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Tag: United Nations

  • West Africa’s economy to expand 4.4%, says UN report

    West Africa’s economy to expand 4.4%, says UN report

    West Africa economy is expected to expand by 4.4 per cent this year, down slightly from 4.6 per cent in 2025, amid macroeconomic reforms in Nigeria and high prices for precious metals, according to the United Nations (UN) flagship World Economic Situation and Prospects 2026 (WESP 2026).

    The Economic Commission for Africa (ECA)   launched the World Economic Situation and Prospects 2026 (WESP 2026) report at its headquarters in Addis Ababa, highlighting a modest improvement in Africa’s growth outlook.

    In Central Africa, growth is forecast at 3.0 per cent in 2026, below the continental average but above the 2025 estimate of 2.8 per cent, reflecting continued dependence on extractive industries and conflict-related disruptions.

    According to the report, economic growth in Africa is projected to rise to 4.0 per cent in 2026 and 4.1 per cent in 2027, up from 3.5 per cent in 2024 and 3.9 per cent in 2025. The acceleration reflected greater macroeconomic stability in several large economies, supporting investment and consumer spending.

    Speaking at the launch, Director, Macroeconomics, Finance and Governance Division , ECA, Stephen Karingi, said that Africa’s improving outlook remains fragile in the face of global uncertainty. “Despite the positive outlook, high debt-servicing costs, limited fiscal space and volatile commodity prices continue to weigh on Africa’s prospects for inclusive and sustainable growth,” Karingi said.

    Global output is forecast to grow by 2.7 per cent in 2026, slightly below the 2.8 per cent estimated for 2025 and well below the pre-pandemic average of 3.2 per cent. During 2025, unexpected resilience to sharp increases in U.S. tariffs, supported by solid consumer spending and easing inflation, helped sustain growth. However, underlying weaknesses persist. Subdued investment and limited fiscal space are weighing on economic activity, raising the prospect that the world economy could settle into a persistently slower growth path than in the pre-pandemic era.

    “A combination of economic, geopolitical and technological tensions is reshaping the global landscape, generating new economic uncertainty and social vulnerabilities. Many developing economies continue to struggle and, as a result, progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals remains distant for much of the world,” said United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres.

    Presenting the report, Officer-in-Charge of the Macroeconomic Analysis Section, Macroeconomics and Governance Division, ECA, Hopestone Chavula, underscored the uneven nature of the recovery across the continent.

    “Africa’s growth recovery remains uneven across subregions. While East Africa continues to lead growth momentum, other parts of the continent are constrained by structural challenges and exposure to external shocks,” Chavula said.

    The report noted that Africa’s growth remains resilient but faces headwinds from declining official development assistance, rising trade barriers and an uncertain global trade and financial environment. East Africa is expected to lead regional performance, with growth projected to accelerate to 5.8 per cent in 2026 from 5.4 per cent in 2025, driven by robust performance in Ethiopia and Kenya and supported by regional integration and the expansion of renewable energy.

     North Africa’s growth is forecast to ease slightly to 4.1 per cent in 2026, following a strong 4.3 per cent in 2025, underpinned by improved balance-of-payments conditions and a rebound in tourism.

    Southern Africa’s growth is expected to edge up from 1.6 per cent in 2025 to 2.0 per cent in 2026 but will remain subdued due to structural constraints and heightened exposure to higher United States tariffs.

    Africa’s average public debt-to-GDP ratio is estimated at 63 per cent in 2025, remaining well above pre-pandemic levels, with interest payments absorbing nearly 15 per cent of government revenues. A few countries have regained access to international markets through new bond issuances. At the same time, about 40 per cent of African countries remain in debt distress or at high risk thereof, with several seeking restructuring under the G20 Common Framework. Limited fiscal space continues to constrain development spending, even as reform and consolidation efforts advance in some of the region’s larger economies.

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    African trade expanded in 2025, supported by strong exports of precious metals and agricultural commodities, alongside rising imports of transport equipment. The region’s exposure to global trade tensions remains limited, reflecting diversified export partnerships and exemptions from higher U.S. tariffs for key products such as crude oil and gold. However, the expiration of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) and the introduction of new tariff measures present challenges for some exporters, particularly in the apparel sector. Meanwhile, progress in implementing the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) has also been slow and uneven.

    Inflation has eased across most African economies, supported by exchange rate stabilization. However, food price inflation remains elevated—above 10 per cent in many countries—reflecting structural vulnerabilities and climate-related shocks. Achieving sustained progress on inflation will require a balanced policy mix, combining credible monetary frameworks to anchor expectations, targeted fiscal measures to support vulnerable households, and strategic investments in food systems and logistics to ease supply constraints.

    The report underscored that navigating an era of trade realignments, persistent price pressures, and climate related shocks will demand deeper global coordination and decisive collective action at a time when geopolitical tensions are rising, policies are becoming more inward looking, and impetus towards multilateral solutions is weakening. Sustained progress will depend on rebuilding trust, strengthening predictability, and renewing the commitment to an open, rules based multilateral trading system.

    The Sevilla Commitment, the outcome document of the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development, offers a forward-looking blueprint to strengthen multilateral cooperation, reform the international financial architecture, and scale up development finance. Delivering on its key priorities—including clearer debt workout modalities and expanded concessional and climate finance—is essential to reducing systemic risks and fostering a more stable and equitable global economy.

  • UN warns of hunger after global funding collapse

    UN warns of hunger after global funding collapse

    Nearly 35 million Nigerians are at risk of hunger this year, including 3 million children facing severe malnutrition, following the collapse of global aid budgets, the United Nations (UN) said Thursday.

    Speaking at the launch of the 2026 humanitarian plan in Abuja, UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator Mohamed Malick Fall said the long-dominant, foreign-led aid model in Nigeria is no longer sustainable and that Nigeria’s needs have grown.

    Conditions in the conflict-hit northeast are dire, Fall said, with civilians in Borno, Adamawa and Yobe states facing rising violence. A surge in suicide bombings and widespread attacks killed more than 4,000 people in the first eight months of 2025, matching the toll for all of 2023, he said.

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    The UN can only aim to deliver $516 million to provide lifesaving aid to 2.5 million people this year, down from 3.6 million in 2025, which in turn was about half the previous year’s level.

    “These are not statistics. These numbers represent lives, futures and Nigerians,” Fall said.

    He also said the UN had no choice but to focus on “the most lifesaving” interventions given the drop in available funding.

    Shortfalls last year led the World Food Programme to also warn that millions could go hungry in Nigeria as its resources ran out in December and it was forced to cut support for more than 300,000 children.

    Fall said Nigeria was showing growing national ownership of the crisis response in recent months through measures such as local funding for lean-season food support and early-warning action on flooding.

  • To summon a siege

    To summon a siege

    Every civilisation has its myths of rescue. In ours, the rescuer arrives in the attire of the West, hawking human rights in one hand and carnage in the other. Empires never travel light. They arrive with doctrines and appetites, and an accounting logic that mortgages human lives against barrels of oil, shipping lanes, voting blocs, and dubious evangelism.

    Nigeria as other nations of Africa, is once again ripe for the picking in the so-called New World Order, not because we are weak in prospects or numbers, but because we are fragmented in will and allegiance. This renders us dangerously exposed in an era where might is always deemed right, international law is reduced to a ceremonial proviso, and the United Nations, a forum of toothless bulldogs.

    In such a clime, even the presumed Giant of Africa must tread with the exaggerated politeness of the vulnerable. Thus, Nigeria’s resort to frantic diplomacy while its citizenry – out of spite or despair – openly fantasise about foreign invasion as if it were a Netflix series with a happy ending.

    No doubt, terror stalks our forests as bandits and insurgents turn entire regions into cauldrons of grief. The carnage is real and fear isn’t imagined. What must be resisted is the childish leap from justified anger to suicidal longing. The idea that a global hegemon like the United States, would arrive in Nigeria as a neutral surgeon to excise evil and depart politely, intones naïveté.

    There has been much heated talk, some of it reckless, about foreign military capabilities, “coordinated efforts,” and what powerful allies could do if unleashed. Statements by American officials are quoted and misquoted, even as rumours inflate to certainties. Yet the language of “partnership and counterterrorism” must be heeded with caution, not with hysteria or worship. Coordination shouldn’t translate to colonisation by default as it is rarely charity. It is interest meeting interest, and the dominant party always writes the footnotes.

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    Alongside US “cooperation” to crush terrorists operating within Nigeria, the Nigerian military’s recent operations deserve support and scrutiny in equal measure. And sponsors of terror, whether they wear agbada, humanitarian badge or military camouflage, must be hunted with the same intensity as the foot soldiers they bankroll. Apologists must be exposed and prosecuted. This is the bare minimum of sovereignty.

    Yet, sovereignty is diminished, not strengthened, when citizens behave as though only outsiders can save them. The most dangerous sound Nigeria can experience is not the crack of a gunshot or the roar of a fighter jet, it is the applause and shrieks of approval by a people, who, weary of their own contradictions and tedious labour of self-repair, summon a siege upon themselves.

    When a nation embraces an external force as the decisive answer to its internal failures, it announces something fatal about itself: that it no longer trusts its own capacity for reform. For a former colony, this is the worst form of self-betrayal.

    The global context makes this even more perilous. We are living through a period of resurgent imperial siege. Great powers no longer bother to hide their appetites behind diplomatic or moral sermons. They pursue brazenly their “enlightened self-interest,” spheres of influence, and strategic resources. After the Americas, Africa remains one of the last great theatres where rival empires test their might.

    The United States’ historical posturing toward Latin America, shaped by doctrines that claimed to protect the hemisphere while subordinating it, is instructive. In early January 2026, U.S. forces invaded Venezuela and abducted President Nicolás Maduro and his wife to the United States to face criminal charges, after which President Donald Trump said the U.S. would “run” the country and take control of up to 50 million barrels of its oil for sale, for the benefit of Venezuelans and American interests.

    Trump has also revived his bid to seize Greenland, a strategic Danish territory in the Arctic, calling it vital to U.S. security and suggesting all options are on the table despite Danish and NATO objections to any annexation. From Chile to Guatemala, Brazil to the Caribbean, the logic was consistent: the sovereignty of smaller nations is negotiable when it conflicts with American priorities. To pretend that Nigeria is immune to similar calculations is to be delusional.

    The rise of alternative powers, particularly China, has complicated this old order. Both trade patterns and alliances have shifted. The BRICS bloc, comprising Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, represents one such counterweight. Nigeria must take this multi-polar reality seriously, not as a romantic rebellion against the West, but as a sober exercise in self-preservation. Alignment, whether with Western powers or emerging blocs, should never be devotional. It must be transactional, disciplined, and rooted in Nigeria’s long-term interests.

    What is unforgivable is the growing habit among some politically embittered Nigerians of openly calling for US invasion as a form of domestic revenge. This is especially reckless in an era when American politics, under a resurgent Donald Trump, has shown little patience for diplomatic niceties while glorifying dominance and reduction of nations to strategic assets.

    Nigeria’s resource wealth makes it an even more tempting target in a world hungry for energy and strategic advantage. Oil, gas, critical minerals, a massive consumer market, and a pivotal geographic position all make the country too important to ignore. That importance should serve as leverage, but only if Nigerians quit trading their sovereignty for spite and emboldening imperial actors who see Africa as unfinished business.

    Every offer of intelligence sharing or security cooperation, whether from Western or Middle Eastern allies, must be handled with extreme care. If poorly managed, it becomes a Trojan horse, entangling domestic security with foreign agendas that may cause instability.

    No country survives by hating itself loudly enough to attract a conqueror. Those who cheer hypothetical invasions should remember the ghosts of Libya, Iraq, and Afghanistan. Libya, once a rich and functioning state, became an impoverished slave market and weapons depot. Iraq’s invasion unleashed sectarian demons that still stalk the region while Afghanistan cycled through decades of occupation and collapse.

    Empires do not rebuild what they break. They move on. Nigeria must learn from the Afghan experience. In the wake of United States-led NATO’s sudden withdrawal from Afghanistan, Gaisu Yari, an Afghan refugee, now a grantee of the Open Society Foundation (OSF), recalled his flight from his homeland as his darkest hour. As the occupying forces commenced their hasty withdrawal, he had just four hours to pack up the life he had created in Afghanistan into one suitcase. In a pain-filled memoir, Yari revealed how he cried all through his perilous trip to the Kabul airport, reliving the agony of saying goodbye to his tearful mother on the roof of an old house.

    He eventually evacuated to Poland, landing with his family in a refugee camp with scarce food and resources. Every new dawn he spends abroad lacerates and leaves a thick welt on his psyche.

    Would Nigerians learn from the sad fate of the Yaris of the world? Despite initial patronage by dubious and bleeding-heart foreign press, Afghanistan has faded from global news headlines.

    Let us be guided by the Afghans’ experience. Nigerians must shun the lure of anarchy. We must avoid poisonous interventions from foreigners, whose major interest is to abolish our sovereignty, plunder our resources, and strip us bare to devious elements.

  • UN chief raises concerns about instability in Venezuela

    UN chief raises concerns about instability in Venezuela

    United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres raised concerns yesterday about greater instability in Venezuela after the U.S. capture of President Nicolas Maduro, while the United States said it does not plan to occupy the Latin American country.

    The 15-member Security Council met at UN headquarters in New York just hours before Maduro was due to appear in a Manhattan federal court on drug charges including narco-terrorism conspiracy. Maduro has denied any criminal involvement.

    “I am deeply concerned about the possible intensification of instability in the country, the potential impact on the region, and the precedent it may set for how relations between and among states are conducted,” Guterres said in a statement delivered to the council by U.N. political affairs chief Rosemary DiCarlo.

    U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Mike Waltz told the Security Council the United States carried out “a surgical law enforcement operation facilitated by the U.S. military against two indicted fugitives of American justice,” referring to Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores.

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    “As Secretary (of State Marco) Rubio has said, there is no war against Venezuela or its people. We are not occupying a country,” said Waltz, as he laid out the U.S. case against Maduro at the Security Council.

    “We’re not going to allow the Western Hemisphere to be used as a base of operation for our nation’s adversaries,” Waltz said. “You cannot continue to have the largest energy reserves in the world under the control of adversaries of the United States, under the control of illegitimate leaders, and not benefiting the people of Venezuela.”

    Venezuela’s U.N. Ambassador Samuel Moncada called the U.S. operation to capture Maduro “an illegitimate armed attack lacking any legal justification.” Moncada told the council that Venezuelan institutions are functioning normally, constitutional order has been preserved, and the state exercises effective control over all of its territory.

    Guterres called on all Venezuelan actors to engage in an inclusive and democratic dialogue, adding: “I welcome and am ready to support all efforts aimed at assisting Venezuelans in finding a peaceful way forward.”

    Guterres also expressed concern that the U.S. operation to capture Maduro in Caracas on Saturday did not respect the rules of international law. The U.N. Charter states that members “shall refrain in their international relations from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state.”

    The United States has cited Article 51 of the U.N. Charter, which says that nothing “shall impair the inherent right of individual or collective self-defense if an armed attack occurs against a member of the United Nations.”

    Russia, China and Colombia condemned the U.S. military operation as illegal. Most remaining council members did not directly criticise the United States and instead stated the importance of abiding by international law and the U.N. Charter.

    “Unintelligible murmurings and attempts to avoid principled assessments by those who in other circumstances froth at the mouth and demand that others respect the U.N. Charter today seem particularly hypocritical and unseemly,” said Russia’s U.N. Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia.

    Russia has been denounced by the United Nations for its 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

    Colombia, which requested yesterday’s meeting, condemned the U.S. operation as a clear violation of the sovereignty, political independence and territorial integrity of Venezuela. Russia, China and Venezuela called on the United States to release Maduro and his wife.

    The United States cannot be held accountable by the U.N. Security Council, which is charged with maintaining international peace and security, for any such violation. The United States wields a veto – along with Russia, China, Britain and France – so it can block any action.

  • UN boss Guterres raises alarm over surge in global military spending

    UN boss Guterres raises alarm over surge in global military spending

    United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres has expressed concern over the sharp rise in global military spending, noting that it is now about thirteen times higher than funds allocated to development aid.

    According to him, military expenditure in 2025 is estimated at around $2.7 trillion, an amount equivalent to the entire Gross Domestic Product of Africa.

    Guterres warned that the world is at a critical crossroads, defined by escalating conflicts, deepening divisions and accelerating climate breakdown.

    He stressed that building a safer world requires greater investment in fighting poverty rather than waging wars.

    Looking ahead to 2026, the UN chief urged world leaders to make people-centred choices in their policy and spending decisions.

    He said, “As we enter the new year, the world stands at a crossroads. Chaos and uncertainty surround us. 

    “Division. Violence. Climate breakdown. And systemic violations of international law.

    “A retreat from the very principles that bind us together as a human family. 

    “People everywhere are asking: Are leaders even listening? Are they ready to act?

    “As we turn the page on a turbulent year, one fact speaks louder than words:

    “Global military spending has soared to 2.7 trillion dollars, growing by almost 10%.

    “That is thirteen times more than all development aid, equivalent to the entire Gross Domestic Product of Africa.

    “All, while conflict rages at levels unseen since World War II.

    “On this new year, let’s resolve to get our priorities straight.

    “A safer world begins by investing more in fighting poverty and less in fighting wars. Peace must prevail.

    “It’s clear the world has the resources to lift lives, heal the planet, and secure a future of peace and justice.

    “In 2026, I call on leaders everywhere: Get serious. Choose people and planet over pain.

    “And I urge everyone who hears this message: Play your part.

    “Our future depends on our collective courage to act.

    “This new year, let’s rise together:For justice. For humanity. For peace.”

  • UN expresses pains over school girls’ abductions

    UN expresses pains over school girls’ abductions

    United Nations has expressed deep pain over school girls’ abductions in Nigeria.

    This is as it also continues the push for gender equality, empowerment and rights for women and girls.

    UN Women Deputy Executive Director, Nyaradzayi Gumbonzvanda, in Abuja said she feels the pains as a mother of what the children are going through.

    “And at the outset, to also express as a mother, as a leader, my pain with the abductions that we still see of our daughters. I needed to express that.

    “I join calls for release of our daughters. As a mother, I feel my stomach churning when I wonder, what did she eat today? Where did she sleep tonight etc.? And I also think of her community, and their families. And therefore reaffirm that every girl must have a right and does have a right to security and to education.”

    She added: “Violence against women and girls remains pervasive in this country, Nigeria, with the abductions that I have mentioned and the attacks on schoolgirls highlighting the urgent need for safety in schools, safety in our homes, in our communities, and online.

    “This is critical because globally, nearly one in three women experience physical or sexual violence in their lifetime.”

    Gumbonzvanda also decried the alarming rate of Technology-Facilitated Gender Based Violence, calling for proper protections for the girl child.

    “A critical area of concern remains technology-facilitated gender-based violence, which is rising globally and nationally. Between 16 percent and 58 percent of women worldwide experience some form of online or technology-facilitated gender-based violence, depending on the region.

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    “Globally, one in three women experience physical or sexual violence. And technology-facilitated abuse affects up to 58 percent of women, according to our UN Women data of 2022,” the UN Women official said.

     She also noted that UN Women is supporting the governments and stakeholders in strengthening the policy frameworks, enhancing digital safety, and promoting accountability for online harms.

    She stressed the importance of a legal framework to address the menace.

     According to her: “Effective legal frameworks and inclusive governance are essential to reversing this trend. My discussion with ambassadors accredited to Nigeria also underscored the importance of enhanced regional cooperation and particularly across the Sahel and West Africa, where women’s leadership and peace-building efforts are indispensable for stability and for sustainable development.

    Gumbonzvanda commended the efforts of the National Assembly’s strong commitment to strengthening legislation that protects women and girls in advancing measures that expand women’s participation in governance.

    She also commented on women’s representation at the National Assembly which is only 3.8 percent, far way below the global average of 27.2 percent according to the Inter-Parliamentary Union data of 2025.

    She urged the country to adopt the “Legislative reforms such as affirmative action, such as quotas, and the proposed special seats which are globally recognised to accelerate women’s participation.

    “These measures are not just there to strengthen democracy, but also to ensure rule of law in that budget reflects the needs of half of the population.”

    She therefore sees the ongoing debate on the special bill as positive.

     “Therefore, I am really excited to be here in this country, as the country engages deeply and boldly and confidently on the special seats bill. And I’m looking forward to the day when it will be passed. I do, in every country, because also as the UN, special measures are part of standards, are part of international standards.

    “And equally, we have SDG 5 on women in decision making, which aims for gender parity by 2030. So the efforts in Nigeria are a good progressive approach towards that goal. Economic empowerment is vital for sustainable development.”

    On the need to empower women, Gumbonzvanda stressed that women make up over 70 percent of Nigeria’s agricultural labour force, yet face barriers to land, to credit, to markets.

    “Gender responsive budgeting and investments in women farmers and entrepreneurs can unlock growth and resilience. Closing gender gaps in labour participation could add up to 12 million to global GDP by 2025, according to the data from McKinsey, proving that empowering women is smart economics.

    “Empowering women economically is not charity. It is innovation, it is development, it is a benefit that extends the entire community. Some of us are sitting here because our mothers in the rural areas were empowered to be able to send their goats to market and be able to pay school fees, that we’re able to give soap and sugar, because our mothers were able to get a little bit of income in the family.”

  • COP30 climate talks end in Brazil without roadmap to phase out fossil fuels

    COP30 climate talks end in Brazil without roadmap to phase out fossil fuels

    The United Nations climate talks in Brazil reached a subdued agreement at the weekend to deliver more money to countries hit hardest by climate change to help them adapt to extreme weather’s wrath. But the agreement doesn’t include an explicit detailed map to phase out fossil fuels or strengthen inadequate emissions cutting plans.

    The Brazilian hosts of the conference said they’d eventually come up with a road map to get away from fossil fuels working with hardline Colombia, but it won’t have the same force as something approved at the United Nations conference called COP30.

    The deal was approved Saturday after negotiators blew past a deadline to wrap up the previous day. The deal was crafted after more than 12 hours of late night and early morning meetings in COP30 President André Corrêa do Lago’s office.

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    Looking ahead, Do Lago said tough discussions started in Belem will continue under Brazil’s leadership until the next annual conference “even if they are not reflected in this text we just approved.” Do Lago has said a fossil fuel transition plan will be in a separate proposal issued later by his team that won’t carry the same weight as a deal accepted by nations at the conference.

    But critics complained about the deal struck Saturday.

    “It’s a weak outcome,” said former Philippine negotiator Jasper Inventor, now at Greenpeace International.

    It was called weak and inadequate by many, with Panama negotiator Juan Carlos Monterrey Gomez railing against the deal.

    “A climate decision that cannot even say ‘fossil fuels’ is not neutrality, it is complicity. And what is happening here transcends incompetence,” Monterrey Gomez said. “Science has been deleted from COP30 because it offends the polluters.”

  • ‘UN Charter prohibits foreign threats’

    ‘UN Charter prohibits foreign threats’

    A former member of the Kwara State House of Assembly Commission and chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Kehinde Alex Bankole (KAB), has said any threat of military action against Nigeria would contravene the United Nations (UN) Charter.

    He said it could undermine Nigeria’s sovereignty.

    He faulted U.S. President Donald Trump’s claim of possible military action in Nigeria over alleged violence against Christians — an accusation Nigeria has consistently denied.

    Bankole said such threats amount to a direct violation of international law as enshrined in the UN Charter, particularly Article 2, which upholds the principles of sovereignty, equality, and non-intervention among member states.

    “Nigeria remains a sovereign state, and the UN Charter has clearly addressed this in Article 2,” he said.

    “Article 2(1) affirms the sovereign equality of all UN Member States, Article 2(4) prohibits the use or threat of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state, and Article 2(7) forbids interference in matters within a state’s domestic jurisdiction.”

    He further explained that while Article 2(7) allows for UN intervention in cases of threats to international peace under Chapter VII, such action must be authorised by the UN Security Council, not by any individual nation.

    “These provisions collectively balance a state’s sovereign rights with its responsibilities as a UN member. No country has the unilateral right to threaten another with invasion under the guise of protection or aid,” he stated.

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    Bankole urged Nigerians to rally behind President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and resist any external attempts to undermine the nation’s stability.

    “We must support our country and not allow anyone to ridicule Nigeria — a nation that hosts the largest black population in the world,” he said.

    “President Tinubu has done well in addressing insecurity and rebuilding governance institutions. He should not be distracted.”

    The APC chieftain, who is also the founder of KAB Constructions, KAB Energy, and KAB Security, criticised past Nigerian leaders for neglecting national development and allowing the nation’s image to deteriorate globally.

    “Our leaders over the years have failed to build functional institutions. This weakness now exposes us to ridicule from foreign actors. It’s shameful, but this is the time to defend our sovereignty,” he said.

    Bankole called on the international community to respect Nigeria’s territorial integrity and work through multilateral frameworks, rather than unilateral threats, in addressing global human rights concerns.

  • FG seeks UN support to access $10bn funding for humanitarian response

    FG seeks UN support to access $10bn funding for humanitarian response

    The Federal Government has called on the United Nations (UN) to assist Nigeria in accessing long-term funding to tackle the country’s growing humanitarian challenges, particularly those linked to internal displacement.

    The call for the assistance is hinged on the fact that Nigeria’s humanitarian response system is facing a significant reduction in external funding, posing a threat to programme continuity and operational capacity.

    Speaking at a roundtable on Humanitarian Development and Peacebuilding Approaches to Durable Solutions for Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in Abuja on Wednesday, the Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Senator Abubakar Bagudu, explained that if Nigeria could secure access to $10 billion at an interest rate of four percent the funds could be used to address humanitarian challenges and generate wealth for internally displaced persons across the country.

    “If we had access to $10 billion at four percent, it could be used to address the country’s humanitarian challenges while generating wealth for internally displaced persons,” he stated.

    He noted that the country could explore capital market instruments to raise long-term funding for humanitarian interventions, stressing that reliance on donor grants and short-term support was no longer sustainable.

    “Funds can be obtained from the capital market for long-term investments to address humanitarian issues,” Bagudu said. “Development partners’ funding is no longer sustainable as grants are decreasing.”

    According to him, the Federal Government’s macroeconomic policies are designed to curb waste and strengthen the capacity of the three tiers of government to address developmental challenges more effectively.

    Bagudu said that the increased revenue allocations to state governments were intended to enable them to tackle critical issues such as infrastructure provision and social development.

    He also revealed that President Bola Tinubu’s administration has initiated strategic programmes such as the Renewed Hope Ward-based Development Plan and the Solutions for the Internally Displaced and Host Communities (SOLID) initiative, which are aimed at mapping economic opportunities across Nigeria’s 8,809 wards to support displaced persons and vulnerable communities.

    “The Renewed Hope Ward-based Development Plan and SOLID initiatives will help address humanitarian challenges by identifying and scaling up economic opportunities across the country,” he said.

    United Nations Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Nigeria, Mr. Mohammed Fall, lauded the Federal Government’s efforts to address humanitarian crises in Borno, Yobe, Adamawa, and other parts of the North-East, where conflict and displacement remain significant challenges.

    “The UN appreciates the Federal Government’s commitment to finding sustainable solutions to displacement and humanitarian challenges,” Fall said. “We will continue to support Nigeria to ensure that the internally displaced recover their dignity and get back on their feet.”

    The roundtable also had in attendance representatives from the National Commission for Refugees, Migrants and Internally Displaced Persons (NCFRMI), the Institute for Peace and Conflict Resolution (IPCR), and the Office for Strategic Preparedness and Resilience (OSPRE).

    The meeting served as a platform to strengthen coordination among government agencies, development partners, and humanitarian actors toward achieving durable, homegrown solutions for displaced persons in Nigeria.

  • Renewing fight against out-of-school children, poor girl-child education

    Renewing fight against out-of-school children, poor girl-child education

    Observers have argued that part of the perennial issues bedevilling the education sector are the scourge of out-of-school children, which many have termed as a  ticking time bomb and the issue of apathy to girl-child education. They stressed the imperative of addressing these twin challenges, moreso advocating for concerted efforts in the drive for sustained progress. They pointed out that challenges were quite daunting, but not insurmountable. While they identified strong governance, innovative partnerships, and sustained investment as key, they served a powerful reminder that investing in girl-child education and fixing the out-of-school crisis was one of the smartest investments for a sustainable future, DAMOLA KOLA-DARE and VICTORIA AMADI report

    Fed Govt and UN initiatives on girl-child education

    Nigeria faces a significant challenge in the education of the girl-child, with an estimated 7.6 million girls deprived of an education, particularly in the northern regions. The United Nations (UN), primarily through its agencies like the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), is actively supporting the Federal Government to address the barriers to girl-child education in Nigeria through targeted programmes, advocacy and strategic partnerships.

    One of the UN initiatives and programmes is the Girls’ Education Project (GEP3). This was a landmark initiative, ran by UNICEF in partnership with the Nigerian government and the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO). It was implemented from 2012 to 2022. It successfully enrolled 1.5 million more girls in school across six northern states by addressing socio-economic barriers and gender norms.

    Another initiative is Reaching and Empowering Adolescent Girls (REACH), which is a follow-up to GEP3. UNICEF launched the REACH programme in 2023. It focused on empowering adolescent girls in northwestern Nigeria through integrated, multi-sectoral programmes for education and life skills.

    Also included is Accelerated Second Chance Education Programme, a UNESCO-led initiative, launched before the COVID-19 pandemic. It helped women and girls who had  dropped out of school re-enter the education system through remote and in-person learning. In 2022, over 6,000 women and girls graduated from the programme.

    A few days ago, the UN reaffirmed its commitment to strengthening girls’ education in Nigeria, with a steely resolve for collaboration with the Malala Fund to ensure millions of children, especially the girl-child and out of school children, are back in classes for learning.

    At a high-level engagement in Abuja with Malala Yousafzai, co-founder of the Malala Fund, UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Nigeria, Mohamed Malick Fall, emphasised that no child should be left behind.

    Malala lauded Nigeria’s central role in the fund’s 2025–2030 global strategy, noting that over $8 million had already been invested in local partner organisations.

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    She stressed the importance of supporting married and pregnant girls to return to school, boosting education financing, and leveraging schooling as a tool to end child marriage.

    Also, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has renewed its commitment to reducing the high number of out-of-school children in Sokoto State.

    During a visit to SKS Model Primary School, Yabo, UNICEF Country Representative Wafa Said praised local efforts to boost enrolment but expressed concern over children still roaming the streets. He promised to strengthen teacher training and expand climate-friendly school initiatives.

    The imperative of addressing girl-child education, out-of-school scourge

    However, with these international organisations intensifying efforts to ensure every Nigerian child, especially girls, can access and complete quality education, stakeholders believe that should also inspire the government to engender sustained efforts to address the pressing challenges.

    Founder of FOWGI, Mrs. Rifkatu Ademola, highlighted key challenges limiting girls’ access to uninterrupted quality education, such as lack of safe learning spaces, cultural norms, and economic hardship.

    “We must align action with policy to ensure that no girl is left behind due to poverty, period, or patriarchy.

    “We must innovate in how we teach, support girls emotionally and mentally, and create solutions rooted in their lived experiences,” she said.

    Mrs. Ademola stressed the need for collaboration between government, civil society, schools, parents, and the girls themselves, adding that real change could not occur in silos.

    “We must intentionally raise the next generation of girl leaders, not just as beneficiaries of education, but as creators of systems, solutions, and structures,” she added.

    Team Lead, NCAssociates EdTech Consulting and an EdTech specialist, Isaac-Joseph Olanrewaju, said the millions of school-age children who were out of school, and girls disproportionately excluded from learning opportunities undermined the nation’s development aspirations, fueled cycles of poverty, and weakened national competitiveness.

    “Educating our girls is not charity—it is smart economics. Evidence shows that girls who complete school are less likely to marry early, more likely to earn higher incomes, and more likely to educate their own children. This creates a multiplier effect that strengthens households, communities, and the nation.

    “Nigeria cannot achieve its ambitious national development goals while millions of its children remain out of school. We must recognise that every child excluded from education is a lost opportunity for national progress,” he said.

    An educationist and Director, Capacity Development Initiative, Lagos, Mr. Onanuga Olubayo, noted that most of the cities that rated high on the index of poor education to the girl-child were within the continent of Africa, Asia and the Middle East. This, he said, was borne out of a general conservationist opinion on the girl-child, their position socially and economically.

    “Education should be holistic. We must take into serious consideration the total well-being of the child as reflected in the taxonomy or domains of learning which encompasses the child’s cognitive, affective, psychomotor and every other necessary skills that would ensure proper grooming of the child for better applications of the knowledge gained at school.  I emphasise there should be no preference for or reference to gender, a child is a child whether boy or girl and deserves education as an integral part of their rights,” he said.

    Olubayo stated that the post COVID-19 pandemic opened eyes across the globe to several possibilities (opportunities) that were hitherto not perceived and particularly several holes and gaps that should be fixed in the Nigerian education system.

    He said before the pandemic, there had been issues associated with out-of-school children, particularly the girl-child, adding that post-pandemic, it has morphed into “a near national embarrassment”.

    According to the founder of the Women’s Technology Empowerment Centre (W.TEC) in Nigeria, Oreoluwa Somolu Lesi, the visit is important since it will help to shine light on the gap in the education for the girl-child.

    She cited that the main cause of girl-child early marriage was poverty and illiteracy, adding that the partnership would help minimise the pandemic of girl-child marriage in Nigeria.

    “Her foundation has really supported local organisations’ focus on education.

    “What the foundation is doing is important. The partnership is important because it spotlights the problem.

    “The visit is important. It’s an opportunity to advocate and discuss the way forward for the girl-child,” Lesi said.

    For the Lead, Edu-norms Consulting and Education Business School, Dr. Adedamola Israel Olofa, the cost of leaving millions of children out of school — especially girls — is too high for Nigeria. He stressed the need to act with urgency: spend wisely, protect schools, support families, and change social attitudes to turn the tide and secure the future of children.

    The President of Association for Formidable Educational Development (AFED), Mr. Kanu Emmanuel Orji, noted that Malala’s visit to Nigeria and partnership with UNICEF to promote girl-child education was a significant development that deserved commendation.

    Orji also stressed that the collaboration had the potential to drive meaningful change in the education sector, particularly in addressing the issue of out-of-school children.

    Highlighting the importance of low-cost schools as a viable model for providing accessible and quality education to marginalised communities, the AFED’s head added that by supporting this push, Nigeria can make significant strides in capturing all school-age children and promoting inclusive education.

    “The Malala Fund believes in innovation, and Malala as a product of a low-cost school owned by her father when she was attacked by the Taliban, received a great feat in education that has placed her on global stage and so must emphasis on low-cost schools as a global solution to tackle the problem of out-of-school children was noteworthy,” he said.

    Educationist and founder, Baiwa Foundation for Human Development, Dr. Mikailu Ibrahim reiterated that the visit would draw global attention to the challenges girls faced in accessing education, serving as an inspiration and advocacy. He added that her visit to Nigeria and her partnership with UNICEF were significant for advancing girls’ education in the country.

    Ibrahim also noted that the collaboration might likely influence policies that prioritise girls’ education, facilitating necessary reforms.

    He also stressed that the partnership would also engage community stakeholders, addressing cultural barriers that hinder girls from attending school.

    “In fact, partners in the sector are already talking about the visit and its promise of UNICEF’s resources,  especially from the FCDO funded Girl’s Education Programme (Phases 1-3) can provide vital support, including funding, educational materials and teacher training and improving infrastructure,” he added.

    Panacea to the twin recurrent challenges

    On likely solutions to address the problems, Isaac-Joseph said: “The Universal Basic Education framework must be enforced, with increased budgetary allocation and transparent monitoring, build safe learning environments with gender-sensitive infrastructure — functional toilets, clean water, and menstrual hygiene facilities, expand the Safe Schools Declaration to protect children in conflict-prone areas.

    “Conditional cash transfers, free school meals, and scholarships can reduce the economic burden and incentivize parents to keep children, especially girls, in school.

    “Recruiting and training more female teachers provides role models and encourages girls to remain in school. Continuous professional development in inclusive pedagogy and digital learning is essential.

    “Mobile learning apps, radio and TV lessons, and offline digital tools can reach children in remote or insecure regions. Digital literacy programmes must include girls from the outset, preparing them for future careers in STEM and closing the gender gap.”

    Olubayo, in a chat with The Nation, said: “There should be grassroots orientation programme to change the culturally wrong notions around the girl-child in homes, families and communities across the nation.

    “There should also be a strong emphasis on child’s rights and particularly the girl-child, which should be well-gazzetted and primed for implementation nationwide.”

    He also emphasised the creation of a workable framework to execute the afore-mentioned points, which, he asserted, would go a very long way in addressing the problem.

    He stressed the need for a proper and well-defined concept on education that actually address deficits in the economy, adding that there should be deliberate investment in education of children.

    Olofa said: “Compulsory education and anti-child marriage laws should be enforced. Girls who dropped out because of marriage or unplanned pregnancy should be allowed to return to school.

    “Improve security around schools, especially in the North. The abducted 300 Chibok girls on my mind.  Provide safe classrooms, toilets for girls, and clean water.”

    For Ibrahim, focused initiatives can target Nigeria’s large population of out-of-school children, offering alternative learning opportunities and incentives for families.

    “Education empowers girls, enhancing their decision-making abilities and health knowledge, leading to better job prospects and reduced poverty.

    “The ripple effects of educating girls extend to mental health, self-esteem, and resilience against gender-based violence,” he added.