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ABUJA, June 14 (Reuters) - Nigeria's central bank allowed the naira currency to drop as much as 36% on the official market on Wednesday, days after the central bank governor who oversaw much-criticised multiple exchange rates was suspended. The naira hit a record low of 750 to the dollar on the official market, Refinitiv Eikon data showed, down from a previous low of 477 naira to the dollar struck on Tuesday. Traders said the central bank had removed trading restrictions on the official market. Central bank governor Godwin Emefiele was suspended late last week, after new President Bola Tinubu criticised Emefiele's handling of the currency and monetary policy at his inauguration. Tinubu has called on the central bank to work towards a unified exchange rate, rather than the multiple exchange rates Emefiele oversaw to keep the naira artificially strong.

Persons: Godwin Emefiele, Bola Tinubu, Tinubu, Emefiele, Charlie Robertson, MacDonald Dzirutwe, Rachel Savage, Karin Strohecker, Alexander Winning, Chizu Organizations: Traders, FIM Partners, Thomson Locations: ABUJA, Central, Lagos, Johannesburg, London

☆ Nigeria swears in lawmakers, focus shifts to president's cabinet nominees
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

ABUJA, June 13 (Reuters) - Nigeria's new lawmakers were sworn in on Tuesday following February elections, setting the stage for President Bola Tinubu to submit cabinet nominees in a process likely to signal how he intends to tackle a struggling economy and growing insecurity. The swearing-in ceremony in the capital Abuja also saw Tinubu's allies elected as Senate President and House Speaker, to mark the official start of legislative duties for newly elected officials. Nigeria's Senate wields significant influence in Nigeria's bicameral legislature, including scrutinizing and confirming the president's cabinet nominees. Tinubu has up to the end of July to name his cabinet but his aides say the president could submit some names as soon as next week. His choice of finance, petroleum and defence ministers as well as national security adviser would be closely watched.

Persons: Bola Tinubu, Tinubu, Godwin Emefiele, Elisha Bala, Camillus Eboh, William Maclean Organizations: Senate, Thomson Locations: ABUJA, Abuja, Gbogbo

☆ Nigeria's security agency detains suspended central bank governor
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-10 | by ( Macdonald Dzirutwe | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LAGOS, June 10 (Reuters) - Nigeria's suspended central bank Governor Godwin Emefiele has been detained and is being held in custody for investigative reasons, the police's Department of State Services (DSS) said on Saturday. The country's new President Bola Tinubu suspended Emefiele with immediate effect on Friday, a measure the government said was linked to an ongoing probe of the governor's office and to planned reforms in the financial sector. "The Department of State Services (DSS) hereby confirms that Mr Godwin Emefiele, the suspended governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) is now in its custody for some investigative reasons," the DSS statement said. Under Nigerian law, the permanent removal of a central bank governor from office would require a vote by the Senate. Economic analysts expect a series of changes at the central bank, including a gradual devaluation of the naira.

Persons: Godwin Emefiele, Bola Tinubu, Tinubu, Mr Godwin Emefiele, Emefiele, Razia Khan, MacDonald Dzirutwe, Alex Richardson, Mike Harrison, Helen Popper Our Organizations: police's Department of State Services, of State Services, Central Bank of Nigeria, Senate, Standard Chartered, Thomson Locations: LAGOS, Africa, Middle East, Nigeria

☆ Nigeria's President Tinubu suspends central bank governor
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-09 | by ( Felix Onuah | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

ABUJA, June 9 (Reuters) - Nigeria's President Bola Tinubu has suspended central bank Governor Godwin Emefiele with immediate effect, following ongoing investigation of his office and planned reforms in the financial sector, the head of the government said on Friday. Tinubu criticised Emefiele's handling of the currency and monetary policy at his inauguration last week and called on the central bank to work towards a unified exchange rate. "President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has suspended the Central Bank Governor, Mr Godwin Emefiele, from office with immediate effect," the government said in a statement. Emefiele has been directed to hand over operations to the deputy governor, who will act as the central bank governor pending the conclusion of investigation and the reforms, the statement said. On Wednesday, the central bank allowed the naira to weaken by 2% on the official market to a record low.

Persons: Bola Tinubu, Godwin Emefiele, Tinubu, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Mr Godwin Emefiele, Emefiele, Muhammadu Buhari, Felix Onuah, Chijioke Ohuocha, Marguerita Choy, Chris Reese Organizations: Central Bank Governor, Financial, Thomson Locations: ABUJA, Nigeria

☆ Nigeria central bank allows naira to weaken 2% to record low
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-07 | by ( Chijioke Ohuocha | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

ABUJA, June 7 (Reuters) - Nigeria's central bank allowed the naira to drop about 2% on the official market to a record low on Wednesday, but the currency's rate remained above where it trades at central bank auctions and on the black market. Nigeria is trying to find a way to unify its multiple exchange rate system, used to keep the naira artificially strong. In the past, the bank has allowed the naira to weaken in 5 naira increments. The central bank has been adjusting the naira gradually on the official market to avoid a large-scale devaluation. Last Thursday, the central bank denied devaluing the naira, following media reports of a big fall in the currency after Tinubu met the central bank governor.

Persons: Bola Tinubu, Tinubu, Chijioke, Alexander Winning, Christina Fincher Organizations: New, U.S, Traders, Thomson Locations: ABUJA, Nigeria

☆ Bombing of herders highlights deadly air attacks by Nigerian military
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +19 min

The letter said the Nigerian Air Force is committed to human rights and “further deliberations” on the issue, according to the report. “The absence of details raises the question of whether the air force carried out the air strike based on mere suspicion,” Human Rights Watch said. The U.S. State Department and the Pentagon had no immediate comment about the airstrike or the U.S. relationship with the Nigerian Air Force. Before now, neither the Nigerian government nor the military had provided any public explanation for what happened on Jan. 24. ACLED data show Nigerian Air Force strikes continued to claim the lives of noncombatants, inside and outside the northeast.

Persons: Ibrahim Muazu, “, ACLED, D.D, Pwajok, ”, Sara Jacobs, herdsmen, Oladayo Amao, Amao, “ miscreants, Muhammadu Buhari, Bola Tinubu, Jan, Muazu, Lamido, Nigeria’s, Sanusi, Buhari, Rand Paul, Cory Booker, Rex Tillerson, Lai Mohammed, Jacobs, Jim Risch, Chris Smith, Antony Blinken, Biden, Risch, brazenly “, ” Abubakar Bello Rukubi, ” “, Yemi Osinbajo, cc’d, Samuel Ortom, herder, ” Muazu, Humeyra Pamuk, Daphne Psaledakis, Idrees Ali, Jarrett Renshaw, David Lewis, Reade Levinson, Simon Newman, Catherine Tai Design, Eve Watling, Julie Marquis, Alexandra Zavis Organizations: herder, Reuters, Air Force, Nigerian Air Force, Human Rights Watch, Air, Rights Watch, Ministry of Defence, Nigerian Air, House Foreign Affairs, ” Reuters, ACLED, Planet Labs PBC, U.S . State Department, Pentagon, ”, Muazu, Congress, San Frontieres, Republican, Punch, UK, Nigeria –, Systems, U.S, Super, International, Development, Rights Initiative, Benue State Livestock Guards, Human Rights, Daily Trust, Nigeria’s Locations: Nigerian, Nasarawa, Akwanaja, United States, U.S, Nigeria, California, Kano, Rann, Cameroonian, Zamfara, “, Benue, ” Benue, London, Makurdi, Naka, Washington, Philadelphia

ABUJA, June 4 (Reuters) - Nigeria's state oil firm NNPC Ltd is winding down crude swap contracts with traders and will pay cash for gasoline imports, its chief executive told Reuters, adding that private companies could begin importing petrol as soon as this month. And we now have an arm's-length process where we can pay cash for the imports," Kyari told Reuters in an interview late on Saturday. This is the first time NNPC has said it is terminating crude swap contracts. In its report detailing March crude oil loadings, NNPC also allocated crude to the swap contracts held by the consortiums. Nigeria has struggled to meet its OPEC oil quota of 1.742 million bpd due to grand oil theft and illegal refining.

Persons: Bola Tinubu's, Tinubu, NNPC, Kyari, MacDonald Dzirutwe, Camillus Eboh, Julia Payne, Susan Fenton Organizations: NNPC, Reuters, Dangote Refinery, Thomson Locations: ABUJA, Nigeria, Ukraine, Dangote, NNPC, Vienna

ABUJA, June 2 (Reuters) - Nigeria's main labour union said on Friday it plans to go on strike from Wednesday to protest against a tripling of fuel prices in what would be the first big test for new President Bola Tinubu after he scrapped a costly fuel subsidy. The price increase has led to a sharp rise in transport fares and Estonian ride-hailing and food delivery startup Bolt said it had hiked its prices in Nigeria, citing increased operating costs due to higher fuel prices. Nigeria's fuel subsidy cost the government billions of dollars annually but was popular as it helped keep prices low in Africa's biggest oil producer, which is still grappling with high poverty rates among residents. But Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) president Joe Ajaero, after an emergency meeting of the union's executive council in Abuja, said the state oil company NNPC should reverse the price hike. On Friday, the president said Nigeria needs to review its minimum wage of 30,000 naira ($65).

Persons: Bola Tinubu, Bolt, Joe Ajaero, Ajaero, MacDonald Dzirutwe, Kirsten Donovan, Angus MacSwan, Aurora Ellis Organizations: Nigerian Bureau, Statistics, World Bank, Labour Congress, Nigeria Labour Congress, Wednesday, Thomson Locations: ABUJA, Nigeria, Abuja

☆ Nigeria: Fuel prices triple as new leader Tinubu ends subsidy
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-01 | by ( Nimi Princewill | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

In a seemingly off-the-cuff remark during his inaugural speech Monday, Tinubu declared, “the fuel subsidy is gone,” adding that it was unsustainable. The last time the government tried to remove fuel subsidies in 2012, it sparked nationwide protests. Fuel subsidies are a drain on public finances and many argue that they have led to widespread abuse and corruption. Previous governments have tried unsuccessfully to remove the fuel subsidy, which has kept gas prices artificially low, although they have steadily climbed through the years. Fuel subsidies were not sustainable, but ending them “abruptly” without provision for economic and social consequences was “reckless,” he added.

Persons: Bola Tinubu, Tinubu, “, Joe Ajaero, Goodluck Jonathan, Sam Amadi, ” Amadi, NNPC Organizations: Nigeria CNN —, CNN, National Petroleum Corporation, Nigeria’s Labour Congress, Occupy, Abuja School of Social, ” Locations: Abuja, Nigeria, Africa’s, State, Occupy Nigeria

☆ Bola Tinubu sworn in as new Nigerian president
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-29 | by ( Stephanie Busari | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: 1 min

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☆ Nigeria's Tinubu sworn in as president
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-29 | by ( Reuters Editorial | ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

PoliticsNigeria's Tinubu sworn in as presidentPostedBola Tinubu was sworn in as Nigeria's president on Monday following a disputed election. He faces pressure to quickly improve economic and security conditions. Edward Baran has more.

☆ Explainer: What to expect from Nigeria's new president Bola Tinubu
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-29 | by ( Macdonald Dzirutwe | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

LAGOS, May 29 (Reuters) - Nigeria's new president Bola Tinubu faces a litany of problems, including widespread violence, double-digit inflation and industrial-scale oil theft. Tinubu says he will build on Buhari's public infrastructure programme to create jobs and remove legal limits on government spending. Tinubu says he will reduce corporate tax to attract investment and plug tax loopholes to boost revenue. Tinubu says he will set up a surveillance unit to protect the country's pipelines and attract new investors with tax incentives. Tinubu wants to recruit more soldiers and police officers, while paying and equipping them better.

☆ Nigeria's Tinubu gets his turn as president, familiar problems await
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-29 | by ( Macdonald Dzirutwe | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Buhari, a taciturn former military ruler, leaves Africa's biggest economy and most populous nation deeply divided. But what authorities promised would be the country's freest and fairest election yet ended in frustration for many. Buhari defends his record, saying new infrastructure such as roads, bridges and airports, and the protectionist policies have laid the foundations for future growth. Separatist and gang violence plague the southeast, and clashes between farmers and herders persist in hinterland states known as Nigeria's Middle Belt. A former Lagos state governor, Tinubu has promised to be a better steward of the economy.

SummarySummary Companies Tinubu succeeds former military leader BuhariNigeria divided after disputed electionAfrica's biggest economy faces headwindsInsecurity spread under BuhariABUJA, May 29 (Reuters) - Bola Tinubu was sworn in as Nigeria's president on Monday, facing mounting calls to improve economic and security conditions which many complain worsened under his predecessor Muhammadu Buhari. Tinubu, the former Lagos state governor and a member of Buhari's party, has promised to be a better steward of Africa's biggest economy and most populous nation. A raft of protectionist economic policies and foreign currency interventions have also spooked investors. Buhari defended his record on Sunday, saying new infrastructure such as roads, bridges and airports, and the protectionist policies have laid the foundations for future growth. Separatist and gang violence plague the southeast, and clashes between farmers and herders persist in hinterland states known as Nigeria's Middle Belt.

☆ Nigeria's Buhari defends election outcome, economic record
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-28 | by ( Felix Onuah | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

ABUJA, May 28 (Reuters) - Nigeria's President Muhammadu Buhari on Sunday defended his record on the economy and the outcome of a disputed presidential election, saying he was leaving a legacy of credible and fair votes, a day before he hands over power to his successor. Buhari first came to office in 2015 after promising to reboot the economy and end corruption and insecurity, but many Nigerians say these issues have worsened under his watch. Incoming President Bola Tinubu's victory is being challenged by his two closest opposition rivals, and on Tuesday a tribunal will begin to hear the main arguments in the election petition. Tinubu is inheriting anaemic economic growth, record debt and shrinking oil output. Life is tough for Nigerians, and a tangle of protectionist economic policies and foreign currency interventions have caused dollar shortages and spooked investors.

☆ Fact Check-Photo of Nigeria’s Obi visiting president-elect Tinubu is digitally altered
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-17 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

“Obi visited Tinubu. The Labor Party Presidential candidate H.E Peter Obi visited the President Elect Tinubu. Obi denied visiting Tinubu during an interview on Arise News on May 1 (here ), time stamp 30:00. A photo said to show Peter Obi standing next to president-elect Bola Tinubu has been digitally altered. The original version does not feature Obi, who denied visiting Tinubu during an interview on May 1.

☆ US imposes election-related visa restrictions on Nigerians
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | by ( ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

Reuters —The United States has imposed entry restrictions on more Nigerians for undermining the democratic process during the African nation’s 2023 election cycle, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Monday. The action is the latest in a series of visa restrictions imposed on Nigerian individuals in recent years. Nigeria’s election tribunal this month was to begin hearing opposition petitions challenging president-elect Bola Tinubu’s victory in the disputed February presidential vote, court records showed. Tinubu, from the ruling All Progressives Congress party, defeated his closest rivals Atiku Abubakar of the People’s Democratic Party and the Labour Party’s Peter Obi, who have alleged fraud and have launched a court challenge. Atiku and Obi want the tribunal to invalidate Tinubu’s victory, arguing that the vote was fraught with irregularities, among other criticisms.

☆ U.S. imposes election-related visa restrictions on Nigerians
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

WASHINGTON, May 15 (Reuters) - The United States has imposed entry restrictions on more Nigerians for undermining the democratic process during the African nation's 2023 election cycle, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Monday. "These individuals have been involved in intimidation of voters through threats and physical violence, the manipulation of vote results, and other activity that undermines Nigeria’s democratic process," Blinken said in a statement. The action is the latest in a series of visa restrictions imposed on Nigerian individuals in recent years. Nigeria's election tribunal this month was to begin hearing opposition petitions challenging president-elect Bola Tinubu's victory in the disputed February presidential vote, court records showed. Atiku and Obi want the tribunal to invalidate Tinubu's victory, arguing that the vote was fraught with irregularities, among other criticisms.

☆ Fact Check-Face of Nigeria’s Tinubu edited onto photo of emaciated British man
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

A photo of an emaciated man in what appears to be a hospital has been digitally altered and shared online as showing Nigeria’s President-elect Bola Tinubu. The photo shows a man sitting in a chair next to a hospital bed. However, an online image search reveals that the photograph has been digitally altered and does not show Nigeria’s president-elect. The unedited picture shows a man from Liverpool, the United Kingdom, who was being treated in hospital in 2019 after severe illness left him unable to walk. A photo of an emaciated man has been altered and does not show Nigeria’s President-elect Bola Tinubu.

☆ Fact Check-TIME magazine cover featuring Bola Tinubu is fabricated
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

A fabricated TIME magazine cover featuring Nigerian President-elect Bola Tinubu has misled people online. A tweet sharing the purported cover has been viewed 132,000 times at the time of writing (here). Reuters found no cover featuring Tinubu since he was declared president-elect of Nigeria on Feb. 28. The typography of the purported cover does not match TIME’s usual style. A spokesperson for TIME magazine told Reuters the cover featuring Tinubu is not authentic.

☆ Nigeria gets World Bank funding for social program ahead of fuel subsidy cut
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-05 | by ( Felix Onuah | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] A participant stands near a logo of World Bank at the International Monetary Fund - World Bank Annual Meeting 2018 in Nusa Dua, Bali, Indonesia, October 12, 2018. REUTERS/Johannes P. ChristoABUJA, April 5 (Reuters) - Nigeria has secured $800 million from the World Bank to scale up its national social program ahead of the removal of its costly but popular subsidies on petrol in June, Finance Minister Zainab Ahmed said on Wednesday. Ahmed said the government was considering cash transfers and mass transit buses for workers to ease the pain of the subsidy removal on the most vulnerable segment of its population. She added that the country has registered ten million households, which is equivalent to 50 million people on its vulnerable list. Ahmed said discussions were going on at different levels of government and with members of the incoming administration of President-elect Bola Tinubu on the subsidy removal.

☆ Fact Check-Video purporting to show post-election clash in Lagos, Nigeria, dates to at least October 2022
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-31 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

“It seems Ndigbo have waken up to defend themselves from Tinubu's APC thugs in Lagos,” wrote one person who shared the video on Twitter. However, another online search of keyframes also revealed that the clip was shared online as early as October 2022 (here ) (here ) (here ). TVC News Nigeria reported that a clash broke out between traders and road transport workers at Alaba International market on Oct. 19 (here ). Corroborating videos said to show the market has been shared online (here ) and other local outlets reported on the clashes (here ) (here ). Video showing clashes in Alaba International Market in Lagos, Nigeria dates to at least October 2022.

☆ Nigeria's junior oil minister Timipre Sylva has resigned -sources
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( Felix Onuah | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

ABUJA, March 30 (Reuters) - Nigeria's Timipre Sylva has resigned as the country's minister of state for petroleum to seek a new term as governor of oil-producing Bayelsa State in the southern Niger Delta, ministry and presidency sources told Reuters on Thursday. Sylva handed his resignation letter last week to Buhari, who doubles as petroleum minister, and stopped coming to the office, said two sources who did not want to be identified. They said he would be seeking the ruling All Progressives Congress ticket to run for Bayelsa governor in party primaries scheduled to take place on April 14. Appointed junior oil minister in August 2019, Sylva oversaw major reforms in the oil sector, including the passing of legislation that overhauled the sector's fiscal regime in a bid to spur investment. During his time as minister, Nigeria's oil output fell to its lowest in decades due to crude theft and pipeline vandalism.

☆ Fact Check-Lawyer’s speech mistaken for official U.S. response to Nigeria’s presidential election
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-20 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

An online claim that the United States has not officially congratulated Nigerian president-elect Bola Tinubu on his election win is not true. It is based on a speech by a U.S. lawyer that is being misrepresented as reflecting an official U.S. position. “Vote rigging, vote buying and bribery marred Nigeria's presidential elections. But neither the lawyer nor the Nigerian pro-democracy group speak for the U.S. government, which officially congratulated Tinubu on March 1. The U.S. has officially congratulated Nigerian president-elect Bola Tinubu.

☆ Nigeria's two big parties dominate governorship elections
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-20 | by ( Macdonald Dzirutwe | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

LAGOS, March 20 (Reuters) - Nigeria's two biggest parties won the majority of states in weekend governorship polls, official figures showed on Monday, maintaining their political dominance following elections in which European Union observers said 21 people died from violence. But Obi came third in the presidential race behind Tinubu and Atiku and his Labour Party was yet to win a governorship race. Official figures showed that APC won 15 states, including the closely watched Lagos race, compared to seven for PDP, which led in another state as counting continued. A northern regional party won one state and led in another. Two races were declared inconclusive because they were too close to call between APC and PDP.

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