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ITF To Assist Seafarers Secure Jobs On Foreign Vessels

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5 years ago

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The International Transport Workers Federation (ITF) has promised to assist Nigerian seafarers in securing employment on foreign vessels.
The body said the efforts would enable Nigerian seafarers work beyond the local Cabotage vessels.
ITF made this known in a statement signed by the Africa Regional Secretary, ITF, Muhammed Safiyanu, during his visit to Lagos, recently.
Safiyanu expressed concern over the shortfall in the number of Nigerian seafarers in global shipping trade due to absence of international certification.
He said ITF has commenced a maritime affiliate support programme to train Nigerian seafarers and expand ITF maritime agreement in the country.
This, he said, would be done in collaboration with the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA).
According to him, the programme, which is the first of its kind in the world, would take off in the country and run for 15 months.
“There is a huge gap in Nigerian seafarers’ capacity to work in global vessels and the problem is because they do not have international certification that will give them the opportunity to work in international vessels. That is why they are limited to the local cabotage trade.
“What we are trying to do is to bring a project that we call the Maritime Affiliate Support. The project, which is going to take 15 months, is centred on two cardinal points. One is to see how we can expand the ITF maritime agreement in Nigeria, secondly is to offer some assistance in terms of training so that Nigerian seafarers can actually be operating beyond the cabotage trade that we have in Nigeria.
“From the records that we have globally, we understand that we have a shortfall of Nigerian seafarers globally, and the only way we can change that is to enhance  collaboration with NIMASA so that we can have an understanding where Nigerian seafarers can be trained so that they can have global opportunities instead of only operating in the Cabotage trade.
“The project is designed to capture two affiliates in Nigeria; Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria, MWUN and the Merchant Navy Senior Staff Association. We have agreed to form a small working group to make sure that the strategy we have designed is fruitful.
“Our focus at the end is to make sure that you have an additional membership density that would project you more so that you can have an effective impact on the work you are doing.
“Next is to institutionalise dockworkers and seafarers recreation centres, which we are trying to build for you”, he said.

 

By: Chinedu Wosu

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Kenyan Runners Dominate Berlin Marathons

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1 day 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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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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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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