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Electricity Market Records Over N1.4trn Shortfall – DISCOs

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Electricity Distribution Companies (DISCOs) say the non- review of the Multi-Year Tarrif Order (MYTO), since February 2016 had resulted in the accumulation of over N1.4trillion shortfall in the nation’s electricity market.
The Executive Secretary, Research and Documentation, Association of Nigerian Electricity Distributors (ANED), Mr Sunny Oduntan, made the disclosure at a media briefing in Abuja, yesterday.
He said the regulator, Nigeria Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), carried out a minor review of the tarriff on Feb. 4, 2016.
Oduntan said :”In the MYTO, there is a requirement for what is called minor review of the tarrif.
“That should happen every six month, it may interest you to know that the current tariff that we have, came on board on the February 4, 2016, and there has never been a single minor review,” he said.
According to him, the minor review would have to consider the power generation level in the country, inflation, foreign exchange, lending rate and other index.
He said anything short of a six monthly review period for the sector would not be ideal, adding that records showed over N1.4 trillion had been accumulated as shortfall in the value chain as a result of non review of tariff since February 2016.
Oduntan explained that on capital investment made by the DISCOs, that only a capital expenditure of N45 billion were to be spent by the 11 DisCos annually.
“In every tariff computation, there is allowance for capital expenditure.
“When they say tariff, inside it, they work out a lot of things including how much you can use for capital expenditure.
“ That CAPEX, you cannot spend outside of it, if you do, you cannot recover it,” he said.
According to Oduntan, the current tariff gives each DISCOs capital expenditure of N5.5billion per annum, that is N45 billion for all the DISCOs for CAPEX, and that thus far, no DisCos had such an amount on their table to spend, since they had not done 100 per cent collection.
“And even with the 100 per cent collection that money is not enough to deal with the DISCOs capital expenditure.
“While TCN on the order hand has maximum capital investment fund of N50billion to spend yearly, with that heavy CAPEX, TCN has not been able to solve their transmission challenges.’’

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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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