Author: Newsdesk

Amb. Joseph Sacko, Commissioner for Agriculture, Rural Development, Blue Economy and Sustainable Environment (ARBE) on Thursday stressed the need for building resilient food systems in Africa in the post Coronavirus (COVID-19) era. Sacko said this at the virtual inaugural briefing within the framework of the ongoing 35th Ordinary Session of the AU-Summit, which started from February 2 to 3, in in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. She explained that ARBE comprises two directorates namely: the Directorate for Agriculture and Rural Development, as well as Directorate of Blue Economy and Sustainable Environment in the department of the AU. According to her, the directorates…

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Nigerian government says the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC) had tracked 2,000 projects worth over N300 billion, between 2019 and 2021, through its Constituency and Executive Projects Tracking Initiative. The Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed disclosed this, in Abuja, while briefing the media on the giant strides of the President Muhammadu Buhari’s Administration in the anti-corruption fight. Mohammed said during the same period, 326 contractors, who abandoned projects across the six geo-political zones, were forced by the Commission to return to site, to complete projects worth N32.183 billion. He said that the ICPC’s Assets Tracing, Recovery and Management…

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The current democratic transition in West Africa started in the early 1990s. At the formal level, it led to the establishment of constitutional rule and the operation re-establishment of a multi-party systems. The problem is that democratic transition requires a more profound socio-political transformation that allows freely elected rulers and the majority of the civil population to impose their supremacy over ruling oligarchies of the military or civilian ethno-regional cabals that had been in power for decades. The did not happen in most of our countries. The end goal which was to have been the development of a democratic political…

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By Lizzy Carr, Bauchi The Centre for Information Technology and Development (CITAD) has described  misinformation about COVID-19 vaccine as hindrance to vaccine uptake. The Coordinator, Public Education on COVID-19 Vaccine Project at CITAD, Hamza Ibrahim stated this on Thursday at a press conference to share key hindrances to COVID-19 vaccination exercise identified in six states of the project implementation. CITAD with support from MacArthur Foundation is implementing a “Public Education on COVID-19 Vaccine” in six states of the north that include Bauchi, Borno, Kaduna, Kogi, Kano and Plateau. “The project is aimed at creating awareness around COVID-19 vaccine with a…

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The Nigerian government has announced that it discovered 96 sponsors of Boko Haram terrorists and the Islamic State of West Africa Province (ISWAP). The Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed who made the disclosure during a press conference in Abuja on Thursday, said the “Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU), in 2020-2021, revealed 96 financiers of terrorism in Nigeria,” while 424 associates and supporters of the financiers were also uncovered. He added that 123 companies and 33 Bureau de Change were linked to terrorists in addition to 26 suspected bandits/kidnappers and seven co-conspirators who have now been identified. “The analysis…

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A number of persons on Thursday sustained various degrees of injuries as protest over the use of Hijab thickened in Oyun Baptist High School, Ijagbo, in Oyun local government area of Kwara. A man in his early 20s was seen being rushed to a nearby hospital after he was reportedly shot at. The use of Hijab had generated controversy in some missionary schools in the state over the past few months. The state government had on January 25, restated its policy and directed management of schools in the state to allow the use of Hijab by willing Muslims without forcing…

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By Babagana Wakil, Maiduguri Borno state governor, Babagana Zulum and his Gombe state counterpart, Inuwa Yahaya on Wednesday, attended the inauguration of the Presidential Committee on the Repatriation, Return and Resettlement of refugees and Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in the North-East of Nigeria by President Muhammadu Buhari. Presidential spokesman, Femi Adesina, said in a statement that during the inauguration, Buhari commended Governor Babagana Umara Zulum for his unparalleled commitment to his people and exemplary leadership. He also spoke highly of Governor Yahaya. Buhari, the statement added, gave assurance that the North East will, in the coming months, witness a change…

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President Muhammadu Buhari says Nigerians in the North East will, in the coming months, witness a change from the protracted insurgency to peace and development in their respective communities. The president stated this at the inauguration of the Presidential Committee on the Repatriation, Return and Resettlement of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in the North-East, which preceded the weekly Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting. According to him, the administration is embarking on a revised approach to addressing the 13-year conflict and insurgency in the region and will not relent in efforts towards a return to peace and normalcy. “At the advent…

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The Northern Emancipation Network, (NEN) has blamed what it called, incessant mediocre attempts to diminish the image of Professor Rufai Abubakar, the current Director General of the National Intelligence Agency (NIA), on certain interests who would rather see the continuation of unprofessionalism and decay in the NIA. A statement signed by NEN’s National Secretary, Suleiman Abbah said the DG’s traducers, actively sponsored by a fugitive former Spy Chief of the NIA, have resorted to unjustifiably accusing him of committing every sin under the sun, including the sanctioning of an errant Radio Programme by a competent body other than the NIA.…

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The Senate Committee on Petroleum Resources (Upstream) has commended the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd) for repositioning the Nigerian oil and gas industry into a competitive business environment. The Chairman of the Committee, Sen. Bassey Akpan, gave the commendation when he led its members on an oversight visit to the NNPC Towers in Abuja. Akpan, according to a statement by Garba Muhammad, Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division, NNPC, on Wednesday, also pledged support for frontier exploration. He said the visit offered the lawmakers the opportunity to have first-hand information about Management’s actions in transitioning from a…

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