SR SahelReporters

By Aviashima Too, Abuja.  The Nigerian Army and the Nigerian Anti-Doping Centre (NADC) have strengthened their partnership to promote clean sport, protect athletes and safeguard Nigeria’s reputation in international competitions. The Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lieutenant General Waidi Shaibu, stated this on Wednesday, September 30, 2026, when he received the Executive Secretary and Chief Executive Officer of the NADC, Mr Mainasara Illo, and members of his delegation on a courtesy visit to Army Headquarters in Abuja. Shaibu stressed the need for sustained anti-doping education, regular screening and effective institutional oversight, particularly from the early stages of athletes’ development. According to him, adequate sensitisation would help athletes avoid both deliberate and inadvertent use of prohibited substances, including those that may be contained in unverified medications, supplements and local remedies. The Army Chief assured the NADC delegation of the Niger...

By Aviashima Toom, Abuja  The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has repatriated a rescued female baby gorilla, Bili, to the Republic of Congo, marking what the Service described as its first full-cycle international wildlife operation. The NCS disclosed this in a statement issued on Wednesday, by its National Public Relations Officer, Abdullahi Maiwada, a Deputy Comptroller of Customs. According to the Service, the operation, conducted between September 22 and 28, involved the interception, rescue, rehabilitation and safe return of Bili to the Réserve Naturelle de Tchimpounga in the Kouilou Department of Pointe-Noire, Republic of Congo. A Bili was rescued by Customs officers in August 2023 during an enforcement operation against wildlife trafficking and was subsequently placed under the care of the Pandrillus Foundation in Calabar for rehabilitation. The Service said a DNA test later confirmed that the gorilla originated from the Republic of Congo, leading to arrangements f...

By Aviashima Toom, Abuja  Comptroller Murtala Mu’azu has assumed duty as the 33rd Customs Area Controller (CAC) of the Apapa Area Command of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), pledging to sustain the Command’s achievements in revenue generation, trade facilitation, enforcement and professional conduct. Mu’azu formally took over from Comptroller Emmanuel Oshoba (Rtd) at an assumption-of-office and farewell ceremony held on Tuesday, September 29, 2026, at the Command’s Auditorium in Apapa, Lagos. The ceremony attracted heads and representatives of security and regulatory agencies, government institutions, terminal operators, shipping companies, customs brokers, business stakeholders and other partners of the Command. In his inaugural address, Mu’azu described his appointment as a “great honour and privilege,” expressing appreciation to the Comptroller-General of Customs, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, MFR, PhD, fnipr, psc+, for the confidence reposed in him. He pledged to discha...

Ngutswen Offers a Different Leadership Conversation to Kwande/Ushongo At a time when political conversations are increasingly dominated by promises of quick solutions and sweeping declarations, Hon. Felix Ngutswen, the NDC candidate for the Kwande/Ushongo Federal Constituency, is presenting a different message—one centred on honest leadership, collective responsibility and a shared vision for the future. His message is neither complicated nor wrapped in political rhetoric. “I am not here to promise easy answers. I am here to offer honest leadership, shared sacrifice, and a common vision.” The statement captures what appears to be the central theme of Ngutswen’s emerging political campaign: that meaningful development requires more than promises. It requires leadership willing to acknowledge challenges, engage the people and work with them towards practical solutions. For the people of Kwande/Ushongo, the question before 2027 is therefore becoming part of a larger conversati...

By Aviashima Toom, Abuja  The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) and His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC) of the United Kingdom have advanced discussions to finalise a Customs Mutual Administrative Assistance Agreement (CMAA) to strengthen information sharing, compliance, and trade facilitation between the two countries. The Assistant Comptroller-General (ACG) of Customs in charge of the Strategic, Research and Policy Department, Nafi’u Isyaku, who represented the Comptroller-General of Customs (CGC), Adewale Adeniyi, during a high-level bilateral meeting with the HMRC delegation on Friday, 26 September 2026, said the engagement was part of efforts to conclude negotiations on the agreement ahead of its proposed signing in December. ACG Isyaku said the negotiations had been conducted virtually for about six months before the two sides decided to meet physically at the NCS headquarters in Maitama, Abuja, to finalise outstanding issues. “The meeting is to finalise our Custo...

By Aviashima Toom, Abuja  The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has once again received international recognition for its strategic communication and stakeholder engagement efforts, with the Comptroller-General of Customs, Adewale Adeniyi, receiving a Special Award of Excellence at the 2026 International Public Relations Association (IPRA) Golden World Awards in Athens, Greece, on Friday, 25 September 2026. The award recognises the Service’s approach to transparent communication, stakeholder engagement and ethical public relations in supporting the implementation and public understanding of its ongoing reforms, particularly initiatives aimed at modernising Customs operations, improving trade facilitation and strengthening institutional transparency. Receiving the recognition, CGC Adeniyi described the honour as international acknowledgement of the Nigeria Customs Service's reform efforts, noting that it would further encourage the Service to deepen its adoption of emerging ...

By Aviashima Toom, Abuja  Troops of the Joint Task Force North West, Operation FANSAN YAMMA, have arrested three suspected terrorist logistics couriers and rescued 14 kidnapped victims during separate operations in Faskari Local Government Area of Katsina State. According to a statement issued on Friday, by the Theatre Command’s Media Information Officer, Lieutenant Colonel Aliyu Danja, the suspects were intercepted on September 24 while travelling on a motorcycle in Faskari. The military said preliminary interrogation indicated that the suspects were transporting ₦2.7 million, suspected to be ransom money, along with three mobile phones for onward delivery to a terrorist kingpin through intermediaries in the area. The suspects and the recovered items have been taken into military custody for further investigation, the statement said. In a separate operation on September 25, troops acting on intelligence about the movement of terrorists in the area reportedly ambushed a...

By Aviashima Toom, Abuja  The Armed Forces of Nigeria says its troops rescued more than 140 kidnapped victims, arrested suspected terrorists and collaborators, and disrupted criminal activities across several parts of the country between September 17 and 24, 2026. The military also reported the recovery of firearms and ammunition, the disruption of arms trafficking networks and the seizure of suspected stolen crude oil during operations conducted across the North East, North West, North Central, South South and South East geopolitical zones. The Director of Defence Media Operations, Major General Michael Onoja, disclosed this in a statement on the military’s ongoing operations released on September 25. In the North East, troops of Operation HADIN KAI sustained operations against terrorists in Borno and Yobe states. The military said troops, supported by an Air Component helicopter gunship, repelled a large-scale terrorist advance on Gajiram in Nganzai Local Government A...

By Aviashima Toom, Abuja  The National Hydrographic Agency (NHA) will release three new nautical charts covering the Calabar maritime corridor on October 1, 2026, as Nigeria moves to expand authoritative chart coverage of its waters. The new charts — NG5514 (Approaches to Calabar), NG5515 (Jamestown), and NG4255 (Port of Calabar) — will provide updated navigational information from the approaches to Calabar through Jamestown and into the Port of Calabar limits. The release coincides with the planned withdrawal of UK Hydrographic Office (UKHO) Admiralty Charts 3433 and 3434, which currently provide chart coverage of the Calabar area. According to the NHA, it is working with the UKHO to coordinate the transition and minimise any potential gap in authoritative navigational coverage for mariners operating in the area. The agency said the paper charts underwent technical assessment by the UKHO as part of the quality assurance process, while the corresponding Electronic Navig...

The forest is still standing. But for how long? Somewhere beyond the highways, towns and expanding settlements of Nigeria are landscapes that most Nigerians rarely see. There are forests where chimpanzees still move through the canopy. Wetlands where migratory birds arrive. Savannahs where antelopes once moved in herds. Mountains, rivers and ancient forest corridors where some of the country's most threatened species continue to survive. These places are Nigeria's national parks. Together, they represent some of the country's most important remaining protected ecosystems. The National Park Service says the seven parks cover more than 22,000 square kilometres, stretching across very different ecological zones. Its mandate is not merely to keep animals inside fenced boundaries. It is responsible for preserving vegetation and wildlife, protecting endangered species and habitats, maintaining important wetlands and watersheds, and conserving representative ecosystems for future ...

By Aviashima Toom, Abuja  The Defence Headquarters has launched an online discount shop to enable serving and retired members of the Armed Forces of Nigeria, as well as their families, access essential goods at preferential prices. The initiative was launched on Thursday in Abuja by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Senator George Akume, who served as the Special Guest of Honour at the event. Akume described the initiative as a practical intervention aimed at improving the welfare of military personnel, veterans and their families, stressing that the wellbeing of service members and their dependants was essential to maintaining a motivated and resilient Armed Forces. He commended the Defence Headquarters and Zinox Group for the partnership, saying the initiative demonstrated how digital technology could be deployed to address contemporary welfare needs. The SGF, however, emphasised the need for transparency, reliability and continuous improvement ...

By Aviashima Toom, Abu ja  The Nigerian Navy has pledged to strengthen its support for crude oil-producing companies in a bid to enhance the protection of critical petroleum assets and boost Nigeria’s crude oil production output. The Chief of the Naval Staff (CNS), Vice Admiral Idi Abbas, made the commitment when he received a delegation of the Security Sub-Committee of the Oil Producers Trade Section (OPTS) of the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), led by its Chairman, Mr Johnson Ogbum, at the Naval Headquarters, Abuja. According to a press statement issued on Thursday by the Director Naval Information, Navy Captain Abiodun Folorunsho, the engagement focused on strengthening security around oil production facilities, remote assets and export terminals. The statement said discussions centred on addressing crude oil theft, third-party interference and threats to offshore and near-shore petroleum infrastructure. The OPTS delegation also sought enhanced naval p...

By Aviashima Toom, Abuja  The Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lieutenant General Waidi Shaibu, has unveiled 30 family accommodation units at Ribadu Cantonment, Kaduna, as part of ongoing efforts by the Nigerian Army to improve the welfare and living conditions of its personnel and their families. According to a statement issued on Thursday, 24 September 2026, by the Acting Director, Army Public Relations, Colonel Appolonia Anele, the newly completed accommodation comprises two blocks of family housing units designed to ease accommodation challenges within the cantonment and provide a conducive living environment for personnel. The statement said the project formed part of the Nigerian Army’s broader infrastructure development and renewal programme aimed at rehabilitating ageing facilities and providing additional infrastructure across formations and units nationwide. Speaking at the unveiling, Lieutenant General Shaibu said the provision of decent accommodation remained an ...

By Aviashima Toom, Abuja   The remains of the late former Chief of Account and Budget (Army), Major General Ezra Jakko (Rtd), were on Wednesday, 23 September 2026, laid to rest at the National Military Cemetery, Abuja, amid solemn tributes from family members, colleagues, friends and senior military officers. The funeral ceremony, which attracted serving and retired senior military officers and other dignitaries, provided an opportunity to honour the deceased officer’s contributions to the Nigerian Army and his service to the nation. Delivering the funeral oration on behalf of the Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Waidi Shaibu, the Chief of Account and Budget (Army), Major General Taofik Temitope Sidick, described the late General Jakko as a highly professional soldier whose career was marked by dedication, discipline and an unwavering commitment to duty. He said the deceased was not only distinguished by his professional achievements but was also a man of ad...

By Aviashima Toom, Abuja  The Comptroller-General of Customs (CGC), Adewale Adeniyi, has pledged the support of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) for the successful hosting of the 2026 World Public Relations Forum (WPRF), scheduled to take place in November 2026, while highlighting the impact of strategic communication towards the success of key reforms being implemented by the Service. CGC Adeniyi made this commitment on Tuesday, 22 September 2026, when a delegation led by the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Global Alliance for Public Relations and Communication Management, Professor Justin Green, alongside the President of the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR) and Chairman of Council, Ike Neliaku, visited him at the Customs House, Maitama, Abuja, ahead of the global event. The CGC used the engagement to speak on some of the major reforms undertaken by the Service, including B’Odogwu, the Authorised Economic Operator (AEO) programme and Advance...

By Aviashima Toom, Abuja  The Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lt. Gen. Waidi Shaibu, has reaffirmed the Nigerian Army’s commitment to protecting critical energy infrastructure and strengthening partnerships aimed at supporting Nigeria’s economic growth and national development. Shaibu made the commitment on Wednesday when the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Renaissance Africa Energy Company Limited, Mr. Tony Attah, led a delegation on a courtesy visit to Army Headquarters in Abuja. The Army Chief described energy security as a key component of national security, stressing that the protection of strategic energy assets was essential to sustaining industrial productivity, economic stability and national development. He assured the delegation of the Army’s continued support in securing critical national infrastructure and creating a safe environment for legitimate economic activities to thrive. Shaibu also emphasised the importance of sustained engagement betw...

By Aviashima Toom, Abuja The Nigerian Navy has discovered approximately 182,000 litres of substance suspected to be stolen crude oil in Bethel Creeks, Rivers State. The discovery was made on Tuesday, September 22, 2026, by the Forward Operating Base (FOB) Bonny during a follow-up operation based on actionable intelligence on suspicious activities in the area. The Director of Naval Information, Navy Captain Abiodun Folorunsho, disclosed this in a statement issued on Tuesday. According to him, the operatives uncovered eight dugout pits during the operation, five of which contained the suspected stolen crude oil, while the remaining three were empty. The operation also led to the discovery of hoses believed to have been used to move crude oil. The Navy said the items were handled in accordance with established procedures. The latest discovery comes less than two weeks after FOB Bonny uncovered approximately 87,000 litres of suspected stolen crude oil at four newly activated il...