General
Petroleum Producers Task Next Admin on Crude Oil Theft, Others
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Independent Petroleum Producers Group (IPPG) has called on the next administration to address the bottlenecks mitigating against industry growth and energy security.
This call was made by the Chairman of the group, Mr Abdulrazaq Isa, on Monday in Abuja at the ongoing sixth edition of the Nigeria International Energy Summit (NIES).
Mr Isa said the administration’s agenda for the industry should be geared toward improving investor confidence through the effective implementation of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) and strengthening regulatory institutions.
He said the incoming administration should arrest the menace of crude oil theft across the Niger Delta, which still lingered in spite of the recent successes recorded by the federal government.
Mr Isa listed others as harnessing the nation’s hydrocarbon asset, particularly gas to catalyse and rapidly industrialise the economy, building a broader value-creating midstream (gas processing plants) and downstream (refineries) and transforming Nigeria into a product supplier.
He emphasised the need to eliminate industry-wide subsidies for all hydrocarbon and refined products as they remain detrimental to the growth of a vibrant industry.
Mr Isa also called for an immediate repositioning of the industry.
“The Nigerian oil and gas industry has a very limited window to get things right and must work toward the rapid exploitation of its vast hydrocarbon assets for the socio-economic transformation and deploying same to guarantee our energy security.
“It is instructive to note that this edition of the NIES will be the last of this current administration.
“It is on that note and on behalf of the Board of Trustees and the Governing Council of the IPPG I commend President Muhammadu Buhari for his unwavering commitment to the survival and growth of our industry.
“Under his leadership, his administration has delivered unprecedented milestones across the entire industry, notably, the enactment of PIA in 2021, which has boosted investor confidence after a two-decade lull in activities.
“This landmark legislation has begun the transformation of Nigeria’s oil and gas industry and laid a solid foundation for the growth and development of the industry for future generations,’’ he said.
On his part, Mr Omar Farouk, the Secretary-General African Petroleum Producers’ Organisation (APPO), called for enabling environment for African energy security.
Mr Farouk listed challenges in the African energy industry as a lack of funding, technology and reliance on foreign markets.
He said for seven decades, Africa had been producing petroleum; it had relied essentially on external finance and always depended on foreign technology and, to some extent, expertise to produce the products.
Mr Farouk said that these three challenges had been the focus of APPO in the last three years, and it had concluded that the future of the industry lay in the hands of Africans.
“For the funding of the oil and gas projects across the continent, we have gone into partnership with the African Export-Import Bank to establish Africa Energy Bank with the objective of financing oil and gas projects in the continent.
“For technology and expertise, the APPO secretariat has just concluded a tour of institutions of oil and gas training in some of our member countries for centres of excellence in the petroleum industry.
“We want to banish the mindset that our people are too poor to buy energy and empower people to have access to energy,’’ he said.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Nigeria is eyeing stronger diplomatic and strategic ties when it comes to sustainable development as it participates in the 2026 edition of Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week (ADSW).
President Bola Tinubu arrived in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE), on Sunday. His plane landed at the Presidential Wing of Zayed International Airport at exactly 11:30 pm local time.
He was received by Sheikh Shakhboot Nahyan Al Nahyan, UAE Minister of State for Foreign Affairs; the UAE Ambassador to Nigeria, Salem Saeed Al-Shamsi; Nigeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Yusuf Maitama Tuggar; and members of the Nigerian diplomatic mission in Abu Dhabi.
Several other ministers, including the Minister of Budget and Planning, Mr Atiku Bagudu; the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Mrs Jumoke Oduwole; and the Director-General of the National Intelligence Agency, Mr Mohammed Mohammed, welcomed President Tinubu at his hotel.
President Tinubu arrived in Abu Dhabi from Europe, where he spent part of his end-of-year break, engaging in fruitful discussions with Rwandan President Paul Kagame and French President Emmanuel Macron, according to a statement by the presidency.
The 2026 Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week, with the theme The Nexus of Next, All Systems Go, is a global platform that brings together world leaders, policymakers, investors, and experts to advance dialogue and action on sustainable development, climate action, energy transition, and inclusive economic growth.
This visit further reinforces the strong diplomatic and economic ties between Nigeria and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), while positioning Nigeria as an active contributor to global conversations on sustainable development.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The failure of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to account for about N55.9 billion earmarked for the purchase of some materials for the 2019 general elections has forced the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) to file a lawsuit against the commission.
In the suit number FHC/ABJ/CS/38/2026 filed last Friday at the Federal High Court in Abuja, SERAP asked the court for an order of mandamus to compel INEC to disclose the names of all contractors paid the sum of money.
It was claimed that the N55.9 billion was meant for the purchase of smart card readers, ballot papers, result sheets and other election materials for the 2019 general elections, which produced the late Mr Muhammadu Buhari as President for a second term in office.
SERAP is relying on the latest annual report published by the Auditor-General on September 9, 2025, to ask for the use of the funds, which is said to be missing or diverted.
The organisation argued that the electoral umpire “must operate without corruption if the commission is to ensure free and fair elections in the country and uphold Nigerians’ right to participation.”
“INEC cannot ensure impartial administration of future elections if these allegations are not satisfactorily addressed, perpetrators including the contractors involved are not prosecuted and the proceeds of corruption are not fully recovered,” a part of the statement issued by the group stated.
“INEC cannot properly carry out its constitutional and statutory responsibilities to conduct free and fair elections in the country if it continues to fail to uphold the basic principles of transparency, accountability and the rule of law.
“These allegations also constitute abuse of public office and show the urgent need by INEC to commit to transparency, accountability, clean governance and the rule of law,” it further declared.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Ministry of Finance has directed all shipping companies and airlines operating in Nigeria to submit their manifests through the Single Window Project (SWP) as part of efforts to strengthen cargo tracking and transparency.
The submission of shipping manifests before the change of policy was handled exclusively by the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) for onward cargo processing and port clearance.
However, following a memo from late last year signed by the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr Wale Edun, all shipping firms and airlines were directed to integrate with the National Single Window platform to ensure seamless Manifests submission.
“I would like to bring to your attention that His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu inaugurated the National Single Window (NSW) Project on the 16th of April 2024.
The NSW Project aims to streamline and automate import and export processes at Nigeria’s entry & exit ports, with the dual goals of enhancing trade facilitation and increasing government revenue.
“By integrating the operations of multiple government agencies involved in trade processes on one platform, the NSW platform will ensure faster clearance of goods and services, improve operational efficiencies at the imports and significantly reduce bureaucratic bottlenecks.
“Key components of the Single Window as defined by the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and World Customs Organisation (WCO) include: (a) a single-entry point i.e. traders, shipping lines, airlines and other stakeholders should submit all required import and export documentation through a single-entry point on a centralized digital platform, and (b) single submission i.e. all documentation should only be submitted once and data only entered once.
“As a result, the NSW Platform will be the single-entry point of submission for all Sea and Air Manifests. Therefore, all shipping lines and airlines are therefore directed to integrate with the NSW Platform to ensure seamless Manifests submission,” parts of the memo read.
The Comptroller-General of the NCS, the chairman of the Nigerian Revenue Service (NRS), the Managing Director of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), the Managing Director of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) and the Director General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) were copied in the memo.
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