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“Paris is the perfect place to grow”: Rasheedat Ajibade opens up on PSG move
“Paris is the perfect place to grow”: Rasheedat Ajibade opens up on PSG move
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Ondo Communities Protest Invasion, Seek Aiyedatiwa’s Intervention
Ondo Communities Protest Invasion, Seek Aiyedatiwa’s Intervention
Fidelis David in Akure
Indigenes of Ikale communities of Odigbo Local Government Area of Ondo State yesterday protested against the alleged invasion of their land and the undue intimidation of their people by private firms.
The protester from communities comprising Ikale community, Ago alaye, and Agrifon claimed that the company’s actions are a clear disregard for their rights and a threat to their livelihoods.
The aggrieved residents gathered at the A1 and A9 areas, carrying placards and banners with inscriptions such as: ‘Enough is Enough’; ‘We say No to Rex intimidation’; ‘Ikale communities say no to Marginalisation’, among others, chanting solidarity songs to press home their demands.
The Youth Leader of the communities, Mr Gabriel Adeyeye, while addressing journalists, urged the company to respect the rights of the genuine indigenes.
Particularly, he claimed that the company’s actions were not only affecting their lives but also undermining the peace and stability of the community.
According to him, “We are here to register our grievances against undue intimidation unleashed on us not only by Rex Forestry Limited but also by Rubber Estate Nigeria Limited.
“For many years, we’ve been intimidated and marginalized by the people of Araromi-Obu, claiming they are the illegal owners of the land,
“We gave them the land, they took us to court, claiming ownership of the land. On May 13, 2019, a reputable Judge then in Ondo State, Justice O. O Akeredolu, delivered a judgment affirming categorically that this land, through historical background, belongs to Ikale.
“Ever since then, we have been trying our best to ensure that we execute the other parties have tried all they could to judgment, not all efforts proved abortive. As we collectively speak now, this land belongs to us, and Ititas come to stay, and now is the time to get back our land.”
He called for the intervention of the state Governor, Lucky Aiyedatiwa, saying: “We want the government to intervene and put an end to the alleged harassment and the intimidation of our people.”
Also, community leaders, Olawale Araromi and Omosebi Ikupuluyi, while expressing displeasure over the companies’ actions, urged the government to wade into the matter before it results in avoidable conflict.
The post Ondo Communities Protest Invasion, Seek Aiyedatiwa’s Intervention appeared first on THISDAYLIVE.
Fidelis David in Akure Indigenes of Ikale communities of Odigbo Local Government Area of Ondo State yesterday protested against the alleged invasion of their land and the undue intimidation of their
The post Ondo Communities Protest Invasion, Seek Aiyedatiwa’s Intervention appeared first on THISDAYLIVE.
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- August 27, 2025
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Transfers: Nigerian star Chrisantus Uche heads to Wolves in €20m deal, Getafe President expresses frustration
Transfers: Nigerian star Chrisantus Uche heads to Wolves in €20m deal, Getafe President expresses frustration
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Nigeria’s Dantsoho elected Vice-President of global ports body, IAPH
Dr. Abubakar Dantsoho, Managing Director of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), has been elected Vice-President for Africa of the International Association for Ports & Harbours (IAPH), further cementing Nigeria’s growing influence in global maritime affairs. The election, held in Tokyo, marks another milestone for Dantsoho, who previously made history as the first Nigerian to lead
Nigeria’s Dantsoho elected Vice-President of global ports body, IAPH
Dr. Abubakar Dantsoho, Managing Director of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), has been elected Vice-President for Africa of the International Association for Ports & Harbours (IAPH), further cementing Nigeria’s growing influence in global maritime affairs.
The election, held in Tokyo, marks another milestone for Dantsoho, who previously made history as the first Nigerian to lead the Port Management Association of West and Central Africa since its establishment in 1972.
Confirming the victory in a statement on Tuesday, NPA spokesperson Ikechukwu Onyemekara said the appointment reflects international recognition of Nigeria’s renewed leadership in maritime development. IAPH Secretary-General Masahiko Furuichi also welcomed the development, noting, “I am delighted to work together with you in IAPH for the years to come.”
Dantsoho’s leadership at the NPA has been marked by major operational gains, including a significant rise in non-oil exports and an improved trade balance. According to the Nigerian Export Processing Council (NEPC), non-oil exports rose by 19.59% in the first half of 2025 to $3.225 billion, while export volumes on NPA platforms climbed to 4.04 million metric tonnes. The Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG) also credited these reforms with helping Nigeria achieve a trade surplus for the first time in years.
Founded in 1955 and headquartered in Tokyo, IAPH is a global alliance of more than 190 ports and 167 port-related businesses across 89 countries. Collectively, its members handle over 60% of the world’s seaborne trade and container traffic. The body plays a key role in shaping global maritime policy, working closely with the International Maritime Organization, World Customs Organization, and the United Nations system.
Dantsoho’s elevation places Nigeria at the heart of global port policy debates, strengthening its voice in advancing trade efficiency, port resilience, and sustainable growth in the maritime sector.
Nigeria’s Dantsoho elected Vice-President of global ports body, IAPH
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- August 27, 2025
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Billions Spent, Poverty Persists: Unraveling Nigeria’s Relief Paradox and the Road Ahead
Billions Spent, Poverty Persists: Unraveling Nigeria’s Relief Paradox and the Road Ahead
By Ugo Inyama
Nigeria’s federal government has announced plans to disburse ₦54.9 billion in August 2025 to more than 2.1 million households under the Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) programme. Alongside this, the Government Enterprise and Empowerment Programme (GEEP) will extend ₦300,000 interest-free loans to about 21,000 smallholder farmers, with the aim of boosting food security through dry-season farming (Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, 2025). On paper, these interventions appear bold, compassionate, and timely—especially at a moment when inflation continues to squeeze households and hunger gnaws at millions.
But behind the headline figures lies a familiar challenge. Since the introduction of the National Social Investment Programme (NSIP) in 2016 and the palliatives of the COVID-19 era, cash transfers and loans have been widely promoted as instruments of poverty relief (World Bank, 2021; IMF, 2022). Yet poverty levels remain persistently high. The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS, 2023) reports that more than 133 million Nigerians—over 60% of the population—are living in multidimensional poverty. The World Bank (2024) further notes that rising inflation, food insecurity, and weak job creation continue to push millions below the poverty line, despite successive interventions.
The challenge is not the absence of programmes but the way they are designed and sustained. Cash transfers, while important in easing immediate hardship, rarely bring about lasting change on their own. In many cases, they are distributed unevenly, exposed to political influence, or weakened by limited monitoring and evaluation systems (Transparency International, 2023). Similarly, credit facilities for farmers can provide short-term relief, but without reliable access to markets, storage, extension services, and irrigation, loans alone are unlikely to translate into sustained agricultural productivity (FAO, 2024).
Scale is also a major constraint. Although ₦54.9 billion appears significant, when divided across 2.2 million households, it translates to just over ₦25,000 per family—barely enough to cover food needs for a household of five for a month under current prices (NBS Food Price Watch, 2025). This illustrates the difficulty of achieving durable poverty reduction at national level when resources are spread so thinly.
Fiscal realities complicate matters further. In 2024, debt servicing accounted for 68% of federal revenues (DMO, 2024). With such limited fiscal space, social investments are often presented as temporary relief measures rather than as part of a long-term development strategy. At the same time, Nigeria receives more than $20 billion annually in diaspora remittances (World Bank, 2024), a flow that already surpasses foreign aid. Yet these funds are largely disconnected from official poverty-alleviation frameworks. If channelled through matched savings schemes or community investment initiatives, remittances could become a more stable complement to government programmes.
The political economy of social interventions also shapes their impact. Relief packages are often introduced or expanded during electoral cycles, and in some cases, the process of identifying beneficiaries is influenced by partisan considerations rather than transparent, needs-based registries (BudgIT, 2023). This creates perceptions that welfare is a political tool rather than a social contract. Such dynamics reduce trust and undermine the legitimacy of otherwise valuable programmes. For interventions to be credible, they must be insulated from political manipulation and embedded within permanent institutions.
To improve effectiveness, three broad shifts are necessary. First, targeting and transparency should be enhanced through digital identity systems, ensuring that assistance reaches the poorest households with minimal leakage (World Bank ID4D, 2023). Second, cash transfers should be complemented by sustained investments in education, healthcare, and nutrition to address structural drivers of poverty and prevent its transmission across generations (UNDP, 2024). Third, empowerment loans must be linked to wider reforms in agriculture and small enterprise development, enabling recipients to transform credit into sustainable livelihoods (African Development Bank, 2024).
Nigeria’s social protection programmes are valuable in cushioning hardship, but their effectiveness should not be measured only by the billions disbursed. The more fundamental question is whether they create opportunities for households to move beyond subsistence. The way forward requires aligning short-term support with long-term structural transformation—so that poverty relief is not simply a cycle of temporary alleviation followed by renewed vulnerability, but a genuine pathway toward resilience and shared prosperity.
*Ugo Inyama writes from the African Digital Governance Centre, Manchester, UK.
www.africandgc.org
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By Ugo Inyama Nigeria’s federal government has announced plans to disburse ₦54.9 billion in August 2025 to more than 2.1 million households under the Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) programme. Alongside
The post Billions Spent, Poverty Persists: Unraveling Nigeria’s Relief Paradox and the Road Ahead appeared first on THISDAYLIVE.
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- August 27, 2025
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Retired Police Chiefs pack out after exposé
…But Frempong stays on as presidency struggles to enforce ban The Director-General of Research and Planning, DCOP Martin Kwaku Ayiih, vacated his office swiftly on Monday, just hours after The…
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- August 27, 2025
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NPP’s Abronye faces another GH¢20 million defamation case
…As COCOBOD, Forestry bosses separately pursue him Dr Ransford Antertey Abbey, the Acting Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD), has initiated a high-stakes legal battle, suing Kwame…
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Otti urges Abia women to join campaign against criminality, illicit drugs
Abia State Governor, Alex Otti, has tasked women on inculcating good values on their children to curb unwholesome behaviours that endanger societal progress. Governor Otti, who spoke at the grand finale of the 2025 women August meeting held by Abia women in Umuahia, urged them to campaign against the sale and consumption of illicit drugs,
Otti urges Abia women to join campaign against criminality, illicit drugs
Abia State Governor, Alex Otti, has tasked women on inculcating good values on their children to curb unwholesome behaviours that endanger societal progress.
Governor Otti, who spoke at the grand finale of the 2025 women August meeting held by Abia women in Umuahia, urged them to campaign against the sale and consumption of illicit drugs, desperation for wealth and criminal activities.
He said that the women constitute an important stakeholder group and are relied upon to achieve the government’s social reorientation targets.
He regretted that the society is losing many young people to crime, substance abuse, and impatience, but declared that the bad situation must change.
“We are also losing many young people to crime, substance abuse, and impatience. This has to change immediately,” Otti said.
He encouraged the women to partner with him to achieve the objectives of his administration, saying that women in agriculture will form 60% beneficiaries of his administration’s N2 billion agriculture funds.
He said that his administration was doing everything to holistically address maternal and infant mortality in the State through education, quality healthcare for pregnant women, nursing mothers and their babies.
While commending his wife, Mrs Chidinma Otti for Abia women renaissance, Otti disclosed that he insisted that Abia women who were recently employed as teachers must be posted to areas not too far from their homes.
Otti urges Abia women to join campaign against criminality, illicit drugs
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Flood Threat: Yobe SEMA relocates entire community to higher ground
Following threats posed by flood, 240 households from Garin Kolo, Nangere local government area of Yobe State have been relocated to safer ground. Executive Secretary of Yobe State Emergency Management Agency, (SEMA), Dr. Mohammed Goje, stated this in a statement made available to newsmen. He said the urgent intervention came after a devastating flood that
Flood Threat: Yobe SEMA relocates entire community to higher ground
Following threats posed by flood, 240 households from Garin Kolo, Nangere local government area of Yobe State have been relocated to safer ground.
Executive Secretary of Yobe State Emergency Management Agency, (SEMA), Dr. Mohammed Goje, stated this in a statement made available to newsmen.
He said the urgent intervention came after a devastating flood that washed away much of the community, sacking over 200 households and contaminating all public water sources and latrines, thereby exposing families to the risk of communicable diseases.
According to him, in line with the Governor’s commitment, a team of SEMA personnel led the evacuation mission alongside the State Epidemiology Manager as well as other agencies.
“Despite the difficult terrain caused by floodwaters, the team ensured that women, children, and the elderly were prioritized in the initial phase of evacuation. The exercise will continue until every household is safely relocated.
“The Local Government Authority has already provided land for resettlement, where our Local Emergency Management Committee with the State Team have erected 22 temporary shelters—enough for 200 people as of today 26th—with more underway”, he said.
He also added that a water reservoir has been installed, five emergency toilets provided as well as an ambulance stationed for medical referrals.
“Security personnel from the NSCDC and Police have ensured safety of lives and property throughout the operation,” Goje said.
He further said during the evacuation, a number of vulnerable individuals requiring medical attention were promptly referred and admitted at General Hospital Nangere.
Flood Threat: Yobe SEMA relocates entire community to higher ground
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Gov Otu: We won’t fold arms while Biakpan–Etono war rages
Governor Bassey Otu of Cross River State has expressed deep concern over the lingering communal clashes between the people of Biakpan in Biase Local Government Area and their neighbours in Etono 2, describing the conflict as “embarrassing” to the state. Speaking on the crisis when he received a delegation from the Brotherhood of the Cross
Gov Otu: We won’t fold arms while Biakpan–Etono war rages
Governor Bassey Otu of Cross River State has expressed deep concern over the lingering communal clashes between the people of Biakpan in Biase Local Government Area and their neighbours in Etono 2, describing the conflict as “embarrassing” to the state.
Speaking on the crisis when he received a delegation from the Brotherhood of the Cross and Star led by Patriarch Bassey Imowo yesterday, the governor lamented the repeated bloodshed and warned that the government would no longer tolerate disputes degenerating into violence.
He disclosed that where land remains the root of communal crises, such as in the case of Biakpan and Etono 2, the state would not hesitate to step in and take over the disputed parcels to forestall further bloodletting.
“The issues here are very serious. We have stepped into the Biakpan–Etono communal war.
“I believe we can settle this issue because we have made it clear to all restive communities that where there is controversy over lands, the government will only have to take over such lands. That will avert continual bloodshed,” he stated.
Governor Otu said the persistent violence was particularly disturbing because Biakpan attracts thousands of visitors and pilgrims from across the world annually, which also boosts tourism, a revenue earner for the state.
He noted that such conflicts create a negative impression of the state.
He further revealed that some arrests had been made and assured that those found culpable would be used as examples to deter others.
He blamed the escalation of the conflict partly on lapses by some officials, stressing that if they had lived up to their responsibilities, the violence would have been curtailed.
“With eminent personalities in both communities, I’m surprised that such barbaric acts have persisted. But I am happy with the efforts and intervention by His Holiness Olumba Olumba Obu to bring the two communities together,” the governor said.
While describing the conflict as “embarrassing,” Otu maintained that his administration would not fold its arms and allow the bloodshed to continue.
Speaking earlier, Bassey Imowo commended the governor for his proactive efforts at curbing security issues and developmental strides.
He said as a result of the conflict, his organization has been unable to hold its pilgrimage activities in Biakpan, which attracts thousands of pilgrims, tourists, researchers.
Imowo said, “Regrettably, the recent violent attacks and counter attacks on both communities have posed serious security threats and put on hold all our programmes in Biakpan and environs.”
The delegation appealed to the Governor to prioritize the restoration of peace by permanently resolving the conflict between the sister communities.
Gov Otu: We won’t fold arms while Biakpan–Etono war rages
