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… Releases 45,000 Tonnes Of Grains For Public Sale

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15 years ago

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The Federal Government has released 45,000 tonnes of assorted grains, from the National Strategic Food Reserve (NSFR); to the general public, to cushion the effect of high prices of food commodities in the Country. The grains are paddy rice, garri, millet, maize and sorghum.

Prof  Sheik Ahmed Abdallah, Minister of Agriculture while flagging off the occasion, said it was meant to ease the high prices of food stuffs in the country, adding that President Goodluck Jonathan had directed that the grains be sold at subsidised prices. He said that 15,000 tonnes of assorted grains had been approved, as donation, to Niger and Chad Republics, to fight hunger in the two countries, as requested by the ECOWAS Committee of Ministers.

According to Abdallah, the commodities were to be sold at 30 per cent subsidy as follows; 50 kg of maize N1, 855 or N37, 100 per  tonne, sorghum N 33,600 per tonne and N1, 680 per 50kg bag, 50 kg of millet, N1, 890 or N37, 800 per tonne while 20 kg of gari would go for N1,050 or N42, 100 per tonne while paddy rice goes for N42, 000 per tonne and per 50 kg of the commodity would be sold at N2, 100

He said similar exercise would be carried out in eight other states where the food reserve silos were located; pointing out that some allocations had been made for sale to some stakeholders and various groups in the states. Abdallah expressed the hope that state governments would complement the efforts of federal government by releasing food items from their buffer stock for effective realisation of the aims and objectives of the programme.

Mallam Ahmed Gafar, a beneficiary commended the government for the release of the grains and called on the officials, charged with the responsibility of executing the programme to shun corruption. Another beneficiary, Mrs Funke Akinloye noted that the effort would go a long way in ensuring that many household, especially the low income earners have easy access to varieties of grains. She urged government to ensure proper monitoring of the programme to avoid it being hijacked by the middle men.

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Kenyan Runners Dominate Berlin Marathons

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2 days ago

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September 22, 2025

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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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2 days ago

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September 22, 2025

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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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2 days ago

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September 22, 2025

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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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