General
Peter Obi Advocates Human Capital Investment to Tackle Trump’s Tariffs
By Adedapo Adesanya
More reactions continue trail the recent tariffs introduced by the administration of President Donald Trump of the United States, and the latest to add his input is the presidential candidate of the Labour Party in the 2023 general election, Mr Peter Obi, who called on African nations to urgently invest in their human capital and scale up productivity.
He made this while speaking at the plenary session of the Commonwealth Enterprise and Investment Council (CWEIC) Trade and Investment Summit 2025 in London on Tuesday.
Mr Obi emphasised that Africa’s pathway to relevance and resilience in the evolving global economy lies in harnessing its youthful population and vast resources.
The former Governor of Anambra State noted that interventions by President Trump had already disrupted long-standing assumptions of global trade, with many nations adopting protective measures to safeguard their economies, lamenting that African countries have largely failed to respond proactively.
“Despite its vast opportunities, Africa’s share of global trade remains at a paltry 2-3 per cent, with its GDP share at about 3 per cent,” Mr Obi stated, adding that Africa’s GDP per capita stands at just $1,900, compared to about $9,000 in Asia per World Trade Organisation (WTO) data.
He warned that this persists even though Africa has the second-largest and most populous continent of about 1.5 billion people and the world’s largest concentration of working-age population
Mr Obi pointed out that the continent boasts abundant natural resources, including nearly a billion hectares of uncultivated arable land and over 30 per cent of the world’s mineral reserves but these remain underutilised.
“Africa holds over 60 per cent of the world’s arable land. Our food and agriculture market, currently valued at $280 billion annually, is projected to exceed $1 trillion by 2030,” he explained, adding that, “With agriculture at the core of our economic transformation, Africa can emerge as a global agricultural powerhouse and a net exporter of food.”
He lamented that leadership remains the lacking element and called for a transformative shift in governance across the continent, advocating one that embraces innovative education, healthcare investment, and poverty reduction.
“What is missing is leadership that can reorder priorities and scale up productivity so that African countries can move into higher levels of value creation,” he argued.
“We have seen promising signs in better-governed African countries. The challenge remains scaling up and sustaining this across the region,” he added.
Mr Obi urged African leaders to learn from Asia’s developmental state model, which prioritised human capital and productivity over mere institutional imports from Western economies, and called for bold, visionary leadership to steer Africa toward economic self-reliance and global competitiveness.
“Africa must rebuild its economies through leadership that focuses on rapid upgrades in productive capacities, especially in education and healthcare, to lift millions out of poverty and seize the opportunities of the new global economy,” he said.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Nigeria’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has confirmed that the latest United States airstrikes on Islamic State West African Province (ISWAP) targets in northwest Nigeria were conducted at the request of the Nigerian government.
According to reports, the US struck at ISWAP targets in Jabo, Sokoto State, on Christmas night.
The ministry described the operation as a product of established counterterrorism cooperation between both countries.
In a press statement issued on Friday, the Ministry said the strikes were “undertaken following formal engagement and with the full knowledge and coordination of the Government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”
“The Government of Nigeria wishes to clarify that the airstrikes conducted by the United States against Islamic State elements in parts of northwest Nigeria were carried out at the request of Nigerian authorities and in line with existing bilateral security cooperation frameworks,” the statement said.
The Ministry stressed that Nigeria “remains firmly in control of all counterterrorism operations within its sovereign territory,” adding that international partners only provide support “where such assistance aligns with Nigeria’s national security objectives.”
According to the statement, the strikes form part of Nigeria’s broader strategy to “degrade terrorist capabilities, disrupt logistics networks, and protect civilian populations from violent extremist threats.”
The Foreign Ministry further emphasised that the federal government “will continue to work with trusted international partners to confront terrorism, banditry, and transnational criminal networks that threaten national and regional stability.”
Reacting to concerns around sovereignty, the Ministry said:
“At no time was Nigeria’s sovereignty compromised. All actions were conducted with due respect for Nigeria’s laws, institutions, and command structures.”
The statement also cautioned against mischaracterising Nigeria’s security challenges, noting that extremist violence “has affected communities across religious and ethnic lines and should not be framed in sectarian terms.”
Nigeria reaffirmed its commitment to a multi-layered response combining military operations, intelligence sharing, community engagement, and socio-economic interventions, adding that counterterrorism efforts remain focused on protecting lives and restoring stability.
The US Africa Command (AFRICOM) said the strikes were carried out in Sokoto State and that multiple militants were killed.
US President Donald Trump described the strikes as “powerful and deadly,” saying they were directed at Islamic State militants responsible for violent attacks on Christians in Nigeria.
The Nigerian government has clearly denied that only Christians are affected by the killings, saying the terror spread across all faiths.
Meanwhile, US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth has warned that “more to come” as part of sustained efforts against extremist groups.
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.
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