archiveDecember 2016

The former permanent secretary (permsec)  of the Nigerian Federal Government who retired with brand new 45 SUV cars has been revealed. He is Dr. Godknows Boladei Igali, formerly of the Ministry of Power.  He is from Bayelsa state. The Nation newspaper reported Saturday that the vehicles recovered from him were...

Governments at all levels in Nigeria have been asked to pursue people-oriented goals in 2017 to be able to improve the living standard and people’s lives. The Nigerian Independence Group (NIG), a socio-economic think tank, which made the call, also urged the citizens to remain vigilant and ensure that governance...

Ninety-three journalists and media staff were killed around the world in the course of their work in 2016, with Iraq and Afghanistan the deadliest countries, the International Federation of Journalists has said. According to AFP, the IFJ said the figure, 19 less than in 2015, was for journalists killed in...

Stocks down 6% Naira, Nigeria currency lost around a third of its official value against the dollar in 2016 while the stock market declined 6.17 percent over the same period, reflecting the economic crisis in Africa’s biggest economy. According to Reuters report, the currency closed at 305 to the dollar...

2016 was predicted to be a tough year for African economies, and it delivered. Traditional economic leaders faltered this year amid a storm of falling commodity prices, unpredictable and destructive weather like droughts and floods across large swaths of the the continent. Slow economic growth in China, a major investor...

Nigeria’s prevailing economic recession has forced the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to suspend printing of small naira denominations for about a year, leading to the scarcity of the notes in the economy, sources at the apex bank have disclosed. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), citing sources at the...

The West African Examinations Council (WAEC) says blind candidates also cheat during examinations. They cheat by colluding. The Head of Test Administration of WAEC in Nigeria, Mrs Frances Iweha-Onukwu, made the revelation in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos on Wednesday. Iweha-Onukwu said the reason...

Russia has promised to respond to the expulsion of 35 of its diplomats from Washington, amid a bitter dispute over alleged Russian interference in the recent US presidential election. A spokesman for President Vladimir Putin said the Kremlin’s reaction would cause the US “significant discomfort”.  He, however, hinted that Russia...

The Nigeria Retail Investors Group (NRI) has said that economic policy prescriptions for the 2017 proposed fiscal plans should, at the minimum, seek to address a reduction in the cost basis for utilising domestic raw materials/inputs on the production side. The NRI, a Nigerian think-tank, whose membership comprises of Nigerian...

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) sold about $1 billion on the forward market last week to clear a backlog of dollar obligations in selected sectors, traders said on Thursday, its largest special auction since a currency peg was removed in June. According to Reuters report, outstanding dollar demand was...