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Centre Accredits 1,000 Consultants In Eight Years – DG

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Director-General, Centre for Management Development (CMD), Dr Kabir Kabo, says the centre has accredited over 1,000 management consultants in eight years to promote quality in management training in the country.
CMD, a parastatal agency of the Ministry of Budget and National Planning, was established to drive the vision, plans and training programmes of Federal Government.
Kabo disclosed at a valedictory news conference in Abuja that the centre had accredited the consultants and 200 firms by giving them licences to practise for five years renewable period.
The goal of the accreditation is to enhance quality and ensure that clients get value for their money.
The exercise is process-driven, with steps to verify that the services offered by various training outfits meet, or if possible, exceed customer expectations.
It is also aimed at providing appropriate capacity to drive national growth and development.
The director-general said the centre had trained over 4,000 participants in the civil service, particularly from the office of Head of Service of the Federation.
Kano, whose eight-year tenure of office at the centre would end on Feb. 15, said the centre had recorded modest achievements on e-learning and online study.
“We have conducted impact assessment for over 2,000 participants; we have conducted Needs Assessment Survey for the computation of state Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
“ We have developed both strategic and implementation for the centre as regulatory body. We regulate management consultants and firms across the country.
“CMD operates like CBN as it relates to commercial banks,’’ he said.
In addition, the director-general said that the centre sent over 100 staff to overseas training to Ghana, China, Japan, UK, USA, India, Kenya, Dubai, Australia, South Korea, Singapore and Ethiopia.
Usman said that the centre also sent 48 staff on Post Graduate programmes both locally and abroad.
“We established fully six zonal offices in Uyo, Ibadan, Owerri, Kano, Gombe and Makurdi; we have also recruited 200 staff.
“We have trained over 300 staff as certified management consultants,’’ he said.
According to him, the centre bought befitting office in Abuja at N250 million which is worth N1.3 billion now.
He further said that the centre regained its corporate headquarters land in Abuja and also set up Public Private Partnership (PPP) process to build it.
“We have completed construction of digital centre in Lagos office and ensured its furnishings and also increased the number of the departments from five to eight.
“We have renovated training, library and administrative complex and ensured that Air conditioners were provided to create conductive atmosphere for learning.’’
Usman, however, thanked the media for making CMD visible to the needs of skilled manpower in the country.
CMD is the apex management regulatory agency responsible for the country’s human and capital development.

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Kenyan Runners Dominate Berlin Marathons

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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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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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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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