West Africa News

[Daily Trust] The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has announced a 37.21 percent decrease in cases of pipeline vandalism across the country in the month of January 2021.

[This Day] Exactly seven years after 276 schoolgirls of Government Girls' Secondary School (GGSS), Chibok, Borno State were abducted by Boko Haram insurgents, ARISE NEWS Channel, the broadcast arm of THISDAY Newspapers, was at the community to speak with the parents, teachers and relatives of some of the 112 girls, who have remained in captivity.

[This Day] The Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) has denied revoking 32 refinery licences, saying their validity periods merely expired.

[This Day] Mr. Nurudeen Lawal, the Chief of Party USAID Northern Education Initiative spoke to Funmi Ogundare and explained the various strategies used and how the agency had partnered with different stakeholders at the state and federal levels in the last five years. The objective is to provide basic literacy opportunities to out-of-school children especially in Sokoto and Bauchi States, to enable them find their feet, among other issues. Excerpts:

[This Day] The French Minister of Foreign Trade and Attractiveness, Mr. Franck Riester, yesterday said the trade volume between Nigeria and France suffered a loss of over $2.2 billion due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

[Premium Times] JAMB accuses the university, and other unnamed institutions, of reportedly issuing admission letters to candidates without recourse to it.

[Daily Trust] Samsung Heavy Industries Nigeria Limited (SHIN) and Vision Care, an international relief organisation, planned to donate 496 bags of rice and 12,000 reusable masks to Lagos, Kano and Bayelsa states as part of the COVID-19 relief efforts.

[Daily Trust] The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) listed the University of Abuja (UniAbuja) among institutions conducting illegal admission.

[Daily Trust] Smile Train, a nonprofit organisation has revealed that over 6,000 babies are born with cleft annually in Nigeria.

[Leadership] French Minister in charge of Foreign Trade and Attractiveness, Franck Riester, has explained reasons why France and Nigeria's bilateral trade dropped to $2.3billion in 2020.

[Premium Times] The attendees say some of the challenges confronting women in the Nigerian film industry include unequal pay and sexism

[Premium Times] On February 21, Mr Okorocha was arrested by the police for unsealing a hotel owned by his wife shut by the Imo State government.

[Premium Times] Despite not siting its Africa's office in Nigeria, Twitter made clear its target market is Nigeria.

[Leadership] The federal government has said the country is being prepared for a post-crude oil era through development and increased utilisation of natural gas.

[Leadership] The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) yesterday arrested former Imo State governor, Rochas Okorocha.

[Leadership] The controversy surrounding the alleged link of the minister of communications and digital economy, Ibrahim Isa Pantami to Boko Haram and other terrorist organisations around the world may have opened a new vista as the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has reacted to the alleged placement of the minister on terror watch list.

[Leadership] Following the establishment of its first African office in Ghana, Twitter said it would recruit experts of major local languages in Nigeria (Yoruba, Igbo and Hausa) for its operations.

[AI London] Tens of thousands of children in Nigeria are missing out on their education because of the authorities' ongoing failure to protect schools, particularly in northern Nigeria, from attacks by insurgents and other armed groups, Amnesty International said today.

[VOA] Amchide, Cameroon -- Officials in Cameroon and Nigeria say economic activity has gradually resumed along their border, despite the continued presence of the terrorist group Boko Haram. Markets have re-opened and border merchants say traveling near the border is safer thanks to a heavy presence of troops.

[New Frame] Through DIY technology and a futuristic use of cellphones that is particular to Africa, the Sahel Sounds label has released roughly 60 albums in the past 10 years.

[Leadership] Lagos -- There is a cloud of uncertainty surrounding $62 billion outstanding taxes and royalties owed Nigeria by operating major oil companies in the country.

[Leadership] Nigerians yesterday sent a deluge of requests to the Embassy of the United States of America in Abuja, trying to get more information and clarification on the alleged links of the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Ibrahim Isa Pantami, to Boko Haram, al-Qaeda and other terrorist organisations around the world.

[Premium Times] The claim that taking painkillers after receiving the COVID-19 vaccine is harmful and can lead to death is mostly true. Experts' views and studies show it can be risky, especially when taken without a doctor's prescription.

[This Day] Abuja -- Former President Goodluck Jonathan yesterday canvassed the overhaul of the electoral process to make the electorate the ultimate decision-makers in an election, saying winners should be decided through the ballot box rather than the court.

[Vanguard] Management of Dangote Cement Plc has said yesterday that the price of its product per bag from the factory was between N2,450 in Obajana and Gboko, and N2,510 in Ibese, inclusive of VAT.

[Vanguard] The Nigerian and Ghanian Twittersphere has been set abuzz over the announcement of the choice of Ghana as headquarters of the microblogging platform.

[This Day] The Director-General of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, yesterday deplored increasing COVID-19 vaccine nationalism and restrictions placed on exports by producing countries, which she described as a threat to Nigeria and other African countries.

[Premium Times] President Buhari flew to London to see his doctor just before resident doctors in Nigeria went on strike over unpaid allowances

[Premium Times] "The ballot paper and not the judiciary should determine who wins elections or select political leaders..."

[This Day] The Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr. Isa Pantami, has denied any link with Boko Haram, saying he has been preaching against the sect for the past 15 years.