Category: The Nation – Nigeria

Flash floods have ravaged several parts of Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital, submerging homes, roads, estates, markets and business premises and forcing residents to flee their houses.

The flooding, largely attributed to persistent heavy rainfall, left residents stranded in several parts of the city, with some moving mattresses, cooking utensils, and other valuables to safer locations.

Others with nowhere to go were seen seeking higher ground within their compounds, while navigating the floodwaters to carry out essential daily activities.

Homes, offices, markets, hospitals and estates, as well as areas under flyovers, were reportedly overwhelmed by rising floodwaters.

The situation also disrupted academic activities, with students and pupils in some of the worst-hit areas unable to access their schools.

Several major roads became impassable as floodwaters trapped vehicles and left commuters stranded.

Among the areas badly affected were Rukpokwu, Rumuokwuta, Obiwali Road, Peter Odili Road, Eneka, SARS Road, Aba Road, Eliozu, Ozuoba and NTA Road.

In some communities, residents watched helplessly as floodwaters entered their living rooms, destroying property and household belongings.

Some affected residents were seen crying and appealing to the government to declare an emergency and intervene urgently.

The flooding also disrupted social activities, with wedding guests reportedly stunned at the weekend when floodwaters submerged a reception venue.

Heaps of refuse and sewage floating on the floodwaters have further heightened fears of a possible outbreak of diseases among residents.

A resident, who spoke in confidence, called on the government to launch an emergency flood-control programme to tackle the disaster.

She said, ‘I respectfully appeal for an immediate assessment of these areas and a coordinated flood control programme.

We need more than an emergency approach during a rainy season like this. We need properly connected drainage systems, desilting and widening of major drains, clearing of blocked waterways and culverts, adequate water outlets, and regular maintenance.

‘The Local Government Councils should also identify and document flood hotspots within their areas and work with the State Government on permanent interventions.

When the rains stop, the water may disappear, but the underlying problem remains. Let us fix the drainage infrastructure before the next major rainfall.’

Another resident, Tina Ugbo, blamed the development on indiscriminate house construction and encroachment on waterways in the city.

She said, ‘They have sold lands in Port Harcourt, and sadly, many of our waterways have also been encroached upon. People have knowingly and unknowingly built homes and businesses on areas meant for water to flow.

‘Now, the consequences are devastating. Families are being forced out of their homes, businesses are being destroyed, roads are becoming impassable, and people are left stranded, frustrated and helpless.

‘I saw the flood this morning, and honestly, I was speechless. Seeing people struggle to get home and protect what they have worked so hard for is heartbreaking.

‘We need urgent action, proper drainage, restoration of waterways and a lasting solution to this recurring disaster. My prayers go out to everyone affected. May God protect our people and provide help where it is needed most. Port Harcourt needs help. The people need help.’

Another resident, Meshack Uyi, took to Facebook to vent his frustration, blaming both the people and government for the recurring flooding.

Uyi wrote, ‘Port Harcourt does not flood because it rains. Port Harcourt floods because leadership has failed. Yes, people are responsible for their actions, but governments are responsible for creating systems that make things work.

‘This is Port Harcourt, the heart of Rivers State, the Garden City. If flooding is allowed to happen here, then nowhere is safe. I’ve lived in Port Harcourt for over 20 years, and Port Harcourt has flooded every single year. Governments have changed, but the problem hasn’t. The solutions exist. So why are we still making excuses?

‘For decades, governments have looked away while wetlands were sold, waterways were encroached. Planning authorities approve what should never have been approved, while enforcement agencies conveniently look the other way.’

Uyi called for immediate action, saying it was time for stakeholders to stop making excuses over the recurring disaster.

He said, ‘Declare and permanently protect buffer zones along every major waterway. Demolish every illegal structure obstructing drains and waterways, regardless of who owns it or which party it supports. The law cannot be for the poor alone.

‘The same applies to the thousands of unauthorised containers, kiosks, and structures choking our streets and drainage channels. We cannot continue sacrificing an entire city for political patronage.

‘The government must take responsibility for proper waste, drainage and flood management. Floodwaters do not recognise political parties. They do not distinguish between rich and poor. Water obeys only nature. It is time for the leaders to do the same.’

The fourth Ofala Festival of His Royal Majesty, Igwe K.O. Obioremgbe, the Ogbuehi Jideofor V of Amorka Town in Ihiala Local Government Area of Anambra State, will be held on Saturday.

The colourful traditional ceremony is expected to attract sons and daughters of Amorka, friends, associates, dignitaries and well-wishers from across the country. It will take place at the palace, Umuezike, Amorka.

The Ofala Festival is an important cultural occasion that celebrates the traditional institution, community unity, heritage and the achievements of the people.

It provides an opportunity for the people of Amorka to come together in celebration and to reaffirm their commitment to the peace, progress and development of the community.

As the Ogbuehi Jideofor V, Igwe Obioremgbe has continued to uphold the customs and traditions of Amorka while promoting unity and peaceful coexistence among his people. The 4th Ofala Festival is expected to be a significant gathering, featuring traditional rites, cultural displays and other activities that will showcase the rich heritage of Amorka and the people of Ihiala.

The royal palace has invited members of the public, particularly sons and daughters of Amorka, traditional rulers, community leaders, and friends and well-wishers of Igwe K.O. Obioremgbe, to join in celebrating the occasion.

The festival is scheduled to commence at the palace, Umuezike, Amorka, on October 3.

The Oyo State chapter of the African Action Congress (AAC) has unveiled Oloye Saheed Oladele, the Baàm?`k?´ of Ibadanland, as its candidate for the 2027 governorship election in the state.

In an official statement released by the Oyo State Publicity Secretary of the AAC, Mr Ismail Olalekan, the party described Oladele as a selfless leader whose candidacy in the party was a much awaited homecoming.

He also portrayed Oladele as a committed Nigerian and a people-focused leader and educationist of repute with exceptional achievements in youth development and public affairs.

The statement read further that Oladele’s emergence followed rigorous internal processes and consultations within the party, and with stakeholders across Oyo State.

The party further said his candidacy reflects its commitment to presenting a candidate who understands the aspirations of ordinary residents of Oyo State, and is prepared to advance the party’s principles.

The party also unveiled Mrs Damola Jaye as Oloye Saheed Oladele’s running mate. According to the statement, Mrs Jaye brings deep political lineage and a robust Oke Ogun collaboration to the ticket, while the duo of Oladele and Jaye represent an electoral platform focused on taking Oyo State back from the shackles of modern slavery, abject poverty, educational retrogression, poor development at the local government level, and unnecessary mortgaging of the future of Oyo State.

With the 2027 general elections approaching, the emergence of the Oladele/Jaye AAC ticket has disrupted the political permutations ahead of the gubernatorial contest in Oyo State.

The Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Senator George Akume, has directed Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) to translate the findings of the 2026 Transparency and Integrity Index (TII) into concrete changes in their operations, warning against allowing the report to become another unused document.

Akume said the Federal Government expects public institutions to integrate transparency and accountability into management decisions, budgeting, procurement, staff development and public engagement as part of efforts to strengthen citizens’ trust in government.

The SGF spoke on Monday while delivering the keynote address at the presentation of the 2026 Transparency and Integrity Index at the Federal Ministry of Finance Auditorium in Abuja.

According to a statement by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Yomi Odunuga, Akume said the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu remained committed to open, accountable and responsible governance, stressing that government policies, programmes and actions must be transparent, visible and understandable to Nigerians.

He described the Index as an important instrument for assessing accountability, openness and ethical standards across public institutions, saying it provides MDAs with benchmarks for identifying their strengths as well as shortcomings requiring urgent attention.

Akume consequently charged heads of MDAs to incorporate the Index’s findings and indicators into strategic planning, performance management, budget priorities, procurement processes, staff training, and digital disclosure.

‘The report should not sit on the shelf and should inform management decisions, budget priorities, procurement processes, staff training, digital disclosure, and how you communicate with the public’, the SGF said.

He stressed that transparency must be treated as an institutional asset rather than an administrative burden, adding that integrity should be embedded in the procedures and culture of government institutions through clear policies, proper record-keeping, effective oversight and ethical leadership.

Akume also called for consequences for wrongdoing, insisting that strengthening public confidence in government would require institutions to demonstrate accountability not only in policy declarations but also in their everyday operations.

The SGF particularly urged MDAs to leverage technology by ensuring that their websites and data portals provide accurate, timely and user-friendly information on their activities.

He said that current information on budgets, contracts and services should be readily available to citizens, enabling them to engage with government effectively and to track how public resources are being utilised.

Akume explained that the 2026 TII assesses public institutions across five areas – fiscal transparency, open procurement and contracting, human resources and inclusion, control of corruption, and citizens’ engagement.

He said the initiative complements ongoing public service reforms, anti-corruption measures and Nigeria’s commitments under the Open Government Partnership.

The SGF, however, stressed that the objective should extend beyond securing favourable institutional rankings, saying the ultimate goal was to build public institutions that Nigerians could understand, engage with and hold accountable while safeguarding public resources and improving service delivery.

‘The Federal Government remains fully committed to this goal. We will continue building institutions that are transparent, accountable, professional and responsive to the needs of the people,’ Akume said.

He commended the Bureau of Public Service Reforms (BPSR) and the Centre for Fiscal Transparency and Public Integrity (CeFTPI) for sustaining the initiative.

Akume also called for stronger collaboration among government institutions, civil society organisations, professional bodies, development partners, and the media to strengthen transparency and accountability and ultimately ‘bring corruption to its knees.’

The Grassroots Supporters of G-15 in Kwara Central have denied reports that some members of the group had defected from the All Progressives Congress (APC).

The group described the reports as misleading and said they could cause confusion within the party ahead of the 2027 general elections.

The clarification followed reports that some G-15 members had endorsed Kwara State Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq.

Chairman of the Elders Council of Ilorin G-15, Saka Awayewaserere, said the group remained members of the APC and loyal to the leaders of the G-15 movement.

He said stakeholders of the G-15 movement in Ilorin East were not aware of any move by members to abandon the group’s position.

‘Our loyalty to our leaders in G-15 therefore remains unshaken,’ Awayewaserere said.

The G-15 emerged following disagreements surrounding the APC governorship primary in the state, with some aggrieved aspirants and their supporters forming the group.

Grassroots supporters said their continued membership of the APC did not prevent them from maintaining political relationships with the leaders of the G-15.

Awayewaserere said the group would continue to support its leaders while respecting its members’ individual political choices.

He also reaffirmed the group’s support for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu ahead of the 2027 presidential election.

He said the group would mobilise its supporters at the grassroots in support of Tinubu, citing its belief in the President’s leadership and the need for continuity.

Awayewaserere said the group would take its message to communities across Kwara Central as part of its mobilisation efforts.

The group urged the public and political stakeholders to disregard reports of mass defections or a complete realignment of G-15 supporters, saying the political situation is more nuanced than recent reports suggested.

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Monday said the Federal Government’s National Credit Guarantee Company (NCGC) has helped unlock N46.95 billion in loans for 67,512 Nigerians and businesses within its first year of operations.

The President said the credit was mobilised on the back of N21.59 billion in guarantees issued by the company, translating to about N2.17 in lending for every N1 of guarantee provided.

Tinubu, in a message posted on his verified X handle, @officialABAT, said the figures demonstrated his administration’s determination to move Nigeria towards a credit-based economy in which workers and businesses could access financing without being held back by traditional collateral requirements.

The figures cited by the President are consistent with NCGC’s first-year performance, which showed that N21.59 billion in risk cover unlocked N46.95 billion in financing for 67,512 borrowers across 25 states and the Federal Capital Territory.

According to Tinubu, 11,374 of the beneficiaries are women, while 33.5 per cent of the total beneficiaries are first-time formal borrowers, bringing more than 22,000 Nigerians into the formal credit system for the first time.

He said the development would allow the new borrowers to establish credit histories which could improve their prospects of securing further financing as they successfully repay their loans.

‘When I sought your mandate, I promised to move Nigeria towards a credit-based economy and to establish a loan guarantee scheme that would help small businesses overcome the barriers that keep them from finance.

‘That promise was about something practical. A worker with access to credit can buy what the family needs and pay over time, and a small business can invest today against the income it expects tomorrow’, Tinubu said.

The President said his administration had been building institutions around the objective, pointing to the Nigerian Consumer Credit Corporation (CREDICORP), the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), the Bank of Industry (BOI), Development Bank of Nigeria (DBN) and NCGC as components of the emerging credit architecture.

He explained that while CREDICORP provides consumer credit to working Nigerians and NELFUND supports students with education financing, the NCGC was established to confront one of the biggest obstacles to business lending; the reluctance of financial institutions to lend to otherwise viable businesses with insufficient collateral or limited credit histories.

‘Many viable businesses still meet the same obstacle at the bank. Lenders see too much risk in a sound business when the owner has little collateral or no credit history.

‘We established NCGC to help change that. It carries part of the lending risk with participating financial institutions, giving them greater confidence to lend to businesses and borrowers they might otherwise turn away’, Tinubu said.

The NCGC operates by providing partial credit guarantees, sharing part of lenders’ exposure and consequently reducing the risk attached to lending to underserved businesses and consumers.

The company says its guarantees typically cover up to 60 per cent of outstanding loan principal, although higher coverage may apply to some strategic categories.

Tinubu said the company currently works with 19 participating financial institutions comprising 13 commercial banks, three microfinance banks and three development finance institutions.

He added that beyond the volume of loans already mobilised, the businesses supported under the guarantee arrangement were estimated to account for 661,291 direct and indirect jobs.

Independent reporting on NCGC’s first-year performance also put the number of jobs supported at 661,291 and confirmed that 11,374 of the 67,512 beneficiaries were women.

The President said access to credit was important not merely because of the amount of money disbursed but because of its capacity to expand businesses, stimulate consumption and create employment.

‘Credit matters because of what people can do with it. A trader can restock before the festive season. When a manufacturer takes a bigger order and buys another machine to fill it, another Nigerian gets a job’, he said.

Tinubu said the administration considered the expansion of credit as a critical bridge between its economic reforms and opportunities available to ordinary Nigerians.

‘This is how we move from reforms to opportunities. Our reforms laid the foundation. Credit gives Nigerians the means to build on it. Tens of thousands who stood outside formal credit a year ago are now inside, borrowing to grow’, he said.

The NCGC was created following a presidential mandate in August 2024 to address financing constraints confronting small businesses and underserved consumers.

Its mandate includes providing partial credit guarantees to reduce lending risks, improve access to finance and promote financial inclusion.

Tinubu pledged that his administration would continue expanding access to formal credit across the country, saying ‘we will keep widening that road until the opportunities our reforms create reach homes and businesses in every part of Nigeria.

‘Promise made, Promise Kept. We are moving from reforms to opportunities. Nigeria First’, the President added.

Former House of Assembly candidates who contested under the African Democratic Congress (ADC) in Jigawa, Plateau, Taraba and Zamfara states have defected to the All Progressives Congress (APC) ahead of the 2027 general elections.

The defectors, led by Princess Aslam Aliyu (Gimbiyar Kauran Namoda) and represented by Hon. Mohammed Hassan of Zamfara State, submitted their resignation letters to the APC leadership at the party’s National Secretariat in Abuja on Monday.

They said they were joining the APC to support President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration and its agenda ahead of the 2027 elections.

Speaking on behalf of the delegation, Hassan said the decision followed a desire to contribute to national development and serve their communities.

‘We are not here merely to change the political platform, but to begin a new chapter of service and a great contribution to our people by supporting Baba Tinubu to a Renewed Agenda 2027, Inshallah,’ he said.

Hassan appealed to the APC leadership to accept the defectors and provide them with an opportunity to contribute to the party’s activities.

‘Our commitment remains clear: to support the party, mobilise our people, promote development, and render service to Nigeria with sincerity and dedication,’ he said.

Receiving the defectors, APC National Chairman, Prof. Nentawe Yilwatda, welcomed their decision and noted that they had withdrawn from their previous political ambitions before joining the party.

‘We receive you especially because of the significance of your coming as candidates who voluntarily left the contest and withdrew from their ambition; abandoned their ambition for the overall interest of the nation,’ Yilwatda said.

He urged the new members to register in their respective wards and participate in the party’s grassroots activities.

Yilwatda also highlighted federal government projects and social intervention programmes in northern Nigeria, citing road projects, compressed natural gas (CNG), fertiliser and gas distribution, civil service salary support and the student loan scheme.

He said the student loan programme had benefited many students in northern Nigeria and questioned calls by opposition politicians to reverse some federal government policies.

‘The beneficiaries of the student loan-most of them are from the North. We have more of them in this part of the country. Should we stop it?’ he asked.

Yilwatda said the defectors should participate in the party’s campaign activities at ward and polling-unit levels ahead of the 2027 elections.

‘Follow the campaign train in your own ward, in your own polling unit, because all elections are won at the polling units,’ he said.

He welcomed the former ADC candidates to the APC and assured them of opportunities to participate in the party’s activities.

Accord stalwart, Dr. Gbenga Hashim, has promised that Nigerian refineries will have access to the nation’s crude at a strategic domestic price, if the party wins next year’s presidential election.

He said an Accord government would give them the cost advantage to compete aggressively in the sub-regional markets and transform Nigeria into a global energy power.

Hashim also promised to deliver cheaper petrol to Nigerians.

The Accord stalwart spoke at the weekend in Ilorin, the Kwara State capital, during the Diaspora Dialogue, while giving his take on fuel subsidy and the politics of 2027, anchored by Prof. Farooq Kperogi, Prof. Moses Ochonu, and Dr. Osmund Agbo.

He spoke against the backdrop of rising petrol prices and growing pressure on global energy markets. The businessman-turned-politician said Nigeria’s greatest economic mistake has been to treat crude oil primarily as an export commodity instead of using it as the foundation of National Industrial Power.

‘Nigeria has spent decades giving the world our crude and buying back the value created from it. Our Energy First policy will reverse that equation.

‘Our crude is our strategic advantage. We will put that advantage behind Nigerian industry. Refining and petrochemical industries are a core part of our immediate industrialisation strategy as we aim to be the world most reliable energy source,’ Hashim said.

The Accord stalwart noted that Dangote Refinery and other qualifying Nigerian refineries would be able to access Nigerian crude under a strategic domestic pricing framework rather than being treated simply as foreign buyers competing for an internationally traded commodity.

‘If the crude is Nigerian and the refinery is Nigerian, the Nigerian economy must capture the advantage.

‘Our refineries will buy Nigerian crude at a strategic local price, not international crude economics, so they can produce competitively, expand aggressively and conquer international markets starting first with the African region,’ Hashim said.

The Accord stalwart stressed that the policy would not be designed to favour any single company.

‘This is not a Dangote subsidy. It is a Nigerian industrial strategy.

‘Dangote will benefit because it has invested at extraordinary scale. Other existing refineries will benefit. New refineries will benefit. Any Nigerian refinery that meets the required efficiency, transparency and performance standards will have access to the same framework.

‘We are not creating one protected champion. We are going to create an army of Nigerian energy champions,’ he said.

Hashim also said an Accord government would use direct government investment and strategic joint ventures to expand Nigeria’s domestic refining capacity by an additional one million barrels per day within three years.

He said the objective is not simply to produce more petrol, but to establish Nigeria as Africa’s leading refining and petrochemical hub.

‘We want to be Africa’s refining and petrochemical hub, not just a huge crude exporter.

‘We will use government investment strategically and deploy joint ventures where necessary to expand refining capacity, deepen petrochemical production and ensure that Nigerian crude creates value in Nigeria before it is exported,’ Hashim said.

According to him, Nigeria must move beyond the ambition of becoming merely self-sufficient in refined petroleum products to becoming a country whose energy companies compete and win globally.

‘We don’t want Dangote merely to dominate the Nigerian refining market. We want Dangote to compete with the world’s biggest energy companies. It started doing this by being the largest supplier of aviation fuel to Europe in the last few months.

‘We want Nigerian refineries supplying Africa. We want Nigerian petrochemical companies competing globally. We want Nigerian energy traders operating internationally.

‘We want Nigerian companies to shape the global energy market,’ he said.

Hashim stressed the local crude strategy must be matched by a dramatic increase in Nigeria’s crude production.

He has proposed recovering approximately 3,000 shut-in and non-producing wells and raising National crude production towards 4 million barrels per day within 24 months of an Accord administration.

‘It makes no economic sense for a country, with thousands of oil wells sitting idle, to behave as though crude is scarce.

‘We will recover commercially viable shut-in wells, restore production infrastructure, improve evacuation and security, and bring Nigeria’s lost barrels back into the economy.’

But Hashim said the additional barrels must not simply become additional exports.

‘The real question is not whether Nigeria can produce four million barrels. The real question is; what will Nigeria do with four million barrels? Under our Energy First policy, we will use those barrels to power Nigerian industry.’

Hashim also doubled down on his proposed ?605 per litre petrol price within the broader Energy First philosophy, adding that Nigeria should reduce energy costs by reducing the underlying cost of production and expanding productive capacity rather than permanently subsidising consumption.

‘For us, ?605 is not our destination. It is a starting point in a transition from subsidising consumption to building productive capacity.

‘We want to make energy cheaper because Nigeria produces more, refines more and captures more value, not because government endlessly pays the difference.’

He said the long-term objective is to bring petrol prices down towards ?200-?300 per litre as crude production rises, domestic refining expands, efficiency improves, and logistics costs fall.

‘The cheaper energy we are promising Nigerians will not be based on accounting magic.

‘It will come from producing more, refining more, wasting less and capturing more value within Nigeria,’ he stated.

Hashim said refining should only be the beginning of Nigeria’s energy transformation.

‘We must stop thinking of petroleum as petrol.

‘The crude beneath our soil can become petrol, diesel, aviation fuel, lubricants, plastics, fertiliser feedstock, petrochemicals and thousands of industrial products.

‘That is where the real economic transformation lies,’ the Accord stalwart stated.

He said an Energy First government would, therefore, build an integrated energy industrial ecosystem around Nigerian crude and gas, supported by pipelines, ports, storage, electricity, transportation, security and predictable regulation.

‘Government will build the ecosystem. Nigerian entrepreneurs will build the companies. Nigerian companies will conquer the markets.

‘Our job is to make Nigerian energy companies less dependent on Nigeria’s limitations.’

Hashim said the emergence of the Dangote Refinery has demonstrated that Nigerian capital can operate at global scale.

‘Dangote has shown the world what Nigerian capital can build. Now Nigeria needs a government with the ambition to match that investment.

‘Our job is not to make Dangote dependent on government. Our job is to make Dangote less dependent on Nigeria’s limitations.

‘We want to give Nigerian energy companies the crude advantage, infrastructure, policy certainty and strategic support required to compete anywhere in the world,’ he said.

Hashim said the ultimate objective of Energy First is to change Nigeria’s position in the global energy economy.

‘For decades, the world bought Nigerian crude and created wealth from it elsewhere.

‘Energy First will ensure that Nigerian crude creates Nigerian industries, Nigerian companies, Nigerian jobs and Nigerian global champions.

‘Local crude. Local refining. Global products. Global markets. Nigerian companies. Global energy power,’ he added.

Kano State has emerged as the best performing state in Nigeria in the 2026 Senior School Certificate Examination (SSCE) conducted by the National Examinations Council (NECO), maintaining its leadership position for the second consecutive year.

In the results released by the examination body, Kano recorded 74,413 candidates, who obtained at least five credits, including English Language and Mathematics, placing the state ahead of other states.

Lagos State came second with 72,496 candidates, while Oyo State placed third with 55,543 candidates.

According to a statement by the State Director-General, Media and Publicity, Sunusi Tofa, the 2026 feat marks the second year in a row that Kano has topped the NECO national performance chart, having also recorded the highest number of candidates with five credits, including English Language and Mathematics, in the 2025 examination.

Reacting to the development, Governor Abba Yusuf commended the students, teachers, parents and other education stakeholders for the outstanding performance, describing it as evidence that sustained investment in education was yielding measurable results.

He noted that Kano maintaining first position in NECO for two consecutive years, 2025 and 2026, had confirmed the state as the leading SSCE performer in the country.

Governor Yusuf reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to prioritising education through increased funding, improved learning facilities, teacher recruitment and training, scholarships and support for indigent students.

As part of its interventions, the state government spent over N4.4 billion in 2026 to sponsor candidates for the Senior Secondary School Certificate Examination, with particular attention to indigent students.

According to the governor, the intervention was designed to remove financial barriers and enable students to sit for the examinations under better conditions.

He said the latest NECO result was a continuation of the steady improvement recorded by Kano students since the inception of the present administration.

Under Governor Yusuf, education has consistently received the largest share of the state budget, surpassing the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) benchmark, it was learnt.

In 2024, education accounted for about 29.95 per cent of the state budget. The allocation was increased to N168.35 billion, representing 31 per cent, in the 2025 budget. For 2026, the state earmarked N405.35 billion for education, representing about 30 per cent of the N1.47 trillion budget.

The governor says the investment goes beyond examination sponsorship to include classroom renovation, teacher recruitment, provision of learning materials, school uniforms, scholarships and other interventions aimed at improving the quality of education.

He added that the administration’s education policies had continued to attract recognition at both national and international levels, positioning Kano as a leading education reform hub in sub-Saharan Africa.

The federal government has unveiled plans to lift five million young Nigerians out of poverty through skills acquisition and empowerment programmes designed to create sustainable livelihoods and improve employability.

Implemented under the National Poverty Reduction with Growth Strategy (NPRGS), the initiative will equip beneficiaries with practical, market-relevant skills and provide support to help them become economically independent.

Senior Special Assistant to the President on Technical, Vocational and Entrepreneurship Education, Dr Abiola Arogundade, disclosed this on Monday in Ibadan at the commencement of the Oyo State phase of the programme.

The two-week training, which runs from September 28 to October 9, targets 200 young Nigerians in Graphics and Artificial Intelligence (AI), makeup artistry, and fashion design.

Arogundade said the intervention was part of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s drive to tackle poverty and unemployment by expanding access to technical, vocational and entrepreneurial education across the country.

According to her, the programme, which commenced with a pilot in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), has now moved to Oyo State and will subsequently be extended to other states and geopolitical zones.

Of the 200 beneficiaries participating in the Oyo programme, 30 are being trained in Graphics and AI, while 85 participants are undergoing training in makeup artistry and fashion designing.

Arogundade said the government’s intervention would not end with training, explaining that beneficiaries would also be linked with organisations and business opportunities to help them translate their newly acquired skills into sustainable sources of income.

‘So with this programme, we are training 200 people. We will also be distributing 500 tablets during the grand finale of the programme as part of the Federal Government’s digital empowerment drive.

‘We are directly empowering 700 people in this programme, and there will be a multiplier effect.

‘We are not just training them for themselves, but we are training them for their communities, for the population, and for all the states in Nigeria’, she said.

The presidential aide urged the beneficiaries to maximise the opportunity by taking the training seriously and using the knowledge and tools provided to create businesses and transfer skills to others in their communities.

‘I want to just encourage them to do their best.

‘I want to encourage them to know that President Bola Tinubu is thinking about all Nigerians, all young Nigerians in the country and is ready to address their plights’, Arogundade said.

She reiterated the administration’s commitment to creating pathways for young Nigerians to achieve economic self-reliance through practical training, entrepreneurship and access to productive tools.

Keynote speaker for the Graphics and AI training, Mrs Oluronke Shonubi, said the growing adoption of artificial intelligence offered Nigeria an opportunity to accelerate development, strengthen employability and prepare its young population for emerging jobs.

One beneficiary, Idowu Olalere, a 400-level student at the Federal University Oye-Ekiti (FUOYE), said the programme would help young Nigerians bridge the gap between their existing abilities and the changing requirements of the labour market.

Other beneficiaries, Mrs Iyabo Ajayi, who is undergoing makeup training, and Fatunbi Joshua, a fashion design trainee, expressed optimism that the initiative would help reduce unemployment by providing participants with practical skills for self-employment.

At the end of the programme, beneficiaries will receive start-up tools, including laptops for Graphics and AI trainees, sewing machines for fashion designers and fully equipped makeup kits for those trained in makeup artistry.

The intervention forms part of the Federal Government’s broader NPRGS programme, which aims to reduce poverty, promote inclusive economic growth, and expand opportunities for young Nigerians through technical, vocational, and entrepreneurship education.