Amnesty International has reported that at least 24 protesters were killed and 1,200 others arrested during the recent #EndBadGovernance protests in Nigeria. The nationwide demonstrations, which lasted from August 1 to August 10, were driven by widespread frustration over the country’s economic hardship and governance issues. The protests, initially peaceful, turned violent in several regions, with security forces reportedly using teargas and live ammunition against demonstrators and journalists. Cases of looting and vandalism of both public and private property were also reported, particularly in some northern states. In a report titled “Bloody August: Nigerian Government’s Violent Crackdown on #EndBadGovernance Protests,”…

The British government earned over N40 billion processing visas for Nigerian nationals between June 2023 to the same month in 2024. According to Marc Owen, director of visa, status and information services at UK visas and immigration, at least 225,000 UK visa applications from Nigeria were processed in the period under review. Owen spoke at the launch of Africa’s biggest UK visa application centre (VAC) in Lagos. “In the year to June 2024, we processed more than 225k UK visas for Nigerian nationals across all categories and this new partnership demonstrates our continued commitment to ensuring our visa services are…

Professor Benedicta Madunagu, a pioneering feminist, revolutionary socialist, human rights activist, and distinguished botanist, passed away on November 26, 2024, in Calabar, Cross River State, Nigeria, at the age of 77. A lifelong committed revolutionary and scholar, Comrade Bene (as she was fondly called) was a prominent figure in the Nigerian Left, dedicated to social justice, gender empowerment, and progressive political transformation. She was a professor of Botany at the University of Calabar and co-founder of the influential Girls' Power Initiative (GPI), an organization committed to girls' and young women's empowerment. Born in Afaha-Essang, Akwa Ibom State, Professor Madunagu's academic…

The Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited has reported that the rehabilitated old Port Harcourt refinery is now operating at 70% of its installed capacity, with plans to increase production to 90% in the near future. The refinery, which has a capacity of 60,000 barrels per stream day, has resumed operations after years of challenges and underwent significant repair work. NNPC began truck loading of petroleum products on Tuesday, 26 November, and is currently producing a range of daily outputs including: - 1.4 million litres of blended petrol - 900,000 litres of kerosene - 1.5 million litres of diesel -…