Nigeria achieved a trade surplus of N3.42 trillion in the fourth quarter of 2024, according to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). The country's exports totaled N20.01 trillion while imports stood at N16.59 trillion during this period.

Total trade for Q4 2024 reached N36.6 trillion, representing a 2.20 percent increase compared to the N35.8 trillion recorded in the third quarter. More significantly, this figure marks a substantial 68.32 percent increase compared to the N21.75 trillion recorded in the corresponding period of 2023.

Exports accounted for 54.68 percent of total trade value in Q4 2024. While this represents a significant 57.67 percent increase over the value recorded in Q4 2023, exports decreased slightly by 2.55 percent compared to Q3 2024.

Crude oil remained the dominant export commodity, valued at N13.78 trillion and representing 68.87 percent of total exports. Non-crude oil exports were valued at N6.23 trillion, accounting for 31.13 percent of total exports, while non-oil products contributed N2.84 trillion or 4.20 percent of total exports.

The Netherlands emerged as Nigeria's top export destination in Q4 2024, receiving goods valued at N2.09 trillion (10.44 percent of total exports). Other major export destinations included France (N1.91 trillion or 9.54 percent), Spain (N1.74 trillion or 8.68 percent), India (N1.60 trillion or 7.98 percent), and Indonesia (N1.41 trillion or 7.03 percent). These five countries collectively accounted for 43.67 percent of Nigeria's total export value during the quarter.

On the import side, China maintained its position as Nigeria's leading trading partner, supplying goods worth N4.61 trillion (27.80 percent of total imports). Other significant import sources included India (N1.89 trillion or 11.43 percent), Belgium (N1.38 trillion or 8.35 percent), the United States (N1.05 billion or 6.33 percent), and France (N501 billion or 3.62 percent).​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

Following a violent attack by Nigerian Air Force (NAF) personnel on Ikeja Electricity Distribution Company (DisCo) last Thursday, 15 employees were hospitalized with injuries, while the company’s office remained deserted yesterday. Power has yet to be restored at the NAF base, and the incident has drawn widespread condemnation, including from the Nigeria Employers Consultative Association (NECA).

A senior Ikeja DisCo official, speaking anonymously for security reasons, confirmed that over 15 staff members were receiving treatment at undisclosed hospitals. He added that operations were partially halted, with the union advising employees to stay away if they felt unsafe. “Business is not fully operational. The union has asked members to stay home if they feel uncomfortable or unsafe,” he said.

Ikeja DisCo’s Chairman, Kola Adesina, revealed that the NAF’s N4 billion debt has severely impacted the company’s operations. Despite seven years of negotiations, the debt remains unpaid. “We are owed about N4 billion, and this has created significant liabilities on our balance sheet, pushing us to the brink of bankruptcy,” Adesina stated. He emphasized that as a distribution company, Ikeja DisCo is responsible for remitting funds to gas suppliers, the Transmission Company of Nigeria, and other stakeholders, making the unpaid debt a critical issue.

The attack, triggered by a two-week power outage at the NAF base, left Ikeja DisCo’s headquarters in Alausa, Lagos, eerily quiet. Only a handful of staff reported for duty, with many still traumatized by the invasion. Employees recounted being brutalized, with laptops, phones, and installation equipment stolen during the chaos. One female staff member, who requested anonymity, described the invasion as terrifying. “I thought we were under attack by armed thugs. I fell and sustained bruises, and some colleagues sprained their ankles. The physical and emotional pain is still fresh,” she said.

Ikeja DisCo’s Public Relations Officer, Kingsley Okotie, confirmed that he and many colleagues were still recovering from injuries. “I’m limping and receiving medical treatment. The office is nearly empty because people are scared and traumatized. We’ve advised those affected to seek medical help rather than force themselves to return to an unsafe environment,” he said. Okotie also confirmed that power had not been restored to the NAF base, as critical equipment was stolen during the attack.

NECA condemned the incident, calling it a threat to Nigeria’s democratic governance and investment climate. In a statement, NECA’s Director General, Adewale-Smatt Oyerinde, urged the federal government to establish a committee to review electricity debt profiles across military bases and ensure prompt payment. “This attack is unlawful and undermines the progress made in democratic governance. It sends a wrong signal to domestic and foreign investors,” the statement read.

NECA also called for immediate government intervention to settle the NAF’s debt and restore power to the base. “Ikeja Electric is a private entity with over 2,600 employees. It has the right to demand payment for services rendered and suspend services for non-payment. The federal government must act swiftly to prevent such incidents from recurring,” the statement added.

The attack has raised concerns about the safety of private businesses and their employees, as well as the broader implications for Nigeria’s investment environment. Stakeholders are urging the government to address the underlying issues to prevent future occurrences.

WESTERN PERSPECTIVE

Ukrainian forces fighting inside Russia are almost surrounded, open source maps show

Thousands of Ukrainian troops who stormed into Russia's Kursk region last summer in a shock incursion are nearly surrounded by Russian forces there, in a major blow to Kyiv which hoped to use its presence there as leverage over Moscow in any peace talks.

Ukraine's situation in Kursk has deteriorated sharply in the last three days, open source maps show, after Russian forces retook territory as part of a gathering counteroffensive that has nearly cut the Ukrainian force in two and separated the main group from its principal supply lines.

The precarious situation for Ukraine comes after Washington suspended its intelligence sharing with Kyiv and raises the possibility that its forces may be forced into a politically awkward and psychologically difficult retreat back into Ukraine, or risk being captured or killed.

The battlefield reversal comes at a time when Kyiv is under mounting U.S. pressure to agree a ceasefire with Moscow and as Russian forces continue to advance along parts of the front line inside Ukraine, even as Ukrainian forces stage a fightback in one area.

"The situation (for Ukraine in Kursk) is very bad," Pasi Paroinen, a military analyst with the Finland-based Black Bird Group, told Reuters.

"Now there is not much left until Ukrainian forces will either be encircled or forced to withdraw. And withdrawal would mean running a dangerous gauntlet, where the forces would be constantly threatened by Russian drones and artillery," he said.

"If Ukrainian forces are not able to restore the situation quickly, this could be the moment where the Kursk salient begins to finally close into an encircled pocket."

There was no official confirmation of the Russian thrust from the Russian Defence Ministry or the Ukrainian military, both of which tend to report battlefield changes with a delay.

Yan Matveev, another military analyst, said on Telegram that Ukraine had a difficult choice to make.

"The only argument in favour of holding the bridgehead is political. To use the remnants of the bridgehead for bargaining. And also a little morale - after all, a retreat is a retreat...," he said.

TAKING WAR TO RUSSIA

Ukraine's incursion into Kursk last August was the most serious attack on Russian territory since the Nazi invasion of the Soviet Union in 1941 and was designed to bring the war to ordinary Russians, whom the Kremlin had tried to shield from the fallout from the fighting raging inside Ukraine.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said it was also aimed at trying to ease pressure on Ukrainian troops defending their own country from Russian forces in the east by forcing Moscow to divert resources to defend its own territory, and at giving Kyiv a potential bargaining chip in future peace talks.

The incursion was embarrassing for Moscow and raised uncomfortable questions about its ability to protect its own borders. Russian President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly said his forces would regain full control of Kursk by force and rejected any idea of making it part of wider future talks.

Open source mapping from Deep State, an authoritative Ukrainian military blogging resource, showed on Friday that around three-quarters of the Ukrainian force inside Russia had now been almost completely encircled.

It showed they were joined to the remaining Ukrainian force located closer to the Russian border by a land corridor around 1 km long and less than 500 metres wide at its narrowest point as Russian forces move to cut that off too.

Deep State said late on Thursday that Russian forces had advanced near the nearby settlement of Kuryilovka. In an update released on Friday it also said that Russian forces were pressuring Ukraine's positions in the border area with Sumy region as part of the same operation and moving to try to block supplies to Ukrainian forces inside Kursk.

"It is worth noting that the enemy has an advantage in UAVs (drones), both reconnaissance and strike. The most commonly used is the FPV drone. They are mainly responsible for fire control of everything that moves ‘in’ or ‘out’ of Kursk region," Deep State said in its note.

Yuri Podolyak, an influential Russian war blogger, said Russian forces had broken through south of Sudzha, a Russian town located inside the nearly surrounded pocket.

"The Russian Armed Forces have driven a deep wedge (up to 4 kilometres deep) and actually reached the alternative supply route to Sudzha (which the enemy was using because the main road could not be used)," Podolyak wrote on his Telegram channel.

Ukraine's General Staff said on Friday that its armed forces had repelled 32 Russian attacks in the Kursk region over the past day.

RUSSIAN PERSPECTIVE

Russia hits Ukrainian energy sites

Russian forces have carried out a series of strikes on Ukrainian energy sites on Friday, the Defense Ministry has said in its daily briefing. 

According to the MOD, a “group strike” targeted “gas and energy infrastructure that powers the military-industrial complex of Ukraine.” Long-range missiles and drones were used in the barrage. 

Ukrainian Energy Minister German Galushchenko wrote on Facebook that “the energy and gas infrastructure in different Ukrainian regions has been hit by massive missiles and drone strikes.” 

The authorities were responding with “necessary measures to stabilize the energy and gas supply.”

Ukraine’s national gas and oil company Naftogaz said in a short statement that its gas-extracting facilities have been damaged. Officials in the northern Chernigov Region and the western regions of Ternopol and Ivano-Frankovsk reported local power outages from strikes on “critical industrial sites.”

The local authorities in the eastern Poltava Region said that “the fragments of an enemy projectile” fell on a house, injuring three people. 

Russia first ramped up strikes on energy infrastructure in response to the Ukrainian bombing of the long bridge that connects Crimea with mainland Russia in October 2022.

In April 2024, President Vladimir Putin said that Russian forces were hitting energy facilities in response to Ukrainian attacks on Russian soil. “We have seen a series of strikes on our energy sites and were forced to retaliate,” he said.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Friday that the strikes were directed at “sites linked to the production of weapons in Ukraine.”

Reuters/RT

Rates of obesity and overweight are spiralling due to a "monumental societal failure" to tackle the problem, with more than half of adults and almost a third of children and young people set to be affected by 2050, according to a new study.

That represents more than 3.8 billion adults and 746 million children and adolescents, research published in The Lancet said.

Obesity is associated with an increased risk of serious health problems like diabetes, some cancers, and heart disease.

"The unprecedented global epidemic of overweight and obesity is a profound tragedy and a monumental social failure," said lead author Professor Emmanuela Gakidou from the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington in the U.S.

The team, part of the Global Burden of Disease Study BMI Collaborators, used data from 204 countries and territories to come up with their estimates and project what could happen in future without action.

Rates of overweight and obesity have already more than doubled over the past three decades, with more than 2.1 billion adults and 493 million young people aged 5-24 years affected as of 2021, they said.

While the reasons for obesity were complex, governments should use the estimates to focus in on how to help populations most at risk, researchers said, particularly around improving access to healthy diets.

The study, funded by the Gates Foundation, had limitations, including data gaps and the use of body mass index as a marker. It also did not take into account the potential impact of obesity drugs, which have seen huge demand in richer countries where they are available, the researchers said.

The picture varies globally, but the researchers said an accelerated rise in obesity among young people and the rise in low- and middle-income countries where health systems cannot cope with the coming disease burden were particularly worrying.

That includes a projected 250% increase in rates of overweight and obesity in sub-Saharan Africa. The rise, to 522 million adults and 200 million children and young people, is driven partly by population growth.

A separate study published on Monday, the World Obesity Atlas from the World Obesity Federation, also raised this issue.

"The most affected regions are developing countries," said Simon Barquera, president of the Federation.

The Obesity Atlas suggested that 79% of adults and 88% of children with obesity and overweight will be living in low- and middle-income countries by 2035, and only 7% of all countries have adequate health systems in place to deal with this.

"It's really one of the main public health challenges around the world," Barquera added.

Reuters

The Nigerian Senate has suspended Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, representing Kogi Central, for six months without pay following a heated dispute with Senate President Godswill Akpabio over seating arrangements and her allegations of sexual harassment against him. The suspension, which took effect on March 6, 2025, has sparked widespread condemnation from legal experts, opposition parties, and civil society groups, who argue that the decision undermines due process and justice.

The controversy heightened after Akpoti-Uduaghan accused Akpabio of sexual harassment during an interview on Arise Television on February 28, 2025. She claimed that the Senate President had made unwanted advances toward her and was frustrating her legislative duties after she rejected his alleged advances. Akpabio has vehemently denied the allegations, stating that he has never sexually harassed anyone in his life. He also revealed that he attended Akpoti-Uduaghan’s wedding and shared a close relationship with her husband, Emmanuel Uduaghan, adding that he even slept at the Dangote cement factory in Kogi State during her wedding due to logistical challenges.

The Senate referred Akpoti-Uduaghan’s allegations to the Committee on Ethics, Privileges, and Public Petitions for investigation. However, the committee found her guilty of violating Senate rules and recommended her suspension, citing her refusal to attend the investigative hearing to defend herself. The committee’s report, presented by its chairman, Neda Imasuen (LP, Edo South), proposed a six-month suspension, withdrawal of her salary and security details, and a ban on her representing the Senate domestically and internationally during the suspension period. The Senate adopted the recommendations after a voice vote, despite Akpoti-Uduaghan’s protest that “this injustice will not be sustained” before her microphone was cut off.

Akpoti-Uduaghan’s legal counsel, Victor Giwa, has condemned the suspension as illegal, citing a court order that restrained the Senate from taking further action on the matter pending the determination of a motion on notice. Giwa argued that the Senate’s decision violated the Nigerian Constitution, which guarantees every citizen the right to seek redress in court when their civil rights are breached. He revealed that legal action would be taken against those responsible for disregarding the court order and vowed to challenge the suspension in court.

The Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) and opposition parties have also criticized the Senate’s handling of the case. The Chairperson of the NBA Women Forum, Huwaila Muhammad, described the suspension as an act of intimidation and called for a fair hearing. Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and Labour Party presidential candidate Peter Obi expressed concern over the Senate’s decision, with Atiku describing it as an attack on affirmative action and gender inclusivity. The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the Labour Party have called for an independent investigation into the sexual harassment allegations and urged the Senate to reconsider the suspension.

As the legal battle unfolds, the case has drawn significant public attention, with many questioning the Senate’s commitment to justice and due process. Akpoti-Uduaghan’s suspension has not only highlighted the challenges faced by women in Nigerian politics but also raised concerns about the integrity of the legislative process. The outcome of the court case and the Senate’s next steps will be closely watched as the nation grapples with the implications of this high-profile controversy.