The World Health Summit has opened applications for its fully funded 2026 Stipend and Fellowship Programme, targeting participants from low- and middle-income countries, including Nigeria. The announcement, made via the summit’s official X account, invites qualified candidates to apply for the global health gathering scheduled to take place in Berlin, Germany, from October 11 to 13, 2026. Organisers said the fellowship will support up to 15 participants, including individuals with lived experience in global health. Successful applicants will receive round-trip economy flights to Berlin, four nights of hotel accommodation close to the venue, and full summit registration covering access to…
Author: Elvis Eromosele
Nigeria cannot afford to treat Mali’s latest crisis as a distant problem. The coordinated attacks in Mali, reaching as far as Bamako, offer a stark warning of how quickly insurgencies can evolve when pressure eases, coordination improves among armed groups, and state response lags. For Nigeria, the message is clear: act decisively now or risk a more complex, multi-front security emergency. At the heart of the lesson is escalation. What began in Mali as localised unrest grew into a hybrid threat involving jihadist factions, separatist elements, and external fighters. Nigeria is already confronting a similar mix through Boko Haram and…
Authorities in Mali have imposed a 72-hour nightly curfew in the capital, Bamako, following a wave of coordinated attacks that struck the city and several other regions, signalling a major escalation in the country’s security crisis. The curfew, announced by Governor Abdoulaye Coulibaly, runs from 9:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. and took effect on April 25, 2026, as security forces intensified operations to restore order. Officials say the attacks—linked to jihadist and separatist groups—are among the most complex and coordinated in recent years. At least 16 people were reported wounded in the initial assaults, while the military claimed it had…
U.S. President Donald Trump has cancelled a planned delegation to Pakistan for peace talks with Iran, citing internal divisions among Iranian leaders and what he described as a waste of time. In a post on Truth Social, Trump said the trip to Islamabad had been called off due to “too much time wasted on traveling” and confusion within Iran’s leadership. “If they want to talk, all they have to do is call,” he added, insisting the United States holds the advantage in the stalled negotiations. The now-cancelled mission was expected to include Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner and special envoy Steve…
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has scrapped card maintenance charges on naira-denominated debit and credit cards and introduced zero fees for electronic transfers of ₦5,000 and below, in a major overhaul of banking charges aimed at reducing costs and boosting financial inclusion. The changes are outlined in a revised Guide to Charges by Banks and Other Financial Institutions, which takes effect from May 1, 2026, replacing the 2020 framework. Under the new structure, customers will pay no fees for transfers of ₦5,000 and below. Transfers between ₦5,000 and ₦50,000 will attract a ₦10 charge, while transactions above ₦50,000 will…
The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) and the Royal Malaysian Customs Department (RMCD) have taken steps to strengthen bilateral cooperation on trade facilitation and border management, as trade between both countries continues to expand. This followed an official visit by Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, the Comptroller-General of Customs, to the RMCD headquarters in Malaysia on the sidelines of the DSA Malaysia 2026. The engagement comes amid significant growth in trade relations between the two countries. Nigeria’s imports from Malaysia rose from N159.9 billion in 2020 to N716.0 billion in 2024, with cumulative trade estimated at N1.82 trillion over five years. During the…
The Ogun State Government has inaugurated a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility owned by Summit Household Solutions Limited in Ota, in a move expected to deepen local production capacity and enhance hygiene standards across Nigeria. The facility, which commenced operations in April 2025, is dedicated to the production of home and personal care products such as dishwashing liquids, handwash, sanitisers and multipurpose liquid soaps, with an estimated annual output of 7,000 tonnes. Summit Household Solutions Limited, a Nigerian FMCG company, produces the popular 2Sure brand and has expanded its portfolio to include Lewar, a premium beauty soap line designed to offer quality…
CP Bode Ojajuni, psc, FCSS, MNIPR, the Commissioner of Police, Ogun State Command, received Prof. Fatiu Abiola Arogundade, MD, FMCP, the Vice Chancellor, Federal University of Medicine and Medical Sciences, Abeokuta, and his management team at the Command Headquarters, Eleweran, Abeokuta. The visit emphasised the importance of strengthening collaboration between the Nigeria Police Force and academic institutions, particularly in ensuring the safety and security of students, staff, and critical infrastructure within the university community. Discussions also focused on proactive measures to address security concerns and enhance intelligence sharing between the institution and the police. CP Ojajuni appreciated the Vice Chancellor…
In politics, grand claims are often dismissed as harmless rhetoric. In public finance, they matter. So when President Bola Tinubu said in September 2025, “Nigeria is not borrowing. We have met our revenue target for the year, and we met it in August.” He made a sweeping statement about the country’s finances. Three months later, Finance Minister Wale Edun told lawmakers something very different: that the government would likely miss its 2025 revenue target by about ₦30 trillion and had already borrowed roughly ₦14.1 trillion to cover the gap. Both statements were reported. The issue is whether both can be…
A Federal High Court in Abuja has affirmed the authority of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) to regulate consumer protection issues in the banking sector, dismissing a suit filed by United Bank for Africa (UBA) and imposing a N2 million fine on the lender. In a landmark ruling, Justice James Omotosho upheld the Commission’s statutory powers to investigate complaints involving banks and other financial institutions, reinforcing FCCPC’s role as the primary agency for consumer protection in Nigeria. UBA had approached the court in suit number FHC/ABJ/CS/1972/2025, seeking clarity on whether the FCCPC could exercise jurisdiction over a…