In the week that just ended, Nigeria was again jolted by a brutal reminder of the unchecked terror plaguing its northeastern region and other parts of the northwest and central regions. Over 50 lives were violently cut short in Borno State as Boko Haram’s JAS faction descended on the villages of Gatamarwa and Tsiha in the Chibok Local Government Area. Survivors recounted horrors too gruesome to forget, residents rounded up, accused of treason for supposed collaboration with rival factions, and then slaughtered in cold blood. But as if the massacre wasn’t damning enough, a more sinister truth now weighs heavily…
Author: Abdallah el-Kurebe
President Bola Tinubu, has reappointed Prof. Garba Hamidu Sharubutu as the Executive Secretary of the Agricultural Research Council of Nigeria (ARCN). The President also made agriculture-related appointments, including Yazid Shehu Umar Danfulani as Managing Director of the Nigerian Agricultural Insurance Corporation (NAIC) and Abubakar Umar Jarengol as NAIC’s Executive Director, Operations, and Engr. Kabir Abdullahi Barkiya was appointed as Chairman of the Nigerian Agricultural Land Development Authority (NALDA). Other appointments include: Hamza Ibrahim Baba – Programme Manager, Government Enterprise and Empowerment Programme (GEEP) Barr. Sama’ila Audu – Executive Director, Administration, Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF) Prof. Musa Garba Mai…
In what could be one of the biggest gold finds in recent history, Uganda has announced the discovery of over 31 million metric tonnes of gold ore, with the potential to refine more than 320,000 tonnes of pure gold. Estimated to be worth over $12 trillion, the discovery has sparked a wave of excitement and cautious optimism across the country. For many Ugandans, especially in mineral-rich but underdeveloped regions like Karamoja, this announcement brings a renewed sense of hope. The government says the find could unlock a new era of economic prosperity, job creation, and infrastructure development. “This gold could…
In spite of the economic hardship visibly biting its citizens, Nigeria has been notably excluded from the list of the world’s least happy countries, as 23 African nations featured in the bottom tier of the 2024 World Happiness Report. The report, which ranks 147 countries based on factors such as social support, income, health, freedom, generosity, and corruption, places Afghanistan at the bottom of the list. Among African countries, Sierra Leone (146), Malawi (144), Zimbabwe (143), Botswana (142), and DR Congo (141) are among the lowest-ranked. Other African countries featured include Comoros, Lesotho, Eswatini, Tanzania, Egypt, Ethiopia, Zambia, Madagascar, Liberia,…
The College of Agricultural, Consumer, and Environmental Sciences (ACES) at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign has announced an international education partnership with the International Federation of Agricultural Journalists (IFAJ), which aims to transform the future of food and agricultural communication. The collaboration formalizes the launch of a Certificate in Global Agricultural Communications, a flagship initiative of the proposed James F. Evans Global Center for Food and Agricultural Communications. The announcement was made during a ceremonial signing event attended by ACES Dean Germán Bollero and IFAJ Vice President Adalberto Rossi. The certificate will be delivered entirely online and made globally accessible.…
A kitchen staple in millions of Nigerian homes may soon get more expensive. Indonesia—the world’s largest producer of palm oil, has increased its export tax on crude palm oil (CPO) from 7.5% to 10%, effective May 17. This is in a move that could ripple across global markets, including Nigeria, which is its fifth-largest producer globally. The tax hike is part of Jakarta’s broader strategy to fund its expanding biofuel program and replant aging trees, many of which are no longer yielding optimally. It also reflects Indonesia’s growing focus on energy security and sustainability, as the country recently raised the…
The hard truth is, very few members of the National Assembly (NASS) returned to their communities after the elections to ask, “Why didn’t you vote?” They didn’t listen, didn’t ask, didn’t care. And now, they want to legislate our silence away. But democracy isn’t built on force. It’s built on trust. And right now, that trust is broken.
Imagine carrying a virus and not even knowing it. That’s the reality for millions of people worldwide living with human papillomavirus (HPV) — often without any visible symptoms. HPV is the most common sexually transmitted infection globally. While many types are harmless and go away on their own, some can cause warts, and others can lead to serious health problems like cervical and throat cancers. “Most people who have HPV don’t know they are infected.” – Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Let’s break down what to look out for and why it matters. Genital warts – often the…
The World Health Organization (WHO) has advised COVID-19 vaccine manufacturers to commence preparations for potential updates to vaccine formulations in advance of a critical review meeting scheduled for May 2025. The WHO’s Technical Advisory Group on COVID-19 Vaccine Composition (TAG-CO-VAC) continues to conduct rigorous monitoring of SARS-CoV-2 variant evolution, immune responses resulting from infection and vaccination, and vaccine effectiveness against currently circulating variants. Based on these ongoing assessments, the WHO provides authoritative guidance to vaccine manufacturers and regulatory bodies regarding necessary future modifications to the antigenic composition of COVID-19 vaccines. In preparation for the forthcoming deliberations, the WHO has specified…
The World Health Organization (WHO) has released its World Health Statistics 2025 report, revealing the profound and lasting impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on global health. According to the report, global life expectancy declined by 1.8 years between 2019 and 2021—the steepest drop in recent history—effectively reversing a decade’s worth of health gains. The report also highlights that increased levels of anxiety and depression linked to the pandemic reduced global healthy life expectancy by approximately six weeks. This erosion has effectively cancelled out much of the progress made in lowering mortality from noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) during the same period. Warning…