Category: Business Day

District Governor, Rotary District 9112 Olayioye Abidoye, has described sports as a vital tool for driving Rotary’s mission of service to humanity.

Abidoye stated this at a media parley in Lagos, heralding the Rotary Sports Festival (RoSFest) 2027, emphasising that sports foster unity, teamwork and healthy living, which align with the organisation’s core value of impacting society,

Rotary Sports Festival is an annual event, a six-month fitness and fellowship fiesta designed to keep Rotarians mentally and physically sound to carry out humanitarian service.

According to the Rotary District Governor, ‘When you participate in sports, you are mentally sound, you are physically sound and your health is in the right frame to do service and to function in your family. We Rotarians who have dedicated our lives to serving humanity must be fit mentally, physically and health-wise,’

While stating that District 9112 currently has over 2,700 members across 96 Rotary Clubs, which he supervises, he said that RoSFest was one way of taking care of those who take care of others.

Enumerating some of the interventions that his organisation had embarked on, he said it included: donation of learning materials to Ojuwoye Inclusive Nursery and Primary School for children with visual and hearing impairments, observance of Disaster Relief Day, and screening of public primary school pupils for sight and hearing defects under the Legacy Programme to prevent mislabelling poor performance as dullness.

On the other hand, he appealed to Rotarians to ensure effective participation at RosFest 2027, quoting WHO’s definition of health: ‘Health is wealth. When you are not healthy, that is the only thing you think about. We can only mind other people’s business when we are healthy.’

On her part, Chairman of the RoSFest 2027 Committee, who is also the past president, Chinyere Madueke-Onwo, described RoSFest 2027 as a platform for strengthening the relationship between Rotarians and Rotaractors, adding, ‘We recognise the energy, creativity and enthusiasm that Rotaractors bring to the Rotary family, and we look forward to meaningful collaboration that will promote unity, leadership, development and active participation”

She further explained that the RoSFest 2027 edition would feature12 sporting activities, six indoor games which include Ayyolopon, draughts, Scrabble, chess, table tennis and snooker.

While the six outdoor games, she said include: 100m dash for both male and women, relay race, tug of war, football, volley ball and golf.

The objective, Chairman of RoSFest 2027 Committee said was to create opportunities for participation, healthy competition fellowship while encouraging Rotarians and other participants to embrace physical fitness and an active lifestyle.

‘We intend to make this edition more inclusive, engaging and competitive, with every participating Club having the opportunity to demonstrate its sporting strength and team spirit. Medals and points shall also be awarded to Clubs according to merits.

‘RoSFest 2027 presents a valuable opportunity for corporate organisations, institutions, individuals and Clubs to associate with an initiative that promotes health, youth development, community engagement and excellence.

On his part, Augustine Irabor of Rotary Club of Ikoyi and member of RoSFest Committee, explained that the media parley aimed to announce dates and mobilise Rotarians and the public.

Irabor, who was among those honoured for their roles in the last edition for participating in football, tug of war and golf, said RoSFest awareness is growing.

While recalling that last year’s RoSFest recorded huge success, he said that this year’s edition would be more impactful.

It is interesting to note that the qualifying games/tournaments will run from 31st January to 31st March 2027. While 2nd April would witness the opening ceremony of RoSFest Week.

In a bid to drive investment and boost enterprise growth in the Nigerian tourism industry, Aliyu Ajayi Badaki, president, Federation of Tourism Associations of Nigeria (FTAN), has called for the adoption of clear-cut institutional responsibilities, regulation and professional development, among others.

The above, Badaki stated, is a sure pathway to attracting investment and unlocking Nigeria’s tourism potential, which is hugely untapped.

According to him, the top agenda of the FTAN, which is the umbrella body for private sector operators in tourism, is still to be a meaningful voice in tourism policy formulation and implementation.

In his address at the 20th International Conference and Annual General Meeting of Hospitality and Tourism Management Association of Nigeria (HATMAN), which held in Awka, Anambra State, Badaki declared the need for clear institutional responsibilities, appropriate regulations, professional development, and an enabling environment that encourages investment and enterprise growth cannot be overemphasized.

”One of FTAN’s major priorities is ensuring that the organized-private sector has a meaningful voice in tourism policy formulation and implementation in Nigeria,’ he said at the Awka gathering.

”The private sector drives much of the daily activity within our industry. Our hotels, tour operators, travel agents, restaurants, event managers, and other tourism professionals understand the realities of operating tourism businesses.

”Their experiences and recommendations must therefore inform the policies and regulations that affect them.”

To achieve the above, according to him, requires FTAN to engage relevant government institutions on issues affecting the industry, including the implementation and harmonisation of the NTDA Act 2022 and the NIHOTOUR Act 2022.

”Our position is not opposition to regulation. We seek policies that promote professionalism, protect standards, and support the sustainable growth of tourism businesses.

”Tourism policies must be developed with the industry, not merely for the industry.

”Government must recognise the organised private sector as a strategic partner, not simply a stakeholder to be informed after decisions have been made,” he said.

Badaki, who is also chairman, Board of Trustees, HATMAN, called for partnership as the only means of achieving the desired end of tourism development and promotion.

”No single institution can transform Nigeria’s tourism industry alone. We need the government, professional associations, educational institutions, investors, technology providers, and tourism operators working towards common objectives.

”Through the Tourism Transformation Mandate, FTAN will continue to promote constructive engagement, stronger collaboration among associations, and evidence-based advocacy to ensure that the concerns and recommendations of tourism operators receive appropriate consideration.

”I call on HATMAN and other tourism associations to strengthen this collective effort. A united, organised, and professionally credible private sector will be better positioned to influence policy and contribute meaningfully to national tourism development.”

He commended the resilience of HATMAN’s members for their dedication to the sustenance of the association in the past 20 years, noting that two decades of sustaining the professional platform demonstrate HATMAN’s commitment to advancing hospitality and tourism in Nigeria.’

Speaking earlier on the theme of the conference, ‘Artificial Intelligence and the Digital Agenda: Implications for Global Transformation in Hospitality and Tourism’, he noted that it is timely as artificial intelligence and digital technology are changing how people go through the journey of discovering and experiencing destinations. ‘For Nigeria, these developments present opportunities to improve service delivery, reduce operating costs, expand market access, attract investment, and create employment,” Badaki said.

For a thriving and sustainable tourism industry, he called for skilled manpower development, infrastructure and collaboration among others.

”However, technology alone cannot transform our industry. We need skilled professionals, reliable infrastructure, supportive policies, and stronger collaboration among stakeholders.

”Our task is to combine technological innovation with the warmth of Nigerian hospitality, the richness of our culture, and the professionalism required to compete globally.”

He reiterated his commitment to the need for a more coordinated, structured, and result-oriented approach to tourism development.

”This informed my commitment to the Tourism Transformation Mandate (TTM)-a vision focused on strengthening tourism associations, promoting investment, improving professional standards, enhancing destination visibility, and building stronger partnerships between government and the private sector,” he said.

With the conference theme aligning with his TTM agenda, Badaki said: ”I therefore encourage HATMAN to prioritise digital skills development, the adoption of affordable technology by hospitality businesses, improved professional standards, and partnerships with educational institutions and technology providers.

”We must prepare our members not merely to adapt to technological change but to use it as a tool for growth and innovation.”

Badaki further disclosed: ”Through the Tourism Transformation Mandate, FTAN will continue to promote constructive engagement, stronger collaboration among associations, and evidence-based advocacy to ensure that the concerns and recommendations of tourism operators receive appropriate consideration.

”I call on HATMAN and other tourism associations to strengthen this collective effort. A united, organised, and professionally credible private sector will be better positioned to influence policy and contribute meaningfully to national tourism development.”

”As chairman, Board of Trustees, I encourage HATMAN to translate the knowledge gained from this conference into practical programmes that benefit its members.

”Let us equip our professionals with relevant digital skills, support small and medium-sized hospitality businesses, encourage innovation among young people, and strengthen collaboration with FTAN and relevant government agencies.

”Above all, let us measure our progress by the results we achieve-not merely by the conferences we organise or the policies we announce.

”Nigeria possesses enormous tourism potential. What we need is the collective commitment to convert that potential into investment, jobs, business growth, and sustainable economic development.”

He also reaffirmed his commitment, both as chairman of the Board of Trustees of HATMAN and president of FTAN, to advancing a more competitive, innovative, and professionally organised tourism industry.

”Let HATMAN champion professional excellence and digital readiness. Let FTAN strengthen private sector coordination and advocacy. Let the government provide an enabling policy environment and also take cognisance of the provisions of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended) to avoid conflicts.

”And let all stakeholders work together to build a tourism industry that is inclusive, investment-ready, and globally competitive.

”The future of Nigerian tourism depends not only on the technology we adopt but also on the policies we implement, the partnerships we build, and the value we create for our people.”

Trade, investment and cooperation initiatives are opening new possibilities for all three economies. Whether they lead to shared prosperity or simply reproduce familiar patterns of dependence will depend on how value chains, financing and risks are organised.

About this time last year, Ambassador Geert Muylle’s reflections on the pressures reshaping Belgian industrial supply chains prompted me to examine the possibilities of moving from dependency to partnership. The argument was that Europe’s search for economic resilience could meet Africa’s demand for greater productive participation. Both needed to reconsider the terms of their engagement. As we approach the Nigeria Belgium Luxembourg Business Forum in Brussels on 28-30 October, the question has become more demanding. What would demonstrate that partnership is changing the distribution of opportunity?

My stake in both Europe and Africa makes that question personal. I want Nigerian businesses to retain more value from what they produce. I also want Belgian and Luxembourg enterprises to secure dependable returns from partnerships that last. Fair trade must make those ambitions compatible. Seven developments offer a useful basis for judging the possibilities. They include changing commercial flows, investment decisions and new cooperation initiatives. Their significance lies in the connections between them.

A contraction that should change the conversation

The first development is uncomfortable for an otherwise celebratory forum narrative. The Belgian Foreign Trade Agency’s May 2026 bilateral note records Belgian goods exports to Nigeria falling from approximately pound 4.09 billion in 2024 to pound 1.27 billion in 2025, a decline of 68.9 per cent. Belgian goods imports from Nigeria also fell, by 14.6 per cent, to pound 474.9 million. These are Belgian-reported merchandise figures, rather than a complete account of investment or services. The figures challenge the assumption that diplomatic activity automatically produces expanding commerce. They also invite a more useful question than how quickly the old totals can be restored. Which parts of the relationship should grow next?

A relationship built around supplying finished products can generate substantial turnover while leaving limited productive capacity with the buyer. A smaller flow of equipment, engineering and investment could, under the right conditions, help establish enterprises that support decades of exchange. Falling trade is no achievement in itself. But restoring dependence should not become the measure of recovery.

Refining is changing the direction of opportunity

The second development supplies an important part of that context. The US Energy Information Administration reported in August that Nigeria’s seaborne petroleum-product exports to Europe averaged 130,000 barrels a day in the second quarter of 2026, compared with 40,000 in 2025. It links the broader expansion in Nigerian product shipments to the Dangote refinery. These are Europe-wide flows; they should not be presented as exports specifically to Belgium. Nor do they explain every movement in bilateral trade.

Their strategic meaning is nevertheless substantial. Nigerian processing capacity is changing what the country can offer international markets. For Belgian businesses, the response can include engineering services, industrial maintenance, storage, emissions management and partnerships in downstream manufacturing. Nigeria gains more when industrial expansion develops local suppliers and technical competence. Belgian firms gain when their expertise becomes part of a productive system with continuing demand.

The fair-trade test also applies within Nigeria. Domestic refining must deliver competitive markets, environmental responsibility and public value. Replacing external dependence with excessive domestic market power would leave an essential part of the task unfinished.

Cocoa opens a different bilateral future

The third development is the growing prominence of cocoa in the relationship. In its December 2025 account of the previous forum, Nigeria’s Ministry of Livestock Development reported the observation of Ambassador Pieter Leenknegt that cocoa had overtaken crude oil as Nigeria’s leading export to Belgium. This is a meaningful change in the composition of engagement, although commodity rankings alone cannot establish an industrial transformation. Cocoa gives both countries a reason to think beyond the shipment of beans. Nigerian fermentation, quality control and processing could be linked more deliberately to Belgian food manufacturing, technical expertise and distribution.

Each proposed investment would still need to establish its commercial case, including reliable power, competitive costs and applicable market-access conditions. Yet that is precisely the discussion worth having. How much processing can take place competitively in Nigeria? Which skills and equipment are required? What purchasing commitments would make investment credible? Fairness begins to become tangible when the producer can negotiate a larger role in the value chain, and the buyer obtains a more reliable, higher-quality supply.

Sustainability rules are becoming a test of partnership

The fourth development is the approaching application of the EU Deforestation Regulation, with the European Commission identifying 30 December 2026 as the application date. Cocoa is among the commodities covered. European operators’ obligations create information demands throughout their supply chains, including evidence about where commodities were produced.

This matters directly to Nigerian suppliers and Belgian buyers. Forest protection is a shared interest. But the distribution of compliance costs will influence whether the transition strengthens the relationship or excludes smaller producers. A fair response would combine purchasing commitments with practical support for farm mapping, traceability and producer training. Nigerian authorities and exporters must strengthen their own systems; European buyers should consider how their procurement terms can sustain that effort. Compliance could become a field of joint investment, including opportunities for Nigerian technology firms. It should also improve farmers’ ability to participate in formal markets. A system that can trace a bean back to a poor household should be capable of asking whether that household receives enough to sustain responsible production.

Livestock cooperation now needs investable projects

The fifth development is explicitly trilateral. The Ministry of Livestock Development reported that the 2025 forum endorsed a Nigeria-Belgium-Luxembourg Livestock Investment and Cooperation Platform, intended to advance partnerships, technology transfer, capacity building and bankable projects. Endorsement establishes an institutional opening; it does not establish that investment has closed or facilities are operating.

The opportunity is to turn that opening into a small portfolio of credible ventures. Cold-chain services, feed production, veterinary provision and dairy processing deserve appraisal against actual demand and operating conditions.

Nigeria can bring producers, enterprise and markets. Belgian partners can contribute relevant equipment and technical capabilities. Luxembourg’s financial ecosystem could help structure suitable investment vehicles and connect qualifying projects with investors.

The terms matter. Producers need transparent pricing and dependable payments. Investors need enforceable contracts. Projects need responsible land arrangements, animal-health safeguards, and workable community relationships. Those conditions are part of commercial durability.

Ports determine whether productive ambition travels

The sixth development concerns the infrastructure connecting these possibilities. Reporting on an April 2026 meeting between the Nigerian Ports Authority and Belgium’s ambassador described discussions on Belgian participation in Nigerian port modernisation, including infrastructure and operational efficiency. The public account supports an emerging cooperation agenda; it should not be treated as evidence of a completed financing package.

For an exporter, port performance can determine whether a good product reaches its buyer competitively. For an equipment supplier, delays and uncertainty can undermine an otherwise viable investment. Belgian maritime expertise therefore has value well beyond an individual construction contract. Partnerships should be judged by measurable improvements in clearance, cargo movement, and service reliability, alongside local maintenance and operational competence. Nigerian agencies must deliver the regulatory coordination that physical investment requires.

A fair corridor must serve businesses at both ends. More efficient movement of European imports alone would leave its productive promise incomplete. Nigerian exporters also need predictable access to the route.

Development finance is offering another opening

The seventh development is a concrete financing decision. In July 2026, Belgium’s development finance institution BIO approved a US$5 million investment in Acumen Resilient Agriculture Fund II. Nigeria is among the fund’s ten target countries. This is a regional fund investment, rather than a US$5 million allocation to Nigeria, but it identifies a route through which eligible Nigerian agribusinesses could access support.

Its relevance is the connection between agricultural resilience and investable enterprise. Productive partnerships need finance that recognises the costs of building supply systems and adapting to climate risk. Entrepreneurs still need sound governance and credible business models. Investors need to distinguish risks that can be reduced through technical support from those that require guarantees, different financing terms or a decision not to proceed. Calling a project promising cannot substitute for this work.

Luxembourg belongs in the financing discussion

Across these developments, Luxembourg’s contribution should be made specific. There is already a financial bridge to build upon: Nigerian Exchange records its 2019 cooperation agreement with the Luxembourg Stock Exchange and the subsequent cross-listing of Access Bank’s ?15 billion green bond. This is an earlier institutional foundation, not a newly announced 2026 transaction.

Its importance today is practical. Suitable Nigerian projects could be prepared for sustainable-finance markets through credible use-of-proceeds frameworks, external assessment and continuing reporting. Smaller ventures may first require aggregation or intermediary finance. A Luxembourg listing would neither guarantee affordable capital nor remove foreign-exchange risk. Projects earning Naira need financing structures that can withstand currency movements. Transparency about fees, ownership, and tax treatment must accompany any international structure. Luxembourg gains through financial services and investable opportunities; Nigeria gains only if the underlying assets become productive and financially sustainable.

The conversion platform the relationship needs

Taken together, these developments suggest a possible transition towards a relationship in which Nigeria participates more fully in production, Belgium earns returns from industrial and logistical expertise, and Luxembourg helps connect viable ventures with appropriate capital. The outcome will depend on choices still to be made.

Fair trade does not require identical trade balances or equal gains from every transaction. It requires meaningful room for each economy to develop capabilities, transparent allocation of risk and rewards, and commercial arrangements that can endure public scrutiny. Nigeria must improve its investment conditions. European partners must be willing to support productive participation as well as market access for their own firms. This is the context in which the Nigeria Belgium Luxembourg Business Forum is positioning itself as an indispensable conversion platform. Convened under the CBL-ACP Chamber, the 2026 edition combines plenary engagement with targeted business meetings and company visits. The forum programme places commercial priorities and implementation pathways at the centre of that approach.

The strongest contribution of the Business Forum is to bring the people who own an opportunity into direct discussion with those who can resolve its financing, technical or regulatory obstacles. A cocoa processor should leave with a clearer route to equipment, quality assurance and buyers. A livestock venture should establish what must happen before an investor can commit. A logistics proposal should identify the agencies and firms responsible for delivery.

To make this role indispensable, the forum is maintaining a disciplined process after Brussels: named project owners, agreed next steps and reviews at realistic intervals. A ninety-day review could distinguish opportunities that have advanced, those requiring further preparation and those that should be discontinued. Commercial confidentiality can be protected while aggregate progress is reported.

As someone involved in this work, I believe that is the standard we should welcome. The forum’s importance will grow through the transactions it helps make viable and the trust earned when participants follow through. Last year’s challenge was to recognise the opening for partnership. This year’s task is to organise the conversion into shared value. Brussels can become the place where the three economies turn that intention into commitments they can implement, measure and sustain.

SOS Children’s Villages Nigeria says it has reached approximately 650 households in Edo State through a three-year development intervention, as it prepares to build on the gains with a new project focused on strengthening the resilience of children, young people, families and communities.

Eghosa Erhumwunse, Country Director of SOS Children’s Villages Nigeria, disclosed this during a stakeholder engagement in Benin City to review the achievements of the outgoing project and consolidate its impact in partnership with the Edo State Government, community leaders, development partners and beneficiaries.

Erhumwunse said the intervention prioritised vulnerable and hard-to-reach populations, particularly families and children often excluded from mainstream development programmes, while strengthening the capacity of communities to support their welfare and long-term development.

He said the project covered 400 households in its first phase and another 250 in the second phase, bringing the total to approximately 650 households. Based on an estimated average of four persons per household, the intervention potentially reached about 2,600 people.

The country director said the organisation considered community ownership essential to the sustainability of development interventions, stressing that families and communities must be empowered to maintain the gains made after a project ends.

He explained that the completion of the three-year programme would not signal the end of the organisation’s activities in Edo, as it was preparing to introduce a new initiative, Seed of Change, to address broader challenges affecting children, young people, families and their communities.

According to him, the new project, also supported by the German government, would build on previous interventions by strengthening resilience and promoting systemic changes that can sustain development outcomes beyond the period of donor funding.

Erhumwunse described the organisation as an implementing partner that facilitates collaboration between the donor and communities in Edo, noting that the progress recorded depended on the collective contributions of government institutions, community leaders, families, young people and other development partners.

Joy Irenonsen Ihensekhien, Permanent Secretary of the Edo State Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development, who represented the commissioner, Eugenia Abdallah, commended SOS Children’s Villages Nigeria for its partnership with the state government and its support for vulnerable women, children and communities.

Ihensekhien said the ministry contributed to the programme through manpower, training facilities and other forms of support for capacity-building activities designed to empower beneficiaries and improve their ability to become self-reliant.

She expressed the state government’s appreciation for the collaboration, noting that partnerships between public institutions and development organisations remained important in helping vulnerable households cope with prevailing economic pressures.

The Governor of Lagos State, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has charged the Chartered Institute of Stockbrokers (CIS) to deepen capital market participation, strengthen professional capacity and promote financial literacy among Nigerians.

Governor Sanwo-Olu gave the charge on Friday during a courtesy visit by the principal officers of the Chartered Institute of Stockbrokers, led by its President and Chairman of Council, Fiona Ahimie, at Lagos House, Ikeja.

He noted that Nigeria’s capital market has recorded significant growth in recent years, commending professionals and investors for their contributions to the development of the sector.

Governor Sanwo-Olu stressed the need to deepen the market through increased public awareness, financial literacy and broader participation, particularly among Nigerians who may not fully understand the opportunities available.

He observed that many people are not familiar with investment opportunities beyond their daily financial needs, calling for deliberate efforts to educate the public on savings, investment and wealth creation.

The governor, who pledged his administration’s support for the CIS, expressed support for initiatives aimed at expanding financial literacy and developing more professionals to strengthen the capital market.

Governor Sanwo-Olu congratulated Ahimie on her emergence as the first female President of the Chartered Institute of Stockbrokers, describing her appointment as a significant milestone for the professional body.

He expressed confidence in her leadership, urging the new Council to sustain the Institute’s achievements while advancing professionalism, public engagement and capacity development within the capital market.

Governor Sanwo-Olu said Lagos remains committed to supporting professional institutions and economic activities capable of promoting investment, creating jobs and improving opportunities for residents.

He also highlighted the importance of professional expertise in governance, noting that collaboration between public and private sector practitioners could improve institutional effectiveness and strategic development.

Speaking earlier, the President and Chairman of Council of the Chartered Institute of Stockbrokers, Fiona Ahimie, congratulated Governor Sanwo-Olu on his association with the Institute, noting that his professional background and experience in public service made the engagement particularly significant.

Ahimie said the Institute’s annual conference, scheduled for November 4 and 5 in Lagos, would provide an opportunity to discuss the development of Nigeria’s capital market and the need to expand financial literacy and investment participation.

She noted that the Institute is collaborating with the Office of the Vice President on initiatives to train 10 million Nigerians in financial literacy and capital market participation.

According to her, the programme is expected to improve public understanding of investment opportunities and encourage more Nigerians, particularly young people, to participate in the capital market.

Ahimie also disclosed that the Institute is working towards establishing a N5 billion endowment fund to support capacity development and professional training.

The visit by the Chartered Institute of Stockbrokers’ leadership underscored the importance of collaboration between the Lagos State Government and professional institutions in advancing financial literacy, investment awareness and economic development.

Man has come a long way from the days of Aesop, the ancient Greek storyteller who developed a style of travelling to the animal world to draw lessons for men and women. History has a bouquet of his jungle stories and their morals: The ant and the grasshopper (You can shape your tomorrow today); The boy who cried wolf (It’s the lie you’re used to which will be remembered, not the truth you only tell once); The fox and the grapes (One can’t accommodate what’s beyond your reach; you will despise it).

Modern novelists also write to instruct or entertain us, some from forest life, like Nigeria’s Daniel Fagunwa (Ogboju ode ninu igbo irunmole, 1936) and the Englishman George Orwell (Animal Farm, 1945), with others strictly seeking inspiration from the world of human beings as Professor Tunde Ope-Davies has done in his work, Winds Against My Sails.

Ope-Davies dispenses with creatures of the thicket to relate his account; but he also proffers great precepts not virtuously different from those we receive through the writers who commune with the woods. Either way, the readers are enriched, hugely tutored to change perceptions as they reap a harvest of predictable and unexpected twists in the tale.

We have plenty of them in the work of Ope-Davies (Opeibi), a professor in Digital Humanities, Digital Cultures, English and Discourse Studies at the University of Lagos, Nigeria, beginning with a tell-tale autobiographical title for a work of fiction. About the Author back cover section of the book conceals the dark days of the author’s own headwinds. But critics wouldn’t consider it unreasonable to look at Professor Wale Jones in the novel and apply poetic license to unveil him as the alter ego of Opeibi, himself a heavily garlanded don like his creation.

Jones, the main character, leaves rustic Jadesore to embark on what the author calls the Voyage of Life. The name of his village challenges the ambitious to venture out for breakthroughs eluding them. Yet, it doesn’t reveal that you can’t make an omelette without breaking eggs. Wale gets the delicacy alright; but it is at the expense of much travail, trauma and toil.

There are near-death experiences; there are fatalities; there are several heartbreaks as well as betrayals; missed opportunities that present no second chances are also recorded; we equally learn of juvenile escapades that could have shortened the life of the hero; there is a battle over the choice of a marriage partner; a time of abandonment by family, friends and loved ones is also shared; we read of days of hunger when biscuits and mint sweets miserably cater for hunger; there’s story of an absentee father; when he’s home however, he fails to model virtue as he engages in nocturnal drinking orgies with friends in the presence of impressionable children; there are assaults of ill health and threats of death at childbirth.

To be sure, some of these are occasioned by poverty. Not all, though. How about the struggles Jones encounter even after the young man has crossed the threshold, in a manner of speaking, and he begins to get local and global recognition denied peers and mentors? The winds against his sail don’t cease in the ivory tower. They are personified by Katakiti, ”who had remained at the same rank for years. To watch Wale, once his student, rise above him was a bitter pill.” There’s also a season of character perfidy when Wale Jones is accused of being ”too friendly with female students” and ”selling a colleague’s textbook to students, a practice the university had outlawed.” Wale attributes all what he’s facing to ”politics of the system.”

Rightly, the blurb concludes that Wale’s faith in God and ”an unyielding spirit of perseverance” are the steps he mounts to overcome the winds of adversity.

So, like Karl Marx, the legendary German co-founder of Scientific Socialism, whose bronze memorial he gazes at in an unnamed European city, Professor Jones becomes ”a man who faced his fires and emerged remade,” ready to change his defective system as Marx attempted to.

Now, in view of an opening poem that predicts ultimate victory for the voyager ”Because He that stillest the noise of the Seas”, is with the explorer, it may be tempting to dismiss Professor Ope-Davies’ Winds Against My Sails as a simplistic literary contraption primed from the beginning for a happy end, regardless of the protagonist’s tumultuous killer adventures. That would be an unbalanced ruling that misses the Olympian plot of Opeibi’s epic. He brings his story under a roof of sweeping flashbacks, critical commentary, history (ancestral and contemporary), objective philosophy, Biblical theology, all of which reveals the author’s catholic mind.

These are carried by a language rich in fluid prose. metaphor and semiotics.

Let’s examine, for instance, Opeibi’s capture of ‘dust’ to take the readers through their own semiotic journeys. as it were. It first appears as ”chalk dust” in Chapter One. Later, he says ”Dust rose like spirits over the playing fields…” And when Wale Jones got the new birth in Christ, we saw the dust called to action again: ”…he bent his knees on the dusty ground and gave his life to Christ.”

Thus, in the literary construct of Professor Ope-Davies’ world, there’s a sustained imagery of the lowly dust and chalk, both of which appear to have sentenced Wale to limitless and hopeless penury. Once, the lecturer is seen collapsing ”at the foot of a chalkboard.” But, to get into Divine embrace wherein is final liberation, Wale must align with ”the dusty ground” and look up to God from that lowly position. He must stoop to conquer.

Is Ope-Davies testing the waters of fiction with Winds Against My Sails after a string of acclaimed nonfiction publications, including the biographical Kumuyi: Defender of the Faith, which he wrote with co-members of the Editorial Board of the Deeper Christian Life Ministry?

This is a heuristic quest with the possibility of turning in a new-look Tunde Ope-Davies.

Nigeria’s Lekan Otufodunrin has been elected as the president of the World Association for Christian Communication (WACC) Africa Region, to lead its next phase of growth across the continent.

Otufodunrin, president of Journalists for Christ International Outreach, was elected along other new executive members at its recent General Assembly for four year tenure.

Also elected with him are Amie Joof-Cole of Inter Africa Network for Women, Media, Gender and Development (FAMEDEV), Senegal emerged as the vice president; while Blessing Oladunjoye, emerged as secretary.

Otufodunrin and Amie would also serve as board members of WACC UK board.

Otufodunrin in his acceptance pledged that the new executive will implement programmes that will promote the focus of WACC on digital, gender and climate justice among other issues in the continent.

Kehinde Adegboyega, convener, West Africa Digital Rights Defenders Coalition, called for universal access, rights safeguards and data sovereignty in a keynote address on Ensuring Digital Justice in Africa.

‘No digital future is just until it is inclusive, free and grounded in dignity for all Africans,’ Adegoyega stated, reiterating that the road map for regional action should include capacity building, policy advocacy, coalition building and community action.

Sarah Macharia, staff liaison, Africa Region, commended the last executive headed by Matomklawè Kpalla for its accomplishments and urged the new executive to do more to enhance the status of the WACC in the region.

Other executive members include Secretary, Blessing Oladunjoye, BO Foundation For Inclusive Media, Nigeria; Treasurer, Mwendwa Kivuva, Member, Board of Trustees, The Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet), Kenya, Alternate executive members – George Stewart, Media Development Specialist, Liberia and Opeyemi Lawal, Journalist, Nigeria.

Kylian Mbappé scored twice as Real Madrid defeated Barcelona 2-1 in Sunday’s El Clásico at Camp Nou, handing the La Liga leaders their first league defeat of the season and cutting the gap at the top of the table.

Mbappé opened the scoring four minutes before half-time and netted a late winner in the 87th minute after Raphinha equalised for the defending champions.

The result ended Barcelona’s unbeaten start to the La Liga campaign and handed them a second consecutive defeat following Tuesday’s loss to Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) in the Champions League.

Barcelona remain top of the table on 27 points after 10 matches, with a two-point advantage over second-placed Atletico Madrid. Real Madrid sit third, one point behind Atletico.

Real Madrid manager Jose Mourinho praised his team’s discipline and composure in his first El Clásico back in charge of the club.

‘My team had an extraordinary game, very organised, good concentration, with courage to play out from the back against a team that presses you a lot,’ Mourinho told reporters.

‘We had chances for the second goal. Obviously, Barcelona had a strong reaction, but we were calm and organised, and at 1-1 we never lost our tranquillity.’

Barcelona had won six of the previous seven El Clásico encounters since Hansi Flick took charge, but struggled to impose themselves against Mourinho’s side.

‘You saw today, we lacked freshness,’ Flick said.

‘It’s the first defeat in La Liga. We won nine in a row. This is what we have to see.

‘Defeats are a part of the game. We have to analyse; we have to make things better. Now we must make a reaction.’

Real Madrid, who were without suspended forward Vinicius Junior, secured their fifth consecutive victory across all competitions, strengthening their early-season momentum under the veteran Portuguese coach.

After two trophyless seasons, Real Madrid turned to Mourinho to halt Barcelona’s dominance, and Sunday’s result offered encouragement that the team is moving in the right direction.

The Reproduction Rights Society of Nigeria (REPRONIG) has called for stronger protection of intellectual property rights to promote creativity, innovation and sustainable growth of Nigeria’s creative economy.

The call was made at a South-East zonal advocacy and sensitisation programme on copyright protection and the responsible use of intellectual works held on Thursday at Amadeo Recreation Centre, Enugu.

Speaking at the event, Uchenna Cyril Anioke, Chairman of the Programme Planning Committee, highlighted REPRONIG’s role in protecting authors and publishers against the unauthorised reproduction and secondary use of printed and digital materials.

He explained that the organisation collects royalties on behalf of authors and publishers and distributes the proceeds to rightful copyright owners, ensuring that creators receive financial benefits from their intellectual works.

Anioke urged participants to deepen their understanding of the Copyright Act 2022 and collaborate with REPRONIG to safeguard their intellectual property rights.

He also encouraged them to disseminate the knowledge acquired at the programme to their institutions, professional associations, departments and publishing houses to promote wider awareness of copyright protection.

He stressed the need for collective action to build an academic and creative environment where intellectual property is respected, protected and appropriately rewarded, particularly in the South-East and Nigeria at large.

Anioke commended the resource persons, including Macfoy Akachukwu, Sam Owokoniran, Sunny Udeze and Mary Oyesola Adewumi, a REPRONIG administrative officer, as well as members of the planning committee and participants who attended physically and virtually.

The programme attracted librarians, publishers, academics and representatives of corporate organisations from Enugu, Ebonyi, Abia, Anambra and Imo states.

Also speaking, Sunny Udeze of the Department of Mass Communication, Enugu State University, explained the role of academia in REPRONIG’s activities and called on academics and other stakeholders to register with the organisation.

Udeze emphasised the importance of institutional participation in promoting respect for copyright laws and ensuring that authors and researchers benefit from the use of their intellectual contributions.

In his remarks, Owokoniran, who described Udeze as intellectually sophisticated, said the programme was designed to sensitise stakeholders to opportunities provided by the government and REPRONIG for the protection and responsible use of intellectual property.

He commended the organisers for the programme, noting that REPRONIG had been conducting advocacy activities across the country.

‘We have been doing advocacy around the country, but I tell you, this is the largest media crew I’ve ever seen,’ he said.

Owokoniran explained that the programme sought to improve understanding of Nigerian copyright law and promote the responsible use of intellectual works, particularly within the South-East’s academic and professional communities.

He noted that copyright protection was relevant to universities, lecturers, researchers, students, authors, polytechnics, colleges of education and other knowledge-driven institutions across the country.

He condemned the practice of individuals reproducing and profiting from books and other intellectual works without the permission of their creators, describing such activities as unfair to those who invest their time, resources and expertise in producing original materials.

According to him, the objective of copyright protection was not to discourage education or restrict access to knowledge, but to establish a sustainable balance between access to information and fair compensation for intellectual work.

The programme was therefore aimed at encouraging stakeholders to understand their rights and responsibilities under Nigerian copyright law while fostering a culture that recognises and rewards creativity, research and innovation.

Brazilian football legend Ronaldinho will return to competitive action next month at 46 years old, with Italian third-tier club Ravenna announcing that the former World Cup winner will feature in a derby against Forlì on November 15.

The move was first announced in June and will mark a return to the pitch for the former Paris Saint-Germain, Barcelona and AC Milan playmaker, who retired from professional football in 2015.

Ronaldinho, who won the 2002 FIFA World Cup with Brazil and the 2005 Ballon d’Or, has also become a shareholder in Ravenna, a club based in northern Italy.

The Brazilian is targeting his 300th career goal as he prepares for his comeback.

‘The wait now has a date: Sunday, November 15,’ Ravenna said in a statement on Saturday.

‘The Brazilian legend will wear the Ravenna FC shirt in the derby against Forlì. An event that will turn the eyes of the world towards the Bruno Benelli Stadium.’

The club added that the announcement had generated excitement and disbelief among fans, with anticipation building since the move was first revealed in Miami and Ronaldinho’s subsequent reception at Marina di Ravenna.

‘The whole football world thought it too good to be true. Instead, we can now officially confirm a grand return: the return of the magic, the smile, and a talent that has captivated generations of fans,’ the club said.

Ravenna are second in Group B of Italy’s third tier, six points behind leaders Spezia, and are seeking promotion to Serie B for the first time since 2008.

Ronaldinho last played professionally for Brazilian club Fluminense in 2015. His return to the game is expected to draw global attention, with the club describing him as a player whose creativity and charisma transcended club loyalties and generations of supporters.

‘There are footballers who are remembered for what they have won and others also for how they made people feel,’ Ravenna said. ‘Ronaldinho belongs to that rare breed of champions capable of turning football into pure joy.’