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Wednesday, 22 January 2025 04:23

Nigeria's public debt surges to N142.3trn amid currency pressures

In a significant development for its economy, Nigeria's total public debt reached N142.3 trillion by September 30, 2024, marking a 5.97 percent increase from June's N134.3 trillion. This rise, equivalent to N8.02 trillion, primarily reflects the impact of currency depreciation on the country's external obligations. Exchange Rate Impact on External Debt While external debt showed only a marginal increase in dollar terms - from $42.90 billion to $43.03 billion - the naira equivalent surged by 9.22 percent to N68.89 trillion. This dramatic rise in local currency terms stems from the naira's depreciation, with the exchange rate weakening from N1,470.19 to…

Wednesday, 22 January 2025 04:22

Nigeria’s hospitals may be empty of health professionals within two years, CMDs warn

Chief Medical Directors (CMDs) of University Teaching Hospitals and Federal Medical Centres (FMCs) in Nigeria have raised concerns over the alarming rate at which doctors, nurses, and other skilled health workers are leaving the country due to poor remuneration and working conditions. They warned that if this trend continues, tertiary healthcare facilities across the nation could face a severe workforce crisis within the next two years. The CMD of Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH), Wasiu Adeyemo, and the CMD of University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan, Jesse Abiodun, sounded this alarm during the 2025 budget defence session before the House of…

Wednesday, 22 January 2025 04:20

Environmental groups protest at planned return of oil drilling in Ogoniland

Nigerian environmentalists on Tuesday condemned a government plan to resume oil production in the restive Ogoniland, demanding a halt until meaningful talks with local communities are completed. Ogoniland, in Nigeria's coastal Rivers state, is a flashpoint for pollution in the oil-rich Niger River delta region where a $1 billion cleanup was launched in 2018 following a comprehensive 2011 United Nations Environmental Programme study. More than 20 groups, including Environmental Rights Action/Friends of the Earth Nigeria, Health of Mother Earth Foundation, and the Ogoni Solidarity Forum have criticised the plan, saying it disregards the environmental and social damage caused by decades…

Tuesday, 21 January 2025 04:42

Death toll from Niger state fuel truck explosion rises to 98

The death toll from a fuel truck explosion in Nigeria has climbed to 98 after additional bodies were recovered on Monday, according to the Niger state emergency agency. The blast occurred on Saturday in Dikko, Niger State, after a petrol truck overturned and ignited while people were gathering fuel from the wreckage. Abdullahi Baba-Ara, Director-General of the Niger State Emergency Management Agency, confirmed that 80 victims were buried in a mass grave near a health center in Dikko over the weekend. “After clearing the wreckage of the Dikko tanker, we discovered 12 more bodies today, raising the death toll to…

Monday, 20 January 2025 04:54

FG defends oil import licenses as Dangote Refinery output falls short

The Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) has defended its decision to issue petroleum import licenses to multiple companies, citing insufficient production from the Dangote Refinery to meet national demand. The regulatory body's position comes in response to a legal challenge by Dangote Refinery and Petrochemicals FZE, which sought to invalidate import licenses granted to the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) and several other oil companies. Dangote's lawsuit (FHC/ABJ/CS/1324/2024) alleged violations of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA). In a December 2024 counter-affidavit, NMDPRA senior regulatory officer Idris Musa emphasized several key points: Production Capacity: - Current Dangote Refinery…

Sunday, 19 January 2025 04:34

New sect that believes in neither Christianity nor Islam emerges in Northern Nigeria

A new sect, “ACHAD Life Mission International”, has begun operation in North West, Nigeria. The newly established sect is reportedly linked to human trafficking and child separation. According to the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), the sect has its headquarters in Kaduna, while its leader simply identified as “Mr. Yokana”, lives in Jos, Plateau State. In a circular dated January 14, 2025, the Principal Staff Officer to the Comptroller General of NIS, CIS A.A. Aridegbe, alerted Immigration officers of the development. The circular titled: “Emergence of a new sect known as ACHAD Life Mission International”, was distributed to all directorates, zones,…

Sunday, 19 January 2025 04:34

Petrol tanker explosion in Niger state claims over 70 lives

A devastating petrol tanker explosion in Dikko, Gurara Local Government Area of Niger State, has left at least 70 people dead and dozens injured. The incident occurred on Saturday when a fuel-laden tanker, carrying 60,000 liters of petrol, overturned and exploded, engulfing bystanders who had gathered to scoop the spilled fuel. Kumar Tsukwam, the Niger State Sector Commander of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), confirmed that the tanker, owned by HMY Oil and Gas, detached from its head while en route from Lagos to Gwagwalada in the Federal Capital Territory. Despite warnings from authorities, impoverished residents ignored the risks…

Saturday, 18 January 2025 04:38

FAAC: FG, states, LGAs share N1.4trn for December 2024

The Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) has distributed N1.42 trillion in revenue to Nigeria's three levels of government for December 2024. This allocation, drawn from a gross total of N2.31 trillion, represents a N300 billion increase from November's distribution of N1.72 trillion. The breakdown of the distribution, announced at FAAC's December meeting chaired by Finance Minister Wale Edun, is as follows: - Federal Government: N451 billion - State Governments: N498 billion - Local Governments: N361 billion - Oil-Producing States (13% derivation): N113.47 billion Additional allocations included N84.7 billion for collection costs and N801 billion for transfers, interventions, and refunds. Value…

Friday, 17 January 2025 04:32

Nigeria’s 36 governors counter Tinubu’s VAT sharing formula, propose alternative

The Nigeria Governors' Forum (NGF) has thrown its support behind the proposed tax reform bills currently at the national assembly, while proposing a different formula for sharing Value Added Tax (VAT) revenue from the one originally put forward by President Bola Tinubu. In a meeting held on January 16, 2025, between the NGF and the presidential tax reform committee, the governors endorsed a revised VAT sharing formula that differs significantly from the president's original proposal. The governors recommended distributing VAT revenue as follows: - 50% based on equality (distributed equally among states) - 30% based on derivation (where goods and…

Friday, 17 January 2025 04:30

ASUU warns Tax Reform Bill could threaten public university funding

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has raised serious concerns about the potential impact of the Nigeria Tax Bill 2024 on public tertiary education, warning that the proposed legislation could undermine the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund). Dani Mamman, ASUU's Yola Zone Coordinator, stated that the bill's provisions would redirect crucial funding away from TETFund, potentially destabilizing the public university system. "The future of public tertiary education in Nigeria hangs in the balance," he said, emphasizing that the proposed changes could significantly impair universities' operational capabilities. According to Mamman, the consequences could be far-reaching, potentially leading to declining academic…

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Thursday, 16 January 2025 05:00

Nigeria's inflation rate climbed to 34.8% in December, marking fourth consecutive rise

Nigeria's inflation rate continued its upward trajectory in December 2024, reaching 34.8% from 34.6% in November, according to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). This marks the fourth consecutive monthly increase since September 2024, further intensifying the nation's cost of living challenges. Key Findings The headline inflation rate saw a marginal increase of 0.20 percentage points compared to November, primarily driven by heightened demand during the festive period. On a year-over-year basis, this represents a significant 5.87 percentage point increase from December 2023's rate of 28.92%. Food Inflation Shows Mixed Signals Food inflation recorded a slight decline…

Thursday, 16 January 2025 04:59

With the N2.2trn ransom report ‘yanked off’, NBS website back online after hack

The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) website is back online, following 29 days of inaccessibility caused by a cyberattack. The bureau had confirmed the hack on December 18, 2024. While the website is now functional, a notable omission is the controversial “Crime Experience and Security Perception Survey,” which was previously available. The cyberattack occurred just 24 hours after the publication of the report, which detailed alarming crime statistics in Nigeria. The report revealed that Nigerians paid a staggering N2.23 trillion as ransom over the one-year period between May 2023 and April 2024. It also estimated that 51.89 million crime incidents…

Wednesday, 15 January 2025 04:36

CBN fines 9 banks ₦1.35bn over ATM cash shortages

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has imposed fines totaling ₦1.35 billion on nine deposit money banks (DMBs) for failing to ensure adequate cash availability at automated teller machines (ATMs) during the festive season. The penalized banks include Fidelity Bank, First Bank, Keystone Bank, Union Bank, Globus Bank, Providus Bank, Zenith Bank, United Bank for Africa (UBA), and Sterling Bank. Each bank was fined ₦150 million. In a statement released on Tuesday, Hakama Sidi Ali, Acting Director of Corporate Communications at the CBN, explained that spot checks conducted by the apex bank revealed violations of its cash distribution guidelines. Consequently,…

Wednesday, 15 January 2025 04:35

Nigeria Customs Service reports N6.1trn revenue collection in 2024

The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has announced revenue collection of N6.1 trillion for 2024, surpassing its target by N1.026 trillion. Comptroller General Adewale Adeniyi revealed these figures during a press briefing in Abuja on Tuesday, highlighting a 90.4% increase from the N3.2 trillion collected in 2023. The collection was broken down into three main components: - Federation accounts: N3.6 trillion - Non-federation account levies: N816.9 billion - Value-added tax: N1.6 trillion Notably, these results were achieved despite the government granting N1.68 trillion in concessions to support various economic sectors throughout 2024. Building on this, the federal government has set an…

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