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FG to Disburse ₦6.3bn Interest-Free Loans to 21,000 Flood Victims

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Minister of State for Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction, Yusuf Sununu,

Over 8.1m households benefit ₦300bn under Conditional Cash Transfer scheme

 

No fewer than 21,000 Nigerians affected by flood disasters across the country are to benefit from a Federal Government interest-free loan totalling ₦6.3 billion.

The Minister of State for Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction, Yusuf Sununu, disclosed this on Monday at a roundtable held in Abuja to mark the 2025 International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction.

The event had in attendance Vice President Kashim Shettima, Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives Benjamin Kalu, Governor Dauda Lawal of Zamfara State, lawmakers, and international development partners, among others.

Sununu said the initiative is part of efforts by the Tinubu administration to mitigate the impact of flooding on households and cushion its effect on food security.

According to him, each of the 21,000 beneficiaries will receive an interest-free and collateral-free loan of ₦300,000 to help them recover and rebuild their livelihoods.

“We are planning, together with both national and state levels, to improve on our flood mitigating effect by dolling out, in the next few weeks, to 21,000 Nigerians, free interest and collateral-free loans of over ₦300,000 each.
This is to address the crisis in farming and mitigate the impact of flooding in Nigeria,” the minister said.

Sununu also revealed that over 8.1 million households across Nigeria have benefited from the Federal Government’s Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) programme, receiving a total of over ₦300 billion through the National Social Investment Agency.

“Under the Hope Agenda of Mr. President, the Ministry has, through the National Social Investment Agency, improved the resilience of local communities. So far, over 8.1 million households have been reached with more than ₦300 billion, enhancing their health, education, and capacity for self-reliance,” he added.

The minister further disclosed that the government is collaborating with the Federal Ministry of Agriculture to empower internally displaced persons (IDPs) by creating a market structure for their farm produce.

“We have initiated a programme in collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture to enhance food security among IDPs.The formula allocates 30 per cent of the produce to the displaced persons, while the government off-takes 70 per cent and pays the participants their monetary share,” he explained.

Earlier in her remarks, the Director General of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Zubaida Umar, said Nigeria, like many other nations, continues to experience increasing frequency and intensity of disasters driven by climate change, conflicts, pandemics, and technological risks.

She noted that these challenges are testing the limits of traditional emergency response systems and require a more proactive and well-financed disaster risk management framework.

Umar also announced the official launch of two major policy instruments — the NEMA Strategic Plan (2025–2029) and the National Disaster Risk Reduction Strategy (2025–2030) — which she said would guide national resilience and disaster preparedness efforts in the coming years.

“Resilience must be mainstreamed across all sectors — from agriculture, water resources, energy, and infrastructure to finance, education, and health. We are developing a National Risk Monitoring and Information Platform that will enable early warning, vulnerability mapping, and risk-informed investment decisions,” she said.

The NEMA boss also emphasized the need for innovative financing mechanisms such as catastrophe bonds, insurance pools, and climate funds to sustain disaster risk reduction efforts nationwide.

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IGP Disu seeks NIPR partnership to boost public trust in police

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NIPR President, Dr Ike Neliaku, in a handshake with the Inspector-General of Police, Olatunji Disu, at the Force Headquarters in Abuja on Tuesday.

The Inspector-General of Police, IGP Olatunji Disu, has called for stronger collaboration between the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) and the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR) to enhance public confidence in the police.

The IGP made the call on Tuesday when he received a delegation of the NIPR, led by its President and Chairman of Council, Dr Ike Neliaku, on a courtesy visit to the Force Headquarters, Abuja.

According to a statement issued by the Force Public Relations Officer, CSP Ani Iniedu, the IGP emphasised the importance of effective communication, professionalism, transparency and fairness in strengthening the relationship between the police and members of the public.

Disu noted that every police officer was an image-maker of the Force, adding that the conduct of personnel in their daily interactions with citizens had a direct impact on public perception of the police.

He said the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) remained committed to policing by consent and promoting a service-oriented policing culture built on professionalism, empathy, accountability and respect for human rights.

The IGP also sought the support of the NIPR in providing specialised communication training for police personnel and developing a coherent communication framework that would effectively communicate the sacrifices and contributions of police officers to public safety and national security.

Earlier, Neliaku commended the IGP for his professional accomplishments and briefed him on Nigeria’s hosting of the 2026 World Public Relations Forum and Africa Charter Forum.

The international event is scheduled to hold at the Transcorp Hilton, Abuja, and is expected to attract more than 3,000 delegates from 126 member countries of the Global Alliance for Public Relations.

The NIPR delegation also sought the support of the Nigeria Police Force in security planning and coverage for the event.

Neliaku further invited the IGP to serve as a keynote speaker at the forum and encouraged police officers to register and participate as delegates.

The delegation included the Secretary-General of the African Public Relations Association, Dr Omoniyi Ibietan; Dr Suleiman Haruna; Mrs Maryam Sanusi; Mrs Olubunmi Badejo; Commandant Olusola Odumosu; Chief Uzoma Oyegbadu; Chief Moji Makanjuola; Mr Stanley Ogadigo and other members of the institute.

Iniedu said the meeting reflected the commitment of the  Police Force to building productive partnerships with professional bodies and other stakeholders to strengthen public trust, enhance public safety and promote national security.

 

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Inflation drops marginally to 15.39% — NBS

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Nigeria’s headline inflation rate fell marginally to 15.39 per cent in August 2026 from 15.43 per cent in July, according to the National Bureau of Statistics.

The NBS disclosed this in its Consumer Price Index released on Tuesday, saying the latest figure represented a 0.04 percentage point decline from the previous month.

The statistics agency, however, reported a sharper decline in the month-on-month inflation rate, which dropped to 0.71 per cent in August from 1.57 per cent in July.

The month-on-month rate, according to the bureau, declined by 0.86 percentage points compared with the July figure.

The NBS explained that the development indicated that the rate at which the average price level increased in August was slower than that recorded in July.

The latest data also showed a significant moderation in food inflation, which stood at 19.57 per cent year-on-year in August.

The figure was substantially lower than the 25.30 per cent recorded in August 2025.

On a month-on-month basis, food inflation fell to 1.02 per cent in August from 5.56 per cent in July, representing a decline of 4.55 percentage points.

The NBS said the development showed that food prices were still rising, but at a slower rate during the month under review.

It attributed the decline largely to changes in the average prices of a number of food items, including palm oil, carrots, pepper, onions, cassava flour, beef, yam flour, water yam, melon (egusi), fresh ginger, fresh fish, Irish potatoes, wheat grain, frozen chicken and turkey meat.

At the state level, Adamawa recorded the highest year-on-year food inflation rate in August at 38.85 per cent.

It was followed by Zamfara with 37.96 per cent and Bayelsa with 36.20 per cent.

On the other hand, Borno recorded the lowest year-on-year food inflation rate at -4.04 per cent, followed by Jigawa at -0.23 per cent and Kebbi at 3.47 per cent.

The month-on-month figures presented a different picture, with Katsina recording the highest food inflation rate at 9.48 per cent.

Rivers and Osun followed with 8.86 per cent and 8.32 per cent respectively.

Taraba recorded the lowest month-on-month food inflation rate at -12.42 per cent, followed by Borno at -12.15 per cent and Bauchi at -8.88 per cent.

The latest figures indicate a moderation in the pace of price increases, particularly in the food sector, although the NBS data show that consumers continue to face varying price pressures across the states.

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Nigeria’s Oil Output Rises to 1.68m Barrels Per Day

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Nigeria’s crude oil and condensate production rose to 1.68 million barrels per day in August 2026, representing a 0.4 per cent increase from the 1.67 million barrels per day recorded in July.

The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission disclosed this in its latest production report released on Sunday.

Excluding condensate, the country produced an average of 1,500,190 barrels of crude oil per day in August, allowing Nigeria to meet its Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries quota for the fourth consecutive month.

Daily combined crude oil and condensate production ranged between 1.64 million barrels and 1.71 million barrels during the month under review.

A breakdown of production by terminals showed that Bonny Terminal recorded the highest output at 320.04 thousand barrels per day, followed by Forcados Terminal with 317.40 thousand barrels per day.

Qua Iboe Terminal recorded an average production of 171.72 thousand barrels per day, while Escravos Oil Terminal posted 131.71 thousand barrels per day.

Bonga ranked fifth among the highest-producing terminals, with an average output of 92.50 thousand barrels per day.

The NUPRC attributed the modest improvement in August production largely to the resolution of operational challenges involving the Single Buoy Mooring at the Erha field.

The commission said the challenges had adversely affected production in the preceding month.

“The restoration of normal evacuation and production operations at the asset contributed positively to overall production volumes during the period under review,” the commission’s spokesperson, Eniola Akinkuotu, said in a statement on Sunday.

The regulator added that production activities across most other producing assets remained relatively stable during the month.

“Production activities across most other producing assets remained relatively stable, with operators sustaining implementation measures aimed at optimising production efficiency, maintaining asset integrity, and minimising operational disruptions,” the statement said.

The latest figures indicate a continued improvement in Nigeria’s oil production, with the country maintaining its OPEC quota compliance for the fourth consecutive month.

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