Category: The Nation – Nigeria

Nigeria’s First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, will visit Anambra State on Thursday, September 10, 2026, for the first time since assuming her current role.

According to a statement by Daniel Ezeigwe, Media Aide to the wife of the state governor, Dr Nonye Soludo, the visit is expected to strengthen collaboration between the Federal Government and Anambra State on programmes focused on poverty reduction, economic empowerment, food security and improved livelihoods for vulnerable citizens.

A major highlight of the visit will be the empowerment of 5,000 people under the Progressives United Against Poverty Initiative.

The initiative is a partnership championed by the state government in support of the First Lady’s Renewed Hope Initiative (RHI) Economic Support Scheme.

‘The empowerment programme is designed to provide beneficiaries with practical economic support and opportunities to improve their livelihoods, with particular attention to people and households requiring assistance to become more economically productive.’

‘Another major highlight of the visit would be the launch of the National Community Food Bank Programme for the South-East Geopolitical Zone, which would take place in the State the same day.’

‘The programme is part of efforts under the Renewed Hope Initiative to strengthen food security and provide support to vulnerable households, particularly in the face of rising concerns around hunger and nutrition.’

‘As part of her itinerary, Senator Tinubu would also proceed to the Federal Polytechnic, Oko, where she is expected to commission key projects in the institution.’

‘The First Lady’s visit comes against the backdrop of the progressive partnership between the Federal Government and Anambra State.’

‘Note that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, during his last state visit to Anambra, described the relationship between the Federal Government and the state as one based solidly on partnership and shared prosperity, while commending the state’s fast-paced development efforts under Governor Chukwuma Soludo’s administration.’

‘For Anambra, the visit would also mark a significant moment as the state welcomes the First Lady for the first time since she assumed office, with thousands of residents expected to directly benefit from the empowerment programme and the wider interventions scheduled for the visit,’ the statement reads.

Senior Special Assistant to the President on Public Engagement, Fredrick Nwabufo, has said President Bola Ahmed Tinubu deserves re-election on the strength of his administration’s delivery on its campaign promises and the emerging gains of economic reforms implemented over the past three years.

Nwabufo said the administration had kept faith with the core pillars of the manifesto on which Tinubu was elected, arguing that policies initially accompanied by economic hardship were increasingly translating into macroeconomic stability, expanded opportunities and tangible benefits for Nigerians.

He made the case in an article titled: ‘From Reform to Prosperity: A Case for President Tinubu’s Re-election,’ in which he highlighted education financing, improved government revenues, infrastructure development, economic growth, and strengthened investor confidence as evidence that the reforms were beginning to yield results.

According to him, the administration has moved beyond policy declarations by translating its commitments into structural reforms and programmes affecting critical segments of the population.

‘Essentially, the Tinubu administration has kept faith with the core pillars of its original manifesto. It has honoured foundational commitments, translating policy blueprints into tangible infrastructure and structural reforms. What it said it would do, it has done,’ Nwabufo said.

He acknowledged that the reform process had imposed difficulties on Nigerians, particularly following major fiscal adjustments and the removal of petrol subsidy, but maintained that the economy had moved sufficiently towards recovery and was now on a stronger growth trajectory.

‘It has not been an easy road to tread, really, but it has been far from a Golgotha experience. Our economy has reached a sufficient recovery and is already on a stronger growth trajectory,’ he said.

Nwabufo cited the latest Gross Domestic Product figures from the National Bureau of Statistics, which showed that the economy grew by 4.43 per cent year-on-year in real terms in the second quarter of 2026, compared with 4.23 per cent recorded in the corresponding period of 2025.

He said the growth was driven by improvements in the oil and gas, manufacturing, agriculture and services sectors, while inflation declined to 15.43 per cent in July from 15.91 per cent previously.

The presidential aide also pointed to what he described as renewed international confidence in the Nigerian economy, citing recent assessments by international institutions and developments in the capital market.

He said Moody’s had revised Nigeria’s outlook to positive while affirming its B3 rating, attributing the development to stronger external buffers and continued reform momentum.

Nwabufo also cited FTSE Russell’s decision to restore Nigeria to Frontier Market status, effective from the opening of trading on September 21, 2026, following nearly three years in the ‘Unclassified’ category.

He said the Nigerian stock market had also emerged months earlier as the world’s best-performing equity market in dollar terms, surpassing South Korea, which he attributed to improving investor confidence and the country’s macroeconomic outlook.

According to him, Nigeria’s foreign reserves have risen above $53 billion, their highest level in nearly two decades, while the country was ranked the best-performing African economy in the 2026 World Competitiveness Ranking released by the International Institute for Management Development in June.

Nwabufo argued that the indicators showed the administration’s fiscal realignments and other economic reforms were laying the foundation for longer-term stability, infrastructure expansion, increased revenues to subnational governments, and job creation.

‘From yesterday’s challenges, Nigeria is transitioning today, undergirded by economic policy shifts-such as fiscal realignments and fuel subsidy removal-toward long-term stabilisation, infrastructure returns, expanded federal revenue distributions to states, job creation, and emerging microeconomic gains,’ he said.

He added that although economic challenges had not been completely eliminated, gains from macroeconomic stabilisation were already reaching important sections of the population.

The presidential aide said states were now better positioned to meet salary obligations, contrasting the situation with an earlier period when, according to him, 27 states struggled to pay workers.

He also identified the Nigerian Consumer Credit Corporation, CREDICORP, education financing, grants to low-income households and support for small businesses as some of the mechanisms through which the administration was seeking to transmit economic gains to ordinary Nigerians.

Nwabufo devoted a substantial part of his argument to the Nigerian Education Loan Fund, NELFUND, which he described as one of the administration’s most consequential interventions.

Using the example of a student identified as Suleiman, who struggled to finance his university education before accessing the loan scheme in 2024, Nwabufo said NELFUND prevented financial difficulties from ending the educational aspirations of many young Nigerians.

‘NELFUND helped me cross the finish line. It was a lifeline,’ he quoted the student as saying.

According to Nwabufo, close to two million students have benefited from the initiative, giving young Nigerians who could otherwise have been forced out of tertiary institutions an opportunity to continue their education.

He described the programme as a ‘historical novelty’ whose impact, he argued, would be remembered by its beneficiaries for generations.

The presidential aide also sought to dispel what he described as political misconceptions surrounding the student loan programme, stressing that it is a zero-interest facility available to Nigerian students in tertiary institutions and repayable only after beneficiaries have completed the National Youth Service Corps programme.

‘To address certain political contortions, NELFUND is a zero-interest facility open to all Nigerian students in tertiary institutions. It is only due for repayment two years after the completion of the NYSC,’ he said.

Nwabufo cautioned against reducing the programme to partisan politics, saying its primary purpose was to widen access to tertiary education, strengthen Nigeria’s productive workforce and expand young people’s access to jobs and economic opportunities.

He argued that the administration’s first three years had largely been devoted to difficult reforms and laying the foundations required to reposition the economy.

Nwabufo said with the groundwork accomplished, the country was moving into a phase in which the benefits of the reforms should become increasingly visible.

‘In the past three years, the hard work of scaffolding and foundation laying has been accomplished; the reforms have been sown, and now we are harvesting prosperity,’ he said.

Making a direct pitch for continuity beyond the current term, the presidential aide said a second phase of the Renewed Hope Agenda would consolidate the gains already recorded and combine immediate delivery with longer-term development.

‘With Renewed Hope Agenda 2, we will deliver today while building for tomorrow,’ Nwabufo said.

Ten teams will open the 2026 Nathaniel Idowu U-16 Football League season this Saturday, September 5, with five Match Week 1 fixtures split across the New Maracana Sports Complex in Tolu and the Nathaniel Idowu Football Pitch in Oregie.

Organized by Peakline Sports World under McAnthony Anaelechukwu and sponsored by the Nathaniel Idowu Foundation, led by Chief Yemi Idowu, the nine-week grassroots tournament runs through October 31, 2026.

The league serves as a structural development pathway to showcase local youth talent for state, national, and international recruitment.

The action at the New Maracana Sports Complex in Tolu begins at 8:00 a.m. when U-14 defending champions Fortune FA face league debutants St. Petersburg FA. Seraphic FA will subsequently clash with Bright Star FA in the morning’s second fixture, before Moore Wins Foundation FA take on SC Heritage in the final match at the Tolu venue.

The league action shifts to the Nathaniel Idowu Football Pitch in Oregie in the afternoon. Young Eleven FA face Ajegunle United SC at 1:00 p.m. in a rematch of their former U-14 Super 4 clash, while Atico Football Academy make their league debut against Divinely Blessed FA at 2:30 p.m. to complete the opening weekend schedule.

The league will run for nine weeks, closing on October 31, 2026. But already, the opening weekend feels like a prologue – a glimpse of which academies have managed the delicate transition from U-14 to U-16, and which young players are ready to step into the wider world of football.

The Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Olatunji Disu, on Thursday presented insurance benefit cheques worth ?2,317,177,094 to 2,971 next of kin and beneficiaries of police officers who died in the line of duty.

Speaking at a solemn ceremony at the Force Headquarters in Abuja, the police chief affirmed that the gesture was far more than a routine administrative duty.

Instead, he framed it as a sacred institutional obligation to ensure the ultimate sacrifices of fallen heroes are never forgotten.

‘We are not merely presenting checks,’ Disu declared to a hall filled with grieving families, senior officers, and insurance representatives.

He said, ‘We are honouring the memories of police officers who gave their lives in service to our nation and affirming our commitment to the families they left behind’.

Highlighting the human story behind the uniforms, the IGP reminded the gathering that every fallen officer was first a cherished member of a home before joining the nation’s security architecture.

‘Every officer represented here today was a member of a family before becoming a member of the Nigeria Police Force.

They were fathers, mothers, husbands, wives, sons, and daughters who carried personal hopes and responsibilities, yet chose to serve a nation that demanded courage and sacrifice from them,’ he noted.

The ?2.31 billion disbursement covers claims spanning multiple insurance policy periods-from 2017 through 2025-under the Group Life Assurance Scheme, Group Personal Accident Scheme, and the IGP Family Welfare Scheme.

Disu explained that the payout includes vital balance recoveries from insurance firms following previous partial settlements.

Addressing the widows, orphans, and relatives directly, Disu acknowledged that no amount of monetary compensation could replace their loss, but vowed that the Force would remain a permanent pillar of support.

‘No amount of money can replace the loved ones you have lost,’ he said.

The IGP said, ‘However, this payment represents the institutional responsibility we owe to you and a practical expression of our appreciation… The Nigeria Police Force will not abandon the families of those who paid the supreme price in our service. We will not abandon you’.

Disu reflected on the increasingly hazardous security landscape across the country, citing recent tragedies where officers were killed in action-including tactical personnel ambushed in Kebbi, Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) operatives lost during a rescue operation in Zamfara State, and officers attacked in Bunza, Yobe State.

‘Their courage reminds us of the demands of policing and the price our personnel sometimes pay to protect others’ lives and property,’ Disu stated.

He urged the beneficiaries to manage the funds prudently, prioritising the long-term education, welfare, and stability of the children left behind.

Turning to insurance underwriters, Disu charged them with treating claims not as standard commercial transactions but as lifelines for surviving families.

He also instructed the Force Insurance Unit to intensify sensitisation campaigns across all state commands and formations, ensuring that serving personnel and their families fully understand their entitlements.

The Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Senator George Akume, yesterday charged stakeholders driving the Lagos International Financial Centre (LIFC) to work collectively and with urgency to build a globally competitive financial ecosystem capable of attracting capital into Nigeria.

Akume spoke in Abuja while inaugurating the National Steering Committee for the LIFC Initiative, which the Federal Government says will deepen Nigeria’s capital markets, attract domestic and foreign investment, promote financial innovation and strengthen the financial system for sustainable economic growth.

The SGF said President Bola Tinubu had endorsed the LIFC as a strategic national economic priority and directed his office to coordinate Federal Government support for its implementation.

‘The establishment of the LIFC presents an opportunity to leverage Lagos’ strategic position and Nigeria’s economic potential to create a financial centre of international standing,’ Akume said.

He said the composition of the committee, drawing membership from key Federal Government institutions, the Lagos government and the private sector, reflected the level of collaboration required to tackle the policy, legal, regulatory, institutional and infrastructure issues critical to the initiative.

Akume urged members to approach the assignment with commitment and urgency, stressing that the success of the financial centre would depend on a strong whole-of-government approach and effective partnership among the Federal Government, Lagos State and the private sector.

He assured the committee of the support of the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation in the discharge of its mandate.

The committee is chaired by Akume, with Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu as co-chairman, while the Permanent Secretary, General Services Office in the OSGF, Dr Ibrahim Kana, serves as Shadow Chair.

Lagos State Commissioner for Finance, Abayomi Oluyomi, is the Shadow Co-Chair.

Other members include the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele; Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, SAN; Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu; Minister of Interior, Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo; Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr Jumoke Oduwole; and Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Dr Bosun Tijani.

Also on the committee are the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Olayemi Cardoso; Director-General of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Dr Emomotimi Agama; Executive Chairman of the Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS), Dr Zacch Adedeji; and Chairman of EnterpriseNGR, Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede.

Speaking on the occasion, Sanwo-Olu described the proposed financial centre as ‘strategic national infrastructure’ saying the initiative should not be viewed merely as a Lagos project but as a deliberate national economic strategy capable of surviving successive administrations.

The governor, who noted that he would leave office on May 29, 2027, said the enduring legacy of leadership should be measured partly by the institutions, policies and programmes left behind.

‘I have less than 265 days to go as governor. No matter how good I may be, or how many people call me their Governor, on May 29, 2027, I will take a bow. I do not intend to stay one day longer.

‘But the pride of any leader is to leave behind institutions that will outlive them-to leave policies, projects and programmes that will give direction long after they have left office. Today is one of those days,’ Sanwo-Olu said.

Sanwo-Olu said the LIFC was neither his personal project nor one exclusively belonging to Lagos State or the private sector, but a national initiative involving the Federal Government, Lagos State, EnterpriseNGR and international partners.

He commended President Tinubu for endorsing the project and issuing the directive that elevated it to a national strategic programme.

According to him, international financial centres are deliberately established by countries as instruments of economic strategy to mobilise long-term capital, deepen financial markets, create trusted jurisdictions and connect domestic economies with global capital.

‘The Lagos International Financial Centre is strategic national infrastructure. Let me repeat that: an International Financial Centre is strategic national infrastructure.

‘International Financial Centres around the world are deliberate instruments of national economic strategy. They are not merely regional or state initiatives; they are national strategies,’ he said.

Sanwo-Olu said the LIFC would be anchored on institutional trust, regulatory quality, legal certainty and international connectivity, arguing that investors must be able to predict outcomes and have confidence in the regulatory and legal environment.

He said the ambition was to establish ‘Africa’s premier International Financial Centre-a trusted gateway through which global capital can access Nigeria and, indeed, the wider African continent’.

Citing financial centres in Dubai, Hong Kong, Kigali, Casablanca, Mauritius and Abu Dhabi, the governor said their emergence as global investment destinations resulted from deliberate policies to attract capital, talent and businesses.

He linked the urgency behind the LIFC to the Tinubu administration’s target of building a $1 trillion Nigerian economy by 2030.

‘You do not set such a target and simply go to sleep. There must be intentionality.

‘You must run a marathon with the urgency and discipline of a sprinter. Not many countries can achieve a $1 trillion GDP. It is a tall order. But it is achievable,’ Sanwo-Olu said.

The governor, however, stressed that the proposed centre would neither operate as a tax haven nor provide refuge for illicit funds or avenues for regulatory arbitrage.

‘It is not a tax haven. It is not a place for regulatory arbitrage or bypassing compliance requirements. It is not a safe haven for illicit funds. Rather, it is a trusted platform through which nations compete for capital,’ he said.

Sanwo-Olu identified coordinated regulation, an enforceable legal framework, accountable investor services, and talent and market depth as critical foundations for the centre.

He warned against regulatory institutions working at cross-purposes, saying there must be coordinated oversight and certainty that rules would apply equally to all investors and operators.

Meanwhile Aig-Imoukhuede, disclosed that promoters of the initiative were targeting a soft launch of the financial centre in the first quarter of 2027.

Aig-Imoukhuede said groundwork on the project began about two years ago through fact-finding and consensus-building involving technocrats, senior government officials, private-sector leaders and international partners.

He described the collaboration between the Federal Government, Lagos State and the private sector as an example of what Nigeria could achieve through coordinated action.

‘I believe this will become a case study that will be written about in history as an example of how Nigeria can truly work. Nigeria is powerful, and Nigeria needs capital,’ he said.

According to him, countries compete intensely for capital because of its mobility and tendency to gravitate towards jurisdictions offering safety, predictability and opportunities for growth.

‘Capital is perhaps the most discerning visitor that I know. Capital goes where it feels safe. It goes where it believes it can grow. It goes where it feels comfortable. Most importantly, capital is perhaps the most mobile resource in the world,’ he said.

Aig-Imoukhuede said substantial preparatory work had already been completed, including a strategic blueprint, while KPMG had been engaged to develop a detailed business plan, institutional operating model and implementation economics.

He said federal and state legislative instruments were being drafted, while a legal and regulatory gap review had also been undertaken.

The EnterpriseNGR chairman stressed that although the centre would be located in Lagos, its economic benefits were expected to spread nationwide.

‘This is a national assignment. The benefits of this project will go far beyond Lagos. Pools of capital may enter Nigeria through Lagos, but I do not see them remaining only in Lagos.

‘I see capital coming in through Lagos and flowing into projects across the country and across multiple sectors-including technology, agriculture and many other areas of the economy,’ he said.

He said the centre would create high-value jobs, strengthen the formal economy, expand the tax base and contribute to national income and economic growth.

Aig-Imoukhuede identified legal and regulatory certainty, regulatory quality, institutional responsiveness, commercial depth and institutional durability as five factors that would determine the centre’s credibility internationally.

He said the project was now approaching its third and final phase ahead of the proposed launch.

‘Our desire is to have the launch in the first quarter of 2027. What we are planning is what is described as a soft launch’, he said.

Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, said the Federal Government would ensure that the initiative had the legal certainty required to inspire investor confidence.

Fagbemi particularly welcomed Sanwo-Olu’s assurance that the LIFC would not become a safe haven for illicit financial flows, saying the message must be clearly communicated internationally.

‘When an investor is considering where to invest, one of the first things they ask about is the legal regime.

‘Beyond every other consideration, investors want to know the nature and certainty of the laws governing their investments. That gives them confidence and assurance,’ he said.

The AGF pledged that the Justice Ministry would work with federal and sub-national authorities to identify laws requiring amendment, enhancement or repeal to accommodate the initiative.

He said Nigeria’s federal structure meant that the constitutional powers of states to make laws would have to be carefully accommodated in designing the LIFC framework.

Fagbemi also urged the committee to strengthen public communication around the initiative to prevent misunderstanding of its objectives locally and internationally.

On the choice of Lagos as host, he said: ‘The truth must be told: where else would it have been? There are moments when we simply have to be self-critical and honest with ourselves’.

He described the $1 trillion economy target as ambitious but achievable, urging stakeholders to accelerate work now that the implementation process had begun.

Adedeji urged the committee to quickly move beyond steering the project into actual implementation.

‘Rather than simply calling this a Steering Committee, we should quickly move towards establishing an Implementation Committee. We need to begin thinking from execution backwards. We must ask ourselves practical questions about what exactly we are trying to build,’ Adedeji said.

He said fundamental decisions would have to be made on whether the LIFC would operate as a designated physical jurisdiction, a digital ecosystem or a combination of both.

Adedeji cautioned against simply transplanting international financial centre models into Nigeria without accounting for the country’s peculiar constitutional, legal and tax systems.

‘That kind of isomorphic mimicry-simply copying a model and ticking boxes-will not work for us. Nigeria has its own peculiar legal and constitutional structure,’ he said.

He argued that legal certainty should ultimately be entrenched in an Act of Parliament and supported by the constitutional framework.

Adedeji urged stakeholders to implement components of the initiative progressively rather than waiting for the entire framework to be completed.

‘We must ensure that this does not remain merely a presentation or a beautifully packaged proposal,’ he said.

Dr Oduwole, described the LIFC as a ‘catalytic project’ that could significantly accelerate Nigeria’s journey towards a $1 trillion economy.

‘Indeed, the $1 trillion economy target for 2030, as set by Mr President under the Renewed Hope Agenda, could potentially be achieved even before then with interventions such as this,’ she said.

Dr Oduwole said creating an enabling and predictable environment would boost investor confidence and encourage global capital to be domiciled in Nigeria, with Lagos serving as a major entry point.

She acknowledged that implementation could require separate processes, legislation and regulations from those applicable elsewhere in the country and urged participating institutions to approach the technical phase with an open mind.

The minister also disclosed that President Tinubu had approved a Steering Committee for the establishment of a Digital Free Zone, expected to be the first of its kind in Africa.

She said discussions were already under way to ensure alignment between the Digital Free Zone and the LIFC, particularly in areas where both initiatives could complement each other.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs also pledged to deploy Nigeria’s diplomatic network in support of the financial centre through international advocacy, investment diplomacy and strategic partnerships with established international financial centres.

A representative of the ministry said Nigerian missions abroad would engage governments, international organisations, investors and other stakeholders to promote the initiative.

The official said the LIFC provided a concrete platform through which the country’s economic diplomacy could be translated into investment flows and was consistent with President Tinubu’s foreign policy agenda.

Oluyomi had earlier told the gathering that international financial centres were deliberate instruments of national economic strategy built to mobilise long-term capital, deepen markets and connect domestic opportunities with global finance.

He said the LIFC could become the trusted platform through which Nigeria competes for international capital and through which global investors access opportunities across Africa.

Members of the committee’s secretariat are the Director of Legal Services in the OSGF, Mrs Kamilatu M. Kida, and Chief Executive Officer of EnterpriseNGR, Ms Obi Obiekwe.

The Nigeria National League has released its proposed calendar for the 2026/27 season, with the opening fixture scheduled for October 31, 2026.

The calendar was forwarded to secretaries of the concerned State Football Associations by NNL Chief Operating Officer Danlami Alanana on September 2 as part of preparations for the new campaign.

Stadium inspections will take place from September 7 to 19, while club registration will run from September 14 to October 23.

Player licences will be collected between October 24 and 30, just before the opening match on October 31. The remaining Matchday One fixtures are scheduled for November 7.

The first stanza for teams in Groups C and D will end on December 19, followed by a Christmas and New Year break from December 21 until January 7.

Groups A and B will complete their first stanza on January 16, with the mid-season break scheduled for January 16 to 29. A mid-season retreat will also take place between January 21 and 23.

The second stanza will begin on January 30, 2027.

The regular season for Groups C and D is expected to end on March 13, while Groups A and B will conclude on April 3.The season-ending Super Four tournament is scheduled for April 14 to 18, 2027.

Heartland FC and Crown FC are billed to contest the season-opening fixture at the Dan Anyiam Stadium, Owerri, on October 31.

Former Ogun State Governor and Senator representing Ogun East, Otunba Gbenga Daniel, has said Nigeria cannot build a strong economy without security, just as lasting security cannot be achieved without a strong economy.

Daniel stated this on Thursday as the Special Guest of Honour at the 7th Freedom Online Yearly Lecture held at the Sheraton Hotel, Ikeja, Lagos.

Speaking on the theme, ‘Economy and Security: The Future of Nigeria,’ Daniel said the two issues were inseparable and must be addressed together if the country was to achieve sustainable development.

He noted that Nigeria’s economy had recorded encouraging signs, including a reported 4.43 per cent growth in the second quarter of 2026, with improvements in the agriculture and services sectors.

However, he said the real measure of economic progress should be how Nigerians experienced the economy in their daily lives.

He asked whether young Nigerians could find decent jobs, farmers could safely access their farms, manufacturers could produce competitively and small businesses could survive the rising costs of power, transportation and finance.

Daniel said the questions were directly connected to security, which he described as an essential component of economic infrastructure.

He said insecurity affected food production, increased the cost of transporting goods, weakened business competitiveness and discouraged investment.

‘The reported abduction of more than 7,800 people between July 2025 and June 2026 is therefore not only a security statistic. It is also an economic warning,’ he said.

The senator, however, said Nigeria should not be defined solely by its challenges, citing its young population, entrepreneurial culture, growing technology sector, financial institutions and vibrant creative economy as sources of strength.

He said the priority should be to create conditions that would enable Nigerians to deploy their abilities and enterprise on a larger scale.

According to him, such conditions include security, infrastructure and economic opportunities.

‘Nigeria’s future cannot depend on oil alone’

Daniel said while oil remained important to the Nigerian economy, the country’s future could not depend on the commodity alone.

He noted that the non-oil sector accounted for approximately 95.8 per cent of real GDP in the second quarter of 2026, reflecting the growing importance of agriculture, manufacturing, technology, construction, financial services, tourism, entertainment and the digital economy.

He said the challenge was to translate growth in these sectors into productive jobs, higher incomes and improved living standards.

Daniel particularly stressed the need to provide opportunities for young Nigerians, saying they required skills, employment, access to capital and technology to contribute meaningfully to the country’s development.

‘If we give our young people opportunity, they will build Nigeria. If we deny them opportunity, frustration will grow and social stability will suffer,’ he said.

Daniel cites Lagos, Ogun as examples

The former governor said Lagos and Ogun states offered examples of what could be achieved when population, enterprise, infrastructure and opportunity were brought together.

He acknowledged that both states faced challenges but said Nigerians were remarkably productive when provided with an enabling environment.

Daniel called for similar opportunities to be extended across the country, enabling entrepreneurs in cities such as Aba, Kano, Ibadan, Jos, Port Harcourt and Maiduguri to operate with the same confidence as their counterparts in Lagos.

He said the decisions being made today would determine the Nigeria of tomorrow.

‘If we secure our farms, we strengthen food security. If we secure our roads, we strengthen commerce. If we secure our communities, we attract investment. If we create jobs and invest in our young people, we strengthen social stability and the future of the nation,’ he said.

Daniel said he remained optimistic about Nigeria, arguing that the country’s capacity was greater than its problems.

‘We have the people, the resources, the market and the entrepreneurial spirit. What we need is the security, leadership, infrastructure and discipline to convert potential into prosperity,’ he said.

He thereafter handed over to the Governor of Lagos State, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, who was scheduled to deliver the main lecture.

The withdrawal of some West African countries from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) in 2025 weakened regional integration mechanisms, particularly protocols promoting the free movement of goods and services, the Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Media and Public Communications, Sunday Dare, has said.

Dare said the development created a major regional crisis and undermined existing mechanisms for economic integration and regional cooperation.

He said this on Thursday while speaking on border management and regional cooperation at the 2nd Policy Colloquium, organised by the Ministry of Defence in collaboration with Saban Media Services.

The colloquium was themed: ‘Securing the Sovereign Frontier: Strategic Defence Architecture, Emerging Technologies and Democratic Integrity in Nigeria.’

Dare said effective border management had implications not only for economic activities but also for regional security, describing borders as critical frontlines for protecting regional stability.

‘The rupture that came in 2025 when the countries pulled out of ECOWAS created a major regional crisis. That pullout from ECOWAS simply blunted the ECOWAS protocol that promoted integration, free movement of goods and services,’ he said.

He said the withdrawal also led to the emergence of the Alliance of Sahel States (AES), which he described as another regional bloc that challenged existing instruments and protocols for regional cooperation.

‘It eventually led to the creation of AES, another counter-regional body to ECOWAS. But it also challenged the other instruments and protocols that we have for regional cooperation,’ Dare said.

The presidential aide said effective border management could facilitate economic integration, while poor management could contribute to insecurity and instability.

He said the country’s borders must therefore be managed in a manner that balances the need to promote legitimate economic activities with the imperative of protecting national and regional security.

Dare also dismissed claims by the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Atiku Abubakar, that Nigeria’s borders were closed, urging politicians not to turn border security into an issue for electoral campaigns.

‘The Interior Minister has stated the facts. Nigeria’s borders are open. And let me say for a fact, when it comes to the stability of our borders, when it comes to security, it should not be an arena of politicking or an arena to seek votes or to score cheap political points,’ he said.

Dare stressed that open borders did not mean uncontrolled borders, noting that immigration, customs and other security agencies remained responsible for regulating movements across the country’s borders.

‘Our borders are critical. There are no open borders without controls. So you must understand there is a distinction,’ he said.

African Union institutions must move beyond describing young people as ‘the leaders of tomorrow’ and give them a meaningful role in shaping the continent today, President of the Abdou Samb Foundation and Honorary Ambassador to the Pan-African Parliament for the Diaspora, Abdou Samb, has argued.

Samb is pushing for the formal recognition of African youth as the ‘seventh region’ of Africa, a proposal he says would give young Africans a stronger voice in the decisions and policies that affect their future.

The idea follows the African Union’s 2003 decision to recognise the African diaspora as the continent’s sixth region.

According to Samb, that decision acknowledged Africans who live outside the continent, but a similar step is now needed to address what he describes as the exclusion of Africa’s young population from important institutions.

He said the proposal gained fresh momentum on June 16 in Johannesburg, where more than 1,000 young Africans reportedly supported the call for youth to be formally recognised as the seventh region.

The campaign was later taken to Bujumbura during celebrations marking the 20th anniversary of the African Youth Charter, where it also received a favourable response.

For Samb, however, simply giving young people a new title or place on paper would not solve the problem.

He said the experience of the diaspora, which was recognised as the sixth region more than two decades ago, shows that recognition can remain largely symbolic if it does not come with real influence, funding and decision-making powers.

Africa has one of the youngest populations in the world, with a median age of about 19, yet Samb argues that young people remain poorly represented in the institutions responsible for making decisions about the continent. He believes this creates a serious gap between the people who will live longest with today’s decisions and those making them.

He also rejected the argument that young Africans are not experienced enough to participate in leadership.

According to him, such arguments have been used for years to justify keeping younger generations away from positions of responsibility. What matters, he said, should be ability, competence and merit, rather than age, political connections or personal networks.

Samb therefore wants the proposed seventh region to be more than another platform where young Africans are invited to speak without being heard.

He wants it to have the resources to act, the ability to propose initiatives and a system through which its impact can be publicly measured.

He also warned against allowing the initiative to become another avenue for favouritism and political patronage. In his view, talented young Africans should be able to gain access to opportunities based on what they can contribute, rather than who they know.

The proposal, therefore, is not simply about giving African youth another seat at the table.

It is about changing the way the continent makes decisions and ensuring that its largest generation has a genuine stake in shaping Africa’s future.

For Samb, the seventh region will only succeed if it becomes a tool for real change rather than another symbolic recognition.

Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dr. Dele Alake, has levelled a direct broadside at Kogi State communities, accusing local elders and council functionaries of active connivance and dangerous complacency in shielding illegal miners from the law.

He spoke during a protest visit by the Concerned Kogi Youths Against Environmental Degradation at the Ministry’s headquarters on Thursday.

Alake pulled back the curtain on government findings, revealing that the individuals destroying local ecosystems are not foreign invaders but indigenes harboured by their own leaders.

‘Investigations have revealed that illegal miners are not aliens, but indigenes involved in illegitimate livelihoods with the support of elders, traditional rulers, and local government functionaries,’ Alake stated firmly.

Expressing frustration over community-backed sabotage that undermines legitimate operators, the Minister highlighted how local complicity directly starves the national economy while enriching a select few at the public’s expense.

‘Their illegal activities are killing the mining companies,’ Alake warned. ‘In the coal fields, they are stealing the minerals of mining companies which have paid money to obtain licences and will still pay royalties… Illegal miners don’t pay for licences. They don’t pay royalties. They enrich themselves at the expense of the Nigerian people.’

Represented by a delegation of senior officials led by Director of Mining Inspectorate, Engr. Imam Ganiyu, and Mining Marshals Commander, John Attah Onoja, the Minister urged the youth delegation to redirect their activism towards their own backyards and challenge the protective cover provided by local elites.

‘This ministry has a message for them and their collaborators: time is running out,’ he declared. ‘If, as you claim, you are Kogi youths, take this message to the stakeholders in your communities. Consult your elders. Convince community leaders and local authorities to back off and allow the machinery of enforcement to work.’

The Minister highlighted that, despite local resistance, federal enforcement is making headway, noting that, ‘We have arrested 743 suspects; we are prosecuting 165 cases involving 430 accused persons. So far, we have secured five convictions,’ Alake said, warning collaborators that ‘time is running out’ as advanced technology and expanded marshal operations roll out.

‘Consult your elders. Convince community leaders and local authorities to back off and allow the machinery of enforcement to work diligently and effectively,’ he urged the youths.

Earlier, leader of the youth group, Comrade Isaiah Davies Ijele, had lamented the severe ecological ruin in Kogi East-specifically across Ankpa and Omala communities-where unregulated operators have wrecked roads, poisoned water sources, and decimated farmlands.

Responding to the grievances, Director of Mining Environmental Compliance, Dr. Vivian Okono, assured the delegation that the government is compiling a comprehensive list of defaulting mining firms violating their Community Development Agreements, promising that sanctions and public exposure are imminent.