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Nigeria’s First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, on Tuesday announced a N100 million empowerment grant for 2,000 women engaged in petty trading across Benue State.

The First Lady made the announcement during the commissioning of a Community Information and Technology Centre in Ihugh, Vandeikya Local Government Area, stressing the importance of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in driving economic and social development, particularly for women and young people.

Speaking at the event, Mrs Tinubu revealed that Benue State now hosts four ICT centres, while a total of 15 similar facilities have been established in different parts of the country, including Abia, Cross River, Rivers, Delta, Ebonyi, Edo, Jigawa, and the Federal Capital Territory.

According to her, the centres have been fully equipped with computers and other digital tools to help bridge the technology gap and expand access to digital opportunities nationwide.

She said, “The knowledge of ICT serves as a significant tool for empowering communities, especially women, and will enable them to break new opportunities and enhance youths in their educational prospect in the global economy.

“On the grant, the Renewed Hope Initiative on our part will present a N50 million grant to 1,000 women in Vandeikya, and an additional N50 million to support 1,000 in Makurdi and environs to recapitalise their existing businesses, which is a total of N100 million to empower 2,000 women engaged in petty trading.”

The ICT facility in Ihugh was named after Louis Aluor by the First Lady.

The centre was established through a partnership between the Renewed Hope Initiative and the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) to enhance digital literacy and technological inclusion in local communities.

Earlier in the day, Mrs Tinubu commissioned an 11.5-kilometre road project in Makurdi. One of the roads completed under the project, Ishayaba Road, was named in her honour.

Governor Hyacinth Alia, while speaking at the event, described the ICT centre as a landmark investment that would boost entrepreneurship, support e-commerce activities, and provide incubation opportunities for small businesses.

He added that the Benue State Government would ensure the facility remains functional through the provision of start-up support, reliable electricity, and internet connectivity.

First Lady disburses N100m grant to 2,000 Benue women, commissions ICT Centre

Security forces in Tripoli, Libya, have arrested two Nigerian nationals in the coastal town of Qarabouli over allegations of spreading inciting content on social media.

According to a report by The Libya Observer on Wednesday, the suspects were detained for allegedly circulating videos and other online materials described by authorities as having an “inciting nature” that promoted violence and criminal activity.

The statement said the content was considered a violation of Libyan laws and posed a threat to public security and stability.

Authorities confirmed that both individuals have been formally charged and that legal procedures have been concluded.

They have since been referred to the Public Prosecution Office for further investigation and possible prosecution in line with Libyan criminal laws.

While details of the identities of the suspects were not immediately disclosed, the case adds to ongoing concerns over the use of social media platforms in Libya, where authorities have in recent years intensified surveillance of online content deemed threatening to national security.

In a proactive move to curb flooding and attendant disasters, the National Economic Council (NEC) on Thursday approved the sum of N83.2 billion for the Anticipatory Action Task Force (AATF). The approval was sequel to presentation by the Minister of State, Budget and Economic Planning, Senator Atiku Bagudu, on the need to proactively address issues […]

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The Governor of Ogun State, Dapo Abiodun, on Thursday, commissioned the Pharma-Grade Warehouse of the Ogun State Drugs and Health Commodities Management Agency.

Abiodun while speaking at the commissioning in Abeokuta, revealed that more than 30,000 residents living with HIV are currently receiving free antiretroviral therapy, counselling, and support services in health facilities across the state.

He urged residents to take advantage of available healthcare services by visiting hospitals for proper diagnosis and treatment, stressing that his administration has recorded significant milestones in the healthcare sector by repositioning the state’s health system for optimal service delivery.

According to the governor, his administration has continued to strengthen HIV prevention programmes, expand testing services, and implement measures aimed at reducing new infections.

His words, “Today, more than 30,000 residents of Ogun State living with HIV are receiving free antiretroviral therapy, counselling, and support services.

“We continue to strengthen prevention programmes, expand testing services, and reduce new infections.

“The facility will strengthen supply chain efficiency, reduce stock-outs, and ensure that medicines and test kits reach healthcare facilities and patients across the 20 local government areas promptly,” he stated.

Abiodun, while admitting that HIV, tuberculosis, and malaria remain significant public health challenges in the state, assured that his administration, alongside development partners, is making steady progress through sustained interventions aimed at reducing their impact.

He commended the Global Fund for expanding access to HIV treatment in Nigeria and supporting tuberculosis diagnosis, malaria prevention, as well as the provision of life-saving medicines and health commodities, noting that the grants have particularly benefited women, children, adolescents, vulnerable groups, and underserved communities.

Earlier, the Commissioner for Health, Dr Tomi Coker, said the facility was established to improve the delivery of quality healthcare services across the state.

She commended Governor Abiodun for investing in a High-Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) machine used for testing the quality of drugs supplied to health facilities and disclosed that the state government plans to deploy technology capable of detecting low stock levels in medical facilities across the state.

In his remarks, the Executive Director of the Global Fund, Peter Sands, described the newly commissioned facility as a critical investment aimed at strengthening healthcare delivery and ensuring the timely availability of medicines, vaccines, and diagnostic commodities.

Sands revealed that, of the 22 warehouses built across the country, Ogun State’s facility is the largest and best-equipped.

Governor Abiodun commissions largest, best equipped pharma warehouse in Ogun

The Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Professor Muhammad Ali Pate, has called for urgent and coordinated action to reduce Nigeria’s high rate of newborn deaths, warning that the country remains far from achieving global neonatal survival targets.

Pate made the call in a speech delivered on his behalf by Dr Ahmed Mohammed at the 18th Annual General and Scientific Conference of the Nigerian Society of Neonatal Medicine in Port Harcourt.

The minister said Nigeria’s neonatal mortality rate stands at about 41 deaths per 1,000 live births, far above the Sustainable Development Goal target of 12 deaths per 1,000 live births by 2030.

He described the conference theme, “Closing the Gap Towards Achieving Newborn-Related Sustainable Development Goals: Ending Nigeria’s Preventable Newborn Deaths,” as timely and aligned with the Federal Government’s health priorities.

While acknowledging gradual progress, Pate stressed that achieving the target would require sustained investment and stronger interventions across maternal and newborn healthcare.

He noted that many newborn deaths can be prevented through proven, cost-effective measures such as skilled birth attendance, neonatal resuscitation, kangaroo mother care for premature babies, early breastfeeding, infection prevention, and prompt referral for specialised care.

According to him, the Federal Government is scaling up newborn care through the Health Sector Renewal Investment Initiative by strengthening maternal and newborn health services, expanding kangaroo mother care and neonatal resuscitation programmes, upgrading special care baby units, deploying essential newborn commodities, and improving referral systems in collaboration with state governments and development partners.

Pate noted that progress in reducing neonatal deaths has lagged behind gains recorded in maternal and child health, describing newborn survival as one of the country’s most pressing health challenges.

“Every newborn life saved is not only a family preserved from tragedy, but also an investment in Nigeria’s future human capital and national development,” he said, urging stakeholders to use the conference to strengthen partnerships and develop practical solutions for ending preventable newborn deaths.

Also speaking, the Acting Permanent Secretary of the Rivers State Ministry of Health, Dr Vincent Wachukwu, described newborn survival as a critical public health priority for the Rivers State Government.

He said tackling the challenge requires coordinated action, evidence-based interventions, stronger health systems, and continuous professional development for healthcare workers.

Dr Wachukwu highlighted the state’s focus on expanding Universal Health Coverage, improving access to quality newborn care, accelerating implementation of the Nigeria Every Newborn Action Plan, strengthening reviews of stillbirths and neonatal deaths, and enhancing healthcare workers’ skills through neonatal resuscitation and respiratory support training.

He said these efforts, supported by strategic healthcare investments, capacity building, quality improvement initiatives, and stronger accountability mechanisms, are aimed at ensuring that every newborn not only survives but thrives.

Earlier, the President of the Nigerian Society of Neonatal Medicine, Professor Reteola Fadjulu, expressed concern over Nigeria’s persistently high newborn mortality rate, revealing that about 700 babies die daily across the country.

Professor Fadjulu said the conference brings together doctors, nurses, and other healthcare professionals to explore innovative ways of improving newborn survival and expanding access to quality neonatal care.

She noted that the society had organised community outreach programmes and specialised training for healthcare workers on essential newborn care, neonatal resuscitation, and respiratory support ahead of the conference.

She identified prematurity, birth asphyxia, and infections as the leading causes of newborn deaths in Nigeria, stressing that many of the fatalities are preventable through timely medical intervention and proper maternal care.

She also warned against harmful traditional practices, particularly the application of substances to a newborn’s umbilical cord, which can lead to life-threatening infections.

Professor Fadjulu emphasised the importance of antenatal care in detecting and managing pregnancy-related complications early, thereby reducing risks to both mothers and babies. She also called for greater government support for newborn healthcare financing.

“What we want is that every newborn in any state in Nigeria, in any local government, there has to be free healthcare for that newborn,” she said.

She acknowledged ongoing Federal Government efforts to integrate newborn services into maternal healthcare programmes, noting that pilot initiatives are already underway in Lagos and Kano States.

Professor Fadjulu added that years of advocacy by neonatal health experts have helped elevate newborn survival on the national health agenda and expressed optimism that expanded government support would further reduce preventable newborn deaths across the country.

Health experts warn of high newborn death rate, push for urgent health reforms

The African Democratic Congress, ADC National Chairman, David Mark, and the party’s National Secretary, Rauf Aregbesola on Thursday, stormed Ado-Ekiti, the Ekiti State capital, as the opposition party held a mega rally ahead of Saturday’s governorship election.

DAILY POST reports that there was a massive turnout of ADC members and supporters rallying behind the ADC governorship candidate, Oluwadare Abejide.

Speaking at the rally, David Mark assured the ADC candidate that the outcome of the election would be in his favour.

“We will stay with you and accompany you to the government house”, the former Senate President said.

The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, has since commenced the distribution of sensitive election materials from the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, ahead of the polls.

Ekiti Guber: David Mark, Aregbesola, others storm Ado-Ekiti as ADC holds mega rally

A leading election observation group, Yiaga Africa, has described Saturday’s governorship election in Ekiti State, as a critical test of Nigeria’s new Electoral Act 2026, warning that the credibility of the poll will depend on electoral preparedness, transparency in results management, and the neutrality of security agencies.

The organisation said this in a pre-election statement issued ahead of the June 20 governorship election, which will be conducted across 2,445 polling units in Ekiti State’s 16 local government areas.

Yiaga Africa noted that the election is the first governorship poll to be conducted under the Electoral Act 2026 and will serve as a major assessment of new provisions relating to electronic transmission of results, administrative review, and results collation.

It highlighted INEC’s introduction of the e-EC8A result validation process, which enables polling officials to enter polling unit results directly into the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System, BVAS, allowing verification against scanned copies uploaded to the INEC Result Viewing Portal, IReV.

According to the organisation, 1,059,360 registered voters are expected to participate in the election, with the Independent National Electoral Commission reporting a Permanent Voter Card collection rate of 97.1 per cent.

Thirteen political parties are fielding candidates in the contest. However, Yiaga Africa expressed concern over the absence of female candidates and persons with disabilities among the contestants, describing it as evidence of continued exclusion in Nigeria’s political recruitment and nomination processes.

While acknowledging INEC’s efforts in conducting stakeholder engagements, training election officials, organising mock accreditation exercises, and making logistics arrangements despite delayed funding, Yiaga Africa identified operational gaps that emerged during the mock accreditation exercise.

It urged the commission to ensure timely deployment of personnel and materials, effective activation of Registration Area Centres, proper use of BVAS for voter accreditation, and transparent management and transmission of election results.

On security, the organisation commended the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security for coordinating election security preparations but warned of lingering concerns in some parts of the state.

It identified Ado-Ekiti, Ikole, Oye and Ikere local government areas as potential hotspots and expressed concern over the movement of election officials, observers and materials in Ilejemeje and Moba LGAs following recent kidnapping incidents that could affect safe movement, espect6ially after 7 p.m.

Yiaga Africa also raised concerns over the threat posed by vote buying, describing it as one of the most significant risks to the integrity of the election. It warned that prevailing economic hardship could make voters vulnerable to inducement by political actors seeking to influence electoral outcomes.

The group further noted that widespread perceptions that the election outcome is already predetermined could discourage voter participation and contribute to low turnout despite high political awareness among citizens.

The organisation identified what it called three major tests for the election: preparedness, transparency and neutrality. It explained that the preparedness test would assess INEC’s ability to deploy personnel and materials efficiently and ensure the functionality of electoral technology.

“The transparency test would evaluate compliance with the Electoral Act 2026, including the use of BVAS, e-EC8A result validation, electronic transmission of results and transparent collation processes. The neutrality test, according to Yiaga Africa, would focus on the conduct of security agencies and their ability to provide security without partisan interference or intimidation.

As part of its election observation efforts, Yiaga Africa said it would deploy its Watching The Vote methodology, comprising 250 stationary observers and 22 mobile observers across the state. The organisation will also utilise its Process and Results Verification for Transparency (PRVT) and Election Result Analysis Dashboard (ERAD 2.0) systems to independently verify election results and monitor the performance of IReV.

It urged INEC, security agencies, political parties, civil society organisations, traditional and religious leaders, and the media to work together to ensure a credible, peaceful and transparent election that will strengthen public confidence ahead of the 2027 general election.

Ekiti 2026 election to test Nigeria’s new Electoral Act- Yiaga Africa

The Department of State Services (DSS) on Thursday supported ty Bill seeking the establishment of a Trust Fund for the Service and urged the House of Representatives to amend several provisions…

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The National Pension Commission (PenCom) has commenced discussions with the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW)….

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