Author: News Room

President Bola Tinubu has declared that Nigeria must move away from exporting raw cocoa beans and focus on processing the commodity locally to capture more value from the global chocolate market. The president, represented by the Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Abubakar Kyari, stated this on Tuesday at the Cocoa Value Addition Summit 2026 in Abuja. The summit, themed “From Bean to Brand: The Bean in My Hand, The Brand in Our Future,” brought together government officials, cocoa-producing countries, investors, development partners, and industry stakeholders to discuss strategies for expanding cocoa processing and manufacturing across Africa. President Tinubu said…

The Minister of Education, Tunji Alausa [PHOTO CREDIT: @DrTunjiAlausa] Policy inconsistency remains the bane of education in Nigeria, with every political administration or minister introducing new ideas that are, at best, good on paper. The Minister of Education is also pursuing another controversial reform by replacing the 6-3-3-4 administrative structure with a 6-6-4 arrangement, ostensibly to reduce the number of out-of-school children. No policy is 100 per cent foolproof or perfect. What matters is building consensus, ensuring sustainability, implementing reforms faithfully, and keeping education affordable and accessible for all. Education policies have far-reaching consequences, shaping not only what students learn…

Tanzanian singer Diamond Platnumz has sparked significant reactions on social media after posting a photograph of an unidentified woman on his Instagram Stories, just 48 hours after his partner, Zuchu, announced that they were separating and undergoing divorce proceedings. The singer, whose real name is Naseeb Abdul Juma, captioned the post “Natulizana”, a Swahili phrase loosely translating to “we are at peace”, without identifying the woman or providing further context. The timing of the post, however, has fuelled widespread speculation among fans, arriving just shortly after Zuchu [Link: Zuchu’s Instagram] publicly confirmed the end of their six-year relationship. Zuchu announces…

The Gombe State Police Command has arrested a suspected armed robber, detained two alleged housebreakers with 39 master keys, and recovered a stolen vehicle in separate operations across the state. The Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Buhari Abdullahi, disclosed this on Wednesday while briefing journalists on the command’s recent activities. Abdullahi said one Micah Nuhu was arrested over an alleged robbery attack on a woman identified as Mama Kingsley Joseph. According to him, the suspect allegedly attacked the woman with a pestle and stole her purse, which was later recovered by the police. He said the victim was taken to…

Japan is set to reshape its cryptocurrency market with stricter trading rules, stronger user protections and a framework closer to traditional finance.The country’s parliament on Wednesday passed revisions that classify crypto assets as financial assets under Japan’s Financial Instruments and Exchange Act (FIEA), according to a report by local news agency Nikkei.The changes move Japan’s crypto regulation away from the Payment Services Act (PSA), which treated digital assets primarily as payment instruments, and introduce insider trading rules and stronger oversight for crypto businesses.The overhaul marks one of Japan’s biggest shifts in digital asset policy as regulators worldwide continue debating how…

Growing Pains alum Ashley Johnson revealed she was almost kidnapped as a child while filming the hit ‘90s sitcom. Johnson, 42, recalled the terrifying experience during the Wednesday, July 8, episode of her “Weird Kids” podcast, detailing that members of the show’s live studio audience would stand close to actors as they exited their trailers. “I’m walking with my mom and I just remember some guy hops out of the line and he grabs me up and starts booking it,” Johnson, who joined the cast as a six-year-old when she began portraying Chrissy Seaver, said. “He ended up, clearly, going…

The FCT High Court in Maitama, Abuja, on Wednesday, granted bail to former chairman of the Code of Conduct Tribunal, Danladi Umar, who faces charges of receiving gratification from the contractors of the tribunal while in office. The judge, Peter Kekemeke, granted him bail in the sum of N100 million and a surety with proof of a property in Abuja. He rejected the objection raised by the prosecution agency, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), to grant the bail. He ruled that the commission “did not produce strong reasons why bail should not be granted” to Mr Umar. Although…

The Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU) is to launch the Nigerian chapter of the global Women in Anti-Money Laundering, Countering the Financing of Terrorism and Counter-Proliferation Financing (AML/CFT/CPF) Network on 6 October, as part of efforts to strengthen women’s leadership in the country’s fight against financial crimes. The initiative will be championed by the Chief Executive Officer of the NFIU and Nigeria’s National Correspondent to the Inter-Governmental Action Group against Money Laundering in West Africa (GIABA), Hafsat Abubakar Bakari, according to a statement issued by the agency on Wednesday. The NFIU stated that the initiative reflects Nigeria’s commitment to promoting…

Evidence from the field of implementation shows that the lack of clarity in materiality assessment among implementing entities in Nigeria lies in deciding what constitutes material SRRO, which entities should prioritise. The confusion arises because entities in Nigeria which previously engaged in sustainability reporting did so from the perspective of corporate social responsibility (CSR), in which the motivation is giving back to the society and sharing prosperity. In the implementation of IFRS S1 and S2, one of the documents required by Financial Reporting Council (FRC) of Nigeria during the Phase Two of the implementation (see the Revised Roadmap for Implementation…

The All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate in Oyo State, Sharafadeen Alli, has donated a 2015 Toyota Camry to Rachael Alamu, the rescued principal of Community High School, Esiele. PREMIUM TIMES reported that security operatives freed Mrs Alamu alongside the pupils and teachers whom abductors had seized from three schools in the state, after fifty-six days in captivity. On Monday, after she and the rescued teachers and pupils were handed over to Governor Seyi Makinde at the Governor’s Office, Secretariat, Ibadan, Mrs Alamu explained why she asked for her vehicle following her rescue. She explained that she asked because she…