The Nation Newspaper

Category: Foreign

  • Manhunt underway in South Africa after gunmen kill nine, injure 10 at tavern

    Manhunt underway in South Africa after gunmen kill nine, injure 10 at tavern

    Nine people were killed and at least 10 others wounded when gunmen opened fire inside a South African pub early yesterday, sparking a manhunt for the attackers in the country’s second mass shooting in less than a month.

    The shooting happened just before 1 a.m. at KwaNoxolo tavern in Bekkersdal, a township located 28 miles west of Johannesburg.

    Police said about 12 unknown suspects in a white mini-bus and a silver sedan opened fire at pub patrons and continued to shoot randomly as they sped away from the scene.

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    “Some victims were randomly shot in the streets by unknown gunmen,” police said.

    Maj. Gen. Fred Kekana, Gauteng’s acting provincial commissioner, told The Associated Press that the gunmen, some of whom covered their faces with balaclavas, were armed with an AK-47 rifle and several 9mm pistols.

    Authorities have launched a manhunt for the suspects, led by Gauteng’s Serious and Violent Crime Investigations unit in coordination with the Crime Detection Tracing Unit.

    The attack follows a string of mass shootings at bars — often called shebeens or taverns in South Africa.

    Earlier this month, multiple gunmen opened fire at an unlicensed bar near the capital, killing at least 12 people and injuring 13 others.

  • U.S., Nigeria sign $5.1b health pact to expand faith-based healthcare delivery

    U.S., Nigeria sign $5.1b health pact to expand faith-based healthcare delivery

    The United States and Nigeria have signed a five-year bilateral health Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) aimed at strengthening Nigeria’s health system, with a strong focus on expanding faith-based healthcare delivery.

    The agreement, signed by the U.S. Department of State and the Federal Government, provides for a combined investment of nearly $5.1 billion over the life of the MOU.

    Of this amount, the United States plans to commit almost $2.1 billion, while Nigeria will increase its domestic health spending by about $3 billion, the largest co-investment recorded so far under the America First Global Health Strategy.

    Announcing the agreement in a statement at the weekend, the U.S. Principal Deputy Spokesperson, Thomas Pigott, said the funding would be directed at expanding essential preventive and curative services, including HIV, tuberculosis, malaria, maternal and child health, and polio interventions.

    According to the statement, a significant component of the MOU is dedicated to strengthening Christian faith-based healthcare providers across Nigeria.

    The agreement was negotiated alongside reforms by the Nigerian government to prioritise the protection of Christian populations from violence, with targeted funding to support faith-based clinics and hospitals.

    Under the MOU, the United States will continue to support surveillance and outbreak response, laboratory systems, health commodities; frontline healthcare workers, and data systems. 

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    Also, the statement claimed that Nigeria faces significant health challenges, including one of the highest maternal and child mortality rates globally and approximately 30 percent of the global malaria burden. 

    Therefore, U.S. assistance under the MOU will expand access to affordable, preventive and curative services for  HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis (TB), malaria, polio, and maternal and child health, strengthening health outcomes across Nigeria.

    The MOU places a strong emphasis on Christian faith-based healthcare providers, recognising their indispensable role in delivering care to communities in need.

    Nigeria’s more than 900 faith-based clinics and hospitals serve more than 30 percent of the country’s 230 million people, often in areas where healthcare facilities are limited or absent. 

    The MOU provides approximately $200 million in dedicated support to strengthen and support these Christian facilities, enhance workforce capacity, and expand access to integrated HIV, TB, malaria, and maternal child health services. 

    The MOU was negotiated in connection with reforms undertaken by Nigeria to prioritise the protection of Christian populations from extremist violence.

     As with all U.S. foreign assistance, the President and Secretary of State retain the right to pause or terminate programmes that do not align with U.S. national interests, and the United States expects Nigeria to continue making measurable progress in combating religiously motivated violence against Christian communities.

    This five-year MOU is the latest of several health cooperation MOUs signed in Africa this month.

  • Foundation, club award scholarships to pupils

    Foundation, club award scholarships to pupils

    The Sean and Tarra Ajayi Foundation and the Ever Forward Club, USA have endowed some select pupils of Femi Gbajabiamila Junior and Secondary School, Ikate, Surulere with scholarship and educational support materials.

    The occasion, which took place at the school hall, also had the organisation opening a Zenith Bank account for each of the recipients, with N30,000 cash credit.

    The Sean and Tarra Ajayi Foundation is the brainchild of Sean and Tarra Ajayi, two Nigerians, who relocated with their parents to the United States of America at a very tender age in the aftermath of the June 12 1993 political impasse.

    Speaking at the presentation, their mum, Her Royal Highness, Queen Mother, Ambassador Amina Temitope Labinjo Ajayi JP  known popularly as Mama Diaspora, who stood in for them, said the gesture was inspired by Sean’s experience when he came home and visited his alma mater.

    According to Mama Diaspora, the Sean and Tarra Ajayi Foundation, in partnership with the Ever Forward Club, was launching the Million Mask Movement workshop, a programme dedicated to empowering Nigerian youth through mentorship and educational support.

    By aligning their efforts, the organisations aim to achieve a 360-degree impact by bridging the wellness and education gaps.

    “The Ajayi Foundation’s scholarship recipients and programme participants will gain access to the vital SEL workshops of the #MillionMaskMovement, ensuring that they are not only academically prepared but also mentally resilient to handle the intense pressures of academic pursuit and life in a developing economy,” Mama Diaspora stated in her address.

     The programme will, among other things, foster authentic leadership, by promoting vulnerability and honesty to compliment the foundation’s focus on building human capital, and nurturing a generation of Nigerian leaders who are both brilliant and emotionally well-adjusted.

    According to Mama Diaspora, the organisation will also be working on achieving scalable safe places, to enable the rapid expansion of #MillionMaskMovement into more schools and youth centres across Nigeria, providing a powerful, proven methodology for mentors and educators to address mental health challenges and reduce isolation.”

    ama Diaspora also has a word for fellow Nigerians who have made it in the diaspora: “I am using this opportunity to appeal to every diasporan: “Go back to your alma mater and see what you can do to help them. Even if it is just one hundred dollars; it goes a long way.”

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    Responding, Principal of the school, Mrs. Florence Olodeoku, expressed her gratitude to the foundation on the choice of her school, especially because it complements the THEMES+ effort of the Governor Babajide Olusola Sanwo-Olu administration.

    What you are about to do is a life-changing event, and I’m sure the children will never forget a day like this that you have been given scholarship throughout their stay in secondary school and even beyond in their life. They are also going to be taught how to save, which is an addition.”

    Chairman Hon Femi Oduanyo represented by chief of staff Hon. Lawal Afis said: “I am pleased to have such a great foundation, who appreciates education and are here to contribute to the future of our children.”

    He appealed to other individuals and organisations endowed not to hesitate in contributing their quota towards the development of the Nigerian youth.

    Photo Caption: 1: (L-R) Principal, Femi Gbajabiamila Secondary School, Mrs. Florence Olodeoku; Mama Diaspora, Ambassador Amina  Ajayi; one of the beneficiaries, Master Raheem Mubarak Olaitan; representative of Itire-Ikate LCDA chairman, Lawal Afis and another guest

    Photo 2: Mama Diaspora Ambassador Amina Ajayi (middle), Principal Femi Gbajabiamila Secondary School, Mrs Florence Olodeoku,  Representative of Itire-Ikate LCDA chairman, Lawal Afis (right) with the beneficiaries

  • ICC calls U.S. sanctions ‘flagrant attack’ against court’s independence

    ICC calls U.S. sanctions ‘flagrant attack’ against court’s independence

    The International Criminal Court (ICC) said yesterday that U.S. sanctions against two of its judges over its case involving Israel were a “flagrant attack” on the court’s independence.

    “Such measures targeting judges and prosecutors who were elected by the States Parties undermine the rule of law. When judicial actors are threatened for applying the law, it is the international legal order itself that is placed at risk,” the court said.

    The U.S. had sanctioned two more ICC judges from the latest step in the Trump administration’s campaign to punish those involved with efforts to investigate Israel’s conduct in the war in Gaza.

    Secretary of State Marco Rubio yesterday said he was imposing sanctions against Gocha Lordkipanidze of Georgia and Erdenebalsuren Damdin of Mongolia for being “directly engaged in efforts by the ICC to investigate, arrest, detain, or prosecute Israeli nationals, without Israel’s consent, including voting with the majority in favour of the ICC’s ruling against Israel’s appeal on December 15.”

    On Monday, the Hague-based court rejected Israel’s bid to block the ongoing probe into its alleged crimes in Gaza.

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    In a statement yesterday, the ICC denounced the new sanctions, calling them “a flagrant attack against the independence of an impartial judicial institution.”

    “When judicial actors are threatened for applying the law, it is the international legal order itself that is placed at risk,” the statement said. The U.S. and Israel have repeatedly rejected the authority of the ICC to investigate either country’s conduct.

    “We will not tolerate ICC abuses of power that violate the sovereignty of the United States and Israel and wrongly subject U.S. and Israeli persons to the ICC’s jurisdiction,” Rubio said in a statement Thursday.

    “We will continue to respond with significant and tangible consequences to the ICC’s lawfare and overreach,” he said.

    The Trump administration has imposed a slew of sanctions on ICC judges and its chief prosecutor, as well as organizations it said have supported the investigation.

    The court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant in November 2024 for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity. The court also issued arrest warrants for three top Hamas officials.

  • Air Force C-130 crew continues mission from Burkina Faso to Portugal

    Air Force C-130 crew continues mission from Burkina Faso to Portugal

    The Nigerian Air Force C-130 crew, earlier detained in Burkina Faso and released yesterday, has continued its mission from the country to Portugal with the same aircraft.

    The crew, comprising 11 Nigerian personnel, was on a mission to Portugal for scheduled aircraft maintenance when it made an emergency landing in Burkina Faso.

    The emergency landing, which occurred in Bobo-Dioulasso on Dec. 8, 2025, was described as a precautionary measure following a technical issue with the aircraft.

    The Spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Kimiebi Ebienfa, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) that the crew resumed its journey to Portugal after engagements between Nigerian and Burkina Faso authorities.

    Ebienfa said the release of the crew followed diplomatic interventions by a high-powered Nigerian delegation dispatched to Burkina Faso by President Bola Tinubu.

    The delegation was led by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Amb. Yusuf Tuggar, and included the Director-General of the National Intelligence Agency, Amb. Mohammed Mohammed; the Chief of Policy and Plans, Nigerian Air Force, Air Vice Marshal A. Y. Abdullahi; Nigeria’s Permanent Representative to ECOWAS, Amb. Olawale Awe; and the Chief of Protocol in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Amb. Wahab Akande.

    Another statement issued by Alkasim Abdulkadir, Tuggar’s spokesperson, said both sides amicably resolved the issue concerning the Nigerian Air Force pilots and crew.

    Read Also: World Bank approves additional funding for Nigeria’s education skills project

    The soldiers were detained for nearly two weeks after the Confederation of Sahel States (AES) described the landing as an “unfriendly act carried out in defiance of international law”.

    But the air force said the crew observed a technical concern which necessitated a precautionary landing in Bobo-Dioulasso, a city in Burkina Faso, with the nearest airfield.

    NAF said the landing was in accordance with standard safety procedures and international aviation protocols.

    Last week, there were unconfirmed reports that Burkinabe authorities released the Nigerian soldiers.

    However, Tuggar said the military personnel were still in the Sahelian country, adding that efforts were ongoing to resolve the situation quickly.

    Yesterday’s talks between Nigerian and Burkinabe officials over the matter were held in Ouagadougou.

    Abdulkadir noted that Tuggar delivered a message of solidarity and fraternity from Tinubu to Traoré, as both sides considered avenues for deepening bilateral relations and strengthening integration within the regional bloc.

    Abdulkadir said the discussions centred on advancing political, security, and economic cooperation, with particular emphasis on coordinated responses to regional security challenges and collective action through existing sub-regional frameworks.

     “Both sides agreed to sustain regular consultations and pursue practical measures to deepen bilateral cooperation and regional integration, reflecting a shared resolve to promote peace, unity, and stability in the sub-region,” the minister’s aide said in a statement.

  • Trump vows economic boom, blames Biden in address to nation

    Trump vows economic boom, blames Biden in address to nation

    U.S. President Donald Trump promised Americans an economic boom in an address to the nation on the night of Dec. 17, while blaming Democratic predecessor Joe Biden for high prices that have hit the Republican’s popularity.

    “Good evening, America. Eleven months ago, I inherited a mess, and I’m fixing it,” the 79-year-old said in his live speech from the White House at the end of his first year back in power.

    Trump faces growing voter anger over the issue of affordability despite his efforts to dismiss it as a “hoax” by Democrats, sparking Republican fears they could be punished in the 2026 mid-term elections.

    The billionaire president insisted that prices of gas and groceries that have worried Americans were “falling rapidly, and it’s not done yet. But boy, are we making progress”.

    In a surprise announcement, Trump said that 1.45 million United States military service members would each receive “warrior dividend” bonus checks for 1,776 dollars (S$2,295) before Christmas, paid for with revenues raised from tariffs.

    He added that the specific amount was in honour of the year of the founding of the United States, the 250th anniversary of which the country will celebrate in 2026.

    Trump then promised that “we are poised for an economic boom the likes of which the world has never seen” in 2026, when the United States will co-host the FIFA World Cup, with Canada and Mexico.

    But while the White House had billed the speech as a chance for Mr Trump to set out his economic agenda for the rest of his second term, much of it consisted of attacks on familiar targets.

    He repeatedly raged against Mr Biden, the Democrats, and migrants whom he said “stole American jobs”.

    Mr Trump’s speech comes at the end of a whirlwind year in which he has launched an unprecedented display of presidential power, including a crackdown on migration and the targeting of political opponents.

    Many economists say Trump’s tariffs have contributed to higher prices for some goods, though the overall impact has been much less than many forecasters predicted earlier this year.

    Trump, on Dec. 17, argued his tariffs are delivering economic gains and luring investment in domestic manufacturing.

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    Still, Mr Trump’s speech offered a muddled message on price levels.

    He said at one point that he was “bringing them down very fast,” while later acknowledging ongoing inflation, he said was outpaced by wage growth.

    Mr Trump also heralded his tariff barrage, indicating it would fund the payments to military members and had been a useful cudgel in settling conflicts abroad – though the levies are import taxes that historically raise costs.

    Adding to his woes, U.S. hiring has been lacklustre in recent months, with any gains largely propelled by steady hiring in health care.

    The latest jobs report showed employers added 64,000 jobs in November, thanks to health care hiring and the strongest advance in construction employment in more than a year.

    Manufacturers, however, shed jobs for a seventh straight month.

    Polls show that Americans are most concerned about high prices, which experts say are partly fuelled by the tariffs he has slapped on trading partners around the world.

    The inflation problem also dogged Mr Biden as he tried to heal the U.S. economy after the Covid-19 pandemic, and the Democrat unsuccessfully tried similar arguments with voters about economic good times to come.

    Mr Trump got his worst approval ratings ever for his handling of the economy in a PBS News/NPR/Marist poll published on Dec. 17, with 57 per cent of Americans disapproving and expressing concerns about the cost of living.

    A YouGov poll published Dec. 16 showed that 52 per cent of Americans thought the economy was getting worse under Mr Trump.

    He has also faced criticism from his Make America Great Again (MAGA) movement for focusing on peace deals in Ukraine and Gaza and on tensions with Venezuela, instead of domestic issues.

    There are signs that Trump’s team has had a wake-up call on the economy in recent weeks, with the midterm elections in 2026 for control of Congress already looming.

    Republicans lost heavily in elections in November for the mayor of New York and governorships in Virginia and New Jersey, while Democrats ran them close in a previously safe area in Tennessee.

    The president is now ramping up his domestic travel to push his economic message.

    Last week in Pennsylvania, he promised to “make America affordable again,” and on Dec. 12, he is due to give another campaign-style rally in North Carolina.

    Vice-President JD Vance – who is rapidly becoming Trump’s messenger on the issue as he eyes his own presidential run in 2028 – also urged voters to show patience during a speech on Dec 16.

    (Reuters/NAN)

  • M23 ‘captures hundreds of Burundi soldiers captured in latest Congo offensive

    M23 ‘captures hundreds of Burundi soldiers captured in latest Congo offensive

    The Rwanda-backed M23 group has captured hundreds of Burundian soldiers during its latest offensive in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, a rebel official said, as clashes continued despite a warning from the Trump administration.

    Last week, M23 entered the strategic town of Uvira near the border with Burundi, less than a week after the presidents of Congo and Rwanda met in Washington with U.S. President Donald Trump and affirmed their commitment to a peace deal known as the Washington Accords.

    U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Saturday that Rwanda’s actions in eastern Congo violated the Washington Accords and vowed to “take action to ensure promises made to the President are kept”.

    Rwanda denies supporting M23 and has blamed Congolese and Burundian forces for the renewed fighting. A United Nations group of experts report published in July said Rwanda exercised command and control over the rebels.

    “We have several hundred Burundian soldiers with us whom we captured during combat, and we intend to return them home,” Patrick Busu Bwa Ngwi, the M23-appointed governor of South Kivu province, told a press conference on Saturday.

    Busu Bwa Ngwi said Burundi should send an official request for their return, and that M23 wants all Burundian forces “to leave our territory and return home in peace.”

    There was no immediate response on Monday from Burundi, which has had troops in eastern Congo for years.

    A suspected Burundian military vehicle destroyed during renewed clashes between Alliance Fleuve Congo AFC/M23 and the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (FARDC), sits along the National Road No. 5 in Luvungi, a settlement north of Uvira; South Kivu province, in the Democratic Republic of Congo December 13, 2025…. Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab Read more

    M23 staged a lightning offensive in January, quickly seizing eastern Congo’s two biggest cities in fighting that has killed thousands of people while displacing hundreds of thousands more.

    The insurgents have since worked to establish a parallel administration in the east, potentially setting the vast Central African country up for an enduring fracture.

    Congo is rich in minerals, supplying about 70% of the world’s cobalt as well as significant volumes of tin, tantalum and tungsten.

    The Trump administration hopes that an eventual peace deal could clear the way for significant Western investments in mining in eastern Congo.

    Busu Bwa Ngwi, the M23-appointed South Kivu governor, said on Saturday the rebels would not hesitate to push south to Katanga province, which has heavy cobalt and copper deposits, in order to stop alleged abuses of civilians by Congolese forces.

    A local official appointed by the government in Kinshasa told Reuters on Monday that Congo’s military and allied forces had withdrawn from Makobola, 12 km south of Uvira, and were reorganising to try to take back lost territory. A source within M23 told Reuters that the rebels were in Makobola.

    Global charity Medecins Sans Frontieres (Doctors Without Borders) said on Friday it was suspending activities in Baraka, about 100 km south of Uvira, “in response to escalating violence and threats posed by the conflict”.

  • U.S. Embassy warns Nigerians against visa fraud, threatens permanent ban

    U.S. Embassy warns Nigerians against visa fraud, threatens permanent ban

    The United States (U.S.) Embassy in Abuja has warned Nigerians against engaging in any form of fraud in the process of obtaining United States visas, saying offenders risk permanent bans.

    The warning is contained in a statement posted on the embassy’s official X handle, which stressed that applicants who provide false information or fake documents could face lifelong ineligibility under U.S. immigration law.

    According to the embassy, visa fraud carries serious consequences, as any form of misrepresentation during the application process may result in a permanent prohibition from entering the United States.

    “Visa fraud has serious consequences. Lying or providing fake documents can lead to permanent visa bans under U.S. immigration law,” the statement said.

    The embassy reiterated its commitment to continued cooperation with Nigeria on matters of mutual interest.

    “The United States looks forward to continuing to work together with Nigeria on issues of mutual concern,” it added.

    The warning comes amid efforts to curb rising cases of document falsification and misrepresentation in visa applications.

    It also follows ongoing public sensitisation and diplomatic engagements between Nigerian authorities and the U.S. Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr. Richard Mills.

  • Ex-UN chief, Ban warns Security Council risks irrelevance without reform

    Ex-UN chief, Ban warns Security Council risks irrelevance without reform

    Former United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has challenged the Security Council to look backwards regardless of the deep rivalry and distrust, and urged it to choose leaders capable of steering the world away from catastrophe towards active cooperation.

    The call came during an open debate on “Leadership for Peace,” where  Ban and academic Anjali Dayal pressed members to confront both the external crises facing the UN and internal constraints that have weakened its ability to act.

    Ban called on the Security Council to reform the use of veto and renew its support for UN leadership, saying they are essential if the organiation is to remain relevant in the twenty-first century.

    “The path of each for themselves is no different from the path of mutual destruction,” he warned.

    Ban, now an emeritus member of The Elders group, warned that global conditions have worsened since he left office at the end of 2016, marked by deepening confrontation among major powers, eroding multilateralism and conflicts in which civilians continue to pay the highest price.

    “This deeply disappointing situation is characterised by confrontation rather than cooperation among major powers,” he told the Council, citing the war in Ukraine, mass civilian casualties in Gaza and weakening international cooperation – even as the global climate crisis accelerates.

    The former UN chief said the overall crisis cannot be separated from the Security Council’s own failures.

    “The Security Council’s ongoing failure to properly function constitutes the most egregious cause,” he said, highlighting the repeated use of veto by permanent members “to shield themselves, their allies and their proxies from accountability.”

    Without meaningful reform, Ban warned, civilians will remain unprotected and impunity will persist. “Without it, the UN risks lurching towards either collapse or irrelevance,” he said.

    Turning to the selection of the next Secretary-General, Ban called for a single, non-renewable seven-year term to strengthen the independence of the office.

    The current practice of two five-year terms, he said, leaves Secretaries-General “overly dependent on this Council’s Permanent Members for an extension,” even though the arrangement is a convention rather than a requirement of the UN Charter.

    “The General Assembly holds the power to set the terms of the appointment itself,”  Ban noted, urging member states to use that authority to empower the next UN leader more fully.

    Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’s second term expires at the end of next year, and the formal selection process is already under way.

    In November, the Presidents of the General Assembly and the Security Council launched the process together, in line with General Assembly resolution 79/327, which emphasises transparency and inclusivity.

    Under the established procedure, candidates are nominated by Member States or groups and are required to submit a vision statement, curriculum vitae and campaign financing disclosures.

     The President of the General Assembly convenes publicly broadcast interactive dialogues with all candidates, while engaging closely with Member States throughout the process.

    As of mid-December, only Rafael Mariano Grossi – the Director-General of the UN nuclear watchdog International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) – has been nominated by Argentina.

    Anjali Dayal, Associate Professor for International Politics at Fordham University, told the council that the next Secretary-General will assume office at a time of unprecedented strain, including a deepening funding crisis that is already shrinking the UN’s capacity to deliver essential services.

    “That will result not just in shrinking this organisation, but also in less of the work that only the UN can do at scale,” she said, pointing to fewer vaccinations, reduced humanitarian aid and diminished mine-clearance efforts, even as global needs grow.

    Dayal said history shows that even in periods of intense division, the Council has been capable of choosing leaders who advanced peace and cooperation.

    She recalled the protracted deadlock that preceded the selection of Javier Pérez de Cuéllar in 1981 and the critique of U Thant, yet they deftly maneuvered an end to the Iran-Iraq war, resolve conflicts in Cambodia and Nicaragua, and help end the Cuban Missile Crisis.

    Those examples, she said, underscore that the Secretary-General’s influence lies less in material power than in the ability to shape ideas, narratives and long-term cooperation – “to make conference rooms always more attractive than the battlefield.”

  • EU-backed programme opens for young Nigerian STEM professionals in Europe

    EU-backed programme opens for young Nigerian STEM professionals in Europe

    Young Nigerian professionals in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) now have a unique opportunity to gain international work experience, thanks to the SUSTAIN programme, an initiative co-funded by the European Union and implemented by Seefar.

    The programme, designed to connect Nigerian talent with career opportunities in Germany and Ireland, will select up to 240 participants and provide them with extensive preparatory training.

    This includes soft skills development, cultural orientation, and career guidance, ensuring participants transition smoothly into their new roles.

    SUSTAIN Manager in Abuja, Emeka Anene, said the programme is not just about overseas employment but about long-term benefits for Nigeria.

    “SUSTAIN gives talented Nigerian STEM professionals the chance to gain valuable international experience while ensuring their skills ultimately benefit Nigeria. This initiative opens doors for our youth and drives knowledge transfer and economic growth at home,” he said.

    Deputy Head of ICMPD Brussels Mission,Oleg Chirita added that programmes like SUSTAIN address both Europe’s growing demand for STEM talent and provide opportunities for young professionals.

    “Global talent mobility can empower individuals, strengthen economies, and deepen cooperation between regions,” he said.

    For candidates like Peter Iroagbalachi, being shortlisted is a chance to make a difference.

    “If selected, I will use the experience in Europe to promote technology-driven solutions for inclusive growth in Nigeria and Africa, while inspiring other young professionals to pursue global opportunities,” he said.

    The programme responds to a critical skills gap in Europe, where nearly half of businesses report difficulty recruiting professionals with the STEM expertise they need.

    The European Commission estimates the EU requires an additional two million science and engineering experts.

    By linking Nigerian talent with European opportunities, SUSTAIN creates a triple-win scenario: Europe benefits from skilled professionals, Nigeria gains through knowledge transfer and stronger trade links, and participants acquire skills and networks that will boost their careers at home.

    Applications are open on the SUSTAIN website. Eligible applicants must be residents of Nigeria, aged 18–34, with at least two years of relevant STEM experience.

    The programme is a pilot labour mobility initiative designed to foster sustainable economic growth while promoting mutually beneficial partnerships between Nigeria and the EU. It is implemented by Seefar, a social enterprise with over 10 years of experience in migration and reintegration programmes across Europe.