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IOM, Japan to support IDPs, returnees, host communities in Northeast
IOM, Japan to support IDPs, returnees, host communities in Northeast
By: Michael Mike
The Government of Japan and the United Nations International Organisation for Migration (IOM) have signed a joint agreement to support .Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), returnees and vulnerable host communities in the Northeast.
The Ambassador of Japan, Kazuyoshi Matsunaga, said during the signing ceremony of the agreement in Abuja that the the aim if the assignment is to support measures designed to tackle urgent needs of vulnerable people in Adamawa, with an eye of extending it to other affected states.
The envoy said. the agreement focused on: “Strengthening basic healthcare services for IDPs, returnees and host communities in Nigeria” between Japanese government, Adamawa government, IOM and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).
According to him, the project which is worthy US$4.4 million will run from March, 2024 to March, 2026 with measures to ensure sustainability, monitoring and evaluation, calculation of post-project cost, training of personnel in the operation, maintenance, and upkeep of equipment.
Kazuyoshi said: “t is towards combining fixed facilities with innovation technology solutions, such as medical mobility, as service and telemedicine is essential to effectively serving the mobile IDP population.
“Effective technology transfer from Japan to Nigeria requires strong focus on human resource development, therefore investment on capacity building to enable local staff fully utilize and maintain medical equipments.
“So, the ultimate measure of success of this project should not be measured by the construction of beautiful primary healthcare centre or improved access to healthcare service with advanced technology.
“It should be measured by the healthy and safe life of citizens who benefit from this improved healthcare services beyond the duration of the project.”
He explained that the project will bring about introduction of innovation technology, medical masks and telemedicine, and involvement of Japanese companies as model for improving healthcare service across Nigeria.
Chairman of Adamawa Primary Healthcare Development Agency, Dr Sulaiman Bashir, who signed the agreement on behalf of Adamawa State Government, said the agreement would not have been possible without the partnership between IOM and the Japanese government.
He said: “Our state, as mentioned earlier, had enormous humanitarian and development needs. A state of 5.5 million people, 60 per cent are less than 30 years of age.
“These are areas that are of great concern to us. In terms of the humanitarian crisis, we have the three different crises that we are battling within our state.
“Initially, we have the Boko Haram terrorist activity in the northern part of the state, we have the farmer-herder clashes, we also have the last one, the inter-communal conflict there.”
On his part, the IOM Nigeria Chief of Mission, Laurent De Boeck, promised to partner States and Local Government actors to rebuild, rehabilitate, and equip nine health facilities in eight Local Government Areas in Adamawa.
He said such will be achieved through training staff from each unit of the nine Primary Healthcare Centres, which include doctors, nurses, midwives, community health workers, information/data officers, laboratory technicians.
He added that: “This project aligns with the long-term development priorities of both the Nigerian Government and the Adamawa authorities.
“It is a testament to our commitment to not only provide immediate relief, but also to contribute to sustainable solutions that addresses root causes of displacement and insecurity,” he said.
He reiterated the organisation planned to ensure healthcare is not a privilege, but fundamental right accessible to all, to pave way for healthier, more stable and prosperous future for the people of northeast Nigeria.
Chief Representative of JICA, Mr Yuzurio Susumu, said the grant provided from the agreement will further advance construction of primary healthcare centres, and boost capacity building among other things.
Yuzurio said, “Our ultimate goal is to contribute to the creation of an inclusive environment that fosters peaceful coexistence.
“By ensuring access to quality healthcare services, we aim to encourage the return and resettlement of IDPs, laying groundwork for sustainable peace and prosperity in Adamawa.”
IOM, Japan to support IDPs, returnees, host communities in Northeast
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NHRC, stakeholders meet to promote human rights in Gombe
NHRC, stakeholders meet to promote human rights in Gombe
The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), Gombe State Office, on Tuesday, organised a state consultative meeting on the National Action Plan (NAP) for the promotion and protection of human rights in the state.
The meeting which was held in Gombe brought together stakeholders from Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), Civil Society Organizations (CSOs), security agencies, community representatives, youth groups and other relevant stakeholders.
The engagement was to deliberate on the implementation of the NAP and to identify prevailing human rights concerns affecting citizens within Gombe State.
In his opening remarks, the Executive Secretary of the NHRC, Tony Ojukwu, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), said that the engagement served as a platform for interaction, exchange of ideas and collective commitment towards strengthening human rights protection mechanisms in Gombe State and Nigeria at large.
Represented by the State Coordinator, NHRC, Gombe State office Dr Joseph Wanshe, Ojukwu emphasised the importance of the NAP as a strategic framework designed to improve the human rights situation in the state and Nigeria through collaboration among government institutions, civil society organisations and citizens.
Wanshe, while presenting an overview of the NAP, explained that the NAP is a comprehensive policy framework aimed at ensuring the promotion, protection and fulfilment of human rights in accordance with constitutional provisions and international human rights obligations ratified by Nigeria.
Mr Lemuel Akeweta while making his presentation said that the objectives of the meeting amongst others was to create awareness on the NAP for the promotion and protection of human rights in Nigeria.
Others he said was to encourage stakeholders’ participation in the implementation of the NAP; identifying prevailing human rights challenges within the state and strengthening collaboration among MDAs, CSOs and other stakeholders.
He also said that practical recommendations and way forward for effective implementation of the NAP at state and grassroots levels would be developed.
Our Correspondent reports that a total of 45 attendees cutting across 28 MDAs and 17 CSOs and a team of five NHRC staff were also present at the meeting.
NHRC, stakeholders meet to promote human rights in Gombe
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Troops Arrest Three Suspected Terrorist Collaborators in Taraba State Raid
Troops Arrest Three Suspected Terrorist Collaborators in Taraba State Raid
By: Zagazola Makama
Troops of Operation Whirl Stroke (OPWS) have arrested three suspected terrorist collaborators during a coordinated raid on identified enclaves in Karim-Lamido Local Government Area of Taraba State.
Security sources said that the operation was carried out at about 0610 hours on May 10, 2026, by troops of Sector 3 OPWS deployed at Jimilari.
The sources said the troops conducted simultaneous raids on suspected terrorist hideouts at Binari, Chibi and Andamin communities following credible intelligence on the activities of criminal networks in the area.
According to the sources, three suspects believed to be providing support to terrorist elements were arrested during the operation.
Military authorities said the suspects are currently in custody and undergoing preliminary interrogation to determine the extent of their involvement and possible links to wider criminal networks.
They added that troops will sustain clearance operations and intelligence-led raids across vulnerable communities in Karim-Lamido Local Government Area to dismantle support structures for criminal elements and restore security in the area.
Troops Arrest Three Suspected Terrorist Collaborators in Taraba State Raid
News
Execution Discipline Will Define Tegbe’s Agenda for Nigeria’s Power Sector-
Execution Discipline Will Define Tegbe’s Agenda for Nigeria’s Power Sector-
By: Adeola Labzy
When the Minister-Designate for Power, Joseph Olasunkanmi Tegbe, told the Nigerian Senate that there was “no quick fix” to Nigeria’s electricity crisis, the statement stood out for departing from the familiar rhetoric that has long shaped public conversations about the sector. In a country where ambitious declarations on power reform have often generated headlines faster than measurable outcomes, Tegbe’s remarks offered an early signal of a different leadership posture, one anchored less on spectacle and more on execution.
This matters because Nigeria’s power sector has spent decades trapped in cycles of overpromising and institutional under-delivery. Successive reform efforts have come with bold projections, aggressive timelines, and repeated assurances. Yet the sector continues to struggle with liquidity constraints, weak market confidence, transmission vulnerabilities, collection inefficiencies, infrastructure deficits, and operational instability. Over time, the deeper casualty has not only been electricity supply, but institutional credibility.
Against that background, Tegbe’s emphasis on transparency, execution discipline, and operational realism should be read as a useful starting point, not a completed achievement. Nigeria’s electricity market does not suffer from a shortage of reform language. The problems are already well known to policymakers, operators, investors, regulators, and consumers. What has consistently undermined progress is fragmented implementation, weak accountability, poor coordination across the value chain, and the absence of sustained commercial discipline.
In that sense, Tegbe’s early posture appears calibrated toward restoring confidence in the system’s ability to execute before pursuing grand transformation narratives. This is particularly important in a sector where investor confidence, market liquidity, and operational stability are deeply interconnected. Markets respond not merely to ambition, but to predictability, governance credibility, and measurable execution. Each part of the value chain affects the other. Generation without evacuation capacity creates waste. Tariff reform without metering creates distrust. Investment without payment discipline weakens confidence. Policy statements without visible milestones deepen cynicism.
Financial sustainability will be one of the defining pillars of any credible reform effort. For years, the electricity market has operated within a fragile commercial structure marked by accumulated debts, subsidy pressures, payment shortfalls, collection gaps, and uncertainty over cost recovery. The long-term viability of the sector depends not only on expanding infrastructure, but on restoring commercial discipline and rebuilding confidence in the market itself.
This is where transparency becomes strategically important. Transparent reforms reduce uncertainty, strengthen accountability, and give investors, operators, consumers, and policymakers a clearer basis for judging progress. In practical terms, transparency is not merely a governance principle; it is an economic stabilisation tool. It can help rebuild trust in tariff decisions, improve confidence in sector data, and create a more disciplined environment for investment and performance monitoring.
Equally important is execution discipline. Infrastructure projects rarely fail only because funding is unavailable. Many fail because coordination weakens, procurement becomes opaque, implementation drifts, and accountability is diluted. In the power sector, credibility will not be rebuilt by rhetoric alone. It will require visible, measurable, and sustained improvements in the operating system of reform.
Nigeria’s power sector does not require another cycle of exaggerated optimism followed by institutional disappointment. It requires leadership capable of confronting difficult realities honestly while building a credible pathway toward operational stability, financial sustainability, and long-term reform credibility.
That is why Tegbe’s insistence on transparent reforms and execution discipline is important. Its significance will not lie in the statement itself, but in whether it becomes a governing method. In a sector where credibility has become almost as scarce as stable electricity, restoring confidence in governance may be the first and most important reform of all.
Adeola Labzy writes from Abuja, Nigeria.
Execution Discipline Will Define Tegbe’s Agenda for Nigeria’s Power Sector-
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