The first accredited online university in Nigeria has received its operating license.
ShareIn 2018, the Guardian Nigeria reported that more than 190,000 qualified people were turned away from seven public universities in Nigeria. In a first-of-its-kind move, the Nigerian Universities Commission (NUC) has given Miva Open University, owned by uLesson, permission to open Nigeria’s first fully online university. MIVA Open University can now give full Bachelor’s degree programs through Online Distance e-Learning (ODeL) mode; it has this license. The opening of Miva Open University is a good step toward solving the problem of Nigerians not being able to get into college. The university will give students who can’t go to traditional universities a much-needed option.
Source:The Guardian
May 26, 2023 03:52 UTC
Fearless Energy Drink powers ‘Fast and Furious X movie’ premiere
Energy drink, ‘Fearless, from the stable of Rite Foods Limited demonstrated its unwavering commitment to the entertainment industry recently, with its sponsorship of the premiere Fast and Furious X movie at the Silverbird Cinemas in Lagos. The movie premiere, which was held on Wednesday, May 17, was well attended by celebrities. Amidst the rationale for the sponsorship, Sangowawa further stated that Fearless Energy intends to utilise the sponsorship amongst other marketing activities, to re-affirm its brand equity-building strategies as a market leader. Sangowawa further stated that the sponsorship is also a sampling ground for consumers to be able to taste the unique quality of the Fearless brand while enjoying their favourites movies with family and friends. Commenting on the support by the leading energy drink, Nollywood Movie Producer, Andrian Abisogun, applauded the brand for adding colour to the event and for the immense support to the entertainment sector, as well as the energy it provides to viewers at the cinema.
Source:Nigerian Tribune
May 26, 2023 01:28 UTC
Buhari will award contracts till last minute — Fashola
The Federal government had said it would continue to award contracts until the last minute of the administration of the president, Major General Muhammadu Buhari(retd). Reacting to the criticism against the unending award of contracts and external borrowing of the administration, the minister declared that the outgoing government has the right to award contracts till the last hour. Fashola said, “Buhari can award contracts till the last minute. Some states are borrowing money outside the country, still, they will pay it back. He noted that the project was being financed by Nigeria National Petroleum Limited through the Tax Credit Policy of the Federal Government.
Source:Punch
May 26, 2023 01:11 UTC
A call for change in the sustainability reporting landscape
The sustainability reporting landscape needs to change, in general, globally, but also closer to home, within our operating contexts on the continent. Understandably, the proliferation of frameworks, guidelines and standards for sustainability reporting – there are currently over 600 different industry sustainability reporting standards globally – has made the process complex and daunting, whilst confirming the importance of sustainability reporting to organizations who seek to answer the question of: how can we better report our activities? The race to harmonize the various standards also led to the creation of the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) at COP26 in Glasgow in 2021 by the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) Foundation. Let’s return home a bit and talk about sustainability reporting in Nigeria …I would say that some organizations – most notably in financial services, energy and agro-allied industries – have demonstrated a commitment to sustainability. This goes back to leadership, organizational targets and policy documents that show a commitment to effective sustainability reporting.
Source:Nigerian Tribune
May 25, 2023 23:41 UTC
JUST IN: Buhari appoints Odusanya DG, NACETEM – Punch Newspapers
The President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd), has approved the appointment of Olushola Odusanya as the Director General of the National Centre for Technology Management, Ile Ife, Osun State. The President’s approval was conveyed to Odusanya through a letter signed by the Minister of State for Science, Technology and Innovation, Henry Ikoh. He was also the pioneer leader of the Environmental Biotechnology Group at the Biotechnology Center of SHESTCO. The PUNCH reports that Odusanya obtained his PhD in Food Science and Technology in 1999 from the Department of Food Science and Technology, University of Saints in Malaysia. “ He has also been a visiting Associate Professor of Materials Science and Engineering at the African University of Science and Technology Abuja.
Source:Punch
May 25, 2023 23:27 UTC
Japa: 66,796 dependants accompanied Nigerian students to UK in one year
This is a 146.1 per cent increase from the 27,137 dependants who migrated to the UK from March 2021 to March 2022. In the year ending March 2023, around 73 per cent of visas issued to dependants of students were issued to two nationalities (Indians and Nigerians),” it said. Foreign tertiary institutions and respective countries have continued to benefit from the migration of Nigerian students to oversea institutions. For instance, in 2021, Nigerian students and their dependants in the United Kingdom contributed an estimated £1.9bn to the economy of the UK according to a report by SBM intelligence. Earlier, the UK announced its intention to ban foreign students from coming to the country with dependants from January 2024.
Source:Punch
May 25, 2023 20:30 UTC
Tinubu, Shettima get GCFR, GCON titles
The President-elect, Bola Tinubu, and Vice President-elect, Kashim Shettima would be honoured with the Grand Commander of the Order of the Federal Republic and Grand Commander of Order of the Niger respectively. The investiture is ongoing at the State House Conference Center in Abuja. The event is part of the activities lined up for the May 29 inauguration ceremony. After the investiture, there would be the handover of transition documents to Tinubu and Shettima. Details later…
Source:Punch
May 25, 2023 19:56 UTC
Enugu police arrest four for ATM fraud
The Enugu State Police Command on Wednesday said it had arrested four suspected fraudsters who specialise in swapping Automated Teller Machine cards for defrauding a 63-year-old man of N495,000. The statement read, “The suspects were arrested, while escaping to their criminal hideout in Emene, Enugu, after they fraudulently stole the ATM card and Personal Identification Number of an unsuspecting 63-year-old male victim, while pretending to assist him to withdraw money from a commercial Bank ATM along the Ogui Road, Enugu. “Immediately after, the suspects used the card and PIN to withdraw the total of N495,000 from the victim’s account.”The PPRO said the suspects had confessed to the crime during interrogation, saying they have carried out many other criminal acts of ATM card swapping and fraud within the Enugu metropolis. He noted that four banks’ ATM cards, including that of the victim, were recovered from them. Ndukwe said the state Commissioner of Police, Ahmed Ammani, commended the operatives for busting and bringing the criminal syndicate to book.
Source:Punch
May 25, 2023 14:33 UTC
The attack on US embassy officials
Three staffers of the embassy and four police officers in the convoy were reportedly killed in the reprehensible and absolutely shameful attack. Two employees of the embassy were also kidnapped during the attack, but they were eventually rescued unhurt following a joint operation by security operatives. The Anambra State Police Command confirmed the arrest of two suspects in connection with the attack. It is benumbing that this crew of workers going about their lawful duties were killed by non-state actors in Anambra State. The attack underlines the very dangerous dimension that insecurity has taken in the country, with nearly every place considered unsafe.
Source:Nigerian Tribune
May 25, 2023 14:07 UTC
BREAKING: CBN votes to raise interest rates to 18.5%
The Monetary Policy Committee of the Central Bank of Nigeria, on Wednesday, unanimously voted to increase its monetary policy interest rates to 18.5 per cent. The PUNCH reports in March that the MPC of the bank voted to increase the benchmark interest rate by 50 basis points to 18 per cent. The CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele, disclosed this while reading the communiqué of the third MPC meeting of the year on Wednesday. Justifying the rising inflation rate, the MPC blamed the high energy cost and challenges around the supply chain, among others, which are beyond the reach of the CBN. The apex bank had increased the MPR from 11.5 per cent earlier last year to 18 per cent in March this year across six consecutive rate hikes.
Source:Punch
May 24, 2023 23:04 UTC
Ogun police arraigns ex-deputy speaker over breach of peace
The Ogun State Police Command on Wednesday, arraigned a 54-year-old former deputy speaker, Dare Kadiri, over an alleged threat to lives and causing a breach of peace. Kadiri was dragged to court 24-hours after he blocked the gate to the State House of Assembly located in the governor’s office, Oke-Mosan, Abeokuta. The prosecutor, Inspector Lawrence Olu-Balogun told the court that the defendant committed the offence on Tuesday at about 8:40 am at the Ogun State House of Assembly in Oke-Mosan. The prosecutor said that the defendant told the police that the court had given a judgement asking him to resume as a lawmaker. He said that the defendant claimed he came to resume office, going by the judgement delivered by the Ogun state High Court.
Source:Punch
May 24, 2023 22:20 UTC
2nd Niger bridge: Southeast played bad politics against Buhari during 2015, 2019 elections — Ngige
The Minister for Labour and Employment, Senator Chris Ngige, has said that despite bad politics played by the Southeast region during 2015 and 2019 presidential elections, the official commissioning of the Second Niger Bridge, building of Enugu International Airport and other construction of capital projects by the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari, was not a surprise to the people. “During the Civil war, some portions of the bridge were blown up with mines in order to stop the federal troops from crossing over and after the war a second bridge became imperative. But this man (Buhari) we brought him here for campaign and I told the people of the South East that this man would construct the second Niger Bridge and rebuild Enugu Airport. We did not believe it but he did it.”Ngige added, “We played bad politics in 2015 and in 2019 yet the APC government brought infrastructure to the South East like the Enugu-Port Harcourt Road, Enugu-Abakaliki Road and the Federal Secretariat. Nigerian Tribune gathered the construction of the Federal Secretariat Awka, was awarded to M/S COsco Investment Nigeria Limited on 9th December, 2011.
Source:Nigerian Tribune
May 24, 2023 18:52 UTC
May 29: Shelve your strike as mark of solidarity – Otti Inauguration committee appeals to Abia workers
Striking Abia State workers have been urged to drop their indefinite Industrial Action as a show of solidarity to the in-coming administration of Dr Alex Otti. The Alex Otti Inauguration Committee for May 29 transition ceremony made this appeal in Umuahia while addressing the media. According to the Coordinator, Alex Otti Inauguration Committee, Hon. He assured “Otti is going to be available to ndi Abia to work for them”. He disclosed that the Committee is adopting elaborate ceremony as the only Labour Party state in the country, adding, “There is not going to be a lavish expenditure.
Source:Nigerian Tribune
May 24, 2023 18:11 UTC
Forex turnover crashes by 47%, says report
The foreign exchange turnover of Naira against the United States of American dollar on the Investors & Exporters window fell by 47.08 per cent in April. This was disclosed in the monthly report of activities on the FMDQ which was released on Tuesday. Also, further exchange rate volatility increased marginally in April 2023 as the naira traded within an exchange rate range of $/N462.00 – $/N464.00 compared to $/N461.00 – $/N462.00 recorded in March 2023. The daily turnover for Monday stood at $106.84m with the exchange rate hitting an intraday trading high of N467 and a low of N460. The Macro Poverty Outlook for Nigeria partly read, “Macroeconomic stability has weakened amidst declining oil production, costly fuel subsidies, exchange rate distortions, and monetization of the fiscal deficit.
Source:Punch
May 24, 2023 16:02 UTC
Carmelo Anthony Announces Retirement After 19 Seasons in NBA
One of the most prolific scorers in NBA history, Carmelo Anthony, announced his retirement on Monday at the age of 38. In 2011, Anthony was traded to the New York Knicks, where he spent the next six seasons of his career. After leaving the Knicks, Anthony played for the Portland Trail Blazers, Oklahoma City Thunder, Houston Rockets, and Los Angeles Lakers. He is the 19th all-time leading scorer in NBA history, with 27,219 points to his name. He will be remembered as one of the best scorers in NBA history, dominating the court for many years.
Source:The Guardian
May 24, 2023 15:35 UTC