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258 Youths Benefit From Randolph Brown Empowerment Programme

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6 years ago

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A total of  258 youths from the Degema/Bonny Federal Constituency have benefited from the first phase of the Randolph Brown Training and Empowerment programme in Rivers State.

A breakdown of the number shows that 84 of the youths were trained in catering, 86 in Fashion and Designing, 38 in Driving, and 21 in Cobbling.

Others are: 4(Bead Making)12 (Entrepreneurship), 8(Cosmetology), while 5 were trained in Makeup.

Making this known at the graduation ceremony of the programme, the member representing the Constituency of the House of Representa-tives, Hon. Randolph Brown, said the initiative was part of his quest to impact on members of his constituency through laudable projects.

According to Hon. Brown, for this purpose, a committee of ten eminent persons from the constituency headed by him set the programme in motion in February 2018, with the sole purpose of empowering the less-privileged in the area in chosen fields of endeavour.

He explained that he opted for manpower development because it was more impactful in terms of execution and lucrativeness.

“I decided to embark on human capital development by empowering youths with the technical know-how to better their future, instead of embarking on projects that may not be completed before my tenure is over “, he said.

Beyond this, he noted that in the face of lack of fund for Federal Capital projects, “there is hunger in the land, and people need to genuinely survive.”

While charging the graduands to “go and conquer the world, because there is money in everything”, Brown warned that any of them who misuses the opportunity given to them may not have another opportunity.

Highlights of the occasion was handing over of starter packs for those in such fields as catering, fashion and designing, cobbling, etc. Graduants in driving were given N50,000 each, while the amount for acquiring drivers’ licences was fully paid for.

There was also cultural and drama displays by graduants, all of which took place at Delta Hotel, Port-Harcourt.

The training for the programme took place at Udis Vocational Institute, Oyigbo.

 

Beauty David-West

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Kenyan Runners Dominate Berlin Marathons

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2 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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2 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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2 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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