News
AfDB Scouts for Viable Energy Models for Power-Starved Africa

A major preoccupation of the just-concluded visit to Asia by an African Development Bank team led by its President, Akinwumi Adesina, was the search for an efficient energy system that can be easily adapted in some of the most energy-starved African countries.
Energy is at the top of the Bank’s High 5 priorities – Light up and power Africa, Feed Africa, Industrialise Africa, Integrate Africa and Improve the quality of life for Africans. It seeks to tackle one of the most daunting challenges to the continent’s development – energy poverty among its 640 million people. More than half of the continent’s population do not have access to electricity.
To reverse this situation, the Bank unveiled its New Deal on Energy for Africa, and launched a Transformative Partnership on Energy at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, in January 2016.
In this regard, the Bank has since begun to identify reliable partners and businesses that can help to achieve universal access to electricity in Africa by 2025.
Two important entities visited during the Bank mission to Asia were the Isogo Power Station in Yokohama, Japan, and Seoul Thermal Power in Korea. Both plants are among the world’s best examples of the use of clean coal technology to produce electricity.
Isogo, for instance, demonstrates that it is possible to build a 600 MW coal-powered electricity plant over a 12-hectare piece of land in four years that can provide almost the same amount of power currently consumed in Nigeria. Such a development would be transformative in those parts of Africa that enjoy only the rare glow of an occasional lightbulb amidst a sea of darkness.
It also serves as a viable proposition for the use of omnipresent but despised coal that can enable poor nations to deliver affordable energy to millions of people with funding from multilateral development institutions that are averse to funding power generation from fossil fuels.
The Isogo thermal power station comprises two 600-MW plants upgraded in 2002 and 2009, respectively, replacing their predecessors built in the 1960s, and doubling power generation and efficiency.
The plants were built by J-POWER, a wholesale power generator and wire company established by the Japanese government in 1952 and privatized in 2004. Owned by Electric Power Development Co., Ltd. (EPDC), J-POWER and distributes wholesale energy from principally hydroelectric and fossil-fueled plants to 10 utilities located across Japan.
Its attractiveness for some African countries derives from the “build, scrap, build” approach, which makes it possible to replace existing plants without disruption of electricity provision; effective territorial space management and efficient delivery of clean energy.
According to J-POWER officials, inside space-saving tower-type boilers, the compact plant burns pulverized coal to heat water flowing through thousands of narrow pipes, which channel the steam to turbines.
In the more advanced Unit 2, this generates a main steam pressure of 25 mega pascals at a temperature of 600 °C, after which the steam is then recycled and reheated to 620 °C. (The steam in Unit 1 runs at 600 °C and is recycled and reheated to 610 °C.)
This high-temperature, high-pressure process is called ultra-supercritical (USC) steam generation.
The critical point is the temperature and pressure at which water and steam become indistinguishable, and USC steam is well past this point. The higher temperature and pressure make the plant’s operation more efficient at converting heat to electricity.
Thus the plant can achieve a gross thermal efficiency as high as 45%, resulting in 17% reduction in carbon dioxide.
For their part, the Korean Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO) and Korea Midland Power Corporation pride themselves on state-of-the-art power generation and distribution technologies at home and abroad.
For instance, KEPCO’s 1.5% and 2.03% transmission and distribution loss rates, respectively, and 10.26 minutes per year household blackout rate would be a welcome change for those energy impoverished regions in Africa.
News
NRC, Ponzi Scheme Collapses Resulting Loss of Billions of Naira

National Reading Culture (NRC), an online investment platform targeting Nigerians has collapsed, resulting in the loss of billions of Naira for investors.

The website unexpectedly shut down, blocking users from withdrawing their funds and locking in their investments.
Just like all other investment scams, victims were lured with promises of doubling their money in few weeks.
When National Reading Culture eventually crashed, the operators vanished with users’ funds, leaving investors devastated.
How the Platform WorkedTask-Based Earning:
According findings, National Reading Culture lured users with promises of making money by completing simple daily tasks like reading articles, clicking links, or inviting friends.
They also offered investment tiers to earn higher daily profits, where users had to deposit their own money into the platform.
Evidence showed the website previously operated as a Chinese job search platform before rebranding into an “earning” scheme.
News
NSITF Partners South African Insurer on Digital Transformation

The Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF) has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Rand Mutual Assurance (RMA) to collaborate on digital transformation aimed at strengthening worker protection systems and support economic growth.

According to RMA, the agreement was concluded during a visit by its delegation to Abuja.
The partnership will focus on institutional capability development, modernising operating models, improving service delivery and sharing knowledge between the two organisations.
Through the partnership, RMA and NSITF will collaborate to strengthen institutional capability, modernise operating models, accelerate digital transformation and improve services for workers and employers.
The organisations will also explore opportunities for knowledge exchange and the adoption of best practices in social security administration.
RMA said the agreement forms part of its broader engagement with governments, regulators and social security institutions across Africa to support improvements in governance, operational resilience and service delivery.
“Our partnership with NSITF reflects much more than the signing of an agreement,” said Mandla Shezi, group chief executive officer of RMA. “This partnership is not simply about sharing knowledge. It is about co-creating the next generation of African social security systems.”
He added: “By combining our respective strengths, we can help build institutions that are more resilient, more responsive and better equipped to protect workers while supporting national development.”
Shezi said the future of social security depends on integrated systems where prevention, insurance, healthcare, rehabilitation, technology, investment management and institutional capability work together.
News
Senate Rejects Nationalisation of MTN, DStv Over Xenophobic Attacks on Nigerians in South Africa

Senate on Tuesday rejected calls for the nationalisation of South African-owned companies operating in Nigeria, including MTN and DStv, as a retaliatory measure against renewed xenophobic attacks on Nigerians in South Africa.

The upper chamber, however, condemned the attacks and intimidation of Nigerians and other African nationals in South Africa, urging the Federal Government to intensify diplomatic efforts to secure the safety of Nigerians living in the country.
The resolutions followed a motion titled: “Motion on the Need to Halt the Recurring Xenophobic Attacks and Intimidation Against Nigerians and Other African Nationals in the Republic of South Africa,” sponsored by Senator Asuquo Ekpenyong (APC-Cross River South).
The motion was triggered by renewed concerns over attacks against foreign nationals in South Africa following the expiration of a June 30, 2026 deadline reportedly issued by some vigilante groups asking foreigners to leave the country.
During the debate, Senator Wasiu Eshilokun proposed that South African companies operating in Nigeria should be nationalised, while Senator Adams Oshiomhole suggested that profits generated by South African firms could be appropriated to compensate Nigerians who suffered losses if the South African government failed to provide compensation.
Oshiomhole argued that Nigerians should not continue to bear the consequences of attacks against their businesses and lives while South African companies operating in Nigeria continued to make profits.
He said the government should consider using profits from affected companies to compensate victims if South Africa refused to address the losses suffered by Nigerians.
However, the Senate declined the proposal, opting instead for diplomatic engagement and further investigation into the attacks.
Presiding over plenary, Deputy Senate President Barau Jibrin cautioned lawmakers against relying on unverified social media reports and urged a careful approach to the matter.
Jibrin said Nigeria must condemn attacks against its citizens but should allow relevant committees to complete their investigations before taking further actions.
He directed the Senate Committees on Foreign Affairs and Diaspora and Non-Governmental Organisations to review previous resolutions on the matter and submit a report within two weeks.
The Senate also urged the Federal Government, through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Nigerian High Commission in South Africa, to obtain written assurances from South African authorities on the protection of Nigerians and demand the arrest and prosecution of persons responsible for violence, intimidation and looting.
The lawmakers further called for collaboration with other African countries and relevant continental institutions to establish effective mechanisms for monitoring and preventing xenophobic attacks.
Senator Ekpenyong had earlier raised concerns that the attacks were no longer limited to undocumented migrants but had extended to Nigerians with valid work and residence permits.
He described the situation as a threat to the dignity and safety of Nigerians abroad, urging the government to take stronger measures to protect citizens.
The Senate’s latest action comes amid renewed public anger over attacks targeting Nigerians and other foreigners in South Africa, with lawmakers insisting that diplomatic solutions should be prioritised over economic retaliation.
E-Financial3 days agoTokenization, Blockchain Technology will Transform Financial Institutions – IMF
General News3 days agoNIS Deploys Advanced Surveillance Masts, other Critical Infrastructure to Boost Border Security
General News2 days agoIHS Nigeria, FCT-HSES Concludes Clean Cooking Energy Campaign “Project Breathe Clean Air” in Abuja
Broadcasting3 days agoObi, NDC Presidential Candidate Faces N50Bn Defamation Claim over Alleged Podcast Remark
E-Business3 days agoWeebly Websites to Shut Down for Nigeria, 66 Other Countries from September
E-Financial3 days agoFG Denies N8 Trillion ‘Shadow Budget’, Says IMF Quoted out of Context
Telecom3 days agoNo Plans for Fresh Tariff Hike – MTN
News3 days agoWorld Bank Sounds Alarm: Low Revenue, Not Debt, Is Nigeria’s Biggest Fiscal Threat













