Russia has donated 1,000 doses of the Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccine to Vietnam, marking the first time the vaccine was being delivered to the South-East Asian nation, state media said on Tuesday.

Russian Security Council Secretary Nikolai Patrushev arrived in Hanoi on Tuesday for a two-day visit, bringing with him the donated Sputnik V COVID-19 jabs a gift proposed by Russian President Vladimir Putin.

On Feb. 26, Vietnams Ministry of Health approved Russias Sputnik V vaccine for emergency use amid a battle to contain a resurgence of the Coronavirus, a spread that has now been contained.

In August 2020, Vietnam registered to purchase between 50 and 150 million doses of the Russia-made vaccine, although it remains unclear exactly how many doses the country intended to buy.

The South-East Asian nation said it expected to receive at least 60 million vaccine doses in 2021, 30 million of which would be provided through the World Health Organisations COVAX equality mechanism.

Vietnam received its first COVID-19 vaccines in late February, when 117,600 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine, approved for use in the country in early January, arrived at Ho Chi Minh Citys Tan Son Nhat Airport.

Vietnam began offering COVID-19 vaccinations in March, with front-line health workers and vulnerable citizens first on the list.

To date, Vietnam has officially recorded 2,557 Coronavirus cases and 35 deaths. (dpa/NAN)

Source: NAN News

Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi has decided to raise the minimum wages of government employees, according to Egyptian Presidential spokesperson Bassam Rady.

Rady said in a statement that Sisi gave the directive for the increment of wages at a meeting with the prime minister and finance minister late on Monday.

The Egyptian president ordered the cabinet to raise the monthly minimum wages of civil servants to 2,400 Egyptian pounds (153 U.S. dollars) from 2,000 Egyptian pounds, Rady added.

Sisi also decided to increase pensions by 13 per cent, the spokesman quoted the president as saying.

During the meeting, Sisi was as well briefed on the draft budget for the 2021-2022 fiscal year, Rady said.

Source: NAN News

By Emmanuella Anokam

The World Trade Organisation (WTO), says it will work to deliver directly technical assistance, training and quality upgrade to unlock some bottlenecks confronting Nigeria.

Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Director-General of WTO stated this on Monday in Abuja when she paid courtesy visit to Otunba Adeniyi Adebayo, Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment and Minister of State, Amb. Mariam Katagum.

She described WTO as an economic institution which could work with other financial institutions to support investments and technical assistance to mitigate Nigerias economic challenges.

She said the WTO was created with World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF), adding that these three institutions, by working together, could deliver a lot.

Okonjo-Iweala also noted that Nigerias share in world trade was 0.33 per cent which showed a small fraction of what Nigeria could do.

Our share in Africas trade is 19 per cent, which is below our share of Africas Gross Domestic Product (GDP). This means we can turn it around.

I like to look at the optimistic side, when I saw this I knew that there was potential for us to do much. And that is the message I want to convey to the country.

This means that we must step up our action on the economy, we must do better and harder in several ways because of our youth who are waiting for jobs.

Nigeria needs to focus on adding value on transitioning. We are an oil and gas-based economy; and that has sustained us and still will. But the world is moving away from fossil fuel, she said.

Okonjo-Iweala said trade negotiations on agricultural issues were very important for Nigeria adding that the country was active in agriculture and also in the Joint Statement Initiatives, ongoing prolateral negotiations.

According to her, Nigeria is equally involved in E-commerce, services domestic regulations, investment facilitation, micro small and medium enterprises and women in trade.

Okonjo-Iweala, while stating that Nigeria was 103 out of 167 countries in logistics, advised that it was a potential area Nigeria could invest in to improve its logistics.

She said the country can take advantage of trade within the Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).

The WTO D-G also noted that WTO was being faced with many challenges and also needs its own reforms to deliver results.

She added that the organisation has not delivered a multilateral round of negotiations in quite a number of years and has the unique opportunity of delivering the fishery subsidy negotiations.

Okonjo-Iweala explained that supporting and finishing the fishery subsidy negotiations was important for the sustainability of our oceans.

Speaking on COVID-19, Okonjo-Iweala said the WTO must contribute more to the solutions of vaccines therapeutics and diagnostics, especially to the poor countries.

On its dispute settlement system that was paralysed, she said it had to discuss with all members including the U.S. on how to make it work again.

She said this was because the rules-based organisation could not continue to make rules if the dispute settlement system did not work.

Our vision for the WTO is to face these challenges. I hope that Nigeria will take a very active supportive role in helping me to deliver on some of the messages, she added.

Earlier, Adebayo intimated Okonjo-Iweala on some of Ministrys expectations regarding its engagement in ongoing negotiations as it prepared for the WTO Ministerial Conference, scheduled to hold in Geneva in December 2021.

On the ongoing agriculture negotiations, Adebayo said Nigeria was expecting balanced and equitable outcomes that would address the structural causes of insecurity in Net Food Importing Developing Countries (NFIDCs) and Least Developed Countries (LDCs).

On the fisheries subsidies negotiations, the minister noted that the ministry looked forward to outcomes that would result in reduction of overfishing and unsustainable development of the fishing sector of developing countries.

I also wish to draw your attention to our capacity difficulties which continue to undermine our effective participation in the multilateral trading system.

While we acknowledge with thanks the capacity-building efforts of WTO around training officers on international trade governance, the need for more targeted technical assistance from the WTO cannot be overemphasised, he said.

Adebayo appreciated President Muhammadu Buhari for according priority for Nigerias participation in the D-G WTO selection process and authorising the deployment of political, diplomatic and other resources.

He said this was to ensure Okonjo-Iwealas emergence from the three rounds of consultation as the candidate with the largest support of members to lead the WTO and your subsequent confirmation as D-G by WTO.

Similarly, Katagum urged the D-G WTO not to forget the commitment to sustain and enhance the ongoing dialogue and action on women in trade, as a firm believer in the power of trade to lift developing countries, including Nigeria out of poverty.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Okonjo-Iweala, who assumed duty on March 1, is in Nigeria to express appreciation to President Muhammadu Buhari and stimulate economic activities. (NAN)

Source: NAN News

By Bukola Adetoye

The Chairman and Chief Executive of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency ( NDLEA), Brig.-Gen. Buba Marwa (retired) on Tuesday ordered that the agency should completely wipe out drug cartels in Lagos State.

Marwa gave the order when he visited the agencys command in Lagos for an on-the-spot assessment of its facilities.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the NDLEA boss is on a three-day familiarisation and assessment visit to the various commands of the agency in Lagos state including other entities that are of strategic importance to the operations of the agency.

Marwa, who decried the high rate of illicit drug trafficking in Lagos State, said that the state is responsible for 30 per cent of the total drugs abusers in the country.

He said: In the country, an estimate of 15 million people belong to one or more aspects of illicit drug dealing.

This means about 4.5 million people in Lagos State are into illicit drugs, he said.

Marwa said some of the factors responsible for the illicit drug scourge in Lagos State include: the huge population, the presence of two seaports and airports and a huge number of unregistered medicine sellers.

According to the NDLEA chairman, there are about 1.58 million patent medicine stores in the country.

Out of the figure, only 58,000 patent medicine outlets are registered while about 1 million others remain unregistered.

This has really enhanced sales of illicit drugs in the state, Marwa said.

He, however, commended the agencys commandant in Lagos State, Mr Ralph Igwenagu on his efforts at ridding the state of illicit drug trafficking and abuse.

It is only through the combined efforts of all the officers that the agency can win the fight against drugs, Marwa said.

Marwa reassured officers of his commitment to improved conditions of service for enhanced effective service delivery.

I know this command needs a befitting edifice. This will be worked on as soon as possible, he said.

Igwenagu commended the NDLEAs boss for according Lagos States command utmost attention within his short time of assumption of office.

He said that the command would speedily intensify efforts to achieve his directive, to ensure a drug free Lagos State.

Igwenagu said that the command arrested 471 drug offenders in 2020 in spite of the challenges of COVID-19 pandemic.

He said that the arrest comprised 424 males and 47 females and added that the offenders were arrested at various locations in Lagos.

This year, the command seized 11,798 kilogrammes (over 11 tons) of various illicit hard drugs and 722.31 litres of same illicit drugs (liquid) from dealers and joints in the state, Igwenagu said. (NAN)

Source: NAN News

By Stanley Nwanosike

COVID-19

The event was witnessed by the Wife of the Governor, Mrs. Monica Ugwuanyi; Commissioner for Health, Dr Ikechukwu Obi; and Dr George Ugwu, Executive Secretary, Enugu State Primary Health Care Development Agency (ENS-PHCDA), among others.

In his speech, Ugwu said that the Oxford AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine is safe and its efficacy remained highly reliable.

He noted that this event, where key stakeholders of the state took their jabs of the doses of the vaccine, further pointed to the efficacy and the credibility of the vaccine.

The COVID-19 vaccine is safe, secured and given free-of-charge and its efficiency and integrity are highly reliable and guaranteed, he said.

Ugwu applauded Ugwuanyi for supporting all efforts to ensure that the vaccine arrived the state, training for vaccinators and other provisions for the vaccine to residents notwithstanding their locations.

It would be recalled that the first recipient of the jab in the state, Dr Okechukwu Ogbodo, a front-line health worker at Enugu State University Teaching Hospital (ESUTH) Isolation and Treatment Centre, Enugu, had encouraged residents to take the vaccine.

Ogbodo said: I can tell you that almost 30 minutes after taking the vaccine I am hale and hearty; no reaction. So, I want to encourage everybody in Enugu State to come and take this vaccine.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the state received 65,400 doses of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine from the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), Abuja recently.

The state government through ENS-PHCDA had trained and prepared 102 vaccination teams for the first batch of the vaccination, which would cut-across all health workers, selected key/strategic leaders and some other highly vulnerable people. (NAN)

Source: NAN News

By Justina Auta

The Minister of Women Affairs, Mrs Pauline Tallen, on Monday assured Nigerian women of gender parity in the administration of the limited supply of the COVID-19 vaccine in the country.

Tallen gave this assurance while distributing palliatives to 93 women groups in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) as Mothers Day celebration gifts,

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that Nigeria received 3.94 million doses of the COVAX Astrazeneca vaccine on March 2, to be given freely to people willing to take it.

It was part of the 16 million doses to be delivered to Nigeria in the next few weeks from COVAX, a global scheme to procure and distribute inoculations for free, as the world raced to contain the coronavirus pandemic.

The minister said though the exercise was being handled by the COVID-19 Task Force and the Nigeria Center for Disease Control (NCDC) women, particularly the vulnerable would not be left out in the sharing formula.

I am sure the President will ensure that there will be equal distribution between the men and the women, so gender parity will be properly addressed, she said.

On the palliatives, Tallen said that the distribution to various women groups in the FCT was part of activities to commemorate the International Womens Day celebration(IWD).

She, therefore, urged leaders of the groups to share the items judiciously and ensure it got to the target persons, which were the vulnerable, widows and persons with disabilities.

We are handing to these women organisations to be shared among their members and I appeal to them to concentrate more on the vulnerable and the needy, she said.

She revealed that similar gesture would be replicated across all the states with the support of state governors, their wives and other organisations.

A recipient, Mrs Salamatu Aliyu, Chairperson, Nigeria Labour Congress, National Women Commission, commended the efforts of the ministry for its support to women and children.

Aliyu, also enjoined all to continue to pray towards ending all the challenges affecting the peace and progress of the country.

We pray that the almighty God take care of the challenges we have in Nigeria today, because if there are challenges we will not concentrate, she said.

Similarly, Felicia Onibon, President, 100 Women Lobby Group, expressed appreciation to the government for its supports to women.

NAN reports that food items such as rice, pasta, vegetable oil, wrappers and others were given to the group leaders to share for their members. (NAN)

Source: NAN News

By Vivian Emoni.

Clean-Up Nigeria (CUN) an NGO, on Tuesday urged all tiers of government and relevant stakeholders to engage in effective sensitisation for positive result on waste management in the country.

Mr Ene Baba-Owoh, CUNs National Coordinator made the call while speaking with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja.

Baba-Owoh said that the sensitisation would go a long way to address environmental problems as well as improve waste management.

Waste management is a major problem that has affected significant number of people in the country.

I so much believe that something good can be done through sensitisation by government, individuals, groups, relevant stakeholders, to improve the quality of the Nigerian environment.

Waste management is one of my organisations mission, because we have discovered that it is a challenge that affects everybody and is supposed to be everyones problem.

We generate waste everyday so, the way and manner we generate waste determines the way we should tackle it.

We all have roles to play, part of it is to educate people around us, let them know the importance of ways and manners we dispose our waste.

Let them also know the importance of keeping waste bins around to enable them dispose their waste properly.

Also, we should educate people on three ways of disposing their waste; let them know that waste can be reduced, reused, and recycled.

In reducing, reusing and recycling the waste, you select waste such as plastic, papers, metals, nylon, among others.

These waste can be sold to recycling companies who will as well convert the waste to useful materials, thereby turning waste to wealth.

Meanwhile, there are other waste which cannot be used or converted; in this case, you gather them in a landfill, bury them.

In the process of burying them, you are trying to bring them to a usable position, thereby turning them to manure in future.

By doing this, you will discover that waste generates wealth and there is no waste that is a waste, he explained.

Baba-Owoh advised all tiers of government to commercialise waste management and ensure that experts were strongly engaged in the business.

The national coordinator said that the CUN was committed in ensuring that waste management was tackled effectively in the country.

Baba-Owoh said that the organisation decided to create a National Technical Study Group with thesupport of global project partners from Canada, USA, Germany, France and Australia.

He said that the group was conducting a study on waste management in the 36 states including the FCT.

Baba-Owoh said that the organisation had embarked on various environmental activities such as establishment of environmental clubs in schools.

We carry out sensitisation on waste management and other environmental activities across the country.

All these activities are part of our own effort to support the government in ensuring that environmental challenges are tackled in Nigeria, he said. (NAN)

Source: NAN News

By Yunus Yusuf

Following a series of incidents involving Azman Air Boeing 737 aircraft, the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has suspended the operations of all the Boeing 737 aircraft in the fleet of Azman Air Services Limited, with effect from March 15, 2021.

This is contained in a statement signed by Capt. Musa Nuhu, the Director-General of
NCAA, and made available to newsmen in Lagos on Tuesday.

Nuhu said that the suspension was in pursuant to Section 35 (2) of the Civil Aviation Act, 2006 and Part 1.3.3.3 (A) of the Nigeria Civil Aviation Regulations (Nig.CARs) 2015.

He said that the suspension was to enable the authority conduct an audit of the airline to determine the root cause(s) of the incidents, and recommend corrective actions to forestall reccurrence.

According to him, NCAA regrets the inconvenience this action may cause the public, particularly to Azman air passengers, but the need to ensure the safety of air
transport and protect the public interest, cannot be compromised.

The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority will continue to ensure airlines compliance to its regulations in the interest of safety and will view any violation(s) seriously.

Source: NAN News

By Zubairu Idris

Alhaji Usman Bello, District Head of Ketare Kankara in Katsina State, has lauded Federal Government for establishing Funtua free trade zone, saying it would help reduce unemployment and enhance economic activities in the area.

The district head said this when he spoke with newsmen on Tuesday in Katsina.

I just returned from Abuja after visiting Managing Director, Nigeria Export Processing Zones Authority (NEPZA), Prof. Adesoji Adesugba.

During the visit, Adesugba assured that the federal government was committed to using the free trade zone to reduce high unemployment rate in the country.

When the zone is operational, it will leverage on the cotton belt of the North West to commence active production of varieties of fabrics in commercial quantities, Bello said.

The district head said that such industrial hubs would assist in addressing root causes of security challenges bedeviling Nigeria.

He also commended federal government for appointing Adesugba as NEPZA MD.

The people of Katsina are eagerly waiting for the commissioning of the Funtua free trade zone.

The zone will no doubt boost commercial activities, production, employment, and income for our people of the area, he said.

Bello, a former Public Relations Officer of Nigeria Customs Services (NCS) was a course mate of Adesugba, having joined the service in 1982.

He urged the NEPZA MD to use his wealth of experience to reposition the organisation towards attaining its mandate.

Source: NAN News

Idris Olukoya

Some residents of Epe community, Lagos, on Tuesdaydecried the constant violation of traffic light by motorists and commercial motorcycle operators, resulting in fatal accidents.

The residents, who spoke with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Epe, said the situation if not checked, would lead to loss of lives within the coastal town.

They identified Ita-Opo area of the town as the location where the violation usually occurred.

Mr Afeez lawal, a resident, said the violation was due to ignorance of motorists, which was a challenge to other road users.

According to him, a situation where motorists no longer obey traffic rules be it light or sign is gradually making life difficult for other road users.

This is the first time the town is witnessing installation of traffic light, a development that seems strange to vehicle owners.

Some drivers here have not traveled out of Epe, therefore, they may not know the rules and usefulness of traffic light, he added.

Mr Yusuf Atoyegbe, a businessman, appreciated the development but called for more enlightenment and sensitisation on the proper usage of the traffic light by motorists.

He said some of the road users are not used to traffic light; hence, they dont know the importance.

The government or ministry of transportation needs to educate drivers on the importance of traffic light, he said.

Also, Mr Ayogbode seriki, a youth leader in Epe, commended the efforts of Gov. Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos in ensuring infrastructural development across the city.

We really appreciate the governments efforts and we commend his sagacity in giving the people of Epe dividend of democracy.

Epe people appreciate his Excellency and pledge more support throughout his administration, he said.

Mrs Olushola Alade-Raji, a civil servant, urged the state government to deploy traffic wardens to address the incessant abuse of traffic light.

I have observed over time that the working of the traffic light is confusing users. It took the grace of God for multiple accidents to be averted as motorists were not obeying the traffic light.

The confusion experienced is scary, therefore, urgent intervention of appropriate authorities is required to deploy traffic officials with immediate effect, she said.

Alade-Raji said there was need for the quick intervention of traffic officers and Personnel of Lagos State Transport Management Authority (LASTMA) at the traffic light point.

She called on the government to install more traffic lights and caution lights across the town, and that there was need for more training on the proper usage of the technology. (NAN)

Source: NAN News