Author: Vardiafrica

President Bola Tinubu has approved the deployment of electric vehicles (e-vehicles) in the North East region to ease mobility and reduce transportation costs across the states. The approval was given yesterday at the State House, Abuja, during a meeting with the leadership of the Northeast Development Commission (NEDC), led by its Managing Director, Mohammed Alkali. Alkali, speaking to State House Correspondents, said that following a comprehensive analysis of the comparative advantage of Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) powered vehicles, the Commission decided on the use of e-vehicles across the six states of the region. “As you can recall, the directive of…

As Emirates Airline returns to Nigeria after two years, the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Mr Festus Keyamo, SAN, says more destination options will be opened for indigenous carriers. Keyamo made the remarks on arrival aboard an Emirates aircraft from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Wednesday in Lagos. The minister assured that the airline has returned to stay and the Bilateral Air Service Agreement (BASA) discussed was to secure the route for local operators. He said that local carriers now have the opportunity to fly into any destination in the UAE. He said: “With this, we have more…

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has proposed a six-year single-term rotational Presidency between the southern and northern regions of Nigeria. In a letter to Deputy Senate President Jibrin Barau, who is the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Constitution Review, Atiku sought that his proposal be considered in the ongoing constitutional amendment process by the National Assembly. The letter dated August 29, 2024, but which became public this week was signed by Atiku, the 2023 presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). The former Vice President sought that paragraph ‘a’ be added to Section 130 (1) of the 1999…

Today, Facebook announced the new Facebook Content Monetization beta, a new monetization program that will allow creators to earn money on the platform. This new program merges existing programs, including In-stream ads, Ads on Reels, and Performance Bonus, into one. With this single program, creators will be able to earn money from their Reels, long-form videos, photos, and even text posts. There is no change in the way earnings are calculated. Earnings will be based on the engagement, views, and plays the content receives on Facebook. Facebook has already started sending invitations to one million creators who are already monetizing on…

The federal government has introduced tax reliefs for deep offshore oil and gas projects in the country as well as VAT exclusion on LPG, CNG, diesel and others. The Ministry of Finance disclosed this via its official handle on X stating that the fiscal incentives were aimed at boosting investments in the oil and gas sector. The orders from the Ministry are titled; Value Added Tax (VAT) Modification Order 2024 and Notice of Tax Incentives for Deep Offshore Oil & Gas Production, in accordance with the Oil & Gas Companies (Tax Incentives, Exemption, Remission, etc.) Order 2024 The VAT Modification…

Israel Katz, Israeli foreign minister, has announced a ban preventing Antonio Guterres, secretary general of the United Nations (UN), from entering the country. In an X post on Wednesday, Katz termed Guterres “undesirable”. “I decided today to declare U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres an undesirable personality in Israel and to ban his entry into Israel,” Katz said. Guterres failed to “unequivocally condemn Iran’s criminal attack on Israel” on Tuesday, Katz said, and as a result “does not deserve to set foot on Israel’s soil.” Iran said its missile attacks on Israel was retaliation for the deaths of Hassan Nasrallah, Hezbollah leader; Ismail Haniyeh, Hamas political…

The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has announced that over ₦13 billion in diverted public funds was recovered in September 2024 alone. The Chairman of the ICPC, Musa Aliyu, disclosed this during the launch of the commission’s 2024-2028 strategic action plan in Abuja on Wednesday. Aliyu, who emphasised that the anti-corruption agency has been working relentlessly to fulfil its mandate, did not disclose where exactly these funds were recovered from. “Over the past year, the ICPC has made significant progress in discharging its mandate; for example, we recovered over ₦13 billion in diverted public funds in…

The Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) on Wednesday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Petroleum Commission, Ghana (PCG) towards developing and deepening local content regulations in Ghana’s upstream petroleum sector. The signing ceremony took place at the sidelines of the 2024 Annual Local Content Conference and Exhibition held at Takoradi, Ghana.The MoU is valid for three years and it is centred on the desire to build synergies through information sharing and transfer of skills of mutual interest and benefits. Under the MoU, NCDMB will offer PCG strategic advice and guidance in the areas of laws, frameworks,…

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu will depart Abuja today for the United Kingdom to begin a two-week vacation as part of his annual leave. A statement by the Special Adviser to the President (Information & Strategy), Bayo Onanuga, on Wednesday said he would use the two weeks as a working vacation and a retreat to reflect on his administration’s economic reforms. He will return to the country after the leave expires Tinubu departed at exactly 2:35pm, after exchanging pleasantries with some top government officials in Abuja, the nation’s capital. The president celebrated Nigeria’s 64th Independence Day anniversary with a speech, in…

Following the conferment of national honours on the leadership of the National Assembly by President Bola Tinubu, the House of Representatives has expressed dissatisfaction with what it described as discrimination against the Green Chamber. A motion sponsored by all 360 lawmakers drew attention to the conferment of the Grand Commander of the Order of the Niger (GCON) on Senate President Godswill Akpabio; and the Chief Justice of the Federation, Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun. The lawmakers rejected Tinubu’s conferment of the honour of Commander of the Order of the Federal Republic (CFR) on Speaker Tajudeen Abbas. The lawmakers argued that both chambers…