Author: Tahir Ahmed

By NEXTER With its proven expertise in the energy sector, the Dangote Group is well-positioned to contribute significantly to the exploration and development of the recently discovered oil blocks in Niger State’s Bida Basin. Addressing industry leaders at the Dangote Special Day event at the Niger National Trade Fair in Minna, Governor Bago positioned Niger State as “open for business” regarding Bida Basin oil development, specifically calling for private sector investment and expertise in the state’s hydrocarbon exploration. Governor Umaru Muhammed Bago, represented by Hamza Bello Sarki, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Investment, acknowledged Dangote Group’s…

By NEXTER A suspected suicide bomber has lost his life and injured two others near the Mogadishu Cantonment in Abuja, sources said. The sources said the incident occured at about 2:32pm on Monday. The military source told our correspondent that the suicide bomber dressed in white and blue colour T-shirt tried to entered the Cantonment after alighting from a car under the pedestrian bridge. The source said: “At about 2: 32pm on May 26, unidentified individual with planted Improvised Explosive Devices (IED) made attempted to infiltrate into Mogadishu Cantonment after dropping fm a Golf car around Mogadishu Cantonment under the…

By NEXTER All Progressives Congress (APC) senior stakeholder, Dr. Mohammed Kudu Santuraki (Santurakin Nupe) has commended Niger State Governor Mohammed Umar Bago for launching Bida’s 20-year Development Plan. In a statement, Santuraki, who is the Secretary-General of Niger-South Senior Stakeholders’ Forum (NSSF), described the plan as a bold and visionary initiative for sustainable urban growth, economic advancement, and social inclusion in the historic city. He said: “Development plans of this nature are the hallmark of serious governance. They provide a strategic roadmap to transform our cities from centres of potential into engines of prosperity and modern living.” According to Santuraki,…

By NEXTER In a major boost to commercial agriculture in Nigeria, the Dangote Group and the Niger State Government are fostering sectoral partnership worth billions of naira. The conglomerate said significant investment has been deployed into the company’s rice production infrastructure in the state, even as it is partnering the Government on the Niger Food initiative. The Niger Food initiative is an agricultural development programme launched by the Niger State Government in partnership with private sector players like the Dangote Group. Senior Special Adviser to the President and Chief Executive of Dangote Group, Fatima Wali Abdurrahman, said the company’s state-of-the-art…

By Saidu Adamu The pioneer Chairman of the All Progressives Congress APC in Taraba and former Envoy to the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago Alhaji Hassan Ardo on Thursday said that the visit of President Bola Tinubu to Taraba has shown that the State Governor Agbu Kefas has failed woefully in the first Two years of his administration. During an interaction with journalists, Ardo said it is a shame that the President who was represented by Vice President Kashim Shettima had no project to commission as part of the working visit that comes just a few days to the second…

By Abubakar Ahmed The recent revelation by a chieftain of the governing All Progressives Congress (APC) in Osun State, Mr. Ayodele Asalu, regarding the current status of the federal lawmakers’ constituency project fund is no doubt distressing. In a viral video sighted by this writer, Mr. Asalu claimed that the consistency project allowance of the House of Representatives members has risen from a paltry N200 million to an astonishing N1 billion while that of a Senator is now pegged at N2 billion respectively following the removal of petroleum subsidy by the federal government under the present regime of President Bola…

By Abubakar Yunusa Niger State Governor Umaru Bago has declared that Nigeria has no reason to remain in poverty, given its vast natural resources. Speaking at the Taraba International Investment Summit in Jalingo, the governor pointed to Nigeria’s abundant sunshine, fertile land, and water resources as unmatched advantages. “People in Europe barely farm for three months a year.But we can farm 24 hours, 365 days a year. It means we have no business with poverty,”Bago said. He stressed that all key factors of production were naturally available in Taraba State, a sentiment also echoed by Africa’s richest man, Alhaji Aliko…

Dangote calls on governors to seek domestic investment to boost economy By Saidu Adamu The President of the Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote has advised Nigerian Governors to look inward and encourage domestic investment instead of always pushing for foreign ones that may hardly materialise. Speaking at the 2025 Taraba International Investment Summit (Taravest) in Jalingo on Wednesday, the business mogul explained that no foreign investors will come to invest in any part of the country without the presence of domestic investment. He stressed that once the domestic sector is properly established and resources well harnessed, the foreign investors will…

By NEXTER In a bold boost for women entrepreneurship in Nigeria, Dangote Cement Plc has empowered businesswomen in host communities in Benue State with cash grants, thus deepening business activities in the State. The women empowerment programme came months after the Dangote Cement in Gboko increased bursary payments to students of host communities by more than 100 per cent. Speaking at the ceremony Wednesday in Gboko, Group Head, Social Performance, Dangote Cement Plc, Mr. Wakeel Olayiwola said: “”Through this scheme, selected women entrepreneurs in host communities will receive ₦100,000 grants each to strengthen and expand their businesses. “The financial support…

By Saidu Adamu The Taraba State Government has come under intense criticism following a sweeping condemnation by the Correspondents’ Chapel of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), which accused the state of deliberately sidelining the press during major state functions. In a strongly worded resolution passed during an emergency congress, the Chapel expressed outrage over the government’s failure to accredit its members for coverage of the high-profile Taraba State International Investment Summit (TARAVEST) and the visit of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to the state. The resolution was signed by Mr. Charles Akpeji, who served as Chairman of the resolution drafting…