General News
DStv “I AM” Campaign Receives Accolades from Industry Players
Some members of the Nigerian entertainment industry have lauded DStv for the introducing the “I AM” Campaign aimed at delivering original local stories in the entertainment industry.
The company in a statement stated that “the #IAM brand local talent campaign was created to place DStv at the forefront of delivering original local stories, using the most talented performers on the continent.
“This campaign will have a three phase approach beginning with the blockbuster launch spot which showcases some of our biggest stars, followed by a 2nd phase that uses these stars to unlock the value we have in so much of our content using the #IAM theme and campaign.
“We will close the loop with a Pan African Content promo, showcasing and positioning DStv as the ultimate leader of African Content producer and provider.”
The statement further revealed that” it hopes to use the campaign to drive their storytelling, instill content discovery by reiterating the spectrum of content while highlighting the various genres, captivating storylines and incredible African talent.
“This campaign explores different stories told by different people in the desire to foster a connection, while invoking key conversations amongst customers, in this brand advert DStv showcases different genres and celebrates authentic storytelling by using some popular faces.
Iretiola Doyle, popular Nollywood actress and one of the faces of the Campaign said that it was absolutely amazing being part of the campaign.
According to her, “Initially, I got the script while here in Nigeria and like I often tell people the distance between the script and the screen is as wide as any ocean you can think of.
“Did I expect what I met? No! Because reading the words right off the script, they seemed straight forward enough but then I got to set and saw the costumes and saw the scale and I knew this was going to be a fairy-tale.
“It was hard work, pretty intense, it was one day of work, one day of rest and then you were shooting again.
“My character had a lot of work to do because that axe was real. It was intense but it was interesting and well thought out.
Speaking on what the‘I Am DStv campaign’ means to her, she said “The DStv I AM campaign in a nutshell is if you could ever capture what it means to be a creator, an actor in 60 secs that would be it.
“It visualizes the concept of being able to be anything, think anything, conceive anything. I am given the wherewithal to create.”
She noted that it is the duty of a writer to tell an authentic African story while her duty is to re-enact the character given to her.
“Telling the story is first and foremost the writer’s duty, I am an actor, I am a gun for hire, I re-enact characters that are given to me.
“If you ask me how well we have done as in industry in telling our own stories in the last several years, I’ll like to say we have done a lot, things have improved a lot.
“Everybody is proudly Nigerian; everybody is trying to tell the Nigerian story.
“There are many definitions of the Nigerian narrative as there are people seated, people tend to want to stamp their personal perspectives on things and that’s fine but we are very cosmopolitan, there is no situation happening anywhere else in the world that you would not find here, “she added.
She went on to extol Multichoice’s inclusivity in content creation, noting that they have done a fantastic job in that aspect.
Iretiola added that Multichoice’s establishment of language specific channels is responsible for the breaking of monopoly in Nigerian Nollywood industry.
In her words, “MultiChoice is a company, a business concern but when you have a company that comes into a nation, creates a platform for people to express themselves and by so doing create jobs for hundreds and thousands of people because if you understand the business of Television and movie production, you know that it takes a small village to produce anything.
“Not only that, they have gone on to establish channels that are language specific, they have taken on assignments and duties that are not theirs to bear.
“MultiChoice, I dare say is one of the main reasons why the monopoly in Nollywood is broken.
“They do not care who you are, they do not care where you come from, all they want to know is if you have talent and if you are capable of delivering on the job, anybody that says anything to the contrary is just trying to be dis-ingenious. I think they have done a fantastic job.”
Tobi Bakre, Reality TV star, speaking on the campaign, said that the young person out there should know that he or she can be anything he or she wants to be and still have a social life.
He added that the DStv “I AM” Campaign is centered on being able to be anything you want to be and whatever you want to be in life.
The Reality Star advised youths not to limit themselves in whatever they do, adding however that they should know that they have the power to be whatever that suits them.
He thank DStv for giving him the platform that enabled him switch to entertainment industry which he described as the best thing that has happened in his life.
According to him, “I wanted to switch to the entertainment industry but I couldn’t leave 4 years of banking and start going for auditions, I needed that platform and DStv granted that.
“It is one of the best things that has happened to me in my whole life, right now there are a lot of things I want to do, I have the audience for it.
“I can approach any producer or company and table my ideas, even on my own I can work on projects and have the audience for it thanks to DStv.”
Linda Ejiofor, An actress and model known for her role as Bimpe Adekoya in M-Net’s TV series Tinsel, said that the campaign means a lot for actors, musicians and everyone in the creative industry that you can be what you want to be if they put their mind to it.
She commended MultiChoice for telling authentic stories with African magic original movies, African magic Epic, Igbo, Yoruba and Hausa movie channels.
In her words, “Multichoice has done a Fantastic job, telling authentic stories.
“They started with African magic original movies, then moved on the creating channels like African magic Epic, Igbo, Yoruba and Hausa.
“That way not only is the story being told, people can relate with them because they are also told in their mother tongues.”
Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has projected that the pump price of petrol would hover around N950 per litre in the year 2026.
The CBN stated this in its 2026 Macroeconomic Outlook for Nigeria.
In its outlook for the domestic economy, the bank made what it called baseline projections predicated on assumptions like crude oil price at an average of $60 per barrel in the fourth quarter of 2025 and $55 per barrel in 2026 and the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market exchange rate at an average of N1,451.63/$ in Q4 2025 and N1,400/$ in 2026 (supported by a more efficient foreign exchange market, higher capital inflows, a current account surplus, and a broad-based improvement in economic activity).
The CBN stated that domestic crude oil production is assumed to be at about 1.5 million barrels per day throughout the forecast period, as premium motor spirit is expected to sell around N950, an amount higher than the current pump prices.
“The baseline projections are predicated on the following assumptions: crude oil price at an average of $60/barrel in Q4 2025 and $55/barrel in 2026 (consistent with the US EIA’s outlook that rising global crude oil inventories and supply glut would moderate prices); NFEM exchange rate at an average of N1,451.63/$ in Q4 2025 and N1,400/$ in 2026 (supported by a more efficient FX market, higher capital inflows, a current account surplus, and a broad-based improvement in economic activity).
“Furthermore, domestic crude oil production is assumed at about 1.5 mbpd (excluding condensates) throughout the forecast period. PMS price is expected to hover around N950 per litre in 2026. Government expenditure is projected to follow the 2025-2027 MTEF/FSP path, reflecting an expansionary fiscal stance aimed at supporting the $1tn economy initiative. MPR and CRR are assumed at 27.00 and 45.00 per cent, respectively. The baseline projections were generally supported by the assumption of continued improvement in business optimism and stronger investor sentiment,” the CBN said.
The Federal Government has reaffirmed its commitment to grassroots artisans to upgrade local skills to meet both national and international benchmarks and compete in the global markets.
Speaking recently during the Skill-Up Artisans (SUPA) zonal rally, Dr Afiz Ogun, director-general of the Industrial Training Fund (ITF), stated that the initiative is designed to professionalise the sector.
The rally was designed to raise awareness of the programme throughout the North-West region.
The rally saw a diverse turnout of professionals, including those in construction and engineering such as welders, fabricators, plumbers, and carpenters.
Those in the technical service comprised of electrical installers and automobile mechanics, while those in the creative and digital space were fashion designers and ICT technicians.
Represented by Muhammad Aminu, the former zonal director of the ITF, Ogun explained that the SUPA scheme seeks to convert traditional craftsmanship into sustainable livelihoods.
He emphasised that the goal is to transform artisans from job seekers into employers of labour.
“We are calling on artisans across the North-West to embrace the SUPA programme,” Ogun remarked. “This is an opportunity to enhance productivity, increase earnings, and ensure our workforce can compete on a global stage”.
According to the DG, the initiative aligns with President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, focusing on restoring dignity to manual and technical work.
He noted that a competent artisan class forms the essential foundation of a productive economy.
He further called upon traditional rulers, community leaders, and trade associations to assist the ITF in disseminating information about the programme to ensure high participation rates.
“We are here to engage the technicians, the tradespeople, and the young talents who serve as the backbone of our economy,” he added.
Nancy Ekong, director of the Technical Vocational Skills Training Department, highlighted the programme’s recent successes. She revealed that over 30,000 artisans were trained and upgraded during the initial SUPA cycle in 2025.
The ITF remains optimistic that the continued expansion of SUPA will bridge the existing skills gap in Nigeria’s industrial sector.
American billionaire businessman Bill Gates, has paid $8 billion to his ex-wife, Melinda French Gates’ charity, five years after their split over his affairs with other women.
Bill Gates and Melinda French Gates
Gates made the $7.88 billion donation to Melinda French Gates’ Pivotal Philanthropies Foundation in 2024, The New York Times revealed.
The sum, one of the largest public donations ever recorded, was revealed in a new tax filing, which shows the first specific financial terms of the couple’s high-profile split in 2021.
Melinda resigned from The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation in May 2024. Despite leaving the charity, she suggested her ex donate $12.5 billion to a new charitable foundation she intended to create.
A representative for Pivotal told the Times the $12.5 billion agreement has been fulfilled, and the nearly $8 billion donation was part of that agreement.
Melinda set up her Pivotal Philanthropies Foundation in 2022, the year after the divorce. At the end of 2023, it had $604 million on hand.
The billionaire pair split after 27 years together in 2021, embarking on what is considered the most expensive divorce settlement in the world. Melinda later received approximately $76 billion in assets.
Months later, details of Gates’ affair with a Microsoft employee were exposed.
The woman penned a letter to the company’s board in 2019, divulging details about the fling which began in 2000 and demanded that his wife, Melinda “read it”.
Microsoft’s board investigated the women’s claims and deemed the relationship “inappropriate”, the Wall Street Journal reported at the time.
Gates suddenly quit the board in March 2020 while the investigation was still in progress – and before the board could make a formal decision on the matter.
Two further bombshell reports were then revealed, alleging Gates had routinely hit on staffers at Microsoft and at the philanthropic foundation he founded alongside his wife.
A separate shocking report claimed that Gates had sought marriage advice from Jeffrey Epstein, with whom he reportedly shared a “close” relationship, having first met the convicted sex offender in 2011.
Gates’ and Epstein’s friendship first came to light in 2019, months after Epstein killed himself in his Manhattan jail cell while awaiting trial on charges of child sex trafficking.
The two men reportedly spent time together on multiple occasions, flying on Epstein’s private jet – dubbed the “Lolita Express” – and attending late-night gatherings at his Manhattan home.
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