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Sunday, 25 February 2024 04:56

Tinubu-led ECOWAS eats the humble pie, lifts sanctions on Niger, Mali, Burkina Faso after military-ruled countries withdrew membership

The West African regional bloc said on Saturday it would lift strict sanctions on Niger as it seeks a new strategy to dissuade three junta-led states from withdrawing from the political and economic union - a move that threatens regional integration. The decision to lift the sanctions was reached at the extraordinary summit of the ECOWAS held in Abuja on Saturday. The regional bloc also lifted sanctions on the Republic of Guinea-Bissau. The military junta in Mali took over power in August 2020 while soldiers in Burkina Faso overthrew the democratic government in September 2022. Also, soldiers in the Niger…

Sunday, 25 February 2024 04:55

Traders mop up foods items in Nigeria, sell across borders in Niger, Cameroon, others on massive Naira devaluation

Amid the free fall of the naira to the United States dollar, traders who deal in grains have devised a way to sell their wares to neighbouring countries for higher profits. Many of them, who spoke to our correspondents, claimed that they preferred to sell their wares to the countries because they had stronger currencies compared to the naira. This, several experts have said, may lead to hoarding and an artificial grain scarcity and can cause the price of the goods to further head north, thereby leading to a food crisis if nothing is done about it. This is coming…

Sunday, 25 February 2024 04:54

Hardship: Soldiers, police, others thwart attempts by desperate residents to loot Jos market

Security operatives including soldiers, police and Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Crops (NSCDC) have taken over the popular Yankalli Market, one of major commodity markets in Plateau State, following an attempt by desperate residents to break in to steal food and other essential commodities. The desperate people, including both males and females, arrived at the market around 8:00 pm on Friday but were intercepted by security operatives who had been deployed in anticipation of attack. Jamilu Kabiru, chairman of a traders’ association, confirmed the development, stating that they had earlier reported to security agencies. He said “We had heard on…

Saturday, 24 February 2024 04:32

CBN sets new guidelines, capital requirements for BDCs

Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has released guidelines for the sale of foreign exchange (Forex) by Bureau De Change (BDC) operators within the country. CBN said the guidelines will enhance the regulatory framework for the operations of BDCs as part of the ongoing reforms of the Nigerian foreign exchange market. The apex bank disclosed this on Friday in a document titled ‘Revised Regulatory and Supervisory Guidelines for Bureau De Change Operations in Nigeria’. A BDC is a company licensed by the CBN to carry out only retail foreign exchange business in Nigeria. According to the CBN, the guidelines revise the…

Friday, 23 February 2024 04:48

Nigeria's economy grew 3.46% in Q4, 2023 - NBS

Nigeria's economy grew 3.46% in the fourth quarter, a similar pace as it did a year earlier, data showed on Thursday, as oil output picked up and government reforms to boost growth began to take effect. Gross domestic product grew quicker than in the two previous quarters of 2023. GDP grew 2.54% in the third quarter and 2.51% in the second. Growth in the final quarter of 2022 was 3.52% in annual terms. National Bureau of Statistics said full-year growth for 2023 was 2.74%. "The performance of the GDP in the fourth quarter of 2023 was driven mainly by the…

Friday, 23 February 2024 04:48

FG mulls halting cooking gas exports to end scarcity, crash price

Federal government has announced the suspension of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) exports. Ekperikpe Ekpo, minister of state for petroleum resources (gas) made this known on Thursday during an “Internal Stakeholders’ Workshop” in Abuja. He said the action is part of a deliberate attempt to increase the availability of LPG in the domestic market and lessen the financial strain on customers due to the hike in the price of the commodity. “We are interacting with critical stakeholders to ensure that there is no exportation of LPG. All LPG produced within the country will have to be domesticated. When this is done,…

Friday, 23 February 2024 04:46

FAAC: FG, states, LGs share N1.149trn for January 2024

Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) announced the distribution of N1.149 trillion in January 2024 revenue, marking an increase compared to December 2023. FAAC’s spokesperson, Bawa Mokwa, disclosed in a statement on Thursday that the amount was distributed among the Federal Government, States, and Local Government Councils. The N1.149 trillion in total distributable revenue comprised distributable statutory revenue of N463.079 billion, distributable Value Added Tax (VAT) revenue of N391.787 billion, Electronic Money Transfer Levy (EMTL) revenue of N15.922 billion and Exchange Difference revenue of N279.028 billion, according to a communiqué issued by FAAC. FAAC said that the total revenue of N2.068…

Friday, 23 February 2024 04:45

Hardship: Protesters disrupt flow of traffic on Kaduna-Abuja road, steal foodstuffs from trucks

Some hoodlums have disrupted a protest by fish vendors, and stolen food items from trucks stuck in traffic, along Kaduna road in Suleja area of Niger state. Confirming the development to our correspondent on Thursday, Sadiq Bala, a candidate of the Peoples Redemption Party (PRP) for the Suleja constituency, said the fish sellers were protesting the rapid increase in prices of fish. Bala said the fish vendors started the protest at about 10 am on Thursday. “It was fish sellers that started the protest before it was hijacked by aggrieved youths who turned it into a hardship demonstration,” he said.…

Thursday, 22 February 2024 05:05

We can’t buy food in Nigeria due to rising prices - WFP

The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) says it is reviewing its local food procurement and will buy food in Nigeria only in stable market conditions. According to a statement on Wednesday by the international organisation, the decision was made amid rising inflation and high food prices exacerbated by market speculation in Nigeria. On February 15, 2024, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) reported food inflation rate in January this year was 35.41 percent on a year-on-year basis. This is 11.1 percent points higher compared to 24.32 percent rate recorded in January 2023. According to the bureau, the rise in…

Thursday, 22 February 2024 05:04

Nigeria Immigration Service gets new Comptroller-General

President Bola Tinubu has approved the appointment of Kemi Nanna Nandap as the Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS). Ajuri Ngelale, presidential spokesman, who announced this in a statement on Wednesday, said the appointment is effective from March 1, 2024. “Nandap takes over from Mrs. Caroline Wura-Ola Adepoju, whose term in office expires on February 29, 2024. “Before her appointment as Comptroller-General, Nandap was the Deputy Comptroller-General in charge of the Migration Directorate of the Service. “The President anticipates that the new Comptroller-General will deepen the ongoing reforms in the service and create a robust mechanism for efficient and…

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Wednesday, 21 February 2024 02:59

Nigeria, Ghana to have slowest economic growth in West Africa 2024 - AfDB

The economies of Ghana and Nigeria are poised to see the slowest economic growth in 2024 when compared to their peers in the West African region. Overall, the West African region is expected to grow by 0.8% to 4.0% this year and 4.4% in 2025 according to the AfDB macro-economic performance outlook for 2024. African Development bank stated that aside Nigeria and Ghana, every other country in the sub-region is estimated to grow by at least 4% in 2024 with embattled Niger leading the pack at 11.2% followed by Senegal and Ivory Coast at 8.2% and 6.8% respectively. It stated,…

Tuesday, 20 February 2024 04:53

Naira crashes further at both official and parallel markets

The parallel section of the foreign exchange market recorded a new all-time low on Monday after the naira depreciated to N1,730 per dollar. The naira fell by 8.13 percent from N1,600/$ recorded on February 16, 2024. Currency traders at the street market quoted the buying price of the dollar at N1,700 and the selling price at N1,730 — leaving a profit margin of N30. “Customers are demanding for the dollars so much and it is affecting the market,” a black market trader known as Aliyu said. At the official window, the naira depreciated by 2.65 percent to N1,537.96/$ on February…

Tuesday, 20 February 2024 04:52

This is renewed ‘shege’, not renewed hope, protesters cry out in Oyo against hardship

Residents of Ibadan, the Oyo state capital, protested the economic hardship pervading the country. The protesters assembled and took off from Mokola axis on Monday morning. They wielded placards with inscriptions like: “End food hike and inflation”, “insecurity not our birthright”, “Mr President, this is not the hope, this is shege”. Videos making the rounds on social media showed a truck conveying some of the leaders of the protest. The Oyo state police command had warned that it would not tolerate a breakdown of law and order during protests. “The Oyo State Police Command wishes to inform members of the…

Monday, 19 February 2024 04:50

Tinubu’s economic policies responsible for current unprecedented hardship - Catholic Bishops

Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria (CBCN) has said the reform agenda of President Bola Tinubu has added to the plight of the citizens and worsening their conditions. President of the CBCN, Lucius Iwejuru Ugorji, said this at the formal opening of the 2024 First Plenary Assembly of the CBCN at the Catholic Secretariat of Nigeria (CSN) Resource Centre, Abuja, on Sunday. The programme had as its theme, ‘Synod on Synodality: Areas of Concern for the Church in Nigeria’. Ugorji said with the end of the fuel subsidy regime and the unification of the foreign exchange market, there has been a…

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