Special Reports

Standard Chartered Plc had a wild 2023 with Nigeria’s volatile currency as the African nation struggled with foreign-exchange rules to attract investment from overseas and boost the supply of dollars. The London-based lender, in its corporate filings last week, said it made almost $120 million in a single day on June 1, in anticipation of new policies including an impending naira devaluation. By November, its position whipsawed as it made around $40 million only to lose more than $20 million later after the government announced a crackdown on the black market, where the US dollar at one point commanded a…
The brains of men and women operate differently, scientists have shown for the first time in a breakthrough that shows sex does matter in how people think and behave. ‌The issue of whether male and female brains are distinct has proven controversial, with some academics arguing it is society – rather than biology – that shapes divergence. ‌There has never been any definitive proof of difference in activity in the brains of men and women, but Stanford University has shown that it is possible to tell the sexes apart based on activity in “hotspot” areas. ‌They include the “default mode…
With inflation nearing 30% and its currency hitting an all-time low, Nigeria is facing one of its worst economic crises in years. The latest data from the National Bureau of Statistics on Thursday showed that the headline consumer price index (CPI) rose to 29.9% year-on-year in January, its highest level since 1996. The surging cost of living and economic hardship sparked protests across the country over the weekend. With annual inflation nearing 30% and a currency in freefall, Nigeria is facing one of its worst economic crises in years, provoking nationwide outrage and protests. The Nigerian naira hit a new…
Nigeria’s households and businesses are going through very difficult times as a result of the continued escalation of cooking gas, diesel and other resources. This becomes unbearable as their incomes have not experienced any meaningful increase in the past few years, which also recorded a significant drop in the value of the Naira, currently going for N1,515/$ at the official market. A market survey by Energy Vanguard, weekend, indicated that the price of cooking gas (12.5kg) that was N11, 250 in December 2023, has risen to N15, 000, indicating an increase of 33.3 per cent. Similarly, the price of diesel…
This is not the best of times for Nigerian families, who have had to adopt bizarre cost-cutting measures to cope with the recent hardship occasioned by the dramatic hike in the prices of goods and services. Several of them lamented that their income could no longer take care of their daily needs, adding that the prices of staples had almost tripled in the market. Rice, which is arguably one of the commonest consumed staples in the country, has risen to N77,000 per bag. In December, the National Bureau of Statistics stated that the country’s inflation rate hit a 27-year high…
Like every other sector, the building and construction industry may be witnessing one of its worst moments, as exchange rate, building materials, and labour prices have triggered an increase in construction costs by 200 per cent in the last two years. Nigeria’s inflation rate as of December 2023 climbed to 28.9 per cent. The recent upsurge in inflation is primarily linked to the effects of petrol subsidy removal and the devaluation of the official exchange rate, both exerting substantial impacts on consumer prices. The exchange rate crisis has worsened the woes of the building sector. The direct effect of exchange…
Philippa Kelly ‘I don’t sweat the small stuff any more’ Mari Isdale, 40, Greater Manchester, England In 2015, Isdale, then 31, was diagnosed with stage four bowel cancer and given 18 months to live. Despite a period of remission and 170 rounds of chemotherapy, the disease has since spread to her lymph nodes. I always thought, “I’ll get my career sorted, then we’ll get married, have children, go travelling.” And then cancer happened. You grieve for your future self. Your imagined children and your career. If I died tomorrow, what I’d be saying on my deathbed is I regret not…
Civil society groups, under the aegis of the Civil Society Joint Action Group, said 17,469 Nigerians were abducted under the Muhammadu Buhari and Bola Tinubu administrations from 2019 to date. Addressing a press conference in Abuja on Monday, the Civil Society Joint Action Group, revealed that 2,423 persons had been killed, while 1,872 others had been abducted since the inauguration of President Tinubu. Speaking on behalf of the group, the Executive Director of the Civil Society Legislative and Advocacy Centre, Auwal Musa Rafsanjani, said insecurity had persisted over the last three administrations, with 24,816 Nigerians killed and 15,597 persons abducted…
The Red Sea, a vital shipping lane, is under attack – what are the alternatives? You can see exactly where the drone attack hit. Just look for the grisly black scorch marks staining the ship's white paint. On 17 January, the MV Genco Picardy, a US-owned bulk carrier, became the latest victim of Houthi rebel assaults on commercial ships sailing through the Red Sea. One of the world's busiest shipping lanes is now, surely, the most dangerous. Since November, Yemen's Houthi rebel group has targeted vessels passing through the strait of Bab al-Mandab, a 20 mile (32km) wide channel that…
Many citizens are taking to self-help to combat the recent spike in kidnapping and killings across the country, especially in the urban centres. Some residents of the Federal Capital Territory as well as Taraba, Kaduna, Borno, Katsina and Plateau states, who spoke to our correspondents, said they were making life-changing adjustments, including forming neighbourhood guards and vigilantes, to be able to resist the criminals who had shattered their peace and caused them unprecedented loss. In the FCT alone, over 200 violent attacks have been recorded across the six area councils since President Bola Tinubu assumed office on May 29, 2023.…
February 11, 2025

Dangote Refinery nears full capacity milestone

Africa's largest oil refinery is set to achieve full operational capacity within a month, according…
February 01, 2025

Tinubu targeting opposition, not corruption — Atiku

Former Vice President and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, has criticized the…
February 09, 2025

USAID: Here’s a list of the most insane things the agency spent money on

It’s been an exciting week, as Elon Musk and the DOGE have exposed the United…
February 08, 2025

Mayor loses re-election race to his personal driver’s wife

The mayor of Berezovsky shockingly lost the recent local elections to a “puppet candidate” who…
February 09, 2025

Oil theft: ‘Thieves in military uniforms will not deter thieves in civilian uniforms’, N’Delta leaders…

Former Provost Marshal of the Nigerian Army, Brigadier General Idada Ikponmwen (retd.), Udom Ekpoudom, Deputy…
February 11, 2025

Here’s the latest as Israel-Hamas war enters Day 494

Trump says ceasefire should be canceled if hostages aren't released by Saturday: 'Let all hell…
February 09, 2025

Elon Musk put a chip in this paralysed man’s brain. Now he can move things…

Jeney Kleeman Noland Arbaugh’s life changed in a fraction of a second in June 2016.…
January 08, 2025

NFF appoints new Super Eagles head coach

The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has appointed Éric Sékou Chelle as the new Head Coach…

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