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Edo/Delta Customs Step-Up N156m Crude Barrels … Post N30bn Revenue

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The Edo/Delta States Customs Command of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) with guided modalities put in place has generated a total of N30,638,073,795.75 as revenue from January to August 2023.
It also remitted same into the Federal Government treasure, and processed crude oil export amounting to 156,836,264 barrels and  268,319.522 metric tonnes of Liquified  Petroleum Gas (LPG) for the first eight months of the year.
Comptroller Babatunde Olomu disclosed this at a press briefing recently, while showcasing the activities of his Command, where he also said N138,587,468 was recovered through issuance of demand notice.
Olomu, the Command’s helmsman,  described the revenue collection feat as outstanding, saying it was achieved in the face of numerous challenges, including low draft and near collapse of the Warri channel, low trade influx, swings in transaction rate, and the unstable economic environment.
He also attributed the successes recorded to  leakage prevention, zero compromise for duty evasion and due diligence in the face of low volume of trade.
Olomu also sad the Command sniffed out some offending items as seizures, with a duty paid value of N331,181,600.
The seizures comprised bales of used clothes, rice, vegetable oil, used fridges, red wines, tomato paste and sacks of cannabis.
On excise duty collection, he disclosed a collection of N4,507,700,028 from factories engaged in production of excisable products manufactured by Guinness Nigeria PLC, Coca-Cola and 7up Bottling Company and others.
”The Command has never relented in its strive to make sure it hits and surpasses its target against all odds; low draft and near collapse of the Warri channel, low trade influx, swings in transaction rate and the unstable economic environment.
“The Command had been able to make outstanding revenue input into the Federation Account within the period under review, that is January to August 2023.
“This was made possible through leakage prevention, zero compromise for duty evasion, and due diligence in this period of low volume of trade influx into the port, as well as the cooperation of our stakeholders”.

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Kenyan Runners Dominate Berlin Marathons

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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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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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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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