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Nigeria Hosts 63 Countries On Innovative Financing For Dev

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12 years ago

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Nigeria will host the 12th Plenary of the group of 63 member countries of innovative financing for development in Abuja.
This is contained in a statement issued in Abuja last Wednesday by the Head of Information Unit, National Planning Commission (NPC), Mr Salisu Haiba.
Haiba said the presidency of the leading group resided in the commission, which has the Minister as a coordinating/presiding chairman of the Group for the tenure regime which ended in December 2013.
He recalled that through the commission, Nigeria was elected presidency of the leading group at the end of the 11th plenary held in Helsinki, Finland Republic on Feb. 6, 2013, adding that the country spent 10 months on the post.
Haiba said the 12th plenary to be hosted by Nigeria, was in line with the tradition of the group, that the holder of the Presidency should host the plenary to signify the end of its tenure.
He quoted the Supervising Minister of NPC, Alhaji Bashir Yuguda, as explaining that the aim of the group was to raise funds to fill the widening gap between the financial mobilisation toward the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals.
Yuguda said the group also aimed to establish predictable and stable mechanisms for raising funds for development to complement official development assistance.
`He said the group sought to promote the implementation and definition of innovative financing mechanisms around the world.
He recalled that the group was founded in 2006 as a platform with 63 member countries at differing levels of development alongside international organisations and No- Governmental Organisations.
Explaining Nigerian presidency’s achievements, Yuguda said the Federal Government had been promoting globally the instrumentality of innovative financing for development in line with the transformation agenda and the Nigeria Vision 20:2020.
He said that Nigeria undertook to pursue refocusing of the group to strongly influence the post 2015 MDGs activities of the UN and other regional or economic blocs.
“It was also along this line, the group organised two high level side events on innovative financing at TICAD V in Japan in June 2013, as well as at the 68th UN General Assembly in New York in September last year.
“Other activities recorded under Nigeria’s Presidency, according to him, include the production of a draft resolution on innovative financing which was presented to the 68th UN General Assembly,” the minister said.
According to him, although the resolution is yet to be adopted as presented, the subsequent adoption of a resolution on financing for development by the UN, mentioning innovative financing is therefore a concrete outcome of Nigeria’s presidency.
He enumerated some of the Nigeria’s innovative financing mechanisms adopted to include; the air ticket tax and effective management of aid under a newly reviewed Official Development Assistance policy.
According to him, these are in line with Government’s Transformation Agenda and the Nigeria’s Vision 20:2020.

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Kenyan Runners Dominate Berlin Marathons

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6 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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6 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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6 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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