Nigeria central bank delivers third big interest rate hike of the year

Nigeria's central bank delivered another big interest rate hike on Tuesday, responding to a continued rise in inflation which hit a 28-year high in April.

Central Bank of Nigeria Governor Olayemi Cardoso said the bank's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) was faced with a decision to either raise or hold rates while it observed the impact of previous hikes, but opted for an increase in the interests of price stability.

The Monetary Policy Rate was increased by 150 basis points (bps) to 26.25% (NGCBIR=ECI), the third rate increase this year after hikes of 200 bps in March and 400 bps in February.

"The balance of risks suggests further tightening of policy to build on the benefits from previous hikes," Cardoso told a news conference.

Economists had widely predicted another hike given soaring inflation and the highly volatile naira currency.

"A bold policy move was required to bring Nigeria's real rates closer to positive territory and halt the naira's decline," said Danny Greeff, an analyst at ETM Analytics.

Inflation reached 33.69% year-on-year in April (NGCPIY=ECI) - a level not seen since mid-1996 - spurred by the government slashing petrol and electricity subsidies and twice devaluing the naira since President Bola Tinubu took over last year.

The central bank has more work to do to rein in price pressures and there could be more rate hikes to come, analysts said.

The International Monetary Fund has welcomed the central bank's previous hikes and called for decisions to be data-driven.

Cardoso has pledged to curb inflation, support the naira and depart from the unorthodox policies of his predecessor who blurred the lines between monetary and fiscal policy with direct interventions to try to lift economic growth.

The government is also struggling to lift output from its crucial oil sector and keep a lid on rampant insecurity that has left swathes of the country outside its control.

The central bank's next rate-setting meeting is scheduled for July. 

By Chijioke Ohuocha, Elisha Bala-Gbogbo and Macdonald Dzirutwe, Reuters

At least 40 villagers shot dead in Nigeria

Armed men attacked remote villages in northcentral Nigeria, killing at least a dozen villagers during a late-night raid, authorities said Tuesday.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack which follows a similar pattern to yearslong violence in the region blamed on the fight for control over water and land between nomadic herders and rural farmers. These raids have so far killed hundreds in the region.

The local Punch newspaper cited witnesses as saying at least 40 people were killed in Plateau’s Wase district on Monday night. However, government officials told The Associated Press only 12 casualties have so far been confirmed.

It is common for official figures to be less than that of witness accounts in such attacks.

The attackers opened fire on villagers in Wase’s Zurak community, forcing many to flee into nearby bushes, Musa Ashoms, the state commissioner for information said. “We are trying to comb the area to see whether we have more casualties or people with bullet wounds,” he added.

The motorcycle-riding gunmen attacked the village following a security operation that targeted their hideouts and aimed to “wipe” them out of the area, Idris Wase, a federal legislator from Plateau’s Wase district said.

Locals have repeatedly expressed concern over how the assailants can attack villages for hours and escape before security forces arrive on the scene.

Arrests following such attacks are rare.

In December, assailants killed at least 140 residents during an attack that targeted more than a dozen communities over two days.

By Chinedu Asadu, AP 

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Police rescue kidnap victims in Abuja

The Police Command in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) said its operatives on Sunday foiled a kidnap attempt and rescued victims in Dawaki area of Abuja.

The Police Public Relations Officer in the FCT, Josephine Adeh, a superintendent of police, said this in a statement on Monday in Abuja.

Ms Adeh said that the kidnap attempt was foiled following an immediate and strategic response to a distress call on the attack by unknown gunmen in Dawaki on 19 May.


She said the Commissioner of Police (CP) in charge of the FCT, Benneth Igweh, led the operatives that swiftly mobilised to the scene to foil the kidnap attempt.

“Displaying remarkable bravery and coordination, the police, in synergy with local hunters, advanced on the assailants, tactically ambushed them at Ushafa Hill via Bwari and Shishipe Hills via Mpape.

“This led to a fierce gun duel where the hoodlums were overwhelmed by the firepower of the operatives, and this forced them to scamper to safety with various degrees of bullet injuries and the victims were rescued,” she said.

Ms Adeh added that one of the rescued victims was currently in the hospital receiving medical attention.

The FCT Police command spokesperson said that the CP had reaffirmed the command’s steadfast dedication to maintaining peace and security in the FCT.

She also said that search operations were ongoing to rescue other hostages who fled the scene during the shootout.

Meanwhile, the Chairperson of Dawaki Rock Heaven Community, Tunde Abdulrahim, said the incident happened at about 7: 30 p.m. on Sunday.

Mr Abdulrahim said that the heavily armed bandits numbering about 50, consisting of men and women invaded the community and broke into about six houses.

He also said that about 20 people were abducted by the kidnappers.

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