Day: May 29, 2024

The Abuja School of Social and political Thought (TASSPT), has called for the adoption of human development approach in determining the new national minimum wage for Nigerian workers.

The Director of the School, Dr Sam Amadi, gave the advice at a dialogue with the theme ‘Determining fair minimum wage for Nigeria workers’ organised by the school on Tuesday in Abuja.

Amadi said the school deemed it necessary to add its views on the way forward in arriving at an appropriate minimum wage which had wide social implications on the economic growth, poverty reduction, social and political activities.

He said that minimum wage as provided for in the international labour law and Nigeria constitution allowed workers to earn a living wage that guaranteed their wellbeing and life of dignity.

He said government and labour should not be disagreeing over minimum wage, as if there was no approach to arrive at an appropriate minimum wage.

‘The first approach is to ask ourselves, what are those basic foods, goods that a pe
rson needs today to escape poverty?

‘The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) in designing their poverty methodology, first look at basket of goods. They ask themselves, what’s a basket of food and services that somebody needs daily?

‘So for that basket of goods and services, you now ask, what’s the price, the cost on the average, what somebody would need?

‘Let’s assume for a family, the typical standard, a wife, husband, and four children. You calculate it. That gives you the basis. If people have this income, will they be able to survive at the basic level,’ he said.

Amadi said what the school was advocating was a human development approach that first ask what people need in Nigeria to escape poverty? We call it the quality of life approach.

‘When you have that, it forms the based. Then, in every other year, you use the approach called cost of living adjustment, which we employ in our departments.

‘It means that you re-index that benchmark to inflation every year. Someone has done an assessment of that
.

‘That assessment says, if you use COLA, which is what NBS uses every year to look at poverty, you will discover, a very interesting analysis.

‘What you will discover is that 75,000 is the proper price, meaning that without changing the base of the salary, from 2018 to today, adjust for all the inflation that are officially captured, that base will give you today 75,000,’ he said.

He also said that in determining the minimum wage, the rate of Naira to the dollar should be considered.

Amadi recalls in 1981 the minimum wage was N1,500 with one dollar exchanging for N0.62 totaling 2,419 dollars per month, while in 1991 it was increased to N3,000 at 5.91dollars in which the value dropped to 302 dollars.

He also explained that when it was increased to N30,000 in 2015 the dollar was exchange for N368 reducing the value of the minimum wage when compared to dollar at 56 dollars.

Amadi said that for the proposed N54,000 by the Federal Government at current exchange rate the dollar value would be about 36 dollar
s.

‘Today, minimum wage that’s been taxed, amounts to 66 dollars. Look at the drop and the one they are proposing now with inflation, will amount to less than 10 dollars,’ Amadi said.

He said that in arriving at a new minimum wage, activate Chapter 2 of the Constitution, which said that people have a living wage, a right to live, should also be activated.

He said that the argument should not be about viability of the state to pay, saying its a function of the concept of development that the state has.

Amadi said that contrary to fear that the minimum wage would lead to labour loss, it would actually enhance labour productivity, address poverty as well as lead to sustainable economic growth.

Source: News Agency of Nigeria

President Bola Tinubu came to power on May 29, 2023 on the wave of ‘Renewed Hope’ agenda – a wavelength different from his predecessor’s ‘Change’ mantra.

The President inaugurated a 45-man Federal Executive Council (FEC) on Aug. 21, about 84 days after his inauguration, to tinker on promises made to the electorate which ensured his victory at the Feb. 25, 2023 elections.

Thereafter, Sen. John Owan-Enoh became the Minister of Sports Development in FEC after Sunday Dare’s tenure.

The choice of Owan-Enoh (58) – an accomplished educationist and politician – was greeted with a lot of mixed feelings by sports enthusiasts who weighed in on many grounds, especially on the background of the new minister.

Some, who saw him as someone lacking in sports administration, alleged that he had no direct or indirect technical know-how to handle a sector that many believed had suffered from several years of neglect.

They also argued that he could be another neophyte or greenhorn that, would, arguably, further slowdown the
development of sports in Nigeria.

However, some people viewed the appointment of a neutral person in the mold of the Cross River-born politician as ‘a breath of fresh air’ for Nigerian sports.

True to his calling, the University of Calabar graduate of Sociology, appraised the enormous tasks ahead of him and swung into action.

Few days after his appointment, he visited some of the national sports infrastructure including the 62-year-old national stadium, Surulere and similar facilities in Abuja and Ibadan.

Perhaps Owan-Enoh, who knew that his background included no previous expertise in active sports or sports administration, resolved to work smart by familiarising himself with the sports terrain.

Expectedly, Owan-Enoh is faced with a myriad of problems that have continually plagued the sports administration in Nigeria.

Many stakeholders regard sports administration in the country as corruption and mismanagement prone.

In their estimation, other hydra headed issues including corruption in Nigerian sport
s had indeed made it almost impossible to get the system working.

Corruption can affect private sponsorships and willingness of well-meaning investors to leverage on their financial muscle to boost sports development.

These are majorly some of the issues that Owan-Enoh needed to address to improve the performance of Nigerian athletes at the local and international levels.

Nigerian sports as it were, needed strategic plan document, identification of specific challenges, major governance and enabling environment for critical sports infrastructure to thrive.

Owan-Enoh during his visit to the National Stadium, Surulere, openly wept over the abandoned facility.

He also expressed worry on what could have been responsible for the abandonment of facilities at the once national treasure.

He also saw that the facilities there had been abandoned for periods stretching to about 20 years.

Owan-Enoh, who could not hide his emotion over the sorry state of the National Stadium, Surulere, Lagos, said, ‘I weep for this
place, I earnestly weep.’

He went from the entrance to the main bowl, the hostel, boxing, wrestling, para sports and athletics gyms and shook his head in disapproval of the state of rottenness in the stadium.

He assured that within a short period, President Tinubu’s administration would prioritise the facelift of the iconic sports infrastructure.

‘This should not be the symbol of our sports in a city referred to as a sports city,’ he said.

He also promised to bring back the glory of the facility, once touted as the pride of Africa.

According to Owan-Enoh, the maintenance of the facilities is necessary to avoid the mistakes of the past that resulted in the decadent infrastructure.

He said, ‘We must be careful and make something happen quickly, so that the facilities we have working, don’t fall into the same sorry state of shame.’

He stressed President Tinubu’s commitments to sports development, adding that the President would continually give his support to sports, at all times.

Promises were made in t
he past to bring back the glory of the National Stadium, Surulere, but such promises did not materialize, especially with the experience from the former Sports ministers – Solomon Dalung and Sunday Dare.

Dalung, during his time, made frantic efforts at concessioning the National Stadium, Surulere when the then Gov. Akinwunmi Ambode of Lagos State, made efforts to get the stadium to be under the control of the state government.

While the details of the negotiations were not made public, it remained to be seen what eventually went wrong and why the deal failed to materialise after a much publicity and state visits.

After Dalung came the immediate past minister, Dare, who also assured that there would be the political will needed to fix the National Stadium, Surulere.

Dare, during his visit to Lagos then, assured that there would be a departure from the previous neglect and lack of political will to fix the abandoned National Stadium all over the country.

During his one-day working visit to the National Sta
dium, Lagos, Dare said that the stadium’s reinstatement was among his three-point agenda.

Accompanied by bigwigs in the sports circle such as the Chairman, Nigeria Women League, Aisha Falode and other directors in the ministry of sports, he decried how a space once used for 1973 All African Games was neglected for more than 16 years.

He said that the ministry’s agenda for sports development in Nigeria would be in three key areas – facilities maintenance, upgrade and management.

Dare said that his working visit to the stadium was to have a holistic assessment of the stadium with a strong political will to fix it.

‘Let me say that my coming here is not for ritual sake, I came with a renewed instruction from the President Muhammadu Buhari who gave the assignment.

‘There is political will on the part of the president this time to make sure that national monuments like this are not neglected.

‘For this, we will find out an option at which we can restore back to glory Nigeria as a football nation.

‘We should
have up to 10 or 12 international standard stadium and pitches up top FIFA standard. So, there is a renewed political will to restore the stadium,’ he said.

Dare further disclosed that a Public Private Partnership (PPP) to bring back the stadium would not be jettisoned, adding that holistic assessment would be given to the facilities.

‘My work is to inspect and provide the right advice from a professional standpoint. I will be working in conjunction with experts from the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) and the youth ministry.

‘I hope that the arrangement with the Federal Government and Lagos state Government will come and we are also looking at Public Private Partnership (PPP) for a model to evolve and put the facility back,’ he said.

In spite of the promises made, no meaningful impact was made towards recreating the glory days of the National Stadium, Surulere. The decay endured.

Dare also embarked on demolishing what he referred to as shanties attached to various structures in the facility.

Traders
and hangers-on, who loiter the facility were dislodged, ostensibly to attract investors that never came.

During the back-and-forth, a major disaster occurred in the National Stadium, Surulere, which led to its closure by the minister.

Since then, things have not remained the same with the facility. However, the present sports administration under Owan-Enoh needed to go beyond mere promises.

Some stakeholders in the sports community told NAN that immediate action should be taken to revamp the moribund sport infrastructure.

Howbeit, the past administration was unable to effectively address in its two-term tenure, the resuscitation of the stadium. There is now an urgent need to put words to actions.

A significant feature of the strategic plan is to specify the magnitude of the tasks involved and face it.

Some sports enthusiasts and icons are also not impressed with the slow pace in bringing back to life the sports city in Lagos.

Some amateur boxers including the General Secretary, Nigeria Boxing Federatio
n (NBF) also called for the rehabilitation of the aging gymnasium (gym) at the stadium.

They urged the relevant authority to address the deplorable state of the 63-year-old facility being one of the oldest boxing gyms in Nigeria.

Several boxers, who competed for Nigeria at local and international levels, trained at this facility.

An on-site visitation to the weather-beaten facility showed that, apart from the blown off roof, shattered windows and a septic tank that had caved in, toilets seats at the gym were either broken or in bad shape.

Being the only gym available at the facility, the deplorable state of the boxing gym had, no doubt, affected athletes training needs.

Sunday Usman, an amateur boxer, who described the gym’s current condition as an eye sore, also alleged that it was ‘out of use for the past few years’.

Another amateur boxer, Clement Bassey, said that, notwithstanding the fact that the love for boxing had sustained him as an athlete, the present state of the gym was a discouragement.

‘T
raining under this condition is harsh and discouraging; sometimes whenever it rains, the whole gym will be flooded because the roof has been blown off.

‘Some of the boxers don’t even like coming here, except when they have an appointment with the national coach at the stadium,” he said.

The General Secretary of the NBF, Oladapo Akinyele, also appealed for an urgent fixing of the dilapidated facility.

‘Of course, this is where we train and we have to manage it. Some of the boxers who went for the Olympics qualifiers in Thailand trained here.

‘It is in a sorry state, the roof has been blown off. Many times I provided some palliatives by buying some nylon cover for the ceiling, but they are constantly blown away by winds.

‘We need to give the present government a chance to steadily address this problems because they are inherited ones. Am sure that the Minister of Sports Development will soon address the problem.

‘The Minister cares a lot about boxing especially with our good outings during the last Afric
an Games in Ghana,” he said.

A Sport journalist, Femi Adepoju, also told NAN that the long neglect remained a national tragedy, ‘It is such an embarrassment that we cannot maintain the national stadium.

‘All over the world, there are local clubsides that are maintaining bigger sports infrastructure, not to talk of a state-owned facility.

‘A certain Anfield Stadium is being maintained by Liverpool FC of England; Emirates Stadium is owned and maintained by Arsenal; Turf Moor by Burnley; Stamford Bridge by Chelsea FC and so on.

‘I don’t believe that we can’t manage those stadia, the political will is not just there.”

Having spent a year in office, the Sports circle have achieved much especially in tandem with promises made.

As we celebrate the first-year anniversary of this administration, there is need for us to remind the Sports Minister that promises made during his visit to the sports facilities in Lagos must be fulfilled.

The specifics of the decay in the national stadium is distressing, requiring
urgent reconstruction work sponsored either by private firms, consortiums or the government.

Sub-national governments own football, basketball, volleyball, handball, and hockey teams (male and female in some cases) with scarce resources.

National sports infrastructure should not be allowed to live on past glory.

Sports enthusiasts are of the opinion that if we must erect new standard facilities to promote sports, due attention must also be given to the existing ones as well.

Source: News Agency of Nigeria

President Bola Tinubu-led administration has made it clear that its priority is to renew Nigeria’s hope and renew citizens’ trust in the government towards building a prosperous Nigeria.

This, according to the president, will require a bold and ambitious agenda that addresses the root causes of our problems and builds a more prosperous, secure, and equitable future for all Nigerians.

Tinubu, therefore, based his renewed hope agenda on eight priority areas namely, food security; poverty eradication; growth; job creation; access to capital; inclusion; rule of law; and fighting corruption.

These ambitious goals, however, require the unflagging commitment of the members of Tinubu’s cabinet, to ensure that the vision was not only achieved, but the hope of Nigerians renewed and confidence in the government rebuilt.

‘I believe in the ‘Renewed Hope’ agenda of President Bola Tinubu, and Nigerians will see the difference in no distant time,’

These were the words of Mr Nyesom Wike, Minister of the Federal Capital T
erritory (FCT), while receiving handing over notes from Mr Adesola Olusade, the immediate past Permanent Secretary of the FCTA.

Wike, however, noted that not much would be achieved without the support of the workers of the FCT Administration.

But how could the FCT workers provide the needed support without motivation, welfare, and career progression?

Unlike other workers in the Federal Ministries, Departments and Agencies, workers in the FCTA could only get to the position of a director and retire, because FCTA do not have a Civil Service Commission (CSC).

This means that, unlike their counterparts in other ministries, workers in FCT could not get to the peak of their career by becoming a permanent secretary.

In fact, permanent secretaries were being posted to FCTA by the Head of Civil Service of the Federation.

Often, these permanent secretaries were juniors to some of the directors in the FCTA.

This was disturbing even when the National Assembly had passed a Bill for the establishment of CSC for the
FCT and was assented into law by the then acting President Yemi Osibanjo in 2018.

But the law was locked away in cupboards and shelves and growing dust, with no efforts to implement its provision by the previous administration.

Analysts opined that this development did not only kill the morale of the workers, but also stole their motivation and the willingness to give their best to the Administration.

Realising the negative impact this could have in actualising the vision of President Tinubu, through his renewed hope agenda, Wike immediately took steps to address the challenge.

Against all odds, the minister, on Oct. 13, 2023, announced President Tinubu’s approval for the establishment of CSC for the FCTA, in line with the provisions of the law.

This was to allow career progression for civil servants in the Administration.

‘That hindrance to the workers’ career development has been removed with this development,’ he said.

Head of Federal Capital Territory Civil Service, Dr Udo Atang .

On receiving the
news, the elated FCT workers, in their numbers, stormed the Minister’s Wing of the FCTA Secretariat, praising Wike and Tinubu for taking the bold step to implement the FCT CSC Establishment Act, 2018.

Mr Korede Matilukoro, the then President of the Joint Unions Action Committee (JUAC), the umbrella body of FCTA workers, said, ‘this singular act has put smiles on the faces of the workers.’

Matilukoro pointed out that since 2004, the staff of FCTA had been deprived of becoming permanent secretaries, adding that Wike took the issue and within a month, secured President Tinubu’s approval for the implementation of the law.

But the excitement did not last long when a few days after, the Officer of the Head of Civil Service of the Federation, announced the redeployment of Dr Magdalene Ajani from Transportation Ministry to FCTA.

Ajani was to replace the then PS, Mr Olusade Adesola, who was to retire on Jan. 29, but the workers rejected the action, describing it as faulty, and called for the full implementation of
the FCT CSC Law.

Responding to the workers’ outcry, Wike ran to President Tinubu, halted the deployment of Ajani and on March 12, announced Tinubu’s approval for the appointment of Mr Udo Atang, as pioneer Head of Civil Service of the FCTA.

The minister also announced the appointment of 10 Permanent Secretaries for various Secretariats of the Administration as provided for in the FCT Civil Service Law, 2018.

Mr Emeka Ezeh was appointed the Chairman of the Commission’s Board, with six others as commissioners, representing the six geopolitical zones.

The excited pioneer head of FCT civil service, described the development as a demonstration of the reality of the renewed hope agenda of the Tinubu-led government.

Commending Tinubu and Wike for renewing the hope of FCT workers, Atang pointed out that the staff of the Administration have never had it this good.

He added that in the new FCTA system, every member of staff was a potential permanent secretary and head of service.

‘I am also a beneficiary of beco
ming a Permanent Secretary, a son of nobody, rising to the peak of my career when I know nobody except God.

‘We never expected that such things could happen to us.

‘In terms of the aspiration of reaching your peak. I am one of the shining examples that somebody can be a Permanent Secretary in the FCT,’ Dr Babagana Adam, the pioneer Permanent Secretary, Health Services and Environmental Secretariat of the FCTA, has said.

Similarly, the current President of JUAC, Mrs Rifkatu Lortyer, expressed optimism for a cordial working relationship with Wike, for demonstrating high regards for workers and their welfare.

‘So far, he is towing the right direction because the civil service commission had been our fight for a very long time.

‘We have put one or two requests, and he has answered us. Every one of our requests is being considered; that is the most important thing,’ Lortye said.

By and large, public analysts cautioned that now that Tinubu has actualised the long struggle for the FCT CSC, it was only fair tha
t the workers pay back by being committed and work for the actualisation of Tinubu’s Renewed Hope agenda.

Source: News Agency of Nigeria

The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) and the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on the sidelines of the 77th World Health Assembly in Geneva, Switzerland.

The MoU, signed on Tuesday, is to expand their partnership to strengthen epidemic and pandemic prevention, preparedness and response in Africa.

United by a shared mission, the organisations will collaborate to boost regional vaccine research, development, and sustainable manufacturing leadership and capabilities in Africa.

This will foster a faster and more equitable response to emerging infectious diseases.

Dr Jean Kaseya, Africa CDC’s Director General, said: ‘The New Public Health Order calls to action to build resilient health systems capable of managing recurrent, high-impact infectious disease and outbreaks; an action-oriented partnership such as this is at the core.

‘This collaboration with CEPI in research, clinical trials, and local manufacturing of med
ical countermeasures will elevate Africa’s readiness against outbreaks, epidemics, and pandemics.

‘This will consolidate the continent’s preparedness far beyond where we were prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.’

Speaking, Richard Hatchett, CEPI’s Chief Executive Officer, said: ‘African leadership and capabilities will be key for ensuring the continent can respond to increasingly frequent infectious disease outbreaks.

‘The preparatory work to manage these outbreaks, from greater vaccine manufacturing capacity to clinical trial readiness, must be undertaken now.

‘CEPI stands ready to support Africa CDC in the realisation of these goals and to further strengthen Africa’s preparedness and resilience against future outbreaks.’

The partnership is in line with the African Union’s (AU) ambition to produce 60 per cent of the continent’s vaccine needs in Africa by 2040 under the Africa CDC’s Partnerships for African Vaccine Manufacturing (PAVM).

As such, the expanded partnership will ultimately focus its efforts on e
nhancing research and development, building a workforce as well as supply chain optimisation to support resilient health systems.

This ambition will increase vaccine sovereignty and reduce external reliance, helping prevent a recurrence of the vaccine inequity seen during the COVID-19 response in Africa.

To boost vaccine accessibility and efficiency and meet this goal, there is also a need to invest in vaccine RandD and manufacturing innovations, amongst others, and build a resilient regional supply chain.

To that end, Africa CDC and CEPI will coordinate to fund innovations accelerating speed, scale, or accessibility for initial implementation with African manufacturers.

This investment will support sustainable manufacturing for routine vaccinations in Africa, and-in the event of an outbreak-these facilities can be mobilized to produce response vaccines promptly.

In alignment with Africa CDC, the partnership also aims to bolster Africa’s research ecosystem and clinical trial infrastructure, including tar
geted capacity strengthening through CEPI’s Research Preparedness Programme- which, directed by regional experts, aims to build capacity for conducting high-quality Phase 3 efficacy trials.

The organisations will also collaborate to enhance vaccine safety protocols, biosecurity, pathogen surveillance, investment in capacity building, and other areas that help ensure overall African readiness for emergency vaccine responses.

Source: News Agency of Nigeria

Children have always been referred to as the leaders of tomorrow, and that ‘tomorrow’ belongs to children. However, these assertions seem to be neither here nor there, considering the myriad of challenges before the Nigerian child.

The challenges are profound and pervasive with many children inhibited by socio-cultural and economic factors in the coordinates of their wellbeing and development.

The challenges range from childhood mortality to poor access to basic education, nutrition, and healthcare rights to child labour and sexual abuse, not to mention their being victims of conflict and war.

In addition to these challenges, climate change has put the lives of children under constant threat.

According to Save the Children International, nearly 710 million children in many countries are living at the highest risk of suffering the impact of climate crises.

Similarly, violent conflicts, widespread insecurity, kidnapping, and banditry seem to form part of everyday challenges for millions of children in Nige
ria.

With the number of out-of-school children estimated at more than 10 million in the country, stakeholders have expressed concern that even those in schools were challenged by poor facilities, with many of them sitting on bare floors.

Kidnappers have been having a field day, abducting school children and their teachers at will, a situation analysts described as counter-productive to the ongoing efforts to provide children with functional education.

School children during a match past at the 2024 National Children’s Day in Abuja on Monday.

During the 2024 Children’s Day celebration in Abuja, the young ones particularly called for more investment in their education. They made a case for children’s acquisition of functional skills to position them in a way that would enable them to exploit their potential in the ever-changing world.

The call by the young ones was in tandem with the theme of the event, ‘Enhancing the Total Wellbeing of the Nigerian Child through Quality Education and Skills Development.’

‘
Help children in need and give those from poor households access to free education from the primary to the tertiary level.

‘Equip our schools and make them conducive for learning.

‘This will enable all children to access quality education and develop the needed knowledge and skills to live productive adulthood,’ a 14-year-old secondary school student, Kolawale David, advocated.

For nine-year-old Ashezi Akwashiki, the author and advocate of a book on literacy and education, ‘dreams do come true, if every child is nurtured, supported, and equipped with the right knowledge and skills’.

At nine, Akwashiki has been instrumental to the production of ‘Book Buddies’ by Ashezi Initiative, a non-profit organisation promoting literacy and educational equity.

This wouldn’t have been possible if she did not get the support she needed to learn and if her immediate environment had not been conducive enough to excite her imagination.

Mrs Adedayo Benjamins-Laniyi, the Mandate Secretary, Women Affairs Secretariat, FCT A
dministration, and Speaker of FCT Children Parliament, Rahama Waziri, during the 2024 National Children’s Day celebration, in Abuja on Monday.

No wonder FCT’s Children Parliament described the wellbeing of children as the cornerstone of the future of Nigeria.

The Speaker of the parliament, Rahama Waziri, who made the assertion at an event to commemorate the 2024 Children’s Day, added that Nigerian children were in dire need of quality education and skills.

Waziri said that the celebration provided the needed opportunity to discuss how to collectively ensure that every Nigerian child received the education and skills necessary for him or her to thrive.

According to her, empowering children with education and skills is pivotal to the sustainable growth and development of the country.

‘It is through their eyes that we envision a brighter tomorrow, and it is through their development that we can achieve it.

‘Education is the bedrock of any progressive society. It is the tool that empowers individuals to tra
nscend the limitations of their circumstances and achieve their full potential.

‘For the Nigerian child, quality education is not just a right but a necessity.

‘It is the gateway to opportunities, the key to breaking the cycle of poverty, and the foundation for a prosperous and equitable society,’ she maintained.

She also stressed the need for skills development, describing it as crucial to preparing children for the challenges and opportunities in the future.

She noted that the world is evolving rapidly, and that the jobs of tomorrow will demand a diverse set of skills.

Therefore, she said, ‘It is imperative that children are equipped with both technical and soft skills that will enable them to adapt and thrive.

‘We need to ensure that schools are well-equipped with modern facilities, including libraries, laboratories, digital resources, and that curriculums are updated to reflect current realities and future projections.

‘In this digital age, technology plays a crucial role in education. Integrating
ICT in classrooms can enhance learning experiences and provide students with the skills needed in a tech-driven world,’ she said.

School children playing drums during a cultural dance at the celebration of 2024 Children’s Day in Abuja.

Acknowledging the need to equip Nigerian children with functional digital skills, Ms Chidinma Ilechukwu, the Assistant Project Officer, International IDEA, Nigeria Office, said children must be protected at all cost owing to the many challenges they face – abuse, violence, abandonment, and neglect.

She reiterated the organisation’s continued commitment to ensuring that all children in Nigeria have access to justice through the implementation of the Child Rights Acts at the federal and state levels.

Sharing similar sentiment, Sylvia Sarki, Operations Manager, Across Atlantic Development, UK, said parents, guardians and caregivers must continue to support and empower children to reach their full potential.

Sarki insisted that children must be supported to explore and grow as
future leaders, innovators, and change-makers of tomorrow.

Responding to these calls, President Bola Tinubu said the Federal Government had embarked on key transformative policies to create a conducive learning environment across the country.

Tinubu, represented at the event by the FCT Minister of State, Dr Mariya Mahmoud, re-affirmed his administration’s commitment to implementing all matters relating to the total wellbeing and development of the Nigerian child.

He said that the Federal government had established the National Education Data System and approved skill development for all levels of education and teachers ‘training in digital skills.

‘We are also working with the state commissioners of women wffairs and the state ministries of education, state universal basic education boards, and Civil Society Organisations to ensure quality education and skills development for Nigerian children,’ Tinubu said.

The president also said that in furtherance of his ‘Renewed Hope’ agenda, the government had earm
arked N100 billion in the 2024 budget for school feeding programme, targeting 10 million Nigerian children in primary one to six.

He explained that the programme is being reviewed to address hunger, improve nutrition, enhance student’s’ attendance academic performance, boost local agriculture, and serve as an economic stimulus to local communities.

Similarly, Minister of Women Affairs, Mrs Uju Kennedy-Ohanenye, assured the children that their rights would be protected.

‘When it comes to fighting for your rights, I shall always be there for you because Mr. President said the poor shall breathe and the children are one of the vulnerable,’ the minister said.

School children performing a cultural dance during the 2024 Children’s Day celebration in Abuja.

For Mrs Adedayo Benjamins-Laniyi, Mandate Secretary, Women Affairs Secretariat, FCT Administration, children are assets to the nation and must be nurtured and supported.

Benjamins-Laniyi assured children in Abuja of FCT Minister, Mr Nyesom Wike’s commitment
to ensuring that every child in the federal capital territory has access to quality education and skills development opportunities.

She added that the FCT was working to promote policies that protect children’s rights, education, and other necessities towards building a life of dignity.

Also reassuring the children of government’s support, was the Chairman of the Abuja Municipal Area Council, Mr Christopher Maikalangu, who announced the establishment of an ‘Education Endowment Fund’.

According to Maikalangu, the fund is to enable children in rural communities to have access to quality and functional education.

He emphasised the role of education in protecting children from various forms of abuse, adding that no child should be denied access to basic education.

Stakeholders stressed the need to prioritise children’s rights and participation in matters that concern them, with a view to build a better future for all.

Source: News Agency of Nigeria

The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Seme Area Command says it generated N2.63 billion between January and May.

Comptroller Timi Bomodi, the Area Controller disclosed this on Tuesday during a media briefing in Seme, Lagos. State.

According to him, in the period under review, a total sum of N2,634,190,645 was collected.

The controller said that the amount surpassed that of 2023 for same period by 272 per cent.

He said that the command facilitated 143, 468 Metric Tonnes of export produce, with FOB value of ?35, 199, 971. 097, which is equivalent to $38, 461, 397.39.

Bomodi said that the enforcement unit sustained anti-smuggling momentum in all nooks and crannies of the command.

‘This onslaught translated into 474 interceptions of various contraband items within the period under review.

‘These items include 12,448 Jerry cans and 30 litres of petrol, which is equivalent to eight tanker loads.

‘Others are 6,467 bags of 50kg of foreign rice, which is equivalent to 10 trailer loads, 15 fairly used vehicles and
1,251 parcels of cannabis sativa.

‘They also include 20 live parrots, two honey badgers, 2 pelican birds and 404 live tortoises, 3,023 general merchandise, 149 packages of codeine and 45 pieces of unused tyres,’ he said.

Some seized 50kg bag of foreign rice seized by Seme customs on displayed on Tuesday.

He said that all the seized items had a combined Duty Paid Value (DPV) of ?840, 003, 646.

‘We note that there has been a marked increase in the illegal importation of Cannabis from Ghana and different methods have been used by criminals in their effort to beat our officers, all of which were neutralised,’ he said.

Bomodi said that a total of 18 suspects were arrested in connection with the seizures.

He added that 11 of them were granted administrative bails and three were handed over to NDLEA for further action.

‘One was handed over to the Nigeria Police, while four suspects are still in Customs’ custody.’

He said that the command had set-up a complaint desk to address issues concerning the molestatio
n of females in the command.

‘We strongly frown at any act endangering the health and well-being of the vulnerable population of border stake-holders, who go about their normal and legitimate businesses daily.

‘Stringent action shall be taken against any officer of any agency found guilty of molestation of any female on this corridor,’ he said.

30 Jerry can of seized petrol on displayed in Seme command on Tuesday.

Bomodi appreciated the cooperation of other government agencies in ensuring the peace, safety and security of the nation’s borders.

‘Special mention will be made of the effort of officers and men of the Nigerian Army, Air Force and Navy, who have stood shoulder to shoulder with us in this battle.

‘Their unwavering support is crucial and we applaud their patriotic efforts,’ he said.

Source: News Agency of Nigeria