The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Federal government

  • Armed conflicts: Nigeria to implement ECOWAS trans-human movement

    Armed conflicts: Nigeria to implement ECOWAS trans-human movement

    The Federal Government Thursday said it has domesticated the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Trans-Human Movement Law and would commence its implementation.

    President Muhammadu Buhari stated this at the 2017 National Security Summit organised by the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) in Abuja.

    Buhari, who was represented by the Minister for Interior, Gen. Abdulraman Dambazau (rtd), said that the domestication became necessary in order to contain menaces of herders, militants and terrorists.

    He said: “ECOWAS protocol on free movement of goods and person has always been there from the word go but there is ECOWAS decision on trans-humans. That is movement from one country to another as herders.

    “The decision is that every country where these trans-humans come, they should prepare reception areas for them and issue them International trans-humans certificates for identification. They would also be monitored so that their movements are known.

    “So, this is an ECOWAS decision that was taken in 1998 but has not been implemented. ECOWAS is trying now to see how they can implement it so as to reduce the conflict going on between herders and farmers.”

    Buhari also attributed increase in crime rate to proliferation of small arms, noting that there were over 10 million illegal small arms in the country a decade ago.

    He said: “I did a research ten years ago and I discovered that over 10 million small arms and weapons were in the country and that was before Boko Haram and Niger Delta crisis.

    “I do not know the quantity as of today but certainly, they must have increased bearing in mind the flow of weapons from North Africa because of the Libyan and Malian crises.”

    Earlier in his address, Buhari said that armed Agro Rangers would be stationed in farms as part of measures to protect agricultural investment, farmers and herders.

    He explained that the move would boost food security, economy and reduce incessant clashes.

    He said government would pursue security governance initiatives that are broad based, adding that it had entered into bilateral and multilateral agreements with other stakeholders to improve nation’s security.

    He assured of government’s support in carrying out institutional reforms and restructuring to revamp police in line with global best practices.

    He said government has launched national  counter terrorism strategy, adding that security management was the responsibility of everyone including the international community.

    Urging states to domesticate the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015, Buhari said it would assist in harmonsing, punishing any criminal.

    Acknowledging the challenges faced by the police, Buhari noted that there was improved budgetary allocation for the force, urging organised private sector to invest more in security sector as part of their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR).

    In an aside interview with The Nation, the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Ibrahim Idris, said the way out of farmers-herders conflict was for Nigerians to be tolerant with each other.

    He said: “The main way to tackle the issue of herdsmen and farmers is for us to be our brother’s keeper. We grew up in this country and we saw how people migrated to other places and settled peacefully. I think it is just the element of give and take that is lacking and like somebody observed, Nigerians are becoming intolerant of each other. “Until we stop the intolerance and believe that we have to forego something in order to get something, the communal clashes and ethnic disagreements would continue.

    “The reason for the summit is for all stakeholders to assemble and proffer solutions to improving security across the country.”

    Highpoint of the event was the anti-kidnapping, K-9 and anti-explosives simulations exhibited by police operatives.

     

  • FG releases N30 Bln for development of solid minerals sector

    FG releases N30 Bln for development of solid minerals sector

    The Federal Government has released N30 billion for the development of the solid minerals sector, a top official of the Solid Minerals Development Fund has announced.

    Hajiya Hadiza Goni, Acting Secretary of the fund, made the announcement on Wednesday in Sokoto.

    She made the disclosure in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on the sidelines of a workshop on the Mining Sector for the North West Geo-political Zone.

    Goni said the release of the money would facilitate the development of the solid minerals sector and boost nation growth.

    The acting secretary noted that the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari had given priority attention to the diversification of the economy.

    “The discovery of oil in commercial quantity in Nigeria made the mining sector the mainstay of the economy and oil the major revenue earner of the country.

    “Unfortunately, in the approximately 45-year decline of the country’s mining sector, we have been unable to articulate a framework upon which the sector would viably stand and operate.

    “We have, as such, missed out various opportunities to capitalise on the up-surging of the commodity process.”

    Goni disclosed that the Federal Ministry of Mines and Steel had, however, identified 45 solid minerals types across the 36 states of the federation.

    The Governor of Sokoto State, Alhaji Aminu Tambuwal, in a message expressed the determination of the State Government to develop the mineral sector in the state.

    His message was read by the Secretary to the State Government, Prof. Bashir Garba.

    Tambuwal said: “Even more important than oil, we were getting revenue from coal which is also a solid mineral.

    “But we have abandoned the huge deposits of coal since the discovery of oil.

    “There are countries that still rely on solid minerals for their survival, in spite of oil. An example is Copper in Tunisia.

    He assured that the state would collaborate with the Federal Government to exploit solid minerals in Sokoto State

  • FG to establish National Commission for Secondary Education

    FG to establish National Commission for Secondary Education

    The Federal Government Monday revealed that it plans to establish a National Commission for Secondary Education to regulate secondary education in the country.

    Minister of Education, Adamu Adamu disclosed this in Abuja on Monday when he received students of Nigeria Tulip International Colleges (NTIC) who won 48 awards for Nigeria in mathematics, geometry, robotics and various international academic competitions this year.

    Adamu said the plan to establish the commission was part of the ongoing reforms in the education sector by the federal government.

    He noted that while the National Universities Commission (NUC) and the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) regulate and intervene in tertiary education, there is no agency or commission to regulate secondary education as it is done with primary and junior secondary education through the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC).

    The minister said: “This administration came on the mantra of change and reform and that is what we are going to do.

    “For secondary schools in particular, you know for a very long time, there had been a commission, just like there is Universal Basic Education Commission for primary and junior secondary schools, Tertiary Education Trust Fund for tertiary, this commission for secondary education is going to be revamped.”

    Adamu, who commended the students of the college for making Nigeria proud, added that the Tulip Colleges since coming into Nigeria about 20 years ago had been among the best from Secondary to the Tertiary.

    He expressed the readiness of the ministry of education to support the NTIC.

    According to him, emphasis in education should be on science subjects like engineering, technology, and Mathematical sciences.

    “I want to urge you to keep up what you have been doing. I assure you that the future of Nigeria rest in your hands,” he added.

    In his remarks, Principal of the college, Mr. Nwuazu Omeje, said the aim of the school is to groom the students to greatness through provision of quality education and good moral upbringing.

    According to him, the colleges do not just pay attention to education alone but also the character of the children, adding that one could not aspire to any reasonable position in the society without good character.

    The Principal disclosed that one unique thing that the colleges had done was provision of scholarship to the brilliant but indigent students.

    He said various mathematical competitions are organized in collaboration with the National Mathematical Centre, Abuja, where the intelligent students from poor background who could not afford the school fees are offered scholarship to study in the colleges.

    According to him, the aim of the NTIC is to complement the effort of the federal government in providing quality education to citizens.

    “A good number of our students are on scholarship and we don’t discriminate. We go to every state, local government to advertise the competition and the successful ones are brought into the school,” he said.

    The NTIC has branches in Abuja, Lagos, Ogun, Kano, Yobe and Kaduna,

     

     

  • ‘Chibok girls release: PDP insensitive, exhibits disdain for human life’

    ‘Chibok girls release: PDP insensitive, exhibits disdain for human life’

    The Federal Government says the incautious statement by a faction of PDP criticizing the process leading to the release of the 82 Chibok girls further exhibits the party’s disdain for human life.

    In a statement issued on Monday in Abuja, the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed described the statement as “indecent, inhuman and ill-timed”.

    The minister, in the release signed by his Special Adviser, Mr Segun Adeyemi, said it was insensitive for any individual or organization to spoil the joy that heralded the release of the girls because of politics.

    “It is clear that the kind of disdain for human life which the PDP exhibited in its incautious statement is the same reason the poor girls were kidnapped in the first instance.

    “It is also this attitude the then PDP-controlled Federal Government took that seemed an eternity before even acknowledging the abduction, thus losing critical time for their rescue.

    He noted that from the statement, it was clear that the PDP, whose incompetence and the cluelessness precipitated the Chibok girls crisis was not wishing and praying for it to end with the safe return of the abducted girls.

    The minister recalled that President Muhammadu Buhari had stated that the defeat of Boko Haram would not be complete without the rescue of the Chibok girls.

    “If that includes swapping some Boko Haram elements for the girls, so what? Will the PDP rather have the girls stay in perpetual captivity, just to prove a ludicrous point?

    “Didn’t superpower United States engage in negotiations with the Taliban that led to the exchange of five Taliban fighters for US Army Sgt Bowe Bergdahl in 2014?

    “Didn’t Israel release 1,027 Palestinian prisoners in exchange for one Israeli soldier, Gilad Shalit in 2011?

    “A lot of factors come into play when a nation has to decide whether or not to engage in prisoner/hostage swap.

    “None, however, trounces the sanctity attached to human life and the consideration for the pains of the loved ones of those involved,” he said.

    The minister stressed that since the PDP failed to rescue even one of the Chibok girls, the party should hold its peace while the administration continued to seek the release of all the abducted girls, using every means at its disposal.

    He reassured that the administration would continue to work assiduously to end all Boko Haram hostilities.

  • FG offers two, three years savings bonds at 13.1%, 14.1%

    The Federal Government on Monday offered for subscription two-year savings bond at 13.18 per cent and three-year savings bond at 14.18 per cent, the Debt Management Office (DMO) has said.

    According to the offer circular derived from the DMO website, the two-year bond will be due in May 2019 while the three-year bond will be due in May 2020.

    It, however, did not state how much was offered, but added that the maximum subscription was N50 million at N1,000 per unit, subject to minimum subscription of N5,000 and in multiples of N1,000.

    The website said that the bond was fully backed by the full faith and credit of the Federal Government, with quarterly coupon payments to bondholders.

    The savings bond issuance is expected to help finance the nation’s budget deficit.

  • FG decries level of water, irrigation projects decay

    The Minister of Water Resources, Mr Suleiman Adamu on Monday in Abuja decried the level of decay in water and irrigation projects across the country.

    Adamu told the News Agency of Nigeria that the Federal Government would, however, ensure the completion of the abandoned projects rather than embark on new ones.

    “Honestly, I am very sad. What has emerged from these trips is that our fore fathers, the founding fathers of the Ministry of Water Resources and Agriculture have done a tremendous amount of work for this country, which succeeding generations have allowed to waste and have done little.

    “Not only have they not improved on it, they have allowed the whole thing to deteriorate.

    “A lot of the infrastructure that we visited were built in the 70s and early 80s at that time if you imagine the amount of money that were spent on infrastructure and the kind of support they were providing to people.

    “And you see how desolate we found them, it’s quite appalling, but all is not lost, the infrastructure is there.

    “All we need to do is to change our attitude and to try to see how we can invest more money and accord them the priority that they deserve.

    “Thankfully, this government has identified the need to give priority to agriculture, and therefore, it’s an opportunity to revive them, expand them and rehabilitate them.”

    He said the Federal Government was committed to expanding irrigation farming, adding that its target was to have no less than 500,000 hectares of irrigated agriculture by 2030.

    Adamu, who cited the Kano River Irrigation scheme, said although it may be one of the largest in the country, one third of the irrigation facility was not cultivated in the dry season.

    “This is all because of a simple rehabilitation of the canal for the water to get there. It is not because there is no water, it is simply mismanagement.”

    He said that the World Bank-supported Transforming Irrigation Management in Nigeria (TRIMING) programme would promote food security and all year farming.

    Adamu, however, stressed the need for beneficiaries to take ownership of all water projects towards a sustainable agriculture development, stressing that government alone could not provide and protect such projects.

    He urged beneficiaries of the irrigation schemes to do more and protect the facilities, adding that the era of free services was over.

    “One of the problems is that beneficiaries always think that this is a government thing, so they don’t feel that they have a responsibility to maintain them.”

  • 600 households benefit from Fadama intervention scheme

    At least 600 households have benefited from the Fadama III North East special intervention project targeted at Internally Displaced Persons and host communities.

    Mrs Awotunde Bisayo, Community Action Plan (CAP) officer, Fadama III North East special intervention project, disclosed this in an interview the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Gombe on Monday.

    She said that the intervention was in the form of food items, farming inputs and distribution of ruminants to IDPs and their host communities.

    Awotunde said 52 communities were identified in Gombe state alone to benefit further from the project, adding that already, 40 households in 15 communities had benefited.

    According to her, the beneficiaries that selected farming were given seeds and other inputs, as well as food items as assistance.

    She also said that others received foodstuff, as well as livestock and feeds for rearing.

    “We were impressed by what we have seen on ground in Gombe.

    “Most of the beneficiaries we interacted with, confirmed to us that the items were given to them, and we went round and saw it physically.

    “I commend Gombe Fadama office for proper intervention; they are working in line with our aims and objectives,” she said.

    She appealed to those that their names were taken but had not benefited from the intervention to exercise patience, assuring that they would soon benefit.

    An IDP from Chibok, Miss Maimuna Yau, told NAN that she received 50 chicks with feeds, a bag of rice, beans, maize and vegetable oil.

    “We will forever remain grateful for the relief material and means of livelihood given to us by the Federal Government,” she said.

    Another beneficiary, Malam Rabiu Hassan from Dikwa in Borno, said he received food items, as well as four sheep and feeds for rearing.

     

  • FG urged to install sea monitoring device in coastal regions

    A retired university lecturer, Dr Bassey Okwong, has urged the Federal Government to install a water quality network device in coastal areas to detect rise in sea water level.

    Okwong gave the advice in an interview with News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Friday.

    “Nigeria needs a harmonised, comprehensive water quality monitoring networking device across all the major rivers to provide the necessary information for water managers to take proactive decisions toward effective flood control.

    “The monitoring network will provide the capability to observe, analyse and forecast natural and human-induced changes that affect waters from inland out to the estuaries and coasts.

    “More than any other measures, monitoring network programme provides information necessary for management actions by the relevant agencies like Nigeria Hydrological Service Agency (NIHSA) to monitor flooding at the coastal areas,’’ he said.

    He said that the device would be handy in detecting changes in sea water levels overtime with a view to protecting the lives and property of the residents of coastal regions.

    Okwong, who taught at the Department of Geology, University of Calabar, said that such initiative would serve as a proactive means of avoiding water encroachment that could lead to flooding.

    He said that the network mechanism would provide information about oceans and coastal ecosystems as well as inland influences on coastal waters for improved water resource management.

    He noted that increase in the water levels of major rivers had contributed tremendously to flooding, a challenge which had been facing the country since 2012.

    According to him, early information on flood forecasting, prediction and early warning signals will go a long way to mitigate such environmental hazards.

    Okwong urged the government to initiate effective water-monitoring programmes, together with sound data and information management, in the coastal and riverside areas.

    He said that the recurring problem of flooding in the country had necessitated appropriate actions, including early preparation and adoption of modern methods, to tackle the menace.

    Okwong urged NIHSA to collaborate with other federal agencies to provide early information to trigger adequate monitoring of coastal areas the upland regions.

    He, however, urged the government to provide equipment to monitor major rivers across the country to supply information that would be beneficial to fishermen, scientists, water providers and other users of water resources.

    He said that the device should be positioned in strategic locations to facilitate the initiation and execution of measures that would curtail or minimise the effects of floods and coastal degradation in the country.

    “Coastal erosion and degradation has been affecting the entire coastline, with greater occurrence around major coastal cities across the country, for several years now.’’

    “We cannot, as a country with experienced water managers, fold our hands to look at such situations that could be controlled if adequate measures are taken,’’ he added.

  • FG begins pilot implementation of conditional cash transfer in Kogi

    FG begins pilot implementation of conditional cash transfer in Kogi

    The Federal Government said it has earmarked six local government areas in Kogi State as pilot project for the implementation of its Conditional Cash Transfer of N5, 000 monthly per household.

    The National Coordinator, National Cash Transfer Project (NCTP), Office of the Vice President, Dr Temitope Sinkaye, made this known on Thursday at the inauguration of “100-Day Rapid Result Initiative (RRI)” workshop on Conditional Cash Transfer in Lokoja.

    He stated that the projects has two components, which include Base (Unconditional) Cash Transfer of N5,000 for the most vulnerables in which payment had already commenced in nine states, and Conditional Cash Transfer of additional N5,000 for households with children, pregnant women and school age children, among others.

    “We are here to develop a framework for implementation of the conditional cash transfer which is the second component that is being funded by the World Bank, unlike the base cash transfer that is solely funded by the federal government.

    “Kogi was selected as pilot state for the 100-day to test run the implementation strategy, and two local government has been selected in each senatorial zone for the test run namely: Lokoja, Yagba West, Okehi, Ajaokuta, Ibaji and Dekina respectively.

    “At the end of the 100 day after the design and test running, if we are sure that this framework is good enough, then we will replicate it in other states of the federation.

    “For now, we have a total of nine states including Kogi in attendance to participate in the 100-day RRI, others are: Oyo, Kwara, Osun, Cross River, Ekiti, Niger, Bauchi and Borno State,” Sinkaye said.

    Declaring the workshop open, Governor Yahaya Bello, expressed joy and optimism that the cash transfer program would serve as a foundation of hope for many vulnerable people and also reduce crime in the society.

    Bello, who was represented by his deputy, Mr. Simon Achuba, pointed out that the program being executed by the President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration was highly commendable and should be applauded by all Nigerians.

    He however advised the implementators of the program to be God fearing, and do their best to make sure that the money get to the target poor people in the society.

     

  • Fashola tasks agency to provide electricity in rural communities

    Fashola tasks agency to provide electricity in rural communities

    The Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, on Tuesday, said that the tertiary qualifications obtained by board members of the Rural Electrification Agency were meaningless if millions of Nigerians continue to lack access to electricity.

    Fashola made this known while inaugurating a new board for the REA at the headquarters of the Federal Ministry of Power, Works and Housing in Abuja.

    He stated that millions of rural dwellers, as well as some others in urban centres still do not have access to electricity, adding that the responsibility of the newly inaugurated board was to ensure that most of these people get power in the shortest possible time.

    His words: “I think it is important to know why we are here so that we start with the common understanding of what our objective is, you know what is expected of you and understand the necessity to succeed.

    “Very clearly from the citations that we have listened to, Mr. President has picked from Nigeria those who are solely trained in Nigeria, for I heard Ahmadu Bello University, Nekede (polytechnic), as well as those from Doha and the United Kingdom.

    “So clearly, the qualifications that you have are not in doubt, but those qualifications mean nothing if people do not have access to electricity across the country. Your qualifications, experience and achievements mean nothing if this team does not deliver electricity to the people who are in their many millions and are yet to be connected to grid.”

    The minister told the REA board that they should ensure that millions of rural communities get electricity, either by connecting them to the national power grid or by providing them with off-grid power.

    “When I meet with legislators they tell me they have communities that have never been connected to the grid and as I go round the country I’ve seen proof of that. So I know the kind of responsibility that you bear,” Fashola said.

    He, however, promised the team that his ministry would continue to provide the REA with the required support, adding that the budgetary assistance needed to meet the rural electrification needs of Nigerian communities shall be provided.

    “We will breakdown barriers for you, but really and truly it is you who will do much of the work,” the minister said.

    Speaking with journalists after the board was inaugurated, the agency’s Managing Director, Mrs. Damilola Ogunbiyi, said by next week the new REA board will identify all the ongoing projects being undertaken by the agency, adding that it will also focus on completing selected new projects.

    Ogunbiyi said, “What we are going to do from next week is to have the whole project team, led by the executive director technical, to go out and identify the status of all these projects and come up with the proper master plan of how we are to tackle existing projects while also focusing on the new projects that were mentioned by the minister, the university projects, hydro projects and small scale solar projects.

    “So we really see ourselves as an access agency to get power to people who don’t have it regardless of where they are whether in the rural or urban centres. And we are going to do it using a whole different variety of renewable energy technology and some off-grid solutions as well.”