Thursday, May 17, 2018
Video - Nigeria Trade Minister Says Corruption Fight a 'Top Priority'
Nigeria Industry, Trade and Investment Minister Okechukw Enelamah discusses investment opportunities and efforts to reduce corruption in his country. He speaks with Bloomberg's Shery Ahn and David Westin on "Bloomberg Markets: Balance of Power."
Wednesday, May 16, 2018
Young Nigerians turning to drugs
A growing number of young Nigerians are addicted to drugs, officials and police say, turning to cheap narcotics like codeine, tramadol, and other chemical substances in search of a high.
The government this month have banned the production of codeine-based cough syrup and, in the wake of a recent BBC investigation, temporarily shuttered three pharmaceutical firms for allegedly failing to cooperate with federal inspectors.
Now, drug-reform policy advocates, such as RISE Nigeria's Adeolu Ogunrombi, fear the problem will worsen and are pushing authorities to be more proactive about tackling corruption and closing loopholes they say still exist in the public health system.
"There is still a huge demand, and a criminal market is going to spring up to meet the needs of the users who are in need of the substances", he said. "We don't even consider that someone who is dependent on drugs is still a human being."
In this episode, The Stream explores the depth of Nigeria's opioid problem to learn how the government is working to prevent abuse and the distribution of drugs on the black market, and what needs to be done next.
Germany to deport 30,000 Nigerians
Germany has proposed a new process that will facilitate the smooth repatriation of over 30,000 illegal Nigerian migrants back to the country.
Minister of Foreign Affairs Geoffrey Onyeama said this when he received the Security Adviser to the President of Germany, Dr Jan Hecker, and his team in Abuja.
The new proposal, according to Onyeama, is predicated on perceived failures and slow pace of the current system of repatriation.
This, he said, involved both the participation of Nigerian embassies and consulate and the German immigration office.
“They don’t have enough faith and confidence in the process that we have at the moment for the repatriation process.
”Some of the delays they believed are with the mission and consulate in Germany.
” They want to propose a completely new process of repatriation, known as Return and Re-admission,” he said.
Onyeama said that in the last two years only about 200 Nigerians had returned to the country out of about 30,000.
”Germans were not happy that the system we have in place at the moment is certainly not working to their satisfaction,” he said.
According to him, the new process essentially entails that once all legal processes have been exhausted, Nigeria should trust them (Germany), to make right decision on whom should be repatriated.
He added that once the decision was taken, Germany would bring the affected persons to Nigeria without the involvement of Nigeria’s mission in Germany.
“They will bring them here to Nigeria and say we have gone through a process in Germany; these people are your nationals, they have exhausted all the legal processes, please take them.
”And it will be here on Nigeria territory that any possibility will then exist to say maybe that one is not or this one is not.
Onyeama, while describing the proposed process as a complete transformation of the current process, noted that Germany aside from issuing travel documents to those to be repatriated, would also be responsible for their travels.
However, for the new process to come into being, Nigeria would have to agree and carry out some changes in her laws.
Earlier, Jan Hecker said he was in Nigeria to see how both countries could intensify their bilateral relations and achieve good result, particularly on migration.
He was accompanied on the visit by the German Ambassador to Nigeria, Bernhard Schlagheck and other officials.
Minister of Foreign Affairs Geoffrey Onyeama said this when he received the Security Adviser to the President of Germany, Dr Jan Hecker, and his team in Abuja.
The new proposal, according to Onyeama, is predicated on perceived failures and slow pace of the current system of repatriation.
This, he said, involved both the participation of Nigerian embassies and consulate and the German immigration office.
“They don’t have enough faith and confidence in the process that we have at the moment for the repatriation process.
”Some of the delays they believed are with the mission and consulate in Germany.
” They want to propose a completely new process of repatriation, known as Return and Re-admission,” he said.
Onyeama said that in the last two years only about 200 Nigerians had returned to the country out of about 30,000.
”Germans were not happy that the system we have in place at the moment is certainly not working to their satisfaction,” he said.
According to him, the new process essentially entails that once all legal processes have been exhausted, Nigeria should trust them (Germany), to make right decision on whom should be repatriated.
He added that once the decision was taken, Germany would bring the affected persons to Nigeria without the involvement of Nigeria’s mission in Germany.
“They will bring them here to Nigeria and say we have gone through a process in Germany; these people are your nationals, they have exhausted all the legal processes, please take them.
”And it will be here on Nigeria territory that any possibility will then exist to say maybe that one is not or this one is not.
Onyeama, while describing the proposed process as a complete transformation of the current process, noted that Germany aside from issuing travel documents to those to be repatriated, would also be responsible for their travels.
However, for the new process to come into being, Nigeria would have to agree and carry out some changes in her laws.
Earlier, Jan Hecker said he was in Nigeria to see how both countries could intensify their bilateral relations and achieve good result, particularly on migration.
He was accompanied on the visit by the German Ambassador to Nigeria, Bernhard Schlagheck and other officials.
China awarded $7bln rail project by Nigeria
Nigeria has awarded a $6.68 billion contract to the China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC) for work on a major segment of a railway linking the country’s commercial hub Lagos, in the southwest, and Kano in the north, Xinhua reported.
“The signing of the ... segment contract agreement today (Tuesday) concludes all outstanding segments of the Lagos-Kano rail line,” the Chinese state news agency quoted Nigeria’s transport ministry as saying. The work is expected to take two or three years.
CCECC, a subsidiary of Chinese state rail builder China Railway Construction Corporation, has been involved in other parts of the Lagos-Kano rail project, which started in 2006 and was broken into segments for implementation.
In 2016, Nigeria awarded it work on a segment between the northern states of Kano and Kaduna with a contract sum of $1.685 billion.
The railway line is also receiving funding from China. In April, China Exim bank approved a $1.231 billion loan for the network’s modernisation programme.
“The signing of the ... segment contract agreement today (Tuesday) concludes all outstanding segments of the Lagos-Kano rail line,” the Chinese state news agency quoted Nigeria’s transport ministry as saying. The work is expected to take two or three years.
CCECC, a subsidiary of Chinese state rail builder China Railway Construction Corporation, has been involved in other parts of the Lagos-Kano rail project, which started in 2006 and was broken into segments for implementation.
In 2016, Nigeria awarded it work on a segment between the northern states of Kano and Kaduna with a contract sum of $1.685 billion.
The railway line is also receiving funding from China. In April, China Exim bank approved a $1.231 billion loan for the network’s modernisation programme.
Tuesday, May 15, 2018
Nigerian launches 'Save me from dying in this shithole' GoFundMe campaign
Olawuni said he is tired of Nigeria, as the country holds nothing for him.
“I'm tired or this country and I need to leave.” he wrote. “This country has nothing for me. Save me from dying in this shithole. Plis dear.”
The account, opened 23 hours before the filing of this report, has received no donation yet — although it has been generating buzz on social media, particularly on Facebook.
A Facebook user, Oluwakayode Kakaki Agboola, shared the link to the gofundme account with the caption: “Help a Nigerian stranded in Nigeria. Support, Donate and join the campaign.”
Another user, Prince Adewole Adetokunbo Oyeledun, who commented on the same thread, said: “DSS should flag this guy. Let us hold this one against his will. We are in it together. Where does he think he's going? Nonsense!!!”
A survey conducted by CLEEN foundation and Afribarometer in 2017 revealed that one out of every three Nigerians is seeking to leave the country in search of greener pasture.
The survey also revealed that about 8 in every 10 Nigerians who wish to leave the country are aged 35 or below.
Similarly, a survey conducted by NOIPolls last year showed that Nigerian doctors move in droves to the United Kingdom, United States and Canada.
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