Author: Vardiafrica

Sweden on Thursday became the 32nd member of NATO with the handover of documents at a ceremony in Washington, a historic move that Secretary of State Antony Blinken said marked a “strategic debacle” by Russia. “Good things come to those who wait,” Blinken said as he accepted the accession documents from Sweden’s prime minister, following ratification by the 31 other alliance members. “I think if you step back and think of where we were three years ago, none of this was foreordained,” Blinken said of Sweden joining NATO. There is “no clearer example than today of the strategic debacle that…

Oil and gas industry stakeholders and leading academics on Tuesday began a three-day Research and Development (R&D) Zonal Workshop at the Niger Delta University (NDU), Amassoma, with special focus on needs-driven research and deepening of collaboration and linkages, sponsored by the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB). The workshop provides a forum for discussions and demonstration of research breakthroughs on software and hardware as they relate to oil and gas industry needs, bioremediation and related oil field chemicals solutions, such as additives and drilling fluids, and renewable solutions to meet industry needs. Scheduled to be hosted in the six…

A federal capital territory (FCT) high court in Kubwa has struck out the N1 billion suit instituted against Abubakar Malami, former attorney-general of the federation. Malami was sued in his official and personal capacities alongside Asabe Waziri, civil servant and founder of Asabe Waziri Justice Advocacy Initiative. At the court session on Thursday, Oluyemisi Adelaja, presiding judge, struck out the case for lack of diligent prosecution. “The claimant is the one who filed the action and is required to be seen diligently prosecuting same but they are not in court and there is no reason for their absence before the court,” the…

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has demanded N794,000 as the new national minimum wage for workers in the south-west zone. Funmi Sessi, chairperson of the Lagos state chapter of the NLC, said this on Thursday during her presentation at the ongoing public hearing of the tripartite committee on national minimum wage in Lagos. According to Punch, Sessi said the demand was agreed upon by all the members of the union in the south-west. On January 30, the federal government inaugurated a 37-member tripartite committee on national minimum wage. The committee is tasked with the responsibility of recommending a new national minimum wage…

A forensic analyst has told a federal capital territory (FCT) high court in Maitama that the documents used to request the payment of $6.2 million for foreign election observers were forged. Bamaiyi Meriga, the forensic analyst, said this on Thursday while giving evidence as a witness in the trial of Godwin Emefiele, former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). Emefiele is standing trial on a 20-count amended criminal charge preferred against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). The amended charges border on alleged criminal breach of trust, forgery, conspiracy to commit forgery, procurement fraud and conspiracy to commit…

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has warned all development finance institutions (DFIs), primary mortgage banks (PMBs), and microfinance banks (MFBs) in the country regarding the late submission of regulatory returns. In separate letters dated March 5, 2024, the CBN expressed strong disapproval concerning the ongoing issue of late submission of returns by banks on the financial analysis (FinA) system. According to the regulator, FinA is an offsite surveillance automation system for online submission of returns by financial institutions to the CBN. The apex bank, citing Section 24 of the 2020 Banks and Other Financial Institutions Act, asked MFBs, PMBs,…

The house of representatives has resolved to investigate the N200 billion spent on the suspended 2023 population and housing census. The lower legislative chamber on Thursday passed the resolution during the plenary session after the adoption of a motion sponsored Clement Akanni, a lawmaker from Osun state. In April 2023, the government of former President Muhammadu Buhari postponed the 2023 national census indefinitely. The exercise was scheduled to take place nationwide between May 3 and 5. The commission had said it needed N200 billion for the preparation of the exercise. Justifying the postponement of the census at the time, Isiaka Yahaya, NPC spokesperson, said the…

Senegal on Wednesday announced that a delayed presidential election will be held on March 24, after a top court ruled that a proposal to hold the vote after April 2 was unconstitutional. President Macky Sall’s mandate expires on April 2. Originally scheduled for February 25, President Sall called off the exercise citing electoral disputes. He was immediately accused by the opposition of seeking to carry out a coup. His proposal to hold the election in December was the subject of deadly protests which rocked Senegal’s reputation as West Africa’s most stable democracy. A proposal from a national dialogue commission for…

Senegal on Wednesday announced that a delayed presidential election will be held on March 24, after a top court ruled that a proposal to hold the vote after April 2 was unconstitutional. President Macky Sall’s mandate expires on April 2. Originally scheduled for February 25, President Sall called off the exercise citing electoral disputes. He was immediately accused by the opposition of seeking to carry out a coup. His proposal to hold the election in December was the subject of deadly protests which rocked Senegal’s reputation as West Africa’s most stable democracy. A proposal from a national dialogue commission for…

Nigerian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf Maitama Tuggar, and his Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov, discussed issues of mutual interest and regional stability in Moscow on Wednesday. In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Tuggar said his meeting with Lavrov further strengthened the bilateral relations between Russia and Nigeria, especially in the areas of economic growth and regional stability. “Nigeria-Russia relations have a long history, characterized by cooperation in various fields including diplomacy, trade, and security. Over the years, our countries have worked together on issues of mutual interest, fostering strong bilateral ties,” he stated. “My meeting with Russian Foreign Minister,…