Nation
Lagos Charges MDAs On Procurement Alignment With Budget
The Lagos State Government has charged Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) to align their procurement plans with the 2023 budget provisions.
The State’s Head of Service, Mr Hakeem Muri-Okunola, gave the advice in Magodo during the opening ceremony of the 2023 Annual Public Procurement Clinic, organised by the Lagos State Public Procurement Agency (PPA).
Muri-Okunola, who was represented by the Permanent Secretary, Office of the Head of Service, Mrs Olasunkanmi Oyegbola, said officers of the MDAs should ensure that their procurement plans were properly developed and implemented.
According to him, properly developed and implemented procurement plans will ensure that the objectives envisioned in the approved budget are fully achieved.
He said the soundness of the procurement plan goes a long way in determining the success or failure of any budget, since the procurement plan served as the foundation on which the implementation of the budget rest.
According to him, the Babajide Sanwo-Olu’s administration is very passionate about delivering quality goods and services to every nook and cranny of the state.
“Therefore, all hands must be on deck to ensure that procurement plans of MDAs are properly developed to bring the vision of the state government, as contained in the year 2023 approved budget, to reality.
“To this end, Accounting Officers in all MDAs have important roles to play, as they must all embrace the need to faithfully implement the procurement plans of their MDAs.
“They must carry out the role assigned to them under the Lagos State Public Procurement Law to ensure that the public procurement system continues to work for the benefit of all”, he said.
The Head of Service commended the Lagos State Public Procurement Agency Governing Board and Management, urging them to keep up the good work they were doing in Lagos State.
He said the agency had redefined the procurement processes and the conduct of government businesses in the state.
Muri-Okunola said the agency had strengthened accountability and transparency and further enhanced value for public expenditure in government.
“We, therefore, cannot afford to relent on the gains that have been recorded in public procurement management in the state within the few years of the existence of the agency, even as we continue to strive to improve the knowledge, skills and competences of our procurement officers”, he said.
In his welcome address, the Director General, PPA, Mr Fatai Onafowote, said that during the three-day clinic, procurement plans of all MDAs of the state would be subjected to scrutiny and review by a panel of procurement specialists appointed by the agency.
Onafowote said MDAs whose procurement plans were found deficient would be required to effect corrections where necessary, while those that were found to be in order would be approved by the agency for implementation.
He said the reason why the
The Lagos State Government has disclosed that 26,592 public school students failed the 2024 West African Senior School Certificate Examination, raising alarm across the state’s education sector.
The state Commissioner for Basic and Secondary Education, Jamiu Alli-Balogun, during a ministerial press briefing yesterday in Alausa, Ikeja, said that “45.7 per cent of the 58,188 students from public schools who sat for the exams did not pass.”.
This failure rate comes despite the state government’s significant financial backing N1.577 billion was paid on behalf of the students to cover WAEC fees.
“Suffice to say that the sum of N1,577,794,000 only was paid by the state government as examination fees for 58,188 students who were captured for the year 2024 WASSCE,” Alli-Balogun announced.
In a bid to tighten accountability and avoid wastage, the Commissioner disclosed that biometric and image registration was carried out to accurately determine eligible students for government sponsorship for the 2025 WASSCE.
“The exercise successfully captured and registered 56,134 students as bona fide beneficiaries of the Lagos state government’s sponsorship for the examination,” he added.
However, the Lagos State Government rolled out a bold educational intervention – the Eko Learners’ Support Programme for WASSCE and NECO candidates – aimed at reversing the tide of academic failure in the state’s public schools.
Launched on January 14, 2025, the initiative is part of a broader commitment by the Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education to equip Lagos students with tools for success.
“This forward-thinking initiative was designed to support and empower young scholars in attestation of the ministry’s commitment to advancing interest and management of the educational system in Lagos State,” Alli-Balogun stated.
Ekiti State Government says it has vaccinated 226,429 eligible girls in the State against the Human Papilloma Virus, an infection believed to be a leading cause of cervical cancer.
The wife of the Ekiti State Governor, Dr Olayemi Oyebanji, said the HPV immunization exercise, which she flagged off in the State in May 2025 was a great success, noting that it reached targeted communities and protected children against cervical cancer.
The governor’s wife made the disclosure in Ado Ekiti yesterday during a one-day stakeholders’ sensitisation meeting on the introduction of Measles Rubella vaccines in Ekiti State.
She said, “The introduction of Measles Rubella Vaccines is a very crucial step towards protecting Ekiti children particularly the target age group of nine to 14 years from diseases.
“I urge all women in the State to regularly scan their breasts. This can be done with the aid of the Mammography machine which is available at Ekiti State University Teaching Hospital, Ado Ekiti”.
The state Commissioner for Health, Dr Oyebanji Filani, noted that the Measles Rubella vaccines would be rolled out nationally in October, 2025.
Filani said that the State was taking proactive steps to sensitise residents of the State before the date to ensure adequate awareness on the vaccines by citizens.
The Acting Ochimba of Ogida in Etche Local Government Area of Rivers State, Eze Ndudiri Azuatalam, says peace remains paramount in the socio-economic development of Etche land.
Eze Azuatalam, however, called on his people to embrace and eschew violence at all times.
The Onwa Nagbara Oha made the call during the official commissioning of his palace at Ogida recently.
The epoch-making ceremony held at his palace saw the attendance of members of the Etche Supreme Council of Traditional Rulers and Chiefs; the academia; the political class; the clergy ; women as well relevant stakeholders within and outside Etche land.
The Ngbaragida of Azuafor re-emphasised the essence of peace and social harmony which he said open the window for meaningful development to take place.
He also sought the support and collaboration of his people to achieve the desired goals of development, progress and prosperity.
He noted that the peace being witnessed in the area must be sustained through collective effort, saying, contributions and sacrifices need to be made by all concerned to live in peace.
Eze Azuatalam said his aim towards building a better Ogida cannot be compromised as he and his people have no other place called home.
The Acting Ochimba said as part of efforts to build a better Ogida, he has instituted a number of development projects, adding that some of his kinsmen have been empowered through his hard-earned money and resources, saying, he will continue to assist the less- privileged around him.
He reaffirmed his desire to impact positively on the lives of his people as the engagement of the youths will help to reduce social vices in the area.
He thanked members of the Etche Supreme Council of Traditional Rulers and Chiefs for honouring his invitation.
He specifically thanked the Onyi Ishi Etche and Ochie of Etcheland, His Eminence E mmanuel Opurum for leading Etche on the path of prosperity, and described the revered King as a role model to the younger generation.
He said his fatherly role has been a source of hope and inspiration to his subjects.
The palace was unveiled by His Eminence with the assistance of Ochimba of Abara, Eze Jonah Nwala and other prominent Etche traditional rulers and chiefs while the Onyi Ishi Etche was represented by Eze Ken Nwala, Onyi Ishi Agwuru, Ulakwo/ Umuselem Clan.
The Onyi Ishi Etche urged other prominent sons of Etche to emulate the kind gesture of Eze Ndudiri Azuatalam as his magnanimity is being seen and appreciated by his people.
Eze Azuatalam also applauded the efforts of Prof Mekuri Ndimele, former Vice Chancellor of the Ignatius Ajuru University of Education in the growth of Etche land.
According to him, during Ndimele’ s tenure, a lot of development projects were sited at the institution, including the development of Etcheland and empowerment of Etche people.