Author: Khadija Abubakar

THE African Development Bank (AfDB) will establish a Youth Entrepreneurship Investment Bank for Nigeria which is part of its support for young people. AfDB president Akinwunmi Adesina said this on Friday in Abuja while delivering a keynote address at the 90th Birthday Lecture of former Head of State Yakubu Gowon. “I am delighted to announce here today that just three days ago, the African Development Bank’s board of directors approved $100m for the establishment of the Youth Entrepreneurship Investment Bank for Nigeria,” he said. Adesina said the move underscores AfDB’s resolve to support youths who he believes are critical to…

THE Federal Accounts Allocation Committee (FAAC), has shared N1.298 trillion among the Federal Government, states, and the Local Government Councils (LGCs) for September. This is according to a communique issued at the end of FAAC meeting for October held on Thursday in Abuja. The communiqué was made available to newsmen by Bawa Mokwa, the Director, Press and Public Relations, Office of the Auditor-General of the Federation (OAGF). According to the communiqué, N1.298 trillion total distributable revenue comprised distributable statutory revenue of N124.716 billion, and distributable Value Added Tax (VAT) revenue of N543.518 billion. It also comprised Electronic Money Transfer Levy…

THE shortage of aircraft in the domestic airline market has worsened, limiting available flights for passengers, findings by this newspaper have shown. Many passengers were stranded across the country Tuesday as they could not secure flights to their destinations. The busiest routes, Lagos-Abuja and Abuja-Lagos, were hugely impacted as many passengers could not secure seats as of 4pm yesterday. Checks by our correspondent on the airlines indicated that none of them had seats on any of their Lagos-Abuja flights. For instance, a check on Max Air flight slated for 6pm indicated that the seats were fully booked. However, it was…

NIGERIA’s headline inflation rate for September 2024 rose to 32.70 per cent, according to the latest Consumer Price Index report from the National Bureau of Statistics. The increase of 0.55 per cent is from the August 2024 figure of 32.15 per cent. The development was after inflation dropped consecutively in the previous two months of July and August. Year-on-year, inflation has surged by 5.98 percentage points compared to the 26.72 per cent recorded in September 2023. The report read, “In September 2024, the Headline inflation rate was 32.70% relative to the August 2024 headline inflation rate of 32.15%. Looking at…

A FORMER governor of Ekiti State and a chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Ayo Fayose, has expressed regret over the crisis rocking the former leading party in Nigeria. He said that the suspension and counter-suspension within the party has brought the party too low to the level of embarrassment which according to him is not necessary. ”The current situation in our party has made a mockery of suspension and counter-suspension, especially at that level of leadership,” Fayose said on Channels Television’s Sunday Politics monitored by News Point Nigeria. “And sadly now, the current situation in the party has…

THE Petroleum Products Retail Outlets Owners Association of Nigeria (PETROAN), has express regret over the nondisclosure of the exact price of the Premium Motor Spirit by the Dangote Refinery. Expectations were high that the roll out of PMS by the Dangote Refinery will to an extent reduce the rising price of the product in Nigeria, but that has not been the case since the indigenous refinery started selling petrol in the country. The company has left the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) to play the role of middleman, buying from them and the selling to other retailers. Speaking on…

THE Executive Secretary of the Universal Education Commission (UBEC), Dr. Hamid Bobboyi, has reaffirmed the commitment of the Commission to foster innovation in the basic education sector through research. Dr Bobboyi also vowed to ensure that research projects sponsored by the Commission align with the need for a smart technology-driven education system in Nigeria. The UBEC boss stated this while inaugurating the Research Management Committee of the Commission at the UBEC Digital Resource Centre, Abuja. Also speaking at the occasion, the National Coordinator of the UBEC Digital Resource Centre, Prof. Bashir Galadanci, urged the newly inaugurated committee members to harness…

FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, on Tuesday said he has no regret working against the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2023 presidential election. Wike, who spoke on Channels Television’s Politics Today monitored by News Point Nigeria, denied engaging in anti-party activities by refusing to support Atiku Abubakar, the then PDP presidential candidate. He defended his decision, saying it was taken for the sake of justice and fairness. “For presidential election, I said I am going to support equity, fairness and justice. In the other one, I am going to support my party and that is why we won the governor,…

THE Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) says it will sanction Starlink over a tariff hike. Starlink increased its monthly subscription fee from N38,000 to N75,000. It also said new users will get a higher cost for the kit which was previously priced at N440,000 but will now go for N590,000. It said the hike affects new and existing customers. But the NCC Director of Public Affairs Reuben Muoka said “The decision by Starlink to unilaterally review its subscription packages upwards did not receive the approval of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC)”. “The Commission will, therefore, take appropriate enforcement measures against any…

ZENITH Bank, one of Nigeria’s commercial banks, has apologised to its customers over glitches experienced in the past few days. Customers of the bank had expressed frustration over the network glitches which prevented them from having access to their funds. Some of the customers had stormed various branches of the bank to complain about the disruptions, as the bank said it had restored services across its online channels. The bank attributed the disruption to the upgrade of its online channels’ infrastructures. Some of the customers who spoke with our correspondent claimed that the disruption prevented them from either accessing their…

THE Federal Government has commenced arrangements for the evacuation of Nigerians living in Lebanon who are willing to return home following the crisis in the country. The federal government said it convened a multi-stakeholder meeting where briefs were received on the condition of Nigerians in Lebanon and preparations by various agencies towards the success of the evacuation exercise. This was disclosed in a statement issued by the National Emergency Management Agency on Friday. In September 2024, large-scale cross-border attacks escalated in Lebanon, causing over 1,000 deaths and 6,352 injuries in less than two weeks, according to the International Organisation for…

THE Rural Electrification Agency (REA) says starting in November, the Federal Government will kick-start a new rural electricity project bankrolled by the World Bank to provide electricity for 17.5 million Nigerians. The Managing Director of the Rural Electrification Agency, Abba Aliyu, disclosed this when he appeared on Channels Television’s Sunrise daily programme on Thursday. Recall that in December 2023, the World Bank announced the approval of Nigeria Distributed Access through Renewable Energy Scale-up project, being financed by $750m International Development Association credit and would leverage over $1bn of private capital and significant parallel financing from development partners. The financing from…

A FORMER acting governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Folashodun Shonubi, on Wednesday, told Justice Maryann Anenih of the Federal Capital Territory High Court in Maitama Abuja, that intrigues and politics were involved in the naira redesign carried out in 2022. Shonubi, who was the Deputy Governor of Operations before he was appointed Acting CBN Governor but is now retired, in his response to the question of defence counsel, Olalekan Ojo (SAN), at the continuation of hearing in the trial of a former CBN governor, Godwin Emefiele, told the court that the former apex bank chief told him and…

KANO State Governor Alhaji Abba Kabir Yusuf has announced adoption of 95 orphans in Kano. The Governor’s exceptional kindness and magnanimity was demonstrated during a special lunch with the 95 children presently under the care of the state Orphanage home since the lost of their biological parents. The lunchon was part of activities marking the 2024 Independence Day anniversary in Kano. A statement by the Governor’s Spokesperson Mr. Sanusi Bature Dawakin Tofa, Governor Yusuf declared full responsibility of the 95 Orphans henceforth. According to him, “I want to annouce that we have assumed full responsibility of all the 95 orphans…

THE Comptroller-General of Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) Kemi Nandap, has emerged as Chairperson of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Heads of Immigration Forum. This is contained in a statement published on the Service X handle signed by the Service Public Relations Officer (SPRO) Kenneth Udo on Tuesday. Udo said that the milestone occurred during the forum’s recent meeting in Banjul, Gambia, where 13 member states gathered to address migration and mobility challenges. He said that the meeting focused on accelerating the implementation of the ECOWAS National Biometric Identity Card (ENBIC) and abolishing the 90-day stay limit/residence permits…

THE Invest in Our Future initiative, a youth-centered project, has made significant strides in addressing the pressing issues of drug abuse and sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) in Kano, Nigeria. Launched on August 24, 2024, this initiative empowers vulnerable young people by providing them with essential skills in tie-dye and tailoring, offering them pathways to economic independence. The project, spearheaded by Khadija Sulaiman Jebu, a Kennedy Lugar Youth Exchange and Study (YES) alumna, alumni team members alongside experts from the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) and the Foundation for Legal Empowerment (FLF), carried out a series of sensitization activities…

THE Federal Government has handed over 64 100-capacity Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) buses to the Organised Labour and the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS). At the presentation of the buses held within the premises of the banquet hall of the state house Abuja on Sunday, both the Ministers of Information (Mohammed Idris) and Finance (Wale Edun) said 700 CNG buses are also being expected in the country. Nigerians have been paying through their nose for transportation fare and commodities since the removal of subsidy from petrol in 2023. While the clamour for the return of the subsidy regime continues…

THE Federal Ministry of Youths Development has partnered with the Presidential Initiative on Compressed Natural Gas to roll out over 2,000 CNG powered tricycles to empower youths in Nigeria. The Minister of State For Youth Development, Ayodele Olawande, disclosed this during a press briefing in Abuja on Friday, reeling out other initiatives of the ministry. “By Tuesday, October 1, we will be launching the first phase of the project to be distributing 2,000 tricycles in collaboration with the Presidential CNG and will be championed by the Ministry of Youth,” he said. “Before the end of this year, the initiative will…

THE Federal Government has defended its ban on students less than 18 years old sitting for the Senior School Certificate Examination (SSCE), accusing parents of hurrying their children/wards. In July, the Minister of Education Tahir Mamman said that starting from 2025, candidates below 18 will not be allowed to sit for the SSCE. Although the minister said the development was in line with the country’s laws, the move created ripples across the country, prompting a backlash from several quarters. But at the Inter-Ministerial Press Briefing in Abuja, Mamman has defended the policy which he said will pay the country in…

THE Federal Government has approved the increase of Corps Members’ monthly allowance to ₦77,000 with effect from July 2024. In a statement on Wednesday, a spokesperson for the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), Caroline Embu, said the increment was in line with the enactment of the National Minimum Wage (Amendment) Act 2024. Embu quoted a letter from the National Salaries, Incomes and Wages Commission, dated September 25, 2024 and signed by the Chairman, Ekpo Nta. “Prior to this, the Director General, NYSC Brigadier General YD Ahmed, had paid an advocacy visit to the Chairman in which he solicited for a…