Author: Lawrence Idoko

The private sector in Nigeria expanded at the fastest pace in more than four years in September, driven by a sharp increase in customer demand and new orders that pushed companies to ramp up production and hiring, according to the latest Stanbic IBTC Bank Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) report. The headline PMI rose to 56.4 in September from 54.3 in August, marking the strongest reading since February 2022 and signaling a broad-based improvement across the economy’s non-oil segments. Readings above 50 indicate expansion, while those below 50 point to contraction. New orders increased for an eighth consecutive month in September,…

The Federal Government has opened its National Youth Confab (NYC) with a pledge to turn a sprawling youth-policy exercise into measurable action, as officials sought to position young Nigerians as economic contributors rather than passive recipients of state programmes. Speaking at the event in Abuja, Minister of Youth Development Ayodele Olawande disclosed that President Bola Tinubu’s administration has expanded opportunities in education, skills training, entrepreneurship, technology and employment. He described the initiative as an effort to build pathways for young people to gain skills, start businesses, find jobs and participate more fully in national development. Olawande told delegates that the…

The All Progressives Congress’s (APC) North Central leaders have assured they would mount a regionwide campaign to deliver the highest number of votes in Nigeria’s northern region to President Bola Tinubu in the 2027 presidential election. The commitment was made at a meeting of party stakeholders, including governors, senior party officials, government appointees and other leaders, held at the office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) in Abuja. APC National Chairman Nentawe Yilwatda said the party’s six North Central states would mobilize members and supporters for a rally in Lafia, Nasarawa State, on October 10, 2026.…

Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Nyesom Wike said Friday that his political alliance with President Bola Tinubu remains firm, calling on political leaders in Rivers State to consolidate support for the president ahead of future elections. “My interest in Rivers State is for God to use me as a vessel to help our people,” Wike said during a strategic consultative meeting with stakeholders from Akpor Kingdom in Obio-Akpor Local Government Area. “I am back here not for what I will get, but for what I will be, to raise my people,” he said. Wike, a former governor of…

Chairman of Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ola Olukoyede, has said the agency can recover at most about 60% of funds once they have been stolen, underscoring the limits of asset recovery and the need to prioritise prevention. Olukoyede made the comments on Friday during the inauguration of the EFCC’s new zonal directorate in Awka, Anambra State, an event attended by federal and state dignitaries including the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, and the governors of Anambra and Imo states. He said the facility, which will serve both Anambra and Imo, is intended to expand the…

The West African Examinations Council (WAEC) has appointed Dr. Amos Dangut as its Registrar and Chief Executive Officer, placing a Nigerian education administrator with more than two decades of experience in examination management at the helm of the regional testing body. Dangut, who served as head of WAEC’s Nigeria National Office from October 2023 to September 2026, assumed his new position on October 1. He will serve a five-year term through September 2031, succeeding Alhaji Pateh Bah of The Gambia. The appointment was ratified by WAEC’s governing Council at its 74th annual meeting in Accra, Ghana, in March, according to…

Nigeria and the United States have reaffirmed their commitment to deepening military cooperation, with counterterrorism operations, intelligence sharing and specialized training identified as priority areas. The pledge came as Minister of Defence Gen. Christopher Musa hosted Maj. Gen. Matthew Brown, Commander of the U.S. Army Southern European Task Force, Africa (SETAF-AF), for an official working visit to the Ministry of Defence in Abuja. Gen. Musa said collaborative security operations in the northeast, particularly around the Lake Chad Basin, had significantly boosted troop morale, and he sought to build on those gains. He outlined a results-oriented framework centered on specialized joint…

A group representing indigenous residents of Federal Capital Territory (FCT) has thrown its weight behind FCT Minister Nyesom Wike and pledged to mobilize support for President Bola Tinubu’s 2027 re-election bid. The declaration came as the Minister staked his job on the President’s performance in the FCT and Rivers State. Wike told leaders of the Apo Mechanics and Traders Association in Abuja on Wednesday that he would resign as FCT minister if President Tinubu failed to win the presidential vote in both the FCT and his home state of Rivers in the January 16, 2027 polls. “By January 17, 2027,…

The Federal Government has said Nigeria’s free trade zones have attracted more than $200 billion in foreign investment and over 900 billion naira in domestic investment, as it prepares to overhaul regulations governing the zones. Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment Jumoke Oduwole disclosed this at a virtual meeting with Special Economic Zones stakeholders in Abuja. She said the investments have generated more than 100,000 direct jobs and over 500,000 additional jobs across supply chains, logistics networks and host communities. The planned reforms are intended to modernize the regulatory framework, strengthen oversight and increase the zones’ contribution to non-oil exports,…

Home-grown e-hailing startup ProTaxi has commenced operations in Abuja, entering the country’s competitive ride-hailing market with a fleet of electric vehicles and a plan to create income opportunities for 1,000 drivers and their families. The platform, developed by PromiseLand Innovations Ltd., is positioning electric mobility as a way to reduce drivers’ operating costs and offer commuters a more affordable alternative to conventional petrol-powered transportation. Speaking at the launch, Chief Executive Officer Lawrence Oloche said ProTaxi was designed to do more than connect passengers with drivers. “Today, we introduce ProTaxi, which is not just another e-hailing application”, adding that “It is…