Author: Vardiafrica

The West African leaders have assigned Senegalese President Bassirou Diomaye Faye to persuade the military leaders of three nations not to withdraw from the regional economic bloc. Faye was appointed as an envoy of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) at a summit held in Abuja, Nigeria, on Sunday. Meanwhile, the heads of the juntas in Mali, Niger, and Burkina Faso signed a treaty in Niamey, Niger’s capital, to form a confederation aimed at strengthening political and economic ties. Military junta leaders of Niger, Mali, and Burkina Faso, on Saturday ruled out rejoining the West African regional bloc,…

Vice President of Oil and Gas at Dangote Industries Limited (DIL), Devakumar Edwin, has reassured of the commencement of production of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) also known as petrol by the Dangote Oil Refinery and Petrochemicals company this month. Edwin disclosed during an onsite visit to the Dangote Refinery at Ibeju-Lekki, Lagos, by S&P Global, headquartered in Manhattan, New York City, as part of its sovereign credit ratings assessment of Nigeria. He reiterated that as earlier promised, the company will start the production of petrol this month (July). According to him, the move will harness Africa’s abundant crude oil resources…

In furtherance of its proactive flood risk management, the Director General National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Zubaida Umar has activated all Zonal, Territorial and Operation offices of the agency nationwide, to work with the States’ Emergency Management Agencies (SEMAs) within their area of responsibilities, to carry out rescue operations and conduct assessment of the situation A statement from the agency on Sunday, said the NEMA Zonal, Territorial and Operation offices are located in Lagos, Ibadan, Ekiti, Abuja, Minna, Jos, Enugu, Owerri, Port Harcourt, Edo, Uyo, Kano, Sokoto, Kaduna, Maiduguri, Yola and Gombe. At the headquarters, NEMA said it also operates…

The Federal Government released a total sum of N1.23tn to 17 ministries for the implementation of capital projects aimed at advancing development and infrastructure initiatives as of September 30, 2023, reports said. An analysis of the Budget Implementation Report for the third quarter of 2023 released by the Budget Office revealed this. Capital projects, in the context of budgeting, typically refer to major investments in physical infrastructure or assets that are expected to provide long-term benefits. These projects usually involve the construction, acquisition, or renovation of tangible assets such as buildings, roads, bridges, dams, schools, hospitals, and other facilities. The…

The Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) has listed state-owned schools eligible for the student loan scheme. In a Sunday statement, NELFUND said students from the 36 schools can now submit their applications for the student loan fund on its portal. “The Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) is pleased to announce that students enrolled in the following 36 state-owned tertiary institutions can now apply for student loans effective today, 7th July 2024,” NELFUND’s statement read. “The management of these institutions has successfully submitted their student data to the NELFUND Student Verification System (SVS). We urge all other state-owned tertiary institutions to…

President Bola Tinubu has been re-elected as the chairman of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), about one year after he took over the leadership of the regional bloc.  The Nigerian leader who rose to power in May 2023 was re-elected as the ECOWAS chairman during the 65th Ordinary Session of the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government. That event took place at the Presidential Villa in Nigeria’s Abuja capital on Sunday. Stabilising Fund During his opening remark at the summit, President Tinubu urged ECOWAS member states to make financial commitments to help in the battle against terrorism in…

The Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Olukayode Ariwoola, will on Wednesday, July 10, swear in the twelve newly appointed Judges of the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory. A statement by the Director of Press and Information of the Supreme Court, Dr. Festus Akande, said the swearing-in ceremony would hold at the Main Courtroom of the Supreme Court of Nigeria by 10:00am. The new judges to be sworn in are: Justice Buetnaan Mandy Bassi from Plateau State, Justice Ademuyiwa Olakunle Oyeyipo from Kwara State, Justice Bamodu Odunayo Olutomi from Lagos State, Justice Iheabunike Anumaenwe Godwin from Imo State, Justice…

President Bola Tinubu on Friday hosted All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate for Edo State, Monday Okpebholo, and his running mate, Dennis Idahosa, at the Presidential Villa, ahead of the September poll. They were accompanied on the visit to the President by a former Governor of the State, Adams Oshiomhole, and the Minister for Niger Delta Development, Abubakar Momoh. The meeting came barely 24 hours after a Federal High Court in Abuja faulted the primary election of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), which produced Asue Ighodalo as its flag bearer. While Okpebholo declined to speak with State House correspondents on the outcome of the visit, describing it as a private meeting, Oshiomhole expressed confidence that the APC would emerge…

President Bola Tinubu says Nigeria’s power generation capacity at about 4.5 gigawatts is shameful. According to a statement by Ajuri Ngelale, presidential spokesperson, Tinubu spoke during the inauguration of the presidential economic coordination council (PECC) on Thursday. Since powered generation is measured in megawatts in Nigeria, 4.5 gigawatts would translate to 4,500 megawatts. Speaking at the event, the president called for the collaboration of the members to increase Nigeria’s on-grid electricity capacity ”We have the challenge of energy security in Nigeria. We need to work together to improve our oil and gas sector, and we must also increase electricity generation and…

US President Joe Biden said on Friday that only “the Lord Almighty” could convince him to give up on his effort for re-election, despite growing calls from fellow Democrats to do so following a disastrous debate against his Republican opponent Donald Trump. During a prime time interview, Mr Biden blamed a cold and exhaustion for his “bad night” last week, insisting that he was mentally and physically fit for a second term. He did, however, refuse to commit to taking a cognitive test and having the results released to the public. “I wouldn’t be running if I didn’t think I did” have the capacity…