General
NEPZA Corrects Error, Says N11.1bn Remitted in Three Years
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigeria Export Process Zones of Authority (NEPZA) has disclosed that the country’s Free Trade Zones generated N11.1 billion between 2020 and 2023 as against the earlier N11.11 trillion wrongly captured in its submission to the Senate Committee on Trade and Investment.
The Managing Director of the agency, Mr Olufemi Ogunyemi, on Monday in Abuja described the initially quoted figure as a regrettable “typographical mishap.”
He stated that N377.33 million was generated in 2020 while N3.11 billion accrued to the Federation Account in 2021 from the scheme.
According to him, the total remittances from the scheme in 2022 stood at N3.44 billion while an impressive N4.170 billion came through in 2023.
“The attention of the management has been brought to the news making around that the Authority remitted a whopping sum of N11.11 trillion to the Federation Account as at October 2023. This piece of information was a classical typography error and it is regrettable.
“Let me emphatically state that the remittances from the Free Trade Zones from 2020 to 2023 stood at N11.1 billion only. We are however making good progress to take the scheme to that point where it can generate such huge revenue for the government.
“For instance, in 2023, the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) generated N59.38 billion, and the Immigration Services received N828.7 million from the free trade zones while the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) garnered N8.738 billion from the sub-sector,” he said.
Mr Ogunyemi also explained that the Authority was gradually transforming the scheme to become the country’s sustainable economic gateways, adding that more efforts and support were needed to position the scheme for greater exploitation.
“The Nigeria Export Processing Zones Authority (NEPZA) is the major driver of the government’s initiative to diversify the Nigerian economy. With attractive investment packages and a focus on economy-driven sectors, NEPZA provides investment opportunities in different sectors across the country.
“At the moment, the scheme focuses on three critical investment areas which included manufacturing 45 per cent, services 30 per cent, and oil & gas with 11 per cent active investment exploitation,” Mr Ogunyemi said.
The scheme currently has 53 Free Trade Zones harbouring 580 enterprises with a cumulative $30 billion.
The authority collects 20 types of revenues ranging from $500,000 declaration fees, $60,000 annually as Operation License, OPL, and $300 to $500 registration fees in line with extant regulations on internally generated revenue, IGR.
There is also a $100 to $300 Examination fee and Documentation fee per transaction, which occurs on a daily basis, he disclosed.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The United States government gave some terrorists in Nigeria a Christmas gift that sent many of them to the great beyond.
On Thursday, December 25, 2025, the United States President, Mr Donald Trump, directed his country’s military to launch air strikes on camps of members of the dreaded Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) in Sokoto State.
According to Mr Trump, the military action, which he threatened to carry out a few weeks ago if the Nigerian government does not stop the killing of Christians in the country, occurred on Thursday night.
“Tonight, at my direction as Commander in Chief, the United States launched a powerful and deadly strike against ISIS Terrorist Scum in Northwest Nigeria, who have been targeting and viciously killing, primarily, innocent Christians, at levels not seen for many years, and even Centuries!
“I have previously warned these Terrorists that if they did not stop the slaughtering of Christians, there would be hell to pay, and tonight, there was.
“The Department of War executed numerous perfect strikes, as only the United States is capable of doing.
“Under my leadership, our country will not allow radical islamic terrorism to prosper. May God bless our military, and Merry Christmas to all, including the dead terrorists, of which there will be many more if their slaughter of Christians continues,” Mr Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
In a video on X, formerly known as Twitter, the Department of War of the United States posted the below video of the air strikes;
https://twitter.com/DeptofWar/status/2004351717131903272
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The presidency has reacted to speculations that Mr Femi Gbajabiamila has been removed as the Chief of Staff to President Bola Tinubu.
It was alleged that Mr Gbajabiamila has been replaced with the President’s Principal Private Secretary, Mr Hakeem Muri-Okunola.
Mr Muri-Okunola went to Abuja to take up this role after leaving as the Head of Service of the Lagos State Civil Service.
Reacting to the reports on social media on the purported removal of Mr Gbajabiamila, a former Speaker of the House of Representatives, the presidency said no such change has been made.
In a statement signed on Thursday by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Mr Bayo Onanuga, members of the public were advised to disregard the report as “there is absolutely no truth to this story.”
“The Chief of Staff remains in his position. The Principal Private Secretary likewise remains in his role. Hakeem Muri-Okunola has not replaced Femi Gbajabiamila as Chief of Staff.
“The viral claim is a fabrication by mischievous purveyors of fake news whose sole aim is to create disharmony within the government.
“We reiterate that news media should always verify their information before publishing or sharing on social media,” the statement said.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The new chief executive of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), Mrs Oritsemeyiwa Eyesan, has assumed office with a clear message to advance the country’s upstream oil and gas sector in line with the mandate of the commission as enshrined in the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021.
According to a statement signed by Mr Eniola Akinkuotu, the Head of Media & Strategic Communications at the upstream regulator, the NUPRC boss made this assertation during her first town hall meeting with management and staff on Tuesday December 23, 2025.
She further disclosed plans to make the commission a business enabler and re-ignite investments in the upstream sector.
Recall that President Tinubu nominated Mrs Eyesan to take over the NUPRC after the abrupt resignation of her predecessor, Mr Gbenga Komolafe as well as his counterpart in the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), Mr Farouk Ahmed.
In her new capacity, Mrs Eyesan also set a firm production ambition of growing Nigeria’s output and increasing gas production.
“The goal is that we must enable the industry, we are regulators. We must enable the industry from our interactions with the stakeholders, from our interactions with everybody.
“My main objective is to ensure that we make a difference. I believe the NUPRC is at the Center of the industry,” she said.
The commission boss who has served for over three decades in the oil and gas sector, promised to entrench digitisation, transparency and efficiency in operations.
The NUPRC head said with the support of staff and management, the NUPRC will become the gold-standard regulator in Africa. She also promised capacity development, stronger technical depth and sustained engagement with stakeholders, unions and professional teams.
On leadership style, Mrs Eyesan promised an open-door policy and frequent staff engagement, while also soliciting for support and cooperation as the industry embarks on the next phase of transformation.
“If we work together we can unleash opportunities, I don’t see impediments only opportunities,” she added.
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