatest problem we have today is Nigerian Military, now giving the figures under the DIS­COs or wherever you see military formations, they are owing huge electricity debts and the problem we have is that, most of these military formations have refused to pay and they are owing so much.”

The ANED spokesman, who accused military men of beating up officials of the DISCOs whenever they approached them for pay­ment of their electricity bills, however, appealed to President Muhammadu Bu­hari to intervene and rescue their staff from incessant beating and humiliation in the hands of the soldiers

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We’ll sustain NYSC to promote national unity –Buhari

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PRESIDENT Muhammadu Buhari has assured that his administration will take all necessary ac­tions to maintain and improve the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) to promote national unity and integration.

He spoke yesterday after he was briefed by of­ficials of the Federal Ministry of Youth Develop­ment led by the Permanent Secretary, Mrs. Rabi Jimeta.

He affirmed that the objective for which the scheme was established in 1973 was still very rel­evant for national development now.

“I firmly believe in NYSC and I think it should remain a national programme to promote integra­tion. Whenever I go home to Daura, I look out for corps members from Lagos, Aba and other parts of the country.

“I am always thrilled to learn that except for the NYSC, some of them have never left their states of origin to visit other cities in the country,” he said.

Jimeta told the President that the increasing number of NYSC participants posed a challenge to the scheme due to the dwindling revenue, from the national budget, to cater for their needs.

She told the President that the annual enrolment of corps participants had increased from 2,364 at inception in 1974 to 229,016 in 2014 last year.

NYSC Director-General, Brigadier-General Johnson Olawumi, told the President that there were plans to make the scheme voluntary and re­duce the population to make the programme more sustainable.

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Arunma Oteh as World Bank VP/Treasurer

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THE, recent appointment of the immediate past Director General of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Ms. Arunma Oteh, as Vice President and Treasurer of the World Bank is yet another glittering accomplishment by a Nigerian in a global financial institution. Oteh’s appointment, which was announced in a press release by the World Bank President, Jim Yong Kim, came barely three months after another Nigerian, former Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr. Akunwumi Adesina, was elected the 8th President of African Development Bank (AfDB).

Undoubtedly, the World Bank’s se­lection of Oteh for this job is a good choice. It is in recognition of her formi­dable intellectual prowess, exposure, experience, unwavering competitive spirit and in-depth knowledge of global financial markets and regulatory sys­tems. The position is an utmost test of her capability and the strong creden­tials she is bringing into the office.

We congratulate Ms. Oteh on this well-deserved appointment, and look forward to the impact it will have on emerging nations like Nigeria which are in dire need of investment inflows to support and stimulate their declin­ing economies.

A close look at Ms. Oteh’s credentials and antecedents shows that she is well equipped to discharge the functions of these high offices creditably. Prior to joining Nigeria’s apex regulatory agen­cy, SEC, for a five-year tenure that be­gan in 2010 and ended few months ago, she had played very important roles in some international organisations. She was Group Vice President, Corporate Services, at the African Development Bank which she joined in 1992. In that capacity, she was credited with carry­ing out reforms in departments such as Human Resources, Information and Communication Technology and Insti­tutional Procurement. She holds a B.Sc (First Class) in Computer Science from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, and an MBA from Harvard University.

One particular accomplishment was her role as AfDB Group Treasurer be­tween 2001 and 2006, when she spear­headed the bank’s ground-breaking fun­draising and capital market activities across the world. Her previous roles at the organisation included trading room management, investment portfolio cov­erage and public sector lending.

All these accomplishments put her in good stead for her appointment as head of Nigeria’s Securities and Exchange Commission by former president, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan.

Although her tenure at SEC was marked by many controversies, there was no doubt that she transformed Ni­geria’s capital market, which, before her appointment, was characterised by allegations of insider abuse and other manipulations. Her firm regula­tory stance helped to sanitise the capi­tal market, even though it pitched her against some politicians.

Her job schedule at the World Bank is heavy. As Vice President and Treasurer, her job description includes managing and leading a large and diverse team responsible for managing a pool of more than $150 billion in assets. Her other responsibilities include main­taining the bank’s global reputation as a prudent and innovative borrower, in­vestor and risk management, as well as management of an extensive client ad­visory. She also has responsibility for transactions and asset management business for the bank.

Beyond these, she will, in her capacity as one the Bank’s key representatives, engage with outside stakeholders, in­cluding global private sector financial institutions, the financial media and the sovereign debt and reserve manag­ers in client countries, including Nige­ria. She will also collaborate extensive­ly with Finance partners throughout the World Bank Group.

None of these tasks is easy. But as a top performer, nothing less than out­standing success is expected of her. We urge her to be focused on her du­ties, and to recognise that she will ulti­mately be judged by what she is able to achieve in the new office.

In that regard, expectations are high that Ms. Oteh will see her appoint­ment as a sign of trust in her ability. Many women in Nigeria and around the world now see her as a role model. She should, therefore, live up to the expec­tations of the office, and do herself and Nigeria proud. The whole world now is her turf. We wish her a successful ten­ure.

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Buhari appoints new head of Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation

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Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari has named a new chief of the state-run oil company Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) weeks after he sacked the whole board. As part of an anti-corruption campaign he undertook since he took office in May, the leader also banned 113 vessels from lifting crude oil from some 27 Nigerian ports amid suspicions the vessels had been implicated in illicit activities.

Emmanuel Ibe Kachikwu, a lawyer with 30-year-experience in energy, was appointed as NNPC group managing director for the next five years. The announcement was made by Buhari’s spokesman Femi Adesin, who also named other members of the new board. “I am excited to be taking up this challenge,” Kachikwu was quoted as saying in a NNPC statement. “Being in a position to manage the most important natural resource in Nigeria is a source of pride and responsibility for the NNPC and I am committed to taking this forward and helping the NNPC achieve its potential as a globally competitive national oil company,” the statement continued.

Kachikwu’s appointment came as Buhari announced his government is working to identify banks and countries where funds he alleged were stolen during previous administrations had been lodged. In a speech delivered in the capital Abuja as members of the US congress were visiting, he said the international community is providing Nigeria with valuable information in order to locate the funds. Information also includes names of ships that allegedly take crude oil from Nigeria and change direction, or pour their contents into other ships after they leave the nation.

Nigeria is Africa’s biggest oil producer, but its lack of refineries – at present there are four and of these only three resumed production in July after months of inactivity – mean the country has to export about 90% of its crude oil and import petroleum products.

The country then sells fuel to Nigerians at subsidised prices and reimburses the difference to importers. This practice has been condemned by many, with some arguing that it coud save the government billions of naira every year, that could be invested into public services. Others have pointed out that oil destined for Nigeria is sold to other countries at higher prices. NNPC has been marred by scandals linked to stolen revenues. In 2013, the head of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, was suspended after he claimed that $20bn (£13bn) of oil revenue “went missing” from NNPC.

In a letter to former president Goodluck Jonathan, Sanusi said: “I am constrained to formally write your excellency, documenting serious concerns of the CBN on the continued failure of the NNPC to repatriate significant proportions of the proceeds of crude oil shipments it made in gross violation of the law.” The allegations triggered an investigation into NNPC books. According to the audit, released in April, NNPC overpaid the state by almost $750m, but still had to pay an additional $1.5bn.

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Rescue hopes fade for migrants after boat capsizes in Mediterranean

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Media captionWill Turner, Medecins Sans Frontieres: "We don't know how many people might be trapped within the belly of the boat"

Officials initially feared hundreds had drowned but the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) said 400 people were rescued.Search teams in the Mediterranean say they don't expect to find any more survivors from a boat carrying around 600 migrants which sank off Libya.

The Italian coast guard said 25 bodies have been recovered so far but it is unclear how many people are missing.

More than 2,000 migrants are said to have died in 2015 trying to cross the Mediterranean to reach Europe.

Wednesday's incident occurred when the packed fishing boat ran into rough weather about 15 miles (25km) from Libya's coast.

A distress call was picked up in Sicily and one of the first ships on the scene was an Irish navy vessel, the LE Niamh. But as she launched her boats, the migrants apparently moved to one side of the fishing boat, causing it to capsize.

"Those that were on deck would have managed to jump, some of them drowned and some of them were saved," said Martin Xuereb of the Migrant Offshore Aid Station in Malta, one the groups involved in the rescue effort.

"I think it's unlikely that any additional survivors will be picked up."

Seven ships as well as helicopters have been involved in the search operation.

'Capsized very fast'

Cmdr Filippo Marini of the Italian coast guard said survivors had indicated that between 400 and 600 people were on board the boat when it capsized.

Melissa Fleming, a UN refugee agency (UNHCR) spokeswoman, said about 100 people are thought to have been travelling in the boat's hull at the time, adding: "The boat capsized very fast".

Seven ships and three helicopters were said to be involved in the rescue

Medecins sans Frontieres said its Dignity I vessel was one of the first to arrive at the scene

A video released by the Irish navy showed rescued migrants on rafts

Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) said its Dignity I vessel was one of the first to arrive at the scene. Two more of the medical charity's boats arrived later in the day.

"The team on the #Dignity1 can confirm that there have tragically been many deaths but does not have figures at this stage," MSF said in a tweet.

'Lack of resources'

"It was a horrific sight, people desperately clinging to lifebelts, boats and anything they could to fight for their lives," Juan Matias, an MSF project co-ordinator on the Dignity I, said in a statement.

MSF said the vessel was initially diverted from heading to the fishing boat in order to deal with a separate vessel that was in trouble. The group said it rescued nearly 100 migrants in that incident before answering the fishing boat's distress call.

"The fact that we were first called to assist this boat and then shortly afterwards sent to another one highlights the severe lack of resources available for rescue operations," Mr Matias said.

Why is EU struggling with migrants and asylum?

Migration: Are more people on the move than ever before?

The Italian coast guard rescued about 300 migrants adrift in the Mediterranean on Monday

The Mediterranean Sea is the world's most deadly border area for migrants.

In April, a fishing boat carrying about 800 migrants sank off the coast of Libya in what the UN called the deadliest incident in the Mediterranean ever recorded.

EU leaders agreed to increase spending on its search and rescue operation in the region after that incident but smugglers continue to send desperate migrants on the dangerous journey.

Earlier this week, the IOM warned that the number of migrants attempting to make the crossing is much higher than in the same period last year.

"It is unacceptable that in the 21st Century people fleeing from conflict, persecutions, misery and land degradation must endure such terrible experiences [...] and then die on Europe's doorstep," IOM director general William Lacy Swing said in a statement.

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