General
AfDB Gives Nigeria $200m for First Phase Electricity Projects
By Adedapo Adesanya
As part of its plans to provide solutions to the country’s electricity deficiency, the African Development Bank (AfDB) has released the sum of $200 million (N61 billion) to Nigeria.
This was made known on Monday, when an AfDB team visited the Minister of State for Power, Mr Goddy Jedy-Agba in Abuja.
The bank noted that in an agreement for the funds release signed last week, the money will be utilised under the Nigerian Transmission Expansion Programme (NTEP).
According to the Acting Vice President of the bank on Energy, Power, Climate and Green Growth, Mr Wale Shonibare, the organisation remains dedicated to ensuring that the country’s power sector improves.
“We’ve come to recap the progress we are making with our several investments within the power sector in Nigeria around the Nigeria Electrification Project, working with the Rural Electrification Agency (REA) where our board approved $200 million.
“And we also have the work we are doing with the transmission company under the NTEP programme where we’ve approved $200m for phase one and there is a phase two, it is a $410 million programme,” he said
Speaking further on the $200 million earmarked for the transmission expansion programme, Mr Shonibare noted that, “For the NTEP programme, it was signed last week and so the investments will start flowing into the sector very soon.”
“Over the coming months, we will be looking to progress into the second phase of the power transmission programme,” he added.
On the bank’s partnership with the Rural Electrification Agency (REA), he said, “That has already been signed and it is under implementation as we speak. In fact, I am here to flag off the beginning of that programme for the REA.”
He further added that, “We are also supporting government on the Jigawa Solar Project where we provided $1 million to support feasibility studies for phase one and we will be looking at phase two, going forward.
“We are also looking at ways in which we can intervene in the distribution sector. And that work is going on right now, to see what’s the best way of supporting investments in distribution.”
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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