News
UK Government Donates RHIB Vessel to NDLEA
The British Deputy High Commission in association with the UK Border Force, Ministry of Defence (MoD) and the National Crime Agency (NCA), have donated a Rigid-Hull Inflatable Boat (RHIB) to the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA).
L-R: British Deputy High Commissioner in Lagos, Ben Llewellyn-Jones, US Consul General, Claire Pierangelo and NDLEA Chairman, General Mohammad Buba Marwa during the handover Ceremony in Lagos yesterday.
The Rigid-Hull Inflatable Boat was presented to the NDLEA Chairman, General Mohammad Buba Marwa by the British Deputy High Commissioner in Lagos, Ben Llewellyn-Jones on the US Consulate General’s Jetty in Walter Carrington Crescent, Victoria Island, Lagos, on Tuesday, 16th of March 2021.
The US Consul General, Claire Pierangelo and the Director of Sea Ports, Omolade Faboyede were also in attendance during the handover.
The UK Government stated that the provision of the fully operational rigid inflatable boat (RHIB) will greatly improve the NDLEA’s already effective capability to patrol and intercept vessels of interest and detect criminality that operates in and around the waterways surrounding Lagos.
It added that the deployment of the NDLEA patrol RHIB will deter criminals and reduce maritime crime such as drug smuggling, piracy, robbery and kidnapping.
Smuggling represent a significant risk to Nigeria, which is a major transit route for large volumes of illicit drugs and trafficked people transported by West African organised crime gangs (OCG’s) in sea freight and commercial vessels to Europe.
For example, an estimated 125 tonnes of cocaine flows into West Africa each year destined for European markets. And in 2018, 48% of human trafficking victims identified in France were Nigerian, and 80% of all female Nigerian migrants in Italy were likely to fall into the hands of sex traffickers.
The donation is one element of the UK Border Force’s strategy to develop our capacity building activity in Nigeria and is an extension of the UK’s longstanding and successful cooperation with the NDLEA in the fight against organised drug crime in Nigeria. Drawing on the UK’s experience of cross and multi-agency co-operation and working alongside international partners such as the US, the UK has been working closely with the Nigerian authorities to address the wide range of challenges of illegal criminal activity for many years.
In 2020 the UK’s close working relationship with the Nigerian authorities led to the seizure of over 30 tonnes of cocaine, codeine and tramadol at Nigerian seaports, and in 2019 approximately 25 tonnes of cocaine seized in the Gulf of Guinea from vessels destined for Nigeria and neighboring West African countries.
Speaking at the unveiling event the Head of Mission at the Deputy British High Commission in Lagos Ben Llewelyn-Jones said: “Sadly, we know that Nigeria and specifically Lagos port can be both a destination point and a transit location for illegal goods and the illegal movement of people. We have already seen the significant impact that Nigerian law enforcement can have to tackle these crimes.
“We saw this effectiveness as recently as November 2020 at a Lagos beach where the NDLEA Marine Unit seized 704 kilos of cannabis from a fishing vessel that had arrived from Ghana. Many of the illegal goods that enter or pass through Nigeria are destined for Europe and the UK. So, it is also in our interests to continue our longstanding co-operation with the NDLEA and other Nigerian law enforcement agencies more broadly.
“We hope this vessel, and the wider effort and support we are giving, working with the NDLEA and other Nigerian agencies, can help to tackle crime effectively and help to bring the perpetrators of such crimes to account. We would like to especially thank the United States of America’s Consulate General for the use of their Jetty for today’s official handover ceremony.”
U.S. Consulate General Lagos, Consul General Claire Pierangelo said: “I am happy to be here with our great partners, the Nigeria Drug Law Enforcement Agency, as well as our British partners, the United Kingdom Border Task Force, to highlight the great cooperation we have at the Nigeria seaports to investigate transnational criminal organisations.
“We work very hard to combat transnational crime and the illicit trafficking of goods in all forms – to include narcotics, weapons, human, and wildlife trafficking – which presents a major security and economic challenge for the United States, Nigeria, the UK, and our allies.
“I would like to applaud the tremendous collaboration between these three law enforcement agencies that led to the seizure of thousands of pounds of narcotics, including Marijuana and Tramadol, and wildlife species products, such as elephant tusks and pangolin scales from Apapa and Tin Can ports. With the addition of this boat donation to NDLEA from the UK Border Task Force, we look forward to continuing and increasing our joint collaboration to combat transnational crime.
“As you know, a few weeks ago, the United States Drug Enforcement Administration signed a historic MOU with the NLDEA to further strengthen and deepen our cooperation. We salute them for their great work.”
Accelerating artificial intelligence (AI) adoption could increase Africa’s GDP by up to 4% over the next decade, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
In a report released on Tuesday, titled Africa Can Grow Faster With AI—If It Moves Now, economists from the IMF’s Africa Department say current levels of AI adoption and utilisation are expected to contribute just 0.2% to the region’s GDP over the next 10 years.
However, the report says stronger adoption, supported by the right infrastructure and policies, could raise the economic impact to about 4% by extending AI beyond today’s digitally connected firms.
Martin Schindler and other IMF economists say: “AI adoption in sub-Saharan Africa currently lags well behind every other region. If richer economies race ahead while African firms and governments lag, the productivity gap between the region and the rest of the world will only widen.”
Early signs of AI adoption are emerging across Africa, with countries including Zimbabwe, Kenya, Egypt and Nigeria developing AI strategies.
Telecommunications operators, including Vodacom, Econet, Africell and MTN, are also integrating AI into their operations and networks.
Other examples include chatbots supporting teaching and learning in Nigeria and the South African Revenue Service’s use of data analytics for targeted tax audits.
However, the IMF says AI adoption must extend beyond these early use cases to deliver meaningful economic benefits.
“For the region, AI’s main promise is not about replacing office workers, but boosting productivity across the economy—helping informal firms manage inventory, enabling farmers to increase yields, and supporting mid-sized firms to transition to formality and export readiness,” the report reads.
The IMF is urging governments to prioritise investment in reliable electricity, affordable broadband, data infrastructure and digital skills to support wider AI adoption.
Many African countries, including Zimbabwe, Kenya, Ghana, Nigeria and Cameroon, continue to face electricity shortages, while broadband services remain costly and coverage is uneven.
The Fund believes stronger investment in power, connectivity, regional data infrastructure and digital skills would help unlock AI’s economic potential.
National Population Commission (NPC) has commenced the nationwide digital registration of births and deaths under the Electronic Civil Registration and Vital Statistics (E-CRVS) system to strengthen legal identity management and improve demographic data.
Speaking at a press briefing in Lokoja on Tuesday, Mr Afolabi Yori, federal commissioner representing Kogi, said the initiative became operational nationwide on July 1, through the VitalReg platform.
Yori described the development as a landmark in Nigeria’s civil registration system, noting that it would modernise birth and death registration through a technology-driven platform that meets international standards.
He said the digital platform would improve service delivery, strengthen data integrity and ensure that every birth and death occurring in Nigeria was accurately documented and securely stored.
According to him, civil registration is more than an administrative process, as it provides reliable statistics that support public policy formulation, resource allocation and national development planning.
“Nigeria records an estimated five million births annually, yet millions of births and deaths remain unregistered.
“Birth registration coverage currently stands at about 57 per cent nationwide, while death registration remains below 20 per cent,” he said.
The commissioner said that the commission had established 4,011 functional registration centres across the country’s 774 local government areas and was working to expand the number to about 8,000.
He added that the commission was strengthening collaboration with stakeholders to improve the capacity of registration personnel and ensure prompt documentation of vital events through the VitalReg platform.
Yori said the platform would provide faster registration services, 24-hour online access, digital certificate issuance where applicable, and reduce paperwork, waiting time and unnecessary travel.
He disclosed that the platform was being operated under a Public-Private Partnership with Barnks-forte Technologies Ltd. as the commission’s technical partner to ensure system availability, cybersecurity and continuous technological improvement.
He called on parents, healthcare institutions, traditional and religious leaders, civil society organisations, development partners and the media to support the initiative by encouraging the prompt registration of births and deaths.
Earlier, Samuel Omonakpeme, director in Kogi, NPC State, described the commencement of the digital registration system as another milestone in efforts to strengthen Nigeria’s Civil Registration and Vital Statistics system.
Omonakpeme stated that the initiative aligns with the Federal Government’s digital transformation agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals, particularly Goal 16.9, which seeks to provide legal identity for all.
He appreciated the Federal Government, the leadership of the commission, UNICEF and other development partners for supporting the implementation of the initiative.
The state director also urged parents, guardians, health institutions, community leaders, religious organisations and the media to mobilise public support for the timely registration of all births and deaths.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reported that ICT personnel of the commission, led by Ehimoni Kolawole, conducted a live demonstration of the digital birth registration process using the VitalReg platform.
The demonstration showed that the registration process captures the biodata of both parents, while at least one parent must possess a valid National Identification Number (NIN) to complete the registration of a newborn.
Yola Electricity Distribution Company (YEDC) has alerted its customers to a fraudulent message circulating on social media, falsely claiming that electricity consumers can receive an additional 20 per cent bonus units when recharging their prepaid meters through unofficial channels.
In a statement issued by the company’s management on Monday, YEDC described the claim as false and urged customers to disregard the misleading information, stressing that it did not originate from the company.
According to the statement, YEDC does not offer bonus electricity units through individuals, agents, personal bank accounts, phone numbers, or social media contacts.
The company advised customers to purchase electricity tokens only through approved cashless payment platforms, including the YEDC Pay App, OPay, Interswitch, and other authorised vending channels, or to visit the nearest YEDC office for assistance.
YEDC also cautioned customers against sharing their meter details or personal information, or making payments to unauthorised persons claiming to represent the company.
The company further urged customers to rely exclusively on information disseminated through its official communication channels to avoid falling victim to fraud.
The management thanked customers for their continued cooperation and reaffirmed its commitment to serving them.
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