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Envoy Wants Review Of Nigeria,China Trade Imbalance

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14 years ago

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Nigeria’s Ambassador to China, Aminu Wali said on Thursday that Nigeria would have to increase its exports to China as the trade balance was in the ratio of 7:1 in favour of the Asian country.

“Chinese exports to Nigeria stood at seven billion dollars in 2010, while Nigeria exported goods worth a little less than one billion dollars to China during the period.”

Wali, who spoke with a group of Nigerian journalists in Beijing, noted that Chinese businessmen and government were anxious to buy goods from Nigeria.

“Some Nigerian businessmen had approached us for information on doing business in China and we always encouraged them to look more in the areas of solid minerals and agricultural produce.

“Nigeria is currently China’s second biggest trading partner in Africa after South Africa, but we can be number one in two to three years.

“Though China is making inroads in the Nigerian oil sector, I am more concerned with the solid minerals and agricultural produce.”

Wali observed that China had been able to remove 300 million of its citizens from living below the poverty level in the last 30 years, adding that Nigeria could adapt the Asian country’s model.

Reports said that China still has 150 million of its 1.3 billion population living below poverty level, but that indications on ground show that they would soon be prosperous.

“There are Chinese that are still poor but they have the basic necessities of life including electricity, pipe borne water and food on their table.

On the influx of inferior goods into Nigeria from China, Wali said that dubious Nigerian businessmen were largely to blame.

He noted that Chinese goods were meeting the standard in the U.S., the EU and other developed nations but remained sub-standard in Nigeria because Nigerian importers wanted maximum profit.

He, however, said that the Standard Organisation of Nigeria (SON) and its Chinese counterpart had been meeting over the issue and would soon sign an agreement that would ensure that Chinese exports to Nigeria were inspected and certified before being allowed into Nigeria.

Wali noted that the enabling environment for the setting up of industries in Nigeria was also being addressed.

According to the ambassador, no Chinese industrialist will be too eager to move his factory to Nigeria for now because of unstable electricity supply.

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Kenyan Runners Dominate Berlin Marathons

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24 hours 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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