General
FG Approves N5bn Per State for Palliatives
By Adedapo Adesanya
The federal government has approved the disbursement of N5 billion for each state to enable them to procure food items for distribution to the poor in their respective states as part of palliative measures.
Governor Babagana Zulum of Borno State disclosed this at the Presidential Villa shortly after the National Economic Council (NEC) meeting in Abuja.
This development comes in the wake of the hike in the cost of food items, and petroleum owing to the removal of subsidy on the commodity.
According to him, the federal government also released five trucks of rice each to the 36 state governors.
Explaining further, Governor Zulum said the state governors are to procure 100,000 bags of rice, 40,000 bags of maize, and fertilizers.
He noted that 52 per cent of the funds were given to the state governments as grants while 48 per cent is loans.
On May 29, during his inauguration, President Bola Tinubu announced the removal of subsidy on petrol. This development has caused hardship for many Nigerians with its attendant increase in the prices of goods and services.
Days after the removal of subsidy, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) announced the unification of all segments of the forex exchange (FX) market. This has put additional pressure on the local currency and manufacturers, with ripple effects on prices.
On Tuesday, data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said Nigeria’s annual inflation rate rose to 24.08 per cent in July from 22.79 per cent in the previous month.
The statistics office said the July 2023 inflation rate showed an increase of 1.29 per cent points when compared to June 2023 headline inflation rate.
The NBS said the contributions of items on the divisional level to the acceleration in the headline index are food & non-alcoholic beverages (12.47 per cent), housing water, electricity, gas & other fuel (4.03 per cent), clothing & footwear (1.84 per cent), transport (1.57 per cent), furnishings & household equipment & maintenance (1.21 per cent), education (0.95 per cent), health (0.72 per cent), miscellaneous goods & services (0.40 per cent), restaurant & hotels (0.29 per cent), alcoholic beverage, tobacco & kola (0.26 per cent), recreation & culture (0.17 per cent) and communication (0.16 per cent).
Food insecurity has been a major problem for many Nigerians, where 60 per cent of income is spent on feeding. Last month, Mr Tinubu declared an immediate State of Emergency on food insecurity to tackle the increase in food prices.
He also directed that “all matters pertaining to food & water availability and affordability, as essential livelihood items, be included within the purview of the National Security Council.”
And in a public address on July 31, he announced some set of measures to cushion the impact of his policie on the people. With over N500 billion in intervention, he said his government will support businesses, the working class, and the most vulnerable citizens.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) has launched a mobile application designed to monitor fuel consumption patterns in real time across retail outlets nationwide.
The NMDPRA, established under the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021, is responsible for the technical and commercial regulation of Nigeria’s midstream and downstream petroleum operations. The deployment of the mobile application aligns with the authority’s broader efforts to leverage technology to improve regulatory compliance and strengthen accountability.
The pilot phase of the project began on August 1 in Abuja and its six Area Councils, the authority said in a statement published on X.
As part of the rollout, the Executive Director for Distribution Systems, Storage and Retailing Infrastructure (DSSRI), Mr Ogbugo Ukoha, led a team alongside officials from the Abuja Regional Office to assess the readiness and operational performance of the digital platform at participating retail outlets.
According to the NMDPRA, the application captures inventory and compliance data in real time, enabling regulators to monitor fuel distribution more effectively while improving operational efficiency across the sector.
The authority said the platform would generate reliable, data-driven insights to support evidence-based decision-making, strengthen national energy security planning and enhance transparency in the downstream petroleum industry.
It added that the initiative is expected to provide significant value to government, investors, operators and other stakeholders by improving access to accurate fuel consumption and compliance data.
Nigeria’s downstream petroleum sector has undergone significant changes since the deregulation of the petrol market and the removal of fuel subsidies, with regulators placing greater emphasis on data-driven supervision to ensure product availability, prevent supply disruptions and discourage sharp regional disparities in distribution.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
No doubt, moving money among African markets remains a slow, fragmented process that relies on multiple intermediaries and prolonged settlement cycles.
To solve this issue and drive the development of stablecoin-enabled payment services for businesses across the continent, Onafriq has joined forces with a leading stablecoin infrastructure provider, Privy.
The collaboration will enable Onafriq to create and manage embedded digital asset solutions for its partners and, in time, institutional clients where regulation allows. The initial phase focuses on cross-chain stablecoin transfers and treasury and settlement workflows, creating the foundation for future cross-border payment and liquidity solutions.
Integrating Privy’s secure infrastructure enables Onafriq to build the capabilities required to support a new generation of efficient digital payment services for banks, fintechs, and mobile money operators.
This partnership is a key component of Onafriq’s broader strategy to modernise pan-African payment infrastructure, enabling secure multi-modal wallets and more efficient movement of value across the continent.
The outcome will support a range of future institutional use cases, including stablecoin-enabled settlement, treasury management and liquidity services, as it reflects Onafriq’s commitment to driving Africa’s digital transformation agenda by investing in technologies that make financial services more efficient, connected and accessible.
It was gathered that Onafriq selected Privy for its enterprise-grade infrastructure to enable the seamless integration of digital asset wallet capabilities into its products, subject to regulatory approval, and deliver a simple user experience while abstracting the complexity of blockchain technology.
“At Onafriq, we keep investing in technology that makes payments faster and more accessible. Privy gives us a building block for faster settlement and better liquidity management. As demand for digital asset services grows, our goal is to ensure Africa’s payment ecosystem benefits securely and in line with regulatory frameworks,” the Group Chief Product and Innovation Officer at Onafriq,” Mr Luke Kyohere, said.
The chief executive of Privy, Mr Henri Stern, said, “Stablecoins will play an increasingly important role in the future of global payments, but real-world adoption depends on infrastructure that is secure, scalable and simple to implement. Working with Onafriq allows us to help build that foundation across Africa and beyond.”
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Osun State Government has announced plans to institute legal action against the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), following an alleged freezing of the state’s bank account, describing the action as unlawful and capable of disrupting governance.
The Governor of the state, Mr Ademola Adeleke, through the state’s Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Mr Oluwole Jimi-Bada, made this disclosure on Wednesday.
According to the statement, Governor Adeleke has directed him to challenge the anti-graft agency’s decision at the Federal High Court.
It was widely reported that the anti-graft agency issued a “Post No Debit” directive to the management of First Bank, where the state’s accounts are domiciled, effectively restricting transactions.
He argued that while the commission has the authority to investigate financial records, it cannot freeze a state government’s accounts without first obtaining a court order.
“I have the mandate of the governor to proceed to the Federal High Court to challenge this move. EFCC can investigate the accounts, but it can’t freeze the accounts without an order of court.
“This step will affect government running, but we will challenge the move and ensure that the agency acts within the ambit of the law,” Mr Jimi-Bada said.
Also speaking, the Commissioner for Finance, Mr Sola Ogungbile, alleged that police officers stormed the main branch of First Bank in Osogbo and arrested some members of the bank’s staff.
Mr Ogungbile maintained that Governor Adeleke was not deploying state resources for his re-election campaign and urged the EFCC to consider the potential impact of its actions on public services and the welfare of residents.
Governor Adeleke had earlier raised concerns over an alleged plan by the EFCC to freeze all Osun State Government accounts, including those of senior government officials.
In a statement issued by the Commissioner for Information and Public Enlightenment, Mr Kolapo Alimi, the governor described the reported move as unlawful and politically motivated.
He alleged that the planned freezing of the accounts was intended to cripple government operations ahead of the August 15 governorship election.
Governor Adeleke further insisted that there was no legal justification for freezing the state’s accounts, arguing that the EFCC lacks the authority to take such action against a state government without due legal process.
The EFCC had not issued an official response to the allegations as of the time of filing this report.
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