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NITDA’s Talent Development Initiative Woos Business Sweden

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L-r: Anthonia Adenaye (Business Sweden), Joran Bjallerstedt (Deputy Ambassador, Embassy of Sweden) Kashifu Inuwa, CCIE, Director General, National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), and Nathalie Thiel (Business Sweden). During a courtesy visit to NITDA's headquarters in Abuja.
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Developmental Regulations, one of the core mandates of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), and a pillar in the National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy (NDEPS), has been identified as a major attraction of foreign partnership towards talent development by the Business Sweden.

Business Sweden is a platform for success in an increasingly purpose-driven world. It has a unique government and private sector mandate, that help international and Swedish companies to leverage their strengths and lay the foundation for green, inclusive, and digital growth – in Sweden and across global markets.

While welcoming the Swedish team to his office, Kashifu Inuwa, CCIE, the Director General of NITDA, was highly enthusiastic about the proposal made by the Deputy Ambassador of Sweden in Nigeria, Mr. Joran Bjallerstedt, and his team during a courtesy visit to NITDA Headquarters in Abuja.

The DG reaffirmed NITDA’s readiness to partner with the Business Sweden to explore the diverse avenues in promoting trade and entrepreneurship for the Nigerian teeming youths.

“With the Startup Act, Nigeria is positioning to thrive in the Information Technology ecosystem, and President Muhammadu Buhari, GCFR, is set to inaugurate the Council for the Startup Act, which is the apex organ for the implementation of the Nigerian Startup Act,” he noted.

Inuwa asserts that a technical working group committee is drafting the implementation framework for the Startup Act in collaboration with the private sector. The government is working on the Nigeria outsourcing strategy, which is going to focus on making Nigeria the preferred outsourcing destination of the world.

He further said that the National Digital Skills and Strategy, which is aimed at making Nigeria the global talent factory towards bridging the global talent gaps is in motion to connect various talents with jobs.

“We can supply Sweden with the right talent needed to develop your businesses because in the digital economy or in the world we are today, companies are as good as its next products or services,” he said.

The NITDA boss affirmed that Nigeria has the requisite talent required to nurture and train its citizen to fit into the best digital offerings the world has to offer because of the nation’s youthful population.

He also elaborated on NITDA’s function as a government regulatory agency, stating that regulations are meant to enable and not to stifle innovation.

“NITDA recently, launched the regulatory intelligence framework that creates awareness on happenings within the ecosystem and gathers intelligence on how to regulate processes which enables dynamism in our regulation formulation.’’

“Our regulations focus on achieving four objectives which are, to regulate market creation, to enable innovation, to regulate customer or consumer protection, and to regulate efficiency and effective service delivery,” he added.

He noted that some issues of concerns in Nigeria are waste management, transportation and logistics, financial inclusion, agriculture, and many more.

Inuwa further revealed that efforts are ongoing in building clusters for Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) to wedge against the lack of job opportunities for graduates. The Agency is into many other partnerships geared towards digital skill acquisition with MIT-REAP, Google, CISCO and others.

“In the same vein, we are sponsoring students for first degree, MSC and PhD on different courses, and currently in talks with the Universities in changing their curriculum to address the skill gap deficiencies among graduates,” he added.

He hinted that it has always been a collaborative effort in the ecosystem among other service providers in technology, communication companies, agriculture sector, extension workers, and even the input suppliers.

He then recommended his Special Assistant on Digital Transformation, Dr. Aminu Lawal, to be the contact person for all the initiatives identified to partner with Business Sweden on the three clusters, Business Process Outsourcing, Innovation Hubs, and Agriculture.

Dr. Aminu Lawal, while speaking on other strides of the Agency towards co-creating within the ecosystem, said that there have been several internal reforms in the Agency.

He mentioned that the Global Tech African Conference preliminary session would take place in Lagos in July 2023 while the main conference would be held on November 27, 2023.

Anthonia Adenaya, the Director General for Business Sweden West Africa, earlier said, “We work to promote relationships in Sweden and other countries in Africa and would love to develop innovation highway between Nigeria and Sweden, especially in areas that Nigeria wants to develop under the purview of NITDA”.

She commended NITDA’s efforts in enabling a formidable digital economy, particularly the recently assented Start-up Bill and added that NITDA’s objectives aligns with Business Sweden which is a powerhouse of innovation, sustainability, co-creation, and equality.

Anthonia agreed that there are lots of talents in Nigeria, especially when it comes to trade talent which her organisation is willing to export to Sweden. Adding that the proposed training format is project-specific, i.e., tailored to fit a particular company specification and requirements.

“We train students from the perspective and the vision of the company so that they are ready to be exported into the system,” she added.

She later disclosed that Business Sweden is in relationship with Ericson and have trained mechanics and drivers in Ghana. It equally has an MOU with France.


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JAMB Waxes Worriedly over Rising Digital Exam Fraud

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Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has called for radical and urgent interventions to curb the rising wave of sophisticated digital examination fraud in Nigeria.

JAMB Waxes Worriedly over Rising Digital Exam Fraud

JAMB warned that the trend can cause long-term damage to the country’s education system.

Prof. Is-haq Oloyede, JAMB Registrar, made this call during a recent event in Abuja, as reported in the JAMB Bulletin published Monday.

Oloyede described the evolving tactics employed by fraudsters during the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) as “worrisome, highly sophisticated, and capable of jeopardising national development.”

“Malpractice is not only compromising learning and research, it is endangering our collective future,” Oloyede warned.

“There is an urgent need for decisive action on these new and disturbing developments. The public must not treat this menace with levity.”

He lamented that instead of addressing the growing problem, “some people are dissipating their energies on spreading unhelpful conspiracy theories and hatred, while our future is being jeopardised by a new crop of sophisticated digital fraudsters.”

 

The registrar detailed how high-level examination malpractices were uncovered during the 2025 UTME, leading to the withdrawal of some results and the arrest of several culprits nationwide.

According to him, JAMB discovered that certain Computer-Based Test (CBT) centres and school proprietors had colluded with hackers to gain remote access to candidates’ systems and submit pre-programmed answers to local servers at compromised centres.

Oloyede also highlighted the use of AI-enabled photo blending to impersonate candidates, noting that many of the impersonators were current undergraduates. Other fraudulent tactics included:

He said they also include registration with combined fingerprints through the combination of fingerprints from multiple persons for a single candidate’s registration.

He cited the extension of local area networks from some dubious centres to remote “strong rooms” as well as the pairing of candidates with professional mercenaries to gain access to the examination hall.

He revealed that over 3,000 candidates have been identified as either accomplices or beneficiaries of these crimes, stressing that many of them are university students already enrolled in institutions.

 

 

 

 

 


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SERAP Sues NNPC over Alleged Missing ₦500Bn, Seeks Accountability

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Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has filed a lawsuit against the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited over its failure to account for the alleged missing ₦500 billion, which the company reportedly failed to remit to the Federation Account between October and December 2024.

SERAP Sues NNPC over Alleged Missing ₦500Bn, Seeks Accountability

SERAP’s legal action comes after allegations made by the World Bank, which revealed that out of the ₦1.1 trillion generated from crude sales and other income sources in 2024, NNPC only remitted ₦600 billion.

This left a deficit of ₦500 billion, which remains unaccounted for.

According to the lawsuit filed at the Federal High Court in Lagos on Friday, the organisation is demanding that NNPC explain the whereabouts of this missing amount.

The suit, number FHC/L/MSC/553/2025, seeks to compel NNPC to account for the missing funds.

In the legal documents, SERAP is asking for an order of mandamus to direct NNPC to account for the alleged missing ₦500 billion.

The organisation also wants the court to instruct NNPC to invite appropriate anti-corruption agencies to investigate the spending and whereabouts of the funds.

Furthermore, SERAP requests that those responsible for the missing money be identified, held accountable, and handed to relevant authorities for investigation and prosecution.

The lawsuit follows NNPC’s response to SERAP’s Freedom of Information (FoI) request, where the company argued that the FoI Act does not apply to it.

NNPC’s lawyers, Afe Babalola and Co, claimed that the company is exempt from the FoI Act.

SERAP, however, argues that the NNPC must comply with the Nigerian Constitution and the Freedom of Information Act, along with international human rights and anti-corruption standards, in exercising its statutory functions.

In the suit, SERAP emphasizes that the missing funds have significantly contributed to Nigeria’s economic instability, including the country’s high deficit spending and crippling debt crisis.

The organisation argues that the NNPC’s failure to remit these funds has worsened an already precarious economic situation.

SERAP also stresses that the missing oil revenues reflect a broader failure in NNPC’s accountability and transparency. The organisation highlights that the company’s continuing disregard for these principles damages the country’s economic well-being and governance systems.

The lawsuit also references a recent Supreme Court ruling, which declared that the Freedom of Information Act applies to public records in the Federation, including those kept by NNPC. SERAP calls on the court to enforce the application of this ruling in the case at hand.

The suit filed on behalf of SERAP by its lawyers, Kolawole Oluwadare, Ms Oluwakemi Oni, and Ms Valentina Adegoke, read in part, “Nigerians continue to bear the brunt of these missing public funds from the NNPCL meant for the economic development of the country.”

“There is a legitimate public interest in providing the details sought. The NNPC has a legal responsibility to account for and explain the whereabouts of the missing oil money.”

“The country’s oil wealth ought to be used solely for the benefit of the Nigerian people, and for the sake of the present and future generations.”

“Without the full recovery and remittance of the missing ₦500 billion oil revenues, the dire economic situation may worsen and Nigerians will continue to be denied access to basic public goods and services.”

“Nigerians have the right to know why the NNPCL failed to remit the subsidy removal savings to the Federation Account, and why the NNPCL is deliberately denying states and local governments their allocations from the Account, contrary to the provisions of the Nigerian Constitution.”

“The failure by the NNPCL to remit the money to the Federation Account is a grave violation of the public trust and the provisions of the Nigerian Constitution, national anticorruption laws, and the country’s anticorruption obligations.”

“Despite the country’s enormous oil wealth, ordinary Nigerians have derived minimal benefit from oil money primarily because of widespread grand corruption, and the entrenched culture of impunity of perpetrators.”

“Combating the corruption epidemic in the oil sector would alleviate poverty, improve access of Nigerians to basic public goods and services, and enhance the ability of the government to meet its human rights and anti-corruption obligations.”

“The Nigerian Constitution, Freedom of Information Act, and the country’s anti-corruption and human rights obligations rest on the principle that citizens should have access to information regarding the spending of their commonwealth.”

 

“The Auditor-General of the Federation and Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) have for many years documented reports of disappearance of oil money from the NNPCL.”

“The World Bank recently disclosed that out of the N1.1tn revenue from crude sales and other income in 2024, the NNPCL only remitted N600bn, leaving a deficit of ₦500bn unaccounted for.”

“The revenue and other income were expected to be paid into the Federation Account and shared by all levels of government but the NNPCL reportedly failed to do so.”

“SERAP notes that Section 15(5) of the Nigerian Constitution requires public institutions to abolish all corrupt practices and abuse of power.”

“Section 13 of the Nigerian Constitution imposes clear responsibility on the NNPCL to conform to, observe and apply the provisions of Chapter 2 of the Constitution.”

“Nigeria has made legally binding commitments under the UN Convention against Corruption to ensure accountability in the management of public resources. Articles 5 and 9 of the UN Convention against Corruption also impose legal obligations on the NNPCL to ensure proper management of public affairs and public funds.”

“These commitments ought to be fully upheld and respected.”

“The missing oil revenue has also impeded Nigerians’ ability to enjoy their economic and social rights, and denied them access to essential public goods and services, especially at the time of the cost of living crisis in the country.”

“Had the NNPCL accounted for and remitted the alleged missing ₦500 billion to the Federation Account, it is likely that more funds would have been allocated to the fulfilment of economic and social rights, such as increased spending on public goods and services.”

“The Freedom of Information Act, Section 39 of the Nigerian Constitution, article 9 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights guarantee to everyone the right to information on the whereabouts of the missing ₦500 billion of oil revenue.”

No date has been fixed for the hearing of the suit.


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Ikeja Computer Village Begins Biometrics Registration to Tackle Crime

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The leadership of Computer Village, Ikeja, has begun a biometric registration and enumeration exercise to sanitise the market, curb criminal activity, and restore investor confidence.

Ikeja Computer Village Begins Biometrics Registration to Tackle Crime

In a statement, Abisola Azeez,  Iyaloja, described the initiative as part of a broader rebranding effort to address issues like phone snatching, fraudulent technicians, and substandard goods.

It stated, “The market’s leadership announced the move after a recent security incident led the Lagos State Task Force to consider a complete shutdown. However, market representatives intervened to safeguard legitimate traders. Under the new rules, only registered vendors with ID cards displayed at their stalls will be allowed to operate.

Approved street setups will be limited to plastic chairs, show glasses, and umbrellas, while wooden structures and open flames are banned to reduce fire hazards.”

Adeniyi Olasoji, baba Oja, noted the market’s damaged image, emphasising new security measures like CCTV, emergency alert systems, and increased collaboration with law enforcement.

“Other leaders, including Prince Tony Nwakeze, Ralph Chibuzor, Ben Onuorah, Nofiu Akinsanya, and Ikani Tony, affirmed the move as essential for transforming Computer Village into a structured, globally competitive digital hub.

The registration will be completed within two months, after which only verified traders will be allowed to operate.

Meanwhile, Fidelix Ezeugwu, executive secretary of the Ikeja Market Board,  emphasised the market’s unified leadership, comprising representatives from four major ethnic groups, and the importance of updated data to align with global standards.

He said, “Additional upgrades include installation of walkie-talkies for improved communication, enhanced street lighting, and CCTV cameras to monitor activity.

“These improvements aim to position Computer Village as a world-class market, comparable to international hubs like Dubai and Singapore.”

 

 

 


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