By Mark Longyen

The United States government has called for urgent measures to end the war in Sudan.

It says that the humanitarian crisis which trails the conflict has assumed a monumental level.

U.S State Department Special Envoy for Sudan, Tom Perriello, made this known during a digital news conference on Thursday.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the humanitarian crisis was triggered by the ongoing war between the Sudanese Armed Forces and its breakaway paramilitary Rapid Support Forces.

The conflict erupted in April 2023 between former allies, who had jointly seized power in a 2021 coup.

According to Perriello, the scale of the crisis in Sudan has not attracted the required global and media attention.

He said the Sudanese people were now more unified and clearer about ending the war. 

“They want an end to this war now.  They want full humanitarian access.  And they want their future back. 

“And it is our job, all of us who care about the people of Sudan – around the world, around this neighbourhood and beyond – to be urgently seized with the project of ending this war, preventing the worst of this famine, and giving the Sudanese people a chance to determine their own future.  

“This is an urgent situation where we are seeing signs of famine already across the country of Sudan. 

“We have known about horrific atrocities, particularly against women and children, forced recruitment, even slavery in this conflict that must end,” the envoy said. 

Perriello said that the goal of the U.S mission in Sudan was urgent peace, which was the same with the goal of Sudanese civilians and governments around the region.

He said that the situation was getting worse as the rainy season approached with the humanitarian crisis at a breaking point.  

“So, the only true solution here is to silence the guns, and that is going to require not only General Burhan and General Hemedti to reach that deal but also for all of us across the region to be partners in peace. 

“And particularly for those who have been fuelling the conflict rather than fuelling the peace efforts, we need that alignment now. 

“And I think that’s the message first and foremost that we’ve been hearing from the Sudanese people and certainly something we’ve been hearing from our counterparts across the region,” Perriello said.

Speaking on how the U.S. planned to coordinate with global and regional partners to advance peace efforts in Sudan, the official said that the U.S. had seen several important efforts across the region. 

The U.S. envoy said the many initiatives reflected the growing concerns across the region and a new sense of urgency for peace. 

He expressed dismay about reports of “horrific” maltreatment of women in Sudan since the beginning of the conflict.

Perriello stressed that the Sudanese people were unified and clear in their desire to take their future back.

According to him, the desire of the Sudanese people is for the warring generals to meet and for the international and regional community to act as partners in peace.

He said that the U.S. believed that it was very important to engage with all forces involved and work with partners ready to participate in the peace process. (NAN)

Edited by Chidinma Agu/Maharazu Ahmed

By Maureen Okon

Optiva Capital Partners Ltd., a wealth management company has called for collaboration with the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM) to promote further inflow of diaspora investment to the country.

The company’s Chief Executive Officer, Dr Jane Kimemia made the call on Thursday when she led a delegation on a courtesy visit to NiDCOM Headquarters in Abuja.

Kimemia said the company, specialises in investment immigration, could serve as a platform that would provide the bridge through which diaspora investments would flow to the country using the vast network of international partners it is working with.

The CEO said the company could provide divergent investment solutions across geographical locations and asset classes.

“Our clients are global citizens, which we see Nigeria with her population of over 200 million people who can key into it.

“Also Nigeria has a viable market in various sectors of the economy that can thrive and that is where we come in,’’ she said.

Responding, the Chairman/CEO of NiDCOM, Mrs Abike Dabiri-Erewa, informed the delegation that the commission serves as a link between Nigerians living abroad and the country by way of opening them up to investment opportunities in the country.

Dabiri-Erewa assured the delegation of NiDCOM’s readiness to work closely with the wealth managers to ensure that more and more Nigerians living abroad invest in their home country.

She said the commission is passionate about encouraging the diaspora to invest back in the country as it will go a long way toward contributing to the Gross Domestic Product of the country by generating employment opportunities in many sectors of the economy.

“I am glad and proud that in the past couple of years, we have seen the investment that Nigerians in the diaspora have made back home.

“We have them investing in the healthcare, education, agri-business, real estate, and ICT sectors, among others.

“We also have the Diaspora Investment Summit which comes up every November.

“We have also created a forum for them to come together and see where they can invest in the country.

“We will continue to build that bridge between them and their home country and build trust which I think is very important, ‘’she said. (NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Emmanuel Yashim

The U.S. armed forces said that they carried out self-defence strikes against drones, missiles and weapons storage containers in areas of Yemen controlled by the Iran-backed Houthi militia late on Monday.

The U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) said it had successfully engaged and destroyed seven anti-ship missiles, three unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) and three weapons storage containers in Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen in self-defense.

“It was determined these weapons presented an imminent threat to merchant vessels and U.S. Navy ships in the region,” CENTCOM said in a statement.

The Islamist militia has vowed to attack ships in the Red Sea linked to Israel.

However, many of the ships that have come under fire have no connection to the country.

The Houthis said they would force an end to the Israeli attacks in the Gaza Strip, which followed the unprecedented massacre by the Palestinian Islamist organisation Hamas in Israel on Oct. 7.

Because of the continuing Houthi attacks, major shipping companies were increasingly avoiding the shortest sea route between Asia and Europe and sailing around South Africa’s Cape of Good Hope instead.

Several Western countries, including the U.S. and Britain, have launched operations to protect ships in the region in response to the Houthi attacks.

The European Union has also launched a military operation to secure merchant shipping in the Red Sea, one of the most important shipping routes for world trade.

On Thursday, militia chief Abdel-Malik al-Houthis said that the group would expand its operations to block ships linked to Israel from even passing through the Indian Ocean towards the Cape of Good Hope.

The following day, the militants said they had targeted three Israeli and U.S. vessels in the Indian Ocean.

Al-Houthi last week said his group had targeted more than 73 vessels and warships since they started their attacks in November. (dpa/NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

===============
Edited by Cecilia Odey/Chioma Ugboma

By Maureen Okon

The Directorate of Technical Aid Corps (DTAC) on Monday honoured 18 volunteers who served in Uganda and represented Nigeria excellently.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the technical aid corps volunteers returned to Nigeria on Sunday after two years service in Uganda.

The Director-General of DTAC, Dr Buba Yakub, applauded the volunteers for their service to Nigeria and their host community and in helping to bridge the educational gap where they served.

Yakub said that the volunteers willingness to serve was a testament that Nigeria was doing a great service to Africa and humanity.

“What you have done cannot be quantified. We thank you for the spirit of oneness that you have continued to invest in your service to Nigeria and ACP countries as a whole.

“We thank you on behalf of the people of Uganda and Africa as a whole, in the spirit of one Africa, in the spirit of the African solidarity.

“Also in the spirit of Nigeria playing the role of the big brother in Africa, for volunteering to make this dream come true,” he said.

According to him, the technical aid scheme was initiated by Nigeria 35 years ago as part of soft power diplomacy.

“As i speak to you, we have reached over 35 countries within these 35 years. We have impacted in the lives of thousands in Africa, Caribbean and Pacific countries.

“Wherever the black man is, we have sent out volunteers and we have impacted on their lives – not just the students you teach or the patients you treat in the hospitals – but the multiplier effect.

“At a time you train one student, you should be sure you are training thousands of others.

“When we went to Uganda, the present Minister of State Education said she was a student of TAC.

“She was a student of TAC, she was taught by some TAC volunteers years ago, and today she is a minister in that country, so you know what that means.

“So what we are doing as a country is something that no country in Africa, and I can boldly say no country in the world, is really doing,” he said.

The Director Administration, Amb. Mohammed Mohammed congratulated the volunteers for completing their tour of duty without any bad report.

Responding on behalf of the volunteers, Prof. Terhemen-Aboiyar Tehemen, said that the directorate made their stay comfortable in their host country.

He said though they initially faced the challenges of integration, “in the end our stay was worthwhile, fruitfully and beneficial both to those countries and also to us.

“Also we did well to represent Nigeria effectively in Uganda.

“All our colleagues here contributed immensely. Some of them shared here yesterday during our debriefing of their impact in the educational sector of that country.

“We do not want to blow our trumpet, but for all of us here who are seasoned academics and well-trained, we made diligent contributions in teaching, in research and community development.

“Many successfully supervised undergraduate and masters programmes, and even Phds to a certain extent, while they were there,” he said.(NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Maharazu Ahmed

By Mark Longyen

Nigeria has called on palm oil producing countries of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to work assiduously towards resolving their disagreements, which threaten sub-regional trading in the sector.

Amb. Yakubu Dadu, Head, ECOWAS National Unit, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, made this known at a meeting of the group, “free movement of palm oil under the ECOWAS trade liberalization scheme,” on Tuesday, in Abuja.

Dadu, who noted that the meeting was a platform for conversation with palm oil-producing countries and industry stakeholders, urged them to establish measurable metric thresholds based on their production capacity of the produce.

He, however, added that this should take into account the economic conditions of respective ECOWAS member states.

According to him, in spite of the remarkable success of the ECOWAS Trade Liberalization Scheme (ETLS), which was established in 1979, the West African subregion found itself facing challenges within the “pivotal palm oil sector.”

Dadu said: “The ECOWAS Trade Liberalisation Scheme (ETLS) stands as a cornerstone in the realisation of a West African common market, embracing agricultural, handicraft, and erude products initially, and later extending its reach to include industrial and processed goods.

“In spite of the remarkable success of the ETLS, we find ourselves facing challenges within the pivotal palm oil sector as the cross-border movement of palm oil has encountered origin-related disagreements among member states, posing a threat to the sector’s stability and growth potential.

“Our goal should aim to achieve an environment where innovative solutions can be fashioned for the sustainable growth of the palm oil sector within the ECOWAS region.”

Speaking on the sidelines of the event, Mrs Massandje Toure-Litse, Commissioner for Economic Affairs and Agriculture, ECOWAS Commission, said that one of the challenges in palm oil trading in the region was taxation.

She said that by virtue of the introduction of ETLS, ECOWAS had already eradicated tariffs in business transactions within the region, but some disagreements still existed on the issue in some countries, which should be resolved to facilitate oil palm trading.

“Some products will go to some countries and the countries will ask them to pay tariffs when we know that under ECOWAS law, goods produced in our region should be free of tax.

“We have, therefore, invited all the countries to come and have a discussion to solve the issues in the commercialisation of palm oil in the region.

“The countries invited are Ivory Coast, Togo, Benin, Nigeria, Ghana and Liberia,” Toure-Litse said.

Also speaking, ECOWAS Commission’s Director of Customs, Union, and Taxation, Salifou Tiemtore, said that ECOWAS member states were not producing enough palm oil to meet the demands of the subregion.

“Let me tell you the truth, till now, with the statistics we have, we still need to import palm oil. What we are producing is not enough for our own consumption.

“If you take a country like Nigeria, it has the capacity to double its production in terms of palm oil, but we need to put in place some incentives so that through ECOWAS ETLS Nigeria can cover the Nigerian market and also go beyond the Nigerian market.

“We will delve into discussions on palm oil production capacity in the region, analyse import and export data, identify and understand the challenges faced by the sector under the ETLS, and collectively propose lasting solutions to address these challenges,” he said.

Tiemtore added that the region had the potential to meet the needs of member states if support were given to entrepreneurs to expand production and leveraging the ETLS. (NAN)

Edited by Isaac Aregbesola

By Fortune Abang

The Bangladeshi High Commissioner to Nigeria, Masudur Rahman, has spoken of his country’s readiness to deepen bilateral relations with Nigeria.

Speaking at an event organised to mark the Bangladeshi National Day and the country’s 53rd Independence anniversary on Saturday in Abuja, Rahman extolled the diplomatic relations between the two countries.

According to him, the celebration also marks the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between both countries.

“The two countries collaborate deeply in the UN under aegis of the UN bodies and international organisations, often sharing identical position while strongly supporting each other.

“We deeply acknowledge with gratitude the much-needed support Bangladesh received from Nigeria in being elected member of the UN HRC, IMO, and in the post of Managing Director to the Common Fund for Commodities.

“Bangladesh and Nigeria have long-standing close cooperation in the D8, the NAM, the Commonwealth, the OIC and other South-South and Triangular cooperation.

“Over the years, Bangladesh and Nigeria had deepened their cooperation in defence training, educational exchanges and people to people exchanges.

“Our shared history, identical demographic dividend and synergic diaspora would do much better, as our proactive diplomacy resonates with the four pillars of foreign policy of Nigeria: Democracy, Diplomacy, Demography and Diaspora,” Rahman said.

The envoy said President Bola Tinubu’s message to the Bangladeshi Prime Minister on her election victory served as a further demonstration of a renewed commitment to forging new areas of advancing cooperation for the mutual benefit of the two countries.

Nigeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf Tuggar, represented by Amb. Misitura Abdulrahim, the Director of Asia Pacific, diplomatic relations between both countries said Nigeria was ready to deepen cooperation with Bangladesh.

Tuggar said Nigeria and Bangladesh had established bilateral consultation mechanisms between the countries’ foreign ministries since 2021.

According to him, both countries have been making concerted efforts to grow trade and economic relations since then.

He said Nigeria aspires to cooperate with Bangladesh in the area of textile development, cultural exchanges, and sustain military relations.

“These exchange programmes have been extended to the Foreign Service Capacity Building; currently two Nigerian Foreign Service Officers are in Bangladesh for one-year training programme, we hope to receive Bangladeshi course participants in future.

“Nigeria appreciates this partnership with Bangladesh and is committed to the strengthening of cooperation in the areas of trade, ICT and investment, agriculture, education, blue economy and culture.

“From the point of view of our foreign policy, it has been our strategy to promote partnership with friendly countries to advance economic and social agenda of government.

“By attracting foreign direct investments, skill and technology for wealth and job creation, food security, poverty eradication and economic growth, using the 4Ds-Diplomacy Initiative as a tool to achieving this end.

“There is no doubt Nigeria and Bangladesh will continue to build on the successes recorded, while we forge new areas of cooperation in boosting trade and entrepreneur partnership between the two countries,” he said. (NAN) (www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Emmanuel Yashim

By Sarafina Christopher

Madam Liang Huili, Wife of the Chinese Ambassador to Nigeria, Cui Jianchun has underscored the need to create more opportunities for the empowerment of women in order to foster national growth and development.

The wife of the Chinese ambassador highlighted the need on Friday in Abuja, at an event organised by the embassy to commemorate the International Women’s Day 2024.

The event tagged, “The Women In Culture” was organised with the support of the Society of Nigerian Artists.

According to her, women are creators of human civilisation and drivers of social progress as they have recorded extraordinary achievements across all fields of endeavour.

“We need to create more job opportunities for women and crack down on violations of women’s rights and interests.

“In China, the gender gap in compulsory education has been largely closed with women accounting for more than 40 per cent of the country’s workforce with more than half of China’s Internet start-up businesses set up by women.

“We need to enhance global cooperation in advancing women’s development.

“Without a peaceful and stable global environment and sustainable development, and without leveraging the UN’s key coordinating role, the cause of women’s development cannot move forward.

“We should create new opportunities for women to participate in decision-making and be more involved in national, economic, cultural, and social governance.

Liang also added that In pursuing development, there is a need to remove barriers and create an enabling environment in which women are motivated, their creativity is unleashed to the fullest, and they truly feel satisfied, happy and secure.

“We need to eliminate prejudice, discrimination and violence against women and make gender equality a social norm observed by all.

“We need to ensure that women advance at the forefront of our times,”Liang said.

Speaking at the event, Mr James Sule, the Permanent Secretary in the Federal Ministry of Arts, Culture and Creative Economy, expressed appreciation to China for their support and contribution towards promoting women’s empowerment.

The permanent secretary, who was represented by his Special Adviser, Aisha Bello, declared that the significance of the role of women in national development, both in Nigeria and around the world cannot be overemphasised.

“Women have always played a pivotal role in shaping societies, driving economies and fostering innovation.

“In Nigeria, women have been at the forefront of various industries and sectors contributing significantly to the socio economic development of our nation, from intrapreneurship, politics, education, healthcare, arts, technology amongst others , women have shown the ability to lead, inspire and create change,” he said.

Sule also reiterated the ministry’s commitment to supporting women in reaching their goals and fulfilling their potential.

“The ministry will leverage initiatives such as mentorship and skills development programs, as well as funding opportunities as we intend to provide women with the requisite tools and resources needed to succeed in their chosen field.

“We will also strive to create a more inclusive and supportive environment that enables women to thrive and excel in the creative and cultural industries,” he said.

Mr Muhammad Sulaiman, the President of the Society of Nigerian Artists emphasised that Nigeria must deliberately take advantage of its present day situation to look inwards to proffer solutions through social and empowerment programmes.

“These programmes includes microcredit schemes, skills trainings, and short term workshops for mothers and widows, and then the protection of women’s rights at their workplaces,

“The creation of a fair playgrounds for women in leadership positions and in advocating rights to beneficial business opportunities,” Sulaiman said. (NAN)www.nannews.ng

Edited by Emmanuel Yashim