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Amaechi Hails Skye Bank Over Investment In Transport Reforms

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The Rivers State Governor, Rt. Hon Chibuike Amaechi has commended the Skye Bank for the huge investment it has undertaken in the transport sector reforms in the state.
The governor, who was very much excited over transport infrastructure that Skye Bank has put in place to transform transportation in the state, said that the bank’s efforts so far has given challenge to the people of Rivers State who mostly depend on government patronage without investing.
Amaechi made the commendation while speaking at the second Rivers State Transport Summit recently with the theme “The Rivers State Transport Sector Reform; the Journey so far”,
According to him, “over 20 per cent success of the transport system reforms is from partnership and funding by Skye Bank Plc”.
He therefore urged private individuals to also key into the transport sector reforms in the state by investing in the sector, and as well appealed to the Skye Bank management to increase the funding of the scheme by providing more vehicles to meet up with the high demand of commuters.
Also, the wife of the governor, Dame Judith Amaechi, who also is the founder of Empowerment Support Initiative (ESI) in the paper she presented at the summit titled “ Emerging Role of Women in Commercial Transportation; prospects and challenges” pointed out that Lady Cabbies scheme she pioneered is one of the intervention programmes of her NGO, aimed at creating women participation in the transport sector to enable them generate regular income.
She said “the ESI Lady Cabbies is one of the foremost gender commercial transport co-operative group in Nigeria and is managed by ESI”.
Mrs Amaechi also pointed out that the scheme is a boost to the commercial transportation of the state, and in line with the transport reforms programme of the present administration, and that the scheme is also financed by the Skye Bank in partnership with ESI.
On his part, the Commissioner for Transport, Hon George Tolofari said the partnership with Skye Bank Plc has been rewarding, adding that they have been able to build new and modern bus shelters and lay-bys, as well as acquire over 106 buses, currently plying the roads, and over 200 taxis to ease transportation in the city.
Speaking earlier, the Executive Director, Risk Management and South – South operations of Skye Bank Plc, Mr Ibiye Ekonye has said that the Bank has invested over N3 billion on the transport scheme, adding that the bank will continue to partner with Rivers State Government.
He said the bank has introduced a new face of transportation in Port Harcourt; the Port Harcourt City Bus Service (PHCBS) which was launched on June 2nd 2008 to reduce the suffering of Port Harcourt dwellers and also create employment.
The Skye Bank risk management director described the bank as the financier of the transport sector reform in the paper he presented titled “Conceptualisation and the PPP strategy driving the transport sector reform”.
He said that the bank has evolved a reliable and efficient mass transit system in three phases’ medium term (bus), Marin in the medium term and rail for median and larger.

Corlins Walter

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Kenyan Runners Dominate Berlin Marathons

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Kenya made it a clean sweep at the Berlin Marathon with Sabastian Sawe winning the men’s race and Rosemary Wanjiru triumphing in the women’s.

Sawe finished in two hours, two minutes and 16 seconds to make it three wins in his first three marathons.

The 30-year-old, who was victorious at this year’s London Marathon, set a sizzling pace as he left the field behind and ran much of the race surrounded only by his pacesetters.

Japan’s Akasaki Akira came second after a powerful latter half of the race, finishing almost four minutes behind Sawe, while Ethiopia’s Chimdessa Debele followed in third.

“I did my best and I am happy for this performance,” said Sawe.

“I am so happy for this year. I felt well but you cannot change the weather. Next year will be better.”

Sawe had Kelvin Kiptum’s 2023 world record of 2:00:35 in his sights when he reached halfway in 1:00:12, but faded towards the end.

In the women’s race, Wanjiru sped away from the lead pack after 25 kilometers before finishing in 2:21:05.

Ethiopia’s Dera Dida followed three seconds behind Wanjiru, with Azmera Gebru, also of Ethiopia, coming third in 2:21:29.

Wanjiru’s time was 12 minutes slower than compatriot Ruth Chepng’etich’s world record of 2:09:56, which she set in Chicago in 2024.

 

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NIS Ends Decentralised Passport Production After 62 Years

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The Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) has officially ended passport production at multiple centres, transitioning to a single, centralised system for the first time in 62 years.
Minister of Interior, Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, made the disclosure during an inspection of the Nigeria’s new Centralised Passport Personalisation Centre at the NIS Headquarters in Abuja, last Thursday.
He stated that since the establishment of NIS in 1963, Nigeria had never operated a central passport production centre, until now, marking a major reform milestone.
“The project is 100 per cent ready. Nigeria can now be more productive and efficient in delivering passport services,” Tunji-Ojo said.
He explained that old machines could only produce 250 to 300 passports daily, but the new system had a capacity of 4,500 to 5,000 passports every day.
“With this, NIS can now meet daily demands within just four to five hours of operation,” he added, describing it as a game-changer for passport processing in Nigeria.
“We promised two-week delivery, and we’re now pushing for one week.
“Automation and optimisation are crucial for keeping this promise to Nigerians,” the minister said.
He noted that centralisation, in line with global standards, would improve uniformity and enhance the overall integrity of Nigerian travel documents worldwide.
Tunji-Ojo described the development as a step toward bringing services closer to Nigerians while driving a culture of efficiency and total passport system reform.
According to him, the centralised production system aligns with President Bola Tinubu’s reform agenda, boosting NIS capacity and changing the narrative for improved service delivery.
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FG To Roll Out Digital Public Infrastructure, Data Exchange, Next Year 

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The National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) has announced plans to roll out Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) and the Nigerian Data Exchange (NGDX) platforms across key sectors of the economy, starting in early 2026.
Director of E-Government and Digital Economy at NITDA, Dr. Salisu Kaka, made the disclosure in Abuja during a stakeholder review session of the DPI and NGDX drafts at the Digital Public Infrastructure Live Event.
The forum, themed “Advancing Nigeria’s Digital Public Infrastructure through Standards, Data Exchange and e-Government Transformation,” brought together regulators, state governments, and private sector stakeholders to harmonise inputs for building inclusive, secure, and interoperable systems for governance and service delivery.
According to Kaka, Nigeria already has several foundational elements in place, including national identity systems and digital payment platforms.
What remains is the establishment of the data exchange framework, which he said would be finalised by the end of 2025.
“Before the end of this year and by next year we will be fully ready with the foundational element, and we start dropping the use cases across sectors,” Kaka explained.
He stressed that the federal government recognises the autonomy of states urging them to align with national standards.
“If the states can model and reflect what happens at the national level, then we can have a 360-degree view of the whole data exchange across the country and drive all-of-government processes,” he added.
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