The Federal Government has signed a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to remove tariffs on selected products.

Rep. Sam Onuigbo a member of the Governing Board of the North-East Development Commission, disclosed this in an interview with newsmen in Abuja on Tuesday.

Onuigbo said that the agreement signed in Abu Dhabi from Jan. 11 to 15, marked a major breakthrough for Nigeria-UAE economic relations.

NAN reports that Onuigbo, a member of the House of Representatives of Nigeria who represented Ikwuano/Umuahia North and South Federal Constituency, served as Chairman, Committee of Climate Change during the 8th Assembly.

“Under the CEPA signed in January 2026, UAE will eliminate tariffs on 7,315 Nigerian products. This includes immediate duty-free access for 2,805 products (38.3 per cent).

” The rest will phase out over three to five years, covering agricultural and industrial goods.

“Similarly, under the Nigeria/UAE CEPA also signed in January 2026, Nigeria has eliminated tariffs on 6,243 products imported from UAE. That agreement creates these wonderful opportunities between Nigerians and the Emirates,” he said.

Onuigbo said that the agreement was massive as it would facilitate an environment for business owners in Nigeria.

He said the pact would enable verified Nigerian business owners to establish offices in UAE, operate for up to three months and return home with expanded commercial networks.

He commended President Bola Tinubu for the agreement, saying it aimed at repositioning the country while also creating an enabling environment for employment opportunities.

He reaffirmed Nigeria’s readiness for business, noting that the country also unveiled its carbon market framework policy to attract climate-focused investments

”Nigeria is a nation of nearly 250 million people and has had, over the years, the challenge of enough energy or power to be able to attain its economic and industrialisation targets.

“And because of that, Nigeria has been engaging in different activities, for instance, the Energy Transition Plan, enactment of the Climate Change Act, and the Electricity Act which the President signed barely eight days after he assumed office in 2023.

“This shows the importance of addressing the energy gap having enough energy. Electricity is a fundamental point to developing industrially which Nigeria deems necessary,” he said.

Onuigbo lauded Nigeria’s participation at the Abu Dhabi summit saying that the summit would strengthen global economic opportunity for people.

He added that the President’s collaboration would address the challenges and devastating effects of climate change as well as boost economic growth in 2026

The Commissioner for Health and Human Services, Dr. Paul Ogwuche, disclosed this during a press conference to mark the 2026 World Neglected Tropical Diseases Day, organised in collaboration with Sightsavers and themed “Unite, Act, Eliminate Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs).”

Represented by the Permanent Secretary of the ministry, Dr. Beatrice Tsavmbu, the commissioner announced the successful elimination of blinding trachoma in Gwer East, Gwer West and Ukum Local Government Areas, attributing the feat to years of targeted interventions, strong community participation and sustained implementation of the state’s NTDs Control and Elimination Programme.

“I am proud to announce the elimination of blinding trachoma in three of our most affected areas—Gwer East, Gwer West and Ukum. No longer will these communities face the blindness that trachoma has long inflicted,” she said.

However, Dr. Tsavmbu noted that Benue State remains highly endemic for several NTDs, with all 23 local government areas experiencing overlapping disease burdens. She listed the diseases to include onchocerciasis (river blindness), lymphatic filariasis (elephantiasis), schistosomiasis (bilharziasis), soil-transmitted helminth infections (intestinal worms), leprosy, buruli ulcer and snakebite envenoming.

“These conditions collectively put over six million people in Benue State at risk,” she stated.

She revealed that the state had treated an average of more than five million people over the past five years through preventive chemotherapy, morbidity management and disability prevention, supported by Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) initiatives and integrated vector control.

Dr. Tsavmbu also announced a major breakthrough in the fight against river blindness, noting that onchocerciasis endemicity in the state had been reclassified from ongoing transmission to suspected interruption of transmission.

On lymphatic filariasis, she disclosed that 1,064 hydrocele cases had been successfully managed through free surgeries, while 442 lymphoedema patients received free management kits to prevent disease progression. She added that 44 trachoma trichiasis cases were also treated through free surgical interventions.

According to her, Ukum, Logo and Konshisha LGAs have passed Transmission Assessment Survey 1 for lymphatic filariasis, allowing for the cessation of mass drug administration in those areas. In addition, seven other LGAs—Ado, Apa, Kwande, Obi, Ohimini, Oju and Tarka—successfully passed epidemiological monitoring surveys in 2025.

She attributed the progress recorded to strong inter-sectoral collaboration involving agencies such as the Benue Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Agency (BERWASSA), the State Universal Basic Education Board, the Ministry of Education, civil society organisations and security agencies. She also cited the inauguration of the State NTDs Advisory Committee and improvements in supply chain and logistics management systems.

In a related remark, Prof. Edward Omudu of the Department of Biological Sciences, Moses Orshio Adasu University, Makurdi, revealed that the National Universities Commission had recently approved Nigerian universities to offer degree programmes in Water, Sanitation and Health, describing the move as a critical step toward strengthening disease prevention and public health capacity in the country.