FCT

The Minister of Education, Prof. Ruqayyatu Rufa’i, has
called on ECOWAS to support efforts at improving education in Africa.

This is contained in a statement issued by Mr Aliyu Othman,
the Special Assistant (Media) to the Minister, in Abuja on Tuesday.

The statement said that Rufa’I made this known at the
opening of the conference of ECOWAS Ministers of Education.

She noted that it was the desire of the Conference of Ministers
of Education of the African Union that education should receive a boost in line
with the AU Second Decade of Education Action Plan 2006-2015.

The minister called on the ECOWAS Ministers of Education to
popularise the tertiary education subsector as a means of developing the skills
required for the improvement in technological, health and research.

Gombe

The Gombe State Government has distributed 60 tonns of
improved seeds free to farmers to boost agricultural production in the state.

The state Commissioner for Agriculture, Alhaji Dahiru
Buba-Biri, made this known in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria
(NAN) in Gombe on Tuesday.

“Apart from the support the Federal government gave to the
Growth Enhancement Scheme, the governor purchased 60 tonnes of improved seeds
which we distributed at highly subsidised rate,’’ he said.

Buba-Biri said the open pollinated maize was purchased from
Sebore Farms in Adamawa and distributed to farmers, adding that it collaborated
with the federal Government to provide improved seeds for cotton farmers.

“Collaboration is also being brokered by the State, Federal
Government and the private sector to give support to textiles as well as
exporters so that overall market for cotton will be open.

Jigawa

No fewer than seven persons were killed, while 12 others
were injured in floods that ravaged some communities in Kafin-Hausa Local
Government Area of Jigawa.

Alhaji Ahmad Zango, the Deputy Chairman of the local
government, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Tuesday in Kafin-Hausa
that 700 houses and many hectares of farmland were also destroyed by the flood.

Zango said that the casualties were recorded at various
collapsed buildings in the communities.

“Dozens of residential homes were destroyed by flood which
killed seven persons and injured 12 others.

“Farm produce, such as rice, maize, millet, sesame seeds and
beans, were also destroyed,” Zango added.

Jos

Governor  Jonah Jang
of Plateau has charged political appointees in the state to deliver their wards
in the October 6 bye-election to the People Democratic Party (PDP) candidates
or resign.

The governor said this at a campaign rally for the Plateau
North senatorial as well as the house of assembly seats in Barkin Ladi on
Tuesday.

Our correspondent recalled that the seat became vacant
following the demise of Sen. Gyang Dantong and Mr Gyang Fulani, the majority
leader of the assembly.

“My commissioners, Special Advisers and Council Caretaker
Chairmen in the Plateau North senatorial district must ensure that they deliver
their wards in this bye-election or tender their resignation letters.

The governor said that the bye-election was so crucial to
PDP and would not tolerate any laxity on the part of the appointees.

Kano

The Federal Government has started the training of farmers
in Kano State to minimise the amount of dioxin emission into the atmosphere
from open burning sources.

Alhaji Mohamed Maleh, the project manager of Less Burnt for
Clean Earth, a project of the Federal Ministry of Environment, announced this
on Tuesday at a training workshop for farmers in the state.

Our correspondent reports that dioxins are by-products of
various industrial processes and are commonly regarded as highly toxic
compounds that are environmental pollutants.

Our source reports that the three-day training workshop on
alternative approach to open burning of agricultural residue/waste was
organised by the ministry in collaboration with UNDP and Global Environment
Facility.

Kebbi

The International Fund for Agricultural Development
(IFAD)-supported Community Based Agricultural and Rural Development programme
(CBARDP) has reached 1.3 million rural dwellers in Kebbi, Katsina and Zamfara
States, an official said.

Ms Atsuko Toda, the IFAD country representative, made the
statement on Tuesday in Birnin Kebbi while addressing the wrap-up programme of
the FGN/IFAD supervision mission to the states.

She said 550,580 women, representing 41.5 per cent,
benefitted from the programme in the states.

She said 1,815 rural community groups also benefitted from
the programme while 543 community infrastructure were provided.

Toda said there was 200 per cent increase in rice
production, sorghum, recorded 94 per cent, while millet rose by 279 per cent.

Kogi

Kogi Deputy Governor Yomi Awoniyi says the State Government
will acquire and distribute mobile toilets for the use of the 12,000 displaced
persons in the state.

This is contained in a statement by Mr Michael Abu, his
Press Secretary in Lokoja on Tuesday.

According to the statement, the state is worried about the
possibilities of an outbreak of epidemics in the flood victims’ camps.

The statement stated that the state Ministry of Health had
been empowered to prevent the outbreak of epidemics in the state, added that
the mobile toilets was part of measures to keep the camp clean from diseases.

It expressed the commitment of the State Government toward
tackling the effects of devastation caused by the floods in the state.

Kwara

The Federal Government will engage 1,500 workers through the
Integrated Irrigation Dam Project in Eyekonrin-Araromi, Kwara, an official has
said.

Alhaji Abubakar Aduagba, the Managing Director of the Lower
Niger River Basin Authority, Ilorin, announced this in Eyekonrin, Asa Local
Government Area during the National Good Governance Tour to the project on
Tuesday.

Aduagba explained that the construction of the dam started
in 2009 as constituency project of Mr Ayo Adeseun, a member of House of
Representatives, which was funded by the Federal Ministry of Water Resources.

According to him, the 1.3 cubic metre dam will also provide
5,000 gallons of water per day for the people living in the area.

He also said that the National Directorate of Employment
(NDE) took advantage of the project to build structure in the area to train
graduates in farming and fishing.

Lagos

The president of the National Association of Nigerian
Traders (NANTS), Mr Ken Ukaoha, on Tuesday commended the Federal Government for
banning the importation of poultry products.

Ukaoha told our correspondent in Lagos that the ban had encouraged
the production and consumption of local breeds.

He said that there was remarkable success in wealth creation
for poultry farmers and those of several other items on the prohibition list.

He said through that policy more farmers had been productively
engaged.

Ukaoha stressed that with the increasing population in the
country, government should popularise local products.

The president, however, noted that the ban was not the best
way to achieve sustainability.

Mina

The management of Niger Tornadoes FC of Minna says it will
recruit a new technical adviser following the suspension of its technical
adviser, Mr Justine Tenge.

This is contained in a statement signed by Mr Suleiman Isah,
the club’s Media Officer, in Minna on Tuesday.

According to the statement, the indefinite suspension of
Tenge is still effective while the club is following the due process in
recruiting a new adviser.

The statement stated that 12 applications had been received,
noting that a committee would scrutinise and shortlist the successful
applicants for interview.

He said the club took the step because the national league
would start on October 28 and the new adviser would be expected to recruit and
groom players.

Nassawa

The Living Faith Church of Nigeria has donated a modern police
station worth N50 million to the Police Command in Nasarawa State.

The station is at Auta-Baleifi community, Karu Local
Government Area, Nasarawa State.

During the inauguration of the station on Tuesday, the
President of the church, Bishop David Oyedepo, said the gesture would assist
the police in fighting crime.

Oyedepo said “considering the prevailing security situation
in the country, the church thought it wise to assist the police in providing an
enabling environment for them to tackle crime and criminality bedeviling our
society.”

Represented by the Vice President of the church, Bishop
David Abiyoye, Oyedepo said the church donated the facility as part of its
contribution to national development and enhancement of security.

Ondo

Sen. Bola Ahmed Tinubu said on Tuesday that an ACN
government would cater more for the people of Ondo State if the party wins the
October 20 governorship election.

Tinubu made the promise in Ikare Akoko at the Mega Rally of
Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) for the poll.

He told the crowd that the wind of change blowing across the
South- West zone would come to the state “if ACN wins the governorship”
election.

Tinubu said the regional integration of the zone would not
be complete without Ondo State and called on the people to vote for the ACN
candidate, Chief Rotimi Akeredolu, to be part of that development.

He promised that the tomato factory in Ikare would be
sustained and made to produce at optimum capacity.

Sokoto

Most Rev. Hassan Kukah, the Bishop, Catholic Diocese of Sokoto
State, says the military administrations are responsible for the lack of
meaningful development in Nigeria.

Kukah told our correspondent in Sokoto on Tuesday that the
military only succeeded in destroying the solid foundation of the nation’s
democracy.

He said that other countries that had similar military
incursions in leadership had a different experience.

“But in our own case the greed of the military led to their
intervention which destroyed the foundation laid by the nation’s founding
fathers,’’ he said.

He explained that the Nigeria military had no capacity to
provide basic infrastructure to the governed for all the years they were in
power.

He said, “the greed of the military that led to the myriad
of military coups destroyed even the foundation of the military itself and this
truncated democracy in Nigeria.’’

Yola

Agricultural inputs worth more than N7 million were on
Tuesday in Yola distributed to 27 farmers’ groups from nine local government
areas of Adamawa.

Mr Chris Maxwell, the Project Manager of the Agricultural
Development Project ADP in Adamawa, gave the figure during the distribution of
the items.

Maxwell said that the inputs distributed were under the
community-based agriculture and rural development project.

He said, “Last year under the programme assorted
agricultural inputs worth N15 million were distributed, and similarly this
year, items worth more than N7 million will be distributed to farmers.