Author: Ogochukwu Ndubuisi

NUPRC Hands Petroleum Prospecting Licences to 12 Firms The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) has executed concession contracts and commenced the issuance of 19 Petroleum Prospecting Licences (PPLs) to successful bidders in the 2024 Licensing Round. The exercise, conducted on the sidelines of the Nigeria Oil and Gas (NOG) Energy Week 2026 on Wednesday in Abuja, covered 12 awardees across deep offshore, shallow water and continental shelf acreages. The signing was presided over by the NUPRC Chairman, Sen. Magnus Abe, Conmission Chief Executive, Oritsemeyiwa Eyesan, Legal Adviser and Commission Secretary, Olayemi Adeboyejo, alongside other Commission officials. Among the recipients…

Osinbajo Emerges NCF BOT President, Vows Stronger Climate Action Former Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, has pledged to strengthen environmental conservation and climate action following his emergence as President of the Board of Trustees (BOT) of the Nigerian Conservation Foundation (NCF). Osinbajo pledged on Wednesday while delivering his acceptance speech at the Foundation’s 37th Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Lagos. He paid tribute to the founding fathers of the NCF, particularly its President Emeritus, Chief Philip Asiodu, for their foresight in promoting environmental conservation decades before climate change became a global concern. The former vice president also acknowledged the contributions…

El-Rufai Demands ICPC Retraction Over Alleged Court Order Breach Former Kaduna State Governor, Malam Nasir El-Rufai, has rejected allegations by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) that he abused medical privileges and violated a court order. In a statement issued on Wednesday by his Media Adviser, Muyiwa Adekeye, El-Rufai described the ICPC’s July 7 statement as inaccurate in both facts and law. The statement said El-Rufai’s absence from court on July 6 resulted from unresolved health concerns already communicated to the ICPC before the hearing. It alleged that his personal physician, Prof. Bello Abubakar, was denied…

UBA Foundation Partners Slum2School to Equip Pupils with Financial Literacy Skills …Introduces the Money Explorers Book to Inspire a Culture of Saving UBA Foundation, the Corporate Social Responsibility arm of the United Bank for Africa(UBA) Group, has strengthened its commitment to financial education by partnering with Slum2School Africa to deliver a hands-on financial literacy workshop for underserved children, equipping them with essential money management skills from an early age. At the heart of the initiative was the UBA Money Explorers Book, an engaging learning companion designed to introduce children to the fundamentals of financial literacy through interactive stories, practical money…

IMF Projects Global 2026 Growth at 3.0%, Forecasts Nigeria at 4.1% The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has projected that global economic growth will slow to 3.0 per cent in 2026 before recovering to 3.4 per cent in 2027. The IMF projected in its July World Economic Outlook (WEO) Update, released on Wednesday and titled “Global Economy in Crosscurrents of War and Technology.” According to the report, the global outlook remains uneven, with the ongoing war in the Middle East weighing heavily on energy-importing and vulnerable economies. It, however, said that Artificial Intelligence (AI)-driven demand was lifting countries integrated into the…

NCC Seeks Transparent Pricing Framework for Fibre Infrastructure Sharing The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) on Wednesday in Abuja, says it is seeking a fair, sustainable and transparent pricing framework for fibre infrastructure sharing under Nigeria’s Dig-Once policy. This is made known by the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Mr Nadungu Gagare, at a Stakeholders’ Forum on Developing a Pricing Mechanism and Cost-Based Structure for Sharing Duct Built under the Dig-Once Policy. The Stakeholders’ Forum was organised by the NCC. Gagare said the engagement was critical to ensuring that the policy achieved its objectives of…

Trump Says Ceasefire With Iran is Over U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that the ceasefire with Iran “is over,” and he does not want to deal with Iran anymore. Speaking to journalists alongside NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, Trump said he no longer wants to engage with Iranian officials. “For me, I think it is over. I don’t want to deal with them anymore. They are sick people; they are led by sick people; they are vicious, violent people,” he noted. “If they had nuclear weapons, they would use them. As far as I am concerned, it (the ceasefire)…

Nigerians on Health Insurance Hit 22m –NHIA The National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) says the number of Nigerians enrolled in health insurance has risen to more than 22 million. The Director-General of NHIA, Kelechi Ohiri, said this resulted from the implementation of the mandatory health insurance, which has gained momentum nationwide. He said this on Wednesday at the Annual General Meeting of the Nigerian Association of Insurance and Pension Editors (NAIPE) in Lagos. Ohiri said enrolment had increased to 22.03 million, representing a 35 per cent year-on-year growth. He said that this was driven by stronger collaboration with State Social…

NNPC Signs Six Strategic Gas Deals to Boost Industrialisation, Energy Security The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd.) has signed six strategic agreements with key industry partners to deepen gas utilisation, strengthen energy security and accelerate Nigeria’s gas-based industrialisation drive. The agreements signed on the sidelines of the 25th Nigeria Oil and Gas (NOG) Energy Week in Abuja on Tuesday include a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) and a Gas Sale and Aggregation Agreement (GSAA) with Ajaokuta Steel Company Ltd. (ASCL). The agreements also include a Gas Sale Agreement (GSA) with UTM Floating LNG (FLNG), and three Network Entry Agreements…

Emefiele: I was Given Oral Waiver to Transact in Disputed Accounts – Witness A witness in the trial of the ex-governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, on Tuesday told an FCT High Court, sitting in Maitama, Abuja, that he was given an oral waiver to handle disputed transactions into companies’ accounts. The witness, Richard Agulu, a former Zenith Bank staff member, is the third prosecution witness (PW3) and clarified during cross-examination by Mathew Burkaa, SAN, counsel to Emefiele in Abuja. Emefiele was charged along with one Eric Ocheme, said to be at large, in the charge…