General News
10 Challenges Facing Buhari
President Muhammdau Buhari faces a tough battle to diversify an economy reliant on oil and hampered by terrorism and endemic corruption. Buhari won the 2015 election as a self-described “converted democrat,”took over from Goodluck Jonathan.
However, it’s not the first time he has led the Nigeria—he ruled as dictator between 1983 and 1985, after taking power in a coup.
But below are some of the top challenges the new leader of Africa’s most populous nation faces:
1. Too much oil, not enough fuel
The crisis caused this week by fuel shortages will make this the topmost item in Gen Buhari’s in-tray, but the problems in Nigeria’s oil and gas industry are more fundamental.
Nigeria is among the top 10 oil producers in the world and Africa’s leader, pumping 2.5 million barrels of oil out of the ground every day.
It is also one of the leading importers of petroleum products because its four refineries have long been run down through corruption and mismanagement, leading to an inefficient and wasteful subsidy system behind the regular fuel shortages.
Gen Buhari must find ways to divert the wasteful fuel-import subsidies into refurbishment of Nigeria’s oil refineries and sell some government stakes to bring in foreign investment and technical know-how.
2. Powered by generators
The fuel shortages this week exposed another chronic energy security problem in Nigeria: the country is powered by generators. A regular soundtrack to the hum and din of Nigeria’s cities is the diesel symphony of millions of generators purring away, powering everything from lights to water pumps to air conditioning units.
A quick solution to more stable power supply is to set up heavy thermal power plants fed by the country’s oil, but the power grid is in need of refurbishment and investment.
Official figures show that Nigeria requires about 40,000 megawatts of electricity for its population of more than 100 million.
It only produces a little more than 3,000 megawatts and this dropped to less than 1,200 megawatts during the recent crisis as 18 out of the 23 power stations were forced to shut down for lack of fuel.
3. Boko Haram Inc.
The high level of insecurity since 2009 had become worrisome, starting with the menace of Niger Delta militant groups, but the Boko Haram insurgents in the north east have turned insecurity into a national crisis with terror attacks across the country.
As a Muslim leader from the north and with a military background, Gen Buhari has the credentials to get the Nigerian military back into fighting shape and seize the initiative against the insurgents, who have killed upwards of 10,000 people in a few years.
Rescuing the 200 girls captured from Chibok will be a psychological victory, but stamping out extremist views will take a lot more firepower and smarter anti-radicalisation policies.
4.Corruption
Many Nigerians complain about being stereotyped over corruption, and with some merit; you are more likely to be hacked by a Bulgarian or Russian gang.
However, Gen Buhari acknowledges that corruption is a big problem in Nigeria, as does Transparency International, which ranks only 39 countries out of 175 as being more corrupt than Nigeria.
Gen Buhari has promised a crackdown, but as a civilian leader, he is unlikely to resort to the executions he ordered against corrupt officials in his 20 months in office as a military dictator from 1983.
A good place to start is the $20 billion that former Nigeria Central Bank Governor Sanusi Lamido said was stolen from the country’s oil revenue account. The figure is contested; the extent of graft is not.
5. Education’s missing children
As with many African countries, Nigeria’s public education system is wobbling under large numbers, poor policies, poorly paid teachers, and poor facilities. Many move their children to the mushrooming and expensive private schools as soon as they can afford it. Most of the country’s 69 federal and state universities and institutions of higher learning are full.
Of the more than 1.4 million qualified candidates who write the matriculation examination yearly, fewer than 230,000, or less than two in 10, are placed.
6. No jobs
Thanks to the high drop-out rate, an education system that produces graduates ill-suited to the job market, and an economy growing without producing enough jobs, unemployment has been on the rise in Nigeria for many years.
This has been exacerbated by the lack of deliberate job-creation programmes; a high cost of doing business that has forced the relocation of industries, and non-payment of contractors.
The unemployment figure has been put at between 20 million and 24 million – about the entire combined population of Benin, Gambia, Gabon and Togo.
7. National debt
When the previous government took power, it inherited zero national debt. It leaves the country with more than $30 billion debt, according to Finance minister Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala.
This debt is likely to expand further as the government invests in energy and transport infrastructure, but Gen Buhari must make earlier investments work to provide the tax revenue the government needs to repay its creditors.
8. Big economy, small base
Gen Buhari needs to find a way to wean Nigeria off oil and gas which account for more than 90 per cent of the total export revenues and 70 per cent of the tax revenues.
The recent slump in world crude oil prices has hit Nigeria’s tax revenues, export earnings and national reserves hard, and contributed to the Naira sliding from N160 to N221 to the dollar since November 2014.
To cure Nigeria’s Dutch disease, Gen Buhari must force through reforms to attract investments in the agricultural, services and manufacturing sector. The new government must use oil as the means to, not the end of, economic growth.
9. Big country, bloated government
Gen Buhari must find ways to cut down the size and cost of public administration. A mismatch between revenues and expenditures has seen 28 out of the 36 states fail or struggle to pay salaries.
Some 70 per cent of the Nigeria’s budget is devoted to recurrent expenditure, most of it wages. Although the country presently has 42 ministers for its 22 ministries, these are swollen by large retinues of aides, assistants and other political appointees.
In a megalomaniac society such as Nigeria, it is hard to think of a lean and efficient government, yet that is precisely what the country needs to work its way out of its difficulties.
10. Sleeping African giant
Finally, the Gen Buhari administration must take Nigeria’s rightful place alongside South Africa at the head of the African table. The country has long punched below its weight on continental issues.
With South Africa showing signs of uncertainty and hamstrung by a xenophobic outlook by some of its people towards the rest of the continent, Nigeria has an opportunity to emerge as the leader among African nations.
With the right diplomatic outreach in Ecowas, SADC and the East African Community, Gen Buhari might find that his election as President of Nigeria gives him a platform to shape continental policy. Africa is watching him and his government.
The Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority has ordered all international airlines flying into Nigeria to enforce the $10,000 currency declaration rule.
The authority said the rule is required for passengers to declare cash or negotiable instruments above the limit, as part of efforts to strengthen anti-money laundering compliance.
According to the NCAA, the directive, referenced as NCAA/CPD/ABV/298, dated 24 April 2025 seeks to address gaps in the enforcement of existing currency declaration obligations for inbound passengers.
This was announced in a statement issued by the Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection, Michael Achimugu, via his official X account on Tuesday.
“International carriers must take two key actions, which include “Make inflight or pre-landing announcements informing passengers of their legal obligation to declare any currency or Bearer Negotiable Instruments exceeding $10,000 USD or its equivalent upon arrival in Nigeria.
“Distribute currency declaration forms onboard for passengers to complete before landing. The NCAA has received reports indicating that some airlines are yet to comply with this directive”, the statement read.
The NCAA said these requirements are consistent with international best practices and are vital to preventing the illegal movement of large sums of money across borders.
The Authority warned that full cooperation from international airlines is essential, saying, “Please note that the cooperation of all international airlines operating in Nigeria is critical to supporting the country’s efforts to align with global financial standards.”
Accordingly, the authority emphasised that full implementation of this directive, particularly as it concerns inbound passenger declarations, is of utmost importance.
“Compliance will be closely monitored, and non-compliant airlines will face appropriate sanctions,” it added.
The court of appeal in Lagos has asked the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) to revoke the certificate of registration of “KPMG Professional Services”.
In a unanimous decision delivered on Thursday, the appellant court granted the reliefs sought by KPMG Nigeria against CAC and KPMG Professional Services.
The judgment was read by Abdullahi Mahmud Bayero, the judge.
The two other judges are Abimbola Obaseki-Adejumo and A.M. Talba.
In 2002, KPMG Professional Services was registered as a company with CAC despite the existence of KPMG Nigeria, comprising its audit, tax, and consulting arms.
The KPMG Nigeria has long been registered in Nigeria before 2002.
KPMG Audit was registered in 1969, KPMG Tax Consultants in 1990, and KPMG Consulting in 1969.
Displeased with the registration of KPMG Professional Services, KPMG Nigeria approached the federal high court.
The consulting firm had argued that the name “KPMG Professional Services” was deceptively similar to its long-established identity.
In 2005, the lower court dismissed KPMG Nigeria’s case, citing an alleged merger between KPMG Nigeria and Akintola Williams Deloitte as reason the company could no longer assert rights to the name.
The lower upheld the second respondent’s (KPMG Professional Services) counterclaim and ordered that KPMG Nigeria’s name be struck off the CAC register.
The lower court had premised its decision on newspaper articles stating that KPMG Nigeria reportedly merged with Akintola Williams Deloitte.
Delivering the judgment, Bayero ruled that the lower court erred by relying on newspaper articles to ascertain that KPMG Nigeria allegedly merged with another company.
The judge said the documents showing the alleged merger were not presented before the lower court, and the form of the alleged merger could not have been known.
“In any event, the only branch of KPMG, if any, that entered into a merger with Akintola Williams as stated in the newspaper articles 18, is KPMG Audit,” the judge ruled.
“The other spheres were totally unaffected. It would therefore be wrong to state that the merger (which has not been shown to this Court) of KPMG Audit with Akintola Williams means all the other areas of business, including KPMG Consulting and KPMG Tax Consultants, also ceased to exist.
“Even if the Appellants (KPMG Nigeria) had ceased to do business as the Court seemed to have held, the 2nd Respondents (KPMG Professional Services) should not have been carrying on business until the Appellant’s certificate of registration is withdrawn or set aside.
“They cannot use the name until the Appellant’s certification of registration is withdrawn or set aside. They cannot use the name until the name is removed from the 1st Respondent’s (CAC) Register of Names.
“The 1st Respondents can only assign the name to the 2nd Respondents after first taking it away from the Appellants.”
The court ruled that CAC erred by registering KPMG Professional Services despite the existence of a business name, which is already registered.
The judge reversed the earlier ruling of the lower court and reaffirmed the primacy of statutory protection for existing business names under Nigerian corporate law.
Air Peace has announced the launch of direct flights from Abuja to London Heathrow and Gatwick airports, with operations scheduled to begin on October 26, 2025.
The airline said in a statement on Sunday that round-trip fares for the Abuja–London service will start from N1m, making it the first Nigerian carrier to offer direct connections from the capital to both of London’s major international airports. This was contained in a press release issued on Sunday by the airline’s spokesperson, Efe Osifo-Whiskey.
“Direct international flight services from Abuja to both London Heathrow and London Gatwick Airports, effective October 26, 2025.
“Air Peace becomes the first Nigerian carrier to offer direct services from Abuja to both of London’s major international airports, further solidifying its role as a leader in regional and intercontinental aviation.
“Travellers originating from any of Air Peace’s domestic destinations across Nigeria can now book through fares via Abuja to either Heathrow or Gatwick using a single ticket, eliminating the need for multiple bookings or baggage re-checks,” the statement read.
Similarly, the new route opens convenient access for inbound passengers from the UK to cities across Nigeria.
“Travellers from London can access multiple destinations across Nigeria using a single Air Peace ticket through Abuja every morning. These destinations are Lagos, Port Harcourt, Enugu, Benin, Warri, Owerri, Kano, Yola, Gombe and Asaba, for now. Other destinations will be added later,” Osifo-Whiskey stated.
Air Peace is also offering what it describes as unprecedented value in pricing and service.
Osifo-Whiskey said, “It provides a distinct competitive advantage, enabling passengers to travel between Nigeria and the United Kingdom with greater ease, efficiency, and value, due to the possibility of choosing multiple cities entry and exit points.
“Has the cheapest fares ever, starting from only 1 Million Naira round trip. Huge baggage allowance.”
The Abuja–London launch comes months after the airline began Lagos–London Heathrow flights, which started earlier in 2024.
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