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The Lagos State Government, through the Ministry of Tertiary Education, Office of the Senior Special Assistant to the Governor on Students’ Union Affairs – Tertiary Education, has marked this year’s International Students’ Day with a charge for students to embrace entrepreneurship for them to be relevant in today’s world.

With the theme: ‘Empowering students as agents of innovation and change,’ the event had in attendance students and student leaders from tertiary institutions from across the state.

Speaking on the occasion, the Senior Special Adviser to the Governor on Students’ Union Affairs, Hon. Kappo Olawale Samuel, said International Students’ Day was historic and that it marked the struggle of students for better welfare.

‘This is a day celebrated globally to recognise students and the need to prepare them for the future.

We know that the society is changing rapidly and there is need for our youths to be ready for what would make them be able to compete globally. We brought Prof. Olufemi Obayori to deliver a lecture on entrepreneurship.

‘For the participants to take maximum advantage of the occasion, we brought some aides of the governor such as the SSA on Wealth Creation, SSA on Technical Education and others to also let the students know how they can benefit from the various programmes of the Lagos State government. These programmes are to make our students future ready. Moreover, they don’t need to wait until they graduate before they begin to start out as entrepreneurs,’ he said.

Olawale commended students and their leaders from within the state for their enthusiasm to learn from the resource persons brought to the event.

The Commissioner for Tertiary Education, Hon. Tolani Sule, represented by the Permanent Secretary in the ministry, Mr. Adeniran Kasali, said the Babajide Sanwo-Olu administration is ready to make youths in the state fully prepared for the future and is pursuing a number of programmes and policies to make that happen.

The Executive Secretary of the Lagos State Scholarship Board, Hon. Adaranijo Rasheedat, said the Board would not relent efforts at supporting students to make learning easier for them.

The Head of the Student Support Department of the ministry, Mrs Ibidapo-Obe Olubunmi, said the future is not abstract, as it is being shaped, refined and defined by actions being taken today.

The Vice Chancellor, Lagos State University, Prof. Ibiyemi Olatunji-Bello, represented by the Dean of Students Affairs, Dr Abatan Fatai, urged the students to see the need to prepare for the future.

Obayori who spoke on social entrepreneurship, said it was different from neoliberal entrepreneurship that focuses on rapacious acquisition of wealth.

He added that social entrepreneurship is rooted on social responsibility, solidarity and collective well being and urged students to go for it.

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has given the green light for the establishment of a N50-billion Presidential Catalytic Seed Fund, an intervention aimed at revitalising Nigeria’s seed industry, improving food security, and driving private-sector-led growth across the seed value chain.

Vice President Kashim Shettima announced the approval yesterday in Abuja at the opening of the eighth SeedConnect Africa Conference and Exhibition, which also coincided with the 50th anniversary celebration of the National Agricultural Seeds Council (NASC).

The Vice President also unveiled the Seeds for Renewed Hope Programme (S-RHP), which will serve as the engine room for the country’s new seed transformation agenda.

Shettima, who was represented by his Senior Special Adviser on Food Security, Dr. Kingsley Uzoma, said the fund would deliver significant socio-economic and environmental benefits while addressing long-standing structural challenges within the seed subsector.

The Vice President described seed as the first technology, the original data packet that determines the success or failure of the agricultural value chain.

As part of the programme’s rollout, government and private sector partners distributed improved varieties of rice, maize, and vegetable seeds to farmers.

The Nation learnt that the Federal Government aims to boost annual seed availability for key crops by 10 per cent from 2025 to 2027, in a bid to close the existing gap between seed demand and supply.

The N50 billion fund, which activates Section 45 of the NASC Act 2019, will support private-sector-led seed production, expand farmers’ access to certified seeds, and remove barriers slowing down the development of the seed industry.

Shettima also announced government’s plans to upgrade seed testing laboratories, intensify the crackdown on adulterated seeds, and increase youth and women participation in seed entrepreneurship.

The Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Senator Abubakar Kyari, described the seed sector’s 50-year history as a testament to Nigeria’s resilience and commitment to strengthening its agricultural foundation.

Reaffirming that quality seeds remain central to President Tinubu’s food security priorities, the minister said agriculture is the measure of Nigeria’s national resilience and a pillar of stability.

Kyari highlighted key achievements in the sector, including the expansion of the National Agricultural Growth Scheme-Agro-Pocket (NAGS-AP), increased wheat production across several states, the successful introduction of rain-fed wheat in Plateau State, the recapitalisation of the Bank of Agriculture (BoA) with N1.5 trillion, an additional N250 billion funding window, and the full activation of the National Agricultural Development Fund (NADF).

The minister noted that food prices have begun to ease in several commodity markets.

‘While we are not yet where we want to be, this positive trend confirms that we are moving in the right direction,’ he said

NASC’s Director-General, Fatuhu Muhammed, highlighted the agency’s transformation into a regional leader in seed regulation and digital seed traceability.

He cited major milestones, including the release of over 60 improved, climate-resilient seed varieties, the implementation of the Digital Seed Certification System, new guidelines on crop variety registration and third-party certification, and Nigeria’s expanding footprint in global seed bodies such as ISTA, UPOV, OECD schemes, and ECOWAS COASEM.

Muhammed announced that Nigeria exported more than 4,000 MT of certified seeds in 2023, earning over $8 million.

To celebrate NASC’s Golden Jubilee, the Council unveiled the Nigeria Seed Industry Book, the Seeds for Renewed Hope Programme, the Nigeria Seed System Strategy Document (supported by AGRA), and the official NASC 50th anniversary logo.

He added that the newly approved N50 billion fund, housed in the Bank of Industry with a 6% concessional interest rate, would significantly enhance breeding, early-generation seed supply, quality assurance, and commercial seed production over the next four years.

Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde yesterday made good his promise by visiting Ologuneru axis of the ongoing 110km Senator Rashidi Ladoja Circular Road project, to engage with property owners affected by the project.

The governor, at the engagement which lasted for hours, listened to representatives of the property owners, noting that his administration would not fail the people.

He said issues relating to the setback and development corridor would be resolved before the end of his tenure in 2027.

Makinde reiterated his position that the government would ensure adequate compensations were paid to property owners, noting that no house would be demolished without adequate compensation to the affected owner.

He said necessary adjustments would be made in areas affected by the project, adding that the 150 metres setback would not be exceeded in already developed areas.

He said the Circular Road was a rapid transfer network that must comply with the highway code for standard road setback.

Governor Makinde, who hailed the residents of the 38 communities affected by the project for cooperating with his administration to address the issues, said 10 people would be nominated from the affected property owners to form a committee that would work with the New Towns and Cities Development Authority, which was the authorised agency directly in charge of the Circular Road corridor.

Representatives of the property owners lauded Makinde as a compassionate leader. They appealed to him to intervene and bring lasting solution to the lingering matter.

The wife of Kebbi State Governor Hajiya Zainab Idris has urged parents not to withdraw their children reunited with them yesterday after nine days in captivity from school.

She spoke during the reunification of parents and pupils at the Government House in Birnin-Kebbi.

She expressed happiness that none of the girls was violated by their abductors during the traumatic days.

She added that the 24 girl had been taken to the hospital for medical checkup.

‘You must not deny them education because of this incident. They must go back. Government is already putting in place necessary measures for their safety,’ she said.

Governor Nasir Idris said the abduction of the Government Comprehensive Girls Secondary School Maga caused their parents, the people of the state and his government sleepless nights.

‘Since the pupils were taken by the bandits about nine days ago, the parents had been traumatised, but we thank God that it didn’t take long before the security personnel deployed to search for them were able to rescue them,’ he said.

They were brought to Birnin-Kebbi, the state capital, on Tuesday night from Bagega forest in Anka local government area of Zamfara State, where the abductors kept them.

The schoolgirls were then handed over to their parents by the governor.

Commissioner for Basic and Secondary Education, Halimatu Bande, said the period of the girls’ captivity was a trying period for the state.

‘We thank those who stood with us through this period and the security personnel who helped to rescue our girls,’ she said.

The Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), yesterday, lamented that at between 30 and 37 per cent, borrowing costs remain high for manufacturers, and this rate hinders production and reduces the manufacturing sector’s competitiveness.

MAN, therefore, called on the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to review downward the benchmark interest rate in subsequent meetings of its Monetary Policy Committee (MPC).

The Association said adopting a downward review of the rate will lessen the burden of high borrowing costs and incentivize long-term investments in manufacturing, particularly in capital-intensive sub-sectors.

MAN Director General Segun Ajaiyi-Kadir made this position known on Wednesday while reacting to the report of the 303rd meeting of the MPC held from November 24 -25, 2025.

The MPC had at the meeting agreed to retain the benchmark interest rate at 27.00 per cent that was fixed at its September meeting.

It also adjusted the Standing Facilities Corridor to +50 / -450 basis points around the MPR from +250/-250 basis points to encourage borrowing from the central bank, pushing commercial banks to lend more and reducing upward interest-rate volatility.

The cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) was also retained at 45 per cent for commercial banks and 16 per cent for merchant banks.

The Committee also retained the 75 per cent CRR on non-TSA public sector deposits to manage excess liquidity while maintaining the liquidity ratio at 30 per cent.

The Committee members expressed satisfaction with Nigeria’s macroeconomic stability, highlighting key improvements such as the continued slowdown in inflation, steady real output growth, a stable exchange rate, and stronger external reserves.

They particularly noted the accelerated pace of disinflation standing at 16.05 per cent in October 2025, the most significant in seven months, attributing this progress to sustained monetary tightening, increased capital inflows, a surplus in the current account, as well as moderating fuel prices, all of which have collectively eased the inflationary pressures.

Reacting, MAN said it appreciates the MPC’s decision to halt the increase in MPR and to maintain the 27.00 per cent fixed at the last meeting, including the decision to adjust the standing facilities corridor to enhance liquidity

Ajaiyi-Kadir, however, said MAN’s expects a further reduction in the rate to reduce the cost of borrowing for manufacturers.

He lamented that despite the reduction at the MPC’s last meeting, borrowing costs of 30 to 37 per cent remain high for manufacturers, which hinders production and reduces the competitiveness of the sector.

The MAN DG insisting that it is essential to reduce the cost of funds to encourage borrowing for expansion and investment.

He added that the emphasis on exchange rate stability and improved forex liquidity is also vital, as manufacturers rely on foreign exchange for imports.

He further stated that persistent high lending rates will further limit access to affordable credit for manufacturers, especially those within the Small and Medium Industries (SMI) cadre.

‘The situation is complicated with prevailing structural challenges like poor infrastructure, high logistics costs, inadequate electricity supply, high energy cost and insecurity that cumulatively raise production costs and weaken competitiveness,’ Ajaiyi-Kadir said.

He urged the CBN and other policymakers to continue to pursue policies that foster inclusive growth, incentivize manufacturing and address binding constraints limiting the performance of the sector.

‘The CBN should also strengthen handshake with fiscal authority to promote reforms capable of unlocking the full potential of the manufacturing sector.

CBN should consider additional policy instruments or incentives that facilitate credit flow to the real sector of the economy, especially the manufacturing sector,’ the MAN chief added.Top of FormBottom of Form

Ajaiyi-Kadir also urged closer collaborate between the Federal Government and CBN to stabilize the naira and manage external risks by monitoring the potential risk of capital flights because of the MPC’s corridor review that will push banks to lend more.

MAN also recommended the implementation of complementary fiscal measures that support industrial development and promote structural reforms especially in real sectors of the economy including Agricultural, Manufacturing and Energy sectors to further reduce inflationary pressure.

It also called for urgent resolution of the lingering spate of insecurity in the country, especially in agricultural and industrial zones to stabilize food supply and raw material inputs.

‘A secure environment is critical to food security, lower inflation rate and sustained industrial growth in both urban and rural areas,’ Ajaiyi-Kadir said.

He also urged CBN to monitor and evaluate the impacts of previous MPC decisions on credit access to the real sector to aid informed position at subsequent meetings.

Long before bandits preyed on schoolchildren, long before ransom notes began to read like market lists including palm oil, dried fish, onions, and yam tubers, Nigeria itself had been taken hostage.

Thus, what we now call an epidemic of abductions is merely the physical manifestation of captive Nigerianness: with our consciences bound, institutions gagged, and the citizenry caught between fraying morals and failing structures.

Truth is, the hostage crisis did not begin at gunpoint. It began in the dumbing down of Nigerian character; in the fragmentation of our family systems; in the erosion of public trust, and in the corruption that has become as ambient as the air we breathe.

Nigeria’s kidnap-for-ransom enterprise has matured into a grotesque industry, sprawling from forest corridors to the fringes of urban life. Between July 2023 and June 2024 alone, SBM Intelligence reports that 1,130 kidnapping incidents were recorded, involving no fewer than 7,568 victims.

In that period, abductors demanded N10.99 billion, but received only N1.048 billion, a mere 9.5 per cent of their outrageous demands. This gap reveals a frightening evolution: rather than targeting only business magnates, politicians, or oil barons, kidnappers have shifted their sights to the masses: to farmers, market women, students, commuters, villagers, minors, and the elderly.

Yet the absurdity has assumed darker shades. In one widely reported case in the South-West, kidnappers demanded N3.5 million plus a carton of Schnapps, 30 litres of palm oil, 10 tubers of yam, and a keg of vegetable oil before releasing three captives. Elsewhere, abductors have asked for cooking oil, dried fish, garri, power banks, phone chargers, items required to restock a household inventory rather than a ransom ledger.

This is what happens when criminality fuses with hunger; the consequence is a madness that confounds profit logic. It feeds, ultimately, an ever-widening maw of need.

Yet, beyond the abductions that dominate news cycles, Nigeria suffers from a deeper, subtler captivity. Every Nigerian, in some form, is a hostage: hostage to creed, weaponising faith to justify bigotry; hostage to ethnic and religious loyalties; hostage to greed, that turns public office into a private empire.

Many are hostage to hypocrisy, condemning loudly in public what they cuddle in private; hostage to poverty, which renders dignity an unaffordable luxury; hostage to materialism, chasing wealth with the desperation of a drowning man gasping for air.

Some are hostage to sexual lust, weaponising desire to destroy marriages, careers, and destinies; hostage to rage, exploding at the slightest provocation because Nigeria heats everyone, like a pressure cooker; hostage to daily needs, locked in a battle that yokes survival to the next meal.

Many more are hostage to imperialist agendas, gorging on colonist doctrines at the expense of indigenous wisdom. And perhaps most tragically, we are hostage to sentimentality, defending leaders who impoverish us, praising institutions that betray us, and romanticising the very dysfunctions that hold us captive.

Amid this moral malaise, corruption manifests as a social ill and a vehicle of national dysfunction. Recent 2023 data reveal that 32.3% of Nigerians reported personal experience with bribery while dealing with public officials. In total, an estimated 87 million bribes were exchanged that year-approximately 0.8 bribes per adult. Among those who admitted paying bribes, the average number paid within 12 months was 5.1.

The import is alarming: about US $1.26 billion in cash bribes changed hands in 2023; that is roughly 0.35% of Nigeria’s GDP.

The citizen pays bribes to secure what is already his by right. The official extracts bribes to perform what he is already paid to do. And the system, greased by these transactions, chugs out detritus of misgovernance.

To mend all that we have broken, we must rejig our cultural foundations. No society reforms itself without reshaping its stories; the narratives it consumes often become the beliefs it normalises, and the beliefs it normalises form the culture it lives by.

Essentially, patriotism thrives on cultural standards. The politics we espouse and our lore of nationhood manifest the kernel of our sovereignty. A similar dynamic undergirds our politico-literary traditions. Politics thrives on artistic vistas and vice versa.

What shouldn’t we do for an evergreen story? What shouldn’t we give? The evergreen story, if progressively spun, yields fresh insights through the imagination of the writer or filmmaker, who milks history and recalibrates reality to espouse a positive national lyric.

What is the Nigerian lyric? What is our reality? What do our artists project about us to our internal and external publics? Filmmakers, for instance, possess a critical tool: storytelling. But too often, this instrument is pointed inward to glamorise crime, trivialise trauma, and distort our image in the pursuit of box office glory. A recent film, for instance, irresponsibly romanticised kidnap-for-ransom while maligning Islam, thus reinforcing stereotypes that worsen social fissures. This is artistic sabotage masquerading as creativity.

It’s about time the government partnered with filmmakers to produce hard-hitting political thrillers, social dramas, and moral epics that diagnose Nigeria’s ailments and offer a path to healing.

Hollywood perfected this strategy decades ago. Between 1911 and 2017, over 800 feature films received support from the U.S. Department of Defence. More than 1,100 television titles enjoyed Pentagon backing. These ranged from Iron Man and Transformers to Homeland, 24, NCIS, and others.

The United States’ democratic enterprise is one of the most profitable constructions via art, in its bid to ‘make America great again,’ at any cost. It is both music and philosophy, a sensory stream of thought feeding generations of writers, political activists, filmmakers, politicians, gender rights activists, academia, and so on.

Hollywood, democracy and foreign aid do for America what painting and sculpture did for the Italians. They are potent tools for wooing and recolonising the world. Also, both China’s and South Korea’s cultural ascents were deliberately constructed around cinematic narratives aligned with national philosophy. Likewise, Nigeria must birth an artistic movement that elevates, not erodes, the collective psyche. The country’s creative economy stands at an inflection point. With projections estimating a leap from $5 billion in 2022 to $25 billion by the end of 2025, there is an undeniable hunger for indigenous storytelling. Yet, economic prosperity must not overshadow ideological direction.

Nigeria must fuse state power with cultural influence to dismantle the criminal economy, using cinema, storytelling, and public-facing art to drive awareness while strengthening intelligence systems with drones, satellite surveillance, digital tracking, and community-powered reporting tools that predict and prevent abductions.

The government, in partnership with the creative sector, must spotlight the importance of state policing, securing forest corridors and rural communities, using film, radio dramas, and digital content to mobilise public vigilance, while a national forest security command, integrated with trained community vigilante units, constrains bandits’ operations.

Through socially conscious art and nationwide cultural programming, the government must help citizens understand that no crime thrives where jobs, education, and social welfare exist, and the government must walk in virtual lockstep with what it preaches.

A nation’s heart beats in its stories. A country without a socially responsible literary and artistic community is a body without a soul. Our filmmakers must move beyond the monotonous tropes of gender wars, feminist-misandrist vendetta-laden plots. Our novelists must cease writing solely for Western patronage and pity.

Shall we script a new national narrative? One that does not lament Nigeria but reimagines her. One that does not beg for Western approval but commands global reverence.

It’s about time we resolved the maladies that make the Nigerian dream the fantasy of thieves, kidnappers, and blinkered murderers.

Dancer and reality TV star Liquorose has disclosed her enduring passion for music, stating that she had always aspired to be a musician.

In an interview with media personality, VJ Adams, Liquorose revealed that she was actively pursuing a music career prior to her participation in the Big Brother Naija show.

She said, ‘I love music too much. I’ve always wanted to be a musician. Yeah, I’ve been recording. There was a time when I was always in the studio before I went for BBNaija show. I was very hungry with music.’

Liquorose further stated that while she currently feels comfortable about acting, she still has a strong desire for music.

She added, ‘I know that feeling because I’m a poet and I write. If the music isn’t sounding like that, I know I could do better. And I work with writers as well now and stuff. I wanted to ignore music because I’m like I love acting.

‘Acting is like my safest place right now. I’m comfortable, I can act till like I’m 80 or 70 years old. But the urge to make music remains strong. But you see music, there’s a side of me that people have not seen. And it’s my music side.

‘And one thing I need people to know is that the sound won’t just be for you to dance. It’s going to touch you. I can do dancehall, I can rap if I want to, because I write poems. I can’t sing like Beyoncé, but I can hold my own.’

Nigeria stands at a critical moment in its reform journey. With the passage of modernised tax laws between 2023 and 2026, the federal government has set in motion one of the most ambitious overhauls of the country’s tax administration in decades. From digital compliance measures to the rationalisation of incentives, new dispute-resolution structures, and strengthened enforcement powers, these reforms attempt to reshape Nigeria’s tax landscape for the realities of a 21st-century economy.

Yet, the success of these reforms depends on one fundamental factor: capacity. Tax laws, no matter how well drafted, do not execute themselves. They require competent institutions, skilled personnel, modern technology, data-driven intelligence, and taxpayer trust. Without these, even the most progressive legislation will struggle to deliver results.

To bridge this gap, Nigeria must commit to a systematic and sustainable programme of capacity building across national and sub-national tax agencies – FIRS, NCS, State Boards of Internal Revenue, and local government revenue units. This article proposes a four-pillar blueprint to achieve exactly that: Legal and Policy Competence, Digital and Data Capability, Organisational Excellence, and Taxpayer Engagement.

Pillar one: Legal and policy competence

The starting point for effective tax administration is a deep and uniform understanding of the law. In Nigeria, the challenge of inconsistent interpretation across levels of government has long created confusion for taxpayers and fuelled avoidable disputes. With the new tax laws, this challenge becomes even more pressing. The country has introduced new rules on digital taxation, expanded VAT provisions, modernised excise operations, reviewed incentive regimes, and updated administrative procedures. Many of these provisions require technical understanding and accurate legal interpretation.

To this extent, a national curriculum shared across FIRS and all State Boards of Internal Revenue is therefore essential. This curriculum should break down the provisions of the new laws into practical modules relevant for assessments, audits, enforcement, and dispute resolution. Monthly legal-policy interpretation clinics will help harmonise approaches and significantly reduce litigation. Additionally, sector-specific competence is equally necessary. Oil and gas, fintech, digital commerce, informal sector operations, telecoms, manufacturing, and financial services all have unique tax dynamics. Officers must understand the peculiarities of each sector to administer the law effectively. Therefore, legal competence is the foundation. Without it, every other reform pillar becomes shaky.

Pillar two: Digital and data governance capability

The second pillar speaks to the technological engine of the tax system. Globally, the future of tax administration is digital. Nigeria’s new laws reflect this reality mandating e-invoicing, e-filing, e-payment, digital audit trails, automated risk analysis, and greater reliance on real-time data. Despite significant strides by FIRS in automation, many state and local government agencies still lack the capacity to operate robust digital systems. Even where technology exists, officers often need more training to utilise the systems effectively. Consequently, a Digital Tax Operations Academy would help bridge this divide. Through structured training, tax officers would acquire skills in:

Data analytics and risk profiling

AI-based audit selection

Cybersecurity and digital forensics

Understanding and managing digital tax platforms

Cross-agency data matching (BVN, NIN, CAC, Customs, Land Registries, etc.)

Digitisation is not merely about reducing paperwork; it is about building a smarter tax administration that detects evasion patterns, generates insights, and sharpens enforcement tools. With stronger digital governance capacity, Nigeria can move decisively toward automated compliance, fewer leakages, and more predictable revenue flows.

Pillar three: Organisational excellence and human capital development

Reforming tax institutions requires more than legal knowledge and digital skills. It requires a motivated, ethical, and professional workforce. So, the third pillar focuses on building a tax administration anchored on performance, professionalism, and integrity. For too long, promotions in public service have been heavily influenced by tenure. The new era demands competency-based progression, where officers advance based on skills, certifications, knowledge, and results. Therefore, professional qualifications must be mainstreamed: CITN, ICAN, ACCA, ANAN, cybersecurity certifications, internal audit certifications, and forensic accounting skills all have roles to play. These qualifications ensure that officers bring global standards into their daily work.

Capacity building must also incorporate a gender-inclusive focus. Women make up a significant share of the taxpayer base and workforce, yet their tax experiences, business dynamics, and compliance challenges differ. A gender-responsive tax administration is not only fair it improves compliance and reduces distortions. Leadership training is another critical area. Directors, regional coordinators, and unit heads must be equipped with modern governance skills – change management, strategic leadership, collaborative problem-solving and cross-agency coordination. Organisational excellence creates the institutional backbone for efficient tax administration.

Pillar four: Taxpayer engagement and service delivery

No tax system can thrive without the trust and cooperation of taxpayers. The fourth pillar focuses on creating a citizen-centred service environment where taxpayers feel informed, respected, and supported. Nigeria needs a comprehensive taxpayer education strategy that communicates the implications of the new tax laws in simple language. Radio programmes, market outreach, digital campaigns, community town halls, and materials in local languages will help explain filing requirements, rights, obligations, and available remedies. Modernising service touchpoints is equally important. Taxpayers should be able to access support through:

Upgraded call centres

AI-enabled chatbots

Online dispute-resolution portals

Secure e-payment channels

Appointment-booking systems

Improved service delivery reduces the cost of compliance, encourages voluntary filing, and strengthens public confidence. In addition, stakeholder engagement with business groups, market unions, civil society, accountants, tax practitioners, investors, and the broader public will provide important feedback that shapes more responsive tax policies. A modern tax system must communicate, listen, and adapt.

Toward a high-performance tax administration

Nigeria’s new tax laws offer a historic opportunity to strengthen domestic resource mobilisation and reduce overdependence on oil revenue. But laws alone cannot transform a tax system. Institutions do. By adopting a four-pillar capacity-building blueprint legal competence, digital capability, organisational excellence, and taxpayer engagement Nigeria can build a future-ready tax administration capable of delivering results for decades to come.

The country cannot afford half-measures. Revenue agencies must rise to the challenge with urgency, collaboration, and a focus on excellence. If implemented diligently, this blueprint will not only improve compliance but also deepen public trust, strengthen fiscal stability, and accelerate national development. The task before us is clear: build institutions that can deliver the promise of the reforms.

Bitget Wallet, teveryday finance app, has launched a Bank Transfer feature in Nigeria and Mexico, allowing users to convert USDT and USDC into naira and peso and send funds directly to local bank accounts.

The feature turns stablecoins into a practical payment method, enabling users to pay merchants, send money to friends and family, or settle bills from their wallet. The rollout marks the first time a global crypto wallet has enabled direct stablecoin-to-bank transfers at scale in these regions, making crypto more usable.

The feature enables users to pay and transfer seamlessly from crypto to local currency, without relying on peer-to-peer (P2P) platforms or centralised exchanges. It works much like a mobile banking app – users choose a cryptocurrency, enter the amount and bank account, then confirm. Bitget Wallet’s network of licensed partners manages fiat conversion and settlement through regulated payment channels, ensuring instant processing, compliance, and reliability. The service supports 45 banks in Nigeria and 35 in Mexico.

The feature supports USDT and USDC across BNB Chain, Ethereum, Solana, Tron, and Base networks.

By merging crypto payments with traditional banking rails, Bitget Wallet bridges onchain assets with real-world spending. The launch comes as stablecoins play a growing role in emerging-market finance, where crypto is increasingly used to store, move and spend value amid inflation and currency volatility. According to Chainalysis, Nigeria remains Africa’s largest crypto market, accounting for most of the region’s onchain activity with over $90 billion in annual transaction value. In Latin America, Mexico recorded more than $70 billion in onchain volume over the same period. Through Bank Transfers, Bitget Wallet enables users to use crypto as easily as local money – whether sending, spending, or saving.

The feature addresses long-standing challenges in these markets, where turning crypto into usable local money has often been slow, risky, and costly. In Nigeria, users typically rely on P2P platforms subject to liquidity gaps and exchange-rate volatility, while in Mexico, limited infrastructure and regulatory friction constrain access. Bitget Wallet’s Bank Transfer automates the process, reducing risk and enabling instant, compliant one-tap conversions.

‘Stablecoins are quickly becoming a new layer of everyday payments in emerging markets, and connecting them to local banking rails is the next step in that evolution,’ said Jamie Elkaleh, CMO of Bitget Wallet. ‘Nigeria and Mexico together process more than $160 billion in annual onchain volume. Bringing instant stablecoin payments directly into their banking systems makes self-custody more practical, more usable, and increasingly aligned with how people pay today.’

‘The new feature will expand to additional emerging markets in the coming months, complementing Bitget Wallet’s suite of payment tools, including its crypto card, QR code payments, and in-app lifestyle shop, allowing users to pay globally in local ways across shopping, rent, remittances, and everyday expenses. To mark the launch, Bitget Wallet is offering a zero-fee promotion. For more information, visit Bitget Wallet’s blog.’ Jamie Elkaleh explained.

The Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA) has identified a strong public-private partnership, backed by reforms that reduce import dependence, ease pressure on the Naira, and support backward integration as vital to the full realisation of the Nigeria First Policy.

Its Director-General of NECA, Mr. Adewale Smatt Oyerinde, who spoke when NECA convened a high-level virtual Knowledge Sharing Session (KSS) for employers nationwide, with ‘Nigeria First Policy: Unlocking Opportunities for Businesses and the Economy’ as theme, reaffirmed the commitment of NECA to advancing enterprise competitiveness and national economic development through proactive policy advocacy.

He emphasized the need for a more competitive and business-friendly environment, while urging employers to proactively patronize Nigerian products and services.

The virtual engagement was designed to deepen understanding of the Federal Government’s Nigeria First Policy and explore its implications for private-sector growth.

The Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, Ambassador Nura Abba Rimi who was represented by the Director, Industrial Development Department, Mrs. OlumuyiwaAjayiade, made a detailed presentation on the policy’s objectives and strategic priorities. She explained that the Nigeria First Policy prioritizes local goods and services in public procurement, enhances local content participation, and promotes economic growth through targeted government expenditure. She further stated that the initiative aligns directly with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, focused on industrialization, strengthening local production, and shielding the economy from global disruptions.

Also addressing the session, the Director-General of the Bureau of Public Procurement, Dr. Adebowale Adedokun, highlighted procurement and local content requirements under the policy. He assured stakeholders that the Nigeria First Policy aims to empower local enterprises, promote quality standards, and improve global competitiveness of Nigerian products. He disclosed that implementation guidelines are currently being finalized and will be shared with NECA for further stakeholder engagement.

Representing the business community, the Chairperson of NECA’s Committee on Corporate Communications and Public Affairs Experts, Ms. Victoria Uwadoka, stressed the importance of sustainable enterprise growth and outlined the strategic opportunities the policy presents for Nigerian companies.

The Knowledge Sharing Session recorded strong participation across sectors, with robust interaction and positive feedback from employers. Participants acknowledged the session as timely and expressed confidence in the policy’s potential to drive business expansion and national economic transformation.

NECA remains fully committed to working with government and the private sector to ensure successful implementation of the Nigeria First Policy and to champion initiatives that strengthen the Nigerian economy.