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You need Africa today more than before, Tinubu tells world leaders

President Bola Tinubu has declared that, with the abundant resources in Africa, especially in the solid minerals sector, the continent does not need to wait for aid and grants from the global community.

President Tinubu also said that, with the enormous resources in the continent, the world needs Africa today more than before.

These, among others, were contained in his keynote address at the high-level event of the Africa Minerals Strategy Group, “Africa’s Natural Resources Shaping the Future,” on Tuesday in New York, USA.

The President, represented by Vice President Kashim Shettima, said Africans have learned from the experiences of the slave trade and commodity export.

He said that the continent can see the persistence of the injustice of unequal trade relations despite the agreements between the ACP (African, Caribbean, and Pacific) countries and the European Union or the United States programme, AGOA (African Growth and Opportunity Act), or even the ongoing implementation of trade agreements.

The Nigerian President further said that it was with utmost conviction that the great people of Africa have reached a critical moment in their long struggle for social, economic, and political independence, adding, “Now is our time to seize the chance to change the narratives that have been our lot that I stand before you today to set a new agenda of transformation.”

He said the beautiful fact of Africa’s ugly past of colonial and neo-colonial exploitation was that before the continent was plundered and overpowered with the technological innovation of the gun, “our ancestors and their counterparts from Europe were friends, business allies, and mutual sovereigns.

“Africa’s merchants exchanged trade articles such as leather, gold, ivory, and palm oil for cotton, silk, gin, and mirrors.”

Citing an example, Tinubu said, “In 1485, the Portuguese, led by John D’Aveiro, established trade with the Kingdom of Benin in present-day Nigeria. According to our historical records, during the reign of Oba Esigie (1504-1550), the Kingdom of Benin established diplomatic ties with Portugal.

“Both kingdoms exchanged ambassadors, and a school for learning the Portuguese language was established in the Benin Kingdom. The cultural exchange was so engaging that Oba Esigie learned and spoke Portuguese! For most of Africa before colonisation, this was the character of the relationship between our ancestors and the white men from Europe.

“Commercial relationships led to political relationships until the visitors became greedy and upset the cordial harmony by unleashing the trans-Atlantic slave trade, the most devastating depopulation that mankind has ever witnessed.”

He said that he foresaw the resurgence of that era of commercial partnership, mutual diplomatic relations, and economic collaboration after exploiting each other, enslaving each other, and killing each other for over three centuries, noting that the world has realised the futility of hatred and the fatality of one man exploiting another.

He said that the greatest force for global unity and cohesion today is technology, as he opined that communications technology has shrunk the world into a global village and turned strangers into neighbours.

“It has dissolved boundaries and created a world without borders. Telecommuting has transformed the world of work into virtual hubs of co-creation. Wherever you turn, young brilliant innovators are raising the bar, leading the charge of progress into the smart world.

“One of the factors in this development is revolutions in battery technology. Evolution in lithium-ion technology enables the manufacturing of portable consumer electronics, laptops, computers, cellular phones, and electric cars. We live in a world of electronic mobility in which lithium-powered batteries provide higher specific energy, higher energy density, higher energy efficiency, longer cycle life, and longer calendar life.

“This development powers the global struggle against carbon emissions. It promotes a greener world that tames destructive floods and excessive heat, two consequences of global climate under pressure that millions encounter and thousands fail to survive.

“The global need for new battery technology has triggered a new scramble for Africa’s critical minerals. Africa possesses 92 per cent of global reserves of platinum, 56 per cent of cobalt, 54 per cent of manganese, and 36 per cent of chromium.

“These are the minerals employed in the manufacturing of the new batteries. In short, the world needs Africa today more than ever.

“Africans have learned from the experiences of the slave trade and commodity export. We can see the persistence of the injustice of unequal trade relations despite the agreements between the ACP (African, Caribbean, and Pacific) countries and the European Union or the United States program, AGOA (African Growth and Opportunity Act), or even the ongoing implementation of trade agreements.

“Whenever and wherever we accept the age-old role of supplier of raw materials to global industry, we end up with the short end of the stick.

“Our people don’t want to wait for your aid and grants anymore. A situation in which the raw minerals are extracted from our countries, exported, refined, and sold to us as finished products merely consolidates the foundations of our misery and pushes us further down the depths of underdevelopment.

“We seek to break free by localising the whole mineral value chain from extraction to processing to sales within our countries. We have skilled men and women, talented graduates in any discipline you desire, with immense capacity to learn and innovate.

“We have put in place policies to promote direct foreign investment and ease the repatriation of profits; we have introduced tax holidays and incentives for the importation of machinery and migration of professionals with expertise and experience.

“The governments in Africa are working day and night to improve the ease of doing business. We are improving our energy, transportation, and housing infrastructures and facilities. We are simplifying our business rules in line with international best practices, and we are containing threats to security, law, and order.

“Specifically, my administration has adopted the principle of local value addition as conceived by the Africa Minerals Strategy Group, chaired by Nigeria’s Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dr. Oladele Alake. Key to this strategy is attracting companies involved in manufacturing lithium batteries, concentrates, and components to set up their businesses and domesticate the value chain from extraction to production in Nigeria.

“With over 226 million hardworking, fastidious subscribers, we offer an immediate market for local purchases and international exports. This has been demonstrated by the boom in the 10 billion dollar telecom market in our country, manifesting an internationally competitive annual growth of 5.20% per annum.”

He highlighted alarming statistics from the United Nations Development Programme, revealing that over 328 million people in the poorest countries are in dire need of humanitarian assistance.

He stated, “Poverty worsened for the first time in two decades, particularly for low-income and middle-income earners,” underscoring the urgency for transformative strategies.

In his address, the Chairman of the Africa Minerals Strategy Group and Nigeria’s Minister of Solid Minerals, Dr. Henry Dele Alake, proposed a paradigm shift from merely exporting raw minerals to processing them locally into finished goods.

He defined local value addition as transforming raw minerals into semi-finished or finished products, which would enhance capital formation and create jobs across Africa.

He said, “By moving from commercialization to industrialization, we can significantly raise the contribution of the solid minerals sector to our GDP.”

“The initiative has already gained traction, with ten new mineral processing projects underway in Nigeria focusing on lithium, gold, bauxite, and other valuable resources.”

He called on African leaders to unite in this endeavour and urged global mining companies to partner with African nations to foster industrialization in the solid minerals sector.

“We seek to localise the entire mineral value chain from extraction to processing within our countries,” he said.

He said that the initiative represents a unique opportunity for Africa: “This is our chance! Together, we can transform our continent from suppliers of raw minerals to equal partners in the global mining industry.”

Secretary-General Moses Engadu, at the inaugural high-level roundtable of the Africa Minerals Strategy Group (AMSG), stressed the vital role of Africa’s natural resources in shaping not only the continent’s future but also that of the world.

Engadu welcomed esteemed leaders, including Nigerian Vice President Shettima and Malawian President Lazarus Chakwera, stating, “Today, we gather to discuss how Africa’s wealth can serve as a catalyst for sustainable development and economic empowerment.”

The Secretary-General urged African nations to unite in their approach to resource management. “No natural resources should leave our borders as raw materials. We must promote a common agenda,” he said.

He also announced plans for the Africa Minerals and Metals Exchange, aimed at facilitating regional collaboration and ensuring fair market value for African commodities.

The roundtable provided a platform for leaders to discuss strategies for harnessing these resources effectively.

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71% of households affected by food price hike – NBS

The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) says the most prevalent shock affecting households across Nigeria is the price increases on major food items.

The NBS said 71 per cent of households reported this shock.

The NBS disclosed this in its General Household Survey-Panel (GHS-Panel) Wave 5 2023/2024 unveiled in Abuja.

The report said urban households experienced the shock of food price increases at 75.5 per cent more than rural households at 68.9 per cent.

It said the issue was most pronounced in the South-East and South-South zones at 83.6 per cent and 79.3 per cent, respectively.

“In general, the data indicate that price hikes on essential goods are a major concern for households nationwide.”

The report revealed the other top most common economic shocks were increase in price of oil and fuel at 52 per cent, and increase in prices of other fuels at 32.2 per cent.

“This was followed by increase in price of farming/business inputs at 28.8 per cent, floods at 8.8 per cent, droughts at 5.8 per cent, and pest and plant disease at 5.7 per cent.

“Shortage/scarcity of petrol at 5.3 per cent, irregular rains at 4.7 per cent and very high temperatures (>40°C) at 4.7 per cent.”

It said these households dealt with shocks in a variety of ways, but the main coping mechanism was reducing food consumption at 48. 8 per cent.

“To cushion shock effects, some households also received assistance from friends and family at 36.1 per cent and reduced purchased quantities compared to the last at 32.6 per cent.

“In contrast, a significant proportion of households did nothing to deal with the shocks at 28.3 per cent.”

The report revealed that only 4.0 per cent of households nationwide received safety-net assistance, a decline compared to GHS-Panel Wave 4 at 10. 4 per cent.

The report showed that households in the urban areas had a higher coverage of receiving assistance at 5.2 per cent compared to rural areas which has a coverage of 3.5 per cent.

“Also households in the urban areas had a stronger reliance on cash assistance at 60.5 per cent compared to the rural areas at 49.6 per cent.”

The report said at the zonal level, the South-South and North-West zones recorded the highest share of households with safety nets at 6.7 per cent and 5.6 per cent, respectively.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the GHS-Panel is Nigeria’s nationally representative longitudinal household survey which commenced in 2010 and the NBS has implemented five waves of the survey.

The panel nature of the data enables tracking household-level changes in critical areas of welfare, work, and socio-economic outcomes over time, yielding insights for policy. 

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Supreme Court nullifies National Lottery Act

The Supreme Court has nullified the National Lottery Act 2005 enacted by the National Assembly, declaring it unconstitutional.

The apex court in a unanimous decision delivered by a seven-member panel on Friday held that the National Assembly lacks the authority to legislate on matters related to lotteries and games of chance, as such powers reside exclusively with state Houses of Assembly.

Justice Mohammed Idris, who delivered the lead judgement, ordered that the National Lottery Act 2005 should no longer be enforced in any state except the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), where the National Assembly is constitutionally empowered to make laws.

This judgement arises from a suit filed in 2008 by Lagos State and several other states, challenging the constitutionality of the Act.

The court’s decision reinforces the federal principle of states’ autonomy over certain legislative matters.

Details later.

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How DSS arrested fake NGO leader

Officials of the Department of State Services (DSS) Thursday in Abuja arrested one Kennedy Tabukoi for allegedly leading an unregistered Non-Governmental Organization (NGO), the Niger Delta Development Initiative (NDDI), to blackmail certain high-profile officials of government.

According to security sources, when such government officials fail to meet Tabukoi’s demands, he resorts to organising other unsuspecting groups to lead protest marches against government officials.

One such protest march was held Thursday morning at the National Assembly gate, where Tabukoi led several groups to protest against what he claimed were moves by the federal lawmakers to stall a probe of the petroleum sector.

The sources confirmed that, unknown to Tabukoi, security operatives had been on his trail after certain officials of government reported the several attempts he made to allegedly blackmail them into parting with huge sums of money and contracts, “or risk being embarrassed.”

A security source said, “That man Tabukoi had been boasting to friends and members of his syndicate that, as a Niger Deltan activist, he would use his NGO to deal with any government official who didn’t do his bidding.

“Unknown to him, it was the same people he had been intimidating with claims of how much he would make from top government officials in Abuja that tipped off the DSS that he had no NGO and that he was merely using impersonation to blackmail such government officials.”

“When we invited Tabukoi, he didn’t waste time in corroborating the claims of his so-called friends. He said he was aware that several Niger Deltans made money from activism, reason he was in the process of raising money to register his own NGO.”

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IPOB disowns Simon Ekpa

The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has disowned Simon Ekpa

The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) on Friday disowned Simon Ekpa, the self-acclaimed Prime Minister of Biafra Government in Exile (BRGIE), who was arrested in Finland alongside four others over terror-related activities.

According to the Finnish Police, Ekpa was arrested “on suspicion of public incitement to commit a crime with terrorist intent,” while the four others were arrested “for financing a terrorist crime”.

In a statement released on Friday, IPOB’s spokesman, Emma Powerful, accused Ekpa of recruiting violent criminals to destabilize the South East Region.

IPOB also disowned Ekpa, stating that he has never been a registered member of the group.

“Contrary to the deliberate and malicious misinformation from the Neo colonialist news agency, the BBC, that Simon Ekpa is an IPOB leader. Simon Ekpa has never and is not an IPOB member, let alone being a leader in IPOB,” Powerful said.

“IPOB has some family units in Finland, and Simon Ekpa is not a registered member of any IPOB unit in Finland or any other IPOB unit globally. Mazi Nnamdi Kanu established IPOB as a peaceful movement to seek Biafra Independence via a supervised UN referendum.

“IPOB is a peaceful global movement that has never taken to violence or arms struggle in two decades of our self-determination struggle. Even though the various murderous government regimes in Nigeria have provoked us, we have remained resolutely peaceful.

“It was unfortunate that some innocent Biafrans being passionate for the restoration of the stolen sovereignty of the Biafran Nation, thought that Simon Ekpa was genuinely sympathetic to the Biafra course. Sadly, they had to learn the hard way that he was a destructive agent paid to infiltrate and destroy the IPOB peaceful movement for Biafra self-determination.

“He recruited violent criminals to destabilize the South East Region in 2021. He is a self-acclaimed prime minister of a small, criminally minded group called the Biafra Government in Exile (BGIE). The infamous BGIE, led by Simon Ekpa, created a violent group that called itself the Biafra Liberation Army.”

Powerful accused Ekpa’s BRGIE group and the Nigerian Army of being responsible “for many kidnappings, rapes, forceful disappearances, killings, and burning of homes in the South Eastern region.”

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NEC sets up National Electrification Committee to end grid collapse

NEC has set up a National Electrification Committee to end the frequent collapse of Nigeria’s power grid

The National Economic Council (NEC) has in its resolve to end the frequent collapse of Nigeria’s power grid set up a National Electrification Committee.

The Vice President, Kashim Shettima who is the chairman of NEC disclosed this in a post he shared on his official X account on Thursday night.

“The National Economic Council (NEC) has resolved to reinforce implementation of the National Electrification Strategy in a bid to end the collapse of the nation’s power grid,” the post read.

“This is just as Vice President, Kashim Shettima who is the chairman of NEC told members of the council that access to energy is a fundamental right and not a privilege because electricity is the oxygen of economic growth.”

Accordingly, the council has constituted a committee on National Electrification to help address the challenges in the power sector.

The formation of the committee was among decisions taken by NEC at the end of its 146th meeting on Thursday chaired by Shettima at the Council Chambers of the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

The committee headed by Cross River State Governor, Bassey Otu is to work towards deepening states’ engagements within the Electricity Reform Act 2023 and the National Electrification Strategy and Implementation Plan.

VP Shettima added that the private sector distributed renewable energy generation is vital to increasing electricity access across Nigeria.

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Delta approves N713m for 2024 students bursary payment — Official

Gov. Sheriff Oborevwori of Delta has approved the sum of N713 million for the 2024  bursary award for 32,028 students in tertiary institutions in the country.

The Executive Secretary of the State Bursary and Scholarship Board, Dr. Godfrey Enita, disclosed this in a statement made available to newsmen on Thursday in Asaba.

According to Enita, the governor’s approval for the year 2024, the bursary award will cover students of state origin in public and private universities.

“It also covers students in polytechnics, mono-technics, colleges of education, schools of nursing science, and other tertiary schools, including military and paramilitary institutions.

He described the governor’s gesture as rare and uncommon and should be applauded.

“The governor demonstrates his magnanimity and goodwill towards the well-being of the Delta students and youths in general.

“It also underscores his commitment towards educational advancement through financial assistance to students in diverse forms and through massive infrastructural development in schools across the state.

“It is hoped, as always, that beneficiaries of the state’s financial assistance schemes will continue to be worthy ambassadors of Delta wherever they find themselves,” he said.

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