General
Oyo/Osun Customs Command Generates N50.9bn in 10 Months
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Oyo/Osun Area Command of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has generated N50.98 billion between January and October 2021.
This was disclosed by the Customs Area Controller, Mr Adamu Abdulkadir, in Ibadan on Friday while displaying 5,046 bags of foreign rice and other contraband seized by the command.
Mr Abdulkadir said that the revenue generated by the customs command in the period under review signified a 14.4 per cent increase when compared to revenue generated in the same period of the year 2020, which was N43.63 billion.
The comptroller said that the seizures made during the same period had a cumulative Duty Paid Value of N617.05 million.
“Today, as part of the aforementioned, displayed before you are the array of seizures which include 5,046 of 50kg bags of foreign parboiled rice; and 22 bales of second-hand clothing.
“Others are, one unit of 2017 Honda Accord car; and one unit of 2020 Toyota Prado Jeep.
“Others are 500 units of 25 litres of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) which shall be auctioned due to its inflammable nature and proceeds remitted accordingly,” Mr Abdulkadir said.
He said that the officers of the command would not relent in their effort at combating the menace of smuggling.
The controller noted that the service would further sharpen its intelligence and widen its dragnet to ensure all nooks and crannies of the command were well covered.
Mr Abdulkadir said that the Comptroller-General of Customs, Mr Hameed Ali, had been magnanimous enough to the command by providing 10 new fully-kitted Toyota Hilux vehicles to enhance operations.
He said that the comptroller-general had also boosted the morale of officers with the provision of other necessary facilities and equipment that could aid their performances.
“All these have further re-awakened the vigour and strategies in our anti-smuggling drive as exemplified in the seizure of 500 bags of foreign parboiled rice made in a residential building in Osun State in the early hours of Thursday.
“To this effort, we owe him, his erudite management team and the nation at large our commitment and focus in fighting the menace of smuggling that has bedevilled our country,” he said.
Mr Abdulkadir called on residents of Oyo and Osun States not to attack officers performing their lawful duty as there were sanctions prescribed against such offenders under the law.
The controller called on those blocking the roads and other access points and thereby preventing officers from accessing smuggling areas, to refrain from such act as it was also punishable under the law.
He said that Section 158 of the Customs and Excise Management Act (CEMA) gave Customs officers the power to patrol freely across the nation and appreciate citizens that contributed to the successes recorded by the command.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Mr Bosun Tijani, has announced that Nigeria will launch a new alphanumeric postcode system on October 1, 2026, with every home expected to have a unique postcode.
Mr Tijani disclosed the development in a video post on X, describing the new system as a more precise and digitally oriented approach to addressing locations across the country.
He said the initiative would mark a significant shift in Nigeria’s postal addressing system by assigning unique postcodes to individual homes.
The initiative marks a major step in Nigeria’s digital transformation agenda. By replacing the outdated numeric-only system, the alphanumeric codes provide a more flexible and scalable framework that can accommodate the country’s rapid urban growth and diverse settlement patterns.
For emphasis, an alphanumeric postcode system is a postal indexing system that uses a combination of both letters (alpha) and numbers (numeric), along with spaces or punctuation, to identify specific geographic locations, streets, or individual buildings for mail delivery.
Unlike purely numeric postcode systems (such as the 5-digit US ZIP Code or 5-digit codes used in some European countries), alphanumeric codes offer a much higher number of unique combinations using fewer total characters. This flexibility allows postal authorities to pinpoint locations with incredible precision, often down to a single side of a street or a specific large building.
“On October 1st 2026 Nigeria’s new Alphanumeric Postcode System goes live,” Mr Tijani said.
“For the first time, every home will be assigned a unique postcode that’s simple, precise and built for a digital future,” he added.
The minister urged Nigerians to prepare to generate their individual postcodes ahead of the launch.
The new system is expected to strengthen Nigeria’s digital addressing infrastructure and improve the identification and location of homes and properties for postal and other location-based services.
The initiative is being implemented in collaboration with the Nigerian Postal Service (NIPOST) as part of broader efforts to modernise the country’s addressing and digital infrastructure.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr Taiwo Oyedele, has been directed to give an account to Nigerians on how the current government has fared since its inception on May 29, 2023.
This directive was given by President Bola Tinubu in a message posted on his verified social media handles on Wednesday.
This coincides with the commencement of campaigns for the 2027 presidential election scheduled for January 16.
According to the timetable of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), candidates seeking to become the country’s president are eligible to kick off their campaigns from today, Wednesday, August 19, 2026.
In his message today, Mr Tinubu said, “When we began this journey of reform in 2023, I promised that the difficult decisions we were making would serve the purpose of building an economy that works better for you and a country that is stronger for our children.
“Today, your government presents The Reforms Scorecard. It sets out what our reforms have achieved, what they have cost us, and the greater costs and harms we have prevented by acting when we did.
“I have therefore directed the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, to give an account to Nigerians, to explain the numbers, the choices we have made, the progress recorded, and the work that remains.
“You deserve to see the numbers. You deserve to know what has changed and what these reforms mean for you, your family, your business and our country.
“This is your government. This is your country. This is our account to you.”
Shortly after he took the oath of office over three years ago, President Tinubu declared that subsidies on petroleum products were gone. He later approved foreign exchange (FX) reforms, which devalued the Nigerian Naira, shooting from about N800 per Dollar to nearly N2,000 per Dollar. However, it is currently slightly above N1,340 per Dollar in the official market.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited and the Nigerian Agip Exploration (NAE) Limited are advancing discussions on the development of deepwater assets estimated to hold 500 million barrels of oil reserves.
The development followed a meeting between the chief executive of the state oil company, Mr Bayo Ojulari, and Agip’s Vice Chairman and Managing Director, Mr Maurizio Pinna, in Abuja.
The talks focused on ongoing work on deepwater acreage jointly held by NNPC, NAE and Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company (SNEPCo) as well as plans to bring the associated resources into production.
According to NNPC, the acreage comprises the Zabazaba and Etan deepwater fields, with estimated reserves of about 500 million barrels.
The fields are located in Nigeria’s deepwater terrain and are considered significant to the country’s efforts to expand its upstream oil production base, particularly as operators seek to advance projects capable of delivering additional barrels over the medium to long term.
While details of the expected production timeline were not disclosed, the meeting underscores renewed industry focus on unlocking Nigeria’s deepwater resources and growing crude oil production.
The acreage comprises licences converted from OPL 245 and is operated by NAE in partnership with NNPC Limited and SNEPCo.
Mr Ojulari and Mr Pinna also reviewed the work currently underway on the assets and the expected production outlook, with the discussions centred on advancing deepwater development.
The engagement comes amid renewed efforts to attract investment into Nigeria’s offshore petroleum resources and increase national oil production.
