Publication

TOURISM

Kings and commerce: Inside Lagos’s high stakes world of Polo and power

Stagnant wages leave Niger ian workers trailing peers

Tunde Alabi, a fuel attendant in Lagos, earns the national minimum wage of N70,000 ($44) a month — an income that barely lasts two weeks. By the time he pays for transport to work, contributes to food at home, and buys essentials, there is almost...

Niger ia’s fish far mer s r eel fr om 8-year-old expor t ban

An eight-year United States export ban on Nigerian smoked cat sh, imposed a er the federal government failed to submit required safety documen- tation, is hindering investments and limiting farmers’ access to key markets. e US has, since March 2018,...

Lagos eyes 2027 take-off for fir st state-licensed power plants

Lagos State is set to record a major milestone in Nigeria’s power sector reform, with the rst state-licensed independent power producers (IPPS) expected to commence commercial operations between 2026 and early 2027, signalling a shi from policy to...

Telcos lose gr ip on N400bn air time lending business to five fir ms

Nigerian telecom operators are losing direct control of a lucrative revenue stream estimated at over N400 billion annually, as regulators move to restructure the fast-growing airtime and data lending market. The shift follows a directive by the...

Taiwo Oyedele: The reformist now holding Nigeria’s fiscal levers

The elevation of Taiwo Oyedele to Nigeria’s finance leadership is less a political appointment than the culmination of a carefully built reform career, one defined by technical depth, institutional influence, and a consistent push to rethink how the...

W hy Nolly wood can’t affor d lifetime r oyalties to actor s

The debate over lifetime royalties in Nollywood is currently hitting a wall of hard math. While the sentiment points toward a more digni ed future for performers, the economic architecture of Nigerian cinema remains ill-equipped to sustain such a...

Insecur it y squeezes Nor ther n Niger ia as food pr ices sur ge

Across northern Nigeria, from the insurgency-ravaged communities of Borno State, Yobe State and Adamawa State to the banditry-prone zones of Kaduna State, Katsina State and Kano State, a deepening security crisis is steadily dismantling economic...

Like Uzoka-anite, T inubu’s latest cabinet reshuffle came without notice for Edun

In a move that has sent ripples through the corridors of power and the nancial markets alike, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has fundamentally recalibrated the leadership of Nigeria’s economy. e departure of Wale Edun as minister of nance and coordinating...

Pension returns match inflation for first time in seven years

Pension returns in Nigeria are beginning to catch up with in ation for the rst time in seven years, signalling a potential turning point for contributors who have endured years of eroded real value in their retirement savings. Omolola Oloworaran,...

Stocks sur ge to N140tr n as global investor s pile back into Niger ia

The Nigerian stock market is currently charging toward a historic N140 trillion valuation, catalysed by a massive buy signal from the international investment community. is bullish momentum follows the pivotal April 7 announcement of Nigeria’s reclassi...

From boom to bust: Why reforms have failed to rebuild Nigeria’s economy

There was a time when Nigeria’s economy carried the quiet confidence of a nation that produced much of what it consumed. From vehicle assembly lines in Kaduna and Lagos to textile mills in the North and rubber-fed tyre factories in the South, the...

Repackaged expired products dominate Nigeria’s N34trn food market

By the roadside along the busy Iju-ishaga Road in Lagos state, a small kiosk shaded by a fading canopy draws a steady stream of customers. e stall is little more than a wooden table and a cluster of paint buckets arranged for display. From a distance,...

Rising insecur it y dents Niger ia’s investment push

Nigeria’s e orts to reposition itself as an investment destination are facing a fresh risk from escalating insecurity, as the U.S. warns citizens against travel to Africa’s most populous nation. e insecurity situation in Nigeria has worsened with Boko...

Nigeria turns wealthy lifestyle habits into tax funnel

Wealthy Nigerians are now the primary focus of a data-intensive monitoring system designed to shore up public revenue. e taxman is no longer taking declarations at face value; instead, authorities are leveraging digital footprints, luxury purchases and...

In Niger ia’s oil bir thplace, solar power sparks a new economy

The rusted derrick still stands as a monument to Nigeria’s energy sector, a subtle reminder of the day in 1956 when Shell geologists discovered the rst commercial crude oil in this tiny village surrounded by mangroves, changing the course of Africa’s...

How Nigerians endure years of economic hardship

On a sunny afternoon in Lagos, the hum of generators competes with the noise of traffic and commerce. It is a familiar soundtrack, one that captures, in many ways, the Nigerian condition: a people powering their lives, quite literally, in the absence...

From Microsoft to Music: How Addy Awofisayo is Scaling Africa’s Creative GDP

Blackout per sists as Adelabu’s 6,000M W tar get misses thr ee deadlines

When Adebayo Adelabu took o ce as Nigeria’s Minister of Power in August 2023, he promised that the country would reach 6,000 megawatts of electricity generation by the end of that year. He stated that the lights would come on. Nigerians, used to...

FT SE fr ontier upgr ade ignites Seplat, GT CO, Zenith rally

The Nigerian equities market has entered a new era of expansion, propelled by a return of global institutional confidence. Leading the charge are heavyweights such as Seplat, GTCO, and Zenith Bank, whose recent rallies have pushed the Nigerian Exchange...

Nigeria’s revenue boom masks a leak as deductions swallow 39%

Nigeria’s public finances are facing renewed scrutiny a er the World Bank warned that a growing share of federation revenues is being absorbed by deductions before funds reach federal, state and local governments, raising fresh concerns about scal...

Niger ia’s $850m for eign cloud bet leaves fintechs exposed to global shocks

Nigerian companies are spending about $850 million annually on foreign cloud services, embedding the country’s fast-growing digital economy into infrastructure located thousands of kilometres away and increasingly exposed to geopolitical risk. at risk...

Niger ia unlocks N3.3tr n to r escue power sector fr om decade of debt

President Bola Tinubu has approved a N3.3 trillion settlement plan to clear power sector debts accumulated over more than ten years, in what his administration is casting as the most decisive intervention yet in a grid that has long frustrated...

Global crisis, local pain: Iran war drives up costs, leaves Nigerians without safety nets

By all indications, the distant rumble of conflict between the United States, Israel and Iran is no longer a faraway geopolitical story. In Nigeria, it is being felt in the most immediate and personal ways, at the petrol station, in crowded buses, and...

PROFILE

Robert Ogirri, an expert in manufacturing and supply chain is committed to nurturing future leaders. He balances his professional pursuit, academic works and mentorship, a way he redefines what leadership and legacy mean in practice. Currently at the...

Flutter wave secur es Niger ian banking license to accelerate payment eff iciency

Flutterwave, Africa’s leading payments technology company, has secured a Nigerian banking license, enabling it to hold funds and deposits directly and strengthening its nancial infrastructure in its largest market. e landmark announcement comes a er...

INFORMING IMPACTFUL DECISIONS SINCE JULY 2001

Nigeria’s gas riches lure Europe, but pipelines aren’t ready

European energy o cials are scrambling for alternative suppliers after strikes on Qatarenergy’s Ras La an facility forced the company to declare force majeure on lique ed natural gas contracts with Belgium, Italy, and Poland. Nigeria consistently tops...

Niger ia’s bigger banks face cr edit test as r ecapitalisation ends

Nigeria’s banks are now bigger than ever, thanks to the sweeping recapitalisation drive by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), which has reshaped balance sheets and strengthened bu ers across the industry. But while the capital-raising cycle has...

Niger ia’s political chessboar d shifts as Kwankwaso dumps NNPP

Early political manoeuvres ahead of Nigeria’s 2027 presidential election are beginning to reshape the country’s opposition landscape, raising the prospect of a broad coalition that could mount the most serious challenge yet to President Bola Ahmed...

2027: Fragmented opposition faces fierce battle against Tinubu as APC tightens grip

Agrowing wave of defections into Nigeria’s ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) has deepened concerns among political analysts that the opposition may struggle to mount a credible challenge against President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in the 2027 general...

Why Investing in Healthcare and Building Dental Institutions is Vital for Our Nation – Funmi Adeniyi

Soar ing food costs ignite malnutr ition wor r y for young childr en

A surge in food prices across Nigeria is morphing into a public health emergency, as double-digit inflation on essential proteins forces families to ration meals, compromising the development of millions of children. The cost of staples including...

Niger ia eyes textile glor y again but odds look thr eadbar e

The Federal Government’s latest push to revive Nigeria’s Cotton, Textile and Garment (CTG) sector is facing mounting scrutiny, as industry players warn that persistent insecurity in key cotton-producing states, weak agricultural foundations and a...

Niger ia’s equit y boom pushes mar ket value beyond N130tr n

The Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) has officially crossed the N130 trillion market capitalisation mark, a milestone that says much about the country’s economic resurgence as it does about growing investor optimism. Nigeria’s stock market...

Gas-r ich Niger ia faces blackouts amid five-year high flar ing

Nigeria holds one of the world’s largest untapped gas endowments, yet millions of its citizens continue to grapple with chronic electricity shortages led by grid collapses, load shedding or disturbances. Despite sitting on an estimated 600 trillion...

Middle East war threatens Tinubu’s reform gains

Thousands of kilometres away from Nigeria’s shores, rising tensions between the United States-israel and Iran are beginning to ripple through the global economy. For Nigeria, the fallout may come at a delicate moment, just as the country was beginning...

OPINION

Why well-funded public healthcare often serves nations better than private healthcare

World’s largest shipping line wins 45-year Lagos por t deal

Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC), the world’s largest container shipping line, has secured a 45-year concession to develop a new container terminal at Snake Island Port in Lagos. The Geneva-based group said it had signed the concession agreement...

Niger ia’s $400m expor t r oute cr umbles as major car r ier s shun Gulf por ts

Muhammad Gummi, chief executive officer of G-baneen Nigeria, is living on a Ramadan prayer that his shipments will successfully arrive in the Gulf. His sesame seeds and cashew left the Apapa port in Lagos on February 26 aboard a Maersk vessel headed...

The dark millions behind Federal School of Statistics’ unaccredited courses

When Kunle Olayode received his admission letter from the Federal School of Statistics, Ibadan, in 2021, it felt like the first real step toward the future he had carefully imagined. At 25, he believed a Higher National Diploma in Business...

Rising f uel pr ices r eignite inflation nightmar e

Nigeria’s fragile progress in taming inflation is once again under threat as a new surge in fuel prices ripples through Africa’s biggest oil-producing country, stoking fears that the country could slide back into a prolonged cost-ofliving...

Federal finances under strain as debt costs swallow revenues

When President Bola Tinubu swept away Nige-ria's petrol subsidy and allowed the naira to float shortly after taking office in 2023, the reforms were framed as a painful but necessary reset. The government argued the measures would unlock trillions of...

Makoko: Life on edge, as govt halts demolition, residents still in fear

It is just a stroke of luck or probably divine mercies that Ebikamo Eruwari, a 72-year-old retiree, survived death after his home was demolished in Makoko, a slum waterfront community in Lagos. Originally from Sagbama in Bayelsa State, Eruwari, who...

INTERVIEW

When a woman understands her strengths, she stops shrinking to fit into spaces - Yetunde Ajibade

Indian companies invest over $27bn in Niger ia, says High Commissioner

Amb. Abhishek Singh, High Commissioner of India, on Thursday estimated that Indian companies have cumulatively invested around $27 billion in Nigeria. These companies, he said, are active in sectors including pharmaceuticals, power, transmission,...

How Tinubu’s cabinet reshuffle reached the White House before his Minister did

Doris Uzoka-anite, now former minister of state for finance, was midway through a carefully choreographed investment and diplomatic mission in Washington when the news of her movement from the finance ministry began to ripple through her phone. At...

Niger ians feel pinch of US-IR an war as petr ol jumps 13% in 48 hour s

When Taiwo Adeyemi, a logistics driver attached to Uber in Nigeria’s commercial capital, pulled into a filling station on Tuesday morning, the price board stopped him cold. Petrol had jumped to N970 per litre, up from the N860 he paid just days...

Niger ia bleeds $21m daily as output gap dents oil w indfall

Africa’s biggest oil-producing country is forfeiting an estimated $21 million in oil revenue daily despite a surge in crude prices triggered by escalat

Expanding economy yet to ease Nigeria’s living costs

Nigeria’s economy may be growing at its fastest pace in three years, but for many households, the recovery remains largely statistical. Data from the National Bureau of Statistics show the economy grew 3.87 percent in 2025, with fourth-quarter output...

Real peace, fellow-feeling replace xenophobia in South Africa

Call it peace at last, or whatever that sounds good, that is the reality in South Africa now. Citizens and foreigners are at peace with each other, as little or no unrests and attacks have been witnessed for a long time. Interestingly, Nigerian...

INTERVIEW

Busayo Olanipekun: Expanding Responsible Retail Credit Access in Nigeria

Sony ’s AI music detection tool spotlights Niger ia’s copyr ight gaps

The recent unveiling of a new Sony Group AI system, capable of measuring the use of copyrighted material in tracks created by arti cial intelligence, has brought Nigeria’s legal framework into sharp focus, highlighting the urgent need for updated...

L-R: Ayoolanrewaju Kuyebi,

MD/CEO, GHM Luxury; Oludare Makinde, chief commercial officer, Qshelter Limited; Akin Opatola, Chapter president, FIABCI-NIGERIA; Okereke Bright, co-founder/ chief operating officer, Fling Realty Limited; Olayinka Abiodun Olumide, commissioner for...

CBN delivers cautious rate cut on election jitters

The Central Bank of Nigeria delivered a rate cut on Tuesday, but the 50-basis-point reduction to 26.5 per cent was more of a cautious nudge than the aggressive pivot many had anticipated, even as headline in ation slowed to an 11-year low.

Businesses strained under advert regulator’s vetting regime

Nine months a er the Advertising Regulatory Council of Nigeria (ARCON) introduced additional vetting processes to curb the use of online adverts for scams, questions are arising whether the policy is achieving its intended aim. e May 2025 directive,...

Naira rally lifts Nigeria stocks to Afr ica’s top spot

Nigeria is o cially the best stock market in Africa right now, riding on the back of a strong naira, foreign investor appetite, and a bull market run to become the continent’s top performer in 2026. Businessday analysis of the data from African...

Low turnout, votebuying, logistical gaps mar FCT council polls

The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) council elections commenced on Saturday amid tight security, but the exercise was characterised by low voter turnout, reports of vote-buying, logistical setbacks and late arrival of electoral officials in several...

INTERVIEW

Africa’s monetization maverick: How Apollo’s blueprint turned creativity into currency

As lawmakers tinker, trust in 2027 election wanes

By 8 a.m. on February 20, 2027, millions of Nigerians are expected to queue under the sun, ballot papers in hand, once again placing their faith in a system many believe is still struggling to protect their votes. Yet, nearly a year before the first...

CBN r eopens dollar tap for BDCS to cur b nair a gap

The widening exchange rate gap between Nigeria’s o cial and parallel markets is expected to narrow a er the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) reopened access to the official foreign exchange market for more than 80 licensed Bureaux De Change, following a...

Stocks rally as pension funds igniteliquiditytsunami

Nigeria’s stock market surged on Tuesday a er a quiet but powerful rule change released fresh

FX market gap widens first time in three years

The gap between Nigeria’s o cial and parallel exchange rates has widened to more than N90, marking the widest divergence

NLC threatens election boycott over Senate inconsistency on e-transmission of results

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), on Sunday, expressed deep concern over the confusion and contradictory narratives emerging from the Senate regarding the amendment to the 2022 Electoral Act, particularly on electronic transmission of results,...

Nigeria lags Ghana, Senegal in election management

On election day in Ghana in 2024, the mood was calm. Voters queued patiently, polling officials worked with quiet efficiency, and results flowed with minimal drama. By the end of the process, Ghana had once again reinforced its reputation as one of...

‘I was inspired by the vision of building something meaningful’, lessons from Morenike Molehin’s journey

PROFILE