African countries have acquired around 59.9 million COVID-19 vaccines so far, according to the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC). The Africa CDC, the specialised healthcare agency of the African Union, said around 0.79 per cent of Africa’s population has received a full vaccine regimen. Five countries, namely Morocco, Egypt, Nigeria, Ethiopia and South Africa have acquired and administered the most doses of the vaccines to their respective populations. As of Thursday, the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Africa had reached 5,108,890, with 136,030 deaths and 4,558,435 recoveries, according to the agency. South Africa, Morocco, Tunisia,…
Author: Abdallah el-Kurebe
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) mission to Nigeria says the Nigerian economy has started to gradually recover from the negative effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Ms Jesmin Rahman, team lead of the IMF mission to Nigeria who led staff virtual meetings with Nigerian authorities, said this in a statement on Friday in Washington D. C. The meeting, which held from June 1 to 8, was to discuss recent economic, financial developments and outlook of the country. Rahman commended the Federal Government’ measures to contain the transmission of Covid-19 in Nigeria, including the ongoing vaccination programme under the COVAX initiative. She…
UN Secretary-General, António Guterres, says innovative measures to address debt are required to help the world’s more than 100 middle-income countries expand their economies and exit the COVID-19 pandemic. Guterres told the General Assembly on Thursday at UN headquarters in New York while addressing a high-level meeting on these countries. According to him, middle-income countries account for more than half of the UN’s 193 Member States, underlining the need for financing to help them recover in the wake of the global crisis. He said middle-income countries should have their debts suspended till 2022 to cope with the social and economic…
The Police Command in Ekiti on Thursday said it has arrested a 65-year-old man, Durodola Ogundele, for allegedly having canal knowledge of his stepmother. A statement by the command’s Spokesperson, Mr Sunday Abutu, in Ado-Ekiti, said Ogundele was apprehended by the Ido-Osi Divisional Headquarters of the command on Wednesday at in Ido-Osi, after committing the act. Abutu said the suspect had on June 15 allegedly had canal knowledge of his 85-year-old stepmother in her room. He explained that Ogundele is a son to the victim’s late husband. According to him, the suspect on the fateful day entered the victim’s room…
The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) has reiterated its commitment to support the federal government‘s efforts to ensure food sufficiency. FAO Country Representative, Fred Kafeero, said this at the 44th meeting of the National Council on Agriculture and Rural Development (NCARD) in Abuja on Thursday. He said that the theme of the meeting, which is “Nigeria’s Agriculture and Food Security in the face of COVID-19, Floods and Insecurity,” was timely. Kafeero, however, said that the theme was a call for action to cushion the knock-on effects of these shocks and threats on the livelihoods of a large section of the population,…
The federal government has entered into partnership with Brazil to drive its Agriculture Mechanisation Programme and ensure food sufficiency. The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Mohammad Nanono, disclosed this at the 44th meeting of the National Council on Agriculture and Rural Development in Abuja on Thursday. Nanono said that the partnership had yielded an Agricultural Mechanisation loan to the tune of €995m. “Agricultural productivity can only improve through mechanisation of production activities. “In our effort to improve the agricultural production profile of the country, we have entered into a partnership with the government of Brazil through one of their…
A Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) tanker explosion at Mobolaji Bank Anthony Way, opposite Sheraton Hotels and Towers, Ikeja on Thursday night, injured 13 persons. The incident, which occurred at a out 10.32pm, also left 25 cars destroyed. Mr Ibrahim Farinloye, Acting Zonal Coordinator, South West Zonal Office, National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), confirmed the development on Friday. Farinloye said the explosion threw the environment into panic due to the huge fire caused by the incident. He said the explosion was alleged to have been caused by leakage while the LPG tanker was in motion. “The resulting fire travelled with the…
A Federal High Court in Lagos has discharged and acquitted Sen. Peter Nwaoboshi (Delta North) of N322 million money laundering charge. Details later…
President Muhammadu Buhari has arrived Maiduguri for a one day official visit. The president, whose visit is to assess security situation in the North East, will address troops at Maimalari Cantonment, and also inaugurates some completed Federal and State Government projects. Some of the projects to be inaugurated include the 4,000 housing units for displaced persons out of the 10,000 units being constructed by the Federal Government in Borno and the Senate building of Borno State University, Maiduguri. Others are the Borno State Vocational Enterprising Institute, Muna, Government Day Technical Secondary School, Njimtilo, Dr Babagana Wakilbe Memorial School, Abbaganaram Maternal Healthcare…
Governor Aminu Tambuwal of Sokoto has called on Canadian government to support the National Assembly, NASS, to expedite action and pass the Electoral Act that has been lying before it. The governor made the call when he received the Acting Canadian High Commissioner to Nigeria, Mr Nicolas Simard at the government House in Sokoto on Wednesday. According to Tambuwal, facilitating the passage of the bill would guarantee stable democracy, strengthen democracy and guarantee the delivery of good governance. “Nigerians are interested in deepening the nation’s democracy and that could happen where there was free and fair election. “Free and fair…