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Nigeria, Spain’s Trade Hits €7.6bn

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11 years ago

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The Spanish Ambassador
to Nigeria, Mr Alfonso Barnuevo, has said the volume of trade between Nigeria and Spain increased to 7.8 billion Euro in 2013 from 7 billion Euro in 2012.
Barnuevo said this recently in Abuja at a media briefing on the upcoming ninth Spanish Cultural week.
“We are one of the best clients of Nigeria and 90 per cent of the gas used in Spain come from Nigeria and 30 per cent of the oil used in Spain come from your country (Nigeria).
“Increasingly there are more Spanish companies interested in Nigeria in the fields of engineering, construction, oil sector and food.
“I am sure the presence of these companies would be consolidated in the years to come,’’ he said.
Barnuevo said Spain, the world’s 13th largest economy and E.U’s fifth biggest economy in terms of Gross Domestic Product (GDP), was the third largest EU trading partner to Nigeria in the past three years.
He described the economic change that had occurred in Spain in the last 30 years as enormous.
According to him, in the 1980s Spain was a donor-dependent country, but today it is the 6th largest donor to the UN system.
He said between 2004 and 2011, Spain committed 500 million dollars to promote gender equality, water and conflict resolution around the world through multilateral development organisations.
The Cultural Adviser, Spanish Embassy Abuja, Ms Eva Barta, also told our source  that one of the highlights of the cultural week would be the award ceremony for visual arts.
“This year we had about 80 entries and 32 have been shortlisted for the final selection and exhibition,’’ she said.
Barta said in keeping with tradition of previous years, the winner of the arts competition would receive a sponsored trip to Spain with visits to major arts sites and museums.
The prize for the runners-up and the second runners-up is a cash prize of N75,000 and N50,000, respectively, she said.
The Deputy Head of Mission of the embassy, Mr Guillaume Monfort, said the week would also feature Flamenco performance by Anabel Veloso Dance Company.
The Jos Repertory Theatre will also perform a Spanish drama entitled “The Bond of Interest’’.

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Kenyan Runners Dominate Berlin Marathons

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1 day 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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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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1 day 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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