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IMF, World Bank Must End Colonial Rule, Says ActionAid
IMF, World Bank Must End Colonial Rule, Says ActionAid
By: Michael Mike
ActionAid has said the time is up for the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank to stop perpetuating a colonial rule on the world.
The call was made at the weekend as the two global financial institutions conclude their Spring meetings in Washington DC this week.
ActionAid, in the statement said for the last 80 years the IMF and World Bank have been in existence, not much has changed as global South countries have been pushed further into debt and are reeling from the impacts of IMF-imposed austerity measures.
In its 2023 report Fifty Years of Failure, ActionAid found that despite following the IMF’s advice for decades, many African countries are in debt distress or facing a high risk of debt distress. Austerity measures have blocked the recruitment of teachers, doctors and nurses, even in countries with severe shortages, and has squeezed public sector salaries at a time of a rising cost of living.
Global Lead on Economic Justice and Public Services at ActionAid International, Roos Saalbrink, said:“Countries in the global South have since the structural adjustment progammes been in perpetual austerity, eroding public health and education. At a time of unprecedented climate crisis and debt crisis in the global South, the Bretton Woods Institutions continue to oil the wheels of colonial exploitation and extraction. At the same time global South governments have very little say in the policies coming from these institutions at the centre of the international financial architecture. 80 years is enough.”
The statement said ActionAid is also concerned about a ‘gentleman’s agreement’ which has ensured that the IMF managing director has for 80 years been European and the World Bank president a US national.
Country Director of ActionAid USA, Niranjali Amerasinghe, said: “Kristalina Georgieva’s appointment is a continuation of the colonial era ‘gentleman’s agreement’, where rich western powers have the most say. It is unacceptable that 80 years later we are still having to call this out. The IMF must change its leadership selection process, its decision-making model, and the harmful practices that keep developing countries in a cycle of crisis.
“As the climate crisis wreaks havoc, global South countries are so deep in debt that they cannot adapt to these impacts. We are calling for debt cancellation and tax justice to help these countries free up the finances needed to build resilience to climate impacts.
“We need to see an overhaul of the international financial architecture with a proper debt workout mechanism, a UN tax convention, to ensure global South governments have a say over policies impacting them disproportionately.”
ActionAid is a global federation working with more than 41 million people living in more than 71 of the world’s poorest countries, the organisation wants to see a just, fair, and sustainable world, in which everybody enjoys the right to a life of dignity, and freedom from poverty and oppression. We work to achieve social justice and gender equality and to eradicate poverty.
IMF, World Bank Must End Colonial Rule, Says ActionAid
Police arrest three suspected kidnappers in Gombe
By: Zagazola Makama
The Gombe State Police Command has arrested three suspected kidnappers following a tip-off from credible intelligence, sources said on Friday.
Police sources said the suspects were apprehended on March 10 at about 10:00 p.m. by operatives working in conjunction with local hunters.
The arrested suspects were identified as Mohammed Abubakar, 29; Mohammed Bello, 23; and Mohammadu Ali, 25, all residents of Galda Village, Fika Local Government Area of Yobe State.
According to the report, the suspects were planning to carry out a kidnapping in an unspecified location in Bauchi State. Upon interrogation, they allegedly confessed to the planned crime.
Police said investigations were ongoing to uncover further details and apprehend any other accomplices involved in the plot.
Police arrest three suspected kidnappers in Gombe
Youths attack and kill two army officers while responding to dispute in Cross River
By: Zagazola Makama
Two army officers, including an intelligence officer, were reportedly killed during a violent clash between youths in a disputed crisis zone between Isabang and Alesi communities in Obubra Local Government Area of Cross River State.
Sources told Zagazola Makama that the incident followed a conflict on March 11 when Ibrahim Musa, a 25-year-old miner from Kusa, who deals in tin ore at Ekuri village, was allegedly beaten by youths at a village checkpoint and had his mined minerals seized.
The miner reportedly reported the attack to soldiers stationed at 245 Battalion, Edor Barracks, near Jenifer Etuh’s Hospital in Ochon. Troops responded by moving into the forest to arrest four youths allegedly involved in the attack.
Residents said other youths blocked the access road to prevent the arrest and attacked the soldiers. In response, they fired which resulted to the injuries of four persons, including Christopher Agara, 27, and Ogobi Egbe, 30, while two others were evacuated for native treatment.
The attack resulted in the deaths of two soldiers.
Additional troops have since deployed additional personnel to restore order in the area, and normalcy has reportedly returned.
Youths attack and kill two army officers while responding to dispute in Cross River
New Tax Regime to Ease Burden on Workers, Small Businesses — Tegbe
By: Michael Mike
Chairman of the National Tax Policy Implementation Committee (NTPIC), Joseph Tegbe, has said Nigeria’s new tax regime is structured to reduce the financial burden on workers and small businesses while strengthening the country’s fiscal stability and economic competitiveness.
Speaking at the BusinessDay Tax Reform Conference 2026 themed “Navigating the New Tax Regime: What It Means for Your Wallet,” Tegbe described the reforms as the most far-reaching restructuring of Nigeria’s tax system in decades. He noted that the initiative is aimed at simplifying tax processes, promoting fairness, and creating an environment that supports economic expansion.
According to him, the reforms are anchored on four major legislations — the Nigeria Tax Act, 2025, Nigeria Tax Administration Act, 2025, Nigeria Revenue Service (Establishment) Act, 2025 and the Joint Revenue Board of Nigeria (Establishment) Act, 2025 — which collectively introduce a more coordinated and transparent tax administration framework.
Tegbe explained that the new structure provides targeted reliefs for individuals and small enterprises, ensuring that low-income earners and emerging businesses are not overburdened by taxation.
Under the new regime, individuals earning below ₦800,000 annually will be exempted from personal income tax. Workers will also benefit from a rent relief allowance of up to 20 per cent, capped at ₦500,000, among other incentives designed to ease financial pressure on households.
Small businesses are equally positioned to gain from the reforms. Companies with annual revenues below ₦100 million and assets not exceeding ₦250 million will be exempted from Company Income Tax, while nano-enterprises with annual earnings below ₦12 million will not be required to pay income tax.
Despite these relief measures, Tegbe stressed that individuals and businesses within the exempted thresholds must still maintain proper documentation of their earnings and comply with the requirement to file tax returns.
He noted that beyond the tax reliefs, the reforms will also strengthen institutional coordination among key agencies including the Nigeria Revenue Service, the Joint Revenue Board of Nigeria, the Tax Appeal Tribunal and the Office of the Tax Ombud. He added that increased digitalisation of tax processes will improve transparency, efficiency and compliance across the system.
According to Tegbe, the broader objective of the reforms is to create a tax structure that supports enterprise development, encourages investment and enhances Nigeria’s ability to mobilise revenue for national development without placing excessive strain on citizens.
“The goal is to build a tax system that works for everyone — one that supports government in delivering development while also protecting the financial wellbeing of ordinary Nigerians,” he said.
Other dignitaries at the conference included Executive Secretary of the Joint Revenue Board of Nigeria, Olusegun Adesokan; Acting Executive Chairman of the FCT Internal Revenue Service, Michael Ango; renowned economist Uche Uwaleke; and policy expert Sam Amadi, among others, who also contributed to discussions on the implications of the new tax framework for businesses and households.
New Tax Regime to Ease Burden on Workers, Small Businesses — Tegbe
Police arrest three suspected kidnappers in Gombe
Youths attack and kill two army officers while responding to dispute in Cross River
New Tax Regime to Ease Burden on Workers, Small Businesses — Tegbe
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