The advice by the European Union to the Nigerian Government to look beyond military deployment in the ongoing war against terrorism in the Northeast and other crises causing insecurity across the country is one of the leading stories in Nigerian newspapers on Friday.
The Guardian reports that the European Union (EU) has advised the Nigerian Government to look beyond military deployment in the ongoing war against terrorism in the Northeast and other crises causing insecurity across the country.
Addressing a media briefing ahead of Europe Day 2021, Head of the EU Delegation to Nigeria and to the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), Ambassador Ketil Karlsen, said insecurity crises in the country have shown that while the military option should not be foreclosed, other options, including dialogue and legal instruments, should be evolved and explored.
Karlsen reaffirmed the commitment of EU to a strong and robust mutually beneficial partnership with Nigeria, and declared its continued support for the country in addressing challenges and seeking opportunities.
He said the EU-Nigeria partnership had never been stronger and more relevant, even in the face of recent upheavals, noting that the EU bloc of 27 member states remains Nigeria’s biggest trading partner, first investor, a top donor of humanitarian and development aid and the biggest diplomatic network.
He said multiple examples of EU engagement in Nigeria include working with the authorities to bring an end to security challenges across the country. According to him, “we are supporting government’s efforts to fight terrorism, radicalisation and violent extremism as well as the reform of the criminal justice system.”
The newspaper says that Airtel Africa PLC has announced Olusegun Ogunsanya, CEO of Airtel Nigeria, as CEO Africa following Raghu Mandava’s notice of retirement.
Ogunsanya will join the board of Airtel Africa with effect from October 1, 2021. He joined Airtel Africa in 2012 as Managing Director/CEO Nigeria and has been responsible for the overall management of its operations in Nigeria.
He has more than 25 years of experience in business management experience in banking, consumer goods and telecoms. Before joining Airtel in 2012, Ogunsanya held leadership roles at Coca-Cola in Ghana, Nigeria and Kenya (as MD and CEO).
He had also been the Managing Director of Nigerian Bottling Company Ltd (Coca-Cola Hellenic owned) and Group Head of retail banking operations at Ecobank Transnational Inc covering 28 countries in Africa.
He is an electronics engineer and also a chartered accountant. “Raghu Mandava will be retiring as Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer as a director of Airtel Africa plc and as a member of the Market Disclosure Committee on September 30, 2021.
The Vanguard reports that the United States Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, has described the security challenges facing Nigeria as extraordinary.
He stated this during a virtual roundtable with Kenyan and Nigerian journalists.
On how the US could assist Nigeria to tackle the security challenges posed by Boko Haram, bandits, and IPOB, Blinken said: “It is fair to say that the challenges that Nigeria faces, when it comes to security, are quite extraordinary — and you referenced them — whether it’s terrorism, whether it’s banditry and criminality, whether it’s piracy. All of these are real challenges.
“One, we are in absolute solidarity between us in trying to address these challenges together. And the United States is committed to supporting Nigeria as it meets these challenges. And what that involves primarily is helping Nigeria continue to build its capacity through training, through resources, through information sharing, through equipment, and all of that done, very importantly, with full respect for human rights.
“But it’s also important that we work together, as we are, to address some of the drivers or facilitators of violence and instability that we know those engaged in these activities can sometimes feed on. And that’s why you have to have a comprehensive approach to these challenges.
‘’Military approach is vitally important, but it’s insufficient, and so economic development, progress, opportunity is hugely important.”
Blinken Blinken also advised countries battling security challenges to deal with the root causes of insecurity in their region.
The Punch says that the Nigerian Government has stated that the transition from analogue to digital broadcasting will create one million jobs in Nigeria in the next three years.
The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, said this at the launch of Digital Switchover in Lagos on Thursday.
The event marked the beginning of the second phase of the DSO rollout which began in Jos, Plateau State, on 30 April 2016.
The DSO rollout is intended to cover an additional 13 states in 2021, according to the minister. These states will be joining FCT, Kwara, Kaduna, Enugu, and Osun.
“This may look like a daunting task. Indeed, it is. But the fact that we are here in Lagos today is a testimony to our resilience and determination to ensure the success of the transition from analogue to digital television across the country,” the minister said in his speech.
ThisDay reports that the African Development Bank and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), in partnership with the Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa (FARA) and the CGIAR System Organisation, have pledged to work closely with African leaders to address rising hunger in the continent and shore up adequate financing to transform and modernize Africa’s food production.
The impact of climate change, rising fragility and conflict, and locust invasions in East and Southern Africa are taking a toll on the continent, they noted.
According to a statement, a two-day high-level dialogue in this regard focused on modernising food production, making African agriculture more business oriented, and strengthening agriculture value chains.
Finding solutions will require strong backing from governments, development partners and the private sector, it noted.
The Sun reports that astronomical rise in air fares for domestic travel has become a very serious cause for concern for passengers.
Presently, all the domestic airlines have doubled their fares on most of the routes across the country. For instance, one-way trip to Abuja which used to cost a minimum of N25,000 for economy seats or even less, depending on the time the ticket is purchased, now costs as high as N50,000 and in some cases, N60,000 for the same class of tickets.
Captain Musa Nuhu, who is the Director General of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), the regulatory agency, says, in this interview, that the reason for the hike is that demand is higher than supply and also, the scarcity of foreign exchange (forex) has made it impossible for airlines to operate their fleet at full capacity.
The Minister of Aviation has been to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and he is doing what he can about the scarcity of Forex.
GIK/APA