Author: Vardiafrica

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has assented to the Nigerian Insurance Industry Reform Bill, 2025, a landmark legislation to strengthen Nigeria’s financial sector and accelerate the nation’s march towards a $1 trillion economy. The Act now provides zero tolerance to delays in claims insurance settlement and support digitisation of the insurance market to improve access and efficiency. The reform introduced by the new law is expected to catalyse new investments, boost consumer confidence, and position Nigeria as a leading insurance hub in Africa. A statement by Mr Bayo Onanuga, Presidential Spokesperson, announcing the assent stated that the development reaffirms the Tinubu…

The Nigerian First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu has donated the sum of 1 billion to support victims of various disasters in Niger State. She announced the donation during a sympathy visit to Governor Mohammed Umaru Bago at the Government House in Minna, Niger State, North-Central Nigeria. This marks the second humanitarian visit by the President’s wife to Niger State this year. During her first visit in February, she donated 100 million to assist victims of the Dikko Junction tanker explosion. This latest 1 billion donation is aimed to support communities affected by floods, banditry, boat mishaps, and fire outbreaks across…

Rwanda on Tuesday became the third African nation to agree to accept deportees from the United States under the Trump administration’s plans to send migrants to countries they have no ties with to get them off American soil. Rwandan government spokesperson Yolande Makolo told The Associated Press in a statement that the East African country would accept up to 250 deportees from the U.S., with “the ability to approve each individual proposed for resettlement” under the agreement. Makolo didn’t provide a timeline for any deportees to arrive in Rwanda or say if they would arrive at once or in several…

Notorious terrorist leader, Bello Turji, has reportedly surrendered some of his arms and released 32 kidnapped victims as part of a peace initiative facilitated by Islamic clerics in Zamfara State. One of the clerics involved in the talks, Musa Yusuf, popularly known as Asadus-Sunnah, disclosed this during a religious gathering in Kaduna on Monday. He said the development followed a series of meetings held in July with Turji and other notorious fighters in the Fakai forest, located in the Shinkafi Local Government Area of Zamfara. According to Yusuf, the peace talks were initiated by residents of Shinkafi who requested the…

The United States is set to launch a controversial pilot program requiring some foreign visitors to pay visa bonds of up to $15,000, in a bid to crack down on visa overstays. The program, announced in a Federal Register notice on Monday, will begin on August 20 and run for approximately one year. Under the initiative, US consular officers will have the discretion to impose bonds of $5,000, $10,000, or $15,000 on applicants for tourist and business visas. Officers are expected to generally require at least $10,000. The bonds will be returned if the traveller leaves the US on time,…

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has issued a stern warning to political parties and their members to cease premature public campaigns for the 2027 general election, labeling such actions as a gross violation of the Electoral Act 2022.  The commission’s directive comes amid growing concerns over the proliferation of political posters, subtle endorsements, and heated verbal exchanges among political figures, which INEC deems inappropriate given the absence of an official election timetable. In a statement to The Nation, a senior INEC source revealed that the commission raised the issue during its most recent quarterly consultative meeting with party leaders…

The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, NNPCL, has increased the pump price of premium motor spirit across its retail outlets. It was gathered that NNPCL retail outlets in Abuja have adjusted their fuel pump price to N955 per litre from N890. This is the case in NNPCL retail outlets along Kubwa Expressway, Wuse and other parts of Abuja. Similarly, the pump price hike has been implemented at filling stations in Kogi and Nasarawa. This means that the petrol pump price was increased by N65. This comes after independent petroleum product marketers and filling station owners in Abuja increased petrol pump…

The Federal Government has rewarded D’Tigress, Nigeria’s female basketball team, with Order of the Niger (OON) national honours, with each of the players getting $100,000 and a flat. Members of the Coach Rena Makama-led technical team also got $50,000 each. This was announced when President Bola Tinubu hosted the team on Monday evening following the team’s unprecedented fifth consecutive #AfroBasketWomen victory. At the reception in Abuja, the president was represented by his wife, Senator Remi Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima. Last week, the President conferred similar national honours and gifts on the Super Falcons for winning Nigeria’s 10th title of the Women’s…

The African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) has signed a $1.35 billion financing agreement to support the refinancing of debt incurred during the construction of the Dangote Refinery. The deal is part of a $4 billion loan package for Dangote Industries Limited. In a statement released by the bank, the financing will be used to repay outstanding costs linked to the development of the Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals complex, Africa’s largest single-train refinery, with a capacity of 650,000 barrels per day. Speaking on agreement, Professor Benedict Oramah, president and chairman of Afreximbank, said: “With this landmark deal, we once again demonstrate…

Nigeria’s D’Tigress have returned to the country following their historic fifth consecutive title win at the 2025 FIBA Women’s AfroBasket Championship in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire. The women’s basketball team landed at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja on Monday aboard two chartered flights conveying both players and officials. On the ground to receive the team were officials of the National Sports Commission, the Minister of Arts, Culture and Creative Economy, Association of Nigerian Women in Sports, and a handful of supporters. They brought home not only the championship trophy but also an unprecedented achievement in African women’s basketball. D’Tigress…