Nigeria

Nigeria could launch pilot digital currency by year-end

Nigeria's Central Bank is preparing a digital currency pilot that could launch as early as the end of this year, its director of information technology said in a recording heard…

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Another attack on a Nigerian school, 80 students abducted

Gunmen killed a police officer and kidnapped at least 80 students and five teachers from a school in the Nigerian state of Kebbi, police, residents and a teacher said. The…

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Photo Story – Fashion for the Homeless in Lagos

Artist and organizer Abolore Sobayo (C-R, white shirt) looks on as a homeless girl (C) participates in a mini fashion show along train tracks, organized by the Abolore Sobayo Art…

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Nigeria’s Buhari tells youth to ‘behave’ if they want jobs

President Muhammadu Buhari told young Nigerians on Thursday that they must "behave" in order to attract jobs and investment. Buhari, speaking on Arise TV, said security was essential in order…

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ISWAP militant group says Nigeria’s Boko Haram leader is dead

The Islamic State West African Province (ISWAP) militant group said in an audio recording heard by Reuters that Abubakar Shekau, leader of rival Nigerian militant Islamist group Boko Haram, was…

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Nigerian telecoms firms suspend Twitter access after directive

Nigerian telecoms firms have shut down access to Twitter after a regulatory directive, an industry body said on Saturday, a day after the government said it would suspend the U.S.…

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Nigerian state government confirms 136 children abducted in Niger state

Gunmen abducted 136 students from an Islamic school in the north-central Nigerian state of Niger on Sunday, a state official said, lower than the estimate of 200 previously offered by…

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Gunmen abduct more students from school in Nigeria

An armed gang abducted students from an Islamic school in the north-central Nigerian state of Niger on Sunday, police and state government officials said. Armed groups carrying out kidnapping for…

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Nigeria’s investigates reports of Boko Haram leader’s death, Nigerian army chief dies in plane crash

Nigeria's military is investigating reports that the leader of militant Islamist group Boko Haram may have been killed or seriously injured following clashes with rival jihadists, an army spokesman said.…

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Nigeria bans travellers from India, Brazil, Turkey over COVID-19 fears

Nigeria will ban travellers coming from India, Brazil and Turkey because of concerns about the rampant spread of coronavirus in those countries, a presidential committee announced. "Non-Nigerian passport holders and…

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Parents of Nigeria kidnap victims plead for government help

When Linda Peter last spoke to her daughter, the brief phone call left her relieved the teenager was alive but distraught because she could not pay any ransom demanded. Peter's…

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Major prison break in Nigeria as more than 1,800 inmates flee

More than 1,800 inmates escaped from a Nigeria prison after an attack by gunmen carrying rocket-propelled grenades, machine guns, explosives and rifles, the BBC reported on Tuesday. The attackers used…

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Beaten and cowering, kidnapped Nigerian students beg for help

KADUNA, Nigeria, March 13 (Reuters) - A video of some of the students kidnapped from a college in northwest Nigeria emerged on Saturday, showing them cowering on a forest floor…

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More students kidnapped in Nigeria

Gunmen in northwest Nigeria kidnapped around 30 students overnight from a forestry college near a military academy, three students said on Friday, in the fourth mass school abduction since December.…

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Kidnappers release schoolgirls abducted in Nigeria’s Zamfara state – governor

Gunmen have released girls who were kidnapped from a boarding school in the northwest Nigerian state of Zamfara, the governor said in a tweet on Tuesday. An armed gang abducted 317 girls…

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Nigerian security forces continue search for 300 abducted girls

Relatives of more than 300 girls abducted by gunmen from their boarding school in northwest Nigeria endured an agonising wait for news amid rumours that they had been released, while…

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Nigeria losing 200,000 barrels a day to theft, vandalism

Nigeria is losing 200,000 barrels of crude oil a day because of theft and vandalism, the head of the state oil company said, underscoring how insecurity is causing vast financial…

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UPDATED: Another mass kidnapping of school children in Nigeria

Unidentified gunmen kidnapped a number of schoolgirls, estimated to be more than 300, from the town of Jangebe in northwest Nigeria early on Friday, the second such kidnapping in little…

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Nigerian air force passenger plane crash kills 7 people – UPDATE

ABUJA (Reuters) - A small Nigerian air force passenger plane crashed just outside Abuja airport after reporting engine failure on Sunday, killing all seven people on board, the air force…

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Gunmen kidnap students in school attack in Nigeria

Students and teachers were abducted from a school in Niger state, Nigerian media reported on Wednesday. A state spokeswoman confirmed the kidnapping to Reuters news agency. The attack comes on…

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Nigeria’s Okonjo-Iweala makes history as head of WTO

GENEVA, Feb 15 (Reuters) - Three months after the Trump administration rejected her, former Nigerian finance minister Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala received unanimous backing on Monday to become the first woman and first African director-general…

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Nigeria’s candidate closes in on WTO top job after rival withdraws

Nigeria's Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala is a step closer to becoming the first African and first woman to lead the World Trade Organization, after a South Korean rival withdrew on Friday following months of…

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New virus variant appears to emerge in Nigeria, Africa CDC says

Another new variant of the coronavirus appears to have emerged in Nigeria, Africa’s top public health official said Thursday, but he added that further investigation was needed. The discovery could…

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344 kidnapped Nigerian schoolboys released

A total of 344 kidnapped Nigerian schoolboys have been handed over to government security forces, Katsina state Governor Aminu Bello Masari told public broadcaster NTA on Thursday. More than 800 students were at the…

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Parents pray for hundreds of students kidnapped in Nigeria’s Katsina

KANKARA, Nigeria (Reuters) - Parents converged on a secondary school in Nigeria's northwestern Katsina state on Sunday, begging authorities to save hundreds of boys abducted by gunmen. More than 300…

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Nigeria buries 43 farmers killed by militants, dozens missing

Villagers in northeast Nigeria's Borno state on Sunday buried 43 farmers killed in an attack by suspected Islamist militants while security forces searched for dozens still missing. Around 30 of…

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Nigerian general dismisses bloody Lagos protest videos as fake

A judicial panel investigating claims that Nigerian soldiers shot dead peaceful protesters in Lagos viewed videos on Saturday appearing to show people hurt or saying that they were being fired…

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Burned-out buildings and armed gangs in Lagos despite president’s plea

Gangs armed with knives and sticks blocked major roads in Lagos on Friday, with many on the streets angered by a speech in which the president called for calm but…

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Lagos under 24-hour lockdown after violent protests

Lagos was under a round-the-clock curfew on Wednesday enforced by a heavy police presence, as smoke rose from a flashpoint area in Nigeria's biggest city where soldiers had opened fire…

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Nigeria to launch nationwide military exercise as protests rock country

The Nigerian army will begin a two-month national exercise, it said, while denying the move was part of any security response to recent widespread demonstrations against alleged police brutality. Operation…

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Nigeria’s police disbands controversial anti-robbery Squad after protests

The head of Nigeria's police dissolved its Special Anti-Robbery Squad with immediate effect on Sunday, a police statement said, prompted by days of protests across the country against alleged brutality…

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Chevron Nigeria plans to cut 25% of staff after oil price drop

The Nigerian unit of oil major Chevron plans to cut its local workforce by 25% to reduce costs, it said, due to weak demand for oil in the wake of…

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Back to school in Nigeria

Students of Agidingbi senior grammar school went back to school following the Lagos metropolitan government's announcement of full resumption of secondary schools after a six-month lockdown to curb the spread…

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Photo Story: International flights resume in Nigeria

Airport officials check passengers' travel documents on arrival at the Murtala Muhammed International airport in Lagos, Nigeria. After a five-month closure of the Nigerian airports to international flights to curb…

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Nigeria to bar flights from countries that block Nigerians

Nigeria will blocks flights from countries that do not allow Nigerian flights to land due to coronavirus restrictions, Aviation Minister Hadi Sirika said. “The principle of reciprocity will be applied,”…

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Nigerian airports to remain closed to international travel

Nigeria will reopen for international air travel in a matter of weeks, the aviation minister said, without giving a specific date for the resumption after months of closure due to…

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Coronavirus cases in Nigeria surpasses 38,000

More than 540 new coronavirus cases have taken the nationwide tally here to over 38,000, authorities announced Thursday. The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) said 543 more COVID-19 cases…

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Nigeria to restart domestic flights July 8

Nigeria will resume domestic flights from July 8, the government announced, as Africa’s most populous country relaxes novel coronavirus restrictions despite mounting cases and deaths. The airports for the capital…

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Nigeria’s COVID-19 outbreak could impoverish 5 million people, World Bank says

Nigeria's coronavirus outbreak may push 5 million people into poverty as it triggers the worst recession in the African powerhouse since the 1980s, the World Bank said on Thursday. The…

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Photo Story: Fuel tanker accident in Lagos

Firefighters spray water to extinguish a fire at the site of an accident after multiple fuel tankers spilled their cargo on a bridge along Lagos-Ibadan expressway in Lagos, Nigeria. Two…

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Nigeria to begin ‘gradual’ easing of lockdown in Lagos, Abuja

Nigeria will begin a “phased and gradual” easing of more than four weeks of lockdowns in the national capital and the largest city on May 4, President Muhammadu Buhari said…

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Pressure to make face masks compulsory in public in Nigeria

Nigerian state governors have asked President Muhammadu Buhari to approve the compulsory use of face masks in public. as confirmed coronavirus cases rise, according to a letter seen by Reuters.…

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Pirates attack German container ship off West African coast

A vessel operated by Hamburg-based Bernhard Schulte Ship management was attacked by two speedboats in the Gulf of Guinea on Friday. The Maersk Tema was attacked by two speedboats off…

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Xenophobic attacks in South Africa sparks riots in Nigeria and Zambia

Violence and looting have taken place in Nigeria and Zambia against South African-owned businesses, after a continuing series of xenophobic attacks and riots in Johannesburg. The escalating dispute has seen…

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Massacre by Boko Haram in Nigeria

At least 65 people have lost their lives after suspected Boko Haram militants opened fire on a funeral in Nigeria's north-eastern state of Borno. Gunmen arrived on motorcycles and in…

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ISIS says it kidnapped six aid workers in northeast Nigeria

The branch of ISIS in West Africa announced it was responsible for the kidnapping of six aid workers in northeast Nigeria, according to a tweet published by the SITE monitoring…

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Carnage in north-eastern Nigeria

At least 30 people have been killed in the triple suicide bombing in north-eastern Nigeria, while watching a televised football match. The bombers detonated their explosives outside a hall in…

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Nigerian player was told about his father’s kidnap just hours before match against Argentina

The Independent: John Obi Mikel has revealed he was told that his father had been kidnapped just hours before the World Cup match between Nigeria and Argentina. The former Chelsea midfielder and Super Eagles captain was told…

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Violence in Nigeria kills 86 and leads to curfew

Al Jazeera: Eighty-six people have been killed in an attack by herdsmen on six villages in central Nigeria, local media reported. Another six people were wounded and 50 homes were destroyed in…

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Nigeria’s military rescue 1,000 people held captive by Boko Haram

Nigeria's military, through Brigadier General Texas Chukwu, the army spokesman, said that it has rescued more than 1,000 people held captive in northeastern Nigeria by the armed group Boko Haram.…

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