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FG Moves To Improve Nigeria’s Competitive Ranking

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12 years ago

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The Federal Government has
taken a major step to improve the country’s global competitiveness ranking with the appointment of Mr. Chika Mordi, as the new Chief Executive Officer, National Competitiveness Council of Nigeria (NCCN).
The council, which is being chaired by the Minister of Trade and Investment, Mr. Olusegun Aganga, has representatives from the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) and the Nigerian Economic Summit Group NESG), among others.
Aganga was quoted in a statement made available on Sunday that the council was key to improving the country’s global competitiveness ranking, adding that it would work closely with the private sector and the World Economic Forum to achieve the objective.
He said, “The National Competiveness Council was inaugurated by President Goodluck Jonathan some months ago as a private sector-led organisation. The idea of setting up the council is to help improve the competitiveness of Nigeria, which of course, will lead to increased productivity of our companies.
“The council will advocate initiatives in a number of areas, including matters that will affect the macro economy, infrastructure, capital availability, cost of doing business, skills innovation, investment and business climate and regulations. The idea is that in order for Nigeria to fully benefit from its competitive and comparative advantage, it is important that we become competitive like the rest of the world.”
The minister added that unless the country developed its huge resources, put the right skills and infrastructure in place, it would not be competitive.
Aganga noted that membership of the NCCN was drawn from both the public and private sectors, adding that the new CEO would drive the day-to-day activities of the council.
He said, “We have just announced the appointment of Mr. Chika Mordi as the new Chief Executive Officer of the National Competitiveness Council of Nigeria. As part of efforts to institutionalise this drive, the NCCN board has been building a strong executive team to deepen our impact.
“We have a few government ministers like me in the council, but largely, members have been drawn from the best in the corporate world in Nigeria as well as Nigerians in the Diaspora.”
After the event, the President of MAN, Chief Kola Jamodu, told journalists that there was a need to correctly report the ongoing positive developments in the country, adding that it would go a long way in improving its competitiveness ranking globally.

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Kenyan Runners Dominate Berlin Marathons

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22 hours 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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22 hours 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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22 hours 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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