President Bola Tinubu has approved the appointment of Mrs. Zubaida Umar as the Director-General of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA).

Mrs. Umar is the first woman to be appointed as Director-General of the pivotal interventionist and humanitarian agency, and her appointment further underlines the President’s avowed commitment to gender inclusion.

According to a statement by Presidential spokesman, Ajuri Ngelale, the new Director-General of NEMA has over 20 years of work experience in diverse fields, including Human Resources, and Finance and Administration. She is a member of the Chartered Institute of Bankers and the Institute of Credit Administration.

She holds ACCA certifications in Public Financial Management and Digital & Sustainability Financing.

“As Executive Director, Finance and Corporate Services at the Federal Mortgage Bank, Mrs. Umar drove the strategy and repositioning of the bank and successfully facilitated the transformation of the institution into a modern, digitized mortgage and financial service provider.

“The President expects that the new Director-General will bring the much-needed financial and operational discipline and refashion the agency into a performance-driven and proactive emergency response provider with a focus on prevention and climate change readiness in the execution of its core mandate,” Ngelale stated.

President Bola Tinubu on Friday said that his administration is determined to protect the national treasury from looters and other criminally minded persons.

The President also said that he was aware that smugglers and those who benefited from the old subsidy regime in the country are also fighting back in the fight against corruption.

This is as he has asked leaders at the grassroots level to encourage citizens to get their National Identification Number (NIN) for planning, and structuring interventions and to achieve their full integration into various relief programmes.

President Tinubu stated this when he received the Forum of State Chairmen of the All Progressives Congress (APC) at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

He said that his administration is deploying resources to critical sectors and areas with significant impact on the welfare of Nigerians, emphasizing that the nation’s treasury is sacrosanct and must not be abused.

President assured Nigerians that his government is working round the clock to improve their living conditions, and asked leaders to get their NIN for their full integration into various relief programmes.

President Tinubu in a statement issued by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Chief Ajuri Ngelale was quoted as saying, “The programme of our government will be truly progressive; student loans, a national consumer credit system, and social welfare for the unemployed, as well as graduates.

“Every Nigerian will find a place of belonging in our country. In the eye of even the biggest hurricane, we will find that place of tranquillity and prosperous harmony for the benefit of all. Nigerians will all partake on this national journey to prosperity,” the President said.

Emphasizing the central role of agriculture in expanding and accelerating Nigeria’s economic growth, President Tinubu told the state party chairmen, led by the National Chairman of the APC, Dr. Abdullahi Ganduje, that his government had already drawn up a blueprint for large-scale livestock farming, which will be activated soon.

“We are bringing mechanized farming to the fore. Yesterday’s crisis will become today’s opportunity. Fertilizers are being supplied to farmers as we speak. Agriculture and economic diversification provide the answers to our problems. We will not continue to import food. We know how to turn lack into abundance, and the world will watch us do it again,” the President said.

President Tinubu emphasized that the repositioning of the economy is a top national priority as he urged party members not to wait for an appointment before bringing good governance and exemplary civic engagement to the doors of Nigerians.

“As we are fighting corruption, smugglers, and old subsidy beneficiaries, they most certainly will fight back. All those who falsified records and became losers with the subsidy (on petroleum products) removal, they will fight back.

“But we will defend our people. The treasury belongs to the people, and that sacred trust must not be abused.

“I urge the state chairmen that regardless of party affiliation, let us help citizens by mobilizing them for NIN registration. Not just PVCs. Some are poor Nigerians who have not experienced formal education and have no understanding of what NIN is and how it will benefit their lives. We must teach them. We must care for them.

“Without NIN, we can not embark on social security interventions for the vulnerable. We will be making faulty moves without accurate data and iron-clad, digital intervention structures. I have established a committee of governors, and it is headed by the Vice President, Sen. Kashim Shettima. It is working on what must be done to further lift our people.

“We need to give hope, and we are giving it to the country and our citizens. We are working hard, day and night, even though some agents of destabilization are present in the polity. Nigerians, with our focused support, shall defeat them,” the President affirmed.

APC National Chairman, Dr. Abdullahi Ganduje said the party is nearly set to establish the Progressive Institute of Policy and Development for the benefit of its members and the broader Nigerian public.

This was followed by the Forum of APC State Chairmen congratulating the President on his victory at the polls, tribunal, and Supreme Court while assuring him of their continued support as his administration implements its economic programmes.

The World Trade Organisation says Nigeria has lost its leading position in the agriculture export markets because its agricultural commodities do not meet the sanitary and phytosanitary requirements of the foreign markets.

According to WTO, despite the abundance of arable lands and increased investments, the nation has transitioned into a net importer of farm produce that was previously cultivated domestically, undermining efforts aimed at ensuring food sustainability.

The Director-General, WTO, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, disclosed this in Abuja at the launch of seven trade support programmes initiated by the WTO-ITC to boost the development of Nigeria’s trade and industry standards.

The initiatives namely the Standards Trade Development Facility, Digital Trade Initiative support, Women Exporters Entrepreneurship support, National Trade Portal and cotton development initiative aim to provide technical support to strengthen food safety, animal and plant health capacity in developing countries, address challenges of e-commerce digital trade divide and establish a world-class technology centre for all trade-related data and information in Nigeria.

She said, “We are launching today with STDF, ITC, and the NEPC, a project to help with international safety and quality certification for sesame and cowpeas or black-eyed peas. The agriculture sector in Nigeria has the potential to be a major driver of export diversification and job creation – but too much of this potential remains unrealized, due to a variety of barriers. In fact, Nigeria has not only lost out in agricultural export markets, it is a net food importer spending about billions a year on goods, many of which we can also produce here. Some of Nigeria’s unrealised potential has to do with trade-related problems on the supply side – and that is what this project is seeking to rectify.”

Specifically, the WTO DG said Nigerian cowpea and sesame exports were increasingly facing rejections in several destination markets due to non-compliance with international SPS requirements.

She said the failure to comply with regional, global and import country sanitary and phytosanitary standards has resulted in loss of sales, revenue, and hard currency due to export rejects.

Last week, the former finance minister charged Nigeria and other African countries to improve the quality of their shea exports to international standards.

She added, “Nigeria is the world’s largest producer and consumer of cowpeas. Sesame is primarily an export crop, and Nigeria is the world’s fourth leading producer, exporting to the EU, Türkiye, Japan, South Korea and other Asian markets. However, Nigerian cowpea and sesame exports have increasingly faced rejections in several destination markets due to non-compliance with international SPS requirements.”

She said for example, “Nigeria accounts for over a third of Japan’s sesame imports – but health and safety inspections during the past few years have found instances where pesticide residue levels were nearly double the maximum residue limits permissible from 2019 to 2021.

Hence to tackle the challenges, Okonjo-Iweala said the WTO was partnering with relevant stakeholders to build the capacities of stakeholders across the sesame and cowpeas value chains to better understand market access requirements and improve agricultural practices such as pesticide application, hygiene techniques, harvest and post-harvest methods, and food safety.

She said the project which would be implemented with $1.2mn funding would improve the country’s non-oil export.

On her part, the minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Doris Aniete, said the ministry was putting in place policies and mechanisms that would facilitate and enhance trade, while also removing all the bottlenecks hampering trade and investment.

She further stated that the ministry had started rolling out the N50bn Presidential Conditional Grant Scheme through the Bank of Industry, targeting various economic players.

She added that a N150bn intervention through the FGN MSME and Manufacturing Sector Fund, providing low-interest loans that are pivotal for scaling businesses and spurring job creation would commence very soon.

“We are achieving this by facilitating a strong enabling environment for businesses to thrive, developing robust policies and reforms, increasing access to financing, widening access to global markets, driving investments, and creating job opportunities, all in line with the vision of Mr President.

“In 2024 we are focused on improving infrastructural capacity such as power and transport, as well as soft infrastructure such as transparent regulation, policy consistency, the rule of law, and a culture of efficient collaboration and synergy among various government agencies and offices. We believe this will facilitate an environment where business operations are not hindered by red tape but can continue to thrive.

Also speaking, the Executive Director of the Nigerian Export Promotion Council, Nonye Ayeni, explained that the project expected to last for three years would enhance the quality and standard of sesame and cowpea through the institution of good Sanitary and Phyto-sanitary conducts.

She disclosed that in 2022, the worldwide value of sesame exports and its value chain amounted to $7.35bn, projected to surge to $9.27bn by 2032. Similarly, cowpeas were valued at $7.2bn in 2023, with an anticipated rise to $9.43bn by 2028.

“This project, STDF 845, will therefore enhance the quality and standard of sesame and cowpea through the institution of good Sanitary and Phyto-sanitary conducts, Good Agricultural and Warehousing Practices, packaging/labelling and excellent storage systems. All these are expected to forestall frequent contract cancellations and loss of business opportunities while allowing a significant increase in global acceptance of the items and for better quality of these products consumed locally.

“This project is designed to last for three years to enhance the integrity of the cowpea and Sesame value chain from Nigeria. Therefore, the focus lies on improved practices that will enable Nigerian stakeholders to comply with Maximum Residue Levels of selected pesticides used in Cowpeas and Sesame and Microbiological contamination with Salmonella (Sesame). Overall, it will improve the regulatory and control system as well as farming and processing practices applied for Cowpea and Sesame,” she concluded.

President Bola Tinubu has declared that without National Identity Card registration and comprehensive data coverage, it is nearly impossible for the government to provide social welfare measures for low-income people.

Speaking at the Forum of State Chairmen of the All Progressives Congress (APC) at the State House in Abuja on Friday, Tinubu assured Nigerians that his administration is tirelessly working to enhance their living standards.

According to him, local authorities must advocate for citizens’ acquisition of the National Identification Number (NIN), which is essential for strategic planning, structuring supportive interventions, and integrating them into relief schemes.

His words: “I urge the state chairmen that regardless of party affiliation, let us help citizens by mobilizing them for NIN registration. Not just PVCs.

“Some are poor Nigerians who have not experienced formal education and have no understanding of what NIN is and how it will benefit their lives. We must teach them. We must care for them.

“Without NIN, we can not embark on social security interventions for the vulnerable. We will be making faulty moves without accurate data and iron-clad, digital intervention structures.

“I have established a committee of governors, and it is headed by the Vice President, Sen. Kashim Shettima. It is working on what must be done to further lift our people.”

Furthermore, the president highlighted some of the programmes that are currently being rolled out by his administration,, including student loans, the national consumer credit system, and social welfare for the unemployed and graduates.

“The programme of our government will be truly progressive; student loans, a national consumer credit system, and social welfare for the unemployed, as well as graduates.

“Every Nigerian will find a place of belonging in our country. In the eye of even the biggest hurricane, we will find that place of tranquillity and prosperous harmony for the benefit of all. Nigerians will all partake on this national journey to prosperity,” he said.

The Labour Party (LP) has applauded Senator Abdul Ningi for speaking out against alleged N3 trillion padding in the 2024 budget.

The party also urged more senators to speak out, even as it stated that LP senators in the 10th National Assembly are in solidarity with Ningi, a Peoples Democratic Party senator.

Prince Kennedy Ahanotu, the LP National Youth Leader, revealed this during a youth-led solidarity visit to the Party Secretariat in Abuja on Friday.

Senator Ningi, who represents Bauchi Central in the Senate, was suspended for three months on Tuesday over his allegation that the 2024 budget was padded by over N3 trillion.

Addressing the youths, Ahanotu said: “Many Senators besides Labour Party Senators backed the suspended Lawmaker for his courage.

“Even members of the Labour Party are happy with that kind of presentation he made. And you know, in the National Assembly, it is not about the person who spoke out.

“There are a lot of people that supported him, but he was the one that the floor was given before he spoke.

But I can assure you that many senators, including Labour Party senators, are solidly behind him because he is trying to unravel the ills of the National Assembly.

“I think as a national leader, personally as a person, I congratulate Senator Ningi for speaking out because we can not continue like this in Nigeria.

“Some days, some times, people need to speak out. And he’s speaking out, personally me, and on behalf of Nigerian youth, we are applauding, we are congratulating, we are thanking, and we are urging more senators and more House of Representatives to speak out.

“We should not be talking about a bad budget. We should not be talking about doctoring the budget. Why are we doctoring the budget when our intention is to save the citizens of Nigeria, is to serve the citizens of Nigeria and to deliver good dividends to them? So why are we padding?

“I think the budget padding as a matter of fact is for personal enrichment.”

Minister of the Federal Capital Territory Nyesom Wike has told the FCT Senator Ireti Kingibe that he cannot be forced to become her friend.

Wike lambasted the Senator, accusing her of blackmailing him instead of communicating her problems through the proper channels or, better still, focusing on her oversight functions.

The former Rivers Governor stated this in an interview with journalists in Abuja, stating that the lawmaker is aggrieved because the Senate President snubbed her for the Senate Committee on FCT position.

His words: “I don’t want to be personal…she’s the Senator for FCT. She went around saying ‘oh, oh Wike is busy scraping roads…I should leave the roads till when the potholes come?

“Somebody wants to be your friend, and you say, ‘I don’t want to be your friend. Is it by force?’ The problem is that she wanted to be Chairman of the Senate Committee on FCT, and the Senate President said, ‘I’m not giving you’.

I became a governor of one of the most important states in Nigeria, and she thinks that the only way you can bring me is to go to Channels, TVC, saying the Minister is not carrying me along.

“I don’t have the back to carry. It’s not about blackmailing. Do the right thing. You know her problem? She ran for election with my friend Philip Aduda, and she sees me taking Philip everywhere instead of her being the Senator. Should I abandon my friend because he failed the election?”

Recall that Kingibe had accused Wike of carrying out anti-people policies in the Nigerian capital.