Author: Helen Okechukwu

Nigeria, the giant of Africa, known for its oil production, agriculture, and economic diversity, has faced numerous climate change effects for years, leaving many residents with recurring challenge.  The most recent climate change disaster that struck Mokwa districts of Tiffin Maza and Anguwan Hausawa, located in Niger State, claimed the lives of more than 200 people, while 500 residents were reportedly missing.  After the torrential rain swept some victims into the Niger River on 29 May 2025, over 3,000 victims were left with no shelter after 265 homes were ravaged by the flash flood, with the last recurring experience dating…

The Oyo State Command of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has announced the arrest of 80 suspects and conviction of 43 for drug-related offences between January and August 2025. The State Commander, Olayinka Joe-Fadile, disclosed this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Friday in Ibadan. He said the arrests cut across traffickers, dealers and users of narcotics and psychotropic substances. According to him, the suspects comprised 246 males and 34 females, aged between 13 and 50 years. He explained that while some were caught with narcotics, others were apprehended for dealing in cannabis…

The World Health Organization (WHO) has expanded its Model Lists of Essential Medicines (EML) and Essential Medicines for Children (EMLc), introducing a range of new therapies for cancer, diabetes and several rare conditions. According to the notice released on Friday, the updated lists mark the 24th edition of the EML and the 10th of the EMLc. They serve as a global reference for more than 150 countries when deciding which drugs to prioritise for public procurement, health coverage and supply schemes. In the 2025 update, 20 medicines were added to the adult list and 15 to the children’s list, while…

The Director-General of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), Mojisola Adeyeye, has reiterated warnings against counterfeit and unregistered products following the arrest of a local footballer in Abuja for allegedly operating an illegal chemical factory. In a statement issued on Friday by the agency’s Deputy Director of Public Relations and Protocol, Adegboyega Osiyemi, NAFDAC disclosed that Ikechukwu Elijah was apprehended in the Apo-Waru area for manufacturing and distributing hazardous, unregistered chemicals to unsuspecting members of the public. According to the statement, Elijah was initially evasive during interrogation but later admitted to running the facility after…

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has announced that mpox is no longer a global public health emergency, citing a steady fall in infections and fatalities across Africa. WHO Director-General Tedros Ghebreyesus confirmed the decision on Friday after the agency’s emergency committee reviewed the situation at its quarterly meeting. “This decision is based on sustained declines in cases and deaths in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and in other affected countries, including Burundi, Sierra Leone, and Uganda,” Tedros told reporters in Geneva. He stressed, however, that the end of the emergency designation did not signal the end of the threat.…

A fresh outbreak of the Ebola virus has been confirmed in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where 15 deaths have been reported in Kasai Province since late August. Health Minister Samuel Roger Kamba told journalists in Kinshasa on Thursday that this is the country’s 16th Ebola outbreak. The last one, three years ago, killed six people. So far, 28 suspected cases have been documented in Kasai, with the first infection traced to a 34-year-old pregnant woman admitted to hospital on 20 August. A report from the National Library of Medicine in 2022 noted that, from May 2018 to September 2022,…

Youths in Shagari Local Government Area (LGA) of Sokoto State say they are ready to arm themselves against bandits after repeated attacks and kidnappings. The decision followed an online meeting, with details released on Thursday in a statement by youth activist Bello Shagari, grandson of former President Shehu Shagari. They accused the government of failing to protect lives and property, noting that attacks have displaced families, halted farming, and left villages living in fear. Mr Shagari said the youths had taken “a last-resort decision” to defend their communities. “The government has done little to protect us. We cannot sit idle…

A recent study has revealed that life expectancy for people with a rare, untreatable blood cancer has almost doubled over the past 20 years. The study, led by the University of York and funded by Cancer Research UK and Blood Cancer UK, analysed records from more than 3,700 people in England diagnosed with multiple myeloma between 2005 and 2019. Findings, published in Haematologica, show that advances in treatment are giving patients considerably longer survival than in the early 2000s. Multiple myeloma develops when abnormal plasma cells form in the bone marrow. It cannot be cured, but treatments can control the…

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has urged the Nigerian government at all levels to intensify efforts in tackling the worsening malnutrition crisis, warning that millions of children remain at risk of stunted growth, disease, and death. The agency emphasised that only sustained investment, stronger government commitment, and community-led prevention can halt the spiral. Chief of UNICEF’s Bauchi Field Office, Nuzhat Rafique, stressed that malnutrition “slows development and leads directly to suffering and death,” calling for expanded therapeutic feeding programmes, increased local food production, better vaccine coverage, and restoration of security to reverse the trend. Rafique spoke on Wednesday in…

Nigeria’s Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, has expressed confidence that the introduction of the National Single Window project will reshape the country’s trade environment and strengthen its economic stability. Edun, who addressed journalists on Tuesday, after presiding over the 63rd quarterly meeting of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) Board in Abuja, said the platform, set for rollout in the first quarter of 2026, will streamline import and export operations through digital automation. Describing the initiative as one of the signature reforms of President Bola Tinubu’s administration, the minister explained that the system is designed…